Spirited Away: Wind and Sand

Notes: I'm sorry it took so long to get this chapter out. I blame school and work mostly and laziness to a lesser degree. Anyway, this chapter is a long and each chapter I make just seems to get longer. I am also going to ask if anyone has any ideas or things they would like to see in a Gaara x OC story then just tell me, I may be able to put it in the story or some form of it. I am not only writing this story for myself but my readers so I would love to hear what you think and want out of the story. Oh, I also decided to put a status on updates on my profile so if anyone wants to know the progress of the next chapter or progress on any of my stories then they can go to my profile. I'll update it when I have any news. Also, I don't know but any part of this story can be looked up if you don't know about it. For example, if you'd like to get an idea of what Kumo is like, you can look it up on the Naruto wiki. It has lots of information on the Naruto series and I try to stay true to the information provided on Naruto so far. Also clothes, weapons and fighting styles can all be looked up if you'd like to have a better understanding of how these things look or work. I mentioned before about a mermaid style dress and tonfa-style blades and where to find these things. I know I usually like a visual of some things so that is why I provide some way of visual reference. If you'd like any information please ask and I'll answer you directly or in a note.

Special Thanks:

Thanks to nekomata. I'm sorry to say that the new group won't be seen in this chapter but they will play a bigger part in the next chapter and of course become more important as the story progresses. Right now they are laying low and waiting for their moment.

Thanks to Toshiro with love, I really like the one word, it made me smile. Awesome.

Thanks to ZariGS. I really appreciate your review and I figured it might not be the best people have ever read, but as long is it is not the worst I'm pretty okay with that. Also, thanks for telling me that I achieved my goals I was striving for, I hope to continue achieving my goals I have planned for this story.

Thanks to shineon99, it has been a while since my puppy has died now and I thank you for your condolences and for complimenting my story.

Thanks to Ninja Star Light, sorry it wasn't updated really soon but I'm not giving up on this story so be assured that there will be updates.

Thanks to KuramaMustangElric for your four reviews. To answer some of your questions, there are many ways to pronounce things but on a site it said it was pronounced Aura as (Aw-r-uh) or sometimes in my mind it almost sounds more like (Ah-ruh). Gaara should be around 18 in this story and Aura is about 17. All other questions will be answered in time. Thanks for the reviews they made me smile as well and thank you for you condolences and hug, I really appreciate that.

Thanks to everyone that favorited and alerted my stories! It really means a lot to me.

Chapter 5: True Strength Begins in the Heart

Kumogakure: Village Hidden in the Clouds. I would have marveled more at the sight of a village built on steep mountain ridges if I wasn't so worried about Kankuro. When we arrived in Kumo they were suspicious of our appearance although having the Kazekage with us proved useful. They took Kankuro to get medical care right away and Gaara had to discuss what happened outside of Kumo with the Raikage.

I was outside Kankuro's room trying to not get in anyone's way by looking out over the balcony. Temari had to stay with me since I needed to be watched at all times although I could tell her attention wasn't on me at all. She was looking over at the room the whole time. We were outside in the hallway that was filled with large windows overlooking the city. We stood there wondering all the while if Kankuro would be okay. It must be hard to be the Kazekage. I'm sure Gaara was concerned about his brother but he had responsibilities and matters he needed to attend to first.

The door opened which made both Temari and I jump a little. A man from Kumo's medical unit came out and was walking up to us.

"How is he?" Temari asked impatiently.

"He will live but there has been considerable damage to his nervous system. The electrical signals between his nerves in a considerable amount of his body had been either cut off or scrambled," the medical ninja told us, "Although the electrical currents that were cut off were easier to connect again, the ones that are scrambled are almost impossible to redirect without absolute precision and risk. We may never be able to fix the damage to those parts of his system. With some therapy though, he may be able to figure out the receptors of the new nerve paths."

I felt a twinge of guilt in my chest at this news and looked down at the ground.

"Is he awake? May we see him?" Temari asked.

I could hear the concern and anger in her voice.

"He may be a little out of it because of the drugs but you may see him," he said, "Follow me."

I tailed behind Temari wondering how I could face Kankuro. As far as I knew, this was entirely my fault. When we entered the room we found Kankuro lying on a white bed with his right shoulder bandaged up and his face paint gone.

As if he could sense when we came in he opened his eyes tiredly and looked over at the door, "Hey Temai, Aura."

We went over to his side but I stayed slightly behind Temari.

"How are you feeling?" she asked.

He smirked, "With all these drugs I'm not feeling anything, plus, they said it would take a while before the feeling returns to my limbs."

He then looked around a little more, "Where's Gaara?"

"He's fine," Temari answered, "He's giving a full report about the Elements to the Raikage."

Kankuro acknowledged this with a slight nod of understanding then his eyes laid on me. I felt nervous as the twinge of guilt arose again.

"Hey Aura, glad to see you're alright," he smiled.

This only made me feel worse.

"I'm sorry," I said, I just couldn't hold it back.

He looked confused, "Sorry for what?"

"I'm sorry you're hurt, if I didn't drag you people on this trip then this wouldn't have happened," I said as I fought back the sting of tears.

"That's not true," he responded, looking offended, "You didn't drag us to do anything; we all voluntarily went on this mission together. Like Gaara said, you're a part of Suna and we look out for each other."

