Chapter 2
Konohagakure appeared, by all means, a wealthy, prosperous, and beautiful village. Unlike Sunagakure, which was almost completely military-based, Konoha had as many civilians as shinobi, if not more. Already Temari was forming a map in her head, her eyes steely and alert.
Their Jounin-sensei, Baki, had left them at their temporary apartment to get in touch with the Otogakure spy they were allied with. He had given them strict orders to stay in their rooms, however, Baki knew as well as she did that Gaara wasn't about to heed the older man's orders, so Temari hadn't wasted any time either in escaping and scouting out the village that was to be their home for the next two months. Fan polishing could only keep her entertained for so long, and she thought it was stupid of Baki to keep them holed up in an apartment when they could have been scouting and getting familiar with their surroundings.
Kankuro had attempted fiercely to berate her for leaving, but it was not as if he understood. He was at his most content when working on his puppets and experimenting with poisons, but Temari was of a more restless nature and her love of botany urged her to seek out the unusual plant life that Konohagakure harbored. The sun was unusually light on her shoulders, and any breeze that drifted through her hair was cool and clear, a foreign sensation.
The native shinobi she had come across so far did not seem to be much of a threat in her eyes, and though there was a pair that nearly frightened her out of her skin with shouts of joy and youth, she knew better than to underestimate these forest-dwelling fighters. Konoha was known for having the fewest border guards as well the fewest successful infiltrators. A village did not get a fearsome reputation like that without something solid backing up the rumor.
She was examining the structure of the West Gates when that thought floated to the forefront of her mind, and she paused. The tale that the scarred-Chuunin had told her was pulled out of her memory and she pondered upon the two pieces of information. It was a child's fairytale, something mothers told their troublemaking youngsters to keep them out of danger, but if the Demon Prince of Konoha were a true tale, then it would seamlessly explain Konohagakure's unusual defense system. She thought upon the mythological prince, perhaps once a child not too unlike Gaara, chased into exile. Containing a monster such as the Kyubi, much more powerful than Shukaku, the boy would have no doubt caved in to the tailed beast's insane mumbles and given in to the monster. She imagined a twisted fox of flame and charcoal, something like Shukaku's smaller form only more hideous and malicious.
She shuddered at the very idea and rubbed her biceps to ward off the chill in her blood. It did not bode well to think of such a demon.
But, she thought, looking down the dirt road and into the seemingly infinite forest, it was something that needed to be looked into. No one planning the invasion had ever considered an enemy demon coming into the equation.
Gaara himself was a very territorial being, no one crossed the desert without being observed by his never-sleeping eyes, and he housed only the weakest of Biju. If the Demon Prince of Konoha truly did exist, how territorial could he prove to be, especially if threatened?
She couldn't leave the theory unexplored, and when the guards had their eyes averted, she darted out of the village and into the foliage.
Colorful birds chirped and flitted between trees both massive and spindly. Insects clicked and scuttled into burrows hidden within tree roots and decaying logs. The forest was lacking any brittle twigs to crack with a footstep; everything was very wet and very, very green. The forest floor was a carpet of moss and rotting foliage; what few twigs that there were simply bent and did not break with any sort of resounding crack that might alert the native ninja.
She glanced up. There was no sky to be seen, the light that filtered down was emerald green and otherworldly to her eyes. What little sound she made seemed muted.
'Not muted enough,' she thought, feeling a gaze settle on her. Her hackles rose, and she placed her hand on her fan, taking what she hoped was an obviously defensive position. Her five senses went on high alert and she called out in a firm tone:
"I don't mean anyone any harm."
The stare didn't lessen, if anything, she felt as if even more eyes were locked onto her form.
"What on earth are you all doing?"
Panic bloomed within Temari's breast, which she quickly stomped down. The owner of the voice was most likely a Konoha shinobi, and she wasted no time in running off as soon as the hidden eyes diverted their attention. Her blood was pounding in her ears; she could be jeopardizing the entire mission! She felt a fool for not taking the risks of getting caught into consideration when she had the chance. She could not let herself get caught.
The trees came to an abrupt and unexpected stop, and she stumbled into an open field. The sky opened up above Temari's head like a gaping, toothless grin and a sea of white flowers filled the expanse before her. Turquoise eyes widened in awe.
"What… is this?" She murmured to herself.
Dragonflies and butterflies flitted about in the air, sipping nectar, mating, and basking in the sun. The atmosphere was rich with the sweet scent of the flowers, a smell that was almost too sweet. It made her nostrils burn slightly and made her eyes itch. Despite being almost all white, she noticed that the flowers were marred by a variety of colors: black, yellow, violet, cyan, blue, pink, red… there were no dead or sickly flowers anywhere within sight. All was bright and alive.
"What do you think you're doing here?"
She whipped around, her movement more precise than that of a ballerina, hand arcing to grasp her battle-fan. At her movement, the owner of the voice also took up a defensive stance; his center of gravity low and hands held close to the torso like wound up springs.
It was a man. Tall and dressed more like nobility than a shinobi. His hair was a finer shade of gold than hers, and lightly covered oddly pointed ears. He would have been handsome, if not for the thin, black lines that marred his high cheekbones. For a moment, she nearly relaxed, but his forget-me-not-blue eyes glistened and she felt herself chocking on her own terror.
'Demon…!'
He obviously hadn't verified her as a threat yet, which she was thankful for as already she felt she was in more danger than Gaara could daydream of. Those eyes were unnatural, inhuman, and with this new awareness she took in his clawed fingers, the glimpse of white fang protruding over his lip and the bushels of tail curling about his ankles.
He didn't clear his throat, or make any sound at all, but there was a shift in the atmosphere and Temari realized he was waiting for a response. Her mouth was filling with saliva, but she couldn't swallow. Her palms were only beginning to feel damp though sweat already trickled down the sides of her face. The muscles in her legs were tight, ready to spring away at a moment's notice. She licked her lips slowly.
"Just verifying a theory."
The corner of his mouth crinkled upward. "And did you find what you were looking for?"
Her voice failed her, and she only nodded stiffly.
"Then leave."
Temari didn't hesitate, jumping back into the trees and fleeing as fast as her legs would carry her. More than once, she nearly stumbled over her own feet, adrenaline keeping her heart pounding in her ears. She was paranoid that he was chasing her, but each time she glanced back, the man was nowhere within her sight. Nevertheless, she could feel his eerie blue eyes burning holes into her back, as if he knew that curiosity would eventually bring her back. She could hear his thoughts on the wind, and sped up fearfully.
'Until next time, vixen.'
End Chapter 2