Far away from Konoha, the crescent Moon cast her glow upon the temples of Oorun.
Pearl, milky eyes, so different from the candid Byakugan, stared at and into a crystal ball. The priestess stare was unbreakable in her state of trance, for her soul was tainted with evil that aided her schemes and actions.
Through the orb in her hands, the woman saw his figure as he walked in the night, on the empty streets of Konoha. The man was still himself in every aspect, but the fact that she could not control him completely was not important. He stood tall and believed that he was back on Earth on his own devices. He believed he had free will and that was enough for her, because that way she could manipulate him however she saw fit. She gave him an empty purpose, a false goal… He never suspected. In the end, he would think he was making his own choices and that made him a perfect pawn, her masterpiece.
"Madara Uchiha…" The sepulchral voice roared, pronouncing his name as if savoring a delicacy, drunk from the deity that fed on her life essence. "The game has begun."
Ayo stared at the shiny hitaiate in her hands. The brand new ninja band had Konoha's symbol engraved on it. She smiled softly, brushing her thumb over it before finally tying it to her thigh, the same way she used to do with her previous one.
She walked the streets of Konoha, smiling as children waved happily. She sighed, feeling her heart at ease; that was until she remembered of him. The thought of Gaara brought an instant weight into her heart. She thought about what he could be doing then; was he with his fiancée already? He probably had met the woman by then. When would they marry? Jealousy filled her heart and she bit her bottom lip, fighting to stop the tears from coming. This was becoming ridiculous. She had to snap out of it, it was over already.
The kunoichi made her lonely way to the old training ground that faced her home village from miles afar. As soon as she reached the site, nostalgia took over and she sighed. The leaves looked the same; even the Sun, already high in the sky, felt familiar. Naturally, she knew it was just a trick of feelings. The sky was not the same, as the leaves and people had changed completely.
She walked further, exploring the once known place. Her light, feline steps did not disturb as her golden orbs found the river that cut the land, slithering as a snake as it marked earth with the power of flowing water and time. By the riverbank, a man stood with his back turned at her as he faced the stream. Her face lit up with curiosity as she saw a rock being thrown, bouncing against the surface of the water.
She tried to recall a single time she had seen a grown man stone skipping. In fact, she did not remember seeing anyone doing that before.
As he prepared to throw another stone, he froze. Sudden surprise washed over him, as he noticed he failed to sense the presence approach. The chakra felt familiar and he turned around to see the person that stood a few meters away, watching him with cat's eyes.
Gold met ink black and they stared at each other for a moment. He recognized her immediately and he felt euphoria and something else he could not describe. She blinked slowly, feasting on his image as she tried to place him in her mind. He looked terribly familiar. He did not look much older than she was. Giving him a better look, it amazed her how handsome he was. He had pitch black eyes and hair that reached his chin, spiked up and messy. A thin, pale scar cut through his face, from under his left eye and down to his jaw line. He wore casual shinobi clothes, also black, but no chuunin nor jounin vests.
Upon realizing she was staring at the man, her cheeks colored and she looked away, biting her lip. What is it with the men of Konoha, anyway? She thought to herself, embarrassed as she felt like a fool for the second time in less than twenty-four hours in the village.
His raven dark eyes blinked slowly and found hers and the embarrassment she felt increased exponentially as his deep voice sounded, his whole face lighting up with surprise.
"Ayo? Is that you?"
Right. What are the chances? She thought bitterly to herself.
"Huh… Hi?" She chuckled softly, moving closer, not feeling an immediate threat on him. "I'm sorry… Do we know each other?"
She watched the slightest glint of disappointment flash through his gorgeous eyes. "We met once. I do not blame you for forgetting. It was years ago, anyway." He muttered, scratching the back of his head.
The action switched on something in the back of her mind.
"Izuna?" She tried, looking at him once more. It was definitely there; the boy she once helped, long before when she spent those months learning medical ninjutsu in Konoha. "You look… Different." Very, very good looking, she thought to herself.
