A/N: Here's the next installment! I really liked writing this one and it actually came out longer than what I had expected, since I just kept writing and writing and the damn thing didn't want to finish! Hehe.
Just so you know, this vignette will have a second part, which I'm already planning out. I'll be putting it up as soon as possible.
A HUGE thanks goes out to all of you who have reviewed! You have no idea how much your thoughts and opinions mean to me.
Here we go!
Her stupidity amazed her.
All the lessons, all the hard gained experience… it all amounted to nothing.
Hearing the voices of both Tsunade-sensei and Kakashi-sensei clearly in her head, reproaching her for making the most basic of mistakes, Sakura could do nothing but wallow in her foolishness. She had gotten sloppy and she would be the first one to admit it.
Her mind was completely alert, even though her body was not. The drugged dart had poured its poison into her system, causing her nerves and muscles to paralyze, leaving her completely numb and defenseless. Breathing became a great effort, since her abdomen felt like it was made of metal. If she had been a lower level ninja, the drug would have affected her brain cells as well. She'd always been proud of her chakra control and had successfully deterred the toxins from invading her brain before her body shut down completely. Not that it did her much good, though…
Here she was, trapped in a cell, her mind crystal clear while her body was as limp as a dead fish.
Sighing in resignation, Sakura analyzed her circumstances one more time. She had managed to recognize the drug on the dart and she knew its effects would last up to 15 hours, depending on the dose. Since the dart was small and she had managed to hold back some of its effects, the medic was sure there wasn't much of the drug in her system. So, she had around 6 to 8 hours of paralysis to look forward to. It had been around 2 hours since she had been unceremoniously dropped into the small cell.
The room was approximately 3 meters wide by 2 meters long; technically, her captors could have placed around 4 to 5 more people in the cell in the event of there being more prisoners. Since no one else had been placed there to keep her company, Sakura could conclude that no one else had been captured or that her whole medic team was dead.
The only entrance to the chamber was a thick steel door, which had a small barred opening on its lower half. She'd been arranged into a sitting position next to the door once they had let her fall on the floor. From her vantage point, with her head thrown back against the wall in an attempt to prevent her from choking on her own saliva, she couldn't see anything else but the ceiling. However, she could clearly hear her captors on the other side of the door.
They were a group of renegade shinobi from Suna which were operating within the boundaries of the Wind country. From what she knew, they had deserted the village when Gaara became Kazekage, not happy with the council's decision. They had laid low for a long time, but lately, they had dedicated their time to random terrorism acts, directed mostly towards merchant caravans, trying to boycott Suna's relations with neighboring villages. Knowing they weren't powerful enough to take the village directly, they had decided to circumvent it completely, taking a more roundabout approach.
In a nutshell, they were a thorn in Gaara's side and the Kazekage had finally decided to do something about it.
Organizing a few shinobi groups, he'd decided on terminating the group once and for all. Wanting to have an experienced medic on the assignment, Gaara had asked Sakura to be part of the mission. After gathering information about the renegades' possible hideouts, spies confirmed their location. Plans were set, strategies discussed and they went in for the kill.
There was a fierce battle outside the caves where the missing nins were hiding. Once the attack groups managed to force the enemy out, Sakura and her medics moved in, going over the battlefield, checking for survivors. As she bent over an enemy body, a small dart shot out from the corpse's clothes, hitting her directly in the neck. It was the oldest trick in the book and she had fallen for it like a complete and utter amateur.
She didn't know if her group had fallen to similar fates or if they had fought their way out. All she was aware of was of someone lifting her up and taking her away. After what seemed like a short trip, they arrived at another cave complex, where she was deposited in a cell.
Hence, here she was, staring at the ceiling, listening to her kidnappers congratulate themselves on a job well done. From what she would hear, there were around 6 of them huddling outside. Unfortunately, from their comments, it was clear that they recognized her. Damn her pink hair!
They knew she was a leaf shinobi and the Hokage's disciple; they were already planning on asking for ransom. They would bypass Suna altogether and go straight to Konoha; this way, Suna's reputation would crumble and the alliance would be severely tested. However, they were omitting a small detail… the kunoichi in their grasp was none other than the Kazekage's lover.
Sakura could almost feel sorry for them… almost. In all honesty, she was actually feeling sorry for herself. The stupid shinobi outside would just die at Gaara's hands… it would be over in an instant and that would be that. Her case, however, was completely different; she couldn't even hope for it to be quick. She was destined to face not only his anger, but his disappointment as well. For a moment, the pink haired medic wished she was unconscious so she wouldn't be able to think about the consequences of her stupidity.