"What do you mean I'm a part of Suna?" I asked.

"I didn't understand it myself until Gaara said it. He seems to understand people more than anyone. He knew you were lonely in a world where you didn't belong anywhere. You entered this world in Suna so it's your home, just as much as it is ours. Or at least that's what I think he meant," he then winced in pain as he must have moved in a way he wasn't supposed to.

I couldn't believe it but he was right. When I thought of it, Suna was like a home to me and these people were my friends but this still couldn't stifle my feeling of responsibility for his wounds when he was in pain.

"Still, I'm so sorry Kankuro," I apologized once more.

"Don't worry about it," he brushed of my apology, "I've had worse injuries than this."

Temari let out a frustrated sigh.

"Excuse me Kankuro," she said before leaving abruptly.

I watched confused as she left furiously.

Kankuro must have seen the perplexed expression on my face as I turned back to him, "Don't mind Temari, she has a hard time trusting people."

"What? So she's angry at me? But why?" I didn't understand what I had done to her.

"She still thinks of you as an outsider, but don't mind her, she's always been like that. She'll come around eventually," he smiled at me.

He must have been on high dosage of the drugs, I could see it in the way his eyes looked, his softened voice and his slow movements. A medical ninja came in and told me that I needed to leave so Kankuro could get some rest. I said goodbye and told Kankuro that I hoped he got better soon. Although I knew with the nerve damage he would never go back to exactly how he was before.

I stepped outside the door and saw Temari looking out at Kumo. She still had the same angered expression from when she left. I decided to keep my distance and wait for her to notice me. I wanted to tell her that there was no reason for her not to trust me but I knew that would be a lie. Ever since I came to this world I had caused trouble, pain, and damage. One of her brothers was badly wounded and another was caught in a strange connection with me. She had every reason not to trust me when I couldn't even trust myself.

It seemed like I had waited there forever with Temari in silence watching people pass by. We weren't allowed to go anywhere until things were cleared between the Kages. I tried to imagine what was going on between them. Knowing how calm Gaara was and how spastic the Raikage can be, it was sure to be a least a little entertaining. I smiled at the thought of what might be going on between them.

Temari suddenly straightened up and as a reflex so did I. A familiar looking person was walking toward us and surprisingly addressed me.

"The Raikage would like to see you," said a man with blonde hair.

I believed his name might be C if I remembered the series well enough. What a weird name to only be one letter. Of course there were others in this village with one letter names. I wondered what fascination or connection they might have with the Roman alphabet.

Both Temari and I followed him until I started to hear loud noises. We entered the room to find a window and part of a desk damaged. This was the Raikage's office where apparently he had got very upset about something. I knew he had a tendency to overreact about things. A man was standing next to the Raikage looking kind of bored. If I remembered things about Kumo correctly I believed his name was Darui. Gaara was standing with his back to us but when we entered he turned to look in our direction.

The man who came with us made a respective notion, "I've fetched the Wind girl Raikage-sama."

It was weird to be introduced by some other title than my name, as if I was an object or something special. The Raikage was such a big man, it reminded me of how short and small I was.

I felt like everyone was watching me so in my awkwardness I slightly bowed my head, "Nice to meet you Raikage."

"Such a girl being the Wind element," he said as if in disbelief.

"I'm sure you can sense her chakra. It's purely wind element," Gaara said keeping eye contact with the Raikage.

"Odd chakra or not, how do we know she is like the Lightning demon?" he responded.

C had made a hand sign and it looked like he was concentrating for a second then opened his eyes again, "She is like the Lightning demon but there is something different."

Everyone suddenly had given him their attention, including me.

"There is a connection between her and the Kazekage," he continued.

"The bond you were talking about earlier," the Raikage confirmed with Gaara.

"Yes, I told you all we know about the Elements thus far. The bond is still unexplained but if you have any records or information on the Elements then we might find some answers and methods to avoid future incidents from them," Gaara explained.

The Raikage looked suddenly livid but turned his gaze to C who nodded and spoke, "The Lightning demon was able to conceal his chakra with absolute precision. We didn't know he was in the village until he attacked. Those with lightening affiliation had their chakra drained."

Just then the Raikage had got up and smashed part of his desk in less than a second. I jumped in surprise at his short temper. I could tell something had gone on between him and Ryuu. That's when I remembered the message we received in Konoha before deciding to leave for Kumo. They were attacked and the Raikage fought even with his chakra being drained.

"That demon, if I ever get my hands on him he will pay for making a fool out of Kumogakure!" he shouted angrily.

"There is a way we can track him," Gaara said.

This caught the Raikage's attention.

"There is a communication between the Elements and even the ones bonded to them," Gaara explained as I looked at him confused, "I have been trying to concentrate on connecting with the Lightning Element but he seems to still be incapacitated."

Communication? What was he talking about? Was there something about the bond he knew but wasn't telling me?

Everyone else seemed as skeptical about the information as I was.

"I admit that I don't know much about the bond and Elements but if you have any records of their existence it might help us find the Lightning Element and even the others as well," Gaara said with his same calm expression.

All was silent for a while until the Raikage spoke, "Still a bold young Kazekage."

He seemed to smile at this then continued, "I will have all our records searched, until then you are not to leave Kumo."

"Understood," Gaara agreed.

