Yay! Stupid chapters over! This one is kind of jumpy, but it's good... At least, I think it is. Thank you to everyone who's reading this story, though I'd appreciate it if you reviewed. Thanks ^^
Disclaimer: I own nothing of Naruto but Hasu... Though I wish I owned Gaara in real life ~.^
I was sitting on one of the mesas that overlooked Suna. We'd arrived only a few hours beforehand, Kankurou sitting on front of me, facing me. Between us was one bottle of sake and two cups. "Man... Temari's going to hit me for drinking with you." Kankurou sighed, and I shook my head.
"No, she knows what we're doing." I said as I poured the sake into the cups.
"All right... what is it you needed to talk about?" Kankurou asked as he drank the cup slowly.
"Kankurou, I'm going to leave for a week or two. I'm really hesitant to go, though... I think something is going to happen." I said hesitantly, sipping the sake. Kankurou eyed me with a frown.
"What do you think is going to happen?" Kankurou said, and I sighed.
"Kankurou, you know I'm far from an idiot. I don't worry about things unless I'm sure it's needed, usually... This time, I'm relying on my instincts. I need you to trust them... Can you do that?" I asked, and Kankurou eyed me before nodding curtly. "All right... I think someone is targeting me... and I think they are going to try to hurt Gaara to get to me." I said seriously, and Kankurou frowned.
"Why would that hurt you?" Kankurou asked, and I sighed at him.
"Because I love him, Kankurou..." I said, and Kankurou blinked at me before sighing, drinking more sake.
"Okay... so you love my little brother?" Kankurou asked, and I nodded.
"I said that, didn't I?" I carefully drank more sake, refilling the cups. "I am almost positive someone is after me, and I'm certain they will try to hurt Gaara. I have to leave for a week or two. Staying here isn't an option at the moment. I will also being going alone." I said seriously, and Kankurou eyed me skeptically.
"Are you sure you want to go off on your own if you think you're being hunted?" Kankurou questioned, and I nodded.
"I have to. Don't come after me unless I'm gone for a month." I said seriously. If I get captured, two weeks is more then enough time to escape... after finding out what I need to learn. Not that I'm going to let myself get captured again.
"You want me to keep an eye on Gaara?" Kankurou guessed.
"I need you to be with him at all times. I don't want to risk something happening to him..." I trailed off with a sigh.
"All right. I'll do what I can." Kankurou said. "When are you leaving and where to?"
"I'm leaving now. I'm going to see my mother."
And so I found myself on the border between the Land of Fire and the Land of Water. I was constantly on guard, being extremely careful not to be found out. I knew if I was caught by Kirigakure shinobi, it would mean serious trouble for Suna. Finally, after hours of simply sitting in front of a small stone, I got what I came for. "I knew you'd show up here." A beautiful voice said from behind where I knelt. I didn't move, simply staring at the stone my hand was lightly sitting on.
"I knew you'd look here... You kept me waiting." I said calmly. "She never did like Kirigakure... When I left, I took her gravestone with me, and put it here. That way I could visit her, since I'm no longer allowed in Kirigakure, and she wouldn't be buried somewhere she hated."
"Tch... Why would I give a damn what that woman cared about?" The beautiful voice scoffed.
"What? You don't care to know about the woman who raised me?" I asked, a cold smile on my lips. "I would expect no less from you."
"Hmph. So how much have you seen through?" The voice demanded from behind me.
"I've seen through you. I've seen through you getting Kabuto to torture me... I've seen through how you convinced them to help you. What I haven't seen through is who you were trying to lure out." I said in a completely relaxed tone.
"You're awfully at ease for someone who's life I'm making hell." The voice growled suspiciously.
"Only because I'm used to it. You may have been the first one to hurt me, but you were and are far from last." I said calmly.
"Impudent little bitch." The woman's voice growled angrily.
"I do try... Tell me, who were you trying to lure out?" I asked, still unmoving as I stared at the grave stone.
"Someone much more worthwhile to Orochimaru-sama then you." The voice sneered, and I narrowed my eyes very slightly.
