Kiba
We struggled through the sandy storm. It was difficult to find a foothold on the ground at all. Akamaru's paws often slipped. So we only made slow progress. None of us moved through here with ease. If only there was a way... Maybe a shield or something... I turned around.
„Tora...the shield what do you think...!"
She was gone. I could only see Shino and Hinata behind us. Not again. My eyes wandered hectically over our surroundings. But it seemed impossible to see anything in the crowd. I barely recognized my other two companions. But there was no sign of our incomprehensible one.
„TORA!" I gasped. My voice was lost in the furious force of nature, swallowed up by it as if I had never said anything. Anger welled up inside me, as did fear. We should have stayed together. Hold hands or... or... But that wouldn't bring her back now. I didn't care that we might have failed.
„We have to find her," Hinata shouted. Fear gathered in her eyes, carried by small ripples that spilled over their edges and ran down her cheeks. The young features contorted with fear for her best friend, coupled with determination. „We are one team. Nothing should separate us. It may be a force of nature raging around us, but I don't care. She's my friend and I won't let her down," she said firmly, her voice quivering with excitement and determination.
„And neither will anyone," Shino replied, placing a hand on her shoulder from behind. „Up. Let's go find her. The sooner we find them, the better...maybe they won't even realize...that we're..."
His words were drowned out by a loud roar. The sand walls around us rose up, pushed aside by a tremendous force, rising up like menacing, billowing waves that only rippled at the top and seemed frozen at the bottom. My body was frozen, not daring to move. No one said a word. For although there were these eerie walls around us, a violent storm was still raging around the small space that had formed.
Very carefully, I placed a hand against the sandy wall. It didn't give way. Damn. We were trapped, like cattle. What would happen if these walls collapsed? That hell out there would break over us and escape would be unthinkable. Full of rage, I banged against it.
„You've got to be kidding me!", I snapped, before storming towards the wall again, trying to tear it down with my fingers. "Gats..."
„You can't come out of here. It's only for your protection," a deep voice sounded behind us and I froze, realizing the reason why the others hadn't said or done anything. Because he was here. But I didn't care. Angrily, I wheeled around to face him. I didn't care what position he was in. I wouldn't leave Tora out there alone, because I knew, like everyone else in the team, her fear of loneliness, the darkness, the feeling of being abandoned by everyone.
But we wouldn't leave her. Not us. Not me. Not anyone.
Even though I couldn't stand them at the beginning and they still get on my nerves sometimes. Without them, I didn't feel like it either. The little arguments made life in the team really interesting. What's more, she had become an irreplaceable companion for all of us. Faithful and loyal.
„What do you know Kazekage?" I snapped at him so angrily that Hinata took a step back and Shino's features tensed. My eyes bored into his. They seemed almost indifferent, which made the anger creep up inside me again. It constricted my throat and only allowed me to breathe to a limited extent. A thick lump formed in my throat. My body heated up. Yet my counterpart remained calm. It made me furious.
„What if we don't want this protection at all? What if we want to go out there voluntarily? What if out there our comrade is fighting for her life with a fear of loneliness? What if..."
I broke off. An angry sob seized me and I slumped to the ground, bracing my hands in the sand. Damn. Where was this trembling coming from? I wasn't supposed to be weak. I shouldn't be. I was an Inuzuka. Shit again! Almost an adult and now I was squatting on the floor like a scared puppy, about to start howling.
„I realize that."
My head lifted all by itself. He had stepped very close to me and held out his hand. I stared at it, paralyzed. Unexpectedly. Quite clearly. Nevertheless, I grabbed it and let the smaller one help me up. We looked at each other. Neither of us looked away, then I gave in and nodded.
„Bring her back safe and sound," I said in a tone that was almost swallowed up by the howling wind. My counterpart nodded before he dissolved into sand before our eyes and it was lost in the vast quantities of the brown element around us.
„That was the only thing you could have done," Shino said. „Anything else wouldn't have done us or Tora any good."
„I know," I replied tonelessly, unable even to explain to myself why my mind had given way. A few seconds before, wildly determined...and then...by a single look on his part. Not that I was afraid of the redhead. It was something else and nearly felt like...trust?
Tora
It was almost pitch dark here in the heart of the sandstorm. My knees carried me unsteadily through the sand. The wind pulled and tugged at me, making it harder and harder for my body to move forward. My eyes fluttered, trying to ward off the small grains flying towards me. Relentlessly. Hard against my face. I had pulled the hood of my cloak low over my face while I pulled the scarf up over my nose so that only my eyes were visible.
It would do me no good to use wind chakra to fight against this enormous force. It would always be useless. Wasted. I needed a rock... something that could fend off this force of nature, withstand it. I would hide behind it. Get through it. Something strong that could protect me.
In the meantime, night had fallen again and so I wasn't just dealing with a sharp, hard wind...no...it was also freezing cold. I couldn't express how much I longed for a warm campfire in the cozy forest of Konoha. Konoha... that would be nice right now. If only I could teleport. Genma could do these jutsus. If I ever made it out of here, it would be the first thing I would turn to him for...but first I had to realize the idea that had just popped into my head.
