Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.
Note: This story occurs in the year after Konoha's destruction.
Note 2: This story is strictly AU, will have OC, and some may be OOC.
Note 3: Rating may change.
Note 4: This is somewhat a rewrite of Riakou's The Three Sacred Treasures.
Warning: Yaoi and Yuri alert
Sasuke kicked the tree high, flipping backwards. Swiftly, he pulled kunai out of his pocket, throwing them at the tree. Sweat ran down his face and had already drenched his clothes. It was dark, and if you could see the clouds, you'd know that it was about to rain.
It was hours after his practice with his team. And still he was practicing. He had to. He had to get stronger! Of course, he could go to Orochimaru…
"No!" Sasuke said, punching the tree.
'No,' Sasuke thought, 'I won't go to him. No, I won't leave the village. I won't! I will defeat Itachi on my own, with my own strength!'
Sasuke punched the tree again, slowing down though. He was exhausted, and the fatigue was beginning to overtake him. He stood back from the tree, swaying back and forth. His knees buckled, and the ground was threatening to meet his face.
"Keep training like this, and you'll collapse." A girl's voice said to him.
Sasuke froze; he recognized that voice! But it's been so long…six long years…
Sasuke tried turning around, but tipped over slightly, falling towards the ground. A pair of warm but strong hands held him up. Turning his head, he instantly recognized the twelve year old girl. She had thunder yellow eyes and brownish black hair that barely swept her shoulder. She wore a tight white dress with grey silver clouds and golden thunder and lightning. The sleeves were long, and somewhat in the bell style, while it rose three inches above her knees.
Sasuke panted, "You –? But…How?"
"Maybe I'll explain later, Sasuke." The girl said. "What have I told you about overworking yourself?"
"Well…I…"
She smiled, "You're the same as always. I'll help you to your apartment."
"But, my training,"
"Probably ended hours ago." The girl slung Sasuke's arm around her neck. Slowly, she began to walk him down the path through the forest towards the village of Konoha.
"It's familiar." Sasuke said quietly.
"What is?"
"This path."
The girl smiled again, "So you remember?"
"It hasn't been that long." Sasuke said indignantly, "Besides, I'm not that bad at remembering things." She chuckled. Sasuke continued, "You said that exact same thing right before we walked down this path last time."
"Yes, well, old habits die hard." She eyed Sasuke, "That's for sure."
"And what's that supposed to mean!?"
She chuckled, "Nothing, nothing. I meant nothing by it, Sasuke."
Sasuke sighed, feeling his eyes begin to droop. "It's good to have you back…Khatereh." His eyes closed, and he was asleep.
fumikomu ze akuseru kakehiki wa nai sa sou dayo
yoru wo nukeru
nejikomu sa saigo ni sashihiki zero sa sou dayo
hibi wo kezuru
kokoro wo sotto hiraite gyutto hiki yosetara
todoku yo kitto tsutau yo motto sa aa!
iki isoide shiboritotte
motsureru ashi dakedo mae yori zutto sou tooku he
ubaitotte tsukandatte
kimi janai nara imi wa nai no sa
dakara haruka kanata
Naruto
Beyond What You See
Chapter One
Down This Path Again
He felt so warm, so rested. His heart was a puzzle made of little puzzle pieces. Only, the puzzle pieces were mixed, misplaced, and lost. But now, he felt as if a piece of the puzzle had been placed where it belonged, and his heart felt one step closer to being whole again.
It had been so long since Sasuke had actually been content; so long since he could actually sleep so easily. Sasuke snuggled deeper into the covers of his bed, enjoying the warm sunlight streaming through the window of his apartment. A small smile graced his pale face.
'Khatereh…' Sasuke thought. He suddenly shot up, throwing the covers forwards and he shouted, "Khatereh!" Sasuke looked around. He was in his room. He was in his bed and in his sleep clothes. This was his apartment. Last night…Had it even occurred? Was it all a dream? No, he couldn't think of that, he just couldn't. That couldn't have been all just a dream. He didn't want it to be a dream! Like the day she left his side, tears welled into Sasuke's eyes. He wiped them away; no, no more crying. So what if it all had been just a dream. It didn't matter, not after all these years. She was gone; how could she be alive after all that. When she left, he saw the blood that she'd left behind. It wasn't possible for her to be alive.