"-sama, eh? You've fallen lower then I thought." I said in a relaxed tone, and immediately heard the whoosh of air before a kunai flew just by my cheek, creating a long cut on it. A shallow wound. I didn't flinch, or even blink as it did. "You missed." I said calmly, hearing the soft hiss behind me. "...I see. You were trying to lure out him, weren't you?" I guessed, taking her silence as an answer. "How very cruel of you... However, I hid him very well. You will never find him.." I said coldly.
"You dare hide him from me?" The voice growled, and I traced that name on the gravestone with my fingertip.
"Yes, I do dare... Do you dare battle me? You will lose... But you know that, don't you?" I said calmly, hearing the irritated noises coming from the woman behind me.
"You... will never be worth anything, Hasu." The voice snarled furiously. "Shunned by your own family... You have no friends, only people who pity you. Even your enemies discard you as worthless. I will take him, and then you will be completely alone." I simply looked at the gravestone, tracing the engraved name with my pointer finger until I'd long since heard the woman go. With a soft sigh, I stood up.
"Goodbye, Okaa-chan..." I whispered as I tore my eyes from the gravestone, beginning my trip back to Sunagakure.
I sat on the roof outside my window, staring out at Sunagakure silently. I'd returned after four days of uneventful traveling. I'd walked into the house and past the waiting siblings and went right out onto the roof, ignoring them ever since. I wasn't trying to be rude, I was just caught up in my thoughts. I'm not sure what to do... If she goes after him, it will be difficult to protect him without causing problems between villages... I've hidden him well, but if she finds him... I can't go to him, as she'll follow me. In fact, I wouldn't be surprised if she followed me here. I looked out at the mesa, scanning it despite it being pointless as it was too dark to see much.
If she finds him, then I'll have to kill her... If I can't stop her in time, I'll have to kill him. I winced at that thought. I can't do that... I looked over as I heard movement to see Gaara quietly sitting down beside me.
"Temari is worried because you haven't eaten or spoken since your return." He said without emotion as he looked out at Suna.
"Yeah, well..." I turned back to staring at Suna as well. "I've been busy thinking." Yet again I fell into silence as I got caught up in my thoughts. I'm not sure I'd be able to stop her from using him if she got him... But... If I go to him, we could very easily kill her and her people... No, he wouldn't like that. He would do it for me, but he would hate it... I won't make him do that... Can I really protect him? I thought sadly, leaning over without looking. Gaara tensed slightly as I leaned my arm against his, resting my head on his shoulder. He relaxed slowly as I stared out at the village. After a few minutes, I sat back up. "I... love you, Gaara." I said quietly.
Gaara looked at me, his eyes widening a fraction on his otherwise emotionless face. I met his eyes silently for a few moments before I turned to look out at Suna, closing my eyes lightly as I heard the rustling sand, telling me Gaara had left. I looked out at the mesa with a hardened expression, narrowing my eyes. "Come near my family, and I'll kill you." I growled under my breath to nothing before I turned around and stood, climbing back into the house.
"Hasu." Temari said as I walked into the living room, Kankurou sprawled on the sofa.
"Hm?" I hummed as I sat down on Kankurou's chest.
"Oi, woman..." Kankurou grumbled.
"Are you alright?" Temari asked as I flicked at Kankurou, who had tried to push me from his chest.
"I'm fine." I said calmly. "Why do you ask?"
"Because you seem distracted and... different." Temari said hesitantly, and I stood up, getting off the irritated Kankurou, and sat at the edge of the couch just past his feet.
"I'm fine, Temari... I just hadn't visited my mothers grave in some time until a few days ago..." I said calmly.
"Damn it, Hasu. You need to stop living up to your name." Temari growled, referring to the fact that my name meant 'Lotus', which stood for 'mystery' and 'truth'.
"I like to think I live more up to 'Suisen' then 'Hasu'." I said, and Temari frowned at me. Suisen meant 'Daffodil', which stood for 'unrequited love'. "Anyways, I need get some sleep..."
