Alright, keep in mind that in this fiction, Gaara cannot be touched at all. This makes his shock and his reactions a bit more believable. Also, Inner Sakura speaks like 'this', all character thoughts are in italics, and Shukaku speaks in bold. Oh, and if I haven't already mentioned this:

DISCLAIMER: The characters/setting are not mine. The plot, however, is.

On with the story! Oh, and the more you review, the more I update!

Kodu


2

- Gaara -

I was shocked on two levels.

One, that someone had the nerve to touch me.

Two, that someone had the ability to touch me.

Usually, Shukaku went to great levels to protect my being. After all, if I died, he lost his host. When people attempted to come near to me - whether in a threatening manner, or simply to touch me - a shield of sand would rise up and prevent any sort of contact. This is how my mother had died.

They had sealed the demon inside of me while I was exiting my mother's womb. That natural self-defense mechanism had been infused inside my body while I was still half-way inside another. On top of that, Shukaku's thirst for blood was uncontrollable in the early stages of my life.

Temari, the oldest sibling, had been there when it happened. She told me of the nightmares which haunted her dreams; of the visions of my younger self destroying all she had ever held dear. Her and mother had been very close, someone had told me once. I suppose it was a female thing, something I couldn't understand, even more so than the concept of love. But her feelings didn't matter to me. I only wanted to know what had happened. So, years ago, I had forced her to tell me every detail, right down to the shade of our deceased parent's blood.

It had been a massacre. Even as a child, I had had an instinct to kill; a thirst for death. Simply put, I had torn our mother apart from the inside out. I didn't cry. No, in the first few months of my life, I wasn't human enough to experience any kind of emotion other than rage. I had never been a baby. I went straight from 'bloodthirsty demon' to 'more controlled bloodthirsty demon.'

Apparently, though, my inner demon had went into hiding.

My first reaction was to shudder at the feeling of skin on skin, cloth on skin, hair on skin, breath on skin. I had never truly known what touch felt like until now. It was warm and electrifying; prickly and rough. Locks of smooth pink hair brushed against my neck, tickling; running against it like fine sand. Course fabric raked across my fingers, and with each tiny movement of the person atop me, these feelings intensified twenty-fold.

"Ah…" I breathed shakily as I finally took in our position.

We lay there, in the middle of a crowded street, covered in dust. In my shock, my mind could only wonder what others thought of us, seeing such a mess of two people. My clothing was bundled upward, the strap to my gourd pushed painfully under the armpit, the rough leather scratching at my neck. The other was out of breath and panting, grasping all over me for a hold on reality. The female kunoichi was sprawled on top of me, her pale pink hair splayed across my chest and bright green eyes staring at mine in shock.

It must have definitely been something, to put it simply.

Shaking my head, I snapped back into reality and let my cold gaze fall on the girl atop me.

For a moment, the look she gave seemed to say 'Why did you trip me?', as if this whole mess was my fault. But soon it was replaced with regret, shame, and…embarrassment?

She shouldn't have felt embarrassed at our situation. If anything, she should have been disgusted at having touched such a demon as myself. Or, if not that, at least terrified; for after having tripped me up in such a way, I would not let her go easily.

She struggled for several moments, trying to untangle our legs and push off of me, and in that stretch of time, I was just as motionless as ever.

Was someone willingly touching me?

"Sorry…" I heard her mumble, and glanced up to see her cheeks stained a dark shade of crimson - nearly as dark as my hair, or the shirt she wore. For a moment, I wondered what brought on such a look, but soon realized that a tender hand had fallen to my chest in an attempt to push away, and it's twin was resting somewhere along the line between inner and outer thigh.

Alright. Time to move.

Growling slightly - how dare some filthy Konoha wench touch me! - I leaned up, supporting all my weight on my elbows, and glared coldly at the girl below me. Only, such a gaze was much less affective when the person on the receiving end wasn't looking back at you. I found myself burning a hole in the top of this female ninja's head as she continued to struggle away from me.

