A/N: *sheepish* Yeah. I fail at updating. I've had a rough year what with graduating and all. But mostly… I've been busy with RPing. It's taken up all my time and anytime I have a free moment it generally tends to take up my time.

But I will finish this story since I have so very few chapters to go. Two or three left before this story comes to a close. Also, Thanks to all those people who reviewed!!! You're the reason I was able to complete this chapter!

Disclaimer: I don't own these characters, no matter how much I want Gaara and Neji as my personal entourage.

The Minister's Son

A lone heartbeat reverberated through the silent mountain, a single thump, and then another, another still beat through the packed earth. The steady sound flowed through the earth like a drum beat joined by a single breath. Then another, until Neji was once again breathing steadily along with his heart which was no longer still from the death-like sleep of a vampire. A sleep Gaara had forced on him. Blood pumped throughout his entire body and soon he was able to move again. Dark lashes fluttered open and pearl white eyes stared at the ceiling. Never having awoken from such a sleep, it took the young Hyuuga a while to become coherent once more.

x x x x x x

He stayed still. Eyes unblinking as he gazed at his sleeping mate. Long dark lashes that skimmed pale skin lighter than his own, lips he longed to taste, the curve of his nose, cheek, and collarbone. Firm biceps, pectorals, abdomen, and calves…

Sai was beautiful.

And Itachi could not touch him. He could only study him so closely without interruption at this time, an hour before dusk before his mate awoke for the night. He woke up early every evening just for this, this time alone when he could look upon him and ponder a future, a future the young vampire in his waking moments told him they would never share. His mate had yet to recognize his claim over him and Itachi had no choice but to try and convince him otherwise. He did not want to force the bond on him, and so, he contented himself with merely looking and never touching unless it was necessary for his mate, and Sai was his mate, did not take kindly to it.

The sun sunk into the mountains, and with its departure a dark haired male awoke with the night. Sai's resurgence from his death like sleep was always fast and with little warning, a fact that had almost been Itachi's downfall that very first night he had woken early to glimpse his newly found mate in his sleep.

For an hour, his hand had hovered over his face, neck, chest, hips, thighs and lower tracing his entire body mid-air. He never touched him, but he did memorize him by heart. Entranced by his work, Itachi barely kept track of the sinking sun, until Sai's heart gave a quick thump taking his first breath at the same time, and instead of retreating like he should have, Itachi hovered above the young vampire wondering what it would be like to steal his first breath of air. Without warning and far too quickly for a vampire just out of sleep, coal black eyes snapped open, his hands and legs already moving and Itachi, saved by inhuman reflexes and even quicker speed was already across the room, standing near an armchair his stance, relaxed.

He had learned from that first night, but the urge to take that first breath of air from his mate never left him.

A quick thump broke the silence, and quickly following that first heartbeat his first breath of air was taken. Dark eyes stared at the young vampire as he got to his feet. Sai gave him a blank stare for a few moments, before his face changed completely. He smiled at him. A fake smile that never reached his eyes… that never meant anything.

He wouldn't give himself to him… or, and Itachi hoped this was not the case, he couldn't give him something that wasn't there.

The older Uchiha had done a lot of investigating in that week he'd held Sai in his mansion—a prisoner. He had learned of Danzou. Of ROOT. The training. The impossible demands… his eyes darkened.

"It's late," he finally broke the silence.

Sai turned his head to the side to better look at him, before his eyes crinkled, his face an image of happiness, yet it was off—distorted. He showed him fake happiness, along with a fake smile. Fake feelings…

"We should go then," the younger vampire responded cheerfully, picking up his pack and walking past the other man.

He gave no warning. Not even the movement of his clothes. Itachi moved, placing his hand in front of Sai. Stopping him. He had done it so fast that Sai barely managed to stop in time to keep Itachi's hand off his person. As it was, the Uchiha's hand hovered centimeter's away from his exposed abdomen.

Itachi kept the hand in place. He didn't touch him but the heat radiating from it was more than enough to impose his presence.

"Where are you going?" he asked him. For weeks he had followed Sai across the country, each day traveling with him without knowing their final destination.

Sai smiled at him. "Where I please."

He side-stepped the Uchiha, walking away without a backward glance.

x x x x x x

"Gaara," Neji growled, pounding at the entrance which was solid once again. "You uncouth vampire! When I find a way out…!" He continued to pound on the packed earth as he searched for another way out. After half an hour had passed and he had yet to find an exit, he grew impatient. "How do I get out of here!" he screamed in his mind, and to his surprise and shock, an answering ripple in his mind was his reply.

