TICK-TICK-TICK. THE INCESSANT ticking of the small, circle analog clock that hung on the wall to the right of Kallou rang out in her ears, the repetitive sound making her skin crawl uncomfortably. As she looked around the room, her pulse pounded dully in her ears; it bothered her that her heart didn't beat in a rhythm cohesive with the ticking of the clock. It seemed as though as everyone could hear the loud thudding that proved her existence. Silently, she observed, the guilty feeling that stewed in her pit of her stomach as heavy as it had ever been. Still there was a day and a half's wait for Kai to return so that she could attempt to apologize. She'd never been good at them. Nonetheless, she'd practiced it over and over again. She knew what she wanted to say but she also knew that when she got the chance she'd probably mess up. Her voice always abandoned her when she needed it the most.

Kallou frowned with boredom, her eyes rejecting the sight of her surroundings for the faded gray fabric of her shorts. The worn bottoms didn't quite meet her knees. She absently fingered the white, frayed threads that held the worn fabric together, scratching lightly at the seam on her inner- thigh with her thumbnail. Kallou gently smoothed the pad of her thumb over the edge of the shorts, knowing that if they were any shorter, the numerous scars that marred the silky flesh of her thighs would be visible. She scratched at the corner again, pressing down so hard that her thumbnail bent. She'd have to find a way to clip the worthless bit of nail off later.

Yet again, they were sitting in a group session. Yet again, just as most of the times before, no one was talking. In a few of the recent sessions, Kiba had gotten bored enough to start howling; it sounded like a strange mammalian song but she couldn't quite be sure. She never knew about him; he was too mysterious.

Tsunade would ask boring questions every so often, her boredom evident. This time though, she not so much bored as livid. Whenever their blonde caretaker would open her mouth to speak, Kallou's brows would raise expectantly as she thought, 'Ope! Here she goes again... Wonder what she'll say this time...'

"Why do you guys never answer me!?" Tsunade demanded, forgetting her cool as she leaned forward in her chair. Long strands of hair fell forward, covering her face and hiding her amber eyes from view. She didn't bother to acknowledge the mutinous locks of hair.

Kallou surprised everyone in the room, including herself, when she calmly answered the question. "You haven't posed an interesting question." Her voice dripped with boredom, but it held a tone of authority to it. Tsunade was intrigued.

Her first response to the remark was to blink stupidly for a moment before exchanging a bewildered look with her assistant. "Why don't you find my questions... interesting?"

Shikamaru chuckled, lifting his head and opening a single eye to leer at her."We know what we want, but you obviously have never been interested. No one has. So we stopped talking. Whenever we come to a touchy subject, you reject it. You fear what might come up in conversation. In doing so, you have ostracized that which you are desperately seek."

Tsunade's flustered state was evident as all attempts at a fluid, clam question were reduced to sputters. "D—I—what do you want, then? Playing mind games with me won't get you any closer to what you refuse to openly answer.

"Freedom," whispered Naruto. It was more to himself than anyone else, but it was acknowledged nonetheless.

"Okay... I think we both know I can't give you that, though." All pretenses of professionalism had flown out the window the moment Kallou had opened her mouth. Tsunade was so supremely pleased that they were speaking, she'd do almost anything to get them to continue. "How about lunches and dinners outside, twice a week, weather permitting?"

She had hated sessions with them; she would probably always hate these sessions, but it was a worth a try to make them more bearable.

Kiba shook his head 'no' to the bargain that Tsunade had offered, his hair falling into his eyes with the vigorous motion. "Three."

"How about this: two one week, then three the next. They'll alternate. They'll have to. Take it or leave it." When Kiba nodded his compliance, Tsunade exhaled slowly, jotting down her achievement. With any other group, that would have been a small one but not with this group, no. That was practically a milestone. "What else?"

"Notification," demanded Kankuro, his eyes hardened to the answer he thought she might give. "You have to tell us things instead of worrying whether or not we'll say no. Worry about what will happen when we find out, not if."

"Fair enough, you do deserve that much," admitted Tsunade. They had treated them rather like animals as the years progressed and they showed no signs of progress. That hadn't been beneficial at all, she could see that now. She frowned as she wrote down the seemingly trivial rule. It would matter to them.

"Can we... can we have more free days? Or, at least plan our own schedules? At least change it up a little bit? We're always so bored," rambled Naruto. He bit his lip nervously; this was of the utmost important to him. He got bored so easily that even a slight change would be a vast improvement.

Kallou watched and listened, silently, her silvery eyes taking in the first real group session they'd ever had. Kai would be pissed that she'd missed out on it. A sudden realization twisted in her gut. "Guys... it would be... beneficial if Kai did not know I initiated..."

Explanation was not needed. Even her wing mates knew that she would react unfavorably to Kallou, once again, speaking. Kai was paranoid that the other girl would share more and more of her secrets.

"I agree. You are all forbidden from broaching the subject with her; I assume you all know the consequences of such an offense." Tsunade spoke smoothly, hoping to easily iron out any issues. Shikamaru, ever inquisitive, though usually in much a more reserved manner, surprised her by speaking up yet again.

"So what if we tell her? Why are we being punished for that? It's a minor detail," snapped Shikamaru, who most had forgotten was still awake. Appearing lazy often worked in his favor. He'd have been an excellent spy in another life.

"Because. You're antagonizing a volatile, unstable patient. But, by all means—be my guest!" Tsunade snapped angrily, flailing her hands wide in disgust. Remembering her professional side, she quickly corrected herself. "By law I'm required to tell you not to do so. So, do not provoke her. Are we completely understood?"

