Hey! Look what I came up with! There's two acts in this, since each act is quite short. I'll probably keep that up the whole way through. This thing is nearly finished, anyway, so I'll have the next chapter (two acts again) up soon. But not too soon. A couple of days, maybe, just whetting your appetite for this! (Hopefully) Anyway, enjoy!

I don't own Naruto.

Wildfire

Act One – Savages

They were pushing themselves hard to get through the forest before nightfall. Dangerous creatures lived in these woods, and everyone knew better than to be caught in there after dark. That is, everyone but the Wildfire. At least, that was what everyone called them. The Wildfire was an entire primitive civilisation living in and around the treacherous woods, and they made a habit out of confronting the nocturnal creatures that dwelled there. Most people called them crazy and savages, staying well clear of them. The only ones who didn't were the ones who simply didn't care enough to let the thought of them cross their minds.

Sabaku no Gaara was one of these. While he didn't care what a bunch of lunatics got up to in the middle of a dangerous forest, he did care that right at that moment he and his men were stuck in there while dusk was fast approaching. The threat the wild animals and such posed to him and his team was something that was very real, and if they didn't pick up the pace, they were going to be something's dinner.

It didn't look good, though. They'd left it too late to return to their own village, which was in a great desert. They'd been on a reconnaissance mission to gather information about another village that was rumoured to be preparing to declare war on them. Their trip had proven this, and now they were returning with important intel that would probably end up saving hundreds of lives.

Naturally, the wild beasts weren't the only problem. They not only didn't want to run into the deadly creatures, but they also didn't want to run into the Wildfire. Not many people who were found by the odd tribe ever saw their homeland ever again. It was believed that they didn't trust people not to tell their secrets to others, as if anyone would really care. But it was because of this that they were generally avoided, and they seemed to like that fact quite well.

Suddenly a roar sounded from up ahead, and all four of the travellers stopped. A beast. This was not good. The sound had come from directly in front of them; the way they needed to go. Gaara cursed under his breath, and turned to his men.

"Go around the damned thing," he told them. "I'll make sure you get through."

"But Gaara-sama!" one of them exclaimed. "You have to get back to the village! Temari-sama will be livid if you don't return!"

"You know very well that the scroll is more important!" he snapped. "I'll be fine! You wouldn't be! So get your ass moving before I throw you through!"

All three men paled slightly, but saluted and moved through. Gaara went towards the beast, determined to make sure that it didn't go near his men. He had his sand, so he knew he would be fine. As he closed in on the creature, he began to hear a new sound, one that was like chanting. A sinking feeling went through him, and he just knew that it was probably one of them.

The sound of their chanting was close, too close. They were probably nearer than he'd originally thought, and Gaara made the decision to get the hell out of there. His men would be fine, he knew. With the beast distracted by the Wildfire, it wouldn't go anywhere near his men. So he moved around the sounds of the chants and began to leave. But it seemed that it was just not his day.

Out of nowhere he could suddenly see what was going on, and he froze, jaw hanging open in shock. The beast was not really a beast, it was a group of people making the noise. What the hell was going on here? Did this mean that there really were no beasts? But even as he thought that, he knew it to be untrue. A lot of normal people had seen the creatures of the forests themselves. These guys were probably just mimicking the animals or something. They were probably doing this to lure one in.

Nevertheless, there was no way he wanted to get caught up in anything these savages were doing and he turned around, feeling confident that they hadn't spotted him just yet. If fortune was on his side, he would remain unnoticed and continue on with them none the wiser. But it seemed that today was not the day for fortune to smile upon him.

He found himself surrounded by a large group of them, and they were wearing ceremonial masks. One of them approached him and he noticed that this one was wearing the most ornate one of the lot. Gaara refused to let any of the sudden nerves he was experiencing show as the one right in front of him eyed him up and down.

"This is the one," came the muffled voice from behind the mask, and before he could react, whoever it was began chanting and he slowly fell into a deep sleep. (848)

Act Two – Sakura

Waking with a groan, Gaara struggled to clear his sleep-fogged mind, only to snap his eyes open in panic. Sleep? He'd been asleep!? Sitting up, he tried to reach inside to find out what had happened with his demon, but found that he couldn't reach him. What the hell was going on here? Shukaku should have gone on a rampage while he slept, and yet he couldn't sense any residual chakra from the tanuki.

Looking around, he saw that he was in a crude hut, but he was surprised to see a few modern-looking things lying around. Like the radio on the table next to where he slept. He tried to stand up, and it was only when he failed that he noticed that he was being held down by chakra restraints. So he was a prisoner then, he surmised. A restraint lay on each of his wrists, and they made it impossible for him to do more than sit up.

Tentatively he moved his arm, wanting to see what would happen if he tried to take it past the bed he was in. Gaara winced as pain shot through his left arm and he lay back, realising that he wasn't going to get anywhere. His actions had probably alerted someone that he was awake, though, and this was proven a few moments later when someone entered the hut. Looking over, he was a little surprised to see a girl about his own age (which was seventeen) coming towards him with a bowl in her hand.

She smiled at him almost shyly and placed the bowl on the table beside him. Gaara took the opportunity to study her, and found that he liked what he saw. Her figure was slim, yet he could see strength in her movements that told him she was trained to fight. Definitely well developed, if the curves that she had were any indication. But what really stood out to him was the fact that her hair was a cherry blossom pink.

She looked over at him then, smiling shyly once more. Now he could see her eyes, a vivid shade of emerald.

"You must be hungry," she spoke, and he shivered slightly at her melodious voice. "I brought you some food."

"Why am I being held prisoner?" Gaara demanded.

Her eyes widened, an innocent look in them. "You aren't a prisoner!" she told him. "You're our honoured guest!"

"Then why am I bound?" he growled.

"For your own protection, of course!"

...

"What?"

The girl's head lowered and she looked away before explaining, "We had to seal your demon better to get you here. But it's not complete yet, so you have to remain bound until it's done."

She looked at him again, smiling once more. "Don't worry," she told him. "The High Priestess will be here soon, and she'll fix everything, you'll see!"

The girl's enthusiasm seemed a little over the top, but Gaara had met people like her before, and they were usually the brainwashed sort. "What's your name?" he asked.

"Sakura," she told him, then held the bowl out to him.

Looking at it, he realised that there was food in it. At the sight of the food, his stomach growled and Sakura let out a little giggle. She reached into the bowl and pulled out a piece of fruit, handing it to him. Carefully he sniffed it slightly before deciding that it didn't seem to be poisoned and he took a bite. It was the most delicious thing that he'd ever eaten, and he wanted more. Sakura seemed to understand this, and she gave him the bowl as she sat down on the bed next to him.

When he was done, she pulled a water pouch from her side and he drank eagerly, ignoring her giggles at his actions. Gaara simply finished what he was doing and then glared at her. But she remained unaffected by it, and he repressed the urge to sigh. He lay back on the bed, trying to ignore the way Sakura was looking at him and decided to ask a few questions.

"Why was I brought here?" he demanded.

Her eyes went wide and she said, "That's not for me to say! You'll have to ask the High Priestess!"

Gaara frowned, and it deepened when Sakura giggled again. Then she did something unexpected. She leaned forward and kissed his forehead.

"Get some sleep, Gaara," she told him. "You don't need to fear your demon anymore."

She stood and left the room. Reluctantly Gaara lay back and closed his eyes, allowing himself the luxury of drifting off into sleep. The last coherent thought he had was; how the hell did she know my name?

I'll give you a little hint about these Wildfire people. Think the 'Others' in Lost, only nicer and stuff. Anyway, I hope you enjoyed that, cuz if you did, you should review. See ya!