Naruto Fan Fiction ❯ Leaf in the Desert ❯ Chapter 9

Chapter 9

 

Something hurt. At first, Aikou couldn't really tell where the pain was centralized, but soon it became all too apparent that it was mostly her head and a great deal of her body. It felt like someone had crashed a building down on her. Movement seemed beyond her.

 

I wonder if Uzumaki felt like this after I punched him. Now she could sympathize- and regret her hasty actions an oh-so-little-bit. Well, maybe not… he DID kiss me after all, without my consent.

 

Well aren't you little miss high-and-mighty? a disgusted voice sounded in her pounding head. No wonder everyone calls you “princess.” You think everything has to be approved by you before it happens?

 

N-no… of course not… There are many things that occur that I have no control over.

 

A cool sensation pressed gently against her brow, causing some of the pain to recede from her head. Vaguely she wondered why she would feel something against her forehead- didn't she have her forehead protector on from her battle with Nika and those two g-

 

Her eyes snapped open. Memories from the Konoha arena filled her mind- the water octopus that her partner created, the wolves that her opponents had summoned, the smoke that blinded her as the wolves ran toward her father and mother and younger brother…

 

“Aikou?”

 

A concerned voice filled her ears, bringing her out of her recollection. She blinked slowly, clearing her foggy vision as she tried to focus on the source of the voice.

 

“Aikou, are you okay? Can you hear me?”

 

A figure leaned over her, a man with long bangs hanging over intense eyes. Worry was evident in every line of that handsome face. Worry?

 

He brushed his hand against her cheek with such gentleness she nearly gasped out loud. “Aikou?”

 

She struggled to sit up, aware that every inch of her protested the movement. Wincing, she allowed him to help her. Did that make her weak?

 

“No, that makes you human. It is not weakness that allows us to depend on others.”

 

“But, Father- a shinobi cannot depend on others. If we allow others to help us, we will not be able to become strong,” eight-year-old Aikou protested.

 

Gaara gave his precious daughter a smile. “If we donot allow others to help us, we will never know what kind of strength we can achieve.” He leaned down and gave her a hug, taking the little girl into his arms and lifting her up as he so often did when she was much smaller. “Together with your nakama, you can become more than you ever imagined.”

 

A damp washcloth fell from her forehead as she sat forward. She stared at it a moment before glancing up at the young man who held her up with such strong hands. “Wh-wh-wh…?” she tried to say, but her mouth felt like it was full of sand.

 

“Are you okay?” He gently brushed long damp red bangs out of her eyes. Turning away for a moment, he poured a cup of water from a nearby bucket and handed it to her. “Here- water.”

 

Nodding her thanks, she took the proffered drink and allowed the cool liquid to relieve her thirst. After a moment, she stared at her companion.

 

“Feel better?”

 

She nodded again, her eyes slightly wary as they gazed at him. “Where are we, Uzumaki?”

 

Kohaku scowled slightly. “Iwa.”

 

Alarm surged through every fiber of her being and ice blue eyes flew wide. “Iwa?!”

 

“I'm guessing you remember at least part of your battle in the arena?”

 

Aikou lifted a shaky hand to her head. “Nika… and a water-jutsu octopus…”

 

The orange-haired nin nodded. “After the two imposters that were posing as Shikazu and Shido summoned those wolves, Nika hit you and the rest of the finalists waiting in the alcove with some sort of knockout powder.”

 

She gave him an appraising look. “Why were you not affected?”

 

He sat back on his heels and looked away. “I… had jumped down into the arena. As soon as I heard that wolf howl.”

 

“Why?”

 

Kohaku shrugged. “It doesn't matter. We're here now and I think we're going to be here a while until we come up with a plan to escape. We must get back to Konoha as fast as we can.”

 

There was something in his voice that caused the hair on the back of her neck to stand up. “What is going on, Uzumaki?” she asked flatly. “What are you not telling me?”

 

The look he gave her was so serious that for a moment she thought he had become someone else completely. “Our countries are in danger.”

 

“I know that,” she shot back. “But there is another reason for your urgency. Now I demand to know what it is. Does this involve my family?”

 

For a long time he was silent. Too long, in Aikou's opinion, for it to be anything but good news.

 

“Our fathers may already be dead,” he finally said in a deadly quiet voice.

 

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Safaia sat outside the hospital's emergency treatment room, her hands resting on the backs of Sora and Midori, both of whom had fallen asleep with their heads on her lap as they waited to hear word about their fathers' condition. She stared at the pristine white door as if that alone would allow her to see inside to where the med-nins were fighting frantically to save the Hokage and the Kazekage's lives.

 

Gaara… my love…

 

I know someday I must lose you, but please… I beg of you…

 

Do not let it be today…

 

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Inside the medical emergency room, Sakura, unable to bear the thought of trying to heal her husband with him so close to death, focused her talents on trying to heal Gaara, while Ino, having been trained as a med-nin as well, with the best of her former students, worked on Naruto.

 

Naruto has Kyuubi inside him to help heal him, Sakura thought as she fought to close the gaping wounds in Gaara's chest and stomach. His left arm had nearly been ripped off and everyone in the emergency room was covered in blood from both Kages. Gaara has no such help. It's going to take everything I've got to keep him alive.

