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Alive And Victorious
Chapter 5. The troublesome teacher
Matsuri stood on the training ground, balancing a kunai in her hand. She slowly raised her arm and threw the weapon at the wooden pole. Kunai plunged into it but far from the spot she was aiming at. She didn't forget how to do that but her weakened body couldn't adjust. She was rapidly getting tired from repeating the same moves again and again.
The kunoichi pulled the kunai out of the wood and started to hit the pole with the side of her hand. Her skin wore through quickly and the red stains appeared on the spot she was hitting. When the pain became hard to endure, Matsuri switched to kicking, but it wasn't too long when she had to stop and find her refuge in the shadow under the stone wall. She sat on the sand, breathing heavily and biting her lips. I'm so weak! she thought desperately. Four months of being immobilised and I have to start almost from the beginning!
The painful throbbing in her chest grew unbearable and the girl began to weep. How was she supposed to live like a ninja in this condition, to go on missions? She needed to feel she was self-reliant, able to live without anyone's support, and above all she needed money!
Matsuri rubbed her eyes with the fist and sniffed a couple of times. She inhaled deeply, trying to level her breathing and supress the despair raising within her. When she heard someone's footsteps scrunching on the sand, she hastily attempted to force a smile onto her face. Licking her lips, she glanced up at the person who came to a halt in front of her.
It was Gaara. He was eyeing her calmly but Matsuri could feel the uncertainty in him and cursed herself for crying. She didn't want him to see her tears. He could have thought she regretted what she had done. Of course, he would be wrong, because if Matsuri could turn back time, she would do exactly the same thing.
He settled himself on the sand next to her. Matsuri was still smiling, even if she knew her smile was probably unconvincing, plus her cheeks were stained with tears.
"Matsuri," Gaara uttered without any opening, "I want to tell you a story."
The girl's eyes widened. Her sensei, being so taciturn person as he was, was going to tell her a story?
She could only stutter: "Y-yes, Gaara-sensei." The redhead cast a short glance at her and averted his eyes, looking into space.
"Almost three years ago I fought one of the Konoha ninjas. His name was Rock Lee. During that fight I completely crushed his left arm and leg," Gaara said, a tint of guilt lingering in his voice. Matsuri put her hand on her mouth. She thought she had heard that name before... Rock Lee... Hadn't he been amongst other Konoha genins, who came to help Gaara during the Shitenshounin incident? She could barely remember Lee since most of her attention had been drawn to the noisy blonde, dressed in orange, who tried to protect Gaara with such determination, even if he himself was wounded and exhausted. Naruto, that was his name.
"When I had met him many months later, he was still suffering from the effects of that fight," Gaara continued. "He had been told he couldn't be a shinobi anymore. From what I had learnt he had almost broken but he never gave up." He looked seriously at his student. "Do you know how the story ends?"
Matsuri started to ponder. If she remembered correctly, that Lee guy didn't look seriously injured during the battle. It meant he had to return to his best form somehow. The girl sighed with relief at the thought. If Gaara wounded his opponent to that extent it must have meant he had been still living in disregard for human life then and killing without the second thought. Matsuri didn't want to deliberate over such things and hoped she would never have to meet other victims of her sensei.
She raised her eyes and after noticing Gaara's intense look she quickly smiled and nodded.
"Thank you, sensei," she said, trying to brush the back of his palm with her fingertips. The redhead flinched and seemed to be about moving away. Matsuri sent him another smile, this time the apologetic one, and hugged her knees with her arms, gazing into space. She had been a coward. Her teacher had hurt so many people and she couldn't just turn away from that truth. She didn't know any reason why would he become such a cruel, heartless murderer and why would he stop being one. Sometimes she thought she wanted to discover all those secrets, to understand what he was hiding behind that reserved, introverted attitude but on the other hand she wasn't sure she really wanted to hear about his crimes from his own lips. The villagers told her enough already.
The girl sighed quietly, her eyes returning to Gaara's face. She spent so much time with him and she still couldn't honestly say they were friends but at least she learnt how to read him. She knew he couldn't be born a killer, he had to become one, and she knew his soul had been tortured before he began to kill. She couldn't say how she could know it but she was absolutely certain her intuition was right.
