Vixen: Okay, as I promised, here's the sequel to "Gaara's Angel." If you could, I'd like you to play "Arms of an Angel" one more time. The prologue is from Gaara's point of view. I hope you like it!

Arms of an Angel (prologue)

"It's almost unbearable isn't it? The feeling of being all alone. I know that feeling; I've been there, in that dark and lonely place. But now there are others; other people who mean a lot to me. I care more about them then I do myself; and I won't let anyone hurt them! That's why I won't ever give up; I will stop you, even if I have to kill you!"

I had been so sure that there was no one in the world that could possibly care for others as much as they cared for them self. In a way, I was right; Naruto didn't care about others as much as himself; he held their needs far above his own. Naruto had continued to show that rare strength of character every time that I had run across him; I wonder, would I ever be able to hold others higher then myself? I guess that's kind of a dumb question; I hold all the lives of my village above my own.

"But why? Why would you do this for anyone but yourself?!"

I remember all too well how much anger, how much disbelief I had put into that question. Why would he threaten to kill me if he was so noble of heart? But then, letting me live would have been the more cruel course of action; at least, that's what I had thought at the time.

Why are they doing this to me? I finally found a way to make some good use of Shakaku; I finally have a way to turn him to a good purpose. Why do they have to put me through so much pain; why do they have to rip him from my soul? It's almost as unbearable as being left in the darkness...

"Because they saved me from myself! They rescued me from my loneliness; they were the first to accept me for who I am. They're my friends!"

'Friends.' What a simple word; what a not so simple concept. No one had ever wanted to so much as even talk to me; how could I have known what friends were until I had one of my own? I never thought to find one in Temari; or Konkuro either. And yet, they're two of my closest friends now.

Naruto's there too; as annoying as he is, he helped me to find a way out of that hell I had been living; he helped me to find my way out of the darkness and in to the light. Someone else is suppose to be there; but who? If only this pain would stop...

"Well love is, the heart's desire to serve someone who is precious to you; to watch over them like my sister did for you, Gaara."

"Love? Is that the thing that makes him so strong?"

'Love.' Another simple word; another not so simple concept. Respect? Sure, I had that; my whole village respected me. But love? That, I only had from certain people; my sister for one thing. And even though he won't admit it, I think my brother loves me too. But there's still that someone else; a glimmer of blue-violet eyes... and a name... something like 'Angel'?

"Sakura is gonna be all right."

"That's a relief."

It was amazing. Even though he had been in so much pain, Naruto had still been willing to fight because he thought that Sakura was still in danger. We've made up since then; but I can't help but wonder: what would have happened if she'd been dead? Would he have still given up? Or would he have made good on his promise and killed me?

They're trying to rip Shakaku out of me, I know it. Somehow, I think they're more twisted then I had been. Or maybe I've changed more then I thought. Maybe Naruto should have killed me; at least these mad men wouldn't have been able to get Shakaku then.

"Temari, Konkuro? I'm sorry."

Those had to have been some of the hardest words that I had ever said. But they were true; I was sorry for every thing I had done to them. I think they've accepted it; at least, I hope they have.

"Who knows, Naruto Uzamaki? Perhaps even I... someday..."

I can't remember what I had been thinking then. Was I thinking of friends? Someone to talk to? Maybe even... love? What was it?

They've been at it for so long now; and even if I'm a Jinchuriki, I can't last forever. I can feel the toll it's taking on my life; I know that it's slowly fading away as these thoughts speed on. It's funny, in a way. Things are going through my mind so fast; past events and people are all a blur to me.

But I keep seeing a sheet of hair as black as midnight and eyes of the clearest blue-violet. It's so frustrating; we'd met only once, but she's still haunting me; plaguing my soul more effectively then Shukaku ever could. What was that connection I felt that night I'd uncovered her lurking outside my village? Why wouldn't her memory leave me alone; what's this feeling that I have about her? Why can't I even remember her name?

"Assassinate? Like, kill? Why'd I do something as dumb as that, huh? I just wanna talk to you!"