Sasuke began to scan his room again, desperate to find something that would take his mind off of her. Then his eyes fell upon the figure on the couch across from him. They widened.
She slept so peacefully, her eyes closed lightly. A blanket lay almost weightless on her lithe figure. She seemed to sleep so deeply, yet her sleep also seemed to be fragile.
Sasuke dare not move, lest he awaken Khatereh, only to find that he himself were the one dreaming. No, he couldn't risk that.
His dreams…They were so sweet, so comforting. He missed her so much. Yet…They seemed so bitter. He could reach out and touch her in his dreams, speak to her in his dreams, as if she were real. But then he'd awaken, only to find himself alone in his apartment.
Finally, he couldn't stand it any longer. Throwing the covers completely off, Sasuke walked over to the couch. He sat down next to the sleeping form, leaning over her just to touch her face and then hesitating. If he dared to touch her, would she disappear? Would he wake up? He didn't want to.
Khatereh began to shift in her sleep, wiggling slightly. Sasuke froze in his spot.
Khatereh's eyes fluttered opened. A look of surprise crossed her face, "Sasuke? What's…What're you doing? Is everything alright?"
"Are you…You're not disappearing." Sasuke stated, "I'm not waking up."
Khatereh looked confused, "Of course I'm not disappearing. And you can't wake up because you're already awake. What's wrong?"
"I thought you were a dream." Sasuke said, feeling dumb.
"A dream? Okay, that confirms it. Sasuke, you train way too hard."
Sasuke sighed in relief.
Khatereh propped herself up on her elbows. "So, is there anything else bothering you?"
"Yeah; how did we get here?" Sasuke questioned. "And who dressed me!?"
"I ran into a strange man in the village." Khatereh answered, "See, you fell asleep when we reached the village. He had grayish hair, and when he noticed me with you, he told me where you lived. So I brought you here. Oh, and I dressed you. I didn't think you'd want to sleep in sweaty, dirty clothes."
A blush graced Sasuke's face and he looked shocked, "You dressed me!?"
"It wouldn't have been the first time I've seen you naked before." Khatereh commented. Sasuke's blush deepened. "What're you blushing for? We've known each other since I was six, and you were eight."
"Hey Sasuke!" An annoying voice shouted through his apartment door. "I had a key, so I came inside!" It was Naruto. "Oh, and I hope you don't mind Shikamaru being here either! We were supposed to go to that stupid presentation, remember!?"
"Shut up." A slow, slurred slightly, voice said, "He's probably asleep. We should just leave him be…I know I would."
Naruto suddenly burst into the room, a goofy grin on his face, "Hey Sasuke! Wake up!!" He caught the two in a very personal moment. Sasuke was still crouched over Khatereh, and Sasuke's blush still hadn't disappeared all the way yet.
"S-Sasuke!?" Naruto looked dumbfounded.
"Naruto!" Sasuke shouted, obscuring Naruto and Shikamaru's view of Khatereh with his body. "What the hell are you doing!?"
"I could ask you the same thing!" Naruto shouted back.
"Man, this is a drag…" Shikamaru said, putting a hand to his face.
"This is my apartment!" Sasuke said indignantly. "Where did you get a key!? I never gave you one!"
"Kakashi Sensei had it made for me, and what're you doing to that girl!?!"
Khatereh wriggled out from under Sasuke, standing, "All of this shouting is giving me a headache."
Naruto looked her up and down. Then, it was he and Shikamaru's turn to blush.
"What do you think you're doing!" Shikamaru complained, "Just standing up like that! You're not even fully dressed!"
"First of all, this gown isn't that revealing. A little high cut, but not really. Second, I'm allowed to wear what I want in this apartment. Besides, it's your fault for trespassing into someone else's home. Who told you to come in?"
