Naruto Fan Fiction ❯ Maybe I'm Not Alone ❯ Friendship Is A Beautiful Thing ( Chapter 2 )

[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]

Disclaimer: I own Harumaski Kiyoko, but I do not own Naruto.

You sat next to Gaara on the roof. He successfully pulled off your little trick you knew. "You know, you have a little monster in you." you said bluntly. He glared at you sideways and started sending sand, but you shook your head."But I am a monster." you continued. The sand stopped."What?" he asked."You had a monster put in you, I am a monster. Not a full monster of course, only one third monster." you replied, smiling, "That's why I was brought here, I'm different from all those demon-sealed people. There isn't a demon sealed in me, I am the demon." He looked at you."How is that possible?" he asked."My mother... she fused demon blood with my blood... It's kind of how like doctors inject small amounts of bacteria so your body can build up immunity to it, but instead of my body fighting it, it went with it and the demon blood almost took over my regular blood..." you said.
Gaara stayed silent. "It worked better than anyone could imagine. I was a powerful demon in a form of a little girl who had almost perfect control," you said, with a glazed look, "It worked so well in fact, many people had attempted to steal me away from my parents, whom I couldn't care less for. Finally someone killed the two but I escaped before the person caught me. Then I traveled the world, but word of my parents's experiment spread so quickly everyone knew I was a freak. I was chased out of every village I went to since I was 8. Finally I stopped trying to get in villages and stayed in the wilderness until now. Since then people think that 'the Demon' is dead.""I didn't ask for your life story." he stated."I know you didn't. But since I knew yours, I thought it'd be fair for you to know mine. Besides, I also want you to know that...I understand what you went though and...you're not alone." you said, then left.

It was your first night there and the first time you've slept in a bed in years.

"Temari, I cannot fully express my gratitude of how nice you're being by giving me your bed." I said, bowing again.

Temari sighed.

"Kiyoko, this is the tenth time you've thanked me. If you think my bed is so nice, it's okay. I'll just sleep in the guest bed for a month." she said. "Oh, arigato!" I said, hugging her...again.
"Is she done thanking you?" Kankuro asked, annoyed.

The two shared a room. You smiled and nodded.

"Thanks Temari, you just let me room with a dangerous, scary little girl." he said."Kankuro, I'm not scary." I stared at him blankly. "Right..." he said.
"And stop calling me little! I'm only... 2 years younger than you!" I shouted. "Okay.., kid." he said."You're a kid too!" said you."A bigger kid, little girl." said he."Gah! Stop it!" I said, then added, "If you're going to call me something pick one or the other, little or kid.""How about 'little kid'?" he asked. "You better not..." I said, pouting."Whatever you say, little kid." he said smiling.

You got all mad, until you realized something.

"Awww! Kankuro-kun, you gave me a nickname!" you shouted with glee and jumped over to his bed and hugged him."H-hey! Get off of me!" he shouted."You're so nice!" you said.

Temari looked on with amusement. She shook her head and went to move her stuff to the guest room across the hall.

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For the past week, you followed Kankuro around. He became your bestest friend ever, whether he wanted to or not.

"Let's go out!" you said."I'd rather not," he replied."Let's play a game!" you suggested excitedly."What game?" he questioned"I don't know, you pick." you replied."I don't know any games." he said."You're boring." you sighed."You're the one boring me." he said.

You frowned and glared at him.

"What do you do for fun?" you asked, really curious as to what he usually did."Nothing. Aren't you supposed to be training Gaara or something?" he replied, sounding uninterested."I just did! Then I came back in to hang out with you." you replied happily."Why?" he asked, annoyed."Cause I wanted to..." you said then added in a sad voice, "Don't you want to hang out with me?" He looked at you and sighed. Then he stood up, smirking.
"Fine then, if you want to hang out, you'll have to do whatever I say because I'm the bigger person here." he said, proudly with a superior voice. "Hai!" you smiled and agreed."Follow me." he said, leading you somewhere. Outside of the house, towards the outskirts of the town, up this huge sand hill, and down to the other side and that is where you two stopped. "Where are we?" you asked, looking at an old, empty shack. "Come on." he said, smiling at me, jogging ahead. "H-hey! Wait for me!" you said, catching up to him.

After entering the shack after Kankuro, you saw puppets. You smiled.

