I don't own any characters except Karin.

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CHAPTER TEN: CONFESSIONS

"What?" Gaara snapped and I smiled slightly.

The door opened and Kankuro came in. "We need to arrange Lady Chiyo's funeral," he spoke. "Chie, are you okay?"

Since my head had been turned away from Gaara, he could see the traitorous tears. I thought for a second before deciding that I needed some air. I stood up and walked to the door.

"Um…I'm going to get some air…" I spoke as I left.

I walked out of the house, past questioning looks and towards the gates. I found myself sitting on the cliff above the gates, looking out over the desert. I pulled my hair out of its elastic and it hit my waist. I placed my white mask in my lap and sighed as I pulled the black fabric down to rest around my neck.

I cared for Gaara and wanted to be near him since we started talking before the exams, but I kept running from him. I kept away for three years when I knew at times I could have gone to see him. I sighed and wanted to scream in my conflicted frustration.

"Chie?" I heard Temari behind me. She sat next to me and took a deep breath. "Are you okay?"

"It's Karin, and I don't know," I sighed again. "I care about Gaara a lot. During the exams, we'd talk a bit and I liked it. But since then, I've avoided him and I don't know why."

"Maybe your just scared…scared that you love him and scared that he might reject you," she smiled.

I looked at her and she brushed the hair out of my eyes. "What do you mean?"

"You love Gaara, it's easy to see if you know what to look for," she laughed. She looked behind us and I saw her eyes widen and she scrambled to her feet and ran away down the ramp to the village.

A few seconds later, I heard light footsteps. I don't need to look to know it was Gaara. He sat by me and stayed quiet. Sand swirled around in front of me and soaked up the tears on my cheeks.

"Karin, why are you crying?" he whispered softly.

"Many reasons…" I whispered. "Pain…confusion…anger… Pick one."

"Why are you angry?"

"I was on a mission, trying to figure out the Akatsuki's plans and found nothing. We were summoned here afterwards and I finally realized what they were. I should have been here, I could have helped."

"Why pain?"

"All inner wounds… I may seem fine but some wounds will never heal."

"Wounds of the heart? My uncle told me about those and that there is only one cure for them…"

"Yes, but some wounds won't even be healed by it. One wound I'll never be able to heal and that is returning to my original home."

"So make yourself a new home. There are some who would hate to see you leave. Why are you confused?"

"My mind is tripping over itself trying to understand what I've done and reasons I've done them. Who would hate to see me leave?"

"Well, there's your village, ANBU, my siblings and…myself," he mumbled.

I looked at him and saw a smile. "Why you?"

"Kankuro told me of your past. If you went back, no one would ever see you again. If I hadn't been buried under my duties as Kazekage, I think I may have come to see you." He stood up and turned away from me. "You don't know how tormented I was when I had found you almost dead during the Chunin exams... Not knowing if you had recovered after I saw you in the forest during the invasion..." he whispered.

"Gaara?" I spoke confused. I stood up and walked behind him.

"Yes?" he deliberately kept his back to me.

"Look at me," I growled.

He turned around and looked at me. His face was empty of emotion, but the tears were evident. I walked closer and stood less than a foot away. I wiped away the tears and brought the moisture to my lips.

"Was Temari right about what she said when I showed up?" his voice was tight as if he was forcing himself to keep emotions hidden.

"What did you hear?" I whispered, searching his eyes.

"She said you loved me…"

I looked down and noticed that his hands were clenched. I frowned and pulled his hands away from his sides and made him relax them. I finally looked back up at him after a few moments and smiled, never letting go of his hands.

"Yes."

"So why were you crying before Kankuro had interrupted?"

I looked back down at our hands and wound my fingers through his and relaxed my arms so our hands fell to our sides. "I guess that…maybe I'm still afraid…that I'll be pushed away…"

He pulled his hands out of mine and I let him as tears fell. I closed my eyes and tried to stop the tears, feeling the rejection but his arms came around me and pulled me to him. I wrapped my arms around him and buried my face in his shirt. He rested his head on top of mine and tightened his grip around me.

