Summary: All Gaara ever wanted was someone to love. Will a certain blonde shinobi grant his wish? Warning: Yaoi, lemon, angst, OOCemo chars, canon tampering, fluff, other stuff. Re-edited and reposted.
Pairings: GaaraNaru and SasuNaru (One-sided)
Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto. If I did, there would be no such thing as pants in the Naru-verse.
Warning: This story contains yaoi, graphic lemon, adult language, major angst, lots of OOC-ness, some fluff, MASSIVE tampering with the Naruto storyline, and frequent shifts in P.O.V.
A/N: Re-edited on 11/1/06 by Ukeboi88. Full credit for this chapter goes to XxXSasuNaruXxX.
Make sure you read this part or the story will not make any sense to you! This story is about Naruto and Gaara, how they find each other, and how they grow to love one another. Gaara's personality undergoes major changes this isn't the 100 tough-guy Gaara we all know, I've added a softer, innocent side to him(hell, he is flat-out emo at times). He can go to sleep now too (I don't know when he was able to start doing this in the actual story, so for my purposes here it was after the Chuunin Exams.) Now for the setting. Ok, forget everything you know about Naruto after the Chuunin Exams. It's gone, never happened, forget it. Now, age all the characters 4 years without advancing the timeline (I don't want to write this with 13 year olds, I'm sorry that's just gross.) Next, put Tsunade as the Hokage. The third died of er, heart failure during the exams and Tsunade beat the shit out of Orochimaru during the attack on Konoha and was made Hokage afterwards (sorry any Sarutobi fans, but Tsunade rocks, I'd rather have her as Hokage.) Make Naruto secretly gay and make Gaara completely apathetic concerning sex (as in he's never given thought to whether he's straight, gay, bi, whatever.) Also, take away the gourd, I didn't feel like working with it so for this fic we will say he just controls loose sand and sediment wherever he finds it. Now, put all this together and you have all the Naru-gang together in Konoha, with the aforementioned changes, right after the end of the Chuunin exams.
-3rd person P.O.V.-
To anyone who looked at Sabaku no Gaara, only one word came to mind. Evil. Maybe it was the way the teen looked at people, a cold glare from green, soulless eyes. Maybe it was the way he casually talked about ripping people in half. Or maybe it was the knowledge of the Shukaku demon inside the boy. Whatever the reason, many people in the village of Konoha were not happy when they learned that the "Devil of Sand" as they called him, would be taking up residence in the town. This arrangement was made by the Hokage and the elders of Suna, Gaara's home village, after the debacle during the Chuunin exams. It was agreed that the future Kazekage would live in Konoha for an undisclosed amount of time, as atonement for Sand's involvement in the attack on Konoha and to forestall any future conflicts between the two villages. The villagers recognized that this was a good plan diplomatically, but it was where redhead was supposed to live that really pissed them off. Tsunade had arranged to move the boy in with none other than Uzumaki Naruto, Konoha's resident demon-brat and all-around troublemaker. 'What the hell was Hokage-sama thinking, putting those two abominations together? Who knows what evils they will come up with when left alone together?' the villagers speculated, afraid of what the pair might do. Tsunade, however, was not convinced by these arguments, even going so far as to order the villagers to leave the pair alone, warning them that the punishment for breaking this order would come in the form her very strong and extremely painful fist. This was the situation when Gaara arrived, his few belongings in a bag slung over his shoulder.
-Gaara's P.O.V.-
I reached in Konoha at dusk after days of traveling alone. 'Not days really, more like years…' I thought fleetingly. I could see from the looks on the villager's faces as I walked through the streets that they were no more pleased with the situation than I was. 'Just let them try something. The sand is there, as always. It seems to be the only dependable thing in my life really.' Normal people would probably find this fact sad I realized. I would agree with them, if only it didn't hurt so much to think about it. 'This life, this existence… it feels as though I'm trapped, doomed to be alone and empty forever, with only the silent sands around me. No one has ever understood my pain, nor have they ever tried. Does no one care? Am I really so worthless? And in the end, does it even matter? Hmmm this seems to be the place.' I stopped in front of a small house; it was just a cottage really. 'I don't know why, but I feel…different here. I haven't even gone in, yet I have this strange feeling. Is this happiness? Excitement maybe? I wouldn't know… Perhaps this arrangement is for the best after all. If anyone has a chance of understanding, it's Uzumaki. He knows what it's like to carry demons not of one's own making, in more ways than one. But will he care enough to even try? Will he care at all?' Unsure of myself for the first time in my life, I walked up to the door and knocked softly. I didn't realize at the time that what happened next would be the most important moment in my life. The moment that I found my guardian angel…my savior…my Naruto.