Shikamaru made a face before closing his eyes again. Kankuro rolled his eyes, letting his gaze drop to the floor; the rest of his face twisted into an ugly mask of disgust. Sighing wearily at his open show of moodiness, Kallou glanced over to wear Sakura sat. The cotton-candy cutie was being unnaturally silent.

"What about video games? If we buy them ourselves?" Naruto interjected excitedly, his face so hopefully that Tsunade almost felt bad for crushing his excitement.

"No—too violent," she replied with the utmost resolution.

"Wait!" Sakura said, her sudden outburst causing Tsunade to look a little bit taken-aback. "The uniforms—they're wretched. Can we change them? Or better yet, can we wear our own clothing?"

Tsunade furrowed her brow. "You already do wear your own clothing."

"Yeah, our pajamas!" retorted Kiba, his brows coming together in an innocent protest. He found wearing his own pajamas a ridiculous waste, because he hardly wore anything to bed.

"I don't see why not..." murmured Tsunade, making an irritated face. "I'll run it by the committee. I don't suppose they'll be too tickled about it, but I'll do my best."

"If they refuse, then at least let us alter these foul things," requested Naruto. It sounded more like an order, but that was just his terrible manners showing through. "They're hideous and uncomfortable."

"All right, all right—whatever. Look—time's up for today. I'll see you all soon," rushed Tsunade. She was out the door before any of them had even stood up, as was the assistant.

Gaara, who'd been silent for the entirety of the session, slowly stood up. He remained slightly hunched over as they headed back to their wing. All of the things occurring between his ears were weighing him down so heavily it took too much effort to stand at his full stature. As they slowly ambled back to their wing, he turned left instead of the usual straight path through the hallway intersection.

"Oi! Where're you goin'?" called out Kankuro, anxiety riddling his voice. Gaara casually raised his right hand, gave him the middle finger, and continued on his merry-well way. Kankuro groaned heavily before sighing in defeat. "Give 'em hell, then!"

"What the hell is going on? What do you mean 'bye?'" demanded Sasuke, his eyes narrowing with distaste as Kankuro took his sweet time answering.

"Like I said, he is off to raise hell," Kankuro said with a smirk. His eyes were dark with mystery as his smirk merged into the territory of a sneer. "It's what he does."

Sasuke frowned, undecided as to whether or not he believed the stout answer. He raised his brows and then dropped them, admitting defeat. He'd find out soon enough.


[.-_-.]


WALLS, WALLS WALS, and more fucking walls; they were lightly padded with patchy, off-white cushions. Urine and blood stains were randomly splashed across the wall; no one had attempted to clean them. If they had, no one had done a very good job. There was the occasional blood-laden handprint on the wall, or a large patch on the floor where blood had accumulated in a puddle. The stale air reeked of excrement, body odor, and the smell of cold wetness. It was not a comfortable place to be, even without the binding straightjacket that hugged her arms into an immobile position. She tried not to think of what extremes had been reached to cause such a large amount of filth and blood to accumulate.

Kai stared at the walls, completely tuned-out from reality; she was in an altogether different place, where none of this existed. The walls, which she couldn't even see in the darkness of the small room, felt as though they were closing in on her. There wasn't even enough light to see her fingers directly in front of her face. The only reason she was certain of the deplorable state of the walls was that she'd been craning her neck around her to view her surroundings when she'd been dragged down there. Outside the room it was cold and clinical, the small solitary rooms like cells in a prison. Inside the room was an atmosphere comparable to that of a pit—as low as you could get so deep down that even the light doesn't dare to dwell within its confines.

She was normally a fan of the dark—it helped her to sleep. Down here, however, the dark was no longer her friend that provided her shelter from the monsters of the light. Down here, she was in the thick of it. The dark was constant, disconcerting. Night and day blended endlessly together until they were one and the same. The only way to differentiate from night and day was the arrival of the meal. She couldn't remember what number she was on, which had vastly screwed up her time perception.

Now knowing the exact time that meals arrived helped to tell time all the same. The meal times were deliberately set at different times, never to arrive at the same time twice for one person on the same stay. The lights from the hall didn't even show through the slot in the door. There was a metal panel that was lifted from the other side of the door and locked into place. Metal tracks were inserted and locked into place as well. The tray was placed on those tracks, given a light push; the edges of the tray prevented spillage, but the tray would tip to its side sometimes if the food bringers weren't careful. When the food was on the floor, the tracks retracted and the metal panel was secured back into place.

The dark was purposeful, just as the varying meal times were. It threw off their sense of time, effectively disguising the time of day it was. The only way to keep track at all was to try to pay attention to meal times. Kai'd already forgotten her body still unfocused from the buzz of the after-effects of all the unnecessary medicine. There was no down time here in Solitary. This was the domain of a time-honored ritual—waiting.

Kai hummed softly to herself, her eyes drifting lazily. She mumbled to herself, and then began to sing softly, pushing away the reasons for hating this and focusing on the letting those reasons go as best she could. In and out. Wish... Wooosh... Wish... Woosh... Those were the sounds of her breathing.

Kai tried to relax, reminding herself of all the reasons she'd had to do this to herself. They were getting too close. Kallou was no longer to be trusted. Even as she tried to remind herself of the good that would come of this, she couldn't deny the cramped, painful state of her arms. She wiggled them as much as she could until they both popped. Her eyes saw sparks and then she closed them, inviting the swirl of drug-induced images with open—or rather cramped—arms. The sparks and swirls whisked her off to somewhere grand—somewhere she could simply exist and be alive with her own self.

