Chapter 1 - December 14th: Nikura
Submitted December 17, 2011 Updated December 24, 2011 Status Incomplete | Twelve days of Christmas with my characters; Nikura, Kyriean, Mikura Uchiha, Kyrie Sohma, Moira from Ouran High, Hakura, Joanne Motomichi, Cameron, Inri, Moira from Naruto and Mika. The last chapter will be the longest chapter. Enjoy and comment!
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Anime/Manga » - Crossovers |
Chapter 1 - December 14th: Nikura
Chapter 1 - December 14th: Nikura
On the first day of Christmas my best friend gave to me a badger demon in the sand.
Another snowless Christmas in Sunagakure, another sandy Christmas, another year for the villagers to run about between Sunagakure and Konohagakure in a rush to buy gifts for their friends, family and allies. Family, that was one thing the strawberry blonde haired ANBU lacked since a long time ago when her little sister, Karin, died from a lethal dose of poison during a mission to the sound village for their Kage. Her deep red eyes lifted to the Kage building that protruded in the distance against the sand blowing in a breeze.
“Gaara,” she sighed softly, shutting her eyes and leaning against a nearby wall. She disappeared down the alley way and sighed heavily, feeling her heart beat that familiar fast beat as her cheeks flushed pink. Her hand rested on her chest gently, feeling her heart beneath her pale skin. She opened her eyes, lifting her head, and stared at the sky in silence; thinking about her dear little sister. “Oh Karin, tell mom all that has happened since her death will you? Tell her that I never hated her, that I’ve done just what she asked.” A smile tugged at the corner of her lips as a single tear rolled down the side of her face.
“Nikura,” a familiar, female voice called. Nikura blinked a moment and looked for the source of the voice. “Nikura,”
There she was; a blonde with her hair in four pig tails at the back of her head and a rough looking demeanor. She was a foot taller than Nikura and older too, but Nikura was a higher rank than her in a long run.
“Over here Temari,” Nikura called softly, catching the woman’s attention.
“There you are,” Temari huffed as she walked over to Nikura’s hiding spot. “Come on, Gaara needs to go to Konohagakure,”
Nikura shrank back significantly; she knew what that meant. Temari showing up to her meant that she was requested to lead the Kazekage to safety during the four day travel. “You asked to be this rank, now come on,” Temari barked, making Nikura flinch and slowly come from her shadow clad hideaway. What made her wish she could return to it was Gaara’s form standing not far from the opening. Her bangs fell into her face to hide her tinted cheeks as her eyes downcast to the ground.
“Lord Kazekage,” she said quietly in respect towards Gaara. She received her usual response; a nod and an ‘hm’. She let out a quiet sigh, almost emitting a whine that echoed in her head as tears stung her eyes. She hated it, how she adored him so yet she was just. Another villager under his rule; yes he took care of them and took an interest in them because of Naruto Uzumaki, but it still hurt her. Temari gently nudged her forward with a bag of her things all packed.
“Now that Uchiha’ll be waiting for the two of you at the village gates,” Temari snuffed. Nikura’s eyes lifted in a glare from beneath her hair.
“That Uchiha, Temari, is named Mikura. And she prefers being called as such,” she said dangerously. Temari smirked to herself at Nikura’s automatic reaction to defend her friend.
“Whatever, she’ll be waiting for you in any case.” She dismissed, “Now off you go so you don’t make the trip even longer,”
Nikura snorted a sigh before fixing her bag over her shoulder; undignified muttering came from her as she walked past Gaara.
“Stupid, hate this village, Mikura’s so much nicer,” were the few words caught by Gaara’s ears as she passed. He stared off for a moment before following her out of the village. Nikura’s muttering stop and she sighed heavily, a sad tone hitting the corners of it. She lifted her head as they walked. “Ah, Karin, it must be so nice up there with mom isn’t it?” she asked before emitting another sigh. What am I doing? He must think I’m completely insane and insensitive to everything. She thought to herself with despair. This trip was NOT going to end in her favor that much she was certain of. As time passed the sun began to set and she grudgingly stopped for the night. She concerned herself with everything, but decided to start by setting up the tent that Temari had graciously packed. She failed to notice her charge walking away into the woods nearby that was the borderline between the two villages. She fought with the tent, trying to get it to stand up and stay up. She stopped when she heard the sound of wood falling on top of each other onto the ground. She whirled around and her eyes went wide; Gaara was standing in front of a large pile of wood and his clothes harbored tell tale signs that he had been the one to carry it. She swallowed hard, how did she not notice him leave?
