Chapter Nine

"The Kazekage is a good match," Shino had said to her "I do not know him well personally but Naruto speaks highly of him."

Hinata had felt horrible for asking Gaara to return while she talked to her friend, mostly because she could tell that he had a good idea of what was going on. She had felt like a bad friend once again, potentially hurting someone who cared for her.

But she had needed to speak to him.

The two of them had ended up walking along the path leading to the bridge overlooking the river. For a while they had walked in companionable silence, enjoying each other's company for the moment. They held no real destination, just two friends walking along the streets of Konoha at night.

"From what I know if it h-he um, we had met when we were children a-and when he saw me he entered." Her voice was quiet, stutter evident due to her nervousness. He didn't comment on it, but she had known he wouldn't. Shino didn't complain, more than likely he saw complaint as a weakness. After all, this was the same man who had been infuriated when he had been unable to follow the others to track down the Uchiha so many years ago and had said absolutely nothing, even when it had been pointed out. Shino held an overwhelming amount of pride when it came to many things; he was just very quiet about it.

Hands in his pockets as usual, his gaze had flickered to her briefly before focusing ahead. "It is interesting that he would have known it was you after so many years." Her friend had sounded genuinely surprised and intrigued by the situation "You must have left a heavy impact on him."

Her pale pearl gaze had shifted to his face, but his gaze stayed towards the horizon "I-I don't think I could have…"

"You underestimate your effect on others." As always, his voice was calm and warm but there had been an unyielding conviction within. It had always been that way; no matter how often she had thought herself a failure and had wanted to give up, Shino would always tell her that she was much better than she believed and that he believed in her abilities. He had been the first as Kiba had taken a little longer to warm up to the shy heiress. He had never scolded Hinata for being down on herself, he would simply politely disagree with her and it had been enough.

Her face had flamed in embarrassment as they walked along the quiet streets. "I suppose I do."

Shino ended up stopping abruptly and she had turned to look up at him, a question in her eyes.

"Hinata," he began in his soft and low voice "I do not want you to feel sorry for me."

The Hyuuga had been floored. Hinata took a step back, her gaze wide with alarm. "I-I don't! I'd never…"

"And I do not want you to continue to feel guilty either." With a sigh he pulled a hand out of his pocket and cupped her cheek. "You will first and always be my friend, and it does not bring me joy to see my friend hurting herself like this."

She hadn't been able to help the tears "I just…"

"You think I'm in pain, but I am not." He had tilted his head at her when she blinked in confusion "I regret nothing. I had hoped you would find someone who would not hurt you and you have. As your friend, I am very happy for you, although I – as well as Kiba and Kurenai – will miss you terribly when you leave."

Quickly she had wiped at her face when his hand went back into his pocket, hating crying in front of the people she loved. Despite his words her gaze had still held worry and pain. "S-seeing me with G-"

"No." He'd answered, knowing what she had been about to ask "And no, my feelings for you have not changed, just as your feelings for Naruto never changed. You simply moved on, right?"

She had realized what he had been trying to say then and a small but sad smile had emerged on her pale features. Shino was strong, always had been and always would be. At the same time, Hinata worried and cared for her friends and that part of her simply wasn't going to change. "You w-will let me know-"

"Yes." There had even been a hint of amusement in his tone.

"O-okay."

For the two quiet shinobi, their exchange had been enough. Shino would not keep her from her new husband and Hinata hadn't wanted to keep him waiting when he had been so accepting of the situation. Hinata lifted a hand to say goodbye and he nodded once before he had turned to leave. After a few steps, however, he had stopped. "Hinata?"

Hinata had looked at his back with a curious expression."Y-yes?"

There had been a long pause before her long time friend had turned his head up slightly towards the sky. "You should…try to allow yourself to love again." With that he continued his slow trek back towards Kurenai's.

When he had walked away Hinata had thought over his words, because somewhere in there he had been telling her something else, something deeper but it had been lost on her. After a while she had given up, trying to work through the fog of confusion concerning his words would have to come another day.

Even though Shino had told her not to feel guilty, that he was fine and happy for her, she could not shake off the negative feelings. Shino is strong, much stronger than I am. She had kept reminding herself. Perhaps one day the guilt would fade but as of now it was still a raw wound deep in her heart.

