Gone [Naruto fanfic]

#22

A few minutes after I rammed into Naruto, Sakura and Konohamaru's gang showed up; which left me free to look for Temari and rid myself of Pervy Sage's disturbing stares.

After wandering around for some time and looking on every rooftop that I thought she'd be on, I gave up on my search for Temari.

-She's probably hanging out with Shikamaru somewhere....

Jumping up onto a roof at outskirts of the village, I sat down. Gut twisting uncomfortably, I realized just how little time I had left, how much time Gaara had left. The minutes ticked by silently, but my mind was constantly moving as I lay on my back, gazing up at the clouds.

I closed my eyes, trying to calm myself down.

"Whoever that is, I'm not in the mood for talking." I called out.

"Generally when people say that, that means that they need someone to talk to."

I opened my eye and glanced to my right, it was Kakashi-sensei. Propping myself up on my elbows, I glared at him.

"Whoever told you that clearly doesn't know the first thing about people."

To my annoyance, he walked over and sat down next to me. He gazed up at the sky thoughtfully.

"I guess you didn't find Temari?"

I sighed, there was clearly no getting out of this.

"No." I said, defeated.

"That's not what's bothering you though."

He didn't say it as a question, but as a fact.

"Do you ever know exactly what's going to happen, but feel absolutely terrible because you know that no matter what you do, you can't guarantee that you'll be able to change it?" I said in response, heaving a sigh as I looked back up at the sky.

"Would it really be that bad if it stayed the same?" he replied calmly.

"Yes. Because if it does..." my eyes began to burn, "...people could die." the last part came out as a whisper.

I could feel his one-eyed gaze turn to my face, and I looked away in response.

"When Temari leaves...something bad is going to happen."  Curling my legs up to my chest, I hugged them with my arms, as my body began to rock back and forth. The tear burning my eye finally slipped down, but I wiped it away quickly.

"Are you sure?" Kakashi's voice grew concerned.

I nodded, still rocking back and forth as I felt more tears forming a dam behind my eyes.

-Who am I kidding? I'm still a genin. Everybody else has much more experience than I do, and I don't even know if Tsunade will let me go on the mission or not.

"Can you tell me?" His voice had grown gentle, as if talking to a child.

"That's the thing.... I don't know if I can." I let go of my legs, and they fell to the ground cross-legged in front of me. My shoulders drooped. I felt exhausted. Keeping the secret had taken it's toll on not just my mind, but my body as well. I still had to bear it for a little while longer though.

"I'm sure it can't be all that bad."

-What have I got to lose? At this point, I'm not sure if it'll even matter anymore.

I looked at my teacher after I wiped away another rebellious tear with the heel of my hand.

"When Temari leaves..." my voice began to choke up as my throat constricted, but I plowed on. "...Gaara will be in trouble."

Kakashi's eye widened and he leaned in closer to hear my words.

"The Akatsuki will go after him. Two of their members will infiltrate the Sand village, Deidara and Sasori. He will fight with Deidara for a while, and it will look like he's winning, but then....he loses." I looked down. A troubled breath rattled my lungs. Gritting my teeth in frustration, I continued. "They will take him to their hideout, and begin a process to extract the Shukaku. It will take three days to complete, but if the ritual isn't broken in time..." I looked back at Kakashi-sensei's again, "...If the ritual isn't broken in time...Gaara will die."  A mixture of intense emotions made my body shake, mostly being sadness at the thought of what could happen, anger at my lack of self control, and rage directed at the Akatsuki.

"I-I'm not sure if the help that's sent will arrive in time, I don't know that much yet. And I can't do anything since I'm still weak and inexperienced in comparison to everyone else." I said with frustration.

"You're not weak."

I snapped my head up, surprised by his statement.

"Just because you started later then the rest of the people your age doesn't mean that you're the weakest among them." He smiled beneath his mask. "Out of everyone I've seen so far, you've improved the most quickly, and you're smart. More often than not missions will not be about strength, but about intelligence. You beat me within a few minutes the first time I tested you, and you also beat Shikamaru in a game of shogi."

I blushed a little at the last part. I hadn't told anyone that, so I guess Shikamaru must have told Kakashi-sensei himself.

"The first time you tested me you weren't really paying attention, and when I beat Shikamaru, I lost almost all of my game pieces!" I insisted.

Kakashi's gaze suddenly grew hard.

"Do not underestimate yourself Amira. However you put it, you still beat both me and Shikamaru, and we are some of the best shinobi in this village. Not only that, you taught yourself three intermediate jutsu the first week you were here! If I had met you in a battle at this point, I would probably think that you were a Jonin, or at the very least a high level Chunin! You are much stronger than you realize."

His words left me speechless with shock. It was very unlike him to dish out such high praise, and to someone who he's only known for a few months nonetheless.

 I looked down as a smile tugged at my lips. A wiped away the drying tears with my sleeve, and I couldn't help laughing a little.

"I think that in the past two months I've been here I've cried more times than I normally would in a year!" I joked.
"Thank you Kakashi-sensei. Not many people have given me such high praise before," my voice filled with resolve, "but there is still the issue of what will happen in the Sand village and to Gaara."
Kakashi leaned back thoughtfully.

"That is rather troubling...Have you told Temari?"

I shook my head, "No, I couldn't find her. And I didn't know what would happen if I told anyone. I figured since it's so close to happening it wouldn't matter at this point if I told you or not."

"I guess we'll have to see what happens then."

============================ =I hit myself in the feels with this one....dammit.