Glimpses of Fire by shattered_words
Summary: There were many things that shaped the plans of a certain Nukenin, and one was a shinobi that was as destructive as fire. AU/Mentions of Shounen-ai/Yaoi/Yuri (Linked to 'Caught In The Rain')
Categories: Alternate Universe & Crossovers, OC-centric Characters: Gaara
Genres: Action/Adventure, Romance
Warnings: AU
Challenges: None
Series: None
Chapters: 4 Completed: No Word count: 17596 Read: 7216 Published: 10/03/08 Updated: 20/04/08

1. Many Years Ago by shattered_words

2. Just Like Me by shattered_words

3. Betrayal, Purposes by shattered_words

4. Being a Kunoichi by shattered_words

Many Years Ago by shattered_words
Glimpses of Fire
Author:
shattered-words

Disclaimer: If I owned Naruto, it'd be called 'Gaara'. So, isn't it a shame that I don't own it?

Summary: There were many things that shaped the plans of a certain Nukenin, and one was a shinobi that was as destructive as fire. AU/Mentions of Shounen-ai/Yaoi/Yuri (Linked to 'Caught In The Rain')

A/N: This is centered around my OC and Gaara, I know it doesn't look like it but trust me on this. Things will become clear later. Just read on if you wish to find out. o,o

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0oPrologue: Many Years Agoo0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o

Her figure moved as swiftly as she could bear and tried to keep herself hidden by the unrelenting shadows. She paused just inches from crossing around the heavily guarded waterfall through a storm drain used for the water that might flood the village situated behind her. She had already stopped several times as she had made her way as quietly as possible, and she placed a hand over her mouth to stifle a racking cough as someone walked overhead. Since night had fallen there had been few people out and it had been easy for her to slip into the drain, and she only had to be wary of the guards on night duty.

There was a reason she had chosen this night and it involved a certain Chunin that was on duty now. He was the only one she had trusted with her plans to escape the village. He hadn’t really taken her seriously but had still offered to help her, which she had refused. It was certain that he’d be one of the first to be suspected with aiding her and so she hadn’t told him which night she planned to leave. She had also made sure to destroy every piece of evidence that would link him with her disappearance, but she had to get out first for her efforts to pay off.

When he moved on she continued on as well and made sure to time her steps with his. She wasn’t sure he’d stop her if he caught her, and had to be cautious. So, she made sure to make as little noise as possible. She had to leave.

They had done something to her when she had been born. To make her strong for the village, but they hadn’t counted on her sickly nature. Her body made her weak and she became a liability and they tried to get rid of her. She still remembered the blade as it pierced her chest and the gut wrenching pain that followed. The front of her clothes had soaked up the blood that flowed freely from the wound. She had stumbled from the room as she tried to get out but she had fallen and darkness had taken her, but she hadn’t died.

A figure appeared before her after she had managed to get past the waterfall and start down a hidden trail she had found when she had gone on a mission with her team. She immediately fell into a defensive stance and withdrew a kunai. She was ready to fight her way past the ninja if she had to.

“Kiyo-chan,” she heard the male speak. At once, she knew that it was Fujikaru and relaxed only slightly. His tone of voice had been sad when he had called out to her. “You really do plan to go through with it.” He stepped out of the tree’s shadow and his stern yet handsome features were revealed.

Kiyomizu had always thought Fuji to be a serious individual, but he had also proven to be loyal. The Chunin had always placed his duty to his village above his personal relationships and feelings. Even so, he had been unable to resist caring for the younger girl and he had come to view her as a sister. She had substituted for the family he had lost over the years to duty and battles.

“Gomen, Fuji-kun,” she replied, bowing her head. He had also become like a brother to her, since she had been shunned by her own family because of her weakness. However, she wouldn’t allow anyone to stop her, not even him. “I’m going.”

The bandana his hitai-ate was attached to covered his wavy russet hair but it could be seen peeking out at the edges. He stuffed his hands into his black pants and he looked almost uncomfortable in his Taki Chunin vest. His black eyes met her brown ones over the small distance that separated them.

“I know,” he finally responded with a sigh. He didn’t wish to see her go but even he knew that her only hope for survival was for her to leave the village. After a moment, he pulled something out of his pocket and tossed it to her. “You will always be my little sister.” He walked past her and back toward the village. “Don’t look back. Ki o ts’kete. Sayonara.” He vanished in a puff of smoke.

She frowned slightly and opened the small black, velvet box and stared in shock at the ring nestled within. It was silver and glowed with the moonlight and it had the Morisue Clan emblem. Kiyo knew that this was a symbol that you were officially considered a part of the Morisue family, which not only had wealth but was spread out along several different hidden villages. Not to mention the many people that were in one way associated with them in low and high class status.

She quickly slipped it on and tucked the box away, and moved further away from the only place she had ever known as home. Kiyomizu didn’t know where she was going but Fujikaru had already helped her in a big way by accepting her as a member of his family. “Kochira koso,” she whispered. “Sayonara, Aniki.” Then she was gone as she disappeared into the ever darkening night.

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o

The young girl looked around the room and gave a sigh. After almost three months, she could finally breathe easily. She had learned right away that her village wasn’t about to lose their “fabricated soldier” that easily, even if she was too weak to use properly. She’d most likely been dubbed a nukenin, and it had been a miracle that she had managed to avoid the Oinin that had been sent after her. On more than one occasion it had been the ring that had saved her.

Kiyomizu or Morisue Kiyomizu now, moved to the window. She opened it and leaned out as she let her gaze sweep over the village she would now call home. It was as far away as she had been able to go and while there had been other places she could have gone, this had been the best choice. The heat would help her health tremendously for one, and the Morisue Clan had several cousins within this village.

It hadn’t been decided yet which family she would stay with since both the Itagaki and Erizawa Clan were related to the Morisue. For now Kiyo was alternating between the two homes, and she was currently staying with the Itagaki after having been with the Erizawa family the previous week. It was hard to move from one place to another so much, but she could handle it. Certainly it was better than what she had gone through at Takigakure.

She was hit with a blast of hot air as she sighed in relief, and she could already feel her strength improving in the week and a half that she had been here. It helped a lot since soon she would attend the Academy because she had just turned 12 years old. They wanted to gauge her skills and if they were adequate she’d be allowed to become a Genin. Kiyo had confidence that she could make it since she had become one in Waterfall village. She had barely made it, but that had been because the wet climate had drastically drained her chakra.

A grin spread over her pale features which were starting to take on a healthier color, and turned when there was a knock. “Come in,” she practically sing songed. The fusuma door was slid open and she saw that it was Katsuhiko, the eldest son in the Itagaki household.

He lifted a slender brow at his “cousins” cheerful expression. “You seem to be in a good moon,” he said as a slight smirk lifted the corners of his lips. The strands of his short dark brown hair fell over his ebony orbs as they met hers. They were so much like Fujikaru’s that she winced as if in pain. “What’s wrong?” He noticed as she faltered.

She sighed and leaned against the wall and turned her gaze slightly so the warm wind caressed her features. “I miss Fuji-nii-san,” she muttered as a blush spread over her features. Her somber expression lightened as she looked at him. “You look a lot like him, Katsuhiko-san.”

The taller teen let the smirk widen as he waved his hand dismissively. “Come now, I’m sure that I’m better looking than that sour puss,” he said as he chuckled. She had come to learn that the distant cousins got along rather well but were also known to fight like cats and dogs. Ever since she had gotten here, she had pestered the younger cousins on anything on her surrogate brother that she could use as blackmail later on. Not that she needed it since she had Fujikaru wrapped around her little finger.

“Oh Heaven’s yes.” She nodded seriously. “Especially when you go like this,” she replied as she pursed her lips like a fish and made sucking noises. She got along good with Katsu and the younger twins. The only problem was that they always wanted piggy back rides at the same time.

At first she had been too weak to give even one of them a piggy back ride, but now that she was getting better she could almost keep up with them. She was grateful that she had Katsuhiko there to placate them whenever she couldn’t. They were certainly bundles of energy.

He laughed again and shook his head, and came to stand besides her at the window. “Ogenki dess-ka?” he asked her. She had only told Katsu’s father and the head of the Erizawa family the truth about why she had fled Takigakure. They had introduced her as their cousin and told the children that she had come here because of her health, which was the vague truth. She really hated to lie, especially to Katsuhiko whom she had already become friends with, but perhaps one day she’d feel confident enough to tell him the truth.

“I’m fine,” she said and knew it to be true. Kaze no Kuni was mostly desert and was pretty hot, and it did her lungs good. She hadn’t had a coughing fit in a long time now, but she still had to be careful since the nights were rather cold. During those times, she made sure that she was bundled well and had the room heater on. Even during the day she was well bundled up but it wasn’t uncomfortable no matter how hot the day was.

“That’s good to hear,” he muttered and stared outside a while longer. Kiyo could tell that he wanted to say something to her because he had come in here for a reason. She let him take his time, but was curious as to what made him reluctant to speak since he had always been open about what he wanted to say.

The older boy turned toward her and stuffed his hands into his pockets and she actually saw a blush spread over his face. She was about to ask to save him the embarrassment of broaching the subject, but he seemed to gain some courage. “Here, this is for you.” He thrust something in her hands and then quickly turned away again. As he made his way out of the room she thought she heard him muttering something about strangling someone.

Kiyo blinked and looked at the small package he had given her. It was wrapped in light blue washi, and she carefully removed the ribbon and opened it. There was a handmade necklace inside and a note. She let the trinket dangle from her fingers and the red stone at the end caught the light and winked at her. Now she unfolded the note and read it over.

