A Quicksilver Love
Welcome to the Sequel of A Snowy Love! We're picking up right where we left off in A Snowy Love. If you've haven't read it, please do so before reading this fanfic! -Saki
Chapter 1
The next few weeks were filled with paperwork and late nights for both Gaara and Sakura.
It wasn't uncommon to see the pink haired medic trudging home around midnight looking completely exhausted. It was also a very rare sight for anyone to see their elusive Kazekage.
There were a few nights when Gaara and Sakura never made it home as they fell asleep or simply stayed in their offices working and didn't see each other until the next night.
The nights the two did make it home, and into their bed, they did nothing but fall asleep in each other's arms, completely exhausted.
If anyone had stumbled upon them while they were sleeping, it would have been an unusual but nice sight to see, the Kazekage and his pink haired wife lying peacefully in each other's arms.
Temari had come to check on them and make sure they were alright on a few occasions when she knew the pair had been absent from the house for a full day. Somehow, seeing Sakura curled up against her brother with his arms around her made her heart ache for someone's company.
The days moved along and Sakura noticed her paperwork steadily decreasing.
She began to find a very small amount of time to walk home instead of the exhausted trudging she had been doing late at night. This meant that those out for nighttime strolls often caught sight of the pink haired medic returning home from work.
Everyone in Suna that saw her knew her and everyone respected her. She was kind to civilians and shinobi alike and acted like a normal person while she was off duty. She never once shunned people or brushed them off no matter how tired she was.
She talked to everyone that talked to her, even if she found the conversation pointless.
All of the children in the village loved her as well and always smiled when she said hello to them.
One day Sakura found herself with no paperwork left on her desk other than her normal work. She finished this quickly and immediately left the hospital once she was certain everything was in order.
"I am so glad that is over with!" Sakura exclaimed as she fell onto the couch with a lazy flop. She smiled happily, as she heard the door open just as she was reaching over to grab a book.
"Did you finish all of your paperwork?" She asked as he entered the living room. He nodded.
"Yes I did and from the looks of it you did as well." He observed. She smiled as he walked over and sat next to her on the comfortable couch. "I also cleared everything for the next week for our honeymoon." Sakura blinked at him slowly as Gaara waited for the news to sink in.
Her eyes widened and her mouth split into a grin as she shrieked happily before practically tackling him onto his back on the couch. His turquoise eyes went wide as he looked at the pink haired kunoichi currently kissing his jaw line.
"Uh Sakura?" He asked hesitantly, his voice a little strained.
"Hmm? What is it Gaara?" She asked innocently as she looked up at him her big emerald eyes questioning. He looked at her and immediately cursed himself for doing so.
She was straddling him and seemed to not even comprehend anything. "You might want to move." He hissed in a strained voice almost as if he was in pain.
"But why?" She pouted as she wiggled a little, her bottom lip stuck out at him in an incredibly sexy manner. All of his control snapped right there. He grabbed a hold of her hips and made her gasp as he sat up and immediately began kissing her.
He pulled back and flipped them over so she was on the bottom as he kissed along her neck making her squirm under him. She grinned to herself as he nipped at her skin.
"You are a tease." He crooned as he sucked on her mark making her arch suddenly and gasp. "It's been torture being too tired to appreciate you properly." He whispered as he captured her lips once more and began to pull down the zipper on her top. She ran her fingers along his back appreciatively as he pulled the zipper down completely leaving her in her silky black bra with lace edges; her shirt hanging loosely around her shoulders. He smirked when he saw it and she blushed.
"I'm doing the laundry it was the only one I had." She muttered indignantly as he gave her an appreciative look.
"I don't mind it." He whispered once more, his calm husky voice sending shivers down her body. "Though, I'd like it better off of you." He finished in a whisper that was followed by a deep predatory growl that sent her blood aflame.
"When and where did he learn to talk like that?" Sakura wondered as she ran her hands through his hair.
As he was about to fully divulge her of her bra they both felt familiar chakra walking up the path. Gaara hissed as his eyes narrowed and Sakura sighed.
"Kankuro you have the WORST timing ever!" She huffed inwardly as Gaara was feeling the same and hoped that his brother would leave him alone and go to his own house for once.
No such luck as his chakra signature continued advancing towards their door. That was it.
Gaara flared his chakra and leaned down to nip Sakura's mark making hers flare as well. She gasped as their combined chakra flared making Kankuro freeze in his tracks outside.
He had felt Gaara's sudden surge of angry and annoyed chakra forcing him back then Sakura's right after only hers was frustrated. Then their chakra had combined into something that made Kankuro shiver down to his very core as he turned and ran to his house, suddenly not wanting to disturb them.
Gaara looked down at Sakura with a smirk and she gave him a raised eyebrow and a teasing smile. He then leaned down and kissed her softly before moving with butterfly kisses to her bra which he unclasped and threw to the ground. He was not going to let the fact that Kankuro had interrupted them take away his fun.
"No." He thought as he growled against her skin making her shudder again. "He will not interrupt me. Not now." He looked at her hungrily, his eyes showing it as Sakura looked up at him with the same hunger in her dark emerald eyes.
Kankuro sat in his house for the next fifteen minutes trying to keep his mind off the terrifying wave of chakra that had hit him earlier.
