Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. This is for entertainment purposes only.
It was morning, and the house was quiet. There was no Tobi skipping down the hallways, there was no chatter echoing throughout the rooms. Silence reigned, and all was peaceful. But not for long.
Hidan had woken up.
Now, Hidan was not an early bird by any stretch of the imagination, but the medication Sakura had allowed him the night before had worn off and he could feel the annoying, itchy pain of the stitches along his side. At first, the Jashinist had tried to fall back into slumber, but as he could no longer stand the taste of his own mouth, that was no longer an option. So, grumbling to himself, he slid out of bed with the mission of fetching a glass of water.
Deidara, curled up on an air mattress, mumbled before turning over and continuing his snoozing as Hidan snuck by. The silver haired man gave him the finger (because Deidara's baby blue sleep mask looked fucking stupid) and stepped over the blonde's form, deciding that it would probably be best not to wake his fellow members, and more importantly, the girls they lived with.
As the man walked stealthily towards the kitchen, he couldn't help but peek into the rooms he walked by. Call it his curious side kicking in, but damn if he didn't enjoy catching people off guard. At first, all seemed normal. Kakuzu and TenTen were fast asleep, the latter twitching occasionally as she dreamed while the former impersonated a corpse, not moving at all during the night. The second room was Hinata's and Kisame's. Their door was closed, but Hidan opened it anyway, wincing as the hinges squeaked. Luckily, the minute noise did not disturb the two lovers, who were tangled up in Hinata's sheets. Hidan smirked at the scene; although he was slightly jealous of Kisame's good fortune, Hidan had a strong preference for blondes with an attitude, and he inwardly congratulated himself for managing to secure Temari's favor. He wasn't looking for a relationship per say, but a good roll in the sheets was always welcome. Closing the door again, Hidan continued his path and walked right by Ino's and Sasori's room, being sure to take a quick glance inside.
And nearly had an aneurysm right then and there. What. The. Fuck.
The redhead and the blonde were cozied up on the bed, sound asleep. Sasori's face was serene, and Hidan swore the edges of Ino's lips were lifted in an unconscious smile. "This cannot be actually happening," the silver haired man muttered. "That puppet loving freak has no chance with the blonde bitch." Comforting himself with the fact no clothes were missing from either person, he concluded that there was a perfectly reasonable explanation for the strange occurrence. Then he got to Sakura's room and again treated himself to a peek within.
Shocked and disturbed, Hidan turned and ran up the stairs, ignoring the itch in his side. Itachi was in a bed with a female, and that could only mean one thing. Mustering his courage, Hidan began to mentally review the procedure for an exorcism.
XXX
TenTen was usually terrible at keeping New Year's resolutions. First, she had vowed to lay off the sweets, but a box of chocolate covered strawberries hidden in the fridge spoke of her sins. Then, it was to stop visiting thrift shops and buying old weaponry. However, keeping herself from all things sharp and shiny had proved futile. Finally, it was to exercise even more. Now, since TenTen classified "exercise" as anything that got one's heart rate up, she would be able to say she had indeed kept her resolution.
Because waking up to the shrill scream of a fire alarm was a great way to kickstart your day.
"What the fuck!?" she growled, more than a little irritated. Kakuzu was out of bed in a second, quickly throwing off his sheets and leaping upright.
"TOBI DOESN'T WANT TO DIE! HE'S A GOOD BOY!" The masked man ran past the door, crying for Deidara to hurry up. The blonde followed close behind, sleep mask on his forehead and long hair in disarray. Kisame had his arm around Hinata and was guiding her along, a worried expression on his face.
"Come on." The tattooed man grunted at her, jerking his head in the direction of the door.
TenTen was flabbergasted. Kakuzu was appearing to give a shit about something. Too shocked to reply, the brunette wordlessly followed him down the hallway, the smell of smoke lingering in her nostrils. The funny thing was, this smoke had a really funny scent. Rosemary? TenTen thought. Then it hit her, and she turned to Kakuzu, motioning for him to follow her. The man gave her a long stare but trailed after her anyway, curious as to what on earth his roommate had realized.
