What Does It Mean? [Haku x Rai x Ask x Invite]

[Gaara of the Sand]

Gaara let his lips part and pull back in the cold smile he could pull. The slight bit Yuki’s eyes had widened, for mere seconds, but it was enough to satisfy Gaara. He’d seen the reaction…the shock, the confusion, the analyzing leap into the eyes before they went back to a more normal expression. Gaara had succeeded in his task of feigning…but he wasn’t done playing, oh no. Once the sand had wrapped around Yuki’s ankles, He let it sit there, relaxed, while he debated how long to keep it up. He didn’t want to keep his chakra molded into the sand for too much longer. Sure, he had plenty of chakra, but it required more to use normal sand than that in his gourd. It was a bit annoying, really.

However, he didn’t get the chance to let his thoughts dwell on that. Gaara’s cold smile faded as his eyes attempted to meet Yuki’s. Yuki seemed distracted, as though he was now making a more furious attempt to figure him out. Gaara wanted to smile again. He could figure whatever out easily enough, but he would never know anything close to the truth. Gaara was fine with that, remaining some sort of enigmatic demon in the life of anyone that met him was a suitable niche that Gaara could fit into. Then again, he had done that basically his whole life, had he not? What would change that now? Nothing… Gaara answered himself.

It had been a long, silent minute or so before. Yuki seemed to analyze them in that time. Gaara knew that by now it was fairly obvious that he would take any sort of action before this other Suna-nin, and his actions would be decisive in the outcome of any sort of fight. Yuki seemed to be thinking of what kind of situation he was in, and what he should do. It was then that he moved. Gaara hadn’t been 100% expecting it, but what he did surprised him a little. He intended for it to pass within seconds in his head, but his eyes widened a slight bit before relaxing.

Gaara turned his head slightly to get a look at what had been thrown. A dagger…of ice..? He pulled water from this ground? this kid was different…he could pull what little water there was from a desert and freeze it? A strange talent, almost as unique as his sand manipulation Kekkei…Genkei? was the only thing Gaara could fathom. However, now Yuki seemed winded by the effort. His head was bowed, showing weakness. If he were to attack now, it could be over quite soon for this Yuki person.

Before he moved, however, the other Suna-nin made her move. She poised a dagger at Yuki and looked at him as well, while calling Yuki a prisoner. …Prisoner..? Gaara thought, slight confusion spreading through his head. The girl continued…and asked for orders. Gaara could have laughed. ”There…is no prisoner. Just myself, you, and someone who seems to have an interesting ability. Get out of my way…” Gaara said darkly.

He tightened his sand around Yuki’s ankle a little. He was ready for anything now, and that was only confirmed by the chakra he was mixing into the sand within his gourd. He didn’t need to worry at all about it, it would defend him from anything. All he’d need to do was attack, and he didn’t have nearly any qualm about killing both of them. Except for the other suna-nin…she hadn’t given reason to die…yet.

[Haku]

The girl had a bag full of explosives?! Who in there right mind would do that? One wrong match and she would go out with a bang , maybe while taking the block with her. Then again most ninja were not to be the sanest people around. Maybe the girl was just one of the normal ones. It was time to talk the girl down from blowing them all too little bits. Haku wasn’t ready to die yet, his dream had not been realized. He had more to live for like Zabuza. “Relax… alright miss? If I had wanted to take your life I would have done so, the first time I attacked you. I know what kind of position I am in at the moment and so can not afford to be rash as that. Please don’t make me regret that decision.” Haku was trying to intimidate her with that last sentence. He said this with his head still bowed and in a soft voice. He wasn’t mad at the poor girl for wanting to take him prisoner. Although he was pleased that the boy who seemed to intimidate her more then even he did didn’t want to do so at this time. It was Gaara who was in control of his fate it seemed and he would play a game with him. Haku would not threaten him enough to decide that he was better off dead.

