A/N: Sorry for the late update, but I've been busy with this important camp of mine on December 20th and the preperations are killing me! Anyway, I've managed to squeeze in some time to finish this chapter before I leave for Malaysia tomorrow for a break. There's a lot more Gaara thoughts now, hope it's not OOC.
Jenvaati: Thanks soo much for reviewing my chapters! The stray cat thing just popped to me, btw. Heh, and I wish I could be rich too.
Hurting
Seki bit her lip as beads of sweat rolled down the side of her face. Her eye brows were scrunched up in concentration as she summoned the air beneath her again. The air swirled like a mini tornado and lifted Seki towards the canopy of the forest. She felt exhausted and wanted to rest, but forced herself to go higher.
It was her stamina training. Like how people gathered chakra on their feet to walk up the side of a tree, or on water, Seki used her bloodline limit to train her stamina and how much she could use her chakra. She had done this quite often over the years, but so far, she has never gotten higher than 3 stories high.
With that thought clinging to the back of her mind, Seki pushed herself higher and embedded more chakra into the air. Although she didn't waste any chakra, the use of it still weakened her. She wanted to reach as high as 4 stories, maybe even 5, and touch the canopy of the jungle she was training in.
She had come here so often for the past few days Keimyou hardly saw her at home. She had a stubborn streak, similar to her father's, and wanted to improve as fast as she could. On the first night after Gaara brought her home, Keimyou found Seki sprawled on the living room floor, too tired to make it to her room. It was very admirable, but Keimyou had to take care of her health as well, and warned Seki not to overdo it.
Seki tried to listen, but as thoughts of her father being killed by a mysterious shinobi flooded her mind, she could only aim for the top.
Just a little, bit further...
Nah, too far.
Seki could only growl angrily as the wind under her ceased it's spinning and she fell to the ground on her back.
"Chikushou!! I can never get anything right!" Seki yelled out as she rubbed her back, sore from falling so many times. She blinked away her tears of fustration, anger and pain. Seki looked up at the tall canopies of the trees, heart falling as she realised how many times she had already tried, but failed to reach it.
Useless. I am nothing, unless I go insane.
The irony of it all, caused Seki to give a grim smile.
-
"That's the girl, isn't she?"
"She is still alive, after an encounter with the demon child?"
"She's really lucky!"
"Maybe she's in cahoots with him."
"I heard they had a relationship."
"No! How can anyone date such a monstrosity?"
Seki grimaced at the whispers, her irritation level rising to new heights. As if her clothes hadn't drawn enough attention already. The constant falling onto the forest floor had dirtied her orange sleeveless polo tee, and torn the ends of her pants. Dirt and mud covered parts of the orange cat design, and her sandles were torn. Seki hadn't bothered to check her appearance, if she had she would have been taken aback at her own disheveled hair and filthy cheeks.
Can't they just leave me alone? Or at least, be less conspicuous?
It's human nature to gossip, Ki-chan.
Really? I don't, does that make me abnormal?
Seki knew it was a stupid reason, but couldn't help but sag her shoulders as she thought of the word 'abnormal'.
No, you need someone to gossip with, Ki-chan.
She had developed a love-hate relationshop with that little voice in her head, and somehow even got the nickname 'Ki-chan'. But Seki still winced at its blunt answer, realising that after arriving at Sunagakure, the only friends she had made was Temari-chan.
Speaking of which...
"Seki! Seki, over here!" Temari's voice pierced her thoughts, as Seki raised her head to see the waving blonde sitting with her brothers. Her heart started to pound as the pair of bluish green eyes locked with hers again. She hadn't seen Gaara for the past week, and wondered if he had been avoiding her.
Pfft!
Yeah, right. As if he would bother. I'm not that important.
Seki hid her disappointment behind a fake smile and stopped in front of a grinning Temari.
-
"Yo! Seki-chan!"
Seki turned her head to see Sabaku no Temari standing in front of Keimyou's shop, and smiled politely.
"Ohayo, Temari-chan. Why are you so early?"
"I came to help Kankurou collect weapons for his puppet. Stupid baka, can't even remember his own stuff," Seki giggled and went behind the counter to take the box of poison needles her brother had ordered a few days ago. She passed it to Temari and picked up her drink from the counter, the cold water was refreshing as she drowned it down her throat.
"So Seki-chan, I heard about your date with Gaara the other night."
Seki choked on her water and pounded her chest with a fist, while Temari rushed over to her side and patted her back. She heard the 15 year old curse, "Kushou, it was just a remark, I didn't mean to kill you with it."
Seki would've laughed if she wasn't choking so badly that tears stung her eyes. "It's alright, arigatou," Seki panted out as she regained her normal breathing rate. Temari smirked and leaned on the counter, not intending to leave after seeing such a strong reaction from her.
"So, you attracted to my brother, ne?"