"Really?" He grinned, crossing his arms. "You look exactly the same as I remember."
"Is that so?" Ayo chuckled, her amber orbs sparkling with the sunrays.
Madara stared at the beauty in front of him; he obviously lied. She was not the same at all. The kunoichi grew up into a goddess of beauty and he needed maximum effort not to stare. She had called him by his brother's name, the one he gave her when they met each other. That brought him a mixture of relief and regret, which he could not fully comprehend.
"It is nice to see you back in Konoha. How long will you be staying this time?"
"Well, I…" She shyly looked down at her thigh and he followed the action, registering the hitaiate that she wore. She went on. "I just moved here, actually."
His smile was by no means forged.
"These are great news. Can I treat you some lunch? It would be great to hear more about you."
Ayo thought about it. How bad could it be? It was time for her to make some friends. She wouldn't be going anywhere else, anyway.
"Of course." She nodded, smiling softly. "Why not?"
Neji sat by the garden, staring as Hinata and Hanabi sparred. His mind was far from it, though.
He kept thinking of the previous night.
That woman… He knew who she was, of course. Hinata had told him that her student from Suna was staying with them in the Hyuuga compound until she established her own place in Konoha. He wondered why she moved from Sunagakure in the first place, but as much as he was intelligent, he could not deny that, in his mind, he pictured the girl and not the woman.
The image that appeared as Hinata spoke was the one he saw years ago; somehow he didn't even consider the obvious fact that Ayo had grown up… And did she grow up. Sensing her chakra as he trained the night before was easy, but keeping a straight face as he turned around and saw her was a rather difficult task. She was so beautiful and exotic that he had to refrain from staring at her open-mouthed.
Then again, he was Neji Hyuuga.
He told himself that it was simply how different she looked; it caught his attention; it was all. He had seen beautiful girls like Ino wear a lot less, though, and it did not really impress him that much. He wondered what it was about, then. Maybe it did not have to do with her clothes, but more with her appearance.
Her eyes. He closed his own as he reminded of her liquid gold orbs reflecting the moon light. Her lovely voice, stuttering. The tanned skin. He frowned softly.
He was Neji Hyuuga.
What was he thinking? Of course, the woman was gorgeous, but he sounded like a brainless moron. It just wasn't like him. He sensed her chakra closer by and looked at the gates in time to see her arrive. She was accompanied, but she said her goodbyes at the gate and the man walked the other way. Neji perked up a brow at that, wondering who the hell that person was; the guy's chakra was somewhat familiar, but he couldn't quite place it.
Neji's stare was back at the caramel skin beauty that walked to them. Hinata and Hanabi had stopped for a break and Ayo smiled at them as she greeted them. Her eyes met his and she blushed softly, earning a soft smirk from his lips.
"Neji nii-san!" Hinata spoke. "You remember Ayo-chan, right?"
Neji took his sweet time to stare at Ayo once more, from head to toe, making the voluptuous kunoichi blush madly under his stare. "Hn. She was a lot smaller before." He spoke, not mentioning their previous meeting.
Hanabi stared at the interaction, her lips twitching into a sly smile as she watched them both.
"Ayo onee-chan, control yourself. If I didn't know better, I'd think you have a crush on Neji nii-san."
"What?!" The other felt her face burn from embarrassment. "N-no! No. Not at all!"
Neji chuckled softly, crossing his arms. Hinata giggled and Hanabi flashed them a huge smirk. Ayo sighed, defeated. She knew then that she would have to prepare for endless teasing during her stay in the Hyuuga manor.
Gaara still could not get over of how terrible things were going since the news about the wedding. The meeting was a disaster, to put it nicely; after talking about cacti, which he still thought was the worst point of the damn night, he discovered almost nothing about the woman and even though she was indeed very beautiful, she wasn't really appealing to him in any way. He was very miserable at the thought of spending his life with that person and he couldn't stop thinking about Ayo. Would she have a safe trip? Would she enjoy Konoha and forget about him? She would probably meet someone else, all the male shinobi from the Leaf would sure be drooling as soon as they saw her. The thought of it made him want to crush things, which came in hand once he was attacked in the middle of dinner.
