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Chapter Forty-seven: Soulless Monster
Shikamaru's droning tone became vibrations inside my cochlea. The tiny ear hairs sensed sound, but couldn't register and decipher in my brain. I couldn't concentrate. There was already too much on my mind. As I witnessed the tail ends of the Suna ninja slipping away, I made my decision:
Operation Track Sand Siblings to Find Out What They Were Up To was in commence. TSSFOWTWU for short. TSS for super short.
As Shikamaru continued his disgruntled old man lingo, I slipped away, beginning my pursuit on the siblings. My spy skills kicked in as I slipped into the darkness. It brought me back to the time of my first unofficial mission. The unwelcoming nightmare of sneaking through the dark labyrinth of a village that wanted mass shinobi genocide.
I dismissed the thoughts before they could snowball, a common theme lately. In time too, as I notably hid from a bystander. It took zero effort. He was an oblivious megaphone from a mile away.
"I won. I won," Naruto sang. Between being tucked in the corner and his joyful cockiness, I wasn't found.
"Yeah, yeah Naruto. We get it. You won," Shikamaru spoke exacerbated.
Naruto rubbed his nose with a larger-than-life smirk. "They thought I couldn't handle a Hyuuga but I showed them!"
"Yeah, but you got your ass handed to you in the beginning," Shikamaru pointed.
Naruto froze. "Heh, it might have not looked like it, but trust me. I had that planned all along."
"Sure you did," Shikamaru rolled his eyes. "Doesn't matter now. It just means I'm that much closer to making myself look like a fool out there."
"You got this in the bag!" Naruto slabbed Shikamaru's back like he was burping an elephant.
"Easy, Naruto!" Shikamaru cried, grabbing hold of the railing for dear life. "Do you want me to make a bigger fool of myself and face plant into the arena?"
"More like a leap of faith," Shino placed his two cents.
Naruto was shocked. "Woah, Shino. When did you get here?"
"I've been here the whole time..." Shino buried his face further into his high collared shirt.
They continued their chatter as I crept out of sight. The sand siblings weren't far; in fact, they were in the bathroom down the hall. As I slowly approached, hugging the wall, I could hear commotion.
"What are we going to do?!" It sounded like Kankuro. A prepubescent, masculine voice that occasionally broke pitch.
"Would you be quiet." A feminine voice, Temari hissed.
With her command, Kankuro quieted to a deep murmur. It was risky, but I inched closer, needing to know what was going on. I realized this was budding into someone's privacy. They could be having family problems for all I knew. It was inconsiderate of me.
But, that didn't stop the Curious Cat from placing their ear on the door.
"What are we going to do?" Kankuro struggled to speak in hush tones. "If he doesn't show up, our strategy will be ruined."
"This is really bad." Temari wasn't as freaked out as Kankuro, but she was definitely concerned.
Strategy? Who are they talking about? I tried to rack up the list of possibilities. Trying to think who would matter this much to the three siblings to the point of hiding in a bathroom. That's when it hit me.
Oh no... The realization shook through my fragile body.
"If the Uchiha doesn't show, we are in deep shit," Kankuro punched what sounded like the bathroom stall. Fist clanging with metal as it echoed through the confined space.
What did they want with Sasuke? The only thing I could think of was that the siblings were forming a strategy - a three-way strategy - to defeat him. But one, that was cheating and two- what didn't make any sense, was who Sasuke was up against.
Gaara.
Gaara was incredibly strong, sand-demon-bound-to-him strong. I have only witnessed him fight a few shinobi. The men in the Forest of Death, Dosu... they were all decimated. Pulverized until there was nothing more than guts and blood. All of them were dead, except for Lee. I couldn't fathom what would had happen if Gai sensei haven't intervened, both times.