“Wouldn’t it be better to work by fire light?” Gaara asked as a smirk tugged at his lips. Nikura made no comment as she abandoned the tent for the fire wood, setting it up and lighting it. She then returned to the tent silently and began to fight with it again. She paused when Gaara knelt beside her to help.
“I’ve got it Lord Kazekage,” she said quickly, “you rest by the fire,” she smiled. Her smile disappeared when Gaara chuckled and she frowned. “What’s so funny?” she demanded.
“You can’t do it all you know,” Gaara said quietly. Nikura said nothing for a moment as she finished the tent with Gaara’s help.
“Yes I can,” she remarked quietly as she sat back on her heels and looked up at the sky. Small flakes of snow began to fall down on them. “I can do it all, because that’s how I learned to survive with Karin.” She could feel his eyes on her and she shook her head. “Mikura and I, we’re two peas y’know. We’ve been through relatively the same scenarios in life; she lost all her family besides Sasuke and Itachi. I lost all my family except Karin until recently. We both struggle in life, but we make the best of what we have and push ourselves that much harder every day.” She smiled a little, a genuine smile that only few have ever seen her wear on her face, as she shut her eyes and enjoyed the snows small nips as it landed on her face. “How about some food,” she said suddenly, breaking her train of thought and rummaging through the bag. She set up dinner and sat by the fire while it cooked. She could feel his eyes burning holes in her body as he sat opposite her across the fire. She ignored it to the best of her ability and soon handed him his food. “Ow,” she hissed when the flames leapt higher, burning her arm. She quickly drew her arm in and blew on it to ease the pain. “Stupid fire,” she muttered as she examined her arm which held a bright red burn on its side. She shut her eyes and laughed. “Serves me right, reaching over an open flame like that,” she chided herself as she wrapped her arm with a snow soaked bandage. They ate in silence and she threw her plate into the fire, watching the orange flames engulf it. She watched as Gaara did the same before rising. “Good night, Lord Kazekage.” She said softly as he disappeared into the tent. She pulled out a blanket and wrapped it around herself as she kept by the fire to keep watch. It wasn’t long before her blanket became wet and the chill set it, making her entire body shiver. She swallowed hard and tried to keep her body warm by stoking the fire, but it soon died down and extinguished. Soon her teeth began to chatter and she hid her mouth behind the blanket. She heard the tent open and looked over to see Gaara sitting in the opening.
“You’re more likely to die that way,” he said bluntly as he moved. Nikura, despite her pride, didn’t need a second invitation as she scrambled into the warm tent with the bag. She hadn’t realized it was a one person tent and there was only one sleeping bag. She swallowed hard when she caught a glimpse of
Gaara wearing nearly nothing except a button up shirt and boxers. She thanked the darkness as her face flushed red. She heard Gaara say something, but didn’t catch it. “Nikura,” his voice called, catching her attention.
“Yes, Lord Kazekage?” she asked, looking at him and noticing he was lying in the sleeping bag with the side open.
“Instead of dying of hypothermia,” he stated. Nikura swallowed hard as she let the wet blanket drop to the floor of the tent and consciously removed most of her gear. Each layer intensified the chill she felt until she was shaking from the cold in her tank top and shorts. She slowly slid into the sleeping bag with Gaara, feeling warmer when he closed it. Her cheeks burned as he pulled her close. “For an ANBU you certainly are unprepared,”
Nikura said nothing, but emitted a heavy sigh. “You said you lost your family, aside from Karin.”
“What about it?” Nikura asked, her heart aching.