„Mound jutsu," I said before my fingers dug into the ground.
An earthy wall shot up from the sandy ground until it had built a protective wall around me. The ceiling was almost closed, with only a little air seeping in through individual openings. I breathed a sigh of relief. That should be enough. At least it would protect me for a while.
I didn't need to go to the trouble of making the hiding place invisible. In this weather, no one would think of attacking anyone else. Everyone here feared for their own survival. In the end, that was the unsettling thought that made me fall asleep.
A scratching noise woke me up. All my senses were immediately on alert. An enemy? A helper? A friend? Or maybe nothing of the sort. It could just as easily be the wind hitting the walls of my protective hill... But wait... I couldn't hear anything. Nothing at all. Not even a whiff. Had the storm died down?
I rose slowly and crouched down, listening to the sounds on the earthy roof above me. It now sounded much more like a crunch, as if someone was sitting directly above me. My muscles tensed. The wall separating me and the stranger wasn't particularly thick. I quickly reached into my pocket and pulled out a kunai, which I clenched between my teeth like a pirate. Raiton chakra flowed through my veins so quickly that my body began to crackle, seeming to be filled with electricity.
I pushed off hard with my feet, breaking through the ceiling in a matter of seconds. Large chunks of earth flew off in all directions. Out of the corner of my eye, I recognized a shadow. A flash of white. Fabric slipped between my fingers and I grabbed it. I sat astride the other body and pressed my arms and legs to the ground. Only then did I look into my enemy's face and freeze.
Orange eyes stared at me, surprised and a little hurt. The face framed by mint green hair. White top and skirt paired with a fishnet outfit. I flinched back as if I'd been burned. Damn. Was I an idiot. So focused on the fact of possibly being attacked, I hadn't paid more attention to the other's chakra. Otherwise I might have recognized them long ago.
"I'm sorry...Fuu...I mistook you for an opponent."
Wordlessly, she stood up, knocked the sand from her clothes before holding out her hand to help me up. A cautious smile adorned her face. Perhaps I had intimidated her earlier. My stomach clenched in anger at myself. I was such a dork.
„That's all right. I just felt your chakra. It was flickering so strangely. And since you're my friend, I wanted to see how you were doing," she explained, but before I could start, the girl with the mint-colored hair continued.
"After all, you never let a friend down."
A big grin began to adorn her young face...but suddenly it went out. Just like that. Her features tensed. Eyes widened in fright before she jerked into motion, unfurling her shimmering wings. Its whirring vibrated in my ears. I looked at her, overwhelmed.
„A friend is in danger. We have to help him!" she said, rising a little into the air so that she was hovering about three feet above the ground. However, before I could reply that, unfortunately, no wings could shoot out of my back that easily, two arms wrapped around my waist and lifted my body into the air.
I barely stifled a startled scream as my feet lost their footing. Air brushed my cheeks as we climbed higher and higher. Damn, I was getting dizzy.
She was definitely crazy.
Fuu
Tense and determined, I flew towards our destination, holding Tora. One of my new friends was in danger and I had to help him. After all, that was the whole point, wasn't it? You supported each other, you were there for each other. Something that should happen more often in this world. It was the boy that Tora and I had met three days ago, the one they called Kazekage. With the red hair.
A cry for help, an angry roar that had gone through my bones. Never before had I met another Jinjuuriki, someone like me. And for that very reason, I felt it was my duty to help him.
I'm sure he didn't have many friends like me, just because of what was sealed deep inside us. Although I had never really clashed with Chomei before. We accepted each other, respected each other. Something no one had ever noticed. Maybe people would fear us less if they only knew that we didn't want to hurt them.
Tora began to stir in my arms, her eyes widened and she began to move her body.
„Stop Fuu. You can't keep flying. Let me do it," she said and I paused a little.
„Why is that? A friend is in danger. We mustn't abandon him."
She shook her head.
„I didn't say we were doing this, but you...you can't give yourself away. No one can know what you are. It's dangerous. You hear me. There are shinobi in this world who just want to get their hands on you. That can't happen."
A sigh escaped my throat before I started a slight descent. The earth came closer and closer and Tora's tension eased. I jerked my arms open and let her fall. A scream escaped her throat as she fell towards the ground. Abruptly, I rose back into the air, ignoring her cursing and desperate scream.
„Wait. I'm only trying to protect you. Don't do that!"
I eyed her, putting on a small pained smile.
„Maybe the other shinobi will see that we have feelings too and will stand up for those who are important to us."
My wings whirred so fast that my muscles began to ache, but I didn't care, what mattered now was that I got my new friend out of this predicament as quickly as possible, no matter what it was.
He was trapped. A glowing chain had bored its way into his stomach, pulling and tugging at it as if it wanted to get something out of him. The claw that wrapped itself around my heart was ice-cold, but I understood why at the same moment. Tora had just warned me about this. Who would have thought that it would happen so quickly?
However...
