Chapter 2. Konohagakure

Tsunade sighed as she looked at the scroll that the fifth Kazekage had sent them as a missive of his arrival. She had a hunch that aside from having to talk about the current trade system of Suna and Konoha, he had come for something else as well. They had after all, received news that the Sunagakure would be performing the Kazehime trials and yet she had not received a missive about this event. She knew that if a Konoha kunoichi became the Kazehime, it would be a troublesome affair especially if the council demand that the union is not to happen due to a political imbalance, probably the reason why Konoha was not sent an official request asking for their candidate.

She sighed and rubbed her temple. All this thinking was making her head ache and she had no one to take over her paperworks as Sakura was still out and Shizune was busy at the hospital.

"Riza! Sake! Now!" She heard the telltale shuffle and sound of the sake bottle clinking as the woman ran to deliver her request.

"Riza, inform Uzumaki Naruto that the Kazekage will be arriving shortly and he has to greet him as I am indisposed, send Katsuyu. Also, summon Hatake Kakashi, now!"

A panicked 'yes' was the only reply before Riza had vanished to do as she was told. She didn't want to suffer from this alone, oh no, she would ensure that Kakashi, as the next Hokage would also suffer.

Naruto excitedly perused the ramen bowl in front of him and his mouth watered. This was the new Extreme Supreme Naruto Express Ichiraku Ramen Bowl and he was the first one to taste it. His excitement was evident as he stirred the broth to mix in the ingredients before breaking apart his chopsticks.

"Itadakima-waaaah!" A miniature form of Katsuyu suddenly appeared in his Ramen Bowl and started swimming around the soup while nibbling at some of the ingredients making Naruto feel both indignant and annoyed.

Disgusted, he tried to remove it by using his chopsticks but a spit of acid went towards his face which he gladly avoided.

"Naruto-kun, please stop being rude." The slug summon said calmly. Naruto frowned and pointed his chopsticks towards the little slug summon, his look affronted.

"Me? Rude? You were the one who suddenly swam in my delectable Extreme Supreme Naruto Express Ichiraku Ramen Bowl and I'm the one who's rude? Huh? Huh?!" Katsuyu started to wave her antennae and he swore she was laughing at him. He was about to start his ranting when Katsuyu slipped out of his ramen bowl and interrupted his brewing rant.

"Excuse me Naruto-kun for that behavior. Anyway, Tsunade-hime wanted me to tell you that that red-haired Kage will arrive shortly and you are to meet him at the gates. Tsunade-hime is inebriated as of the moment." Katsuyu waved one of her antennae again.

Naruto's eyes widened like saucers with the news that his best friend from Suna was coming and he pumped his fist as he stood up excitedly.

"Gaara is coming! Yosh! Ossan, I'll be back later with a friend. Arigatou!" He put a bill on the counter and started running towards the gate.

After the war, he had not seen Gaara as he was busy recuperating and the latter was busy managing Suna. He also had to ensure that the council would not put Sasuke to execution and they had won the battle. Gaara even helped a bit. However, after that, aside from the occasional nods and greetings during official events, he had not, in the last two years talked to Gaara at all.

He smirked. Oh the stories he would tell his friend. Gaara'd wished he wrote at least a single letter in the span of two years.

Gaara felt a shiver run through his spine almost as if someone was plotting something against him just as the foliage and the greenery grew even thicker, a sign that they were approaching Konoha. It had taken him almost four days to reach the border of Konoha as he could (would) not use his sand to transport them. He used this time to clear his head and think about his move thoroughly. Though he had planned out what it was, he had to ensure that the other parties involved would be understaning and accept his offer. It was killing two birds with one stone.

Almost like a sixth sense, Gaara felt a shift in the air. He sent out a few of her sand creations and felt two chakra signatures a few hundred meters away from them, and they were fast approaching. If it was any indication, their chakra was one with killing intent.

