Unsolicited

Chapter Seven

-Diverted Attention-

Akito looked around the backyard, panting heavily as he examined where all of his kunai had hit. He had intensified his training as of late, planning to prove to the village that he was worthy of being a Suna shinobi, as well as deserving their respect. Not because Gaara made them give it to him, but because he had earned it. Seeing that they had all hit the targets perfectly, he went to go and removed them all from the trees and other places he had thrown them.

Things were going pretty great for him recently, and he had to admit that it made him happy. He was calling Gaara and Sakura mom and dad, and it was nice to say. It was like he had real parents now. He would never forget his father, and he never knew his mother, but it was nice to have a mom and dad. He and Toshiro treated each other like brothers, and even Satomi had warmed up to him. Now at least once a week they made some type of craft together, or did some work in the garden. He didn't particularly enjoy gardening as a task, but when it was all finished, it made him feel accomplished to say that he had helped make it look nice. And he got to spend time with his sister.

The only one who didn't seem to really accept him in the house was Natsumi, and that confused Akito. When he had first arrived she had been welcoming and chatty, but as of late she'd been acting weird. Ever since he'd come home with blood on his hands from beating up Jin, and that had been almost three months ago. Had he scared her? He wasn't sure. She was still nice to him, but really quiet, and it seemed as if she had lost some of her exuberance.

Shrugging it off, he pulled the last kunai out of the last training target and headed back towards the house. His mom had bought him a whole new set of things to train with, having come home one day and found a bunch of knicks in the bark. She had been really upset about it, but he told her that if he had the proper equipment, this wouldn't have happened. So, with a sigh and a shake of her head, she had let it drop and gotten him all this stuff.

He went inside the cool house and upstairs, putting away all of his kunai before grabbing a clean set of clothes. Dinner was going to start soon, and he didn't want to be all stinky and sweaty for it. So he headed down the hall and to the bathroom, grabbing the handle and walking in, stopping dead in his tracks when he realized that it was occupied already.

Natsumi blinked and then suddenly screamed. It was the loudest and most shrill thing he'd ever heard and he had to cover his ears to attempt to block it out. "What are you doing?!" she demanded, ripping her towel off the hanger and covering her body with it, since she had just been stepping out of the shower when he came in.

"I'm sorry! I didn't know anybody was in here. I was just going to get a shower before dinner." He said.

"Well, get out!" she pointed towards the door, her face a dark cherry red. "You pervert!"

"Accidentally walking in doesn't make me a pervert stupid." He said, turning on his heel and closing the door behind him. As he was walking to the other bathroom, Sakura came down the hall.

"What's going on?" she asked in concern.

"Natsumi's being a girl." Was all Akito said, walking past her and putting his clothes in the other bathroom.

The pink haired woman walked over to the closed door and knocked. "Natsumi, sweetheart, are you alright?" she asked through the wood.

The door flew open and Natsumi ran out, still only in a towel and stomped down the steps. "Daddy!" she screamed, stopping in the doorway to the living room. "Akito walked in on me and called me stupid too!" she told her father, who just looked confused.

"Huh?"

"That's not how it went!" Akito yelled, running down that stairs and stopping next to Natsumi. "Don't listen to her Dad, she's just being hysterical." He said.

Natsumi eyes widened and her glare focused on Akito, full of animosity. "What?" she seethed. Gaara stood and walked between his daughter and his taken in son, shoving them apart.

"Natsumi calm down. I'm sure Akito didn't mean to walk in on you."

"What?!" the pink haired girl screamed. "You're taking his side?!"

"It was an accident Natsumi, and I apologized." Akito said, crossing his arms. "Besides, it's not like you have anything worth seeing, so I don't understand why you're making this into such a big deal."

Natsumi went wide eyed and glared at the dark haired boy once more. Gaara actually tried not to laugh and cleared his throat. "Now Natsumi-"

"You jerk!" she yelled, hitting Akito over the head. "I hate you! And I hate you!" she pointed at Gaara, running back upstairs and right past Sakura, who looked even more confused.

The redhead sighed, shaking his head. "Well this should be a fun day."

Akito just frowned. "Yeah." He said, going back upstairs, passing Sakura once more, who was going downstairs to ask Gaara what exactly was going on, since she couldn't get anything out of Natsumi, who had shut herself in her room.

He walked down the hall, stopping when he was in front of the pink haired girl's room. "Natsumi," he knocked twice, "can we talk?"