"But you'll have nightmares?" Temari said, though it was questioning like she wasn't sure anymore.
"So?" I asked as I walked towards my room, leaving behind two confused siblings.
"Why can't I leave?" A boy of twelve questioned a thirteen year old Hasu. He had dark brown hair with a near invisible reddish tint and dark purple eyes. He wore a simple dark grey, long sleeve shirt with dark grey pants and navy blue shinobi sandals.
"Because you could be hurt if you do..." Hasu said quietly.
"Who's going to take care of me?" The boy asked worriedly, sounding frightened.
"I will, silly... I'm not abandoning you. I would never do that." Hasu said assuringly. "I'll bring you food and water every few weeks, and I'll bring enough to last you a month each time. You'll never have to worry... I'll come and spend a few days with you every few weeks."
"But what if you forget about me?" The boy asked in a scared voice.
"I won't forget about you. You're way too important for that." Hasu said, smiling at the boy.
"Are you sure?" He asked nervously.
"I'm positive... I'll never forget about you." Hasu swore, hugging the boy who was only a year younger then herself.
"All right... I'll stay here, then." The boy said as they pulled apart from the hug, giving Hasu a wide grin. She smiled back at him.
I woke up from the relatively peaceful dream, a feeling of dread washing over me. I shook it off as I got up from the bed, quickly getting dressed. I pulled on my black, sleeveless top with a collar that reached half-way up my neck, the shirt bordered by dark purple that matched my eyes. I put on my black pants, then my black shinobi boots. Tightly tying my dark purple Suna hitai-ate around my upper arm, I pulled on my black fingerless gloves that reached just below my elbows, a metal plate across the top of my hands. I walked out of the room while tying my shoulder-length crimson hair up.
"Morning." I called as I walked into the living room to find Temari and Kankurou eating some breakfast.
"Morning." Temari and Kankurou called back, and Temari immediatly smacked him on the back of the head for talking with his mouth full.
"Ow! What the hell, woman?" Kankurou demanded as he swallowed his food. I smiled lightly at their antics as I walked into the kitchen to grab some breakfast of my own. Before I reached the food, though, I heard a knock on the door.
"I got it." I called to the siblings as I walked over to the door, opening it to find Baki standing there, looking at me with a frown. "Baki?" I asked, surprised. "Can I help you?"
"The Kazekage wishes to see you immediately..." He said with a frown, and I nodded.
"Got it." I said, opening the door further. Baki stepped out of the way for me to walk out, and I looked over my shoulder. "I'll be back soon." I called to the siblings before walking out of the house, closing the door behind me. I looked at Baki as we began to head towards the Kazekage's building. "What's this about?"
"I'm not sure." Baki said honestly. "We received a message from Konoha earlier and when Kazekage-sama read it, he told me to get you... I don't know what it said."
"Odd... It can't be that important to me if Konoha didn't sent it to me directly, right?" I asked myself aloud.
"Or it's important enough that the decrpyters decided the Kazekage needed to read it as well..." Baki pointed out, and I nodded at the possibility.
"True. But I doubt that... Or maybe they sent bad news to Gaara since they didn't want me to hear about it over paper..." I mused.
"Or it's good news." Baki suggested as we reached the building, and I let out a soft laugh.
"Maybe..." But I doubt it. I added in my head as I opened the door to Gaara's office. Baki waited outside as I walked in, closing the door behind me. Normally, Gaara would say something about knocking, but he simply looked at me with an odd expression. "You wanted me?" I asked as I walked into the middle of the room.
"Konohagakure sent a message to inform us of a death." Gaara began and I looked at him, biting the inside of my cheek slightly.
"Who?" I asked.
"Sarutobi Asuma." Gaara said as he watched me carefully. I breathed out tiredly as I lightly covered my eyes with my hand. After a moment to compose myself, I lowered my hand and looked at Gaara seriously.
"Who did it?" I asked calmly.