A long time ago, she had promised herself that she wouldn't be a burden anymore… she wouldn't stare at the backs of her comrades while they went ahead and protected her. She would stand on her own two feet, fighting and defending herself by her own means. It was the least she could do. The Fifth's apprenticeship had come as a blessing and a day wouldn't go by without her thanking the universe for it. With the help of Tsunade-sensei, Sakura had learned to believe in herself and to trust in her own strength, something she had never managed to achieve with Naruto and Sasuke by her side. Everyone now told her she had reached her mentor's level and would one day come to surpass it.
But then she went ahead and got herself hit by a drugged dart.
Growling at her uselessness in her mind for the hundredth time, Sakura knew it was futile to torture herself further. She was here and nothing was going to change it. The best she could do was work with what she had. She couldn't count on Gaara or anyone else coming over and rescuing her; she would have to get out of here by herself.
Oh, how she was looking forward to blasting that steel door with her fist when the effects of the drug left her body. They would regret not tying her up.
She would be her own escape ticket… all she needed to do was wait patiently.
XXXXXXX
The door of his office burst open as one of his hunter nin captains walked in hurriedly. Kneeling before his desk, the man removed his bird mask.
"Kazekage-sama, I bring bad news," he exclaimed.
Gaara looked down at him in resignation. Why couldn't missions always go as planned? It was probable that some inexperienced chuunin had blown their cover… he knew he shouldn't have sent the younger ones…
"Sakura-san has been captured."
Silence.
"WHAT?"
Hell breaking lose wouldn't even come close.
XXXXXXX
Sakura heard it coming. At first it was a distant rumble, like the tremors of an approaching earthquake. The noise suddenly became louder and she was sure something big and angry was coming her way. There were nervous mumblings followed by some shouts of alarm outside her cell as the missing nins sprung into sudden action.
They shouldn't have bothered.
A deafening roar echoed throughout the whole cave and the agonizing screams of her captors could scarcely be heard above it. Thunderous crashes could be discerned and Sakura felt something heavy hit the outer wall of her cell… from the loud thud, she could only assume it was a body. Chaos and mayhem reigned outside the steel door and all she could do was stare at the ceiling until it was over. The deadly silence inside the small room only accentuated the confusion and commotion on the other side of the rock wall.
Even though it felt like ages for her, the whole ordeal was over relatively quickly. As the noise started to subside, Sakura managed to confirm her suspicions. In the middle of the upheaval, there was the thrumming of a deadly and angry chakra… and it was oh so familiar.
If she had retained her capacity to groan, she would have.
The steel door disappeared in the blink of an eye and the pink haired medic heard it land with a deafening crash on the other side of the cave. She felt his well-known tendrils of sand reach her, touching her everywhere, as if checking for injuries. Immediately, a looming shadow passed through the doorway and entered the cell.
Coming into her line of vision, Sakura saw his face plainly. He had the look of a madman… a look that had been etched in her memory from their younger days. But as he approached and saw her more clearly, his face softened fractionally; nevertheless the anger was still there.
Kneeling in front of her, he took her head in his hands and lowered her face.
Frantic jade met hazy emerald.
Sakura knew she was in so much trouble.
XXXXXXX
He knew he wasn't thinking clearly but he didn't give a damn.
Breaking his office window with his sand, Gaara jumped straight through with his gourd already strapped to his back, the kneeling captain completely forgotten. He needed to get to were she was being held fast, he couldn't have anyone else slowing him down.
Reaching the outside of the village on his flying sand, he didn't stop as he lifted his arms to the sky.
The elders of the village had told him to use this technique only in the case of an emergency, since the levels of destruction it might provoke were extremely high.
But the Kazekage knew this was the fastest way to travel and if this wasn't an emergency, he didn't know what was!
'Suna Arashi', he whispered as he concentrated his chakra. The sand of the desert exploded into violent motion around him, coming his way as if trying to engulf him. But before the sand could reach his body, it started circling around him, going faster and faster by the second.
The guards on Suna's gates could only stare in awe, as it appeared that the entire desert's sand was consuming their Kazekage. A gigantic whirlwind formed around him, and as the sand picked up unbelievable momentum, it started swallowing up everything in its surroundings. If this thing got nearer, it would destroy the whole village in a matter of seconds.
But it started to move away into the desert at an amazing speed and in a blink of an eye, it was gone.
