Sakura's POV
~April~
Training outside for the last part of March and the beginning of April was tranquil. Soon after my birthday, the Cherry Blossom trees blossomed. The beautiful petals on the flowers bloomed recently to their fullest.
Madoka took a break from etiquette lessons to teach me what she knew on the Cherry Blossoms. Learning about my namesake was interesting, and I had no idea there was so many different varieties of them. Haruki had a few different types here in his home, but Madoka said that some bloomed in different times and different areas.
As for the training with Kioshi, he had moved into the stage where I practiced my katas against him. Of course I didn't ever win, but he was very helpful and never took me lightly. Haruki's lessons were similar as I would practice with him what I had learned throughout the whole time.
It was around the second week when we went to our second festival. It was for the Cherry Blossoms. I had received another yukata from Haruki. He chose a pastel pink one with bright pink Sakura's blooming all over the fabric. The obi tied in a bow behind me was white with lace at the hem. My hair that had grown slightly past my shoulders, was put up into a bun with Sakura accessories dangling down. All in all, I was covered in pink almost everywhere. We had a wonderful time at the festival as we enjoyed each other's company along with all the other relatives who had come.
~May~
On the first week of May, Inner and I had finally achieved a whole hour of seeing someone's memories. We accomplished it by practicing with a younger cousin of ours. He had come to visit after the flower viewing festival and after we had played, he took a nap. I was only going to see if it worked when someone was asleep. Turns out, that as long as Inner and I are awake, we can still see them. We skimmed through his memories of three years in a whole hour. We didn't see specific things just small things, like him playing and interacting with his parents. We figured we could also last an hour in speaking with someone telepathically, but we didn't want to try both of them at the same time. It would probably cause us to faint again.
We also learned that using that ability caused us to get exhausted rather quickly, so we kept practicing. Since it affected us in a deeper level than physical training, we had to take things slow and steady when it came to that ability.
Our physical training was getting better, though we were still lacking in the endurance department. Training with chakra was still the same as always, except I could now release a small amount of chakra out of five Tenketsu but I still had 356 to go.
As for Haruki's training, he was now allowing me to mix the weapons into the katas that he was going to show me. So now I had more katas to learn, which were piling up. The forms for the water dance had been completed and now I would start the wind forms. So my body wouldn't forget the other forms and so I could get the grace that Chouko danced with, I practiced the whole dance for Fire and Water before going into the wind dance every lesson.
~June~
I was told on the first week that this month was to be my last here in the Land of Water. I spent this whole month mostly with Haruki. We would practice early and sometimes when he was busy in the morning, we would practice till late at night.
In order to keep in touch with each other he gave me a messenger bird. The bird which was apparently his favorite, was a majestic looking bird. He was a big bird that was probably a foot and a half. His pretty feathers that glistened in the sun were a mahogany color with a few black spots. And just like Haruki he looked mean and unpredictable, but when he was held by Haruki he turned into a complete domestic pet. I was trained how to take care of him and quickly he and I became good friends.
On the second week, Haruki and I trained most of the time. Since I would soon leave, he wanted to teach me as much as possible. The last two weeks passed by a bit faster than I wanted them to. I really liked living with Haruki here, it was peaceful and it almost felt as if it was a completely different world entirely.
Our last day was bittersweet, as we had decided that we wouldn't train at all and just spend the day together. We walked around the village and at the mountain's paths as we often did together. We even went fishing even though I didn't really like fishing because of the waiting; but it was actually fun with Haruki.
We decided to head home when we noticed the sky turn into a darker blue. The stars beginning to twinkle in the sky very pleasantly. We spent the late afternoon sitting outside, on a hallway that spanned all around the outside of his house. We drank tea as we listened to the wind rustle the leaves gently by our favorite garden. The luminescent full moon was casted overhead and illuminated his garden beautifully, it was the only light besides the dull lanterns decorating the garden all around us. There was a comfortable silence between us as there often is, that is until Haruki decided to speak up.
"I'm going to miss you Sakura." He said quietly as he looked at the moon. I turned my attention away from the nature to look at him and smiled sadly at his forlorn look.
"Me too, but you and I could always visit each other!" I said, trying to make this night less depressing.
"That's right, plus, you can send me a letter any time." I smiled brightly up at him as he suggested it.
