Chapter Text
Boruto frowned towards the small window of the hut, to where his big bro Konohamaru sat, looking out into the grey drizzle, seemingly lost in thought and looking less than energetic. Autumn was here and with it, the colder temperatures and rain. Lots and lots of rain. Despite never seeing his big bro affected by it before, it seemed this year Konohamaru had taken a dislike to the more rugged weather.
Or, rather, perhaps his mood simply matched the dreary weather? Hm... Na, it wasn’t the weather that was the source of Konohamaru Nii-chan’s sullen mood. Boruto was pretty sure of that. It was something else entirely.
A girl.
A noble girl to be more precise. One that Konohamaru had… fallen in love with? Remon-san had been great, and Boruto felt sorry for them both for the outcome.
But this was getting ridiculous.
He turned to his other two teammates, silently signalling that he wanted to talk and that they needed to do so in private. They agreed and Boruto told Konohamaru that they were going to stretch their legs a bit. To see if they could have a chat with the villagers. He received a distracted hum in response, and then a short nod in agreeance before Konohamaru returned his attention to the raindrops slowly running down the glass and pooling on the sill.
Boruto swore he heard a sigh before he closed the door behind him.
Something needed to be done.
Now.
As soon as they got out of hearing distance, he stopped.
“Okay. We need to do something.”
“...About what?” Sarada asked with narrowed eyes. “What kind of mischief are you planning now, Boruto?”
“About Nii-chan!” Boruto answered, flailing his arms in the air dramatically. “This can’t go on forever!”
Sarada wrinkled her nose and squinted, “I have a feeling I will not like this. But…” She sighed. “I think I know what this is about. And I...kinda agree.”
Mitsuki looked at them both in confusion but remained quiet.
Boruto nodded energetically. “Yeah! SO!!! We have to do something!” He looked back at the door, behind which he knew Konohamaru would still remain perfectly still, and look soooo glum. “I really liked Remon-san. And it sucks, what happened. But we have to cheer Nii-chan up somehow! And I was thinking. He did say that it wasn’t ‘his time’ or something like that. So what, like, if we made another ‘time’ happen? Like. Now!?”
Sarada looked at him in disbelief. “Are you seriously saying what I think you are saying? Are you planning on...making Konohamaru-sensei...date?” The way she said it made it sound like it’s such an impossible task. But not for Boruto.
“Yeah!” Boruto beamed.
“How do you ‘date’?” Mitsuki asked innocently, looking back and forth between the two.
They both turned to Mitsuki and their chins dropped. Wow. How does one even begin to... Boruto threw his hands in the air. “Uh, this is more your area, Sarada. You and ChouChou are way better at explaining dating stuff.”
Sarada sighed and pushed her glasses up a little on the bridge of her nose and took on ‘that’ look. The teacher look she often got when she thought her teammates were being slow again. She cleared her throat and turned to Mitsuki. “When you like someone or think that you might like someone if you get to know them better, you go on dates. The date itself could involve all sorts of different activities, all aimed at learning to know the other better. Okay?”
Mitsuki's eyes widened a little bit and he nodded. “Like training?”
Thinking of all the physical touching that happens during training sessions and the amount of time spent together, Boruto exclaimed, “Yes!”
“That’s lame,” Sarada huffed. “If you’re going to set up Konohamaru-sensei on a date, do it properly. Other than that, who do you think is willing to go on a date with him?”
Mitsuki was back to square one, looking confused as he tried to keep up with the discussion.
Boruto’s eyes widened and his shoulders dropped. He hadn’t thought that far yet… “Uh…”
“Sukia-san?” Sarada supplied. “Is she single?”
“I’m not sure, but we could put her on the list,” Boruto mused.
“How about my brother, Log?” Mitsuki smiled, feeling excited to contribute. “He’s single!”
Sarada’s eye twitched. “Eh, way to think outside the box, Mitsuki, we can add him to the list too, but…um, maybe we should start with the gender he has shown interest in first?”
