Apprentice
TEN reviews for the last chapter!! HOLY CRAP!!! (stare!) I feel happy...
I remembered to put in the links!!!!!!! No one reminded me.... I know a couple of you already know what the Four look like and all... but there are certain few who don't!!!
QUIZ -for those who know the manga-: Why does Sakkon have that huge scroll on his back?
A: It's good for his posture
B: It goes with his outfit
C: He seals things in it
D: He hides Shizuka in it
Review with answer! I will unveil the stupidity of people soon!
My review answers!! (Sorry to the people I forgot to respond to last time... my memory sucks more then H-R's on some days...)
Jazzywolf: Yes that was good motivation... ty!
Joann: Uh... honey? I hate short reviews.. I don't wanna sound bitchy, but I've had a bad day so please excuse me... AND LEAVE LONGER REVIEWS!
Chaos-sempai: Thankies!!! That's the nicest thing anyone's said about this so far!!! (happy face; glomp!) Thankies!!! Is that Naruto theme the newest one...? All of these themes are so cheerful... IT'S NOT CHEERFUL DAMMIT!!
A random student: Did the picture really seem that weird...? Good! (grin) I kind of wanted to make the point that Orochi acts differently around Shizuka (e.i.: smiling) because he, one, likes her more, and two, doesn't want to come off as a ruthless killer. I'm glad you think Sakkon is cool, though! Me, too! (as if you couldn't tell...) (H-R: You have the weirdest name ever...)
jazzywolf: I is glad you liked it! ...I talked to you just the other day, didn't I...? Huh, go figure...
kie-san: Heh heh heh... Yes, the sand-nins have arrived! (I promised H-R that if she read this story, the sand-nins would show up, but I was planning on putting them in anyway) I'm glad you like all my characters, but, unfortunately... you know what happens in the whole Sasuke-thing, right? I can't change Kishimoto-sama's plot too too much... (sob) Yeah, I don't guess too many people like Rei, since Rei is like "the ultimate ninja" and whatnot... I don't like her myself... SHE BEAT UP NEJI!!!! (shocked face)
Malitia: I want to send you the pics.... But your e-mail is funky and it won't let me. I have made you into a Sakkon lover? Ok... but remember: HE BELONGS TO SHIZUKA! SO DOES KIMI-KUN! (what are they, socks?) I watch eps 78 alot, too... when I first saw the tapes (before I was a Sakkon-maniac and read the manga) when I first saw Sakkon, I thought he was a girl... then he spoke. I was like "WHAT THE FREAKIN HELL?!" and rewinded it and watched it over... and over... and over just to make sure. Then, in the manga it said "Note: The speaker is a man." I was like "ooohhh..."
Dragonman180: WHOA, FUNNY MENTAL PICTURE!!! (eyes wide) Crikeys.... Yeah, I can see him stalking her date, too... And I even know who that date will be... but I won't tell! (Kenshin face)
Shells: Uh... honey? Buddy, dude, reviewer, friend, amigo.... Sasuke? Um.... I will now direct you to a scene in preveious chapters.... where Shizuka YELLS AT HIM FOR BEING A FRIDGET CONTAINOR-STEALER!!! Don't get me wrong, I don't hate Sasuke... but don't get your hopes up.
Lady Light: Yes... Mr Puppetteer has cat ears... I WANT HIS HOOD SO DAMN BAD! Kan-kun is my baby!!
I'm so glad this has become so popular so quickly!! I didn't think people would like it, but apparently... you do! This fic hit 58 reviews last time I checked... let's go for 70, ok? WE MUST BEAT GENIUS IN LOVE (currently my most popular)!!!
Chapter Nine: Sunaga!?
Shizuka rolled over, over-come with doziness. She felt nice, cool sheetsunder her, and could smell house-like smells (i.e.: cleaning supplies, cooking, etc). A wave of fear over-came her; what was she doing in a house?! The last thing she remembered was a blinding heat, her skin burning, and then, she recalled, a soft, pillowly sensation, like she was floating on air.
As her senses slowly came back to her, she heard voices, or, rather, thoughts floating above her head. She focused on them curiously, wondering if the Four had actually caught up to her.
