(A/N Naruto and co. Dont belong to me okay. I so wish they did.
Includes, some coarse language, sexual implications, blood, OOC-ness and complete and utter babble. I tried my best, I swear)

It was exactly one year. Gaara sighed gently, had Naruto forgotten? Maybe all the missions were becoming stressful and he just didn't have the time. The red head slumped down in his seat; no, Naruto wouldn't forget would he? There was a soft knock at the door, "Come in," the tanuki spoke up slightly so the other could hear. A tall, blonde female slowly walked into the room. "Ah, Gaara ... what's wrong?" she spoke up, concern highlighting her soft voice. The Kazekage shook his head. Temari carried on, "You have a request from the Hokage to meet him in the park tonight, and do you wish to go?" The red-heads heart lifted slightly as his head nodded automatically, maybe he had remembered. "I will go and tell him your answer, are you sure you are alright Gaara," she had walked up to his desk and now her tanned hand was on his porcelain cheek, forcing him to look up at her. "I'm fine Temari," he smiled faintly.
"Okay then, I'll talk to you later," she kissed his forehead and left the room.

The day was long and Gaara found himself staring at the clock on his desk. Time seemed to pass slowly. On more than one occasion he found himself snarling at the clock, threatening to crush it but he knew destroying the inanimate object would make it harder to tell the time. The red head looked down at the sheet of paper in front of him. Another treaty. He sighed heavily and picked up the pen nearby. Words seemed to melt together and become unfocused. Gaara rubbed his turquoise eyes but the words never separated. Sighing again he got up from his seat and wondered over to the window. The village, his village ... it looked so peaceful. Children played ninja in the distance as women fretted over their torn clothes. Men smiled at their wives, comforting them with small gestures like a hand around the waist or a small kiss on the cheek. Gaara ran a hand through his blood red hair, where was Naruto?

Somewhere in the leaf village Naruto was running around, panicking. Where was it? Lady Tsunade had given him the scroll, now where had he put it? He turned round and looked at the mountain of scrolls he had already searched through. Many different ribbons littered the already cluttered floor. The blond growled and clawed through cupboards ... that scroll meant everything to him ... it meant life and death. "Dammit!" he pounded his fist on the table. The door opened silently and closed with a quiet thud. The whiskered male spun round, his face was a mixture of despair and anger. "... I'm s...sorry Na...Naruto ... Lad... Lady Tsunade sa...said you le...left this on h...her table," the blue haired kunoichi muttered quietly, a pink blush covered her cheeks. In one hand she held out a scroll with an orange and black ribbon tied around it. "Arigato, Hinata," he practically yelled and hugged her. The poor Hyuuga almost fainted but she controlled it and steadied herself against the wall. "I hope ... you have ... a good... d...day Naruto," she bowed formally, handed over the scroll and left the room. He had been searching for days for this scroll, and he had actually left it in Lady Tsunade's room, he slapped himself. There was no time to waste, he needed to see Gaara. As the Hokage, it was his duty to redo the peace treaty.