Mitsuki’s brows furrowed in confusion and Boruto facepalmed. “Girls, Mitsuki. Sarada’s suggesting that we should focus on possible girl partners, first. Since the last one, he was interested in was a girl. Okay?”
“Ah. Okay. Yes, if that is what you think is the best, Boruto.” Mitsuki nodded seriously before focusing his gaze on a point far away in the distance and adding in a lower voice, mostly to himself. “I still think they would make a nice couple though...”
“Okay then. Hm. What other women his age is there?…” Boruto mused. “Moegi—neechan of course, but…I think they aren’t really interested in each other. I mean…they’ve known each other since like, always.”
Sarada scratched her head, momentarily stumped by the stupendous task of finding Konohamaru-sensei a girlfriend. It seemed impossible. Then another teacher popped into her mind. “What about Hanabi-sensei? She would be perfect.”
“EEEEEHHHH??? MY AUNT!?!”
“Oh, yes. She is single too, isn’t she? And she's around his age. She’s a girl,” Mitsuki reasoned. “She does sound perfect.”
“EEH?? With that reasoning, Moegi's the same!” Boruto protested wildly. “You can’t put Big Bro and Big Sis together, that’s just weird!”
Sarada rolled her eyes. “Just because you are family to them, doesn’t mean they are…that's a weak argument.”
Boruto groaned. Sarada’s words made sense, but… still. “Fine. But we ask her last! Okay?”
Sarada agreed to that. Okay, so they had a couple of possible suspects (victims). But...how to get them to agree? And him too for that matter. She voiced her concerns and Boruto's shoulders dropped for a moment before his grin returned, with an evil glint in his eyes to boot.
"Bribing!"
Sarada paled. "B—bribing??? You're going to bribe him into going on some sort of a blind date? You're crazier than I thought!"
Mitsuki looked at them both, humming thoughtfully. "Like with money? Or their lives?"
Sweat broke out on Sarada and Boruto's forehead and they swallowed nervously. They both knew Mitsuki doesn't mess around, but damn.
Boruto gathered himself first. "Let's focus on solutions that involve a slightly lower degree of mortality first, okay?"
Sarada poked her lips out, brows creasing together in the process. “How would you even bribe him? With money?” She snorted. “You don’t even have enough money to buy the premium pack of Shinobi Cards!”
That comment stung Boruto, but before he could retort, she held her hand up at his face, a wide smile on her face. “Ah! What about blackmail? Surely you have some kind of dirt on Konohamaru-sensei, Boruto.”
Blackmail? He tossed the idea in his head for a while, and dug around the corners of his mind for an instance he could use. Once he thought of one, a sly grin cracked on his face.
Mitsuki smiled, knowing exactly what that look meant. “I’m taking it that you have something we can use, Boruto?”
“Heh, heh!” He puffed his chest out and rubbed his nose. “Sure do. Let’s just say he'll be doing anything I want!”
Sarada crossed her arms across her chest. “Well, let’s hear it,” she demanded.
Flashback
“Hokage-sama?” Konahamaru peeked into the office, only to find it empty. Holding fast on the mission scroll he had to deliver to Naruto. He frowned and stepped in. Naruto was nowhere in sight, and the order was to make sure he handed it to him personally.
Well, might as well wait for him. The steaming cup of ramen on the desk was evidence enough that he had just stepped out. Konohamaru placed the scroll on the desk and rounded it, looking out the windows and sighing. Turning around and looking at the door, he briefly mused that this was probably how it felt like to be on the receiving end of reports instead of the giving end.
Soon! He told himself. Soon, he would have his turn to be Hokage. His gaze trailed down to the chair, and he saw it hanging there.
The Hokage cape.
He really shouldn’t… Konohamaru chided himself for even considering it. Though, it had been such a long time since he tried the hat on, too... But no, he shouldn’t! The jounin stepped back and looked away, trying to stop himself from doing so, but failed. The temptation was too big. He picked up the cape and with one dramatic swoop, draped it over his shoulders and clasped the lock. A light blush tinted his cheeks, in bliss to feel the soft fabric as he caressed it. Sparkles practically floated in the air around him. He did a little spin, making the edges of the cape float around. It felt wonderful, so he did again, this time shifting to the other foot—hitting the desk.