-3rd person P.O.V.-
Gaara knocked on the door gently, his usually emotionless face covered with an expression of nervousness. He was painfully aware that the shinobi who lived here was the only person to ever show kindness to him and he feared him for that very reason. The kitsune was the only one whose opinion mattered to the tortured orphan, the only one whose rejection would be unbearable. Gaara shuddered at the thought, he didn't want to think about what would happen if the one ray of light he held onto were suddenly torn away, leaving him alone in the dark once again.
"Just a minute!" Naruto's voice was heard from within the tiny house. Gaara looked around absentmindedly, taking in the lush scenery to calm himself. He enjoyed these moments of simple tranquility, rare as they were. All of a sudden the door opened and Gaara found himself in the arms of a very jubilant Naruto. "Gaara!" Naruto cried as he hugged the boy, pleased that he was all right. When he had last seen him, the Shukaku holder had been seriously wounded, by Naruto himself no less. "I'm glad you're ok. I was worried about you ya know." he said, smiling broadly and catching the redhead completely off guard.
"Uzumaki…" he mumbled through his confusion. 'He was worried…about me? Even after I tried to kill him? But why..?' Gaara was completely confused. This boy, who was little more than a stranger, seemed to care about him as a friend, though he had every reason to hate the redhead. Gaara was shaken from his thoughts as Naruto pulled him into the house, shutting the door behind them and taking Gaara's bag. 'Well, he doesn't seem to be mad about me being forced on him by the Hokage. Maybe this won't be so bad after all. It might even be…nice' Gaara reflected, looking Naruto up and down appraisingly. He was wearing his usual orange pants, but didn't have the matching jacket on, just a black t-shirt. He wasn't wearing his forehead protector either, giving his face a softer look. Naruto dropped the redhead's bag on the couch and started heading for the other room.
"I was just about to make dinner if you're hungry Gaara." he called over his shoulder as he disappeared into the kitchen. "Miso ramen, it's very good you know! Though not as good as Ichiraku's…" While Naruto continued babbling about the finer points of ramen dining, Gaara was looking about the house. It was small, but very cozy. All of the furniture had a slightly beat up look, but it was inviting none the less. 'Lived-in.' Gaara thought, pleased at how different it was from his own empty house in Suna. 'It feels like…a home.'
-Naruto's P.O.V.-
From the moment I saw him, I realized this would be trouble. I should have told the old hag no when she "asked" if Gaara could live here. Against my better judgment, I had hugged the redhead, causing a serious problem. His touch, I wasn't sure what it was, but it felt, I dunno… right holding him. Electrifying. I wanted to do it again. 'Thank god he didn't notice the bulge…' was all I could think as I prepared dinner. 'He'd probably kill me if he found out I was attracted to him…' I mused, shuddering slightly. Tsunade had given me a full account of Gaara's past before asking me if he could live here. It was so sad… I could understand why he acted the way he did. My life hadn't exactly been easy either, but he had it so much worse. I was resolved to at least become the insane sand-nin's friend, though I wanted to be so much more. I was startled when I noticed he was standing beside me. 'How long has he been there?' I wondered, fighting to keep a smile on my face.
"Uzumaki…" he whispered, watching me make the ramen, his face void of emotion.
"Oh, uh hey Gaara. It'll be ready in a few minutes ok?" I said, cursing inwardly that my voice sounded so…scared. I didn't want him to think I was afraid of him. "Hey you have to call my Naruto now by the way. We're roomies so it's the rule." I informed him, smiling in earnest this time. He smiled back at me, or tried to anyway. His smile, it almost broke my heart to see it. It looked so… new, so foreign on his flawless face. I guessed that because he hardly ever smiled, he had never really learned to do it right. 'I'll change that.' I vowed, not wanting to see the sad smile again. I didn't think I would be able to take it.