With a flick of his hand he defrosted the ice dagger and summoned the water to his hands. It formed into a sphere hovering about five inches above his open palm. A thin ribbon of water removed from the sphere which he flicked at the girl aiming for her forehead. “You really need to lighten up girl. You can be serous when it’s called for not before. So far it isn’t called for.” He laughed behind his hand as he raised his head. Haku was feeling a little better. “Even if I was your prisoner where would you take me in this storm?” Haku smiled at the glaring girl daring her to make a move. If she got to close with that blade she would be in for a surprise. Haku rested one hand on the ground and ran through a series of hand signs with one hand. ‘Flying ice needles of death’ the water sphere turned into 20 two inch long ice senbon. It could come in handy for dealing with the high strung girl. He was very good with the needles and typically hit what he aimed for. He didn’t release the ice needles just let them hover over his hand and glint in the dark.

He felt the sand tight its grip and he winced. It was get annoying not to mention uncomfortable. He saw Gaara smile and knew he was enjoying this. Haku made not attempt to remove the sand for all that it was hurting him. “I don’t want to fight you to the death gaara. You have advantage and I’m not stupid. In the desert a sand wielder wins by sheer force. I would like to play with you; if you’re game. I’ve never met someone who could do what you can before. It would be interesting and instructive to see how we would fair in a fight.” He was nearly certain that it would do little or no good if he tried. In fact it might make it worse. Haku would just have to sit tight and hope that Gaara would be satisfied with his minor discomfort.

[raiwatanabe]

Clenching down on the ninjato, Rai let out a slow, steady breath. She was outclassed, and it was blatantly obvious to everyone in the cavern she was more a liability than an asset. Slowly putting the weapon away, she quietly observed as Gaara barked at her. She was in his way?

Then the stranger, the boy Yuki, spoke up. Apparently he didn't appreciate the fact she was a walking munitions bag. Still, it did make her feel better that someone took her at least somewhat seriously. Even if she was seen as a little crazy, it was better to be feared as an unstable element than seen as simply a hindrance.

Then again, as the hunter nin melted the icicle projectile, and brought the melted water back within his grasp, Rai could only watch. As he formed seals with one hand, and formed a series of deadly ice senbon, she tried her best to study the movements. They were just too fast.

Her instructors still criticized her at her speed, or lack thereof. The others could read hand seals and interpret their partner's actions much faster, while she could only hope that someone was going to do something she was prepared for. Her observational skills needed a great deal of work, but without anyone to train her directly, it was proving difficult. Only direct instruction would solve these issues, and it was clear that until she was able to undertake such training, she would be outclassed by her fellow genin.

Every word the two spoke in front of her was only more implications to her complete inability to compete at a reasonable level, and it was slowly building into a nagging frustration in the forefront of her mind.

Watanabe froze in place. A game? This boy was talking about exchanging blows like some kind of game? Maybe she should have kept walking in the desert. If she had kept going, she might have made the village by now. Then again, the filter in the rebreather wouldn't take much more sand.

Pulling her knees to her chest, she went silent, and tried to observe both through her peripheral vision. If all else failed, she could at least practice her HUMINT skills, which she knew needed the most work.

It seemed she received an odd glance from Gaara on occasion, as well as Yuki. It was an amusing thought, but in an odd way, this hunter nin might prove an inspiration. She could learn a great deal from him, if she were cautious.

[Gaara of the Sand]

Gaara sneered a little as Yuki displayed a bit more discomfort at the tightening of the sand. Gaara wasn’t going to kill him…it would be rather unsightly for the girl…but then again, he could always kill her, too. However, the next movement from Yuki caught Gaara by surprise. He formed hand seals…with one hand? What is this? Gaara wondered, his mouth drawn thin and his eyes widening in a slight bit of surprise. Never before had he seen someone manipulate chakra with one hand. It was unheard of in the shinobi world…what was this oinin? Who was he? Gaara had a small feeling in the back of his mind that Yuki was not the oinin’s real name. However, he would let it pass. This next move was completely unexpected.

The boy formed water from the ice, into a sphere, but then split it into..senbon? Gaara could make out a fair bit of what it was. He was pretty sure the new formations were senbon. They were small, pointed, and sharp…perfect match for senbon. Yuki let them settle, hovering above his hand. He was clearly controlling them. This made things interesting…two of them that could control something in the environment around them. Never before had Gaara come across someone like that, so this was truly interesting, but more than enough reason to be wary.