"That's right! So you better be prepared to read lots of letters, alright granddaddy?!" He chuckled and nodded as he ruffled my hair. I laughed with him after a moment and took the time to appreciate his calming voice.
A lady who helped with the house chores came up to us carrying something. She handed it to Haruki gently who silently thanked and dismissed her. We were soon alone once again and he turned towards me.
"Sakura, this scroll contains weapons and other materials you will need to continue our lessons alone. There is still so much more I wish to teach you my little Sakura but we always have time for that later." He handed the scroll to me and I took it gratefully. It was different than the last one, this one was a dark green with a gold tassel.
"Thanks Granddaddy!" I said genuinely happy.
'Inner, should we ask him about the scroll he gave us on our birthday?' I asked as Inner tapped her chin in thought.
"Hmm, I think we should. It wouldn't hurt to ask." She said and I looked at him as he drank his warm tea. I breathed in deeply after hearing Inner's reply.
"Hey granddaddy..." He looked down at me expectantly.
"Yes Sakura?" I chewed my lip apprehensively. How was I supposed to ask? Did he think I knew what to do with it already? Would that make me seem like I couldn't handle whatever it was he had given me? Would he end up being disappointed?
"Uhm...about the scroll you gave me before...can you tell me about it?" I waited for his response hoping he would be like Kioshi and answer my questions without hesitation.
"I can tell you a little bit but you have to be the one to find out the rest. That scroll has been passed down through our family for generations. It is to be given to every first born." I stayed silent as I listened carefully to his explanation.
"You are a bright child Sakura. Have you ever noticed how people, mostly ninja don't know much about our clan, and think we're comprised mostly of civilians?" He asked and I nodded my head in confirmation. That was also what I always thought when I watched the anime/manga.
"Before my time as the head, our family was known by a different name. That is why people don't remember us. Now, most of the members of this family are civilian, and it's better that way. Being a samurai or a shinobi is a dangerous thing; but it's also the most helpful. Sakura, when you open the scroll it will only be for a desperate situation understand?" He instructed and I nodded slowly up to him.
"Uhm...what happens if I open it when it's not?" I asked and waited for him to finish his tea and look at me.
"Nothing bad will happen...It's just preferable for when you really need it as it takes a lot out of you to open it. And a bit of advice, stay calm and be persistent when you do open it." I blinked owlishly up at him, confused by his words.
"What the heck does that mean!" Shouted Inner incredulously. I shook my head slightly, not knowing how to answer.
"But wait granddaddy, you said it was passed down to every first born, but why do I have it right now? I mean, shouldn't someone older have it? Like you or mommy?"
"Well, it was mine and I suppose part of it still is..." I raised an eyebrow at his confusing words.
"Anyways, your mother wasn't the first born. You have an uncle who was the first born but he didn't want to be a Shinobi or Samurai. Sakura, since you are the first born in your generation that wants to be a shinobi, that puts you next in line in the family." I nodded my head finally understanding.
"I get it." The night sky was pitch black, allowing the moon to shine brightly. The wind that was getting chilly picked up and it blew out the lights from within the lanterns. The darkness quickly surrounded us but there was still enough light from the moon to shine upon us. I looked down at my necklace which was reflecting the light. The facets on the crystals glimmered brightly like stars above even with all the surrounding darkness.
~July~
The morning arrived fast and we were outside ready to leave the Land of Water. We said our farewells to Haruki as well as to the guards and helpers of the house. We began our long walk to a boat from his mountain which would take us over to the Land of Snow.
The week of traveling by boat, Kioshi and Madoka spent the time teaching me about the Land of Snow. When we had arrived I noticed that not everything was incased in snow and ice. It wouldn't take long though before the current Daimyo gets killed and a tyrant takes over. Before I know it, we will be coming here for a mission. The Land of Snow was a beautiful place but it was extremely cold. Worst part was, Kioshi wanted me to train outside. I knew that after this, I would be fine in almost any weather, though Inner was still nervous about Suna.
We spent a week in the Land of Snow before we continued our journey to the next place. Our next trip took two weeks to get to because we skipped a couple of islands. We came to the Land of the Moon. It was a beautiful Island, we enjoyed our stay here and we were able to see many things that weren't really common to us, or at least to them. We stayed for two weeks, and trained and traveled throughout the island.
~August~
After leaving the Island we headed towards the Land of Honey. I knew without a doubt Madoka and I would enjoy this country. It was famous for its sweets after all, and Inner and I were ready to eat some sweets.