He sat wondering if perhaps it meant that Sakura and Gaara were fighting. "No they wouldn't be fighting. They are much too in tune for that. Maybe something happened that made them angry about something. Maybe it was me." He muttered this to himself, as he attempted to tinker with one of his puppets. The puppet merely gave him a blank stare in return. He sighed and decided that worrying about his younger brother and his pink haired wife wasn't good for him.
After a long while of trying to ignore his worries, he foolishly decided to brave the fury of them both and check on them.
"I'll just walk through Temari's portion of the house, she doesn't care and it's faster." He walked silently through her house and was about to enter the large area that made up Sakura and Gaara's home when a loud cry stopped him in his tracks.
"G-GAARA!" He heard Sakura cry out and at the same time Gaara's voice mixing with hers in a deep growl. Then silence with heavy breathing.
Kankuro's face went bright red as he raced back to his house. He knew if he ever said anything about it, he'd face the wrath of his brother and, even worse, his wife. Kankuro shook his head and decided then would be a great time to go and find Temari or go train.
Back in Sakura and Gaara's house the couple lay on the couch with Sakura resting on top of him, her breath coming in quiet pants. She looked up at Gaara from her position on his chest and smiled. He stared at her with a lazy expression.
"What is it?" He asked and she smiled looking at him coyly.
"Oh I was just wondering when we leave for our honeymoon." He looked at her as his face remained impassive.
"Well we'd better pack soon. We leave tomorrow." He stated this casually as Sakura looked at him with wide eyes.
"What?! Oh I haven't even had time to pack! We need to go pack and get cleaned up!" She jumped up and began grabbing her discarded clothes, throwing his towards him as he caught them. She then proceeded to look over her shoulder at him and smiled in a come-and-get-me way before leaving the room with a small giggle as she raced upstairs. He smirked and Shukaku chuckled deeply.
"See I told you. You're glad I got you into this now aren't you kid." Gaara sighed but inwardly conceded to agreeing with the demon. He pulled on his boxers and followed her up the stairs where he heard the shower already running. He let her finish and then took his turn, making it quick as he could already hear Sakura pulling clothing out of the closet.
Gaara joined her moments later, a black t-shirt and pants already in place. He watched as Sakura carefully folded her clothing before stowing it in her bag. She looked up at him as he watched her and shook her head before turning back to her work.
"You find it funny that I am so careful with my packing Gaara?" She stated as he made a noncommittal noise.
"Actually I find it amusing that you are so methodical and careful with everything. You are indeed a medic true to your actions and your heart." She stopped for a moment and then smiled a little as she finished packing and stowed the bag in a scroll setting it next to Gaara's. He had finished his packing well before her.
"Where are we going for our honeymoon Gaara?"
"I won't tell you until we get there, it will spoil the surprise. But I will tell you we will be spending two days in Konoha." Sakura was surprised to hear this but sighed happily all the same.
"It will be nice to see Konoha again. I'm afraid I haven't been in touch with anyone. It's been almost three months since I moved out and I'm sure everyone thinks I've abandoned them. Especially Naruto. I got a letter from him a while ago but I never replied. I feel awful about it but I have been so busy! Here I have it right here." She stood up and grabbed a white envelope from the table addressed to her in Naruto's sloppy handwriting.
Dear Sakura-chan,
It's so boring without you here! Everyone misses you so much! Granny Tsunade drank for three days straight and Ino kept moping about. She's been all depressed and told me she was glad you are married and that she was coming to see you soon. I'm coming there as well Sakura-chan! As soon as I get the chance! I know things have been busy and we all heard about the trouble with the rogues and hope you guys are alright. Shikamaru asked me to tell you to say hello to Temari for him. Actually he said to say hello to Kankuro and Gaara as well but everyone knows he meant Temari. I wish he would just marry her already he's taking so long. You and Gaara were really quick about it and I'm sure he's liked Temari longer than you two liked each other.
Speaking of couples I thought I should tell you that Neji finally plucked up the courage and asked Tenten out on a date! I think that's a great thing for him maybe now he won't be so much of an ass.
Ah I forgot to say that I asked Hinata on a date as well. I figured since she's such a nice girl I should. She's been kind of sad since you left but then again everyone has. Please say you're coming to visit soon! I hope you are! We all miss you Sakura-chan!
Love, Naruto
Gaara read it and smiled at the blonde's obvious enthusiasm. "Well we'll see him in a day or two." She smiled back and took his hand leading him downstairs where she sat on the soft couch sinking into the cushions and flicking on the television. She changed it to the shinobi news channel and typed in her code as the news anchor came on talking about an attack on a family in Mist but Sakura just shook her head and shut it off. There was always something going on in Mist and most people paid it no mind. Mist was a cruel and sadistic place and everyone knew it. They never bothered with it and the news must be nonexistent if the news anchor was reduced to reporting on it.
"Gaara, what if we left tonight? I mean it would be safer if we traveled alone and we don't have to worry. I mean we're packed and it would be faster. We'll leave a note for Temari and Kankuro and tell them we're leaving." Sakura looked at Gaara and he gave her a questioning look.
"I have everything cleared and I was planning on traveling with you alone anyways. It is safer, especially now. A large envoy would draw too much attention. It is breaking protocol but I am sure an ANBU will follow us no matter what we do. We are always shadowed by them. I suppose we could leave but why so sudden? Why not wait until tomorrow? We have time." Gaara asked tracing her wrist with his finger in a way that he had begun to do as he found that she calmed when he gave her small affectionate touches. She blushed a little and looked down.
