みず

Gaara was all alone. It had been almost a year since Yashamaru's death, but the pain hadn't faded. If anything, the year of having no one had only made his seven-year old heart get slashed and shrivelled, till almost no caring remained at all. He wanted recognition. But making friends would never work. He had to make enemies. His existence would continue. This town would never be rid of him. He would be his mother's curse.

He got distracted from this inner hatred monologue by the sound of laughter. Looking up he noticed the kids from Suna playing in the shadow of the orphanage. They had gotten out a ball and had divided into teams. Naturally, they hadn't asked him to join in though he could see Temari and Kankuro in the crowd. Feeling eyes watching him, he looked up at one of the orphanage's window. In her usual spot, a girl his age was sitting by the window, her head buried in a book. She had faintly red cheeks and Gaara knew instinctively that she had been watching him sitting on the swing. He had observed her for a while now, and every time she had a book. They varied; sometime she would read about the legend of the desert serpent, sometimes about the history of rare plants around the Suna border. Never had he seen her reading the same book two days in a row. He stared at her for a while as she flicked through a book on the different cat species of this world, reading so fast her eyes seemed to be blurring. Eventually he climbed off the swing and headed home.

It couldn't really be called home. True it had been where he lived for his whole life with his father and siblings but he never had felt welcome there. His whole family feared him just like everyone else. As he smashed open the front door and walked through, he felt his siblings freeze from their position on a couch. He ignored them. Temari cleared her throat nervously.

"How was your day, G-Gaara?" she asked thickly. Kankuro kicked her. The Kazekage just leaned back into his chair, his thick brown hair hiding his eyes.

Gaara walked past them, just turning long enough to glare at his 'father'.

"Why don't you just kill them?" The voice of Shukaku groaned in head

"Can't be bothered." He thought back. "They're not worth my attention"

Shukaku grumbled but left him alone. He knew when to push Gaara and when that got him shut off. He also knew it wouldn't be long before Gaara started to talk to him again. He relied on Shukaku to be his only conversationalist.

And if he was on Gaara's good side he got his blood quicker.

~()~

He was back on the swing. The night had been uneventful and he had spent his time quietly reading. One large cup of coffee (coffee did wonders on his brain) on his way out and now he was back to normal. Shukaku had supplied him with enough chakra to give him the energy for the day. None of the kids were playing today. It was a windy day and everyone had gone inside and the girl wasn't at her window. Gaara closed his eyes. It was peaceful.

"Excuse me?"

His eyes snapped open and came face-to-face with a pair of stormy grey eyes. He widened his line of vision and got a view of wild blonde hair, a very red face, a shaking body and a book on the origins of snails tucked under an arm. His eyes widened slightly. It was the girl. The girl from the window. Almost immediately, he went hostile.

"What do you want?" he snapped at her. He had wanted peace and she had interrupted it. His glare would normally have any other person running as away as fast as possible, most likely screeching. Her reaction astonished him. Her hand whipped forward and covered up his mouth. His sand hadn't reacted so she clearly didn't mean any harm, but she had touched him. Willingly.

"Shush, will you." She hissed crossly. "If they catch me out here, I'll be dead meat for sure." He pulled her hand off his mouth. She didn't react to the contact.

"Who's they?" he asked. She waved her other hand in the vague direction of the orphanage.

"Oh, you know," she said drearily. "all the up ups in that hell hole."

He looked at her in amazement. "You don't like that place?"

She huffed. "How could I? All they ever do is natter, chatter and blather. All day long. Changes all the time. Stops for food and sport. Starts up again. They badmouth you quite a bit, which is irritating. I couldn't be bothered finding out and when I asked why they just said that every one said so. Theory of reflection. Others do something so little people pick it up. They don't know why. It's obvious from my quizzing that they don't have the foggiest idea why you inspire terror. Neither do I, come to think about it." She trailed off thoughtfully. Gaara sealed his lips. This girl was different. He saw a kindness in her eyes that no one ever looked at him with. But no one had ever talked so much in front of him, not even Yashamaru.

"But there are people there who like you." He commented tentatively. She crossed her arms and scowled. Her stormy eyes seemed to crackle with lightning. Gaara felt mildly afraid of that storm system in her eyes.

"They don't like me. All they seem to appreciate is looks, not books. Why can't they understand that I like reading?" she stamped her foot, but then her expression brightened. "So I decided to sneak out to speak with you. You never tried to join them so I thought you would possibly speak to me. You seem to understand what it's like to be alone." Gaara was shaking slightly. He cleared his throat. It had gone all dry.

"How . . . did you sneak out?" he asked, desperate for something to say, a rare occurrence. She blushed with pride.

"I used my own technique." She told him, before forming two seals.

"Ninja Art: Manipulate Movement." She whispered, her eyebrows knitted together in concentration. Then she dissolved and appeared a metre away. She let the seal drop, her brow gleaming with sweat. "It's a particle manipulation technique." She gasped. "I can move my particles to a different location but I can only manage several metres. A couple when I'm tired." She looked at him curiously.

"What can you do?"

Gaara went red. He didn't want to use his sand and scare away this nice girl. True she might act a bit weird but she had talked to him and wasn't scared and he didn't want to freak her out. And she knew what it was like being alone.

