Naruto Fan Fiction ❯ Glimpses of Fire ❯ Arriving in Konoha ( Chapter 6 )

[ Y - Young Adult: Not suitable for readers under 16 ]

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:The story really starts to pick up speed here and you will start to learn more about the characters and how they will affect the story and the outcome. Also, I was suppose to update this story every week or two, but now it might be sooner than usual, depending on my schedule. Enjoy!

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~Chapter Six: Arriving in Konoha~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The three girls peered up at the gates as they arrived at Konoha. Eizan frowned as they presented their travel papers to the guard and then were allowed to pass. Enoki had handed them over the applications they had filled out, and they'd be relayed to the Hokage's office.

They were barely given a second look from the Jonin standing guard but her eyes took him in completely, seeing that he was well armed even when he didn't look like he was. There was a Senbon needle dangling from his lips and anyone else might have confused it with a toothpick, not knowing that it was actually a weapon.

The man that was standing as guard at the gate today was Shiranui Genma. He was laid back and appeared almost lazy to one that didn't know him, but he was a very competent ninja and reliable to have in a battle.

Genma was still in his prime at 29 years of age and had the body of a ninja. His slightly long brown hair was hidden under his Konoha hitai-ate, which covered his whole head as the Leaf symbol faced the back.

He had attained the Jonin of rank at a reasonable age, but didn't have a Genin squad like many others with his rank. Today he was taking the place of the normal guard since the majority of the Chunin were on missions or at the Academy, and the Tokubetsu Jonin were busy taking care of last minute preparations for the Chunin Exam.

Since there would be a lot of teams coming from villages that could be hostile or pose a threat, security had been tightened. He was sure there was more than one Anbu squad patrolling the lands around the walls, since most of the Oinin were out on missions.

Genma felt eyes on him and turned to meet the gaze of one of the Suna Genin that he had just allowed to pass through the gates. The younger boy was staring at him and he was slightly taken back by his cold gaze. Also, his dark eyes were rimmed in a blood red color.

He had short, wild black hair and his Suna hitai-ate was twisted up at the left to keep his long bangs out of his eyes. He wore a black shirt with purple fishnet sleeves and black pants with the right knee bandaged. Genma was sure that he was very well armed, and he had two holsters on each thigh and his pouch at the center of his back. He wondered briefly if the youth was ambidextrous.

There were two boys on either side of the Genin, and Genma assumed that they were his teammates. They looked to be a year or two older than him, and were definitely taller than him by several inches.

The one on his right had dark brown hair pulled into a braid, and the Suna headband fastened at his forehead so his bangs fell slightly over ebony orbs. He wore a short sleeved shirt made of thin wire mesh underneath a sleeveless black shirt. This was accompanied by gray pants with the left knee bandaged, and his kunai and shuriken holsters attached at his right thigh.

The boy on his left had his shoulder length black hair pulled into a low ponytail, and he had emerald eyes with a strange light in them. He was wearing a white shirt that only had a black left sleeve. His black pants had the holsters at the left thigh and the sand hitai-ate secured on the right one facing away from his body.

Genma could tell that all three of them were very well armed even if they didn't appear to be. Besides, he had always heard that Suna-nin were fierce in battle even at the Genin level since their training methods were rather harsh.

The short haired boy narrowed his eyes at him before turning away and walking off, and he was soon followed by the other two. He was now able to see the back of their shirts and the boys on the sides had the kanji for death in the middle of their backs. The Genin in the middle not only had the same kanji tattooed to the nape of his neck, but it was also on the back of his shirt. It had both love and death rotating around one another.

Genma frowned and looked down at the chart where he had marked the two teams that had just passed. He was surprised when he saw that one of the teams had consisted of three kunoichi. He looked up at the team and studied them as they walked off and realized that they were indeed three young girls.

It was strange that he hadn't noticed that they were female since all three of them were attractive. Then again, the same could be said about some of the boys their age as well.