The redhead turned his head and glanced at her. Matsuri didn't avert her eyes. She couldn't speak frankly with him and she couldn't touch him. People could kick him while fighting, or punch him (at least give a try) but they couldn't touch him and Matsuri could only try to speak with her eyes. She gazed straight into his eyes and smiled, thinking intensely about how much grateful she was, how much proud of him, how much she believed in him and how much she wanted he would let her befriend him.
He answered with a look so intense that Matsuri couldn't help but blink. Soon it became unbearable and she had to avert her eyes. He was just staring at her!
No, it was impossible. He couldn't be staring. He was Sabaku no Gaara, the one above such things.
She glanced at him from the corner of her eye. He was still staring!
"Gaara-sensei..." she began timidly. "What is it? Do I have something on my face?"
The redhead shook his head and stood up.
"Good luck," he said without looking at her and paced away. Matsuri gazed after him, nonplussed. Actually she didn't want him to go but on the other hand it would be better for her if anyone wouldn't witness her pathetic attempts at training.
Sighing, the girl pulled herself to a standing position and reached into her pouch, grabbing a few shurikens.
o0o0o0o0o
Matsuri was sitting by her window, drinking water. On the table next to her there was an empty container; the instant ramen was the only food she could afford lately. She just came back from the mission but volunteered for the next mission already since she really needed money. Her family stopped supporting her; they also didn't send any letter answering her offer to pay off her debt. Matsuri thought they ultimately cut the bond and she decided to contact them again only when she would need no support. Now she bore a slight grudge against them and was worried about her own condition so there was no way she could write cheerful letters to them.
Somebody knocked at the door. Matsuri put the mug away and opened the door. Behind it Sari was waiting, holding a package wrapped in the linen cloth.
"Hi, can I come in?" she asked but Matsuri moved aside already and waved at her friend to come inside. Sari resolutely stepped into her friend's room (she just felt like home here) and put the package on the table. "How was the mission?" she turned to Matsuri, who was watching the mysterious parcel with astonishment.
"Well, thanks, well enough even though I'm completely worn out."
"And no wonder," Sari commented and approached the countertop where the container with the filtered water was placed. The girl poured some water into the mug and took a sip. "It was your first mission for about... six months?"
Matsuri nodded and pointed at the package.
"And what is it?"
"It's for you," Sari announced and unwrapped the cloth, revealing the basket filled with the anpan buns. "I baked them with my mom."
Matsuri watched her friend agape since Sari had been never making such presents for her.
"Thank you very much but—"
"You need to eat better food. My mom also asked you for a dinner the day after tomorrow."
Matsuri felt herself blushing. Did her friends discover she didn't have money?
"Sari, I—"
The long-haired girl hastily raised her hand like she wanted to silence her friend.
"This is not for free," she said, grinning. "You will do me a favour in exchange."
"Of course," Matsuri bit her lip impatiently. "What can I do for you?'
Sari took a bun and chewed on it, then glanced at her friend, looking slightly embarrassed.
"Tell me, what kind of girls your sensei likes?"
Matsuri burst out with laughter but quickly controlled herself, staring at Sari with widened eyes. The long-haired girl huffed a bit.
"I'm sorry, I— You surprised me with that, uh, question..." Matsuri stuttered. "Sari, you... you're talking seriously?"
Sari nodded in silence. Matsuri digested the surprising news for a short time and began to ponder.
"I don't know," she answered in a serious tone. "Really, I don't know."
Her friend rolled her eyes.
"Oh come on. You've spent so much time with him."
"But we weren't talking about his preferences!"
"You didn't have to talk! Didn't you notice what kind of girls attracts his attention?"
"Sari, I can't help you with this matter, I really can't. He doesn't pay attention to—"
"Impossible," Sari answered with irritation. "All guys do."
Matsuri started to ponder again. She took the bun from the basket and rolled it in her hand.
"Maybe," she said at last, biting the food. "But not him."
