章 543: It Needed to Be Said

Earth Land, Ishgar, Kingdom of Fiore, the Village Hidden in the Leaves.

November, x787.

After Naruto started staying in Alfonzo's residence, things did not change much. Though, the other academy kids were curious to know why he was staying there. On top of that, they wanted to know why Naruto looked so lost when he arrived after seeing the Hokage. However, none of them knew how to start the conversation.

Still, not much changed for the academy kids during the time following that day. However, their training schedule did change a bit.

Since that day, when the kids arrived, Alfonzo would start their training with basic training. Meaning, he would help them strengthen their bodies and work on their magic power control. After that, he, Wendy, and Saeko would take Naruto, Sakura, and Sasuke to different locations to continue their specialized training. Meanwhile, Rika would take over the other's training.

While the group was separated, Wendy would teach Sakura everything she knew about [Medical Ninjutsu]. Though, the pace at which she taught was much slower than her training under Tsunade. Still, Sakura improved a good pace.

Saeko, on the other hand, only taught Sasuke about the basics of swordsmanship. Neither his mind nor his body was ready for her more advanced techniques. However, Sasuke's Sharingan cut down the time needed to learn significantly. Though, it could not make up for the lack of experience.

Meanwhile, Alfonzo had not started training Naruto as a Jinchuriki. Instead, he tested Naruto in the use of the [Sealing Arts]. Naruto was an Uzumaki, after all. So, [Sealing] ran in his blood. And the results were quite positive. Though, he did have to help Naruto work on his penmanship.

Lastly, because of Rika's training, the other kids all improved immensely in the use of throwing weapons. Although Rika was a magic gunner, for the most part, her aim was superb, regardless of what kind of weapon she used. And with her guidance, the six kids learned everything needed to hit a target from a distance.

Other than those small changes, however, not much changed for the academy kids and the visitors from Magnolia. Until today, that is.

Today, while Wendy was working at the hospital, she walked into a patient room to see a patient who had injured their self during training. But she, and Carla, who was following her while she made her rounds, were surprised to see a familiar face.

"Ah! Miss Wendy!" A young man with bushy eyebrows and a bowl cut who wore a green spandex body suit said energetically after seeing Wendy enter the room. "Oh, and Miss Carla is with you , as well. What a pleasant surprise to see you."

This young man was Rock Lee, a member of Team Guy. Immediately, after recognizing him, Wendy could not help but blush, having remembered Lee's declaration the day they met in the Valley of the End. Meanwhile, Carla could not help but scowl, not liking the love struck look in Lee's eyes.

"Uh… Good afternoon, Lee." Wendy said in a flustered tone as she tried to regain control of her facial expression. Um… What seems to be the problem?"

"Ah! Yes! I'm sure you want to know why I'm in the hospital." Lee said while smiling brightly. "Well, during training this morning, while letting my youth explode with my teammates and Guy-Sensei, I believe I tore a muscle in my leg. And although I'm sure my youth would carry me through, Guy-Sensei told me that knowing when to rest and recover is crucial to becoming stronger."

"Well, he's not wrong." Wendy replied while shaking her head as she approached Lee's sick bed. "Allowing the body to recover properly is quite important."

By the time Wendy reached Lee's bedside, she was once again in control of her facial expression. Though, there was still a slight dusting of red on her cheeks due to Lee's fond smile. However, she put those thoughts to the back of her mind. Instead, she channeled her magic power into her hands, causing them to light up in a teal color.

"So, which leg is bothering you?" Wendy asked calmly.

"My right." Lee replied.

With that, Wendy placed her hands on Lee's right leg. Then, she let the diagnostic spell she learned from Tsunade do its work.

Meanwhile, Carla, who had only been watching the interaction between the two, could not help but deepen her scowl. The slight blush on Wendy's face was making her uncomfortable.

'No! Absolutely not!' Carla thought to herself. 'Wendy is too young for romance. I won't let her fall into this boy's clutches. Even if he seems genuine, I know he's up to something. He probably wants to get to either Ur or Master Tsunade through her. I just know it!'

While Carla was fooling herself into thinking that Lee was up to something nefarious, Wendy continued examining Lee's leg.

"Yes, it looks like you really did tear your quadricep." Wendy said in as serious tone while wearing an equally serious expression. "It looks like there is quite a bit of strain on your hamstring, as well."

Meanwhile, Lee watched Wendy's face with fascination, drawn in by her serious expression. However, when she gave her diagnosis, he snapped back to reality.

"So, it was as I expected." Lee said, sounding a bit downcast while he lowered his gaze to his lap and clenched his fists in frustration. "I guess that means I'll have to put my training on hold for a while, yes?"

"That's right." Wendy replied with a nod as she raised her head.

However, when she saw the sad expression on Lee's face, she did not know why, but she began to panic.