Unfortunately, it took a week to arrive but when we did, we were immediately surprised. The country was lively and colorful. There were vendors of candy stands almost everywhere. Madoka was having a blast as she learned from professionals on how to make the sweets; and I was having fun eating them. Kioshi liked sweets but he didn't have such a big sweet tooth like Madoka and I. We left on the second week, which made Madoka and I very depressed.
But I was also depressed for a different reason. My real birthday was almost coming up and I felt lonely without my family in the other world.
"It'll be okay!" reassured Inner, and I smiled at her attempts at encouraging me.
'Thanks. It's just sad to think about it.' Inner frowned at my words.
"What did I say about keeping things bottled up? Do you need to talk about it?" She asked sincerely at the end.
'No thanks, it's not that bad.' I said while Inner continued to frown. It was just another way to motivate me onwards. My depression really wouldn't stand a chance in obscuring my desired goal. In the end, I wouldn't let anything stop me from returning home.
On the third week we had finally arrived to the edge of the desert. I knew the heat would be awful once we stepped out of the forest and into the desert. I was grateful that we had changed clothing to suit the desert and restocked our supplies of water and food. I took a deep breath and followed after Kioshi and Madoka with determination.
"It. Is. Hot!" I winced as Inner shrieked in my head.
'It hasn't even been an hour.' I said, causing Inner to shriek again.
"I think I'm going to go crazy!" I rolled my eyes as I wiped my forehead with my sleeve and trudged on.
'Yeah,you're going to go crazy...' The scorching heat was intense. No wonder they always said the journey through the desert was unbearable. I had never crossed such a hot desert before, and if I did it certainly wasn't as long as two days and without the right equipment my modern world had to offer.
The nights were just as bad, they went from scorching days to freezing nights. I was extremely grateful that Kioshi had come prepared.
When we had reached the sand wall of Suna, Inner was practically overjoyed. I, on the other hand, only wanted to take a shower and then sleep. I had sand everywhere, in my shoes, in my clothes, even in my hair, I was ready to learn from Kioshi how he seemed to stay relatively clean. We showed our traveling papers to the guards and fortunately we were let in without a problem.
We were escorted in through the long road in-between the walls. The shadows provided a nice change in temperature. Once out of the tunnel, we saw the village. I actually thought the sand village was very beautiful, even with the heat.
I could somehow manage to get used to it. We were escorted by the sand ninja to a hotel where we could stay. As we walked the village, I noticed the food stands, the children playing and many other things. I couldn't wait to tour the place.
We had checked into the hotel the ninja took us to and it was heaven to Inner. Once inside the building, there was a nice cool temperature change. It wasn't that much colder it just felt better than the desert outside. We went into our room, which had two beds and a bathroom. There was also a window which over saw the village. The interior was nice and comfortable. It had warm colors and really gave a tourist the Suna style with its patterns on the walls.
After a much needed shower, it was too late to go outside and sight see, so we went to bed early.
~September~
It was early morning on the first week of September that we took our first tour of Suna. I had surprisingly woken up earlier than both Kioshi and Madoka so I went ahead and got ready for the day. I changed into a plain tan dress that reached my knees and a cute poncho that was a shade darker and had zigzag patterns on it. I decided to make a simple braid with my hair so my bangs could get out of my face. When I walked out of the bathroom they were already awake.
"Sakura, you look so cute! How did you learn to do that?" Madoka exclaimed as she looked at my hair.
"Thanks mommy! Uhm...I saw a girl with this hairstyle and wanted to try it...Are we going out?" She nodded at my question, thankfully changing the subject and not questioning my sudden knowledge of hair styles.
"Once we get ready, we'll all go out." I nodded and waited for them to get ready downstairs in the lobby. Looking outside the window I saw how the streets where active so early. It didn't take them long to join me down stairs and soon we stepped out into the busy streets of Suna.
It was fun to look around and see all the different stalls. The villagers where nice people and I knew we would have a good time here. We ate breakfast at a small restaurant, which served really good food. Out of all the places we travelled to, inner and I had yet to decide which we liked best.
After breakfast we went into some stores to buy what we would need in our stay.
"Hey daddy, how long are we going to stay here in Suna?" He looked down at me as I tugged on his pants.
"We have friends that live here, so we're planning to stay for a while. Why, you don't like it here?" I shook my head rapidly.