"What's that supposed to mean?" Naruto questioned, "What, do you live here? Are you Sasuke's girlfriend!?!?!"
Khatereh sighed, pitying the boy while Sasuke said, "No you moron, she's not my girlfriend. She's my friend."
Naruto, however, wouldn't drop the subject. "Were you two about to kiss!?!"
"I told you, she's just a friend!"
"Listen, child," Khatereh said, despite the fact that she was younger than Naruto, "Sasuke and I are just friends. I happened to be visiting Sasuke, so he let me stay here for now. Now, what's this about some presentation?" Realization dawned on Khatereh, and she sighed, "So that's today…I forgot that it was today…Oh no! We're going to be late!"
The all looked at Khatereh, "What, you know about the presentation?"
Khatereh nodded, "Yes. In fact, I'm in the presentation. Now hurry up, Sasuke. Go change; you don't want to be late. This one's important."
"Fine." Sasuke pulled off of Khatereh and walked to his bathroom, closing the door behind him. Khatereh sat back down on the couch. Naruto and Shikamaru continued to stare at her.
"You know, it's rude to stare." Khatereh said. "Do you have a question?"
"How do you know Sasuke?" Naruto asked.
"I've known him since we were children."
Shikamaru examined her, "I've never seen you before. I wasn't aware that Sasuke left the village when he was younger."
"That's because he didn't, and I'm not from your village."
"Then where are you from!?" Naruto questioned.
"A long time ago, my village visited Konoha. I met Sasuke then."
Naruto was about to ask another question when Shikamaru raised a hand. A moment later, Sasuke came out of the bathroom, his head slightly wet.
"Do you mind if I use your bathroom?" Khatereh asked.
"Of course not."
Khatereh stood, grabbing a pack and walking into the bathroom. Naruto stared at Sasuke as he towel dried his hair.
Noticing, Sasuke asked, "What?"
"Are you sure you two aren't –?"
"No." Sasuke answered bluntly.
"I've got to leave you now." Khatereh told them as they entered the Academy building. "I'll see you soon."
"Bye." Sasuke said.
The three made their way to the assigned room. It was a large one, and all the teams were there.
"Good morning, my Shinobi." Tsunade said to them. "Today I want you to meet some special people. Please welcome some of the new Genin that have just past this year."
As she said this, a group of eight walked in, six girls and two boys. They were all twelve, except two who were thirteen.
"This year, we have a very special process." Tsunade continued, "Two of each of these eight students along with another Jounin will join your team on certain missions. Then, afterwards, the new Genin will switch off with another team, going in a cycle. The Jounin, however, is added permanently." Tsunade beckoned for the Jounin to come into the room as well. There were two males and two females. "I will call your Jounin first, then your team, and then a will appoint the new additions to your teams."
Sasuke looked at the crowd and noticed that Khatereh stood amongst them.
"Guy Might. Tenten, Hyuuga Neji, Lee Rock." Tsunade called out. The team stood up. "You receive Team D. Jounin: Sasaki Takumi. Genin: Hyuuga Yanagi, Ito Marise."
Neji smiled as he watched his sister approach.
Takumi was sixteen years old. He had intelligent light brown eyes and silver grey hair. He wore a tight pure black shirt that showed his muscles on his upper body. It was no sleeved. His pants were black too. Brace wrappings were around his hands and wrists. His head band was around his wrist while his pouch for shuriken was around his upper arm.
Yanagi was twelve. She looked like Neji, same hair and eye color. Her hair was short and reached slightly past her shoulder. With her headband, she tied her hair into a ponytail. Yanagi wore a white no sleeved shirt and black shorts.
Marise had big, innocent amber eyes and brown hair with natural red highlights. He wore a nice black tunic with loose black cloth pants. The buttons on his tunic were white. His was around his neck.
"Hatake Kakashi. Haruno Sakura, Uchiha Sasuke, Uzumaki Naruto: Team A. Jounin: Rhapsody Khatereh. Genin: Kachuu, Sato Ryunosuke."
