Chapter 2

An afternoon breeze moved the leaves on the trees. Animals could be heard doing what their ancestors before them did. This one forest was what separated the Fire Country from the Wind Country, and in it were two shinobi who did not seem in a hurry. One shinobi had his arms wrapped around the other.

"Gaara-kun, you know I can walk on my own without you holding me right?" asked the kunoichi nonchalantly.

"Hn."

"Still not talking? You always do that when you hold me."

Gaara just hugged her more tightly and nuzzled his head into the kunoichi's hair. As they continued to walk the onyx-hair kunoichi finally got tired of have to hunch over from the weight on her back that Gaara was putting on her. So she stopped her slow walking pace and asked him,

"Why are you hugging me now anyways? You never did in your village."

Gaara with his face still in her hair replied, "People were watching. Now I have you all to myself before Naruto meets up with us."

"Well where we are supposed to meet is like half a day away if we were to go running and two days tops walking. So, can you give my back a rest and not hug me like this? You...can...hold on to my hand!" was her witty come-back. Gaara pretended to think it over and just sat down where they were with her in his lap and his face still in her hair. The kunoichi sighed and just gave up.

"See I knew you would see it my way, Kagome-chan." Gaara huskily whispered.

"I was not even aware that you wanted me to see anything your way. We are suppose to go that way," Kagome pointed ahead of them, "to go to the Fire Country to meet up with Naruto, as you call him, and you just want to delay it. What is the hold up?"

"You want to get rid of me that soon Kagome-chan? That really hurts you know." mocked Gaara.

"No, I don't, but will you mind telling me why ever since I came to your village and met you, you have wanted to hold me and smell my neck all the time!"

Gaara shrugged and said, "You smell nice and I feel calm around you."

"Well that is the closest thing of an 'I like you' that I am going to get out of you." mumbled Kagome. She turned around on his lap so she was strattling him and continued, "So if you say that, that must mean my little raccoon-doggy does like me." Kagome finished with a smile.

Gaara just gave a glare, showing how much he loved that name. He positioned himself so that his back leaned back into a near by tree and looked up through the branches of the trees to see the sky. Kagome also decide to relax and laid her head on his chest and put her hand on his shoulder. Kagome could sense the lingering yoki of a demon in him the first time she met him. Kagome found out why after befriending him a few days later when he picked up his fetish over her scent. She was shocked that the decedents of the same people who were trying to kill off all demons were trying to harvest the demons power. If there was ever irony this would be it. Kagome sighed and shooked her head to get rid of the train of thought it was heading towards. Looking up to Gaara with her head still on his chest she asked,

"So are we going to stay here and make your friend wait or are we going to run until the sun sets?"

"We will go. If I know Naruto he would get mad because he knows that I wasted time on purpose," was Gaara's reluctant answer.

"Oh, really now, can you tell me how he would know?" asked Kagome as they got up.

"Remember when I told you about how there use to be a one-tailed Shukaku in me?" at Kagome's nod he continued, "Well the Akatsuki were the ones to get it out and were going to leave me for my death, but Naruto and his friends came to my village within 7 to 8 hours at the exact moment he heard I was kidnapped and made it in time to save me. When I came to I saw Naruto and he was scolding me on how I should rely on others when I am in trouble."

"Let me guess, he was the last one to be informed because he would have come straight to the Sand Village and the Akatsuki so he could get you without planning it out?" Kagome asked with humor in her voice.

"Heh, you know him already and all I have said about him was that he would get impatient."

"Well what can I say? I know them when I see them." she said with a shrug.

"So you want to know the rest or not?" Gaara asked while running/jumping away.

"Hey that is not fair! I wanna hear the rest, so wait up!" with that Kagome went after Gaara as he continued on about the boy who saved him from death, and himself.