Section1: Strings Attached [Naruto]

Chapter5: Strings Attached [Naruto]

I watched her running, desperate to escape. Blood boomed in her ears, sweat drops fell one after another, spurring through the gloomy forest; she was not alone… Her walnut hair brushed her face against the fierce wind, her weeping eyes made her vision blurry; unsure of which turn to take and where to hide. Within each step she made the sound of leaves cracking beneath her was heard among her heavy breathing still she could not stop; they were close… closer than she thought. I watched them not far behind her… a sinister aura erupting from them. Explosions burst from all directions within the ground being the cause that the ground shook. Their black cloaks twisted against the force of the wind while their yelling got louder as she got further and further away from them; that didn’t last for long though. Coming upon a dead end she stopped, looking for any direction at all that she could escape from…there were none. They came to a halt ‘Time to end this game of hide and seek…’ With that the final blow was given; the blond raised his arm…passing right through her chest.

I panted for air as my eyes shot open. ‘Just a dream’ I reassured myself trying to overcome the shock. I sat up placing my head on the tip of my knees. I never expected to see such a dream but what was frightening about it was not the fact that the girl died, it was the fact that that girl was…an older version of me. I tried to shake the thought away glazing at the clock which stood on the desk, 7:00. At least I wouldn’t be late for training having in mind that I woke up earlier than supposed to.

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I’ve been in the training field for a while practicing my chakra control climbing up against the rocky wall till I heard footsteps approaching me. ‘Seems like the basic section of your training is done’ Orochimaru stated as I advanced towards him. ‘So what’s next?’ I asked hoping that what followed would be easy. ‘Next in line is perfecting your taijutsu; without it not only your stamina and speed will be pathetic but your chakra level will be so low you’ll barely be able to perform any jutsu at all.’ I gasped, looks like if I wanted to reach his expectations it would take much more than just effort.

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The exhaustion was tearing me apart, sweat drops rolled down my forehead colliding with the rock-hard floor. Shots of pain rushed through me as my breathing became unstable, my lungs gathering all the air they could take. ‘Get up.’ I heard Orochimaru demand; my fists tightened as my head was bend low. I tried standing up but it was of no use, all the energy was drained out of me. ‘Princess, I’ve told you to not make me repeat myself. Now get up.’ Damn it. I really wanted to get up more than anything but as it seems my will was not enough. ‘I-I can’t.’ I shuttered wishing he wouldn’t lose his temper. ‘Fair well then…’ he began with a sigh full of disappointment. ‘We’ll continue tomorrow once we reach the base in the Sound. Don’t disappoint me, Princess.’ He finished leaving me behind to regain my senses.

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I remained on the ground for a long time thinking…Don’t disappoint me Princess…His words played on and on in my mind trying to think how could I possibly find a way to manage what he expected from me. That’s when it hit me…Gaara. This was the last day in the Sand meaning that the time for a base shift had come. Being rested enough from laying down I quickly got up rushing to find Kabuto, hoping he’ll let me go see Gaara.

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I have to admit I was pretty lucky that Kabuto agreed to it just because he had to receive a scroll from another ninja. I rushed to the park where I met Gaara, relieved that he was swinging on a swing. ‘Hey Gaara!’ I greeted sitting on the swing next to him. ‘Mika-Chan! I-I thought you weren’t going to come after…seeing the sand and all’ He exclaimed with surprise. ‘I said I’ll be here and here I am, no way a bit of sand is going to scare me away from you Gaara.’ I admitted with a smile watching him respond in the same way.

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It’s been a while of just fooling around but I knew that at some point I had to tell him. ‘Gaara, I’m…leaving tomorrow’ I announced feeling a burden off my shoulders, however was soon replaced with guilt. ‘What do you mean?’ His expression said it all, confused and betrayed…this just turned much harder than I thought. ‘Oroch…the people I’m staying with are moving out of the village tomorrow meaning I have to follow along. I won’t be able to see you until we return to Suna.’ I explained being careful not to say anything about who I actually was with, S-Ranked criminals. ‘But then I’ll be alone; you can’t go Mika-Chan! Please promise me you’ll stay.’ It tore my apart to watch him but there was nothing I could do to prevent this. ‘Gaara, you’re my friend and you’ll always be with me…here.’ I said pointing to my heart. He remained silent for a while before glancing back at me. ‘Alright; you’ll remain with me here then also…’He gestured to his heart. ‘But promise me that no matter what we’ll meet again.’ ‘I promise…Gaara?’ As he came to face me I sealed my lips in his. ‘See you around.’ I said as I broke apart seeing his stunned expression then on walking away.

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And with that we took our own paths hoping that someday we would meet again; for now though I had to focus on reaching Orochimaru’s expectations and staying strong to be able to deal with anything thrown my way.