Chapter 5 ~ Captured by the Sand
Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or any of its characters.now on with the story!
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
"What?"
"I like you."
"Oh."
By now, you could have sworn that my heart was going to jump out of my chest. He was attracted to me? Out of all people? What did he see in me? What was I supposed to say? "Oh, I like you too." How lame did that sound? It was true that I was attracted to him, but I didn't know how to say it. I decided to take a chance, since he did tell me truthfully, he deserved an answer from me too.
"Well, I'm really flattered that you do," I said.
"Oh."
We sat quietly and my face began to burn up. I didn't know what to say.
"Well, I gotta go. Goodnight," he said.
"What? Oh, yeah, goodnight," I said.
He walked away back through the bushes. That was all I could say? "Well, I'm really flattered that you do?" I brought my knees to my chest and propped my head against them and slowly fell asleep.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
The next morning was spent cleaning up after yesterday's Festival. As they began the day's work, Minako suddenly realized that one of her students was missing.
"Yoko, have you seen Suki?" she asked.
"No, I thought you assigned her to clean up elsewhere."
"No, I didn't. Come to think of it, I didn't see her last night either."
Just then, Misaki and Kakashi arrived.
"Have you seen Suki?" Misaki asked.
"That was what I was about to ask you," Minako replied.
All the villagers were questioned, but none of them had seen her until Neji was asked.
"I saw her last night at the lake, but I don't know if she went back to the inn or not," he said. " Why, what happened?"
"She's disappeared," Yoko said frantically.
"It's all my fault! I left her by the lake!" he said, gritting his teeth at his stupidity.
The news was soon brought to Lord Hokage and he formed a search party. All Jounins were to spread out in groups of 4 to find her. Lord Hokage had forbidden any other ninjas to form search parties. He had denied Neji the right to join the search.
"This is not fair. We're capable of taking care of ourselves out there. Why won't they let us find her?" Sakura whined.
"We'll have to form a search party ourselves. But we have to make sure that Lord Hokage doesn't find out. Tsuyoshi, you and Yoko will have to stay back to watch Lord Hokage," Neji said.
"Why us?" Yoko said.
"We've lived here our whole lives. We know the place better than both of you. Sasuke, you will travel with you regular team. Ino, you'll travel with your regular team too. Hinata, you'll be with Lee and me. Tenten, you take Hinata's place with Kiba and Shino. Sasuke, you and Ino's team will be searching the south area. Tenten and me will be searching the north area. We'll meet back at the Forest Shrine in two hours. Understand?"
Everyone nodded their heads and they all split up and disappeared into the trees.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
My pounding head awoke me and I groaned. My head felt like someone was hitting it non-stop. I sat up and my vision was blurred for a moment. When my vision had cleared up, I observed my surroundings. I was in a very damp cave that had vegetation lining its walls. The cave entrance was covered with running water. I guessed that this cave was behind a waterfall. I got up and proceeded to walk to the entrance and escape, but was stopped when a shadow appeared at the entrance.
"Going somewhere?" a voice said in a menacing tone.
"What are you doing to me? Why am I here?" I asked, demanding answers.
"Judging from your badge, you're a Mist Ninja. I want to know what clan you are in."
"The Ono clan. Why do you want to know?"
"That's my business. Now, why are you here in Konohagare?"
"Because," I said.
"Because what?"
"Because," I said again. I was determined to make him annoyed.
"Will you answer me already?!" he yelled. Obviously, my tactic was working.
"Because I'm.. umm I'm here for my sister's wedding," I lied.
"Your sister must also be in the Ono clan, so why is her wedding located here?"
"Uhh, because she's marrying a uhh, store keeper who set up his shop here," I lied again. I was getting good at this, I thought. Before you know it, he'll think my grandfather was a bird. " Who are you anyway?"
My interrogator stepped out of the shadows and I gasped. On his forehead was the kanji for "love" and strapped on his back was a giant gourd. My eyes flitted to his headband, which was strapped onto the belt that held the gourd on his back. He was from the Hidden Sand Village.
"Who are you? What do you want from me?"