Pouting, Sari sat down on a chair and crossed her arms on her chest.
"You want him for yourself, don't you?" she shot and Matsuri choked. Her face became red all over, she coughed heavily and for a good few minutes she wasn't able to utter a word.
"What?" she exclaimed at last. "What are you talking about?"
"You like him," Sari explained grimly.
"No I don't!" Matsuri exploded, her cheeks still reddened. "You can have him if you want!"
"Then please help me," Sari said in an imploring voice.
Matsuri sat down as well and sighed deeply. She really didn't have the tiniest idea in what kind of girls Gaara was interested. Moreover, she didn't know if he was interested in girls at all but she had to devise something for Sari's sake.
"You know..." she began slowly. "Gaara-sensei is a very reserved person. It's very hard to get close to him. That's why you need the long-standing plan if you want him to trust you, at least I think so. You have to know it will take a really long time. He..." the girl ceased speaking and bit her lip, lost in her thoughts, until she continued. "He needs to know you accept him regardless of his past... well, I suppose so. Um, I—" she sighed again. "Sari, please understand that I don't know him too well. He is the most withdrawn person you can imagine. It seems to me he is not interested in looks only, I've never noticed him watching the pretty girls like other guys do. Well, at least the appearances is not the most important for him since..." her voice softened. "He needs someone he can trust. You know... sometimes I think he had been betrayed in the past. The person he loved hurt him. I don't know why I think so but—"
"As for the person who declared not to know him well you seem to perfectly understand him," Sari sneered and Matsuri flinched, flushing.
"Sari, those are only my suppositions... my intuition. I never talked with him about such things. We're not friends."
"But you want to be his friend?"
Matsuri rolled her eyes.
"I'm only trying to help you!"
"Fine, fine," Sari mitigated her friend. "Please continue."
The other girl growled and shook her head.
"If you want to pick him up, do not try any tricks working on most guys. You will only annoy him. Do not let him know you fancy him. Act like you only wanted to make friends. Do not ask for anything personal."
Matsuri broke off for a second, having a strange feeling she wasn't the best matchmaker in the world. She had been just asked to introduce the guidelines to her friend on how to pick up Sabaku no Gaara, no more no less! If he would ever learn about it...
Watching Sari who was nodding eagerly, obviously memorising each and every word, Matsuri suppressed the sigh. "Gaara-sensei cares deeply about the condition of the village and you have to prove you do too," she finished.
"And you think it will be enough?"
"How can I know?" Matsuri shrugged, eating at the anpan. "But it seems to me it would be a very good opening."
"Matsuri, you know what?" Sari said with a strange lilt in her voice. "If it's anything you need to pick him up, I believe you've already made greater progress than I ever could."
o0o0o0o
Matsuri collapsed on the sand near the stone wall, panting. Shadowed from the burning rays of the sun, she reached for her canteen and began to drink greedily. Gaara settled himself next to her and also sipped water but in opposite to her he didn't look very tired. They've been practicing for a couple of hours and the heat was becoming more and more nagging. Matsuri could almost feel her skin tanning but Gaara still looked like he spent last few years in the cellar, never seeing the light of the day.
After her last conversation with Sari, Matsuri started to watch her sensei critically. Sari called him 'cute' once and 'handsome' on the other day, and Matsuri decided she had to establish her own opinion on the topic. What she was mostly sure of was that he changed much since the time she had met him. During that year he had become taller (even though he was still short in comparison to his peers), stronger and more muscular. Matsuri had become taller as well but she wasn't growing quickly enough to catch up with him. His hips were still narrow while hers were growing wider and his chest was broader yet still flat while her own... well, Matsuri still wasn't sure if she liked the bulges under her shirt or not but they were certainly the hindrance when it came to whipping the jouhyou.
Both of them changed so much, it was apparent. She could feel it vividly during their rare trainings, and today she could feel it stronger than ever.