The point being, there was no need to be sneaking around, strategizing a way to beat Sasuke. Besides, like the siblings have been worried about, Sasuke wasn't here yet and his battle was next. As the Kazekage explained to me before, if an opponent hasn't shown by the time of their battle, it's an automatic disqualification. These competitions were very stringent with the rules. If you are a no-show, you don't deserve to be a shinobi, and they will unhesitatingly move on.
"Due to an opponent not yet arriving, we will be postponing this match and following onto the next battle. Will the next opponents enter the arena?" Genma's voice roared through all the nooks and crannies of the arena. My initial shock was followed by the cries of angry viewers. The match between Sasuke and Gaara was the headliner. The main attraction that brought visitors, who have traveled days, to witness. They didn't care about the other battles- let alone the participant's well-being. They were only bloodthirsty for a fight between arguably the two strongest genin in all the lands.
I wish I could tell the savages to chill the fuck out.
"You wouldn't happen to know where Sasuke is, do you Gaara?" Kankuro spoke condescendingly, but at the end of his sentence, there was a sucking of breath. Like when a politician who knew he said the wrong thing to his audience.
His stumbled words were followed by a slap. This was different than the fist to metal. This was more hand to arm. Temari could have whispered something along the line of "idiot" but I couldn't tell from this side of the door.
I knew Gaara was someone not to get on their wrong side. I wasn't naive. Did they really think their brother could have done something like that? Did they think Gaara killed Sasuke? I could never forget the look in Gaara's eyes as he hovered over Lee's hospital bed. The hunger, the thirst, the need to take the life of someone who was sleeping peaceful. Lee was defeated, his shinobi days were threatened but that was wind over Gaara's head. He doesn't feel like he won the battle until his opponent died the same way he always handled them. It sent shivers down my spine.
I questioned if they felt the same shiver? Were his siblings scared of him?
Did that mean I was scared of Gaara?
"Will the next participates enter the arena," Genma requested. His tone told me the proctor was growing impatient. Mae was probably waiting anxiously.
The yelling of ignorant bastards blocked the softly spoken words from the bathroom. If they discussed any further issues, I couldn't hear. I pressed my ear harder towards the door, increasing of my chances of being caught. Who knew what they would do if they found me.
And it was a good thing I did because as I pressed closer, covering my exposed ear to block the crowd's chants, I heard Kankuro. Thankfully, he was the loudmouth of the bunch.
"Fuck I know, Temari. I can't expose my secret weapon," he growled with frustration. His feet hit the tile floor, causing vibrations to my ear and feet.
"Shit." I ran for cover the moment the hooded nin opened the door. He didn't sense my presence as he practically walked past me to where the others were in the waiting room.
His voice hung over the crowds' ruckus. "Proctor, I forfeit."
The crowd grew louder. Like water to a sponge, they absorbed Kankuro's statement. And they were angry.
"Are you fucking kidding me?" I heard one scream.
"We came here for battles!" Another cried.
Others chanted to fight.
"I forfeit," Kankuro repeated. "Please move onto the next battle."
Naruto didn't take the news well either. "What are you doing? What about Mae?"
He was right. Kankuro forfeited, but that wasn't fair for Mae. Yes, she was nervous and anxious, but I knew Mae and she would have been training as much as she possibly could to prepare for this day. That was her personality, to be the best of the best in all areas- jutsus, chakra control, knowledge. She had that drive to prove herself to others.
I couldn't imagine how this felt for her.
"By forfeit, the winner is Mae." The crowd booed at the proctor's final call.
And how embarrassed she felt.
"Oh man," Shikamaru moaned. "That means I'm next." I didn't need to have a visual on Shikamaru to see the dread on his face.
"Go Shikamaru! You got this!" Naruto yelled. Immediately after, Shikamaru screamed but what started loud grew gradually quiet and then silent.
Naruto laughed uncomfortably. "Sorry, Shikamaru."
"Well, you certainly sent him over the edge," Shino spoke followed by a weird sound. Like a happy wheeze. Was there such a thing as a happy wheeze?
