A/N: Once again, thank you for the reviews. I read all of it and I thank you for your opinions. I welcome all your suggestions and ideas, so please tell me :)
Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto
Chapter 12
That same afternoon, the replies from other villages regarding the Naoshi clan arrived. It was indicated that they had already begun their search and will report once they had finished.
"Right, so all we have to do now is to know where the bandits are located, huh?" Naruto said after he finished reading the replies back in his office. "Gaara?" he curiously looked at the red-head in front of him.
Gaara clearly wasn't paying attention. His own thoughts wandered.
"You let your fear overwhelm you. That fear separated you from him." he had said to her.
Why had he said that to Hinata? It wasn't any of his business. It never will. However, his actions earlier that afternoon contradicted his principles. That's been happening a lot lately. For this reason, next time, he'll really stop himself from poking into other's businesses, her business.
"Then, you're a coward"
He kept cursing himself for calling her that…even now. In fact, he hates himself for calling her a coward. But that line of thought made him confused. Why does he hate himself despite it being the truth?
Should he have been kinder in telling her? Maybe he should have not told her bluntly. But then again, Sabaku no Gaara was straight to the point.
"I should find Hinata and apologize" Gaara thought as he stood from his seat. But he immediately caught himself and slowly sat back down. He wasn't going to apologize. He didn't do anything wrong, right?
Naruto curiously watched Gaara. It was rare for him to be lost in his thoughts, especially when he's not alone in a room. "Gaara, you're acting stupid" Naruto said with a grin.
Gaara snapped back to reality. He glanced over Naruto. "And I'm hearing that from someone who's grinning like an idiot" he deadpanned.
Naruto chuckled. "So? Something wrong?"
Gaara just shook his head in response.
Shortly after, there came a knock on the door. Naruto immediately gave permission to enter. The door opened and came in Hinata.
She gave the room a quick scan only to find Gaara sitting in front of Naruto's table staring at her. She looked away and saw Naruto dashing towards her for a hug.
"Hinata-chan!" Naruto exclaimed as he pulled Hinata into a hug. "Thanks for coming!"
"Uh…" Hinata tried to think fast. For a second there, she felt like her heart would leave her chest to her surprise to Naruto's action. Not to mention, his loud mouth was close to her ear. "Sakura-san asked me to help you in her stead" she finally said.
Upon seeing Naruto draw Hinata in his arms, Gaara felt a terrible itch to force his sand down Naruto's throat. But being a sensible man that he is, he held his ground, despite feeling like he'd been punched in his gut. After his talk with Hinata, he forgot to go to the hospital for check-up if he had some kind of disease. He was too disturbed in his thoughts.
Naruto released Hinata but his hands remained on her shoulders. "Yeah, I really need help today" he said. "There're a lot of mission requests lately and I have to read through all of them"
Hinata wasn't sure if she was willing to help anymore. Not when Gaara was there, not after what he told her. She can even feel his eyes on her. And she was trying her best not to look back at was an awkward atmosphere, though Naruto seemed to be the only one who hadn't noticed. She took a deep breath to calm herself.
"Naruto-kun," she started. "Should I come back later? I might disturb you" she finished. Oh how she hoped Naruto would let her leave! She didn't want to be alone in a room with two people who made her feel…weird. It would be fine if it was only Naruto since he's oblivious to almost anything. But Gaara, on the other hand, wasn't. Hinata had the feeling she would suffocate if she'll stay.
But it seemed luck wasn't with her.
"It's fine, Hinata-chan! We'll work while I'm discussing with Gaara!" Naruto said with a grin. "You won't mind right, Gaara?" he asked the silent red-head.
Gaara's eyes remained on Hinata. She looked like she wanted to flee. And why won't she? He said some unpleasant things to her. Gaara knows when he's not wanted. Ideally, he would leave. But this time was different, to his confusion and surprise. He didn't care that Hinata was uncomfortable because of him. He would stay and observe her. So, in response to Naruto's question, he nodded his head.
Naruto's grin widened as he turned to Hinata. He draped an arm around her shoulder and exclaimed, "See Hinata-chan? You won't disturb anything!"
Hinata felt an immense urge to groan. This has got to be the worst day of her life. Hinata was uncomfortable not only because of Gaara but also because of the proximity between her and Naruto! His arm was around her, he was touching her! All she wanted to do was to push him away and escape the room. But she clearly knows that she can't do that. That would leave Naruto suspicious of her and Gaara to rest his case of his remark about her. And that's the last thing she wanted.
"Where will I sit and work, then?" Hinata asked, forcing a smile.
Naruto pointed to a chair beside his. "I prepared that for you earlier. You're sitting beside me!" he beamed.
Just great…But then again, sitting beside Gaara would be much worse at the moment. How long is he planning to look at her? "O-okay…" Hinata muttered as she sat down, at the same time, trying not to meet Gaara's gaze. Naruto followed shortly and sat down on his chair beside her. Hinata wasted no time in getting to work. A distraction from Gaara's intense stare was much needed and welcomed.
"We really need a strategist for this, especially when we don't know who we are up against." Naruto said to Gaara. "I would've called Shikamaru but, unfortunately, I sent him on a mission." Naruto's oblivious as ever to what's going on between the two other people in the room.