He did not seem to catch a break.
The strike was actually a big surprise. His wife to be was actually abducted by the ninja and he found himself with another problem to solve; of course, he wouldn't just let them take the woman, even though his suspicions became true later: She was part of the scheme to get herself kidnapped. She was in love with the captor.
What a drag, he thought. Maybe he was indeed being influenced by his soon to be brother in law.
After all of the drama, he decided to let the woman go and be happy with her true love. After all, it was all he wanted for himself as well. He came back to Suna without a fiancée, without Ayo, without patience. If the elders of the council dared to give him any word about it, hell would definitely break loose.
He couldn't just go to Konoha, although it was the thing he wanted most at the moment. He couldn't run after Ayo and leave his post unattended, especially considering the attacks of the opposition that were so eager to take away his Kazekage title.
Things were too troublesome and complicated. He wished everything could just be simple.
Temari had already left to Konoha, after promising to send him news about Ayo, so now it was only him and Kankurou. The thought offered him little comfort. He sat at his office, sighing in frustration as he ran a hand through his fiery red hair. He stared at the hitaiate she left behind, still folded neatly and on top of his desk.
He wished he had a picture of her to keep by.
He knew that it was reckless and probably the wrong thing to do, but still he couldn't help himself from getting up and out of his window. It did not take him long to find her house. It was already late at night and very silent in the village, no one really noticed him in the dark and if anyone did, they chose to ignore it.
He opened her window slowly and stepped inside her room. It was still organized as the last he saw it. He walked around, stopping by the bedside table. His gifts rested there, untouched. He frowned softly, feeling the familiar sting in his heart. Looking around, he found what he was looking for: a shelf with her photographs. He stared at the images. He saw her with her mother and recognized his sister and a few other shinobi among the photos. His eyes stopped on a picture of Ayo in a white dress that reached only above her knees, adorned with golden medals and jewelry, her dark, wild hair blown by the wind. She had a huge smile on her face and her hands posed in the tiger hand sing.
His hand held the frame, deciding it was the one he would take.
Before he turned to leave, though, he noticed one of the frames was facing the shelf. Curiosity took the best of him and he lifted the picture, turning it to face him. His eyes widened as he stared at himself. The image was rich in detail, exactly the way he looked. He did not know she could draw with so much expertise. He didn't know she would draw him, of all people.
He recalled Temari's words. "She is passionate and she was in love with you. She has been since a child."
He put the picture back as he found it, a feeling of raw regret consuming his heart.
What had he done?
If it had been Naruto in his place, surely the blonde would never have allowed himself to be dragged in such a situation.
Once back in his office, Gaara stared at Ayo in the picture he had stolen. He would fix this mess, somehow.
First, he needed to find a way to get to Konohagakure.
"Hokage-sama! You need to reconsider!"
"Temari nee-chan, I can't." Naruto sighed, scratching his head. "She asked me and I already accepted her, plus Gaara even signed her off!"
"Ayo was emotional and my brother wasn't thinking!" She frowned, hating that she had no useful argument. "Ayo is needed back in Suna, right away!"
Temari had just gotten a message from Kankurou in which he explained how sour the wedding deal went and that Gaara wasn't to be married any longer. Instead of telling Ayo first, she decided to talk to Naruto. It wasn't being too fruitful.
"I tell you what," The Hokage started, grinning. "If Ayo-chan comes to me herself and asks to be released from duty, I will let you have her. Until then, it's a big no. What is it with Gaara anyway? I did think it was weird that he let someone like that slip away."
"Ayo-chan?" Temari retorted, before deciding to ignore it since Naruto was pretty much informal with everyone. "Hokage-sama, trust me when I say that Gaara wasn't in his right mind."
Shikamaru watched the whole scene quietly, not bothering to get involved.