Was it what she really wanted to be free of this place? No- it was unrealistic. She was one of the patients that would probably spend the rest of her life in the institution, and it was thus useless to wish for an escape- but hey- let the girl dream. But, then again, only a crazy girl would dream, hope, and pray for something she didn't even want, huh?


[.-_-.]


SHE WANTED TO talk to them; conversing as they once had was long gone, and she couldn't bring herself to forgive them. Which was odd; she was notorious for not being able to hold a grudge.

Kai spent most of the first and second day back holed up in her room- despite the fact that they had a group session- her music blaring from the iHome that she'd bought a while back. If one of the girls would knock on her door and ask- no matter how politely- to turn the music down, Kai would ignore them. If they were polite, she'd leave the music as it was. But if they were rude about it, she'd blare her music as long as it would go. However, if one of the boys asked- any of them at all- to turn it down, she'd usually comply.

At night she'd come out and watch TV, her eyes half-glazed as she watched. Kankuro and Gaara- both insomniacs though the degrees greatly varied- were almost always out there watching TV. She talked nightly with Kankuro, though usually talked more at Gaara, because it was very rare for him to reply. But she didn't mind. She rather liked that he didn't talk- which both Kankuro and Gaara suspected was because of her resentment to Kallou- and reminded him of it every so often.

Sometimes Sakura would join them, and Kai would be at least civil to her. She tried to play nice, but she couldn't bring herself to mean any of the things she said to Sakura. Sakura gave up after a few nights of it, and so did Kallou. Kallou talked every so often, deciding to share her opinions after she realized that Kai was mad at her- no matter what she said.

Kai's face clouded with malice whenever Kallou spoke, and Sakura knew that Kai was quite literally murdering Kallou with her eyes. Kallou tried not to notice, but it was hard when Kai threw things and stomped back to her room. It was a sudden change that no one- not even Kai- could have predicted.


[.-_-.]


"GROUP SESSIONS AGAIN!?" Groaned Sakura, smacked her forehead angrily off the bulletin board. "Why do we have them- like all the time?!"

Everyone shrugged, only Naruto bothering to answer her. "They're keeping tabs on us?"

"Meh. Who cares? It's not like we're going anywhere." Kiba grumbled, folding his arms across his chest in a stubborn manner.

Sakura rolled her eyes in irritation, grabbing her book before they could be escorted off to session without it. She was honestly sick of them; she failed to even see the point in the anymore. But, there would be a point to this lesson.


[.-_-.]


"OKAY. SO TODAY is more of a meeting than a session," announced Tsunade, wheeling a giant chalkboard out of the closet and into therapy room. The board was medium sized, constructed of wood.

"Um. Question!" Kai waived her hand vigorously in the air, causing Tsunade to sigh in acknowledgment. "What are we talking about? Fall classes starting again?"

"Yes, Kai," Tsunade answered briskly, collecting a piece of chalk with her well-manicured hand.

"Classes? You mean I'm going to have to go to school here?" burst Sakura, earning a surprisingly pitying glance from Shikamaru.

"Yes. I've talked to the people handling your case, as well as your parents and relatives. They don't believe you will be... rehabilitated in time to finish your final year of schooling." Tsunade's voice was clipped and clinical but her face bore a more sympathetic expression.

"How long did they say I'd be in here? And who said that? Rehabilitated? How the fuck do you expect to rehabilitate when I'm around these whack-jobs!" spewed Sakura, her livid features startling in the off-lighting of the room. She looked to be on the verge of vomiting.

"Long enough for me to know better than to tell you out-right. Your parents, were in fact the ones who said they wished you to get better adjusted before returning to a more natural environment. They said you wouldn't be ready. It would just make things harder for you to see all your friends and have to deal with their emotions on top of your own." Tsunade offered a small smile as tears of disbelief began to form in Sakura's eyes. "Cheer up. It's not so bad here. You don't have to worry about fitting in; you and the other whack-jobs get along just fine. You're all in the same boat."

Tsunade laughed at her own words; Sakura glowered at her for a moment before letting out a small, thick laugh. The older woman was right. Sakura wiped furiously at her eyes, ashamed for crying to so easily, especially in front of everyone. Gaara rolled his eyes, thinking back to when he was a child and how he would have loved to escape his family. They'd tortured him. He was glad to be rid of them; he'd show her hurt and give her a reason to cry, as well.

Sakura sighed heavily, her thoughts roaming from this to that, subject to boring subject. She let herself zone out as Tsunade moved on to discuss how they were to determine what classes they wanted in accordance with what classes were actually available to them. When she moved on to list them, though, Sakura was not the only one to be slipping a little further off. She tried to hang onto reality, but it took too much effort.

She was mildly amused to find that if she let her unfocus, then quickly refocus them again, it looked like the whole world was quaking. She made the room shake again, repressing a giggle as Gaara's chair toppled over in her head. She continued her pseudo-mother-naturism until a hand tapped on her shoulder.

Sakura jolted out of her fantastic daydream, surprised to see Kallou holding a large handful of papers and brochures out to her. The white-haired girl offered a small smile when Sakura accepted the papers. "You zoned," she said, biting her lip. "I figured you'd have missed what she was talking about, so..."

Sakura nodded, glancing down at the stack of papers.

