Suna's Ninja (Gaara Love Story)

14: Heavy disappointment

Author's POV

A few days rolled past, and the Khaotic Party were out of work until Jini said so. Akimi had spent the time in her apartment, making poisons and drugs. Her frustration inside of her build so much, she had broken three glass beakers just from snapping it in her hands.

"Curse you!" She screamed, finally losing her temper. She sank to the floor, distraught and frustrated. Was there nothing she could do? Was she this helpless when it came to Gaara?

"Knock, knock," Pearl's singing voice came through her apartment door. "Anybody home?"

"Leave me alone, Pearl. I am really angry, and I don't want to take my stress out on you," Akimi snapped.

"No can do~!" Pearl called back to her. "It's okay. I won't go, even if you scream and fight me. Just let me talk to you."

"Pearl, please," Akimi hissed. "Give me two hours. That's all I ask. Then I'll let you come in. Just let me cool off."

"Alrighty then. Two hours it is, on the dot!" Akimi listened to her footsteps leave her door and shut her eyes, hugging herself tightly. She wasn't emotionally stable right now, and all the stress was taking its toll on her.

I need all the help I can get, she thought miserably.

Two hours ticked by, and when Pearl stepped into her apartment, she noticed the place had been scrubbed clean, top to bottom, along with a platter of cookies and a pot of jasmine green tea.

"Welcome, Pearl," Akimi said politely, shutting the door behind her teammate. "I've got tea and cookies for you."

"Oh wonderful!"

After settling right in with a cup of steaming tea and three cookies in hand, Pearl turned to Akimi with a bright smile. "So, what's up with your problematic attitude lately?"

Akimi sighed as she nursed a cup of tea slowly. "Where do I start?"

"From the top, when you heard Gaara got kidnapped and stuff. Start there," Pearl ordered, filling her mouth with more delicious cookies. "Make it snappy, because I'm going to run out of cookies soon."

Akimi rolled her eyes. "I've got another batch of muffins staying warm in the oven. But back to my problem. Yeah, I've been really irritating to you guys lately, and I'm aware of it. Ugh, the words aren't coming." She placed her cup down and hooked her arms around her knees, her entire body hunched over.

"Fine then. How did you feel when Gaara was taken?"

"What? Uh, helpless. I can't do anything to save him, and I am pretty much useless. You know my abilities rely on solid surfaces. I can't use Dysfunctional Plain in mid-air," Akimi scowled, raising her face. "Based on reports I've heard, the guy who took Gaara was a super strong rogue ninja. Hey, I was the kid that got beaten up by a Jounin and lost my teammate in that battle. I know I don't have the capability to go save Gaara by myself. Oh, who am I kidding? If I went to go--"

"Enough, enough. So, what do you want to do?" Pearl cut her off, waving her half-eaten orange cranberry cookie menacingly.

"What do you mean?" Akimi scrunched her face up in confusion.

"This isn't a trick question, keep up, Aki. What do you want to do right now?" Pearl repeated, taking in a long sip of tea. "More please!"

"Hai, hai." Akimi poured her another cup of tea, and thought the question over carefully.

"Come on, I don't have all day," Pearl warned, holding up the nearly-empty plate of cookies. Akimi took the plate and went back to her kitchen. As she carefully filled the plate with double chocolate muffins, she kept thinking about Pearl's question.

"Well, what's your answer?" Pearl asked, snatching a muffin.

"I don't know," Akimi admitted mournfully. "There's nothing I can do--"

"HEY!"

Startled, Akimi jumped and snapped her eyes to Pearl who was glaring at her angrily. "Don't you ever say that!" Pearl growled. "What happened to the newbie who got her butt kicked on the first couple days of Team KP, but got up and kept going?! Did you ever stopped to consider what you can do? Instead of running your mouth like a brat, you could have been thinking about what you can be doing right now!"

"Pearl--"

"No, you were right, you're pretty much useless after all," Pearl snarled, snatching the plate of muffins. "Go on and whimper and cry about how disappointing you are. I'm done."

"Wait! Then tell me what I can do! Tell me what I'm supposed to do!" Akimi yelled, anger taking over.

"Figure it out yourself!" Pearl accented her own anger by slamming the door behind herself.

Well, this is fantastic.