"I-I don't." he stuttered. She cut in.

"What do you mean you don't use a technique? Everyone can use a technique. Admittedly some people are better then others but everyone can do it. Now show me!" The last three words delivered as an order. Gaara hesitated before slowly making the sand around his feet churn. He had to really concentrate because the sand was so untameable. It only moved when he really wanted it to. All his doubts were not helping his wanting. The girl stared at it wild-eyed. Then she looked at up and grinned at Gaara, taking him aback. He had never seen a grin directed at him before.

"Cool!" she breathed. "If you can do that, why did you say you couldn't?"

"I didn't" Gaara whispered. "You interrupted me before I could finish." He had never heard someone describe his sand as cool.
"I did?" The girl asked. She thought, jutting out her bottom lip. "I guess so. What were you going to say then?" Gaara was about to answer when there was a crash. Both children froze.

"What was that?" the girl whispered. Gaara just shook his head.

"Where's the other noise?" she asked. He looked at her.

"What other noise?"
"We're right beside an orphanage. Shouldn't there be a bit more noise?"
Gaara sucked in, an ugly suspicion worming into his mind. The last time he had been alone like this it hadn't gone well.

"They've been evacuated." He looked at her. "You should go too."
"Why?" she demanded, curious.

"Because the last time this happened, I-I became very dangerous to be near."
"Last time WHAT happened?"
"The last time the lord Kazekage tried to rid the world of the monster you are currently conversing with." Gaara saw her react, eyes widening. A hurricane blew across the grey. His heart felt painful again and he clenched it with his fist like he used to. And then she spun, hands balled into fists towards where the voice had come from. Standing at the other side of a courtyard was a Suna ninja. He wore a face-mask and was completely unrecognisable. A dozen knives floated around him. He could almost be a reincarnation of Yashamaru, so similar did they look disguised like that, except that Yashamaru was dead.

"What do you mean, a monster?" she asked huffily. "You're just like everyone else. Badmouthing people so you can be like others." She placed her hands on her hips. "I seriously hope I don't end up joining the flock of pointless sheep." The man raised his eyebrows.

"Sorry, lovey, but actually I know full well why everyone avoids that blight on our society. He actually is a monster, one that can be very dangerous to be around." The girl gasped in astonishment. Gaara felt despair mingle with rage. The ninja turned his attention back to Gaara. "And before long there will be some pointy things flying so scat, girl." He got ready to throw his knives. Gaara summoned up Shukaku's power, his bloodlust screaming at Gaara. And then the girl had thrust herself in between Gaara and the man, arms flung at protectively.

Gaara eyes widened in shock. The entire foundations to his world crumbled for the second time in the space of a year. He thought no one cared about him, not ever. Yet now this girl was placing her life in danger to protect his. Gaara's head started swimming. The man shifted his wait uneasily.

"Get out of the way kid, or you're gonna get killed." The girl glared at him and moved closer to Gaara. Gaara himself was still too astonished by the girl's willingness to protect him to be capable of anything other then just staring. The man frowned.

"Your funeral, kid." He shrugged. He formed a seal and one of the knives went flying towards them. The girl quickly formed the two seals from before, but this time she didn't vanish. Gaara smothered a shriek as the knife stuck right into her stomach. The man sighed. Then both males stared in astonishment as she lowly lowered her arms and pulled the dagger right out of her body. No mark had been made. She inspected the weapon that should have just killed her curiously. And then with a speed that shocked all watching, she spun the thing straight back at its owner. Yelping, he managed to deflect it but the force behind it drove him backwards against the wall of the street. She grinned.

"That wasn't a teleportation jutsu I used." She said. "I made my particle's density bend to my will. Now no matter what you throw at me it'll just go straight through." Her eyes glinted. "Unless I want to catch it that is."

"Hey, you." Gaara rasped. The girl looked back at him, eyebrows raised in a question. "How long can you keep that up?"
"Indefinitely."

"Good, now move, you're messing up my aim." Obediently, she moved to one side. The ninja tried to regain his balance but her blow had knocked his arm almost out of its socket. Gaara raised his hand. The ninja's eyes widened.

"Sand Burial!"

~()~

"That was interesting." Her voice remarked. Gaara waited for his billows of sand kicked up to settle. When it did she was watching him curiously.

"You're not . . . scared?"

She cocked her head. "Why should I be? You just totally kicked butt!" she crowed.

Gaara shifted uncomfortably at the praise. "You disorientated him with that throw."

She rolled her eyes. "Come on, it wasn't that big. Sure I made the big boy squeal but you didn't need my help at all, did you?" Gaara shook his head. She grinned and stuck out her hand.

"Name's Mizune, by the way. After that whole incident you probably should know." Tentatively Gaara took her hand, blinking when she didn't flinch away. She shook it so vigorously that when he let go it was sort of numb. "So do you have a name or did every one call you monster so early on that no one could be bothered?"
"Gaara."

"Nice name that. Mine's dull." She looked around. "Do you have some place to hang out, because I reckon folks won't be coming back for a while." She extended her hand. Gaara took it.

"I know one place."