Authors note: I wrote this one awhile back. And I am still trying my best to work out a conclusion for this piece but right now it seems quite dead. I hope that you enjoy my creation!

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any of the characters accept the ones that I created myself.

Translations:

Sensei: Teacher

Ane-chan: sister

mitsukai: angel

senpai: upperclassmen/more experienced one used for someone the person respects

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Chapter one: First Impressions

First impressions, the act of it is hard to do well and yet so easy define. With certain individuals first impressions are crucial. Taking one glance at the pair standing at the altar and you would have never suspected those two polar opposites would have found love in each other's arms, but those that knew and still know them well, could've seen it coming a mile off. Even if on their union hour, black and red roses lined the isle, the two flowers that signify love and death? How can the two be intertwined on such an occasion? Staring down at the traditional white rose, the floral decor known for purity and new beginnings. If there is such an explanation we'd have to start on the day of the lovely couples first impressions.

"Gai-sensei!" The call rang out, it bounced off the walls of the chunnin preliminary exam room. All the genin were hunched over the guard rails, to peer down at the battle field before them. Tired eyes squinted through droopy eyelids, and underneath that thick purple-black rings bagged from lack of good sleep.

"Gai-sensei!" Heads turned, and eyes widened as a silver-haired girl sprinted joyfully past curious onlookers toward that hulking mass of green spandex wearing muscle. Slamming her body onto the shoulders of the man she hooked her arms around his neck and hung there like a necklace, grinning like no tomorrow.

"Gai-Sensei. I missed you!" And the girl earned a flashy smile and a bone crushing hug. By now spectators were wondering how the maiden survived and how on earth this female genin from the cloud country knew the First Green Beast of Konoha. The first being because the second green beast was, well, standing in front of them, his round eyes blinking in fascination at the pair. His thick black eyebrows curved upward in shock and glee. Who knew his sensei this well besides him?

"Ena-chan! I missed you too. There were times I thought you'd forgotten to write." Gai set the girl down, his hold on her released, for the moment. The girl's face remained joyful, but her oceanic blue eyes wavered nervously but retrained themselves on his lips. "You know Father doesn't like the fact I write you letters, sensei. He sometimes refuses to mail them for me, and I have to….improvise." Her hands twisted the hem of her white, bloodstained shawl in her anxiety, gentle wisps of her unrestrained lustrous hair cradled her slender features. Stepping back slightly, as her sensei pressed a strong hand on her petite shoulder. "I know, I know." He smiled, and knelt down to examine his pupil. His black eyes taking in the havoc done to the child. Her pants were shredded at the knees, Ena's elbows had dried blood caking them like every other joint. Face had multiple scratches, bruises littered her body with unsightly colorings. Sighing exaggeratedly, he stood using her for a bit of leverage, sending her another step backwards. No doubt she had taken on her adversaries alone, he father's doing albeit.

Ena's back collided with the chest of Rock Lee, the spitting image of his all too familiar sensei. "I'm sorry." The boy apologized, his chest rumbling softly against her spine, as he stepped away from the girls slight frame. Whipping around quickly, Ena's complexion took on a shade of red. "What d-did you say?" Her voice came out quite the opposite of what her vocals had expelled previously. Lee scratched his silky black bowl-cut haired head, thinking surely the girl had heard him. "I'm sorry for bumping into you." He offered again, shifting his orange leg warmer clad shins into a more assertive step.

As Ena attempted to get away, Gai caught her by the shoulders, pushing her chin up so she could see his face instead of the floor. "Lee said he was sorry, little mitsukai." He glanced up at Lee, briefly as Ena answered. "Your description of Senpai in your letters was very good…." Her face flushed in embarrassment, remembering the far more than flattering mail she'd received on Gai's excitable pupil.

"Lee, Ena-chan is…" Gai stared down at Ena's mussed up features covered in dirt waiting for her to finish his sentence. "Deaf." Her voice answered. "I know being a ninja requires certain skills and hearing is kinda lumped into that package. But I want to be the best ninja I can be, even if I can't hear like I used to. So don't give me the pity party, or say you're sorry for that too because…I hear more than most." She pivoted slowly, another smile broadening on her lips.

Lee had his trademark pearly whites showing in a shimmering toothy grin. "I've heard much about your goals, senpai. You want to be a taijutsu master? A ninja that only uses taijutsu techniques. Gai-sensei has told me much of your progress. And I have to admit….that…." The girls blush grew deeper, as she touched her face in a futile attempt to prevent the red creeping any further. Lee waited expectantly, of what was to come, she'd call him a wash out, just like the rest. "I admire you, senpai, and I know you'll reach that goal someday." She finished quickly before she lost her voice.