"Darui," he finally addressed the bored looking person by him, "you are going to stay with them while they are in Kumo."

He seemed to be the master of the level expression as much as Gaara because he responded as if it didn't matter, "Right."

The Raikage then looked at Gaara, "That won't be a problem will it Kazekage?"

Gaara stared back at him. There seemed to be something intense going on between them.

"No," Gaara finally answered.

Everyone seemed to make respectful gestures before we left the room. Gaara exited first, Temari second, me third and Darui following behind us not paying much attention to where we were going.

"Gaara," Temari said with concern as she caught up and walked beside him, "You didn't tell anyone about the communication before. Are you sure there aren't any other things about this bond you aren't talking about?"

"I only just noticed it recently," he answered, "but I still don't know much about it. The communication so far is only brief images. If I could get an image of his surrounds then we might be able to tell where he is but at the moment it isn't much use. What matters now is finding out more about our enemy so we are better prepared next time."

Temari was silent. She seemed to be bothered by something.

"How is Kankuro?" Gaara asked.

Her expression went a little sad, "He's . . . alright."

We had visited Kankuro who still seemed under the influence of the drugs. He acted way too strangely happy to see us. I still felt guilty when they had told Gaara the news about Kankuro's nerve damage but Gaara didn't seem like one to blame me for it. After we left the medical building we ended up taking a walk through the main part of the village to buy some supplies while we were here. This place was much like Konoha when it came to social environment; there were all types of people, stores and things going on. But something else I noticed is that there was a lot more military force around. Everywhere I looked I saw ninjas that looked like they were on duty. Leave it to Kumo to have such a strong military force.

Compared to these villages so far, Suna seemed so small. There weren't as many people and places to go in Suna as there was here or in Konoha. Suna must be one of the more poor villages among the five ninja nations.

Temari was buying some ingredients for poison antidotes and Gaara seemed to be as well. I had got a little distracted looking at everything around me. This really was a remarkably beautiful place. I smiled to myself, thinking that I may not have been able to see this kind of place if I didn't go on this journey. Suddenly I noticed something that intrigued and excited me.

"A bath house?" I had never been to one before and this one actually looked quite large.

Thinking of a nice warm bath made me melt inside and I realized that I hadn't actually bathed in quite some time. I only had to wash what I could in the rivers and lakes when we were traveling since I couldn't be alone. Oh but how a warm bath sounded so good.

"Yeah, that's the Blue Dragon bath house. It's made from one of the main hot springs in these mountains," Darui commented which startled me a little.

I was so caught up thinking about a bath that I didn't notice that he was standing right by me.

"Um, Blue Dragon?" I asked nervously.

"The name comes from the spring which is said to be home to a sleeping dragon, the whole story behind it is kind of dull," he said before looking over behind me.

I turned to see Gaara and Temari walking up to us.

"What's going on?" Temari questioned.

"Oh nothing," I smiled innocently, "I just never saw a bath house before."

She looked over at it and I noticed a sense of longing in her eyes, "Well there's nothing special about a bath house."

Knowing her, she was always one to say things like this were frivolous but I could tell deep down she really wanted a hot bath as well.

"Go on," Darui said as both Temari and I snapped our attention toward him, "I know you'd like to go in and you're here so why not."

"Ridiculous, we shouldn't be wasting our time right now," Temari commented in protest.

"It's fine Temari," Gaara said.

She seemed a little stunned, "But Gaara shouldn't we be-"

"We have more than enough time right now; we don't know how long it might take for Kumo to check all their records. We may be here for a while," he interjected.

She suddenly had no excuse.

"Fine," she said as if she wasn't happy about it, "I suppose I will have to go with her."

Although I knew I couldn't be left alone I was quite happy that she was going to come with me. I didn't want to go into a new place by myself anyway. I was so excited that I almost ran up to the building as we made our way to the bath house.

I first tied up my hair in a bun but once I began taking off my clothes I started to feel a little awkward. I nearly dove into the water but Temari made her way in more gracefully. Once I was in I felt a lot better and more relaxed in the large hot bath. This water was different than the other baths I had before, the water seemed smooth and slightly thick and gave off a gentle aroma. They must have added salts to all their baths here or oils. Either way I was in a perfectly wonderful state of being.

Neither of the guys had wanted to take a bath. They were just going to wait at the front for us but they really didn't know what they were missing. Come to think of it, how did Gaara stay clean at all? If he controls sand can he just remove dirt from himself easily? I mean, he does wear a layer of sand as armor most of the time. I suppose I got used to him always smelling like sand.

I looked over at Temari who had her eyes closed with a thoughtful expression. She must have sensed my gaze on her because just as I was trying to figure out what she was thinking she opened her eyes and glared at me. I averted my eyes as quickly as possible and pretended that nothing happened. It was like there was a weird tension between Temari and me.

I finally needed to say it, "Temari, I'm sorry. I know you don't trust me but I really do care about you guys and Suna. I didn't mean anyone harm but I would like you to know that I'm sorry."

I bowed my head respectively but I also didn't feel I could look at her scornful eyes.

She was silent for a while then seemed to scoff, "I'm not the one you should be apologizing to."

I looked up at her confused but she was looking off in another direction.

"The only one you have really let down is yourself. If you've harmed anyone due to lack of control you have over your power then gain control over it. If you don't have the strength then gain it. Maybe then you'll be able to protect people you care for instead of harm them," she lectured in her usual tone.