The blonde raced through the forest, over the years he had built up his speed and agility. It was necessary. He converted his chakra into momentum and propelled himself through the dense trees; he needed to get there before nightfall. The scroll was clutched tightly in his hand. Tree's whipped at his face as he sped through the forest and arrived at the edge. He had been running none stop for three hours. It was midday. Whoever said it takes three days to get to Suna, had never met Uzumaki Naruto, he was going to break that record, with time to spare. After drinking some water and forcing down one of Sakura's homemade solider pills, he began running. He didn't mind the harsh winds that swept past him or the sand that swirled round his body. Only one thing occupied his mind. The sweet name that invaded his mind every second of every day. The name that erased pain and bad memories. The only name in the world that could ever cause him true agony. Kunai, poisons, katanas even death itself couldn't harm him like that name could. He forced himself forward, pushing his limits. His leg muscles cried out as he began using more chakra. The burning sensation reminded him of the desperation. The need to get there on time. Hopefully Temari had already told Gaara where to meet him. A rough growl shook the blonde from his thoughts. 'Kit, let me hand you some of my chakra,' Kyuubi snarled loudly.
'And what do you want in return,' Naruto sighed, there was always a catch.
'I want to see my mate too, why would you think there is a catch,' the fox grinned.
'With you, there is always a catch,' the Hokage smiled to himself.
'Let me have control, just for a little while, if you know what I mean,' the demon chuckled perversely. Of course the whiskered man knew what he meant. 'Who says that's going to happen?' the blonde grinned, he loved winding up the little cub inside him. 'I can read your thoughts, Kit, watch what you're saying or else I'll make sure you won't be able to 'get it up', so who's the little cub now, kit?' The nine tails snarled angrily, not happy with Naruto's thoughts.
'Dammit, okay, I'll let you have a small amount of control, we might not even try ...' he spoke quietly; maybe he had taken it too far. It felt like red hot lava was pulsing through his veins, the agony turned fiery before it turned to a dull ache and he picked up the pace. His demon cloak surrounded his body, clearing a path in the sand. "I love you sometimes Kyu," he spoke aloud, a feral smile was on his face, his whisker-like scars were darker and thicker. His azure eyes had taken on a strange violet shade. His hair grew slightly, brushing his shoulders as his nails grew and thickened. He bit his lip by mistake and tasted the copper liquid. It was a strange taste, metallic but slightly spicy, like cinnamon. Not really intriguing, well not like Gaara's blood. Unconsciously, the blonde began drooling. 'Hey kit, daydream and masturbate over the red head later, you got to focus here or else we will just go through Suna's walls, I dont want to upset my mate,' Kyuubi snarled, grabbing the violet eyed boy's attention. Naruto noted that, indeed, his hand had wandered down his pants, cursing lightly, he removed his hand and focused on the task of flitting to the village. Shukaku had definitely changed the nine tails way of thinking. Three years ago, Kyuubi wouldn't have cared who's village he destroyed but now, he hated the thought of even slightly damaging the precious village. He had grown soft. 'KIT I'M GOING TO MAKE SURE YOUR DICK STAYS SOFT IF YOU DONT WATCH IT,' Oh yeah, he still didn't like being called soft.
'Sorry Kyu,' the blonde grinned and pushed further, consuming a little more of the nine tails chakra.

Naruto panted as he reached the gates, a gap in-between two rock formations, many shinobi watched him carefully. Was this a threat or was he the real Hokage. The blonde collapsed onto his knees, he had made it before nightfall. The golden sun was only just dipping below the horizon. "Pass?" one of the shinobi asked. The whiskered man pulled out a small booklet and passed it over. "Hokage Uzumaki, welcome, do you need help?" the man that had the booklet. The blonde shook his head weakly and pulled out another vile solider pill. He had already used up all the energy from the first one. He forced the pill down and stood up, trying not to gag at the putrid scent and the disgusting taste. "How is your village, Hokage?" Temari walked forward from amongst the defensive Shinobi. "It is well, and Suna?"
"It is doing well also, Gaara will be at the park in two hours, do you wish to freshen up?" she smiled, happy that this one man had caused her brother so much happiness. On the other hand, her brother also worried tremendously for the kitsune's safety. "Hai, arigato Temari," he grinned widely, as the pill began filling up his chakra reservoirs. "Have you brought the scroll?" she raised an eyebrow. The whiskered male handed over the scroll that was lightly dusted with golden sand. "Arigato, go straight to the Kazekage's tower, be sure Gaara doesn't see you, he is in his office, Kankuro is outside the room, so he will tell you if Gaara has moved," she nodded and was gone in the blink of an eye. Simple, just avoid the red head in his own home, Naruto sighed and walked forward.

Gaara walked back to his desk, he had been staring out of his window for two hours, watching over his village. The village he would protect with his life. Actually he had protected it to that extent; luckily he had survived and still had his demon with him. 'Gaara, when will Kyuubi be here,' the voice of Shukaku caught his attention. 'Hn ... I'm not sure, hopefully soon,' he replied
'They will be here, wont they,' her voice was almost sugary sweet when she spoke of the demon and its container. 'Naruto wouldn't lie, he will be here,' the red head smiled to himself
'They haven't forgotten have they?' the demon began worrying.
'No, Naruto wouldn't forget, last month he was getting excited,' the Kazekage tried reassuring himself and the demon. A knock silenced both. "Kazekage, may I enter?" the voice of his brother came through the door. "Hai," Gaara spoke quickly. The mahogany door opened enough for the bulky man to walk through. His brown hair got in the way of his dark eyes and his usual face paint was nowhere to be seen. "Kankuro?"
"Yeah, you have two hours until you will meet with the Hokage," the red head nodded, "Shall I come back in an hour or at a certain time?"
"Come back in an hour please, you are dismissed," Gaara smiled vaguely at his elder brother. The puppeteer bowed formally and walked back out. The meeting with Naruto won't be formal, he just knew.