It the middle of the sandstorm of his creation, Gaara didn't even try to control his rising temper. Even at the high velocity with which he was traveling, it would take him more or less an hour to reach the caves his captain had mentioned. His shinobi were supposedly looking through the whole complex, trying to pinpoint the exact cave where Sakura was being held.
By the time he got there, they'd better have discovered which one it was, or there would be hell to pay. He wouldn't tolerate incompetence in a moment like this.
As Gaara traveled through his realm, he silently prayed that he wouldn't come across a merchant caravan, since he didn't have the time to try and circumvent it. He was already going to take too long for his liking and he knew that the minutes would go by agonizingly slow… which would only help to raise his wrath to even higher levels.
Thoughts of an injured and maimed Sakura flashed through his mind. He could see her thrown on a rocky floor, bloodied and battered. He knew that something bad must have happened… Sakura wouldn't get captured that easily. His girl could make her way through a solid stone wall with a single punch, for fuck's sake! Not many shinobi could stand up to her in a close fight and due to her amazing chakra control, she was basically immune to any type of genjutsu. This meant she had to have been immobilized in some way to be taken by the missing nins.
The Kazekage didn't like the images of a limp and powerless Sakura in the hands of an enemy shinobi at all. They could do anything to her… break her bones, pull out her fingernails, punch her, stab her, cut her… and they could… they could…
…rape her.
Vision blurred by large patches of red, Gaara let out a raucous scream of utter wrath, which echoed throughout the whole landscape, making the desert rocks rumble in response. Shukaku shrieked in glee inside his mind, relishing in the destructive impulses the red head was emitting. The demon tanuki filled his thoughts with the bloody and tattered body parts of the missing nins flying through the air. For once, Gaara wholeheartedly agreed with the fiend's intentions.
Impossibly, the moving sandstorm increased its speed.
XXXXXXX
As Temari kneeled behind her ninja team outside the cave complex, she heard the distinctive rumble. They had been discussing the different strategies they might take to rescue Sakura, since they had already identified the cave. But their planning came to an end when the blond kunoichi looked out towards the desert and gave a loud sigh.
"Clear the area," she commanded, moving away from the rocks. "My little brother's coming."
The team looked out over the land, only to see an immense circling cloud of sand hastily coming their way.
The Kazekage had arrived.
Moving away quickly, they arranged themselves in rows behind Temari, saluting the approaching cyclone. Most of them broke into a nervous cold sweat, knowing that their very lives were on the line. There was nothing more horrifying than facing their enraged Kazekage and not many people had actually survived the experience. They could only hope that Sakura was alright, or else this would be the end of them all.
The whirlwind dissipated some distance away and Gaara emerged from the cloud, landing in a quick walk on the ground, his sand following swiftly behind him. As he approached Temari, he didn't stop walking, addressing her over his shoulder as he went by.
"Which one is it?" he asked brusquely.
"The one to the north east," she replied, not daring to look up at him.
Increasing his pace, Gaara made his way towards the large gathering of protruding rocks on the barren hillside. Beneath one of the ledges, he found the opening of the cave Temari had mentioned. He sent his sand in ahead of him as he entered, checking for any possible sentinels. Much to his surprise, he found none and the stupidity of this renegade group amazed him once more.
They were stupid for not taking the necessary precautions to avoid being ambushed and they were all the more brainless for daring to touch what was his.
But then again, this would be the last stupid mistake they would ever make.
After walking a couple of minutes through the dark corridor, Gaara found the reason why there weren't any look outs. A thick and large steel door blocked his path, preventing him from going any further into the cave. It seemed that the idiots thought this barrier would thwart any in-coming invaders…
Evidently, the dimwits weren't expecting the Kazekage to come pay them a personal visit.
He was going to enjoy killing them so much.
Not bothering to send his sand under the door to investigate, he brought the tendrils up before him, wrapping them around the huge door. He knew this would alert the nins inside, but he truly didn't give a shit. Let them know he was coming… let them know who it was that came to exterminate them inside their very own rat lair.
The noise the door made when it flew off its hinges was deafening and immediately, a small version of his 'Suna Arashi' rammed inside the cave, confusing and baffling the people inside.
Visibility was reduced to nil, but as Gaara stepped inside, he knew exactly where each renegade nin was thanks to his sand... he also knew that Sakura wasn't in the room. Good, he didn't need to control himself then.
He sensed a flying kunai coming in his direction, but it was very easily deflected. The Kazekage was now convinced that this rebel group had the combined brain power of a desert rodent… which only helped to increase his wrath even more.
