Chapter 1
"What're you talking about?" Naruto yelled, as he stared madly up at Kakashi. Kakashi smiled at the young boy, though you could only tell by his one visible squinting eye; most of his face was hidden by cloth and his hitai-ate, as usual.
"Naruto, calm down," Kakashi said calmly, as he ruffled his apprentice's hair, "I only said that your little bout with Gaara will have to wait."
Kakashi knew that it wasn't necessary to keep Naruto from his fight, but he felt that is was for the best. He had a bad feeling about that ninja from the Village Hidden in the Sand; there was a good chance that his inner demon would be let loose again, if he did indeed go up against Naruto.
"But…please, Kakashi? If I'm going to be the next Hokage, I have to be able to beat anyone. And that includes that creepy sand village guy. I know that I can do it! Believe it!" Naruto recited overconfidently, as he stroked a heroic pose.
"I'm sure you would be perfectly capable, but…no." Kakashi answered. He really didn't want to argue at the moment; he had just successfully completed an 'A' ranked stealth mission, and he was wiped.
((Change in focus))
"Man, Gaara's creepier than usual today…I wonder what's going on inside that head of his," Kankuro said to whomever happened to be listening.
"Tell me about it," Temari agreed, as she stopped polishing her deadly fan, and looked in the direction that Gaara had sulkily walked away.
Gaara had been acting strange all day; more so than usual, that is. He seemed more moody and emo than usual. Temari and Kankuro were afraid of their brother to begin with, but this was different. They felt that if they were to so much as breathe around him, they could end up dead; that's how thick the tension had grown to.
The two Sand Village occupants figured that Gaara was remembering his dark and gloomy past, although their comrade had never let it bother him before. That was one of the many rules of being a ninja; show no emotion. But although he didn't show his hurting, his inside was probably a whole nother story.
But there was nothing they could do about the matter, so they went on their way, and continued what they had been doing in the first place: Temari polishing her precious fan, and Kankuro thinking up battle strategies.
Soon they were finished their tasks, and they decided to do some battle training. They knew that they had to be some of the most talented ninjas of the Sand Village, but there was always room for improvement.
They made their way to their usual training ground, and then suddenly turned off their path. They had picked out a special spot deep in the woods, far away from their ordinary training ground, where there wasn't much chance on any other ninjas stumbling upon it. It was a place that only the three siblings knew about.
As they walked along, brittle leaves crunched under their feet with every step. It was midsummer, and the trees were enveloped by healthy green leaves. Chirping filled their ears, and the birds that were doing the talking flew all around Temari and Kankuro.
"Get!" Kankuro told the passing birds, as he waved his hands in the air. He didn't have time for childish things like watching birds fly by.
"Leave 'em alone, Kankuro. They never did anything to you," Temari scolded, as she pushed away one of the many leaf-covered branches that were sticking out onto the path.
"Right, but they could be spies. A ninja can use anything against an opponent," Kankuro pointed out.
Temari fell silent. She knew that her brother was right, but she hated the thought of war, and the place they were heading was one of the few places they could escape from it.
They continued on, and pushed through the bushes and branches that seemed to point at them from all angles. They made their way through the course that they had set up. Soon, though not before obtaining a few cuts and scratches, they arrived at their destination.
"Watch out for the traps," Kankuro cautioned, as he stepped over one of the many traps that surrounded the peaceful clearing. He wanted this to be a sanctuary, and he was fully prepared to protect it. Keeping that in mind, he said, "I set them up, just in case."
"Good thinking. You can never be too careful, when you're a ninja," Temari concurred.
Once they avoided the traps that had been so carefully set up, they stepped into the clearing that they called their own. It was their own special place; a place to train, to be alone, to escape from the reality of war, and a place to just… be themselves.
They enjoyed the peaceful calmness that was concealed within their little getaway, hoping with all their hearts that the Sand Village's constant wars wouldn't reach it.
The longer they stayed, the more at peace they felt. As the two stood there in the clearing, the peacefulness washed over them, and the gradually felt very calm and collected. That was another thing they liked about the hideaway; it was hard to not relax.
Little did they know, Gaara was hidden among the trees at the other end of the clearing.
((Change in focus))
Even though the clearing had a way of relaxing people, it had the exact opposite effect on Gaara. The place seemed to bring back memories of his childhood, when he was an outcast, and was alone and wondering most of the time.
"Why?" he whispered loudly to himself, "Why did father have to put this…THING inside of me?" He sadly gazed up at the cloudless blue sky. A feeling of great sadness washed over him, making him sadder than he had been in a long time.
He decided that sulking wouldn't get him anywhere, so he left his place in the shade of a great oak tree to go find some action. At least if he was on the most wanted list like Orochimaru, he'd get some well-deserved attention.
He walked into the clearing, and got a nasty surprise. His food landed in one particularly grassy patch, and discovered one of Kankuro's traps; he had neglected to tell Gaara about them.
