The Lost Shinobi

The Battle That Ended In Blood

I was shaking as soon as Gaara and Lee walked to the arena.

I trembled as Gaara's expression didn't change. What happened to you Gaara? This isn't the you I remember.

I looked over at Lee, who was smiling. I sensed his chakra going rapidly. It seemed so cheerful, I guess he was waiting for the match. I tried to stay relaxed but I couldn't. The worry seemed to be affecting my body, since I was trembling.

'This is Rock Lee, he can't be beaten by Gaara,' I told myself. 'Don't think so, Gaara seems pretty strong,' Yūrei argued. 'Lee can take him on, he's my friend.' 'So's Gaara.'

I looked at the battle, Lee had made the first move. He was stopped by the Sand Guard. Gaara wasn't moving. 'Come on Lee,' my mind began begging.

I saw Lee's moves clearly, but everyone else seemed to be having trouble. Lee kept punching the Sand that protected Gaara. 'It still does that after all this time.'

~Flashback~

"Gaara! Here's another one for you!" I yelled.

Gaara barely noticed the kunai that I had thrown at him, but the Sand took defense. It blocked the kunai, and it bounced off. I grabbed it as soon as it headed over my head.

"That's so cool, do you tell it what to do?" I asked him, eagerly. He sort of blushed and looked away. "No, it just does that," he muttered. "You're lucky, nobody can hurt you. Everybody else has to deal with wounds."

He looked at me, curiously, "How does it feel to be hurt?" I looked at him, a little shocked. Then I smiled, "Well, it feels like, a sharp knife slicing skin. It doesn't feel good, it feels like you can be stopped."

He looked away, "So is it quick?" "Sometimes, sometimes it can last forever." He looked back at me, and I smiled at him, "I'm glad that nobody can hurt you. At least when I'm hurt, I don't have to worry about you being hurt."

~~~~~~~Flashback Ends~~~~~

I was worrying. For the two of them. I kept trembling as I saw Lee attempt to punch Gaara. Lee. I reminded myself that Gaara wasn't the same. He was against Konoha. He was towards killing.

The Sand grabbed Lee's ankle and threw him against the wall. My mind snapped out of it. "Lee!" I yelled. He saw the rest of the sand coming his way and dodged. He kept throwing punches at him, and it reminded me of when I first met him.

'Shouldn't we help him?'

'Yūrei, weren't you were cheering on Gaara a while ago?'

'I feel pity for anybody who has to go against Shuka's host.'

'Shuka? Don't you mean Shukaku?'

'Yep, when I was smaller, I called him Shuka, it sorta stuck.'

I put my attention back to the match. Lee was now taking the defense. He was doing backflips away from Gaara's sand. He was nearly caught by the Sand but he escaped, safely landing on the statue.

Guy-sensei seemed to have lost his mind, "Lee! Take them off!" Lee looked at his Sensei, "But, Guy-Sensei...you told me to only do that to protect a very large group of important people!" Guy Sensei smirked, "That's quite alright! I give you permission." Lee was smiling and quickly sat down.

I looked at Guy, "Sensei, that's dangerous isn't it?" Guy-Sensei smiled, "It's Lee's best shot." It was true, without the weights, Lee had a chance to at least wound Gaara. With them, it seemed impossible. I smiled as Lee took off the weights.