Chapter 38: Wake up, Gaara! Please?

Nue's POV

Ten minutes passed and Sasuke finally showed up. His outfit was new. He wore nothing but black. Though one of his hands were bandaged and his hair's gotten longer, too. "Took you long enough, Sasuke!" I called to him.

"You can't talk, Nue. You were late too." Shikamaru stated. I went all gloomy because he had a point. Sasuke looked towards me, then back at Genma. "Hey, Sasuke is fighting Gaara, right?" I asked. "He sure is. Believe it. " Naruto answered.

The match soon began. So far, the match was turning out amazing. I liked how Sasuke would get through Gaara's sand. He was fast, maybe faster than Kakashi. Keyword: maybe. As Sasuke broke through Gaara sand dome, Gaara began to scream, "BLOOD! IT'S MY BLOOD!"

If they weren't in the middle of a match right now, I'd go down there and see if Gaara was okay. But at the same time, I wanted to see how this would play out. I'll try not to get distracted by the feathers around me. Wait, feathers?

"Naruto, are you seeing this?" I asked. I looked to my side and saw him asleep along with Shikamaru. This is a genjutsu. "Release!" The feathers bounced off me and I ran to where Kakashi-sensei was. "Kakashi-sensei, what's happening?" I asked.

"I'm not sure." He said "Nue, you and Sakura go wake up Naruto and Shikamaru." Kakashi said. I nodded my head and Sakura and I got to work. We undid the genjutsu on them and they slowly began to wake up. Well, except for Shika.

I lifted my head and narrowed my eyes. Something didn't feel right. "Hey! Where are you going?" Sakura called after me as I ran off. I spotted Kiba as he was lying face first on the ground. "Kiba!" I ran over to him and flipped him on his back.

"Kiba. Hey, are you okay?" I asked. He was unconscious. Someone did this to him, but who? I looked towards the arena as I saw Sasuke follow Gaara. "What is he doing?" I demanded before following him.

"Nue, hold up!" Iri called as she and Maria followed me. "Where are you going?" She asked. "I have a bad feeling Sasuke's going to do something bad to Gaara. I've got to stop him." I informed. "Count us in." Iri replied.

"No, I want you guys to go back and find some shelter. I don't want you guys getting hurt." I argued. "That's not up to you, Nue. It's our choice and you can't make us change our minds." Iri argued back. "Okay, fine. You win. But we've got to hurry." I said and the three of us continued to follow Sasuke.

"Look out!" Iri warned. I looked to the side and saw kunai knives being thrown at us. Maria got in front of us and created a shield, making the weapons bounce off of it. "Maria!" Iri and I said in sync. Sound ninja appeared out of nowhere and Maria began to fight them all.

"Iri-sama! Nue-sama! Please go on ahead! I can handle this!" Maria called before kicking a Sound ninja away from her. "But-" I started. "Please, don't argue about this! Just go! Now!" She yelled. "Nue, let's go. We have to trust her." Iri said as she tugged my arm.

I took one last look at Maria before going on ahead with Iri. But we lost track of Sasuke. We continued to follow the path until we finally caught up to Sasuke and found Gaara. But Gaara was different. One side of him was monster-like as it was covered in sand.

"Gaara!" I called to him. He looked at me and growled. "No, Nue! Get out of here!" Sasuke called to me as he was lying on his stomach with Naruto by his side. "He's right! Listen to him! You can't stop him!" Temari said. 

"Where's Sakura?" I asked Naruto. "She's over there!" He pointed at a tree, where Sakura was pinned by sand. "Iri, go help Sakura. I'll deal with Gaara." I told her.

"How? He's... He's gone insane!"

"I'll try and reason with him."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes, now go!"

Iri gave me a nod and went to help Sakura. "Gaara! Snap out of it!" I shouted to him. He growled at me. "Stay away!" He shouted as he shot sand at me. I dodged out of the way. Unfortunately, some of the sand caught my ankle and crushed it.

I fell on a branch and looked at my ankle. It was completely broken while covered in blood. "Gaara, please listen to me!" I called. Gaara growled again until he grabbed the side of his head. "I don't know... Who... are you?" He mumbled.