"No! Go away." She yelled through the door.

"Please?"

"If you don't go away, I'll make you go away." She threatened. Toshiro walked out from his room and past them on his way to the bathroom.

"I'd get away from that door if I were you." He yawned, closing the door behind him.

Akito glanced at the bathroom door before looking back at Natsumi's. "Look, I'm really sorry about everything. I didn't mean what I said, I swear."

"I said go away!" she screamed as sand shot out from beneath the door, forcing him away and barricading anyone from getting near it.

He sighed before walking over to the bathroom where his things were and closing the door behind him, turning on the water and taking a quick shower. When he finished he noticed that Natsumi still had sand around her door, and so assumed she wasn't going to be eating dinner with them once more.

He didn't understand what her problem was. It wasn't like he had walked in on her on purpose. And the time she had walked in on him he hadn't gotten mad at her. It was an accident, and she'd apologized. No harm done, right? But apparently his apology wasn't good enough for her. But what else was he supposed to do, especially if she wouldn't talk to him. He sighed once more. Girls were just too complicated.

Tossing his dirty clothes in the hamper, he left his room and went downstairs, taking his seat at the table with everyone else.

"Is Natsumi still in her room?" Sakura asked.

"Yes." He replied, filling his plate with food.

"She's such a freak." Toshiro snickered, already digging in.

Satomi looked over at her mom. "How come she's so mad? She's done way more annoying things to Akito than him accidently seeing her naked. It's not like there's anything nice to see yet anyways." She sighed.

"That's what I told her, but she just got all huffy and shut herself in her room." Akito said. "She wouldn't even let me try to apologize. I don't understand what her problem is." He shoved a forkful of potatoes in his mouth.

"Don't worry Akito, she'll calm down. She's just having trouble with diverted attention. She's kind of selfish in that way, and as much as she likes you, I think she's just trying to learn how to share attention more than she already has too." Gaara tried to explain to the boy. "Just give her some time to simmer down. She's too happy to keep that against you for long. So no worries."

"I still think it's dumb." He muttered.

"There's lots of things that girls do that you'll think are dumb sweetheart." Sakura said, smiling over at him. "But it's best to learn how to deal with it now than have some woman in your hair all the time turning your world upside down. Isn't that right Gaara?" she asked her husband, wry amusement in her emerald orbs.

The elder redhead gave his wife a small smirk and nodded. "All I can say is that silence is never a good answer. It's better to say something stupid and apologize for it than not say anything at all. Because they always interpret silence as some horrible answer. Which isn't true. Persistence is the key. A woman always wants a man to come after her."

Akito looked at Sakura. "Is that true Mom?"

"Yes." She nodded. "It reassures us that you really care, and that you still want us if you come after us, even if we were the ones in the wrong. Though occasionally we'll come after you, if we love you enough to suck up our pride and do so."

"But I wouldn't hold your breath for that one son." Gaara snickered, continuing to eat. "They usually only realize their blunder after the fact of your groveling. But when you find the one that's worth it, it won't really matter." He smiled to his wife then. "I'd rather have her than her admit some of her mishaps."

"And that includes sisters?" Toshiro huffed, looking a bit tired since it seemed like a lot of work.

"Cause' that seems more like what you'd do for the woman you want to marry." Akito said.

Gaara just laughed. "Well, you care about your sisters more than normal girls right?"

Both boys nodded. Satomi just watched the table, enjoying that she didn't have to be part of the conversation. "And you want them to be happy and protect them too right? After all, that's a big brother's job, as well as a husband's. It's like…practice for your future. If you can't take care of your sister, then how could you take care of another woman who does far more irritating things?"

"I guess that makes sense." The young Uchiha conceded. "But at least with the other woman we'll get to do stuff with them, so that kind of balances it out, right?"

"Hey now." Gaara pointed his fork at the boy. "No thoughts like that until you're at least sixteen. Got it? We don't need you going off and torturing the poor girls of Suna with your wang. And same goes for you Toshiro. You understand me?"

Satomi was just wide eyed and covered her face with her hands. "I don't wanna hear this!" she said loudly, moving her hands over her ears.

Akito sighed. "Yeah, yeah. I know." He waved it off, returning to his food. The rest of the meal was pretty normal and when they finished, Satomi and Sakura took the plates and started the dishes in the kitchen. Before either boy could get up, Gaara cleared his throat and got their attention.

