"Let us go feast in and celebrate in the fellowship of comrades!"
Gaara had no idea why he had decided on having dinner with the Leaf ninja. Kankuro and Temari had let him go alone, which wasn't too unusual now that Gaara's bloodlust was at a reasonable level. It hadn't been too long since he had saved Rock Lee from Kimimaro. It was no surprise to the Sand ninja to find out Lee himself had been sent to escort him to the restaurant.
"I do hope you enjoy the food here. I think it is quite amazing!"
Was Rock Lee always this loud? Not that it really mattered, Gaara guessed. He followed the ninja as they walked together, the raven-haired taijutsu student rambling on about different wonders of Konoha. It was as if Rock Lee didn't remember what Gaara had done to him not long before this.
…Or did he merely not care?
The thought struck Gaara in a strange way. Surely the ninja held some kind of hatred for him. Rock Lee was almost taken out of his training completely because of the way the Sand ninja had hurt him. Gaara almost killed Lee, and would have back then if he had been given the chance. Still the green-clad ninja rambled on, asking Gaara polite questions on what he liked. At one point, Gaara couldn't take it. He turned to face Lee and cut him off mid-sentence, his eyes fiercely looking at the startled boy.
"Don't you care that I almost took your life?" Gaara asked, his voice as deep as always.
Rock Lee seemed to not think about his answer. His lips immediately turned into a soft smile. "I care that you took the time to save it afterwards."
Gaara's eyes widened slightly at his answer. …So Rock Lee didn't care. He had… forgiven Gaara for what he had done to him. The idea behind Lee's kindness was unknown and strange to the red-haired Shinobi; all he truly knew about, as most other ninja did, was revenge. Yes, Gaara had helped Lee escape later on, but was that really enough to clear his actions?
As if to answer his question, Rock Lee grinned and lead Gaara towards the middle of Konoha, where the restaurant would be, continuing his dialogue as if Gaara had never interrupted him. Gaara felt an odd sense of warmth at the other's readiness to forgive him. HE should be offended, probably. The demon holder should probably be angry at how idiotic it was from Lee's part to not be scared of him. It seemed, however, that Rock Lee was stubborn in these kinds of things.
Gaara was going to be his friend, whether the sand-nin liked it or not.
Once the two arrived, Gaara was greeted by all, including Naruto, Sakura, Neji, TenTen, Shino, Kiba, Hinata, Shikamaru, Ino, and Choji. It seemed it would be just them…
"Welcome to true Konoha food, Gaara!" Naruto grinned at him, which made the red head's lips twitch into a tiny smile. "Don't be too freaked out if you decide to stay because of it!"
And as friendly as all of the Leaf ninjas had been to him, no one showed more kindness to Gaara than Rock Lee himself. It amazed him; how could he just.. let Gaara sit next to him and help him with his dinner? If Gaara's glass was empty, Lee would make sure it was filled. If his plate was starting to become less piled up, Rock Lee would suggest something else from the buffet in front of him for Gaara to try. All in all, Rock Lee became the closest thing Gaara had ever had to a friend.
After all finished their meals, and the bill was paid off, Rock Lee lead Gaara back to where he had to be taken. Gaara didn't need the boy's directions; they would be going to the main gate, same place they had come from. He knew the way. He could have told him and asked him to leave Gaara alone, but he didn't. Gaara was starting to truly enjoy Rock Lee's company.
…Was that all there was to it? Was it just his friendship Gaara desired? He wasn't sure now. Surely Rock Lee wasn't the handsomest, or the most able, but he was the kindest. The one that could make Gaara feel like he wasn't a monster and never was. And when Rock Lee gave an impulsive hug goodbye to the sand ninja, Gaara couldn't help but give him a tight hug back and say thank you.
Gaara would return soon. He needed to be back in Konoha.
As he walked away from the Leaf, he sadly realized he already missed Rock Lee's laughter.