Chapter 10
Sakura followed Gaara's instructions and extended her hand, focusing her chakra in her fingers. "You feel the sand, don't you?" Sakura tried again, the sand having no effect to her. "I focus the chakra in my fingertips." She moved her hand to her mouth, focusing to the best of her abilities. "Then I extend, feeling the sand as a part of me." She slowly moved her hand forward, and the sand before her sludged forward, nowhere near as graceful as Gaara. He looked on amused as she tried over and over again just to reach the stone before her. It was nearly half an hour till she reached it, Gaara pushing the sand back between each try. "You made a chair out of this! How do you do it?" Gaara looked at her hiding his sniggering. "Remember, I was born with it. I have more experience." Sakura sighed. How long did it take to get control?"
"I killed those around me until I was 12." Sakura twitched. "It's alright. It's not easy, or beautiful to have a demon. Most go crazy. I was for years." Sakura nodded, her eyes widening. "It was that boy, Naruto who showed me truly what I was missing. He fought for you two with his whole being. It was then I realized, if his friendships made him that powerful, what would it do for me? I began trying to make friends, at first to get power, but after a while it pulled away the hatred I had, the hatred Shukaku filled me with." He sighed looking down on the people. "I realized then what I needed. I didn't need to kill, I needed to make those around me need me. I needed them to need me. It took years, I had to fight tooth and nail just to make them stop hating me, but eventually they stopped running from me. They actually started smiling. I knew what Naruto fought for. Fighting for those he cared about. I needed to do the same. To make them safe. To make amends for my wrongs, and begin creating rights. It can take a lifetime to master yourself, but I was lucky." He smiled off at the people below.
"They feared you to the point of running from you. You weren't lucky, you made your own luck." Sakura looked at him, a little surprised after getting a glimpse into his past. "What made them run in the first place?" Gaara sighed. "As a child I had no real control over the sand, it did as I willed, weather I really wanted it to or not. If something bad happened, those around me died. I killed a few of the children in the neighborhood when I was four. I didn't mean to. I was horrified, but there was nothing I could do to stop it. As I got older it got worse. Anything I disapproved of was destroyed, person or otherwise. When I was six my uncle, the man who cared for me growing up tried to assassinate me. It was ordered by the Kazekage." Sakura winced as she heard this. "I was an experiment and was deemed a failed one, the power in me was too strong. The Kazekage at the time was my father. I had no one. I went into a depression, and the sand talked to me. It was the only one who wasn't afraid of me, and I needed to feel that. Eventually it began telling me things. I could hear my mother cursing me as I was born. I could hear my uncle telling me as much as he tried to see my mother in me, he could never stop blaming me for her death. The begging and cries for mercy became this rumble in my head, and the only way to make it stop was to kill again. I was naive. I did as it told me till Naruto defeated me. After that I joined a new team, one that didn't have my brother and sister. I made new friends, as much as Kankoro disapproved, and the fear began to fade. I couldn't blame them, but I began to understand, and I realized the true horrors of my actions." Sakura flinched at the pain in is eyes. "Now you've changed. You have the care you never did as a child." Gaara nodded.
"I'm sorry to have rambled, but you needed to know this about me. You needed to know why I am this way." Sakura smiled at him, wrapping her arm around his waist. "Thank you for telling me. You're right, I needed to know." Gaara looked at her, a little afraid. "Does this change the way you see me?" Sakura leaned to him, kissing his shoulder. "It does. I know how strong you can be. I know you really care for those down there."
"And this up here." He looked down to her and she smiled. "My life isn't nearly as interesting. I graduated highly in my class, my mother and father are still alive, I've practiced as hard as I could to be the best ninja I can. Tsunade thought I'd make a good med-nin, and so far I've done pretty well." Gaara nodded. "You were abandoned by the one you loved, and it took you years to get to the point of living again." Sakura nodded, lowering her eyes. "You've done the best you could with what you have, and that's pretty good." Sakura nodded. "When I was a child the other kids called me forehead girl. I only really had one friend growing up, but she stopped being my friend when I was eight. We both had a crush on Sasuke, and that was it, she was a rival. I didn't really bother trying to make friends after that, all that mattered was Sasuke. I was so happy to be in his team, but my worst fear was being in the team with Naruto. I didn't know weather to be thrilled or suicidal! It was actually really funny, now that I think back on it. Naruto was always flirting with me. I was always flirting with Sasuke, and he was only passionate about his brother." Gaara cringed. "Not like that!" Sakura laughed. "He wanted to kill him! Sasuke's family was killed by his older brother when he was young." Gaara nodded.