"Listen here boys. I know this is confusing to you now, but on this matter about girls. As brothers you need to be protective of your little sisters. Because one day other boys will find them attractive, and try and mislead them into being with them, and you need to protect them. It's your duty."

"So you want us to keep them from dating using our superior skill and intimidation tactics?" Akito asked. "That seems like the easiest way."

The Kazekage laughed and nodded. "If you see fit. But I need to know you guys are going to take care of them. So, I want you to promise me you will always protect them. No matter what. Even if you're just protecting their feelings or even in a battle. Can you guys do that?"

Toshiro nodded. "But won't it be hard?"

"Not if you both work together. You guys can even pick which one you'll protect so you each only have one sister to worry about, and can trust each other with the other."

"Okay, then I'll protect Satomi." Akito said, nodding. This would be easy, and that way he wouldn't have to deal with too many unnecessary emotions, since he and Satomi were similar.

Gaara nodded and gave Toshiro a small smile. "Can you protect Natsumi?"

He nodded and then sighed, since she was upset. "Which means I have to go make her feel better." He got up from his seat and left the dining room to head upstairs and quail the storm that was his sister's emotions.

After the dishes were done, they went to the living room, each doing their own things. Gaara and Sakura were reading their own books, while Akito sharpened his kunai, and Satomi was drawing in a sketchbook. Toshiro came down the steps with a defeated look. "Dad this is too hard. She's just being mean to me." The redhead sighed.

"Not my problem." Gaara said, a small smirk hidden behind his book.

"Obviously you're not doing it right." Akito commented, not looking up from his task.

Toshiro frowned and crossed his arms. "Oh yeah? Well if you know how to do it, then go up there and convince her to come downstairs and join the family."

"Fine, I will." Akito said confidently, putting his things down before heading up the stairs. He walked down the hallway to Natsumi's bedroom. "Natsumi." He knocked on her door, just as he did before. "Will you please open up?"

The door opened quickly, but all he saw was a pillow that nailed him straight in the face. The door slammed again and locked, leaving them in the same standstill they'd been at all night. Akito sighed and rubbed the bridge of his nose. He had to succeed in this. He just had to. That way he could hold this over Toshiro's head for the rest of his life. It would be awesome.

"That was very rude you know." He said. "And uncalled for."

The door opened once more and she actually stuck her head out, glaring at him. "You're rude and uncalled for you big fat chicken butt! I don't call you ugly and unattractive!"

"I never said you were ugly or unattractive!" he said, returning her glare. "Look, I'm sorry I walked in on you, it was an accident. But I didn't flip out on you when you walked in on me that time at my old house. Accidents happen, so the best thing to do is just move on."

"Well I have stuff to look at! And it's pretty darn great! Maybe not ideal yet, but still great!" she huffed, still glaring at him, though she seemed to have calmed a bit.

"I have stuff to look at too. And you totally looked at it by the way." He pointed at her. "But that's beside the point. I didn't mean what I said about it not being that big of a deal, or when I said you were stupid. Cause' you're not." He said. "I was just upset because you accused me of being a pervert."

Natsumi stared at him for a while until she finally looked away. "I'm really annoying…" she frowned.

"Only sometimes." Akito said, stepping forward and placing his hand on her shoulder. "But I like the annoying you better than the quiet you." He gave her a small smile. "Quietness is what Satomi's for."

This only made her cry and she looked extremely sad. "But I don't want to be annoying ever."

Not knowing what else to do, Akito pulled her to him and hugged her. "Natsumi, don't cry. I promise to never call you annoying. I like you just the way you are, please don't try and change."

"But you like Satomi so much better." She sobbed out, wrapping her arms around him in a tight embrace. "You always spend so much time with her."

"That's because I thought you didn't like me anymore." He admitted. "You've been acting really strange for the past few months, I thought I did something wrong. But I didn't want to upset you by asking you about it."

She sniffed, wiping at her eyes. "Well you just seemed so annoyed and I didn't want to annoy you anymore."

"I was annoyed because I'd had a pretty rough day, and you just up and ripped my shirt off me." He explained, the corner of his mouth lifting slightly. "But I always have a better day when I get to see your smiling face, something I haven't seen in a long time."

She lowered her gaze, ashamed. "But Aruna said people who are happy all the time are annoying too."