"Naruto…" he said, his tone slightly different from his usual flat voice.
'Was that actual emotion in his voice? Gaara…'
-3rd person P.O.V.-
The two shinobi ate together in silence, well almost; Naruto's eating habits weren't exactly quiet. When he was finished devouring his ramen, he looked over at his new roommate. "You like it?" he asked, hoping the redhead enjoyed his cooking.
"It's good…" Gaara replied as he finished his own meal. He wondered if this was how families acted. He had never had anyone else take care of him before. It was…nice.
"Glad you liked it." A relieved sigh escaped the blonde as he spoke. "Hey if you're tired I can show you the sleeping arrangements." he offered, reddened slightly. "C'mon this way." he said as he grabbed the redhead's arm and led him into another room. "This is my room. Well, our room now." Naruto said cheerily. Gaara looked around the cluttered room. Next to the small window sat a bed with orange sheets, obviously Naruto's. A nightstand and overflowing laundry hamper stood next to the bed. Against the far wall was a beat-up desk, littered with everything from rusty kunai to old test's from Naruto's Academy days. Tucked away in a corner was another, smaller bed, which Gaara guessed must be his. "I cleared out some closet space for you too." Naruto said as he flopped down on his own bed, patting his stomach contentedly. "Sorry about how messy it is though." he sighed, looking over at the sand-nin apologetically.
"It's wonderful." Gaara replied, a true smile gracing his features. He liked how close he was going to be to Naruto. The blonde made him feel safe and wanted, two things he couldn't remember ever feeling before. "Thank you Naruto…for everything."
The two spent the rest of the evening talking, or rather Naruto did the talking while Gaara just listened, happy to be near his new friend. At last when Naruto grew tired, they said goodnight and went to sleep, both pleased with the day's events.
Gaara awoke with a start the next morning, surprised at first at where he was. Slowly, he remembered what had happened the previous day. He looked over at Naruto and smiled, the blonde looked so cute when he was asleep. It pleased him that Naruto was able to sleep so soundly with him in the room, given their history. 'Wait, did I really just think he was cute?' the redhead wondered, his brain finally catching up. 'This could be a problem.' he realized. He wasn't sure what he was feeling for Naruto. He knew he cared about the blonde, but whether he saw Naruto as a friend, a brother, or maybe something…more, he wasn't sure. 'Best not to head down that road.' he decided. There was no way he was going to scare Naruto away from him. Not now that he finally found someone who cared about him. Someone he could care about. 'Oh I was supposed to report to the Hokage today.' he remembered suddenly. He got dressed and headed from the room, stealing a last glance at the still-sleeping blonde before he left. 'Naruto…'
-Naruto's P.O.V.-
I woke up suddenly, shaken out of a very nice dream I had been having about a certain redheaded psycho and a can of whipped cream. 'I shouldn't be having dreams like that.' I told myself, certain that I would die of embarrassment if Gaara ever saw one of the tents I pitched during my sleep. I looked over to the other shinobi's bed, not surprised to find it empty. '"God I hope he didn't see this" I muttered, looking down at my raised sheets. I got up and changed quickly, wondering where Gaara had gone. "Damnit, no time for breakfast, I'm late!" I cursed as I remembered that I had training today. Hurrying from the house, I made up my mind to take Gaara to Ichiraku's later for some real ramen. 'He'd like that.' I thought, running for the training grounds as fast as I could.
-3rd Person P.O.V.-
Gaara arrived at the Hokage Tower and was ushered in to meet a very pissed off Tsunade. Already the complaints about the sand-nin's arrival had started pouring in, ensuring that she would have a healthy amount of paperwork to go through for the day. The Hyuuga clan had even gone so far as to send her a formal declaration of protest. 'Arrogant bastards.' she had thought when Shizune had handed her the letter. 'Like I give a fuck what they want. They think they own the damn village just because of their precious Byakugan.' Sometimes being Hokage sucked. A lot. Tsunade stifled her anger as the redhead sat down, not wanting him to see that she already regretted her decision. They stared across her desk at each other for a moment, until Tsunade finally broke the silence. "Welcome back to Konoha Gaara. I trust there have been no problems with your arrangements so far?
"No, everything's fine." he replied in his monotone voice.
