Author's Notes: So many reviewers! Thanks for all the reviews! I loved them! dance around My apologies for the long wait. Question: Anyone have a valid definition for Drabble?
Disclaimer: Naruto and its character are owned by Masashi Kishimoto-san
-Shard- Break
He was alone.
Really, enough of that, Naruto had only just got up. The sky is crystal clear with promise of sunshine throughout the day. The academy is off for its weekly closing days. Today, Uzumaki Naruto felt as cheerful as ever.
Yesterday he may be in the worst mood possible, but today is a whole different story. Of course, the consuming of two bowls of morning ramen might've helped cause such energies to flow. Nevertheless, today he is bursting with energy!
The said energetic boy bounced from the table onto his bed, making a mess of the blankets that were already piled with countless creases. Naruto dived onto his pillow headfirst, suffocating himself on the pillow and making muffling sounds just for the fun of it.
Picking his head up, he noticed a dirty reddish ball lying in the corner of the bed. Did he leave it there? He tilted his head and recalled yesterday's events. It was nearly evening when he got his ball back. He had held the old soccer ball tightly until he reached the safety of his home. Afterwards? Well, three cups of instant ramen cheered him up so greatly that he simply rolled the ball to the corner of his bed and forgotten all about it.
Naruto stared at the red ball, thinking. Then he grinned and picked it up. "You're going to work off all the time that you've been resting!"
Changing in a flash, he tossed his sleeping cap and pajamas on the messy bed. He didn't bother to make his bed or clean the remains of his breakfast. He could do that later, he always does. The sun doesn't shine this brightly everyday.
"Off to the park!"
With the soccer ball under his arm, Naruto sprinted out the door of his small apartment. The door with a swirling sign slammed closed behind him. With the furniture toppled over or topped with all sorts of trash, mostly ramen wrappers, the empty apartment looked as if it had been trampled.
-Shard-
"Gaara-sama, unfortunately there is still more things to discuss with the Hokage-sama from the Kazekage-sama. I am needed in the discussions, so therefore I cannot care for you during the day. I will leave you to play by the swings, and please don't go too far. If it's necessary, you may find me at the Hokage tower. Otherwise, please play quietly along. I will come for you when the discussion is over."
That was the formal, all-so-usual style of speech Yashamaru said in the morning. He had lead Gaara to a small swing in front of the same ninja academy. It seemed that today was a day off, because the whole building was deserted, which is probably the reason that Yashamaru risked bringing him to an area usually filled with students.
Yashamaru had left almost immediately after giving his instructions for the day. His charge watched his withdrawing back until he made a turn to another street. Left alone with only the close presence of his toy, Gaara was again met with the familiar silence.
The purple stuffed bear that was fondly named "Teddy" was being gently cradled by one of his arms. His free hand grasped the rope of the swings and rocked himself lightly. His dark lined eyes peered at the dangling round sign of the ninja academy. A small breeze picked up and swept past him. The wind rustled a few leaves on the ground and skimmed by his red hair.
From a distant off, children were playing in the park nearby. Their voices reached the swings in little blurry echoes. Gaara could catch the shadows of a several children running in the park. They all seem to have fun playing together. Just like the children in Suna.
The redheaded boy pushed his feet on the dirt ground to stop the swing. But as much as the children are similar to the ones in Suna, they aren't the same. Maybe…maybe he can play with them?
Please don't go too far
Don't go too far, but it's okay to go a little far, right?
Standing up, Gaara took an uncertain step forward.
Maybe…
He put the other foot before the first.
The sound of children playing seemed louder and closer. If he goes, they might not know him. Then maybe he can play with them and then…
He picked his foot up and put it over the again, resuming the pattern as he moved closer and closer to the small park that was filled with children. Perhaps if he could somehow be like one of them, maybe just for one day, he might experience how the other children were like. Maybe if they don't know, and they think he's just another regular child…
Standing before the entrance of the park, he looked into the playground area of the park. Suddenly, everything seemed to slow down. The atmosphere of the playing children was disturbed. The playful voices died down as gazes shifted towards him.
Silence covered the area. Moments of surprised silence followed. Then comes the part that Gaara despises more than silence: whispering.
–No–
The small black pair of ninja sandals stumbled a few steps back.
No
Why did he try? He was different, both inside and outside. He should've known better. Did he think he could pretend to be any different than how he is? Pulling his feet backwards, he retraced his footsteps. He retreated several steps before whipping around and breaking into a run.
The redheaded boy sprinted back to the safety of the vacant swing. Grasping his teddy bear, he flopped back down onto the swing, swaying it with his force. Gaara rocked himself in the same method he had before. His green eyes, hidden within the dark layer around his eyes, stared upwards to the sky. The tree that supports the swing blocked most of the sunlight from his view. He watched the leaves of the branches rustle softly when the breeze swept by.
