Blinded by Fear

Anything but Normal

The makeshift team had traveled for miles with no sight of Sasuke anywhere although they were sure they were heading in the right direction. Every few miles, Jugo would stop and ask any wildlife he could find about a black haired boy that looked a lot like the girl traveling with them, and all of them confirmed seeing him running that way. A few of the animals made mention of another young man traveling with him, his hair just as dark, but longer, and a deadened look in his eye. Jugo, knowing it must have been Itachi somehow, decided not to relay this information to Sakaria in fear it would cause her to travel recklessly ahead. After running for so long, Suigetsu finally stopped when they caught sight of a small village nestled in the woods.

"Let's take it easy for the night," Suigetsu whined tiredly, dragging his feet toward the village as the other two stood behind him.

"But what if the trail goes cold?" Sakaria asked, looking back in the direction they had been traveling. "We could catch up to Sasuke tonight if we-"

"Yeah, but whose to say Sasuke isn't gonna keep running all night?" Suigetsu asked, still walking away. "He's crazy enough to do it."

"Suigetsu..." Jugo said, looking over to him, "Don't you think it would be smarter if we continued moving in the direction we've been going? We can make camp somewhere ahead, but to go off course just to get to a village could waste a lot of time."

Suigetsu turned back, his face flat and annoyed, "Look, I'm sleeping in a real bed tonight. Even if I have to kill someone to do it." Sakaria tensed slightly at her companion's claim, but a bed did sound nice. Maybe there would be an inn they could stay in so Suigetsu wouldn't have to act out rashly. Jugo said nothing and started to walk in Suigetsu's direction, sighing. With Suigetsu being as stubborn as he was, he knew that they would have to go along or split up, and Jugo certainly didn't want to be responsible for Sakaria's well being since he could hardly control his rampages.

"Oy, fireball, you comin?" Suigetsu asked, still walking away. Sakaria looked one last time in the direction she knew her brother to be, then caught up to her group, not escaping the feeling of longing she had to find him.

Once inside the small village, it seemed everyone Suigetsu or Jugo looked at was traumatized and instantly headed the other direction. Sakaria couldn't blame them. With Suigetsu's sharp teeth and weird appearance, and Jugo's size, we must look like a band of circus freaks. She thought, watching as a group of girls ran to the other side of the street to get further away. I'm the only normal one among us...

"Well, I'd ask someone about a place to sleep, but looks like nobody wants to chat," Suigetsu said confidently. Something about bringing that much fear to people made him feel good.

Sakaria stopped and looked over at a little girl who was hiding behind a fish stand, staring up at them. "Hold on," She said, walking over and kneeling next to the girl who stayed behind the stand, only peeking her blue eyes out at Sakaria. "Hi there!" Sakaria said brightly, "We don't really know this place too well, and I was wondering if maybe you could help us find some place to stay for the night," she said, closing her eyes with a big smile.

"u-uhm... A place to sleep?" The little girl moused, starting to come out of her hiding spot until she saw Suigetsu smile at her and hid again. "I d-don't know if you've asked, b-but Ayako has a lodge a-a little ways down the r-r-oad." Sakaria smiled and stood, digging in her pocket for a moment. She pulled out a few ryo to hand the little girl who took them from her reluctantly.

"Thank you! Oh, and don't be scared of those two," Sakaria said, pointing her thumb behind her at her companions, "They look tough, but they're really just big sissies!" The little girl laughed and ran away to find her group of friends, suddenly at ease.