Seki blushed furiously and brushed past Temari to pick up a broom and sweep the shop. Keimyou would come back soon to relieve her so she could go train, but she wanted the shop to be clean on his return. Temari didn't wait for a reply and moved on to another question. "I'm curious though, why aren't you afraid of him? Most girls would be running scared just by the sound of his name," Seki's sweeping slowed and Temari peered at her features. They were shadowed by her dyed hair, but the older teen could see Seki's eyes shine with tears.
"I ca-can't..."
"You, can't...?" Temari prodded. Seki looked up at her, her expression showing desperation and hesitation at the same time. Temari knew that look and smiled reassuringly.
"You can trust me. I may be a bitch, but I know how to keep a secret for a friend."
Friend, Seki thought with a flash of hope. She bit her lip, still unsure. Temari placed her arms around the girl clutching the broom so tightly her knuckles turned white. She held her for a while, and Seki let her tears roll down her face as she sighed in their warm embrace. She gave in after a while.
"I can't feel fear, Temari-chan."
Temari looked down at the forest of brown and orange hair, puzzled. Seki continued to speak to Temari's chest, softly, but clearly, "A poison affects the back of my brain that ceases my sense of fear. I couldn't get scared even if I wanted to."
"How did you get this poison?"
Seki looked up, emotion cleared from her face as she said monotonously, as if she had repeated it many times before, "I was bitten by a demon at birth."
-
"Ohayo, Temari-chan," Seki greeted at her friend. The two girls had grown tremendously close after that faithful morning, Seki's past spilling out like sand as she talked to Temari. She skipped her training to chat with the sister of the village's demon, and said shinobi was the only thing Temari wouldn't share.
"I think you can ask him yourself."
Myself, eh? Seki thought as her eyes wandered over to the red head again. He seemed oblivious to his surroundings, keeping his sight averted from the people around him, whispering and glaring. But Seki noticed that within those glares, held so much fear that proved no one would dare stand up against him, even if they wanted to. Seki nodded towards Kankurou, who was frowning at Temari. She wondered what had happened between them and looked at Temari for an answer.
A shrug.
"Seki-chan, I'm sorry but I can't train with you today. I have to help out at the Kazekage's office, how about tomorrow?"
"Hai. I want to thank you again for accompanying me," Seki replied, bowing slightly. Temari pushed her back up gently and had a soft smile on her face.
"Iie, it's fun to train with someone with similar attacks. As well as gender, and brains," Seki giggled as Temari gestured towards her purple face painted brother, who rolled his eyes in reply. Gaara stayed silent throughout the banter and merely stood up after finishing his meal. His siblings hastily followed suit, with Temari giving one last grin to her friend before walking off with the two guys. Seki waved a little, her spirits still dampened by Gaara's lack of expression towards her. She turned to walk into the restaurant to buy some breakfast, only to get shoved to the ground – hard.
"Who said you were welcome here?" A deep voice grunted at Seki. She pushed herself up, brushing sand off her usual orange polo tee and black pants before frowning at the man in front of her.
"The last time I heard, customers who wanted to eat some food were allowed to enter restaurants."
"Yeah, normal customers."
"Nani?" Seki exclaimed, bewildered. The burly sized man pointed an accusing finger at the teenager. "You are not welcomed here, because you are not normal."
"And who made you the judge of that?"
"Look around you, no one wants you here!"
Seki blinked at the vaguely familiar words and glanced at the customers in the restaurant. All of them were glaring at her, staring as if she was a mutant of some kind. The same look they had given Gaara, even the fear was lingering in them. She gritted her teeth in frustration and asked the man again, who seemed to be the manager of the restaurant, "So what? I am a normal customer, a customer who is hungry and wanting to eat."
"You can't be normal if you hang out with that demon child!"
This came from a woman at a nearby table, and similar hateful remarks started to rise from the tables around Seki.
"You two are in cahoots together!"
"Don't you dare hurt my family!"
"Only a bakemono would be friends with a demon!"
"...Bakemono!"
"...I-Iie!" Seki shook her head, hands covering her ears as the shouts became louder and fiercer.
"The two of you should leave!"
"Leave us!"
Memories burst like a forest fire and spread quickly in Seki's mind as she shook her head wildly. Her knees gave way and she dropped to the ground, still clutching her hair to the point of ripping it off. And still, the cries of detest continued.
"Go away!"
"Get away!"
"You're not welcomed here, so why don't you go?!"
"Go! We hate you!"
"No one wants you! Leave now!"
"You're not wanted here! And neither is that bakemono, so why don't you do us all a favor and..."
"IIE!!" Seki let out a blood-chilling scream, cutting the manager short. His once annoyed face soon faded and paled as Seki shakily stood up, cracking her knuckles audibly. Her hair was in a mess, her clothes dirtied with sand and sweat, but her voice delivered a chill down everyone's spines.
"Gaara... is not a bakemono..." Mothers pulled their children close and men took up poles to defend themselves, as Seki opened her eyes, no longer bright red.