Either way, my guess was Naruto gave Shikamaru a bit too much of an encouragement.
The unseen scene distracted me and before I could return to ease dropping, the door opened again.
"Once I kick this Leaf chump's ass, we'll figure out what to do about the plan," Temari spoke to Gaara. She let the door close before any answer came.
She walked down the hall and was about to head out to the arena before she froze. She was more keen than her brother. I placed my hand over my mouth, not to let any breaths potential be heard. I wished I could stop my heart from beating.
But no one has control over their heart.
Luckily, between the crowd's chants and her already tardiness, she dismissed her concerns and pursuited to the arena.
Good luck, Shikamaru. I thought.
With only one sibling left, there was no reason to hang around any longer. The conversation was over. I needed to return to the Hokage to tell him my suspicions. Even if I only heard snippets and didn't fully understand it, something was going on, something bad.
And I also needed to apologize for being gone for so long.
The only way back was the way I came. Silently, I walked passed the bathroom as casual and non-guiltily as I could. I was almost in the clear when I felt it. A presence, his presence. Gaara didn't join the waiting room with Kankuro to watch Temari's battle like I would have assumed.
In times like these, there were only two options. Flight: pretend I didn't sense his steps echoing in the empty hallway direction and run away like the time I was asked out on a date by my perverted sensei. Or, fight.
I choose the latter.
Turning around, Gaara was only 10 feet away from me. His silhouette was expressionless and impossible to decipher. In the dimmed lighting, his light green eyes glowed. I wondered if mine were as well.
Lately, I have been suffering from countless thoughts. From my past, to incomprehensible visions. From my hatred inner-laced with deceit. From Mae, Gaara, myself, and more. They flowed; an angered river with waves violent. My inability to tackle one without another emerging.
But for the first time, the currents weren't pulling me under. My mind was clear. One thought outfought the rest and tamed the untamable beast within me. Gaara, mysterious Gaara with his mysterious plan soothed me like the howling wind on a cold desert night. How could a boy full of destruction and death have this kind of effect on me?
All signs pointed to one known fact. I needed to find out what the siblings were up to, I had to.
And above the village's potential safety, the screaming goons beyond this hallway, and even my own daunting curiosity- what was most important was him. The boy who I haven't seen since he briefly visited me in the hospital. The boy who ran from his own hospital bed, escaping to who knew where. The boy who had been making Sakura worried sick.
Sasuke, what happened to Sasuke?
Gaara and I were at a stare off. Neither of us advanced as if one molecular movement could collide two wrong atoms and catastrophically ignite. His eyes were... haunting, hypnotizing really. I was afraid it was a lure, a way for him to draw prey closer before he gobbled them up, or, pulverize them.
Those eyes, have they seen Sasuke? Did they witness the sand wrap around his feet, his torso, his neck before taking the life out of him?
Was Kankuro right to accuse Gaara? Did Gaara kill Sasuke?
Before my mouth could form words, Gaara's expression changed. His brows were fixed, furrowed. Was he reading my mind?
"Gaa-ra," were the only syllables to escape my lips before I felt the edge of a blade press against my neck.
I seized, my thoughts had distracted me from realizing there was someone behind me, two somebodies.
"Look what we have here. Hope we're not interrupting this... lovely conversation," a man spoke, sarcastically behind me. Followed by his statement was a grunt coming from the other guy. The first's voice was light, higher pitched while the grunter was a deep baritone, husky. It was obvious one was the talker; the other the doer.
I struggled to get out of the Doer's kunai.
The Talker tsked. "I wouldn't do that if I were you."
The Doer pressed the kunai closer to my neck. Liquid warmth dripped down my neck.
"You see, my friend here is very triggered happy. Any excuse to kill, any and he will. Heck, he doesn't need any excuse." Both him and his dunce companion laughed. Wannabe Jekyll and Hyde.
I wasn't amused. "What do you want?"
"What do we want?" The Talker reiterated. "Well, nothing with you. It's him we wish to converse with."
