The Seventh Tail
Chapter 4: A Night out.
After several weeks of Gaara actually being nice to Natsuki, the two got to know each other. They became friends, even though they each always seemed to have these odd blushing moments when they'd break out in red.
Natsuki also got to know exactly who Gaara knew from different nations with all the paper work he had her do, she soon knew all the affairs of the country. Some would spectate this as a bad thing, but Gaara really didn't care.
Of course, by now, Natsuki was beginning to reach her limit on staying time. She was a traveler and had to decide whether or not she wanted to stay. This is our current scene.
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"Hey, you got another call from that weird ramen kid; he says that you need to come right away. Says there's some shortage of shrimp for Ichiraku's famous Seafood Special," Natsuki said as she read the contents of the message out to her boss.
"Hmph, tell him to go fishing," Gaara grunted his response without even looking up from what ever he had on his desk. There was a pause.
"What you lookin' at?" Natsuki wondered.
"Nothing," Gaara stated plainly.
"Aw, come on! Let me see!" the red head girl pleaded as she went behind the desk.
"No." Gaara stated as he closed a little book he had with him.
"Right, well, I don't listen to the word no, you should know that by now," Natsuki said. She then leaned across Gaara's desk and snatched the thin blue book from him.
"Stop it!" Gaara ordered as he tried to stop her from pilfering his stuff. It didn't work out as he had hoped.
"AWWWW! Gaara, you look so cute as a baby!" Natsuki squealed. The book Gaara had been flipping through was a photo album. It was his father's and Gaara just found it in his new, cleaner office.
"Give it back." Gaara ordered.
"Aw, but look, you're so cute, and there's the group photo!" Natsuki aw-ed at the family picture. It held Temari and Kankuro each holding one half of a laughing baby Gaara, the two smiling also, and their dad standing in the back.
"Stop it!" Gaara demanded.
"Hey, look, ha ha! You're pulling Kankuro's hair! Did Temari take this picture?" Natsuki laughed at the photo of a 3 year old Gaara fighting with a 5 year old Kankuro.
"Please, Natsuki, stop looking at the pictures now!" Gaara asked sternly. He really didn't want her to get to the next few pages, she'd ask the infamous question that he had been regretting.
"Hey, look at this one, you're four! How cute! Let's see, what does it say here… 'Suna's Savior'?" Natsuki read in question, "Who wrote that?"
"My father," Gaara regrettably answered.
"I guess he really thought you were special, huh?" Natsuki said. She obviously hadn't been told about what Gaara was to the town.
"You could say that," Gaara said quietly.
"Ok, and now we have Kankuro at 6 and a Temari at 7, now we have… Gaara at 5! Then Gaara at 6! Wow you were so cute when you were little and just look at your cute little bear! And next year! Kankuro turns 8, Temari, 9 and Gaara at 7, wait, you aren't smiling! Gaara, what was wrong with this one?" Natsuki had reached the alleged year seven. That was after it had all happened.
"Nothing, now please, give me back the book," Gaara asked again.
"No, what's wrong with this year, and why is there a red mark across the picture?" Natsuki demanded. There was something none of her new friends had told her, and she wasn't too happy about it. Gaara was surprised to hear a hint of worry in her voice.
"You don't want to know."
"Yes, I do." Natsuki demanded.
"Ok, look, when I was six, my dad had shinobi try to kill me, one of which was my uncle."
"Why? Were you dangerous or something?"
"When I was little my father sealed the One Tailed demon, Shukaku inside me, ok? Now, please just give me back the book and leave." Gaara was seriously steamed right now.
"Oh." That was all Natsuki was able to say.
So, that's why you don't like Gaara, huh? The girl asked Suzaku.
Yes, now you know why not to trust him. Shukaku is the demon of the sand. We are in his domain. That is why I say we leave. Luckily, Shukaku is to dumb to sense me within you.
Ring! Ring!
"I should probably go get that…" Natsuki stammered before she sprinted out of the office to go get the phone.
Damn! Just when I thought we might be able to be friends…Somehow, I knew things would go badly if she found out. Well, just goes to show that nobody could ever like me, what with a demon inside me and all. Gaara sighed to himself. Somehow he was really sad that Natsuki could not like him.
Oh, you take your siblings for granted.
Leave me alone, you're the one who caused all my problems.
Nonsense, I didn't choose to be a cold, self centered brat.
Shut-up, now, before I kill you.
But, little brat, you'd kill yourself.