"Well, technically, everybody is annoying in their own way." He reasoned. "Besides, this Aruna girl sounds like she can be a real pain in the ass, and that's even worse than being annoying. So you're way better than her."

Natsumi didn't look to ecstatic about the fact but sighed. "I'm pretty sure everyone is better than her."

"Regardless, you shouldn't listen to everything she tells you. Because you're smarter than she is." He stroked her cheek. "And you know what?"

"What?"

"I don't think you're annoying at all. Just a bit difficult at times. And it's my job to protect you and make sure you're happy, so I just have to get used to it." he smiled then.

She stared at him, looking confused, but then smiled fully for the first time in months. "Okay." She whispered, a small blush spreading across her cheeks.

"Good." he brushed his thumb over her cheek before glancing towards the stairs. "So, do you want to come downstairs and hang out with the family? If you're hungry, mom left you a plate in the microwave, and I'll sit with you in the kitchen so that you don't have to eat alone."

Her smile faltered for only a moment. She had to remember that his father was dead, and that her parents were treating him as their own. So it was natural for him to call them as such, right? But she still felt uneasy about it, though she didn't know why. "No it's kinda late, so I think I'll just go to bed, but thanks. Though, I am kinda hungry. Will you bring it up to me? And we can hang out in my room until you want to leave or something." She shrugged, rubbing the back of her head.

"Sure thing." He nodded, releasing her and running down the stairs to the kitchen. When he entered the room he saw that Gaara was in there getting a glass of water. "Natsumi's fine now." He announced, opening the microwave and grabbing the plate for Natsumi. "So I'm just going to bring her her dinner, and keep her company."

The redhead actually looked surprised and assessed any damage that might have been done. "And she didn't attempt to kill you? I didn't hear any screaming or thrashing."

Akito shrugged. "She threw a pillow at me, but then she started crying, so I hugged her, and everything got better after that."

Gaara nodded. "Well I'm glad to hear that. So are the dynamics back? Cause' I don't think I can stand two Satomi's."

"I think so. I mean, I got her to smile." Akito announced, smiling proudly at his feat.

"Well good." Gaara smiled as well, handing him a strawberry flavored soda, since it was Natsumi's favorite. "She has such a pretty smile."

"Yeah, she does." Akito took the drink and placed it in the crook of his arm before going over and grabbing a few brownies and putting them on her plate, figuring that she might want some dessert as well. "I'm gonna go ahead and take this up to her, and then I probably won't see you guys until morning, so goodnight." He said, looking back at the redhead. He turned to leave the kitchen, and then hesitated.

"Dad?" he asked, looking back over his shoulder. "Do you think I could switch with Toshiro and protect Natsumi? I think…I think I help her out a lot more…if that makes sense. Not that Toshiro can't…but you know what I mean."

Gaara just smirked, nodding. "Do you promise to protect her? With everything you have in you?"

"I promise. I'll even give up my own life to save her." He nodded firmly.

"Well, let's hope not. I'd hate to lose you too you know." Gaara walked over and pat his head before heading back to the living room. "Night son."

"Night Dad!" he called as he rushed up the stairs. He entered Natsumi's room and found her sitting in the center of her bed.

"Here's your dinner. I also brought you your favorite drink, and some brownies." He told her, walking over and setting it down next to her.

Natsumi blinked and smiled, taking the plate and drink, beginning to eat since she was starving. "Thanks." She told him, offering him one of the brownies.

He took it from her. "No problem." He smiled, biting into the chocolaty goodness. He wasn't one for sweets, but he had to admit, the ones Sakura made were divine.

Natsumi leaned against him, smiling as she ate, not minding this time that there was silence between them. "Sorry I got so upset."

"It's okay. I forgot that girls were a lot more modest than boys." He said. "Since I'm not really used to being around people, I still have a lot of stuff to learn."

"That's ok. I can help you." She smiled brightly.

"That would be great." He returned her smile as he finished off his brownie. "Thanks Natsumi."

"No problem."

Akito stayed with her while she finished her dinner, and then took her plate downstairs when she was done. Both were tired by then, as everyone else had already gone to bed, and so before retiring for the night himself, he went back to Natsumi's room to make sure she didn't need anything else. Saying that she was fine, he bid goodnight to her before going to his room and crawling into his bed.

Sighing, he fell asleep quickly, feeling a sense of accomplishment at having been able to make Natsumi happy, something he'd never really gone out of his way to do.