"He wasn't, is that so?" Naruto scratched his chin, starting to put things together. "Does this have anything to do with that arranged marriage thing?"
Temari's eyes widened, giving Naruto the answer he wanted.
"I will take that as a yes." The seventh Hokage nodded, his index finger tapping his face. "So you say that Ayo-chan was emotional and that Gaara wasn't in his right mind… And it had to do with the wedding…" Shikamaru could actually hear the wheels spinning inside the infamous blonde's mind. "It must mean that Gaara has a crush on Ayo-chan and she likes him too. That would explain her strange request… She was mad because he was getting married!"
Shikamaru stared wide-eyed and Temari gasped in shock.
Wow, Shikamaru thought to himself. Finally, Naruto got one right.
Temari chuckled nervously. "Hokage, please do not speak of this to…"
"Well, if you want me to act like I don't know, I can do that." The seventh grinned boyishly, crossing his arms. "But I will not get involved in it, either. Gaara needs to man up and come get the girl himself, otherwise she will never truly forgive him." He reasoned.
Temari and Shikamaru stared at Naruto in shock, knowing that what he said was wise.
"When did you get so smart?" Shikamaru muttered, amused.
Temari sighed. "Alright… You do have a point…"
"So it's settled. I need to hurry and put her in some missions, before she's snatched away." Naruto smirked, sitting lazily on his chair.
Temari nodded, sighing again.
What a drag!
He walked at night, the wind blowing the leaves that brushed past him. He didn't remember how long it was since he was last in Konoha. The place brought a lot of memories, some bad and some good. Some even funny.
Gaara stared at the faces set on stone, above him. He wondered where he would find her.
Closing his eyes for a moment, he concentrated in searching for the familiar chakra that belonged with him, back in Suna. It didn't take him long to feel her. She wasn't moving, which made it easier for him to track. He found himself on her windowsill, watching as she moved slowly on bed, breathing steadily as she slept. He didn't realize it was already that late.
He knew the best option was for him to retreat and wait until the morning before approaching her, but his heart seemed to disagree. Reluctantly, his hand reached out to open the window. A second later and he was already inside her room, his teal eyes staring at her sleeping form. He thought he was probably looking terribly creepy as he watched her sleep, but he pushed the thought away and walked closer to the bed, his fingers brushing a curl of her hair away from her face.
His eyes widened as she frowned, moving just the slightest. She did not wake up, though, only turning on the mattress, the motion causing the sheets over her to shift and reveal a good portion of her bare body.
He felt his face burn and his blood boiled. It seemed like he was always finding her in a naked state.
Looking down at himself, helplessly, he decided it would really be best to just go away and meet her in a few hours. He turned to leave, but stopped on his tracks at the sound of her voice.
"Gaara…"
Although a whisper, it was his name without a doubt. He turned quickly to face her, but she was still fast asleep. He started at her with curiosity, wondering what that was about. She had just called him. Could it be that she was…
He blinked a couple of times, his heart racing.
She was dreaming of him.
The irresistible urge to stay took over, feeding the also unyielding desire to touch her. He sat on her bed softly, staring at her as he ran his fingers on her face, caressing her cheek gently. A small smile was her reaction and he felt the butterflies go wild in his stomach. The sheets tangled around her, snaking between her legs as she hugged them. This is wrong, he thought as he moved his hand to brush her thigh, his fingertips running a trail until he reached her knee.
"Hmm…" She moaned softly, moving again. One of her dark candy nipples escaped the prison of fabrics and he gulped, his hands itching to grasp it. Why was it that he couldn't resist her breasts? He felt he was a perverted freak, but it wasn't enough to stop his next move. His thumb brushed the brown lump of skin gently and he watched, as it got hard from his touch, hearing the soft gasp that escaped her luscious lips.
