Here's Chapter 1, freshly rewritten! This honestly took so long. Why did I write such long chapters? I have taken the (poorly placed) lyrics out of the chapter entirely, but the story is still loosely based off of the song Should I Tell Her? by Ric Roc. Remember, this story is rated T for a reason. I reserve the right to use whatever language I feel is appropriate.
Should Tell Her?
By Socially Suicidal
Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or the song Should I Tell Her. I own Arina and this story, respectively.
Chapter One: Human Emotions
Sabaku no Gaara, Godaime Kazekage of Sunagakure no Sato, heaved a heavy sigh as he shoved a calloused hand through unruly, thick crimson locks. Staring down at the papers before him through bleary eyes, the young leader wished for the umpteenth time just for the ability to focus on his mundane paperwork.
'Damn it, too distracted. Sleep sounds like such a wonderful reprieve.'
'That it does, my boy. Provide me with the opportunity to ravage her better than you ever could,' mocked the entirely too familiar voice as the Shukaku skulked its way into the forefront of his subconscious.
'You truly are the most exasperating of the vermin,' Gaara shot back, wincing as the strain between his furrowed brow increased, causing the dull pains of a headache to begin throbbing through his skull.
The demon made a distinctive snorting noise, before replying with equal animosity, 'You're a choleric little human. Sensitive, are you? Perhaps if you give me what I want, you'll be cured of that.'
The Kazekage leaned back in his chair, running his hand over his face as he accepted that he would get no work done at the moment with the boisterous voice of the tankui ringing through his mind, 'And what would that be, you overgrown raccoon?'
'Allow me to make this quite simple for your finite human mind to comprehend,' chortled the demon mockingly, 'End this useless frustrating by simply approaching the female, apprehending her, and proceeding with the mating technique I explained the rabbits in the desert use.'
Snarling, the Kazekage impatiently gave a retort of, 'Go do that to yourself, depraved demon,' before deciding to promptly ignore the distorted bijuu and sink into a light meditation.
The presence of such human emotions was quickly grating on his thin nerves. He survived nearly his entire life not possessing such pointless attributes, and he was hard-pressed not to allow them to commandeer the slim control he had reined over himself when he became Kazekage. The cause of such reactions, his own best friend's most precious person, was entirely oblivious to the situation she had caused and was quickly approaching his village on a mission, under the recommendation of the Fifth Hokage. In a display of the peace and bonds between their two villages, Lady Tsunade had offered to send her star pupil to work in Suna's hospital and to train a team of medics that were thought to possess much more potential than any of his own jounin could make proper use of with their instruction.
He could only fathom that Naruto was accompanying her for the sole reason that the opportunity to get him off of Tsunade's back was simply too sweet a thing for the older woman to pass up.
Shukaku, peeved that he had so easily been discarded from the attention of his eternally insolent host, saw it fit to punish said host for his inattentiveness with an interesting scene to display before Gaara from within his very own mind.
Fighting the nausea of suddenly being torn from one consciousness into another, Gaara stumbled along a stone path before regaining his balance and surveying his surroundings. He recognized the place and continued down the path toward a small bridge crossing a calm stream. Leaning against the stones, he sucked a deep breath through his nostrils and calmly waited for whatever fuckery the demented demon had concocted for this fantasy.
Black rimmed jade eyes, unruly crimson hair, and a blank expression stared back up at the Kazekage in the clear water. A leaf landed on the reflection of his forehead, ruining the smooth image and warping it suddenly. Her reflection then blinked up at him, complete with petal pink hair and verdant pink eyes.
She appeared at his side, casually leaning over the same stone side and glancing down at the stream with an easy smile. "Good evening, Kazekage-sama."
He responded to her warm greeting with a characteristic grunt, eyes remaining fixed on the mirrored image of the kunoichi that smiled up at him from the water.
"If I may ask, what is the Kazekage doing out here so late?" She pondered conversationally, leaning on her elbow to turn toward him.
As he made attempt to reply, he found his throat was as dry as the desert he reigned and managed to cough out an, entirely undignified, grunt of, "Nothing."
Pink eyebrows drew together as she regarded him with sudden concern. Placing a gloved hand on his arm, the light tone she had previously used disappeared entirely, 'Are you feeling alright, Kazekage-sama?"
His control expunged, the Kazekage whirled on her and grabbed her wrist in a sudden dizzy movement that elicited a shocked squeak from the, barely, shorter shinobi. Gaara crudely yanked her forward, teeth grinding together as his jaw set with painful intensity.
"Gaara," he rasped, his height allowing him to stare down at her through narrowed eyes.
