"There's a fine line between love and hate... But there's also the wonderful invention of erasers."
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Kylie's POV
"So this is the place?" I inquired to Ebisu, Granny Chiyo's brother. He had led me to the door that supposedly led to my reward from Granny Chiyo.
"Yes," Ebisu confirmed. "If my sister called you the Gifted Child... She wanted you to enter this room. No one has been in there for centuries. The key is yours, as well is anything you find in there."
He handed me a key that looked as ancient as he did. I nodded, shooting him a grateful smile.
"Thank you," I said sincerely.
"It is I who should thank you, dear one," he objected, sounding equally sincere, "My sister's soul was set free thanks to you and your friends. This room is your well-deserved reward. Good luck, Gifted One." And with that, he walked away and disappeared down the hall.
"So, are you gonna open it, or what?" Kankuro inquired boredly from next to me.
My eye twitched at him. "I just got this insanely mysterious key, and all you care about is what's in the room?"
"Well, duh," He said. "They all called you the Gifted Child... I want to know what that means."
"You're not the only one," I murmured. "Well, here goes." I lifted the key up and placed it into the keyhole. It unlocked with a small click, and slowly, I turned the knob. The door opened, and revealed... Darkness?
Uh... Question mark?
I sighed, shaking my head. I took a few steps into the room, my eyes adjusting to what little lighting was in it. Turns out I saw perfectly. Every inch of the room was clear to me, as if it was meant specifically for me to see.
I raised an eyebrow at Kankuro when he didn't follow me. "Aren't you coming?"
"I would... But I can't," He said.
"It's called walking, Kankuro," I teased, "Just move your feet! Duh!"
"No, I'm being serious," He said seriously. "I literally can't go into the room. It's like there's some invisible wall blocking me from entering."
I walked back over to him and reached out my hand. I felt nothing, and I put my hands on my hips, tilting my head.
"Well... Looks like you'll have to wait here," I said, smirking.
"Aw, come on!" He whined.
"I'll tell you if I find anything interesting," I said, turning back around.
"How can you even see anything? It's pitch black," He said.
"No... You might need glasses. I see everything," I said. "Just stop being so testy! I'll be back."
He sighed. "Fiiiiiiine..." He said finally.
I smiled. "Good. Now, stay, kitty cat," I said, throwing a smirk over my shoulder at him. He scowled at me, and I laughed, returning back to the task at hand.
My enhanced vision showed me a plain room with only a large chest at the center of it. I made my way over to the mysterious and ancient-looking chest, only to find that it was locked. I tried the key Ebisu had given me, but it didn't work.
"Hm..." I muttered, trying to figure out what unlocked the chest. I tried moving it, but it wouldn't budge.
I touched my neck in thought, and I found my hands feeling a chain. I instantly remembered what it was. It was the chain to my key necklace; the one I'd had since birth.
Wait... Key?
I pulled the necklace off of me, staring at the key that hung from the chain. Carefully, I slid my key into the chest's lock. I almost jumped in excitement when I heard a small click, signaling the chest was opening.
I lifted up the chest's cover easily, looking at its contents. Inside of the chest were a bunch of scrolls, all with different purposes. There were medical jutsus and ninjutsus, all of which I had never even heard of. However, the thing that stood out was that on each scroll was the character for "Gifted."
I dug through the scrolls and finally, at the bottom, I found a smaller, more adequate sized scroll. However, this one was accented with gold, the 'gifted' character bolder than on any of the other scrolls.
I peeled it open, but what I saw shocked me. There was absolutely nothing on the scroll.
Something seemed off about the sudden blankness, so I focused on the scroll as best as I could. It turned out that the scroll was masked by a genjutsu, a powerful one at that.
I broke through the genjutsu with ease, and words began appearing on the scroll at the speed of light.
If you're reading this, you indeed are the Gifted Child of legend. This scroll was masked with a genjutsu only the Gifted Child could break. Your role, although small at first, is as important as everyone else's. You will guide and aid the Prophecy Child.
But you cannot do it alone. In this scroll are two jutsus that will be used for the final battle. You can only use each jutsu once, and you must be prepared to sacrifice all that you have for them. Once they are used, they cannot be undone.
