This was a bitch to write. I couldn't get past what I had there already, so I just decided to ignore it and rewrite it from scratch. And then of course I went through it and added things from the original I felt needed to be there. In any case, I hope you like the rewrite!
I don't own Naruto…
Chapter Two – Red Sand
Slipping through the camp, three men made little sound, intent on their target. They were assassins, and they were here to kill someone that rumours said was hard to kill. But these men were part of an elite squad, they had taken down many who were considered to be 'impossible' to take out.
The camp was silent this time of night, those on watch had been vigilant, but these men were better. They were known as the Silent Squad, and their reputations preceded them. No one had ever heard them coming before, and it was unlikely that anyone ever would. Their assassination techniques relied on sneaking into their target's home or other, taking their lives as they slept.
The tent they were looking for came into view, and the leader gestured instructions, to which the two with him nodded, and they made for the back of the tent, where they would remain unseen. As they reached it, a couple of soldiers came out of one tent and the three assassins froze, waiting until the warriors moved on. One of them then pulled a kunai out of a pouch, quietly slicing a hole in the tent.
The leader quickly glanced into the tent, noting that there were no lights, and also that the resident of the tent was indeed there. No good coming all this way if their target wasn't even here. He indicated for his squad mates to follow him as he slipped inside. Once in there, they took note of the figure on the makeshift cot and confirmed the identity of their target. The red haired man slumbered on, oblivious to their presence.
The leader grinned. They'd all heard the stories of how this man apparently never slept, and to see that it wasn't true was an honour indeed. This mighty warrior was legendary in battle, a fierce fighter who took down countless numbers of his enemies in one fell swoop. But now he would die, murdered in his sleep without honour. It was truly a momentous occasion indeed.
Saying a quick mokútō, he unsheathed his katana, raising it high above his head before bringing it down in a precision strike that hit the heart dead on. His squad mates sniggered at the sight of this once mighty warrior, murdered in the dark like some commoner. But something didn't feel right, so the leader made to pull out the sword to strike again, making sure that it was done.
The blade would not move. In the faint light in the tent, the leader could see the red head's face crack, his body following a moment later as he collapsed in a pile of sand. The katana was loosened, only to fall to the ground as the grip on it went slack. The leader's jaw hung open as where there was once a sleeping figure before them, there was now nothing more then a pile of sand. He and his squad mates whirled around, only to be caught as more sand came up to encase them, blocking their escape.
A lantern flared into life and a figure stepped out of the shadows, one that was supposed to be dead! All three assassins gulped as blue-jade eyes stared at them emotionlessly. He raised a hand and the sand covering the leader's squad mates crushed the life out of them, the sand muffling their death cries. Then the red head turned to him.
"Tell me who sent you and your death will be quick," he said in a monotone voice. "If not, then I will draw your death out long and painfully."
The leader of the assassins knew that he shouldn't say anything, he'd taken a vow with his employer to remain silent if he were captured. But he was about to die anyway, so he said, "Lord Orochimaru of the Otō village ordered your life to be terminated. You are in the way of his conquest of the Leaf."
"So you were sent in?" was the question.
"We were to eliminate you as you slept," the assassin said, "as our employer has scoffed at the rumours of your insomnia."
"Then your employer is a fool," the red head sneered.
There was a moment silence, then the assassin asked, "Will you keep your word?"
The red head nodded ever so briefly, and just as he'd promised it would be, the assassin's death was quick.
Sabaku no Gaara stared at the sand before him, drenched in the blood of his victims. He felt no remorse in killing them, they'd been here to do the same to him, after all. He sighed, then sent out a small sliver of sand that would summon his first ranked General, Baki to him. These men really should not have made it into the camp, their security was far too lax. Still, at least they would be able to improve on wherever they'd gone wrong.
Moments later there was a rapping at the tent entrance, and Gaara spoke, "Enter."
Baki came in a moment later and eyed all the red sand still lying around the tent. With a sigh, Gaara gathered it all back to his gourd, which lay in the corner of the tent, and said, "Find out who is on watch, tell them that three got past them, and warn them not to let it happen again."
"Yes, Kazekage-sama," Baki said with a bow. "You are unhurt, of course?"
"Of course," Gaara told him, and his old sensei and most trusted man left.
Once he was alone again, Gaara puzzled over Orochimaru's choice of assassins. The Silent Squad were well known assassins, but they were usually hired to take out people while they were sleeping. He knew that the Sannin knew that Gaara never slept, due to the tanuki demon that resided within him. So why? It was no secret that Gaara was an insomniac, so the actions were puzzling.