They found the source of the smoke in the kitchen, as she had expected. "Do you want to kill him or shall I?" The brunette asked Kakuzu. She needn't have bothered though, as Sakura had just come into the area and spotted the culprit.
"WHAT THE HELL?!"
Hidan was seated in the middle of the kitchen floor, the contents of Ino's spice drawer spilled out in front of him, slowly burning to a crisp. A jar of tomato sauce was in use as the Jashinist drew several designs on the floor, mumbling to himself. As Sakura charged him, Hidan leapt up, holding out his pendant in the hopes of warding her off.
"Back, demon! In the name of Jashin, I command it!" he yelled.
"May I ask what's going on?" Itachi said, sauntering into the room. "I turned off the alarm."
"IT WALKS! Foul spirit, I command you to name yourself!" Hidan continued. Itachi just looked at him blankly, and Sakura finally gave in to her violent impulses and slapped Hidan in the face, hard.
Hidan sat down suddenly, face solemn. "You should not be able to touch my body. How is it, demoness, that you can do this?"
"What the fucking hell are you talking about?!" Sakura hissed. Hidan looked around the room and was greeted by Itachi's raised eyebrows and Kakuzu's flat expression.
"I'm trying to help, they're possessed, Kakuzu. Help me exorcise the devils within!" Hidan contended, pointing at Sakura and Itachi.
"Well, you're being unusually stupid." Kakuzu said evenly. "TenTen, go tell the others everything is fine." TenTen's eyes flashed at the command but she did as requested, sneering at Hidan's defeated expression.
"They were in the same bed together! Clearly a nefarious demon is at work." Sakura flushed, and Itachi crossed his arms, frowning.
"Is it really so unbelievable that I may occasionally enjoy physical touch?" The raven asked, sounding vulnerable. Sakura patted his arm consolingly.
Kakuzu merely shook his head, moderately surprised but concealing it perfectly. Count on his partner to make a huge deal out of something that, while admittedly startling, hardly bordered on "emergency exorcism needs to be carried out." He had seen this kind of shit from his partner before, and it was still really fucking irritating.
"Hidan." The Jashinist looked up, and Kakuzu stared him down. "You will clean everything up, and you will apologize. No one is possessed."
"So you're not possessed?" Hidan asked Itachi and Sakura. Kakuzu suppressed the instinct to kill. He had literally just said they were not possessed.
"Nope." Sakura replied smartly. Hidan was certainly not the brightest crayon in the box. Itachi just hnn'd, looking vaguely upset.
At last Hidan walked glumly outside to apologize, and Kakuzu took a deep breath. Anger management was really working. Then another strong impulse to destroy something shot through him. So he still needed some work.
"Did that seriously happen?" Sakura asked him, once the tattooed man had gotten his temper under control.
Kakuzu sighed, defeated. "It's happened more than I'd like to admit."
As he finished his sentence, TenTen skipped happily into the room, followed by the rest of the gang. "I knew you could say more than two words in the morning!" she crowed, laughing at Kakuzu's sullen expression.
Hidan had commenced sweeping the piles of burnt herbs into one heap when a sharp cough caused him to look up, startled. Realizing who it was, the Jashinist guiltily met Ino's furious gaze, and mentally began to pray his balls would stay attached.
XXX
After having set Hidan at scrubbing the house, Ino felt immediately better about the whole exorcism thing. Although the place still smelled faintly of Italian herbs, the burn mark on the floor was barely noticeable and the tomato sauce had come out nicely. Soon, the air would carry a citrus tinge and Hidan would be too tired to cause any more trouble. Of course she would allow him time to gather strength for the lap dances he would be performing tonight. Sakura had examined his wound and determined that as long as he was careful he would be fine, and thank goodness too, because they were already going to be out one person. That person just didn't know it yet. And that was why she was waiting patiently outside the bathroom, ready to confront a certain redhead.