She stuttered, shocked from his sudden change in demeanor, "Al-alright, Ka…Gaara…" Her head tilted as she regarded him with intelligent eyes, and he found gravity to gain sudden intensity as he failed in his fight against the urge and began to lean forward…
His head smacked against the desk in front of him as he leaned forward just slightly too much, resulting in an angry red mark in the center of his forehead. A giggle sounded from somewhere in the vicinity, but the exhausted jinchuuriki pardoned it to have been a figment of his currently muddled mind.
"My, my, a little jumpy today are we?" whispered a voice, inches behind his ear. Jumping slightly, the Kazekage whirled his chair around but found the area behind him vacant. He whipped is head back around, the force of which nearly causing him whiplash, as a tsking noise echoed, now from in front of his desk. His dangerously narrowed eyes fell upon the image of his smirking kunoichi friend.
Fixing the jounin with the most heated glare he could muster, Gaara pulled himself in closer to his desk and crossed his arms soundly over his chest as he surveyed her smug form.
Seishin no Arina, his friend of many years, with her long, straight black hair, reaching just about to her lower back, long bangs that angled around her face, the longest parts reaching just at her shoulder and the shortest at the beginning at her eyebrow, parted in the middle and piercing white eyes smirked back at him.
Arina was clad in black capri pants, a black three quarter sleeve shirt under a sleeveless zipped tan colored vest that reached her mid stomach, with a black belt hanging lazily around her waist with a kunai and shuriken pouch hanging from it, and black boots reaching almost to the ends of her pants. The only thing symbolizing her strong bond with the Village Hidden in the Sand was the fingerless gloves she wore with the hourglass symbol on it.
One of his more elite jounin, Arina possessed a special ability that complimented her dexterous fighting skills and background in the medical field. Her strong mind ability enabled her to, based off of their chakra signatures, read and control the minds of others, in addition to granting her the ability contact demons and spirits sealed within people.
A rare strength within her clan, Arina's mastery of such abilities was known from the day of her birth, which inevitably led to the Fourth Kazekage's plan to utilize her in his plan to create the ultimate weapon from his very own son. Being three months older than her red-haired companion, Arina had already been betrothed to spend the rest of her waking days controlling and warping Gaara to do the will of the village when he was born.
The sickly smug expression adorning her pale face alerted the Kazekage to the fact that she had clearly seen his fantasy and heard his inner debacle with the sand demon, and was apparently very amused by it. Allowing a heavy exhale to leave his body, Gaara permitted gravity to take hold of his head as it fell forward to smash against his desk with an echoing thud.
"Now, now, Raccoon-chan, you will lose countless brain cells doing that," chirped the kunoichi as she waltzed over to the window sill and plopped down on it unceremoniously.
"Don't call me that," he muttered darkly, shifting some papers nonchalantly on his desk while he attempted to ignore her presence.
Her expression dropped into a feigned serious scowl as bowed her head deeply, deepening her voice in a monotone with her reply, "Yes, almighty Kazekage."
The thought, 'Sarcastic dimwit…' flitted through his mind momentarily, resulting in an unladylike snort to depart from the kunoichi.
"Sand brat," Arina retorted. Seeing his glare intensify, she shrugged coolly. "Well," she began, tone suspiciously casual, "It has not become an everyday occurrence that I'm fortunate enough to see the almighty Kage of ours so…" she feigned to be pondering, tapping her finger to her chin as if looking for the right word, "frustrated."
Gaara chose not to reply, the truth of this statement making him weary of any defense he could conjure up would just lead him further down this dangerous path. He was aware that he probably couldn't make up any plausible defense, anyway, due to the complete chaotic confusion the entire situation left him in. Why did his fan-girls repulse him so, while this seemingly plain girl caught and held his attention without even seeking it?
'You are ignorant as always, boy. The kunoichi cannot be compared to those harlots,' the Shukaku spoke up, languidly stretching its massive muscles in a deep corner of Gaara's mind.
'No vulgar comment? Full of surprises, for once, rodent,' Gaara shot back, not appreciating being called ignorant by the bijuu.
Acting as if Gaara had not replied, the demon digressed as he continued speaking, 'Although, I do suppose she makes the utmost delicious noises, if you can evoke them effectively.'
The Kazekage visibly tensed in reaction to the demon's eternally uncouth words, hand clasping tightly around the idle pen in his grasp. Arina smirked before closing her eyes, allowing the mental conversation to continue on uninterrupted.
'Perhaps you will now think more seriously before implying I was anything but what I am,' Shukaku chortled, 'She's refreshing, a most acceptable mate for us, I have decided.'
'Us?' Gaara retorted, scowling.
Shukaku scoffed, and then replied in the most sagely manner a bloodthirsty demon as he could manage, 'Only naturally is it that whomever it is that becomes your mate becomes mine as well.'
The Kazekage's nose wrinkled in disgust, shaking his head at the one-track mind of the bijuu, 'Truly, that is all you consider.'