‘For a very beautiful girl.
-Ashikaga Ritsuko.’


A brow lifted at the name and wondered who that was. Then she remembered that he was Katsuhiko’s friend. She had thought him strange since during their first meeting he had uttered something stupid and then could only stutter an apology before leaving the room. Glancing at the necklace and the smooth crimson stone, she let a smile curve her lips and proceeded to slip it on.

She laughed when she realized that it was Ritsuko he had been muttering about strangling. Kiyo wondered how long the Ashikaga boy had begged Katsuhiko to give her the box, since it was obvious that he was rather shy around her. It was the first time she had been given something like this since the boys in Taki had all avoided her as instructed by their parents. She sighed and hoped that it would be different in Sunagakure no Sato.

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o

The next four years passed in a blur of missions and training, and she was as healthy as she had ever been. In that time she had gotten to know the strange Ashikaga Ritsuko and realized that he was as she had suspected, strange. During their early meetings, they had been awkward for a lot of reasons but they had gradually started to enjoy being with each other. If they weren’t on a mission then they were hanging with Katsuhiko and other friends. Sometimes they were alone and they could find something to talk about for hours, or merely sit in silence and enjoy one another’s company.

He had finally worked up the courage to ask her to go out with him, and she had simply replied, “I thought we were already going out.” They had laughed and then shared their first kiss. That had been almost two years ago and since then if they weren’t on a mission then they were together. However, these last few weeks she had sensed that Ritsuko was hiding something from her.

She confronted her cousin and demanded to know if he was cheating on her. When he finally spoke, she was shocked. It wasn’t what she had been expecting.

“What do you mean?” she asked the taller ninja. He wouldn’t even look her in the eye as he repeated what he had told her. She turned away and clenched her hands into fists as she tried to keep her emotions in check.

“Arranged marriage,” she whispered. Her hand found the necklace that had hung from her neck since the day he had given it to her. Now she tore it away and let it drop to the tatami mats she stood on. She left Katsuhiko where he stood as she fled the house.

“Kiyo-kun,” he called out to her, but she wasn’t listening anymore. She ran as hard as she could until she had reached the outskirts of the village. Falling onto her knees she tried to slow her racing pulse. The moon’s light flowed around her and glinted off the sand hitai-ate that was secured at her right thigh.

The newly appointed Chunin kunoichi took in deep breaths and tried not to cry. She was seized by a coughing fit which she hadn’t had in months, but the night was cold and she hadn’t remembered to bring her coat in her haste to leave the house. Her hand covered her mouth and when it stopped, she let herself fall onto her back.

“Damn coward!” she yelled to the darkened heavens. He hadn’t told her and the fact that she had to get it out of Katsuhiko made it hurt even more. Her cousin had always been the middle man in their relationship since Itagaki-san didn’t approve of her going out with the Ritsuko, and now she knew why. It had been because the Ashikaga family had set up the marriage between him and Arato Etsuko.

She sat up as she was seized with another coughing fit and she heard footsteps behind her but she didn’t bother to turn around. Kiyo knew who it was since he was the only one that made noise on purpose at times. “What do you want?” she muttered, wiping absently at a stray tear.

“I’m sorry,” he said quietly. He had moved closer but had stopped just behind her. Out of the corner of her eye she saw that he was holding the necklace for her to take. She didn’t want to even look at it much less take it, but she swallowed the bitterness that was threatening to consume her and took it. The trinket meant a lot to her.

“Save your breath,” she snapped without meaning to. She heard him falter but then felt something fall over her shoulders and saw that it was her jacket. For a moment she wondered if he had actually went to her house to get it, but knew that he wouldn’t. More than likely it had been Katsuhiko that had given it to him.

He sat next to her and was quiet for a long time. His shoulder length black hair flowed around him and caught the moon’s light so it sparkled like star light in the darkness. As the wind picked up, the ends danced around him and the bangs fell over his grey eyes. He had bent his legs and folded his arms over his knees as he rested his chin on them.

She could tell that he wanted to say something to her but was having trouble getting it out. When she was seized with another coughing fit, he seemed to snap out of it and spoke at last. “It was set up before I was born. I don’t have a choice,” he muttered as he ran a hand through his straight, silky hair.

Kiyo gripped the jacket around her and bowed her head. “That’s a lie,” she muttered. She stood to her full height of five feet and two inches as she peered down at him with a frown. “You made your choice and it’s obvious what it was.” She hastily stuffed the necklace into the jacket’s pocket and turned away as she stifled another cough. “Goodbye, Ashikaga-san.” The Morisue female walked off as she headed back to her house, and refused to look back.

She didn’t speak to Katsuhiko when she got home and only closed herself off in her room. Tonight all she wanted to do was curl into a ball and cry herself to sleep.

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o

The child tilted her head to the side as she heard something calling out to her. She glanced around the room she was sitting in with wide black eyes and the motion ruffled her short black hair. Her tiny hands came to rest on the floor as she lifted her bottom off the floor until she had come to stop on her hands and knees.

She proceeded to crawl across the tatami mats until she entered the other room. The whispering within the confines of her mind was drawing her toward the irori that was burning even now since it was fall and the days were starting to be as cold as the nights.

While she crawled, she was cooing happily and continued to move over the now wooden floor. Closer and closer she came. Stopping, her dark orbs lifted and she squealed gleefully and started forward once again. She had almost reached the hearth when two hands took hold of her small body and lifted her out of harms’ way. The baby girl immediately started to wail at having been kept from her objective.

The woman that had lifted her started to comfort her and quiet her crying. She patted the ten month old on the back and held her as tightly. “Oh Kami, don’t listen to it, kudasai,” she whispered fiercely.

A small head poked around the corner with a curious expression. The boy had his father’s straight black hair but his mother’s black eyes, and he looked no older than nine years old. He was wearing shorts and a long sleeved shirt, but was missing his sandals and was only in his socks.

“You were supposed to be watching your sister, Eizan-kun,” she chastised. Her dark brown bangs fell over matching eyes that were currently narrowed in annoyance. She was out of her Jonin attire and was sporting a long flowing flowered skirt and light blue blouse.

Eizan returned the gesture defiantly and shook his head so the dark strands flipped around him. “She’s not my sister,” he answered stubbornly. “And you’re not my Okaa-san!” He disappeared into the other room once more and she knew he would plop down in front of that blasted television her husband had gotten from a nearby town.

Kiyomizu sighed wearily as she rocked her musume and moved down the hall to put her down for a nap. “Time for your nap, Arisa-chan,” she cooed. As if in response, she gave a yawn as her eyes became half lidded.

Laying her in the crib, she gave her the bottle and started to hum a lullaby. In no time at all she had fallen asleep, and Kiyo watched as she rested her head on her arms which she folded and rested on the railing. She wore a sad expression as she sighed once more.

“I’m sorry, chibi,” she mumbled. “I never meant to give it to you.” Kiyo ran a hand across her face as she felt her fatigue settle over her body. Over the last ten months since she’d given birth, she had started to become as sick as she had been in Taki and even now she stifled a cough. Her failing health indicated that she wouldn’t survive a second child birth, and she resigned herself grudgingly.

She had slumped more against the crib when she heard someone from the doorway. “Are you okay?” asked a familiar voice. Turning, she was surprised to see Katsuhiko standing there and knew that Eizan had probably let him in.

A smile spread over her sickly pale features. “Katsu-kun,” she whispered as she staggered toward him. Before she realized what happened, the taller shinobi had caught her falling body and was now lifting her up.

Itagaki Katsuhiko was stunned at how little his cousin weighed as he lifted her bridal style. He frowned as he moved out into the hall toward her bedroom. At that moment, Eizan came around the corner and froze.

The boy had stopped when he saw his father’s new wife in his uncle Katsu’s arms, and he felt a chill as he remembered his mother. She had been carried in the same way after she had been injured in her mission and the last he saw of her was her pale, bloodied face. “What’s wrong?” he asked as his voice shook. Her face looked so pale and like his beloved Okaa-san. “Is she okay?”

The suna-nin frowned and wished the young Academy student hadn’t caught sight of them. It hadn’t even been two years since his mother had died and this certainly wouldn’t help. “Hai,” he hastened to reassure him. He walked past him and into the room where he laid her on the bed. “Kiyo-kun is just tired.”

He walked to him and placed a hand on his head as he kneeled so he was at eye level with him. “I’m going to take care of her. Do you think you can keep an eye on Arisa-chan?” When he only glanced at the kunoichi’s still figure, Katsuhiko squeezed his shoulder to reassure him.

The shorter of the two nodded and moved out of the room when the sand shinobi urged him with a firm hand. When he had left, Katsu flicked on the radio he still had on from his recent mission. He made a series of pulses go through in a distinctive pattern.

“Go ahead,” a familiar voice responded in his ear piece after several seconds.

“You need to get home,” he said as quiet as possible so Eizan wouldn’t hear. “Your ok’san needs you.”

There was silence for several seconds. “How is she?” he finally asked and Katsu could hear the worry underlying his tone.

Katsuhiko sighed and ran his hand through his longish dark brown hair. “Yokunai,” he responded.

“I’ll be there soon,” he spoke and then it cut off.

Five minutes later and he had gotten a basin of cold water and a compress as he sat besides her. A frown twisted his face as his fingers brushed over her skin. “Atsui,” he muttered under his breath. He leaned his forehead against the bed next to her hand. “Dosh’te? You knew this would happen, so why?”