"No daddy! This place is great!" He smiled and we continued to pick out clothes that would fit the environment. When we finished shopping for our things, we walked back to our hotel room.
"Ne Sakura, how about we go to a park and train there?" I nodded at Kioshi's suggestion.
When we put away all our things, we left the hotel again. Madoka said she would try and find the friends they were talking about while Kioshi and I trained. The park was small but big enough for kids to play and adults to walk around. Luckily, we were alone so it would make things much easier.
Kioshi and I practiced for two hours on my katas and he helped me for one hour on my stances that incorporated my weapons. It was barely midday when we stopped and Kioshi said he wanted to see if Madoka had found their friends. I asked if I could stay and work on my endurance training and he surprised me by agreeing.
This was the first time I was allowed to train on my own outside of the house; and that was a great sign. It meant that when we got back to Konoha, he would most likely let me wonder around on my own.
When Kioshi left, Inner and I worked on our concentration skills. If we concentrated hard enough we could barely feel a small amount of chakra from other people. When little kids who were younger than us came to play in the park we would try our memory ability. The sun was starting to go down so I quickly made my way back to the hotel.
My routine for the next two weeks was starting to get comfortable. The heat was fine, except for when Kioshi made us do intense exercises outside in the heat. Madoka was finishing her lessons on teaching me how to read people. I had also met their friends, they didn't have any children but we still managed to become friends.
The last week was interesting. I was now, in Kioshi's words, "ready to explore on my own". When I asked why he thought that, he answered by saying that I was smart and could defend myself. But I had a feeling that if I was in trouble he would know and waste no time in finding me.
So here we were, Inner and I exploring Suna. We decided that just for today, we would skip training, besides, our weights were enough of training. The weights were becoming increasingly harder to train with; but we always managed to push ourselves harder.
We first walked through the places we've been to. Then we started exploring places we hadn't of gone to before. Inner and I found a couple of parks that varied in sizes and play things. We also found out that although it was in the middle of the desert there was still things such as flowers and other plants that were just as beautiful.
The book Madoka had gotten me for my birthday came in handy. I had almost finished reading it all and with Inner's help we had already found some herbs in the forest. I knew it was hard for them to grow herbs here with this weather but I also knew they specialized in poisons. Madoka was impressed with my findings so I knew she was picking up on my subtle acts of interest in the subject.
It was getting late and the only rule was to get back before it go too late. The rest of the week went by relatively normal, the only thing that changed was having to do a ton more of endurance exercises and getting half way in my new dance forms.
~October~
On the first week of October I was surprised. Madoka and Kioshi were invited over to spend some time with their friends as per usual. However, I was given the choice whether to go with them or go around Suna, I picked the latter of the two choices.
'Inner, do you think we should go into the main part of Suna today?' I asked once I had stepped foot outside of the hotel.
"Yeah I think that's a good idea!" I nodded at her exclamation as I began walking into the main part of the village.
The streets were crowded and it was hard to get by the people on the streets. After a good five minutes of squishing myself through the crowd, I was able to get on a path that was less crowded. I looked behind me and sighed at the mass of bodies I had managed to bypass. I ran farther ahead to get away from the crowd.
"Augh! My arms and legs are hurting!" shouted Inner referring to the weights. Although our speed must be good from all the weight, our endurance was not as good. So the running helped get more training in.
We rounded a corner of a street when we ran right into someone. The person stayed standing while I didn't get so lucky and had fallen on my butt. I winced at the painful impact and looked up to apologize. I stopped before I could say anything as I gawked at the person in front of me.
"Holy crap Outer! That's Chiyo!" Inner's shouting broke my trance-like state and I shook my head before getting up. I dusted myself off the dirt that had gotten on my dark blue, Suna pattern dress.
"I'm sorry for bumping into you..." I looked up towards a much younger version of the Chiyo I remembered. She looked a bit unhappy so this must already be when Sasori left Suna. She didn't really say anything and started walking away from me wordlessly. I frowned, I knew she was unhappy and thought the younger generations should look after themselves but leaving like that is just mean and rude. I followed her and walked alongside of her.
"What are you doing?" Inner asked as I continued my walk down the alley-way with her right beside me.
'I'm using our childish nature to somehow get her to open up. I mean, she cared for Sakura when she got older, why not start early?' I continued to walk alongside Chiyo and with Madoka's lessons, I could tell she was already irritated. After all, she wasn't really hiding that expression.