Interesting eyes... like she just woke up and forgot to put make-up on the other one...
This is weird... Why's he always have to bring everything and everybody he finds in the desert home with him?
I think I'll try pork ramen today...
Shizuka thought back; so she was in the desert; that would explain the blinding heat and her skin burning. But wait... this doesn't make sense, she though confusedly. I was heading for the Thunder Country... How could I go from Sound to Thunder to Desert?
She opened her eyes, determines to figure this out. Where am I?
"Where do you think? It's hot, dusty and unbearbly bright. You put it together, snake-girl."
Shizuka looked up, her eyes wide; three shadows loomed over her; one, shorter then the other, had short, spiky hair; the other, slightly taller, had spiky ponytails, and the last and tallest, had....
Are those cat ears?
Are you human? she asked the cat-guy, just to be sure.
"Che." He crossed his arms, looking away. "Fine way to repay us for saving you from the desert."
"What's wrong with the desert?" asked the smallest shadow, in a quiet-yet-powerful voice.
"Nothing, if you happen to be able to control all the sand," the cat-guy pointed out.
"Come on, guys, don't argue," protested the pony-tailed shadow before the smaller shadow could cover the other one in what appeared to be something deadly, since the tallest shadow started whimpering.
Who the hell ARE you people?!
They paused, looking at her. "You don't know us? We know you," the pony-tailed shadow said.
Well, excuse me for being out of the loop, but you people are weird, I've never seen you before in my life!
They looked at each other. "I'm Temari," the girl said. "This is Kankurou, yes, he is human, and this is Gaara." She gestured to the other two in turn.
Gaara? Shizuka thought for a moment; where had she heard that name? The three waited patiently while she racked her brains. After a few moments of thought, something clicked, and she jumped up, pointing excitedly at the shadow called Gaara, nodding. Yeah, yeah! He's--he's-- She paused to think again.
Temari rolled her eyes. "Don't strain yourself too hard, now."
Shizuka glared.
"Gaara's the one who brought you home," Temari offered, nodding to her littlest brother, who said nothing, just looked away.
Huh? Shizuka started wracking her brains again, but stopped when she felt a stinging pain; she looked down at her hands. Her skin was red and peeling; some places were even oozing some sort of clear liquid. She grimaced. What the hell?
"You got sunburned," Temari answered. "It'll hurt for a while, but that'll go away, soon."
Are you the only one who talks? Shizuka asked haughtily, blowing on her sunburned skin. However, as her breath was hot, this only proved to agitate her burns even more.
"I talk!" Kankurou insisted. "I just talked to you!"
Shizuka looked at Gaara expectantly, waiting for him to defend his silence, but found he wasn't paying attention; his eyes were screwed shut and his hand was at his forehead, like he had a headache. Suddenly, an eery, dark voice echoed in Shizuka's head.
(...should have just left her to die out there. Her blood looks good...)
Shut up, you damn demon! I told you I wasn't going to kill anyone else for you!
Shizuka starred, her eyes wide.
There was a moment of silence.
WHAT THE HELL?! she yelped, jumping away, despite the stinging pain in her skin. Gaara looked up, slightly confused. What the hell was that?!
Temari and Kankurou looked at each other confusedly, but comphrehension dawned on Gaara. "It's Shukaku," he answered in his quiet voice. "It's the living soul of an elder priest of our village, that was bound inside me before I was born. It talks to me alot."
Shizuka continued to stare as Temari slowly understood and Kankurou decided to work it out out loud. "She can hear it? That's... not normal."
I can hear people's thoughts, Shizuka supplied, snapping back to her senses. I can't use my vocal chords since birth, so my dad developed a way for me to communicate through thoughts.
"Yeah, we know," Temari said casually. When Shizuka looked at her confusedly, she added, "Our dad and your dad were allies a while ago. We heard about Orochimaru's daughter; you must be her, right?"
Shizuka started to answer with the usual, "Yes, I'm Orochimaru's daughter, now get on your knees and pray I don't have him decaptitate you," but stopped; that joke wasn't funny anymore: she knew now Orochimaru would kill anyone she didn't like. The jokes and comments Sakkon and the others had made made sense to her now.