A hand came to rest on his head as he stiffened and when he lifted his head it was to meet Kiyo’s softened gaze. “Because I wanted her,” she whispered as the familiar spark ignited in her weary eyes. “She’s beautiful, my Arisa-chan.”

The brown haired male watched a frown twist her features. “Onegai, Katsu-kun, don’t leave her alone,” she said with a note of desperation in her voice. “Don’t let it consume her.”

The Itagaki was confused by her words. “Nani? I don’t understand what you mean, Kiyo-kun.” He stopped as he heard the door open behind him and turned to see Kiyo’s husband rushed in followed by a medic-nin. When he turned back around, he saw that she had passed out once again.

“How’s she doing?” his cousin-in-law asked breathlessly as he gasped in air. Katsu stood and intercepted him before he could get to the bed. The medic-nin meanwhile started to check her over as the slightly shorter man led the kunoichi’s husband outside.

“She’s sleeping now,” he paused with a sigh. “She doesn’t look good.” It was hard for him to say this and while he wasn’t a medical ninja, he had known the birth would take a heavy toll on her health.

The look on his face almost made Katsu curse but before he could say anything, they turned as the door opened and the medic stepped out. “How is she?” the brown haired man immediately asked.

The man, who was slightly older than the two of them, sighed and closed his bag. “She’s resting but is very weak,” he said quietly. He glanced at the door. “Her health is failing and it’s unclear how long she has left to live. She could have five years, five months, or five days.” He pursed his lips and shook his head. “I’m sorry but only her will can determine how much longer she lives.”

Katsuhiko saw the man to the door and left the couple to themselves for several minutes. Inside, the dark haired man sat in the chair his best friend had abandoned and lifted his wife’s frail hand between his larger ones. “I’m here, Kiyo,” he whispered.

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o

Ashikaga Ritsuko awoke with a gasp and felt his entire body slicked with cold sweat. He sat up and shivered as he listened for several seconds but all he heard was the steady ticking of the clock hanging from the wall in the darkened living room.

A sigh left his lips as he ran a hand through his shoulder length black hair that had stuck to the sides of his face and neck. Pulling it into a messy ponytail, he stood and made his way to the kitchen.

The irori was still burning in the middle of the room and provided warmth from the biting wind outside. Fall had come and went and winter had been a nonsensical blur to which he had barely paid attention to. Kiyo had held on longer than they had estimated and a year had come and gone. However, she hadn't awoken since that night Katsu had called him after he had reported to the Kazekage on his last mission.

He was sad that his wife had not been able to see Arisa's first steps or hear her first words, but he had sat by her bedside with the child in his lap and spoke to her. She was still too young to understand and so Ritsu had merely told her that her mother was only sleeping.

It was a relief that Eizan had started to cooperate and would take care of his sister when he was forced to go on a mission, and Katsuhiko wasn't available. He hated leaving them alone but the boy was old enough to be able to take care of the house since he had been in the Academy four years now.

Ritsuko paused as he brought the glass of water to his lips and lowered it to rest on the counter. A shudder passed through him as he gasped and bolted down the hall toward that use to be Kiyo and his room as the glass shattered behind him. He slammed the door open and froze just inside the doorway.

He could see her figure sitting up in the bed and her head was turned toward him. He tried to speak, but his tongue stuck to the roof of his mouth. A beam of moon light cut through the room and lit up her familiar features, and he could see the gentle smile soften her lips. “I dreamt of you, Ritsu,” she whispered.

He collapsed and fell to his knees as tears streamed down his face. His whole body shook with sobs as he thanked every deity he could think of. Kiyomizu merely watched with a smile on her lips.-

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o
Translations:
1. Gomen: I’m sorry.
2. Ki o ts’kete: Take care.
3. Sayonara: goodbye.
4. Kochira koso: The same to you.
5. Aniki: big brother.
6. Oinin: literally ‘chasing ninja’ or hunter-nin; they hunt and kill missing nin, and disposing of their remains to keep the villages jutsu out of enemy hands.
7. nukenin: missing nin or rouge ninja that have betrayed or abandoned their villages
8. Takigakure: literally ‘hidden within the waterfall’
9. fusuma: sliding door of wood & heavy paper, opened or closed to alter the size of a room.
10. nii-san: another word for big brother.
11. Ogenki dess-ka: How are you
12. Kaze no Kuni: literally ‘the land of wind’.
13. washi: handmade paper
14. Sunagakure no Sato: literally means ‘Village Hidden within the Sand’.
15. tatami mats: straw-and-rush mats that cover the floor of a certain rooms; a room is measured in tatami mats.
16. irori: the hearth at the heart of house, often kept burning as main source of heat and sometimes used for cooking.
17. Kami: god, divine wind
18. kudasai: please (give me or do for me)
19. Okaa-san: mother
20. musume: daughter
21. ok’san: wife
22. Yokunai: not good
23. Atsui: hot
24. Dosh’te: why
25. Onegai: please (pleading)
26. Nani: what

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o
End, Prologue
Just Like Me by shattered_words
Glimpses of Fire

Author: shattered-words

Disclaimer: If I owned Naruto, it’d be called ‘Gaara’. So, isn’t it a shame that I don’t own it?

Summary: There were many things that shaped the plans of a certain Nukenin, and one was a shinobi that was as destructive as fire. AU/Mentions of Shounen-ai/Yaoi/Yuri

A/N: Rewritten for your enjoyment! Actually, I just corrected a lot of mistakes, that’s all. Enjoy.

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o Chapter One: Just Like Me o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o

‘Come closer,’ the voice whispered as she continued to move forward. She was almost mesmerized by it and what lay ahead of her. Something inside of her told her to scream and resist, but she could only continue to do as the voice instructed.

‘Just embrace it.’ She reached out and touched her hand to the surface of the mirror-like wall. Its cool surface became warm to the touch and then flared to life. After a moment it became clear and she was able to see through it and at first all she saw were flames licking against the invisible wall.

Then she heard the screams as she gasped and pressed her face against the wall. She tried to look through the fire and saw them withering in agony as they tried to escape. They were calling out to her, reaching out to her to save them. It was her family.

She banged her fists against the wall, trying to break it and help them. ‘You killed them,’ the voice whispered in her ear as she screamed.

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o

The five year old girl shot up in bed as she gasped and started to cough. She wrapped her arms around herself as she shuddered at the cold sweat that covered her small body. Her wide eyes peered around the dark room as tears slipped down her cheeks. “I’m sorry,” she sobbed. “So sorry.”

The fire had taken everything from her and had almost claimed her own life as well. She wished it had killed her as well, and then she might have been spared the pain of these last few lonely months.

She escaped from the dark house now as the dawns’ light started to spill in through the window of her nearly empty room. There were very little possessions that were left after that horrific night and what she did have had been provided by her uncle Katsu. He came by at times but never stayed long, but she didn’t blame him. She had killed his two best friends.

Again she spent the day training and roaming the outskirts of the village. She never went into Suna because it was forbidden for her to do so. It had been decided by the Kazekage that she was too dangerous and hadn’t even allowed her uncles to take her in. Now the only times she was allowed to enter the city was to buy supplies with money her uncles gave her.

It would be hot today as well and the wind slightly calmed her nerves as it caressed her tanned face. Her black hair had grown past her shoulders and it was tangled and wild. She had always had it combed and neat before, but that had been thanks to her mother. Her mother was dead now.

She trained everything her brother had taught her until her muscles ached and she collapsed to the ground. As she lay there, she knew that her clothes would get dirty but it didn’t matter since no one would be there to lecture her. When her eyes stung with the promise of tears, she wiped her face and stood once again to train. It kept her mind off things she didn’t want to think about.

When the sky was streaked with the light of an afternoon sun, she left the small training ground. She walked and came upon the playground as children her age ran around laughing. They wouldn’t let her play with them because they knew something terrifying resided inside of her. She was different than all of them.

Even if she knew she should leave before they spotted her, she was rooted to the ground as she watched them kick a ball between two goals. She wanted to cover her ears to shut out the sound of their laughter. Then she noticed a red haired boy sitting by himself on a swing, and recognized him. He was another that was hated but he lived within the city. She had seen him before and had tired to approach him a few times, but she had always been deterred by a blonde haired man.

One of the boys kicked the ball too high, and it got stuck on top of a roof. The children stopped to look up and wondered how they would recover it. None of them were skilled enough in jutsu to be able to get it. She almost moved to help them but stopped as she saw the ball move, and it seemed to descend toward them on its own. Turning, she noticed that the boy had left the swing and approached them.

It was a bit surprising to realize that the ball was being moved by the very sand, and it deposited it in his hands. She saw now why he was feared. He was just like her, but he seemed to have more control than she had. She turned to look at the kids and saw that he was receiving the same fearful looks.

Their voices reached her where she stood. “It’s Gaara,” one girl spoke fearfully as the boy lifted the ball hesitantly.

“Here,” he said, holding it out for them to take. There was a shy expression on his face and his movements were cautious as if he thought they would attack if he moved too quickly.

“Suna no Gaara,” a boy muttered and stepped back. Their eyes were the same, viewing him as a monster. “Run!” They turned and all started to run from him. She looked at the boy and saw as his eyes widened in shock and disbelief. He was frozen in place as he continued to hold the ball in his hands.

She gripped her chest as she winced, and wondered if this boy felt the same pain that she did when they all ran from her, avoided her, and called her bakemono.

