*** I am so sorry that I forgot to post yesterday! I was going to but forgot! Again, so sorry. ***
Since the moment on the roof, Gaara and Aiko have gotten closer. They became like brother and sister. A real brother and sister. Gaara and Toshiko were really the only ones who she wasn’t a little bit scared of. Kankuro scared her because of his face makeup, and Temari scared her because of the aura of strength that emanated from her.
As Gaara and Aiko were in her and Toshiko’s shared room, a maid walked in and said that the Kazekage would like to see them in his office asap. Aiko and Gaara looked at each other before getting up and following the maid. As they walked, Gaara held an emotionless facade, but inside he was freaking out. What was his father going to do this time?
Aiko’s fear was written all over her face. She would have to face the Kazekage again. But this time, without Toshiko there to help her. Sure, Gaara was here, but Toshiko was the only one who knew what she had been through her entire life.
As the doors of the Kazekage’s office loomed closer, Aiko became stricken with panic. She involuntarily reached out for Gaara’s hand to squeeze. When Gaara felt her small hand wrap around his, he looked down at her. Her eyes were wide with fear, her palms were sweaty, and her breathes were labored.
Gaara gripped her hand back, letting her know that he was there. She gave him a shaky smile in thanks.
The maid knocked on the door, a few seconds later they were invited in. Aiko refused to let go of Gaara’s hand, even when the Kazekage stared pointedly at their entwined hands. Gaara was about to let go when Aiko tightened her grip to qn almost unbareable degree. He looked down at her, concern flashed in his eyes before it disappeared.
The Kazekage cleared his throat before saying why he called them into his office.
“I called you both here because you seemed to get close and I wanted to let you both know that it is time for Aiko to go the Hidden Leaf village. I just got a reply to the letter I sent when Aiko and Toshiko arrived. The hokage was glad for the warning and is readying a special home for AIko, since she is still a child, and Toshiko will not be with her for at least a year.”
Aiko froze. She knew that the day would come when she would need to leave Suna and Toshiko would stay until his probation was over. But now she was close with Gaara. What if when they met again, he didn’t like her? Or he changed? And not for the better.
As she was contemplating all of the things that could go wrong, Gaara was thinking about what he was going to do now that Aiko was going to leave. She was the only one who talked to him like he was an actual human being and not just some freak or monster.
The Kazekage cleared his throat to catch their attention before continuing what he was saying before they both spaced out.
“Anyway, a ninja from the village will be coming over to escort Aiko from Suna to Konoha. I suggest you pack your stuff, Aiko. They will be coming early tomorrow morning. That’s all, you are dismissed.”
With that Aiko and Gaara left the room. As they were walking back to Aiko’s bedroom, they both held tight to each other's hand, not wanting to let go of each other.
As the sun was rising over the horizon, a small group of people were waiting at the gate for a ninja from the Leaf.
Aiko was saying goodbye to Toshiko, Gaara, Temari, Kankuro and a few others while trying not to cry. She didn’t want to go to a new place all by herself. Without Toshiko to help her. Without Gaara either. Even though they met almost two weeks ago, they were best friends.
Aiko looked at Toshiko and Gaara with tears streaming down her face. She really didn’t want to leave.
With a heart wrenching sb escaping her throat, she ran to Toshiko. Her arms wrapped around his waist and her face pressed into his stomach. Toshiko had tears threatening eyes but would not give into them. He just picked her up and hugged her back, hiding his face in her shoulder. She hugged back tighter.
They only released when they heard running footsteps in the distance. Toshiko still held Aiko, not wanting to let go just yet. Aiko tightened her arms that were wrapped around his neck.
The people were getting closer and closer. Which means the time for Aiko to leave would be sooner and sooner. As they were within eyesight, Aiko saw that it looked to be an adult and a teenager just a little older than she was.
The teenager was a girl with long, glossy pink hair and was wearing a quapo that was a pinkish shade of red. The adult with her was a- A MAN!!!
Aiko started to get scared and clutched to Toshiko tighter. Toshiko noticed that the adult with the pretty young lady was a man. He frowned. He thought that the ninja would be a female. That’s what he asked for.
As the ninja’s drew closer Aiko’s apprehension for leaving grew. She couldn’t spend three days with them.
When the ninja’s stopped and stood in front of them, they got a good look at him. The bottom half of him was basically what Toshiko was wearing. But the top was a long sleeve shirt underneath a jounin vest. He was wearing a mask that covered down from the bridge of his nose over his cheeks. And his headband was covering his left eye. Though he was young, his hair was grey and seemed to defy gravity in soft spikes.
When they were within hearing distance, Toshiko asked bluntly, “Why are you a man?”
The grey-haired man blinked in surprise at being asked that question. He looked at Aiko, who was still rested in Toshiko’s arms, but more securely.
“Um, because I was born this way?” He asked kind of confused.
Toshiko shook his head and narrowed his eyes, “I meant why did they send a man? I specifically asked for a woman.”
The grey haired man narrowed his eyes, getting bad ideas that this was the guy that they had to escort and that he was a pervert.
“Because Lord Hokage wouldn’t tell us who we were escorting, just that they requested a woman. Many of our kunoichi got the wrong idea and didn’t want to escort you,” The grey haired man replied with glaring eyes.
Aiko eyes widened when she realized that the man thought that Toshiko was the one going to the Leaf. She looked at Toshiko, seeing that he was to mad to realize this too.
She looked at the man and slowly opened her mouth, “Um, s-si-ir?”
The man looked at her, still glaring, until he noticed how scared she was. Then his eyes softened into a soft, gentle stare.
“What is it sweetheart?” He asked in a soft voice that made Aiko a little less afraid of him.
“Um, he’s n-not the on-e th-that you’re escort-ting. I-I am,” Aiko stated while stuttering through her entire sentence.
“What’s wrong? Why are you stuttering so much? Do we scare you?” He asked with a concerned look.
Aiko shook her head. Then nodded. Thoroughly confused, the Leaf ninja turned to Toshiko to explain. He sighed before speaking and wrapping his arms around Aiko more firmly, getting the response of her head making its way into his neck.
“She has androphobia. Sometimes it can be manageable, sometimes she gets panic attacks. She only let’s Gaara and I near her or talk to her. And since I neither of us will be going on the trip to the Leaf for private reasons, I wanted a woman to escort her so there won’t be any fear of a panic attack,” When he was done explaining, the man and the girl looked at each other before looking at Toshiko and Aiko.
Their eyes held pity as they gazed at the frightened 12-year-old girl hiding her face in the neck of Toshiko. They didn’t want her to be scared the whole trip, but at the same time they couldn’t send for someone else. They already lost enough time getting sending the scroll and getting there.
The grey haired man and the pink haired little girl, who still had yet to introduce themselves, looked back at them, finally coming to a decision.
“Look, we can’t go back and ask for a kunoichi to come over and escort her, it would take too long and we don’t have that kind of time. So, how about I travel with you and my student, Sakura Haruno, but stay away unless asked?” He asked as he put his hands in his pockets.
Toshiko looks at Aiko, a silent question in his eyes. She thought about it. He seemed nice, but so did Kaijū, before she knew what he was.
But, maybe she should give him a try. And he was a ninja, so he had to be good.
She slowly, hesitantly, nodded and gave a shaky smile the Leaf ninja.
The grey haired man nodded in understanding.
“That’s great,” He smiled, at least they thought so through the mask, at Aiko. “By the way, the name is Kakashi Hatake.”
Toshiko let her down and gave her a gentle and loving kiss on the forehead. Her eyes watered, but she would not let her tears fall. She would be strong. For Gaara and for Toshiko.
Her Panda and Shiko.