Chapter Four
Gaara sat across from the Hokage. To his left were members of the Sand's council and to the right were Leaf's. It was the same boring crap they talked about all the time. Going through the treaty over and over again, while he listened with deaf ears. There were not even that many changes from their previous documents, and he already memorized each page, section, line, and words by heart after the first read.
Treaty matters took no less than one to two weeks. The primary reason for Gaara's stay in Konoha for such a long term was not just to sign papers with the Hokage, but in order for part of the treaty to occur, he needed to stay.
Sure, the Hokage was pretty pissed off when he made the request as part of the deal, but it did not take long for her to be convinced that having one of the village's kunoichi become Gaara's wife would make their alliance stronger.
"Section fourteen: the Kazekage of the Hidden Sand Village shall be wedded to a Hidden Leaf Village kunoichi within the next four months, thus making the alliance between the two villages permanent. In the event should the marriage be annulled, but only for rational and strong reason provided there be evidence, the alliance will be broken and further treaty matters will be discussed by the councils and their kage."
Gaara watched as the blonde Hokage seated across from him frowned as that part of the treaty was read aloud. Her eyes flickered in his direction, but his expression remained neutral. "Who did you have in mind?"
Gaara did not have to think twice. Ever since the chunnin exams, he has had his eyes set on the pink haired kunoichi who risked her life for the Uchiha. The girl who always smiled for Naruto and somehow even wormed her way into Kakashi's personal life. He wanted her because Naruto had her; because she had so much love to give to every citizen of her village. And if a contract was what it took to have her, then so be it.
"Sakura Haruno."
The council members jumped from their seats as the wooden long table in front of them cracked into pieces. Gaara remained unaffected, simply watching as Tsunade tightly gripped the edge with more force than necessary. "Anyone else?" she muttered through gritted teeth.
Gaara narrowed his eyes in annoyance, "Are you hesitant about having your apprentice be wedded to me?"
Slamming her hand on the table, Tsunade growled, "What kind of fool wouldn't be hesitating about handing over their best medical ninja!"
"All the more reason she should be the one for Lord Kazekage," One of the Sand council elders spoke, interrupting their argument and afterwards cowered under the intense glare sent to him by the Hokage.
Another council member spoke, but this time from the Leaf, "Hokage-sama, as much as we are all reluctant to give our best kunoichi to the Sand, our alliance is at stake. We cannot afford to become enemies with the Hidden Sand Village."
Again, Tsunade frowned. Sakura was as much a student as she was a daughter to her. After all those years training her for both her sake and for their village, handing her over to the sand would not only be emotionally difficult but could prove a disadvantage to the village. That and the fact that she would throw a fit if she found out about her part in the treaty.
The red haired kazekage observed the turmoil of emotions flashing on Tsunade's face until she smirked, "Fine, but don't say I didn't warn you. Sakura is my student, but she has an even worse temper than I do. She's not going to accept this easily."
They continued to sit in the office while everyone else left the room. Gaara remained stoic, while Tsunade could only imagine what tantrum Sakura will have.
"To think that Temari would use an excuse such as your safety to have me arrange for you to live with my student. You were never planning on involving her in this. So why now?"
"I simply chose what will benefit my village in the long term."
Tsunade's smirk widened, Well, well, it looks like there's more to this brat than meets the eye.
There was a loud banging on her door just as Sakura climb out of bed. She chose to ignore her best girl friend and continued to her morning routine, but even as she stepped out of the bathroom, Ino continued to slam her hand against the thick piece of wood. Groaning, Sakura regrettably opened the door.
Ino walked straight into her home, a plate of food in her hands, "Hey forehead! I brought you my specially made scrambled egg whites..." Her voice faded after looking around the room, only to realize that the subject of her objective was not present.
Sakura crossed her arms, "Pig, if you're looking Gaara, don't even bother. He's too busy for you."
Ino's eye twitch in annoyance, about to make a comeback, when she heard a commotion outside Sakura's door. Both girls paused, and only then did Ino remember the Inuzuka she left outside.
"Out of my way," it was Gaara.
"Think you're all that just because you're kazekage now, huh? I don't think so." Sakura's brow furrowed at the sound of Kiba's voice. The kid was seriously asking for trouble. He never knew when to keep his mouth shut, and if he kept up such an arrogant act, he was going to get her lectured by Tsunade.