Then this bald man who controlled this chain would see what I was capable of. All this time, they had only seen me as the cheerful, naive Fuu. But very few of them knew that I was also capable of other things. Now he was going to see what it meant when I got really angry.
I flew towards the redhead in a dive, my hand clenched into a fist, gathering most of my chakra in it. His head jerked upwards in shock. Turquoise eyes widened in shock.
„Stay away," he warned, but I didn't even think about turning around. I was too determined to help him here and now. He was like me and we had to stick together.
The sharp wind cut at my ears, rushing and howling. Closer and closer came the glowing chain. It crackled ominously. Only a little way to go.
Sharp pain pierced through every single limb of my body, as if a thousand lightning bolts had passed through it. A strangled scream escaped me. My wings trembled, crumpled, went limp. It was now impossible to move them, to get away from this spot. I lay on the ground with trembling, aching limbs, unable to move a muscle. What kind of jutsu was that?
My gaze met that of the red-haired boy. His jaws were clenched. If he could, he would help me, for sure.
It clanked as a second chain rushed towards me. My wings made one last desperate attempt to get me out of reach. They protested, they hurt, but I had to be strong now, I couldn't fail. No one could help us in this situation and if we didn't do something about it, we would both die. That couldn't happen.
Out of the corner of my eye, I saw the bright metal flash, ominous. I made a swerve and it sped past me, but turned in mid-air and reversed. My eyes widened in horror. No.
It bounced right in front of my nose. The shiny tip buzzed around in the air, disoriented. As if it no longer knew what it was actually looking for or what it had been sent to do. The gleam diminished and within a heartbeat an invisible blow severed the metal several times.
The air in front of me began to vibrate. Colors formed before my eyes. Green, black, brown. Silver irises flashed towards me. She had tilted her head to the side, looking at the bald ninja. The posture reminded me a little of a big cat about to pounce. Every muscle in her body trembled with tension. She seemed angry, but I knew it wasn't directed at us. Her right hand tensely clutched the long katana. I could feel the chakra she was channeling through it, making the blade flash slightly. Almost electric.
„Whoever sent you. Leave my friends in peace!"
Friends! She had said it, that wonderful word. I had heard her say it before, referring to me. But this fact gave me the strength I needed to stand wordlessly by the redhead's side.
„Tora! Stay out of this," the boy said in an undertone that shouldn't actually tolerate any contradiction. But the brown-haired girl didn't seem to pay any attention.
„Certainly not, Gaara. I agree with Fuu on this point. I won't abandon my friends either, no matter how hopeless the situation may be. And whoever tries to snatch them from me will get to know me."
There was no question that she was angry. My gaze slid to the redhead, who was watching the whole situation with his arms crossed. His eyes narrowed slightly when he heard Tora's words, but he didn't say anything back. Perhaps he accepted it...
„Besides, I'm not here alone," she whispered, so quietly that I almost didn't understand. What did she mean by that? There was no one here except...
Hurried footsteps drew my attention to the right. A team was hurrying towards us. The one in front had these strange pale eyes that made me feel like I was being x-rayed. I knew this team, they were from Konoha, just like Tora. Nevertheless, the current situation forced me to remain tense and suspicious.
I stood protectively in front of Tora and Gaara, placed my hand on the ground and concentrated my chakra. Individual threads shot out of the ground, condensing more and more into an all-encompassing protective barrier. With my eyes narrowed in concentration, I surrounded the metal chain with countless threads, trying to prevent the ichibi from being pulled any further out of Gaara's body.
He looked at me with a surprised expression. An amused smile crept onto my lips before I stood up and clapped my hands in satisfaction.
„That should hold him off for a while and buy Tora some time, now she can overpower him."
Gaara nodded slightly and placed two fingers on his right eye. I wonder what came next.
„He's created a barrier around himself that they can't penetrate," the red-haired Kazekage said after what felt like an eternity of silence and I looked up.
„They've surrounded it. No one can get through...wait...there's something behind him. A doppelganger of Tora managed to get to him before he put up the barrier..."
Gaara broke off, frowned, removed his hand from his eye, released the jutsu. What was he doing there? It was the only way to see what was going on outside.
Within the next second, however, I felt an incision inside the cocoon, severing the individual interwoven chakra threads. It was the boy with the pale eyes who stepped inside and ran quickly towards Gaara.
I stood in front of him protectively when a cool hand grabbed my shoulder and gently pushed me aside. Gaara shook his head slightly. I obeyed, albeit quite reluctantly. I watched as thin veins began to form around the other boy's eyes. He examined the Kazekagen's stomach before his hand began to shimmer bluish and he rammed it directly into the spot where the metal was stuck in his stomach.
The shimmering of the metal faded and it slowly but surely detached itself from Gaara's stomach. A sigh of relief escaped me, but I left the cocoon in place. For safety's sake. None of us knew what was going on outside. It was better if we stayed in here for the time being.
Nevertheless, I flinched when another person stepped through the small gap. Exhausted, but also infinitely relieved, silver eyes looked towards us, fixed on Gaara's turquoise irises.
„We've made it," said Tora.