7/7/10
Disclaimer: the characters in this fic such as Naruto, Gaara, Sai, etc. don't belong to me, although if they did, then Naruto would stop making an ass out of himself for Sasuke's sake and pay proper attention to his REAL friends.
Dedication: God, my parents, my fans, Masashi Kishimoto for creating the Naruto series and giving us these colorful characters, my beloved friends, and especially all of you wonderful readers!
Special dedication to: Blithe, for being a great friend, the best Sai x Gaara supporter ever, and kicking serious ass with her awesome portrayal of Sai.
Naruto: Sand And Ink
13 Drabbles
Installment: Set Delta
By Tiger5913
Naruto Drabble #1 - First Time, 100 words, Sai x Gaara
When he had finished speaking to Naruto and turned away to leave, Gaara caught a glimpse of the unfamiliar dark-haired shinobi in their age group and paused for a split second. His immediate response was to wonder why the person was wearing that kind of outfit in an environment surrounded by snow.
...Not that it was any of his business.
Sai had come to deliver the news to his teammate, and stepped back when the Kazekage and two other Sand shinobi appeared. Despite their ages, someone of a higher rank surely demanded respect, so he kept quiet until they left.
Naruto Drabble #2 - Difference, 100 words, Sai x Gaara
While in a social setting, Naruto not-so-discreetly prodded the pink-haired kunoichi to ask her why Sai and Gaara weren't interacting very much with each other.
The blond was oblivious to most obvious facts - which Hinata could heartily vouch for - and Sakura considered hitting him for being stupid, but instead decided to just sigh and lay out the details. Sai was forward and outgoing, while Gaara had remained reserved and quiet over the years.
What neither one of them realized was that Sai and Gaara didn't need endless chatter to be comfortable with each other. Silence could be just as meaningful.
Naruto Drabble #3 - Similarity, 100 words, Sai x Gaara
It was easier to conceal the quality of being socially inept when one remained quiet and simply observed. Gaara knew this, and quickly came to realize that Sai seemed to be also lacking that particular attribute. He was surprised to see the Leaf ninja being so openly expressive with it.
With his curiosity piqued, he asked on one occasion, "Is it... wise to expose that area of deficiency to so many individuals?"
"What area of deficiency?"
"...Social inexperience," the redhead clarified in a soft tone.
Sai just used one of his practiced smiles and responded candidly, "Why does it matter?"
Naruto Drabble #4 - Eyes, 100 words, Sai x Gaara
Even after the extraction, the insomniac rings around his eyes had remained, the dark color calling attention to the light shade of his irises and iridescent pupils. That unusual quality, combined with the tattoo on his forehead, happened to be ripe for scrutiny during new encounters.
He didn't know Sai was an artist, and the blatant staring brought back unpleasant memories of past incidents. Thinking he had somehow offended him with his presence alone, Gaara turned his face away to hopefully divert his attention.
To his surprise, the uninhibited ninja stepped around to the front and continued gazing at him.
Naruto Drabble #5 - Health, 100 words, Sai x Gaara
Leaf shinobi were very stubborn, the young Kazekage noted inwardly to himself as Sai gave him a chastising look, one hand firmly propped on his hip.
"Gaara-sama, it's the middle of the night," he admonished his friend, "Wouldn't it be better to sleep now, and not during your meeting?"
A very reasonable suggestion, but nevertheless, Gaara made a gesture at the pile of paperwork sitting on his desk. "I have additional documents to review..."
"Okay. In that case, Ill stay up with you."
"Sai," the redhead returned with a warning edge in his voice.
He went to bed moments later.
Naruto Drabble #6 - Drink, 100 words, Sai x Gaara
Individual characteristics were easy to pinpoint during mealtime.
Half of Naruto's friends ate with great enthusiasm, as if this was their first time seeing food, while the remaining half was much more refined and cordial.
Fortunately, Sai was one of the latter, and he was more than willing to share interesting acquired facts about the others with the Kazekage. They spent most of their meal talking quietly together and exchanging observations.
It was during this same occasion that Gaara learned why Lee should never be allowed to drink alcohol.
The restaurant owners were very thankful for his avid sand control.
Naruto Drabble #7 - Memory, 100 words, Sai x Gaara
They had come a long way since the beginning, the redhead silently mused as he recalled the first time he and Sai - officially - met.
With the diplomatic meetings concluded for the day, Gaara stepped out of the Hokage building, disappointed to learn that the newly reformed Team 7 was away from the village on a mission.
Down by the stream, he came across someone painting, whom stirred faint familiarity.
"I am..." - no, not called, not anymore - "My name is Sai."
Before Gaara could offer his own name in return, the dark-haired shinobi supplied helpfully, "I know who you are, Kazekage-sama."
Naruto Drabble #8 - The Past, 100 words, Sai x Gaara
They might not have gotten along in the past, with the Leaf ANBU being aloof and detached, using fake gestures and expressions to gather needed information from others, and then just fading into the background. Cold and withdrawn as he was, Gaara wouldn't have had the patience to put up with that kind of nonsense, resorting to violence as the first answer rather than the last.
So startlingly similar, and yet, neither one was accepting of kinship. Not back then.
But both of them had moved beyond those stages, becoming better once the shackles from the darkness were finally removed.
Naruto Drabble #9 - The Future, 100 words, Sai x Gaara
After applying the formal stamp to yet another proposal, his gaze skipped over to a small stack filed under the personal section of his paperwork.
