The Mayonaka Chronicles- Book 1- Moon
Chapter 1- A Knock On the Door
Everything started with a knock on the door…
" Anda, the Damakage would like to see you."
'Oh, God. What did I do now?' I thought, pulling on my shoes.
I took my time walking to the Damakage's office. I focused on trying to think of all the things that could've gotten me into trouble. Sure, I had dumped ice- water on Yuri, a girl who had terrorized me since we were kids in the ninja academy. And, I super- glued Roji- sensai to his chair (I hated him almost as much as Yuri ). But I was sure no one had seen me.
I finally reached the Damakage's office. I rapped nervously before entering, then plopped down in a chair. In front of me sat Seiji Mayonaka, my older brother, the Damakage. He was sitting in the same spinning chair that I had loved as a child, when our father was Damakage. I had always looked up to Seiji, trying to mimic his smooth, emotionless expression. But now, he looked so… worn out…
" So, what's my punishment?" I asked, putting my feet on his desk.
" As hard as this may be to believe, you're not in trouble. But, if you did do something you think I should punish you for, now would be the time to tell me." he warned, pushing my feet off.
"Well, I got bored and decided to dump a few gallons of ice- water on Yuri." I said " But I torment her almost daily, so you probably already knew that."
"Anda…" He sighed "You're 15 and you're still a genin. You fail the Chunin Exams every year because you won't work with your teammates. Couldn't you put forth a little effort to make a friend?"
"Nope. Anyway, since I'm not in trouble, what did you want to tell me?" I asked.
"We've been asked to participate in a small tournament in the Hidden Leaf Village. Ninja from all over the world will be participating. I think it's a good chance to get to know different shinobi. And the winner gets a spot with the Anbu Black Ops. Would you like to participate?"
That was the worst thing about Seiji. He was always worried about me(And the fact that I tried to kill every friend I'd ever made). He'd always cared for and loved me. He put on a brave face and hid the tears when our parents died, for my sake. He took the role of Kage at only 15. In my eyes, he had always been so… strong.
"Are you going?" he nodded" Yeah, I guess I'll go."
He smiled and said, "We'll be leaving tomorrow, so get packed. I'll be home a little later than usual; there's a lot of paperwork that needs to be done. I don't want to leave Tsuchiro with too much." he muttered, giving the papers on his desk a sweeping glance.
"Mmmm… hey, do you know where I can find a really big bucket, a really strong rope, and a lot of rotten fish?" I asked absent-mindedly.
"Anda, please promise me that you won't get into any trouble in Konaha." he said, his brows furrowing.
"How about I promise to try as hard as I can." I said, forcing a smile.
"Anda, I'm being serious. This is very important. I want you to take this seriously. You'll be replacing me as Kage soon. I want you to be ready." he scolded.
"Yes sir…" I sighed.
"Don't wait up for me. Get some sleep." he said, hugging me.
Outside, it was starting to get quiet. Night had come, turning the sky a deep blue. The smells of ramen were fading, being drowned out by the sake that was being brewed in the back of a bar.
I felt a sudden rush of adrenalin, and decided to run the whole way home. Thoughts rushed through my head; mixtures of fear, excitement, and curiosity about the tournament. I took a shower, trying to calm my nerves. It didn't help at all, and I was relived when I finally fell asleep.
Then came the dream… I was by a river, in a dark forest. I had never seen this place before. There was a boy sitting next to me, holding my hand. He had blood- red hair and sorrowful, tortured blue eyes. There was a mark on his forehead that said " love." And… he was crying. I wondered why. Then I realized that… I was crying too. I couldn't understand why.
"Anda… I'm sorry… I should have controlled myself… I didn't mean to hurt you… I'm sorry…" he whispered, looking down sadly.
" It wasn't you're fault. You were only trying to save the team…" I said, trying to get him to look me in the eyes. He wouldn't.
"It IS my fault. Stop trying to make me feel better! As your sensai, I take responsibility for any injuries or lives lost. I should have seen this coming!" he said.
" Stop blaming yourself! Nobody could've prevented it, and I'm not hurt that badly. You did the best you could! " I said angrily, tears streaming down my cheeks.
" I just hate seeing you in pain…"
I awoke abruptly, my heart racing.
'Who was that guy?' I thought 'How did he hurt me? And how did he become my sensai?'
I was really confused, and my head hurt terribly. I brushed the dream off and went back to sleep.