"Save yourself from embarrassment and step out of the way," Gaara gritted his teeth in anger as the dog ninja continued to block him from entering Sakura's home. He could have just teleported inside the house, but after what happened a few days ago, he knew better. Sakura was scary when she wanted to be, and he hated to be on the receiving end of her anger.
"Is that a challenge?"
"Kiba!" The dog ninja shivered as chills ran up his spine. He turned around to face an extremely angry Sakura Haruno. He swallowed and hesitantly smiled. "I will not allow fighting in my home, got that?!"
Gaara inwardly smirked at the sight of a cowering Inuzuka. He was right. Sakura was not to be messed with. She was certainly the best candidate for his village.
Not that he actually felt anything for her but his admiration towards her strength and personality. But that was it. He did not particularly like her romantically, and he wasn't planning to try either. He simply wanted her just because. And once the treaty is signed, she will be off limits to any male trying to garner her attention.
"Since you're both here, as well as pig over there," Sakura pointed behind her, where Ino was smiling a little too wide to be pretty, "Might as well eat breakfast together."
Kiba flashed her a toothy grin, thanked her, and walked into her home, giving Ino a high five as he entered.
When all four of them were finally seated, Sakura placing both her own cooking and Ino's on the table,, another loud knock sounded at her door. She groaned, wondering what she did to deserve torture so early in the morning.
Sakura quickly excused herself to open the door, a heavy sigh escaping her lips. As soon as she was out the kitchen, Ino proceeded to seduce the Kazekage, who simply tried to ignore her, while Kiba watched with amusement.
"Kazekage-sama, you know, you could have asked to stay with me instead," the blonde purred, her eyes blinking at a rather rapid rate in an attempt to look sexy, "I'm a way better cook than Sakura, and maybe even more than just cooking."
Gaara looked at her, his expression not giving away his mortification. After a few seconds of awkward silence, the Kazekage finally responded with a simple, "Not interested."
Ino's jaw dropped, her anger rising. Kiba watched with amusement at Ino's failed attempt. Though, if he were Gaara, he certainly would have accepted her offer. He tried to hold in his laughter but failed, "Sorry Ino. But truth be told, Sakura is actually quite amazing when it comes to sex."
At that statement, Gaara looked up at the Inuzuka, his eyes narrowed. "You and Sakura?"
Kiba smirked, "That's right. The reason why I'm trying to get her to go out with me. I mean, what sane man would let a nice piece of meat like her, go so easily?"
It was at that point then that Gaara lost his temper.
Sakura's eyebrow twitched. She shouldn't be upset, because she was the one to forget about their weekly meetings at her place, but after all the things that piled up on her the past few days, she was a snap of a thread away from going on a rampage. Before her stood a beaming Naruto, who had bags of ramen in his hands, a glaring at nothing in particular Sasuke, Sai, who had a plate of food in hand and his infamous and almost genuine smile, and of course the porn loving Kakashi.
"Ohayo Sakura-chan! It's Team Kakashi bonding time!" Naruto removed his sandals and walked into her home, followed by the others. It was not long until they heard loud crashing sounds coming from the kitchen. Sakura inwardly groaned marching into the room, the others close behind.
It was certainly a surprise to find Ino sitting on top of Kiba. She looked upset, almost feral, while the Inuzuka was flushed, but clearly enjoying their position. The table was toppled over on the floor, and Gaara seemed to be the only one in his place just as Sakura left him. Over his head were the plates of food, saved by his sand.
Sakura could only glare and shake her head at the scene. Ino always surprised her when it came to her approach on their bets, but this was certainly backfiring on her, seeing as the Kazekage seemed rather annoyed than jealous.
"Whoa! What happened here?" Naruto wiggled his eyebrows at the dog ninja, giving him a thumbs up at their current position.
Sakura rolled her eyes. Men and their perverse minds. She quickly approached the two and leaned over with her hands on her hips, "What the hell is going on here?! I leave for a minute and you ruin everything! If you guys want to do any type of physical activities, please feel free to do it somewhere aside from my home!"
Ino, finally realizing where she was sitting, jumped from Kiba, flustered. She did not think that his comment would make her so upset, and it was not because she was jealous. Although Sakura and her have been rivals for quite some time, they were still best friends, and anyone who talked crap about her would certainly make the Yamanaka angry.
