The matron pulls Asami aside as soon as they walk into the orphanage, her grip on Asami's chubby forearm gentle, but stern.
"What were you thinking? What was that?" The matron's eyes are wide as she tries, and fails, to keep her words steady.
She's trying not to raise her voice, but Asami can hear the subtle panic in the way her words shake, in her laboured breathing.
Asami is speechless for a few seconds. It's clear that the matron expects an explanation for her actions in the playground.
"Uh." Asami says.
The matron rubs her temples exasperatedly, her growing concern evident.
"What the hell was going on with you, Asami ?" There's a suppressed frantic energy to her. "He could have killed you in an instant! I'm genuinely surprised he didn't!"
Asami leans away from the matron, and thinks to herself that she's not particularly sure what that was, either. She'd acted mostly on instinct, but as much as she thinks it was stupid to talk to Gaara, her feelings are… mixed, at best. Asami wants, more than anything, to live a life. A full life, with as little regrets as possible, and as much enjoyment as she can get. Ever since she gained consciousness of her 'past' she's been so scared of repeating past mistakes that she swore to herself that she'd do anything to keep living. A key tenet of that philosophy is avoiding the central characters of the story. Asami knows that they're essentially walking death magnets, and that being a shinobi is bad enough already, but none of those things take away from the fact that it's really not Gaara's fault that he's a jinchuuriki.
And maybe on a deeper level, Asami knows she can do something about the loneliness that plagues him. Maybe she wants to give in to her kindness, just this once.
The matron closes her eyes, huffs, and looks at Asami while lightly pinching the bridge of her nose. It's far from the first time this expression has been directed at Asami.
"I really don't get you, Asami-chan. One moment you're going on and on about how you don't want to die young - which, ignoring how irrational that is for a four year old, seems to completely control how you act. And then you go ahead and talk to Gaara. Don't you know how dangerous he is? Being a shinobi is a million times safer than being his friend!"
"I - Uhm -"
"Asami, maybe we haven't taught you enough about the boy, but you know what he's capable of. You know that the beast inside him is a danger to all, and you know that one day he could just - Just snap! He could kill you and it would be like swatting a fly!"
"Well it's not his fault he's the way he is!" Asami answers back, before shutting her mouth. Good god, talking back to the Matron never ends well.
Her eyes are wide open now, and Asami doesn't think she's ever seen the woman this angry.
And then she starts going on and on about the dangers of associating herself with the jinchuuriki. The more the Matron yells at her, though, the more Asami concludes that these people are illogical when it comes to their fear of Gaara. He's four, for christ's sake! He's just like Asami. And he isn't even that tall! She really doubts that this version of Gaara would rip her apart limb from limb just because he could - he seemed more gentle than that.
While her memories of her past life aren't all that clear, she very vaguely remembers the series making it clear that he was a kind kid who just wanted someone to be friends with, even if he didn't really know how to do that. Although she knows that might change in a few years, Asami thinks that acting like Gaara is a cold-blooded, heartless killer, when he's really just a child, is kind of overkill.
The matron keeps lecturing her, but Asami's starting to tune it out. What she's saying is really just the same old rhetoric the people of Sunagakure believe, so it's not like she hasn't heard any of this before.
Anyway, what's done is done. She's already talked to him, and there's really no going back now, so Asami's just gonna follow through with it. Hopefully she'll be able to make him feel a little less alone, and be his friend until he finds some acceptance. Or at the very least until he goes off his rocker and starts murdering people. She's not so sure she can stick around for that.
…
Gaara is very confused. Happy, but confused.
As much as he wished for a friend - or even just an acquaintance - after so long without anyone to keep him company, he had learned to lower his expectations. He'd adapted to the cold stares and the mean words whispered behind his back some time ago, just like he had learned to deal with the sand in his shoes and the burning hot sun of Wind Country. It bothers him, but there hasn't been a day in life in which someone was nice to him other than Yashamaru.
So the only thing he can think of at the moment is 'why' - Why on earth had that blonde girl talked to him?
He's almost back at the Kazekage abode, and even though he made sure to walk a little slower so he'd have time to think about today, he still hasn't managed to reach a conclusion.
At first, Gaara thought nothing of it . He'd walked home happier than he's ever been in his life, grin stretching from ear to ear and feeling like he was at the top of the world. All of his efforts to be nice had finally paid off, and finally someone had talked to him! Someone had actually walked up to him and talked to him like he wasn't a ticking time bomb!
But then he kept walking, and he remembered how everyone looked at her like she was insane for doing it. Like she had been doing something wrong.