I knew she was right. There were much more things I had to train besides my body. I had to train my mind and even my heart. I had to gain control over myself and even my own thoughts. If I wanted her to trust me, I needed to earn it. I need to be able to trust myself before I could ask for her trust.

In her own harsh ways she showed that she really cared though. I had to respect her for that. I left her alone although she kept looking over at me a little concerned at my thoughtfulness.

"Look," she finally said making eye contact with me, "it's not that I don't like you. You're not a bad person but I have more important things I have to worry about. So I can't trust you just yet."

I smiled, "I understand."

Under her tough facade I knew Temari was a warm person. What she said only made me certain of it.

The two men stood just outside the bath house where the bustle from the streets contradicted their serious silence. Darui had his eyes closed apparently thinking of something or maybe just meditating. Gaara locked his gaze on the entrance to the bath house although is eyes showed that he wasn't really seeing what was in front of him. They stood with both their backs against the wall with an unnoticeable tension that those that passed by dismissed.

"You know she's a danger," Darui said casually with his eyes still closed.

Gaara didn't reply, but kept his gaze on the bath house.

"If she really is an Element then you know that she holds an unpredictable power, she's a threat to people around her," Darui spoke then looked in the opposite direction of Gaara.

"She doesn't even know how to use her power right?" he glanced over to Gaara who seemed unmoved.

"How well can you say you know her?" he questioned, "Can you really trust her that easily? This could all be an act and she could really be waiting for a time she can catch you off guard."

"I appreciate your concerns but they aren't necessary," Gaara finally spoke not moving from his position one bit, "Aura has been under careful watch since she has arrived."

Darui slightly smiled, "Leave it to the Kazekage to think of everything; putting yourself at risk for your village."

He then closed his eyes again, "But there's something more behind your actions. I could even say you are trying to protect all the villages from something. You know more than you're letting on about these Elements."

"I could say the same for you," Gaara commented finally looking in Darui's direction, "You have more information on the Elements than you let others know."

Darui kept his eyes closed in silence for a while, "I might have heard something about it a long time ago. Of course back then it seemed like only a myth. Heck, maybe even the Blue Dragon is real."

He smiled slightly and looked out into the crowd, "The Raikage and everyone isn't used to this new alliance between the villages yet. Sharing delicate information with another village seems like betrayal, but I don't think he knows what the Elements really mean."

"If the Raikage is still uncertain then why would you share this information with me now?" Gaara asked.

"I don't know," he admitted looking away again, "maybe I'm trying to protect the villages as well."

Gaara was meeting with the Raikage again today. I had slept so well after my bath last night that I had a hard time getting up in the morning but I was rejuvenated. There was an earthquake or at least I thought there was until someone explained to me that it was a result of intense training. Just picturing the training they were doing made me uneasy. These people really took pride in their strength.

"Gaara," Temari said as he entered the room.

"We're leaving," he stated suddenly then looked at me, "get your things ready."

"What about Kankuro?" Temari asked.

"You're staying here. Aura and I are going to the Island Turtle," he informed her.

She looked surprised, "Why so suddenly?"

"The temple was destroyed during the wars, but they transferred their Element records to a safe location on the Island Turtle. I received permission to access them but only for Aura and I. I need you to stay here with Kankuro," he explained.

She looked reluctant but accepted this, "I understand."

"Aura," he directed at me, "we're leaving right away."

"Oh, right," I said a little confused but I went to gather my things.

The reason Gaara and I left so quickly is that we were catching a boat out to the Island Turtle that was departing that afternoon. I was kind of freaked out because I knew there were larger than normal animals there but I really had nothing to worry about because I wouldn't be alone. I stood on the deck looking out at the ocean with the cool breeze whipping past me. The waves lashing on the sides of the boat as it skidded over the water. Leaning against the railing I closed my eyes and breathed in the salty smell of the ocean.

I heard someone walk by me then stop. I opened my eyes to see Gaara was there looking out at the ocean as well.

I smiled at him, "Hey Gaara, isn't the ocean great? I've only been to an ocean a few times in my life but every time I'm near one it always makes me feel calm."

"Does it?" he said looking at me now.

"Yeah," I answered, "There is something relaxing about the sound of the waves. How many times have you been near an ocean Gaara?"

He lived in a desert so I wondered how many times he had seen an ocean as well.

"Not many," he responded, "I've been on missions near oceans before but I never thought of it as calming."

I wondered why that was but figured that it might just be a matter of opinion.

After some silence I asked, "So why does Kumo keep records on the Island Turtle? I mean, where would they even keep them in a place like that?"

"They keep their most ancient artifacts and sensitive information behind the Falls of Truth. The island moves all the time and has dangerous animals so it makes a perfect hiding place for things they don't want to be found," He explained staring ahead.

"I see," I said looking out at the waves, "It makes sense I guess. They did hide two jinjuuriki there after all."

I saw out of the corner of my eye that he glanced over at me.

"I'm not the only one that seems to be hiding what they know," he commented before walking away.

I looked back and watched him disappear into a doorway. I didn't know exactly what intent he had with that comment but it felt like everyone distrusted me more than ever lately.