"Gaara…" She moaned his name again and her hand grasped his shirt, pulling him to her with an inexplicable force. His eyes widened in shock as he was pulled on top of her, the scent of exotic flowers and spices numbing his mind as he watched her open her eyes slowly, still half-asleep, staring at him. He braced himself for whatever reaction she would have, but she only blinked slowly, her arms making their way around his neck, pulling him closer as her legs crossed around his body, pressing him further against herself.
He felt his heart pound madly against his chest, his pants painfully tight as their bodies touched. Her eyes closed again as she rocked her hips against his slowly, panting as she did so. He groaned, closing his own teal orbs at the lustful feeling that seemed to soak every cell on his body. His hand moved, undoing the buttons of his clothes. Her eyes were half-open again, watching sleepily as he did so, her palms spreading on his chest as he pulled his shirt away. She purred with content, scratching his skin with her sharp nails. He hissed with the action, the raw pleasure enticing him to no end.
He reached out for his pants, pausing to watch her reaction to it. She nodded slowly, biting her bottom lip as she waited for him to go on. He took the rest of his clothes away, letting them fall soundlessly on her floor, making his way back to her. Her lips sought his in a long, sloppy kiss as her arms hugged his neck once more, repeating the same move from before, her legs closing around him. He gasped loudly and closed his eyes, moaning at the feeling of her wetness against him.
"Gaara…"
"Gaara…"
"Gaara?!"
His greenish eyes opened and he stared at the ceiling, his heart beating a thousand miles per second. Sitting up, he found himself back in Suna, alone in his own bed, staring at a hard on and groaning miserably as someone called him from his door, whom he suspected was his brother.
Oh, come on! Gaara thought, letting himself fall back on bed and pulling a pillow against his face, sighing in frustration. A dream… Again?!
A basket of fruits rested between them as they sat together on a clearing, enjoying the quiet afternoon. The warm weather was still fresh when compared to Suna's. As they kept each other company, varied topics were discussed; even tales and old stories were told… Mostly by her, as she told him about her life. He merely talked about shinobi tactics and skills, which left her wondering about the mystery that he was.
"Yes, of course I've heard about it." Ayo rolled her eyes, cutting a slice of the apple on her hands and pushing the bit of fruit inside her mouth, closing her eyes in contempt as she felt the sweet taste of its juice.
Madara stared at the kunoichi, doing a double take as he tried to remember what he had just said a second before. He fought the urge to frown upon his own reaction to her eating a simple fruit. This is not part of my plans, he thought.
"I thought so, but I felt I should ask anyway." He continued, looking down at his hands where another apple rested, a gift she brought for him. "You master the types of nature that are necessary for it. Why don't you try and grasp it?"
"Kekkei Touta is extremely complicated, Izuna. It is at Kage's level and it's usually inherited… Chances are I will never be able to do it, although I do want to master it and I've tried before." She shrugged. "There is no need for rushing, anyway. It's not like we are at war or anything."
Black eyes flashed red for a split second as she stared at her fruit, cutting another slice. She never noticed it.
"Well, I think you should. We can never know what the future brings."
She stopped and looked into his dark orbs, thinking over his words. "I guess you're right… I never gave it much attention before, since I figured it was a dead end." She muttered, biting the slice that was still stuck on her knife, forcing his stare down at her lips once more.
Damned woman. He thought to himself, feeling the faintest blush spread across his cheeks.
Madara had kept his original looks as he decided on how to appear before her, as a grown up. He looked younger, obviously, but other than that, he only changed two things: The length of his hair that was now short, much like Izuna's, and a large scar on his left cheek, reaching right above his eye. As he figured, no one in Konoha seemed to notice anything. Not even one person noticed his real identity.
Idiots. He thought to himself.
"It is not a dead end. I will help you practice." He muttered, staring at the red fruit in his hands.
She smiled at him and nodded. "I suppose I can give it another try."