While he still lay in his mother's womb the sand spirit, or demon Shukaku, was sealed inside of him. It was a measure taken in part to protect the people from the raging demon and also, on his father's part, a means to procure a powerful soldier, one that would be a serious threat to their enemies. Gaara had spent most of his young life being used as a tool, until his father was killed and the elders of his village had declared him as their Kazekage.
He knew that Orochimaru was no fool, perhaps he'd deliberately sent these assassins here, knowing they would fail? Nothing about the Snake was logical anyway, so maybe that irrational reasoning was justified in that maniacal brain of his. Deciding not to worry over the workings of the mad Sannin, Gaara instead decided to think over another aspect of the lunatic.
Orochimaru was a legendary figure, a power in his own right. Originally from the land of Fire, he was one of three Sannin, renowned ninja who'd fought in a war, centuries ago. The reason he and his former team mates weren't dead was because apparently their actions in that war had caught the attention of a Greater Dragon, who'd blessed them with immortality. If it weren't for the fact that they were all walking around, it would surely be dismissed as just another legend from those glorious days.
For the most part they stayed out of other people's business and daily lives, but Orochimaru had recently re-emerged to begin a campaign of conquest, but what did the assassin mean when he said that Gaara was in the Sannin's way? Perhaps it had to do with Orochimaru's personal vendetta against the Village Hidden in the Leaves, Konohagakure. Sand and Leaf were allies, and Gaara was lending his army to his long time friend and fellow jinchuuriki, Uzumaki Naruto. Naruto was Hokage of Konoha, just as Gaara was Kazekage of Sunagakure, the Village Hidden in the Sand.
This war that Orochimaru had brought upon Leaf, it wasn't just limited to the village. No, he also sent his troops to the other villages, the civilian ones. The Daimyo of Fire had issued the request for Leaf to send troops to protect the Daimyo's palace, even though he had the resources of the Shogun's samurai troops. But with the two nations of Fire and Wind behind him, there were better chances for success in the eventual outcome.
Standing, Gaara decided that he needed to go for a walk. It was unlikely that there would be any more assassins tonight, though he knew Baki would attempt to argue otherwise. But Gaara just wanted to find somewhere, perhaps meditate some before the sun came up. It wasn't like he would sleep, he couldn't in case the demon within tried to take over. And Gaara knew that Shukaku would relish the opportunity to wreak havoc.
The night was quite cool, and Gaara looked up at the moon that hung in near fullness above them. The full moon had already passed, though. Calmly he walked through the camp to the outer edge, stopped at a certain point by a concerned Baki.
"Kazekage-sama," he spoke. "Should you be going out there alone?"
"I will be fine, Baki," Gaara assured him. "I am more than capable of defending myself."
"I know this," Baki said with a wry, downward twist of his lips. "But you shouldn't have to. The men here are meant to protect you, as you are their Kage."
"And they really did a fine job tonight," Gaara said.
There was no malice in his tone, no judgement, but Baki took it to be so. "They cannot be blamed for this," he said. "I have spoken to the men; all avenues in and out were covered. Whoever the assassins were, they were obviously elite."
"They were the Silent Squad," Gaara told him, and watched Baki's brows furrow in confusion.
"I thought they specialised in taking out targets while they slept?" he asked.
Gaara just shrugged and walked on past him.
He walked until eventually he came to a small stream with an overhang of sorts, and Gaara utilised his sand to get up to the top of it. Once up there, he looked out over the basically flat landscape of River Country, deciding that this was a good place to meditate. He could see for some distance around him, and would definitely be able to tell if someone was coming. He settled onto the rock then closed his eyes, meditating and strengthening his mind.
It must have been only a few hours later, as the sun had not yet risen, when he sensed someone coming. He released a tendril of sand to intercept the intruder, and when they were close enough, it latched onto their foot and hoisted them up in the air and right in front of him.
"Woah! Hey! This is no way to treat the Mighty Toad Sage!" a voice called indignantly, and Gaara let them go in mild surprise.
An undignified yelp accompanied a crash as the person landed on the ground, and Gaara stood, jumping lightly down to the ground and staring down at his unwelcome visitor. The old man before him ruffled his mane of white hair and glared up at him with all the indignity of a pouting child.
"What a way to greet an old friend," muttered Jiraiya, a Sannin in the flesh, to Gaara's private wondering.
Ignoring the Toad Sage's tone, Gaara extended a hand and asked, "That's what happens when you sneak up on me, rōjin."
Jiraiya took the extended hand, then dusted his clothes down. "You're a disrespectful brat, you know that?" he said. "Just like Naruto."
Gaara cocked his head. "Why are you here?" he asked. "Our last intelligence had you at the borders of Otō on a reconnaissance mission."