Yuki spoke next, though. He would like to play? Gaara felt a manic grin starting to slowly spread across his face. He would like to play…of course Gaara was game. He always was. The wind howled once more after Yuki spoke, causing Gaara to flinch, bringing a hand to his head, pulling his hair back off his forehead as the small twinge from the uprooting hairs distracted him from the throb in his head. However, after the one howl, the wind stopped, and the sand returned to the desert floor. The sky had been getting lighter for a while, it had truly been a late night when he’d set out, and sitting here made it longer. The sun was starting to peer over the distance, casting some light in the cavern. Yuki had brought herself together, seemingly staying as small as possible in this. The message seemed to have gotten across that she was not a match in anything that may break out with the stranger, so Gaara simply cast her a glance before returning his gaze to a neutral position.

Gaara ducked his head down, keeping his hands on his head. ”I could say the same of you…never before have I met…someone like you. And I’d be…more than happy to play with you.” Gaara let a dangerous grin slide across his face while it was ducked towards his lap. Gaara released the sand around Yuki’s ankle. That feign was over. However, the ice needles were another thing. They could pierce, cut, and hurt. It was a considerable offense. I should consider myself honored to have a considerable defense to match..,. Gaara thought. With that, he pulled some sand from the outside towards himself and raised it in a circle around him, various strands of sand dancing like fire in the rising sunlight. Gaara picked his head up, his hair still pulled back, the few strands that fell low pulled out of his eyes. He squinted in the light, which was hitting his eyeline directly and tried to get a better look at Yuki. His back was to the sun, so he couldn’t make anything of Yuki’s face out.

However, he wasn’t too concerned about it. ”Shall we…play?” Gaara asked, a slight curl in his lip giving the impression of irritation instead of anticipation.

[Haku]

Haku sighed as dawn broke clear and cool. He had decided that in the morning light the desert was almost nice. A soft smile graced his features as though he was about to test his skill while being handicapped by the terrine. It would be a work out for him that’s for sure. He couldn’t use most of his jutsu because they required water to work even his ice style. Haku didn’t want to delay their game by passing out just to bring more water to the surface. This meant he could only use what he had on hand and in hand. Twenty needles that was it? After those were gone he would have to think of something else to try or declare a forfeit. “I’ll take that as a Complement.” He said with a short nod as he brushed his free hand over his now free ankle subtly checking for anything worse then redness. He found nothing and counted himself lucky for that. That sand could have crippled him easily with a little more pressure to the right spot. No matter how fast Haku was he doubt that he could run well on a broken ankle.

“This might be a short game I’m afraid but let’s make it interesting while it lasts, hmm?” He stood up a little warily at first then much straighter as he watched the sand waft in and dance around gaara. Haku leaned towards the girl and smile in a friendly way despite what was going to take place. “Spare some water for a game please, misses?” He indicted the ground at his feet. “Its faster to use what’s already up here then to constantly pull water from beneath the sand.” Haku flicked one of the senbon as gaara left wrist. His intention was to fold he wanted to see what Gaara reaction would be and how fast he could move. Also he wanted to see if that sand could do anything to stop the attack. It was a test of skill of sorts to see if the show with his ankle was just a mere fluke or not. Haku hoped it was not just raw guess work and that Gaara had at least some skill with his sand abilities. That would make this a lot more challenging for him. Haku face was fixed in a calm unnerving smile. It made people made to see some one just smiling at them when they were working hard to beat them to a pulp which is exactly why he did it. “Your move,Gaara.”

[raiwatanabe]

The hunter-nin was asking her for what? Why, in her right mind, would Rai deliberately give this obvious water user access to her canteen? Looking pleadingly over to Gaara, Watanabe's nervous twitch in her right hand began to surface. Gaara seemed to be... smiling? It was odd, and she wouldn't have noticed it any other time, but for some reason, she could see it.

Gaara was... happy trying to fight this person?

Holding out the canteen, she hesitantly poured a capful of water into the boy's outstretched hands. "Don't have too much fun," she grumbled first at Yuki, then at Gaara. Putting the canteen back on the tactical belt, she reached for the backpack, and withdrew one of the explosive notes. Holding it firmly in her hand, she drew her thumb slowly over the seal.

