Coming Home

Chapter Four

The trip to Suna was not one Lee ever considered to be long. Had the escort team not been slowing him down, he would've made it there much sooner. As it was, he kept stopping for them every so many hours to rest. The Kazekage had been quiet most of the way and that had made the journey a bit awkward.
Now they were just twelve hours from Suna and Lee was already sweating. He could feel the perspiration dripping down his neck. He tried not to think about the heat too much, lest he worry himself about spending time in Sunagakure. He felt a bit over dressed with his orange leg warmers, but he didn't regret his decision to wear weights. He probably would've just felt even more held back if he hadn't worn them, anyways.
As the sand ninjas began starting a fire, the black-haired jounnin rested against a skinny, dried up tree. Reaching in his bag for his canteen, he considered that the tree probably needed water much more than he did. And a great deal of it, at that. He gave the Kazekage a sideways glance as he drank bountifully. He was standing straight, with his arms crossed against his chest and an irritated look on his face. Was it just Lee or did the Kazekage always look kind of irritated?
The red choppy hair glowed like flames in the setting sun. The effect making Lee feel the heat even more. As he turned his head slightly to the side, Lee noticed a glint of sunlight hit his sea foam green eyes. They shone brightly in the orange light and the leaf couldn't help but let his own eyes linger a moment longer than they should.
Gaara's head turned abruptly and met his eyes. Flushing, he diverted his gaze. As much as he wanted to believe the Kazekage was unaware of what had took place, he couldn't deny that he heard the crunching sound of footsteps coming toward him. He groaned inwardly as the young man reached him.
"Were you looking at me?" He asked in a tone that held no particular emotion. He didn't seem to be accusatory but then, he didn't seem to have any feeling on the subject.
Lee chuckled nervously. And decided the best course of action would be to lie through his teeth. "What?! Ah, of course not Gaara-kun! I was looking at.. Uh, that is to say.. Enjoying the scenery!" He concluded quickly. Lee had always been the most terrible liar. The reason probably being the he didn't enjoy lying. It felt like a serious betrayal, especially to a friend. His last sentence hung in the air as the red-haired boy looked around their desolate area skeptically.
Lee did his best to keep a polite smile as he busied himself with screwing the cap onto his canteen. Something was still itching to find its way out in the back of his mind and he felt now was the perfect time to bring it up. "Gaara-kun.." He said hesitantly, bringing the sand ninja's attention back to him. "Why did you ask for me?"
Gaara blinked blankly, as if this was obvious and he was receiving a rather odd question. "You're strong, I've seen you fight. It was impressive." He said this as though he didn't have to think about it. Like it was an automatic response. Lee felt flattered, it was quite the compliment. Or as close to a compliment as the Kazekage had probably ever come.
Lee smiled in genuine appreciation. His energy was completely renewed and he became twice as motivated to reach the village. He looked around at the escort. They didn't seem to be ready to move any time soon. As a matter of fact, Lee was pretty sure they were settling down here for the remainder of the night. He set his jaw in an attempt to not look as disappointed as he felt.
"We can finish the trip ahead of them," Gaara suddenly suggested. Lee looked up to see that the young man was looking at him with a slight furrow of his none existing eyebrows. He bit his lip guiltily. It was true that he was indeed dying to get there. But he didn't want his friend to push himself on his account.
"Gaara-kun, you don't have to do that. I will try my absolute best to be patient!" He made a determined fist before him.
Gaara seemed to smirk at his comment, before his face became an emotionless slate, once again. "I'm becoming tired of being away from the village," his voice was cold but Lee could've swore he heard a hint of worry in it.
He stood, gathering his things. His hand reached out to pat the green-haired boy's shoulder in a sign of understanding. Surprised, the latter snapped his head back to him with wide eyes. Lee gave him a soft smile. "Let's go then."
The former jinchuuriki nodded before walking in the opposite direction to inform the rest of their members. By the time he returned Lee had put all his items into his bag and was waiting for the him patiently. "Yosh! You ready?" He received a nod in response, and with that the two of them took off toward the sunset.