The young priest-to-be, blinked in surprise as an image of Gaara and him standing just outside the mountain staring at a large piece of bedrock appeared in his mind's eye. A vision? "Blood is needed to open the door…" Neji murmured as in a trance, reaching out to the same rock Gaara touched in the image. In his vision, he watched as Gaara wrote down a set of ancient letters he had never seen before. Once the scene played out in his mind it rippled once more before vanishing altogether. Not wasting his time with questions he had no answers for, Neji went back to the room, picked up a sharp object, and returned to the rock. He made a small cut on his finger wincing slightly and then re-wrote the same letters from his vision on the wall. He held his breath as seconds passed and the wall remained in place. "Did I get something wrong?" he asked himself, heart falling. But no sooner had he spoken when the blood was absorbed into the rock and like before a door appeared, sliding open revealing the outside world. Not waiting for the opening to close again, Neji ran out of the mountain and into the dark woods.

x x x x x x

"He passed by here," Kimimaro said, crouching down to pick up a single dark strand of hair, holding it between two fingers. His eyes then flicked to the ground beyond, seeing a snapped twig on the ground. He moved forward, picking up the broken item, examining it more closely. His other hand then touched the imprint of a shoe, examining the softness of the dirt. "Two hours since he's been here."

He stood and Juugo placed a hand on his shoulder. "We will find him," he said.

Haku smiled. "And after we do, the both of you can leave your place as Weapons without consequences."

Juugo turned to the younger boy and nodded. This was their last assignment, and soon he and Kimimaro could live in peace… together.

"We should go," Kimimaro interrupted them, his face blank. Their assignment was not over yet and he would not let his guard down until it was. He moved forward, letting Juugo's hand slip off of him. Juugo stared at his discarded hand for a second, heart faint. "We should focus on the mission not… this," he told himself as he lifted his head, ready to follow his fellow Weapons, but waiting for him was Kimimaro who gave him a look meant only for him—his mate—and disappeared.

"Let's go," Haku smiled at Juugo who slowly nodded in return before the two vampires too disappeared from sight, following their undisputed leader.

x x x x x x

He watched quietly from his table as the two vampires went up to his mate.

Sai.

He had refused to sit with him, to have a cup of tea. It didn't surprise him. Sai had left to explore the rest of the city and Itachi eventually convinced himself to give him some room and let him go. But his mate was barely out of sight, dozens of meters away, when he came across two vampires.

His grip on his cup tightened.

Sai smiled at them. His eyes crinkling. Fake.

It was not an everyday occurrence to encounter other vampires since their numbers were few and the fact that most vampires tended to be secretive didn't help either. As it was, the two vampires had approached his mate and after speaking for a bit, the trio sat down at a table at another restaurant. Sai smiled at one of the vampires as he pulled out a chair for him.

Itachi put is cup down. Eyes darkening.

"Where do you fare from?" One of the vampires, Kain, asked.

"The world," was Sai's cryptic response, though his smile made it less of an offense.

"Hn. That's a very large place," the other vampire, Jing, put in. He stared at the stranger… Sai the boy had called himself.

Interesting.

"Do you travel a lot then?" Kain asked looking up as a waitress came with their drinks. Sai and Kain thanked her, while Jing remained quiet, nodding at her.

Sai turned back to Kain. "I like to travel," he lied with a smile, and Kain nodded. "So where are you traveling to now? Maybe we're going to the same place. We can travel together if that's the case," he put in, smile in place.

Itachi got up. He had enough.

Sai blinked at him, trying to think of the best way to refuse him without telling him where he was going.

A rustling of clothing, a shift in the air, and a pair of hands on Sai's shoulders. "He's traveling with me."

Kain and Jing both looked up at their new arrival. Kain blinked. "Oh. Hello." Kain kept quiet. Inspecting the newcomer.

"You're both traveling together?" Kain asked, looking first at the newcomer and then at Sai.

"We are mates. It is only natural." Itachi responded, and before Sai could say anything let alone either vampire, Itachi spoke up once again.

"We are leaving."

x x x x x x

"I've been waiting for weeks and still my nephew remains lost," the Minister clipped out. He was not pleased. He had swallowed his pride and asked for their aid and yet nothing. No sign of Neji anywhere. Where had that depraved vampire—Sabaku no Gaara—taken him?