Gaara remained stagnant, unaltered by the scenario.
The Talker cleared his throat. "You must realize everyone is here for your battle against the Uchiha, if it wasn't obvious from the angry cries before," he spoke to Gaara. "What comes with intriguing battles are intriguing bets. Even our great Feudal Lord has taking part of this... investment." The Doer grunted with agreement.
Was that all he could do? My annoyance questioned.
"He sounds like a fantastic Lord," I replied, sarcastically. "Betting his villagers' money on a Chunin battle."
Before I could say more, a rough hand slapped across my face. The callousness and thickness of the fingers, like frozen sausages, reminded me of the cold touch of Cesear right before... he tried to do worse.
I couldn't let the past get to me. "If you're trying to scare me, you're gonna have to do better than that. You hit like a bitch," I barked.
My sarcastic comment angered the grunting beast. There was practically steam surrounding us from his bull-like nostrils. I knew I said too much as the angry big oaf's fist connected with the side of my head. I thought someone turned out the lights, but it was really my vision escaping me.
"Your loudmouth friend should really learn some manners. It's going to get her into real trouble one day," the Talker warned. His voice begged to take my life.
"Too late," my countless, near death occurrences drew the slightest of smirks to my lips.
I can practically feel the eyes of the Talker roll. "As I was saying, word has traveled far about how the Uchiha boy was to be the next great protegee with skills well beyond his age; therefore, our Lord has bet a great sum of money on his victory... if he shows up that is."
His ignorant comment stirred within me. To treat people like pieces to a Shogi game, like a disposable pawn. All my self-doubt on Gaara's potential actions soared out the window. "Of course Sasuke will show, you Bigots," following my dagger words with a stomp to the Doer's toes.
His moment of distraction was my attempt at escaping, but the punch to the skull left me slow, too slow. The Doer quickly recovered and disposed the kunai to wrap his fat hands around my pencil neck. He rather take my life with his own hands than through an instrument.
Last breaths escaped my lips as his hands close tighter around my neck.
"Gaara of the Sand, lose the battle. Otherwise, your friend here wont ever see the light of day. Is that clear?" the Talker warned.
Gaara doesn't response, no reaction in any shape. His unresponsiveness throughout this entire encounter tips off the Talker.
"I guess you don't care about this girl after all," the Talker concluded. "I can't really blame you. She is just an annoying, useless girl."
The Doer's grip grew tighter. I tried kicked free, but it was useless. I couldn't think clearly. Maybe it was better this way.
Everything sounded like a distant echo. "She will be gone any moment now. I guess what people say about you is true, Gaara. You are just a careless, soulless mon-"
There were muffling sounds that I couldn't decipher. However, the pressure around my throat loosened and the cold, solid ground greeted me with open arms...
ΞΎ
I didn't know how long it had been until I came to. Maybe it was seconds, or perhaps hours. Time felt insignificant. Somehow, I was alive as my vision became crisper. Reuniting with the world of the living, I wasn't suffocating but felt something around my neck. Prying whatever it was off, I was horrified to find they were hands, only hands and the beginnings of wrists, covered in blood. I was covered in blood; sat in a pool of blood and sand, like a crimson beach.
Ringing that echoed in my ears, like an alarm placed inside a conch, started to diminish. Hands roughly grabbed my shoulders causing me to jump. Thankfully, they weren't like the Doer's or Cesear's. These were smaller, childish. They haven't gone through the world of struggles yet. I heard commotion from this person but the ringing was still too loud to make the sounds translatable.
The figure held my body, in a form of a bear hug. A fur trimmed hoodie entered my field of sight.
"Jesus fucking Christ," Kiba's voice was breaking through the chimes. "What happened to you?"
My lips moved, but I was unsure if there was a reply.
"Quorra." His voice was firm, scared. "Are those hands on the floor?"
I pulled away from his embrace. "I'm okay," I could hear myself now.