There were only 6 shinobi in the room and he made quick work of them. Wrapping two completely surprised victims with his sand, he lifted them up towards the ceiling. Their screams echoed through the air as a millisecond later, the deadly grip of his 'Sabaku Sousou' silenced them forever, making their blood rain down onto the circling sand, bathing Suna's leader in crimson.
Shukaku laughed in delight with the gory scene Gaara was creating.
Feeling movement to his left, Gaara sensed as a nin tried to attack him straight on, lunging forward with a katana in hand. His idiotic bravery wasn't worth the effort. The sand stopped him dead in his tracks, making him release the blade by gripping his wrist forcefully. A tendril picked up the sword on the red head's order and pierced him through the heart with his own weapon, a dying yell on his lips.
With the screams of their companions, the remaining three ninjas decided it was time to retreat, but there was only one entrance to the cave. As they made their way towards the exit, they made a vain attempt to circumvent their enemy. One was inevitably wrapped in sand, his neck broken with a loud crack a moment later. Another was thrown back against the wall with intense violence, his spine broken with the force of the blow.
In a remarkable act of self control, Gaara managed to subdue his anger momentarily as his sand picked up the remaining shinobi. He broke the man's ribs with his 'Sabaku Kyuu' but refrained from taking his life. They needed to interrogate at least one of the renegades to make sure that the whole group had been completely eradicated. Gaara would have slaughtered the ninja in a heartbeat but as Kazekage, he knew he had an obligation to his village.
As the unconscious shinobi dropped to the floor with a thud, the red head brought his raging sand to a stop, making most of it recede into his gourd. He looked around the cave, trying to discern where Sakura was. Spotting another steel door at the back, he could vaguely sense a familiar chakra coming from beyond. The chakra felt extremely weak, a mocking flow compared to the energy she usually radiated.
Abruptly, the anger was replaced by something else... by something equally intense.
Ripping the door with his sand as he moved quickly towards the back, Gaara's heart contracted with, what was to him, an unfamiliar emotion…
Fear.
He was scared shitless of what he might find… scared that he might have arrived too late… scared that he might have already lost her…
In those seven seconds it took to cross the room, Sabaku no Gaara experienced dread for the first time in his life.
As he reached the doorway, he saw her… sitting with her back to the wall, face turned upwards, eyes staring blankly at the ceiling. She was dirty and disheveled, the lustrous shade of her hair all but gone under the grime.
As Gaara came near, Sakura didn't move.
His heart clenched painfully for the second time in the span of half a minute.
Kneeling down in front of her, the Kazekage took her face in his hands, lowering her head carefully. The empty emerald stare which met his gaze did nothing to kindle his hope.
"Sakura," he whispered in the oppressing silence of the room.
No answer.
Gritting his teeth in agonizing torment, the red head placed his fingers on her neck, checking for a pulse. Miraculously, a steady but weak rhythm reverberated through her skin.
She was alive… but what the fuck was wrong with her? He mentally berated himself for not showing more interest in her work. If he'd paid more attention to her medical rambles, he might've known what to do in the situation he found himself in.
Her skin was ice cold and as he partially lifted one of her hands with his own, her limb fell limply to the floor once he let go of her. Staring at her for a few minutes as he pondered about her condition, Gaara's anger reasserted himself.
He wasn't about to lose her to some idiotic, third-class missing nin group. No one in this world would ever take her away from him. No one.
Lifting her up bridal style in a single fluid movement, the red head made his way towards the exit. In all honesty, the only person to which he would have entrusted her health to was… well, herself. But given the circumstances, he knew he was going to have to compromise. Tsunade was the obvious second choice, but she was simply too far away. Therefore, Gaara would have to place his trust in his own medics, something he wasn't too eager to do… he had hired Sakura to instruct them for a reason, after all. Suna's medics hadn't been able to save the Kazekage's brother in a case of dire emergency, so, intense training had been called for.
Now, Gaara was going to place the life of the most important person in his life in their hands. Strengthening his resolve, he reminded himself that by doing so, he was actually trusting her own skills as a sensei and if he couldn't trust her, he couldn't trust anyone.
Walking swiftly out of the cave, he headed in the direction of his shinobi team, intent on getting some answers.
XXXXXXX
Sakura could see him amazingly clearly. She could see the blood of his enemies smeared over his cheek, splattered all over his clothes. She could see the anguish in his face, the turmoil showing through his maddened gaze.
And she could do nothing to ease his pain.
'Gaara, I'm ok!' she mentally screamed at him.