Konohamaru stumbled and tried to steady the desk but the hot cup of ramen shook, threatening to spill. His eyes went wide, choking on a scream as he watched the cup in slow motion spill on the edge of the cape.
“Shit!” All the blood on his face drained as he stared at the ramen-stained cape. With shaky hands, he unclasped the lock to remove it. He had to do something before Naruto saw this!
“Nii-chan?”
Oh. Fuck.
Slowly, he turned to face the person at the door, blue eyes blown wide and lips slightly apart.
“Nii-chan,” Boruto gasped and looked at the ramen spilled on the cape. From shock, his face morphed into a smirk. “Oh, dad is gonna be maaaaaaad,” he sang-songed the last syllable as a positively malicious grin spread across Boruto's face.
“D—d—don’t say anything! It was an accident!” Konohamaru’s face turned red, and he thought he momentarily saw his life flash before his eyes, imagining Naruto’s face when he saw the ruined cape. “It’s nothing, okay? I’ll have it cleaned right now.”
“But he’ll notice it’s goooone,” Boruto chuckled. “And I’m pretty sure he’ll be back here soon, ya know?”
He was right. Naruto would definitely notice. Konohamaru ground his teeth together. “Help me keep him out of here until I have it cleaned.”
“Oh?” Boruto’s eyebrows rose. “You need my help, Nii-chan?” The laugh escaping his lips was so evil that Konohamaru swore he could see little devil horns sprout on the top of Boruto’s head.
The jounin’s shoulders shook. He hated to admit it, but he really did need Boruto's help.
“It’ll cost ya,” Boruto snickered. “Later on.”
“Fine!” Konohamaru blurted as he heard footsteps approaching. He shoved the cape into his messenger bag and opened the window, a foot on the window sill, ready to flee the crime scene. “Make sure no one comes in here, Boruto.”
The little brat grinned. “I gotchu, Nii-chan.”
...
Sarada pouted. “You really expect me to believe this happened?”
Mitsuki, on the other hand, smiled happily. “That sounds interesting, Boruto.”
“Yeah, well, it happened and now he owes me!” Boruto shrugged.
“And what, Hokage-sama didn’t even notice it was gone?” Sarada challenged.
“Of course he did,” Boruto snorted. “Blamed me for the spilled ramen, too. But he never knew it was Nii-chan, okay? Anyway, that isn’t the point!” He threw his hands in the air, exasperated. They were supposed to be planning a date for their sensei, not debating if he really was stupid enough to do something like that and ask for Boruto’s help not to get caught. “Now, I have something to blackmail him with, and Auntie Hanabi can’t say no to Hima, so I’ll ask Hima to help me get her to say yes. You two handle asking the other two, okay?”
“Right,” Mitsuki nodded. “I’ll see Suika-san when we get back from the mission.”
Sarada pushed her glasses back up the bridge of her nose, the glare blocking her eyes. “Hn. I’ll take Moegi-sensei then.”
Boruto grinned. Perfect. Everything was falling into place.
Operation 'Get Konohamaru-sensei a Date' was now in action!
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As soon as they got home after the mission, they all set to work on their own unofficial, self-appointed tasks for their equally unofficial, self-appointed mission.
Mitsuki asked Suika about her dating life, and was, predictably, shot down pretty quickly.
“Um, why would you want to know that, Mitsuki-kun?” the secretary asked surprised.
Mitsuki shrugged. “Well. You see. I have a date for you if you are interested?”
“Eh? That is very nice of you, but I have a partner.”
Mitsuki blinked. “Oh. Well, then it was nothing. I wish you a good day, Suika-san.”
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Sarada tried another tactic. Konohamaru-sensei and Moegi-sensei were old friends. Everybody knew that. But Sarada needed to find out how she really felt about him for this to work.