All through the next morning, I thought about the dream. It drove me crazy, and I couldn't push it away. I had never seen the boy before, and yet he seemed so familiar. Thankfully, Seiji was dead-tired. If he had noticed my bizarre behavior, his questioning would never stop.
I packed quickly, eager to leave. To pass the time, I double, triple, and quadruple-checked my bag, making sure I had everything. And finally, it was time to go.
Chapter 2- The Village Hidden in the Leaves
I only had to be in Konaha for a few minute to know that I hated it. The shinobi were nothing like me. They stared at me, their looks bore into me, tearing into me, ripping me apart. I was tempted to use my sword on them, but resisted. Seiji was walking a few feet in front of me, glancing back every few minutes to make sure I was there. I had no chance of committing a murder without him knowing.
I was about to explode, ready to rip someone's head off, when we reached the Hokage's office. Her assistant, Shizune, greeted us at the door. She did a good job of hiding her shock( that was good. If she gave me another fearful look, I might have gone crazy and killed her).
"Lady Tsunade, the Damakage is here to see you." she called.
"Ahhhh… you've arrived." a voice called from the back of the room. "I'm guessing your journey was okay."
"Yes, everything went smoothly." he said to a lady sitting behind a desk.
"Wonderful. I'm guessing this is Anda." she said, nodding towards me.
"Yes. She's here to participate in the tournament." Seiji said.
"Good. There will be many different villages participating. Everyone will meet in one week at the ninja academy at 9:00." Tsunade explained.
I was bored to tears. I didn't see how Seiji could deal with this. I had to get out of here.
" Ummm… Do you have a bathroom anywhere?" I asked.
"… All the way down the hall." she said slowly.
As soon as the door was shut, I ran down the hall, turned down a seemingly deserted hall, and crashed into something.
" Are you okay?" a male voice asked.
"No I'm not okay baka!!" I yelled angrily, looking up. "Wha-"
My breath caught in my throat. Standing in front of me was the same guy that was in my dream!
"How did you-? But you…? I must be hallucinating…" I muttered.
"Are you sure you're not hurt?" he asked.
"Yes I'm sure!" I said.
"Good. I thought you had a concussion. You were starting to babble about something." He joked, smiling brightly.
I had to admit, even though he was a little annoying, he was probably the most beautiful person I had ever seen.
"How 'bout I give you a concussion?" I growled.
He just laughed and helped me up.
"You look so familiar… I just can't remember where I've seen you… " he muttered.
"Well I know you don't see many people like me. It can't be that hard to remember." I scoffed.
"Where do you live? What village do you come from?" he asked.
"Why do you need to know?" I said.
"Just tell me." he commanded.
"Damagakure." I told him.
"…Anda!" he exclaimed.
"H-how do you know my name?" I asked.
"Hmmm… I figured you wouldn't remember me. It's been about 10 years since I last saw you…" he mumbled.
Realization suddenly hit me.
"G-Gaara…" I whispered.
I thought back to ten years ago, when I first met him. Neither of us had friends, until we met each other. He was the only one who hadn't ran away from me; the only one who wasn't scared.
Flashback
He walked right up to me and introduced himself. My eyes widened in surprise. I know I looked scary, with my fangs and claws that could cut through solid diamond. But there was no hint fear in his eyes. Only his bright smile that lit up his face.
The first thing we did was run into my room and start pulling books off the book case that covered a whole wall. For five year olds, we were surprisingly literate. In the few weeks he was there, he managed to read the entire 'Tale of Genji.' That was the best thing for us to do. Temari practiced her jutsus, Kankuro hung out with all the girls in the village, and our parents talked about boring things. We were left alone to do anything we wanted.
"Anda… I want to give you something…" he whispered the night before he left.
"Hmmm…" I mumbled.
I heard him shuffling quietly in his bag, then felt something soft against my hands. It was a stuffed bear. I looked over at him in surprise. I knew that this was his favorite thing in the whole world. And yet he was still giving it to me.
"I want you to have it…" he mumbled quietly.
I was speechless…
End Flashback
"I can't believe you're here!" he exclaimed, wrapping his arms around my waist.
"…can't… b-breath…" I gasped.
"Sorry." he apologized, letting me go.
"Anda!"
I spun around. Seiji was storming towards us, brows furrowed.
"Where did you go? You said you were going to the bathroom!" he said angrily.
"Well, I was going to the bathroom." I explained. "But then I ran into an old friend."
Seiji's expression softened as he noticed Gaara standing quietly behind me. They both smiled.