'Don't worry, I'll be fine. The effect goes away after a while! I'm ok! You won't feel anything too promising since the drug lowers the body's cardiac levels,' she told him when he lifted his hand to check her pulse.
Heart shattering at the look of distress crossing his features, the pink haired medic screamed inside her mind, cursing her carelessness for the umpteenth time that day. He stared at her for what seemed like an eternity, until a familiar spark of stubbornness and anger showed through his eyes.
'That's it! No worrying! Yes, get angry, get angry!' she exclaimed as he picked her up, preferring for him to be angry at her than miserable at her condition. They walked for a few minutes until they emerged into clear daylight.
Gaara made his way quickly towards his shinobi, who were still standing in formation behind Temari, waiting for him.
As he came near them, shocked murmurs resounded all around at the limp condition of the woman he was holding. Ignoring the whispers, the red head spotted the medical team and headed directly towards them.
Standing with Sakura firmly in his arms, the Kazekage stopped in front of Naoko and Rinji.
"What is wrong with her?" he asked, forcing his voice to come out evenly even though his furious eyes betrayed his supposed calm.
The two chuunins swallowed visibly before coming closer to inspect their sensei.
Rinji reached out, as if trying to take Sakura from Gaara's arms. The red head stopped him with a single deadly look, letting him know in no small terms that if he touched Sakura, he would lose his limbs before he even reached her.
The medic-in-training stepped back, all blood leaving his face.
Naoko intervened on his behalf. "Kazekage-sama, we need you to put her down so we can examine her," she pleaded.
Turning his fuming gaze towards her, he nodded in understanding, swallowing his anger for Sakura's sake.
'Gaara, this is not the time to have a jealously attack!' Sakura screamed inside her mind.
Looking around for a spot, he found one nearby. He lowered her into a sitting position, her back against a large rock.
Naoko was immediately over her, examining her body using chakra. Rinji kneeled on her other side, fear of his Kazekage forgotten in view of his sensei's condition. He took Sakura's face in his hands, examining her eyes.
'Come on guys,' Sakura thought. 'This one should be easy for you. We covered paralyzing drugs ages ago!'
As she egged them own, she refused to think about the low blow her pride was suffering from this whole scenario.
After a few minutes of intense examination, both Naoko and Rinji sat back from Sakura, staring at each other.
"Well?" Gaara asked angrily, patience completely exhausted.
"Cursis juice," Naoko said, completely sure of her diagnosis.
'That's my girl!' Sakura exclaimed. 'You can have next week off just for that!'
"And that means?" Gaara asked curtly.
'It means I will be as limp as a rag for around four more hours and then I'll be in tip-top shape,' she answered inside her head.
"She'll be paralyzed for a few more hours, depending on the dose. But after that, her body will come back to normal and there won't be any side effects," Naoko replied.
"And from what I can see," Rinji added, "she's actually completely conscious."
"What?" Gaara exclaimed, kneeling down in front of Sakura, looking at her intently.
"She must have fought the effects of the drug with her chakra, which is in fact, an amazing feat. Its effects are instant, meaning she managed to prevent it from reaching her brain milliseconds after she was hit," the trainee added.
'Ha! And you know it!' the pink haired medic thought. 'Ten extra points for you on your next quiz boy, for making your sensei feel a little bit better.'
The Kazekage stared at Sakura, concern in his gaze. "Is there an antidote for this drug?"
"Yes there is," Naoko replied, "but we would have to make it back at the village. It's simple to make but by the time we arrive and get all the necessary ingredients together, the effects of the drug will be long gone."
Gaara nodded in understanding, but he wasn't happy with the news. The last thing he wanted was to have his lover in a comatose state for the next few hours while he sat, useless and impotent, waiting for the effects of the substance to dissipate. But it seemed there was nothing he could do about it.
Without a word, he stood up, taking Sakura in his arms once more.
"I'm going back to the village," he informed them. "Make sure you have a ready dose of that antidote in 48 hours. I want all medic teams to have some for upcoming missions. An episode like this will not happen again."
"Yes, Kazekage-sama", Rinji and Naoko answered at the same time, bowing before their leader.
Gaara made his way over to the other shinobi teams. As he arrived, Temari spoke to him.
"Kazekage-sama, we tried…" she started, but the red head interrupted.
"We will speak of this later," he told her, a cold tone in his voice.
'This is not Temari's fault, you dimwit! It's mine!' Sakura shouted at him from inside her mind.
"I left a missing nin alive for interrogation. Go back into the cave and search it, see if you can find any clues or leadings to other hideouts. Once you are done report to me immediately."