"So you're a puppeteer!" you said, smiling. He saw you smiling and smiled back. "Yeah, I love it." he replied. "That's cool. I never did get into puppetry. Want to show me how you do it?" you asked. He blushed a little."Well... I'm still kind of new and I only know some tricks..." he turned and looked away. You laughed a little."It's okay! That's more than I know! Come on!" you said cheerfully."H-hai."

Later that day, when you were sleeping your nightmare came back. It usually did when you were starting to get happy again or if you were extremely upset. You were thrashing around in your sleep until you felt a hand on your face. You sat up, awake and surprised. You looked to see Kankuro.
"Kiyoko, are you okay?" he asked, worried. You frowned and nodded."What happened?" he asked. You looked down and blushed."Gomen nasai, I was having a nightmare.." He chuckled a little. "No worries, I'll protect you if those nightmares come true." he said, proudly and smirking. You giggled a little."It's okay, Kankuro-kun. I think I'm a little stronger than you." you said, innocently looking away. He looked down at you with a horrified expression."N-nani!? No, you're not! I'm bigger than you!" he stated."So!" you argued."Which means I'm stronger." he said."Nu uh!" you shouted, "Which one of us is training Gaara? Yes, that's me." you said, pointing at yourself, "So therefore, I am stronger than you."

Suddenly something hit the window and you squealed. Kankuro laughed.

"What was that!?" you asked, surprised. "There's a sandstorm going on." he explained."Oh..."
Kankuro shook his head and started heading back to his own bed across the room but he stopped when you called his name.

"Kankuro-kun... can I sleep with you tonight?" you asked, hopefully. He turned and blushed. "Um, sure, Kiyoko-chan." You jumped up and smiled. "Yay!" You quickly made yourself comfortable on Kankuro's bed. He slowly joined you. You cuddled next to him. "Kankuro-kun, you're the best friend I never had." You looked up at him smiling and he was smiling back at you. "You too, Kiyoko-chan." You looked back down sadly though, 'And it'll all back to loneliness when I tell them what I told Gaara.' you thought.

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It's been two weeks into the month you were staying and you were close with Temari, but even closer with Kankuro. Even you and Gaara had a mutual respect for each other, though you wanted friendship.

"Kankuro-kun, are you hungry?" you asked, smiling."I guess." he said."Want me to cook you something?" you asked him."You can cook?" Kankuro asked, surprised."Eh, I only cooked fish with a fire I made, but I can learn with a stove." you said, smiling, already going into the kitchen. "Uh...Kiyoko, don't burn anything down..like the house." he said, nervous.

You laughed and Temari walked in.

"I won't burn the house down!" I exclaimed. "Why would you?" Temari asked."Because she's going to cook..." Kankuro explained.
"...Kiyoko, how about you just let me cook and I'll-" Temari was cut off by you.
"No! I want to cook something for Kankuro-kun!" you said, determined.

Temari and Kankuro looked at each other and sighed, as you went from the refrigerator to the stove.

After you were done cooking, you sat down Temari and Kankuro and put two plates of the food you cooked, which looked good.

"Where's Gaara? you asked, smiling. The two looked at each other. "Why would you want to know that?" Temari asked."I want him to join us..." I said, frowning."Why!?" Kankuro asked."Why not?" you countered."Because he's a monster." he simply replied.

You glared at him and Temari, who had nodded in agreement.

"I can't believe you said that!" you shouted and tipped over both their plates, ruining their food then walked away. You heard them whispering."What's her problem?" Temari asked."I don't know, but did she really have to ruin the food? What a waste..." Kankuro said, sighing."You must have really ticked her off, Kankuro." Temari said. "What? Me!? It must have been you!" Kankuro told her.

They both glared at each other. You went to Gaara's roof to see him already there.

"Gaara-san, do you want some food?" you asked, smiling, "I still have some left..."

He glanced at me with the same cold glare that never seems to lose its place on his face.

"I don't eat." he stated."Hmm... you don't eat, you don't sleep..." you said, shaking your head."The only reason why they're accepting you is because they don't know the truth." he said. You smiled sadly and nodded your head."That's true. Gaara, I'm going to tell them later today. Would you like to be there?" He glanced back at you and made a grunting noise. You sighed. "I have no idea if that's a yes or a no..."
Then you left.