"I had a pretty simple life, save the fight with Zabuza Momochi when I was 13. We did everything in our power to kill him, Sasuke almost didn't make it. It was a real struggle. Naruto became a power house and almost killed Haku, who was more powerful than Zabuza. Last second Haku sacrificed himself to try and save Zabuza from Kakashi-sensei, but the man who hired Zabuza betrayed him. Zabuza realized what had happened and avenged Haku, dying himself in the process. As soon as we came back we had the Chunin exams, where I met you. After that there was something else, and again, and again. Nothing really topped those days." Sakura smiled, turning a little nostalgic. "Everything has changed. I never would have thought I'd be here with you like this." She giggled, hugging Gaara and sighed. "That's pretty much my life. Boring, huh?" Gaara smiled at her, hugging her close. "I don't think so." She smiled at him and leaned up kissing him, and he wrapped his arms around her kissing back.
"Oh, the time! We have to go get Kankoro!" Sakura jumped to her feet, leaving Gaara a little surprised. He stood and brushed himself off before looking over at her. "I guess it is getting late." He sighed, putting his arm around her as they walked back to the hospital.
"Sakura, let me out." Sakura shook her head as they passed the stands along the marketplace. She shook her head as if she was trying to shake something off, but Gaara knew, as he'd heard it too. "Sakura, you can just ignore it. He'll stop after a while." Sakura nodded. "Alright!" She smiled, more lively than before and ran ahead a little, noticing a pair of leather gloves with a silver flower across the back of the hand. "Oh, they're pretty!" She smiled, and Gaara nodded. 'It's easy for her to change her thoughts. She doesn't even realize how lucky she is.'
They reached the hospital after only a few minutes, Kankoro sat in the room, dressed down, and it was obvious he felt wholly uncomfortable without his makeup. "I don't like this..." He growled as Gaara pushed the wheelchair down the hall. "After we get outside, I'll bubble you, alright?" Kankoro nodded, his eyes shifting nonstop around him. Sakura watched amazed. She'd seen him dressed down after only one day, but in his home city he was this terrified of being seen as a human being? It didn't make sense to her. Gaara looked over, smiling.
"He knew the attachment between us. He knew we would keep company, but I don't think he knew how long." Sakura nodded. 'How long? Gaara's planning on keeping me here for a long time. Maybe forever...' She smiled at the thought someone wanted her here forever, she'd never had someone want her around this much, at least no one she wanted to be around. She realized she was blushing and Gaara tried to hide a laugh.
The instant they walked through the door Kankoro walked upstairs. "I'm getting dressed." He grumbled as he walked up the stairs. Gaara shook his head as he sat on the couch. Sakura was amazed at the difference in Kankoro's personality. "He's been in that outfit nearly nonstop since he was seven. It's a part of who he is, and if he's not in the outfit he doesn't feel like himself. If he's injured, it makes him feel weak. He feels like he's not a ninja." Sakura nodded. It made a little sense now, but she knew she would never completely understand.
He came downstairs a half an hour later, in full regalia. He seemed quite a bit more relaxed. He plopped on the couch and stretched out, looking around. "Home sweet home. Gaara, can I ask you a favor?"
"No." Gaara looked out from his office, his face stoic. "Please?" Kankoro clapped his hands together in a begging manner and Gaara looked out, his eyes narrowed. "No." Sakura watched this, wondering what was going on. "Little brother, you'd refuse your injured brother a heartfelt request?" He batted his eyes playfully and Gaara rolled his eyes. "Fine, chicken, right?"
Gaara left for a minute, leaving Sakura to assist Kankoro if needed, and returned with a platter about half an hour later. "Here." He put the platter on the table and Kankoro, who nearly jumped for joy. "Get the plates!"
Sakura poked at the substance before her. It was definitely chickenesque, and there were mushrooms, but beyond that she wasn't entirely sure. She poked and nearly gagged, the substance seemed to still be alive! "Ewww." She squealed as the gelatinous ooze lurched forwards, towards her. "What is this?" She cringed, Truly terrified. "It's chicken surprise, the creation of a restaurant around the corner! It's awesome!" Kankoro was sucking down the goo as if it were the best thing on earth! Sakura gagged, looking away. "I can't! I'm not even sure it's dead!" Gaara laughed, poking at the food as well. "It's not as bad as it looks. It's his favorite." Gaara poked the top of his chopsticks at Kankoro who sucked down another glob of the chicken goo. Sakura nodded, looking at the plate, afraid.
She took a bite with her eyes closed, Kankoro watching her with his mouth full but his eyes wide. Gaara smiled at her, his eyes narrowed in admiration. Sakura tasted the funky chicken jello, surprised by the flavor. It was really tasty, and the goo seemed a little less nauseating in texture, which was actually pleasant with the mushrooms and green onion.
Gaara sat there, a little terrified as Sakura and Kankoro devoured the sludge.
They sat around for a bit, talking and making plans for the next day, Kankoro kept freezing and watching in an amazed stupor as Gaara and Sakura began poking and tickling each other. "We should try and get you a little more practice with Shukaku." Sakura poked at his side, and Gaara looked down at her surprised. "I only have one last free day before I go to the hospital! We should enjoy the day!" She tried tickling his side, and Gaara scooted towards the arm of the couch, tickling her side. "We can spend part of the day doing each! You really should practice!" Sakura began laughing and curled up, trying to fight off his fingers. Kankoro laughed at the situation, earning a wide eyed stare from both of them.