Khatereh smiled amusedly at both Sasuke and Naruto's dumbfounded expressions. Kakashi, however, was watching the girl.
Kachuu was a thirteen year old female. She had long, golden blonde hair that spiked at the ends and beautiful blue eyes. Kachuu wore a dark blue black, long sleeved shirt with a collar that rose up her neck slightly and matching pants, as well as a short sleeved red jacket with a high collar and reached down to her ankles. Her head band was around her forehead.
'So the fortune teller was right…' Kakashi observed.
Ryunosuke, thirteen, on the other hand had bright, electrifying green eyes. His hair was black and took on a greenish bluish tinge. He had a confident smirk on, and his hair was slightly long spikes. He wore a no sleeved reddish black shirt as well as black pants. His headband was around his left forearm. Ryunosuke wasn't just handsome or cute, but he was extremely handsome, and by his expression he knew it.
"Sarutobi Asuma. Akimichi Choji, Nara Shikamaru, Yamanaka Ino: Team C. Jounin: Hidaka Amaterasu. Genin: Takara, Yamanaka Yuuha."
Shikamaru looked shocked and turned to Ino and whispered, "Why didn't you tell me Yuuha was going to be joining out team?"
"I didn't." Ino said indignantly, "It was withheld information, and besides that it's random."
Amaterasu looked to be about eighteen years old. She wore a tight dress that reached three inches above her knee. It was a dark blue color. Her shuriken pouch was around her forearm. Her eyes were light purple; her hair was light brown, long and wavy. Her head band was around her head.
Takara was truly a gem, and only twelve years at that. Her body was well toned, lithe, and fit. Takara had beautifully silky garnet colored hair and sapphire eyes. She wore nothing more than a black strip of cloth across her chest and short black cloth shorts. Her head band was around her right thigh.
Yuuha looked a lot like her sister. Her eyes were the same green blue, and their hair was the same blonde as well. Only, Yuuha's hair was barely able to touch her shoulders. She wore a slimming, short sleeved, light purple dress that reached to her knees. Her headband was around her small waist.
"And lastly: Yuuhi Kurenai. Aburame Shino, Hyuuga Hinata, Inuzuka Kiba: Team B. Jounin: Takahashi Tetsuya. Genin: Yukika, Suzuki Umika."
As they made their way to join the team, Sasuke looked over at Kiba and Shino, glaring murderously at them. Puzzled they watched the three approach.
Tetsuya had black hair. His eyes were midnight blue with silvery flecks. He wore simply a black short sleeved shirt with a silvery yellow moon upon it. His pants were dark blue, a pouch of shuriken around his forearm rather than his leg. He wore his head band around his head.
Yukika had dark black blue hair and black eyes. He skin was pale too. She wore a tight blue tank top and black shorts.
Umika wore a white tube top and dark blue pant. Her hair reached to the middle of her back and was dark brown. Her eyes were an enchanting blue, and how dark the shade was changed with lighting.
"Now that your teams have been sorted," Tsunade said, "You will train with your current team and perform missions with them until the time of the switch."
"You're a Jounin!?" Naruto questioned Khatereh.
Khatereh had changed to a more serious one while out in public, "Yes, Naruto."
"Why didn't you say so before?"
"You never asked." Khatereh answered.
"I'm glad you were mixed into our group." Sasuke commented quietly to her.
"So, what do you think of our group so far?" Kakashi asked Kachuu.
"I think its fun." Kachuu answered. "But I think the blonde haired one is a bit weird."
"What, do you mean you or Naruto?" Kakashi asked jokingly.
Kachuu smiled and thought for a moment, "Both."
"Hey, you're Ryunosuke, right?" Sakura asked, a tinge of pink on her cheeks, but it was hardly noticeable.
"Yeah, so?" Ryunosuke answered.
"You're thirteen?" Ryunosuke nodded, and Sakura continued, "Hey, that means we're the same age!"