The Jonin had assumed that they were boys since most girls their age were distinctly female and some even wore make-up. These Suna-nin, however, had no such gunk covering their faces and donned extremely masculine clothing.

And another thing that was bugging him was the shorter of the three. He had sensed something from her and the red haired shinobi from the second team, and it was a powerful chakra that had caused a chill to go through him. His had a distinctive blood lust and hers had been like an inferno.

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

When they had lost sight of the gate Eizan turned toward Amane and Iwane, and motioned toward Temari and Kankurou. They nodded and followed the older ninja. She didn't want them to cause any trouble and knew that if there was any then either Amane or Iwane would come find her.

The red haired shinobi had separated from his siblings, and now she moved around a corner and disappeared within the crowd of people. She had seen the nod Gaara had sent her way and so she knew that she was to go and see if she noticed any strong ninja near by.

They had arrived seven days before the Exam would start but they would use that time to their advantage. It was nearing afternoon already and she was walking along when she saw an eagle fly overhead. Her eyes narrowed as she quickly riffled through the useful tidbits of memory that she had stored. An instant later she had it and knew that usually that type of eagle wasn't common in this area, and wondered if perhaps it was a signal like the Kazekage called the Jonin in Suna.

This country also had a Kage but theirs was known as a Hokage. She went through the information she had and knew that the current one was the Sandaime. Eizan wondered for a brief moment what kind of person the Hokage was and his relationship with the rest of the villagers. `Is he like the Kazekage who sees his own son's life as an abomination?' Her hands clenched into fists at this thought and she wished for the thousandth time that she could kill the old man.

As she was exploring she passed a shop that served Ramen with the sign `Ichiraku' over it. The Suna-nin wondered what the quality of their food was and made a mental note to return. She like ramen since it had been one of the main things that she had always eaten when she had been younger. During her childhood she hadn't had too much money and instant ramen had been the only thing she could afford on most days.

However, before her family's death she had enjoyed it. She had always seen her brother finish a cup of ramen in half a minute before he rushed off to a mission or training. During those times she had wanted to be just like Eizan and so she had mimicked him even when her mother became upset when all she'd want to eat was ramen.

Then she'd become a Genin and gone on missions, so she'd been able to afford to buy more than just ramen. Even so, it had always remained one of her preferred choices when deciding on a meal. It reminded her of her brother.

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

Eizan had explored for maybe half an hour when she felt a familiar chakra signature approaching. Amane appeared beside her as she stopped a moment later. Her hands were stuffed into her pockets and she was clutching something in one of them. “Eizan-sama, Kankurou is causing a bit of trouble,” Amane muttered.

The shorter girl frowned before sighing. She hopped onto the nearest rooftop and headed in the direction that the Itagaki indicated as she ran along beside her. “What's that fool done this time?” she asked. The taller ninja smirked and merely shrugged. Eizan sighed again.

She tilted her head to the side and changed directions. “Go ahead of me,” she informed her and headed in the direction that she sensed Gaara's chakra. The wind user nodded and went off the way they had been going in. Eizan knew that the red head would want to know that his “dear brother” was causing trouble and hindering the plan.

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

Kankurou dropped the little kid he'd been about to punch when a rock struck his arm, and he growled and looked in the direction it had come from. A boy sat on a tree branch and he looked to be around their age or a year younger. He was throwing up two rocks in one of his hands and catching them easily.

When Amane appeared behind the puppet master, Iwane grinned at her and motioned toward the raven haired Genin. The Itagaki only sighed.

The boy that Kankurou had lifted off his feet had scrambled back to his friends, a young girl and another boy his age. Standing besides them were two other Genin, a blonde haired, blue eyed boy, and a pink haired, teal eyed girl that looked to be more concerned for her looks than her training.

Both Suna kunoichi didn't speak to Temari or Kankurou, and merely waited as Gaara's brother looked up at the boy in the tree. He was smirking in a superior way and looking down at him as he leaned against the trunk. His Konoha hitai-ate indicated that this was his village, and they assumed that he was Genin like the other two on the ground. A mop of black hair fell slightly into matching ebony eyes.