 

She frowned as she focused all her healing jutsu on stopping the blood escaping from Gaara's chest, perspiration trickling down her temples.

 

Why isn't this stopping? It's almost as if there's something… preventing me from using my chakra to heal him…

 

“Sakura,” Ino called, concern evident in her voice.

 

“I'm kinda busy!” she hollered back, tears in her eyes. Come on, Gaara… you can't give up on us… Fight, dammit!

 

“Sakura-sensei,” one of her assistants murmured, “the Hokage…”

 

Emerald eyes lifted from the bloody body of Gaara to snap over to the equally torn up form of her husband. “Naruto?”

 

“Naruto?!”

 

----------------------------

 

“Dead?”

 

Kohaku turned away, his bangs covering his eyes. “It's possible.”

 

“How?”

 

He took a deep breath, as if to brace himself for something painful.

 

“You were already unconscious by the time those wolves reached the dais,” he said quietly. “But I saw. There wasn't any time- and our fathers made a fatal error.”

 

Aikou's head was bent and he couldn't see her face. Her question came out in a breathy whisper. “Error?”

 

Kohaku lifted his head and gazed unseeing at the ceiling of their cell. “They had disguised themselves throughout the tournament as ANBU guards, using shadow clones to replace themselves in their chairs. They must have thought that any attack would be on their clones, giving them the chance for a surprise attack and the upper hand.”

 

He gave a weak laugh, even though he wasn't amused. “But those damned wolves… they knew those clones weren't Dad and Gaara. Somehow, they anticipated such a trick and moved so fast that our fathers couldn't do anything about it.”

 

“That does not mean that they are dead,” Aikou replied fiercely, still not looking up.

 

Kohaku grabbed her by the shoulders. “Those wolves ripped into them like they were nothing, Aikou! I saw it with my own eyes!” he growled, pain and anger evident on his face. “Even being Kages couldn't save them!”

 

“That does not mean that they are dead!” she cried, her head snapping up as she tried to glare at him- but she couldn't. His eyes widened in shock to see that the icy Princess of the Sands… was crying. Tears slid down her cheeks even as she fought them, those ice blue eyes staring at him as if to disprove his words. “My father… my father… is not… could not…”

 

He pulled her against his chest, wrapping his arms around her gently but firmly, understanding her pain, sharing in it. At first she resisted, ashamed to be showing feminine weakness such as grief to one such as him, but soon she realized that he, too, was grieving. Indeed, his entire body was shaking with his fury and anguish.

 

“It's okay, kanojo,” he murmured into her hair as she held him and gave into her tears. “We'll make these bastards pay…

 

“I swear it on my life.”

 

-----------------------------

 

On a simple but rather comfortable chair, which one wouldn't think would be available in a country defined by rocky terrain, reclined a rather relaxed figure. His dark hair was cut short, his face smooth and rather good-looking, accented by the well-trimmed goatee he sported. All in all, he seemed to be any ordinary middle-aged man, except for his wine-dark eyes.

 

Those eyes belied the uncanny intelligence and ruthless ambition of a well-organized and well-feared dictator.

 

Kanaye Ishizue, Tsuchikage of the Country of Rock, frowned at his subordinates from his seat in his comfy chair. “You nearly destroyed my plans, Garou, Urufu. You were to only injure the Hokage and Kazekage- not kill them…”

 

The brothers remained as they were, kneeling in front of their leader. Garou bowed a little lower. “We are sorry, Tsuchikage-sama. Kokushibyou and Shuurajou went a little overboard, but when we left Konoha, the Kages still lived…”

 

Kanaye stood up, causing the two men and the single woman to cower slightly.

 

“Twenty years…” he murmured, slowly walking towards the trio. “Twenty years I have been planning this coup… Two decades I have been studying, learning, manipulating, organizing, and building up my forces to take my rightful place in the world…”

 

He paused in front of Garou. The Rock elite shuddered and tried to stop the sweat that suddenly beaded his brow. “And now, because you couldn't control the wolves you and your brother are blood-bound to, all my plans may have been shot straight to hell!!” he roared.

 

The trio remained silent, prostrating themselves in front of their Tsuchikage. All three were visibly shaking, fear practically radiating off of them in waves.

 

“You had better hope that they live long enough to surrender their countries to me, or so help me, you'll wish your wolves had ripped you apart as well!

 

“Y-yes… Tsuchikage-sama…”

 

.oOo.oOo.oOo.oOo.oOo.

 

A/N: Wow… things are going along quite swimmingly… ^.^ Please read and review- I'd like to know how everyone's liking my story! Thanks!

 

nakama- comrades, friends, companions (it's actually something stronger than these terms- it loses something in translation)

 

kanojo- sweetheart

 

Ishizue- foundation stone (fitting for the Tsuchikage, eh?)

 

Garou- hungry wolf (the Iwa ninja who impersonated Shido)

 

Urufu- wolf (the Iwa ninja who impersonated Shikazu)

 

Kokushibyou- Black Death (one of the summoned wolves)

 

Shuurajou- Bloodshed (lit. “a scene of carnage”- the other summoned wolf)