Ryunosuke raised an eyebrow at her, "Sakura, aren't you the least bit creeped out by the fact that you're supposed to be my teacher as well as Kakashi Sensei and Khatereh Sensei?" Shutting his eyes as if reminiscing, "Don't get too worked up over me. I'm not the type of person you'd want to date. Take my word for it; I'd bring much more grief than happiness."
Sakura flustered and protested, "No! No! That's not what I was talking about!"
"Look, I'm only thirteen getting out of the Academy because of Kachuu. I could've aced the exams last year, but I was Kachuu's only friend. So, I bombed it."
Sakura looked shocked, "On purpose!?" Ryunosuke nodded. "But why would you do that!?"
"Friends do stuff for each other." Ryunosuke stated simply, "I didn't want Kachuu to be all alone. What other choice did I have? Besides, it was just one year."
"But there's a lot you can do in one year." Sakura told him. "You could be Chunin by now…"
"I told you: Friends do stuff for each other." Ryunosuke said, "You may think it's stupid, but I don't."
Gaara traveled aimlessly down the path. He was in Konoha. He'd run away yesterday; he didn't want to go home. At least, not with them. It was dangerous, but if he stayed in the woods no one would notice him hopefully.
He couldn't go back to Suna, he just couldn't. He couldn't go to that place because once he'd gotten there, they'd tell him what a horrible job he did on the invasion of Konoha. But the truth was, he had been shocked the entire time he was there. For the first time in his life, someone had actually hit him and made him feel pain. For the first time in his life, someone had actually made him bleed. Someone had broken through his sand shields. Besides that, he didn't want to hurt anyone, not even Sasuke, but the Shukaku…The demon demanded sacrifices…
Gaara winced; the Shukaku's lust for blood was once again trying to take over. No, he couldn't let that happen, not yet at least. They'd know it was him right away. Not only would that alert Konoha, but it would also alert Suna. They probably still hadn't noticed he wasn't there anymore.
A jolt of pain ran up Gaara's body, squeezing at his heart. Gaara was almost brought to his knees by the unfamiliar emotion. And then a memory floated back to him…
A six year old Gaara walked up to the door. He knocked on it a few times and waited for someone to answer. A moment later, one of the children he'd hurt earlier answered the door. Her eyes were wide at the sight of him, but Gaara couldn't tell if it was fear…Or hate.
Mentally shaking it away, Gaara said to the girl, "I'm sorry about before. It hurt, right?" Gaara held a paper bag up to her, "Here, this is ointment. Us it if you want…"
The girl gave him an angry, spiteful look, "Go home." She promptly slammed the door in his face before shouting, "Monster!"
Gaara slowly lowered the bag as he stared at the closed door. It hurt, his heart hurt. And he couldn't make it go away. He felt like crying, but the tears wouldn't come.
Gaara slowly let the package drop until it hit the floor. Staring forlornly at the ground, Gaara turned and began to walk home, alone. He briefly passed by his father leaning against a building. He simply glared at Gaara with as much contempt as the girl, if not more. 'Father…' Sadly, Gaara turned away from his own father and walked away.
His legs began to move quicker. Faster and faster they went, until he sped down the road. He'd no idea where he was going, but he had to get away. Somehow, he had to get away, away from this God-awful pain. He had to; there was no way around it. Gaara began to run so fast that he could no longer see.
Little did he know, but an eleven year old girl stepped out in front of him. She had dark purple brown hair, and her eyes were an enchanting, wondrous grey blue that shifted between shades of grey blue with the lighting.
Gaara kept on running, colliding head on into the girl. She didn't seem to move from the collision, staying right where she was. Gaara looked up, horrified that he'd crashed with someone, fear gripping him tightly as he thought, 'Not another assassin!'
Gaara looked up into grey blue eyes. They weren't hard, cold, glaring, or anything like that. They were soft and kind. He recognized those eyes.
"Hey, Gaara." The girl said to him softly.
Gaara suddenly launched himself forwards, wrapping his arms around her small, toned waist. He buried his head into her stomach, willing the tears to come, but they still wouldn't.