The island looked like a massive fortress when we first arrived. The sea walls were like tall vertical cliffs and spear-like rocks rose from the water. It was an intimidating island to say the least. When we stepped foot on the new land we were introduced to Motoi. He must be a guide to this island. Meeting him in person he seemed a bit strange but he was a nice person. It was the large beasts that I was really worried about.

I was extremely glad that he fed us before we went to our destination. I could tell that Gaara really wanted to leave quickly until he found out that Motoi spent time with Naruto and B on the island. I had made a lot of casual conversation during the meal.

"Thanks so much," I said to him after I had finished my food.

The dishes here were a bit strange but I was too hungry to really care. It actually tasted pretty good.

"So why do you stay on this island?" I asked out of curiosity.

This seemed to catch him off guard, "Well it's a long story but I came here on a mission before and I just didn't want to leave so I took the position to watch this place."

"How come you wanted to stay?" I questioned further.

He seemed like he thought of something sad but answered, "Many things but I thought it was a great place to train and I really like the animals."

He liked the animals? The animals were huge and dangerous here. Well, I guess he learned to live with them.

Gaara got up from his chair, "May you lead us to falls now?"

I looked from him to Motoi and both seemed to be seriously staring at each other. All my work to make a casual conversation was over already.

Motoi nodded, "Right, please follow me."

I got up quickly and followed them both as we all moved quickly across the island. I had to be on Gaara's sand although I was starting to feel bad that I could not keep up with them without help. There wasn't much talking on the way there which was a little awkward and made it seem like it took forever to get to the falls. The gentle roar of falling water, the smell of damp earth and the white mist rolling off the water made the place look almost mystical. I saw the little island in front of the waterfall and wondered if we would have to meet our dark side to enter. When I really thought of it though, there were those that entered without doing that.

"The entrance is behind the falls," Motoi said looking at the cascading water.

"Aura," Gaara said and I turned my attention toward him.

I must have been in awe at the falls because I didn't notice he had gotten so close to the waterfall.

"Oh," I could tell he wanted me to follow him.

I ran over to the edge of the pool by him but I didn't know how we were going to get behind the falls until Gaara picked me up. I was stunned and let out a small noise when he did this but I soon understood why he had to pick me up. Gaara was walking on the water, something I didn't know how to do and we were about to go through the falls. Even if he used his sand to carry me, the water would have washed it away.

I felt weird being so close to Gaara. I had only just realized that a lot a people probably had never gotten this close to him before. His sand always seems like a barrier between him and everyone else. Although his social barriers had gone down he physical barriers still seemed to be there.

Motoi went through the falls first then Gaara and I followed. I braced myself for the impact of the water but it wasn't as bad as I thought. The inside seemed a lot cooler and darker than the outside. Gaara placed me on the steps where I was greeted by headless statues and a vast room with a mural of the two-tailed and the eight-tailed beasts.

I scanned my surroundings trying to take everything in but it was such a large area.

"The room should be to the left up ahead," Motoi stated as Gaara and I followed once again.

I looked over at Gaara as we walked and was astonished to see that he didn't have his sand armor on like he normally did. I expected that his armor would get dark from being doused with water but his hair and clothes were a normal type of damp.

I wondered why he didn't have his armor on but I concluded that maybe he did have his armor still but it just wasn't like I thought it would be.

The ruins themselves were interesting and impressive but smelled damp and old. There were even plants growing from the walls.

"Here is where we keep the records and artifacts from the old Element temple," Motoi stated as we arrived at a stone door with a lightening, fire, rock, and wind design carved on the surface.

"How does it open?" Gaara asked.

Motoi seemed sheepish when answering, "I'm not exactly sure, there are usually switches to open each door, but I haven't found any for this one."

"What? You mean we came all the way here and we can't open the door?" I admit this sounded a little whiny but I was feeling a little cold from being drenched earlier.

"It seems we will have to look for the switch," Gaara stated simply.

We all began to search diligently. Motoi searched the area across the hall and the floor, Gaara searched the wall and area around the door and I took the liberty of feeling on the door for the switch. I didn't know exactly what I was looking for but I put pressure on all the grooves I could find and when my hand touched the wind design it caused me to flinch and back away. The design shone with a dull green light for a second then the door slowly slid to the side revealing a large room inside. The other two seemed just as astonished as I was. We all stood there in silence for a few seconds after the door locked into place completely open.

"Well I guess that works," I said nervously.

We all approached the pitch dark room cautiously but just as Gaara and I cleared the threshold the door closed suddenly behind us leaving Motoi outside. I quickly turned around and tried to do what I had done outside to open the door but it didn't work. It was too dark to see anything and I pounded my fists on the stone door as if it would help in opening it. I also yelled but I could hardly hear Motoi's voice on the other side of the thick stone.

A light then lit the room with a moderate glow.

"Aura," Gaara said to get my attention.

I turned around to see the room had an electric current running through some lines in the wall illuminating the new space. There were all kinds of drawings on the walls and what seemed like a bookshelf full of scrolls on the other side of the room. Though the murals on the walls were what caught my attention the most. They seemed to be brought to life in the glow of the electric current.

Gaara was looking at the walls as well; they seemed to tell a story. There were pictures of five different individuals surrounded by different elements. The Elements clashed together making what looked like the world and other murals showed how the clashes between the Elements caused devastation. Near the end of the murals it showed the Elements with what looked like other people who shared the same element and then others as well. It all seemed really confusing.