"Seiji… how've you been?" Gaara asked.
"Pretty good. And you?" He said.
"Good…"he said, glancing at a clock on the wall. "I should go… Tsunade's probably wondering where I am."
"Oh…I guess I'll see you later then." I said. "Bye."
Gaara's POV
I stepped into Tsunade's office, sad to leave Anda. Tsunade was sitting behind her desk, shuffling through papers. She glanced up and saw me, and pulled a few sheets of paper off a giant pile on her desk.
"Hello, Gaara. I'm glad to see you got here okay." she said.
"I can't wait to see who's going to participate." I muttered absent-mindedly.
"Well, I have the profiles for the four shinobi on your team." she said, handing me the papers she was holding in her hands.
I glanced at the name on the top of the first page, and my breath caught in my throat. Typed neatly at the top of the page was the name Anda Mayonaka…
"Gaara!" Tsunade's angry voice pulled me back into reality.
"Huh… oh, sorry." I apologized, blushing. "Could you repeat that?"
She sighed and started over. "The first round begins two weeks from Friday. Your team's training schedules will be up to you. The first round will be a doubles battle, 2 vs. 2. You'll receive more information soon after that. Good luck."
I got up silently and left. As soon as I was out of the building, I started to run. I didn't stop until I reached my hotel room, the door locked behind me. Collapsing on my bed, I read through the ninja profiles. Anda, Choji, and two from the Moon and Blood, Tsuki and Misa Amane. I was excited about having Anda on my team, so much that I didn't care who else I got stuck with.
Eventually, I got tired of just sitting in the room, so I slipped my shoes on and went outside. For a while, I just walked around. Thankfully the people ignored me. I couldn't stand everyone staring at me in fear. It drove me insane.
After a while, I spotted Anda walking towards the village limits. I decided to follow her. She quickly ducked into the forests surrounding Konaha. They were filled with dangerous creatures; giant bugs, enormous jungle cats. Surely she knew that. I followed her, not wanting her to get hurt(especially if I knew I could prevent it).
She moved so swiftly, I almost lost her. Everything on her was black, except her unbelievably pale skin. She blended in perfectly with her surroundings. Then suddenly, she disappeared through the trees. I paused a second, then followed behind. I finally broke through into a wide clearing. She was laying on her back in the middle, eyes closed, appearing to be sleeping. I tried to leave before she noticed me.
"Wait!" she said suddenly.
I jumped in surprise. I had thought she was sleeping.
'Maybe she's talking in her sleep…' I thought.
Then she sat up and looked at me. She smiled, fangs glinting in the soft moonlight.
"Sit." she said. "We've got a lot of catching up to do."
I didn't know if it was an invitation or a request. I didn't want to risk it, so I sat next to her, even though I wanted to go home and sleep.
"So, how've you been in the past… well… decade, I guess." she said, smiling.
"I became Kazekage a year ago. What about you?" I asked, trying to be polite.
"Well, I managed to fail the chunin exams five times. And get rid of every sensai that has ever tried to train me. But other than that, not much." she said.
"Naruto Uzumaki's still a genin too. I'm pretty sure he'll be in the tournament. For the past two years, he's been training with Jiriya, the Toad Sage." I muttered.
Gaara… why did you become Kazekage? What happened to your father?" she asked hesitantly.
"You've heard of the rouge ninja Orochimaru, right?" she nodded. "He wanted to get revenge on the Hidden Leaf. He plotted with the Sand and Sound to attack during the Chunin Exams. He killed my father and disguised himself as him. Then he killed their third Kage, who was replaced by Lady Tsunade."
"…did you have a part in this?" she asked.
I looked away, ashamed. I didn't want to admit that I was the most important part in the attack. I had changed so much since then. I didn't want her to think I was still a bad person.
"You did, didn't you? Why?" she said.
I looked over at her. She was staring at me sadly, brows furrowed in sadness.
"I want to say no… but I can't lie to you. I did. But, I've changed. I'm not like I was before…" I said.
She pouted, her lower lip poking out slightly. She grabbed my hand and stared at stared at it. Her eyes went blank for a second.
"Anda…" I whispered softly.
She looked up at me. Her other hand reached up to touch my cheek. I felt my face grow hot as I blushed under her touch.
"I want to blame you for working with him… but I just can't… I don't know why…" she whispered.
She pushed me onto my back and laid her head on my chest.
"Your heart's beating fast." she mumbled.