“Matte!” he cried and lifted his hand toward the six fleeing children. “Don’t leave me alone!” Her arms came around herself as she felt chilled and saddened, and as she watched, the sand sprung up and caught hold of the children. It started to drag them back toward the boy as they screamed.

She tilted her head to the side and could only watch them being pulled by the sand. Moving forward, they saw her and pleaded for help. The boy turned startling turquoise eyes toward her and she saw the crazed expression in them, and the sand sprung up toward her but she merely stood there. It surrounded her and cut her in various places on her skin, and blood spilled down her cheek as she closed her eyes. The sand seemed to howl like a beast that wanted to devour her, and she waited.

“Why are we different?” she whispered as it compressed around her to crush her. A split second later it stilled and fell away as if her words had been enough to stop it. When she opened her eyes and glanced up, she saw a man standing in front of the children.

It looked like the sand had attacked the others and he had jumped in front. There were cuts along his arms and face where it had slammed into him at full force. “Please stop, Gaara-sama!” he yelled at the boy who looked shocked.

The other kids had been released, and some of them appeared to have passed out. She looked down at the sand in confusion, not understanding. It had been so close. She had been so close! The sand would have crushed her and ended her suffering. “Dosh’te?” she asked and fell to her knees as tears spilling down her face. Everything should have ended then.

The man turned and seemed to misunderstand as he gave her a sympathetic look, and a kind smile. She recognized him. He was the one that had stopped her all those times she had tried to speak to the red head, and there was something else. His eyes held the same look as all the others. She saw the hate just behind the surface of his kind façade.

However, it wasn’t directed at her and she saw his eyes shift toward the boy and understood that it was directed at him. Her gaze moved to him now, and saw that he was staring at her with those eyes that had black rings around them. His scarlet bangs fell over them and she couldn’t help the smile that stretched over her face. “Do not trust so easily,” she muttered before she stood and stumbled off.

She didn’t want to go back to that house, but there was no where else for her to go. She had no home.

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o

When the sun gave up its seat to the moon, she returned to the empty house. This wasn’t her home, since that had burned to the ground with her family in the blazing inferno, and left her alone.

She sat on the floor and leaned against the wall beside the front door. Dragging her legs against her chest, she hugged them and rested her chin on her drawn up knees as her messy bangs hid her eyes.

‘Why are my eyes different?’

‘Because when they were made, a bit of red got mixed in.’

That’s what her mother had said to her since her black eyes had blood red pupils and rimmed in crimson. Afterwards she had combed her long black hair until it shone with a healthy glow.

The tears came and flowed down her face as she remembered, and the salty liquid made her cuts sting. She made no expression of pain. Her eyes were blank as she stared into the darkness of the room, and all she could see were the flames. All she could remember was her mother’s charred face staring at her from the burning house before it had collapsed around her.

Her mother had always been a frail woman and suffered from illness almost every day of Arisa’s short life. She couldn’t even muster the strength to lift her into her arms and hug her. Everyday she had suffered with that sickness, but that day was different.

She had forced open the window and had lifted her up like she weighed nothing before throwing her outside. As she sat up from where she had landed, she had seen her mother smile. She must have been in terrible pain in those last moments, yet she had smiled.

There was a knock on the door behind her as she gasped and turned around. She lifted her head as she gave the door a startled look, but she quickly wiped her blood-shot eyes. Turning, she pulled it open and blinked in confusion. The red haired boy from earlier stood there and he was holding a bag against his chest. Since the room behind her was dark, the light from the lamps outside spilled over her as she opened the door a bit wider, and she had to squint to see him clearly.

He offered her the bag. “I...brought you this, for your cuts,” he muttered quietly. He was looking down as if he was ashamed but she had also seen the fear and hope in his eyes. “It’s ointment.” He stood there quietly as she stared at him. After a moment, she reached out and took it. She saw the surprise play across his face and wondered if he had done the same thing with the other children and had been rejected.

“Arigato,” she whispered and saw his face relax in a smile. She suspected that it was a rare thing. “Would you...like to come in?” Her voice was underlined with hope. The house was dark and empty, and she didn’t remember the last time her uncle had come over.

He hesitated and she flinched but offered a forced smile anyway. “You don’t have to.” ‘They never want to come in.’ She started to close the door, but he told her to wait. Opening it again, she peered at him expectantly. He nodded, and after a moment she stepped back and allowed him to enter.

She closed the door when he entered and plunged the room into darkness. The sound of his nervous shifting reached her ears as she moved down the hall. Since she hardly had any furniture she managed to avoid tripping over anything. When she reached the kitchen, she turned on the light and it lit up the hall she had gone down. The boy’s slightly darkened figure stood by the door, and he followed when she motioned with her hand.

As he entered the room she had already started to make tea and told him to have a seat at the table that was in the middle of the small kitchen. He did as she instructed and she sat in the chair across from him a moment later. For a while, she merely stared at him and he started to shift around a bit nervously after several seconds.

“W-what is your name?” he asked her. She could tell that he wasn’t use to talking with another but neither was she. After all, no one spoke to her. Next year she would start going to the ninja academy as her brother had done but she doubted that anyone would talk to her even then.

As he asked her for a name, she paused and tilted her head. She wasn’t sure what to answer since to her, she had died along with her parents and brother in that fire. She was no longer Ashikaga Arisa. That person was dead.

When she opened her mouth, her own name did not pass her lips. “Ashikaga Eizan,” she said instead. She had been very close to her older brother and he had taught her a lot in the last few years he had been alive.

He gave her a strange look, since it was mainly a boy’s name but she only stood and walked toward the stove. The kettle had stared to whistle to indicate that the water was boiling. She poured the water and made tea for herself. “Would you like tea?”

She could feel his eyes on her back as he stared like they all did, but he was different. The sand coming to life and attacking the kids was proof of that. This boy was feared as she was. Unlike him, she was able to summon something else to her bidding, though. It was the reason why she blamed herself for the fire. She had started it.

Even if she had not meant to, she had done so. That was her Kekkei Genkai. She could create fire or manipulate it to her will. She was sure that her mother had known it had been her fault, but she had still saved her. By that time, her brother and father were already dead.

The nightmare had started it all and it had started to consume her room and then her brother’s. The ceiling had crushed him and her parents had been awakened by the sound of it caving in.

They had most likely known that he was dead and had gone after her first, her father using a water jutsu to cut a path to her. He had managed to douse her with a weak water technique to bring her around before the fire consumed him. She had awoken to his shrieks of agony and screamed as she cowered on the already demolished bed.

Her mother, who had somehow managed to survive the flames surrounding them, had rushed in as sections of the roof started to collapse. She had forced the window open even as the flames licked at her arms and hands, and had lifted her. She’d faltered only once before throwing her outside.

When she sat up she saw her mother’s face smiling at her from the burning house before the whole structure crumbled on her. That last image of her mother had been burned into her memory forever. She’d been found staring blankly at the rubble that had once been her home.

They all knew what had happened and feared that it would happen again if they got knew her. The next day, the Kazekage had decided that it was not safe for her to live within the city, and hadn’t let her uncles care for her. She was confined to this small house just on the outskirts of Suna.

No one dared visit her except for her uncle and two of her cousins that brought her food, clothing or money to get by. The two girls that visited her had family abilities that the others didn’t and were avoided as well. Theirs weren’t as frightening as hers, but they were mostly avoided because they were related to her like her other cousins.

“No, I prefer coffee.” The boys’ voice wrenched her from her musings, and she clenched her hand over the handle of the kettle. She tried not to think of the things that made her life miserable, but at times she wasn’t able to help it.

She nodded and made him the coffee without hesitation, but didn’t asking why he drank such a strong drink. She had seen the dark circles under his eyes and suspected that he didn’t get a lot of sleep. When she asked if he wanted any cream or sugar he simply stated that he drank it black. Again, she didn’t ask him about it.

Walking over, she set it before him before moving to sit down. She would have offered him something to eat with it, but the only thing that she had was the necessary things. She had nothing to be offered to a guest such as odango, or even ohagi.

They sat in silence as they each drank from their own cups. After a moment, she looked at him. “They don’t like me either,” she said and he looked startled. Then he smiled slightly.

After a moment he lifted his gaze and looked around once. “Where’s your family?” he asked her quietly. Her hands froze as she had been about to set the cup of tea back on the saucer, and she lowered her head until her bangs obscured her eyes.

She held back a shudder as the memories came again but managed to shove them back into the recees of her mind. “I…killed them,” she finally answered. When she lifted her head there was a surprised look on his face. “It was an accident. I can’t control it.”

He seemed confused, so she lifted her hand in front of her, and concentrated hard so the ability wouldn’t go out of her control. Soon, flames started to crawl over the skin of her arm, wrist and hand. He watched with wide eyes and a slightly open mouth. She moved her fingers a bit to show him that it didn’t hurt. “They also call me a monster.”

“You…are just like me,” he muttered and a smile cracked his once sad features. She found herself returning it. “You can be my friend because you are like me.” A light came lit up her eyes as she nodded her head. She really did hope that they could eventually become friends because the loneliness was torture.

When he was leaving, she asked him his name and he hesitated before replying. “It’s… Gaara.” She smiled and nodded.

Before he walked out the door she caught his arm and he turned to look at her. “I would not trust that man,” she warned. “His eyes are hateful even when his face is kind.”

He frowned slightly as he turned to face her, and she released him. “You mean Yashamaru?” he asked her. He shook his head. “I don’t know what you’re talking about. He’s the one that made me the ointment. He was worried about you being hurt.”