Calming myself before Shukaku decided to rear his ugly head - now wouldn't that be unfortunate… -, I grabbed hold of the girl's arms and dragged both of us to a standing position.

Relief flooded her features, and I could tell she was about to apologize ,when I interrupted her with my harsh demeanor.

"Never touch me again."

And I threw her to the ground.


- Sakura -

Stupid, stupid, stupid!

How could I not have seen this coming? Of course, with the day going as it had been, I should have expected the worst to happen. Now, not only was I late seeing Sasuke (And Naruto, I guess, but he didn't really concern me.), but I had to deal with a complete stranger and explain to him why I had plowed through him like a thick-headed ox!

'Don't look at me!' yelled my inner self, and I seethed in anger.

You idiot. You are me!

'Well, technically, I'm a result of your unstable mind and stray chakra blending together to create a companion for your heartsick self.'

Who the hell are you calling unstable!

'Never mind! Now pay attention to the idiot who jumped in your way!'

I glanced down at the boy below me, and had to force Inner Sakura's anger out of my mind as his eyes locked onto mine. They were the palest shade of blue I had ever seen, lacking pupils and, even more distinctly, warmth. The gaze was cold, threatening; like a raging tempest had found refuge in his eyes and was unleashing its fury on anyone who dared look deep enough.

After a few moments, I seemed to realize that I was sitting atop a very agitated boy, whose body was even smaller than mine - if that were even possible -, was probably crushing him with my weight, and all I could do was stare at him like a dumbstruck idiot.

My face felt hot as I turned my head away and began my struggle to free myself from his legs. He may have been in pain from our position, but I was highly embarrassed. After all, it's not everyday you find yourself on the ground in a public place, trapped between a man's legs and stuck very close to his most private parts, practically groping him as you fight to escape such a situation.

It was even more embarrassing when he didn't make a move to help me. Okay, I knew I got us into this whole mess and everything, but he could have at least been generous and lent a hand!

At that moment, I heard a small noise escape his lips, and blushed even deeper when I realized what I had been doing.

Our legs were tangled in a knot only some sick higher deity could form. If I shifted my right leg, my knee would come up and rub against a very off-limits place. If I moved my left, it would push against my right and have the same affect. So, very delicately, I had tried to wiggle my left ankle out from under his thigh so I could begin to untangle it from my right leg. This wiggling, though, caused my entire body to shift against his until I was stretched out on top of him like a blanket.

My hair cascaded over my shoulders to hide the redness of my face - thank God! -, but I couldn't stop the automatic reaction of my hands. In a rush of adrenaline, my left palm found its way onto the boy's chest so I could push my own chest away from him, and my right rested against his thigh to reduce the movement I made in that area.

Embarrassed couldn't even begin to describe what I felt.

Horrified, paralyzed, wanting-to-curl-up-into-a-ball-and-die…Yeah, that was a little more accurate.

'Yah Sakura! Make you're move!' My inner voice was starting to get really annoying.

What!?

'Come on. You've been lonely long enough. Now charm this kid with all you've got! Yah!'

What the heck!? Shut up!

It was at that moment I felt rough fingers clasp around my arms and drag me to my feet. This stranger apparently had no qualms with privacy, and didn't seem to notice when his legs raked up mine in an almost alluring manner; when his arms brushed against my waist, and his chest pressed into my chest.

Sighing in relief, I looked up to apologize when his own words cut me off.

"Never touch me again."

For a moment, I wondered why he thought we would even see each other again, but that thought was but a fleeting whisper as I felt myself tumble to the ground.

'What the hell? Did he just push me!?'

Calm down, I thought, breathing deep, clenching my fists to keep my mind off my anger.

Huffing in annoyance, the red-head stepped over my body like it was just some worthless log lying in the middle of the road.

'Oh no he didn't!'

And that was when I snapped.


Hehe...yeah, a cliffie. Review! ...Or you'll never see what happens next... ;-)