Hinata was walking down the streets with Neji, Hanabi and Ayo by her side. She had wanted to give the foreign kunoichi a tour, since things had changed a lot since the last time she was in Konoha. It proved to be a fun afternoon. Hinata loved to spend time with her sister and cousin and missed Ayo. She wasn't a child anymore, though. As they talked the night before, Ayo told her everything that happened and the reason why she decided to leave Sunagakure. Hinata could understand her; after all, she knew how it felt to love someone that was out of her reach. However, things had turned out in her favor in the end and for that reason Hinata did not fully know what the other girl was going through. She could only try to be there for the younger, helping in any way she could.
Neji walked with them without a sound, carrying the bags with the things they bought. Hanabi and Ayo were laughing as they talked about something random when they heard a faint noise and a child broke down, crying. Ayo stopped, staring at the source of it and seeing a small kid that had fallen and bruised his knee. Smiling gently, she knelt in front of him and brought her palm to the cut, a soft glow healing it instantly.
Neji watched silently as Ayo pulled a lollipop out of her bag and gave it to the small boy, who smiled brightly in return, waving as they walked away. He stared at her from the corner of his eyes with a small smile of his own.
He tried to ignore the captivating character that she was with every little thing his perceptive eyes caught her doing, even without meaning to. Ayo was exotic, kind, skilled. He kept adding qualities to the list and he had only been around her for a few days.
It honestly alarmed him in a strange, unknown way.
Back in the Hyuuga compound, Neji sat by the garden, watching as the first stars began to appear. Ayo was walking down the halls when she saw him. It was a common occurrence; she would be walking to her room and find him at the garden, meditating or training. She smiled softly as their eyes met. He nodded, his eyes looking away from her, blankly staring back at the sky. To his surprise, he felt her sitting next to him. She did not ask, not announce. She simply did as she felt like.
He didn't look her at her, but she broke the silence anyway. "I heard about the branch house mark…"
His head turned to her, then. His look was surprised and lightly offended. He did not mind the mark anymore; after Hinata took charge as heir and head of the clan, the branch house members that were born no longer carried the curse. Nonetheless, it was rather rude of her part to speak bluntly like that. He wondered what she wanted, starting a conversation that way.
When he said nothing, she continued. "Can I see it?"
He frowned. She couldn't be that dense. He decided he found the first flaw on her, after all. "No." He simply replied, standing up and walking away, not being able to hide the utter annoyance in his voice.
Ayo frowned too. He was pissed at her; she figured, a little too late, that it was a sensitive subject. She should have known, but she really didn't think that he would have cared that much. She didn't know enough about him or his family. She could have apologized, but her instincts told her otherwise. She quickly stood up as well and moved to step in front of him, reaching out. His eyes followed the movement, but he did not move an inch, not believing she would dare touching him.
She did, though.
He blinked in disbelief as her hands brushed his hitaiate. Taking a graceful step back to avoid her touch, his eyes widened in shock from the unexpected launch of her body at his. His feet moved to avoid the contact once more, but she anticipated it and caught him out of guard. All they managed to accomplish was falling soundly on the floor.
Ayo didn't let it stop her and crawled to him, her hands quick on their aim to pull the band away from his forehead, her thighs pressed firmly on his sides as she straddled him to keep him from escaping.
Neji growled, angry, as he felt the branch mark exposed to the prying lioness' eyes. He cursed himself for letting his guard down and stared at her, enraged, ready to push her away from him. However, his anger was replaced with incredulity as she leaned down and pressed her soft lips to the mark on his skin, kissing it gently.
He closed his eyes instantly, the way one would do when about to experience something painful; instead, a warm feeling spread inside his chest. He opened his pearl eyes to stare at her and she blinked a couple of times, looking like she was also stunned by her own actions. She blushed, still on top of him, as she finally noticed the position they were in.
"I'm sorry for asking such an insensitive question…" She muttered slowly, the faint blush darkening on her cheeks. "I never meant to offend. I was just… Curious."
She got up and off him. He did not move, frozen on spot as if he was afraid that his heart would escape if he got up. He listened her quiet, rushed footsteps fade away and closed his eyes once more, confused with how she made him feel.
What the hell did just happen?