"Look, I know I probably shouldn't have told you things about Kai that made her mad, but... that doesn't mean we shouldn't be friends, huh? You'd think I'd be a good secret keeper, but... sometimes I need to talk. It gets boring being quiet all the time."

"Yeah, I'm sorry, too... I didn't mean to avoid you, but I just didn't want to her freak out, again..." Sakura averted her eyes to the papers, reading the title 'FUTURE GOAL PLANNING.' Yeah. Because she had plans for the future... "Do you think Kai will forgive you?"

"I dunno, I doubt it... but I'm not worried. Life is mysterious, and so are boys."

Sakura smiled at the brief truism, and then stood up. "Wed' better get going before everyone starts to think we've gone AWAL."

Sakura beamed when Kallou returned her smile, and then sighed with an air of content. That was one problem off of her endless list of shit to deal with.


[.-_-.]


"SO WHERE DID you go last night?" Kankuro asked carefully, being sure not to anger his brother. It was later in the day, perhaps pushing into the wee hours of the next day. He still had to be weary of his brother, lest he wanted a fist shoved deep into his skull. When Gaara only shrugged, Kankuro rolled his eyes, looking away for a few seconds.

Gaara's brain swam with the memories of where he'd been; he knew he couldn't tell his brother what he'd been up to just yet. He'd been to see the nighttime secretary; Kankuro had no idea, but their sister Temari had taken the job as the night secretary in order to keep an eye on them and make sure that they were well. Previously, she'd lived hours from them in their hometown, but she told him she'd missed him. He hadn't missed her, only her quick, witty responses to his sarcasm. Gaara had been to see her so he could dig up dirt on all of his roomates. His sister, if one he cared so little about could be called that, had been hesitant at first, but her resolved had dissolved when he asked again in a surprisingly sweet and polite tone. He had plans that required this information. Sharing it with Kankuro just yet would ruin the whole point of getting it. Besides that, Kankuro would flip on his sister for even thinking about working in a place like this.

The information itself—well, Temari had yet to get it to him. But that wasn't a problem. She'd get him the information and Gaara would make good on his bargain with her. He'd keep an eye on Kankuro. She knew that he was the more emotional of the two boys.

Temari would get the information for him on a Friday, which gave him that night to read them. He'd return them to her by the end of the night. Tsunade would know something was up if they weren't there in the morning. Saturday night Temari would take them home, carefully copy everything in the exact order it was placed in the files, and then return everything to the files, just as they'd been before. Copying them at work was too risky.

It was risk worth taking, however. Gaara would make good use of it by terrorizing each and every one of them—save for Kankuro, as was the condition with his sister. He would them all around his pinkie like a child conned their father into buying them what they wanted. Not that his father had ever done that for him. But in this case, he'd be unstoppable.


[.-_-.]


THE DARK HID the expression on his face as he stared at the television, the flashes of light playing across his features in quick succession. Gaara turned his face up, studying the darkened tiles of the ceiling. They were different from the ones in his room. He hadn't mentally categorized these ones yet.

Glancing sideways at the sound of a door opening, the ginger-haired boy listened to the soft ruffles of footfalls that he'd memorized by heart. Gaara didn't do anything to acknowledge her preent, but she gently waved at him nonetheless. Kankuro stirred slightly as he plopped down, his arm twitching as she leaned back to watch television.

Slurring her words together, she asked him what time it was, her eyes only half open as she turned to look at him. Her voice as well as her entire body, was still heavy with the last dregs of sleep.

Gaara held up two fingers, signifying the hour of night. "Two? Shit. I can't sleep; too fucking loud..."

Gaara cast her an incredulous look, brows raising in confusion. Kai grunted with exasperation, holding her face in her hands. She curled up into a ball on the couch, only lifting her head from her pillow to talk to him.

"You're used to people screaming all night." Boy, she had him there. "You tune that shit out. I can't. Yet. Hopefully." Her head dropped a little as her eyes crossed with fatigue. "I'm so used to my music now that it just doesn't even help. I need a break, I suppose..." She was rambling now; he rather wished that she'd just shut up. "Their screaming sort of... carries over my... music. I..."

Her head was back on the pillow, eyes close. Kankuro grunted, and Gaara lookedup slowly. Kankuro opened a bleary eye, snorting, "That was fast." Then he, too, was back asleep, his soft snores loud in Gaara's perceptive ears.

The television lulled them to sleep almost instantly, but it was merely a tool for him to pass the time with. Why didn't he get to sleep? Why was he forced to live a life of perpetual awareness? With all the sedatives he was on, one would think he'd be near comatose twenty-four-seven. It seemed viciously unfair to him that they should get to sleep so easily when he could not...


[.-_-.]


GAARA FLICKED THE light on only after he'd silently shut the door and laid a blanket across the bottom, preventing any light from peeking through. This room was unlike all the others. It was so foreign... the white walls had been painted to resemble a forest, and there were little animals sticking out here and there. There were pictures and things that she'd drawn hung all over the walls, and he was sure that he'd seen everyone of their wing-mates.

Gaara shook his head, knowing that he was getting off track. Gaara started the hunt for what he needed, shamelessly overturning her bed-side table and rooting through her drawers.

He'd hunted for a good ten minutes, effectively tearing her room up in the process. Clothing- mostly changes of uniform- was strewn across the floor from when he'd upended the drawers, and books and trivial trinkets, as well, littered the floor from when he'd ran his arm across the top of the dresser looking for the little, green, squared-off object and the medium sized black box type doo-hicky.