Naruto walked through the dusty streets of Suna, children played ninja nearby. A little girl stumbled near him as the other boys laughed at her. The blonde bent down and picked the girl up, wiping away her tears. "Are you alright?" he asked quietly to the brown haired girl in his arms. She nodded, wide eyed. His blue eyes wandered over to her knees, one was bleeding a little, maybe cut on a rock? Using one arm to hold the girl, who wrapped her thin arms around his neck, he grabbed some healing serum out of his back pocket and applied it to her knee. The shallow wound instantly began knitting itself back together. The new skin was slightly pink, like a faint sunburn. "Arigato," the girl whispered. The blonde smiled and set her on her feet, easily removing her grip from his neck. "Be careful next time okay," he grinned widely and pulled out a few sweets from one of his pockets and handed them over to her. This time the little girl grinned and ran over to two adults, maybe her parents. The man and woman nodded at him, telling the girl who he was. "ARIGATO HOKAGE UZUMAKI!" she shouted back at him, her two pigtails swayed in the dry breeze. He waved and began walking again. He had wasted a bit of time on that girl, but it was worth it. It made the village friendly towards him.

As he approached the giant building, Naruto had the feeling someone was watching him. He closed his azure eyes and waited a few minutes. Behind his eyelids he saw several dozen blue figures flickering like little flames. Probably the Kazekage's guards. For a few seconds he wondered why he would have so many, Kankuro was enough, that guy could be extremely scary at times. He pressed his palm to the door and opened it quietly. Dark eyes met blue. "Ah, Kankuro," The brown haired ninja growled lightly. "Um ..."
"Three doors to the left, and be quiet, Gaara is in the bathroom, you have five minutes before Gaara finishes in there, you have to be out by then," the puppeteer growled, he never liked the blonde. Sure, he was in the kitsune's debt for bringing the Kazekage back to life and bringing him home. The only bad thing was, when Naruto wasn't around, Gaara was a wreck. The red head would worry constantly, wondering if the blonde was safe coming to Suna on his own. Worrying about the 'S' rank missions Naruto assigned himself to do. The kitsune had a very dangerous life and this made the tanuki edgy. Sometimes the Kazekage became extremely ill when Naruto went out on an unsafe mission, he would worry himself sick. "Arigato," Naruto waved and ran into the room.

After closing the door, Naruto looked around. He was in Gaara's bedroom. Papers littered one of his tables. He was working too hard again. Last time Gaara had this much paper work on his desk, he had fainted from exhaustion. Sighing quietly to himself, he stripped of his normal clothes and shook them, watching the golden grains of sand fall onto the sandy coloured floor. Hopefully the red head wouldn't notice. Quickly, he stuffed his sandy clothes into his bag and pulled out his plain orange shirt and a pair of dark jeans. Wet footsteps alerted him and he began rushing, finding it extremely difficult to pull on his socks. "Hey Gaara, do you know how long you have left," Kankuro's voice made the blonde sigh in relief. He had to hurry; the puppeteer wouldn't be able to hold the redhead forever. Sand had pooled in his shoes and there was no time to empty them out of the window. Gritting his teeth against the rough feeling, he grabbed his other shoe. A sharp pinch attacked his heel. The kitsune bit his tongue and looked down. A black scorpion had attached its claw to his foot, its stinger poised to attack. "Shit," he growled to himself.
"Okay, I was just warning you," Kankuro sounded worried, maybe he had been threatened? The door opened a bit and Gaara's eyes opened wide.

"Kankuro, have you been in my room?" Turquoise eyes glared at the puppeteer. The brunette nodded quickly, dammit! The Kazekage shook his head, there was sand all over the floor and there was that smell, the intoxicating aroma that stood out. "Are you injured?" he asked his older brother. Kankuro's dark eyes quickly scanned the floor and settled upon a small speck of blood. "It was a paper cut, all healed up now, I was going to drop off some more papers but I had no where to put them, so I have left them in my room," that wasn't a complete lie. Yeah he did have paperwork for Gaara to sign, and they were in his room but no paper cut. "That's not your blood Kankuro," Gaara pulled his towel closer against his body. Water dripped off his blood red hair and landed on the sand coloured carpet. He had only just got out of his warm bath and was still naked apart from the one towel that covered his torso and private regions. "What do you mean, it's got to be my blood, nobody else has been in here,"
"It's not your blood," the pale skinned male spoke sternly. He knew the scent of his brother's blood; it was sour and smelt slightly like wood. Also it had a spicy aroma that came with handling poisons. No this scent was intoxicating in its own way; it was warm, musky and enticing. It lay heavy in the air and the red head could taste it. It was sweet and tangy and completely addictive. The Kazekage resisted the urge to taste the blood on the floor. "Hm... but no one has entered here," Kankuro mused, trying his best to hide the lie, "Remember, 45 minutes," the puppeteer walked out of the room and closed the door behind him. Kami, that was too close. Stupid Naruto.