Sakura ignored the looks given to her by her team and walked over to the Kazekage, "Thank you for saving the food, Kazekage-sama. At least I know there's someone who isn't here to destroy my home."
She ordered the men to set the tables and chairs back to where they once were, while she set the food on table. They had to grab a few of the chairs on her front porch because there were more guests in her home that she ever had before. And when the meal started, was when team seven began to give both Gaara and Kiba threatening looks. That is, aside from Kakashi, which Sakura was more than thankful for at the moment.
""What are you doing here, dog breath?" Naruto was the first to make an insult, his eyes narrowed at the dog ninja, who returned the favor and sent the Uzumaki a glare.
"I'm here to visit my future girlfriend, obviously."
"Oh? I didn't know you were interested in Ino-chan. Who knew?" at Naruto's statement, both Kiba and Ino blushed, looking away from each other. Sakura raised an eyebrow, suddenly curious if what happened early gave rise to certain emotions between the two.
After regaining his composure, Kiba denied Naruto's implication, "Wrong, idiot! I meant, Sakura, of course."
The pink haired kunoichi was very close to losing her temper, being embarrassed by both Kiba, and her teammates in front of the man she was supposed to be seducing. To make it worse, throughout the whole meal, Gaara was staring at her like he was analyzing every move she made.
Gaara's jade orbs would meet hers, his eyes filled with hunger, and something close to anger. Sakura could feel his gaze on her, even as she tried to break the arguments that would start, even when Ino would try to get his attention, it was all focused on her. And she wasn't conceited, she just knew he was watching her the whole two hours of breakfast. Even when she would look to see if he was staring, he would not look away.
Sakura wasn't sure whether she found it annoying, or if she actually liked it. He was giving her more attention than when they were alone together. Something deep within her was stirring awake, but she refused to allow herself to get carried away.
After everyone had breakfast, with more than one failed attempt at seducing someone in the group, Sakura decided it was time she kicked everyone, aside from Gaara, out of her home. Her personal space was invaded one too many times, and she really needed a break from all the yelling, screaming, glaring, and arguing between the males.
"Finally!" the kunoichi slumped down against the door, sighing.
"I could say the same thing," Gaara's deep voice echoed in the room, startling Sakura. He was seated on the living room, eyes closed, as if meditating.
"Get used to it. They will be coming and going almost every single day," Sakura pushed herself off the wooden floor and bit her lip. Why, even with him just sitting there, did he have to look so...hot? She shook her head, trying to clear from that train of thought.
Gaara looked at her, "What relationship do you have with the Inuzuka?"
His blunt question caught her off guard, "Wha?.. I have no relationship wi-"
Before she could react, Gaara was in front of her, his face close to hers, "He said that you had a sexual relationship with him, the reason why he refuses to let you go."
Unable to move, Sakura swallowed. This was the first time Gaara was this close to her, and her heart was beating rapidly in her chest. Her mind was at a loss, unsure of what to do or what to say. He was so dominating, radiating authority and power.
Idiot! What do you think you're doing?! This is your chance to seduce the hunk of a man in front of you! Inner Sakura was throwing a tantrum in her mind, but his green eyes were keeping her frozen in place.
He moved closer, and she could feel his breathing on her neck, sending chills all over her skin. "W-whatever t..that relationship was...it's none of your business." It was all she could say.
"You have no idea how much I want to punish you right now, Sakura," and then he was gone. Sakura could only look at the empty space in front of her, eyes wide with shock. She wanted to think she was dreaming, but it was quite evident that the events really did take place. There was an intense heat burning in her belly, something she knew quite well what, but never did a man make her feel so with just a few words.
After ten minutes sitting in the empty room, realization hit Sakura. What right did Gaara have to question her? And even more so, tell her that he wanted to punish her? Who gave him the right to even think he could touch her in any way?!
First and Foremost, I apologize for such a late update, and on all the stories i have yet to update.
not only was architecture taking up my time, but I had a major writer's block while writing this.
But I felt I should at least update some of my stories before christmas and even update all of them before my winter break is over.
So please look forward to updates on my other stories!
Thank you everyone for all the support!
Review please! and HAPPY HOLIDAYS!:)