The pink haired kunoichi was staring up at him with a slight frown and the two Suna girls continued to watch the events quietly. They had been ordered to follow the sand siblings but nothing had been said about interfering. More than likely it would either be Eizan or Gaara that would put an end to this.

“Tell me, what're you doing in our village?” the leaf-nin asked. Amane turned to look at the pink haired girl who had muttered a name, and then bit her bottom lip nervously and clenched her hands into fists at her sides.

`Sasuke.' The wind user's eyes fastened on the blonde haired kid behind the kunoichi who didn't look too thrilled to see the boy. His cerulean gaze was observing the events quietly as they were, but his loud clothes might have suggested that he was an impulsive and foolish person.

Amane's features twisted into a glare when she saw a blush upon Temari's face. The brown haired girl wanted to deck the girl. She was a shinobi, and not a hormone-driven teenager. However, at times Iwane was worse when it came to members of the opposite and same gender.

“Oh look, another little brat,” Kankurou growled as he gripped the hand the rock had struck. Both girls were observing intently in case anything of interest was brought to their attention to tell Eizan about it.

On that thought, Amane wondered where their leader had gone off to, but instead concentrated on the confrontation. They were all but being ignored and it was the way she liked it since it was best when trying to gather information.

“Get lost,” the boy informed the puppet master. Amane could have laughed at the way Kankurou became upset by the words, but only thought him an idiot. The blonde boy glanced in their direction and let his gaze pass over them intently. Amane frowned slightly and glanced at her companion. Iwane's gaze shifted toward her and the other girl merely gave her a grin.

A moment later, the earth user's eyes narrowed and she inclined her head the slightest bit. Amane didn't react and only nodded to indicate that she was aware of the same thing.

“Come down, little squirrel,” he called out and Sasuke merely stared down at him and made no move to comply with the request. Either he was really confidant in his ability to defeat Kankurou or he was a fool. Amane quickly decided that it was the older boy that was a fool as he moved the hand that held the puppet on his back. “Think you're pretty smart, don't you?”

When he removed the bundle from his back, Amane found herself developing a headache. `Does that boy have no common sense?' she wondered. They were in a foreign village of an ally nation, and starting a fight outside of the Chunin Exam could cause a lot of trouble.

Temari also seemed to realize the consequences and stepped toward her younger brother. “Tell me you're not planning to use Karasu?” Temari asked incredulously. He didn't answer and continued to smirk up at Sasuke. Iwane tensed as did Amane when they felt the two presences appear just above the boy in the tree.

“Kankurou, stop,” came the chillingly cold voice. A figure moved just beside Sasuke who was shocked to discover that someone was there. On a branch a bit higher than him was Gaara, and his arms were crossed over his chest as he hung upside down from a tree branch as his feet were held against the tree branch by his chakra.

Above him, Eizan was crouched on the same branch and her eyes were narrowed slightly on the scene below her. “You're a disgrace to our village.” All the Konoha inhabitants were staring up in surprise since they'd both appeared quite suddenly.

Sasuke was indeed stunned to hear the boy behind him and not just him, but there was another Suna-nin on top of the same branch. He was crouched and said nothing as he glared down at the ninja below. `How did they manage to sneak up behind me? Their stealth skills rival Kakashi's', were his thoughts.

Another thing that caught his interest was that Kankurou and Temari looked completely terrified by the sight of him. `So, he's the leader,' he thought in reference to the two older ninja. He switched his look on the other, and wondered if he was part of the three man cell along with the two other boys that had been behind Kankurou all this time that hadn't spoken one word to anyone.

“It annoys me that you would lose control in a quarrel with children,” Gaara muttered darkly. The older boy was staring at him nervously as sweat dripped down his face. “Have you forgotten why we came here?”

Sasuke wondered why they were here, but thought it best to listen to the conversation. He found the two in the tree very interesting and wanted to learn more if he could.