"I am Gaara of the Sand and what I want are answers."
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Neji was leaping from tree to tree in the northern section of the forest. His mind was so caught up in trying to find Suki that he hadn't even realized that he had left his comrades behind until he heard his name.
"NEJI!!"
He turned around and waited impatiently for the person to come out. Lee and Hinata appeared out of breath.
"Why are you going so fast for? We can't keep up with you," Lee said.
"I'm so tired," Hinata said, plopping onto the floor and panting.
"We're going to have to find her soon. What if she's in danger?" Neji said, staring into the trees.
"Don't worry, that girl can take care of herself. I've heard about her from Tsuyoshi. She was probably the most powerful ninja of the Genin rank back at their village," Lee said.
"Yeah, we've seen her in battle. You know she can take care of herself," Hinata said in a comforting voice. She was worried. Not about Suki, but about Neji. Rarely did she him so nervous and scared.
"Com'n let's go."
They sprang of into the trees and disappeared from view.
Meanwhile, back at the village, Lord Hokage spotted Yoko and Tsuyoshi as they lounged around his office.
"Yoko, Tsuyoshi, what are you doing here? Where are the others?" he said.
"Uhh, Lord Hokage... Good morning. We, uhh, we're just... walking around, yeah that's it," Tsuyoshi stuttered. Yoko gave him a nudge with her elbow and he shut his mouth.
"The others, yes the others are playing hide and seek with us. We have no idea where they went, so we came to ask you if you've seen them," Yoko said, passing a very childish lie. Lord Hokage looked at them both suspiciously before answering them.
"No, I haven't seen them. Now, I've got to go. Good-bye now," he replied, walking away.
"Wait! Where are you going?" Tsuyoshi yelled after him.
"To the Hunter-Nin's guild to check on progress."
"NO!! I mean, no, I don't think it's a good idea to go there," Yoko lied.
"Why?"
"Because. because I heard that some weird bugs attacked it and now it's full of dead bugs," she said. He ignored them and walked farther.
"Where are you going?" she yelled.
"To the bathroom, is there a problem with that too?" he said. Yoko blushed and dragged Tsuyoshi behind a bush.
"What do we do now?" she whispered.
"I don't know! Wait until he comes back! Then maybe we can knock him out," he said.
"WHAT?! We can't do that! He's Lord Hokage!" she hissed.
"Don't worry, I'll think of something."
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
"So, you are the famous Gaara of the Sand," I said. Gaara had a reputation of being a ruthless killer. Looking at him now, you wouldn't think that he was. He looked about my age, but he'd killed so many ninjas much older than both of our ages combined.
"I see you've heard of me before," he said, smirking. "Now, you have some questions to answer."
The questioning lasted until midday and I was getting bored. His siblings, Temari and Kankuro, arrived around noon and they had brought some food with them. I was starving and surprisingly, my captives actually offered food to me. I guess they weren't as ruthless as I thought. We sat around after lunch before Temari and Kankuro left again. Gaara had run out of questions and I decided that it was my turn to question him. After all, I might never get out of there alive and I might as well do something to pass time.
"So, Gaara, why are you here?" I asked.
"That's my business. Top secret mission from my father."
"Who's your father?"
"The Kazekage of Sand Village," he had answered with a strained look on his face.
"You don't like your father?"
"He's a bastard. I don't even consider him as my father."
I was surprised by his answer for all the other ninjas who didn't have a father were very depressed. Here, he actually had a father and he called him a bastard?
"What did he ever do to you?"
"He's not exactly my father. More like my creator. And why are you being so nosy for?"
I shut my mouth, scared that I would anger him and I sat in silence. My hip pouch began to shake and I suddenly remembered that my Phoenix egg was there. I took it out and the shell began to crack. A small head burst out and chirped. The rest of the body popped out and the Phoenix emerged. As if its life was being fast forwarded, it grew larger and larger until it was full grown and with a screech, it disappeared. During this whole process, Gaara was watching and when it was done, he began questioning me again, but I refused to answer any of his questions. We sat in silence again and I began to wonder. When was I going to get home? Would I ever get back alive? I hoped someone would find me and thankfully, I heard someone faintly call my name. In my happiness, I called out, not realizing that Gaara was still there.