Flashback
"Fine. Do what you want." He waved his dismissal. "But," he added, glaring at Sakkon, "if she comes back with so much as one scratch on her, I will personally make sure you can never move so much as an inch again, understood?"
End flashback
Flashback
"You don't remember your mom at all?"
She shrugged. "Not really. Mostly I remember seeing Ma, then Orochi-daddy. Then there was a lot of blood. That's pretty much it."
End flashback
Flashback
"Traders," Sakkon answered darkly. "I was going to tell Orochimaru-sama about them. There's a market somewhere, and I have a feeling that after tonight, he'll want to destroy it."
End flashback
Flashback
"You always let him walk all over you and don't say a word in your own
defense! If you did, he might apologize for once!" Shizuka advanced, looking ready to strangle him.
"Or kill me," Sakkon pointed out, getting ready to guard himself.
End flashback
Flashback
Sakkon rolled his eyes, holding up his hands to imitate a scale, lifting and lowering them each in turn, immitating a scale. "Ok, let me see--shut up and live to turn seventeen, or yell back and die in two seconds. Ooh, this is such an agonizing decision, lemme think, uh..." He rubbed his temples, as if thinking hard. "No," he concluded, giving her a look.
End flashback
Flashback
"How come she gets the big one?" Kidoumaru grumbled, going further down the hall to claim a room. "She's the smallest person, and yet she gets the biggest room."
"Because she can have you killed by just giving Orochimaru-sama a hug and asking him sweetly," Sakkon answered, throwing his backpack in the room next to Shizuka's.
Damn straight. Shizuka came out of her room and made a sorry attempt at a scary face. Fear me!
End flashback
Suddenly, none of it seemed funny anymore. They'd all lied to her deliberately, even Kimimaru. A feeling of betrayal boiled inside her, coming out in the form of two small tears, which she instantly wiped away before any of the three could see.
But Gaara saw.
And he understood.
Later that night
Shizuka sat in the hospital bed she had been deposited on, starring out the near-bye window. It felt strange, but this was the first time she had actually really looked out a window; there were no windows in the Sound Village's head quarters, except in the hospital wing, and she normally paid so much attention to Kimimaru, she didn't notice them when she was in there. There was a window in her room in Konoha, as well, but, again, she hadn't paid attention. She found she enjoyed watching as people moved around below her, or watching wisps of wind as they caught the sane and sent it into spirals.
She felt the presence behind her before they could say anything. Do you and your demon want to talk some more? she asked, rather coldly, for she wasn't in a good mood.
Gaara scoffed slightly, stopping in the doorway.
Well?
No answer.
If you're not going to talk, go away. You're wasting my alone-time. She turned back to the window.
Gaara's eye twitched. No one had talked to him with such insolence since... Ok, since this morning when he walked in on Temari getting dressed, but still--No one spoke to Gaara of the Desert like that!
(Apparently, she just did.)
Shut up, you god damn demon, just stay out of my head! He turned on his heal, going back down the hall.
I can hear you, you know, Shizuka called after him.
Gaara stopped for a few moments, then said coldly, "Then you shouldn't need to ask why I came." He continued down the hall.
Actually, I didn't catch that part and I can't push rewind, she said angrily; no answer. Damn these people are weird!
Wow, yeah, I seriously just sat down and wrote this as soon as I posted the last one... that's why it came so fast. SORRY FOR THE LINKS!! (sob) It won't let me put them in!! BUT... I can give directions to a very good site that has them!
Ok, go to Anime galleries dot net....
Now, go to NARUTO... you should see several folders of your favorite characters--IGNORE! Go down to the bottom of the list; there should be one called Sound nins. CLICK. Sakkon and the others appear in the 6th page. It's not that hard to tell who's who if you pay attention to my discriptions. Sakkon has light lavender-blue hair and a necklace and too heads, Kidoumaru has six arms, Tayuya has red hair and is the only girl... Jiroubou is fat.
This site has really good pictures of everyone, I suggest you look at them!