XxX

XxX

Naruto stopped and pushed Sasuke away from him when he heard Temari yell something to Kankuro.

"Wait!" He pleaded when Sasuke grabbed him again. Sasuke ignored the plea and pulled him deeper into the dark hallway. Naruto's face was still red from crying earlier, but Sasuke's current affections were only making it redder. "S-Sasuke-kun," Naruto groaned.

Sasuke stopped pulling the blonde and turned to him with a slight smirk. Naruto froze. "Uh…"

"What did you call me?"

"Y-your name, stupid…" Naruto stated, looking away a bit.

Sasuke leaned toward Naruto. "Sasuke…kun, neh?" he teased.

Naruto went beet red and shoved away from the very tempting Sasuke. "Sh-shut up." He said with a shaky voice.

Sasuke was about to drag him into a secluded bedroom when a loud shrieking noise erupted throughout the house. Sasuke instantly crouched and pulled out a kunai, and Naruto pushed himself against a wall, peering down into the darkness, gripping a scroll.

"What's that noise?" he hissed to Sasuke.

Sasuke stayed silent as the shrieks continued. They sounded dead. Like they were coming from a bone-dry throat. "It's those zombie things!" he exclaimed.

"In the house?!" Naruto whispered quickly.

"Yeah, remember they were demanding for the Kazekage?"

"Gaara!" Naruto yelled before running into the darkness. Sasuke reached after him, but was grabbed from behind. He quickly bent over and brought his fore-arm against the back of their knees, causing a newly-pissed Kankuro to fall to the ground.

"Watch it!"

"Well then tell me who it is before you grab me while zombie's are screaming like a bunch of banshee's!" Sasuke yelled back.

Kankuro ignored the comment. "C'mon, there actually not in the house. It just sounds like it."

Sasuke silently followed Kankuro as he led him throughout the various dark halls of the house. They soon came across a room with double-doors. Kankuro knocked. "Gaara?"

Silence.

"I knew he wouldn't be here."

"But hasn't Sakura told him to stay in bed?"

"Yeah, but that was before Temari caught them making out in the hall."

Sasuke frowned and looked away. "So where are they?"

"In the kitchen," came Temari's voice from the side.

"Temari. How are things outside?" asked Kankuro.

"Bad, c'mon. Gaara and Sakura are waiting down in the kitchen with Naruto."

XxX

"How the hell did they get through?" demanded a very upset Gaara.

"Sir, they came from underground." Explained a very sweaty patrol-nin.

"Where are they now?"

"Everywhere, we got reports from civilians saying they came into their homes."

"Are they being taken care of?"

"Yes, sir."

"I want every other house to have one shinobi outside of it. Tell all the villagers to yell for help when they see one. All shinobi are to report to the center of the village in exactly 15 minutes. I want Baki here in 5. Send out a messenger hawk to the Leaf. Tell them about the attack. Kankuro!"

"Yes?"

"Help me to the tower. Sakura, I need you to go out and see who's been hurt. Sasuke and Naruto, I need you to go give me a estimate of how many are inside, and how many are coming by the minute. Temari?"

"Yes?"

"Go help kill some."

"Uhm, Gaara? Don't they need your help?" Temari asked.

"If they're hurting the villagers, they're getting killed. I don't want to hear anymore objections."

"Yes." Temari said before transporting away.

Gaara rubbed his temple before calling upon his sand to help himself to the tower. Kankuro stayed behind him to make sure nobody came too close. Sasuke and Naruto left rather quickly, so Sakura lingered by herself in the kitchen before disappearing into a vortex of pink pedals.

XxX

"Gaara?"

"What?"

"I think Dad might me among these things. He did die out there."

Kankuro stated, not hesitant about it at all.

"Maybe mom, too." That was hesitant.

"But mom died in the hospital, didn't she?"

"Yeah, but her body was tossed out here."

"What?!" Gaara stopped.