"Please don't ever leave," he whispered into my hair. "You leave and I may just have to track you down and drag you back."

I smiled and took a slow breath. I had wondered how this would feel like and now I had it. My tears kept falling, now from happiness, and soaked into his shirt which I'm sure he could feel.

"Come we need to dress for the funeral. I'm sure Temari will have something that you could wear," he smiled then transported us to his house, using his sand.

He swayed and I steadied him. "You need to take it easy with the chakra," I growled, helping him inside.

"What happened?" Naruto stood up as we came into the living room.

"He is just pushing himself too far," I sighed. "Naruto, help him to his room."

"Temari, would you lend Karin something to wear for the funeral?" Gaara asked as Naruto dragged him away.

I found myself being dragged up the stairs and Temari pulled me into her closet.

"So… what happened?" she smiled as soon as she found a black kimono for me.

I smiled as I changed and told her. Her eyes bulged when I told her about the hug and I fell silent and finished changing.

"So it's not just Naruto that has changed Gaara," she smiled.

"Maybe," I laughed strapping my dagger to my thigh under the dress.

"Maybe? Wow that's slick," she growled. "He may not admit it but he is falling for you if he hasn't already. Remember what I said earlier? It's obvious when you know what to look for. I have thought of you as a sister since you came to help and I don't want to see you get hurt."

"Thanks Temari," I smiled as she pulled out a pair of flats.

"How old are you now, Karin?"

"I'll be fifteen in a few weeks. Come, they'll be waiting for us," I smiled, grabbing her hand and dragging her out of the room.

Gaara and Naruto came out of the hall and we walked out of the house. Naruto handed Gaara to me at his request and I helped support him. I had one arm around his waist and my other hand grasped his wrist that was over my shoulder. People followed us as we walked to the cemetery.

"Karin, I must speak with you," my captain caught up to me.

I nodded and handed Gaara back to Naruto and followed Asaka away from the villagers. We jumped up onto a nearby building and watched the procession towards Lady Chiyo's burial site. It was quiet for a few minutes as we studied the villagers.

"What's the Kazekage's situation?" Asaka spoke.

"Somehow, the Akatsuki extracted his beast, so he is no longer a host. He has some control over sand still but I'm not sure what his limits are," I reported.

"I come to offer you a special mission on behalf of the village. If you would like to stay here in Suna, you may, but you must be at the Kazekage's side to protect him."

"Very well, I'll take the mission," I spoke, voice empty of emotion.

"You'll still be ANBU but on this mission, no uniform is allowed. You must blend in with the villagers."

"Yes, sir," I bowed.

"Either I or another team will be back soon with your things to make the mission a little more bearable. Now get going, you have a leader to protect," he spoke.

I nodded and ran off. Gaara was already at the grave with most of the village. I walked to him and stood next to him.

"Karin, are you coming?" Tenten asked, hesitating behind the others as they started to walk away from the gates of Suna to head home.

"No, sorry. I have a solo mission that I must take care of," I spoke.

"How long?"

"No clue, a few months, years… I'm not exactly sure." Both teams seemed to understand. They knew I was ANBU and they also knew that Gaara was vulnerable now. "I'll see ya around."

They nodded and left.

"What's your mission?" Gaara asked as the sand Shinobi walked back through the gate to head home.

"ANBU thinks you need protection now since you don't have Shukaku. So basically my mission is you," I smiled. "Think you have room for me?"

"Of course," he smiled, bringing me into his arms. "I can always make room for you. Just never leave."

"Okay," I smiled then transported us to his house which was still empty. "Come on, you need rest."

"What?" his voice was startled and there was a hint of fear.

"Sleep. The Shukaku is gone, you don't need to fear sleeping anymore," I smiled, pulling him to his room.

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