"Well I wanted to get to our honeymoon faster. It sounds really nice and I, well I need a break." Gaara nodded as he understood her reasoning.
"Alright we can leave today. Leave my siblings a note; I'll grab our traveling cloaks and our packs with our weapons and clothes."
She nodded and stood as Gaara went to get their supplies.
She grabbed a pad of paper that was lying on the counter and jotted down two quick notes before walking to their respective parts of the house and placing them there.
She walked back to the main entryway and saw Gaara standing in the hall with her hip pouch and her cloak.
He was wearing his usual clothing with the gourd strapped on his back. He looked at Sakura and she smiled, remembering the boy that she first met before the Chunin exams. The boy back then had been so hard and broken compared to the man that stood in front of her now. They were completely different but yet the same. She was sure that she loved him and always would and that moment reinforced it.
He looked at her his eyes questioning as she shook her head and smiled at him as he pulled her close to his chest as the familiar sand wrapped around them enveloping them in a comfortable feeling as they disappeared from the street leaving nothing behind. Sakura closed her eyes, she had never liked the split second that she felt the darkness around her until she felt them moving forward at a steady pace.
"We're out of Suna now. Do you feel alright Sakura? You look a bit nervous." Gaara asked Sakura who looked down and realized just how very high up they were. She wasn't afraid of heights but still, it was unnerving to be riding on moving sand that seemed, at times, so very unstable.
"I'm fine Gaara." Gaara looked at her with a questioning look as he held onto her waist pulling her closer to him. He took his gourd off his back and supported it against him with his sand. She looked at him perplexed as he did this.
"Climb onto my back like you did last time. We'll move faster and you won't have to look at the ground." He said calmly making her look at him a light blush on her cheeks as he smirked lightly at her catching her uneasiness on the sand right away. She obliged, climbing onto his back and nestling her head on his shoulder.
She smiled contently at the wonderful smell of sand, earthy musk, and sun that seemed to cling to him as the breeze blew his scent across to her nose.
She smiled and closed her eyes enjoying the warmth of being so close to him and the warm breeze that blew her hair around her face as they moved quickly through the air. She knew Gaara was shielding most of the unmercifully harsh wind from them both and was glad he was doing so.
Gaara glanced at Sakura out of the corner of his eye and couldn't help but admire the tranquility of her features.
Her gentle sloping nose dipped down to soft pink lips currently stretched into a content sort of smile. Her eyes were closed as dark pink eyelashes fluttered gently on her pale cheeks. He marveled for a moment at her expression and then turned his attention back to the travel ahead.
They stopped twice for water, both times being shielded by Gaara's protective sand.
"It's early spring in Konoha but I'm sure it's not extremely warm yet. It will be strange feeling the cooler air when I was just wearing a t-shirt and a skirt." Sakura mentioned as they passed into the beginnings of the forest.
Gaara made an affirming noise as Sakura wrapped her arms a little tighter around him and rested her chin on his shoulder. He glanced sideways at her as she sighed contentedly. "What's on your mind?" He asked as he noticed her gaze drop slightly.
She looked startled for a mere moment before her lips stretched into a small smile. "I was just thinking about how nice it will be to be in Konoha. Spring in Konoha is always one of the prettiest times of the year."
"I look forward to seeing it." Gaara murmured.
The conversation ended as Sakura began watching the trees that were flying by as they moved.
After a few hours Sakura knew they were close to Konoha as the temperature seemed to level out into a cold spring night and the grasslands were definitely beneath them.
Apparently, Gaara had sped up his sand as much as he wanted to and they were now traveling faster than most shinobi.
It was near midnight before they stopped. Sakura could hear the woodland animals moving silently about as she jumped off Gaara's back and stretched her muscles. They were on the edge of Fire Country, concealed in the very beginnings of the forest.
Gaara busied himself with setting up their camp, pulling out a scroll containing a large sleeping bag.
Sakura was familiar with these sleeping bags meant for two people, as she had to use them sometimes on missions to Snow Country where it was cold year round.
They were used to conserve body heat between people and had kept Team 7 and Team Kakashi warm on many occasions. More often than not, the sleeping bags had meant that Naruto ended up with injuries caused by a very angry Sakura who was not overly fond of her teammate's grabby hands.
This occasion was very different; she knew Gaara was not the overly affectionate type and did not move in his sleep and she actually wanted to be held by him.
Gaara made a sand hut around them as the two took off their packs and slid into the sleeping bag. As soon as the two were situated, Sakura slid into Gaara's waiting arms.
It was a routine now for both of them and they were so accustomed to it. Gaara found he could only sleep soundly when she was near.
He rested his chin on her head and she curled up in his arms. He smiled and closed his eyes, hoping to catch some sleep before they left the next morning. She was already asleep in his arms.
"Sakura, wake up." A calm voice was gently calling to her but she kept her eyes closed tight making a small frown as she rolled over in the sleeping bag.
"Ne, five more minutes." She mumbled as Gaara found himself amused as always at her resistance to waking up. He sighed and took down the sand hut sending the beginnings of the morning sunlight cascading over them both.
Sakura's face immediately contorted into a scowl and she covered her face in an attempt to shut out the light. "Alright I'm getting up." She mumbled, sitting up and stretching with her eyes closed.