Gaara was lifted high into the air by the thick rope that was now tied to his ankle. He didn't exactly like hanging upside down like an opossum, so he started working at the complex knot that held him there. But although he tried, he didn't put much effort into it; he got some time to cool down, and attempt to talk himself out of his decision. Although he was desperate for attention, he didn't want to completely ruin his life.
"Impudence…" he muttered, as he continued to effortlessly work at the knot. Without him noticing, the sand demon that was harbored in his flesh sprang to life and protected him. In an instant, a thick barrier of sand was reaching out from his urn, five kunai sunk deeply into it.
((Change in focus))
"What was that?" Temari asked, as she attempted to locate where the noise had come from. She easily found where it originated, as a flock of birds flew into the air as soon as it had happened.
"I don't…hey! That's one of the traps I set! Something must have triggered it!" Kankuro said, fear creeping into his voice.
"Or someone…" Temari whispered sadly.
Kankuro took note of his sister's sadness. If an intruder had found their little piece of land, they would have no hideaway; no place to hide from the harshness of the constant wars that raged in the Village of the Sand. It wasn't really himself that he was worried about; he could handle it. It was Temari he was fretting for; she needed this place.
Keeping his younger sister's needs in mind, he got ready for a potential battle. He didn't want to disturb the peace and engage in a fight, but he was prepared to if things came to that.
In moments he and Temari had thought up a plan, and were leaping through the trees. As they hopped from tree to tree, they surveyed the scene. They didn't spot anyone on the ground, nor did they spy anyone among the trees.
"Where's the trap?" Temari asked, tension creeping into her quivering voice.
The last of the birds were flying from their perches in the trees, secretly telling the two that the trap was just ahead. "It's just around the corner…there!" Kankuro announced when he saw something hanging from a tree. "That's the trap. Looks like we did catch someone."
As the two advanced, they slowed their pace. Not only did they slow to remain hidden, though; Temari had also become very depressed at the thought of invaders. If the culprit was dangerous they had to be very careful, so they both kept that in mind as they crept along at a slower pace.
"Gaara!" Temari gasped when she observed him hanging upside down from the tree.
"Get. Me. Down," the boy hissed.
"OK, Gaara…I'm so sorry! It'll never happen again!" Kakuro reported in a very intimidated voice. His voice was filled with fear of his big brother.
He unwrapped the binding that held his puppet to his back, and sent it up the tree to retrieve his brother. It did its job quickly, as Gaara was back on his feet in no time.
"Gaara, are you OK?" Temari questioned, relief filling her voice. She was truly happy that her safe place was unharmed. Although she'd been prepared to protect it, she wouldn't've liked it.
"Go…away…" Gaara muttered. His being in the air had given him time to think. He could've easily gotten down, though he'd chosen not to; his sand had been busy protecting him, so he'd had nothing to worry about. He'd used that time to work out his emotional predicament.
"Gaara…" Temari sighed. She was used to his odd behavior, but she'd never really accepted it.
"Why…am I like this?" he asked the air, with genuine hurt in his voice. The emotional strain was obviously too much for him; years of suppressing his emotions had been bound to lead up to it.
Then, without warning, the demon inside Gaara began to act up. Sand poured continuously out of his urn, and completely surrounded the Sand Village ninja.
"Gaara…what's going on? What're you doing?" Kankuro asked curiously. He'd never seen his brother like this, and it was slightly bothering him.
"I…don't know…" Gaara uttered, as the sand stared digging a hole in the ground. The hole just happened to be taking shape in Gaara's vicinity, and was forming around his body. The hole got deeper and deeper, and Gaara went along with it; as it got deeper, he sunk into the soft earth more. Soon, only his head was poking above the ground.
Gaara's brother and sister were stunned. They had no idea what was going on, and the whole event was starting to frighten them.
"H-help…" Gaara managed to say, as he sunk farther into the earth.
His siblings moved to help him, but they were too late. Just as they stuck out their hands to grab him, the sand completely engulfed him, and smoothed over as well, erasing all evidence of the ordeal.
Desperate to save their brother, they reached into the ground where he had disappeared and grasped the only thing they could find. It was soft and string, and they assumed they had grabbed hold of Gaara's hair. They tugged it, and it came out very easily.
"It's just…it's just grass…" Temari said in a dumbfounded tone of voice, as she stared at the large clump of green grass that was sitting in the palm of her hand.
((End of Chapter 1))
Well, my second fanfiction is here! This makes me so happy...I just love to write and see what other people think of it. I know I say that in every fanfiction I write, but it's true! And please, review this thing! I love to know how it's bad, how it's good, how I can improve, and all that other stuff!
I got my laptop earlier this week, so this fanfiction should progress fairly quickly. But keep this in mind: this is a side project until my first Inuyasha fanfiction is complete. It only has a few more chapters, but this could still take a little while to update...I have a case of writer's block at the moment.
Chapter 2 comign soon!
Disclaimer time! I do NOT own Inuyasha or Naruto...just wait for a minute while I sob...all done! Now read! Read to your heart's content!!
