A/N: Song: Another Day by Pomplamoose (Nataly Dawn and Jack Conte) they are awesome. Check them out on youtube. Waste by Foster the People…only cuz that is the song that I have been listening to nonstop today.
(o)
Gaara felt a distinct constriction in his chest, followed by a rushing in his ears. The cloth and metal clanged softly on the floor as he fought to breathe and gasp silently for air.
This wasn't happening.
More rushing in his ears as blurred colors clouded his vision. He was vaguely aware that he might be suffering from shock, perhaps dehydration and low chakra levels from running earlier. The murderous intent running off of him to incinerate all parties responsible for her death clouded over his better judgment, and he felt what little of his chakra was left overwhelm his head, leaking out in all directions to decimate everyone in his path.
He would find and kill them all.
Just as he was making his way to exit the building, Isago stopped him with a wide-eyed look of fear.
"Temari, Kankuro, Baki," he asked with worry and shock, "did one of them not make it?"
"They are all badly injured." The Kazekage nearly snarled. Even in Gaara's rage, something about the man seemed out of place. He knew that he had been in the front lines with them, so the man should have sported more injuries than a bandaged forearm.
"Where is your hitai-ate?" he suddenly demanded of the turbaned shinobi.
"My lord," he explained with a deep bow, "The young Leaf-Nin requested it before giving her speech on the battlefield."
Something clicked in Gaara's brain, releasing all of the built up tension, "What?"
"The young Leaf kunoichi asked me for my hitai-ate before the battle began, she took hers off and tied that one around her head stating her loyalty to you, Kazekage-sama."
He bowed again lowly. "She took a blow for me in battle; I am here to make sure she recovers, as I owe her my life."
"Take me to her," came his reply after his heart began to beat normally again, and they both entered the hospital.
The hospital seemed to quiet down at this point, nurses and doctors were no longer shifting bleeding patients between rooms or carting them into surgery. Tenten was eventually found, taking over for a nurse who asked her to look over Baki and make sure he wouldn't leave unexpectedly after he woke up, as was his habit no matter what condition he arrived in. His former sensei just didn't know the concept of "stay put or rupture your spleen."
"Go take a break," Tenten assured her, "my head is fine," she patted her swathed head with a smile, but the nurse gave her a dubious look, "take a break while you can, it's gunna be a long night." Tenten squeezed the nurse's hand to comfort her, reassuring her that she could handle the sleeping sand-nin and then shooed her out the door, not turning enough to see Gaara and Isago waiting to enter Baki's room.
They entered the small room, and Tenten stood and bowed respectively, "Kazekage-sama," she stated reverently, and turned to Isago stating his name, earning a bow from him as well. Gaara fought the urge to grab a hold of her and shake her like a child that had disobeyed their parent before a life threatening circumstance. Yet, somehow, he was just grateful that she was alive.
Formalities aside, Gaara uncrossed his arms, revealing the hitai-ate he had retrieved from the floor in front of front desk.
"You had me worried," he confessed in a much harsher tone than he had anticipated. She shifted to hand Isago his Suna hitai-ate and Isago received it, turning to take his leave after both exchanging head nods. Suna shinobi were proud, and hopefully the aphonic display was taken as a sign of gratitude for saving the man's life. Her nodding back definitely seemed like it did.
"My apologies, Isago, for not handing it to you in the condition you entrusted me."
"I'll send you my dry cleaning bill." He stated with a serious tone, but the wink let him know he was giving her a hard time, just like he would any comrade on the field who he would take a kunai to the face for. She had earned the man's respect and trust. Gaara was impressed.
"Isago," Gaara commanded with a hard stare the kunoichi, "I need to speak to the Leaf-nin for some time. Take her spot and make sure Baki stays put."
"Hai, Kazekage-sama," Isago confirmed the order. Gaara nodded to the kunoichi, who directed him down the hall to where his sister was recovering from surgery.
Temari looked pale and small on a seemingly large bed; the dim lights blinking ominously only enhanced her pallid features. Tenten immediately stole over to her side to brush the errant strands of sunny hair away, a tenderness in her fingers that Gaara wished he could posses. She hunted through cupboard and drawer until she found a washcloth. Dampened and wrung out, she began to wipe his sister's face of all the crusted blood on the corners of her mouth and mop the dried and wet salt from her forehead and cheeks. Her hands worked nimbly like any seasoned mother, but with serene genteel warmth that only a close friend would employ. Gaara's heart constricted at the simple kind act and flashes of her bending down to wipe a small redhead's face of dinner crossed his thoughts so quickly he couldn't keep a small smile from forming at the pleasing thought.
"Who would have ever thought you two would become friends after the first chunin exams."