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You called Temari into your and Kankuro's room. When she arrived you faced both of them.

"Have you ever wondered why I was chosen to train Gaara?" you asked them. The two looked at each other.
"It's because you know jutsus that no one else knows." Temari replied. You shook your head.
"It's more than that. Do you know why I know those jutsus?" you asked them.
"No, we don't." Kankuro stated.
"Well, Gaara knows. Kazekage-sama knows, and I'm deciding to tell you two why." There was a silent pause.
"The reason why I'm telling you now is because we've gotten closer and I don't want to get any closer if you don't know the truth about me, because I think it'll change a lot between the three of us when I tell you." Both of them looked at you sadly.
"Kiyoko, we'll always see you as our friend." Temari smiled. You frowned and shook your head.
"I guess you can say I'm kind of like Gaara." you started out. The two already gasped, but you continued.
"But I don't have a demon sealed in me. I am a demon, actually one-third demon. There is currently demon blood running through my veins. I can transform into a demon willingly and have control, because it's who I am now. My parents did this to me, mostly my mother. They were creating the perfect weapon for their village. I was the experiment." You closed your eyes, not wanting to see their reactions, but also to stop the tears.
"When I was old enough to understand what happened, I didn't have time to grow up like normal little girls. I didn't have time to be immature. I was forced to act older than I was. I was forced into intense training. I never knew what love or fun was." You stopped and sighed.
"And that is why I was chosen to train Gaara."

You looked up to see Temari crying. Kankuro had this unreadable expression on. She stood up, angrily and pointed at the door.

"Get out. Get out!" she shouted. You sighed and you let the tears fall freely now. You looked at her apologetically and nodded, not being able to talk. You tried choking back the tears but you couldn't. Finally you started walking towards the door, but someone stopped you with an embrace. You looked up to see Kankuro. He hugged you tightly, without looking at you and then let go and went to comfort Temari. You went out only to see Gaara with his emotionless stare. You smiled.
"Gaara! Did you hear?" you asked him, happily, "I told them." Gaara stayed silent. "Can we go to your roof?" He nodded and disappeared. You went to the roof to see him already there.

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"Father, I know you said to befriend her so she would stay longer, but you never told us she was the Demon!" Temari shouted at the Kazekage. He glared at his daughter."Does it matter?" he asked. Temari rolled her eyes."Yes, it does. I refuse to talk to her. She's a freak and a monster! She'll kill us!" she shouted. The Kazekage looked at his oldest son."Do you feel the same way, Kankuro?" Kankuro looked at the ground and frowned then finally answered."Yes." The Kazekage sighed."Fine then. Dismissed."

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"Why did you cry?" Gaara said. You looked at him lazily. You stopped crying a while ago and you were now laying down beside him."Because I cared too much. I shouldn't have." He glanced at you. "You've changed. You're not the same person you were when you first came here." he stated. You nodded.
"I know, but you don't have to worry about that anymore. I think I'll move my stuff to my guest room now." You got up but Gaara stopped you."It's already done." he said. You looked at him."Did you do that?" you asked."Yes." you smiled at him. "Awww, thanks! You're the best." you glanced at him and bit your lip then took a deep breath and hugged him from behind. He tensed up and pushed you away."Sorry..." you said, bowing, "I'll go then." Suddenly sand surrounded me. "G-gaara, what are you doing!?" you gulped.
"Trust me." he surprisingly said. Then the two of you were surrounded by a sand ball. You were facing him and smiled. "It's dark in here." you stated. He nodded then he did something that surprised you.
He hugged you.

You smiled. "Gaara... arigato." You hugged him back.

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It was now the fourth week. You spent all of your time with Gaara and even stayed up most of the night for him. You didn't even spare a passing glance at Temari or Kankuro. Every time Gaara wanted to show affection he'd always create a little sand ball around you two. You were now at Gaara's roof again.