The muscles in her face hardened and her hand gripped the door knob tightly. “His eyes are the same. They are the same as everyone else that looks at me with hate and fear, as if I were some kind of monster,” she growled. “You would do well to be careful.

When he shook his head again and tried to protest, she slammed the door in his face. She leaned against it as she breathed in deeply and after several moments she heard him walk away.

She covered her face with her hands as she slid to the floor. ‘Dosh’te?’ He had been one of the only people that had been kind to her since her family’s death, and she had driven him away. She had only been trying to warn him.

But she had seen it in his eyes. He cared about this person, and to have said such things about him... It would always be the same.

She curled into a ball as she fell to the floor and drew in shaky breaths as she tried not to cry. For a moment she wondered if this was her fate. She wondered what horrible thing she had done in her past life to have been cursed with this ability. If she really was cursed then maybe she was destined to be alone and hated for the rest of her life.

Maybe she really was a monster.-

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Translations:

1. Suna no Gaara: Gaara of the Sand

2. bakemono: monster

3. matte: wait

4. arigato: thanks, thank you

5. Kekkei Genkai: advanced bloodline, refers to something passed down through the genetic make-up in a specific clans. Many fear the clans that possessed these skills, which could not be copied outside of the clans.

6. Kazekage: literally “Wind Shadow”; top ninja in Hidden Sand Village

7. odango: dumplings.

8. ohagi: rice cake covered with bean jam, soybean or ground sesame.

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o

End, Chapter One

Betrayal, Purposes by shattered_words
Glimpses of Fire

Author: shattered-words

Disclaimer: If I owned Naruto, it’d be called ‘Gaara’. So, isn’t it a shame that I don’t own it?

Summary: There were many things that shaped the plans of a certain Nukenin, and one was a shinobi that was as destructive as fire. (AU/Mentions of Shounen-ai/Yaoi/Yuri) (Linked to “Caught in the Rain”)

AN: Don’t you just hate when you notice a lot of mistakes? -sigh- This is once again, revised and corrected for your enjoyment, so enjoy!

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0oChapter Two: Betrayal, Purposeso0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o

Eizan coughed as she stumbled and paused in her training. Usually she didn’t train during the night since it was cold and she was affected by it more than others because of her abilities, but she needed to blow off some steam. No one would care if she was gone for a few days, and she needed to train because soon she would start at the Academy.

Becoming a ninja like her brother had been the only thing that was left for her, since she had kept him from achieving that goal. She would have preferred to die but she’d never have the courage to commit suicide, but if she became a ninja she might be killed during a mission.

She doubted that anyone would miss her and so she put everything out of her mind and concentrated on training under the moon’s light. The young girl was within the Suna even if she shouldn’t, and she’d located herself to a rooftop so she wouldn’t be spotted. She didn’t want to train in the area her house was located. She hated that place.

That’s when she heard the sound of someone approaching and was drawn to the edge of the roof she was upon. She saw a ninja sprinting along the lower roofs and his face was covered, but she recognized the Suna headband. Crouching on the edge, she peered down at him until he had passed under her and continued on.

Her curiosity got the better of her and started to follow him but made sure to keep a good distant away and avoided using too much chakra or he’d sense her presence. From a very young age, her brother, who had been on his way to becoming an excellent ninja, had taught her quite a bit. While she wasn’t even at the level of a Genin yet, she had always been able to catch onto the techniques quickly. She had learned few jutsu and now she kept them close and trained to perfect them. It was the only way that she could keep her brother and parents alive, and so she continued to train hard what she had been taught and absorbed.

When he stopped, she did as well and turned to see what he was looking at and saw a figure about her size sitting by themselves with their back to the ninja. It was dark and so she wasn’t able to see whom it was too clearly, but she could tell that he was most likely weeping quietly. The Suna-nin silently attacked, sending several kunai in his direction. She contemplated the idea of warning him, but was afraid that she might be discovered within the city, and it was too late anyway.

Eizan was surprised when the sand shot up to protect him. ‘He’s attacking Gaara!’ The red haired boy also looked stunned as he stood and turned to face the man with a fearful expression. Then his features hardened as his sand blocked another barrage of kunai. There was anger on his face now, and she knew it all too well.

She felt that same anger every time someone looked at her with those hateful eyes. Several times she had asked why she had to go through something like this, and endure the blind hatred of people that didn’t know the kind of person she was. People that didn’t know the details of something she couldn’t control.

Her eyes caught a glimmer of light on the edge of her vision and she saw the ninja preparing an attack as he distracted Gaara from seeing. It looked like he would trigger from the side by using wire as he feigned a frontal assault. She had seen the sand protect him several times but she wasn’t sure it would sense the kunai in time.

There was no time to think and she let her body react instinctively. She was in front of him and then felt the kunai sink into her back moments later. It almost made her cry out, but clenched her teeth and took in deep breaths to stop herself. Gaara took in a small breath of surprise that might have been a gasp and looked at her in confusion, not understanding what had happened.

She let a grin spread over her features. “I told you...to be careful,” she gasped and collapsed to the side. Her blood spilled from the wounds and stained the ground around her. They hadn’t done too much damage, but realized that if they had hit Gaara it would have been worse.

Thinking about it now, she didn’t really know why she had jumped in front of that attack. ‘You can be my friend because you are like me.’ She chuckled softly as his earlier words came back to haunt her, but she knew the truth.

He was shunned by the entire world and understood the pain of loneliness. No doubt he felt the same pain within his chest like she did. These thoughts ran over and over again in her mind, and came to the conclusion that perhaps he would be able to dispel the cover of darkness that surrounded her very life.

When she dared to move again, she listened around her but could only hear the shifting of the sand. As she was finally able to lift her head, she saw that it had engulfed the masked ninja. He fought vainly against it before the smaller male closed his hand and the sand quickly crushed him. His blood splattered in various directions as she stood and stumbled toward Gaara as the ninja’s body hit the floor. She saw that he was looking down at the man uncertainly, and fear clouding his features.

As she reached his side and fell onto her knees, he was reaching out a trembling hand toward the ninja’s mask. She saw the ends of blonde hair sticking out around it and she sighed as she lowered her gaze. Eizan knew who it was and when he removed the covering they both found themselves staring into Yashamaru’s face.

His bloodied features looked calm even as he laid there, and blood ran from the corners of his mouth as he looked at Gaara. “You are strong, as I expected, Gaara-sama,” he said quietly.

The red head gasped and clutched his chest as pain gripped him. “Yashamaru,” he whimpered in disbelief. She could only watch as he fell to his knees. He gripped his head, turned his face to the sky and screamed. She was shaken by the terror and pain it contained as she wrapped her arms around her body. Her chest throbbed as she winced but it had been a different kind of pain. ‘What is this feeling?’ she wondered.

Gaara questioned him on his actions as she stared at the man with an expressionless face. She felt bad for the red head but she wasn’t too surprised. His eyes had revealed his hate and that he couldn’t be trusted. The thought caused her to frown and knew that she simply wasn’t willing to trust anyone and thus suspected everyone.

Her eyes lingered over Gaara’s face and saw that he was in so much pain and for a moment wished that she could take it within herself. Perhaps that pain could maybe make her feel alive again.

“It was an order,” Yashamaru finally answered. Her gaze moved to fasten on the older ninja this time. “By your father, Kazekage.” Shock gripped her then since she hadn’t known that this boy’s father was someone she hated. Now she was interested in hearing the rest and she listened as well.

Gaara asked why his father had sent Yashamaru to kill him, and he explained that the Kazekage had placed the order to seal Shukaku inside of him. Then he would be observed like an experiment. They saw that he had no control over the sand or the being within him, and might one day become a danger to the village. He had to be eliminated.

The red head seemed overwhelmed by this information but he thought a moment before smiling weakly. “Then you did this unwillingly because Father ordered you to?” he asked with his last scrap at hope hanging by a thread.

Eizan saw that his face was now streaked with tears, and she frowned as she sighed quietly. Even now she saw the hatred behind the man’s eyes as they were fixed on the boy. Gaara was deceiving himself but she didn’t have any right to say this to him.

Yashamaru shook his head. “That’s not correct. Even if it was an order I could have chosen to decline it.” His eyes turned toward the sky overhead and ignored the stricken look on the younger male’s face. “Deep within my heart...I hated you,” he told him. “My beloved sister, your mother, was used as a sacrifice to seal the Shukaku inside of you. She died giving birth to you and cursing this village.” His eyes narrowed slightly at this before his face softened into a look of sorrow. “I carried a wound that could never heal.”

Eizan wanted to shut him up but knew that Gaara needed to hear the truth. She knew first hand that living in a fantasy wasn’t good, but he was suffering so much. As she caught sight of his lifeless eyes she shuddered and made a decision.

If she stayed by Gaara’s side then she could keep him alive and also deter the Kazekage’s plans. Her childish mind told her that this way neither of them would be alone again. She wanted to take away that lifeless look from his stare that Yashamaru’s betrayal had put there.

“My sister gave you your name. ‘This child’s name is Gaara’,” Yashamaru continued to speak. His eyes had returned to stare at the darkened heavens above. “An Asura that loves himself. Love only yourself. And fight only for yourself. By doing so, you can continue to exist. Your name carries those wishes.” He looked up at Gaara as tears still ran down his face.

“But my sister did not give you the name because she cared for you or loved you. She gave you that name so that you could continue to exist. Because she hated and cursed this village as she died, and she wanted her deep hatred to exist and remain. To let others know of it.” He smiled suddenly but there was no warmth behind it. “You were not loved.”