"What do you want kid?" She finally asked me. Hmm I figured she would have lasted a lot longer. Her patience, like mine, might not be so good.
"Why are you unhappy?" I asked while tilting my head. She stared at me for a while before narrowing her eyes. Seems like she's suspicious of something.
"How old are you kid?" I frowned at having been asked such a question first.
"What does that have to do with you being unhappy?" I asked and she shook her head at my question.
"Never mind. Go to wherever your parents are." She instructed and continued to walk away faster this time. I sighed and followed after her. Sorry Chiyo, but the first step to recovering is admitting something is wrong.
"Ne, are you a Shinobi?" She side glanced at me and I thought she wasn't going to answer me.
"Why do you ask?" I smiled brightly as she answered.
'Gotcha.' I thought as I smiled brightly up at her.
"You have ninja weapons." I answered nonchalantly. She looked over to me curiously but continued walking on, a little slower now.
"I bet you're an amazing Kunoichi." She raised an eyebrow at my comment. I suppose that meant for me to enlighten her with my reasoning.
"You're an elder Shinobi, meaning you've seen many battles. Plus, you hide your weapons very well." She nodded at my words.
"That is correct." It was silent as we walked on and I was having a hard time thinking of what to say next. I couldn't really ask if she had children, because that would just make her sad.
"Do you have any brothers or sisters?" I finally asked once I realized that was a safe topic.
"I have one younger brother." I was actually surprised she was answering, let alone telling me about herself. She probably just thought I was some random kid that she would never see again.
"You're lucky, I don't have any." It was partially true. Sakura Haruno didn't have siblings. I looked up and noticed the sun was already starting to go down.
"Well, I have to go. It was fun talking to you, maybe we can talk again sometime?" She didn't say anything but at least she stopped to listen. As I was walking away, I stopped and turned.
"And by the way, I'm three years old!" I told her before running off back to the hotel.
The next three weeks were not as good as the first. I had tried on multiple occasions to look for Chiyo again, but I could never find her. My training was getting a lot better as I could now release chakra out of 100 of my tenketsu. It wasn't powerful just barely releasing it.
We would also go up a lot on my exercises. Kioshi said my training with weapons was really good now, so I was very proud of my accomplishments. Also, I had sent my first letter to Haruki, so I was waiting patiently for a reply.
~November~
I saw Chiyo again on the first week of November. I was with Kioshi and Madoka and we were walking around the village markets when I spotted her. This time she was with her brother...Ebizō I think was his name.
They were just walking around, and they didn't really seem like they were enjoying their walk. When we passed by them I made it clear that I was smiling and waving at her. She obviously didn't say or do anything but at least she looked at me. When we were farther away, I turned back and saw when Ebizō leaned in and asked something. Most likely, he was asking who I was. And as predicted, Chiyo only shook her head nonchalantly, and I couldn't really tell what they were saying afterwards.
The second week, Inner and I were determined to find Chiyo. We looked everywhere but we couldn't find a trace of that woman or her brother. We looked for her in the outskirts of the village to the center and yet we couldn't find her. We were heading back to the hotel, finally calling it a day from all the pointless running. Although it did help with training but our main objective was not completed.
'We might as well run all the way there.' I said as I began to jog to the hotel. I'm glad I chose to wear comfortable clothes instead of dresses today. My black sweat-pants and loose red tee-shirt were comfortable on me when I ran through the village.
"Augh! Why run more?! Can't we just take a break from all the running?!" Screamed Inner as she dramatically wiped the sweat of her forehead. I was rounding a corner when I suddenly sensed something incoming. But, considering my mind and senses were much better than my tiny three-year-old body reflexes, I couldn't dodge it. Whatever it was, slammed right into my face making it hurt a lot.
"What the hell! That freaking hurt!" Inner exclaimed as the object rolled down my stinging face. I caught it before it fell on instinct.
I looked down at my hands and noticed it was a ball, with some sand falling though my fingertips. I looked up as I rubbed my throbbing face and noticed a group of kids. I raised an eyebrow, they were unnaturally quiet for a bunch of kids. Then I noticed off to the side a kid that was much smaller than the rest. My eyes widened a fraction, that was unmistakably Gaara!
"Kyaaa! He's so cute!" I winced as Inner started running around my head while squealing.