Musing in silence, the kunoichi took another sip of water. This training was different than other ones. It has been... odd. Whenever they've been practicing taijutsu, Gaara was always standing motionless, letting her punch and kick him. Not that she could ever land even one hit on him; the sand was always getting in the way. Sometimes he was attacking her but it had never been the full contact fight... until today. At first Matsuri was quite surprised by the strangles, chokeholds, joint locks and pinning holds that suddenly rained down upon her but she felt no fear. The more fighting techniques the better. He was a bit too hard on her and she could ask for mercy of course but what would she do if any other shinobi attacked her? She could clearly recall the encounter with ANBU assassins. Asking them for mercy wasn't the option, was it? She just had to deal with it.
She could sense that Gaara wasn't acting like himself during the training but she was pushing that thought away. Only when he gripped her and threw her at the ground, straddling her and pinning her hands above her head, the sting of the real fear stabbed at her chest. Under her uncertain, apprehensive gaze he seemed to regain his senses and let her go, announcing the break. Now they were sitting in the shadow the stone wall was casting and Matsuri wasn't sure if she ever wanted to continue.
She slanted a glance at her teacher who seemed to be oblivious to her uncertainties. He was calmly looking at something distant and Matsuri felt confused. What if she was only imagining things? What if he only decided there was no handicap for her anymore? She has never been seriously injured during any of their trainings. Yes, she would like him to inform her first what he was going to do but maybe he was only testing her determination?
Her breathing was level already and she quenched her thirst; there was no reason to procrastinate. Matsuri took a deep breath and braced herself up for the inevitable.
"Sensei," she spoke timidly. "Maybe we should continue...?"
o0o0o0o
Gaara was walking down the corridor when he heard the voices. It seemed a few people were talking loudly, and one of them at least was very angry.
"All of them only want to gather as much as they can! They're unscrupulously taking advantage of the situation!"
Gaara quietly stopped, recognizing Baki's voice.
"You said earlier they've already accepted it," someone answered. The redhead's curiosity was immediately picked when he heard his older brother's voice.
"Yes, they have!" Baki raged. "They know perfectly well they have no other choice than to accept him taking the position! That's why they're trying to delay. Kazekage's absence made them going definitely too far!"
Gaara held his breath. He knew he shouldn't eavesdrop but he just had to know what they were going to say.
"What are their arguments then?" Kankurou asked in a quieter tone.
"Oh, always the same! He's too young, too inexperienced, people don't trust him..."
"As for the youth, it might be true, but I don't think so. As for the inexperience, it doesn't matter since he's more devoted to the village than all of them together. As for the trust—"
"I know," Baki interrupted. "The villagers can see what is going on. Even if they're still afraid, they're trying to accept him. At least some of them."
Gaara took a few steps back since he was almost sure who they were talking about. He just wanted to hear the rest and deliberate over it in solitude. The strange warm feeling began to expand in his chest but he suppressed it until he could be absolutely certain what Baki meant.
"They know they won't be able to manipulate him. Besides, Gaara had seen too many mistakes the previous Kazekage had made not to repeat them," Baki said and the redhead's heart pounded. Was his dream about to fulfil faster than he expected? Gaara knew his former teacher respected him and supported his efforts to gain people's acceptance but he would have never guessed that Baki considered him to be the best candidate for Kazekage's position. It was a surprising and encouraging thought.
The redhead headed forward, shuffling his sandals to announce his presence. Baki and Kankurou ceased talking and waited for him to show himself. He walked from behind the corner, eyeing them calmly.
"Hey Gaara," Kankurou said with his usual tone, not even a slightest twitch betraying his thoughts. Gaara greeted Baki with the nod while the puppeteer continued. "How was the training?"
"Fine, thank you" the redhead answered indifferently and walked away, feeling their looks on his back. He decided not to mention the conversation because he was certain he wasn't meant to hear it. Judging from Baki's words he could tell that secret preparations to make him the village's leader started some time ago and were still unfinished. If they have never uttered a word about it, they apparently wanted him not to know anything.
He entered his room, lost in thoughts. Kankurou's question about training drew his attention to other matter of his gradually increasing interest. This training was different. Odd. He wasn't acting like himself, for the first time attacking Matsuri in such aggressive manner. He could say it was for her sake but it would be an apparent lie. Since he considered lying to himself stupid and useless he still had to answer the nagging question: why?