Best of luck, Gifted One.
-Lady Chiyo
I raised an eyebrow slowly, but I turned the scroll over and rolled it out fully to read its contents. When I saw was written it, however, I almost dropped it.
On one half of the scroll was directions for a jutsu I had never heard of, but I knew it was special. However, what really shocked me was what was written on the other half of the scroll.
And why was it so shocking, you ask?
Because, written on the other half of the scroll, was the very same Resurrection Jutsu Granny Chiyo had used to bring Gaara back.
Ryuu's POV
"Glad to see you could make it," the Hokage greeted as I entered her office.
"You wanted to see me?" I inquired.
She nodded. "Ryuu... It seems something has happened since your last visit here," She said solemnly.
"What happened?" I asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Do you know where Rin is?" She inquired instead of answering my question.
"No," I replied honestly, "We talked, and then she left."
"Did she say where she was going?" She asked.
"No... Did something happen to Rin?" I said.
She sighed, closing her eyes. "Unfortunately, I believe something did happen to her. No one has seen her since she came to assist in your sanity test. We believe someone's kidnapped her."
"Why would they kidnap her?" I asked.
"She's the heir to the Mori clan, and she possesses its kekkei genkai," she explained, "She's blind, so people see her as the weakest link."
"So you don't have any leads on who might've taken her?" I said.
She shook her head. "No, I don't. It could be anyone who wants the Mori clans power, and many rouge ninja are after her for that. There's no end to the possibilities."
I clenched my fists, looking up at her. "Then... What the hell do we do to find her?"
"That's precisely why I called you here," She said. "Normally, I don't allow this, especially since you have only just arrived in Konoha... But I feel that my hands are tied. You know Rin well, don't you?"
Yes, I do, but she hates me, I thought. Either way, I nodded.
"Then it's settled," She said. "I'm sending you out on a mission to recover the Mori Princess. You'll take two other Chunin with you; the less people who know about this, the better. If anyone finds out that a clan as powerful as the Mori clan has lost their princess, they'll lose their position of authority for sure. You've got to be fast, Ryuu. Find Rin and bring her back to Konoha."
"Amazing," I muttered, "Even when they've lost their princess, all that matters is their position of authority.
She sighed, opening her honey gold eyes that were filled with guilt. "I know it's terrible, but that's how the Mori clan has always been. Do not go and spark controversy. They already doubt your trust now. Just follow my orders and lay low, all right?"
"Fine," I said somewhat grudgingly.
"Very well," She said. "Gather your two other Chunin and leave the village at once. And make sure this doesn't get out. I don't want to worry anyone else. Understood?"
"Yes, Lady Hokage," I said, nodding at her.
"Good," she said, "Dismissed."
I nodded once more and turned around, exiting her office. As I left the Hokage Building, hundreds of things ran through my mind, all of them about Rin. I knew I shouldn't be worrying about her, but I couldn't help it. Even if she did hate me, I refused to let anything happen to her.
Whoever had taken her... They'd pay.
~*~
"Wait, run that by me again?" Josh said, tilting his head. "She just... Vanished?"
"Basically," I confirmed. "The Hokage told me to gather two Chunin, and that's what you two are. We need to find Rin, and we need to be quick and quiet about it."
"Okay, then," Mitchell said, "Where did you last see her?"
"The Hokage Building," I answered, "She left it and then... I don't know where she went."
"We should start searching the woods around Konoha," Josh suggested.
"I'll get my dogs on it," Mitchell said.
"Fine," I said, "Let's go."
And then we headed out of the house and into the woods.
~*~
"I... I can't believe it," Josh muttered, his gray eyes wide.
"The entire woods... And not one trace of her," Mitchell said, kneeling beside his largest dog, Iwashi. "You're sure there's nothing, Iwashi?"
"I'm sure," the large dog confirmed, "There's no sign of Rin. My team searched every inch of these woods, but we couldn't find anything." Iwashi looked up at me, most likely noticing my narrowed expression. "We'll keep looking."
"Thanks," Mitchell said, standing up. After nodding, the large dog ran off into the woods, barking and sending signals to his team of canines.