The wind was so kind and gentle here, it seem that it was always like that in Konoha. It was unlike Suna, where the wind varied in different strength. The comings of strong winds were nearly unpredictable. Oftentimes, a strong wind would sweep hail-like sand from the baking deserts into the village of Sand. This was not Suna. This was unlike Suna. Yet the reaction of the people in Konoha did not differ any more than the people in Suna.
He can lie for a day. He can lie for awhile, keeping the sand a secret. He tried that in Suna, but his secrets never lasted. After all, the sand sees all other things as enemies, which is why it's always on guard and ready to protect him. Gaara was a part of the sand.
-Shard-
When Uzumaki Naruto entered the playground, nothing changed. That was the truthful answer. No one flinched. No one moved away. No one turn their attention to him. They resumed their games, aware, but pretending not to notice.
Sprinting towards an empty section in the small park, Naruto began to practice throwing Iruka's red soccer ball upwards and maintaining it in the sky. It was a typical day. As long as he stayed by the sides, no one would bother him. No one would move away. No one would come closer. Everything would seem it be fine.
A grin splayed across his face.
But there's no fun in that.
Aiming the ball at an angle, he threw it upwards and ran to the center of the playground. Naruto waved his arms above his head, eyes following the ball as it descended. While running towards the falling ball with rapidly waving, he shouted: "I got it! I got it!"
His shout caused the other kids to stop their playing and look at him with curiosity. Naruto ran directly below where the ball would fall. He lifted his arms to the sky and waited for the ball to descend.
With eyes of the children on him, he continued to watch the ball descend. While waiting, he grinned and laughed sheepishly as if by flattery. Then suddenly, because of the absence of his awareness, his arms forgot to react, and Iruka's old, red, dirty soccer ball came plummeting down right onto his face.
Not the most impressive scene, so to say.
Naruto froze. His arms were still outstretched towards the sky. The ball, on the other hand, had already come down and was now stuck on his face due to the impact. Suddenly, everything was quite. If possible, crickets could be heard in the background.
The soccer ball slowly lost its stick to Naruto's visage and dropped to the ground with a dull thud. Everything was quiet for a good three second before Naruto flopped down onto the ground next to his ball.
Small, restraint giggles could be heard as children tried to keep their laughter from escaping their mouths, but it wouldn't hold. Bubbles of laughter exploded from one boy, causing a whole chain of bubble-bursting. Soon everyone in the playground was laughing with good humor at the comedic scene.
The blond-haired boy pushed himself up to sitting position with one hand on the ground supporting his weight and the other hand rubbing his redden cheeks. Looking at the laughing kids, he pouted and stuck his tongue out. Picking himself up, he grinned and tossed the ball lightly into the air. "So, who wants to play ball?"
-Shard-
There was laughter in the playground. There was always laughter in the playground whenever people are in it. Gaara pushed against the dirt ground with the tip of his shoes, letting the swing dangle in the air. Konoha's wind was nice. He should just enjoy it while he's in the village. It really wouldn't matter if he stayed here or go back to Suna, he felt indifferent about staying in either of them.
He closed his eyes. Dark eyelids covered his green orbs. A small gust of wind blew past him. He swayed with the air, enjoying its presence.
Thud – Thud
It was the dull sound of rubber brushing roughly against the dirt ground. The redhead opened his eyes in a painfully slow manner. A part of him did not want to pull himself away from his own world, where there is only him and the gentle breeze.
His vision came back and his mind focused. The first thing he caught that was abnormal was an undeniably familiar object that had appeared before him on the spot which was empty before: An old, red, soccer ball. Hadn't he seen something like that before? Perhaps only a day ago?
If he were in the usual situation, he'd just walk away, leaving the ball for the owner to find. Who'd try to get it if he's around? But it was the reason that this ball was so familiar that he decided to take the chance. He slipped off the swing casually and walked towards the dirty red ball.
Picking it up, he recognized the texture of the ball. He supposed that it was the gift that came with the sand. He could feel everything that the sand feels. He remembers everything that the sand felt. In rare times, he could remember all the five senses of the situation that the sand had been through.
A bitter chill ran through his spine. Sometimes, he could still remember the first thing the sand touched. He wasn't certain of the scenario. But it was something…painful. There was also a stench of metal and fire. Hot, thick, sticky liquid in dark colors pooled around. The echo of someone that was close to him. Sometimes it made him sick to think and he just pretend that they were merely nightmares. Nightmares aren't real, Yashamaru had comforted when Gaara told him about it. The younger boy relaxed after hearing the words and brushed aside the fact that Yashamaru had turned his head away instantly after comforting him.
"Hey! You're that kid, aren't you?"
Gaara woke up from his train of thoughts. Without his notice, a boy of unruly blond hair and trademark cheek slashes stood in front of him. His grin had hid his eyes from view, but even without seeing his eyes, Gaara recognized the person. A thought emerged from the rest when the blond boy decreased the size of his grin to reveal his eyes.