Eizan fell onto her rear and hissed softly as the impact jarred her wounds to send spasms of pain through her entire body. When she wiped the sweat that covered her forehead she smeared it with the blood that had stained her hands. Her breathing was labored but she listened to Yashamaru’s words and winced at his last words. She was unloved now. Gaara was alone in this world, and not needed by anyone, just as she was.

Yashamaru pulled open his vest to reveal the exploding notes covering him and they ignited. “This is it. Please die.” Gaara’s gaze had fallen toward the ground and he didn’t see them, or didn’t care. She cried out, but her warning came too late.

The explosion rocked the surrounding area and all she could do was shield herself with her arms. She was thrown back and gasped as she landed on her back. A whimper of pain escaped her lips as the kunai sunk further into her flesh, and she rolled onto her side as quickly as she could.

After several seconds she managed to sit up and ignored the pain as she stared ahead. Gaara sat where he had been and he was unscathed. His sand had come up in time to protect him from the exploding notes. They had destroyed the ground around the dome of sand and from what remained, she knew Yashamaru was dead. She was glad that he hadn’t taken Gaara with him.

She slowly rose to her feet and staggered toward him. He had collapsed on his hands and knees and he was sobbing in such a way that he was practically screaming in pain. Eizan wished she could say something to comfort him but she wasn’t even sure he would hear her.

He lifted his gaze suddenly, and she saw something snap within his eyes that flashed a golden color a moment later. The sand start to move around him as it howled with the six-year-olds’ pain. His gaze fixed on her and she was caught within the sand storm as she cried out in shock but could do nothing as she was whipped around above the red head.

She was going too fast to see as the sand shot toward his forehead and started to carve something into his flesh. All she heard was his screaming and a few minutes later everything stopped and she was flung back toward the ground. She landed with a grunt of pain and the only thing that she was grateful for was that she had landed on her stomach this time.

Now she lifted her gaze slowly and saw blood running down Gaara’s face. His sand had carved the kanji symbol ‘Ai’ into his flesh. He turned his dead turquoise eyes on her and she shuddered at what she saw there.

“That is what Gaara is...Me,” he whispered. There was no more life in that gaze as it met her crimson rimmed eyes. “I finally understand. I’m alone. I won’t believe in anyone, or love anyone. I’m alone. Yes, I am alone.” He lifted his hand toward her and felt the sand wrapping around her.

When she was lifted into the air she stared at him as he started to close his hand. The sand tightened around her and pressed on her chest so she had trouble breathing. A smile crossed her face as she closed her eyes and waited. ‘Tou-san. Okaa-san. Eizan-nii-san.’

She was stunned when she was released and thrown once again to land on her stomach at his feet as she hissed in pain. He looked down at her and noticed the kunai as if he hadn’t seen them before. Eizan lifted her eyes and saw as his narrowed. Gaara looked like he was trying to regain some form of control. “Why...did you?” he asked as he reached out and pulled out one of the kunai as she winced.

As he pulled out another of the three that remained, the black haired girl rested her face against the cool, uncomfortable ground. “Because you are just like me,” she muttered the words he had said earlier.

His hand paused as he removed the last weapon from her back, and then let it fall to the ground. He crouched beside her but she didn’t move as her eyes fastened on the kunai’s dirtied edge. The moonlight glinted off the unsoiled side and it reflected in the dark pools of her eyes. She felt the coolness of the ground seeping into the contours of her bloody face. Her body ached all over and knew she had sustained several cuts when she had been trapped within the tornado of sand.

“I don’t trust you,” she heard him speak after several seconds. His voice was not like she had heard when he had come to her house. It had been hesitant and almost innocently naïve, just as hers had been before her family’s demise. He had changed now, like she had.

She laughed quietly and nodded. “I know you don’t,” she muttered before she shakily lifted herself onto her hands and knees and met his gaze. When she was on just her knees, she bowed her head toward him. “He’s wrong,” she whispered. “You’re not a failure. They will see.”

Her father had told her that when she became a ninja like him and her brother then she would serve the Kazekage. However, that man hated her and she hated him, so she could never serve him. She peered into Gaara’s cold eyes and knew she wanted to stay with him since they were so alike.

The only problem was that he didn’t trust anyone and might not believe her if she said she wanted to be his friend. So, her only option was to stay at his side as if she were serving the Kazekage. He was his father’s enemy, and as her Eizan-nii-san had always said ‘The enemy of my enemy is my friend’.

She hadn’t understood it then but she did now. If she was with Gaara at all times, protecting him and serving him then she would never be alone again either. Also, by staying alive she would ensure that her brother and family’s legacy as ninja would never die.

After a moment, Gaara stood and stared down at her with that same cold stare. “My only purpose is to end life,” he said quietly, and she was the crazed look in his stare. He hadn’t been backed into his last bit of sanity. It had been torn from him. “To fight only for myself and love only myself.”

They were both so young but even then they knew their purpose. She nodded as she bent to one knee in a show of submission. “Hai, and mine will be to help you fulfill that purpose, Gaara-dono,” she muttered.

Eizan watched his shadow as it spread across the floor in front of her and after a moment she saw him nod. Relief flooded through her and she stood as he turned away. They both gazed off over the edge of the roof they were on. The teddy bear he had always carried with him had been thrown aside and was splattered in blood, and now it lay forgotten. The time of childhood had ended, for both of them.-

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o

Translations:

1. Sunagakure no Sato: literally means ‘Village Hidden within the Sand’

2. -sama: this is one level higher than “-san”. It is used to confer great respect

3. Shukaku: is said to be the corrupted spirit of a Sand Priest turned demon; also Shukaku can be translated to mean ‘drunk’.

4. Asura: an enemy of the gods in Hindu mythology, a demon

5. exploding note: this tool is a note which explodes after a set amount of time

6. Ai: romanji spelling for the kanji representing ‘love’.

7. -dono: this comes from the word “tono,” which means “lord.” It is an even higher level than “-sama” and confers utmost respect.

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o

End, Chapter Two

Being a Kunoichi by shattered_words
Glimpses of Fire

Author: shattered-words

Disclaimer: If I owned Naruto, it’d be called ‘Gaara’. So, isn’t it a shame that I don’t own it?

Summary: There were many things that shaped the plans of a certain Nukenin, and one was a shinobi that was as destructive as fire. AU/Mentions of Shounen-ai/Yaoi/Yuri (Linked to “Caught in the Rain”)

A/N: I noticed several mistakes and had to repost cause they were bugging me. Btw, Happy Turkey day, a bit late but it’s the thought that counts. Hope ya didn’t stuff yourselves like turkeys! (I don’t really like it but give me the apple pie! XD)

~*~*~*~*~*~ Chapter Three: Being a Kunoichi ~*~*~*~*~*~

The first few days at the academy hadn’t been the best week of her life, but she had not been completely isolated. She had entered a year earlier than she had intended and thus placed in Gaara’s class. Also, the two cousins on her mother’s side of the family were also in the same class. They were Itagaki Akemi and Erizawa Miwako. Akemi was her uncle Katsuhiko’s daughter and Miwako was from the Erizawa Main House. She knew they were forbidden to speak to her, but she had seen them make an attempt several times. Eizan had told them none too nicely to stay away. It was better for them this way.

The red head had asked her once why she called him ‘Gaara-dono’. She had explained that her father had always referred to the Kazekage with “-dono”, and since she was serving him in the same way, she had to show him proper respect. His face had looked troubled and she wished she knew why.

She could tell that he still didn’t trust her, but at least he spoke to her once in a while. It gave her a bit of hope that maybe one day he’d open up to her. It was a fool’s hope, but one she wasn’t willing to give up on. For the time being, she only wanted him to forget the loneliness he had felt all this time.

When he had walked away, she had smiled slightly and hurried after him. She learned to shut out the hateful stares and fearful whispering when she was with him. They could say what they wanted and look however long they wished. She had Gaara at her side and she wasn’t alone. It was enough for the moment. And she wished she could freeze that instant so it would never change.

But time did pass and before she knew it, half a year had gone by. During that time she had refused to take ikebana classes that all kunoichi had to take. It was so that they could blend in as regular women when within enemy territory. She already knew this since she had watched her mother do it many times. While she had never tried it, Eizan was certain she could if she tried. But she didn’t want to try it!

Another thing that hadn’t been pleasant was the confusion during her registration. She had written her brother’s name and the record’s people had given her a strange look. They had tried to change it to her given name but she had adamantly refused to take it.

In her anger, her hands had burst into flame at her sides. The Chunin dealing with her had been startled half to death and had backed off. They relented and agreed to her demands and she had been glad even if she had had to use their fear to achieve it. As she had walked out with the ID she had ignored the eyes upon her.

They had given Eizan her brother’s old Academy identification card for the time being until they made another for her. They looked so much alike that they could have been twins, except her hair was much longer than his had been in the picture. She almost laughed as she remembered that at one point, her mother had told her sibling that he had “a lovely face”. She’d never forget the way his features had reddened in an undignified way.

As she walked back to the empty house she had frowned at the ID. The word “Deceased” had been stamped just below his picture but the information could still be seen clearly. Her frown had deepened and twisted her pale features as she ran her fingertips over the offensive word. She felt a stab of pain and remorse as the horrific day played itself out within the confines of her mind. It was a constant torture.

Before she had entered the academy, she had already mastered certain jutsu such as henge, bunshin and a Katon jutsu as well. Her brother had taught her these after realizing that she could learn fire techniques rather quickly.