"You know who I am. It's me, Nue." I said as I tried to get up. I gritted my teeth, trying my best to endure the pain of my broken ankle. "Wake up, Gaara!" I shouted to him. I quickly did some hand signs. "Fire Style: Dragon Flame Jutsu!" I spit a mouthful of fire at him, but he blocked the fire with his sand.

"Do you really think a little bit of fire is going to stop me?!" Gaara shouted. He shot sand at me again. Only this time it went past me. Crap, it's going after Naruto! I shot myself in front of Naruto and the sand hit my back.

I bit my lip to hold back my scream. "Nue-chan!" Naruto yelled out of worry. I smiled weakly at him. "Don't worry about me. I'm fine." I assured him before falling to my hands and knees. "Nue-chan!" Naruto kneeled down beside me.

"I'm okay. Really." I said, barely a whisper. "Nue-chan, let me fight." Naruto said. "No, I don't want you getting hurt." I said. Naruto frowned and turned to Gaara. "You bastard! You'll pay for that!" Naruto growled. I watched as he charged at Gaara.

"No, Naruto!" Sasuke yelled. I cried out in pain as I felt my curse mark acting up. I can't let this thing take over me. I have to fight it. I got up to see Naruto being flown back. I caught him and fell back on a branch.

I looked at Gaara, then gasped when I saw sand being shot at us. I threw Naruto out of the way and got hit with the sand, making me cry out in pain as my back hit the tree. I fell on my hands and knees as I panted slightly.

"Nue!" I heard Iri scream. "No, Iri! Stay out of this! I have to do this on my own!" I told her, then turned my attention towards Gaara. "Listen to me! You're being controlled by the demon inside you! Go back to normal!" I shouted at him.

He yelled and threw more sand at me. My back roughly hit itself against the tree again, making me cough up blood. I slid down the tree until I was sitting down. Sand wrapped itself around my wrists and pinned them above my head.

More sand shot at me, causing to cry out in pain once more. "Nue-chan!" Naruto called. The sand finally stopped shooting at me and I dropped my head in exhaustion. "Gaara... Please, snap out of it." I said, weakly.

"Stop talking to me like you know me! Stay away from me!" Gaara shouted at me. I looked at him in pain. "Just go back." I begged. My face suddenly went emotionless as Gaara stared at me with anger. My eyes widened when I saw his eyes.

All I could see was pain, anger, and sadness. I get it now. I frowned and tried to break free from the sand's grip. It didn't work at first, but when I tried again, I managed to loosen it. I kept pulling until the sand crumbled away.

Gaara seemed shock that I was able to break out of his sand and I calmly limped over to him. Gaara started to take a step back as I got closer to him. He shot sand at me again, but I swiped it away with my fist.

The sand dispersed and I continued to limp towards him. I stopped when I was at arms length. I held my hand out to him, hoping he would take it and snap out of his monster side. But he just frowned and continued to walk backwards from me.

When he took another step back, his foot slipped off the branch. My eyes widened and I quickly grabbed him, pulled him into an embrace with my arm wrapped around his waist and my other arm wrapped around his upper back.

I felt him tense up, probably shocked at the fact I was hugging him. But he soon went back to his angry state. Gaara put his hands on my shoulders and try to push me away, but I held on tightly, refusing to let go. He tried again, but I still didn't budge.

This only made him angrier. "Let go." He hissed. I didn't say anything as I continued to hold him. "Just what are you doing? I said let go!" Gaara snapped. "I won't." I said, calmly. "It's all right. You're going to be all right." I said with a small smile.

"You don't know that." He hissed. "Yes, I do. You and I are alike. Don't you get it?" I said. Gaara paused and stopped trying to push me away from him. "I understand now. You're sad... and lonely. You just wanted to be loved," I said.

"I know what that's like, Gaara. Believe me, I know. And all because you're different. You're scared and sick of being alone. No one should have to feel that way, and I'm sorry." I said. I felt tears roll down my cheeks.

"So, please... just stop. You don't have to do this anymore." I begged. I hugged him tighter and put my face in his shoulder. "You didn't choose to become a monster because you wanted to. It's not you fault, and I'm sorry. It's not fair. Why should you have to suffer just because you were forced to be like this?" I said, closing my eyes tightly.