The door opened, releasing a billow of steam into her bedroom. Ino's was the only attached bath, but she had graciously allowed Sasori full access. Said member was soon revealed, one towel wrapped around his slim hips and another being used to dry his hair. Ino swallowed, trying not to watch the way his biceps flexed as the man dried himself.
"I grow tired of this scenario." Sasori sighed.
Ino suppressed the urge to blush. "Well, we've got some business to take care of and I didn't want to wait."
The redhead smirked, noticing the faint tinge of color in Ino's cheeks. "At least you don't procrastinate. What do you want?"
"You're not going to be able to perform tonight."
"What?" Sasori frowned. "I'm fine, and it's my turn." Like it or not, a certain rivalry had sprung up between the members in their little venture. It was only a matter of time before they started keeping track of the earnings made and lap dances given. Damn if he wasn't going to dance tonight.
"Have you seen your back? I can't let you wander around shirtless when you look like an eggplant has been grafted under your skin."
Sasori started to speak, but was interrupted by Sakura barging into the room, a furious look gracing her features. "Dumbass can't perform tonight. Idiot went and tore out some of his stitches vacuuming!"
"Why am I not surprised?" Ino groaned, trying not to scream. "I don't care what you have to do, but if anyone injures themselves again, I'm going to kill them. Slowly."
Sakura nodded, then turned to glare at Sasori. "Ice on that back every two hours, ginger. Or else."
Sasori was about to retort that "Ginger" was not an okay nickname, but the pinkette had already gone. Fridays were huge nights at the club, and there was a lot to get done.
"I will be performing tonight, then." Sasori stated.
"No, you will not be." Ino gave a very fake smile. "Pein will have my ass if I get one of you guys in the hospital."
"How do you know him anyway?"
"Konan and I were sorority sisters, actually."
"What degree?" Sasori was not, as a rule, talkative, but he had not known Ino had any sort of higher level education.
"None. After my father died, I had to come back and take care of my younger brothers. But anyway," Ino continued "you can't perform. Not sure what to do now, missing two members isn't too great for Friday night business…"
"Surely you have connections, just think about it. You're wasting my time."
Ino turned to look at him, then eyed his red hair and smiled. Pulling out her cell phone, she quickly dialed Temari's number.
"Hello?"
"It's Ino. Is your younger brother interested in a little cash? You were telling me he was taking a break from the movie industry not too long ago."
"Yeah, actually. Let me get him."
During the lull, Ino turned to a bemused Sasori and winked. You're pretty alright, Ginger.
XXX
"Ugh." Sakura muttered to herself as she washed her hands. "I am so fucking done with people getting hurt around here." The pinkette looked up, examining herself in the mirror, somewhat pleased. Although her work involved rather high energy activities, she had always been a faithful gym goer and that was not about to change. Plus, she needed to relieve the stress caused by the exorcism incident and a quick run, stretching, and some weights would do wonders for her.
Donning a black sports bra and some athletic shorts, she grabbed a water bottle and headed to the basement, ready to work up a sweat. She shortly arrived at the bottom of the stairs and made for the treadmill, but not before carefully stretching her legs and sides.
It was in the first part of her third mile that she heard the singing. It sounded like "I'm A Little Teapot" but Sakura couldn't be sure.
"Shut up, Tobi, yeah!" Ah hah. Sakura thought. It is "I'm A Little Teapot."
Deidara slouched into the room, giving Sakura a long, defeated look. "I'm sorry, yeah. He insisted."
Sakura just shrugged, too focused on her running to speak. However, after about thirty more minutes of exerting herself, her focus was drawn to Tobi, who seemed to shed his usual clumsiness, moving around the weights and equipment with the practiced ease of a long time gym junkie. And he was able to lift a surprising amount. To her surprise, Sakura found herself subtly checking out Tobi's defined biceps and forearms. It was nearly ludicrous to find the childlike man attractive, considering he had the mentality of a six year old, but his body was, well, really nice.