The corners of his mouth turned up mischievously when he found the black box, and he hurriedly plugged it into the wall. He swore under his breath when he remembered that he was still in need of the other part.

He yanked the drawers open again, growling when all of them were empty. He dropped down on his knees, sifting through the mess he'd made. He brushed the books aside with a sweep of his arms, sliding his hand along through the clothes. He moved his hands closer to the dresser, feeling under the edge. He delighted soundlessly when his hand curled around the object.

Gaara lifted it to his face, studying it closely. He looked to the black box, and then smirked. This would be simple. He spun his finger on the smaller piece, looking for the right track. He smirked slightly as he slipped it onto the bigger piece of equipment, having already cranked up the volume.

The sounds that blared from the iHome were loud and inhuman- the wail of heavy metal. Gaara laughed mirthlessly as the sounds of screams rang out as he jerked people from their sleep, and the loud thumping of people falling from their beds and rest areas. There were many sounds of waking, as well as the sound of death threats.


[.-_-.]


SAKURA WOKE TO the sound of shouting, loud thumping, and the blaring of music that she recognized but couldn't place.

"Sleep with one eye open, gripping your pillow tight..." Sakura had heard it somewhere before, but she couldn't quite place it... She rolled out of bed when she heard a feminine squeal of pain.

Sakura opened her door and stepped out, only to jump back so as to avoid her feet being squished. Kankuro and Gaara were rolling around on the floor, Gaara's wiry frame bending easily under his brother's grip. Gaara had one advantage however- he knew his brother's weak spots. Gaara would strike his brother on the shoulder with a chop like motion, earning a grunt of pain each time.

However Kankuro would smack his brother against whatever surface was closest, and each timeGaara's head would snap back into it. But Kankuro was tired, and his resolve was wearing down. Gaara flipped Kankuro over onto his stomach, a position he knew his brother would hate being pinned in. He did it specifically because he knew his brother could not stand it.

Sakura furrowed her brows as she noticed everyone else watching, some with interest and others with apprehension. She watched as Gaara struggled to hold his brother in the seemingly innocuous position. Gaara twisted his brother's arm around behind his back- the arm of the same shoulder he'd been striking.

Sakura closed her eyes as Kankuro cried out, the sound of Gaara's laughter rising above it. She opened her eyes at the sound of someone trying to intervene. She opened her eyes in time to see Gaara strike out at Kai, who's glare didn't waver despite how obviously she'd flinched.

"Stop it!" Sakura intervened, trying to yank Gaara off of the larger, more muscular boy. IT was odd that Gaara could beat him with only that amount of struggle. He was already giving her hell, wasn't he? What was that he could do to her for opposing him? She wasn't afraid to die, only of the pain that so often accompanied it. But pain is temporary, and if he chose to kill her the pain would end. It always did.

Naruto covered his eyes, curling up into a ball as Sasuke watched the scene with great disinterest. Shikamaru hadn't woken- his pills kept him coasting, low and unaware. Kiba growled, prepared to pounce, but then he would pull back uncertainly. He didn't know what to do, other than yip and bark every few seconds.

There was a loud popping sound as Gaara reached for Sakura, his grip on Kankuro's arm remaining as tight as ever. The sudden shift in weight as he grabbed for her throat effectively yanked Kankuro's arm from the sock. Kankuro, surprisingly, held back whatever scream of discomfort threatened to splurge forth by burying his face into the carpet.

Kiba pounced forward, shoving Gaara, who was already moving, off of his brother. Gaara pulled himself easily from Kiba's grasp, grimacing as he skulked back to his room. Sakura could wait. He would get her back in due time.

Kankuro groaned as he rolled over, his face reddening in embarrassment as he realized that everyone had witnessed his defeat. When Kiba made an effort to help him, Kankuro pulled himself free of his fellow brunette's grip, shaking his head stubbornly.

Stretching himself out on the floor, Kankuro slowed his breathing and closed his eyes. His body went lax as he breathed slowly in and out, his facial features smoothing out as he blocked the pain from his mind. He bent his arm at a ninety-degree angle, wincing in the process. He rotated the arm inward, pulling with his other arm to make an 'L' shape. A grimace crossed his face as he forced his arm away from his body, the upper portion of his arm remaining frozen in place. He sharply exhaled as eyes popped open.

Sakura watched with genuine interest as he relaxed his arm and tried again, biting his lip as he pushed the arm until it reached the floor. His chin jerked when it popped back into place and he let out a low, humorless laugh. He pull his arm back in toward his chest, and closed his eyes as he went back to resting.

Sakura grabbed two belts from her room, slapping his protesting hand away. She started to tie one to his wrist, starting to knot it when Kankuro snorted, "I have a sling. It'snot like I learned to pop it back in just now."

Sakura sighed, stepping back from him. "Sorry for bothering, then." She crossed her arms as he started back to his room then faltered.

"Err... Awe, well fuck. He won't fuck with it again." Kankuro moved to shrug, letting out a strangled gasp as his shoulder seared with pain. "I hope."

Naruto stared after Kankuro as he disappeared into their room. He sighed in confusion. "'Night." Wandering back to their room, he carefully opened the door, unsure of what to expect. None of them were. Sakura, Kallou, and Kai plopped down on the couch in unison, all hope of sleep gone.

"What the hell just happened?" whispered Kai, her voice low with disbelief.

"I think we've just been pranked..." moaned Sakura, closing her eyes.

Kallou rested her chin on her hands, sighing softly. "No, his arm was dislocated."

