Warnings: Not edited- expect errors. Also I can't really clarify when this occurs in the AtO time-line.
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Kotetsu climbed the apartment building's stairs with an overwhelming sense of unease. Did something happen? He then shook his head. They're probably not even here. I'm just overreacting. But Izumo was supposed to be back with Harii an hour ago.
He knocked loudly.
“The door's open!”
Harii's home? Kotetsu frowned. So Izumo didn't pick him up! Did he get called away or something?
Kotetsu opened the door and stared. Izumo was sprawled across the couch looking a bit green. “Izumo, what happened to you? And why are there so many bowls everywhere?”
Izumo gave him a pained look and shuffled deeper in to the couch.
“Kotetsu, come here! I want you to try this!”
Kotetsu walked in to the kitchen and frowned. “Is that ramen? Since when did you make ramen, Harii?"
"Since today morning!" Harii replied as he rolled out some dough meticulously and cut up long strings of noodles. Kotetsu watched him in awe. He's cutting them like a professional. No hesitation and such speed. And he only started making it today morning?
Kotetsu sat at the dining table and cleared his throat hesitatingly. "So why are you making so much ramen?"
Harii held up his hand motioning for him to wait for a few moments as he boiled the noodles carefully making sure to devote his complete attention to the task at hand. Kotetsu watched it with a slight sense of wariness. He looks way too serious.
"Here, try this for me, would you?" Harri said and put a steaming bowl of ramen on the table in front of him. Kotetsu inhaled the scent wafting up from the bowl and grinned. He split the chopsticks apart and grabbed some noodles.
As he lifted his chopsticks to his mouth, he noticed Harii staring at him. Kotetsu stared at his chopsticks suspiciously. "Is something wrong?"
Harii shook his head. "Just wanted to see an honest opinion of the first taste."
"Oh ok." Kotetsu shrugged and shoved the noodles in his mouth. He chewed once.
Twice.
And spit it out in disgust.
"Again?" Harii stared at the bowl in despair.
Kotetsu scrubbed at his tongue viciously as he watched Harii. "What do you mean again?"
"I've been trying since morning to make ramen from scratch that actually tastes good. I don't know what I'm doing wrong. It smells and looks fine, but as soon as you taste it..." Harii sat on the chair, slouched forward and slammed his head on the dining table.
Kotetsu frowned and stared at the bowl of ramen. "So just don't make ramen."
Harii looked up and glared at him. "I can't just give up."
"Why not? You cook other things just fine..." Kotetsu adjusted the bandages that ran across his nose. "Some of that is almost restaurant quality."
"But..." Harii sighed and stared at the bowl.
Kotetsu pushed the bowl away. "You should just stick to what you know."
"Maybe I just need more practice. I mean I just started today." Harii said.
"Don't you usually manage to make eatable food on the first try? Like that time you made that complicated soup from that recipe book?" Kotetsu tapped his fingers against the table top. "Hmm, that was good soup. You should make that instead of ramen. You've probably gotten better with that recipe now."
Harii groaned and slammed his head on to the table again. "Then why can't I make ramen? I followed the stupid instructions and everything..."
"Why is ramen so important anyway?"
Harii shrugged and glared at the bowl. "I guess I should throw that. You should check on Izumo. He said he was fine but he hasn't moved in a while..."
Kotetsu nodded and walked in to the living room. "Izumo? You all right?"
Izumo looked up. "Please tell me he's done."
"Yeah I guess. How many times did you..." Kotetsu said, keeping his voice low.
"Too many. I thought they needed more than one bite to get to the real taste."
"Why didn't you just tell him to stop?" Kotetsu wondered absently.
"He looked so earnest. I didn't want to..."
"Idiot." Kotetsu shook his head. "Do you need some stomach medicine?"
"I'll just sleep it off."
"Fine. See if I ever offer my help to you again."
"As if I'd want your help, moron." Izumo pushed himself to a seating position and promptly winced clutching his stomach. "I think I'll just stay here for a while."
"I wonder why he's so serious about making ramen. You can get those instant ramen packets." Kotetsu absently picked up a scrap of paper lying by the couch. Hmm, Harii draws?
Izumo said, his voice muffled by the couch. "Don't you know a special person of Harii's who loves ramen?"
"Special person? Harii has a girlfriend? When did this happen and why didn't you tell me this earlier?" Kotetsu leaned forward and smacked the back of Izumo's head.
"You moron!" Izumo glared at him. "Who said anything about a girlfriend?"
"So a boyfriend?" Kotetsu rubbed the bandage across his nose. "How surprising. Why didn’t he tell us?"
Izumo narrowed his eyes and shook his head. "Sometimes I really wonder if I should cut off your syrup supply. Obviously it's making you twice as stupid." He sighed loudly. "Kotetsu, which orange wearing person in Konoha loves ramen?"