A groan snatched Sakura's attention away from Tobi to focus on a red-faced Deidara, who was struggling to lift a dumbbell. Sakura laughed to herself. She was small, but strong, and had a secret feminist side. Not as prominent as TenTen's, but still prominent enough to warrant her intervention.
"You, know, Deidara," Sakura said, getting off the treadmill "it's a lot easier if you do it this way…"
Deidara moved, giving her a look that said Like eff you're gonna lift that, yeah. His jaw soon dropped as the woman proceeded to do six reps.
"See?" Sakura smiled, looking pleased with herself.
"Wow! Deidara, the pretty girl is really strong! You must be a super hero!" Tobi squealed, skipping over to the two. He shook her hand enthusiastically. "It's so nice to know you!"
Deidara's face went from pink to red. "Shut up, Tobi, yeah."
Sakura just laughed. "If you change you're technique a bit, I'm sure you'll be able to lift even more." She poked him hard in the abs. "I can tell."
The blonde smirked, his embarrassment forgotten. "I'll do that, yeah. I'd stay, but I told TenTen I'd go shopping with her so if someone complained about the food this week they'd bitch at me, yeah."
Has it really been that long? She checked the time and sure enough, forty minutes had passed.
After Deidara had left, Sakura commenced with the second part of her workout, dragging out a yoga mat and proceeding to work her core. This was probably the trickiest part of her routine, because the men didn't like rock-hard tummies. It was a fine line between a too toned stomach and just the right amount of firmness.
"If you want to learn a great new exercise for that, Sakura, Tobi can show you one." The masked man sauntered over, having removed his shirt to reveal nicely defined abs and…a nipple piercing? Sakura raised an eyebrow, intrigued. His voice was darker now, smoother. It sent a shiver down her spine. Fuck me sideways! Inner chimed. Tobi has a sexy bedroom voice! Shut up! I thought I was rid of you long ago.
"Uh…sure, Tobi."
"It's not too bad." He motioned for Sakura to lie on her back and she obliged, struggling not to say anything as Tobi took hold of her lower thighs and proceeded to show her a new variation of the classic bicycle. After about thirty seconds of doing the exercise, Sakura's core was screaming and she lay panting, but smiling.
"Thanks. Where the hell did you learn that?" Sakura asked, gathering her iPod and water bottle. She still had to prep for the show tonight.
She jumped when Tobi snuck up behind her, grabbing her petite waist and whispering huskily in her ear. "Tobi knows many things he'd like to show Sakura."
"Um, yeah, ok…" Sakura mumbled, rushing up the stairs. That was really fucking weird. Taking a quick glance at the time, the pinkette realized she was running late. Ah shit. I'll let Ino know later.
However, due to the time crunch, the incident would remain with her.
XXX
The doorbell rang promptly at nine o' clock, and Hidan, having been banished from participating in the pre-stripping rituals, was the one who answered.
Standing in the doorway was a redheaded guy who would look a lot like Sasori if it wasn't for his clear jade eyes and the scarlet tattoo on his forehead.
"Who the hell are you?" Hidan asked, trying to be polite.
"Ino asked for me."
"INO! SOME DUDE IS AT THE DOOR!" Hidan yelled up the stairs.
"IS IT GAARA?" The blonde screamed back.
"WHO THE FUCK IS GAARA?"
"HE HAS A TATTOO ON HIS FOREHEAD!"
"YES, IT'S HIM!"
"LET HIM IN THEN!"
"FINE!" Hidan stepped to the side. "'Sup dude?"
Gaara just gave the silver haired man an exasperated glare as he stepped inside, pulling off his jacket to reveal a grey tank top and a chiseled physique. "Who's the idiot that got himself injured?"
Hidan crossed his arms. "I was fucking stabbed, buddy. The other guy got kicked in the back fighting a dude four times his size. We're not pussies here."
"Did I say that?" Gaara said flatly. "Haven't been here in a while."