Gaara was already out of the sleeping bag and was deftly attaching his gourd and packs into place as Sakura wiggled her way out of the sleeping bag. She spent a few moments combing her hair before retying her hitai-ate and attaching her packs.
He waited patiently for her to finish, placing the sleeping bag back into the scroll before nodding to her.
Sakura walked over to him and jumped lightly onto his back wrapping her arms around his neck as she rested her face next to his and smiled happily. She felt them lifting in the air and felt him support her legs as he had done the day before as they set off once again.
After a few hours of riding on the sand, accompanied by minor breaks for water and food, they found themselves very close to Konoha.
It wasn't nearly as cold as the last time they were in Konoha being that it was now nearly April. The temperature was actually rather comfortably warm, much warmer than Sakura remembered.
There was still a slight chill in the air but the warmth in the wind promised of spring days to come. The trees around them had great green buds for flowers and a few already had their full leaves.
The whistling sound of the wind in the trees immediately calmed Sakura greatly. She had missed that sound. The wind in Konoha was much more forgiving and soft than the brutal sand filled wind of Suna.
Soon Sakura began to become excited when they passed the outermost training fields. She knew that in a matter of minutes they would find themselves at Konoha's gates.
As Sakura caught sight of the bridge and gates she felt her heart jump and her pulse quicken. She was almost home.
"Gaara you can put me down now we're almost there." He shook his head slightly, looking straight ahead.
"I'm sorry Sakura but I don't want to yet. I would prefer it if you stayed where you are." She rolled her eyes but obliged, putting her head back on his shoulder as he smirked triumphantly and continued riding his sand towards the open gates of Konoha.
In their stand next to the gates Kotetsu was sleeping and Izumo was lazily doing a crossword.
Neither was on high alert as they hadn't had any intel of incoming shinobi or returning squads. By all accounts it was simply another lazy day in Konoha, standard procedure for the both of them.
Izumo was agonizing over a word that supposedly referred to a weapon used by the mist village when he saw a bright flash of pink and red out of the corner of his eye. His head shot up as he nudged Kotetsu.
He woke up and looked at Izumo with a critical glare for a split second as the former merely pointed to someone who had just flown through the gates.
"We are here for a few days. No need to tell the Hokage, she'll find out in a little while." Kotetsu and Izumo merely stared at the duo. Neither one had been aware that the Kazekage and the slightly blushing Sakura riding piggyback style would be arriving in Konoha. They were also incredibly surprised to see them unaccompanied by an envoy. It was nearly unheard of for a Kage to travel with only shadow ANBU backup.
"Hey Kotetsu, Izumo! Nice to see you! We have some catching up to do! No doubt Ino will want to have a get-together for me, make sure you're there!" Sakura smiled and waved as Gaara flew them away.
"We should let the Hokage know we are here." He stated as they flew towards the Hokage building over top of the rooftops.
Below the traveling pair, a rather dejected looking Naruto was walking down the street to the falconry, hoping he had gotten a letter from Sakura. He had heard about the attack on Suna and had not heard anything other than a "she's my student of course she's fine!" from a rather drunk and agitated Tsunade.
Naruto was worried about her, she hadn't sent any word and he had only heard snippets from others who had heard something about her during their missions. He missed his best friend a lot; Konoha just wasn't the same without her.
He looked up at the rooftops and silently willed the sky to send him some sort of a message. Just then, he thought he saw a blur of pink and red out of the corner of his eye. He stopped dead in his tracks and whirled around to look, only to be met with blue sky and a group of birds twittering on the rooftops. He scanned around once more thinking that maybe he had not been seeing things, only to find no trace of any pink haired girl.
"Man I miss Sakura-chan so much my eyes are tricking me into seeing her!" He shook his head and continued down the road with a sigh.
"Gaara I think I just saw Naruto." Sakura looked back over her shoulder as Gaara slowed the sand. She looked around at the ground but, upon not seeing her blonde haired friend, shook her head. "Never mind it must have just been something yellow that caught my eye."
Gaara nodded and continued until they both hovered in front of Tsunade's window which was open to let in the breeze. The blonde herself was currently standing up near the bookshelf across the room.
The first thing Sakura noticed was the new picture on her desk of Sakura and Gaara at their first wedding smiling together and another picture of her in her medic uniform next to Shizune and Tsunade after her first examination. They were all so happy and Sakura looked relieved as she smiled into the camera.
Sakura looked at Gaara and gestured to the photos. He let her down as they both stepped in through the window. They saw Tsunade's shoulders move a little as she turned around with her eyes closed.
"I swear Naruto you can't just use the door like a normal pers…" She froze as her eyes opened and she saw Sakura and Gaara standing in her office as if it was something they did every day.
Tsunade had always been a woman known for being rather harsh in terms of emotions and the like and her shout was something to be reckoned with.
The resounding yell, sounding rather joyful in nature as opposed to the usual fury or frustration, that sounded from the Hokage tower shook the birds from the trees and was loud enough for Kotetsu and Izumo to hear it making them smirk, knowing that Sakura had arrived at the Hokage tower.
Sakura surged forwards and pulled Tsunade into a hug that the blonde awkwardly returned. "Shishou it is so good to see you!" Tsunade stared at her as Sakura pulled back and regarded her with a beaming smile. Her gaze flickered to the Kazekage who bowed politely to her and moved forwards towards his wife.