“L...listen Gaara, th-they started it,” Kankurou argued as he motioned toward the blonde boy and the younger one. He seemed desperate for the redhead to believe his words, but by Gaara's expression it didn't seem to be working all that well. “The little one slammed me!”

Gaara's eyes narrowed dangerously. “Shut up,” he warned quietly, and while he hadn't raised his voice the tone was dead serious. “I'll kill you.” Kankurou shuddered at the look the younger boy pinned him with and he found himself stepping back.

“I got it,” he conceded, having returned the wrapped bundle to his back once again. The two behind him smirked at this and glanced at one another before stepping back as if they didn't want to be caught in the cross hairs of the Suna ninja. “My mistake.”

Temari held up her hands and smiled nervously. “We're sorry,” she said and it looked like she wanted to crawl under a rock for cover. “Okay, Gaara?”

For Sasuke it confirmed even more that he was their leader, and so it was only reasonable to think that the other one was the leader for the two behind Kankurou.

“Apologies to you,” Gaara said as he turned to look at Sasuke. Their gazes met and the dark haired boy almost shivered at the intensity of his stare. He was even more interested in knowing the red head.

Gaara was also interested in him since he'd seen some of what had happened through his third eye. He'd sent it ahead of him to see the trouble that Kankurou had gotten into. `This is the one who hit Kankurou with a stone. That took skill.'

He vanished within his sand and appeared in between his siblings as they instinctively stepped away from him. “Let's go. We didn't come here to play around.” Kankurou nodded and followed him when Gaara turned to walk away and Temari also did as her younger brother instructed.

Sasuke turned to glance up at the other boy and was surprised to see that he was gone as well. When he looked to the ground it was to see that he was standing beside his teammates and had already started to follow the other three Suna-nin.

“Hey, wait,” called the pink-haired ninja. The shortest ninja turned slightly as Sakura had called out. He saw the one that had been on the branch move to step in front of Gaara. “Judging by your hitai-ate, you are ninja from Sunagakure,” she started. “The Fire and Wind Country may be allies, but it's forbidden for shinobi to enter each other's villages without permission.” The boy with the braid looked almost bored by her words. “We can't just let you pass. State your purpose!”

Eizan stepped toward her as she glared at the girl. “Is that so?” she asked. “I'd like to see what you plan on doing to stop us, kunoichi.”

Even if the sand-nin was shorter than her, Sakura saw something in those ebony orbs that made the pink haired girl step back as her teal eyes widened in fear. However, one glance from Gaara and the Suna kunoichi hesitated and then backed off.

Sasuke didn't miss this and frowned. `Is he the leader of both cells?' he wondered. It seemed that way since one look was all it had taken to stop the black haired ninja from proceeding further with the threat against Sakura.

“Talk about living under a rock,” Temari spoke up. She removed something from her pouch and they would all see that it was a passport, and thus permission to enter into Konoha. It had her information and picture and the Suna symbol on the side of the photo. The others didn't bother to extract theirs. “Weren't you informed?”

She stared to explain to them about the Chunin Exam. The other blonde Genin asked her a question or two, but Sasuke had started to notice that he had started to change. He knew the reason for that and he was glad for the presence of the other boy.

When Temari had finished her explanation Sasuke jumped off the tree and landed in front of his teammates. There was a pensive look on the blonde's face while the pink haired kunoichi was watching their exchange intently with calculating eyes.

Meanwhile, Eizan was watching the raven haired Genin that was so familiar to her. When he jumped from the tree she had stepped protectively in front of Gaara once again.

“Hey, you! What's your name?” he asked as he looked at Gaara. Temari thought he was addressing her and blushed once again. “No, the one next to you with the gourd.” It was obvious he meant Gaara, especially when he pointed at him.

The fire wielder looked him over and thought that it'd be useful to find out more about him. He looked skillful and might be one of those strong opponents that Gaara wanted to find. She glanced back at Gaara and saw that he was returning Sasuke's stare, but his was harsher.