Once she had transformed into Gaara and had scared some of the students in their class. It hadn’t been intentional but it had been amusing. When she had seen the pained look in the red head’s face, she had been overwhelmed with guilt. She’d fallen to her knees with her legs tucked under like in seiza, but with her head bowed low and hands at the side of her hand against the ground. Her father had taught her that it was a way to beg forgiveness, by doing dogeza.

“Get up,” Gaara had muttered and looked away. “I don’t ever want to see you do that again. It’s for the weak.” His voice had started to become colder recently, but every now and then she saw a hint of kindness with his eyes. She had agreed to be his subordinate but she couldn’t deny that she cared for Gaara. After all, he was the only friend she ever had.

She fell back into her idealistic personality and tried to get his opaque turquoise orbs to come alive again. He became easily annoyed by her attempts and would disappear from her sight for long periods of time. While it was depressing to a point of tears for her when it happened, Eizan refused to weep or give up.

Every day her infallible enthusiasm was met with his impassive responses. And over time her eyes started to lose their shimmer of optimism. Then one day, several years later, she forgot what it was to smile and what laughter sounded like. She couldn’t remember any other reason for her existence other than being a tool. After all, this is what shinobi were in the end and disposable when they lost their luster.

As they grew older, Eizan did everything he asked of her as long as it pleased him. She began to read the few expressions he made and would know what he wanted without him having to ask. So in a sense, she began to think like him.

Ever since Yashamaru had tried to kill Gaara, there had been numerous other attempts to take his life. He had killed them every time, but she had interfered once when Gaara had turned eight years old. She had destroyed a building and while there had been a lot of injuries, only the assassin had died. After that, the red head had forbidden her to interrupt again.

He had grown unstable over the years and enjoyed taking the lives of those that came for his. Every time he killed, she saw a portion of that remaining kindness die away as well. She was afraid that one day it would disappear and he’d lose sight of himself. It was a terrifying thought.

Eizan had quickly learned that he hardly ever slept. He had never told her and she hadn’t asked, but she knew it most likely had to do with the Incarnate of Sand within him. She wondered if it would get free and devour him if he happened to sleep. One night, he had asked her to watch him while he tried to sleep. It had been a bit startling but she had agreed to wake him if it looked like the demon was starting to escape.

The first times he had managed to get half an hour of rest before she had to wake him up. However, during one of those sessions she had been exhausted from training and had fallen asleep after him. The biju had broken through and attacked her. It had demolished her house and gravely injured her. Gaara never tried to sleep in her presence again.

Eizan knew she had failed him and had felt awful, but his presence had reassured her. If he was still at her side that meant that he forgave her for the mistake. By this point she had stopped asking him for anything for herself and only did as he asked. It was almost to a point that if he asked for her heart, she’d gladly rip it out of her chest and hand it to him before she died.

She didn’t know if he realized it, or didn’t care, but he had saved her life by allowing her to remain by his side for so long. He had dispelled her loneliness and gave her a reason to live again, and so would offer up her life to him if he desired it.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Gaara was twelve and Eizan eleven when they graduated from the academy to officially become Genin. Akemi and Miwako had also passed to the Genin level that same year. They were to be put into three man cells with two of the students of the same class.

She almost strangled the substitute Chunin instructor when he placed her in a different team than Gaara. It had been a sight as the red head had made her stop with a simple word. Eizan had sighed and resigned herself. They’d learned to fear the sand using shinobi even more as they realized that she followed any order he gave her.

One of the boys had muttered something along the lines of her being Gaara’s lap dog. She hadn’t heard him because he had been across the room, but moments later Akemi had appeared besides him and decked the taller ninja. He’d fallen like a ton of bricks to the floor and had looked at the Itagaki with a stunned expression. Eizan was a bit confused and wouldn’t find out what had happened until several months later.

Gaara had been placed in a cell with his two siblings, Temari and Kankurou, who had been Genin longer than them. Eizan despised them both. Kankurou resembled his father greatly and she suspected that the scarlet haired shinobi hated him for the same reason. The older boy must have learned this since he started to wear Kabuki face paint shortly after Gaara joined his team.

Temari resembled his mother more but she doubted that Gaara hated her because of this. Eizan disliked her so much because she had looked at her youngest brother with the same fear and hate as all those ignorant villagers and other ninja when they had been younger. Not to mention the fact that they were weaker when compared to both Gaara and her.

Eizan had been placed in a cell with Akemi and Miwako. It was easy to see that they were good fighters, but she was still stronger since training had been all she had devoted herself since her family’s deaths. Their clothing, however, had too much of a feminine flair and not enough protection for battle.

Akemi even wore a skirt, and even if she wore shorts underneath, she didn’t like it. It would be good if they were in enemy territory and had to blend in with civilians, but it was unacceptable while in the village.

“Are you girls or ninja?” Eizan asked them as she was forced to sit with them. The desk had enough room for three people, and she sat on the edge at they sat to her left. It had been her intention to join Gaara but he had stopped her with a shake of his head. So she had followed her instructors’ orders for once.

Miwako ran her slender fingers through her shoulder length black hair, and fixed intense emerald eyes on the shortest of them. “We are ninja of course,” she replied with a smirk.

“Wrong,” Eizan snapped. “You are kunoichi that dress like girls and have unfit names.” She leaned back in her seat as she glanced at Gaara as he sat a few desks away by himself. A soft sigh left her lips and she turned her attention back to the taller girls.

Akemi’s arms were folded upon the desk before her and she now turned her body and head slightly back to look at her. She surpassed the Ashikaga girl in height, size and age, but there was something about her that made the Itagaki listen.

“How’re our names unfit?” Miwako spoke up once more while her companion remained silent besides her.

She stifled a yawn as her crimson-rimmed orbs shifted from one to the other. “Names like yours are good if you are under the guise of a civilian. However, in the village you will be called kunoichi and considered weaker.” A smirk spread over her features. “That is how the Kazekage sees us, as the weaker sex.”

“Wouldn’t that be an advantage?” Akemi finally spoke up. She pushed back a few strands of her waist length, dark brown hair behind her ear, and even as she seemed to be disagreeing with her logic, her black eyes were riveted on Eizan.

“Hai, it would be an advantage outside of Suna, but not within.” She folded her arms behind her head and gave them an almost bored look. “We are a kunoichi cell and in their eyes we will not be strong enough for anything other than D-rank missions.”

Before either girl could disagree, Eizan stood as they were dismissed for lunch. She could tell that they didn’t seem convinced by her words. “I guess it shouldn’t bother you,” she replied as her eyes narrowed. “You have your families’ wealth to depend on in case you only get D-rank assignments.” She moved off toward the door that the red head had disappeared through as she stuffed her hands into her pockets.

Akemi and Miwako watched her go and then turned to look at their clothing. The fire user had a point. Even if they were given the low paying missions, they’d still have their families. Eizan, on the other hand, didn’t have anyone to depend on for food and clothing but her.

The two girls glanced at one another and nodded before standing and hurrying out the door. They only had half an hour to get back to the classroom.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Gaara had disappeared after having finished his lunch and she was left to eat the rest of hers alone. When she was done, she’d spread out on the roof they had been on and gazed at the sky. There was hardly any wind today, and she could see the clouds since they weren’t obscured by a sand storm. She folded her arms behind her head with a sigh and enjoyed the heat of the day.

Her black hair had been as long as Akemi’s at one point, but had been cut so that it reached her jaw and left wild. The Suna hitai-ate she had received was fastened on her forehead and it was twisted up to the left at an angle and held her long bangs away from her eyes. She wore chain mail and a protective vest underneath a dark purple shirt with long, black fishnet sleeves. Her black pants were high-water for ventilation, with bandages wrapped around both thighs, a kunai holster attached to the right one, and her shuriken holster at the left. She also donned the black issue sandals.

Two years ago she had carved the kanji sign for love into her upper left shoulder, just above her growing breast with a sharpened kunai. Gaara had found her as she had been stopping the bleeding and had slapped her as she had fallen to the ground. She had stared up at him in shock; since it was the first time he had struck her.

He had crouched in front of her as she glanced away, and his hands had closed her opened shirt but left the wound exposed. “Why did you do this?” he asked her tonelessly. He had thrown the bloody bandages she had been using aside, and had pressed clean ones from his pouch against the scarred flesh.

Eizan had glanced back and met his eyes, but had been unable to identify the emotion within them. She had been unable to hold his gaze and had looked away again to rest her eyes on his hand as it pressed the bandages against her wound to stop the bleeding.

“I wanted to feel your pain,” she finally said. At the time she had been desperate to feel closer to him, since he had been pulling away everyday. She had been afraid that one day all she’d see in him was hatred and death.

She had seen his hand still for the slightest moment, and then start to dab at the wound once again. “You are a fool,” he had told her in that emotionless tone.

When she risked a look at his face, he met her gaze and she saw that hint of kindness once more. It had been a bit startling but then she smiled and nodded. “Hai,” she had agreed.

Eizan sat up and glanced off the side of the roof. Gaara had told her that he would meet his two teammates in another location and she had to return to the classroom by herself to meet her Jonin sensei. She sighed as she jumped off the roof and made her way back to the building, stuffing her hands into her pockets as she went.

Before she reached the door, she stopped as two figures appeared in front of her. The taller one had a black shirt with the sleeves rolled up and gray pants with the left leg wrapped in bandages. She saw that there was a pouch at her right lower back and shuriken and kunai holsters at the right thigh. The same black sandals were worn and the Suna hitai-ate was at her forehead as her bangs fell across it. Eizan could see a dark brown braid over one shoulder and she realized that it was Akemi.

