Both (Boyxboy)

Chapter VII

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Naruto rolled his eyes at the large amount of flowers that were laid out in front of him. "He is seriously blowing this out of preposition," he muttered. "I don't know, I think it's pretty cute," Sakura replied with a shrug. "Of course you would find it cute. You always his various ways of courting me to be cute," Naruto said.

Sakura laughed a little as she crossed her legs. "I think it's your move now," she said. A yellow eyebrow was raised in question."It's my turn? I'm still seeing him as a friend," Naruto pointed out.

"Yeah, thank you, I realize that. But it's been two months now, surely something has changed," Sakura reasoned. Naruto sighed as he slumped against the arm rest. "To be honest with you, Sakura, I don't know what I should be feeling now," Naruto confessed. Sakura shook her head.

"Look, Naruto, Gaara obviously loves you, he's said it to you I don't know how many times. He wouldn't betray you if it life depended on it and I'm sure that he'd worth the ground you walk on. Hell, your proof is right there on that table," she said as she pointed at the table in front of her.

Naruto sighed a little. "I suppose you're right," he muttered. 'Of course I am. I mean, you two are sleeping in the same bed together. It's been three months and you two aren't together yet," Sakura snapped.

"Like you have any room to talk, Sakura. How long did it take for you and Ino to get together?" Naruto snapped back. "My case and your case are two different things, Naruto," Sakura snapped. "No, go ahead. How long did it take you and Ino to get together?" her friend asked.

Sakura blushed and muttered something incoherent. "Sorry, what was that?" Naruto asked as he cupped his ear. "A year, Naruto, but that was because we were both stubborn and didn't realize our feelings till you locked us up in that damn closet together," Sakura snapped. Naruto leaned back with a satisfied smirk on his face. "Oh, shut up," Sakura snapped.

"I'm not saying a word," Naruto said innocently. Sakura glared at her friend, willing his head to burst into flames. Naruto laughed as he stood up. "Well, I guess I'm going to go thank Gaara for the flowers. You stay here and pout that I actually got one up on you," he said as he walked around the table and towards the exit.

"Oh, screw off!" Sakura shouted. Naruto laughed as he opened the door. "Love you too," he said as he closed the door behind him in time to dodge a vase aimed at his head.

~Kazekage Office~

Gaara sighed as he reclined back in his chair, looking out at his village. So many annoyances smashing his head into the wall. "Why can't we have more shinobi at hand?" he thought as someone knocked on his office door. "Come in," he called.

The door opened and a familiar chakra entered the room. Gaara spun his chair around to see Naruto standing there. "Close the door and you can let your tail out," he said. Naruto nodded silently as he nudged the door shut behind him and walked farther into the office.

A brilliant yellow light appeared around Naruto and his ears and tail appeared. "Oh, you do not know what a relief it is to have my ears and tail out," he sighed as he rubbed his tail. "Why don't you just tell people that you're half-Bijū?" Gaara asked.

"You and me both know that people fear what they do not understand. If they knew I was half-Bijū, it would be my childhood all over again," Naruto said as he sat down. Gaara frowned and mentally kicked himself, he should have known that would be his answer.

"So, what brings you here?" he asked. "The large amount of flowers that you left me," Naruto said. "Oh, well, you said that you had a fondness of flowers and you have been spending a lot of time in the greenhouse. So I figured that you might like flowers as a gift," Gaara said.

"You are aware that this is the desert, right? Flora is scarce here, you should really be more respectful of it," Naruto chided. Gaara smiled softly and shook his head. "I'll be sure to keep that in mind for now on," he promised. Naruto nodded as his tail laid down in his lap and he began to stroke it softly.

"Thank you by the way. That was really sweet of you, Gaara," he said. Gaara nodded. "You're welcome, Naruto. At this point, I feel like I'd do just about anything for you," he said. "I'll keep that in mind," Naruto said with a mischievous glint in his eyes.

Gaara shook his head amused. "I feel like I just sealed my fate," he thought. Naruto frowned at one of the papers on his friend's desk. "Seems like you're having a bit of trouble," he commented. Gaara looked down and sighed. "Yes, a band of bandits calling themselves the Quicksand Gang. A group of idiots who think they're all that and more, but just causes more trouble than they're worth," he said. "And why can't you deal with them?" Naruto asked.

"I don't have nearly as many shinobi as Konoha does, so I can't give this to a Jonin squad or something," Gaara said. "How about you send me out there?" Naruto suggested. Gaara blinked and looked up at his fellow Jinchūriki.

"What?" he asked confused. "Send me out there to go and take care of these Quicksand guys," Naruto repeated. "No, absolutely not," Gaara snapped. "Come on, Gaara, I'm not a little golden bird that has to be locked in his cage to be protected from the rest of the world," Naruto snorted.

Gaara stared at Naruto blankly. "Oh...that's exactly what you see me as. Seriously?" the half-Bijū asked annoyed. "Can you blame me? You've already suffered through so much already. I just couldn't bare it if you suffered through anymore," Gaara reasoned. "Oh, it's not like you haven't suffered either," Naruto snapped.

"The only thing that I suffered through was emotional abuse. My father tried to have me assassinated on numerous occasions and my mother died giving birth to me. The only sort of love I ever got was from my uncle, but he ended up being as cruel as everyone else in the village. You suffered through both emotional and physical abuse, way more than me. I don't want to see you in that kind of pain again," Gaara said.

Naruto's eyes softened. "I'm touched that you care so much for me, but I'm capable of taking care of myself, I have been since the age of eight," he pointed out. "I know that, I," Gaara sighed and leaned forward.

"I know...it's just...I just want to be there to protect you is all. You saved me from my own personal darkness, you are literally my own light. My sunshine," the Kazekage said. "I'm starting to think that that's your pet name for me. But I kinda understand. You want me to stay safe, I get that much, but didn't you just say that you'd do anything for me at this point? " Naruto asked with a mischievous glint in his blue eyes.

"You're toying with me, aren't you?" Gaara asked with a raised eyebrow. "I'm becoming more and more fox-like each day. You'll have to learn to live with it," Naruto said with a mischievous grin.

Gaara sighed and leaned back in his chair. "Fine, I'll have the paperwork filled out for you. You can leave tomorrow," he said. Naruto grinned. "Thanks, Gaara. I better head into the marketplace and get ready," he said as his tail and ears disappeared and he hurried out of the office.

"Temari's right, I am already whipped," Gaara muttered to himself.