In fact, the reason she started to panic was simple. Ever since Lee made his declaration of love, though it did not contain the word love at all, Wendy had found herself thinking about it over and over.

As previously mentioned, Wendy had been confessed to many times in the past. She was quite cute, so that was natural. However, thanks to her instincts as a Dragon Slayer, she, like Carla, could tell that those men had ulterior motives when they declared their love for her. But her instincts did not alert her at all when Lee did the same. And that led to her thinking about him much more than she intended to.

"D-D-Don't' worry." Wendy stammered out as she subconsciously grabbed Lee's hand to comfort him. Then, at a much louder volume than intended, she continued. "I'll do my best to heal you. So, you won't have to miss too much training time. Only a day or two at most."

Immediately after her words ended, Wendy noticed that Lee's gaze was no longer focused on his lap. And when she followed Lee's line of sight, she saw that he was staring at his left hand, that she was holding tightly.

In the next instant, Wendy reddened up to her ears while her mouth opened and closed like a fish out of water. Lee, on the other hand, was staring at his and Wendy's hands with shock written all over his face. And all though he was happy that Wendy took the initiative to hold his hand, the more surprising thing was the care she showed for him.

Because of his low amount of magic power and inability to use Ninjutsu or Genjutsu, Lee had been mocked as a failure. In fact, no one ever showed so much care when he hurt himself in the past. Until he met Guy, that is. Even his teammates, Neji and Tenten, had told him that he should give up on becoming a shinobi during their time in the academy. Though, Tenten was much more tactful about it than Neji, who said it as bluntly as could be. In fact, even after becoming a Genin, Neji had told him the same thing on several occasions.

But Wendy, despite having known him for less than a month, showed him such concern. And he could not understand why.

The reason for Wendy's concern was simple, however. For the last three years, she has been a member of Fairy Tail. Meaning, she has seen just how hard her guildmates work during training. Especially those in Alfonzo's inner circle. So, she could appreciate someone who worked hard to achieve their goals.

And after using her diagnosis spell on Lee's leg, despite having not seen the rest of his body. She could tell that he worked extremely hard to improve. Perhaps even as hard as Alfonzo, Elicia, and the others. And she could definitely appreciate that.

Meanwhile, Carla was getting even more irritated seeing the position Wendy and lee were in.

"Wendy, you don't have time for this." Carla said sharply. "You have a lot of other patients to see after this, remember?"

Hearing Carla's voice was enough to snap Wendy back to her senses. However, the blush on her face and ears crept down her neck, as well.

"A-A-Anyway, I can heal the torn muscle." Wendy said, beginning to stammer again. "I'll take care of all the strains, too. But you maybe should let me see the rest of your body, too. No! Wait! I didn't mean I wanted to see your body… No, wait, that sounds wrong, too! I mean, you should let me observe.--- No, check! Yes, you should let me check the rest of your body for any unknown injuries, too."

Seeing Wendy's flustered state, Lee could not help but smile warmly, which made Wendy even more embarrassed. Meanwhile, Carla's scowl deepened even further.

"A-Anyway, I'll heal the tear first." Wendy said as she looked away from Lee's eyes and focused on his leg. "After that, it will take a day or two before you can train. But at least you won't be stuck in the hospital. Then, when you're discharged, you can set up an appointment for me to see what I can do with the strain I'm sure the rest of your body has been put through."

After her initial stammering, Wendy eventually started talking so fast that Lee had to concentrate to understand everything she said. However, after she finished, he nodded his head with a smile.

"I understand, I'll make sure to schedule the appointment promptly." Lee said while his gaze was focused on Wendy's lowered face.

Although Wendy could feel Lee's gaze, she tried to put it out of her mind. Instead, she focused on healing the tear in his quadricep. And it only took a few minutes for Wendy, with her blend of the [Healing Magic] allotted to her by her [Sky Dragon Slayer Magic] and Tsunade's [Medical Ninjutsu], to heal Lee's torn muscle.

"Okay, I'm all done." Wendy said, the blush on her face having receded by quite a bit by now. "Remember, take it easy for a day or two. Otherwise, you could reinjure it again."

"Yes, I'll follow your instructions." Lee said with a nod. "And I'll make sure to schedule an appointment to see you again."

Seeing Lee's smile, Wendy's blush try to make a reappearance. However, she was able to hold it back with her will. Then, she nodded to Lee and turned around to leave. Though, she did not realize that she was walking a little faster than usual while her movements were quite stiff.

"Have a good day, Miss Wendy." Lee said energetically. "I'll see you soon."

Raising her right arm, Wendy gave a little wave. Though, she did not turn around. Meanwhile, Carla glared at Lee as hard as she could before hurrying to follow Wendy.

Eventually, when Lee could no longer hear Wendy's footsteps, he clenched his fists before thrusting them both up above his head.