Miwako was on her right side and was wearing a short sleeved, black shirt and white shorts and the left thigh had her holsters and she also had the pouch at her back where everything from kunai, shuriken and scrolls could be kept. Her sand headband was tied around her waist and black hair pulled back into a ponytail.

“What-”

“We simply followed your advice,” Miwako said with a slight grin. She placed her hands at her waist and seemed slightly amused by the look on Eizan’s face. “I think it’ll be harder to change our names, but for now just called me Erizawa Iwane.” This was said with a shrug. “I never liked the name Miwako anyways.”

Akemi had been quiet this whole time and now she looked at Eizan. “My grandfather and parents won’t agree with my choice to change my clothes and name,” she said with a hint of defiance in her black eyes. “So call me Itagaki Amane.”

Eizan glanced from one to the other and sighed as she stretched her arms over her head. “Very well then, let’s go meet our weak sensei,” she muttered with a yawn, although she found a smirk stretching over her features as she walked off. ‘Perhaps things won’t be so bad.’

The three girls entered the classroom to see several of the other teams going off with their sensei. They took a seat at a nearby desk to wait for theirs and before long the others had left so only they remained. The substitute Chunin instructor had gone off as well with the petty excuse of a meeting with his co-workers. Eizan had hopped up on the desk to wait and the newly named Amane and Iwane had opted to stand beside the desk.

After several minutes, Eizan stood as she gave a yawn and started to walk off. “I’m leaving,” she muttered and the two girls hurried to catch up to her.

As they reached the door, someone opened it and the pyro glanced up at the older ninja. He wore his Suna headband around his right upper arm over the sleeve of his black shirt that went to his elbows. His pants were also black and there wasn’t a hint of color on him, since his sandals were also black. It reminded her of Kankurou’s own all black clothing. She hated him already.

His longish reddish brown hair was pulled in a low ponytail at the nape of his neck. A black cloth mask hid the lower part of his face, but his dark brown eyes were fixed on the shortest girl in a hateful manner. ‘So, the instructor hates me as well? Just peachy.’

“And where are you three going?” he asked, but was only looking at Eizan with that cold stare. She could tell that he was strong, but it didn’t bother her that he hated her. Almost all of Suna hated her besides Gaara, a young Suna ANBU, Amane and Iwane, so she was use to it.

Everyone had obviously thought she hung around Gaara because they were both isolated. Now that they knew she served him they’d be more hostile toward her. She didn’t care since she’d be willing to suffer through hell for the red headed shinobi. All she cared about was staying by his side. Eizan didn’t know what would become of her if he ever dismissed her. She only knew that she’d rather die than return to the loneliness again.

A hand slipped to her hip as she stared fearlessly back at her instructor. “You’re late,” she told him bluntly.

The Jonin raised an eyebrow and a grin spread over his features under his mask. “You’re not going anywhere.” His harsh gaze lifted and fastened on both Amane and Iwane, as both girls seemed intimidated by him. Eizan merely crossed her arms over her chest and met his stare unflinchingly when it came to land on her once again.

Kazuyoshi Enoki narrowed his eyes when she refused to look away or cower. He had seen Ashikaga Arisa after her family’s death and she had been a weak, fearful five-year-old girl. She had changed drastically over the years.

“Your training starts now.” He turned and left the Academy. Once outside he headed toward the edge of the village as the sun started to set. The training grounds would be hard to see since the moon’s light did not reach there due to the cliffs located close by.

If Eizan had heard his thoughts, she would have almost laughed. Ashikaga Arisa was dead, and she was Ashikaga Eizan.

The two girls looked at her, but she merely shrugged and followed after him as they did the same. She never once let her guard down around anyone besides Gaara, since she hadn’t told him something. After she had interfered with the assassination attempt when he had been eight, the Kazekage had sent an assassin after her as well.

She had been walking alone toward her house that night and she hadn’t been expecting it. Before the sand-nin could inflict harm on her, someone had stopped him. She had looked up and had been almost horrified to see an Anbu member standing in front of her.

He wore a black long sleeved shirt with the Suna symbol stitched into the right bicep. The sleeves were tucked into matching gloves that had a thin metal plate over the knuckles, and a beige armored vest was worn over the shirt. There were shin guards secured over the black pants, and he also donned black issue sandals but they looked different than hers.

Eizan hadn’t wanted to take her eyes off of him, but her gaze had unconsciously gone to the dead assassin. He had disappeared without a word and she had only caught sight of his short, spiky brown hair because a white porcelain mask had hid his face. It had had the Suna symbol etched into the right cheek and the kanji for ‘Harukaze’ on the forehead.

He saved her every time they came for her life, but he never let her thank him before he left as quickly as he had showed up. She quickly learned to never sleep in her room, and to let Gaara handle them when they came while she was with him. It was obvious to her that that they were after them both, but she never told him about the other times and she didn’t know why.

That’s why she was suspicious of their Jonin instructor since he might be after her life as well. However, that isn’t what had happened that night as they had arrived at the training ground that was located farthest away from the houses.

Enoki had vanished among the quickly gathering shadows as they had stopped and looked around for him. He attacked several moments later and after managing to avoid him, she realized he was serious. He didn’t pull back his punches if they didn’t manage to block, and some could inflict serious harm.

When he attacked next it was a frontal assault and threw several shuriken before him. Eizan was blocking the other two’s view but she saw as they each moved around her to deflect the projectiles. The fire wielder flipped over their heads and met Enoki head on. Their kunai clashed and locked into place. He had the greater strength, but she used her excess chakra to keep him at bay and he was surprised as he felt himself gradually being forced back.

Lifting a leg to kick her, she lifted hers to block it and force it to the ground once again. She pushed forward and he was slightly off balance for a second. Taking advantage of it, she used all her strength against him as he stumbled back. Eizan flipped backwards and her feet nailed him under the chin as he fell back. Because of her chakra and her training, she had been able to match his speed.

It continued on like this that night, and he picked up the level of his attacks every half an hour. The other two girls weren’t as fast and she was forced to defend them too many times, and had sustained numerous wounds but luckily it was nothing fatal. The others weren’t in danger and only had minor injuries thanks to her interference.

She blocked another attack meant for Akemi and got hurt in the process. The pain shot through her as she clenched her teeth to keep from crying out. Quickly, she started to form seals for a jutsu as he came at them again.

‘Katon, Housenka no Jutsu!’ She brought her hand around her mouth and breathed in before expelling fireballs from her mouth rapidly. Her brother had taught her this jutsu a long time ago, but she had only mastered it a year after his death.

He had learned it from someone in Konohagakure no Sato. Eizan had met him, since she had been there when her sibling had taken part in the Chunin Exam. During her Academy days, she had found out that the leaf-nin had killed his entire clan. She wasn’t sure whether it was true or not, but her brother had told her that he had been stronger despite being younger.

Enoki frowned and jumped back several times to avoid the fireballs. When she prepared to make her next move, he held out a hand to stop her. “Training is over for tonight,” he said as he breathed in heavily. They were all winded, and he had a few minimal wounds as well. The training had only lasted about four hours, but they had trained well. Eizan doubted that the other teams had gotten the same rough treatment besides Gaara’s team.

After glaring at him a moment, Eizan nodded and straightened before dropping the seal. He told them that they’d meet tomorrow and every night, and it was up to them how to train for it. It was clear that he wouldn’t train them but test and attack them to see if they were keeping up. This was more of a battle, and he would most likely increase his level of attacks as time ran down as he had done tonight.

When he left she had taken out some bandages and thrown them at Amane and Iwane before turning away. “Tomorrow at first light,” she told and then strolled away. As she had walked off she folded her arms behind her head and turned casually around the corner in the direction that would lead to her house. It would be empty.

As she finally arrived, she unlocked and opened the door and stepped inside. The entire house was silent and dark. As she closed and locked the door, she finally collapsed before it with a groan. She had taken too many attacks meant for the others and had strained her chakra with that last attack, but Eizan had refused to show weakness in front of any of them.

She rested the side of her face against the uncomfortably cool wooden floor. Before she closed her eyes, she saw a glint of light from the darkness. Her gaze shifted toward it as it reflected against her Suna hitai-ate.

A figure dressed in all black stepped out of the shadows, and in the dim light she was barely able to make out the hourglass like symbol on his headband. Eizan couldn’t muster the strength to move as he approached her. His hand slipped into the pouch at his side as he stopped beside her.

Another assassin had come for her life but it looked like he’d be successful that night since there was no sign of the Anbu. He lifted the kunai in his hand as her eyes slid shut, and the last thing she saw was the moonlight glinting off the sharpened edge of his weapon as it descended toward her.-

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Translations:

1. Seiza: is the traditional and formal way of sitting in Japan. It is quite polite to sit in seiza style, where you kneel on the floor, resting your buttocks on your heels with the tops of your feet flat on the floor.

2. Dogeza: dates back to when samurai served Japanese feudal lords, but it is still practiced today under extreme circumstances in which one begs for forgiveness or pleads for consent. The feet and legs are positioned as in seiza. However, unlike seiza, those performing dogeza bow deeply with their face down and hands to the side.

3. Harukaze: lit. “spring wind”

4. seals: a bunch of hand movements that are named and represented after animals.

5. Katon, Housenka no Jutsu: lit. “Fire Release, Mythical Fire Flower Technique”

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

End, Chapter Three

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