"Not that, stupid. The music," snarled Kai. Sakura groaned.

"Would you two just cut it out? We're sick of seeing you fighting! At least try to be nice, Kai!" Sakura's face was dark with anger, but she actually expected Kai to apologize. That was a poor assumption; these were people who hardly ever did as you expected them.

Kai flung the pillow she'd been cling to across the room, stomping over to the chair on the other side of the room. She promptly curled and went to sleep; at least, she pretended to do so, anyway. Sasuke ambled off to his room and Kiba dragged himself off to his own as well. Sakura let out a low scream of frustration, burying her face in the couch.

"Why does everyone have to make this so hard?" she asked Kallou, one of her only friends at the moment.

"Well, you sure as hell don't make it easy," laughed Kallou. She shook her hair out of her face with a soft smile. Sakura sighed, flopping back on the couch as Kallou stood up. "You going to bed or what?"

"Nah; can't sleep." Sakura shrugged against the cushions. "I needa think." Kallou nodded at Sakura's words and headed off to her room. Sakura stayed on the couch, spread across the corner seat, her arms rubbing delightfully against the soft, comfortable material.

'Why do we have such a nice couch? Do they know we sleep on the couch sometimes, or what?' Things didn't seem to add up here, but it didn't bother her too much. What did she care? People thought she was crazy. Her opinion had no eminence.


[.-_-.]


THE FEEL OF weight settling onto the couch stirred her from her sleep. Sakura looked up to see Kankuro painstakingly situating himself off the couch. "Why don't you sleep in your own room anymore, Kankuro?" Her eyes were closed again before he answered.

"I could ask you the same," he mused. "It's less of a hassle, and it's better company.

"Uhm, thanks, I guess..." Sakura cracked an eye open, wondering what he meant.

"I didn't mean you, " snorted Kankuro. He grinned rather sheepishly when she glared at him. She noticed the color creeping into his cheeps and was perplexed for a brief second. That was the most of a non-violent emotion she'd ever seen out of him.

She pushed the small revelation aside, and closed her eyes again. "Whatever..."

"Gaara's all pissed off because he can't fall asleep out here. I think he is jealous," chortled Kankuro. When he burst into giggles, Sakura looked up in obvious confusion, her thin pink brows knitting together.

"Are you mental?" Something was definitely not right with him, or her moronic question. Of course he was.

"Shi-Shikamaru gave me—" Kankuro's giggles escalated and he reddened further as his shoulders began to quake quite painfully under the force of his out-of-character giggles. "Oh! Pills! I asked—" Kankuro held his breath, trying to control his laughter. When the chuckles subsided, he breathed in and out slowly. "No idea what he gave me, but it's not too painful anymore."

"Ah-ha," Sakura said with a nod. She waited for him to stop giggling before continuing. "Why do you let your brother get the best of you?"

The question took him by surprise; his giggles ceased and he stared at her for a moment. "I—where the hell do you get off asking me that?"

"I saw you. You could've killed him. You're strong enough to do it." Sakura was enjoying this. She didn't know if she was gathering information or just rubbing it in his face that she knew something about him, but she could see why Gaara found it entertaining. "You held back."

Kankuro glared at her, then his resolve softened. "He's my little brother," he mumbled. " I can't hurt him."

"But he can hurt you! If I was you, I wouldn't—"

"Well you're not me!" snapped Kankuro, his eyes hardening over again in the blink of an eye. The glare he fixed her with now frightened her more than the one he'd given her in the library. It was then that Sakura realized she'd not been using her better judgment in playing games with him—even if he was flying on pain medication. He probably knew any game she could think to play; Gaara was his brother after all.

"You have no idea what we've been through together. If you were me, you'd wish you'd never been born. Where do you get off trying to get into my head when I'm fucking high, little girl?" Kankuro growled as he rolled off the couch. "You'd better watch yourself, Sakura—"the way he said her name was so cruel and mocking it sent shivers down her spine. "Because so help me God, I will rip that pretty little face right off your skull and feed it to the birds."

She could hear him mutter the words 'stupid bitch' as he stomped back to his room, even though he wasn't overly loud with his swearing.

"Silly little girl; do you enjoy putting your foot in your mouth?" Sakura jolted at the sound of Gaara's voice. She rolled over, only to be startled by his close proximity.

Sakura smirked in irritation. "Do you enjoy being a royal prick? Because it seems to me you revel a bit too much in your assholity." Sakura had borrowed Kai's word, but the other girl would never know. It was for a good cause.

"Yes, actually, it's been my hobby for as long as I can remember," he hissed. His snide tone mocked her, his eyes narrowing victoriously as he saw the anger swelling within her.

Gaara practically threw himself down on the couch next to her, knowing full-well that there was the other whole other side of the couch available for him to sit on. "It's your own fault. You know that."

"Huh? What was my fault?!" Sakura crossed her arms angrily, fixing him with the stubborn glare she'd spent so long working on. It was still childish and ineffective, doing little to convey her demands of an answer. She was still scared of him, despite her curiosity.

"Kankuro's arm." Gaara smirked at her indignant expression. He was a little surprised by her calm response.

"Pray tell; how is that my fault?"

"If you hadn't provoked me, I wouldn't have been so intent on choking the life of you. Henceforth, Kankuro's arm would've been fine," he purred. Sakura was so deathly sick of that stupid smirk.

"Look, pal¸ I don't know what sort of warped logic you've got going on for you, but you hurt your brother, not me. You've not even got the decency to apologize to him. I'm not the one who hurt him, and I'm not about to take responsibility for you fucking up." Sakura stubbornly turned away from him, suddenly interested in television.