"Uhm...here's your ball." I said as I outstretched my hands. The kids looked between me and Gaara and then they just left. They hurried away without saying anything and without taking their ball. What was Isupposed to do with it now?
"Kya! Quick, play with Gaara!" I tilted my head at Inner's instructions. I began to walk over to Gaara, stopping until I was about five feet away. I took this time to observe him. He was really small which was odd since I knew he was my age. He still didn't have the Kanji for love on his forehead, so this was before he became unstable. I could see him tremble and try to make himself smaller…if that was even as possible. His little hands held on tightly to the bear in his arms and he shook as I observed him.
"Poor bear, you'll hurt him if you squeeze that hard." He opened his eyes widely and loosened his grip on the toy. His beautiful jade eyes looked uncertainly up at me. That made me sad, that a child has to feel so guarded with everyone.
'What to do in this sort of situation?' I asked myself. Trying to think of a good way to have our best interaction without changing much of the plot.
"How about just being nice? Besides, you're good at that. The plot doesn't matter when someone needs you right? That's what you always do, just like with Haku." I mentally sighed at Inner's straight on words. How was it that she knew me better than I did now?
"Ne, what should I do with this ball?" I asked as I outstretched my hands. He flinched back a little and I just hoped he had the tailed beast a little under control.
"I don't know anyone here, because I'm visiting Suna, so I don't know what to do with it." His eyes widened slightly at the mention of me being new. His whole being somehow relaxed. I felt so sad that he would rather be with a stranger than his own villagers. Although they were to blame for causing such a young child to experience such hardships.
"Should I leave it here? Do you think they'll come back to get it? Should we just play with it?" I asked nicely but he seemed to be watching me for any lies.
"Why aren't you scared?" He asked very quietly, I tilted my head as he spoke for the first time. His voice was soft and it trembled as he spoke with such emotion.
"Why should I be?" His eye's widened at my question.
"I...hurt you..." I blinked down at him as he answered me. So it was him who had hit me. He must have made his sand move the ball and it might have been me who was just in the way. Typical, I would be the one to screw everything up and make everything worse.
"Oh...it was just an accident, besides I'm alright!" I said. He still seemed a bit uncertain. I looked up at the sky noticing it getting darker. I walked over towards the center where the kids used to be. I left the ball on the ground and then turned back to face Gaara...He must have thought I was leaving without saying anything.
"Ne, if you come to this park tomorrow at twelve in the morning we can play!" His eyes widened in surprise at my suggestion. I started to walk towards the hotel, but was stopped by Gaara's timid yet hopeful voice.
"Okay!" I smiled and waved goodbye before running off to the hotel, trying to beat the sun from going completely down. If not...I would be in a whole lot of trouble and there would be no playdate with Gaara.
The next day came quick and I was excited to go meet Gaara again. I left after breakfast telling Madoka and Kioshi I would come back later to train after meeting a friend. They had been happy that I had been able to make a friend and allowed me to go, plus they gave me money for snacks. I decided to go in something comfortable again so I could play. I wore tan sweat pants, with a white loose tee-shirt, my bangs into a simple braid and out of my face.
I ran all the way to the park from yesterday, hopping he would actually be there. When I arrived, I looked around and spotted him on a swing set. He swung in small strides and the whole image was heart clenching. He looked so lonely.
"Hey!" I yelled with my childish high pitched voice. He spotted me running towards him, and I could see the happiness he was trying so hard to hide.
"I'm glad you came. So, what do you want to do?" I asked carefully as I took the seat next to his on the swings. He was very quiet; I don't think anyone could ever make him a chatterbox. He shook his head negatively.
"I don't know...I've never played with anyone before..." I frowned disbelievingly at him like any child would do. I suppose it was time to channel my inner child for this endeavor.
"Never played?!" He looked down at his lap sadly and what looked like embarrassment. Hmm, I needed to pick a game that would be good for him and one that every child needs to experience.
"How about hide and seek?" I asked with a hopeful smile. He looked up and blinked at me unsurely.
"You don't want to?" I asked uncertainly as I stopped rocking the swing and stared at him.
"No!...I mean...I want to play…" I smiled at his words.
"Alright. Do you want to hide or seek?" He shook his head once more at my question.
"I don't know." He finally spoke up and shuffled his feet underneath him.
"Then you can seek and I'll hide, because I'm a horrible seeker. All you have to do is find me, ok?" He nodded at my suggestion and I jumped off the swing to stand in front of him.