She observed me silently as I stared up at the stars. I could feel her dark blue eyes staring at me. And she didn't look away until she had fallen asleep on top of me.
The next morning
I awoke to find Anda still asleep. She looked so peaceful. The dark purple bruise- like spots under her eyes had faded some, but hadn't completely disappeared. I tried to keep still and not wake her.
Not long after, she woke up, her expression showing confusion. Then she looked up, saw me, and smiled.
"I guess I fell asleep, didn't I?" she said, still smiling.
"Yeah. We both did." I said, yawning loudly.
She stood up and stretched. I sat up and watched her, trying to hold back a smile. I didn't know why I felt like this about her, like I wanted her to be more than just my friend. She noticed me staring at her and blushed. I couldn't hold back a smile.
"Seiji's gonna kill me if he wakes up and I'm not there!" she said suddenly. I stood up quickly.
"You should probably go." I said, even though I didn't want to. I wondered I she sensed that.
She grabbed my hand. My heart skipped a beat.
"Bye Gaara." She said, standing on her toes and kissing my cheek.
My face grew hot. I stood there dazed as she left.
Chapter 3-
Friday
Tsuki's POV
"Ummm… is this seat taken?" A girl my age asked.
I shook my head.
"Hi. I'm Anda Mayonaka." she said.
"Tsuki." I mumbled.
"Which village are you from?" she asked.
"Moon…" I answered.
"I'm from the Hidden Demon. There in the same land, right?" she said.
"Yeah, I'm pretty sure they are." I said
Right then another girl with blond hair and all black clothing sat with us.
"Hi, I'm Misa Amane!" she said with a smile.
"Anda Mayonaka."
"Tsuki."
After we had all introduced ourselves, another guy with black glasses and a heavy coat came up to us, and the whole process started over again. His name was Shino Aburame, from Konaha
"Oh no! Hide me!" Anda said suddenly, ducking under the desk.
"From who?" Misa asked.
"That guy that just walked in! That's my brother. I ditched him before I got here. I think he's mad!" she whispered.
"Dude, he won't kill you in front of all these people. You don't gotta hide!" I said. She slowly got back in her seat, blushing furiously. On of the sensai standing in the front glared at her. She whimpered quietly.
"Although I can't guarantee that he won't kill you later." I said. Misa and Shino laughed quietly.
They finally gave us our teams. Me, Anda and Misa were all on the same team, along with Choji Akimichi, from Konaha. Our sensai was Gaara, from Sunagakure.
"I want you all outside the ninja academy by 7:00 tomorrow." he said.
"I hope you mean 7:00 at night." Misa joked.
"No, I mean 7:00 in the morning. No joking or I'll make it 6:00." he warned.
I could tell that this was going to be a fun 3 months.
Seiji's POV
After we had been introduced to our teams and everyone had started to leave, I found Gaara.
"Gaara." I called. He stopped and turned around to face me.
"Hi Seiji." he said.
"Listen… when you're training Anda, be careful." I warned.
"Don't worry. I'm not gonna hurt her." he said.
"I'm more worried about her hurting you. She's not really good at following directions, and doesn't like being told what to do. I asked Tsunade to let me train her, but she said no." I explained.
"I'll be fine." he said.
He left, following after Temari and Kankuro. I followed soon after, still thinking about Anda. She was a strong kunoichi, but she refused to let anyone train her. Every one of her sensai had quit because of her pulling pranks on them, refusing to listen to them, or putting them in the hospital. I wished I had a chance to train her, to make her listen. But since becoming Damakage, I hadn't had any time. I wanted to quit, to give up the role of Kage. But only a direct descendant of Rinji Mayonaka could take that position, and the only other descendant was Anda. I would rather take the stress that put all of it onto Anda.
"Seiji! Wait!" someone called from behind me.
I turned to see Ino walking towards me.
"Ummm… Seiji, is there any way I could switch teams? I don't really get along with a certain… person on our team." she asked.
"Once the teams have been decided, you can't change them. Tsunade has put you on teams based on mental ability, physical ability, and how well you get along with them." I said calmly.
"But I don't get along with Sakura at all!" she said.
"And that's why you're on the same team." I explained.
She stormed off angrily. I almost smiled. This was going to be a fun three months.
Misa's POV
My first thought in the morning was 'I hate the dude that made us get up so early.' I wanted nothing but sleep after I had stayed up all night, trying to fall asleep. I had finally crashed in the early hours of the morning.