Naruto: Sound Sisters

Chapter 8 - Wasted Tears

She sat there, on her bed, listless; she had cried every tear she had within her for that moment. Her heart was torn to pieces; she was dead on the inside. All she had to give was thrown away carelessly. She had been staring at the wall all night, as though she had the ability to, and pondered about her life. She had never met anyone that could cause her to feel so alive, feel like she was a normal human being. She was always treated like a maid (her father), or a pest (Imai), or a role model (Kiyoshi). But she had also never been hurt in such a heart-wrenching way. She had never felt rejection or betrayal in such a manner.

'I should have listened to myself. I knew not to get close to anyone. Love brings nothing but pain... pain and sorrow. It's a useless feeling... never again.'

Imao laid onto her other side and let whatever tears she had collected within her stream out once again. She breathed in and out ever so slowly and began to drift into sleep.

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Imai opened the door slowly, hoping to get a peek inside Imao's room. As the door's opening became larger, she could see her twin curled up on her bed. There was no sobbing or crying. Imai had never felt so sorry for her sister; it was as though she could feel her broken heart. She would've never imagined in her whole life that she could feel connected to her, feel so in tune and compassionate for her. She even forgot that she was angry with her for yelling at her the night before. Imai just looked at her, saddened by seeing such a different side to her twin. It didn't seem fair that her sister was feeling so much misery, especially misery that she didn't cause. Imai sighed as she slowly closed the door shut and made her way to the kitchen.

As Imai looked around for something to eat, a knock on the front door startled her. She went to the door and opened it slightly, taking a peek at who was disturbing her peace.

"Hi! Is Imao in?" His face gleamed with a smile. Naruto was always happy to visit Imao. Imai opened the door a bit more and gave him a slightly annoyed look but then thought about Imao and looked at the entrance of the hallway.

"Imao's... not feeling well right now." Imai tried not to look too worried but unfortunately wasn't doing a good job at it. Naruto's face changed dramatically to a frantic expression.

"What!? What happened!? Is she ok!? Does she need a medic? I can have someone come and-" Imai interrupted him.

"Just... come back in a few days or something. Don't worry about it, she'll be fine... I think it's contagious though." Imai proceeded to coughed in Naruto's direction. He stepped back and gave her a disgusted look.

"Alright then, tell her I came by and that I hope she feels better." Naruto's words muffled as he covered his nose and mouth with his hands.

"Sure thing..." Imai sighed as she rolled her eyes and closed the door.

"Thanks!" Naruto shouted through the door before he left. Imai cringed a little and walked out of the kitchen and made her way into her room

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It had seemed a long time since he last saw her, though it was only a few days. He became anxious and walked quicker as he got closer and closer to the plain, wooden cottage. He held a small flower and an orange in his hand, keeping them close to him so that nothing would happen to them. He couldn't wait to see how she was doing, hoping to talk to his friend again. Soon he was a few steps away from the door and as he looked at it better, he saw a folded note sticking out of one of the crevices that the wooden door had. He stopped in front of it and pulled it out.

"Naruto." He read his name on the folded letter. He unfolded it and began to read.

Dear Naruto,

I regret to inform you that my family and I have left Konoha. We have important and urgent business to attend elsewhere. I just wanted to let you know this and that I thank you for being such a great and wonderful friend. I thank you for everything that you have done for my family and I. Someday we will meet again. Please, take good care of yourself. Goodbye.

Your friend,
Imao Tanaka

Naruto didn't understand why she hadn't told him before. He became saddened and a little angry that he didn't get to see her before they left.

"Well... hopefully I'll get to see her again someday soon." Naruto smiled to himself but then began to wonder if Gaara knew about this. He knew that Imao and Gaara had become very close but then shrugged it off. There was nothing left for Naruto to do there; he folded the note and put it in his pocket. He placed the flower he had brought Imao into the crevice where Imao had left the note. He smiled again, turned around and walked back to Konoha.