Note: Geh. I hate doing these. They always annoy me when I’m
reading fanfics, so I’m trying to avoid them. I just
wanted to thank the people who’ve reviewed, and also to apologize for the short
chapters. Hopefully this one will be a little longer. I introduce a new
character here, but don’t worry about lovey dovey mary
sue crap – none of that occurs in MY story, dammit!
The
day was a monotonous one – exactly like the one before it and certain
enough to be exactly like the one that was going to come tomorrow. It gave
an air of eternity to the shifting, melting heat wave that was a constant
in the desert. Every dune looked exactly the same as the one before it, and
it continued in a process that stretched towards the distant horizon.
On
a nondescript dune in the infinitely large desert, Gaara was assaulting the
only living thing for miles.
It
was a massive, crooked old cactus that had a strange resemblance to a miniature
forest, though foot-long spikes helped to show otherwise. It was bent at strange
angles, adding a whisper of eeriness to the otherwise banal landscape. Gaara,
deftly avoiding the cactus’s sharp defenses, was ripping off portions
of the cactus with alarming celerity. The portions that he tore off were promptly
placed in the sand beside him.
Upon
closer examination, it would have to be noted that each of these portions
contained a small amount of water.
Gaara
paused in the vandalizing of the cactus to, one by one,
empty the contents of the cactus into a small water container that had been
previously stored in an inconspicuous pocket in his raven-hued pants. The
leftover pieces, once having been removed of water, were placed in a separate
pouch. Gaara repeated this process several times, effectively demolishing
several yards’ worth of previously formidable growth.
It
was only when someone tapped him on the shoulder that he even realized he
was not alone.
Gaara’s
azure eyes hardened into diamonds, and he swiftly snatched up some stray needles
from the cactus and spun around, hurling them into his opponent - whoever
they were - all in one fluid motion. Thoughts darted through Gaara’s previously stoic mind, trying to understand how
that person had been able to come so close without alerting him.
Gaara
wasn’t surprised when he found all of the needles dodged, and he reached
behind him, grabbing for the cork to his gourd. This would be over in an instant
if he could –
A
hand stopped his, and pale azure met obsidian black. Gaara paused, his other
hand ready to attack or defend, depending on what occurred next.
The
person in front of him appeared to be female, around his age. He caught a
glimpse of onyx eyes and matching, shin-length hair before something very
unexpected occurred.
The girl,
with an alacrity all her own, socked him in the face. Hard.
And,
although Gaara was used to such punches due to his own training, there was
something strange about this one.
Or
at least, that was what he thought before he passed out.
It
was only later- when the sky was awash with coppery hues that signified the
end of another day- that Gaara regained consciousness. As opposed to what
someone like Naruto would do, Gaara decided to lie quietly and think about
a possible approach to this new foe - and also to wonder why he wasn’t
dead yet. The opponent obviously could have ended his life right then and
there if they so chose.
It
was then that he noticed something was wrong with his surroundings. Yes, the
feeling of sliding grit behind his back made sense - he was on a sand dune.
The fiery desert sunset off in the distance also made sense. No, it was more
like there wasn’t a weight where there should be. He realized what was
wrong.
She
had taken his gourd.
Anger
quickly swept away confusion, and Gaara sat up. His eyes slitted
dangerously, he did a full 360-degree turn while, at the same time, unconsciously
going through the fabric of his outfit in a search for hidden weapons, though
he came up with none. Those were gone, too.
And
then someone tapped him on the shoulder.
On to Chapter 4
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