"What are you two doing here!? I haven't heard a thing about either one of you traveling. Where is your envoy?" She looked around to the window with a stern expression, half-expecting to see ANBU standing watch outside.
She watched as Sakura shared a rather guilty look with a rather unfazed Gaara.
"We're actually going on our honeymoon. We never got the chance to what with me being the head medical director and Gaara being the Kazekage. We had a hard time getting away but we left early with our usual guard so we wouldn't have a large envoy. It was more inconspicuous to travel like that." Tsunade gave her a stern look but then sighed, she couldn't really fault them, she herself hated the large envoys. They were gaudy and annoying and she always had attributed them to a large neon sign saying "Look someone important! Come and get me!" Tsunade was about to comment on the matter when a loud knock sounded on her door just before two shinobi entered the room.
"Hokage-sama? We heard a shout from outside is Naru-" A familiar face stood in the door frame as brown eyes fell onto emerald and turquoise ones. Shikamaru and Choji stared at Gaara and Sakura with rather shocked expressions.
"What are you two doing here?" Shikamaru asked, breaking the silence with a quizzical stare.
He had little time to assess the situation as Sakura rushed forward and enveloped her friend in a hug. Sakura let go of Shikamaru as he nodded to Gaara who gave him a nod in return. Sakura smiled at Choji as the two shinobi became accustomed to the unexpected presence of the Kazekage and Sakura.
"We're on a vacation and we decided to stop by and see everyone." Sakura explained as Shikamaru gave her his usual "This is unusual." look.
"Good. You both work too hard I'm sure." He drawled, giving them a lazy smile. Choji beamed and took the opportunity to interject an idea.
"Well I say we go and have some good barbeque to celebrate your return. Surely you can't refuse the best barbeque in Konoha. Besides, Ino will have both of our hides if she finds out we saw you before she did and didn't set something up." Shikamaru's face fell at the mention of their overzealous blonde teammate and he muttered a trademark "troublesome woman." Under his breath.
Sakura, knowing they were exactly right, smiled and nodded while laying a hand on Gaara's arm.
"Well of course we won't turn it down! You're right Choji, Ino-pig probably would skin us all alive. But let's just keep it to our group for now, I can take the blame later. Tenuchi Barbeque right?"
"Of course! As if there was any other place to get barbeque!" Choji exclaimed as Sakura laughed. The group turned to look Gaara who had been silent throughout the entire exchange.
"We'll meet you there." He stated with a small smile and Sakura looked at him confused for a split second before she caught on and clambered onto his back. The trio of onlookers raised their eyebrows in surprise as the usually sensible and serious Kazekage climbed out the window with Sakura on his back before taking off with his sand.
"Bye Shishou! We'll talk later!" Sakura called out, waving to Tsunade.
"Hey what's with Gaara carrying Sakura? Can she not use chakra or something?" Choji questioned, watching them leave as Shikamaru lazily regarded the scene with a smile.
Tsunade looked at Choji with furrowed brows.
"Her chakra was perfectly normal. That's their weird way of avoiding confrontation." She gave a definitive nod as Shikamaru sighed and waved to her lazily, knowing the impromptu meeting was over.
Tsunade was completely content now that she had seen Sakura. She had been worried when she heard of the attack on Suna. She knew Sakura could cope with the medical staff and she knew Gaara would protect her but still, it made her nervous.
She shook her head and sat down in her chair with a smile as a small thought crawled into her mind. She pondered it for a moment before shaking her head. "No she would have told me. He is most likely just enjoying showing off." She smiled and nodded, satisfied as she went back to doing something she rarely ever did; paperwork.
"Hey was that- no it couldn't have been." Kiba shook his head as he swore he saw a flash of pink and red pass by.
He had been taking a walk and had had the misfortune of running into Lee who was doing his late afternoon laps around Konoha, naturally completing them by walking on his hands. He had been talking to the jumpsuit clad shinobi about chakra control after Lee had practically forced him into the conversation, and was about to make his excuses when the flash of color had caught his eye.
He was going to keep walking and part from Lee at the next corner but caught a scent in the air that had him freeze and then grab Lee by the back of his flak jacket, hauling him upright and dragging him down the street as Lee spluttered and looked at him with a confused glance.
"Kiba has the springtime of youth gotten into you today?" He questioned, earning a warning look from Kiba.
"I smelled a scent I haven't smelled in a few months. Come on Lee quit dragging your feet!" He let go of the green clad boy who ran alongside Kiba and Akamaru who had barked at Kiba.
"Yosh! I shall pursue this person with you Kiba!" He grinned as Kiba rolled his eyes.
"Yeah, yeah come on Lee." He smirked and pushed on where he smelled the familiar scent that was so faint on the air but unmistakably there. He turned a quick corner and smelled a strong scent of barbeque making him stop and curse. Of all the things to mess up his smell, food was the one that always got him. In that split moment he had lost the scent.
"Akamaru find the scent!" The dog barked and put his nose to the ground before barking again, making Kiba nod as Lee stood there watching them. "Come on Lee I found it." He nodded to Akamaru who barked and ran off leaving the boys alone as they walked towards the barbeque shop where he saw Shikamaru and Choji walking inside.
"Shikamaru! Choji!" Lee called as they walked into the barbeque place and saw their friends enter a private back room. Choji turned and smiled lightly, waving them over as he sat down disappearing from view behind the high back of the large booth. Lee and Kiba walked over to their table and froze when they saw a familiar pink haired girl and her red haired husband.