"Aura, over here," Gaara called to me.

While I was examining the walls he had taken the liberty to look at some of the scrolls.

"These have been translated from the old scripts," he told me.

"What do they say?" I asked.

"There's a lot about the history of the Elements but there are many more scrolls here," he looked up at the shelves which made me follow his gaze.

He was right, there were so many scrolls.

"I guess we'll just have to look through them all," I stated before grabbing one off the shelf.

For a while we really didn't think of getting out of the chamber but concentrated on searching for the information we came for. There were a lot of things I didn't understand written on the scrolls. Even if they were translated and simplified they talked about a lot of things I didn't know about from this world and also a lot of it was about Kumo. It's to be expected that most of the records in Kumo would be about the area and how the Lightning Element originated in this country.

Some of the scrolls were plain old text and history while others were studies made from research on the old scripts. A lot of scrolls told of the Elements and how they lived much like regular humans did. They seemed to be born at random over the years to random families. Although it could not be concluded that an Element was a hereditary trait, it still seemed that Elements were more likely born in families that had the Element in it. They also concluded in the scripts that Elements were not reincarnations of the same person because all Elements born were quite different in appearance and varied in gender. There were also very rare times where an Element child was born while the same Element was still alive.

Although throughout all the scripts it told of great wars between the Elements and the reason they scattered to different dimensions in order for peace to reign. Even though, I knew peace was a fragile thing as I thought of all the wars in this world and mine.

I sighed as I picked up yet another scroll and as I opened it I knew I found something interesting, something that would be helpful to our situation.

"Gaara," I called to him as I set the scroll down on a table-like stone.

He looked up from his scroll and down at the one I laid out.

"It's about Familiars," I told him.

I knew he'd be interested in this as well considering this is what he seemed to be connected to me as.

When I knew I had his full attention I read it aloud, "Familiars are those contracted to the Element. Though there is no real visible connection, the bond between an Element and Familiar is speculated to be soul related. Familiars are essential to an Element living a regular live as it seems that the Familiar regulates the power of an Element. The Familiar acts as a buffer between the Element's power and the world around them. Without a Familiar, Elements can often live hundreds of years with power at a much higher and uncontrollable level, causing damage to those around them and even themselves. Thus, Familiars play and important role in an Element's power control. These people have been known to share abilities to a limited extent with the Element they are contracted with."

There was so much more information on Familiars and as I read I could tell by how close Gaara was to me that this was information that he wanted to know as well. It was then that the sound of something big pounded on the door of the room causing it to shake. I lost my footing and had to clutch the stone table to keep from falling.

The door abruptly burst open in pieces and as the dust cleared Motoi stood with a large bear-like animal next to him.

"Are you guys all right?" he yelled.

I was leaning over the table too astonished to say anything but Gaara was standing as if nothing had happened.

Motoi ran in the room to see both of us with scrolls sprawled around randomly from the quake he made.

"What happened?" he asked both of us.

I regained my composer before answering, "We found what we were looking for."

When we had got back to Motoi's place we explained to him that we had found the records of the Elements we were looking for. Luckily for us, even though the records weren't supposed to be removed from the room they had to be moved for safety because of Motoi's rescue act. It seemed like that all we did for a day was look over scrolls but no matter what information they held, there was no information on why they were being brought back to this dimension now or even how a bond was made between a Familiar and an Element.

There were still a lot of unanswered questions but I can't say that the journey wasn't fruitful. There was actually a lot we learned about the Elements and I had to remember to thank the Raikage for allowing us to view them.

After we had gone through the scrolls more times than I can remember, Gaara told me we were going to train on the island for a while. I didn't understand why at first until he told me we should try to experiment with the bond and this would be the perfect place to do it. I suppose it was best because there weren't any people to harm on this island but I still could tell that the bond intrigued Gaara.

Each day we went out to different parts of the island to train. The only exception to this training was that it was to sync our bond. This was a concept found in a scroll on Familiars. Considering the abilities and beneficial attributes the bond had it was to our advantage to be able to use it to its full potential. Most of the training consisted of me using my power and seeing if Gaara could do the same. We also found out through training that is was easy for either of us to sense where the other was. We could also sense how the other was feeling at times. I suppose we were able to do this before but we simply dismissed it up until now. That kind of ability can be mistakenly identified as intuition.

Even though Gaara had some control over the wind power I put off it seemed I had way more control over him. I had never really tried to do it before so I never noticed how I could actually control his sand to some extent. I wasn't a master of it like he was but at least I could stop it from moving or suppress his sand ability altogether. I also was able to share images from my mind to his more than he could to me. Although the training was doing well, all of the bond abilities seemed like they were forced and less synced than we hoped. In the script they had said the abilities between the Familiar and Element were flawless and shared almost to an equal extent. What was wrong with what we were doing?

Today we set out to a lake that had natural stone pedestals growing out from the water. He had me stand on one while he stood on another facing me. I was supposed to try to attack with wind and suppress his abilities as he tried to knock me off the small pedestal I stood on.

"Hey can we stop for a second?" I pleaded as I nearly lost my balance from one of his sand attacks.

The sky was grey overcast and looked darker each second. A rolling thunder rumbled overhead.

"What's wrong?" he asked from his pedestal.