"I'M HERE!!!" I yelled. "I'M- MMFF!!"
"Shut up! You stupid ass! What the hell do you think you're doing?!" Gaara hissed. He had covered my mouth firmly with his hand and was now dragging me to the back of the cave. I kicked around until he pressed a shuriken against my throat.
"One more word from you and you're going to get it," he hissed again. I shut my mouth in fear for my life. He dropped me onto the floor and I rubbed my neck. It was sore, but I would live. I sat quietly waiting for someone to find me.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
"SUKI!!"
"I'M HERE!!!"
"Did you hear that? She's somewhere near here!" Hinata said, breathless from excitement. They followed the sound of the voice and they were sure that the others would be able to hear it. Halfway there, they met up with Tenten, Kiba, and Shino. They followed the trail up the mountain, but found no trace until they came to the riverbank. Littered along the bank were dead bodies of forest animals. The blood led to a hidden trail that went behind a waterfall. As they followed up the trail, they heard people talking.
"What are you going to do with me?"
"You'll find out soon."
Neji was sure that one of the voices belonged to Suki and he burst through the waterfall without thinking.
"Suki! You're here!"
The rest of the other ninjas appeared and soon, the ninjas assigned to search the south area arrived. Gaara saw that he was out numbered, and he proceeded to battle. He shut his eyes and his gourd began to vibrate. The cork popped out and a flow of sand erupted from the opening. The sand headed straight for the ninjas and they pushed them out one by one. Suki jumped on top of Gaara and shoved a pebble into the opening to stop the flow of sand. Gaara pushed her off and the sand was once more free, attacking the ninjas and pushing them out the cave into a five-foot drop towards the river. Suki fell out and for a few moments, she saw Neji follow after her. He dived out of the cave entrance, his arms stretched towards her. She grabbed them and concentrated on summoning the Phoenix.
The sky turned crimson red and a loud screech signaled the arrival of the all-powerful Phoenix. It swooped down and caught Suki and Neji on its back. They both landed with a thud and the Phoenix flew towards the river, picking up the rest of the fallen ninjas with its beak and claws. It dropped them of on the riverbank and turned its wrath on Gaara. Suki climbed atop the Phoenix and it flew up towards the cave. A flaming cyclone was issued from its beak and it evaporated the waters of the river, exposing the cave entrance and Gaara.
"You think you can beat me with this overgrown chicken?" Gaara said, laughing.
"No, I know I can beat you with the Phoenix." Suki replied. She patted the Phoenix and it attacked. It swooped down to the entrance and grabbed Gaara by his gourd. The sand enclosed around Suki and the Phoenix, surrounding them in a sandy tomb. The sand restricted the Phoenix's wing movement, causing it to drop down towards the forest. Seconds before it hit the ground, it broke free of the sand and flapped its way up to the sky. Suki gasped for air, coughing up a little sand from her throat. The Phoenix released Gaara and he fell through the sky. His sand formed a sling around him and he landed safely. Suki landed next to Gaara and patted the Phoenix's head.
"I'll do this myself," she whispered. It nodded and flew into the sky, disappearing behind some clouds. The sky cleared up and the sun once again shone brightly. Suki grabbed a shuriken and lunged at Gaara. She threw the shuriken and it barely reached him when Gaara's sand destroyed it. The sand headed straight for her and she braced herself for the hit, but she didn't feel anything. Right in front of her was Neji encased in sand. He cried out in pain as Gaara began tightening the hold on him.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
"NEJI!! NO!!"
In my fury, I grabbed a shuriken and lunged at Gaara. The sand took the blow for him and it knocked me over. It made a large gash on my arm and I felt the blood dribble out, but I was too caught up in my anger to feel any pain. I lunged at him again, but this time I feinted and attacked the only place that was not protected by his sand. His legs. I threw the shuriken with all the strength I had and was rewarded by Gaara's scream as it pierced his leg. The sand around Neji fell lifelessly onto the floor and he fell with a thud. It was dragged back into the gourd as if an invisible force was vacuuming it up. I ran to Neji and picked him up by his head. He opened his eyes and smiled.
