Chapter 10:

Little Falcon: It's an update! Hooray! You still know me right? Right? Read and review! Just like always.

Standard Disclaimer: I only own the idea that's all. If I did own this series I'll be the happiest person on earth!!!

His murderous glare paralyzed her of even thinking to escape. She remained rooted on the ground as he confidently made his way to her. With each step, she felt her terror building. His hand extended slowly to touch her face as a maniacal smirk appeared on his face.

Sakura snapped her eyes open then sat up abruptly as she catch her breath. Barely a second after, the Kazekage was embracing her tightly. Without words, he comforted her by stroking her hair and holding her close. Burying her face in his naked chest, she wound her arms around him as like a frightened child.

"It's the same ever since he took me captive. Every night he plagued my dreams," she told him without him asking.

Gaara stopped caressing her hair for a short moment then resumed. His anger for his dark twin rose to a different level as he pulled her body closer to his. "Is there anything I can do?" he sounded so pathetic that hit himself mentally soon after saying those words. But that was the truth, he felt so helpless at the moment so he had to ask.

There was pregnant silence. Then she replied… "Just hold me like this every time I wake up. It makes me forget 'he' even exists," his unspoken reply was his reassuring touch that made her relax and finally sleep again.

The lady hokage was in the hidden sand village for the usual alliance meeting between the hidden sand and the hidden leaf. Her timing couldn't have been better. She was able to treat her student, who was in a risk to lose her baby, immediately.

Naruto, Sasuke, Kakashi, Ino, Shikamaru, Kankuro, Temari and Shizune stood quietly by her bed as Tsunade examined her condition. Gaara sat by her side the whole time, holding her hand.

"Your baby's doing well and your physical condition is stable as well," she began but the grave expression on her features worried him.

"But…" Sakura still didn't feel relieved after hearing what her shishou said because of the worry in her face.

"Sakura… your pregnancy is very delicate. One wrong move and it could mean risking your life and the baby's…" she said in a cold, clinical tone. "…as you are now, you can't bear to exert yourself physically and mentally. Sakura I want you to listen to me... I know telling you to have complete bed rest would be useless so I want you to promise me that you will NEVER use too much charka whatever the circumstance maybe,"

"I promise," Sakura reassured with a forced smile.

"Now that that's done, I should leave. The elders might be having a fit now that I'm gone too long," Tsunade together with Kakashi and Shizune left. The Kazekage kissed Sakura's hand and left for a moment to accompany the hokage to the gates- like a Kazekage should.

"Omedetou, Sakura-chan!" his boyish grin appeared on his whiskered face as he stood by her bed. The others also voiced out their congratulations just like Naruto.

"So when is the wedding?" her blond best friend asked with a starry eyed expression on her pretty face.

"I haven't thought about it yet," her emerald eyes landed on her ring finger on her left hand where her engagement ring was replaced by Gaara just last night.

"I MUST ABSOLUTELY BE THE ONE TO PLAN EVEYTHING OUT!" Ino towered over her threateningly that she felt the need to back away.

"No, I will plan their wedding," the hidden sand's wind user battled stares with the hidden leaf's mind walker.

Everyone sweat dropped as they witnessed the battle of wits between the two.

"Oh, I heard you have a member of the Akatsuki in custody. Have you learned anything from him?" her cheerful tone dropped replaced by a cold, demanding one.

Unexpectedly, Shikamaru was the one to answer her. "Nothing,"

"That guy is unbelievable. We threw all we had at him. He was barely alive but still he won't talk," the puppet master added incredulously.

"We don't have time to waste on him. We'll just have to blindly get ready for the worst. That's the only choice we have," the Uchiha protégé clenched his fists in irritation as Sakura quietly listened.

"Let me see him," Sakura got out of bed. In reaction, the gang pushed her gently back to bed only to have smoke blasted to the floor. When it cleared, she was nowhere in sight.

Blood drained from Naruto's face. "This is bad," the gang was about to rush out of the room to search for her when Gaara appeared on the doorway.

"Where is she?" his jade eyes narrowed lethally as he entered the room. It was Naruto who squeaked the answer. "WHAT?!" sand erupted from nowhere as the sand master left the room.

The prisoner remained motionless as water dripped from the ceiling to the dirty cell floor. Blood, sweat and dirt covered his entire body as he remained shackled to the wall. There was almost no patch of skin that didn't have bruise or wound.

The sound of light footsteps woke him up. Guards were always marching noisily around but it was these set of footsteps that made him nervous. As they approached, he tugged at the chains desperately. Then they stopped, his eyes crawled from the blood covered floor to the feet of the person standing behind the steel bars.

Deidara remembered fear as his eyes reluctantly wandered to the person's face. Her dead black eyes stared at him like a cornered prey. "No… don't come near me," he pulled his chains so hard the metal dug into his skin. His desperation grew as he heard the door of his cell was being unlocked. "No… no… NO!!!"

Gaara materialized in the dungeon corridors just in time to see Sakura exit Deidara's cell. Marching right up to her, he pulled her into a protective embrace. Moments after, the gang arrived catching their breath.

"Question him all you want. This time he'll gladly answer your questions," Sakura told Shikamaru with a wink as she left together with her fiancé.

"Oi, Shikamaru," the noisy shinobi called as his eyes were nailed on the prisoner.

"What the hell did she do to him?" Sasuke's eyes reflected Deidara stood on motionless on the corner of the cell, chained. In his eyes that didn't dare to blink was the expression of sheer terror.

She managed to scare the living daylights out of this guy who barely flinched with the worst torturing techniques. What's more disturbing is that… she did that without even touching him. Shikamaru could only wonder why he fears her so.

Little Falcon: Read and review please…