Gaara x Sakura

~Ep 7~

Gaara leaned his back against the firm trunk of a tree as he watched Sakura sleeping. She fought her exhaustion until she could not keep her eyes open. Even in those moments as she drifted off, the weary female passed him a mistrustful look and held a kunai to her chest. The One frowned at her pathetic attempt at protection. Gaara could crush her delicate bones into dust, relishing her blood mixing with his sand.

The familiar pull of the Shukaku, the beast Gaara harbored, burned inside him, his lust for her death building. He gritted his teeth as his tortured mind changed the slumbering woman's hair from coral pink to black as night, like that wench who had taken Naruto away from him. Hatred boiled deep inside him and he clenched his fists until his jagged nails dug into his calloused palms, drawing warm blood.

She took him away. It's all her fault. Kill her...

That voice, the Shukaku... its voice seemed to overpower him. Gaara knew he shouldn't kill her. This was the last human he had to protect to fulfill his requirement. Gaara gripped his head in agony as he tried to snuff the murderous intention that was overflowing. His sand inched from the gourd on his back, crawling like a snake across the grass towards Sakura. Just as the sand raised itself to attack, the kunoichi let out a gentle moan, stopping Gaara in his tracks. That sound, it was... soothing.

The powerful being turned his back to Sakura and faced her still unconscious prisoner. How did one describe soothing? It had been so long since Gaara detected something other than hatred and deep sorrow. His heart grasped for that one moment of peace the soft sound brought him. Cyan eyes fought to keep his gaze off that woman Madara forced him to endure.

"Damn it," he muttered at his confusion. He crossed his arms over his chest and gazed up at the star-filled sky. A breeze whistled by, tussling his crimson locks. "Hmph."

"Why haven't we sent anyone to see if she's okay?! Sakura may be in danger!"

Cinnamon orbs rolled in annoyance as she tried to keep her temper in check. "Do you not have any faith in your teammate?! Sakura is no weak ninja!"

The young male quieted before growling and turning on his heels. "If she isn't back in three days, I'm going after her."

He slammed the door, and the Sannin's raged boiled over. She jumped to her feet, fist clenching. Tsunade almost wished he would try to leave because she would beat the living shit out of him for opening his big Hokage rubbed her temples, returned to her chair, and let her blonde bangs fall over her face. She took a deep breath and counted backward from ten, a trick that had saved many asses from her wrath. She had to admit she too was wondering where Sakura was. Her return date was a week ago. What was holding her? Tsunade knew her prodigy could handle this mission without a problem and if she were to get herself into a sticky situation, she'd figure a way to get out.

"You know how he can get ma'am. I'll make sure he doesn't do anything stupid."

Tsunade looked up to see the Copy Cat Ninja crouching in her windowsill. She had yet to get used to him appearing without her being able to sense his chakra. "Keep him under tight surveillance. He needs to stay right here until I say otherwise."

Kakashi's one visible eye closed and crinkled in the corner, hinting at his hidden smile. "Well, you know he's not the brightest sometimes. I will watch out for him."

With that, he vanished in a puff of smoke. Tsunade gazed out the window. The sky was darkening and thunder rolled in the distance. Her eyes narrowed at the ominous feeling radiating from it. Tsunade leaned back in her chair and took a deep breath, wishing she had a nice cup of sake to help her relax. The difficulties of being the Hokage sometimes got to her, but she never showed that. Everyone knew the Sannin for her headstrong attitude and she would keep that title.

Deep in the forest, Naruto paced, fuming about the situation with Sakura. Sakura was a powerful Kunoichi, but that didn't stop his concern. The blonde leaned against a large tree and rubbed the back of his neck.

"Still fretting about Sakura?"

Blue eyes turned upward to see his mentor crouched on a tree branch above him. Naruto returned his gaze to the forest in front of him, the darkening grey clouds mimicking the rumbling feelings he had inside him.

"Am I not supposed to worry about her?! She's my friend!"

Kakashi jumped down beside the younger male, feet landing so the leaves did not crunch from his weight. "You're making yourself less useful as a ninja. Because it preoccupies your mind, you'd be the last person the Hokage would send on important missions."

Naruto frowned, knowing Kakashi-sensei had a point. He had grown bored; his last S ranked mission was two weeks ago, and he was ready to get moving! He should listen to Lady Tsunade and wait a little longer before he did anything drastic. Sakura was more than capable of coming back safe and she'd punch him in the face if she knew of his fretting.

"Fine," Naruto said after a period of silence. He pushed himself off the tree and locked his fingers behind his head. "Well, I'm getting something to eat." He turned on his heels to leave but paused. "Hey, why don't we train before I go eat? That will definitely build up my appetite!"

"Hmm," Kakashi pondered, placing his hands in his pockets. "I would test my strength now that you can control the Kyuubi."

Naruto held up his fist. "He's my friend, not something I control. I can beat you easy now!"

The older male chuckled before falling into his fighting stance. "We'll just see about that."

After a two-hour long spar, a tired blonde headed towards his apartment. His clothes were wet with sweat and dirt covered him from head to toe. His breath was still coming in shallow gasps as his heart rate returned to normal. That was an intense battle, and it made the Jinchuriki happy to spar with his older mentor again. A few drops of warm rain landed on his face and a flash of lightning forked the sky followed by a loud crack of thunder. Naruto jogged to a denser part of the forest. The rain soothed his skin, but he didn't like being blinded by a heavy downpour. Naruto continued to tread forward and glanced up at the darkening sky. He should move a little faster before he got struck by lightning... that had happened before.

Suddenly, Naruto's gaze shot to the distance and he skidded to a halt. "Hey! Why don't you come out instead of hiding like a coward?!"

Silence answered him, but then a figure appeared. The person had an orange spiraled mask covering his face. Short, spiky hair stuck up from the top of his head. A black robe billowed to his ankles marked with strange red designs visible even in the darkened light. Who was this guy? The strangest part was that he wasn't wearing a ninja headband, but his power hung like a blanket over the atmosphere.

"Who the hell are you?!" Naruto shouted, jumping back and pulling a kunai from his back pocket.

"Still so... rowdy."

Naruto's cerulean orbs flashed.

"What are you talking about?!"

"You still remember nothing?" the figure asked as he took a step forward.

Naruto threw the kunai, and it surprised him when it traveled through the stranger and into a tree behind him. Just what kind of person was this? And what did he mean about remembering?

Naruto's thoughts got interrupted by the intruder before he could ask questions.

"You will soon reunite with Rage, and he has the final piece to the puzzle. Keep her safe, just as you always have."

With that, he disappeared in a minimizing swirl. Naruto stared in the place where he had been standing. Who was that? Reunited with rage, was that a riddle? Naruto wasn't the type who understood riddles. Naruto was thinking maybe he should inform someone of what he saw. His chakra had aura the Jinchuriki never sensed before. It almost had an energized sensation as if he would never run out of chakra.

"I should go let Granny Tsunade kno-"

Naruto's stomach interrupted his thoughts, reminding him of his priorities. Maybe he should eat first. Mm, ramen... The blonde shook his head. Granny would eat him alive if she discovered he delayed important information for food. He didn't want to fall more on her bad side.