"Gaara-kun, I'm leaving in 6 days.." you said. He looked at you."Can't you stay longer?" he asked. You smiled at him."I can... but I don't want to." You went up to him. "Gaara, I'll miss you. I'm sorry, I just can't stay. I don't want to be so close to people and if I stay longer, I'm afraid I'd get attached to you." He frowned and started forming a sand ball. That was until a voice suddenly shouted his name. "Gaara, what are you doing!?" You both turned to see Kankuro, who had this worried look on his face and jogging over to where you were. "Gaara, just continue." you said. The sand ball continued to surround us, and just as Kankuro reached us, it was complete.
"Gaara, stop it!" Kankuro could be heard from the inside. You giggled a little. "What wrong with getting attached to me?" Gaara asked you. You frowned."You once said I was changing. Well you are too." He nodded, his emotionless stare back in place. "Do you want to change back?" he asked. "Yes." you answered."Do you want me to change back?" You looked at him and shook your head. You started to cry."Of course not, Gaara! You're a wonderful person. Don't... don't change back. Get close to someone else though, not me. Be more of a brother to Kankuro and Temari. Be more...caring, please. Don't hide in a little sand ball." you said, smiling and crying at the same time."Don't cry, Kiyoko-chan." Gaara said."Gomen nasai, Gaara-kun. I'll save my tears for our goodbye." you said, smiling, wiping away your tears. Gaara let the sand fall, to reveal Kankuro standing just outside. "Kiyoko, you're okay." He rushed over to hug you, but you pushed him away. "What do you want?" you asked coldly. "Kiyoko, gomen..." he started."No. You don't mean that. Stay away from me." You glared at him. He looked helplessly at you. "Gaara, can you please leave the two of us alone?" he asked Gaara. "No, he stays. You go." you said. You saw Gaara look at you in the corner of your eye and you knew what was coming next. You quickly turned to stop him.
"Gaara!" Too late. He disappeared, leaving you alone with Kankuro.

"Kankuro, I really don't feel like talking to you anymore." you stated."Kiyoko-chan, please just listen to me!" he pleaded. "Kankuro, I'm leaving soon and I want you to know I really did at one point think you were the best friend I never had and I'll miss you regardless of what happened. I'll miss those two weeks we've had and though it didn't end as well I as I wan-" you were cut off. "Kiyoko, we can still have another week and you can stay longer and.. and... I don't know! Just please forgive me and can we just be friends again? Please?" he asked."I really don't think that'll work out." she said. "Please, Kiyoko." he looked at you with the saddest face ever. You looked away and sighed.
"Okay."

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It was now the end of your stay and you were standing just outside of the Hidden Sand Village with the Kazekage and the Sand Siblings. You bowed.

"Thank you." you said, ready to turn away and walk. "Wait, Kiyoko, are you sure you don't want to stay longer?" the Kazekage attempted again. You smiled at him and shook your head. "Come on, Kiyoko-chan, stay with us." Kankuro said, looking at you with sad eyes, again. "Kiyoko, I know... I know how I reacted was wrong, and I won't like it if you leave and we still haven't come to peace, will you forgive me?" Temari asked. You nodded your head. "Of course, Temari-chan..." Kankuro looked between you two in shock."Why'd you forgive her so easily?!" You shrugged and smiled and went up to Kankuro."Aw, Kankuro-kun, I'm going to miss you." You picked up his hands and held them in yours for a few seconds then kissed him on the cheek. You let go and turned to Gaara."But the person I'll miss most is... Gaara-kun..." you said softly. You went up to him and felt special as sand started to surround you two."Gaara..." you started."Kiyoko..." he said. You started tearing up slightly and hugged him. "I'm going to miss you." He slowly hugged back. "I'll miss you too." he surprisingly said it back. You let the tears fall freely and then you let go. You took a step back as the sand started to fall. "Well, this is goodbye, then." I stated. Temari started crying. Kankuro was sniffling. Kazekage just looked on. Gaara... Gaara still had that emotionless stare. "What will you do after you leave?" Kankuro asked."I"ll travel the world again... as Harumaski Kiyoko, and not the Demon." you said, smiling."Wh-where is your next stop?" asked Temari in the middle of tears."Kirigakure." you said."Ah, the Bloody Mist Village." the Kazekage stated. You giggled and nodded. "You know they may seem a little confused to see a little ten year old girl approach their gate..." The Kazekage continued. You nodded."I know. Well, I'll be going now." You turned then stopped and turned back again to face them. "Gaara." Before he could put up a sand ball, you rushed over to him and stood on your tippie-toes to kiss his love symbol and whispered in his ear.
"I love you, Gaara-kun."