She also felt guilty about Gaara, who had confirmed the fact that he knew there had been something between her and her ex-lover when she had returned to the room. He hadn't sounded angry or upset, but she felt that perhaps he had been a little guarded afterwards. Considering their strange…relationship – if one could call it that – it felt as if she had taken one step forward and two steps back. Of course, there was also the 'What do I want from this?' question which helped not at all.

It was very difficult for her to feel married when her husband kept her at a distance. Where had the passionate man that had frightened yet thrilled her in the beginning gone? When he had seen her he had been so intense and determined, now he was kind but distant and calm. Was it because he finally had her and so he was more relaxed now? Hinata had no real idea and a not so small part of her actually missed that intensity and determination from before.

The morning had started with a complimentary breakfast and then a visit to her home. For that Hinata had actually went alone, as Gaara had felt that he probably wouldn't be welcome. A correct assumption, as her father had been in a foul mood and at one point she had almost been certain that he was going to force her to stay. Her cousin had ended up leaving early for a mission and so Hinata had spent the majority of her time at home with her sister. She had promised Hanabi that she would write often and 'send lotsa pictures'.

"Do you think you could love him?" Hanabi had asked her at one point.

"Eh?" Blushing, she had turned away from her sister "I-I don't know. I don't think he wants that. He says he…just wants friendship."

Her sister had rolled her eyes "Then maybe he should stop looking at you like you're the only thing in his world."

Does he really look at me like that?

She met up with her husband for lunch with the Hokage and his fiancé. Hinata didn't even want to recall all of the insanity that had went on during that hour. At first Naruto had started off with congratulations and well wishes. Shortly after that, the awkward 'so you gonna do it' questions began topped off with 'well, how ya gonna have kids if ya don't?' when they somewhat hinted that intimacy wasn't really something they – or rather Gaara – wished to pursue from their relationship.

Sakura had ended up smacking him down every five minutes, which really made eating lunch awkward. There were a few times after they had mentioned it that the pink-haired woman had given Hinata a worried and almost sympathetic look, to which she had simply nervously. What else could she do?

Gaara hadn't seemed bothered by it at all, but Hinata was beginning to notice that Gaara never seemed to be anything. She figured that like with Shino it would take her some time to get used to the things Gaara would or didn't say. There were small movements that he would make at times, but she hadn't quite gotten them all down yet. The one thing she immediately realized was that if he didn't quite understand something or he didn't want to speak to you, he'd just stare. The Kazekage was very good at staring people down, as if it were an art form. It had only taken a few questions that a wife really didn't need to ask a husband permission on for Hinata to get that he was staring at her because he felt the question was too ridiculous to answer. In a lot of ways, Gaara and Shino were very much alike; the difference being that Shino's eyes were always blocked so you couldn't see the emotions in his eyes. Gaara could, when he wanted to, block all emotion from his face and his eyes but rarely did the latter around her. Also like Shino he was a man of few facial expressions, so being able to read him by looking into his eyes she knew would help tremendously.

During the luncheon the couple had been informed that Ino was throwing a small party at her old home in celebration of her marriage and that they were invited. Of course Hinata wanted to go and so Gaara easily agreed. They had rested for a bit back at the suite before they had hit the streets to go to the Yamanaka home.

He didn't look at her as they were walking, but he was holding her hand, their fingers interlaced. "Who did she marry?" he suddenly asked "It seems as if she is very happy about it."

The question had caught her slightly off guard. He hadn't said a word about it earlier. "Oh, um…Uchiha-san. T-they're in love s-so…"

There was a small pause. Then a nod. "Ah, I understand now." He sounded as if he had just come across a revelation, which wasn't far from the truth. "He was pretending to be interested in you."

His wife blinked up at him owlishly, slightly confused before making a little noise."Oh. That." Hinata had forgotten about it since she had really only played along for her friend "Yes. It's um, somewhat complicated but they had planned to be together from the beginning."

"You helped them?" He sounded genuinely surprised. She nodded "You're a very selfless person."

She didn't believe that at all but she didn't want to debate it with him. She decided to change the subject a bit. "I-um, Uchiha-san had…on the second day, he had told me I should pick you."

The Kazekage had almost stopped in his tracks; instead he glanced at her, his eyes slightly widened in surprise. "Did he?"

She giggled softly. "Mmhm. He said that for something like this you were the best I would ever get."