"Akatsuki... A pair reportedly called Hidan and Kakuzu." Gaara said and I frowned in confusion. Sensing my next question, Gaara answered ahead of time. "They killed him for the bounty he had... However, they retreated for an unknown reason and his team returned his body to Konoha." He said. "Nara Shikamaru, Hagane Kotetsu, and Kamizuki Izumo were all injured, but are recovering... Sarutobi Asuma's funeral will be in three days."
"I see..." I said, hanging my head slightly so my bangs partially hid my eyes. "I need to go... I promised Temari I would be back there soon..." I said, my voice breaking at the last word to my irritation. I turned to leave, only to find my foot caught in sand. I felt a tear slip from my eye and hit the sand, further giving away how sad I really was at this news. I heard Gaara walk over to me, and once he was close enough, I slowly put my arms around him quietly crying into his shoulder. I felt the sand unwrap from my foot as he slowly and hesitantly put his arms around me as well.
"Again!" Temari growled as she found me on the rooftop three hours later.
"Hello to you to." I said dryly.
"Why are you up here again?" Temari asked as she walked over to me, frowning as she spotted the cigarette between my fingers.
"Don't look at me like that... I have plenty bad habits all ready, I'm not picking up another one. It's a... memorial smoke." I said with a shrug.
"Someone died?" Temari asked with a deeper frown as she sat in front of me. I inhaled the cigarette before exhaling the smoke slowly towards the sky, feeling my body relax as I did.
"Asuma-sempai... Shikamaru's sensei." I said with a sigh to get rid of any extra smoke before breathing in more.
"Oh... So that's why Gaara wanted to talk to you earlier... Are you..?" She trailed off questioningly.
"I'm fine." I said bitterly, rubbing the butt of the cigarette into the ground to put it out. "I'm just tired."
"Tired of what?" Temari asked, confusion evident in her voice.
"Of everything, Temari!" I shouted, and she blinked at me. "I'm tired of lying. I'm tired of hiding my past. I'm tired of running. I'm tired of death. I'm tired of hate, and damn it!" I slammed my fist into the roof, feeling my middle knuckle crack at the impact, the skin getting torn from the rough rooftop. "I'm tired of being hunted!" I spat furiously, feeling blood on my knuckles, which were still smashed into the roof.
"Hunted? Hiding your past? What are you talking about?" Temari asked curiously. I looked away, starting to stand up when Temari grabbed my forearm roughly, holding me in place. "What the hell are you talking about, Hasu!" She demanded.
"Only four people have ever known about my whole past, and only two of them are still alive. Asuma and his father were two, now only Inoichi and Tsunade know... I didn't even want them to know. I didn't want anyone to know... Asuma was like a temporary father to me. He let me stay in his house while I was in Konoha, and I ate with him and his team all the time. Eventually I ended up going to my own apartment, but only for the month before you guys came... It isn't right that people just keep dying and dying... I can't go near the Land of Water because I'm hunted by Kirigakure Hunter-Nins for having a Kekkei Genkai, even though I'm not a missing-nin... Now I'm being hunted by my own-" I cut myself off, roughly shaking Temari's hand from my arm.
"Hunted by what, Hasu?" Temari growled angrily, and I glared at her.
"It's none of your damn business, Temari!" I shouted.
"Hey! What's the matter with you two?" Kankurou demanded from the window we'd climbed onto the roof from. I looked at him, wondering when he'd gotten there.
"I'm sick of her hiding things from us!" Temari yelled, pointing at me, and I glared at her.
"They're my things to hide! It isn't like I don't have reasons for doing this!" I spat, and Temari glared back at me.
"Don't you get it, Hasu? You're like family to us!" She said, and I narrowed my eyes.
"Yeah? Well my last family abandoned me for having a damn blood limit I got from them!" I hissed furiously.
"We would never do that to you. When will you start trusting us?" Temari demanded, sounding almost hurt. I looked to the side, biting my lip. "No! You will trust us, Hasu! We've more then earned it." She said sternly. I chewed my lip worriedly before turning around.
"I'll be back by nightfall... All of you, including Gaara, need to be here when I get back..." I said softly before jumping away, running towards the mountain I went to every few weeks.