"Sen-p-pai?" Lee stuttered out, another grin on his face. "Hai, you are my superior. You are my senpai. Do you not want me to call you that?" Ena reasoned for him concerned she'd offended him in some way. "N-no not at all, Ena-san." Lee flushed slightly with pride, his eyes twinkled in the light.

When the lights flashed and names were sifted through, Ena huddled against the rusty bars. Her eyes reflecting the glowing board that randomly chose pairings for the chunnin preliminary fights. Quickly scanning the pairing her eyes welled up with determination and a little bit of doubt. Gai quickly stepped away from Lee, forsaking him momentarily to reassure Ena. Her crystal blue eyes anchored to the figure across the stadium. Her blue-haired, gray-eyed twin sister. Her arms crossed over her busty chest covered in her thick baby blue shawl, she to was staring in disbelief at the match-up. But, comparing their current states, the blue-haired was far less…damaged.

Ena quaked with the uncertainty that roared inside her, as the announcer called the match. "Would Nephinee and Ena please step down?" Retreating two steps, the referee had broken her train of hope, her throat was parched, doubt harbored in her body. Could she actually beat her twin sister? Could she bring herself to strike her down, the one she loved and tended her wounds?

Gai took her by the shoulders again, "I believe in you." Ena waved his hands off of her nodding with fake resolution, he raised his hand and touched the top of her head ruffling her silky hair. "You deserve some recognition for all the training you do. Mitsukai…"

"Yes, sensei." Ena answered meekly, before breathing in noisily and jumping off the bar. Twirling in midair she disappeared in a gust of wind and reappeared gracefully on the ground. Her older twin glared at the referee with angry resentment for the match-up. "Ane-chan…" Ena sighed regretfully, taking on a fighting stance. "We've done this a million times, just a million and one more, eh?" The look-a-like smirked, readying herself but nervousness shook the pair even in their hardened footing. "The same to you Esu-chan." Nephinee's voice withheld a kinder tone, she didn't want to hurt her sister, they were the same in their mother's womb. Together they'd shared so much, yet when it came down to it there was a widening rift between their personalities.

"Begin!" And the two launched themselves headlong into the center of the battlefield. Nephinee's punches landed the minimal amount of time as Ena deftly swayed and fluidly brushed the fists aside with the palms of her hands, but when they did hit, they did so with deadly power. An unusual dance that held familiarity in a strange sense.

One chakra empowered ball of knuckles, targeted Ena's ribs and found the mark, sending her flying into a nearby wall. Ena had never been good with any type of close range attacks.

Coughing violently, she regained breath. Shakily, finding her footing. Her tongue swiped along her lower lip, tasting the blood that trailed onto her chin. Thumb brushing on her jaw she caught some of the crimson liquid. Performing the proper hand symbols she thrust her palm onto the ground. A plume of orange smoke puffed from the jutsu and then dissipated, leaving a pile of ash in it's wake. The elder sister looked on curiously. "That's your summoning jutsu?!" Nephinee gasped, there was no way her sister had trained so long and so hard only to come up with that, she withdrew two kunai from the pouch hanging on her right hip, revealing the multitude of large water canteens buckled to her waist.

Gai chuckled softly, crossing his arms over his chest. "So she's bringing him out so early in the game? I suppose she wants to end this quickly…." Lee turned to his sensei quizzically. "I-I don't quite understand…" Closing his eyes Gai, chuckled again. "Lee, have you ever heard of the mystical bird the Phoenix?"

"Yes, Gai-sensei! Isn't that the one that dies every few centuries and then is reborn anew to live again?" Lee answered, still curious as to where this conversation would lead. "Well. Little Mitsukai here can summon one. But it takes a lot of charka out of her, and….he always seems to come as a pile of ash when summoned before he entirely appears. It's a tiring process and can give you either the upper hand or make you the underdog in a battle situation, in this instance Ena-chan has the upper hand because Nephinee doesn't know that her summon was successful." Gai explained, gesturing to the large pile of gray dust beside the white haired girl, who was kneeling with an exhausted look on her face, endearing dejected eyes staring fixedly at her opponent, those eyes…a portal to her tattered soul. Many of the onlookers pulled away when she scanned the crowd, seeing the anguish that consumed her heart. A shimmer of a smile on her face, and with that Gai was thrown into the bowels of a long-gone memory.