"You used to work here or something?"
"Yeah, Naruto Uzumaki got me out of the Suna gang and hooked me up with a job here. Temari is my sister."
"You're sister is one hot bitch."
"Say that again and there will be a problem." Gaara snarled.
"It was just a compliment, like seriously…"
"Gaara! It's been so long!" Sakura had just come down the stairs, wearing nothing a red two piece, and engulfed the redhead in a hug, which he returned awkwardly. "How are you? How's the movie business?"
"Well, I'm taking a break for a bit."
"Whoa, you make movies, yeah?" Deidara had just come down the stairs, blonde hair looking freshly washed and dried.
"Yeah, and star in them too." Gaara replied, turning to face the blonde fully. Then, a flicker of recognition flashed across his face.
"Wait, I fucking know you! You bastard, yeah!" Deidara growled, attempting to sucker punch the redhead.
"What the fuck!?" Sakura yelled, trying to hold Deidara back. Luckily, Itachi had heard the commotion and come the the rescue, restraining the blonde while Gaara recovered his composure.
"Do you two know each other?" Itachi asked mildly, unruffled despite having stopped Deidara from punching someone while dressed in a silver thong.
"The jerk tried to kill me yeah! Almost cut off my arm with a fucking machete! That's how I got these, yeah!" Deidara said vehemently, pointing at two deep scars on his right arm.
"I briefly died because of you!" Gaara shot back, obviously pissed. "I'm going."
"Please don't." Sakura asked. "We really need you. Can't you guys just kiss and make up?"
"I don't think a heart-to-heart is going to solve this." Kisame interjected, coming down the stairs. "However, I will remind Deidara that Leader will not be pleased at your conduct." The blue-skinned man turned to Gaara. "I don't know you, but I'm hoping you'll stick to your word and help us out."
The redhead sighed. "I suppose I will."
"What kind of movies do you make anyway?"
Gaara gave a devilish smirk. "Have you seen Great Sexpections?"
XXX
It was midnight, and Deidara stood behind the black curtains, trying to calm his nerves. The girls had finished with their part of the entertainment, and the vast majority of the crowd was composed of women looking for a great night out. He was still itching to pick a fight with the composed redhead, but since Sasori and Hidan couldn't perform tonight, it was necessary to have an extra entertainer in the wings. He took a deep breath. He was prepared. He was sexy. This would be a cinch.
"Nervous?"
"What do you want, yeah?" Deidara sighed, turning to a perfectly unfazed Gaara, who shrugged. Deidara adjusted his outfit and resumed innerly preparing himself, until Temari's sultry voice sounded over the speakers. It's show time. Deidara shot a last glare at the stoic redhead. If I can't punch ya, I'll make sure the ladies are thinking of me while watching you, yeah.
"Ladies, we at Yamanaka's De-Flowering Shop welcome you. We have a little blend of both new and old tonight, and it is my pleasure to introduce…Deidara!"
*Yeah yeah yeah, yeah yeah yeah*
Deidara swaggered out onto the stage, being sure to add a bit of swing to his hips, accentuating their leanness. He smirked at the cheering women and hit the floor, grinding against it and moving himself forward to get closer the the crowd.
*Up in the club with my homies Trying to get a little VI/ keep it down on the low key*
He sat up on his heels and swiveled his torso the the beat, his clingy black shirt leaving little to the imagination, for the garment outlined every taut muscle in his torso. He allowed a few women to slip their hands underneath it to caress said muscles, but soon he rose to his feet, executing some fancy footwork and a well timed body roll. From the sound, Deidara knew he had pulled it off quite nicely and smiled to himself, looking coyly at the ladies down below him.
*Conversation got heavy, she had me feelin' like she's ready to blow! (Watch out!)*
Twerking briefly at the beat drop, Deidara jumped and landed softly, swiveling his hips. A shower of bills greeted this, and the blonde couldn't wait to see the look on Kakuzu's face. Grinning, he went down the the stage, thrusting smoothly against the catwalk. He twerked his hips erotically, causing several women to squeal and flush.