The reality of the hateful glares sent his way settled back into his mind, and he started to consider the possibility that maybe she didn't do it because she wanted to be his friend. He hadn't talked to her enough to understand her motives, and he doesn't want to get his hopes up only to have them crushed again.
He wants to know why. He wants to know why she talked to him. And most of all, he wants to know if she's going to leave him eventually - If she's going to start acting like the rest of the villagers. If she's going to start being afraid.
Gaara decides he'll ask her tomorrow. The blonde girl did say that she'd be there after the academy was over. His father hadn't allowed him to attend it, but he knew when it ended from the rare times he talked to his siblings. Yashamaru might be able to give him advice on what to do.
Armed with a new determination , Gaara promises himself that he's going to ask her about this when they meet up. He should probably ask her for her name as well, because he's growing a little tired of just thinking about her as the blonde girl from the park.
…
The day begins as usual. Asami wakes up some 30 minutes before the other children, climbs outside of the window (thankfully, her room is on the first floor, so she doesn't have to exert herself too much) and looks for the best hiding place she can find. This time, there's a pile of crates near a merchant's shop not too far away from the orphanage that she can hide herself in. She just makes a hole for herself in the middle of some, climbs into it and covers herself with another crate. There! Optimal hiding place secured. She's even got a view of the street from a small gap in between crates. That way, she can keep an eye on the shinobi that's going to come and look for her so they can drag her off to the academy. The caregivers at the orphanage had been no match against her stubborn nature, grabby hands and sticky fingers, and so they were forced to call shinobi for back up. Traitors! But today she's going to give them a run for their money!
About 10 minutes pass before she sees the shinobi looking for her. Today, it isn't , but a new man with long black hair tied in a low ponytail and a sharp face. His face is serious, dark eyes quickly scanning the area for anything out of order. Asami almost thinks he won't find her - that is, until she notices his stance.
She can tell that he isn't just a random chuunin from the way he holds himself; ostensibly, there's nothing off putting about him. He looks relaxed and at ease, but Asami is nothing if not perceptive. She sees the way he's subtly guarding vulnerable spots, and how one of his hands is always placed near his weapons pouch in his waist.
"That isn't a chuunin,' Asami panics. 'That's a fucking jounin!'
It seems that her split second panic betrayed her hiding spot to him because he snaps his head in her direction and starts briskly walking towards Asami.
Oh no. oh no no no.
She's gotta look for a way out. There's a small gap in between the crates and the wall, and If she runs fast enough to evade him, she might be able to make it.
Asami moves to the gap just in time for the jounin to pick up the crate covering her. His eyes widen in surprise as she moves with surprising speed, quickly escaping from the hand that reaches for her. Asami smiles in delight when she runs behind a house. Sucker! She was so close to him and he still managed to miss. Oh, this is great! They send a high ranking shinobi after her and he can't even catch - oh. Her feet aren't touching the ground anymore. Damn.
"You're a little faster than I'd thought you'd be." The Jouning is holding her by the collar of her dark red shirt. Even though she hasn't known him for very long, Asami can tell he's taking great care to keep his expression plain. She does, however, pick up on his interest in her abilities.
"The academy files said that you weren't very good at anything physical, but I suppose you've been rigging them on purpose. It's no wonder the chuunin have such a hard time catching you."
Asami frowns. That cocky little shit!
He tilts his head to look at her.
"Nothing to say?"
Her frown turns into a glare.
"Not to you, jackass!"
The jounin's face remains impassive as he scoffs lightly in amusement.
"Language, little girl. You're already on thin ice with Sato."
Asami ignores him. She had hoped to get away this time, with such a good hiding place. What an asshole.
"Will you walk, or am I going to have to carry you?"
…
The jounin has her slung over his back like a potato sack, which is so much more humiliating than Asami thought it would be. She can feel all of the villagers staring at her. From her upside down view on the jounin's back, she can even tell that some are even sniggering! There's this older kid who keeps pointing at her and laughing with his friends, and Asami swears that she's this close to screaming at the son of a bitch. The jounin shifts his grip on her ankle and raises her up slightly.
He's completely ignoring all of the attention, focused solely on completing his task of delivering her to the academy. Asami thinks that she should have just agreed to walk, because at least then she could have looked for an opening to run away. Now, though, there's absolutely no way she's getting out of this. Crap!
"Your attempts at running away weren't entirely useless, you know. It did surprise me when you managed to escape."
Asami tries her best to look up at the back of his head. The silence is boring now, and she could try to use this time to get some information out of him.
"They were useless if you managed to catch me." She shrugs. Or tries to. Her position isn't very advantageous.
"But anyway, how'd you figure out I was hiding in the crates in the first place?"
