Evanescent Trail

Naruto was in love with a human.



The tunnel they just passed earlier was one of the gates only licensed adult demons can use to delve into the human world and gather information and further advance their own civilization. And the reason why Naruto was able to turn into a perfect human… was because…



“Naruto met Gaara when he was still a child. He skipped school that day, he was planning to run away from the bullies in school and he was chased inside Akagahara. I don’t know how he ended up in HERE, but according to Naruto, it was Gaara who took care of him until he found his way back…”



>>>>>



The fox boy kept running on his two feet despite the rocks and twigs being thrown at his direction.



“There! Go die! You’re a plague!”



“Catch him!”



“You should be in there! With your mother! You should just disappear!”



“Don’t come back here anymore!”



Some hitting his back, he tripped on a sharp stone, wounding his knee, his leg and both his palms as he tried to steady himself. He didn’t cry despite the hurt, because no one would here him, so what’s the use? And even if someone did, they wouldn’t help, just like that boy with the black ears and tail who just watched him impassively to get bullied by the kids yesterday. He didn’t shout for help, because it was useless, no one would help, instead they would just shrug off and wish the kids would finally succeed in warding him off.



He passed that huge gate, he couldn’t even remember how he was able to evade those mines, he was full of charcoal, of dirt, of blood and of sweat. Surely, this is an ‘I want to die’ situation. It would have been better if they’d just executed him along with his father.



Before he knew it, he was crawling, no still running, in fact it was faster, faster than he could have run earlier, his ears became sharper, his nose became more distinct of the smell, his senses have heightened. And then he saw a gate, it sure would be great to go there and rest, but he didn’t like the dark, and so when he went there, he ventured further, passing that tunnel and into the light.



Bang!



There was a sharp noise, and it frightened him, he didn’t know why, but it frightened him, again at the slightest sound of people approaching him he ran past them, they barely saw him, registering his movement and a flash of orange a trick of the light for the humans with the guns. He’d seen them before, in the picture books that Kakashi-sensei would bring from his business trips. Kakashi-sensei was nice.



“Hey, what’s that?”



“I think it’s a fox, but a little one.”



“Anyway let’s catch it! It’s better than birds don’t you think?” The hunters were hot on his tail, he was going to be sold for his fur, yes, Kakashi told him that and he didn’t know at first if it was just to scare him to go to bed, but judging from those weapons they were carrying, he finally confirmed that what Kakashi was saying was true. He had to get away! As fast as he can!



However, why are they here in Akagahara? Surely, they couldn’t have trespassed, their boundaries were invisible right!?



The fox reached a clearing, following the path, it led him to a rather huge house, from a distance he heard the rustle of leaves and the smell of the gunpowder from the humans, and he absentmindedly leaped on a fence, landing on all four feet to a soft damp ground.



“Who’s there?” Naruto backed away, no, he was the one who trespassed, the wind, the smell, the surroundings, even the heat of the sun seemed so different to his skin.



There was a small boy sitting on the porch facing him, his eyes were closed, Naruto thought it weird to ask who he was, he could have found it less troublesome if he’d just open his eyes and curiously he stepped forward little by little. “Is it a cat?” The boy looked distinct, his eyes were surrounded by weird black marks, his hair was red, like blood, like wine, like a rich ripe big apple, like fire. The fox made no noise, but stiffened when the boy’s hand lifted from his lap to reach out, and squeezing his already closed lids, he slowly opened them, a dull gray color of the pair of irises.



“I’m sorry, I couldn’t see you. I’m blind you see. Are you a cat? Or maybe a dog?” The other hand lifted, waving, groping for something in mid-air, until they stopped, when the red-haired boy felt something furry on his leg. The fox’s forehead was rubbing against the boy’s leg, and it made no resistance when it was lifted by little pale hands and put over the soft lap.



“Ehh… your fur is extremely soft, but you’re full of mud-” The boy’s face showed worry when he heard the fox squeak as he brushed along a small wound on its left hind leg. “You’re hurt.” The redhead stated, carefully putting the fox on the wooden porch and standing up to go to his room. “Stay there, I’ll help you. Even though I’m like this, I hope I could still help you.” But the fox didn’t stay there, he followed the boy, biting on the hem of his pants and the boy smiled.