No familial ties, without an official assignment to any team; no one of great significance to leave behind. The transition wouldn't be difficult...
He shook his head to clear those thoughts before they could fully form. It was starting to make too much sense, and he was hardly one to give into beguiling illusions or hopeless goals.
On the top of the transfer document, in the young Kazekage's neat and precise handwriting, was Sai's name.
Naruto Drabble #10 - The Present, 100 words, Sai x Gaara
It must have been the lack of movement that drew the bird to his friend. Gaara calmly watched as it settled down on his shoulder, tiny-clawed feet grasping the red strap of his jacket.
A faint smile graced his lips at the sight, which grew slightly when Sai raised a hand to pet its small, furry head with the pad of a single finger. He let the bird stay there, since it wasn't disturbing their picnic, or their reading and studying session.
With a soft chirp, it stared down at the book Sai held in his hands to read along.
Naruto Drabble #11 - Dreams, 100 words, Sai x Gaara
There was a faint tickling sensation running across his abdomen, drawing a shiver from the redhead. Slowly, he lifted his head, light turquoise eyes seeming dazed and unfocused as he searched for the source of the feeling.
His chin dipped down enough so that his line of sight fell upon a thin black snake languidly crawling up his body, only stopping to flick a dry tongue at the tip of his exposed nipple...
With a start, Gaara suddenly awoke and immediately lifted the covers to look over himself. He was fully clothed, and no snakes anywhere.
What a peculiar dream...
Naruto Drabble #12 - Something Missing, 100 words, Sai x Gaara
His village, his people, his siblings, his friends... Shouldn't all of those combined factors be enough? Surely he would be too greedy to ask for... more.
Even so, he couldn't deny that watching Kankuro and Temari interacting with their respective significant others stirred an... odd sense of longing inside of him.
Patriotic love, familial love, platonic love... The pieces fell together.
Perhaps a person needed everything, including the last component - romantic love - in order to be complete.
It was a question that he considered posing to Sai, seeing as he might have come across some pertinent information throughout his research...
Naruto Drabble #13 - Unexpected, 300 words, Sai x Gaara
The first kiss caught him completely off-guard.
Moments later, all his muddled mind could recall was the close proximity, the brief feeling of pressure against his lips, a vague recollection of warm breath fanning over his cheek...
Then it was over, and Sai had pulled back to give him a curious gaze, silently probing his facial features for a response. Looking past his typical stoic expression to decipher how he really felt, underneath the surface.
Before they could discuss it, the loud chatter of Naruto and the rest of the Leaf rookies approached them. Another outing proposed by the boisterous blond, to which the young Kazekage had agreed, after his siblings encouraged him to interact with more people in his age group.
A blessing in disguise, because Gaara didn't know what to feel, or even how to respond, right at that moment. He needed time to think.
The bewildered redhead was left in a distracted state for the rest of the day, which his other peers quickly dismissed as him being his usual quiet self.
Except Sai - he wasn't so easily fooled, especially after all the time he had spent observing his friend. He knew that pensive look: Gaara was deep in thought. It made him wonder if he had made a mistake, even though he clearly remembered the instructions from the book. Kissing was a distinct, unique way of expressing attraction toward another. That was just what he had done.
But did Gaara know that? Maybe he hadn't read the book before, or thought the kiss was unintentional. Sai had seen instances where people used that excuse to pass off certain incidents. If Gaara bore that misconception, then he would have to show him otherwise.
The second kiss wasn't accidental. Not by a long shot.
Nor was it unrequited.
End of Set Delta
Bonus: Relationship, 200 words, Sai x Gaara - dedicated to Blithe
"So, what does this mean...?"
"What do you want it to mean, Gaara-sama?"
"...Something significant, with meaning."
"Then it will be."
He looked down at their joined hands and nodded in agreement, soon asking, "Sai. Friends don't... typically kiss each other, correct?"
Sai considered that question for a moment. "I've seen some people behave that way."
"...I see."
A small, knowing smile to accompany the next words; "But I don't."
Gaara felt relieved to hear that answer, and then he mused aloud, "We must be... more than friends now."
The Leaf ninja tilted his head while echoing, "More than friends?"
"Yes," he paused to search for the proper explanation, "Our situation might be suitable to... that of a romantic relationship."
A romantic relationship: consisting of a bond between - usually - two individuals with romantic attraction to each other, according to what he read.
His expression changed to a steady neutral. "Is that what you want?"
"I haven't personally experienced this kind of relationship, but I am... willing to try."
A new type of bond that he'd yet to explore very carefully. What was it made of? Sai was curious to find out.
His answer came in the form of a kiss.
End of Installment
Authors Note: Holy crap, it's been a while, hasn't it? O_O And I know that most people's response to Sai x Gaara is, "Bwuh?" and "I don't see it!" Hey, the pairing makes a lot of sense! You just gotta think about it, and know the characters really well. Hopefully, these drabbles will help with the convincing. ^_^ If not, go ahead and hit me up with some Sai x Gaara requests, and I'll see what I can do. Anyhow, the first thirteen prompts were taken from the 13drabbles community on LiveJournal, while I just made up the bonus one. I kept to the 100-words limit with most of them, but went a little overboard with the thirteenth prompt... Oops.
Thank you so much for reading; please leave a review to let me know what you think, or any drabble prompts!
With love for my fans,
Tiger5913