*Yeah (yeah), her and my girl used to be the best of homies Yeah (yeah), next thing I knew she was all up on me screaming*
The shirt was at last removed, exposing a perfect six-pack and a v-line worth envying. The women went wild, showering money upon the stage. Deidara ground against the stage in sync with the lyrics, allowing bills to be stuffed deep into his pockets and tucked into the waistband, kept loose for that purpose.
*She asked for one more dance and I'm Like yeah, how the hell am I supposed to leave*
Swiftly, he rose again, moving his hips seductively and making sure to flex each ab in turn before grabbing his package and thrusting his lean hips, insinuating what he would love to do to every woman in the audience. He selected a brunette and pulled her onto the stage, her friends' cheering deafening in his ears.
*My outfit's ridiculous, in the club lookin' so conspicuous.*
Bending the woman over, he gently ground against her in small circles, letting the ladies get an eyeful of the jeans perfectly outlining the contours of his ass. The woman below him squealed in delight as he moved; to her, feeling his perfect musculature was just as good, if not better, than getting to see it.
*These women all on the prowl, if you hold the head steady I'm a milk the cow.*
Deidara, feeling a bit cocky, flipped the woman over and held her face to his groin. The girl blushed crimson, but stuffed a twenty into his pants. He smiled at her then, lifted her back down to the floor before falling against the catwalk again, twerking, swiveling, and raking in the dough.
*Yeah (yeah), next thing I knew she was all up on me screaming:Yeah, yeah, yeah! Yeah, yeah! Yeah!*
At last escaping the grabby hands of the assembled ladies, Deidara rewarded them with several perfect body rolls and a wink, feeling the weight and rustle of bills in his pockets. Kakuzu would be pleased.
"That wasn't bad, brat." Sasori greeted him as he walked down towards the changing room. The injured redhead had decided to make himself useful by doing some maintenance and repair work out of the way while Hidan acted as bouncer for the night.
"Sasori, my man! You should be out there, yeah."
A snort was heard from the other side of the lockers. "I can practically guarantee I will make more than any of you tonight." Gaara stepped out of the shadows, his jade eyes rimmed with black kohl and his red kanji tattoo stark against his pale skin.
"You may be quiet but you're also cocky." Sasori retorted. "We would be just fine on our own."
"Looks like our boys are feeling a bit hot under the collar, hmm?" Temari's voice floated down into the room and Gaara quickly moved back up to the stage, but not before tossing out one last jab.
"I'll show you what the ladies like. Don't forget who I am or what I do."
Deidara waited until he was out of earshot before remarking to Sasori. "He does look awfully a lot like you, yeah."
Sasori just shrugged. This wasn't his problem.
XXX
"Thanks for agreeing to help out."
"Must I make idle chatter with you?" Gaara replied, giving Sakura a stink-eye.
"No. I'm sorry that you and Deidara got off on the wrong foot."
Gaara merely sighed. "Before Naruto paid my way of that gang, I did some pretty bad things. Since he's not here to help out, I don't mind being a stand in."
"The long distance thing must be wearing on you, huh?"
"Well, he's already convinced me to star in one of his movies, so we both needed this. It's tolerable."
"And, for one night, and one night only, we have a special guest…Sabaku no Gaara!"
"Good luck!"
XXX
Itachi was curious about the redhead. He was…different. Aloof. Cold. The raven wondered how on earth someone like that could be a stripper. But then again, he was a stripper, so…? Curious, Itachi snuck into the back and decided to watch "Gaara" dance. He ought to be getting ready for his single number, but Itachi decided to indulge himself. He had already earned a substantial amount of cash giving lap dances.
*Show me the meaning of being lonely*
What a strange choice for a song. Usually, the entertainment was carried out in time to a thumping beat, but this was different. A bit sad. The spotlight switched on and Itachi's gaze was drawn to the redhead who was standing with his head down, clothed in a white collared shirt with a grey fedora on his head. The figure reached out towards the audience, and Gaara met the cheering ladies with a strange kind of look in his eyes, as if he wasn't really there but was just thinking about someone very far away.