“You only had your mother, didn’t you?”
Nikura fell silent.
“Yeah, it was just me, mom and Karin.” Nikura answered, “But then the fourth Kazekage.” She shut her eyes. “Sent my mom off on a stupid mission when Karin was only an infant, and I was about five. She came back, but not alive.” She sighed softly, “Being her daughter I was alone most of my life anyway because she had housed a demon. Karin got lucky; she had no resemblance to our mother. Everyone just thought she was a friend. I kept it that way so she wouldn’t have to suffer the same way I did.”
“You protected her by denying she was your sister.”
“Yeah, I guess so.” Nikura laughed humorlessly. “Then I met Mikura one day, she came to the village to escort your father to Konohagakure for a meeting with the third Hokage. She saved my skin that day. Then at the Chunnin exams we met and caught up, I’m not surprised I lost to her so quickly in the preliminary rounds. She’s got a lot more to worry about then I ever will.”
“So you’ve always had a friend,” Gaara stated quietly.
“If you want to call her that, sure,” Nikura remarked, “Mikura’s been great to me. She can always make me laugh no matter how down I am.” A smile appeared on her face again, “She chased Naruto a few times. He’s afraid of her apparently.”
Nikura squeaked when Gaara pulled her closer. “L-Lord Kazekage,” she whispered as her face grew warm and her heart beat hard in her chest.
“How can you be so open about yourself?” Gaara asked as he nuzzled his face against her chest making Nikura’s face grow even redder.
“I’m not usually,” she admitted quietly, “It just happens sometimes, for some reason, I start to rattle on about myself. I don’t know why, it’s not that anyone really cares about what I’ve gone through.” She laughed at herself.
“I do,”
She paused and her breathing stopped.
“W-what,”
“I care,” Gaara muttered. Nikura looked at him and smiled, bringing her arms around him.
“Oh Gaara,” she soothed, “I know it sounds so similar to your life.” She shut her eyes, “I couldn’t help you as children, and I was forced to watch from the shadows as I do even now.”
Gaara’s face lifted and, without meaning, their lips met. Nikura’s eyes snapped open and went wide as her face burned hot, her heart beating harshly against her chest. She slowly relaxed and her eyes closed before their kiss broke. She smiled and easily snuggled up to Gaara feeling that a point had been made. Temari, her best friend, had purposely packed in such a way.
Another snowless Christmas in Sunagakure, another sandy Christmas, another year for the villagers to run about between Sunagakure and Konohagakure in a rush to buy gifts for their friends, family and allies. Family, that was one thing the strawberry blonde haired ANBU lacked since a long time ago when her little sister, Karin, died from a lethal dose of poison during a mission to the sound village for their Kage. Her deep red eyes lifted to the Kage building that protruded in the distance against the sand blowing in a breeze.
“Gaara,” she sighed softly, shutting her eyes and leaning against a nearby wall. She disappeared down the alley way and sighed heavily, feeling her heart beat that familiar fast beat as her cheeks flushed pink. Her hand rested on her chest gently, feeling her heart beneath her pale skin. She opened her eyes, lifting her head, and stared at the sky in silence; thinking about her dear little sister. “Oh Karin, tell mom all that has happened since her death will you? Tell her that I never hated her, that I’ve done just what she asked.” A smile tugged at the corner of her lips as a single tear rolled down the side of her face.
“Nikura,” a familiar, female voice called. Nikura blinked a moment and looked for the source of the voice. “Nikura,”
There she was; a blonde with her hair in four pig tails at the back of her head and a rough looking demeanor. She was a foot taller than Nikura and older too, but Nikura was a higher rank than her in a long run.
“Over here Temari,” Nikura called softly, catching the woman’s attention.
“There you are,” Temari huffed as she walked over to Nikura’s hiding spot. “Come on, Gaara needs to go to Konohagakure,”
Nikura shrank back significantly; she knew what that meant. Temari showing up to her meant that she was requested to lead the Kazekage to safety during the four day travel. “You asked to be this rank, now come on,” Temari barked, making Nikura flinch and slowly come from her shadow clad hideaway. What made her wish she could return to it was Gaara’s form standing not far from the opening. Her bangs fell into her face to hide her tinted cheeks as her eyes downcast to the ground.