Kiba noticed the markings around my neck, two hand-shaped bruises were probably forming as we spoke. "Holy fuck, Quorra." I could hear Akamaru barking angrily. Who knew how long he had been barking for.
"I'm alright," I reassured.
I must had looked far worse than I thought because Kiba snarled. His temper rose exponentially. "Are you serious? Look at you, you're covered in blood."
Thankful he was assisting me, I couldn't help but feel angry. He was treating me like a child. Like I was being punished."This isn't the first time." I mumbled, pushing myself away from Kiba.
"What?!" His face was red, eyes crazy. "This is all your fault isn't it?" he yelled pointing in front of us.
It was Gaara. Kiba was pointing at Gaara who never left his position since it was just the two of us. As always, Gaara was unresponsive.
"You did this to her," Kiba continued to yell. "It has to be. I heard what you have done."
But, how? I thought.
"He killed Dosu to protect me!" I exclaimed.
"Dosu?! The Sound-nin! I was talking about how he almost killed Lee in the hospital. Our good friend Lee. What the fuck are you talking about?" Kiba went berserk.
I placed my hands over my mouth. The lack of oxygen to my brain had fucked up my sense of thought. Of course he was talking about Lee. No one knew about the encounter between Dosu and myself except for Gaara and Gachero-sensei. And now I gave Kiba more ammo to blast through his cannon mouth. I've seen him angry countless times before, but I have never felt this from him.
Kiba was scaring me.
He saw the fear in my eyes and calmed, but not by much. "You've been hanging out with this fucking creep. Haven't you?"
"You don't understand-" I tried to explain.
"Oh, I understand. I understand fully." He cut me off. "Don't you see, Quorra? Look what has happened to you, to what almost happened to Lee! Lee, Quorra! He's a killing machine!"
"Stop it!" I screamed, my voice rasp.
"I was looking for Mae, hoping to cheer her up. And it's a good thing I did because who do I find instead? You, knocked out cold! Who knows what would have happened if I didn't find you!"
"Gaara wouldn't hurt me," I said. "He saved me."
Kiba did a double take as if I told him that zombies were real. "What?"
"Gaara has saved me countless times. He's the only one who told me the truth," I held my ground. I will not be pushed around.
"The truth? What fucking truth?" Kiba practical spat in my eyes.
"The truth about what happened at the Preliminaries," I responded, teeth grinding.
"Jesus, Quorra. I tried to tell you that wasn't my call." He stared at Gaara with hatred in his eyes. "What has he been telling you? Brainwashing you to believe? Haven't you thought for a second about Sasuke? How he hasn't arrived yet and Gaara is his opponent. Didn't you think he had something to do with it?
"Stop!" I didn't want to talk about this anymore. I didn't want to be yelled at.
Kiba saw me shaking and I hated myself for it. Kiba took a deep breath. "He's dangerous, Quorra." He grabbed my wrist, just like before at the staircase.
"Come on. Let's go before he kills us." He pulled me.
"No," I said, whimpered.
"No?" I couldn't tell if it was angry or confused. Kiba's voice was haunting.
"No," I repeated. "He wouldn't do that. Gaara wouldn't hurt me." I repeated, feeling my eyes water, trying as much as I could to hold them back.
"And why the fuck not?"
"Because..." The words escape me.
"He is a monster, Quorra. A soulless mon-"
"Because he's my friend," the words spilled out of my lips.
Did I actually say that? Kiba's face looked like I felt. Shocked, bewildered with utter disbelief. He dropped my hand as it collided to my side like a dead piece of meat.
But the question was, what was scarier than what I have endured all day was...
Did I mean it?
Quorra never seems to have it easy. What's the relationship between Quorra and Gaara? Quorra and Kiba? Did she ruin a friendship to build a potential new one? Or was Kiba doing the right thing and Quorra was in the wrong? How will Gaara react to all of this, if he does?
Until next time!
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