Before I knew it, I was already crying. "Everything's going to be all right now, Gaara. I promise it." I said. Gaara didn't say anything. I opened my eyes and glanced over at him, seeing the sand was retreating. Gaara's monster side disappeared as it returned to his original face.

"Why?" Gaara whispered. I looked at him. "Why what?" I asked, sniffling. "Why are you crying?" He asked as he used a thumb to wipe away a tear. "Because... I don't want you to feel hurt anymore. I want you to be happy. I hate... seeing someone I care about get hurt, and it's not fair." I said, wiping my eyes.

I gasped lightly when he hugged me. "Nue, can I ask you something?"

"Of course." I nodded my head

"Will... Will you be my friend?"

My eyes widened as he asked that question. "Yes." I answered, hugging him back with a smile. Gaara smiled softly as he hugged me tighter. "Making friends while getting yourself injured. I'll never understand how you operate, Nue." Iri said with a sigh as she held an unconscious Sakura.

A while later, Temari and Kankuro came to take Gaara back to his village so he could get healed. Iri helped me take my team to the hospital so they could get healed as well. Maria met up with us by the hospital doors. Her eyes widened when she saw my condition.

"It's all right, Maria. I'm fine. I've been in worst situations. Trust me." I assured her, referring to my fight with Megumi. After we got my team settled in the hospital, Maria and Iri took me home to clean out my wounds.

I laid in my bed as I stared up at the ceiling, gently stroking Misaku's fur as she purred. Kiyoshi was resting on the pillow next to me, sleeping soundly. Iri had told me stay in bed for a while due to my ankle injuring. I nodded my head to her, not wanting to start a fight with her.

After only a few minutes, I began to move my ankle around and it was completely healed. Strange, right?

I hope my team healed up soon. I was more worried about their wounds than mine. But things got a lot worst when Kakashi-sensei came by later and informed us that Hokage-sama died. Maria, Iri, and I began to prepare for the funeral as we dressed in black.

As we walked to the funeral, I spotted my team. They all had the same expression that I held. The funeral began and dark clouds began to form. Soon, it began to rain. We all walked up one by one, placing our flowers on the casket.

I helped Misaki and Kiyoshi place their flowers as I held them. I wiped my eyes before the tears could escape my eyes. Okaa-san's gone, Julia and Sharon are gone, and now Hokage-sama is gone. "It's not fair. Why... did you have to die?" I asked.

I sniffled and wiped my eyes again. "It's okay to cry, Nue," I looked up at Kakshi as he stared straight ahead. "But.. I-If I cry, then it'll show h-how weak I am." I said as I rubbed my eyes. "Sometimes we all have to cry. It shows how much we care about that person, and how much we've been through." He said

Iri cried softly as she wiped her eyes. But every time she did, more tears fell down her face. "He was only trying to protect us. It's not fair!" I said as I covered my face with my hands, tears spilling down my face. I felt Maria pull me into a side hug.

"We may have lost the people we love, but that doesn't mean they're gone, Nue-sama. They'll still be watching us." Maria said. "But I promised... that I would protect them." I said as I rubbed my eyes.

"Promised who?" I looked down at my feet as Yin Yang stood by my foot. "What..?" I asked. "To whom did you make that promise to?" Yin Yang asked. Actually, I don't know who I promised. I guess it was a promise I made to Zabuza after he died.

I could feel the rain beginning to stop. "The rain... It's stopping." I said as I wiped my face. "I guess this is a way of the Hokage telling us to keeping fighting." Yin Yang said. "I guess so." I agreed in a quiet voice.

When the funeral ended, Naruto, Sakura, and Sasuke were waiting for me. I smiled gently at them. I may have lost the Hokage, but I didn't lose my friends. I still have them. I walked over to them as Naruto was asking Kakashi-sensei to teach him Chidori. I giggled.

"Are you going to be okay, Nue?" Iri asked. I looked at her, then at the sky. "Yeah. I think I'm going to be just fine." I answered her. Hokage-sama... I will keep fighting. And I won't stop until everyone is safe. I have faith that when I get stronger, I'll have the ability to protect everyone I love.

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Phew. Sorry for the super long chapter and for mixing the battle up. Don't forget to vote and comment. Sayonara!!

Kureiji out~