She might have… spied on her for a bit, just a little. And caught her on the way home from the supermarket. She just needed to catch her alone, for some girl talk. Waving her hand in the air and pretending she only just noticed her. Sarada ran up to meet her. “Hi, Moegi-sensei!” She smiled brightly to lure her into a sense of familiarity and security.
“Oh, hi, Sarada-chan!” Moegi smiled and hitched one of her bags up in her hand to get a better grip.
“That looks heavy. Let me help you?”
Moegi looked at her with surprise. At first, it looked like she was going to deny the help, but after a moment she shrugged. “Um. Okay, why not. Thank you! I appreciate it!”
They walked side by side for a few minutes, exchanging small talk about missions and recent happenings. Sarada chewed on her lip. Trying to think of a way to bring up the subject without causing suspicion was harder than she had thought...
“Erhm, Moegi-sensei. I’ve been thinking about something lately. I keep thinking about um… boys.”
Moegi’s eyes widened. She had assumed the girl was after something, but this she hadn’t expected.
“Um… yes? What about them?”
“Do you… umm… think about boys, too?” This was a lot harder than Sarada thought it would be, and she didn’t even have to fake feeling shy or awkward because that was exactly how she felt.
“Uhh… yes, I suppose I do—I mean, what about them?”
“Like, what do you like about them?” Sarada really wasn’t sure at this point how this conversation was going, but maybe Moegi-sensei could help if her answers matched.
“What do I like about them?” She repeated and thought for a moment. Both of her closest friends were boys, and sometimes she honestly had to rethink why she was friends with them in the first place. “I don’t know, it depends on who it is. I mean, Udon is reliable, even if he used to get into a lot of trouble sometimes.”
Perfect. There was her opening. “And Konohamaru-sensei?” Her eyes were wide and expectant.
Moegi had to think a little more. “He was the biggest troublemaker. He’s a dork, too.”
Dork. Was that a bad thing? “Do you like… dorks?”
“Hell no. I like cool and handsome,” she sighed, wondering when she might find her perfect match.
Ouch. Her Sensei was nice but he was… none of those. Quick, think of other redeeming qualities that Konohamaru-sensei has! Sarada struggled coming up with something on the spot, and before she could think of anything, they were already in front of Moegi’s apartment.
“Well, this is me,” she smiled and took the bag from Sarada’s arms. “Thanks for the help, Sarada.”
Sarada sighed and let her arms fall to her side. Damn it. That was a complete bust. She hoped the others had more luck…
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When Boruto heard that the other two failed in their endeavours, he groaned. That meant they only had one more on their list…
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Himawari pursed her lips. This was not going to be easy, but she knew she could get Hanabi—neechan to agree to her proposal. No one said no to Himawari.
Idly swinging her feet around, perched up on the kitchen bench and watching Hanabi cook, Himawari planned her attack. She knew exactly what angle she would take.
The guilt trip one.
"Hanabi—neechan Did you know that Ako-chan in my class just got a baby cousin?" She put her hands together, eyes glittering in delight. "Ako-chan showed us photos today. He’s soooooo cute!"
"Oh, that sounds wonderful," Hanabi answered, smiling brightly as she moved the hot pot from the stove and, after a taste test, added more salt to the sauce.
"It really was!" Himawari nodded enthusiastically. "You know…I was wondering if I would ever get a baby cousin?"
A 'clonk' loud enough for Himawari's ears to hurt echoed through the kitchen when the pot connected with the floor.
Hanabi stared at the pot and the mess splattered all over the kitchen for a moment, still trying to register what her niece had asked. Her cheeks burned and a hand went up to cover her mouth.
"W—why would you wonder that, Himawari?" She stuttered and took a deep breath before fetching a towel.
Himawari jumped down from the bench to help her wipe up the mess but soon stopped. She looked up at her aunt, tilted her head to the side, taking on a serious look. "I mean it, Nee-chan. I see mum and dad, and how happy they are, and I would love to see you happy with someone too!" she explained before her face brightened into a sunshine smile of innocence. "And I would absolutely looooove to have a baby cousin! I would be your best babysitter, promise!"