*So many words for the broken heart*
Gaara put his hand over his chest and moved his shoulders from side to side, swaying fluidly with the music, reaching out again to touch a woman's hand then recoiling, moonwalking backwards as if struggling against a strong wind. Itachi felt his own heart lurch and put a hand to his chest. He was feeling…Nostalgic? This was lunacy.
*Walk with me, and maybe*
Now Gaara added a note of seduction to his dance, moving his hand under his shirt to expose defined abdominal muscles. The redhead was a bit of the thin side, but still built enough to be considered extremely attractive, judging from the cheers issued by the audience. His hips moved in small, slow circles, accentuating his v-line. Gaara did a perfect body roll, but it was a slow, sensual execution instead of the usual quick completion of the winning move.
*Your every wish will be done They tell me*
As the tempo sped up, Gaara quickly moved forward, ripping off his black tie and throwing it away dramatically before popping off the top few buttons of his shirt to expose his chiseled throat and delectable pectorals.
*Show me the meaning of being lonely*
Gaara now went down to the ground, rolling against the stage sensually, throwing back his head and closing his eyes. The moves were still not explicit nor sexual, they were just…emotional. The women reached out to touch the redhead, but he remained just beyond their reach, seeming even further away by the feeling clouding his gaze and showing on his face.
*Tell me why I can't be there where you are*
Rising to his feet, Gaara performed a flawless controlled fall, every muscle in his lean body flexing beautifully as he descended to the stage again. Parting his lips, the redhead ran a hand through his already tousled hair and pretended to beat his fist against the stage while slowly grinding into it, the very picture of a lover in agony without his other half. The ladies around cheered and sighed collectively, throwing bunches of money upon the stage as Gaara played their inner romantics.
*Guilty roads to an endless love (endless love)*
The redhead proceeded to crawl around the edge of the stage, allowing the ladies to slip more cash into his well fitted pants. He bent over, stretching out his deliciously toned chest and abs, but not quite baring it all yet. Hands reached out to touch him, but Gaara remained just out of reach, so tantalizingly close but still so far away.
*Your every wish will be done They tell me*
He left the edge of the catwalk and moved to the wall at the back of the stage, putting one hand on the wall and rolling his body carefully to give the crowd a nice view of his backside before turning around swiftly and strutting forward.
*Show me the meaning of being lonely*
The shirt was off now, and the women below were quick to make their appreciation known. Gaara smirked at the new cascade of bills but maintained a soft look on his handsome face, taking off the fedora and bowing to the crowd. Not quite done, he replaced his hat and once again went down the the stage, accomplishing another controlled fall and roll much to the crowd's delight.
*Tell me why I can't be there where you are*
Gaara once again stood, moonwalking towards the back of the stage while flexing his abs. At the culmination of the beat, the redhead tossed his hat into the crowd and bowed his head. The stage went black.
*There's something missing in my heart*
XXX
"Gaara, that was beautiful!" Sakura squealed. "I've never seen you dance like that before. You must really miss Naruto, huh?"
Gaara merely inclined his head, spotting a certain blonde looking at him. Deidara did not seem overly pleased, but did nod in his direction. In return, Gaara gave the Akatsuki member a brief salute, then turned to leave. His work here was done.
XXX
Outside, among the crowd, two men were standing, each lost in his own thoughts. One found himself, for once, un-captivated by the the carpet of bills littering the stage. The other couldn't help but remain still for a while, mulling over his thoughts. Then, he reached a decision. He would be performing something a little different tonight.
Author's Note: Well, I really hope that was enjoyable, because it's taken me way too long to get this out to you guys. Anyway, reviews are really, really appreciated. I would rather have a review than a chocolate chip cookie, and that is saying something. Thanks for sticking with me!