“Lord Kazekage,” she said quietly in respect towards Gaara. She received her usual response; a nod and an ‘hm’. She let out a quiet sigh, almost emitting a whine that echoed in her head as tears stung her eyes. She hated it, how she adored him so yet she was just. Another villager under his rule; yes he took care of them and took an interest in them because of Naruto Uzumaki, but it still hurt her. Temari gently nudged her forward with a bag of her things all packed.
“Now that Uchiha’ll be waiting for the two of you at the village gates,” Temari snuffed. Nikura’s eyes lifted in a glare from beneath her hair.
“That Uchiha, Temari, is named Mikura. And she prefers being called as such,” she said dangerously. Temari smirked to herself at Nikura’s automatic reaction to defend her friend.
“Whatever, she’ll be waiting for you in any case.” She dismissed, “Now off you go so you don’t make the trip even longer,”
Nikura snorted a sigh before fixing her bag over her shoulder; undignified muttering came from her as she walked past Gaara.
“Stupid, hate this village, Mikura’s so much nicer,” were the few words caught by Gaara’s ears as she passed. He stared off for a moment before following her out of the village. Nikura’s muttering stop and she sighed heavily, a sad tone hitting the corners of it. She lifted her head as they walked. “Ah, Karin, it must be so nice up there with mom isn’t it?” she asked before emitting another sigh. What am I doing? He must think I’m completely insane and insensitive to everything. She thought to herself with despair. This trip was NOT going to end in her favor that much she was certain of. As time passed the sun began to set and she grudgingly stopped for the night. She concerned herself with everything, but decided to start by setting up the tent that Temari had graciously packed. She failed to notice her charge walking away into the woods nearby that was the borderline between the two villages. She fought with the tent, trying to get it to stand up and stay up. She stopped when she heard the sound of wood falling on top of each other onto the ground. She whirled around and her eyes went wide; Gaara was standing in front of a large pile of wood and his clothes harbored tell tale signs that he had been the one to carry it. She swallowed hard, how did she not notice him leave?
“Wouldn’t it be better to work by fire light?” Gaara asked as a smirk tugged at his lips. Nikura made no comment as she abandoned the tent for the fire wood, setting it up and lighting it. She then returned to the tent silently and began to fight with it again. She paused when Gaara knelt beside her to help.
“I’ve got it Lord Kazekage,” she said quickly, “you rest by the fire,” she smiled. Her smile disappeared when Gaara chuckled and she frowned. “What’s so funny?” she demanded.
“You can’t do it all you know,” Gaara said quietly. Nikura said nothing for a moment as she finished the tent with Gaara’s help.
“Yes I can,” she remarked quietly as she sat back on her heels and looked up at the sky. Small flakes of snow began to fall down on them. “I can do it all, because that’s how I learned to survive with Karin.” She could feel his eyes on her and she shook her head. “Mikura and I, we’re two peas y’know. We’ve been through relatively the same scenarios in life; she lost all her family besides Sasuke and Itachi. I lost all my family except Karin until recently. We both struggle in life, but we make the best of what we have and push ourselves that much harder every day.” She smiled a little, a genuine smile that only few have ever seen her wear on her face, as she shut her eyes and enjoyed the snows small nips as it landed on her face. “How about some food,” she said suddenly, breaking her train of thought and rummaging through the bag. She set up dinner and sat by the fire while it cooked. She could feel his eyes burning holes in her body as he sat opposite her across the fire. She ignored it to the best of her ability and soon handed him his food. “Ow,” she hissed when the flames leapt higher, burning her arm. She quickly drew her arm in and blew on it to ease the pain. “Stupid fire,” she muttered as she examined her arm which held a bright red burn on its side. She shut her eyes and laughed. “Serves me right, reaching over an open flame like that,” she chided herself as she wrapped her arm with a snow soaked bandage. They ate in silence and she threw her plate into the fire, watching the orange flames engulf it. She watched as Gaara did the same before rising. “Good night, Lord Kazekage.” She said softly as he disappeared into the tent. She pulled out a blanket and wrapped it around herself as she kept by the fire to keep watch. It wasn’t long before her blanket became wet and the chill set it, making her entire body shiver. She swallowed hard and tried to keep her body warm by stoking the fire, but it soon died down and extinguished. Soon her teeth began to chatter and she hid her mouth behind the blanket. She heard the tent open and looked over to see Gaara sitting in the opening.