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When training was finished for the day and Ni-chan sent the others home, Boruto lingered. He gave them a discreet ‘thumbs up’ and a confident grin as they left. He was going to sort this out!
The lingering soon caught Konohamaru’s suspicion. Whenever Boruto lingered, something was usually up. He sighed and crossed his arms. “Well? What is it?”
Boruto gulped. Now that he thought about it, he should probably have put more thought into how he was supposed to approach the subject… Oh, well. Too late. He preferred winging it anyhow.
He plonked himself down on the ground and invited Konohamaru to do the same. Nii-chan raised a questioning eyebrow, but humoured him and followed suit.
Not exactly sure how he should approach the subject, Boruto plucked a grass straw and twirled it between his fingers. Eh. Time to bite the bullet. “Um… You know. I really liked Remon-san too, she was really nice.”
Konohamaru’s eyes widened to the size of saucers. His whole body tensed for a second before his gaze dropped to the ground and his shoulders slumped. “Haven’t seen her for months, why are you bringing her up n—” He stopped himself mid-sentence, looking back up at Boruto in horror. “You didn’t go to see her, right? She has enough on her plate without us butting into her life…”
Boruto’s arms came up to flail in the air, arrrg no-no-no. This didn’t go how he imagined it at all. “Ah, no! Of course, I didn’t!” He scratched the back of his head. Trying to work out a way to bring up the subject. “I just meant…” He sighed. “You’ve just been pretty down lately and I—”
"What, no. I’m fine! Don’t worry about me!” Konohamaru protested, holding his hands up in the air and shaking his head to emphasise his point.
Boruto looked at him sceptically. Konohamaru wasn’t fooling anyone. But this didn’t lead anywhere. “Listen, Nii-chan, she was really nice an’ all. But, like. That was months ago! I know you said it wasn’t your time or something like that. But guess what! Your favourite Lil Bro got you covered!” He grinned and proudly pointed both his thumbs at his own chest. “I got you a date!”
As soon as he said it and saw Nii-chan looking at him in shock, he realised how it must sound, and hurried to clarify. “Eh, not with Remon-san! I got you a new date!”
Konohamaru sputtered, “Th—that doesn’t make it better. What the heck did you do, Boruto?!”
Boruto backpedalled. Nii-chan didn’t look like he appreciated the gesture at all. And they had gone through so much trouble to organise this! Tsk, it was ungrateful, really.
“Ah, Come on! Hear me out!” Boruto protested, waving his hands protectively in the air in front of him. “It is just a date with a really nice woman!”
Konohamaru didn’t seem the least bit convinced. He pursed his lips and squinted at Boruto. “Who?”
From his reactions to the whole dating thing Boruto had proposed, he assumed Nii-chan would refuse before even considering it, so he had to get him on board without actually getting him on board. Sort of. “Nu-uh. It’s a blind date! A fun mystery!”
From the highly unimpressed look Konohamaru gave him, Boruto gathered he didn’t think so… Okay then. Plan B!
“If you don’t, I’m telling dad about the cape thing!”
“O—oi! You said you would keep that a secret!” Konohamaru paled.
“No way! I said it would cost you, later on. Do you really want to pay up?”
Boruto frowned. Why was Nii-chan being so difficult? They went through so much just to get him a date, ya know!
Konohamaru swallowed. He was being blackmailed?! The little shit really had zero scruples. Weighing the two, he decided to go with the (hopefully) lesser evil. He really didn’t have a choice…
“Fine.”
Boruto’s face lit up. “Great! Okay! So. All I want you to do is to come to the Coffee, Nin, and Tea Leaf Cafe tomorrow at half-past three!”
“...Okay.” There was really nothing else he could say. The place, time, and even the person he was going to date was already set. He could only hope that whoever Boruto got to agree to go on a date with him wouldn’t feel weird or awkward about it.
“Yes!” Boruto pumped his fist in the air. “This is gonna be great, Nii-chan.” He was all grins, and how could Konohamaru be upset with his lil bro looking so happy?
A date. Set up by his adolescent brother with a talent for butting into things he had no business in. How mortifying was that.
A lot.