"You're ok," he whispered. I nodded as tears came to my eyes. He put his hand up onto my face and stroked it gently.
"Don't die, Neji." I said, choking on my own tears. He put a finger to my lips and slowly closed his eyes. I lifted him up and walked towards the others. I set him down gently and wiped away my tears.
"Take care of him." I said. Sakura put a hand on my shoulder.
"It's o.k." I said. "I know he'll be o.k." I walked back to where Gaara was. I was determined to defeat him, no matter what it took. Someone tugged my arm and I turned back.
"If you go, I'll go too," Hinata said. "Neji's my cousin and I want to help you."
I nodded and Hinata gave me a hug. Rock Lee, Tenten, Naruto, and Sasuke all walked up. They also volunteered to help. I instructed the others to stay behind, just in case Temari and Kankuro came back.
"Let's go kick some ninja butt!!" Naruto yelled.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Lord Hokage wandered back to his office. When he got back, he would have a nice hot bath and a cup of tea. There were some shuffling noises by the bush next to the entrance and he went to investigate. It better not be those kids again, he thought, frowning. He pushed the bushes aside and..
"I can't believe we just did that!!" Yoko whined. "If Minako finds out, she'll kill us!"
"Aww, stop being a baby, nothing's gonna happen. Let's tie him up and find the others," Tsuyoshi replied. They toke out a rope and dragged Lord Hokage's unconscious form into the bushes.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
"Shit. oww.." I said, out of breath.
"Had enough already? This only the beginning. I'm going to do something far worse than what you did to my leg," Gaara hissed. The others were all too tired to fight. Naruto's doppelgangers were too slow, Sasuke's attacks just wouldn't go through, Tenten's weapons didn't work either, Hinata's Byakugen was useless against all that sand, and Rock Lee was just too tired. I was the last one standing and I needed to do something before he killed us all. I couldn't summon the Phoenix, I had no strength and if I didn't do anything, this was going to be a really big loss. I took out a few ninja stars and flicked them at him. While he was busy showing off and catching them one by one, I jumped from under him and slammed into his stomach. He fell over and cursed.
"You bitch!"
I collapsed onto the ground. I just couldn't go on anymore. The sand flew out of his gourd and wrapped around me. His hand slowly closed and I could feel the life being squeezed out of me. I cried out in pain and he laughed at my agony.
"How's this feel?" he said.
Some blood trickled out of my mouth and the salty taste overflowed my lips. I couldn't do anything. I was too weak. Too tired. I had no strength. The sky began to blacken and the air slowly escaped from my lungs. I was getting so sleepy..
"SUKI!!!"
"Wha."
"Put her down, you bastard!"
"Well, well, new players? This is going to be fun."
The sand loosened a bit and I painfully hit the earth. Air returning to my lungs again. My vision began to brighten and I pushed myself up.
"Suki! Are you ok?"
I turned to Yoko's voice and fell into her arms. I was a bit dizzy from the lack of oxygen, but I was getting better. I wiped the blood from my mouth and faced Gaara.
"There's only one thing we can do to him," I said.
"The Assault?" Tsuyoshi asked. I nodded.
"The Assault."
I stood firmly on the ground and prepared myself. Yoko ran to one side of Gaara and Tsuyoshi to the other.
"Oh, playing another little game, are we," Gaara said, smirking.
"TIRPLE WHIRLPOOL ASSAULT!!!"
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
AN: MUAHAHAHAHAHA, I'm just so evil, ending it here at that crucial moment. But, don't worry, you'll get more soon, if you REVIEW!!!!! Oh, I also have a request for all of those great artists currently living in New York City. Could you please send me a sample by December cuz I need to figure out who I'm gonna pick for this art thing I'm doing... if you're interested. Prize money and everything else will be split evenly, just in case you're wondering... Ooo. be sure to read my new fanfic: "Love by the Moon!!!"
Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or any of its characters.now on with the story!
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
"What?"
"I like you."
"Oh."
By now, you could have sworn that my heart was going to jump out of my chest. He was attracted to me? Out of all people? What did he see in me? What was I supposed to say? "Oh, I like you too." How lame did that sound? It was true that I was attracted to him, but I didn't know how to say it. I decided to take a chance, since he did tell me truthfully, he deserved an answer from me too.
"Well, I'm really flattered that you do," I said.
"Oh."
We sat quietly and my face began to burn up. I didn't know what to say.
"Well, I gotta go. Goodnight," he said.
"What? Oh, yeah, goodnight," I said.
He walked away back through the bushes. That was all I could say? "Well, I'm really flattered that you do?" I brought my knees to my chest and propped my head against them and slowly fell asleep.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
The next morning was spent cleaning up after yesterday's Festival. As they began the day's work, Minako suddenly realized that one of her students was missing.
"Yoko, have you seen Suki?" she asked.
"No, I thought you assigned her to clean up elsewhere."
"No, I didn't. Come to think of it, I didn't see her last night either."
Just then, Misaki and Kakashi arrived.
"Have you seen Suki?" Misaki asked.
"That was what I was about to ask you," Minako replied.
All the villagers were questioned, but none of them had seen her until Neji was asked.
"I saw her last night at the lake, but I don't know if she went back to the inn or not," he said. " Why, what happened?"
"She's disappeared," Yoko said frantically.
"It's all my fault! I left her by the lake!" he said, gritting his teeth at his stupidity.
The news was soon brought to Lord Hokage and he formed a search party. All Jounins were to spread out in groups of 4 to find her. Lord Hokage had forbidden any other ninjas to form search parties. He had denied Neji the right to join the search.
"This is not fair. We're capable of taking care of ourselves out there. Why won't they let us find her?" Sakura whined.
"We'll have to form a search party ourselves. But we have to make sure that Lord Hokage doesn't find out. Tsuyoshi, you and Yoko will have to stay back to watch Lord Hokage," Neji said.
"Why us?" Yoko said.
"We've lived here our whole lives. We know the place better than both of you. Sasuke, you will travel with you regular team. Ino, you'll travel with your regular team too. Hinata, you'll be with Lee and me. Tenten, you take Hinata's place with Kiba and Shino. Sasuke, you and Ino's team will be searching the south area. Tenten and me will be searching the north area. We'll meet back at the Forest Shrine in two hours. Understand?"
Everyone nodded their heads and they all split up and disappeared into the trees.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
My pounding head awoke me and I groaned. My head felt like someone was hitting it non-stop. I sat up and my vision was blurred for a moment. When my vision had cleared up, I observed my surroundings. I was in a very damp cave that had vegetation lining its walls. The cave entrance was covered with running water. I guessed that this cave was behind a waterfall. I got up and proceeded to walk to the entrance and escape, but was stopped when a shadow appeared at the entrance.
"Going somewhere?" a voice said in a menacing tone.
"What are you doing to me? Why am I here?" I asked, demanding answers.
"Judging from your badge, you're a Mist Ninja. I want to know what clan you are in."
"The Ono clan. Why do you want to know?"
"That's my business. Now, why are you here in Konohagare?"
"Because," I said.
"Because what?"
"Because," I said again. I was determined to make him annoyed.
"Will you answer me already?!" he yelled. Obviously, my tactic was working.
"Because I'm.. umm I'm here for my sister's wedding," I lied.
"Your sister must also be in the Ono clan, so why is her wedding located here?"
"Uhh, because she's marrying a uhh, store keeper who set up his shop here," I lied again. I was getting good at this, I thought. Before you know it, he'll think my grandfather was a bird. " Who are you anyway?"
My interrogator stepped out of the shadows and I gasped. On his forehead was the kanji for "love" and strapped on his back was a giant gourd. My eyes flitted to his headband, which was strapped onto the belt that held the gourd on his back. He was from the Hidden Sand Village.
"Who are you? What do you want from me?"