“Sabaku no Gaara,” he responded quietly. “I am also interested in you. Your name?” It seemed that Eizan had been right in her assumption about Gaara being interested in this boy. Her eyes flicked back to the other boy.

“It's Uchiha Sasuke,” he answered the red haired boy as he smirked. When he said his name the short boy's eyes widen. He frowned and turned to look at him. “Who are you?” he asked him next, meeting his stare. He saw that his eyes were not completely black as he had originally thought, and there was a blood red lining them and soaking the pupil. The color reminded him of his older brothers' Sharingan.

Ashikaga Eizan was shocked to hear the name. `I knew he looked familiar,' she mused. `He looks so much like Itachi.' She frowned when his gaze turned toward her and asked her who she was. `His eyes changed so much. They're almost dead slates.'

A smirk spread over her features and she might have given him her name but she saw Gaara turn to look at her. His eyes had hardened and she could have sworn she saw a momentary flash of anger in them. It was almost frightening.

She turned to meet the Uchiha's stare and glared at him before turning away. “Don't be so nosy,” she growled. As she walked off, Amane and Iwane followed after her. She had never seen Gaara react that way, but for some reason she felt a small smile spread over her face.

“Hey, Hey! What about me?” the blonde boy finally spoke up after having observed the exchange. He was grinning and pointing a finger at him self. He seemed rather excited about everyone giving out their names and it was almost amusing.

The Genin had blonde hair and blue eyes, and he was wearing a flamboyant orange jacket and matching pants. His sandals were blue and his leaf hitai-ate was proudly displayed at his forehead.

Gaara turned around to follow after the one that hadn't given his name. Sasuke hadn't missed the look the spook had sent his way. When he lifted his gaze to look in his direction, the Uchiha was once again surprised to see that he was gone along with his teammates.

“Not interested,” Gaara responded to the question and started to walk off. They were gone in the next few seconds and Sasuke had to smirk.

`Things are getting interesting', he thought to himself, ignoring his blonde teammate who seemed to be depressed about not being asked to supply his name. He didn't notice that Sakura was being strangely silent, or that she was looking after the sand ninja with worry etched into her face.

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

Eizan came to stop on the roof of a nearby building and Amane and Iwane kneeled before her before she indicated that they stand. “Report,” she muttered to them as she turned away and crossed her arms over her chest.

Her gaze shifted toward the direction that the Konoha Genin had been, and she saw as Gaara and his team left. She knew that they were most likely going to where they had rented rooms at a local ryokan, and knew that Enoki had made theirs at the same place.

Amane spoke up first. “The one named Uchiha Sasuke was able to easily hit Kankurou so that he released the small boy,” she said, trying to remember anything else important about the others. “The pink haired kunoichi didn't say much but she has sharp eyes. Even then she didn't appear too strong.”

Iwane smirked and nodded about that. “I doubt she'd pose too much of a threat,” she commented and shrugged her shoulders before crossing her arms behind her head. “But we both agree that she still shouldn't be underestimated since by her words, she seems smart where she lacks skills.”

Eizan lifted an eyebrow and tried to remember if she had seen anything useful about her but there wasn't. “I wonder if they're part of the same team?” she asked out loud. The other girls gave each other incredulous looks but it did seem that way.

“Maybe they are. They'd made the usual three man cell with the blonde boy,” commented Amane. “He didn't seem too strong either, but he was observing as we were.” She remembered something else and stepped forward. “Also, there were three ninja observing us, Eizan-sama.”

Iwane snapped her fingers and it almost seemed like it had escaped her mind for a moment. “Hai, I sensed them as well. They were nearby watching from a nearby three but I couldn't exactly see what village they hailed from.” She turned her body so that she was looking in the same direction that Eizan was. “They're probably one of the many teams that have already started to arrive for the Chunin Exam.”

Eizan stretched her arms over her head, and yawned. She plopped down on the edge of the roof as her legs hung over the side. Her gaze swept over what she could see of the village. “Possibly,” she commented and yawned again as she brought her hand to stifle it. “This is a more flourishing land than our own village, don't you think?”