As Kankuro turned he was face to face with a grinning tanned blonde. "Baka, you almost got caught," the dark eyed male slapped the kitsune. The whiskered Hokage rubbed his sore cheek, "Hey I got out of there, dont slap me, only girls slap," that remark earned him a punch to the gut.
"Who you calling a girl," the puppeteer snarled rather loudly.
"Shhh," The blonde panicked, he didnt want Gaara finding out. The brunette scowled and motioned for the Hokage to move. "Dont forget, 35 minutes," Naruto grinned and ran out of the building, one hands still clutching his gut. 'Fucking crazy kid, gonna get himself killed one day,' Kankuro smiled to himself before guarding the door.

Gaara couldn't pull his eyes away from that single blood stain on his floor. Maybe he could get Temari to bleach it later; the scent was driving him mad. "I recognise it, I really do, but where from?" he spoke aloud. Was it from a past attack? Maybe it was his brother; he had been away from his puppetry for a month now. 'No that's the blood of an animal that is aroused,' Shukaku purred happily, the thought of a creature who had blood this inviting, this tempting, she was growling happily. "But what about Naru..." he spoke quietly, dropping the towel.
'Ah yes, my little Kyuubi, maybe his blood is better, but ...' something clicked in the demons head and she murmured to herself. "Care to share?" She shook her head and crawled back in her cage, giggling insanely, almost as if she was drunk or high. The pale teen dried himself off and began worrying, something had excited Shukaku, but Gaara only loved Naruto, whatever it was ... it was going to ruin everything. The last of the deranged demons giggles died off as the red head pulled a black T-shirt over his head. It wasn't going to be formal ... it was Naruto. He grabbed a pair of jeans, not bothering to put on underwear; it was going to be a short meeting. 'Or maybe longer than you expect,' her manic giggles interrupted his train of thought once more. Stupid demon.

Gaara found Naruto sat under a rather large Sakura tree. Pink petals floated down, swirling round his lithe body. Never had he seen this tree before, then again, he never went out enough. The sun had set a little while ago, cloaking the silent village in darkness. The only light came from the silver moon and the small fairy-like stars. No words needed to be said. The blonde knew Gaara was there and just patted a patch of warm, soft grass next to him. The red head sat down and smiled, looking up at the moon. Why was Shukaku so silent, it was a full moon? A tan hand slowly walked across the grass and covered the paler hand. Both males smiled at the silent message, twining their fingers together. A soft breeze blew more petals over them but none of them minded the slight chill. "Gaara ..." the whiskered Hokage turned around to see his boyfriend.
"Yeah," he sighed a reply and looked at the blue eyed teen.
"Let me take you somewhere," he grinned happily, pulling the tanuki to his feet, both hands placed securely around the red heads waist. Gaara wrapped his arms around the blonde's neck, pulling them closer, so their lips were millimetres apart. Naruto whispered something softly against the others lips before kissing him sweetly. The Hokage was the first to pull back and break his boyfriends hold on him. "Let's go," their hands entwined once more as they began walking into the sleepy village.

Not many places were open as it was late but Naruto confidently walked into a posh restaurant. Inside was ivory and gold. Not many were inside and it was uncomfortably quite but the blonde didnt release Gaara's hand, actually he tightened his grip slightly as heads whirled round. Staring at the Kazekage, and more than one of them starting whispering. "It's alright, just follow me," the kitsune whispered quietly as they made their way to the back of the building. The Kazekage just nodded and ignored the babbling buffoons. The blonde led them to a table, far away from the other villagers. The table was decorated with silk and golden ribbons. Two wine glasses were filled with a red liquid and the only other colour on the table was the silver glint of the cutlery. Two men dressed in white suits, decorated with gold ties pulled out the seats for the two Jinchuuriki to sit down on. The Hokage waved them off after they had handed out the menus. 'He had remembered," Gaara smiled slightly to himself. "I hope this isn't too much Gaara," Naruto beamed and opened up his menu, quickly scanning over the food before nodding and setting the folded paper down. "N...No, arigato Naru~" The red head smiled behind his menu.
"Anything for you Gaara,"

