This is Much Better

He gathered his blood-soaked sand back into his gourd, sneering at the dead Sound ninja. What the Sand ninja didn’t know was that someone saw the whole thing. She was hiding behind the building, hand over her mouth and eyes wide. She had to tell someone about this… fast! As quietly as possible, she slid down the drainpipe until her feet gently touched the ground. She looked up to see if the killer was following her, but he was gone. She swallowed hard and was about to turn and run when she came face to face with the red haired ninja. She opened her mouth to scream when a huge wave of sand grabbed her and pinned her to the wall. She was frozen with fear as he approached her with an evil look in his eyes. “P-please,” she gasped, tilting her head up so the sand wouldn’t suffocate her. “Have mercy!”

“Why?” he growled, crossing his arms. “Why should I show mercy to the ones who hurt me? Why should I spare a useless being like you and show mercy?” He was so close, she could feel his hot breath on her face. “You don’t even know me. You don’t know what I’ve been through.”

“I-I know,” she gasped. “B-but I want to know.” He cocked his head, confused but still glaring at her. “I know about… the demon inside of you.” The sand tightened around her and she let out a painful gasp. “But…there are people out there who don’t see the demon and… care about you.” The sand quickly became tighter, knocking the breath out of her.

“Shut up, you little pig,” he growled menacingly, and then smirked. “If this is true, name one.” Her face suddenly turned bright red. Not because of the lack of oxygen, but of pure embarrassment. Could she tell him that she was the one who cared about him? She closed her eyes and turned away, knowing that he’d never believe that.

Suddenly, the sand around her began to loosen and she quickly dropped to the ground, coughing and gasping for breath. She looked up and shuddered at what she saw. She had never seen his face look so… shocked. His eyes were wide, mouth slightly open as if to say something, and face paler that usual. He suddenly yelped and grabbed his head as if to drive the pain away. She reached towards him, but he backed away like a wounded animal. “Stay away,” he gasped. His eyes became glassy and he quickly wiped them with the back of his hand and continued to stare at her. After a long hesitation, he mumbled, “I never want to see you again.” He slowly turned and walked away, leaving the young girl alone on the street.

Who is this girl? She is Akihana Noroi and hardly anyone knew her. She had long, amber hair with flashing red highlights, large mint-green eyes and a slim, dancer like body. She wore a simple, mini black and light purple dress, black gloves and boots and wore her purple leaf headband around her small waist. She seemed like a delicate being, but her clan is famous for their skill of manipulating chakra. She was in the Chunin exams with many famous ninjas, such as Sasuke and Rock Lee, but during the second challenge, her two teammates were killed by a group of Grass ninjas. She now works at the nearby hospital and is an excellent medical ninja, but she still had one thing on her mind: that Sand ninja, Gaara.

She knew of him before he even came to the village and watched him silently, yet admiringly, throughout his stay. She hid her excitement when she sat next to him during the written exam, silently cheered him on when he fought (and won) against the bushy-browed ninja, and forced herself to lie to the AMBU about is she had seen where the ‘freak’ went. Even though he wanted to kill her, she forgave Gaara. She knew it was that cursed demon, not him. She knew that beyond his violent and evil ways, he just wanted to be loved and not be treated like a monster.

Even though she hadn’t seen this boy in several years, she never forgot him. But it took her by complete shock when one day, while carrying numerous scrolls, she felt a tap on her shoulder. “You dropped this,” a familiar, yet oddly different voice behind her said. She turned to thank the stranger when she suddenly lost her words. It was Gaara, and how he grew! He was certainly taller and much more handsome. She stared, eyes wide and silently took the scroll. “Are you Noroi?” he asked. She managed to nod. “I want to talk to you.”

“Uh… right now?” she asked, looking around to see if any AMBU was around. He gave her a small nod. “I… I can’t right now. I need to go to work.”

“Then after work, I want you to take a walk with me,” he murmured, looking at the ground while he spoke. “Is that okay?”

“Uh, huh,” she said quickly. He nodded, turned on his heel and disappeared, leaving her dazed and confused. Why was he here all of a sudden? What did he want? She scratched her head and headed towards the hospital with a light heart. She finished all her paperwork and all her patients were healed and sent home. This was going to be a nice and easy day.

Unfortunately, she was horribly wrong.  Many ninjas had just come back from an S-ranked mission and several of them were in critical condition. She skipped all breaks and never hesitated for more than a minute to save those poor people. Good news was that she saved all their patients lives and they would be on their feet in no time. Bad news was that she was so exhausted, that she could hardly walk out the door when work was over. Leaning against the door, she looked around for the red-haired ninja and saw no one that looked like him. She huffed and made a face. Once again, a guy has ditched her.

She waited several minutes to get some of her strength back before starting to walk towards the trail to her favorite place. Ever since she was little, she always went there when she was angry and now was the time. She snuck into the woods and began climbing over the dead logs and over large streams. After dodging a large mud puddle, she stopped and listened. Was someone following her? She turned and saw no one behind her. She sighed and shrugged. What was there to worry about? Besides, no one, not even her parents, knew about her secret spot.