"Well... What're we supposed to do? She could be halfway to another nation right now," Josh said, crossing his arms over his chest.
"This is weird," Mitchell murmured, "I mean, no traces of her whatsoever? Whoever took her is very good at covering their tracks."
"... Unless there weren't any tracks to cover in the first place," I thought out loud.
"Huh?" Both boys said at the same time.
"I think I know where Rin is," I said. "You guys stay here and see if you find any leads."
"Wait! Where are you going?" Josh asked.
"And where the hell is Rin?" Mitchell added.
"The only place she could be," I said easily, "She's in Konoha."
And with that, I summoned one of my dragons and hopped onto its back. Mitchell and Josh called after me, but I didn't reply. I had my dragon fly me to the place where I knew Rin was:
Our home, Konoha.
Minxie's POV
I stuffed clothes into my bag mindlessly, packing up for the trip back home. Truthfully, I didn't want to leave Suna. And that was all because of Gaara. I had grown impossibly close to him in only a few days, and leaving wasn't in any way going to be fun.
I'm sure you're wondering why I was still in Suna in the first place, so I'll explain.
See, after we had all said our prayers for Granny Chiyo, we headed back to the Sand Village to treat our wounds and rest up. Sakura told us what Sasori had told her about Orochimaru, and Kakashi-sensei decided that we'd be heading back home to tell the Hokage.
Kankuro and Kylie became best friends in only a few days, and they were practically inseparable. We were all mourning Granny Chiyo's death, and we had stayed at the Sand so we could be present for the burial.
Surprisingly, Kakashi-sensei hadn't asked me about my connection to the Akatsuki. Most likely, he was waiting until things died down a bit to ask me. I was sure he didn't question where my true loyalty lied, but I still felt uneasy now that someone else knew. Well, not exactly that someone knew, but that someone was getting suspicious.
I sighed, tossing a shirt into my bag. Things were becoming extremely complicated lately.
I was so lost in my thoughts that I didn't notice someone enter the room until they spoke, "Minxie."
"HOLY SH-" I covered my mouth, dropping the brush in my hand at the sound of their voice. I relaxed when I saw that it was only Gaara. "Oh, Gaara. You scared me."
"Sorry," the redhead apologized sincerely. "I didn't mean to scare you."
"It's okay," I said, smiling at him.
"What're you doing?" He inquired.
"Not much," I answered, "Just packing for the trip back to Konoha."
"When're you leaving?" He asked.
"In a day or two," I said, sounding disappointed. "We have a time limit to get back home."
"You don't seem so excited for that," He noted.
I coughed, trying not to say anything embarrassing. "Well... I really like Suna." And you.
Gaara fell silent, so I turned back around and continued putting stuff into my bag.
"Kakashi told me about what happened when Kimi examined me," Gaara said out of nowhere. "That you gave your chakra so I'd come back to life. How you didn't care if it killed you. How all you wanted was for me to come back, because you... You cared about me."
And here begins the awkward conversation. Oh, joy. Looks like I still have a big mouth, two and a half years later.
"Oh, yeah," I said, my back still facing him. "That."
"Was it true?" He asked. "Did you... Did you mean it?"
With all my heart.
"Why?" I asked, still not turning around. Why couldn't I just say what I really wanted to say? Why was it so hard for me to tell the truth?
Because you're scared, a part of me thought. Because you're afraid you'll get hurt again. You're scared of getting your heart broken. Because it happened once already, and you know you won't survive a second time.
"Because I want to know," He answered simply, dragging me out of my thoughts. When I stayed silent, he said, "Minxie."
I sighed, closing my bag with a huff. "Yes, I meant it, Gaara. There. I said it. People care about you. I care about you. Happy now?" I said, turning around to face with my hands on my hips. That very action landed me right in front of him, his nose almost touching mine.
How'd he get there that quick!?
Gaara's hand touched my cheek, stroking it softly. My face burned, and I tried to form a sentence in the brain of mine that was slowly turning to mush at his touch.
"G-Gaara..." I stuttered out. "I-I... I-"
"For once," He interrupted, his seafoam green eyes boring into mine. "Just stop talking."
And then, only a second later, his lips were on mine.