He carefully closed the door and let his gourd turn into the sand, ignoring the straps. The sand swirled in the air and gathered in the corner, forming the familiar shape. Gaara stopped in front of the window and watched the sun going down. The previous question had been answered in his mind already but he still didn't want to admit it to himself. His gaze lowered until it reached a certain building where he knew Matsuri was living in. He knew which her windows exactly were even if he had never asked his student about it.
Sighing, he closed his eyes and rubbed his forehead. The emotional turmoil caused by the training and then the conversation between Baki and Kankurou, all of this greatly disturbed him but he had to be honest with himself and admit that he'd been attacking Matsuri the way he did because it excited him. It excited him when he could feel her body close to his own, when he could easily overpower her. Her flushed face popped in front of his imagination, her futile efforts to fight him off and finally the fear in her eyes when he pinned her to the ground.
He had been using her without her knowing, and the notion made him feel guilty and scared. He should know better than to use his powers like that. In his life he had tasted already what it meant to have the absolute power. Because of Shukaku, his nemesis, he could rule human life and death and found the great delight in it. Such power would corrupt even the purest mind, and his mind wasn't pure, not since Yashamaru's betrayal.
The only difference was he didn't feel like killing this time. His Bijuu's chakra had been endlessly testing the strength of his mental barriers but it wasn't too offensive now. His desire to overpower Matsuri obviously had a different source.
His trusting, cheerful student definitely changed. She was still trusting and cheerful but she wasn't a child anymore. Her body changed just as his own. He could feel it when they were fighting and the need to discover, to taste, to possess overwhelmed him. And he succumbed – he had been discovering, tasting, possessing, all of this without her knowing.
It was... improper. He shouldn't do that anymore.
Willing to distract the disturbing thoughts he decided to ponder over something else. Amongst many things he had discovered during the training was Matsuri's surprising physical weakness. Of course she had been weaker than him but she wasn't supposed to be that weak. From her words on the other day he had learnt her once injured shoulder had been healed completely and it shouldn't influence her fitness any longer. What was the cause then? Was she sick?
He decided to watch her closer to see if the weakness was growing. Maybe Matsuri didn't realize it, and maybe she did but wanted to hide it? Whatever case it was, he had to know the truth.
o0o0o0o
Kankurou adjusted the scrolls on his back and grinned to himself when he came out from between the cliffs and the familiar sight of the yellow and ochre coloured buildings welcomed him.
"Home sweet home," he murmured. The other chuunins who had been on the mission with him looked content as well. Kankurou turned to face them and waved his hand.
"You're dismissed," he said. "I'm going straight to Kazekage Tower to give my report."
"Yes, Kankurou-senpai," one of them uttered and they marched off.
"Setsuna, don't forget about tomorrow!" the puppeteer called and one of the chuunins glanced back, grinning and nodding.
Kankurou snorted funnily and went towards the Tower. Since the last Kazekage's death (Kankurou couldn't think about him as his father – the man was just Yondaime Kazekage) and council's obvious inability to choose the next one, the amount of ninjas who could have been sent on missions considerably decreased. The village's security was the top priority but fewer missions meant less money. The Sunagakure's reputation had been gradually ruined and the elders decided to send even Kankurou or Temari to complete certain tasks. Gaara, being a part of the regular troops, was being assigned many more missions than his siblings and every time he was leaving village Kankurou was truly worried (not that he ever let anyone know about it). It seemed though that after the feral mission which almost got Matsuri killed the council finally ceased attempting to murder 'the container of the demon Shukaku.'
Kankurou couldn't help but wince at the very recalling of the phrase.
Anyway the councilmen's decision could have something to do with the confrontation with Gaara right after that mission. No one knew anything certain about it since the only source of information was the council's guard but the gossip ran that Gaara indirectly offered them the truce. Besides, Gaara, even if oblivious to it, was currently the most serious candidate for the position of Kazekage. It could be another reason of ceasing killing attempts directed at him.