If they watched her clench down on the paper of the note, she did not know. However, the point seemed to have been made.

As she watched, it was obvious who she should be rooting for. At least, she thought it was. Gaara was one of her countrymen, and definitely not a hunter-nin with some hidden agenda. Yet, watching as the boy seemed to anxiously await the "fun", Rai had doubts.

She was no fool to the reasons she began her training at the academy, or what she was hoping to achieve. Still, there were others, she knew, that struck her as a little... odd, like this boy's brother and sister. The Kage's family just seemed to be a little skewed in the sanity department.

In comparison, Rai watched Yuki with both a sense of alarm, and awe. He was methodical in a cold, ruthless fashion, but at the same time, with his collected thoughts came a demeanor she could only hope to achieve. Studying his movements, every motion had a fluid efficiency to it. No energy was wasted, and the distance at which he stood from Gaara, along with his stance, were the pinnacle of tactical genius.

Rai wiped all other thoughts from her head as her memory took over, recording every detail, every gesture with minute detail. Regardless of the victor, she would have her back-up plan. However, she would not leave without learning something she could apply to her own training.

[Gaara of the Sand]

His intention was to fold he wanted to see what Gaara reaction would be and how fast he could move. Also he wanted to see if that sand could do anything to stop the attack. It was a test of skill of sorts to see if the show with his ankle was just a mere fluke or not. Yuki appeared to hope it was not just raw guess work and that Gaara had at least some skill with his sand abilities. That would make this a lot more challenging for him. Haku face was fixed in a calm unnerving smile. It made people made to see some one just smiling at them when they were working hard to beat them to a pulp which is exactly why he did it. “Your move,Gaara.”


Gaara's rather "crazy" smile faded rather quickly when Yuki moved towards the other Suna nin and she seemed reluctant to give him water. Gaara almost wanted to tell her that it would be fine and he would make sure that Yuki didnt go haywire....rather easily. He wanted to have some fun, and with someone who clearly used water, just a capful wouldnt do much. However, he kept quiet. He had a guess that a strong glare he might give her would be enough to egg her into providing Yuki with more water. However, something else caught his eye. She grabbed an exploding note and held it in her hands. He shifted a little away from her. He didnt feel like getting blown up, nor would he be too happy if it did go off. Needless to say the sand would protect him, but regardless, it would be annoying.

Yuki spoke again, and Gaara couldnt help but cast him a sort of twisted smile crossed with a lip curl as Yuki stated he'd take his last statement as a compliment. "And so you will..." Gaara muttered, a small smirk crossing his face. Yuki stated the obvious, that the game would be short. He seemed to be willing enough to fight here, but he was already on his toes about the sand. Smart move... Gaara thought. Yuki moved then, and shot a senbon right out at him. Gaara's eyes narrowed then returned to normal within a second. He blinked and glanced downward. The sand from his gourd, his ultimate defense, was right at his aid, as expected. It had caught the senbon and was moving around it somewhat to keep it in its grasp. It was noticably darker than the sand he'd gathered from the outside, and it was much more..."wild".

Gaara smiled coldly and twitched his right hand from its half-clenched position to a stiff, raised position with the fingers slightly splayed, directed towards Yuki. The sand rose up right to Yuki's neck height in a split second. It was formed to make sharp projections seemingly from the ground. Had he not stopped them, they could have done some serious damage, especially at the throat-area. "...And so it was..." Gaara muttered darkly, rising himself, keeping his one arm slightly bent to keep his hand pointed at Yuki's throat. Gaara's other hand was left by his side, and he pushed himself up to stand with only his legs. The sand from his gourd was swaying in a trail from inside the gourd around the ice senbon. Gaara sort of clenched just his fingertips, and the sand crushed the senbon, opening back up to reveal a few chunks of ice that had made up the senbon.

"Should we move outside?" Gaara asked, little tone to his voice "It might get a little cramped in here." he said, hoping Yuki would catch his drift.