The surprised expression shifted to one of indifference. "I am not sure if that is a compliment or not." He said flatly

Hinata linked their arms, leaning against him as she let out another giggle. "It's Uchiha-san so it's a compliment, I promise."

"Hn." His tone did not sound as if he were convinced.

The small party held her parents, Sasuke, Shikamaru, Chouji, and that was it. It wasn't really the type of parties Ino was known to throw but Hinata figured this was because she really wanted to keep a low profile with the Uchiha's mad as hell about the fact that their son manipulated them to get the woman he had wanted.

"They hate me so much," Ino whined to her friend, hugging her after she walked in "You wouldn't even believe the things they say off to the side, loud enough so I can hear. Go beat them up for me Hina-chan." The blonde pouted and Hinata hugged Ino back, a soft smile on her lips.

The Uchiha emerged then, a hand in his pocket as he gave his wife a look. When Ino's pout intensified under his onyx gaze he snorted and rolled his eyes. "Anyway, there's a house in the Uchiha district that's unoccupied," Sasuke explained to them. "We're going to move there and hope in ten years my family will get their heads out of their asses." There was a pause and then his dark eyes glanced at her "What did Hiashi say?"

Gaara was no longer holding her hand but she could feel him right behind her, offering silent warmth and support. "Father was…very angry." She admitted "Um, but everyone else is fine."

Sasuke was obviously confused as to why Hiashi would be angry but he didn't press it. Ino dragged the two in and everyone enjoyed the small gathering, had toasts and good food.

They left the Yamanaka house late that evening, Hinata slightly tipsy from allowing Ino to talk her into having a drink or two. She hung loosely on her husband's arm as he led them back to their room.

"Is there anything else you'd like to do before we leave?" He asked her. She shook her head. "Would it be good with you if we left tomorrow?" She nodded again and snuggled closer on his arm.

"Did you know that your body generates a lot of heat?" Hinata randomly asked him.

There was a small pause "What?" Gaara sounded slightly confused.

"I mean, whenever I'm around you you're always really warm, like a human heater." Pale eyes looked up at her husband who was giving her a blank stare. She giggled.

"Is…that a bad thing?" the light confusion shifted to full blown and he looked completely lost as to what she was talking about.

"Nope." She said and snuggled even closer, not hearing the soft intake of breath he made.

----

Because Gaara had not expected to return home married, he had not brought much in terms of carrying large items back to his home. Hinata really didn't have a lot of luggage but there were about two large boxes that would have to be left behind and shipped. Thankfully his wife wasn't a materialistic person who needed everything she owned immediately.

Temari and Shikamaru arrived just before they were about to leave to see them off.

"Have a safe trip, you two." Temari smiled at her brother "Kankuro's gonna flip when he finds out you're coming back married."

The look he gave her sister showed an obvious lack of care concerning his brother's feelings. "Hm. At least he won't be able to question my sexuality any longer." He deadpanned.

His pretty little wife's face turned a bright red and her eyes widened. Then she coughed abruptly turning away from him to hide her laughter. Temari didn't hide hers.

"He was just mad that you destroyed all his porn. He never really thought that." The blonde put a hand on her hip, tilting her head slightly "Why did you do that anyway?"

"It was payback." The Kazekage said easily, no guilt or remorse in his tone.

"For what?"

"I can't tell you that." He smiled slightly at his sister "Kankuro doesn't really know either, because I had waited for two years to do it."

Green eyes much like his own widened in surprise and disbelief. "You serious? You waited two whole years?"

A small shrug "I had been hoping that he wouldn't figure out that I was the one who had done it if I waited long enough for him to forget what he had done to me. One of the maids told on me, that's how he found out."

His sister laughed "Wow, Gaara, remind me to never do anything to piss you off. I don't want it to come biting me in the ass like, five years later."

"I would never do that to you, only Kankuro. In fact, I am still waiting for an opportunity to get him back for what he said."

Still laughing his sister reached out and hugged him. "Hey little brother," she whispered in his ear "I hear Hinata is a really good person so…I hope you work things out with her."

Why did people keep insinuating things he didn't understand? "What things?"

Pulling back Temari shook her head "You'll figure it out I think. Just…remember how special she is to you. That's all."