'God he creeps me out.' she thought as she nodded in response. "Very good. Now for the duration of your stay, you will be assigned to train and work with Team Seven. I know you know Naruto and I believe you have met Sasuke and Sakura if I'm not mistaken?" He nodded silently. "Ah, perfect then. Well, that was really all I had to discuss with… oh wait, I almost forgot. I want you to report to me at once any and all harassment from the villagers that occurs, understood?"
"…" He made no reply once again, glaring at her instead with his deadened green eyes. He didn't want to have to run to the busty blonde whenever one of the idiot villagers decided to mess with him.
Under normal circumstances, Tsunade would have sent the boy flying through a wall for daring to be so insolent with her, but, to her extreme disappointment, these were not normal circumstances. If she hurt the boy she could end up starting another war and she definitely did not want that. Not that she didn't think Konoha would win, but that wasn't the point. "Gaara please." she sighed, hoping to get the boy to agree while saving a shred of her own dignity if at all possible. "I don't like it anymore than you do, but this is politics. I don't want to start a war here just because a few of my people can't follow an order. Just please agree to this and you won't be bothered by me again."
"…Fine." he muttered, seething with indignation at the thought of complaining like a child to the annoying woman when he knew that he could easily defend himself from any attacks.
"Thank you. Now get out of my office please. As you can see, I have plenty of paperwork to do…" she droned as she waved him from the room.
On the way out, Gaara asked the Hokage's assistant for directions to Team Seven's training area and for a schedule. Noticing that they had training today, he decided to pay Naruto and the rest of his new teammates a visit.
-Sasuke's P.O.V.-
I knew something was off with Naruto by how odd he was acting. Normally, whenever we sparred the idiot would give it everything he had. I'd still kick his ass, but at least it was fun. Today it seemed like he wasn't even trying. 'Maybe it has something to do with him,' "Oi, dobe, whats up with you today eh? What did the freak do to you?" I asked, hoping to make the blonde laugh. That intoxicating laugh of his…
"Shut it Sasuke-teme! He's not a freak!" he replied angrily, managing to land a kick to my side at the same time. 'He's just…misunderstood." he continued, a sad smile appearing on his face.
I didn't know what had caught me off guard more, the fact that Naruto had managed to land such a strong kick, or that he was actually defending Gaara. I wasn't happy with either, particularly the latter. 'He better not start to like that psycho.' I grimaced, horrified at the thought. Naruto was mine alone. He just didn't know it yet was all. But shit, if Naruto was developing feelings for Gaara… 'Maybe I should make my move fast, before anything can happen.' I thought, starting to aim a kick to Naruto's skull. I was surprised when instead of sending the blonde flying, I fell flat on my face.
-3rd Person P.O.V.-
What had happened was this: After his meeting with the Hokage, Gaara had hurried to the training grounds, anxious to see Naruto again. He had heard what Sasuke had said, as well as Naruto's response. He stopped in his tracks, feeling immense gratitude towards the blonde for what he had said. Then he noticed Sasuke was getting ready to attack, so he quietly used his sand to bind the Uchiha's feet in place, effectively stopping him from harming Naruto.
Sasuke got to his knees, loudly cursing the shinobi he knew must be responsible. "What the fuck did you do that for you bastard!!!" he screamed at the approaching redhead. His screams attracted the attention of Kakashi, who had been helping Sakura work on her chakra control across the clearing. Noticing Gaara, Kakashi quickly moved to stop whatever fight the his students had started.
"Is there something going on here that I should know about?" he drawled in his lazy voice as he appeared next to Sasuke.
"Yeah. This fuckhead interrupted Naruto and I during our fight." the angry brunette spat, glaring at his nemesis.
"Really? Is this true Naruto?" Kakashi asked, his eye turning to the steadily reddening blonde.
"Its true." mumbled Gaara, breaking his silence suddenly. "I saw Uchiha about to attack, so I stopped him. I didn't want him to hurt Naruto…" he trailed off, fixing the blonde with a warm look that resembled… concern?