The little hairs on the back of her neck stood up when Gaara leaned closer. She stiffened when she felt his hot breath in her ear, "You're playing with fire, girl. You'd better be ready to get burned."

His hand was hot on the back of her neck, the rough pressure both exhilarating and terrifying at the same time. She turned herself to look at him, noticing just how startlingly close his face was to hers.

She didn't know what she'd expected, but whatever had been expected never happened. He calmly sat back to watch TV, snickering at the trailer for a horror movie. Sakura rolled her eyes as she turned back to the screen, almost immediately feeling his eyes on her again. She couldn't tell if she felt uncomfortable or empowered.


[.-_-.]


"FLU SHOTS, EVERYONE," announced Shizune, Tsunade's assistant. Her dark hair denied her bright, bubbly personality. Gaara found it simply repulsive for someone to be so chipper at this hour of the day.

Despite the few moans and groans, the group was relatively unmoved by the prospect of being stabbed with needles in order to attain their immunizations. There were a few other people in the room, each of the uniformly normal looking.

"Alright, I want the wings to stick together. We're going to take the wings one at time, just to speed things up," explained Shizune, pushing the South Wing gang into exam room four, locking the door behind them as she went to get her materials.

Gaara plopped down into one of the chairs, his brother doing the same, though he kept his arm clamped to his side as he did so. Naruto and Kai, naturally, hopped onto the exam table while Kiba chose to sit on the edge of it. Sasuke leaned coolly against the wall, smirking at Sakura and Kallou. They had nowhere to sit or lean.

Sakura snorted in indignation, but quickly smiled when Naruto and Kai hopped off the exam table. "Why thank you!"

Sakura plopped down in Kai's seat, knowing that she would take it as a personal offence if Kallou sat there. Shizune walked in then, the little basket of needles held carefully in her hand. Two burly-looking men accompanied her; they were there to ensure that everyone took their shots like gentle-ladies and gentleman.

"First up... Uchiha, Sasuke." Shizune looked up expectantly as Sasuke stepped forward, dutifully rolling up his sleeve. Naruto blushed slightly at the curl of the bicep, halting himself from licking his lips. He wasn't completely over the line of his own sexuality, or if he was a borderline; a bisexual. He couldn't be sure. But he didn't mind so much. He'd find someone for certain this way.

Sasuke's facial expression didn't register any changes as the needle passed beneath his skin, though his jaw muscles constricted slightly. "All-righty! You're good to go," Shizune said with a dazzling smile. Sasuke averted his eyes as she smoothed a Sponge-bob band-aid over the small break in his skin. Sasuke rolled his eyes at the cartoon, jerking his sleeve down. "Uzumaki, Naruto."

Naruto stepped forward, his face dark with anticipation. He hated needles. He winced when Shizune administered the shot, rubbing his shoulder as she soon as the needle was removed from his arm. He smiled when he received his band aid—it was colorful, much to his liking—and pulled down his sleeve.

"Sabaku Gaara?" Gaara didn't move from his seat, instead opting to pull off his shirt from where he sat. Naruto stared a second before pulling his eyes away when Gaara shot him a glare so strong Naruto thought his heart might stop. For someone so vastly underweight, Gaara had a good bit of musculature.

Gaara's gaze lazily consumed the room, the corners of his mouth twitching up when Kai caught him staring at her. She was going to get him back for trashing her room. She'd screamed this morning when she went in there to change out of her pajamas.

The needle slipped past the barrier of his skin, but his face didn't recognize pain—if he'd even felt any. He glanced around the room coolly, his gaze falling upon Sakura. He glared slightly, t he expression of surprise on Sakura's face equating to something along the line of priceless. The needle slipped out again. The band-aid placed over the only mark of this exchange bore Spongebob, flashing a thumbs-up to Patrick, who stared stupidly out of the rubbery material.

"Haruno Sakura..." sighed Shizune, waiting for Sakura to pull off her jacket. She offered a small smile when Sakura bared her skin, waiting for the shot. Sakura returned the smile with an even smaller, less enthusiastic one of her own. Closing her eyes as they sprayed the numbing solution, Sakura squeezed them tight when the needle passed through her skin. She heard a snicker, but when she opened her eyes everyone was silent. She suspected Gaara had been the noise she'd heard. She rolled her eyes, something she knew she did a lot, and then grimaced as the needle was pulled out of her flesh. It had hurt more coming out than it had going in. She didn't look at her band-aid, instead opting to quickly yank her jacket back on. A dull throb pulsed outward from her shoulder, coinciding perfectly with the beat of her heart.

"Inuzuka Kiba." His shot went quickly. He'd already rolled his sleeve up; he was very reserved about his discomfort, if there was any at all. He chatted idly with Kallou while he got his shot, telling her that it wasn't so bad and she didn't have to worry. He didn't know it wasn't the pain she was worried about.

"Nara Shikamaru," announced Shizune. Shikamaru sighed as he lazily pulled up his sleeve, a lazy smile stretching across face at the sting of the needle. It wasn't his style of getting high, but using needles was quicker than pills. He closed his eyes as the band-aid was placed and let himself drift back to sleep. He wasn't always this tired, but being around these morons sapped him of his strength, or the will to have any.