"Yosh! I knew my youth would prevail!" Lee shouted happily. "Alfonzo was right. I just had to be calmer when dealing with her. I need to find a way to thank him."

"My youthful disciple!" Lee heard a familiar shout from down the hall while he was congratulating himself. "I've come to visit you! I even brought my special protein drink to help your muscle heal faster!"

"I don't know how many times we've asked you this, Guy." A stern female voice said shortly afterwards. "But please keep your voice down in the hospital."

Knowing exactly who the first shout belonged to, Lee could not help but smile.

"I can't wait to tell Guy-Sensei about what just happened." Lee said excitedly. "Maybe he'll do some laps around the village with me to help me celebrate. Oh but wait, I'm not supposed to train. I could hurt my leg again. Oh, I know! We could do those laps on our hands. That's brilliant!"

Meanwhile, Wendy, after meeting Lee, continued her work at the hospital. And although her quality of work was not affected, she could not stop thinking about their little encounter. And eventually, her shift ended and she and Carla, accompanied by Anko, went back to the residence she shared with the others from magnolia.

When Wendy, Carla, and Anko eventually arrived at the mansion, Anko excused herself as she had work to do at the T&I Department. Meanwhile, Wendy and Carla entered the house after bidding her goodbye. And when they did, they noticed that the house was empty. Realizing that the academy kids must be here already. So, Wendy and Carla quickly made their way to Wendy's room to get ready for Sakura's training in [Medical Ninjutsu].

As soon as they entered the room, Wendy was surprised when Carla closed the door behind them and looked at her with a stern expression while resting her paws on her hips.

"Carla, is something wrong?" Wendy asked in a confused tone.

"I forbid you from seeing that boy again." Carla said sharply.

"Huh? What are you talking about?" Wendy asked, her confusion growing. Though, she could not help but think about Lee when Carla mentioned "that boy."

"I already told you, you're too young to start thinking about dating." Carla replied, still in that same sharp tone.

Immediately, Wendy's expression changed from confusion to anger.

"And I already told you, I'm not a kid, Carla." Wendy said, her tone turning sharp, as well. "I'm old enough to make my own decisions."

Taken aback by Wendy's tone, Carla's expression showed confusion for a moment. A moment later, however, her stern expression returned. But just as she opened her mouth to retort, Wendy spoke once again.

"Don't say anything, Carla." Wendy said, still speaking sharply. "Enough is enough. I know you want what's best for me, and I appreciate that, I really do. But enough is enough. You're not my guardian. In fact, I should be yours. You're only nine years old, after all."

Once again, Carla was taken aback, causing her expression to change. However, this time, Wendy did not even allow her the time to get her expression under control.

"Besides, you're being a real hypocrite right now." Wendy added. "You tell me I'm too young to be dating, but you're seeing Happy. And don't try to deny it, you all but said so yourself when we first got here. So, you don't have the right to tell me if I can date or not."

This time, Carla looked away sheepishly, feeling the tiniest bit of guilt for acting that way. Still, she wanted to say something. But once again, Wendy spoke before she could.

"You're supposed to be my partner, Carla." Wendy said. "but the way you're acting only shows that you don't trust my judgement. And, honestly, I'm getting tired of it. This isn't how partners are supposed to treat each other."

"And ignoring my advice is showing that you trust me?" Carla, finally finding the opportunity to speak, said angrily.

"You're not giving me advice, Carla." Wendy said, calming down significantly after hearing Carla's tone. "You're trying to dictate how I live my life. Not even Master Ur treats me like that. I mean, you just forbade me from seeing Lee again. Seriously, what even gives you the right?"

Hearing that, Carla opened her eyes wide in surprise. For as long as she could remember, the only thing she ever tried to do was make sure that Wendy was okay. However, she never realized how the way she acted could be seen from Wendy's perspective. On top of that, other than whining and showing some token resistance, Wendy never made her feelings on the matter known.

But when Carla took a moment to think about it, she realized that Wendy had told her how she felt numerous times. She was unable to count how many times Wendy told her that she was not a child or that she could make her own decisions. But all those times, Carla merely dismissed her complaints as a child's whining.

"And although it hurts to say this." Wendy said as she lowered her head. A moment later, however, she raised her head with a firm expression on her face. "I can't be friends with someone who wants to control all my actions."

Immediately, tears began to well up in Carla's eyes. Wendy's words had seriously hurt her. That said, because of her own hurt, Carla did not see the tears that were welling up in Wendy's eyes, as well. Instead, without a word, she turned around, opened the door, and ran away.

"Carla, wait!" Wendy said while raising her right hand in Carla's direction. trying to stop her, to no avail.

A moment later, Wendy dropped both her arm and her head as a wave of sadness washed over her. However, she decided that she would not apologize for what she said the next time she spoke to her best friend. The words she said, needed to be said, after all.