"Ok. So close your eyes and count to twenty, then you can find me. Let's just stay in this park so it will be easier." He nodded and closed his eyes. He counted so quietly that he just mumbled them. I smiled and then looked around, I spotted a barrel and decided that that was the best choice at the moment. I ran over and hid behind it, glad I was short enough to fit. I closed my eyes and concentrated on the sounds around me. Since we were alone, there weren't any other footsteps besides his.
His footsteps where getting closer and I knew he would easily find me. It was a known fact that the tailed beast enhanced the body of the one containing them. So there was no doubt that he didn't hear me, or sense me come over here. And as if proving my point, he appeared around the barrel right when I opened my eyes. He looked down at me with an expression that tugged at my heartstrings.
"Aww! You found me!" I stood up after my exclamation and he allowed me room to move out.
"You're good at this." I said which earned me another small smile. As he noticed my staring, he quickly and shyly looked down to his feet. He most likely didn't get compliments often or at all.
"Do you want to try and hide?" He looked up and nodded at my inquiry. I ran over to the swing he was on earlier and I counted to twenty out loud. I concentrated solely on the things around me. His chakra was big enough for me too sense and I was actually amazed he was somewhat controlling all that power.
"Ready or not here I come!" I yelled out and jumped off the swing, recreating every little kids' antics.
I remember playing this with my sister and some other kids. The little ones would always giggle when I failed to find them and state it dramatically. I wonder if he would be the same? I purposefully tried many times to look for Gaara in places I knew he wasn't in; and I would exclaim loudly how I thought that place was theone. I didn't hear him laugh but that was to be expected. After three minutes of searching, I went over to his hiding spot, that was under the slide this whole time.
"Okay, this time I know you're definitely here!" I stated with resolve and peeked underneath the slide.
"I found you!" He looked up at me and I froze. Instead of him laughing he was crying!
"Ne, what's wrong?! Are you not feeling well?" I asked and frantically ran over to crouch down beside him. He hid his face in his folded arms that were resting on top of his knees.
"Why...sniff...are you being so nice to me?" He said in-between soft sobs. I took a deep breath to calm myself before I answered.
"What's wrong with being nice?" I asked him the same thing I asked Inner a while back. He stopped sobbing at my question but didn't look up.
"Everyone else isn't nice to me..." I tilted my head and sighed at his confession. I decided to change the subject.
"Ne, what's your name?" He looked up and wiped the tears from his face with his sleeves.
"Gaara." I smiled and nodded as he simply gave me his first name. I was glad we managed to change subjects without any more problems.
"Well, it's nice to meet you Gaara-san. My name is Sakura Haruno." He nodded timidly and got out of his hiding spot.
"Ne Gaara-san, I might not always be able to see you every day but I promise to play with you again!" He nodded again probably sad to know that piece of information. We played hide and seek for an hour or so before we each went our separate ways once again.
'Today was very successful.' I stated to which Inner nodded.
"Yeah, I'm glad he's slowly opening up to us even if a little."
'That's right, but we can't expect to be trusted so easily.'
The rest of the week nothing happened. We couldn't find Chiyo and we didn't play with Gaara. Either we missed each other when we came to the park or we were just busy.
I didn't see Gaara until the last week. I wasn't even thinking about it when I ran into him and his siblings at the market. He noticed me as well, since his eyes widened and he looked a bit happy and relieved. I waved at him and ran up to him. This would be the first time I met his siblings who weren't that much older than us.
"Hey Gaara-san, how have you been?" The way people were looking at me made me want to punch something. Even his siblings who I knew were only scared because of Shukaku, were looking at me strangely. Gaara seemed to retreat back into a frightened, self-conscious child. Did he think I wouldn't talk to him in public? Probably.
"It's too bad we couldn't play these last few days." His siblings must have been really confused after my statement because their eyes got bigger.
"Are you two his big sister and brother?" They looked at me weirdly, but nodded in confirmation.
"It's really nice to meet the both of you. I'm visiting Suna and only recently was able to befriend Gaara-san." Their eyes widened and looked at Gaara who was hugging his bear and smiling up at me with watery eyes. Probably because I had publically said he was my friend. It shouldn't seem too weird, since people where weird in the first place by making friends like that. Friendship just formed naturally, at least in my other world kids just became friends without any concern or need for words.