“You want to go in?” The redhead smiled. “I’ve never had a visitor before, my father and mother is always away.”



Are you alone too? Like me?



The redhead fumbled for his cabinet, it was where the maid would always keep the first aid in case he injured himself from stumbling or tripping. He refused to be a burden, even in this kind of condition, he didn’t want to feel as if he was someone to be nursed and babied. Finally he felt the texture of the medicine box and put it on the tatami floor beside him, he moved his hand, asking for the fox to come to him, and the fox did so trustingly, lying his head on his lap.



“Yours ears and tail, the tail is fat but gets leaner at the end. Are you a fox? Sorry, this would hurt.” The fox squeaked again, but endured the pain as a small ball of cotton was put n his wound with disinfectant.



“My name is Gaara. I wonder what I should call you…”



The boy cleaned and wrapped the wound with a bandage, he crawled then next to the table where a basin full of water and a cloth was placed readily for him should he want to clean up and used this to wipe the fox off the mud and some blood on his fur. Naruto savored the gentleness of those hands, all the while that he was being taken care of, Gaara talked about himself. That he was eight years old, and his family just moved from Germany to Japan, that he turned blind because the acid his father who was a photographer uses on developing photographs fell on his eyes and damaged the nerves. Even though Naruto couldn’t understand this, it felt good to be talking to someone for the first time.



“It would be really great… if I could see you.” Gaara put the basin and the cloth aside, the fox then jumped and stood on his hind legs on the redhead’s lap, his forelegs leaned on his chest and he chuckled when the fox’s whiskers and tongue tickled him. “Hey, stop that… you’re tickling me!”



The fox continued to lick on his cheek, on the tip of his nose, to his eyes.



“Stop it-what are you doing… you’re tickling me--” The gray blur that Gaara had tired of seeing for three years slowly turned into different shades of color, they were still a blur, however as the wall clock ticked inside his room, the silence became evident, as well as the colors forming definite shapes, including the face of a cute fox looking up to him, on his lap. And the dull gray of his irises, once again returned to their beautiful blue green hue.



“Your… eyes… are red… like that of a rabbit’s. Usa-chan.” The boy said, tears that continued to fall down his cheeks as he embraced the fox in his arms were ignored. “I knew you were beautiful.”



>



Inside the same room Gaara who looked more mature after ten years kneeled on the tatami mat, wearing the ceremonial men’s kimono robes of green with agile fingers he started to mix the muddy green liquid on the ceramic tea bowl when a rustle of leaves from outside the fence took his attention.



He turned his head to the view outside, his shoji door was open, as it had always been. He kept them open, and felt reluctant to close it at night in case Usa happened to remember to come by. It’s been two months since he’d last seen his friend, for fifteen years he’d always anticipated the mystical fox’s visits, he started to wonder if he’d been caught. Even went as far as searching the woods and calling his name.



“Who’s there?” He produced a dagger in its black lacquered sheath from his obi, ready to strike the stranger who dared enter the Sabaku residence despite their ownership to the whole mountain.



“I’m sorry… I got lost in the woods.” The voice was unfamiliar, but felt familiar at the same time as if he’d been hearing it for a long time in his head but now couldn’t believe the sound had actually materialized.



“Show yourself.” Gaara quickly stood up, he unsheathed the dagger, throwing its case on the floor carelessly and hid the blade behind him as he stepped down the porch.



A foreigner?



Even with the tall white fence separating them he could see from the gaps of the fences the person’s appearance. He was wearing commoner clothes, a pale blue tee and cargo shorts, brown sandals and blonde wild hair with eyes… that shone red under the moon as if he’d just stopped crying after a long time, however for a foreigner to speak fluent Japanese as that, had his doubts rising again.



Still, even if a large part of him wanted to call the security, at the back of his mind, he knew that the moment he’d set eyes on this beautiful creature, he wouldn’t be able to let him leave him anymore. It made him go against logics.



“What’s… what’s your name?”



“Usa.” The teen smiled.