Amane and Iwane moved to stand on either side of her, also letting their eyes move over the village. They were not on the highest of the buildings, but from here they had a pretty good view. “Hai, but I wouldn't want to live here,” the wind user told them and pushed back a loose strand of her hair behind her ear.

Iwane nodded to this as she placed one foot just at the edge of the roof. “I doubt if the kunoichi of this village are anything but stupid, flirting fools,” the earth user spoke up. She grinned sheepishly at her quiet teammate as she flicked her pony tail back over her shoulder. “But I'm one to talk, huh?”

Eizan laughed. “You'd fit right in,” she said and escaped her whining friend by jumping off the roof. She landed easily on the ground and lifted her head and glance up at them. “Scout around and see if you see anything interesting. I'm going to get some food.” The Ashikaga smirked. “Or you could join me for some Ramen?”

Iwane laughed and Amane smirked slightly. They both shook their head and said almost at the same time, “You know I hate the stuff.” All three girls went their separate ways after agreeing to meet at the Inn after an hour.

Eizan shook her head when they had gone and then walked off as she stuffed her hands into her pockets. She strolled toward the ramen shop that she had seen earlier, since she had to get use to this city because they were likely to be here for a while.

She actually had to push the Noren aside that hung from the low roof and slid onto one of the stools. A middle aged man and a young woman greeted her with smiles. It was slightly surprising, but she remembered that no one here would know what she was and thus wouldn't fear her as Suna did.

She merely gave them a nod in return to their greeting. “Chashuu ramen,” she simply told them. The man immediately started on her order as the girl asked her what she'd like to drink. Eizan asked for oolong tea as she fiddled with the chop sticks she had extracted from the green container to her left.

As she was waiting, the sound of approaching footsteps was heard. The fire wielder could tell that they were running in this direction. Moments later, the Noren were pushed aside as a figure entered.

“Ichiraku Ramen is the best!” the person was chanting as he sat two stools to Eizan's left. She lifted her head slightly and peered through her bangs at him since his voice sounded vaguely familiar.

A flash of blonde hair and orange clothing was enough for her to realize that it was one of the Konoha Genin they had run into not too long ago. He hadn't said anything too important, but it was hard to miss that mop of his and his clothing wasn't exactly subtle. He was certainly noticeable.

“Pork roast, old man!” The mentioned “old man” was setting the bowl in front of her when he glanced at the boy, and she saw a fond smile pass over his features.

`He probably comes here often,' she mused to herself and stored that for future reference.

Eizan placed her hands in front of her and slightly bowed her head. “Itadakimasu,” she muttered. She didn't believe in any of the gods or deities that her parents or grandparents did, but saying the phrase had become a habit. After all, Eizan couldn't believe in a god that would give her these abilities only to destroy everything she's ever loved.

The Ashikaga was distracted from her brooding thought as the boy wiggled impatiently in his seat. She chuckled quietly and shook her head, and started to eat her noodles.

It was just as the girls had reported, since he didn't appear strong and so she had no need to observe him. However, while she would have preferred to finish her meal in peace, it seemed that fate always had a different idea in mind.

“Hey! It's you...that shinobi from...uh...” he said, fishing around for the name. To Eizan he didn't appear to be too bright, but she'd learned that at times things are not as they seemed. However, she doubted that that could be said about this boy.

She swallowed the mouthful of noodles and lifted her gaze to look at him as her bangs fell slightly over her right eye. Her cold stare, which usually unnerved anyone from Suna, didn't seem to have any effect on the blonde Genin. He merely blinked in confusion and stared back.

“Sunagakure,” she provided and wondered why she ever bothered. She went back to her meal and hoped that the answer would placate the boy into leaving her in peace. Eizan would soon learn that shaking off Uzumaki Naruto wasn't the easiest thing in the world.

He snapped his fingers as he grinned. “Yeah, that's it!” A hearty thanks was given to the man when he placed his bowl of ramen before the leaf-nin, and he made quick work of breaking his chop sticks apart. “Itadakimasu!” he yelled before he started to eat the noodles with gusto.