"That's simple. Your chakra signature gave you away. And I don't think it was useless to try and get away. You've displayed surprising skills for someone of your age and track record, not to manage you caught me slightly off guard. That doesn't happen very often."
"My chakra signature?"
He adjusts his grip on her ankles again.
"Yes. We all have one, even civilians. But you're still a growing child, and your reserves have yet to develop over time. It wasn't very strong."
"Huh. Good to know." Asami makes a mental note to find out how to conceal her signature. It could be helpful.
"Can I ask you something?" she says. It's been on her mind for a while, but this situation is a bit off.
He considers her request for a bit.
"Alright. What is it?"
"Why did they suddenly start sending skilled shinobi after me? "
His step falters just the slightest amount, but Asami notices this and frowns. It's really not a serious question, so why this reaction from a man as composed as he is? He takes a deep breath, considers his words carefully and says:
"Your recent actions are cause for attention. Some important people believe it might be worth keeping you under supervision."
Well, that's totally not worrying. She's gone and put herself on a fucking government watchlist. God fucking damn it.
"Shit."
The jounin does her the courtesy of pretending he didn't hear, even though he totally did.
Asami does wonder, though, how the hell the elders came to the conclusion that she was worth their interest, resources, and time. She's just another orphan girl with an unknown parentage and no bright future ahead of her - she's made sure of that. She's probably going to have to be very attentive these days just in case.
He finally puts her down on the ground, and it is with much distress that Asami realises that they have reached the academy.
She looks up at him. Asami hadn't gotten a chance to get a good look, what with being on his back and all, but now that she can see him she notices that he looks very - well. Bland, maybe?
The man's hair reaches his mid back, a deep dark colour that heavily contrasts the pale pallor of his skin. Similarly, his eyes are dark brown, like charred wood. His face is still impassive, but there's a hint of wariness on his features.
"Hey! What's your name again?"
Asami doesn't really know why she asks him, but he intrigues her. And with the revelation that she's on some government officials' watchlist, she's probably going to be seeing him more often than not.
He looks down at her curiously, once again seemingly considering his words carefully. He seems to do an awful lot of that. The jounin's eyes soften an almost imperceptible amount before he speaks.
"It's Touya. And for the record, here's a word of advice; you're not wrong in assuming that being a shinobi is cruel, but you're very much going to graduate now that you're on certain people's watches. They will want to keep an eye on you." He moves to walk away.
"You're a bright girl, despite what your teachers think. You know what will happen to you if you go out unprepared. You don't have to show them necessarily, but you might want to be prepared for whatever could happen to you."
Asami is struck quiet. She does not know what to say to this. Is he implying she should study on her own, that she should continue flunking exams but keep up with her skills? Does he- does he think that there's people out there who might want to hurt her? What the actual fuck is going on?
She doesn't even notice when the jounin - no, Touya - leaves, and just barely manages to hear the bell ring. Even so, she can't stop wondering what to do with this information.
For the first time in the short while she's lived in this world, Asami pays attention to class.
…
Touya leaves the premises of the academy building with a deep sense of dread, heavy in his ribs. He doesn't know exactly why he told Asami what he did - maybe he sympathised with her because of her background? Or maybe he just regained some of his empathy; empathy he thought he lost long ago after his anbu initiation. Regardless, the next step he must take is recounting his findings to the elders. After a report came yesterday of a girl who had talked to the Jinchuuriki, all of them had grown curious - and that was never a good thing when it came to the council of elders. A majority of them decided to monitor her as soon as possible. Maybe, with enough work and careful handling of the girl's future, she could be used to control the boy. Maybe.
Touya can't help but hate the thought.
However, he must not allow his personal feelings to hinder his mission. He has a job to do and he intends to do it well.
He's near the Kazekage's building, where the elders are currently congregated and waiting for him to return, when Touya stops at a quiet and dark-ish alleyway to put on his bone white mask.
He enters the building through the window of the top level, as is customary for anbu. He finds elder Joseki waiting for him, along with two others - also donning white masks.
"Jackal. We have been waiting for your arrival. The council has gathered."
Touya does not respond, but instead walks towards the other two anbu - Coyote and Meerkat welcome him into their formation and the three of them are led by Elder Joseki towards the room where the council is convened.
All three of them walk with a practised rhythm - measured steps ensure no sound is made - and keep a distance of exactly one metre from Elder Joseki. Toya feels as if this process has been etched into his bones; a constant repetition of the same steps and the same words almost every day for some 7 years of his life. He's so tired.
...
Hello!
I hope you've enjoyed the update - If you have, please leave a review! They genuinely keep me going and help me write the next chapter much faster! Chapter three will either be published on the 13th or on the twentieth, depending on how much progress I've made with the story overall.
Thank you for reading!