Gaara & Itachi... A Shinobi Battle.
Chapter 6: Of Sorrow & Return.
(Pre-Chapter Prompt): This whole story is based on the instinctive response of love and will. A draw was determined not just for the story, but to show that people can always believe differently in the things they see and have, even if it was obtained through false pretenses and decisions. When you believe in something, it becomes YOUR fate, and only YOUR fate. Itachi didn't live in the world of shinobi knowing that he had done wrong, but rather, he believed in the story that his pride and skill was his answer for living, so it became his will of fire. Gaara found that he had people to protect, feeling responsible for others rather than himself, and that brought him the will that he personally needed to allow himself to face off against Itachi. The draw was decided as it seemed more than a battle of jutsu and skill. It was a battle to show the equality in each of their dreams and beliefs. I guess it's true when you say... "Aslong as you believe, you can accomplish". Believing is everything in our lives, so find what's important and follow through with a fist that a wall couldn't even break and live on to tell tales of your glory... even if we can't agree on everything, we can always agree we each respect the decision to have human compassion's, just like will. Believe & achieve. Sianara!
For every breath, Gaara felt it wasn't worth it. The day of the battle between Gaara and Itachi, a saddening total of 32 ninja had been killed. Most of them were look out guards for the entrance of the Hidden Sand village, just doing their duty to protect one another, but instead, in the end, they needed protection themselves that came at too late of a time. A stubborn attitude of sadness and regret; This is the weight of being the Kazekage. He wasn't victorious in battle, but he was victorious in knowing he couldn't let the deaths of the ninja who had fallen that day go to waste, and became victorious in protecting the village itself, but that's not enough to disarm the fragile weight of pain embedded in his heart, thinking about the loss of love those deaths will bring to families and friends. To protect the safety of the village, Gaara couldn't explain this to the council with the exact truth. It's known to only a select few how those men died on that dreadful day that Itachi raided the body and innards of fallen shinobi... and even Gaara himself. A final tale comes forward, revealing the results of what's to come...
Welcome to the finale. Enjoy!
"We're here! They should be around here somewhere!" yells a jounin to the other six that seem to have accompanied him. "I see him! Kazekage-sama's down!" yells the jounin in the front of the group. "Let's go!" he then yells, jumping and running through the rubble of the Hidden Sand entrance to the position of Gaara's body. "Hmm? Reinforcements?" says the jounin that was laid next to Gaara as all seven jounin land next to the two on the ground. "KAZEKAGE-SAMA!" yells the jounin that seemed to be hovering over Gaara that had just arrived as he dispatches the sleeve around his hand, revealing a glove on his hand as he yells, "He might still have a chance to live! Thankfully I was mildly trained in Medical Ninjutsu!" as he places the gloved hand over the heart of his Kazekage, emitting a green chakra into him as it flows gently around the jounin's hand. "Shit! Will this work?" yells one of the jounin standing back from the crowd. "It should! If I can emit enough chakra into his heart to start it pumping again, and then extract my own chakra flow into his circulatory system, he should be okay. The thing is... I am having trouble getting his heart started. I'm not that advanced in Medical Ninjutsu just yet, but I know the basics. This is the only chance right now for Kazekage-sama!" yells the vaguely experienced Medical ninja. "Come on Damnit! Please... Start beating!" he yells, molding the green chakra even more so around Gaara's chest.
An image of Gaara standing alone as a young child appears, holding his stuffed bear tightly in his arms as he started to cry, barely rocking himself back and forth on the swing set that he had scared all the kids away from with his sand. The thoughts of Gaara as the Kazekage starts being mysteriously heard, "I'm... so alone" he thinks, as the presently aged Gaara walks up to himself by the swing set as a child, sitting on the swing next to himself with his eyes looking directly at the younger memory of himself. "Where am I?" the present Gaara says as the younger one replies, "You're... in loneliness" the boy replies as the present Gaara's eyes widen, then tightening in curiosity. "Why am I here?" he asks as the younger version of himself disappears, as does the swing set. Gaara then see's himself standing up after rushing off the dissipating swing set. His image becomes small and vague. "What's happening?" he asks himself outloud as their was a reply from his own voice, "You're trying to live... to live to see their faces". Gaara falls down on his knee's, holding his fists tightly, confused like never before as he see's images of Naruto standing infront of him, all alone. Suddenly, Kakashi, Sakura & Sasuke join Naruto. Then the Third Hokage, Fifth Hokage & Jiraiya, followed by Iruka, Lee, Neji, Shikamaru, Kiba & Akamaru, Ino, Ten-Ten, Chouji, Shino and Hinata. "I envy you... Uzumaki Naruto, for the friends you have made" Gaara says as he turns back in time into the child, all alone... but no one appears in the image for Gaara. "There was never anyone there for me" the child Gaara speaks out loud, continuing on with his words, "...never anyone there. Not even once". Suddenly, screams are heard as everything around Gaara becomes white, "He's coming to!" as he looks around oddly for where the voice is. Suddenly, blackness covers everything in sight...