"Dad's orders," Kankuro said, stopping a few feet ahead of Gaara. "You know, a whole bunch of shit. The elders were afraid her body would be possessed."
"Possessed?"

" 'If you're killed by a demon for sacrifice, a part of lingers in your soul.' They were taking precautions." He said.

Gaara looked after Kankuro.

"I wasn't told."

Kankuro chuckled amongst the screeches. "I guess you weren't."

Gaara gave him a side-long glance. "Lets get going."

"You wouldn't mind if they're killed?"

"Kankuro, you can't kill the dead."

"But you told everyone-,"

"Yes, that was before I realized this."

"…Oh."

There was a small silence between them before Gaara moved his sand forward.

"Gaara?"

"Hn?"

"Are you in love with Sakura?"

Gaara stopped dead. But Kankuro kept moving. "What's the matter? Stunned silent?"

Gaara could practically hear the grin on his older brother's face.

"Che," he scoffed, glaring very heatedly at Kankuro. Kankuro laughed the rest of the way.

XxX

"Haruno-sama!"

"We have a broken artery!"

"He's bleeding badly!"

"She has no pulse!"

"Who's head does this belong too?"

"What?" Sakura asked to the last question screamed at her. She turned around to have a bloody head shoved in her face.

"Uh, that's one of the zombie's heads." She explained.

"…Oh." The head was tossed carelessly aside.

"I need about 16 more medic's here! Please call for more!" Sakura called out, looking up to see a messenger hawk returning from the Leaf. 'That was fast!' she thought to herself. 'Kaka-sensei and the other jounin will be here soon, then…'

"Haruno-sama, this little girl lost her hand." Someone said behind her.

Sakura turned around to see a girl, about 7 years old. She looked as if she was in shock. Sakura turned to the medic that brought her over.

"Where was she?"

"I found her in a corner. She looked like she was screaming, but no sound was coming out."

Sakura examined the blood-covered child. "Open your mouth."

The girl didn't move. Sakura pulled out a pair gloves and snapped them on. She stuck her fingers in her mouth and pried her teeth apart to see her throat. "It's swollen. While I work on her arm, get a lung tubes and anesthetics."

As Sakura began to clot the bleeding of what was left of the girls arm, she glanced up to see the Kazekage tower.

'I hope Gaara made it there safely.'

XxX

Naruto stood on a tall section of the wall, looking out onto the desert.

"Hey, stupid, the village is the other way." Sasuke said.

"I know!" Naruto exclaimed.

"Then what are you doing? You're supposed to be calculating the amount of dead things coming in."

"They're here, though."

"Who?" Sasuke turned. He had to squint to see an excessive amount of high-speed ninja's heading this way.

"The sun's starting to rise." Naruto stated, jumping off the wall into the village.

"Ahh," Sasuke agreed, following close after. "Go to the tower, Naruto. Tell Gaara from what I can see with Sharingan, 56 per minute. But Neji's coming, and his Byakugan is much more appropriate for such a task. I'm going to greet the other's at the gate."

With that, Sasuke leapt away, leaving Naruto to go to the tower by himself.

Sasuke raced through the street, slashing the heads off of zombies with his chokuto as he went. He passed Sakura, and glared at her.

'What was that for?' Sakura thought to herself, pouting a bit.

Sasuke kept going to the gate, and eventually ran into Hinata, which surprised him.

"Hinata," he said, catching her after nearly knocking her over.

"S-sasuke-kun! It's been a while…" she said, blushing.

"Are the other's here?"

"Um…not yet. I, uh, came earlier then them. Tsunade-sama's orders…" She said as confidently as she could. Something on her finger sparkled brightly in the desert sun caught his eye. He looked down, and saw an engagement ring. 'Oh, yes,' He thought to himself. Neji and her are to be wedded. 'To keep the bloodline pure.'

Sasuke knew that blood-relatives of the Hyuuga clan were to wed each other, arranged at birth. Neji and Hinata are cousins, so it would make sense.

