A Weakness Chapter 5

A Weakness
Avatar The Last Airbender
(>'.')><('.'<)
Chapter 5
Ninja
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They were about less than a half a day away from Toph's destination. They were sitting in a campfire and they were in silence again. She flicked away a rock and sighed. The farmer began to look tired. They were in a middle of one of the small patches of trees to stay away from road robbers. They were settled a small distance away from the road. It grew dark and Toph began to feel some nearby foot steps. "Li I think there are some people out here," she announced to him.
"Which direction?" he asked and lifted his head up from a quick power nap.
"Well it is not from the road," she said.
"Then we should be alert because we don't know who is out there," he said. As he said that a net shot out form the bushes. It got him and the momentum of the shot carried him to a tree which soon knocked him out. Toph stood up and got into a ready stance. She felt the movement of the attackers and she slid her foot to their direction. She threw her arms out and shot them forward along with her and and fingers which sent earth in that direction. After that move the steps went silent. She was searching for the lost footsteps. They were either in the air or in a tree somewhere. "Whoever you are you better leave us alone or else you're dead!" said she out into the night. There was no answer back so she decided that they ran off. She ran up to Li and checked if he was awake. He soon regained consciousness and he began to pick himself up. "Are you alright?" she asked him.
"I'm fine just a bad headache that's all," he said and rubbed his head. "Are they gone?" he asked again.
"I think so, but I think they will be back. They always come back," she said from previous experiences. "Put the money in your shoes," she instructed him and he did so. She threw her money pouch in her shirt.
"Should we move on?"
"I think we will be fine it wasn't much of a fight anyways. They never even stepped foot on the camp ground." she said.
"LOOK OUT!" Li shouted seeing someone jump out from the trees.
"AT WHAT!" She said steeping around in a frenzy. She couldn't get a clear shot of vibrations to tell her where they were. She began to grow nervous knowing there were ninjas in the trees.
"Those must be ninjas," he said to himself.
"You think, I can't see them at all," she said aloud.
"I thought..."
"You know what I mean," she said and rolled her eyes. "Can you defend yourself?"
"No," he replied.
"Fine then be my eyes. Tell me where they are!" she said.
Li began to look around for the ninjas with little luck. They blended in with the night and when he thought he saw one was nothing but a bird. He could tell that Toph was growing worried. "Do you even know where they are?"
"I see them and before I could tell you they are gone." he said to her. Then out of nowhere there was a small water bomb that went onto the campfire. He was now virtually blind now. Toph smelled the increasing smoke from the burned out fire.
"Can you see?" she asked out to him.
"I can't it's too dark out!" he replied back.
"Now I will be your eyes," she said.
"How?"
"Just follow my instruction," she said. She felt someone running up to him. She moved her hand behind herself and the earth moved under the man and tripped him. She jumped up to the ground and bended the earth burying the man. Then out of nowhere she was swept off her feet and she landed into a tree. She felt the men rope tying her in and she couldn't bend now. She tried to move her head to maybe bending them away if she could, but there was knife to her throat. She felt Li as well being tied to a tree. She felt all the other men restarting the fire.
"Nice instructing," Li said sarcastically.
"Sorry," she said to him.
"Where's your money?" the man said holding the knife.
"We have no money. We lost all of it yesterday as out our money bag went down the river while we were getting are water pouches refilled," Toph said lying. The money was in her shirt and in Li's shoes as she instructed him earlier to do that. She then felt the man being bended out of the hole by one of them.
"Is that true," the other man holding a knife to Li's throat. He franticly shook his head yes to afraid to speak.
"HE'S HERE!" one of the men shouted out drawing out his swords.
"Men into your positions!" the man holding the knife.
Toph didn't know what in spirits name they were talking about, but she hoped it would be someone to take care of them. This was the biggest pickle she has ever had on this journey of hers. The took out the fire again and the stood still. She heard someones muffled scream and they were soon taken out. "Where are you? You bastard," she heard one of the men say in the breath. She felt someone land on the ground and massive walls of heat were produced by him. He was a firebender. She then felt sprinkles of water  hit her face next to a hard breeze of air, and the tasted the dust of earth. She as quickly as she could track his footsteps which were light. She finally did realize who this was... it was Aang. She was so full of glee she was dumbfounded by it.
It was him... it was really him. The air went silent and her savior stepped up to her. She felt the heat of his hand touch her hair moving it away from her face. She relaxed to his near touch. She could tell that he was staring into her eyes in a sixth sense sorrta way. She felt like she was dreaming and unwillingly said out his name aloud, "Aang I hope it's you," she said dreamly. She felt his heart skip and a beat and now she knew it was him. "I miss you so much," she said producing a tear. Toph doesn't normally cry, but she then realized that Aang was her weakness. He made her cry unintentionally. "Aang why don't you answer back it's me... TOPH!" she said wanting him to say anything. She felt his heart race and he ran off. Toph began to cry harder and the ropes were burnt away. She collapsed to the ground clutching onto the newly burnt rope and hugged it as if it was a doll even though she hatted dolls.
Li ran up next to her and saw a ball of fire his the burnt out campfire. "Toph are you okay?"
"Yeah," she said wiping away her tears.
"Was it really him?"
"What did you see?"
"All I saw was fire, then water, and then earth." he said.
"It was really him," she said relieved that she was right.
"Who?" he said.
"Didn't you here me?"
"Not really," he said.
"It was Aang," she said happy. Momo wiggled himself out of a bag the ninja's threw him in. He landed on her shoulder. Toph was kinda surprised that he didn't get Momo. She was happy that she didn't it was her only item to remember him by until she saw him again.
"The Avatar was here," the man said to himself astonished by it. "We should get moving because we don't know if more would come." he said to her. Toph agreed and smiled into the night. She felt all the unconscious men all around her. They gathered their things and rode off into the road. As they were in a middle of a plain again Toph smiled herself listening to the steady beat of the wind thinking about Aang beng the airbender that he is. Now with her spirits up and running she looked forward to seeing him again.

Toph's savior weaved himself through the branches of the forest. He couldn't believe it himself. Toph, right in front of him. Aang sighed as he was soon reaching Appa who was hidden in the trees. Before he was flying by just to get away from the temples for a short while. He heard earth bending and shouted into the night. He thought it was that robbing ninja group at it again and he went down from the sky landed Appa and he checked it out. He was right and they already had the captives. After he defeated them he walked up to them seeing if they were hurt. He walked up to the girl first to see if she was okay. It was too dark for him to really tell whoever it was. There were no injuries then he heard his name called out from her. He was stunned that she knew his name. Then she said that she missed him and told him she was Toph. He still couldn't believe it as he began to fly off with Appa. Aang was still mad at her for not telling him Katara's true feelings. It took him four years to let her go finally, but his anger at his friends still stood as a fierce fire. She didn't even have Momo with her, which made him more angry. Probably Katara has him as a pet. He then remembered that Toph said that she liked him. That was the confusing part about it. What if she still liked him and that's why she is so far down south. She has been searching for him all this time. He quickly reached into his knapsack and pulled out Toph's old headband he clutched it tightly. He stared out into the moon.
As Aang stared out into the moon Toph did as well somehow feeling his presence. Aang felt the same thing and he sighed sadly to himself. He then realized now that he has made one of the biggest mistakes of his life. He letted her go. Out of his constant anger of his previous feelings he never did see the big picture in front of him. All he did see was the frame and not Toph. He lowered his head sad and confused. As he on the ground Aang let Appa into the barn and he slept into his small home thinking about his past mistake..