I Broke Into Your House To Clean It, Sensei!

Konoha seemed so empty with just about everyone gone off to the war. While Suzume had a great distaste for the shinobi system, she still had a respect for certain members within it. Yen was easily one of them...although she rarely showed it. Breaking into his house wasn't exactly a way to do so, but she wasn't doing it with ill intentions....at least, not this time. Using a bump key to bypass the lock on his door, she looked over a shoulder to see if there had been any witnesses. The night was creeping up enough that it was just barely visible outside without some other form of light. She was sure enough no one saw.

With a satisfying click and crack of the lock giving in, she twisted the doorknob open. Suzume glanced at her tools for a quick second, smiling in disbelief it actually worked. She put them in her pockets, then observed the mess in front of her. It was...horrifying to say the least. Worse than the last time she sneaked in here. May as well start cleaning up right away, the innocent girl figured. She organized the shoes scattered by the door. Ah but, a couple of them were dirty...even falling apart. This wouldn't do. Knowing where Yen kept cleaning supplies from her last "visit", she went and grabbed some things to clean with and started working on the shoes. It was no shock that nothing was used up - not even a little. It was better to say that Yen having cleaning supplies in the first place was the actual shock. Out of curiosity, she checked the expiration dates to see if they were already expired. 

Turns out, they weren't expired already...but they would be soon. With a sigh and chuckle, she began whipping the muck and grime from one of the shoes using a paper towel and some type of spray thing. The bottle of the spray claimed it was the best for dirt, so Suzume chose to be the judge. Such tedious work let her ponder, however. What if he never were to return? A clean house...for no one to come back to. And to have to accept that he'd never return, without fully knowing what happened...or maybe it would be better to not know? She didn't need to know everything, and if it was something terribly bad like that, Suzume felt she'd be better off not knowing.

Before she began to get teary from such gloomy thoughts, she glanced back to the shoe that was now shiny clean. It looked new, as if it hadn't been worn at all yet. Could it be said that such small effort was something to be proud of? The results paid off, despite how little she tried. The spray cleaner definitely did well. So far, it was easy. One shoe done, another she picked up to do the same. It became a routine for the time being, until each pair of Yen's shoes were cleaned. Now to repair the more used up pairs. Every ninja had a sewing kit somewhere, at least a little one. Scavenging through disorganized drawers and cabinets, she managed to find a thread and needle kit. It might not have been best for fixing up a shoe, but Suzume made it work anyhow. Pushing the needle through the leathers and thick fabrics caused her finger tips to become fatigued and torn up a bit, but that was all part of her plan. Her odd form of appreciation...even if he were to never come back. 

Now that the footwear all set, she took a deep breath before turning to see the rest of what was needing to be completed. And that would be...well, everything. Taking of her own shoes and placing them on a mat, she then grabbed a broom to sweep the dust off the floor and out the door. Suzume did this quickly, so as to not give a hint that someone was in a house they weren't supposed to be. After all, Yen was the deputy kage...she partly expected to be caught. But, that didn't matter to her. It'd be worth it. 

Heading up to the stairs to where she read some scrolls the first time she came here, she thought it'd be best to start from the top and finish towards the entrance door where she already begun. To her, it seemed more accomplishing that way. Tiny steps at a time, to keep the motivation and continue making Yen's house appear good as new. With scrolls, manuals, files, and documents laid about with no form of sensibility, she arranged them in alphabetical order on some shelves by what type of information they contained. Scrolls on the first shelf, manuals on another, files and documents on the last. Some of them contained sensitive information, and it was pretty difficult for her to not take a peak. Though, she shrugged it off. What would she do with such knowledge anyhow? 

Well, maybe she sat at the table to read a few pages of the other less sensitive scrolls and manuals. For as obnoxious and careless as the genin came off as, Suzume was rather studious. It was such the trait that allowed her to prosper during the academy. Not wanting to get overly side tracked, she got back to setting Yen's reading stuff on the shelves. She had to move things already on the shelves to make room, but she sorted it out eventually. Once this room had gotten cleared up, Suzume discovered a couch. Was it there last time she had been here? It sure looked nice to take a tiny nap in - so that's what she did. Not a very long one, though. She didn't plan to stay for too long. It seemed a bit risky. Maybe Yen would come back early, and find a half cleaned house...and his pupil sleeping on his own furniture. 