Suddenly, the person Kankurou had been so intensely musing about walked from behind the corner. The puppeteer flinched and stepped back, still influenced by the old habit drilled into his brain long time ago, the habit of the immediate retreat at the sight of those piercing eyes and 'ai' kanji on the pale forehead. The puppeteer's hands left the scrolls on his back he had instinctively grasped and he could feel his body relax since he knew his brother was no threat anymore.
Gaara's eyes widened a bit at Kankurou's reaction. The older boy scratched his head and chuckled nervously.
"Man, you got me scared. You've shown like a ghost."
Just saying those words Kankurou knew it was kind of a blunder since Gaara looked quite like roiho with his porcelain skin and bloody red hair, and definitely didn't need to be reminded of that fact. Fortunately Gaara didn't seem to be offended.
"How was the mission?" the redhead asked and Kankurou sighed inwardly with relief.
"The absolute success," he answered boastfully, grinning.
They headed towards Kazekage Tower in silence until the puppeteer thought he spotted a familiar figure on one of the terraces. Raising his head, he recognized Matsuri sitting there with a boy. Kankurou glanced at Gaara from the corner of his eye and noticed his younger brother also caught the glimpse of the two.
Matsuri was laughing while her companion was whispering something into her ear with his hand snaking at the small of her back. Kankurou finally remembered the boy's name. It was Yakku, one of Temari's students. From what Kankurou had heard Matsuri was the world to the boy.
The puppeteer slowed his pace deliberately.
"Gaara, look," he said quietly, waiting to gauge his brother's reaction.
"I see," Gaara answered emotionlessly and the puppeteer snarled inwardly. Sometimes it was so damn annoying not to be able to read his brother. Not even the slightest twitch nor the blink of the eye betrayed what Gaara was thinking.
The boy sitting with Matsuri spotted them walking down the street and visibly stiffened. His hand left Matsuri's back and he moved away from her. The kunoichi followed his gaze and noticed them too. She stood up and said something to the boy who hastily hid in the building while she jumped down onto the ground.
"Gaara-sensei, hello. Kankurou-san," she greeted them and the puppeteer glanced at Gaara's face. The redhead only nodded so Kankurou decided to do something to test if the gossips running around the village were true.
"You shouldn't leave your boyfriend alone," he teased and Matsuri blushed lightly, shaking her head.
"Yakku is not my boyfriend," she explained in a serious tone. "He's one of my best friends."
"If you say so," Kankurou answered ironically, winking at her.
Matsuri pouted visibly.
"Kankurou-san, you're mean," she commented. "I wanted to ask you how the mission went but now I'm going to go." She looked at Gaara and beamed a smile at him. "Gaara-sensei, see you soon on the training ground," she said and turned away. Stunned, Kankurou watched her running into the building she had left earlier. How could he not notice that before? He had been never paying much attention to Matsuri since she was less than average looking according to his standards but he shouldn't omit such distinct changes in her. The voice, the smile. The hair, the lips, the chest, the hips. The legs; damn, Matsuri had such nicely shaped legs! He wondered if Gaara could also see those changes and how he was taking them. While it was true Gaara had said earlier he wasn't planning to date Matsuri nor any other girl, Kankurou couldn't help but wonder how much longer his younger brother would stay completely oblivious to the dreamy looks more and more girls were sending in his direction. It was true the forbidden fruits were the most attractive but Kankurou hoped there were a few girls at least who wanted to approach Gaara because they genuinely liked him. The puppeteer had to reluctantly admit that his brother, once a vicious little midget, changed much as well, month after month gaining new and new levels of the physical attractiveness, leaving Kankurou far behind.
The puppeteer was honestly curious if Gaara was generally aware of how the changes in him influenced the opposite sex. Unfortunately, the most likely thing was that he wasn't. Kankurou was certain that deep down Gaara still thought of himself as someone less worthy than other people, someone undeserving any kinder feelings. Of course Shukaku had been still sealed within him and it would be stupid to ignore the fact but Kankurou was absolutely certain Gaara would rather crush himself with Sabaku Kyuu than hurt any villager.