She'd been different, all right. She wasn't even the least bit afraid of me When I had confronted her. After the incident at the Chunin exams, she had to have heard about the Sand Village shinobi Gaara. And yet... and yet she still hadn't shown any signs of the terror that I had reluctantly grown accustomed to when people talked about or even looked at me.

"Ahh, so you can laugh after all. Maybe you aren't that weird after all!"

Just the memory of that moment made me want to laugh; but all that came out was a weak, barely audible moan. That had possibly been the first time I had laughed since I was six.

"You've been a wanderer all of your life; just looking for someone that would give a damn about the real you, and not be turned off by the monster that was forced on your soul. The thing that you long for is acceptance, but you've been rejected so much that you don't think that will ever be possible; you don't even know if you can get your own family to accept you, and that hurts you deeply. Until recently, you thought that your only mission in life was to kill, so that you could feel alive. But now, even that has been taken away from you because someone has shown you that there's a better way to feel alive; now you've got enough confusion to knock over even Chief Toad. But what you want most is love; but you've had so many hardships in your life, you don't know it; or, if you do, you just push it to the side because you think that it's the last thing in the world that you'll ever get."

I was so amazed by how well she knew me, even though we had only known each other for barely half an hour. She was so amazing; so fresh; so different, I feel like I'm letting her down because I can't remember who she is. I'd hung on as long as I could to her name; but somehow, somewhere, I lost it, and it makes me want to cry.

"Uchiha; Tenshi Ame Uchiha. And I know I can trust you."

Tenshi Ame. Angel of Rain. It fits."

That's her name. Tenshi; an absolute irony if I have to say so for myself. Who would have ever thought that there was an angel that could possibly love a demon like me? But did she love me? I know she trusted me; but could she have possibly fallen in love during such a brief encounter? Amazingly enough, I think I had. She seemed just like an angel; she was an angel; an angel with a past almost as bad as mine.

She hadn't gone into details, but she had told me a little about her life. Even though my own is being sucked right out of me, all I can think of now is her. I can still feel that tingle of sadness for her; she'd been shunned too; and all because she could understand a person's true inner-self. But unlike me, she'd never gotten a chance to try and prove her worth to her family; they were killed by her cousin before she had ever gotten the chance.

"But you seemed so cheerful earlier. How can you manage that?"

"Because I know that their watching; they want me to succeed. I feel their tears, you know; they say that there's holes in the floor of heaven, and that rain is actually the tears of those who are waiting for their family to join them. I love the rain; it makes me feel close to those that I've lost. And I've learned that, no matter what sort of horrible things that life throws at you, you should try to make the best of it. Don't let Shakaku be a curse; turn him into a blessing. Use your powers to help others; you'd be unstoppable then."

She certainly had been quite upbeat despite what Itachi had done; kind of like Naruto, except no where near as annoying.

Tenshi... I wonder what's happened to her? Does she still enjoy the rain? Does she still feel close to her family when she stands in that drenching downpour? There was so much I wanted to talk to her about; so much I wanted to ask her...

Such a waste, really. With Naruto and Tenshi's help, I had finally found my true purpose in life. It wasn't to kill others, as I had thought at first; it was to help them. And now, it's all for nothing, thanks to theses damned maniacs.

"See? I told you you're a sweet heart! I really hate to kiss and run, but I need to go; who knows, maybe we'll meet again someday!'

It's over; I can feel it. They have what they want; they've got Shukaku. Everything seems so empty now. I'm going to die; it's simple as that. It doesn't seem right, in way; but what's my choice? A Jinchuriki can't live when their demon is gone; but it's still not right.

Everything's getting darker now. That's stupid, actually; it was really dark where they were holding me anyway. But my senses are fading away; it's getting harder to think. But the same thought keeps running through my mind, though it keeps getting fainter. I wonder... was it worth it? Did... did I make any difference? Any at all? Was it worth the pain I gave them; worth everything that I put them through? And what... what about... Tenshi...?

Vixen: Hope you guys like it. Liked, loved, absolutely despised, please leave a review. If you don't like it, tell me why, so I can apply it to future stores; but flaming is strictly forbidden.