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Three heads popped out of the nearby bushes, all wide and expectant. It was the best view the three could get, close enough to the table to see the two adults sitting across each other, but too far to hear most of their conversation.
“This sucks. I can’t hear a thing!” Boruto whined.
He was instantly shushed by Sarada, who turned her ear towards their sensei. “We won’t hear anything if you keep whining like that!”
Their third member, on the other hand, was quiet and unblinking, observing every little hand gesture and curve of their lips. It was rather confusing to decipher what was going on. The straightness of Konohamaru-sensei’s posture and the way Hanabi-sensei would tuck her hair behind her ear every so often did not seem to match. Sensei was smiling and laughing, though. But it seemed different compared to how he would laugh when he poked
fun at Boruto or praised them for doing well on a mission.
He did actually know what they were talking about, his enhanced hearing ensuring that, but he still didn't understand it.
First, they had shared some rather colourful sentiments towards Boruto and Himawari, and that had been expected. Then they had complained about them some more before Hanabi had ordered tea, before they suddenly leaned in and whispered something he could not pick up...
Nope. Didn't make sense. Not one bit.
…
Konohamaru's stomach filled with knots as the sign above the cafe came into view. Still arguing with himself of what would be the lesser evil option, he took a seat, resisting the itch in his fingers to fiddle with something. Bailing would be a valid option, but that also meant owning up to that unfortunate afternoon in the Hokage office... Other than that, his only other option really was to bite the bullet and apologise to whoever his Genin had conned into agreeing to this as soon as they entered.
In an effort to calm down and put focus away from the awkwardness of the whole scenario, he looked out the window, mentally going through his team's next training session set up.
He was going to make it extra hellish for them…Perhaps he could ask Hanabi for ideas, she was far more cruel in running training drills. Pretty infamous when it came to it, to be honest.
She could help him set up something particularly brutal for his team...Uh? Konohamaru's chin dropped when the bell at the entrance rang, announcing another guest entering, and Konohamaru's gaze was drawn to the front door where said Hyuuga appeared. Speak(think?)of the devil and there she was, looking less than thrilled and scanning the place in search for something or someone. What was she doing—
Hell no. They didn't— They hadn't—
She noticed him and her eyes widened as their gazes met. Yupp. It was definitely her. They had somehow conned/bribed/blackmailed? Hanabi Hyuuga into going on a date with him.
Oh, he was going to kill the little brats.
She took a deep breath, and he scrambled to stand when she after a moment's stillness approached him. "Ha—hanabi, I didn't real—I'm so sorry—They didn't—"
He was rambling. Uncontrollably. Okay, deep breaths. Focus. Ignore the awkwardness. He felt warm with embarrassment and nerves and prayed it was not showing.
Hanabi's eyes were still wide with surprise and her jaw which had dropped when she first saw him still hung slightly ajar, but when he started rambling, an amused twinkle appeared in her eyes and her lips quirked upward. "Konohamaru-senpai?" She interrupted. "Well, this is unexpected." Her smirk widened, and Konohamaru wanted to sink through the floor. "If you wanted a date, you should have just asked instead of resorting to getting my niece to guilt-trip me…"
"Wha—No I had no idea! I mean. Uh? Guilt trip? What did they—Uh, wait, what? If I wanted... What do you—?"
The heiress giggled at Konohamaru’s stuttering. “I was just teasing, Konohamaru-senpai. Himawari tricked me into coming, and I was dreading it. But seeing it’s you, I feel relieved.”
His shoulders sunk in relief. She was not pissed off or anything. Himawari had guilt-tripped her? Boruto actually dragged his little sister into this madness? “Yeah, same.” His hand moved up to scratch at the back of his neck and he gave her a bashful grin before offering her a seat. “I had no idea either… But for me, it was Boruto who was behind it…”
She nodded, understanding the situation. The light in her eyes seemed to brighten, finding the whole situation a lot more amusing than she previously had. “I’m not surprised it was Boruto.” Her gaze shifted to the side, by the bushes. “But I have a feeling your whole team has a hand in it, too.”