"Gai-sensei…if papa finds that you're teaching me again he won't be happy….I don't want him to be….unhappy with me again…" The short cherub faced Ena mumbled, her voice was gentle and shaky with fear. Purplish bruises that covered the length of her arms and a blackening one that she sported on her right eye didn't help the fact that she was quivering noticeably with the restless wind that accompanied the unique girl, one of a pair.

Big baby blues diluted with tears of distress sparkled waveringly up at the younger Gai. "Shhh…little one…shush now…he won't find out." The man soothed in a fatherly tone, touching her silver head. She clutched a large orange bird-like stuffed animal with a missing black button eye to her shivering frame. "Now why did you bring a stuffed animal with you? Aren't you too old for that kind of thing?"

The young one squeaked and held her possession tighter than ever. "Pheo takes care of me. Always has, when papa makes the sting come, Pheo feels good on my face. 'Sides, Mama made it for me a'fore she died. Her love is in it." She gave an impish grin to her beloved teacher. Gai shook his head, a girl of seven years shouldn't say these things, she shouldn't even know what death is!

"But…maybe I shoulda left him home."

"No, no. Ena-chan it's ok." He ruffled her hair, causing it to come up in unkempt stringy stalks on her cranium when he removed his hand. "Wanna learn something new?"

The girl nodded fervently, for someone her size she had an amazing amount of chakra and fairly good control. Must have been her father's teachings. He'd seen how he drilled his children.

"OK I saw this new technique and thought it might be perfect for you."

Gai performed the hand symbols, and pressed his palm to the ground, after watching the young one gasp in worried horror for her sensei when he'd bit his thumb causing it to bleed. A cloud of smoke plumed and out popped a tiny sparrow. It chirped delightfully then spoke, "Hi-ya!" The bird was a bit hyperactive and paranoid but it jumpstarted Ena into wanting a try. She was delighted by the flapping of the brown one's wings and stick feet, she giggled like a child should have, then got serious and performed the same signs as her temporary teacher and permanent friend.

Orange smoke swirled and a pile of ash was left it it's wake, the girl was having trouble standing and plopped down onto the grass beside a big oak tree on the towns training grounds. "Aw…it didn't work." She wheezed in a dissatisfied manner, her eyes lolled back and forth in her head from exertion, until a tiny red flame sparked through the gray material. Then a tiny head appeared, wings, feet and all. "Whaddaya want?" It commanded, "Pops dun want me called out yet." It turned to face it's summoner while Gai stared in awe.

"You! This is all your fault! Hey, why you so small? You ok?" The fiery creature squawked, as Ena lay on her back. "I can't feel my arms…Ga-ai sensei….Pheo?" Pecking at her ankles, the flame hoisted itself onto the child's body, "Pheo? Tat ain't my name….." The baby bird sighed, "You work too hard kid. Give it a rest, you shouldn't even have enough power to summon meh, that weird bug-eyed guy can't even do it. Hey you still with me, kiddo?" By now Ena was lost to the world of conscious people and deep in the land of dreams. "She's passed out, probably be out for a few days. Completely drained…" Gai sighed, cradling the girl in his arms before standing. The bird now dubbed Pheo piped up, "She is kinda cute when she's sleeping…like a…a little angel. Yeah that's it…"

Her chest was heaving, sweat rained over her body dampening her clothing. Reaching up she ripped the bloodstained shawl off her body and casting it to the side, giving full light to the heavy body armor she wore beneath. Carefully stripping off the dented chest plate, her breathing leveled out. This chance at recovery was broken, as two blades cut through the air. Ena rolled effectively out of the way before propping herself up on a bent knee, a laceration on her shoulder opened up and began to bleed. "Damn…." She mumbled, "Esu-chan, you think you can beat me? I've always beaten you in our sparring sessions. How would this be any different?" Nephinee grinned half-heartedly, the only way to get the soft hearted Ena to fight her would be to provoke her. "I can beat you….because…" Ena stumbled as she stood again, only to be tossed back to her knees from the two large explosions at her back, sending her careening into another wall.

Nephinee stood sadly watching her sister fall miserably to her attacks. 'Better finish this or Father will be angry I didn't do it when I had the chance.' Closing her eyes she brushed her baby blue locks from her perspiration coated face. Clasping her hands together she summoned her chakra and it swirled in jagged circles around her water containers as they began to simultaneously push the liquid out and the aqua flames slid into the water. It surged behind her creating a wall of water, before she could finished an enormous pain crackled along her spine releasing her concentration and the wave crashed forward.