"I am Gaara of the Sand and what I want are answers."
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Neji was leaping from tree to tree in the northern section of the forest. His mind was so caught up in trying to find Suki that he hadn't even realized that he had left his comrades behind until he heard his name.
"NEJI!!"
He turned around and waited impatiently for the person to come out. Lee and Hinata appeared out of breath.
"Why are you going so fast for? We can't keep up with you," Lee said.
"I'm so tired," Hinata said, plopping onto the floor and panting.
"We're going to have to find her soon. What if she's in danger?" Neji said, staring into the trees.
"Don't worry, that girl can take care of herself. I've heard about her from Tsuyoshi. She was probably the most powerful ninja of the Genin rank back at their village," Lee said.
"Yeah, we've seen her in battle. You know she can take care of herself," Hinata said in a comforting voice. She was worried. Not about Suki, but about Neji. Rarely did she him so nervous and scared.
"Com'n let's go."
They sprang of into the trees and disappeared from view.
Meanwhile, back at the village, Lord Hokage spotted Yoko and Tsuyoshi as they lounged around his office.
"Yoko, Tsuyoshi, what are you doing here? Where are the others?" he said.
"Uhh, Lord Hokage... Good morning. We, uhh, we're just... walking around, yeah that's it," Tsuyoshi stuttered. Yoko gave him a nudge with her elbow and he shut his mouth.
"The others, yes the others are playing hide and seek with us. We have no idea where they went, so we came to ask you if you've seen them," Yoko said, passing a very childish lie. Lord Hokage looked at them both suspiciously before answering them.
"No, I haven't seen them. Now, I've got to go. Good-bye now," he replied, walking away.
"Wait! Where are you going?" Tsuyoshi yelled after him.
"To the Hunter-Nin's guild to check on progress."
"NO!! I mean, no, I don't think it's a good idea to go there," Yoko lied.
"Why?"
"Because. because I heard that some weird bugs attacked it and now it's full of dead bugs," she said. He ignored them and walked farther.
"Where are you going?" she yelled.
"To the bathroom, is there a problem with that too?" he said. Yoko blushed and dragged Tsuyoshi behind a bush.
"What do we do now?" she whispered.
"I don't know! Wait until he comes back! Then maybe we can knock him out," he said.
"WHAT?! We can't do that! He's Lord Hokage!" she hissed.
"Don't worry, I'll think of something."
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
"So, you are the famous Gaara of the Sand," I said. Gaara had a reputation of being a ruthless killer. Looking at him now, you wouldn't think that he was. He looked about my age, but he'd killed so many ninjas much older than both of our ages combined.
"I see you've heard of me before," he said, smirking. "Now, you have some questions to answer."
The questioning lasted until midday and I was getting bored. His siblings, Temari and Kankuro, arrived around noon and they had brought some food with them. I was starving and surprisingly, my captives actually offered food to me. I guess they weren't as ruthless as I thought. We sat around after lunch before Temari and Kankuro left again. Gaara had run out of questions and I decided that it was my turn to question him. After all, I might never get out of there alive and I might as well do something to pass time.
"So, Gaara, why are you here?" I asked.
"That's my business. Top secret mission from my father."
"Who's your father?"
"The Kazekage of Sand Village," he had answered with a strained look on his face.
"You don't like your father?"
"He's a bastard. I don't even consider him as my father."
I was surprised by his answer for all the other ninjas who didn't have a father were very depressed. Here, he actually had a father and he called him a bastard?
"What did he ever do to you?"
"He's not exactly my father. More like my creator. And why are you being so nosy for?"
I shut my mouth, scared that I would anger him and I sat in silence. My hip pouch began to shake and I suddenly remembered that my Phoenix egg was there. I took it out and the shell began to crack. A small head burst out and chirped. The rest of the body popped out and the Phoenix emerged. As if its life was being fast forwarded, it grew larger and larger until it was full grown and with a screech, it disappeared. During this whole process, Gaara was watching and when it was done, he began questioning me again, but I refused to answer any of his questions. We sat in silence again and I began to wonder. When was I going to get home? Would I ever get back alive? I hoped someone would find me and thankfully, I heard someone faintly call my name. In my happiness, I called out, not realizing that Gaara was still there.