Konohamaru blinked. Sarada and Mitsuki? Boruto had been the one forcing him to come. Why would the other two be involved? “Eh, what makes you say that?”
A smile formed on her lips and she tipped her head to the side by the smallest bit. “I believe we’re being watched.”
Konohamaru’s jaw dropped in realisation and his gaze followed her direction. Okay, this doubled his embarrassment. He had been so occupied with dreading this whole thing and making up apologies to whoever would turn up that he hadn’t noticed them.
“What the—” He glared towards the bushes with murderous intent in his eyes and was just about to storm over to give them a piece of his mind when Hanabi stopped him.
“Wait.” Hanabi placed her hand over his on the table, leaning forward and keeping her voice low. “I don’t think they meant any harm, you know? We can confront them about it later, but we’re already here. We might as well have fun, right?” Her smile widened, and for a moment, Konohamaru thought that Boruto's typical, 'I know you can’t deny me anything' grin that got him out of so much trouble might have originated from the Hyuga side. It was, if nothing else, a very convincing smile, and Konohamaru relaxed back into his seat, nodding slowly. As he sat down, he couldn’t help being extremely aware of the fact that she still hadn’t let go of his hand and he desperately tried to will himself to focus on something else. Anything else.
“So, erhm. You said Himawari convinced you to come. What did she say?” He asked as he pulled back.
“I—She—umm…” Hanabi looked away, dread marring her pretty features. “Let’s not talk about it.”
Seeing how uncomfortable the subject made Hanabi, he suspected something similar to the reason he was there and dropped it quickly. Hopefully, she wouldn't ask about his either… Clearing his throat again, he racked his brain for something else to talk about when she lifted her hand to twirl a lock around her little finger. She…had changed her hairstyle a bit: let her hair out and with a small clip at the temple supporting one side of her fringe. Also, now that he thought about it, she had changed her outfit too. She wore a pale pink top—a lot more...fitted than her usual get up—that matched her eyes almost perfectly, and flare pants in a light material.
"You, um… you look really nice. I, eh. I apologise that it was just um...me."
Her brows lifted at that, and her hand dropped back on the table. She leaned forward. “Thank you! And don’t be sorry, I’m actually happy it was you and not some random person.”
When she grinned like that, it was hard for Konohamaru to tell if she was just teasing or being sincere.
“Let’s order something. What would you like?” Hanabi asked and raised her hand, and when the waiter came over, she asked for a menu and for some tea to be served. “Have you eaten here before? The Dango is pretty good.”
Glancing towards the bushes, Konohamaru mentally groaned at the idea of letting his team have a front seat to their date, and shook his head. "Well, no. But how about we go somewhere else instead? Somewhere without an audience," he said, giving a small nod towards the bushes.
A waiter came over and placed some teacups on the table, pouring hot tea before setting the teapot down.
Hanabi chuckled lightly and nodded. “That sounds better than Dango.”
"Okay," he signalled with his finger for her to come closer, and whispered when she leaned in. "Sorry, but pretty sure Mitsuki can hear us from this distance. If we flicker out, it should take them a little while to pick up the trail—”
She leaned in over the table, shifting her head for her ear to come closer to his lips. As her arm slid on the table, the back of her hand knocked the teacup over, sending the contents past the table and spilling over down to Konohamaru’s pants.
Even her quick reflexes weren’t fast enough to save the liquid from spilling. “Oh, I’m so sorry!”
Jumping up from his seat as the hot tea splashed over his thighs, he tugged at the fabric to lift it off his skin and let out a surprised yelp and a curse.
Just when Konohamaru thought this blind date might have been a blessing in disguise too.
Things really weren’t looking well.
“Are you alright?” Hanabi asked with her hands on her mouth. “I’m so sorry!”
“Eh, fine,” he gulped, trying to hide how much it actually stung and silently grateful that the tea had not spilled a few inches north and to the middle...