She knew she was close when the ground slowly changed from sticky mud to soft sand. She inhaled the air and smelled the pleasant odor of salt water. She pulled away the vines and saw her secret paradise: the beach. It was the perfect time of the day to be there. The sun was slowly setting, turning the water into a deep sapphire and the sky into a warm, fiery colored rainbow. She took off her sandals and buried her feet underneath the soft, warm sand. She sighed with relief and walked towards the water. When she was ten feet away, she pulled a large towel from her bag laid it onto the ground, and collapsed on top of it, closing her eyes and smiling. Ah, sweet relief!

Through the lids of her eyes, she saw a shadow pass over her. She stiffened with fear and slowly opened her eyes. It was Gaara, kneeling over her and staring at her with curiosity. She yelped and quickly sat up. “What are you… who…?” she stammered, trying to find her words. He just sat there silently, head cocked and eyes curious. “What?” she asked, now a little scared that he wasn’t answering her. Was he going to kill her?

“I’ve never been this close to a girl…” he murmured. She started to blush when he finished his sentence, “… who was alive.” She gulped and tried her best not to show her fear. He cocked his head to the other side and muttered bluntly, “You’re quite attractive.”

“Uh… thank you,” she said, smiling. Then a thought popped into her head and she gave him a face. “Where were you? I thought you were supposed to meet me after-.” She was suddenly stopped when he put his cold, pale hand over her mouth.

“I wanted to wait,” he said softly. “I wanted to walk with you, but I wanted you to choose the place you wished to go to. So I followed you here.” He pulled his hand away. “I hope you didn’t mind.” She shook his head, wishing his hand was back on her mouth.

They were silent for a while, sitting side by side and watching the sun slowly set over the water. “It’s beautiful, isn’t it?” she murmured, trying to break the silence.

“Mmm hmm,” he mumbled, but he wasn’t looking at the sunset. She turned and saw that he was staring directly at her face. She was a bit startled, but very pleased by what he said. “Noroi?” he said after a hesitation. “May I… hold you hand?”

Her eyes widened. Her face turned bright red and her vocal chords would not obey her, so she managed to nod her had vigorously. He slid his hand across the ground until it covered hers. His hand was still cold, but she could have sworn that his cheeks suddenly turned into a very light shade of pink. She smiled at this and his blush became deeper. She looked at their hands and sighed. “Why did you come back?” she finally asked.

He stiffened and his hand tightened around hers. Maybe she shouldn’t have asked that. He made a small noise that sounded a bit like a growl (was the sand around her moving?). She gulped. “It was what you said years ago,” he growled. “That people cared… and you were one of them…” he looked at her with fire in his eyes. “Why?” he leaned close until he was inches from her face. “What do you see in me?”

They were frozen in that position: she was scared to move and he was anxious for an answer. She couldn’t answer with his face that close to hers (her mind was completely scrambled), so she slowly reached up and put her hand on his cheek as if to move him back a little. His eyes shut tightly when her hand made contact with his skin and he quickly pulled away, his back towards her as if she just slapped him. “Gaara?” she said softly. He refused to move. “Gaara?” she called again and still got no response.

Tears filled her eyes when she realized how scared he was to trust anyone. Without thinking, she leaned forward and wrapped her arms around his waist. “I can only imagine how much pain you’ve been through over the years. But you’re not like what people say. You’re not a monster or a freak. You’re a scared, young man who is scared to trust and aching for comfort.” She pulled him closer to her and whispered, “Please trust me and understand that I want to help you. I…” she shut her eyes and tears spilled from them. “I want you to be happy…”

She felt him move and she pulled back, waiting for his response. He looked at her with a strained face and glassy eyes. She was about to say something, but stopped when he put his hand up. “Wait,” he muttered. She immediately obeyed, crossing her legs and folding her hands over her lap. Minutes passed by and he still didn’t say anything. Suddenly, his hands quickly reached towards her as if to choke her. She was startled, but didn’t move. His hands hovered over her neck and he placed them gently on her shoulders. “You do trust me, don’t you?” he said very softly. “Maybe… you weren’t lying years ago.” His hands slowly, yet awkwardly, crept up her neck and stopped on her cheeks. He leaned forward and pressed his forehead tightly against hers. “I’m sorry,” he whispered, eyes shut tightly, but tears slid from the corners of them.

“I already forgave you,” she murmured, bringing her hand up and placed it on the back of his head, feeling the softness of his short, red hair. The both pulled away and stared into each others eyes. His dramatically changed. The sadness that lurked in there before was gone. She leaned forward and gave his a quick, soft kiss on the lips. He stiffened and she looked away, feeling ashamed. She knew that was too sudden and expected the worst. “I… I didn’t mean to-.”

“Sh,” he hissed and she was quiet. He opened his eyes and slowly pressed his lips against hers. Her arms, which were supporting her this whole time, suddenly gave way and they both fell to the ground, with his body pinning her down. She swallowed and felt her face grow hot. But for the first time ever, he gave her a soft, happy smile. “Hmm, this is better,” he murmured.

She giggled. “Yeah, it is better,” she giggled. He lowered himself and kissed her lovingly, and as she pressed her hands onto his cheeks, they felt surprisingly warm.