'No, boy, you are aware that I think of a diverse number of things.'
Gaara only offered a challenging snort in response. Shukaku began pacing.
'Well, there is murder, murder is always a pleasing thought. And blood, a most interesting subject. Carnage, of course... Gore, perhaps gore and carnage. Our future mate caught in the middle of the desert, unblemished skin overcome with sand from m…'
Growling lowly, the pen in his grasp snapped immediately, 'Enough.'
Finding the present moment a suitable moment to intervene, Arina spoke up in a friendly, conversational tone that caused Gaara to snap his eyes in her direction. He stared at her unmoving form with narrowed eyes, but she chirped on, unaffected, 'Why, hello there, Shukaku.'
'Arina, it has been lifetimes.'Shukaku replied casually, taking a seat from his pacing and inclining his massive head toward the voice of the kunoichi.
'That was not unintentional,' quipped Gaara, as he snorted ungracefully and scowled.
'It has come to my attention,' Arina continued, effectively ignoring the Kazekage within the recesses of his own conscious, 'That our little cub has run into some difficulties, my old friend.'
'It would seem so,'agreed the demon, followed by the shrug of his sandy shoulders, 'If it were up to me, I would explain to her the situation and take her as my mate.'
Arina gave a short chuckle, stifling quickly to maintain the serious subject matter, 'Well, I agree with the first proposition. The second, however, I believe can wait.'
Snarling, the Kazekage slammed his hands onto his desk, standing up violently, "I can still hear you two assholes."
'Oh, of course, boy. No need to become so distressed.'
Arina gave a bark of laughter, eyes flying open as she returned the stare of the Kazekage, 'Right! Gaara! Hello, darling. Feeling pushy today?'
'Leave my mind, immediately.'
"Alright, alright, I'm out. Refrain from starting another world war in your tantrum," Arina replied calmly, casually brushing nonexistent dust from her physical form.
Grunting, Gaara returned to his seat, glare never leaving the sand kunoichi. Her invasion of his mind never failed to set him off. Being a rather private individual, for obvious reasons, the Kazekage was irked endlessly when Arina dropped in on his conversations with the bijuu, often times teasing them both, or providing a moderator (it was these times he was almost grateful for her uncanny ability to drop in mid-conversation).
"What does your insolence want?" Asked the exhausted Kazekage, expression falling into its normal indifference, save for the downward curl of his lips.
Concluded that he looked much, much older while he frowned, Arina feigned a hurt expression and glided over to his desk. Leaning disrespectfully on the corner, she replied, "Is it illegal for me to drop in and see how my little brother was doing?"
He resisted the sudden urge to roll his eyes; she would never let him live down those three months she was older than him by.
Gaara returned with a nasty growl, instead. "Well," Arina continued in a professional tone, standing tall and placing her hands on her hips, "I've decided to take mercy on your poor soul, and lend you some aid."
Concluding that she looked like a child who was planning to steal some extra cookies, Gaara braced himself for whatever stupidity she was talking about. He decided that he very much preferred the corporate Arina, who refused to tolerate ignorance and was taciturn and harsh, but quick to deliver a sharp verbal lashing if the need presented itself.
"Excuse me? Whatever could cause me to require assistance from you?" Gaara replied cautiously, hairless brow lifting as he considered her.
She merely grunted, shifting her weight from foot to foot, before replying curtly, "Why, your problem of course."
"What problem?" Perhaps the demon has described him adequately when he referred to him as choleric, the Kazekage could feel the vein in his forehead obscured by his thick red mane begin to throb obnoxiously.
Arina sighed, all patience suddenly rushing out of her body as she nearly yelled at him, "With your girl problem you imbecile. You know, the one with pink hair and a left hook that could make a boulder sing?"
"And what, exactly, would make you decide I possess such a problem?" Inquired the Kazekage heatedly, voice low and malicious, "And if it was so, who are you to believe I would appreciate help from you?" He had raised his voice and immediately regretted it. Gaara knew very well Arina was conscious of his lie, but the way she suddenly snapped her mouth closed and swallowed violently made him aware that, despite being one of the most malicious shinobi in his village, Arina did possess human qualities, such as feelings, that he could have easily hurt with his carelessness. The irrational part of his mind asked him why he cared, but the rational side reminded him that as Kazekage, and as her friend, it was his responsibility to be aware of his appearance to others and adjust it accordingly.
"Gaara, you do have a problem, and it is causing you to be unable to do your job. And," she murmured softly, eyes imploring him to see her reason;
"I'm going to help you regardless of if you desire my help or not, face it. You have too much on your mind and you cannot handle it alone."
Gaara nodded solemnly, unable to deny how correct she was, seeing as it was entirely pointless, "I still don't understand how you intend to help."
