Porcelain

Puppet #1

She ran. Her lungs burned in her chest and her breath was short, raspy gasps. Her feet tapped quickly and lightly on the dusty stone pavement. The young 7 year old female glanced over her shoulder. Her pale green eyes caught sight of a looming shadow, moving rather awkwardly as it manoeuvred through the obstacles to get to her.

Crap…! She cursed inwardly and looked around.

It was dark. The moonlight only gave her the outlines of buildings and objects, but it didn't help her find a way to get out of the situation she was currently in.

Where…?! Where can I go?! She was panicking.

"GET…BACK…HERE!"

The female winced at the drunken voice. She pressed her lips together and tried to hurry her step, but nearly tripped when she heard glass shatter. An empty bottle of alcohol had been thrown and it hit the wall just inches beside her.

Mentally, she knew that once they caught her, it would be over. For running away, it would be her punishment.

I got to find somewhere to hide! Anywhere!

She was desperate. She jumped onto a few crates and sloppily climbed onto the roof of a random house. Carefully treading, her feet moved her to a balcony that was open and at a higher level than the roof.

Looking back to make sure that her pursuer didn't see, she went in.

It was silent. The area was dark and the only light was the reflection of the moonlight that illuminated the doorway. She could hear the loud voice of the person who had chased her, shouting for her to come out of hiding. Her back pressed against a wall and she turned her head to the doorway. Her medium length black hair stuck to her face as it glistened with sweat.

Her short breaths eventually became slower until it was normal. The voice had died down, as if the person had given up. She closed her eyes and slid down the wall until she hit the ground, holding her head in her hands.

That was close…

The lights flicked on. Her pale green eyes flicked open immediately and met with a person in the room.

Wait…

Her eyes widened slightly when she realised that it wasn't a person she was looking at, but rather, a puppet. And it wasn't just one puppet. There were about three.

"Who are you?"

Jerking her head to the voice, she felt nervous at the encounter. It was only a red haired boy. He looked younger than her, but his grey brown eyes were impassive and held a lack of interest in anything as well as a maturity she didn't see in most adults.

Seeing how she had clammed up, the boy's hand dropped to his side as he examined the person who had intruded his room.

Her medium length hair was as dark as midnight, contrasting strongly against her incredibly porcelain-like features, which was quite uncommon in Sunagakure. Her clothes were dirty and some parts were freshly ripped. Her arms and legs were slightly bruised and cut, the purple standing out like the moon in the sky. Lastly, he met her incredibly pale green eyes. They were so pale that it felt like they could look straight into his soul and find out every secret he hid. That, in itself, was also very uncommon in Suna.

"I don't like repeating myself." The red head narrowed his eyes slightly as he came forward a few more steps.

Pressing up against the wall slightly, her hands curled into a fist. The boy didn't sound like one at all! His voice was a lot deeper than she had thought.

"COME BACK HERE, YOU SHITTY MIDGET!"

She jumped at the close proximity of the voice. It belonged to her pursuer. They hadn't given up yet. She could feel cold sweat drip from her chin as dread filled her.

The red head shuffled to the doorway and closed it, muttering something incoherent under his breath. He glanced down at the female expectantly.

The girl gulped thickly and looked down, away from his piercing gaze. In the background, the chaser's voice could still be heard, but muffled.

"…Eirin." She didn't think she was going to get out of the situation. The boy hadn't sold her out yet so she decided to tell him what he wanted to know.

The boy merely looked at her for a moment, before he turned around and left the room. Eirin just stared at the empty room.

What just happened?

No longer than a minute later, the red head came back with a box. He placed it down beside her and sat down, opening it to reveal medical supplies.

"What…" Eirin's mouth opened in shock.

She watched as the boy took out a few bottles and cotton balls. He soaked them and pressed them to her face, making her wince and flinch away from him.

"Don't move." He continued to press the cotton ball to her face.

"But it burns…" Her eyes watered and the boy stopped for a brief moment, before continuing. Once he was finished, he cleaned up her face and stuck a bandage on it, before proceeding to her other cuts. Once he finished, he left with the supplies.

He helped me…

Eirin was at a loss for words. The job was easily done, and she was bandaged up and her wounds were cleaned.

When did I get this many wounds…?

As the door creaked open, the boy came back in. He had the same impassive look on his face as before.

Eirin stood up and dusted herself off, bowing her head to the boy in front of her. "Thank you very much for treating my wounds and not selling me out!"

"You're not a ninja, are you?" The boy questioned.

Eirin returned to her full height and shook her head. She had decided that she would tell him what he wanted to know, since he was kind enough to treat her wounds. "No, I'm not."

"Is that why you're running away from that person who shouts at you?" He asked bluntly. He had pieced two and two together.

Eirin's eyes widened and she fidgeted slightly, before nodding. Her gaze landed on a shiny forehead protector with Sunagakure's symbol on it.

So he's a ninja…

Seeing her eyes wandering, the boy nods his head. "Yes."

It was silent for a long while. Eirin fidgeted with her fingers, biting the bottom of her lip in nervousness. She didn't want to ask him of anything, since she was the 'guest' (who had intruded on him).

"What?" The boy asked. He could tell she wanted to ask him something.

"Uhm…What's…what's your name?" Her voice was a higher octave than normal. She instantly shut her mouth after finishing her sentence. She didn't want to further embarrass herself.

"Sasori." The red head replied.

"Sasori…" Eirin familiarised herself with his name and mumbled it quietly under her breath. Unknown to her, he could hear every word she said.

"Are you leaving?" Sasori asked suddenly.

"Uhm, uh, yes, uh…yeah!" Eirin nodded her head and she went towards the door to the balcony. Her hand shook as she thought of the situation outside. How would she cope?

"With that drunk running around?" His eyebrow raised slightly.

Eirin swallowed and nodded her head, trying to put on a brave smile. Sasori could see right through it.

This girl isn't convincing at all. He thought bluntly. Who's she trying to fool?

"If you want to stay for the night until morning, it's fine." Sasori flicked off the lights and walked to his bed.

He knew that she wasn't a ninja. If she tried anything, he would be able to stop her. Any Genin would be able to.

Eirin just stood there, completely perplexed. After a long while of just standing there and gaping at the sleeping figure, she peered out the window on the side to check if that person was still running around. Once she saw and heard nobody but the soft breaths of the sleeping boy, she closed the door and sat down where she was before, up against the wall. Her eyes closed and she leaned on the low closet that was next to her.

Sasori sat up after hearing her breathing becomes steady. He slipped out of bed slowly and went to his cupboard, taking out a spare blanket. He unfolded it and threw it over the female, before going back to bed again.

So this is the girl they're keeping an eye on.