That idea caused her to jump from the couch and head straight into the kitchen. It was then that the quietness of the area began to bother her. Would it kill a fella to play music, or make a bit of noise? Ack, well, with the lack of ambiance outside, Suzume proceeded to the sink that had a few used dishes and utensils in it. It wasn't as bad as the first time she came in, but bad enough that she cleaned it up again. The clanking of ceramic somewhat soothed the edge from her. Although, the sink itself had some sauces and ickyness all over it. Grabbing a sponge, she swabbed it all up in no time. Hot water and soap made it easy. She didn't entirely understand why Yen didn't keep up with it in the first place...but she supposed that working as the deputy and loosing his family would give no time for such things. What a shame the situation he fell into, but now she was doing her best to do something for him - even if it wasn't entirely allowed in the manner she did it. Or, get acknowledged if the war were to take him for that matter. 

Now that she finished the sink and plates, Suzume moved on to the counter tops and table. Pots and pans were laid wherever they could fit. The pile seemed fragile, picking up the wrong one might cause everything to fall. That'd be too much noise - which would be bad if someone heard. Figuring out which pan would be best to pick up was a lot like untying shoe laces that had been twisted together in incomprehensible ways. A puzzle indeed, but not something the girl couldn't do. After a clang of cast iron here and and ting of steel there, they would be settled in a fashion that was easy to grab when they would be needed again. Erm, if they would be...provided Yen made it back to use them. What a shame that'd be, not eating another meal cooked by the elder shinobi. Ah, once again, Suzume was diving into darker waters. Having smaller pans set inside bigger ones, she considered this part of her project complete. Next to them were the pots, arrange in the same way.

The genin cleared away some crumbs that were left atop the tablecloth, and she wondered if they were from the time she ate pie with Yen. Taking a clean plate, she placed it on the table that now had a smoothed out cloth that was also proportionately spread out. She also put his tea kettle in the middle of it, along with a fork, knife, and spoon arranged next to the plate. Ah yes, a properly set table. That wasn't too bad, she expected his kitchen to be the most difficult to clean. 

She was wrong. His bedroom was some other type of disaster. It had a nasty stench, too. Maybe replacing the sheets would be easier at this rate? But she wasn't sure if Yen would appreciate throwing out his belongings, even if she replaced them. So instead, she hand washed everything. She took off the pillow cases, blankets, sheets, even some clothes that was on the floor. Mixing some more soap and water into a bucket, she did the best she could to wash them with her hands. Although, she wasn't sure how she would dry them. Leaving them hung over a window might give a clue that she was there, so instead Suzume used the kitchen chairs to drape everything over. While waiting for them to dry, she went on to the last room needed cleaning...the bathroom. She expected it to be the most disastrous out of everything, now that she was approaching it. In an awkward fit of hesitation, she slowly opened the door. 

It managed to not be as bad as she imagined. Still needed cleaning, though. A few spider webs occupied the corners. Not wanting to kill the spiders, she took a recently cleaned cup and trapped them so that they could be put outside. Discretely of course, to her not killing spiders seemed weird but she always did it anyhow because she had a form of respect for life. Even though she looked down on the life style of where she lived. Was it all that contradictory? With the spiders taken care of, she got rid of the webs they had to leave behind after being forced from their nests. Too bad for them, they'll have to settle in a bush or something next time. Maybe Yen didn't mind them in the end, after all he was an Aburame.

She got some more paper towels and some more cleaner, and swished away his bathroom mirror's filth until it was so clear it may as well been a portal to some alternate dimension. Would it be a better one? Pivoting towards the bathtub, she also scrubbed it up until it was just as shiny. Suzume went as far to unclog the drain. It was utterly disgusting, but leaving it as it was would be to leave all her efforts unfinished. Then she placed his shampoos and such neatly on the bathtub's side. The curtains needed to be hung up a bit better, but that was an easy fix. Finally....the toilet. Who knows what kind of mess that would be, but whatever it was it would be no longer. 

By this point, the break of dawn had come. Suzume went from each room to check the quality of her work. For anything she left behind before moving on to the next room, she took care of. The sheets and clothes placed in the kitchen were pretty much all dried by now. She made his bed, and folded his clothes - putting them on the end of his bed. Confident that she had done a job well done, the girl left the house as it was. She couldn't wait for Yen to come back, and hope he would so badly. He'd probably be tired from playing his part in the war, but he'd have a nice bed ready for him to sleep in! 

[EXIT]
(WC: 2,013 - claiming 10 stats for now, might claim abilities later)

Approving 10 stats for now, might approve abilities later