Kotetsu oh-ed. "Naruto?"
"Yeah! How'd you even end up thinking of..."
"That's because you emphasised special someone. What am I supposed to think?" Kotetsu waved his hand in irritation.
"You’re an idiot! Were you planning on setting Harii up with someone or something?"
"No! Of course not! Who do I look like to you? Idiot-Isshin?"
"Errr..."
Kotetsu looked to the side to find Harii holding a cup and staring at them with an exasperated look. "Kotetsu, you shouldn't stress an invalid person."
"Who are you calling invalid!" Izumo groaned, fell back to the couch and muttered, “And whose fault do you think this is, anyway?”
Harii just shrugged and walked in to his plant room. I can’t believe he made that entire room a place for his plants. But before Kotetsu could say anything, Harii returned.
"Here you go. Drink that up." Harii pushed a cup of something in to Izumo's hands. Kotetsu gagged at the smell and Izumo's face took on a green-ish tinge.
"Are you trying to kill me, Harii?"
Harii gave Izumo an amused smirk. "I wonder if this is some common ninja weakness. Everyone is always wary of me giving them medicines just from the smell itself."
Kotetsu frowned. When did he give a ninja medicine? And who...
"Oh, go on." Harry pushed the cup insistently. “If you drink that, we’ll be able to go out to eat already.’
Izumo sniffed the concoction once again and groaned.
“And I’ll pay for anything you want to eat, even if it’s expensive,” Harry said. “Like maybe some food from, oh I don’t know… the very heavenly establishment of Kusaka’s.”
Kotetsu couldn’t smother his laughter fast enough as Izumo’s eyes widened. “How do you know about that? Kotetsu, did you tell him?”
Kotetsu huffed. “What? No!”
Harii grinned looking rather devious. “So the story about you getting drunk out of your mind and confessing your undying love to Kusaka’s chef just before you fell face first in to a pot of sauce was actually true?”
“You forgot the part where he broke five tables and a door in order to reach the chef in the first place,” Kotetsu said.
“Kotetsu! So you were the one who told him.” Izumo stood up but fell back with a grimace. He frowned, and downed the foul smelling liquid in his hand with one large gulp.
“Izumo, not that fast! You were supposed to wait till I got the water.” Harry ran to the kitchen.
Kotetsu snickered at Izumo’s disgusted expression. “So it does taste as bad as it smells.”
“Worse. I can’t believe he made me drink that useless…” Izumo stopped.
“Izumo? What happened?” Kotetsu asked feeling rather worried at the pause.
“I feel fine,” Izumo said and flexed his arm experimentally and stood up. “In fact, I feel better than ever. Even my arm is fine.”
“Your arm? You mean the one you strained from training last night.”
“Yeah.” Izumo looked up at him in surprise. “My whole body feels fine. Better actually.”
“From drinking the smelly herb drink?” Kotetsu whispered. Maybe Izumo’s delusional from all those fumes. No, he’s actually moving a lot smoother than before.
Izumo nodded just as Harry came back with a glass of water. “I’m going to have a talk with the apartment manager. Looks like something’s wrong with the hot water. Here, hope you don’t mind ice cold water.”
Izumo rolled his eyes. “I’m a ninja. Ice cold water is not the worst thing I’ve had to drink.”
Harii gave him a wry look. “Somehow I just know the medicine I gave you is one of the worst things you’ve had to drink.”
“Worst but the most helpful. My stomach-ache is long gone.” Izumo said and gulped down the water. “Where did you learn to make something like that?”
Harii tilted his head to the side and smiled. “I learnt to make it here in Konoha itself. I was reading up some stuff and decided to experiment with some old techniques. The thing I gave you is probably so weak it’s not all that useful…”
Not all that useful? But it made Izumo’s training pains vanish. Kotetsu felt a little faint and Izumo looked just as surprised. Just what the heck was he trying to recreate then? And where did he learn his old techniques.
Harii was still talking. “It’s a one time medicine right now. Take it too often and it gets useless.” He paused with an irritated look. “I still haven’t gotten the right formula for the stuff I have here. But enough of that! Since you’re all better let’s go out and eat. I want to see Kusaka’s chef.”
Izumo sputtered. “I thought you said we chose the place.”
Harii smiled. “I’m sure you’d love to go back there. Right Kotetsu?”
Kotetsu nodded. “Yeah.” Maybe we’ll find out some more when we’re eating. After all, everyone gets talkative with food.
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A/N: The 'gag' scene removed from chapter 11. Obviously I changed POV and re-wrote most of it- to make it more un-gag-like? Still feels like something is missing from it, though.
Polar