"I'M HERE!!!" I yelled. "I'M- MMFF!!"
"Shut up! You stupid ass! What the hell do you think you're doing?!" Gaara hissed. He had covered my mouth firmly with his hand and was now dragging me to the back of the cave. I kicked around until he pressed a shuriken against my throat.
"One more word from you and you're going to get it," he hissed again. I shut my mouth in fear for my life. He dropped me onto the floor and I rubbed my neck. It was sore, but I would live. I sat quietly waiting for someone to find me.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
"SUKI!!"
"I'M HERE!!!"
"Did you hear that? She's somewhere near here!" Hinata said, breathless from excitement. They followed the sound of the voice and they were sure that the others would be able to hear it. Halfway there, they met up with Tenten, Kiba, and Shino. They followed the trail up the mountain, but found no trace until they came to the riverbank. Littered along the bank were dead bodies of forest animals. The blood led to a hidden trail that went behind a waterfall. As they followed up the trail, they heard people talking.
"What are you going to do with me?"
"You'll find out soon."
Neji was sure that one of the voices belonged to Suki and he burst through the waterfall without thinking.
"Suki! You're here!"
The rest of the other ninjas appeared and soon, the ninjas assigned to search the south area arrived. Gaara saw that he was out numbered, and he proceeded to battle. He shut his eyes and his gourd began to vibrate. The cork popped out and a flow of sand erupted from the opening. The sand headed straight for the ninjas and they pushed them out one by one. Suki jumped on top of Gaara and shoved a pebble into the opening to stop the flow of sand. Gaara pushed her off and the sand was once more free, attacking the ninjas and pushing them out the cave into a five-foot drop towards the river. Suki fell out and for a few moments, she saw Neji follow after her. He dived out of the cave entrance, his arms stretched towards her. She grabbed them and concentrated on summoning the Phoenix.
The sky turned crimson red and a loud screech signaled the arrival of the all-powerful Phoenix. It swooped down and caught Suki and Neji on its back. They both landed with a thud and the Phoenix flew towards the river, picking up the rest of the fallen ninjas with its beak and claws. It dropped them of on the riverbank and turned its wrath on Gaara. Suki climbed atop the Phoenix and it flew up towards the cave. A flaming cyclone was issued from its beak and it evaporated the waters of the river, exposing the cave entrance and Gaara.
"You think you can beat me with this overgrown chicken?" Gaara said, laughing.
"No, I know I can beat you with the Phoenix." Suki replied. She patted the Phoenix and it attacked. It swooped down to the entrance and grabbed Gaara by his gourd. The sand enclosed around Suki and the Phoenix, surrounding them in a sandy tomb. The sand restricted the Phoenix's wing movement, causing it to drop down towards the forest. Seconds before it hit the ground, it broke free of the sand and flapped its way up to the sky. Suki gasped for air, coughing up a little sand from her throat. The Phoenix released Gaara and he fell through the sky. His sand formed a sling around him and he landed safely. Suki landed next to Gaara and patted the Phoenix's head.
"I'll do this myself," she whispered. It nodded and flew into the sky, disappearing behind some clouds. The sky cleared up and the sun once again shone brightly. Suki grabbed a shuriken and lunged at Gaara. She threw the shuriken and it barely reached him when Gaara's sand destroyed it. The sand headed straight for her and she braced herself for the hit, but she didn't feel anything. Right in front of her was Neji encased in sand. He cried out in pain as Gaara began tightening the hold on him.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
"NEJI!! NO!!"
In my fury, I grabbed a shuriken and lunged at Gaara. The sand took the blow for him and it knocked me over. It made a large gash on my arm and I felt the blood dribble out, but I was too caught up in my anger to feel any pain. I lunged at him again, but this time I feinted and attacked the only place that was not protected by his sand. His legs. I threw the shuriken with all the strength I had and was rewarded by Gaara's scream as it pierced his leg. The sand around Neji fell lifelessly onto the floor and he fell with a thud. It was dragged back into the gourd as if an invisible force was vacuuming it up. I ran to Neji and picked him up by his head. He opened his eyes and smiled.