"Yes, Kazekage-sama!" the whole shinobi group answered in chorus, exploding into action immediately, Temari included.
When they were gone, Gaara looked down at the woman in his arms, looking into her still hazy gaze. He knew she was conscious and he wanted very badly to give her a piece of his mind for making him worry like this. But he also knew he wouldn't be able to do it until he heard her side of the tale… not until the whole situation was laid out clearly.
In truth, the only thing he cared about was having her safe in his embrace. To know that her life wasn't in danger and she wasn't going anywhere.
Calling on his sand, he settled down cross-legged on the small cloud it formed. Settling Sakura safely on his lap for the journey back to the village, he ordered his sand to move, flying away into the desert landscape.
XXXXXXX
'Ceilings aren't really that bad once you get used to them,' Sakura thought morbidly as she lay on their bed, her head on a large pillow.
They'd arrived at Suna around an hour and a half ago, but the effects of the drug still weren't leaving her body. If her calculations didn't fail her, Sakura surmised she still had around 30 more minutes to go.
At the moment, she could hear Gaara rummaging around in the kitchen. After placing her on the bed and making sure she was comfortable, he had sat down on the mattress next to her, arms and legs crossed. From the stubborn set of his jaw, she knew he was going to stay there and wait until her paralysis left her. Groaning inwardly, Sakura really wasn't looking forward to have him stare at her in complete silence until it was all over. Luckily, she had been saved by a knock on the front door after only 10 minutes of torture.
It must have been one of his captains coming to report, since she could hear their murmurs in the living room. After some time, the shinobi had left and from what she could hear, it seemed like the Kazekage was looking for something to eat.
Gulping down two full glasses of water after eating some fruit, Gaara felt slightly better. He hadn't eaten anything since breakfast and night was already quickly approaching. Still, the satisfaction in his stomach didn't spread through the rest of his body.
He was tense… extremely tense. And the anxiety in his muscles wouldn't leave until she was safely moving and talking to him. Glancing at the clock on the wall, he growled in irritation. How long was this freaking drug going to take to get out of her system? He'd already waited long enough and his meager patience had already vanished into thin air.
If Sakura didn't move soon, he was going to destroy something.
Going back into the bedroom, he sat back down next to her, looking her over for what seemed the six hundredth time. There was no change whatsoever; she still stared blankly at the ceiling.
Shaking her roughly until she reacted wasn't going to solve the problem, but he was extremely tempted to do so. He had infinitely more patience than he usually did when it came to Sakura, but this was just too much. This whole situation pushed his limits to unimaginable levels.
Cracking his neck in a rough movement, the Kazekage decided that meditation was in order. It was his equivalent to 'taking a nap'. He needed some time out from this whole situation and meditating would help him achieve that goal. This way, he would be able to face the current problem with a fresh start.
Closing his eyes, he settled into a more comfortable sitting position while his mind drifted away.
This was the reason why he didn't catch the sudden blink of Sakura's eyes.
'YES!' the pink haired kunoichi exclaimed inside her mind.
Feeling was slowly returning to her face and after what seemed like an eternity, she could finally move her eyes around.
Her emerald orbs settled on the imposing figure of Suna's leader as he meditated, sitting cross legged on the mattress close by.
Sakura contemplated the idea of regaining her body's movement before he came back from 'dreamland' and making a dash for the door. She could see herself running at full speed back to Konoha, a giant wave of sand chasing her every step of the way.
Sighing inwardly, she resigned herself for the upcoming confrontation once and for all. It was inevitable and she had already organized the precise order of the words she was going to say.
But first thing's first.
Blinking her eyes in rapid succession, she attempted to wrinkle her nose at the same time. It moved only slightly. This was going to be an excruciatingly slow process, but she had all the time in the world.
After another ten minutes, she could already wrinkle her forehead, her nose and was beginning to move her mouth. Opening her lips slowly as feeling returned to her, she could feel them crack open with the movement. The taste of blood was suddenly on her tongue, her mouth completely dry.
'This has got to be the worst experience of my life,' Sakura thought morosely.
Well, I can think of some worse ones, her inner persona chirped in, like being trapped under a giant claw of sand while being knocked against a tree and suffocating in the process while your team mates fight for their lives…
'I refuse to even think about that!' Sakura thought vehemently. 'He was unstable and under the influence of a demon! This is difficult enough already without you bringing this up.'
Inner Sakura rolled her eyes but remained silent.