Displeased eyes stared at the Minister. Human, he thought with disgust. But this human would prove useful. The Counsel had yet to find Gaara—his supposed son, not that he ever thought of the little brat as anything but a tool. A tool that had consumed his time in order to create only to be left with… with what? A rebellious little brat who wouldn't take orders. Well. It was time to remedy the mistake of his past. To erase him. If not from this earth—the brat was too strong, he should have done it sooner, while he was still too young to use his full powers. But if he couldn't erase him from the world then he would erase his existence from memory. He would lock him up, hide him away for an eternity until everyone forgot about the Sand Prince.

He would make him disappear. Him and his new found mate.

"If it pleases you. I will retrieve him myself," the Kazekage turned to the Minister. Dark beady eyes making his presence imposing, dangerous. Yet Hiashi did not look away. "As long as I get my son back," was Hiashi's reply before the Kazekage vanished from his spot leaving the minister to ponder over his disappearance.

x x x x x x

Gaara… where are you? Neji thought.

He had been on the move for hours. His pace excruciating for a mere human. But… as Gaara had often told him, he was no mere human.

Gaara…

And again he felt a ripple in his mind. He came to a stop almost slamming into a tree. Pearl white eyes gazed into the distance as Neji slipped into the mind of his mate.

He could sense his urgency. Could see what he saw… smell what he smelled… so many scents.

All he saw was sand, swirling sand everywhere… Gaara… the swirling sand was making him nauseous so he pulled back… back into a dark abyss… further even.

And then he saw… Gaara standing in a green clearing. The moon shining. It was night. Gaara stared at two tall males. The two pulled out long katanas.

Neji gasped, his eyes widened.

But he sensed that it was another vision. Gaara's memories. He saw them clearly as if he was standing next to him—no. As if he was Gaara.

He—Gaara… No. Neji—both of them. One. They moved and in the blink of an eye Gaara had the two males on the floor restrained by his sand or more accurately covered in his sand so that only their faces were visible.

"You won't get away with this," one of the males bit out.

"You will pay, you monster!" the second said.

A dark voice… Gaara… spoke

"Sabaku Soso."

----

Neji's eyes widened as he came back to himself.

"Gaara…" he breathed, remembering the blood. It had been all over him—Gaara. His heart pounded.

What had he witnessed? Gaara's memories? They must have been. But Gaara… his eyes… they had been reflected back at him through the eyes of—his victims.

He gulped. He'd never imagined the vampire could be so cruel, so…

He shook his head. Now wasn't the time. He needed to get to Gaara. His Gaara. The one he knew, the one he…

He still couldn't admit it.

"Think Neji," he told himself. How did he do it? How did he move so fast. How did you move so fast?

And again that ripple in his mind as he once more slipped into Gaara's mind, he sifted through the dark abyss, trying to remain unnoticed. He doubted Gaara would have let him use his memories to figure out how to get to him.

Though Neji was careful, he did not realize that being Gaara's other half, his mate. His presence in Gaara's mind was as natural as breathing. Gaara didn't notice him because he belonged there. A mate wasn't a disturbance but part of their other half's mind and so it gave him the ability to slip past unnoticed.

Neji stayed still his mind focused on the scene again, he examined the same gory scene, dissecting how Gaara had used his vampire speed.

After ten minutes Neij finally opened his eyes again. He took a deep breath. Inhale. Exhale. He readied himself.

And then he moved.

He ran through the forest with the speed of a vampire, supernatural speed and it took all of his concentration not to slam into a tree, to avoid the obstacles in his path before he reached them. He fell about five times, tripping as he avoided deadly collisions. He hit nearly twenty trees, caught himself from tripping many times before he finally got a sense of the speed could react… somewhat in time.

He was learning.

And he was being pulled, pulled by an invisible force toward was what undoubtedly Gaara.

And so he followed it. Let it lead him.

x x x x x x

"He came through here," Juugo spoke up, catching Haku's attention. Kimimaro had gone on ahead, checking a lead—a small whiff of the Hyuuga's scent that lingered in the air… nothing solid. So, the two Weapons had stayed behind looking for a solid clue, a solid trail.

Haku bent down, examining the bent twig. "He did, but the trail is lost here," Haku got up. "It looks like he moved a few more paces before standing here," he pointed at two clear imprints, the soil was moved in a way that confirmed that someone had been standing still on it for a long time. "From here," the young boy looked out into the distance. "He had to have used inhuman speed."