Well, sacrifices must be made…
You would never do that, you know it. That would break your dead mother's heart! After all, she only wanted you to survive!
Be quiet now!
Huh, looks like I've gotten to you, by the way, Kyuubi's on the phone.
What?
"Uh, Gaara? Naruto's on the phone for you, he says it's something about shrimp," Natsuki said shakily. She was praying that he wasn't mad.
"Ugh," Gaara picked up the phone reluctantly, "What is it, baka?"
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"Hey, Gaara?" Natsuki approached her boss at 6 that evening; he had hopefully had enough time to cool down.
"Yes?" Gaara looked up from his desk.
"Do you want to go out with, Kankuro, Temari, and I tonight? We're gonna see Kankuro get shot down by girls," Natsuki offered.
Gaara's eyes widened a bit. This offer surprised Gaara. He was expecting her to ask if she could quit. He was expecting her to ignore him and stop being his friend, but she was actually being nice to him.
"Um, sure," Gaara responded.
"Great, we're meeting at your house, so I'll see ya there!" Natsuki smiled and left.
That was interesting.
You're letting her get to you, boy!
Ah, shut-up, I'd don't care what you think.
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This is perfect!
Natsuki smiled happily at herself as she stood in front of her bathroom mirror. She wore a form-fitting, dark blue tank-top with a matching skirt that ended a little higher than her mid thigh.
Not too flashy, but not that formal either.
Natsuki's eyes sparkled as she looked over herself. She had let her red hair down and tucked one side behind her ear. Around her neck the small phoenix necklace glimmered.
I'm really glad Temari invited me to join them at the nightclub tonight. It feels really good to just get out every once in a while.
Wish I could…
Natsuki ignored Suzaku's comment and gathered her things before leaving the apartment.
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Kankuro could only stare as he opened the door. Was this chick really Natsuki?
What's wrong with him? It like he's never seen a girl before.
"Uh… Kankuro? Can I come in?" Natsuki asked.
"Sure…," he mumbled and moved aside to let her pass.
"Thanks."
Kankuro couldn't help but admire her well formed figure as she slipped by him.
"Where are the others?"
"In the kitchen. We were waiting for you. Gaara nearly made us leave without you…"
"Stupid jerk," she smiled.
In the kitchen Temari sat on a stool along the counter. She wore the usual appealing outfit, only without sporting the intimidating fan on her back. Gaara was leaning against the wall on the opposite side of the room. He wore his regular maroon cloak with black pants and sandals. Gaara turned to glare at the newcomer.
His face remained blank and expressionless as he looked over Natsuki. But his mind reeled with admiration.
Wow…
Gaara couldn't help himself. He was still a guy, after all. The slightly snug materials showed off her soft attributes more than usual. His eyes traveled up her smooth legs to her gentle waist. His gaze looked up to her flat stomach with his eyes lingering slightly longer on her chest, then up to her smiling, shining hazel eyes.
"Wow! Natsuki, you look great! You should dress like that more often," Temari complemented.
"Let's just go already…" Gaara grumbled, and left the kitchen for the door.
She looked good.
Shut it!
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It didn't take long before the group entered the nightclub. Bodies moved in rhythmic waves with the loud music. The air seemed slightly thicker and warm, full of the scent of perfume, cologne, and sweat.
"Hey, baby, is your dad an alien? Because you are out of this world!" Kankuro tried to use an absolutely horrible pick up line on a girl.
Slap!!!!!
"Ow! Oh, come on! It wasn't that bad!" Kankuro whined as he rubbed his cheek.
"Oh, but it was," Temari said.
"Riddle me this, cat-man, do you have any boys on the team you train?" Natsuki asked.
"Yeah, why?" Kankuro wondered.
"And do you give them dating advice?" Natsuki followed up.
"Some times, but why are you asking me this?" Kankuro pondered.
"Wow, those boys need to ignore everything you say," Natsuki concluded.
"Psh! That's what you think, Gaara, it wasn't that bad right?" Kankuro went to his brother for back-up.
"Keep telling yourself that."
"Ugh! Well, next one I've got for sure!" Kankuro resolved.
"Right…" Temari said with an eye-brow up and her head titled. Unlike her brother she had no trouble attracting guys.
"Well, I'm off! See you guys later!" Temari called as she thrust herself into the crowd.
"Me too," said Kankuro, "I need to go and land some babes!"
"It'll never happen…" Natsuki mumbled to herself.