Returning to the task at hand with a vengeance, the pink haired medic forced her whole face to move and at the same time, managed to make her tongue budge slightly. After another few minutes, she was able to stick it out of her mouth and rotate it all around.
Which brought her to another predicament… she was now able to talk.
So, should she wait until she was able to move completely and defend herself or should she put him out of his misery now?
If she was in his shoes, worried sick over him without knowing exactly what was happening to him, Sakura knew what she would want.
Taking in a large breath, she let the words come out.
"I'm very sorry Gaara, I was extremely careless."
Eyes flying open at the sound of her voice, the red head found her emerald orbs staring directly at him. They were clear, focused… and as beautiful as he remembered them.
Reaching for her in a rapid movement, he cradled her in his arms.
"Are you alright? Do you hurt anywhere?"
"I'm ok…"
"Where did you get hit? Did the bastards hurt you?"
"No, I'm…"
"Did they touch you anywhere?"
"Gaara, I'm alright!" she shouted at him, making herself heard through his tirade.
He blinked for a moment as he looked at her. Without warning, he crushed her to his chest, holding on to her tightly.
"Don't ever do that again," he whispered fiercely in her ear.
Sakura sighed, keeping quiet. She knew it was useless to argue with him at a moment like this.
Holding on to her silently for a few minutes, Gaara finally loosened his hold on her, just enough for him to look at her face directly.
"What the fuck happened?"
With a look of intense resignation, Sakura started talking.
"There isn't much to tell. I was extremely careless, Gaara, that about sums it all up. I was going over the bodies after the main battle had ended and I wasn't paying attention to what I was doing. The dart that hit me was hidden in the vest of an enemy nin. Once I got hit, there wasn't much I could do about it.
"I'm really sorry I made you worry and I'm sorry I forced Temari and her team to go out of their way to look for me… And I'm sorry I made you come rescue me. I should have been able to take care of myself. I shouldn't be a burden to anyone."
As she told him all this, the pink haired medic finally realized what a low blow this whole experience had been to her pride. Haruno Sakura, apprentice to the great Godaime, said to follow in her sensei's footsteps… taken down by the most basic trick a ninja could pull… and a dead ninja, at that. It felt to her that she had traveled back in time, when she would have died many times if Naruto and Sasuke hadn't come to her rescue.
Her self-confidence was utterly and completely devastated.
Feeling tears start to build behind her eyes, she hardened her resolve, refusing to cry about this in front of Gaara. He was probably already appalled by her weakness, so she wouldn't give him even more reasons to do so.
She felt so disappointed with herself.
A retort dying on his lips, Gaara stopped himself when he got a good look of her face. Her mouth was set in a strange expression and she refused to look him straight in the eye.
She looked apologetic, but there was something else behind her eyes… something he just couldn't place.
"You are not a burden," he stated firmly. She looked up at him, emerald orbs softening for a moment, but that strange look wasn't completely gone.
Cursing his lack of experience in relating to other people, the red head decided to let this slide for the time being. If there was something she wanted to say, she would say it when she was ready. Despite all the anger he had been building up all day, he found that his temper had lessened considerably when she started talking to him.
Sakura was safe and in his care. All he wanted now was to have her sleeping in his arms for the rest of the night… and he was going to get what he wanted.
"Is the paralysis getting better?" he asked.
Looking up at him at the unexpected question, Sakura didn't know what to answer. She had been preparing herself for a direct verbal attack, not for him to show any concern about her condition. Where was her explosive and temperamental lover?
Once more, Sakura was taken aback by his complete unpredictability. He wasn't pushing her, so for both their sakes, she buried her feelings of guilt and unworthiness as best as she could, knowing they would eventually resurface. But for now, it was enough.
"It's getting better," she finally answered. "I think I can move my neck now."
She succeeded in moving her head from side to side.
"Is there anything I can do to help?" Gaara asked, having had enough of sitting idly next to her.
"Well, increasing the blood flow of my extremities would help, so a massage might come in handy."
He didn't need to be told twice. Gently, he laid her down on the mattress facing down and proceeded to give her a thorough massage. Starting with her shoulders and neck, he slowly advanced down her arms. He gave her back special attention, especially when he felt her muscles twitch in response.
If she had been in any other circumstance, Sakura would have closed her eyes and let herself enjoy his attentions. However, her body was still partially numb and when feeling returned slowly to her limbs, it caused an intense sensation of 'pins and needles' which wasn't at all pleasant.
This definitely wasn't her day.