"Sabaku Kankuro." Why did they always forget the 'no?' Kankuro grumbled something about his arm and Shizune wordlessly slipped the sleeve up and applied the numbing solution. He blinked rapidly a few times when the shot was inserted. He was sick as he reminded himself of what he'd dreaded as a child. He blanched at the thought and Shizune raised a well-sculpted brow. "Are you all right?"

Kankuro nodded, angry that he looked weak in front of them. Shizune sighed, moving on with the list. "Very well. Otokogi Kai." A few people raised their brows at her last name, causing Kai to redden in embarrassment. It meant something along the lines of being courageous, and chivalrous, but she was definitely not courageous so much as stupid when it came to giving up with certain things.

She rolled up sleeve, ducking her head. She giggled slightly when the needle broke the skin. After she received her band-aid, she skipped over to Naruto so they could compare.

"Ketsueki Kallou."

Kallou nervously pulled up her sleeve, blocking out the surprised reactions of her roommates. Scars circled and crisscrossed over her upper arms, some startlingly white while others were dark and purpled with age. She didn't wince at all as the needle was slipped in, her face somewhat peaceful as Shizune pulled it out. Shizune did her best to pretend not to notice the abundance of scarring.

"That should do it!" chirped Shizune, her face radiant. Sakura longed to slap that silly smile off of her face, though she couldn't place the reason for her sudden hostility. "We have another group, so you all need to head off to the library, okay?"

Kai whooped, and Sakura smirked. It was about time they went back there.

Shizune opened the door, letting them out of the small room; they hastily obliged, filing out as quickly as they could. Sakura moved around Gaara who was moving purposefully slow, and then started to race with Naruto and Kai. They giggled as they ran, elbowing each other in their efforts to surpass one another.

"Oof!" "AH!" "What the fuck!" They all toppled to the floor when they careened into a barrier that hadn't been there a few moments before. They looked up to see a tall man with tattoos covering his skin. His skin looked to have taken on a permanent, smoky haze.

"Watch it, runts." His voice was low and gravely. Naruto, from this angle, could easily see the unnatural points to the man's teeth.

"I beg your pardon?" spat Sakura, her polite phrase dripping with derision. "You stepped in front of us, dumb shit."

"Ah, but you ran into me," countered the taller man. He smiled sardonically, baring his fang-like teeth.

"How tall are you?" inquired Naruto, helping Kai up.

"Six-foot-three, short shit," the taller man smirked, proud of his impressive stature.

"Ah, I didn't know they stacked shit that high," Naruto said loudly, his conversational tone only adding insult to injury.

"Oh, no!" he mocked, his voice taking on a creepy tone. "Them's fightin' words! You'd better watch it, shorty." He tucked a hand under Kai's chin, lifting her gaze. "Don't want to trip and fall again, do we, hmm?"

He yanked on her hair, before she could even protest and then smiled as Naruto and a few others stepped forward. Their menacing factors kicking in perfectly. No one picked on their own but them. That was a right reserved specifically to them. No one else.

"Aw, lookie. The little boys are coming after their bitches. So which one of you is the queer?" All of the boys—who consisted of the brothers and Sasuke—either snorted in irritation, or crossed their arms over their chests. None of them would admit that—Kankuro had no idea, and Gaara wouldn't admit he knew a gay man and was sort of... friends with him. Sasuke reserved the right to not out himself unless it was necessary.

The bizarre, blue-skinned man gave Kai's hair another tug, only letting go when Sasuke stepped forward, a snarl on his lips. The man stayed his ground, challenging them to take another step forward. Kankuro and Gaara closed in on him immediately, though Sasuke was the one to pull the girls away from him. He backed away, raising his hands as he offered up a wide, sinister smile in return. "All right, you got me. I'll see you all in class."

"What?" Sakura's head snapped up as she glared at him. Kai massaged her head where her hair had been jerked, mystified by how calm and collected Naruto appeared.

"You'll see!" He chirped in a strange sing-song voice. He stomped away from them to go get his shot.

As they walked to the library, Kai walked along side Kankuro. "Thanks for saving our asses back there... That creep was huge!"

Kankuro fixed with an utterly bored look, but she beamed at him anyway. "I couldn't let him make fun of you." Kai's smile widened. "That's my job." Kai smacked herself in the face, walking with her head in her hands.

"Ass monkey..."

"Wh—Did you just call me an... ass monkey?" asked Kankuro, stifling his giggles. It still hurt too much to laugh.

"Yes; would you prefer douche nozzle?" She asked innocently. When he giggled and shook his head 'no,' she nodded in satisfaction. "Good. I think I found my new pet name for you. I might call you monk for short."

He knew she was joking and had no intention of calling him that, but laughing felt kind of good. Unless you were laughing at Gaara or Sasuke. Why? Because they'd beat the living shit out of you. Maybe that's a lie. Yes, I suppose it is. Because they'd kill you. Short and simply put.

Author's Note- Had to end this somewhere! :D So do you like it? I know there isn't much of Kiba and Kallou, or Kankuro and Kai, and but you voted for mostly A- Gaasaku! DUH! It's the main theme! lol. :) So do you like?

Now... Can you guess who the big scary guy is? Go on! Guess! I'll tell if your right or wrong! :D

Also... no options for this chapter. Okay... I'll give you two!

A-Their first class is with Kakashi.

B- Their first class is with Orochimaru

C- FREE REQUEST! Tell me what you want to happen. :)

P.s. When do you want the lemons to come into play? I've worked on it a little bit... and I've got someone to help me! :D SasuSaku-kun! :D

Reviews are sex- jk, but review please! :)

Lauren.