"Look at that! He's finally awake! You had us scared to death, you know that, little brother?" Temari yells to Gaara as the bloodied eyes of the Kazekage open up, looking around with his head moving very slowly as he see's Temari, Kankurou, the entire council, and all of the jounin that had helped on their mission standing to his sides. "Where am I?" Gaara asks. "Silly! You've been out for quite a few hours you know! Thankfully, everyone managed to rush you here to the Hospital quickly enough to treat your injuries" Kankurou replies. "What happened to me?" Gaara asks as Temari speaks, "Apparently, after you fought it out with Itachi, you pretty much dropped completely dead! These jounin saved you" as Gaara looks around, thinking to himself, "They... saved me?". Gaara then lets out a smile. "Hey! What's with that smile, Gaara?" yells Temari as Gaara replies confused, "What?..." he says. "Yeah! You never smiled before! It doesn't suit you so stop it!" replies Kankurou. "All these jounin... Temari, Kankurou... they helped save me. This feeling... What is it? It's not... lonliness..." Gaara thinks to himself, still with that unfit smile slapped across his face. "I'm sorry" Gaara generally says to the people in the Hospital room. "Sorry for what, Gaara?" the councilman replies as he continues onwards, "You protected us with your life! There are people out there that have avoided the idea of fear because of your selflessness. You're incredible! It was a good decision to have you placed as Kazekage". "I can't believe this is what became of me. Uzumaki Naruto... again, I thank you for helping me see the light of my beliefs. Thanks for sharing your will of the ninja" Gaara says to himself as Temari sits next to him, holding Gaara's hand as he looks down at it, smiling a tad wider now as they both look out of the window to their right together, watching the birds fly, swooping side-by-side one another.
"Itachi. Are you alright now?" says Kisame in a cave as he buttons up his Akatsuki robe, looking over to the bandaged and wounded Itachi. "I'm fine" Itachi says as he looks over to the side. "I guess that jinchuriki kid is better than we thought to have been able to do this to you of all people. Teh...! I don't know anyone in their right mind who would even dare attack you. You're lucky you had enough chakra to bring yourself here instead of using it to finish off the kid!" Kisame says as he smirks over towards Itachi. "...yeah" Itachi replies with a sigh in his voice, silently breathing as he closes his eyes. "Ahh!... so this is what happens when you're a Sharingan user who relies too much on his eyes, huh?... Yeaaah!" says another member of Akatsuki as he shows himself from the shadows, revealing that it was Deidora. "Hey... you're the one that's gonna have to take that kids jinchuriki now, so let's see you try it!" Kisame replies for Itachi as Itachi then speaks, "If you want Shukaku, use the village as your enemy, not the kid". "What the hell is that supposed to mean?...Yeah" replies Deidora. "Itachi only failed because not only was the kid powerful, but he was injured, and if he used his remaining chakra injured as he was to beat him, he without a doubt would have died since he wouldn't be able to get here. If he started off the fight by invading the Hidden Sand itself, and used the innocent people for his goal, the jinchuriki would have been too busy protecting his people, so he'd be bound to run out of his chakra much quicker, but Itachi wasn't there for the Shukaku, understand?" says Kisame. "Well, you gave me an idea then... Yeah!" says Deidora as he walks away, back into the shadows he came from. "Stupid fool. I don't know why we accepted him into Akatsuki... Psh!" yells Kisame as Itachi looks up, bearing his Sharingan as he replies to Kisame's statement, "It's okay... Kisame. My objective was complete. Deidora can conquer his jinchuriki now" as Kisame looks at him, slightly wide-eyed.
A week had passed in the Hidden Sand as Gaara is seen to be mostly recovered, standing over the Hidden Sand's monument of the deceased, as it lists the names of everyone that had died the day Itachi had come to challenge Gaara. He holds his hands in prayer position for a moment, throwing a rose ontop of the monument as a scream is suddenly heard, "Gaara! Come on! We have a meeting to attend!" said the councilman that had helped the day of the tragedies. Gaara looks down as he replies, "...Yeah..." as he walks away from the monument with a sadness in his eyes. "Gaara... they died happy for their village, like you would have done. Not to be harsh, but accept it and acknowledge it... and let's move on, shall we?" says the councilman as Gaara replies yet again, "...Yeah..." as he smirks a tad joyously now, walking over to the building of the meeting.
Sitting back in his chair at the council, Gaara begins listening in on the conversations as he once did quite often, having a lack of interest as always as the elders speak. "So that's what we told the villagers the destruction at the main entrance was?" says a younger member of the council as the elder replies, "Yes... and remember it, too this time!", yelling it over to everyone as one of the members of the council sitting near the middle of the square table asks, "Uhh... what was it again?". "IDIOT!" the elder screams as he continues on..."I'll say it one more time for you to hear! The avalanche that occurred at the Hidden Sand's main entrance was caused by a freak lightning bolt hitting it! Understand?". "Uhh.. Yes yes! But there's one thing I don't get!" the younger council member says as the elder replies, "What is it?". "Well... we're in the middle of the desert and it really doesn't thunder here! Also... it didn't even rain the day of the incident" he answers back, having the elder scream, "THAT'S THE STORY! GOT IT? EVERYONE?". "Yes!" yells everyone around the table as Gaara looks away from the council meeting with his eyes as blank as always, smiling as he thinks to himself suddenly... "I'm not... alone", "I'm not alone... anymore".
The End.