He has…nice blue eyes
-Shard-
Some had called him clumsy. Others had called him stupid. But there was no one who came across him that never called him either of those names at least once. Honestly, he didn't mind. At the very least, he was noticed.
Of course, to be noticed, he also must be outspoken and do abnormal, outrageous things that stands out and grab attention. That wasn't a problem either, since it had became a habit of his. Setting up pranks, purposely failing tests, making Iruka-sensei furious, it was actually easy to accomplish. It was quite fun. So maybe he'd get smacked in the head once in a while and maybe punished to stand in the hall sometimes…oh well. The things he'd do just to see the throbbing vein on Iruka-sensei's head.
But in this case, maybe trying to pull of the "Naruto Airball", as he had named his comedic ball-toss just before, twice was too much. Instead of falling within the playground, it had landed far out of his expectation. It went past the gate of the playground entrance, the place where children were reluctant to go while the sun is still shining so brightly. Naruto's reply was a scratch in the back of his head and the usual grin saying: "Heh, I have more strength than I knew!"
He and several Konoha children reached the entrance of the playground in hope to retrieve the plaything. It was then they realized that the ball had miraculously landed by the swing in front of the Ninja Academy. The children of the small ball-retrieval group halt and began whispering amongst each other. Naruto looked at them with confusion, his eyes formed into two lines like a kitsune, the action he does when he "tries" to think hard.
"Nani? Why are we stopping?" He stared back at the small group. They each wore a skeptical expression with eyes darting back and forth. A whispering voice lifted its volume just enough so Naruto could hear. "There's that kid again."
The kyuubi-child glanced back. He could see that there was someone there. Someone was sitting on the swing, to be precise. That person had gotten off and was walking towards a red ball, Iruka-sensei's ball. Well, technically, Iruka's ex-ball, because it was his now.
"I saw him came here before."
"He has weird black things around his eyes, is that normal?"
"His clothes are strange, what if he's not from our village?"
"My okaa-san says that we should never talk with people outside of the village."
"Let's just go back, it's only a ball."
It's one things if it's just his usual persistent self trying to show off, but it's another thing if it's getting what is important to him back. That was the ball that Iruka-sensei gave him. It was important. He has to get it back no matter what the cost is. That was what Naruto thought inside. Outwardly, he turned and shrugged casually, giving the impression of being careless "It's just a kid, no need to fear."
They looked at him, not unexpectedly, but with worries. There was no way that any of them is going down and make a fool out of themselves. Not with Uzumaki Naruto. Laughing at something and being laughed at is two whole different stories. None of them would bother to throw their pride away that easily.
"Hey, if none of you are going, then I am." Naruto declared. He turned boldly to the direction of the swing, showing every intention of making his declaration true.
"If you go there, then we won't play with you." It was a warning.
Naruto paused. One might've expected him to retort or maybe even decide that it was the better choice. However, the sunshine blond boy just turned back and grin, "Okay, okay, so I'll play with you guys next time then."
He brushed it off that easily.
The few Konoha children turned back. They accepted it that calmly. Naruto was funny in many ways, but it doesn't wash away the fact that they were constantly reminded by their parents to avoid him as much as possible.
With their backs turned, they didn't see the edge of the blond boy's mouth that had twisted sadly in a just so slightly way. It vanished as soon as he got near the swing. In its place, a wide grin appeared. A simple thought ran through his mind when he recognized the redheaded boy who was currently holding his soccer ball: What do you know? It's him again!
The other boy didn't seem to notice his presence even when he stopped in front of him. Naruto took note of his appearance. It looked different under the blend of the sunlight and the tree's shade than it had when he first saw him. That time, he was bathed in the orange light cast by the setting sun. His ruffled red hair no longer shone the golden color but instead revealed its original color: a shade of burning flame. His green eyes seemed aloof as if in deep reminisce.
"Hey! You're that kid, aren't you?"
The question started the boy. He blinked into reality and stared at him with wide eyes. It looks as if Naruto had pulled him out of daydreaming at the wrong time. A panic-stricken expression ran across his face. Naruto's grin loosened. The boy before him continued the eye contact, seemingly glued to it. Naruto on the other hand easily moved his attention to the red ball that the boy was currently cradling.
The redhead seemed noticed his change of attention and followed his view down to the ball that he was holding. Realization struck him once again. He was in the same position as the day before. He lifted the ball up just slightly, intending to toss it over the small distance. Speaking of distance, this space between was far too close for him. He intended to finish this as soon as possible. He could think of the rest afterwards.
His mouth had already formed the word "Here", but he never got to say the beginning of the syllable aloud. Before he could react, Naruto stepped forward, shortening the space even more. He held up his arms to meet the redhead's halfway. The Suna boy could feel the other's warm fingers slightly overlapping his to receive the ball.