A young female walked over to them and placed down two long ivory candles and lit them, before asking the couple what they wished to eat. She was pretty, golden blonde fell past her shoulders and her eyes were a deep hazel colour. Her voice was serene. The woman seemed to have a different uniform. She wore a simple white blouse and a golden ribbon tied round her neck, in the style of a choker. Instead of trousers, she wore a black pleated skirt with gold stitched across the bottom. They spoke quietly and the young woman walked away, smiling to herself. Turquoise eyes looked into the small flames as they danced and swirled round, making the red head content. A warm hand brushed over his and sent an electric shock through his system. At first, Gaara froze but as the soothing current passed through his body again; he smiled and loosened up, grasping the tan hand in his. "You look so beautiful today Gaara," the blonde spoke up. The Kazekage looked up from the dancing flames and into a pair of deep blue eyes. Blue eyes that were clearer than a cloudless summer day and deeper than the all of the oceans put together. The red head's heart fluttered when he caught the loving smile on the tanned teens face. Every word was sincere and it hit the tanuki with a wave of emotion. "Are you alright, Gaara?" a beautiful sincere question. Gaara just nodded lightly, a light blush spreading over his porcelain cheeks. Naruto blinked slowly and smiled, only he could do this to his Gaara and it made him so happy.

A different waitress walked through the double doors leading to the kitchen. Her strawberry blonde hair was wavy and stopped at her shoulders. She smiled and handed the two males their meal before smiling happily and walking away. Her uniform was slightly different from the first young woman's. Yeah, she had the same white blouse but this time it was decorated with golden stitching in the form of a Sakura tree. Also her golden ribbon was tied like a head band, keeping her hair from her face. She had a plain black pleated skirt. Gaara noticed on close inspection the waitress's eyes were a very light blue. Everyone who had come in contact with them had been smiling and it made the Kazekage uneasy. Naruto noticed his boyfriend was fidgeting a bit so squeezed his hand lovingly in reassurance before releasing it to eat his meal. The red head almost whined at the loss of contact but somehow, that electric currant was still flowing through his body, it was radiating from the blonde in front of him. Both ate in almost silence. Most of the small conversation came from the kitsune; who passed across compliments and information based off his village. Gaara listened intently, Sakura had a new boyfriend but refused to give away any information, Sasuke could be coming back and Lady Tsunade had run out of sake ... the red head chuckled quietly at the last part; it amazed him on how an alcoholic like Tsunade could be a great ninja. The paler male asked about Shikamaru, not that he was interested, but for Temari's sake. "Ah ... Shikamaru ... he was injured last mission, he had a plan but the enemy reacted differently to what he though, he almost got killed but I stopped the enemy ..." the whiskered male stopped and began eating again.
"What happened Naru~"
"Just a cut, nothing Granny couldn't heal," He averted his eyes and stopped eating.
"Naru... are you alright?" Gaara put his chopsticks down and reached over to hold the tanned hand. The blonde sighed, smiled and allowed his finger to twine with the others. "Yeah," he beamed. Gaara sighed in relief and rubbed his leg against the kitsune's, "If you need me, I'll always be here for you Naru, I promise," the Kazekage spoke quietly.

Another waitress passed through the doors and walked up to their table, she was different. She didnt smile and her eyes were a disturbing colour of old blood. Under her eyes were black marks, insomnia maybe? Her russet hair brushed her collar bone and clashed against her ivory skin. The other two girls were fairly tanned. She wore a simple white blouse and trousers instead of a skirt. Her golden ribbon was tied around her thin wrist. She looked intimidating. "Have you finished your meal?" she was polite but the tone of her voice was harsh. Naruto nodded and beamed. The young woman picked up the plates and disappeared into the kitchen. "What was with her?" Gaara murmured to himself.
"Rough past," Naruto answered. Gaara gave him a quizzical glance. "I hired them to serve us, old friends," the blonde smiled and got out of his seat before offering his boyfriend his hand. The red head took it gratefully and a waiter pushed both chairs in. All three waitresses met the couple at the door. "Arigato," Gaara spoke nicely. All three bowed respectfully.
"Have a nice night Kazekage," the blonde woman smiled.
"Yeah, you too Naruto," the strawberry blonde grinned happily. The last didnt speak. Naruto waved to the girls and led Gaara out of the restaurant and back to the Kazekage mansion.