Tenten simply smiled that comfortable smile that he let his guard down for, the one she used when she was truly comfortable with him.
"She can still kick my ass, no doubt," came the reply, even as she was tenderly tucking Temari in, and adjusting her pillow for optimum comfort.
Gaara shook his head with derision, but let the comment pass without arguing further. Gaara moved his way to hold his sisters hand and tenderly squeeze it, all the while hoping he wouldn't crush it under the weight of all the emotions manifesting from leaky chakra. Before they could settle into a comfortable silence, she directed him down the hall again to where Kankuro was recovering.
Matsuri of all people was found next to him, washing the bunraku facial paint off of him while he drooled peacefully into his pillow. Tenten and Matsuri seemed to exchange some kind of silent female information with a look, and Gaara nodded his approval of his brother's caregiver before he followed Tenten back out into the hallway.
They were silent as she followed him all the way across town back to his private chambers off of his office, his assistant long past gone as the evening worn on. He nearly slammed her up against the double doors as they clicked shut, startling her out of the sobering hospital visits.
His breath in her ear, she stilled as they let the proximity of their bodies meld into one, moving slowly, with hesitant arms reaching out to touch the other. The lights weren't even on overhead, and yet the ginger glow streaking from the window pane became as welcomed as the heat radiating between the two. So much unspoken, and yet so much said with just the little amount of touch and the look of their eyes.
"I thought I lost you," came torn from his lips in a raspy whisper. He ghosted pale fingers over the wisps of her bangs, then repeated a desperatly hushed, "I thought I lost you."
The setting sun settled upon them, casting an orange haze over the contents of the office letting it suffuse onto her soft features.
"Stay," he let out again, closing his eyes letting his forehead bump against hers. He let it linger there, rolling over hers before he whispered in her ear again, "with me. Stay with me. Don't go." He instinctually held her closer, "please."
Her reaction to his supplication was to finally end his torture and sink her lips onto his. All of the weight of the day seemed to melt away, and constrict him at once as he held her close and poured out his love over her, kissing her every place her exposed flesh met his eyes. His chakra leaked out again, exposing his true intentions for her, with her, as his mouth was other wise engaged in maneuvering it over her skin, egged on by the soft moans she emitted from nipping at the tender flesh.
At some point she stopped being docile against his "attacks" and started playing dirty by slamming him up against the door and taking a dominating role as her mouth overtook his and his brain began to cease its higher functions and pure instinct and hormones kicked in.
Now they were fighting for dominance as his hands moved her back against the doors, then she managed to turn the tables and in swift movements he was on top of her on his desk somehow, hearing the sound of fabric tearing, unable to care weather is was hers or his. Something fell off his desk and shattered, and in the back of his mind he was happy that it was probably that atrocious vase some foreign dignity insisted reside there. It was a particularly obnoxious shade of hideous he sometimes couldn't stomach most mornings, and moved his stack of paperwork in front of it just so he could get through his day with out throwing up on irreplaceable documents or killing people. He would have to thank her later for that one.
Another moan from her and Gaara found it almost incapable of caring exactly where they were going to do this, as long as they got to, and soon. His mouth found her sternum and hungrily licked and teased it as his hands worked the fastens on her shirt.
Loud knocking on the door sobered them into producing flying weapons and curses in its direction.
Gaara nearly shouted at the blasphemous interruption, and eyed the bedroom off his office, the sanctuary and chambers he normally used after he finally resigned to call it a night after a long day of meetings, paperwork and other such taxing chores.
The loud thrumming was hard to ignore. So was the voice that announced that Baki, Temari, and Kankuro were all awake and asking to see him.
Well didn't they just have perfect timing. Never before had he wanted to kill someone for regaining consciousness. Even those three.
He fought the urge to call through the door to give them an extra dose of morphine and he would be there in a bit. The kunoichi squirmed underneath him with glint of lust in her eyes. Ok make that some time next week.
But the knocking continued. So did the shouting. Gaara fought a homicidal wave that threatened to take out every living thing in the vicinity as it raged with impatience with in him and he somehow managed to calmly and not threateningly answer that he would be there as soon as he was able.
"Go," she insisted. "I will be here when you get back."
A sudden rush of fear washed over him, and he struck out with words before he had even realized, "but after today, you can't leave after today. I need you here. Beside me. From now on."
She got up from his desk and kissed him passionately, as if it were one of many times she would assure him with out a doubt that she would be with him, no matter what.
"Let's go together." She offered taking his hand for more comfort. He nodded.
"That's what I was hoping you'd say."
And together, they walked hand in hand back to the hospital, knowing that today wasn't just the ending of the mission, it was the beginning of a new start for both of them.