Ena was in great agony, and Nephinee could feel it.

Debris from the stone wall smothered her. Gai leaned forward in anticipation, as the rubble trembled, at first a vermillion back emerged and then a silver head tossed its hair to reveal the girls face framed in mild affliction. Raising her arms she criss-crossed them to block the oncoming tsunami as best she could. In a cry of desperation she screamed out a name; "Pheo!" The screech of the bird ricocheted off the water as flames encased the female. With a hissing sigh, water met fire.

The wave tumbled down, spreading over the entire field lapping at the statue of the pair of hands preparing a jutsu. "Yes!" Came the cry from Gai's edge of the stadium.

Massive wings expanded, and flames licked eagerly at Ena's body and the thin yellow legs that tapered down to thick talons grasped the earth firmly. A red eye settled on the singed girl, while her skin was unharmed, her clothing was blackened at the edges. "I thought you'd never come…." Ena smiled wearily, rubbing the birds beak tenderly. "How could I forget you, little mitsukai…" The bird cawed, puffing out his chest toward his newest adversary, Nephinee. Who was gaping in apprehension, her mouth hanging open at the bird quadruple the size of an albatross, it's blazing eyes fixed on her form.

Regaining her composure quickly, Nephinee grimaced and preformed a successful back-flip and braced herself against the wall. Popping open all the caps of her water bottles, those left anyway, she summoned up her remaining power. Hand seals quickly done, she opened her depthless eyes and smiled. "Suiton, Suishouna!"

Another more powerful wave reared it's ugly head. Ena took action quickly and crouched, knowing Pheo couldn't protect her this time, the wave was far too large. Gathering what chakra she had left, she threw a smoke bomb as two blue blades of chakra twirled around her feet, kicking up a harsh gust as Pheo's wings brushed against the black cloud of smoke it sizzled and caught fire. Sending a spiral of broiling wind around her body.

The next wall of water gained speed, the strength of it pushed Nephinee even further into the wall, cracking it's surface. It was a battle of the elements as a giant tornado of fire barreled into the ever thickening wall of water, surprising a very confident Nephinee. Bringing her into the fading whirlwind it dashed her against the wall, beating her with the sharp chakra infused winds and fizzling flames.

As the dust faded, winds died and Pheo disappeared as suddenly as he had come, the victor was decided. Ena was barely standing, clutching the weight of her twin sister to herself. A soft sorrowful smile gracing her face. "The winner is Watanabe Ena!"

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"She'll be fine she just needs some rest and a bandage for her cuts. I just knocked her out. Ane-chan should be fine…" Ena assured the medic nins, as she handed her twin over. Nephinee had a very large lump, growing on the back of her beautiful head.

Trudging up the steps onto the balcony passing a few unrecognizable figures, Ena found her vision blackening. "Must've used to…much energy…." Her fingers curled around something , she used it to hold herself up for a few extra seconds before she collapsed onto the floor, dragging the thing down with her, but it maintained it's balance. Grabbing her hand and tearing it away from itself, she blinked slowly looking up. "A boy…?" She muttered.

His crimson red hair, swayed with the force of his body as he stood. Lips formed a thin angry line along his face. Around his eyes were black rings, a sign of insomnia. Power emanated from his body, the wrong kind of power, it wanted death, pain and suffering but not for her. As her eyesight faded, she felt the ground shudder while Gai rushed over, she looked into the male's blue-green eyes, they were filled with sadness and the loneliness it accompanied, the emotions she knew all too well.

Ena smiled, and the boy's face contorted into one of confusion, at the girl with the bloodied body and joyful eyes. "It's nice to meet you….I'm Ena." She whispered weakly, a smile growing on her drained features. A gust of wind, brushed by him, tugging at her hair.

Her head lolled to the side in her unconsciousness, her face still smiling in the pool of silver hair that surrounded her, the red-head's eyes widened in frustration and confusion. Why did the girl say that? 'It's nice to meet you?' No one had ever told him that before. Nor had anyone touched him in such a way that he could feel the warmth secreted from her body. Brushing the awkward feeling off, the tingly sensation in his chest stopped as he touched the area where his heart was, the feeling aggravated him.

He continued to glare at the strange girl, and he was compelled to reply to her statement. "I am Subaku no Gaara."

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Authors note: I do hope that you enjoyed it. Please review! :D