"Don't sell yourself short, Kazekage-sama," Arina purred, smirk set perfectly back in place as she teased him, "It would be impossible for her not to notice your progression from blood thirsty brat to esteemed Kage of this village, hell, it's impossible for anyone to be unaware of it. Don't underestimate your accomplishments. Now, when is Naruto supposed to be arriving?"
The skin of his brow lifted once more as he considered her question. Finally, he replied cautiously, "Why does that matter?"
"Well…" mumbled the sand kunoichi, immediately avoiding his piercing gaze and scratching the back of her neck coyly.
Gaara stood up once more, accusing stare daring her to meet his eyes, "What did you do?" he demanded.
Arina put her hands up immediately in her defense, backing away from him a few feet, as if the appendages could stop him if he decided to toss her out of his office window, "Settle down, settle down. I have done nothing."
Sinking back into his chair, but not removing the shackles of his stare from her, he replied slowly, "Anytime now."
"Where are they staying?" Inquired the sand shinobi, although fully aware of the arrangements for the two Konoha nin to reside in the Kazekage's residency for the duration of their stay.
"Not sure, to be honest. I believe Temari…" Blinking, the Kazekage immediately recognized his painful stupidity as he flew from his office chair, around his desk and passed a smirking Arina, to the door which he yanked open and barked to his secretary, "Send Temari into my office, immediately."
Momentarily stunned, the small receptionist sprung up from his seat with a shaky reply of, "Right away, Kazekage-sama!"
Sighing, Gaara closed his office door and allowed his back to lean against it. He pinned Arina with his calculating gaze, fully cognizant of her awareness that what he so deeply hoped was not going to happen, would indeed happen. "Revenge, is this revenge for the four month mission?"
"No, of course not!" Chirped the jounin, hands clasping together in front of her, "This is my revenge for you and Kankuro putting beetle juice in my shampoo when I was staying with you guys," she finished, voice sickly sweet and practically dripping with sugary menace.
He shrugged nonchalantly, muttering something that vaguely resembled, "We thought it was Temari's," as he stepped around her once more to take a seat at his desk.
Temari then barged in, casting him a swift glare and a playful, "Oh that's nice, thanks a lot." Teal eyes then suddenly fell to rest on Arina, and the wind mistress squealed uncharacteristically and entrapped the slighter girl into a deathly embrace. "Oh, Arina-chan, you're back! I've missed you! That moron should never have sent you on that mission for so long!" She pulled away from the girl, grasping her shoulders and shaking her roughly, "Do you have any idea what being with them alone is like? It's nightmarish!" She laughed without humor, pulling the asphyxiated kunoichi back in to continue slowly squeezing the life out of her.
"You'll … find out... j-just how h-horrible … b-being alone with… them… is fo-forever if-f you… k-kill me!" Arina choked, turning a light shade of purple that would have been a lovely shade on a flower that bloomed early in the spring time.
Temari blinked, releasing her, "Woops," she shrugged, scratching the back of her neck sheepishly. Turning her attention back to her little brother, her tone became professional once more. "What is it you wanted, little brother?"
"Where are Naruto and Haruno-san staying?" He asked bluntly, ignoring the pointless scene that they had just previously been displaying.
"Oh!" she exclaimed, waving her hand casually, "With us of course!" She failed to notice the sudden rush of blood leaving the face of the stone still Kazekage, "Arina and Sakura-chan can share a room," she glanced at Arina who nodded in agreement, "Since you have that extra bed."
'I'm looking forward to a very interesting stay, right Shukaku?' Arina whispered suavely, waggling her eyebrows at the Shukaku within Gaara's mind.
Arina could sense the grin, revealing rows of sharpened canines, that broke out over the bijuu's furry face as he replied, 'Yes, the girl staying with us shall be eventful if I have any say in it.'
'Well, that, and Gaara's room is right down the hall from mine,' replied the mind reader casually, smirking as she could predict the reaction of the sand beast.
'Leave it to my host to obscure that detail,' chortled the demon.
'This is going to be too much fun,' pride and excitement dripped from her every word.
"Get the fuck out of my mind, right now," Gaara roared, sand shooting from out of the gourd in the corner of the room to spill over the floor and coat it like a blanket of snow.
Arina smirked, not even bothering to feign the innocent look that her words suggested, "Oh, dear, you could hear that?"
Gaara growled, "It's my fucking mind you crazy wench."
Temari chuckled, trapping the girl within her arms and resuming to squeeze all life from her yet again, "Oh, how I've missed you so!"
"We better get one hell of a greeting, if that's the one she gets!" Laughed a voice from the hallway, right outside of his door that was increasing in volume rapidly as the speaker moved closer to the room.
'They're here…'
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