Hanabi looked at him with wide eyes for a few moments, still deeply apologetic. Before speaking, she swallowed. “Maybe you should get changed…”
A hand moving up to scratch the back of his neck, eyes still glued on his ruined pants, he let out an embarrassed laugh. “Yeah, probably.” Lifting his gaze to meet hers, he shrugged helplessly and laughed again. “You know, if we just duck back to my place I can get changed and we can, uh… try again?”
Hanabi gave him a small smile and nodded. “That sounds good. I’m really sorry again.” She followed him out.
Conveniently, just as the trio of spying genin snuck out of the bushes and hid behind a post, a crowd of people passed by, obscuring their view of the leaving couple. Even when they hurried, as soon as the crowd had dissipated, the two Jounin were nowhere in sight.
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Hanabi carefully placed two teacups and a teapot on a tray and picked it up, calling out to Konohamaru as she walked. “I’ll be out on the porch. Just take your time.” Her soft footsteps padded around the empty halls, the wood creaking under her feet.
The weather was nice. Big white fluffy clouds hung overhead and a cool breeze ruffled her hair as she stepped outside. She looked up, a content smile on her face. This was much better than being in a packed cafe. Quiet, and no pesky nephews to spy on their date.
Quickly getting changed, taking a moment to inspect the damage, and again thanking whatever merciful deity it had been who had decided to spare him from further agony and humiliation, he joined her on the porch. He settled himself next to her and sighed, happy to be out of his soiled pants and away from the crowd. Hanabi handed him a teacup, which he gratefully accepted.
The two fell into an easy conversation ranging from work to their childhood days and the mutual people they associate with. As the conversation flowed, it was inevitable to talk about Boruto and Konohamaru’s team, but they still skirted around the real reasons why the two were chosen for this blind date. After a while, the reason no longer mattered. It really wasn’t a date as much as a catch up between old friends anyhow.
They were actually… having fun and enjoying each other’s company. Talking and laughing until the sky turned shades of pink and orange and the sun finally set on the horizon.
Turning her gaze to the darkened sky and then to her watch, she sighed. “I hate to cut it short, but I really have to get going. I need to cook dinner for dad.” She stretched her arms before standing and then straightened her clothes.
Konohamaru looked at the time as well and blinked. Having not kept track of time during the afternoon, he had not realised how late it actually was. Actually, now that he thought about it, earlier on he had been so occupied with agonising over the blind date, and then, later, chatting with Hanabi, that Remon-san had not even crossed his mind the whole day.
He smiled. “I know this was not what you had expected, or been promised, but...I had a great time. Thanks for today.”
“I had a great time as well, next time we can have dinner, too.” Hanabi grinned.
It took a moment, but he realised that he stared at her, jaw dropped and ogling like an idiot. Shutting his mouth, he blinked. That sounded an awful lot like a... date. With Hanabi Hyuuga? An actual, real date with his funny, kind, smart, stunningly beautiful colleague? Hell yeah. Sign him up! “Eh, yeah! Sounds great.”
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Throwing one arm around his shoulder and handing him a beer with the other, Moegi plonked down on the seat next to Konohamaru, smirking mischievously. “Okay. Spill it!”
Udon, on his other side, nodded towards her and accepted another beer. “Yes. Now, first. Who did your team end up setting you up with? And secondly, How was it?”
Thinking of the date, and how he should best describe it, he chuckled into his beer. “The little brats had for some unknown reason decided to set me up with Hanabi Hyuuga,” he started, ignoring the shocked expressions on his friends’ faces. “Date was a disaster. She burned me. Literally.” Nodding towards his lap, he quickly continued. Knowing too well they had a stream of questions ready to bombard him with as soon as he gave them the slightest chance, he was determined not to let them have a word in just yet, not until he was finished. “Had to get home so I could get changed. We ended up having tea on the porch for the rest of the afternoon.” He looked up at both of them and grinned.
“Got a second date too.”
This last bit made his friends gape, hands grabbing and shaking him from side to side to get even more information. No matter how much they pried and tried to twist his story around and embarrass him further, it didn’t matter because as Konohamaru said, he got a second date. And this time, she asked him out, without the help of his three little shits.
The Effing End :D