Gaara didn't really understand that either but decided not to push the issue. Whenever his siblings started speaking vaguely he knew that he would get little answers if he probed. "When will you be arriving in Suna for your honeymoon?"

"Oh, um," She looked thoughtful "Maybe in a week or so. Shika's mom has kind of taken over all the wedding plans, which is fine with me because I didn't really want to worry about that kind of crap anyway. We should be married by next week and on our way there after that."

"Send me a message when you are on your way. I want to hold a small celebration for you."

"I can do that. Take care."

The first day of travel had been uneventful. They were riding by carriage and Hinata had fallen asleep almost thirty minutes after they had left Konoha. Gaara couldn't really blame her; it took two days to Suna and it was a pretty boring trip. Because she was sitting beside him her body had leaned against his once she had fallen asleep so he shifted his arm so that she would be more comfortable. He ignored the pleasurable sensation of having her body next to his.

Now what?

He had her finally, his long time friend whom he cared very deeply for, but he didn't really know what he could do for her once they arrived in his country. Being the Kazekage's wife she would be unable to return to her shinobi status. His lands weren't as lush or full of vegetation like Konoha, they were barren and the people made their homes from the land and rock itself.

What if she hates it?

Gaara was very well aware that he really hadn't thought anything through when he had decided to do what he did. His initial reaction had been to make sure Hinata became a part of his life no matter what. He had felt very strongly about that goal and he held no regrets concerning it. The feelings that preceded that were the ones that he was currently trying to fight, because none of them were 'friendly'.

She had not loved her first lover yet they are still friends.

It wasn't a concept he understood. He had not remained friends with his old lovers; he had really wanted nothing to do with them after they had left. Hinata had claimed that the two of them had been friends prior and had promised not to lose that friendship if a relationship between them didn't work out. He could tell that they had stuck with that but he couldn't understand why Hinata felt so heartbroken about it. Because he had loved her and she hadn't returned his feelings?

Whenever he thought about Hinata and her prior relationship he felt strange in a few ways. A part of him was feeling that perhaps Hinata really had loved her ex-lover; why else would she be so sad? A part of him seemed to like the fact that the two had remained friends because it made him feel hopeful. The last part of him was angry with himself for feeling hopeful that he could have an intimate relationship with Hinata and it not turn to crap.

The Kazekage didn't love Hinata, at least he felt that he didn't. His feelings for her were strong because she had held such a huge impact on his life as a child and now he had that back in his life. He did want to be with her, but was a bit confused as to the how. The more time passed and he was able to reflect and think on how he had felt that first day, the more he realized that he had not pursued her just because they had been friends long ago. Those intense sensations had felt overwhelming to him at the time and so he had tried to focus and calm down. He had told her that he only wanted friendship, yet his body and thoughts reacted differently.

Things will make more sense once I return home.

By the time the carriage stopped for the night they were near the border. A few miles ahead the landscape would begin to change drastically. From where they were it would take another full day and probably the morning after to reach Suna through the desert.

His guards took to taking care of the mounts while Hinata stood out in the open and stretched with a yawn. Pale eyes blinked sleepily at her surroundings. His hand almost went to his heart when he looked at her. Yes, she was definitely beautiful.

"I know this area." She said with another yawn.

"Well, we are still in Konoha lands so –"

"No, I mean, I know this area." A thoughtful expression emerged as she tried to remember the significance "Oh!" She suddenly exclaimed "This area has a-"his wife paused mid sentence, staring up at him. He stared back at her blankly, wondering if she would finish.

She didn't. Instead, her face lit up and she took hold of his hand, moving him into the forest "I want to show you something."

Hinata sounded so excited that he didn't even think to question her. It was dark but the moon was full, giving the land a silvery glow. Looking at it, Konoha's forests definitely made the landscape look beautiful at night, yet he still preferred to look at the moon from his own country.

He noticed that the path they were taking seemed to be old and a little grown over. His wife walked ahead confidently, long hair swaying behind her. In the moonlight her dark hair took on an interesting shine and he found himself suddenly wanting to move his fingers through the silky mass. Would it feel as nice as it looked?

Cut that out.

The land began to shift as they began to walk up an incline. In the distance he could hear a roaring noise but couldn't quite make out exactly what it was. It wasn't an animal, so that left few options. It was when the scent of water filled the air that he realized where she was possibly taking him.