Gaara sat up quickly, Sakura smiled and climbed, quite disheveled, to a sitting position. "You two are really cute!" He smiled, honestly saying what he felt. Sakura grinned, and Gaara looked over at her, a blush crossing his cheeks. Sakura giggled, throwing her arms around him and looked up to him. "I think so." She joked, and Gaara smiled down at her. "Fine, we goof off tomorrow." He grinned, causing Sakura to cheer, and Kankoro to laugh.
They sat around, joking for a while before Kankoro yawned, earning a look from Sakura. She walked over, feeling his neck. "It's a yawn." Sakura smiled at him. "It can be a sign that you're not getting enough oxygen." Kankoro sighed. "I'm not going back to the hospital."
"No, you're not. You do need to sleep though. It promotes healing." Sakura smiled and backed up. Kankoro stood, stretching. "Fine, guess I'll give you two lovebirds some time alone." He grinned as he walked up the stairs. Sakura smiled at Gaara and yawned, stretching out. She laid her head on his lap and looked up at him, wrapping her arm around his waist, her hand by her head. He reached down, cupping her cheek and smiled at her. She rubbed her cheek in his hand and her eyes closed as she relished the feeling. "You're so soft..." She smiled causing Gaara to blush lightly. He picked her up and took her upstairs, laying her down on the bed. He went to the armoire, pulled out a soft kimono and sat her up, pulling the one she'd been wearing from her shoulders. He kissed each one before untying the obi and slid it off, kissing her stomach before gently lifting her and pulling the kimono off the rest of the way. She laid there, smiling at him as he sat her up again, placing the new kimono on her arms, kissing every few inches to her neck, and kissed down her chest and stomach before closing the kimono and wrapping her in a soft pink tie style belt. He covered her, kissing her softly before leaning down to her and whispering in her ear. "I love you, Sakura. Good night, sleep well." She smiled at him, unable to keep down her blush at this and whispered back. "I love you, Gaara. Good night, I'll await the morning, when I can see you again." He looked down at her, his eyes soft and happy at these words. He stood and walked gently from the room, closing the door behind himself.
"I was wrong. I never thought I'd ever see you happy. I thought you'd probably never deserve to BE happy. I'm glad I was so badly mistaken." Gaara looked over at Kankoro, his eyes shining for the first time Kankoro could remember. "You still taking her?" Gaara nodded. "I'm more sure now than I was this morning." Kankoro nodded. "I'm almost sad about that. I like her. If you weren't gonna get her, I would." Gaara narrowed his eyes and Kankoro shook his head. "Don't worry, not like I have a chance. She remembers me as the boy with the makeup. I'm Gaara's brother. You're the one she loves, and it's obvious. It's too bad Temari isn't here to see this." He sighed, looking at his brother. "She'd probably be pissed, you falling in love without her to examine the girl first." Kankoro grinned, and suddenly Gaara was happy his sister was off with Shikamaru.
"I'm off to bed. You should try and get a little rest as well, watch tv or something."
"I've slept four times in the last two weeks." Gaara looked at his brother who wasn't sure he'd heard that right. "She takes my strength. It's not a bad thing, but my energy runs fast around her." Kankoro looked at his brother, suspicious. "Your energy doesn't go that fast, Gaara. Either she's an energy vampire or..." Kankoro grinned, crossing his arms before him. Gaara looked at him, waiting for a moment before asking. "Or?"
"Or my little brother's finally lost his virginity." Gaara looked down quickly, his face flooded red. "Guess that answers that!" Kankoro laughed, putting his arm around his brother. "As soon as I can, I'm taking you out for a drink!" Kankoro laughed, and Gaara sighed. "Please, don't react much to this. I'm taking her to the top of the crest, let's save my luck for then, alright?" Kankoro nodded. "You two will both have a day off soon. What days do you two have off?"
"Wednesdays and Saturdays. We have the same days off." Kankoro nodded. "Today is Friday, take her Wednesday." Gaara looked over at him surprised. "You told me to give you a week?" Gaara felt his pulse racing. "Yeah, but I've never seen this. Very few people truly ever do. I can't hold you back, and I want to know!" Gaara nodded. "I'll ask her tomorrow about going. That gives her a few days to think about it."
Sakura woke the next morning and decided to dress more like the Suna people. She wore a long black kimono Kankoro found in Temari's closet with a red sash Gaara let her borrow. She wore her hair up, a silver hair stick held it back with a few strands framing her face, with a light pink lip gloss and a little blue eye shadow. Gaara watched entranced as she came down the stairs and Kankoro was nearly floored.
She twirled once, showing off her hair and the outfit before asking. "What do you think?" Gaara was in shock. The outfit was more of what he was used to when it came to the women of his home town, and seeing her like that was enough to send fantasies through his head and he blushed deeply. Kankoro nearly blushed himself, seeing her in such a state. "You look beautiful." Gaara reached out and took her hand. Kankoro walked to the door, opening it for the couple and walked behind them, suddenly envying his brother.