"Sakura-chan and Kazekage-sama!" Lee practically yelled, making the two look up at the black haired man. Sakura's expression faltered for a mere moment before she smiled at the green clad shinobi.
"Hi Lee, Kiba, it's good to see you both!" Kiba grinned in triumph.
"I knew I smelled your scent! I was sure I was imagining things! How've you been and what are you doing in Konoha?!" He motioned for Lee to sit down as the black haired man took a spot next to Choji on the far side of the booth.
"We're doing great and we're on our way to somewhere for a vacation. I have absolutely no idea to where though as he refuses to tell me!" She looked at Gaara and he shrugged.
"It's a honeymoon trip you shouldn't know, it was Kankuro's idea he said it had to be a surprise." Sakura shook her head as Kiba's ear perked up at the word honeymoon.
"Ah so it's your honeymoon eh? Thought you'd already have had that." Kiba grinned at Gaara and waggled his eyebrows suggestively. Sakura shot the Inuzuka a disbelieving glance.
"Well not a proper one according to my siblings." Sakura blushed heavily as the others laughed. Oh how she hated being at the mercy of Konoha's perverted shinobi.
"Well I know one person who will be ecstatic to see you guys. Naruto hasn't shut up for a month. He was in a state of panic after he heard about the attack on Suna and we had to restrain him until it was over so he didn't do something stupid and run off trying to help." Kiba stated as Shikamaru nodded with a pained expression.
"It took us two days to get him under control. He was actually confined to his apartment. The idiot." Sakura shook her head, not at all surprised to hear this information.
"Baka. He's always trying to do that." Her voice was not angry, simply exasperated at her former teammate's reckless nature.
They ordered the barbeque and got caught up on things in Konoha before talking about Suna. Sakura explained in detail about the attack and Gaara told them how Sakura punched the former medical director into a wall after he insulted her then had him banned from any medical work of any kind.
That got a laugh from everyone as Sakura played the situation off as just dealing with people like she's been taught. They all smiled fondly at Sakura each one realizing how much they really did miss her.
As Kiba talked about how Akamaru raced halfway across town because he smelled a potential mate, which turned out to be a poodle in heat, Shikamaru was thinking about something else.
He saw how happy Gaara and Sakura were and realized how much he really did miss the pink haired medic when she was in Suna. He also realized how much he missed a certain blonde with an attitude that he hadn't seen in a few months.
He rarely saw her despite the fact that they had been going out secretly for a year. It was extremely troublesome, each one keeping up the façade that the other hadn't made a move, but it suited them both.
Shikamaru, however, was getting tired of it all. He was planning on simplifying matters by marrying her and moving to Suna, at least until he could get her to come to Konoha. He was the future head of his clan after all. He highly doubted that anyone had ever given thought to the sand siblings leaving much less getting married. He knew this and he decided that he would act the next time he saw Temari. He knew he couldn't keep their façade up much longer with the prying nature of Sakura and the friendship between the two, he knew it was bound to escalate sooner or later.
"So I decided to go find Naruto and wouldn't you know it, he was stuck in the mouth of one of the giant frogs because he had made him angry." Choji finished his story as Sakura laughed while the others enjoyed the laughter that had been absent from Konoha.
It was strange, when she was gone on missions for months at a time or holed up in the hospital so much that no one ever saw her they didn't miss her nearly as much as now when they knew she was gone and living somewhere else. The group rarely ever saw one another since they had advanced rank. They had only really gotten together when circumstances had allowed. But now, with one of the components missing, they realized how much they felt it when someone was missing. Sakura had always been a staple in Konoha, having never actually left to train like Naruto, and was not often on missions.
Kiba, who was only pretending to listen to Lee spout off something about a new 'high-intensity training regime', had been observing Sakura and noticed something different about her headband. "Hey Sakura did you get a new hitai-ate?" Sakura looked at him with surprise as Lee finished his story and the group turned their attention to Sakura.
She nodded and touched the headband on her pink hair before smiling.
"Oh I must have grabbed my new one when I left. Here, do you want to see it?" She took it out of her hair and handed it to him.
He put it in the middle of the table and they all looked at it in silence, the realization hitting them all with a sudden finality.
The mark of Suna was proudly displayed on her headband stating that her allegiance was to Suna.
Kiba was the first to speak again, saying it looked nice. She smiled and put it back on snapping the others out of their stupor.
The waitress came back around to get the bill and everyone began to attempt to divvy up who had eaten what and how to pay for it. Gaara merely nodded to the waitress who had recognized him immediately.
"I've got a tab here for Kankuro when he visits." He stated as the others realized their squabbling had been taken care of. They thanked him as the group stood and began walking out.
"Hey do you guys wanna come to the training fields? Naruto said something about training later today and maybe we'll catch him there." Kiba asked as they walked outside where Akamaru greeted Sakura with a huge lick and a bark.
"Sure that'd be great." She said smiling and Kiba grinned.
"Race you there?" He asked looking at the others in the group.
"You're on!" Sakura beamed and Gaara looked at her as she smiled at him climbing onto his back again making Kiba raise an eyebrow and the others smile. "Ok on the count of three; one two three!"
Gaara shot off on his sand as the others jumped onto the rooftops rushing along at top speed as Gaara suddenly turned left on his sand and started to speed up with Sakura burying her face in his red hair.