"Isn't it kind of dangerous to be near water when there's a lightning storm?" I questioned.

I had only seen a few flashes from far off but it looked as though they were getting closer each minute. The wind even began to pick up more dramatically as the sky got darker.

He looked up at the clouds then back to me, "A few more times then we'll head back for today."

I was glad I got him to compromise and decided that I would finish the next few exercises quickly.

His sand came at me as I concentrated on suppressing his chakra. I felt a drop of water on my face then my arm then my back. In an instant there was a downpour. The wind swept past me violently bringing with it large waves of water droplets. With the feel of the wind I decided this was my best time to send a counter attack. The gust would disguise wind abilities so I sent a few wind blades at him using my weapons. I could hardly see him through the rain and dark surroundings but I was surprised as he suddenly disappeared. I expected him to appear again out of nowhere for a surprise attack but all I heard was a splash from the lake below.

The sound of the wind and thunder grew louder but there was no sign of him. What happened? Was he in the water? I felt panicked. Why was I so uneasy? Gaara was okay. He was always okay right?

It was then I felt a weird sensation and images of being under that dark water flashed in my head.

Was he drowning?

I looked down at the water but couldn't see anything with the heavy rain. What was I going to do? I felt frantic as I searched the water with my eyes but I knew I was a little too nervous to concentrate completely. That's when I made the decision to go in. I scrambled to throw off anything heavy on me like my weapons and dived in.

The water didn't seem as cold as the rain. I opened my eyes and swam over to where Gaara's pedestal was. I resurfaced for air then dived again when I saw something red below me, I swam down in the dark water to find Gaara covered in mud. His sand armor must have come off with the water. I hastily grabbed onto him trying to pull him up. No wonder he sank, he was so heavy. I figured it must have been from all the sand and the gourd. I cut the gourd off of him using one of my kunai as the need for air tightened my lungs. I had to get him to the surface quick. I grabbed him once again and swam as best I could to the surface. I burst out of the water coughing and gasping. It was still raining hard as I made my way to the side of the lake. Dragging him up on shore I then leaned over him.

"Gaara!" I called to him but he didn't respond.

I put my ear to his chest and listened for a heartbeat. Luckily there was one but it didn't seem like he was breathing. I didn't know exactly what to do but I decided to improvise from what I had seen before. I opened his mouth and blocked his nose as I breathed air in him then pressed upward on his stomach then continued to repeat this action hoping it would help. I was starting to feel desperate until I was breathing in his mouth again and he spat up water coughing. He sat up suddenly still coughing and spitting out water.

I tried to stop him from moving so much, "Gaara you shouldn't get up so quickly. Are you alright? Are you hurt at all?"

He opened his eyes and looked straight at me. This is when I noticed the awkward position I had put myself in. I had placed myself over him even after he sad up and our faces were close enough to feel each other's breath. His sand armor was gone and we were both soaking wet. I felt my face get warm and only hoped I wasn't blushing. I just couldn't find the strength to look away from him. This was just him, no sand armor or anything. His eyes really were something unique.

Lightning cracked and lit up the area. This was enough to snap me back to my senses as I moved away from him and looked at the ground.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean for you to drown," I apologized.

"You were able to suppress my chakra completely, that was the point of our training," he said as I glanced back up at him to see he was looking at the sky that rumbled with thunder.

"You were even able to pull me out of the water," he added.

"Yeah, but if I didn't-" I began but he interrupted me.

"Thank you," I didn't expect to hear that from him.

He looked over at me and I looked away again. He then got up and in response so did I. I was still a little worried about his condition but he seemed as resilient as ever. The rain had lightened up a little now.

"We'll continue our training tomorrow," he stated before beginning to walk in the direction of Motoi's house.

I couldn't help but stand there and stare at him. He acted as if he didn't just almost die. Although I guess he had many near death experiences in his life. He even admitted I saved him and thanked me. He was only human after all but there was something else bothering me. What was I feeling when I looked in his eyes?

I ran to catch up with him and to make sure he was okay but I couldn't bring myself to look directly at him. I felt almost embarrassed thinking of how close I had been to him. I needed to distract myself with something or anything at all because I was afraid to even get close to the thought of what just happened.

I had trouble sleeping after that incident. Every time I closed my eyes I could see his sea foam eyes staring back at me. Training had become more serious but the bond seemed to be weaker than usual and didn't work as well. I didn't even talk to him much after that. I didn't want him to think I was mad at him though so I would smile and try to answer things normally. I could tell that he knew something was going on with me but I tried my best to hide it.

The fact was that I didn't even know what was going on inside me. I felt like I was in such turmoil. It was like I couldn't concentrate on anything.

I decided that I would do it. Ever since I saw the Falls of Truth the idea was stuck in my mind. I wanted to meet the darker side of me. I found it a really intriguing concept but when I first saw the falls I didn't feel I was in any need for them because most of my questions were about things I didn't know. Now I found that I was questioning myself more than ever. I needed some way to find out what was wrong with me.

I wondered if I could leave by myself. I was never by myself for a long time since I arrived here. Still, I needed to be alone. I didn't want anyone to know what I was doing. When I went to the bathroom I snuck out the window. Not very original but still it was a classic move. I stole away toward the woods then ran as swiftly as I could to my destination. It was times like this I was glad I had a great sense of direction. Spending time on this island I had come to know the way to a few places and we had gone to the falls a few times before.