As Kankuro left, Natsuki and Gaara were left alone in the overwhelming crowd.
"Kazekage-sama! Dance with me!"
"No-no! Dance with me, Gaara!"
"Gaara, I know how you feel, please, dance with me!"
"I LOVE BADGERS!!!!"
An onslaught of fan girls came squealing and surrounded Gaara so he had no escape. He panicked and tried to get them off of him, but to no avail.
Man, why is it always me?
I, for one, like the idea of being surrounded by girls. Sigh If only they were demons…
"Help, Temari!" Gaara called, but his sister had already gone to keep Kankuro from making to big a fool of himself.
"Argh!" he yelped as one fan girl jumped on his head and brought him to the floor.
Ha ha!
"Woah, ladies, please, back away from the cute red-head! Come, now, give him some air!" Natsuki pushed her way through the crowd to try and help Gaara out of this mess.
"Hey, it's that girl from before! The competition!" one fan girl said. All of the girls turned to glare at her.
"Right, and this 'competition' is here to help this poor soul up off the ground that you all so rudely shoved him on. Now, break it up before Kankuro sees you all gathered in one spot!" Natsuki said. This got the fan girls running out of the club as to avoid Kankuro's awful social skills.
"Thanks," Gaara said in his monotone voice.
"Not a problem, I figure, you need to stay alive long enough for me to get my pay check," Natsuki shrugged.
"Sure," Gaara said skeptically
"Want to go sit down?" Natsuki asked.
"Sure."
They reached the bar and took two chairs next to each other. Natsuki settled contently in her chair, thankful to be out of the crowd.
"What'll ya 'ave?" asked a gruff bartender. He had a heavy body, with small beady eyes.
"Nothing." Replied Gaara.
"Yes, Kazekage-sama," and he shuffled away to the next customer.
They sat in silence for awhile, listening to the beat of the music. Gaara's eyes scanned the crowd and saw Temari dancing with a good-looking brunette guy. Kankuro, however, was being slapped by an unhappy blond.
"Are you going to even bother to make conversation?" Natsuki questioned lazily.
"No."
"Humph." Natsuki scowled. Then suddenly a handsome ninja with curly black hair and smooth features walked up to Natsuki. He had black eyes that seemed to smirk in the dark light.
"What makes you unhappy?" he asked with a concerned smile. Gaara glared. Who was this punk? He already hated him for interrupting his time with Natsuki.
"This jerk. And who are you exactly?" smiled Natsuki.
"The name's Atdansi. And may I ask what pretty name do you have?"
"Natsuki." She answered, blushing slightly at his comment.
Gaara scowled. Luckily, no one seemed to have noticed.
Natsuki and Atdansi continued to chat for another five minutes before Atdansi suggested, "Would you like to come over and meet some of my friends?"
Natsuki glanced at Gaara.
"Do whatever you want," he said in an expressionless voice.
When he didn't seem to care she turned to Atdansi and said, "Yes, I'd love to. You can come to, Gaara."
Gaara didn't move from his seat as he watched her leave with the black haired ninja to join him with his friends. They were all guys, he noticed. A small pang of anger bit him and he let out a small growl as he watched them chat playfully. How could Natsuki talk so easily? Then it seemed that Atdansi asked Natsuki to dance because they walked out towards the dance floor together.
Gaara watched appreciatively as Natsuki's body began to sway gently with the beats, and gradually picked up pace to match the tempo. Atdansi put his hands on her waist and the two intertwined with each other. A smile graced Natsuki's features as she and Atdansi moved in closely. Around them, Gaara noticed, a few other guys began to collect and watch the smooth duo.
Seeing the comfort level between the two heightened his hate for the guy. Gaara smiled as he decided in his mind how he would kill Atdansi. Maybe just a small crush from his sand, or, even better, he could take Atdansi outside and make him beg for mercy before ending his pathetic life. Wait… what was with the sudden killing desire? Why would he be upset with this low life? Was it because he was with Natsuki? Nah, … it couldn't be. Could it?
Why don't you go to her?
No matter how much I'd love to interrupt them, I can't. It would be rude.
Since when did you care? Just go over there and take back what's yours…She did invite you after all.
Slowly, Gaara got up and headed toward Natsuki.
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Natsuki grinned broadly at the feeling of excitement as she danced with Atdansi and his friends. They were all good looking and were great dancers.
I wonder if Gaara dances this good. I've never seen him.
