Chapter 49: Arrival
Neiko is filled with natural energy. It will be much faster to attain Sage Mode in her mouth. Kabuto can't touch me in here. Neiko is way too strong for him.
Neiko: "Akia! He's going after your earth dome!"
Just then I enter Sage Mode and rush out of Neiko's mouth. I won't let him get anywhere close to Gaara or Temari!
I get to him at an incredible speed and throw him as far away from them as I can. I then go in the earth dome and release the genjutsu that Gaara and Temari were under. I then go immediately out to find Kabuto right there, in front of me.
Kabuto: "So you released the genjutsu in the end."
"What are you really after…"
Kabuto: "Like I said, Lord Orochimaru's chakra within you. The more I gather his chakra, the stronger I'll become."
Did he absorb Orochimaru's chakra when he died? Is that why he looks so different, with the same eyes as Orochimaru? That sick bastard…
Gaara: "Akia!"
Temari: "What's going on here?"
Gaara! Temari! They finally fully regained consciousness!
Kabuto: "Damn it… I won't be as efficient against all three of you… Well then, Akia, it seems that you were spared, for now…"
Kabuto then vanishes from our sight. Now I know that he'll be targeting me in the future… I'll have to be careful. Is he going to target other people who have Orochimaru's chakra? If he is, then Anko-sensei is in danger.
Neiko: "Well, I guess you don't need me anymore for now. It was nice seeing Gaara again."
Neiko then vanishes as well. I release my Sage Mode and go back to normal.
Gaara: "Akia… Are you alright?"
My legs feel weak. I was so scared… I was so scared of losing Gaara again… If I was a second later, he would have…
"Gaara, Temari… I'm so sorry… This is all my fault… He was after me."
Temari: "Don't blame yourself for any of this. We all got out of it alive and well. That's what's important."
Gaara puts his left hand on my right shoulder.
Gaara: "I should've protected you…"
I turn around to face him.
"I'm your bodyguard. It's my mission to protect you."
Gaara: "This is not about the mission! This is about me wanting to protect someone precious."
"Gaara…"
I hug him and burry my face in his chest. I feel tears rolling down my cheeks. My voice is all shaky…
"I'm so glad you weren't hurt."
He runs his fingers through my long hair. I'm so glad he's alright. I don't want to put his life in danger…
Gaara: "And I'm glad you're with me."
Temari: "You two are sweet and all but shouldn't we get moving? Even though I'd rather rest some more, but we can't risk staying in the same place now that we know that someone is after Akia."
Gaara and I let go of each other.
"You're right. We should get going."
The rest of the journey ends without any other interferences. We make it to the Land of Iron a little ahead of schedule so we decide to go find a place to rest.
Gaara: "This place is freezing cold."
Temari: "You said it… Let's hurry and find an inn or something."
Gaara: "Akia, you're not cold?"
"Not really. I actually like this weather."
The snow reminds me of when I first met Haku… It was snowing just like now. He was sitting on the cold floor, alone and crying.
Temari: "Did you live in a cold place before?"
"I have. It was for a short while, though. My family never really stayed in the same place more than a few months…"
Temari: "You must've been to a lot of places."
"I think we actually went to Sunagakure when I was three. I don't remember much though. Besides, it was always forbidden for me to leave the hideouts."
Talking about my past like this is bringing back a lot of memories… And they're not all that nice… Kabuto appearing again out of nowhere a few days ago is not helping either. I've always felt a bad vibe from this guy. Since the moment I first saw him helping Orochimaru making me take all these medical tests. I can't believe that sick bastard saw me naked when I was younger… The worst is our age difference is not that big… He's just seven years older than me. I still feel his cold slimy tongue on my neck from a few days ago…
Temari: "There was a hideout of Orochimaru's in Sunagakure?"
Gaara: "Temari, let's stop talking about this."
Did Gaara notice? He probably did… He's sharp with these things. Or maybe it's just with me that he is.
We find an inn and rent a room for the night. The meeting is tomorrow. We should get all the rest we can.
Almost 50 chapters? It went by so fast o.o
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As always, thanks for reading!
Fangirling over Gaara~!