Juugo looked at him, nodding. He had concluded the same thing. But one didn't simply use vampiric speed out of nowhere. They knew he was part vampire, a fact that had been surprising when they'd first been informed of their prey, but no other information on the boy had mentioned this. Even though he carried their blood in his veins, he was human for all appearances. Yet…

Haku turned back to him, his lips turning up into a smile. "It's okay," he told him. "After all we're used to tracking vampires rather than humans. It just means that it'll take just a bit longer than we anticipated," he reassured the older man. "We should catch up with Kimimaro."

Juugo nodded.

x x x x x

Neji was running, zipping through the trees following that invisible pull that told him Gaara was alive. He had learned how to control the speed. How to speed up, and speed down for when he needed to stop. All thanks to Gaara's memories. Mostly bloody memories. There were few memories that Neji had encountered that didn't involve blood. Those eyes. Gaara's eyes. They chilled him to the bone. He had never imagined that such dead eyes belonged to the man he had known. Every time Gaara had looked at him... his eyes had always been alive, shined. But in those memories… Neji was too busy concentrating on his speed and on his mate that he was caught off guard.

A white figure shot out of the trees ramming straight into him making him crash on the floor. The young hybrid harshly rolled on the ground the small rocks, plants and fallen debris from the towering trees nicked him, scratching his skin, making him bleed.

"I found you," Kimimaro said. His eyes neutral as he looked at the fallen boy. Soon, he and Juugo could leave this life behind. All he had to do was kill this half-breed.

Dozens of small scratches lined his body, his arms and legs taking most of the damage since he'd automatically curled up into a ball using his hands to cover his face while his legs took much of the damage.

Once he finally came to a stop, Neji didn't move. He was face down on the ground. His white robes stained with dirt and blood. It took him almost a whole minute to finally shift, to move. His wheezed out a string of coughs, causing dust to fly in the air, which in turn, caused another string of coughs. Blinking back the pain, Neji put out his arms and slowly lifted himself up, his face turning to his assailant.

His eyes widened in shock.

"… No."

x x x x x

The two vampires stopped. "He went too far," Juugo said.

Haku nodded. "We should have found him by now."

"I sense him," Juugo put in, peering into the forest beyond. "He's farther still."

Haku nodded. He was his mate. Juugo would know. "Then let's go."

Juugo turned to him. "Okay."

x x x x x

Neji backed away, pale lavender widening, images of his past flashing through his mind's eyes.

"My mother died to protect him, but in the end they killed him anyways and left his body strewn across the cathedral steps for all to see. I was in the adjoining room with my nanny and had heard everything through the thin walls. I remember my father's yells my mother's cry of mercy…the terrible sounds that accompanied their dying screams. I was terrified, and when one of the creatures entered my room I thought I would be next. I was huddled in my nanny's arms, afraid of the boogeyman before us. He was smeared with blood, my parents blood no doubt. The man did not linger long, he did not know of my existence so in his eyes, I was merely another human amongst many…"

His breath hitched, almost hyperventilating as that same man from those tragic memories looked at him with those same eyes… meaning to kill him just like he'd killed his parents. It was like he was four all over again, fear gripping his body but this time his nanny was nowhere in site.

Gaara…

He was alone and this time that same vampire that had walked into his room, smeared with his parents blood, looking… for… him…

He had come back for him, tracked him down… to finish what he'd started years and years ago. He backed away, hitting a tree. It stopped him. And Neji managed to find the strength to get to his feet. His parents. Their last screams echoed in his mind. They bombarded him with their dying screams… that man. He had killed them. Murdered them. And for what! For falling in love.

His eyes darkened, and for the first time in all his human years Neji's anger bubbled over the cauldron of his carefully reign in emotions. He let loose his anger, his hidden powers pounding on the doors that locked away that which made him Gaara's mate—Vampire. Pale lavender eyes narrowed into slits and Neji screamed.

"You!" He stepped forward the air cracking with his power, it poured out of him in waves, smashing into Kimimaro who backed away, surprised by the youth's anger. The power radiating off of him. Where had it come from? This power… he'd never felt something like it…

"You killed them!" Neji continued, eyes burning with rage, fury for the parents taken away from him. For the family he never knew, never got to know and why! He glared at the Weapon.