Natsuki didn't dwell on the thought to much before dancing with Atdansi for a second time. She liked the feeling of the warmth of another person wrapped around her body. Atdansi moved behind her and put his hands on her soft waist.
She was surprised when she felt similar warmth in front of her, and turned a questioning gaze on the newcomer.
G-G-Gaara!... OMG!
Gaara's strong body moved smoothly with hers as he began to dance with her. He smirked at Natsuki's shocked face. "You invited me, didn't you?"
A growl of annoyance and the tightened grip from behind suggested that Atdansi did not appreciate the other male's actions. He pulled Natsuki closer and began to rub against her thigh to prove his dominance, so to speak. Gaara merely growled and placed his hands around Natsuki's waist and pulled her roughly onto his hips. Natsuki was shocked, but didn't protest.
Atdansi's presence disappeared as Gaara lent into the curve of Natsuki's neck and ran a cool hand up her back. (Little did Natsuki know that Atdansi was being pulled away by a sand clone Gaara.) She swayed sensationally to the beat of the music. Her fiery bangs fell in front of her face, covering one glittering hazel eye. Gaara let out a soft purr and moved closer. Her scent filled him and excited his senses. This may be his only chance to sample a bit of her perfection, and he wasn't going to waste it. They moved perfectly together had a small crowd gathered around them. (Atdansi was no where in sight.)
Eventually, the music ended and they broke apart. Gaara grabbed one of Natsuki's hands and held it in his. Then they began to push themselves through the mob, and headed back to the bar.
Did I just dance with Gaara? The Kazekage & my Boss!? OMG!...But he was soooo good!
Seems you were happy. That disgusts me.
"Thanks for the dance, Natsuki," Gaara said as he pulled them out of the throng of people.
"No problem."
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Kankuro stood jealous on the other side of the room. When had Gaara learned to dance like that?
Temari merely smirked with delight. Things were turning out nicely, as far as she was concerned.
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Gaara and Natsuki went back to the bar.
I enjoyed that. Gaara thought.
That's because you were dancing with the hottest girl in the club.
No… there was something else too…
So you admit she is the hottest girl here.
I didn't say that!
But you were thinking it.
…
Your silence says it all.
Shut up you damn badger!
"Hey," Natsuki broke in, "Want to ditch this place?"
"I'd like nothing better," Gaara replied. Natsuki then grinned, and grabbed Gaara by the wrist. She led him out of the building and they walked along the dark street to a small, but beautiful park. They found a bench and sat.
"I hope Kankuro isn't too beat up at the end of the night," Natsuki sighed.
"I do," Gaara said.
"What? How could you say that about your on brother?" Natsuki demanded.
"Well, I think it's about time he actually learned that those lines, don't help, so he needs to come up with something not stupid," Gaara explained.
"You make a very valid point there," Natsuki said. Their was a awkward pause.
"Hmm, pretty stars…" Gaara said as he looked up.
"Yeah, they're so clear around here, you can hardly see any in the water nation," Natsuki commented.
"Yeah, there's nothing like the stars of Suna…" Gaara replied.
"Yep."
"Yep."
The two sat there for a while, just star-gazing. One would occasionally point out one constellation to the other, but they were primarily silent.
After a bit, Gaara felt something slump against his shoulder. It was Natsuki, she had fallen asleep and her head had leaned over to Gaara's shoulder in search of a pillow. He smiled to himself.
After a while Gaara wasn't quite sure what to do with her. Should he take her home and risk waking her up? Or should he just stay like this, hoping she'll get up naturally?
Gaara decided on taking her home. He slowly, and gently maneuvered his arm out from under her head and was able to lean her body onto his lap, so that he could proceed in picking her up.
Gaara stood with Natsuki in arms, she still slept.
Phew, I didn't wake her.
Gaara then began his walk to her abode. When he made his way to the ramen shop, he realized he couldn't knock on the door and get someone to take her to her room, he had to do it. It would seem very inappropriate for the Kazekage to be delivering a girl home at this hour, and her being unconscious no doubt! Gaara jumped up to the second story and found her window. He gently placed Natsuki on her bed and stepped back.
The stars… really are beautiful.
And with that, Gaara jumped off to his own room to find something to do in his absence of sleep.
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Maggie: That be it! Cliffies for all! Now remember, REVIEW BEFORE I GET MIDEVIL ON YOUR ASS!! NINJA STYLE!!!!!!!!
Lori: (he he he…nice one mags…) I thought this chappy was ok, but I need your input! Please Review!