"Uhm...I'm Temari...the oldest sibling." I nodded that I understood and smiled at her for speaking up.
"Nice to meet you Temari-san...and you are?" I asked looking at Kankuro. He shook his head out of his stupor and smiled nervously over at me.
"I'm Kankuro...Nice to meet you?" I tilted my head and chuckled at their confusion.
"Sorry Gaara-san, but I can't play today. I have to get back home to my parents but maybe some other time. Your siblings can also come!" I waved and started to run back home.
~December~
Most of December went by fast. I had found Chiyo on the first week and we talked some more. I told her I was visiting Suna and didn't exactly know when we would be leaving but that I wanted to talk to her more. She was still a bit quiet around me but that was to be expected. She did answer some questions that I had asked her, so I felt we were progressing nicely.
I even met up with Gaara again. His siblings came too, and I was able to get them to play hide and seek. Although the beginning was awkward, after a while, things started to relax. They were all just kids after all, they just needed someone to remind them.
They were surprised when I told them to continue to play and that I would be right back. I wanted to get a snack for all of us since last time I couldn't really do that. I came back after a few minutes and as predicted things went back to be being awkward. Once they saw me each face was adorned with different levels of relieved smiles. I distributed a drink to all of them which made them look surprised that I would do such I thing. Was it so hard to show some kindness to someone?
We played all day and went home after a long day filled with fun. I knew they didn't completely trust me; but just knowing they were interacting with each other made things okay.
On the third week I met with Chiyo again. She was starting to get used to me I think, because she was starting to ask me some questions too. Ebizō had arrived towards the end of the conversation, and I had asked him some questions as well. They were both very quiet but I knew that they were fun people to be around. Chiyo herself was very mischievous when pretending to be dead. I couldn't see how that was funny since I would be more worried than amused.
I always wondered if I should tell them that I'm from Konoha but decided against it. All the good things that I had accomplished would be ruined if they knew that I was from their rivaling country. I spent a longer time than usual with them. For some reason I felt like it would be a long time until I saw them again.
I told them I wanted to be a Shinobi as well and that I wanted to be a field Medical Ninja. They were actually genuinely surprised about that. Chiyo had even asked me if I knew about poisons and such. I told her I was barely getting familiar with the herbs but just her asking me, made me think she probably thought I was some sort of prodigy. I mean who asks a three-year-old if they know about poisons?
After talking with Chiyo and Ebizō, I went to the park to see if there was any chance that the Sand Siblings were there. To my surprise and amusement, they were, and when they looked up to see me they looked happy. Kankuro who expressed himself more openly jumped out of the swing and waved me over excitedly, while the others only smiled. It was pretty funny seeing them together with an awkward atmosphere and then completely change in emotions once I arrived.
We played again and to everyone's amazement my messenger hawk that Haruki had given me came flying above us. I was happy that I was going to get a reply and extended my hand out for the bird, whistling for its attention. The others must have never seen one up close, and most likely not one from Water. I found out from Haruki that each village had its own trade mark bird.
The bird landed gently on my arm and his huge wings that had been extended wide, pulled in. I untied the note and decided to read it later so I could have more time with the others. Seeing their curious looks, I explained it was from my grandfather who sent a letter.
Kankuro was the first to ask if that was my bird which I had said yes to. Placing the bird on a tree so it could wait until I finished playing. Today was actually very nice, I got two out of the three siblings to laugh while the last one wasn't probably going to laugh but at least he smiled.
We played and drank some juice at the end of the day as we usually did. They had asked me many questions, probably still not completely trusting me. However, they had been childish questions that didn't hurt to answer. They had also asked me about my necklace which was always proudly visible. I told them it was from my family and that I would find a crystal of my own and add to the chain.
We stayed together till the sun went down and as I saw their backs retreating, I felt that same foreboding feeling as before. Inner and I thought nothing of it at the time and just left it as having a weird feeling.
Only when I was awoken with chaos did I finally know why I was feeling worried. I was taken away from our hotel by Madoka who quickly carried me away. Kioshi had sealed everything he could and caught up quickly afterwards. As I was carried away in the middle of the night with a full moon illuminating the whole village, I saw Shukaku released. I couldn't do anything as I was carried away through a chaotic crowd of villagers. We left Suna as quickly as we could, but I couldn't help have this guilty feeling inside me as I was being carried away back to Konoha.