He slowed and Sakura felt him stop as she raised her head up to see them hovering above the training grounds. They descended to the ground and she slid off as they caught sight of a blonde lying further down in the training area, obviously out cold. There were a few marks on the ground and quite a few kunai telling her that he had been sparring with clones again.
Lee arrived first with Kiba and the others close behind.
"How the heck do you go that fast?" Kiba asked as they approached the couple.
"His sand is impressive." She stated as she began moving towards the unconscious blonde.
The group followed her as she knelt down and put her hands over her teammate, doing a quick scan of him to be sure that yes, he was fine, just resting. She rolled her eyes and yelled at him knowing it to be an effective way of getting him up. "Hey Naruto! Kakashi-sensei told me we've got a mission!" The blonde shot up and jumped to his feet before blinking as he saw the others around him and heard a girly laugh. He whirled around and saw Sakura standing there laughing. His blue eyes filled with happiness and he shot towards her with a shout.
"SAKURA-CHAN!" Naruto rushed at her, wrapping his arms around her and slamming into her with enough force to make her stumble a little as her blonde friend picked her up in a bone crushing hug and spun her around. "Why didn't you tell me you were coming!? I've missed you so much Sakura-chan!" He hugged her again and Sakura beamed.
"Naruto I didn't have time to tell anyone I was coming I didn't know until yesterday! It was kind of a surprise trip and he still won't tell me where we are ultimately going." She stated, looking at Gaara who smirked as Naruto turned to him and enveloped him in a hug that made the red head look a little surprised. He really wasn't used to anyone but Sakura's hugs. Naruto looked at them and beamed.
"I'm so glad you guys are here! We can go get ramen later and you can see everyone else! We've all missed you guys! Ino was bawling for at least a week after you left Sakura and even Kakashi-sensei mentioned that it was strange knowing you weren't living here anymore. We have to go see everyone else!"
"I'm sorry I didn't come earlier we are a little busy in Suna." Naruto's blue eyes flickered from her to Gaara and back again before grinning. Before he could say anything else Kiba's voice cut across the clearing.
"So I'm assuming we're not sparring now huh?" Kiba nodded to Naruto who looked about ready to burst with excitement. Sakura glanced at her blonde teammate and shrugged.
"Well we could go see everyone else now instead." Sakura suggested as Naruto's face lit up even more.
Sensing that this would lead to a long evening of dragging Sakura back and forth, Shikamaru decided to weasel his way out of it.
"I think I'm going to go and watch some clouds. Choji are you coming?" Choji looked at Shikamaru and nodded, knowing that his friend probably had the right idea in disappearing.
"Yeah we'll catch up with you guys later. Ino's going to have a party for you no matter what so we'll be there." Sakura nodded and waved to them both, walking away with Naruto on her left and Gaara on her right.
The group was abuzz with excitement, mostly coming from Naruto, as they walked back into Konoha. Gaara was politely listening to Lee while Kiba criticized some of his statements and Sakura was telling Naruto what had happened in Suna.
He was asking numerous questions and she was answering them with a tried patience, smiling because she knew that she really had missed her teammate. They walked through the town nodding to those who called out to them and feeling like the center of attention.
The news that the Kazekage and the Kazehime were back in Konoha was spreading like wildfire already. Across the city, Tenten was walking with Neji and Hinata talking to them near a store when they heard a Jonin passing by say something about the Kazekage. Tenten stopped the two Hyuuga and forced them both to listen in as the Jonin and his companion stopped.
"Yeah apparently they're back in Konoha. Someone said they saw them on the market road." Tenten looked at Neji and Hinata, both of whom seemed mildly surprised at the information.
Tenten took off onto the rooftops with Hinata close behind. Neji was mainly following them because Tenten had grabbed his arm and practically drug him up onto the rooftops.
They jumped down onto the market road and immediately noticed a pink haired person laughing happily next to Naruto. Tenten's eyes got wide and she rushed forward.
"Sakura! We heard that you were back!" She grinned as Sakura turned and waved at the approaching group.
"Sakura, Gaara it is nice to see you." Hinata stated as Sakura smiled at the shy girl.
"Where is your envoy?" Neji questioned as Tenten gave him an exasperated look.
"Sure Neji, just forget to greet our friends." Neji moved to protest as Tenten shook her head. "He's just being proper as usual." Neji shot her a glance as Sakura turned her attention to Hinata.
"Is Ino at her shop today?" Sakura asked as Hinata nodded. "We're going to go and pay her a visit."
"Great! We'll come with you!" Tenten grinned and the group started up the road once again in a mass of talking and smiling as Tenten questioned Sakura about what life was like in Suna. She answered as best as she could but was not prepared for what Tenten shot at her next.
"So I heard Kiba say you were going on your honeymoon. I would have thought you'd already had that. Or is this like a second honeymoon that's going to be more romantic or something?" Sakura blushed minutely and rubbed her neck.
"It's more of a proper honeymoon as we had to start working as soon as we got to Suna." Tenten looked up at Gaara who had finally joined the conversation by way of answering for Sakura.
Before Tenten could say anything else, Sakura and the group stopped in front of the Yamanaka flower shop where they could see Ino watering some plants in the window. Sakura walked through the door, ringing the bell as she did so.
"Welcome to the Yamanaka flower shop how may I…" Ino's eyes widened as she locked eyes with her pink haired best friend. "Forehead!" Ino broke out of her stupor, pulling Sakura in for a hug, her watering forgotten as Sakura laughed and hugged her back.