It seemed he favored ramen. Eizan almost smirked at the fact that they had something in common, but she merely shook her head and returned to her own meal. “So, what's your name?” He grinned and pointed the chopsticks in his direction. “I'm Uzumaki Naruto!” he supplied without waiting for a response and pointed his eating utensils at her this time.

“It's rude to point with your hashi,” she chastised. “ And I don't think I recall asking for your name.” She returned to her food, and Naruto blinked in confusion and also went back to his ramen. He was eating faster, however, and had already started on his second bowl by this time. It seemed he really liked ramen.

When she had paid and stood to leave, the blonde was on his third or fourth bowl. She was walking down the street when he called out to her. “Onii-san, wait up,” he said, and quickly finished and paid as well.

Eizan had stopped but for a different reason. `Onii-san?' Memories of the past came unbidden to her mind and she struggled to keep his memories in check. She hadn't reviewed them all and knew what would happen if she let them fill her mind too quickly.

As she continued to walk once again, she made it a point to ignore him, but he followed her. “Come on, Onii-san, tell me your name!”

She stuffed her hands into her pockets and glanced away from him. The day was fading toward the western horizon, and it looked like the sun had been slain and was spilling its guts across the heavens. It reminded Eizan of her childhood days, which had been splattered with blood.

Meanwhile, Naruto was chatting while she ignored him, but kept an open ear in case he said something of importance. So far all he'd done was boast how he was getting stronger thanks to his friends help and that soon he'd be able to defeat Sasuke easily. He hadn't given his “friend” a name, but the blonde had assured her that he was very strong.

“That's why I want to take the test and beat Sasuke,” was his finally declaration and he clenched his hand into a fist. It was already clear to Eizan that Sasuke and he were teammates, since he had mentioned in somewhere in his rambling. Another slightly interesting thing that she'd heard was that they were rivals, but she had to wonder how serious the raven-haired ninja took it.

Naruto had also mentioned a `Sakura-chan', and she figured that it was the pink haired kunoichi. He had described her as having a brilliant mind, which was amazing to Eizan. She didn't know that the Uzumaki even knew that word.

She realized that she'd almost reached the ryokan and didn't wish the blonde to know where she was staying at. So she stopped and turned toward him.

“Get lost, Bozu,” she told him and he halted in his stride and met her stare. His cerulean orbs were almost mesmerizing and she found that she had to tear her gaze from his. Then she was walking away and turning into the small alleyway that would lead her toward the next street and the inn.

When she was half way down the alley a figure manifested itself before her as she froze in her tracks. A gasp escaped her lips and she fell to one knee. Gaara was standing before her but that wasn't what had made her gasp. It was the look of murder in his eyes as his sand swirled around him dangerously. “Gaara-dono!”

Moments later she felt his foot connect under her chin and she cried out as flew back. She landed a few feet from away and she was still for a second as her heart pounded in her ears. Then she scrambled back onto her knees, and wondered what she had done to upset him so much.

He strode toward her but stopped as a shout come from behind her. “Hey, you can't do that!” She recognized Naruto's voice, and remembered that he had been just around the corner and he'd most likely seen everything.

Gaara lifted his gaze from his subordinate and glared at the boy with sun kissed hair as turquoise clashed with blue. Everything seemed to pause in those few moments as they stared each other down. The red head seemed to see something in the blonde that he liked and the sand started to leak from his gourd.

Eizan started to rise to her feet and was fully prepared to demand that Naruto leave, but she was stopped. The male Suna-nin's hand snapped forward and harshly knocked her away and she crashed against the wall.

“Stay there,” Gaara growled and turned to look at the other boy once again. Meanwhile, Eizan slid to the floor as she coughed and blood passed her lips. “I can treat my property as I please.”

She winced as he spoke these words but resigned herself. All along she'd know that all she'd ever been to him was nothing more than a tool. She was property that could be disposed of when no longer useful, but that still didn't lessen her pain and sorrow.