When I reached the falls I looked around suspiciously trying to sense if anyone had followed me but it seemed all was well. I approached the pool in front of falls where the small island platform rested in the middle. I waded my way over to it slowly and then sat down. I wasn't sure what to do but I guessed I had to meditate. I sat there and closed my eyes for a while trying to clear my mind and be still but it was harder than I thought.

When I was finally able to clear my mind and be still I had no idea of time. It could have been hours or minutes before I heard a sound from the falls.

"So you've finally come," said a voice much like my own.

I opened my eyes reveal someone that looked like me only with cold expression.

I stood up to face this person, "I'm guessing you're my darkness or something like that."

"Something like that," the other me responded, "but it's stupid of you to come to see me over something so trivial. You know how you feel; you're just not willing to admit it."

"Admit what?" I asked.

"Always playing dumb I see. I guess I'll have to spell this out for you. You fell in love with Gaara but you can't admit that you would love someone that is not supposed to exist at all. And you are afraid that he wouldn't return your feelings."

I flinched. I wanted to deny her words but I knew I couldn't. I opened my mouth to say something but I couldn't.

"You act like such a child," the other me said scornfully, "You freak out over things like love. You may train but you really don't try as much as you could. And you wonder why people don't trust you? You hide your true self from everyone. You can't accept what you are and become a burden to everyone around you."

I felt taken aback by her words, "What do you mean? I train to my limits, I try to do the best I can and I'm not hiding anything."

She laughed, "Really? You are still denying everything? You really are quite pathetic."

I glared at her and my hands automatically drifted toward my weapons.

"So you want to fight huh?" she said before going into a fighting stance, "I'll show you what I'm really capable of."

She charged at me using wind to create a speed I could hardly keep up with. I blocked her attack only to be hit by another one. I crashed on the ground and winced in pain. While looking up at her I rubbed my side where she hit me. How could this person be me? She was way too fast and the hit hurt like heck.

She stood over me and smirked, "Down for the count already? I can't say I expected more from you though."

Who knew my darkness was so cocky and insulting.

"I'm not as weak as you think I am," I growled at her.

I readied myself and lunged at her with my weapons drawn. I released a chain of attacks with wind power charged in them but she dodged them all. She suddenly dropped her weapons and caught my arms.

This stunned me and she smirked, "Like I said, pathetic. Don't you dare come back to see me until you grow up a little."

She then quickly positioned a palm so it aimed at my stomach and shot a concentrated amount of razor sharp wind through me. I screamed out in pain and fell backwards. As suddenly as it happened I didn't feel so much pain anymore. I opened my eyes and saw no one around. I looked down at my stomach to see nothing there.

I realized that I must have broken my meditative state. I hit the ground, angry with myself. The darker part of me was right. Every time I took a step forward I took two steps back. I really was pathetic. If that person was me then I was capable of much more than I was allowing myself to achieve yet I was holding myself back. She was right that I had trouble accepting things like the fact that I was an Element, that I no longer lived in my own world and even the way I felt.

I got up and brushed myself off when I sensed someone.

"How long have you been there?" I asked glancing over at Gaara.

He was standing at the edge of the forest watching me. I guess all that Familiar training was good for something. He successfully evaded even my detection.

"I followed you here," he stated.

I sighed while thinking that I really must seem stupid. I waded through the water back toward him. I didn't want to look at him but enough was enough. As soon as I walked past him I stopped.

"It's true; I have been hiding things from you. As you might have guessed, I know a lot more about this place than I let on. I know a lot about you, about Naruto, people of the Leaf, the Sand and other villages, everyone. I know I had played stupid for a while now but I'd like to say I'm sorry. I think one reason our bond wasn't working so well is that I was hiding myself, but I won't do that anymore. I'll accept that I am the Element of Wind and have responsibilities in this world. I won't be a side character in my own life anymore. I have things I want to protect as well."

I started walking again. I'd prove my darker side wrong. I wouldn't be pathetic anymore. I'm going to train to my fullest and protect myself and those around me. I refused to be useless. I was going to become the main character of my own life's story.

Notes: Just so you know, Aura goes through learning and relearning like this because it seems realistic that people sometimes relapse into old ways and even resolutions become weak at times. In most stories people change after one event, usually a traumatic one. Although I believe that traumatic events can change people sometimes it is not a full change so they need to go through and learn things again and again sometimes until it finally sinks in. This I can say is Aura's case, she didn't have a need to be very strong in her life so she has had 17 years of being passive. Habits are hard to break but as it has been said, you can't go down the rabbit hole expecting to come out unchanged. In the next chapter there will be a noticeable change in Aura's character. I promise she won't become annoying or anything, but I can say she will be a stronger person. I also tried to make Gaara seem a little more human, he had as much a chance of drowning as anyone. What Aura didn't realize at the time is that she really could do a lot more than see was letting herself be capable of. On another note, I believe I need an editor. I just can't seem to fix everything on my own. If anyone would like to help you can just send a message. I also would like to have some art made at some point, probably when the story is more than half over and most of the characters have been introduced. I will also have some polls and other things as the story progresses. Just tell me of any ideas if you'd like. I would even like to hear what you think might happen. I think that would be really interesting. Until the next chapter!