"You jerk! When did you get here I haven't heard anything from you in months! Why the are you here and why didn't you tell me you were coming!?" She hit Sakura's arms as she pulled away, making Sakura laugh again.
"I missed you too Ino-pig." Sakura grinned at Ino's usual drama filled antics as she ushered the rest of the group inside the shop.
"All of you come on to the back and we'll have some celebratory lemonade!" They all accepted and followed Ino through the shop, except for Neji who tried to sneak out but was grabbed by Lee.
Tenten giggled as Neji glared and the group walked into the back room. There were a few couches around so they all sat down as Ino brought back a bunch of glasses and two pitchers of lemonade. She poured them all a glass and the group took them talking again happily catching Ino up on everything as she declared there would have a party making everyone laugh and Kiba say "I told you so!" Ino then turned to Sakura just as she was taking a sip of lemonade.
"So Sakura, any kids on the way yet?" Sakura's eyes went wide and she started coughing heavily putting down her lemonade as Tenten hit her on the back making her cough again and look at Ino with a disbelieving expression that was quickly morphing into annoyance. All eyes in the room were immediately on her as Kiba grinned wolfishly and Naruto's jaw dropped.
"What?" Ino rolled her eyes.
"Oh come on! We all know you've had at least some sort of a honeymoon!" Sakura turned bright red even as her eyebrows drew together and Gaara became infinitely more uncomfortable.
"No Ino, I am not a pregnant housewife I am a busy shinobi and a medic." Ino rolled her eyes and waved her off.
"Oh you'll find a way to balance that, I know you Forehead. I am so going to be Auntie Ino! How cute does that sound?!" She clapped her hands together and grinned as Sakura gave her an exasperated look as Kiba laughed while Gaara and Neji looked on in stoic silence. Gaara especially did not like what the blonde was insinuating. Naruto just looked confused.
"Wait honeymoon? Like a couple's thing?" Sakura rolled her eyes at her blonde teammate who was, as usual, hung up on the first part of Ino's declaration, and sighed.
"Yes Naruto, a honeymoon, a trip people take when they get married. I know you know this!" Naruto scrunched up his nose for a moment before grinning at his friend.
"Oh so like Icha Icha!" Tenten caught the fist that had automatically lashed out at the blonde as Naruto threw up his hands in self defense.
"Don't hit him in here! I need this shop Forehead." Ino scolded her as Sakura unclenched her fist and lowered it, her eyes shut as she shook her head.
Kiba was howling with laughter as Hinata's face turned bright red. Sakura reached beside her and threw a pillow at Naruto's head with violent force as the blonde merely grinned, knowing full well what he had implied. Naruto, idiot though he was, was not as naïve as he once had been and now used this to his advantage.
Naruto winked at Gaara who humored him with a small nod. He was used to Kankuro's perverted sense of humor and had stumbled across one of the Icha Icha books that his brother had bought after suggestion from Kakashi. He was enlightened by the book and had to admit that the plot, minus the constant sex, was rather good.
He still hadn't touched the Icha Icha books Jiraiya gave him at his bachelor party. He had them safely stowed in Kankuro's house. He had to admit he was almost relieved that he gave them to Kankuro for fear of Sakura finding them. He had heard from Naruto that she had not been a fan of the books.
Ino turned her attention to Sakura once more and flipped her blonde hair over her shoulder.
"So Forehead, the party's tonight. I'll tell you the exact time when I talk to Tsunade, she'll want to be included. I'll come over and tell you when I know." Sakura nodded and looked at everyone.
"I'm so happy to see all of you and I really want to catch up, but we haven't been back to my house yet and I think we should get going. Make sure everyone who can be there is there tonight Ino-pig. I still haven't seen the Sensei." Ino rolled her eyes as Sakura stood and left the room, followed by some of the group.
"As if they wouldn't be!" Sakura called her goodbyes as she and Gaara parted from the group and began the walk to her home.
Sakura looped her hand through the crook in Gaara's arm as they walked up the street to her house. "I'm glad to be back in Konoha." Gaara nodded as they walked up the steps and she took out the key in her pouch sighing as she put it in the lock and turned it before walking inside.
Everything was like they had left it. Someone had been cleaning it as it was miraculously dust free. Sakura immediately noticed how small it was compared to their house in Suna.
Actually it was tiny compared to their house in Suna. Sakura was a bit taken-aback. Her house had never seemed this small when she had lived in it! In fact, compared to most of her friend's apartments, it was large. Gaara observed her as she meandered into the living room, looking around before turning back to him.
"We only have two days here so we should enjoy them." Gaara murmured after Sakura's face had morphed into a slightly wistful expression.
She turned her gaze back to him and walked to his side, pulling his face down to hers to peck his lips. She gave him a small smile as she pulled away.
They both made their way into her room, discarding their packs on the dresser. The bed was still made and everything she didn't take with her was still on the shelf but it was pretty much empty with only a few things lying around. She sighed and sat on the bed as Gaara sat next to her and took her hand in his. "What is it Sakura? You've been acting different." She looked at him and shrugged.
"It's nothing Gaara I'm just remembering things about this house. Good things." She glanced at him from under her eyelashes as she ran a hand along his arm.
He hummed in response, a small smile tugging at the corner of his lips.
End of Chapter 1