“You’re more likely to die that way,” he said bluntly as he moved. Nikura, despite her pride, didn’t need a second invitation as she scrambled into the warm tent with the bag. She hadn’t realized it was a one person tent and there was only one sleeping bag. She swallowed hard when she caught a glimpse of
Gaara wearing nearly nothing except a button up shirt and boxers. She thanked the darkness as her face flushed red. She heard Gaara say something, but didn’t catch it. “Nikura,” his voice called, catching her attention.
“Yes, Lord Kazekage?” she asked, looking at him and noticing he was lying in the sleeping bag with the side open.
“Instead of dying of hypothermia,” he stated. Nikura swallowed hard as she let the wet blanket drop to the floor of the tent and consciously removed most of her gear. Each layer intensified the chill she felt until she was shaking from the cold in her tank top and shorts. She slowly slid into the sleeping bag with Gaara, feeling warmer when he closed it. Her cheeks burned as he pulled her close. “For an ANBU you certainly are unprepared,”
Nikura said nothing, but emitted a heavy sigh. “You said you lost your family, aside from Karin.”
“What about it?” Nikura asked, her heart aching.
“You only had your mother, didn’t you?”
Nikura fell silent.
“Yeah, it was just me, mom and Karin.” Nikura answered, “But then the fourth Kazekage.” She shut her eyes. “Sent my mom off on a stupid mission when Karin was only an infant, and I was about five. She came back, but not alive.” She sighed softly, “Being her daughter I was alone most of my life anyway because she had housed a demon. Karin got lucky; she had no resemblance to our mother. Everyone just thought she was a friend. I kept it that way so she wouldn’t have to suffer the same way I did.”
“You protected her by denying she was your sister.”
“Yeah, I guess so.” Nikura laughed humorlessly. “Then I met Mikura one day, she came to the village to escort your father to Konohagakure for a meeting with the third Hokage. She saved my skin that day. Then at the Chunnin exams we met and caught up, I’m not surprised I lost to her so quickly in the preliminary rounds. She’s got a lot more to worry about then I ever will.”
“So you’ve always had a friend,” Gaara stated quietly.
“If you want to call her that, sure,” Nikura remarked, “Mikura’s been great to me. She can always make me laugh no matter how down I am.” A smile appeared on her face again, “She chased Naruto a few times. He’s afraid of her apparently.”
Nikura squeaked when Gaara pulled her closer. “L-Lord Kazekage,” she whispered as her face grew warm and her heart beat hard in her chest.
“How can you be so open about yourself?” Gaara asked as he nuzzled his face against her chest making Nikura’s face grow even redder.
“I’m not usually,” she admitted quietly, “It just happens sometimes, for some reason, I start to rattle on about myself. I don’t know why, it’s not that anyone really cares about what I’ve gone through.” She laughed at herself.
“I do,”
She paused and her breathing stopped.
“W-what,”
“I care,” Gaara muttered. Nikura looked at him and smiled, bringing her arms around him.
“Oh Gaara,” she soothed, “I know it sounds so similar to your life.” She shut her eyes, “I couldn’t help you as children, and I was forced to watch from the shadows as I do even now.”
Gaara’s face lifted and, without meaning, their lips met. Nikura’s eyes snapped open and went wide as her face burned hot, her heart beating harshly against her chest. She slowly relaxed and her eyes closed before their kiss broke. She smiled and easily snuggled up to Gaara feeling that a point had been made. Temari, her best friend, had purposely packed in such a way.
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