The girl's eyes became concerned, "Hey, now, what's wrong?" While she thought, 'Everything. Everything about his life is wrong, that's what. I wish I could help more than simply this…'
The girl dropped to her knees and Gaara wrapped his tiny arms around her neck, laying his head on her shoulder, burying it deeper and deeper.
The girl wrapped her arms around the tiny boy and said quietly, "I heard about this afternoon…"
Gaara froze. "No, I didn't mean it! I didn't want to hurt them! Please don't leave me!"
The girl pulled Gaara away until she could look into his fearful and sad eyes, "I'm not going to leave, Gaara. Is that why you're out so late? Why aren't you at home?"
"I was trying to give them ointment…" Gaara looked at the ground.
The girl smiled softly, "That was very kind of you."
"The girl slammed the door in my face!" Gaara shouted out of pain.
"It's okay." The girl pulled Gaara back to her, wrapping her arms around him once more. "Don't let them bother you, Gaara. They can't appreciate what a wonderful person you are. It's their loss." The girl picked him up gently, cradling him. Gaara buried his head into her chest, the tears finally coming.
"It's okay, Gaara." The girl whispered, "I'll protect you for as long as I can. I will protect you, I promise…"
Gaara found that tears were running down his cheeks. Who was the girl? Why couldn't he remember!? He wanted the memory to stop there, for it brought another with it, but it didn't, it wouldn't…
"Good night, Gaara." The girl brought him to his house. He looked back at her smiling face as he went inside his home. Yashamaru, his uncle, didn't seem to be home yet. That was alright, Gaara needed time alone anyway. He made his way to the roof of the house, wiping away tears.
He sat on the ledge, the full moon behind him. 'It didn't go well…' He thought. Looking at his hands with such forlorn, Gaara continued with his thoughts, 'Why am I the only one who is a monster?' Gaara brought his hands to cover his face, shutting the world out, 'Why am I?'
Gaara briefly remembered Yashamaru's words: "The thing that can heal a wound of the heart…is love."
'Yashamaru…' He thought, clutching at the pain in his heart.
A moment later, kunai flew at him from behind, colliding with a shield of sand. Gaara pulled his face from his hands in shock and fear. Gaara turned, the sand molding around him. Why did there have to be another?
Gaara saw the figure, standing menacingly, kunai floating around him. 'What…?"
Gaara looked afraid, watching the assassin, 'Why?' Soon, Gaara's anger bubbled out, 'Why do I…Why am I the only to have to go through all of this!'
Gaara readied himself, allowing the anger to take control. He stood in a position ready for fighting.
The assassin launched more kunai at him. The sand covered Gaara, only leaving a slit area for Gaara to see out of. Maneuvering well, Gaara sent his sand to encase the assassin. It wrapped around him, crushing him at Gaara's angry will. Blood stained the grounds.
Gaara realized what he'd done; he'd killed yet another…Fear now took hold of him as he looked at the fallen man. His eyes were wide with fear as he asked, "Who are you…?" Gaara held his arms in front of his chest, "Why…?"
Gaara noticed the hurt finger, it was just like Yashamaru's…And an even greater fear took hold of Gaara, one that he wished would go away. He walked to the man, pulling the mask off, only to have his fears confirmed. The assassin was Yashamaru, his face bloody.
"You are strong, as I expected…Gaara." Yashamaru spoke.
The pain was too immense. It hurt too much. Gaara clutched his heart again. He was confused, afraid, hurt; the emotions, they were too strong, too painful. He wanted them to go away. He wished this were all just a dream. But it wasn't. What he'd done wasn't a dream; it was real.
'Yashamaru…' Gaara thought, raising his hand to clutch his head.
Gaara fell to his knees next to him, sand spurted upwards. Tears ran down his face, as he asked his uncle, "Why?"
Yashamaru answered, "Love is the spirit of devoting yourself to someone important and close to you…It is expressed by caring for and protecting that person. Just like my sister."
"You are a person who is important and close to me, Gaara." Yashamaru had said to him once with a smile.