[Haku]

Haku frowned for a moment at the amount of water that was given but decided not to do anything about it. Gaara seemed to have it covered all by him self. He caught the look that the boy was giving the girl and was interested in what she would do next in the face of it. The note she pulled out next surprised him and he gave a small sigh of annoyance. He had thought that he had given the girl the idea that wasn’t the best choice of action. Haku supposed that the girl was just excited and being wary. “Please put that away. It’s just a game.” He sent a pair of ice senbon her way just to get the point across. They just hovered around her one pointed at her eyes and the other aimed at the hand that held the note. He wasn’t really looking at her but he was watching her from the corner of his eye.

Haku was not impressed by her actions in the least. Her pulling out the explosive made her a threat to him personally and he could just ignore that. “Is she an example of your village’s young Gaara? If so I pity your country, even with you.” Haku felt the girl needed discipline and control. “You must be as ice miss. Cool, calm, and unaffected by anything not even killing another. Do not give anything away till the last possible moment. Acting rash will be your death I promise you. That is your weakness. Is it mine?” He decided to give her a bit of a helping hand. He knew she was watching them with great attention. It was evident that she was taking mental notes of all they did.

The spikes of sand caused him to move at his normal speed back wards in attempt to get out of their range. He hit the wall with a soft thump it was indeed cramped in here for such displays. He winced in pain as his head throbbed. “Perhaps we should adjourn to a place nearby with more water readily available what do you think? Do you know of such a place?” He could make do with what he had but it wouldn’t be him fighting at his best. He darted outside at top speed ducking low under the spikes of sand. The sand had caught his ice senbon and crushed it. It was a darker sort then the outside desert sand and it an evil feeling to it which made his skin crawl. Haku was curious about it as that sand was the sort that came from the gourd but at the same time he wasn’t sure he wanted to get close to the sand.

Three down eighteen more to go plus the extra cap full. What to do with that? He thought with a pause as he waited for the others to come up he had gotten every far from the crack in his haste. Opps. Haku thought with a sigh. His trump card had been played in part by his show. Mist or mirror, mist or mirror…. Mist would be good cover mirror more impressive and a possible escape route if I swing it right. I’ll let gaara choose. “well do you want to test your strengh against a mirror or your skill against a mist your choice.”

( think now after you guy post would be a good time to switch to a different thread as we have left the location of this one.)

[raiwatanabe]

The ice senbon hovered about Rai, her brain nagging at her body to hold perfectly still. Yet, her muscles strained, wanting to twitch, deflect, do something, anything, to get away. Still, this Yuki was speaking of being like ice. Perhaps, she thought, that was a starting point. She needed to be calm, something that while she had no skill at, she could potentially learn.

Watching the two cautiously, the hunter-nin was rapidly defeated. Watanabe felt guilty for a moment, thinking back to the capfull of water she had provided. While he was a foreign shinobi, and he had made hostile gestures, with his skill, he would have done something by now if he were after them.

Looking back to Gaara, she wondered just where the Kazekage's son would see her loyalty lie if she did what she was working out in her head.

Sighing, she knew she couldn't look any more like a fool. Holding up the full quart canteen, she stared directly at Yuki. "Alright, let's make this interesting. After your game, you teach me some of this "being like ice" stuff." She did not wait for a response, but tossed the canteen at the boy, and looking back to Gaara, moved slowly away.

The thought "traitor" kept nagging at her mind, but she was a genin without a jounin-sensei, and required some kind of training if she hoped to be of use to Suna.

[Gaara of the Sand]

Gaara half smirked when Yuki told his village companion to put her exploding note away. He had to give Yuki a point there; an explosive note was a bit extreme. The only person that he knew that could come out alive for certain was himself…and it would not even be worth his time if he had to explain the deaths of a foreign shinobi and another village mate…it would automatically be assumed that he killed them. Of course, it’s a likely guess… Gaara thought coldly, keeping his hand steady as he cast a sharp glance at the other Suna-nin.

Yuki’s next question sort of surprised him, though. Was she an example of their young…And he pities Suna…even with me? What? Gaara had to say he was the slightest bit confused by that statement. To show it, he only blinked. He would remain silent, like he had through the most of this encounter, until Yuki finished speaking. ”An example of Suna’s young? I’d have to say no. For two reasons. One, the young will be young…their actions are unpredictable, as you can see. Secondly, we don’t need to be pitied by anyone. Even with me, though? I myself am only 12.”