"You okay little bro?" Temari asked as he suddenly stiffened. She noticed him suddenly calling forth sand from his gourd and subtly looking and feeling around their surrounding.

"Be on your guard Temari, I have a feeling that we will have company in a few minutes." Temari felt the chill and the shift in the air as the chakra signatures drew nearer. She grabbed her fan's hilt and waited for the telltale sign of movement.

Without warning two kunais with exploding tags whizzed past her cheeks and she immediately pushed Gaara aside. The kunais exploded and Temari opened her fan in front as a defensive barrier. Gaara had done the same but instinct was still at play. She looked around and could only hear the sound of trees falling and kunais clashing. Almost like a surge of chakra exploding, she felt sudden tremors underground which did not went unnoticed by her brother who had lifted them almost before the ground beneath them gave way.

She was astounded by the devastation around her. No normal shinobi could do this and though she had a hunch of who it was, she was not entirely sure as to why they were being attacked. After a few minutes, she closed her fan and observed their surrounding. The sight made her on edge as she was reminded of the war again. The same was applicable for Gaara who had his sand ready to attack anyone who would emerge from the rubble. From a distance, they could hear the approaching voice of a female as she silently cursed the Hokage.

"Damn that stupid missing nin. Curse you Tsunade! Making me run after that stupid nin and knowing that he was going to piss me off." Temari and Gaara looked at each other as they heard the familiar voice, even clearer as it drew nearer.

"Oh Sakura, I have a special mission for you. I want you to go and bring back Midori for questioning, I'll relieve you of medical rounds for a month and assign you to the poison department. Yeah right! Special mission my arse, more like a fucking clean up mission her Anbu could not handle. Shannaro!"

Another tremor shook the trees and they heard the sound of groaning as the earth tried to withstand the sudden force.

The rubble a few feet away from them moved to reveal a man who seemed like he was wishing he was dead right now. Gaara merely appraised him and deduced that he probably was the target of the fast approaching kunoichi.

The man tried to speak up and ask for help from them, not recognizing who they were.

"Please. H-help me. She's a monster..."

"There you are Midori-chan." The man squealed femininely before fainting as Sakura cracked her knuckles, her voice sickly sweet. She adjusted her gloves, ready to punch him through the gut when Gaara called her out, deciding that carnage was not what he wanted to see.

"Haruno-san." She stopped a few inches from the man's torso and looked up, realizing that she was not in fact, the only standing person. Frowning slightly, she stood up and bowed, slightly embarrassed at the outburst they had seen.

"Kazekage-sama, Temari-san, I'm sorry. I didn't see you there."

"Indeed, you seemed a bit... preoccupied." Temari looked at her brother weirdly, he sounded almost as if he was teasing Sakura. Sakura did not spoke but gave him an annoyed glare.

"I'm sorry you had to see that." She countered back before straightening up. Gaara nodded slightly while Temari smirked. Now it was getting interesting.

"You should finish up here Sakura. We'll go on ahead now. And don't worry, we won't tell anyone." Temari winked as Gaara transported them in a whirl of sand leaving a slack-jawed and embarrassed Sakura behind.

Gaara's face seemed stoic but his eyes were dancing with mirth and Temari watched him with hawk eyes. He never teased anyone except for her, Kankuro and Naruto. And she never knew that Sakura and Gaara even interacted like that. She smirked. This was getting interesting. It looks like all hope was not lost yet.

AN: Okay, here's the next chapter so just to explain, the story might not be that fast paced but I promise, I'm doing all I can to at least build up and develop my characters, or well Kishimoto-sama's.

To clarify as well, this is set two years after the war and I thoroughly believe that with their abilities and chakra, it won't take long before everyone is settled in. Also, Sasuke is out of Konoha doing his missions similar to the current timeline of Boruto.

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any of it's characters, places, and names. All rights go to Masashi Kishimoto. Except of course for my own ideas, that's mine.