Because of him.

x x x x x

He was close. Almost there. Soon he would destroy that which threatened his mate, Neji. He sped through a bullet encased in sand, steadily making his way to that place. A gathering place. He would make everything right again. Would make it so that his mate was safe, so that Neji didn't have to run away from anyone.

Hyuuga Neji. His mate.

Sabuka no Gaara. The Sand Prince.

He would use every drop of power he possessed to safeguard he who was most precious to him. The only being in this world that belonged to him. His Mate.

Because of him.

Gaara stooped, the sand bullet crashing through multiple trees, ripping them out of the ground as the sands dispersed, revealing the being inside.

"Neji," Gaara whispered, the sands swirling around him. Something was wrong.

Neji…

He turned back, teal eyes peering into the distance in the direction he felt his mate… something was WRONG!

"Neji!" he called in his mind, panicking. "Neji! What's wrong?! Where are you?!"

Nothing but a black ball of dark emotions reached him. Neji was too far gone in his own rage, his own emotions to recognize the call of his mate.

The sands swirled around their master, rapidly encasing him in a cocoon of sand, protecting him and the sands that now resembled the bullet form earlier once more shot into the distance, crashing through the trees ripping out any who got in its way… its course changed. It now moved in the opposite direction.

"Neji! I'm coming!"

x x x x x

Blinding rage coursed through his body. That man. Here! His beloved mother, his devoted father, both killed by him!

He pointed at him and a blinding light shot from his finger, piercing the Weapon, tearing through his body like butter.

Kimiraro fell on the forest floor, his hand clutching his injured shoulder. He grit his teeth. The half-breed wasn't as powerless as the Elders had told them. The Weapon got to his feet and moved with speed born from ancient blood and years of experience. He zigzagged around the blinding light whose center held his target. He couldn't get close to him, the light blinding. It burned his sensitive eyes. It was like looking directly at the sun. Yet, he continued to move around him, searching for a weak point. If he could take care of this half-breed now… everything would be okay.

The figure inside that light grew more hostile as the source of his rage disappeared from sight. He wanted to slash him, break him into hundreds of pieces, make him pay for what he'd done.

His parents.

Murdered.

By Him!

He had enough. His vampire side, the true beast that dwelled within broke through to the surface, consuming his human side, the priest-to be gone, and in his place a creature of darkness. His fury boiled over.

The beast spread its hands and blindly light shot out in every direction, until it caught its prey.

Shards of light sliced through his left hand. The appendage took the blunt of the blow and now lay useless at his side. He couldn't run anymore. The light having cut the tendons of his legs until it was all he could do to keep on standing… what the hell was that.

That beast inside the light.

"Kimimaro!" Juugo yelled having arrived just moments before, Haku at his side. The vampire had immediately caught his mate's blood in the air, and could sense his pain through their bond.

"Leave!" Kimimaro snapped. He couldn't be here. Not with that creature so near. The hybrid it was nothing short of a monster.

"Haku! Take him away!" he yelled as he saw his mate trying to get past the blinding light to his side.

"Kimiraro!" Juugo yelled into his mind. His worry almost palpable. He could hear his heart. It was working overtime.

"Leave! That hybrid only wants to harm me. Not you!" he told him having figured out that much in the few words Neji had said before his mind was consumed by the beast inside.

"No!" was Juugo's response. The blinding light burned hotter, brighter and out of the sphere stepped a long-haired male, white robes fluttering behind him as he stepped closer to Kimimaro determined to land the final blow face to face.

"Juugo No!" Kimimaro screamed as his mate jumped in the monster's path, using his body as a shield to protect him.

"No!"

"I'm sorry."

A blinding light.

x x x x x

"What a mess," the Kazekage said, cold eyes staring at the chaos left by the young boy that he now carried in his arms.

Those cold eyes left the brutal carnage of the scene beyond only to stray back to the unconscious boy in his arms. "Maybe I should kill you know…" he thought out loud. "But then Gaara would sense the moment you died…" He continued to stare the young boy. "I can't take the chance that he'd survive your death. And with nothing left to lose, the boy will become a problem. I have no use for a tool that won't do as I order."

With that, the Kazekage disappeared, leaving behind the fallen Weapons that decorated the bloody clearing.


Next chapter:

The Kazekage now has his son's mate in his care and finds a way to disrupt the bond between a mated couple and cuts Gaara's connection to Neji. He then introduces himself to Neji as Gaara's father, tricking him for his own plans.

As always, reviews are greatly appreciated. XD