Chapter 21 (The Demons)
I met Gaara just outside the gates to the village. Before I could even ask why I was there he kissed me fiercely. All thoughts of Neji drifted out of my mind.
"That was maddening," he murmured, "Being so close to you with him there."
He kissed me again.
Deep within me something stirred and I heard the voice of the five-tailed tiger demon in my head.
"This looks like fun," purred the tiger. No, tiger, I thought furiously, but I was ignored. I felt all the strength of the tiger fill me, along with an intense joy and playfulness. The energy that radiated from me made Gaara take a step back.
"Wha-?" he began, but was cut off as a similar energy filled him. I assumed this was Shukaku's Chakra- a dark, lethal-looking, reddish brown Chakra.
"What's happening? This…isn't…normal," Gaara said through clenched teeth.
"He thinks Shukaku will hurt him. Tell him to stop fighting. The raccoon-demon just wants me," said the voice of the tiger in my head. I laughed lightly.
"Don't fight him, Gaara. I think you'll find Shukaku has become quite tame," I said. It didn't occur to me that listening to and trusting a demon might not be a smart thing to do. Gaara stopped fighting and Shukaku's energy filled him.
"Unbelievable! Why-?"
"I'll explain later. Run with me," I encouraged. This time my voice held the alluring timbre of the tiger demon.
I ran without even thinking about it. The tiger within me was enjoying the freedom that I'd finally given her. Behind us Gaara, still amazed, ran instinctively on the power of Shukaku. They were slower than us. This time it was entirely the demon that spoke through me.
"Come on, Shukaku," she said cheerfully.
"Slow down, Kouta," said a voice that must have been Shukaku's.
"Who's Kouta?" I wondered vaguely.
"I am Kouta you silly girl," said the tiger lightly.
"Oh. I didn't know you had a name. You never told me that," I responded.
"You never asked," she replied.
We ran through the desert for a long time. It could have been days, months, or years…there seemed to be no limit to the strength of the demons. Eventually we stopped at an oasis and Kouta and Shukaku returned to their separate, dormant, places.
"Shukaku has never been that way before. Never so calm…so manageable," Gaara, said, the amazement still in his voice.
"I know. It was because of Kouta, I think," I said slowly.
"That is the tiger's name?"
"Yes."
"Then she is rightfully named so. 'Kouta' means peace. She made Shukaku…peaceful. Usually I must be asleep for him to control me," he said quietly.
"It is amazing," I agreed, "…I'm glad I didn't hurt anyone this time."
"Nor did I. Who did you hurt last time?"
"…I hurt Neji," I whispered painfully. Just saying has name brought to mind the look of hurt I'd seen on his face a few hours earlier. My distress was evident because Gaara walked over to me.
"I shouldn't have asked. I've upset you. I'm…sorry," he said awkwardly. He put his arms around me and kissed me.
"Holy Cow!" said a voice. We broke apart and looked up to see Mei and Kankuro approaching us. Gaara and I both had to fight back the demons that had been reawakened by the kiss.
"I didn't know you two were like that," Mei continued, eyes wide. Gaara didn't say anything and neither did I. He was harnessing his demon whereas I just didn't want to say anything.
"Scram you two, this is our make-out spot," Kankuro said with a hint of humor. Gaara took my hand suddenly, almost desperately, and led me away.
"They're both sort of creepy," I heard Mei remark when they thought we couldn't hear them anymore.
"Gaara's always been like that," Kankuro replied, "I don't know what the story is behind that Chouko kid, but it can't be a good one."
When we were far enough away Gaara and I both let the demons go. Shukaku and Kouta both took control of us to have a conversation.
"We could go back and kill them," Shukaku suggested.
"No, Shukaku. They're only children. Besides, I think I am ready to go back to the village now," Kouta replied. Gaara and I both sighed in relief. Kankuro and Mei had no idea how close they'd almost come to being lunchmeat for demons.
"Come on, Shukaku, I'll race you," Kouta said playfully.
When I returned to the hotel Kakashi and Neji both sat on the couch. Kakashi was bandaging a wound on Neji's back. They both surveyed me silently when I walked in.
"What happened to your back?" I asked, trying to sound unconcerned.
"One of Orochimaru's spies recognized me as a Leaf ninja and attacked. We fought. I won. The Sand ninja have him now. The only people who know are those who are in on the mission. We feel certain that the other spies don't know what happened," he informed me.
"I was gone a long time wasn't I?" I said wondrously.
"Three hours," Kakashi provided. Without saying anything more I went to my room and shut the door.
"I wonder where she went for three hours," Neji said, unaware that I was listening.
"And who she was with," Kakashi added dryly.
"You could have followed her."
There was a stunned silence.
"Do you know what she would do to me if she caught me spying on her? Especially if she has a boyf-" the word died on Kakashi's lips. The intense silence that followed made me uncomfortable. I was exhausted. It felt like weeks since I'd had a good night's sleep. I collapsed onto the bed with a yawn and fell asleep almost instantly.