"And neither am I!" Seki felt anger overwhelm her, but she did not fight it. She did not try to suppress it, she did not want to suppress it.
They deserve it.
That was Seki's last thought before insanity took over her body.
-
Gaara watched with interest as her eyes revealed a deep magenta, with the blood lust he was so familiar with, shining deep within her pupils. Seki raised her hands slowly, and a man, underestimating Seki's frightful appearance, leaped towards her with a pole, aiming her right shoulder.
Baka, Gaara thought, smirking.
A tornado shot out fast and dug deep into the man's chest, breaking his rib cage instantly. Seki thrusted her palms in the directions the other men were jumping from, tornadoes appearing within her hands and colliding with the men. The breaking of bones echoed in the air, along with the cries of pain.
The manager who started all this quickly led the women and children out of harm's way as more men from the area came forward to help their comrades. Seki flipped backwards with as much agility as a cat and dropped to the ground on all fours, clawing the ground with her suddenly long fingernails. Five men cornered her wielding spears, trying to pierce her, but Seki avoided each attempt. Using air to sharpen her nails, she then scratched each men in turn, sprinting between them so fast that no one could see her.
Blood spurted out of the men's wounds, and their shouts gave Seki a sense of insane satisfaction. One that only Gaara could understand, as he watched her expressions. The men gripped their wounded limbs, edging away from her, but Seki was not done with them yet. Using her wind, she lifted the men in the air, spinning them so fast and then throwing them against buildings, their blood staining the clean white walls.
Gaara watched all this with pure fascination, not that anyone would've noticed if they saw his emotionless face. But inside, his mind was wheeling and thoughts raced through his head, each one trying to stay in his mind for more than three seconds.
Her powers are not like during her training.
She has the same chakra but she's not the same person.
She is nearly killing everyone without thinking.
Would she want this?
That last thought struck his senses and Gaara looked at the now dangerous Seki. She was flinging a couple of kunais into the thighs of two men, so fast they barely felt the pain until moments later. When they did realize it, Seki had already punched them on the head so hard their skull cracked and they fell limp on the ground. Them and a few others.
Her eyes flashed around crazily, magenta pupils widening as they search for more attackers. Gaara saw no determination, no kindness, no curiosity.
No loneliness.
He knew that this insane girl was not the Seki Raion he knew, and he knew she would not kill people this mercilessly.
Like me, Gaara thought bitterly. He had not known this girl for a long time, but something struck him about her, that made him feel like he had to do something. Even though the villagers did not deserve someone's help...
No, this is not for them. It's for her.
You doing something for her now, my Jinchuriki? Hehehe.
Gaara froze at the voice of his demon, the Shukaku. It was the first time he actually spoke proper words, and the way he said 'my Jinchuriki' made Gaara shiver inwardly.
What is so special about her? You've stopped me twice, but don't start thinking you're in control, ne?
I'm still the one in charge.
Not... now.
Gaara thought, surprisingly retorting back at the Shukaku. He watched Seki's attempts to kill the men who attacked her, all the while knowing it was the last thing she wanted -
To kill the people she wanted to love, and receive love from.
Deciding against the Shukaku's snarls, Gaara stepped out from behind the building, his tattoo glowing brightly under the sun. Seki spun round to face her new enemy, her whole figure splattered with blood not her own. The orange polo tee she loved was slightly ripped at the edges, her black pants were muddy from the sand and her sandals were caked with dried blood. Seki gave an evil looking smirk and picked up a kunai from the ground. In a flash, it was in the air zooming straight at Gaara's forehead. Sand shot up to block the attack, Seki narrowing her eyes at the ultimate defence.
The Shukaku container was impressed. Obviously this was a whole new side of Seki that did not remember, nor know anything before hand other than fighting skills. She viewed Gaara as a new attacker and was smart enough to test his reflexes, or in his case, his defence. With that, Seki pulled her shoulders back and showed the nails as sharp as tiger's claws, as if telling Gaara to begin.
"Gaara... is not a bakemono..."
"And neither am I!"
Gaara held this thought in his mind as he crossed his arms and faced his opponent. She had severely injured nearly twenty men for the past half hour and was still standing strong. She bared her teeth, which sprouted fangs and dropped to the ground in a cat-like position. Gaara's sand rose behind him, ready to protect the sand master from getting hurt. Seki's magenta eyes glowered with blood thirsty lust, licking her tongue hungrily as she eyed Gaara.
Those are not her eyes.
With that, Gaara attacked.
-
A/N: I had some difficulty making Seki seem insane and everything because I've just grown to LOVE her. Heh, anyway cut me some slack too, I hardly see anyone portraying Shukaku properly so I don't know how to either. Anyway, cliffhanger for some suspense. Prepare for some kick butt action in the next chapter, ne? Off to my holiday, Ja ne!
-JE