Jiraiya grimaced. "Don't remind me," he muttered. "I still can't believe that brat talked me into it. Ah… which brings me to why I'm here. Naruto somehow managed to convince me to deliver a message to you, as well. He wants to see you to go over the information we all have so far. He wants a strategy meeting, basically."
Gaara grimaced. This could only mean that Naruto possibly had more information on the Snake Sannin, or Snake Charmer, as he was calling himself these days. That hebi bastard was as charming as a toothless old man trying to relive his glory days, which wasn't much to say the least. In any case, maybe he should go just to see whatever it was that Naruto had to say for himself.
"It should be dawn soon," Jiraiya spoke up. "Maybe we should go to your camp?"
Sighing, Gaara started walking in that direction, leaving the Sannin to follow him. They reached the camp as the sun poked its rays over the horizon, and Baki was ready to greet them.
"Jiraiya-sama," he hailed with a low bow. "It is an honour to have you in our camp. Are you hungry? Our cooks are preparing our morning meal as we speak."
"I would be delighted to partake of your hospitality," Jiraiya said, and followed Baki to the mess tent.
Gaara, in the meantime, decided that he would head into his tent and grab some clothing, then head back to the stream to bathe. He selected a simple hakama and uwangi combination before heading out of the tent. There was no need to linger, he simply washed off the excess sweat and such gained from all this travelling, then put on his clothes, which also included fundoshi. As he returned to camp, he quickly tied a thin obi around his uwangi, and then looked up to see that Jiraiya was with his men, chatting over food and fire. He approached them and they all looked up.
"Join us, Kazekage-sama," Baki invited, and Gaara nodded in acceptance, gathering his own bowl and spooning food into it.
The sun was well and truly up now, though still quite low on the horizon, as they discussed their plans for getting to Naruto's location. "He wasn't too far off the border from River when I left him," Jiraiya told them. "It should take you two, maybe three days to reach him, depending on how quickly you go and when you leave."
"Not until all the men are fed and packed up," Baki said, "which will probably be mid morning."
Jiraiya nodded his understanding of this.
Once the morning meal was done, the men immediately got to the job of taking down the tents and packing them away, bundling them onto the packhorses, and then finally it was time to go. They travelled nonstop until the sun began to set, then camp was made once more. This then meant that another day or two was what they needed to reach Naruto's location.
All throughout the day, Jiraiya had ridden up front with Gaara and Baki, but once they stopped, he went back to regaling the men with tales of his exploits, and not necessarily of the shinobi kind. The Toad Sage was, after all, a well known pervert. He wasn't sure how he felt about the influence the Sannin was having on his men…
In any case, it was while they were all sitting down for their evening meal when Gaara first felt the surge of chakra. It was small, hardly worth paying attention to, except that it was growing at an increasing rate. Any men in the camp with shinobi training worth a damn froze as the chakra grew to an exponential proportion, then a light flared through the camp, momentarily blinding them. Gaara leapt to his feet once it had passed and ran in the direction he'd first felt it, Baki, Jiraiya and a few others hot on his heels.
Pushing through the light foliage, Gaara stopped when he came across a most unusual sight. There, lying in a heap, was a woman in a rather exquisite silk kimono. The others stopped short behind him, and he could only imagine that they were gaping as he really wanted to, but was too stubborn to do so. He took a tentative step forward, coming to a halt when the woman groaned.
"Be careful, Kazekage-sama," Baki cautioned, but Gaara ignored him, stepping forward once more.
He stood over the woman, once more marvelling at the detail of her kimono, then noticed that her hair was pink, of all things. While he had indeed seen pink hair before, it was usually only on civilians. He knelt down and turned her over, noting the delicate shape of her face. For reasons unknown to him, he pulled her into his arms, lifting her up and heading back to camp with her.
"Is this wise?" Baki asked, but once again he was ignored.
He carried her all the way to his tent and placed her on his makeshift cot before making the decision to remove her clothes and place her into something more practical. It was definitely not because of Jiraiya's influence, though as he changed her, he couldn't help but take a peek. Once it was done, he sighed and though, 'I'm sure to go to jigóku for this…'
So, I hope that was good. I like the increase in the word count, as well as the different angle I wrote from for the assassins. Plus, I got more information off the net about Japanese clothing and incorporated it into this. I've got a glossary for the Japanese words…
Mokútō: Silent Prayer.
Rōjin: An old man.
Hebi: Snake.
Hakama: Traditional samurai style pants.
Uwangi: A traditional jacket styled the same as a kimono.
Fundoshi: Traditional Japanese undergarments, mostly worn by men.
Obi: A belt used to keep multiple items of clothing together, such as kimono.
Shogun: Emperor's military leader.
Jigóku: Hell.
Anyway, make sure you review to let me know what you think of the rewrite, I really want to know!