Gaara felt like he had jumped out of skin. The redhead immediately pulled his hands away, dropping the ball in Naruto's arms. He stumbled backwards clumsily, tripping over his own foot and falling on his sides. That wasn't all. His abrupt fall knocked the back of his head with the board of the swing. It made his Teddy, who had been sitting on the once-still swing, fall past his head to the ground besides him, coincidently landing in a similar motion.
Naruto blinked. Gaara's cheeks would've been burning had he not been surprised at his own sequence of clumsy movements. He may have had tripped or fell here and there before, but he never performed such consecutive clumsiness. He wondered if the blond boy saw the one-second appearance of the sand right before he hit his head on the swing. The sand was always so protective.
A moment of silence passed between. It was filled only with a small blow carried by the breeze.
The Uzumaki boy began to laugh heartily. Gaara stared at him with semi-wide eyes. He supposed this was supposed to be usual. Back in Suna, had he tripped near someone, that person would stare at him, horrified. Nobody wanted to cross the demon of the desert. That was what they had so fondly dubbed him behind his back. But the boy in front of him was laughing without fear. It was forced or mocked laughter either. It sounded…joyful.
"Eh, sorry, sorry. You okay?" The sunshine blond grinned broadly, one hand reaching to the back of his head. He dropped the ball and held up his other hand towards a now wide-eyed Gaara.
Green orbs stared at the extending hand. He instinctively clutched the purple bear besides him. The boy before him was being patient, though he looked a little surprised at Gaara's hesitation. As if to answer the question of why he's holding out his hand, Naruto explained, "I'll help you up."
This was a first. No one extended their hands to held him up before. Even his caretaker Yashamaru, whom Gaara trusted on, never did that before. If he were to trip, Yashamaru would aid him by supporting his shoulders. That was the formal or proper way, or so the Suna Ninja explained. This was risky. But since he had taken so many risks already, mainly during his first encounter with the boy, he supposed it wouldn't matter to risk another. A corner of his mind noted disapprovingly that opening so much will only be bad for himself. Gaara ignored it and reached for the hand.
The pale, uncertain fingers grasped the tan, warm ones.
Gaara felt goose bumps spread from his arms as he was pulled to his feet. He could do nothing but stare at the face of the blond boy with blue eyes. Naruto's grin never faltered, "I'm Uzumaki Naruto! What's your name?"
"Sa…Sabaku no…Gaara…"
"Ehh? Gaara is it? I never seen you around here…until yesterday, that is." He released his hand from Gaara's and bent down to retrieve his ball. Gaara waited as he stood up and held the ball before him. "You know, I wanted to say "thank you" to you since yesterday. So here: Arigato!"
"Nice to meet you."
Blink.
Gaara's face turned as red as his hair. He had been dwelling on what to say, a bit too late. Thus resulted for his untimely response.
Naruto laughed heartily again, "Nice to meet you too! Ma, you're a funny guy Gaara!"
He tossed the ball just so lightly in the air, "So Gaara, wanna play ball?"
Thus start the beginning of the friendship of two demon-children.
Response
The One Who Creeps You Out: Here's your next chapter! Hope you enjoy.
shirlryu: Thanks for the review. I hope this chapter is satisfying.
jackwolf: Again, enjoy!
Sariachan-KokiriLeaf: Glad to hear your opinion on it. I saw what you meant with Naruto ;;
Sensibly Tainted: I can't say when my next update is. This is probably not going to be updated regularly, but I'll try to keep the updating intervals short.
Viky: Sankyuu
Guardian Fox: Yes, it's an old, red, soccer ball. It became too long to repeat all that. Sorry for the confusion.
Angevelinka: Glad that you liked the previous chapters. Thanks!
Sorelina: Arigato! I'll try to keep them all in-character.
Jen: Grown up? You might have to wait a while. This is mostly centered around them as children. Thanks for you review!
Falcon-Jade-Darkness: Thank you! The parts with them grown up might not appear until later on.
Caelistes: I know, Gaara is so timid when he was young! He was so cute when he smiled!
Aihze: Thanks for the second review!
Elijah Snow: Wow, thank you very much. I've always had an idea of Gaara and Naruto's encounter as children, but I didn't find a fanfiction like that on them. Not exactly as how I had pictured them. So I wrote this.
ChibiPheonix: Arigato for your review.
Hiei's Cute Girl: Thanks, here's the update!
Fallen Dragon: Sorry for the long wait and thanks for the review.
Peacebunnie: Thank you. Forgive the authoress' lateness.
Daiokkan: I'm not sure how to say 'thank you' without using these exact words either. Arigato?
Mistress DragonFlame: Thanks for the review again. Here's your update!
Boredathome: This one is slightly longer. I can only hope that it's still satisfying.