Once they left the trees and entered the clearing the waterfall could be clearly heard. From their position he could see it on the adjacent side of the rock face. Below them was a bright pool of clear water, he could actually see all the way to the bottom. At the water's edge there were flowers that littered the grassy field below, all various sizes and colors. It didn't seem as if this area was widely used or known about.

"When we were coming back from a mission one night I found this place," Hinata told him. Letting go of his hand she walked closer to the edge of the cliff before turning to look at him "It was a night like this and it was so beautiful then as well. I remember sitting up here and just looking at it and the stars in the sky." A worried expression emerged "D-do you like it?"

"Yes," he took a few steps toward her, looking over her shoulder "Thank you for bringing me here."

Hinata beamed at him and for a second he found himself unable to move. He forced himself to take a slow but deep breath and let it out.

"U-um, when we first met," she began to look nervous, her eyes looking away and down from him "Did you…were you holding a ball?"

His outward reaction was a blink. Surprise and hope filled him "Yes. Do you remember something?"

She sported a little frown before shaking her head "It's more like…I can't remember but I can feel. I mean, I do remember a little boy but like I said before I can't see his face. When I think about him holding the ball, though, I find myself feeling really happy. Whenever I try to think back to that time I get an overall feeling that the boy meant a lot to me, although I don't know why. I can remember feeling sadness and I…I think it's because the boy was sad." Her pale gaze looked up at him hopefully "Is that…does that make any sense?"

"Yes. When we first met I was unhappy. When I first saw you I thought that perhaps you were afraid of me. Now I know that you were just a really shy person." He hid his smile when Hinata blushed at his statement.

"Back then, yes…I was very shy." Confusion flickered and she took a step forward, her hand reaching out to the kanji tattoo "You…I don't remember this."

Gaara closed his eyes when he felt her fingers brush against the marking once again. "No, it happened a few months after that."

The feeling of her fingers disappeared and he opened his eyes. She was still looking at the tattoo but there was a pained expression on her face. He watched the inner debate within his wife as she tried to decide whether or not she wanted to pry.

"C-can I ask what happened?"

Briefly he wondered if Hinata was somewhat of an empathic person. Even though she knew little of his past he could sense that she knew the marking had held a dark meaning to it. She was nervous; as if afraid he would become angry or guarded. Hinata didn't seem to know much about his past but he appreciated the fact that she was trying to be considerate.

"I was betrayed by someone I cared for very much," he explained "I don't think you ever met him, but he was my uncle. I thought, at the time, that he was the only person who truly cared about me."

She looked horrified and he could not help but give her a small, understanding smile. His wife was more than beautiful; making him glad that he had made the decisions he had over the past few days."Why would he betray you?" her voice was soft and sad. There was something else there, perhaps anger, but it was so slight he couldn't tell.

The redhead closed his eyes briefly. "Demons choose their hosts almost always before the child is born. My mother died having me, cursing the demon and her fate, and my uncle saw me as his sister's killer. When my father decided that I wouldn't be able to control my demon my uncle volunteered to be the assassin."

Hinata's horrified expression turned into appalled and she let out a strained sound, as if she were trying to stop herself from crying "But that's…why would they-"

"Demons are not welcome creatures in our world." He explained "Naruto's case was slightly different as his parents sealed the beast within, preventing it from having any real influence on him. The seal placed on him requires a sacrifice; I am assuming his father filled that role." He raised two fingers "There are two things that can happen to the host. One, the demon's influence becomes so overwhelming that it is eventually able to completely take control. If it can take control it can eventually break free of the host completely and fully emerge in our realm. The second is that the host's willpower forces the demon to accept a symbiotic relationship in where it stays within the body and the host has access to its powers. They tried to kill me because they didn't think I would be able to control my demon."

He raised a hand and brushed back the hair over his tattoo "This was…I did this when I realized that I truly had no one who loved or cared for me, so I decided to love myself and only myself. This was made as a reminder of that. I don't really believe in th-"

Arms came around him and his wife buried her face in his chest. He stood there for a moment, startled and slightly confused until he realized that she was crying. He slowly put his arms around her shoulders and an unnamed emotion moved through him at her reaction.

"I-I would have…" she said, sounding muffled with her face pressed against his chest "I-I would have cared. I would have loved you."