He fell silent for a minute to listen to what Yuki had to say to his Suna counterpart. Cool and calm…like ice? In the desert? What…? Gaara thought. He didn’t make a comment, but instead studied the girls reaction. She seemed somewhat unfazed, but he didn’t pay much attention. Instead, he was more focused on the speed Yuki displayed. Gaara did a millisecond of a double-take. That was…kind of quick… he thought. His jaw had slacked slightly, and his eyes widened just a touch, but he got his expression under control. The kid was fast…what was he playing at.

All too late, his Suna companion offered up the rest of her water. Gaara took it from her and gave her a level stare ”I’ll get this to him. You should stay out of the way. It would not be pleasant if you…died.” He walked out, with Yuki’s last question ringing in his mind. He almost forgot to drop the sand spikes so his Suna-nin fellow could get out. He did so by relaxing his hand, but walked a few steps before absent-mindedly tossing the water canteen to Yuki. ”The closest oasis is at least a half mile from here. But….Mirror.” To Gaara, “Mirror” sounded interesting…whatever it was, he figured he could do a good fighting off of it.

[[Sure, you can move it to another thread. Title it something to the effect of the two having a bit of a spar]]

[Haku]

“That sounds promising…lead the way, please. We’ll see when we get there alright?” Haku smiled he was amused that he could play his trump card in this fight and he could see the reaction of both to it. ”I’ll race you.” He made a joking challenge to the pair. “You have an advantage gaara. You can move sand and in a desert anyone you choose could be your prey, age or no. That is a fact despite your age and I’m not much older. I have maybe three years on you, if that. You have the potential to rule this land by that skill alone should you choose. Although I personally wouldn’t recommend it right now as you are a little too young to rule well.” He knew that at least in mist that the strongest always rules and that gaar was certainly quite strong young as he was. Haku wasn’t entirely sure of his own age but reckoned himself about fifteen or so, plus or minus a year. He accepted the canteen with a nod of thanks to the girl “I’d also like to see what you can do miss, but don’t play with explosives around me. Heed this warning if only because I’m quite dangerous when I choose to be and am an unknown element.” He would give the girl hints and tips that were mostly common sense but that could help her in the long run. Haku frowned at the girl all but ordering him to do something. His voice was cold and hard as ice. “You want me to teach you? Prove to me that you are worth it. Tell me why I should waste my time on you. I have my own missions to attend to.” He was being harsh and at the same time Haku was trying to test her mettle if she cracked then she wasn’t ready for anything more serous then a talking to. If she really wanted to learn he would teach her some exactly the way he had been taught years ago.

(this is part one of this post. part two will move them to the o-asis)

[raiwatanabe]

Rai stared at Gaara, then back to Yuki. She knew she was outclassed, but why did they seem to enjoy rubbing it in? The gamble was acknowledged, but it had yet to pay off. Gaara must have thought she was out of her mind. As for Yuki, well, heaven knew what he seemed to think, but trying to defend her position was getting rather difficult. Why did she deserve to be tutored?

Why would any opposing village nin even bother to teach her, anyway?

"Consider it, an investment in good will," Rai started, trying to channel her most self-controlled, proper speech she could manage. She could never bat her eyes or flirt like the other girls, but she could always present herself as a professional. "You're a hunter-nin, obviously. Hunter-nins working outside of their nation's borders are quite alone, unless they have contacts and good working relationships with the nations they visit. Offering a few suggestions, and your friendly competition here with Gaara might prove useful in furthering a diplomatic understanding. If all else, being in your position, any person I would come across could serve as a valuable asset."

She hoped he bought it, or at least would act like he bought it to teach her. She wasn't going to resort to lowering herself any further. If anything, while shinobi were renowned for sacrificing anything for the mission, Rai hoped to at least keep her dignity intact. She might not make a good kunoichi, sacrificing more than just her life for a mission, but she would not deliberately put herself in a position of weakness in a negotiation.

She waited quietly, knowing the person to speak next would determine who had power over the other.