Gaara stopped his massage only when he had reached her feet. Around 30 minutes had passed since he'd started and when he moved away, Sakura managed to lift herself up into a sitting position.
Her legs hanging from the side of the bed, she started lifting them up experimentally, as if trying to judge how much movement she was able to exert. She did the same with her arms, lifting and bending them, trying to force them into working normally.
Silently watching as she went about this whole procedure, Gaara admired the look of determination in her eyes. He knew she was surely in some kind of pain, but she didn't even complain once. Looking at her state, his anger rekindled at the thought of what the fucking missing nins had done to his girl. He regretted not killing them more slowly.
Standing up carefully, Sakura managed to walk across the room, Gaara appearing lightning quick at her side once he saw she was standing. After around ten minutes of tentative pacing, she finally recovered her sense of balance and was able to walk normally. Flopping down on the bed once more as she realized how much the simple exercise had exhausted her, she felt the beginnings of a head ache in her left temple. Groaning, she started massaging her head.
"What's wrong?" the red head asked in concern.
"I'm starting to get a headache…"
Patience utterly exhausted from the frustration he'd been experiencing all day, the Kazekage took matters into his own hands.
"You need some rest and are probably dehydrated," he stated in an authoritative voice, leaving absolutely no space for arguments. "Get into the bathroom and give yourself a quick shower. I will bring you something to drink and I'll make you some of the 'migraine tea' which you keep stashed in the cupboard."
And with that, he took her by the arm and led her towards the bathroom. Once inside, he placed a towel into her hands before turning around and walking out the door.
"Gaara, please remember…"
"Yes I know", he replied over his shoulder, "one teaspoon of honey instead of sugar or else you won't be able to keep it down since the tea is too bitter for you."
Sakura had to smile at that, tears building in her eyes once more. Despite his gruffness, he really paid attention to her and knew her better than anyone else. Small details like this one were the ones that counted, small ways in which he showed his appreciation. Despite the mess she had dragged both of them into, Gaara still went out of his way to please her.
As she climbed into the shower, Sakura felt completely undeserving of his attentions.
Once she was sitting on the bed, with a comfy boxer and a tank top on, the red head made her drink three full glasses of water and a cup of her medicinal tea. He'd brought her a bit of fruit as well and the pink haired kunoichi managed to eat three quarters of an apple before her stomach churned in protest.
"Time to sleep", he told her in his Kazekage voice. Finding she was too tired to complain, she did what she was told as Gaara went into the bathroom to give himself a quick wash.
Laying on her back and looking up at the ceiling once more, Sakura knew sleep was far from coming, despite the tiredness in her body. She was emotionally battered and her heart ached when she thought of how much she had let him down.
Coming out of the bathroom, hair wet and only with his sleeping trousers on, Gaara made his way hurriedly to the bed. He lay face up next to her and when she made no move to come closer, he reached for her, pulling her to him until her cheek was resting on his chest.
The red head closed his eyes, relishing in the feel of her body in his arms… in the warmth, and most importantly, in the life thrumming through her being. He had come too close to losing her today, and by the life of him, he was never going to let something like this happen again. Never.
He broke the reigning silence with an intense tone in his voice.
"I'm glad you are safe."
It was an extremely simple phrase… and if it were coming from anyone else, it would have been a casual statement; an affirmation with nothing behind it.
But it wasn't coming from anyone else… it was coming from him. And that made all the difference.
In those few words, he was expressing his relief, letting her know he wasn't judging her… letting her know how much he had worried about her… letting her know how much he loved her.
Burying her face into his chest, Sakura nodded fiercely, not trusting her voice. He returned her gesture by tightening his hold on her. He had never been a man of words, but with his pink haired woman, there wasn't any need to say anything. With a simple phrase and a simple gesture, they understood each other completely.
Sleep and exhaustion washed over Sakura as she lay there, safe in his embrace. Somewhere in the back of her mind, she still thought of how she didn't deserve all this and in her chest, her heart still hurt. But all this was lost in a wave of darkness and the only thing she could sense was the beating of Gaara's heart under her ear, protecting her from her inner doubts and fears. He would guard her, shielding her from harm… even if it meant he needed to shield her from herself.
Hence, she drew on his strength, on his presence, losing herself in the flow of his potent chakra, banishing everything else.
Tomorrow would be another day… but for now, Haruno Sakura would sleep safely in the arms of her lover, one of the most powerful shinobi in the world.
There you have it! This did come out a little long… oh well, hope you liked it anyway! I'll be putting up the second part to this soon.
Read and review!