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

Naruto had been about to leave but had heard the boy gasp before saying a name. He'd turned into the alley only to see the sand wielding shinobi's foot knock Eizan to the ground as he cried out.

He lifted wide eyes and was surprised to see the one that he and his team had met earlier. The leaf ninja was trying to remember his name as the other Suna-nin hurried back onto his knees. `Sabaku no Gaara' he recalled, and then he impulsively yelled at the red haired kid. Even if he had started to control himself better since the mission to Waves, at the time it didn't seem like it, but he was justified!

The blonde watched as Eizan started to stand, but was knocked to the side by Gaara as he hit the wall. He slid to the ground with a small groan, and his gaze didn't leave him as the other jinchuriki spoke. When the red head referred to the Ashikaga as property he saw as he flinched as if he'd been hit.

His long bangs had come to fall over the Suna hitai-ate to obscure his eyes. The shorter ninja didn't want to show it, but the words had hurt.

“How can you say that?” he muttered quietly, letting his gaze wander for another moment on the fallen boy before he finally turned to look at Gaara. “People aren't property and he doesn't deserve to be treated like that! No one does!”

He clenched his hands into fists and then ran toward him. “I'm going to kick your ass and make you apologize!” He jumped forward and swung, and was shocked when the other boy's figure appeared before him and took the hit.

The short haired ninja stumbled back a bit but quickly regained his balance. He was slouched slightly and blood was dripping from his mouth to stain the ground below him. The bangs still obscured his eyes from Naruto's sight.

`Why did he protect him?' the blonde wondered in disbelief as he watched the other lift his blood stained face.

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

Eizan saw Naruto clench his hands and then rush at Gaara. Normally, he would have stopped this by letting the sand envelope him so that he could crush him. She realized, however, that the red head wanted to toy with the leaf-nin before killing him.

Her body moved of its own free will with the desire to protect both of them. The Uzumaki boy had been a bit too chatty, but she didn't think he deserved to die in such a way, and she had always sworn to serve Gaara and defend him from anything.

The fist had connected with her jaw and she had only stumbled a few steps before she straightened. She had almost fallen since vertigo had seized her from having been hit already, and blood was dripping from her mouth. Gaara had moved back so she hadn't slammed into him, but even she hadn't have recovered in time, the sand would have come up to protect him.

The blood had spilled in a small puddle at her feet before she lifted her gaze to meet Naruto's wide eyed stare. “Back off,” she snarled quietly as she coughed and once again splattered the ground scarlet.

The energetic blonde stepped toward her but stopped at her growl. She moved back and turned to face Gaara and bowed at the waist toward him.

“Sumimasen.” When he didn't say anything, she lifted her head and saw as his eyes narrowed in anger. Then he turned and disappeared in his sand. When he was gone she sighed and fell onto her knees, but it wasn't from relief. She had seen in his eyes that this matter between them had not been resolved.

She felt someone helping her to her feet, and then heard Naruto asking her if she was okay. “Onii-san, can you walk?” She shoved him away and turned to glare at the boy. For some odd reason, she knew that he had been the cause of this.

“Don't touch me! I am not your Onii-san! Get lost,” she told him before she staggered back. She jumped up onto the roof and put some distance between the two.

After she spent a few minutes recovering on a rooftop several blocks down, she started to move toward the ryokan once again. She wasn't sure what Gaara had in store for her but she only knew that it was anything but good. Eizan only wished her wounds would heal before the start of the Chunin Exam.

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

Translations:

1.Kage: literally “Shadow”; those who achieved the title of Kage are the leaders of the five most powerful Hidden Villages. Kage are usually the most powerful ninja of the village.

2. Chashuu: roasted pork fillet

3. Itadakimasu: traditional phrase of gratitude said before a meal

4. Bozu: this is an informal way to refer to a boy, similar to the English term “kid” or “squirt”.

5. Sumimasen: I'm sorry, forgive me.

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

End Chapter Six