𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐊𝐀𝐙𝐄𝐊𝐀𝐆𝐄'𝐒 𝐊𝐄𝐄𝐏𝐄𝐑 | gaara

Part 2

"[Name]! Get in here right now!"

You grumbled and swung your legs out of your bed as your elder sister Risa's voice boomed from the living room. When you got to her, she was standing in front of the door, head in her hands and a piece of paper lying at her feet.

"What?" you asked snappishly, wondering what on earth could've made your sister so mad in such a short space of time. It hadn't been that long ago since she'd been bubbling about her amazing boyfriend Shinji to you and your older brother Ichiro at the dinner table, boring both of you out of your wits.

Risa looked up at you with a dark look on her face, and you immediately backed off. She kicked the paper towards you and let out an aggravated groan, shaking her head in apparent despair.

"This is so stupid! They can't just force me to marry the Kazekage! This is insane!" 

She stormed off to the living room and you quickly picked up the paper lying on the ground, following her suit.

"Wait- what?!" 

She threw herself onto the couch face first, letting out a loud whine.

"Read it!"

You opened up the paper, then began to read.

To: Risa [Surname]

Dear Miss [Surname],

Very recently it had come to the attention of the village council that the Lord Kazekage was in need of a female counterpart to aid him in the running of the village. After countless searches of potential suitors throughout the village, we wish to congratulate you on your selection as the lucky woman who will be by Lord Kazekage's side for, we hope, the rest of your human lives. Looking at an overview of your profile, we see that your shinobi abilities are of superb levels, and you are the closest match we could get to that of the Kazekage's out of all the women within his age group in this village. We wish to meet you in person this coming Friday, and urgently request your presence at the Kazekage's office by midday. Activities for you and the Kazekage to get to know each other more before sealing your relationship with marriage will commence the same day.

We hope to see you soon.

Sincerely,

The Village Council.

You gaped at your elder sister in shock, while she looked like she was trying to suffocate herself by smothering her face with a cushion.

"They want you to what?!" She suddenly threw the cushion up in the air and glared at you, anger clearly evident on her face.

"I know, right?! Stupid! This has got to be illegal!" You sat down next to your sister and looked at her, still trying to process what you had read. Surely this was all a big prank?

"What about Shinji?" you asked dumbfoundedly, wondering what on earth her current boyfriend would think of this situation. Risa looked at you with a scowl on her face, almost as if to say, "are you that stupid?"

"What about Shinji?" she snapped, giving you the look of death. "I am not marrying that- that monster!" 

At those words, you felt as if you'd been slapped in the face.

"Hey," you said in a serious voice. "The Kazekage is not a monster. Besides, he doesn't even have Shukaku anymore, so what's your problem?"

Your sister scowled again, obviously not a big fan of the Kazekage.

"Oh, taking his side now, are we, huh?" she snapped at you, her voice beginning to rise. You suddenly felt a great surge of anger towards her, not knowing where it was coming from.

"Who are you to judge him, huh? He sacrificed himself to protect us! It's lucky the Leaf shinobi even managed to get him back!" you exclaim, face going red at your sister's harsh words. If there was one thing you disliked about her, it was her judgmental behaviour towards others, especially those she didn't even know that well.

I guess being considered one of the village's top kunoichi also means you have to be a complete asshole about everything, you grumbled in your mind, wishing that your sister wasn't always so narrowminded all the time.

"Oh, well, I guess if you love him so much, why don't you go instead, huh?" she sneered, crossing her arms and looking away from you in scorn. You got to your feet, flushing bright red.

"Gladly! He's not as bad as you make him out to be! I'm sure there are other girls out there in the village who would agree with me!"

You were yelling now, but weren't sure why. Your sister's eyes widened, and she covered her mouth as a lightbulb went off in her mind.

"Yes!"

Risa jumped to her feet and unexpectedly embraced you, making you tense up in awkwardness. "That's it, [Name]! You can go instead of me! That way I can stay with Shinji, and you can have the Kazekage! YES!"

You spluttered and struggled for words as you realised what you'd just said to her, and the mess that you were already picturing in your mind.

Needless to say, you started to panic, instantly regretting your words.

"Wait! No, I-" Your sister released you and beamed, holding you at arm's length.

"Have fun at the Kazekage's office tomorrow, Risa."

Her voice and gaze were so ridden with an evil tint that you didn't know whether you were more afraid of her, or pretending to be her.