Gaara wiped his tears, "You…You…I thought that you were…"
"It was an order." Yashamaru continued, "I was ordered to kill you." Gaara's eyes widened. "By your father…Kazekage."
"Father did…?" Gaara couldn't believe it. A hand went up to his mouth, stifling a cry of horror. Gaara began to sob as more tears continued to fall, "Father? Why? Why me?"
Yashamaru didn't stop his onslaught there, "Deep within my heart…I hated you. This is it. Please die." An explosion, and Yashamaru's body was blown to bits. Gaara, on the other hand, had been protected by an arch of sand. But he wished that the sand hadn't protected him and left him to die. Gaara huddled inside, anger, confusion, pain, they all coursed through him as Yashamaru's words sank in. Slowly, the sand lowered. In an instant, Gaara's world cracked, and he felt the ground beneath him fall. Now, all that remained was darkness. A pair of red eyes appeared out of the darkness and consumed him.
Anger once again took control as the Shukaku within willed it. The sand swirled upwards as Gaara began to disappear and the Shukaku began to push out. The sand webbed behind him.
From the explosion, many others were beginning to arrive, only to look with horror as he began to transform. One raised kunai at the child, who hadn't noticed them. A metallic ring pierced the night.
It was the girl.
She'd kicked the kunai from the man's hand. She glared at them all.
"It's her!" They all cried, recognizing the skilled Jounin of eleven.
"If anyone of you hurts Gaara!" She shouted a threat, "I'll kill you myself!"
"Then what're we supposed to do!?" One shouted back, "He'll tear the entire village down!"
The girl turned from them, ignoring their protests. Instead, to their horror, she boldly stepped towards Gaara.
"Gaara," She whispered softly to him. "Gaara, I know you can hear me in there. Please listen…" Tears were still falling, but the sand continued to swarm. "Gaara, it's me, do you not recognize my voice?"
The sand swirled around her, too, but unlike Yashamaru did not crush her. She remained calm and said, "Gaara, we talked about this. Do not allow the Shukaku to take control of you. When you do, you're allowing the Shukaku to act as you, when in truth this is not you. If you allow it any further, the Shukaku will begin to meld with Gaara, and Gaara will be lost to the demon forever. You must grasp what is yours, and push away what is the Demon's. Please, Gaara, listen to me."
Gaara sobbed, pushing the Shukaku back, "S-sen…sei…Sensei!" The sand dropped suddenly, and the girl held Gaara in her arms.
She was smiling to him, "It's going to be okay, Gaara. I promise I won't allow them to hurt you. I'll take care of you."
The girl turned back to them. They looked at her with shock, terror, and horror: She was holding the monster!
"Give the child to me." The Kazekage suddenly walked out of the crowd.
The girl glared angrily at him, "I won't."
"What!? You dare to defy me!?"
"Unlike everyone else," The girl said, "I'm not afraid of you. I don't fear cowards!"
They gasped; she dared to call the Kazekage a coward!? And to his face!?
"What kind of man are you!?" The girl continued with her angry rampage, "You send others to do your dirty work for you!? If you had to try to kill Gaara, you could at least come yourself! What kind of a person tries to kill their own son!?!"
Gaara's grip around her neck grew tighter. He felt so tired, but he didn't want to sleep, lest they convince his Sensei to kill him as well. But he had to trust her. He had to. She wouldn't hurt him, not after all that she'd done for him. She was defying his father for him, and only him.
Slowly, but definitely, sleep overtook him. The last words he heard were, "You're going to be okay, Gaara. I promise."
"Shu Yu…Sensei…" Gaara whispered before falling asleep…
"No!" Gaara said. "It's not real; she's not real! Why…Why does my mind play tricks on me!? Why must I be plagued with the memories of someone who does not exist? Why, now, do my memories twist and add this…this female who protects me? Why, after the invasion of Konoha? Is it because of that boy, Lee!? Or perhaps Sasuke! Why won't she go away…Why does she continue to plague my memories, consume my dreams…Why do I miss someone who could not possibly be real?"
To Be Continued…