Naruto grinned sheepishly when he heard this, his blush turning from a light pink to a healthy shade of scarlet. He conveniently found a very interesting rock on the ground and turned his attention to it, fidgeting nervously as he did so. His reaction to Gaara's words did not go unnoticed by his rival; a look of mingled pain and fear had replaced brunette's glare as he glanced at Naruto. 'FUCK!!! NARUTO ALREADY LIKES THE FREAK! I've got to stop them before it goes too far. I can't let Gaara touch my Naruto!'
Kakashi looked at the three boys for a moment, wondering what the hell was going on. He too, had seen how Naruto reacted to what Gaara said. He also had seen the look of hurt on Sasuke's face. 'Could it be that they…no, it would never happen…well actually that would be kinda hot to watch…' Kakashi caught himself at this point, not wanting to continue that train of thought until he was alone later (Oh Kakashi, you perv you! .). Sakura came running up at this point, she squealed when she saw Sasuke on the ground.
"Sasuke-kun! What did he do to you?" she cried, her voice full of concern. She glared at Gaara as she helped the Uchiha up. "Let him go NOW!" she screamed, her livid expression marring her normally beautiful features. Gaara quickly released his hold on the boy's ankles, not wanting to draw out the confrontation any longer than necessary. They were going to be a team after all.
"Hmmm. Well if you guys are done…I should tell you that Gaara will be joining our team for the duration of his stay in our village." Kakashi looked at them expectantly, hoping for an entertaining reaction and was not disappointed.
"ARE YOU FUCKING SERIOUS!?! What the hell Kakashi, did you volunteer for this? Trying to get your jollies off making us miserable is that it? You can't just force us to be near the freak!" For the second time that morning Sasuke found himself sprawled on the ground, thanks to a well-aimed punch from Naruto.
"Stop." was all Naruto said, his voice dripping with venom. Sasuke's arrogant prick routine was really starting to piss him off.
"I think maybe we should call it a day." Kakashi chuckled. He was definitely sure about what was going on now and damn was he happy about it. He couldn't wait to tell Iruka, their little Naruto had not one, but two boys after him. Sure they were both slightly insane, but that didn't matter to Kakashi. Not as long as he got to watch…
"Yeah, okay Kakashi-sensei." Naruto muttered. C'mon Gaara lets go." he said as he turned to his roommate, surprised when the redhead allowed him to lead them away from the field. Without another word they walked off towards the village, leaving behind an angry Uchiha, a gleeful Kakashi, and a very confused Sakura.
-Gaara's P.O.V.-
After we left the others, we continued to walk side by side, neither of us speaking. I noticed Naruto's hand dangling next to me as we walked. God how I wanted to hold it. 'So close, yet so far…'
"Sorry about that Gaara." he said suddenly, stopping to look over at me. "Sasuke can be a real asshole sometimes, well most of the time actually, but he'll get over it eventually. I hope he will anyway." He thought I was sad about what the other boy had said? How wrong he was. I was far more concerned with what Naruto himself had said. Could he possibly…?
"Naruto…" I began shakily, afraid of what the answer to the coming question might be. "Why did you do all that for me back there? You know Sasuke a lot better than you know me. Why would you…" I couldn't finish the sentence. I had foolishly looked straight into those sky-blue orbs he called eyes and had become hopelessly lost in them. 'Is this what it feels like to love someone?' I wondered briefly, still dreading the answer to my unspoken question.
"I don't know why, I…" he said carefully, as if he was struggling to find an acceptable response. "Let's just go home." he said finally and I readily agreed. It wouldn't be smart to press him I decided, as I turned to follow him once again.
-3rd Person P.O.V.-
They continued on in silence, neither one sure of what they were feeling. Naruto was finding it hard to keep his feelings for Gaara secret, while Gaara was having trouble just having feelings. Somehow, they never made it to Ichiraku's like Naruto had planned…
-Lame Passage of Time Paragraph- ;
Days turned to weeks and weeks turned to months as Naruto and Gaara's secret affections for each other deepened. Yet neither talked about it to the other, they were both too afraid of rejection to broach the subject. They were teenage boys after all, they didn't have much sense when it came to romance. So they continued to stifle their feelings until it came to pass that Gaara had been in Konoha for almost two years. Little did Gaara know that with his 18th birthday fast approaching, he would soon be granted his one and only wish.
Ukeboi: Sasu had a bunch of versions of the next chapter, I'll be sorting through them and combining them in the next few days. This story should be complete by the end of the week.