It was as if something suddenly gripped his throat and squeezed. It took him a moment before he could speak again and when he did it sounded strained "I think that…when we met you cared. For a while I had thought about that, but then as the years went on I began to feel that maybe I had made you up because I didn't really want to believe my uncle's words. When we met you weren't afraid of me and you didn't blame me." His arms tightened around her "It had never happened to me before and it was…a good feeling."

"I really want to remember you." Hinata sounded stuffy but stubborn "I-I don't want this seal on my memories."

Irritation filled him regarding Hinata's father. "It might take some time but I'm sure we can get it removed."

There wasn't much else to say after that. The Kazekage instead retreated into his thoughts as he held his wife, thinking on her words. It seemed that somehow, some way, Hinata was able to say or do something that affected him in a way that no one else could ever manage. Troubled thoughts emerged and he decided to push them to the side for now. When she finally stopped crying she allowed him to take her back to the others so they could camp and rest for the night. In their tent while Hinata slept in her bedroll Gaara wondered for a long time how he was ever going to be able to back away if she fell in love with another man.

----

Fanning herself, Hinata slid open one of the small windows of the carriage and wished that Gaara wasn't around so she could strip down to her skin. It didn't make any sense for it to be as hot as it was anywhere and she was having a hard time keeping her mood up when everyone else around her seemed perfectly fine as she melted into oblivion.

She felt his eyes turn to her as she opened the top of her kimono just a bit to get some air flowing with her small fan. His face looked blank but she could see the amusement in his eyes. Hinata completely missed the heated gaze that had been there just a moment ago. "You're laughing at me." She said miserably.

His lips twitched slightly and he turned to stare out the other window. "I am quite sure I'm not laughing."

"Not out loud b-but I can see it in your eyes, you think this is funny." When he didn't answer she contemplated throwing her fan at his head but then changed her mind when she realized she wouldn't have her source of air. Damn his teasing, it was too hot for that!

They were half a day's journey into the Kazekage's lands and Hinata was sure that she was going to die from heat stroke. Her kimono, which wasn't really that thin, wasn't helping things. It wasn't as if he hadn't warned her that they were running into the 'warmer' parts of the year but she felt that there was a very huge difference between 'warmer' and 'blazing inferno'.

"You will become used to it in time," he said, still looking outside the window. Hinata was sure he sounded amused.

"I don't think I could ever get used to this much heat." She admitted "Do you all at least have air conditioning?" her own home didn't really have central heating or air. In the summer one lifted the windows and either laid around or found something cool to drink or eat. In the winter they had electric blankets and a kotetsu her family would sometimes sleep under. She didn't think she would be able to handle this amount of heat without something keeping her cool.

"I promise you will be comfortable indoors."

"You're still laughing at me," she pouted.

A small pause. "…I am not laughing." On the outside. She knew he was saying in his head. Sighing she leaned back in her chair and continued to fan herself.

Somehow she must have dozed off because she found herself suddenly awake when she realized they were not alone. Immediately she activated her byakugan and gasped. "Th-there's…"

"I know." He said calmly and she looked over at him as the carriage came to a sudden halt. Opening the door on his side she heard a 'pop' as the cork from his gourd was removed and sand began to flow out from it and towards the ground below. "I can sense…seven but it feels like there are more."

Hinata nodded "There are four north, two east, three coming from behind and three from the west. T-they seem to all be underground."

"How unfortunate for them." He deadpanned. When she moved to follow him out he turned and looked at her. "Stay here."

What? "W-wait a second-" her protests were cut off when he closed the door behind him.

Okay, so she wasn't an active kunoichi anymore but that didn't mean she had lost all of her skills. They were seriously outnumbered and her husband was telling her to stay inside and do nothing. Frowning, she moved to the other side where a small bag rested just above the seats and pulled it down. Opening it, she pulled out her normal shinobi attire.

As Hinata stripped out of her kimono and into her normal clothes she realized that after this the two of them would have to have a talk. Gaara was stubborn but so was she when it was truly important to her. Hinata was a kunoichi and she refused to sit and be a damsel in distress. She'd come too far for that.

AN: I…was supposed to have this chapter out yesterday. LAWL. I'm only one more chapter away from the two stories being able to go at the same pace. At least, if my math doesn't totally fail in any case.

Enjoy!