"Here they come!" Hinata said, breaking his thoughts. He turned to see Kakashi, Gai, Anko, Asuma, Neji and other jounin come. He frowned.

"Why are you here, Hinata? Only jounin are coming."

"Well, I don't know," Hinata replied, looking a bit worried herself.

"Hinata!"

Hinata turned to see Neji running towards her. He caught up to her, with a look on his face. "What are you doing here? It's not very safe." He asked, grabbing her shoulders lightly.

"Tsunade-sama told me to come, and that Kazekage-sama has orders for me."

"I was going to go there, after I gathered everyone up." Sasuke said, looking over Neji's shoulder to see everyone standing there.

"Lets go," Sasuke said, jumping away.

XxX

"Kazekage-sama, the Leaf shinobi are here."

"So fast…good. Send them up when they get in."

"Hai!"

Gaara turned and looked out his window as he thought of what to do. He was still mad at himself for several things that happened today. Including fainting from exhaustion when he got to the tower. And waking up, dry-heaving. Getting caught making out with Sakura, telling his older sister to go kill the un-dead, practically admitting to being in love to his brother…Oh, yes…he felt absolutely brilliant. Gaara rested his head against the cool glass of his ridiculously small round window. He hoped Sakura was ok, and that her team hadn't been found and attacked. If she wouldn't find him and kill him with her frightening psychic powers(Gaara swore she had them), he would be out there helping. But Sakura told him not to over-do it. And going out there to defeat a bunch of zombies would be over-doing it.

"I need to do something," Gaara said, sighing. "I'm starting to sag."

Gaara touched the hop of his head, suddenly remembering the ears and tail he had. He felt two lumps.

"Well, at least they're going away." Said a familiar voice. Gaara looked up to see his step-brother, Shikamaru leaning in the doorway with his arms crossed.

"Where are the rest of the shinobi I requested?" Gaara inquired.

"They're coming down the hall now," Shikamaru responded, looking down the dark hall. Gaara's office was soon filled with Leaf Shinobi.

"It's hell out there," Someone from the back spoke. It was Anko.

"So, Gaara-sama. What are you thinking about doing?" Kakashi asked, stepping forward.

"Hinata Hyuuga?" Was all Gaara said. Hinata stumbled forward.

"Ha-Hai!"

Gaara stared at her for a bit, leaning on his desk. She shifted on her feet.

'Why the hell would Tsunade send a girl like this…?'

"You're Hokage sent you for your…" He looked down at the scroll. "…Byakugan. Neji, I believe, also has this?" he finished.

"Yes," Neji and Hinata replied in unison.

"Good. Naruto said Sasuke did mention this."

"I did." Sasuke said from the back. He was standing next to Naruto and Shikamaru.

Kakashi dismissed himself, and brought Naruto outside with him. "Anko? Tell me the plans when I come back."

"Ok,"

Kakashi closed the door behind him, and lightly put a hand on Naruto's shoulder. "Naruto, I'm sorry about Iruka."

Naruto stayed silent and looked away.

"I know what he was to you. Are you ok?"

"I'll be alright," Naruto said quietly.

"He left this for you," Kakashi handed him a thin scroll. "Read it later, ok?"

With that, Kakashi patted the boys head and went back into the room. Naruto slouched against the wall and lid to the ground. The door opened silently, exposing Gaara's voice and a bit of mumbling. The door closed, and Sasuke sat down next to Naruto.

"Everything alright?" he asked.

"I guess."

The two stayed silent for the remainder of the meeting, getting up and letting go of each other's hands when they heard Gaara dismissing everyone.

"Sasuke, Naruto. You guys can go back to the house. The sun's risen, and the Seekers are all gone for today. I'll call you guys again tomorrow morning." Gaara said as everyone filed out of his office.

"Kankuro? Could you go get Sakura? I need help getting back."

"Yeah, yeah. You don't want to faint again." Kankuro said, grinning.

XxX