The puppeteer sighed quietly, scrutinizing his brother's face from the corner of his eye. He wanted so much Gaara would to have a normal life. As normal as Jinchuuriki's life could have been of course. Kankurou always thought it was not possible but he changed his mind after meeting Uzumaki Naruto and seeing him interacting with other Konoha genins.
In six weeks Gaara would turn fifteen and he should have been able to have a normal life, and in Kankurou's opinion girls and dates were the part of the normal life. Not that he himself had ever dated any girl but he decided his brother deserved a better fate. In any case it seemed Gaara would have much more chances than him anyway.
Gaara wasn't any different from other boys at his age and Kankurou knew this perfectly well since the certain day when he had entered the bathroom where Gaara had been having a shower just minutes earlier. The heavy, musky scent wafting in the air hit the puppeteer's nostrils, the scent he could unmistakably recognize, knowing it from the moments of his own blissful releases.
Yes, Gaara definitely needed to wake up.
"He's one of my best friends," the puppeteer repeated Matsuri's words in the mocking tone. "The girl is surely blind. This Yakku guy is head over heels with her but he's not going to tell her."
"Hn," Gaara murmured and Kankurou winced with an irritation.
"He's afraid of you," the puppeteer added, trying to make his brother spill anything about his relationship with Matsuri. Gaara blinked and gazed at him, obviously surprised, waiting for the continuation. "Nobody knows for sure what kind of relationship you have with Matsuri and I seriously doubt you would find a single guy in Suna who would have challenged you to win her over," Kankurou finished, holding his breath while waiting for the answer. For a fleeting moment he seriously wondered if it was wise to offer the Kazekage position to a guy who was such ignorant when it came to social matters.
The redhead frowned.
"Do you think I'm standing in a way of Matsuri's happiness?" he inquired and it wasn't the answer Kankurou had been expecting even if he could draw a certain conclusion from it. But the puppeteer didn't know Matsuri's opinion on the matter so "I have no idea" was the only thing he could say.
o0o0o0o
Matsuri stood in front of her water meter and watched it with her lips pursed. The water limitations were one of the most troublesome things while living in the hidden village located in the heart of the desert. Each and every one member of the small society had a certain amount of water to use every month, depending on his position and rank. The people who overdrew the limit had to pay and Matsuri couldn't afford it. The girl really wanted to have a long, nice shower but what she could only do was to fill the bowl with the water and wash herself with a white linen cloth until she felt clean at last.
She entered the bathroom and glared at the innocent bowl. Limits or not, she just couldn't deny herself a shower after long, exhausting training session. Stripping her clothes off, Matsuri pondered over Yakku she had been training with. Her friend was still scared of Gaara and seemed to have a grudge against him but Matsuri couldn't figure out the reason. A week earlier when she had been sitting with Yakku on the terrace of his house and when Gaara appeared almost out of nowhere on the street below them, with his brother by his side, she could clearly sense that Yakku panicked.
With a sigh, the kunoichi stepped inside the cabin and succumbed to the pleasant sensation of the cool water flowing down her body. Why everything was always about Gaara? Sometimes – but only sometimes, she quickly admonished herself – she felt just so tired. Trying to change people's minds was such a thankless task, and it was undermining her confidence when she could see that even one of her closest friends still lived in a fear of her teacher. And what if Yakku had been right? What if Matsuri would be also scared if she had known the old Gaara, if she also had been terrorized and constantly feared for her life?
Sealing off the water, Matsuri reached for the towel and wrapped it around her body. All those 'ifs' meant nothing since she didn't know Gaara's reasons at all and still had no courage to ask him. Not that she regretted she had chosen him to be her teacher but sometimes... he was just too troublesome.
The end of chapter 5.
Chapter 6: The troublesome student
anpan=sweet bun most commonly filled with red bean paste. Anpan can also be prepared with other fillings, including white beans, sesame or chestnut.
roiho=kind of ghost appearing in a Polish fantasy&sci-fi novel „Pan Lodowego Ogrodu" (eng. „The Lord of the Ice Garden") by Jarosław Grzędowicz; or lava field on Rapa Nui island