"You're ok," he whispered. I nodded as tears came to my eyes. He put his hand up onto my face and stroked it gently.
"Don't die, Neji." I said, choking on my own tears. He put a finger to my lips and slowly closed his eyes. I lifted him up and walked towards the others. I set him down gently and wiped away my tears.
"Take care of him." I said. Sakura put a hand on my shoulder.
"It's o.k." I said. "I know he'll be o.k." I walked back to where Gaara was. I was determined to defeat him, no matter what it took. Someone tugged my arm and I turned back.
"If you go, I'll go too," Hinata said. "Neji's my cousin and I want to help you."
I nodded and Hinata gave me a hug. Rock Lee, Tenten, Naruto, and Sasuke all walked up. They also volunteered to help. I instructed the others to stay behind, just in case Temari and Kankuro came back.
"Let's go kick some ninja butt!!" Naruto yelled.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Lord Hokage wandered back to his office. When he got back, he would have a nice hot bath and a cup of tea. There were some shuffling noises by the bush next to the entrance and he went to investigate. It better not be those kids again, he thought, frowning. He pushed the bushes aside and..
"I can't believe we just did that!!" Yoko whined. "If Minako finds out, she'll kill us!"
"Aww, stop being a baby, nothing's gonna happen. Let's tie him up and find the others," Tsuyoshi replied. They toke out a rope and dragged Lord Hokage's unconscious form into the bushes.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
"Shit. oww.." I said, out of breath.
"Had enough already? This only the beginning. I'm going to do something far worse than what you did to my leg," Gaara hissed. The others were all too tired to fight. Naruto's doppelgangers were too slow, Sasuke's attacks just wouldn't go through, Tenten's weapons didn't work either, Hinata's Byakugen was useless against all that sand, and Rock Lee was just too tired. I was the last one standing and I needed to do something before he killed us all. I couldn't summon the Phoenix, I had no strength and if I didn't do anything, this was going to be a really big loss. I took out a few ninja stars and flicked them at him. While he was busy showing off and catching them one by one, I jumped from under him and slammed into his stomach. He fell over and cursed.
"You bitch!"
I collapsed onto the ground. I just couldn't go on anymore. The sand flew out of his gourd and wrapped around me. His hand slowly closed and I could feel the life being squeezed out of me. I cried out in pain and he laughed at my agony.
"How's this feel?" he said.
Some blood trickled out of my mouth and the salty taste overflowed my lips. I couldn't do anything. I was too weak. Too tired. I had no strength. The sky began to blacken and the air slowly escaped from my lungs. I was getting so sleepy..
"SUKI!!!"
"Wha."
"Put her down, you bastard!"
"Well, well, new players? This is going to be fun."
The sand loosened a bit and I painfully hit the earth. Air returning to my lungs again. My vision began to brighten and I pushed myself up.
"Suki! Are you ok?"
I turned to Yoko's voice and fell into her arms. I was a bit dizzy from the lack of oxygen, but I was getting better. I wiped the blood from my mouth and faced Gaara.
"There's only one thing we can do to him," I said.
"The Assault?" Tsuyoshi asked. I nodded.
"The Assault."
I stood firmly on the ground and prepared myself. Yoko ran to one side of Gaara and Tsuyoshi to the other.
"Oh, playing another little game, are we," Gaara said, smirking.
"TIRPLE WHIRLPOOL ASSAULT!!!"
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
AN: MUAHAHAHAHAHA, I'm just so evil, ending it here at that crucial moment. But, don't worry, you'll get more soon, if you REVIEW!!!!! Oh, I also have a request for all of those great artists currently living in New York City. Could you please send me a sample by December cuz I need to figure out who I'm gonna pick for this art thing I'm doing... if you're interested. Prize money and everything else will be split evenly, just in case you're wondering... Ooo. be sure to read my new fanfic: "Love by the Moon!!!"