Gaara's eyes darted to Naruto, much to Hinata's relief. "The Nara's father, then" he suggested.
"Nara Shikaku? He's on a mission too" Naruto said. Without warning, he slapped his forehead. "GAH! I'm such an idiot! I should have left at least one of them!" he exclaimed.
Gaara's face remained impassive as he watched the blond ninja whine. "We don't have a choice. We can no longer waste time. We'll form a plan to capture the bandits without them." Gaara said. His gaze landed once more to the silent heiress and watched her shoulders stiffen. "So, she is sensitive to her surroundings" he thought. "I'll call Temari. She may be of help to us" he said to Naruto.
"That would be great" Naruto agreed.
Temari was itching to interrogate her brother. She paced restlessly outside the office of the Hokage. A single mistake…a single mistake on her part ruined everything! Her plan to get Gaara and Hinata together was already going smoothly…until that damn oversight came into play!
"YOU TOLD YOUR BROTHER?!" Tenten had shouted at her when she spotted Temari walking idly on the streets. The people around curiously looked at them with a mix of surprise on their faces.
"What are you going on about?" Temari asked, annoyed at the sudden outburst of the brunette.
Tenten took a deep breath so as not to shout again. "I found Hinata looking depressed on a park bench earlier. She said she had a talk with your brother."
"Wait…Hinata? Depressed? That's new..." Temari commented.
"I know! That's why I was shocked!" Tenten exclaimed. "She has never looked depressed these days. She never shows it on her face. So – hey! That's not what I came here for!"
"Then what? Hurry up and spit it out!"
"As I said, she had a talk with your brother." Tenten started, her face contorting to fury. "Hinata said Gaara knew of what happened three years ago! She said that YOU told him!" she shouted as she pointed an accusing finger at Temari.
Temari's eyes widened as realization dawned on her. "Crap!" she muttered. "I forgot to tell Gaara to keep it a secret!"
Tenten's eyes widened for a moment then narrowed. "So YOU told him" she didn't ask. She stated.
Temari turned defensive. "Well, he was curious at that time! He was having a fever so, in order to ease his seemingly-endless suffering, I answered his questions and told him her story!"
"It was supposed to be a secret! Because of what you did, Hinata was disappointed in me!" Tenten shouted. "Oh kami! She hates me now!"
"She told you she hates you?" Temari asked in disbelief.
"No," Tenten replied, a frown on her face. "But any person would if they were on her shoes."
Temari blanched. She didn't want Hinata to hate her. It was like being hated by your little sister. It hurts!
"How will I make it up to her now?" Tenten practically whined. "How will you make it up to me?!"
"I'll make my plan work, dammit!" Temari yelled. "I'm still in the middle of doing so. Just let me make it work."
Tenten fell silent. Then she quietly asked, "What do you have?"
Temari's face turned smug. "You said you saw Hinata depressed, right?"Tenten nodded and Temari continued, "Let me tell you that that was the result of my plan in action" she said with a smirk.
Tenten's face slightly softened with assurance. But it soon contorted with worry. "How are we going to face her now?"
Damn, the brunette's right. Earlier when she spotted Hinata walking in the direction of the Hokage's office, which was in front of Temari, she instinctively hid somewhere. She admits that she's afraid of Hinata's reaction when she sees her. She didn't want to picture out an angry Hinata…or worse, an ignoring Hinata. Temari hates silent treatment more than anything! Although she was used to Gaara's silence, at least he responds if he feels the need to.
"Temari, come inside" she suddenly heard Gaara's voice call her behind the door.
She'll go inside?! But Hinata's there!
However, Temari doesn't need to be told twice. Reluctantly, she opened the door to the office. She found Naruto and Gaara looking at her while Hinata, who was sitting beside Naruto, bowed her head. She looked so tense. Was it because of her? Maybe Hinata doesn't want to see her. Oh kami, she can't stand this! Unfortunately, she has to force herself to come inside. She put on her expressionless mask and closed the door behind her.
"Yes?" Temari asked, trying to sound nonchalant.
"We're formulating a plan to capture the bandits. We need your help" Gaara explained. His attention returned to Hinata for the umpteenth time.
Temari silently followed Gaara's gaze and noticed Hinata tense up more. She stopped herself from sighing in relief. So it wasn't her, it was just Gaara. What the hell did her brother told her that made her act like that? And they were just starting to get comfortable with each other! Damn it!
"So, any ideas?" Naruto asked.
Temari's focus went to the subject at hand. "Capturing the bandits, huh?" she muttered. Then, she snapped her fingers as an idea came to mind. "How about a bait?" she suggested.
"A bait?" Naruto echoed.
"Exactly" Temari nodded. "The bandits capture a Naoshi, right? Then we'll have a Naoshi as bait. And we'll be there to wait for the bandits."
"But they have a sensor with them, you know" Naruto said.
Temari felt the urge to roll her eyes. "Duh! We'll hide our chakra."
Naruto nodded in understanding. "That could work. What do you say, Gaara?"
Gaara just nodded his head in agreement.
"Once we capture those who'll come, we could interrogate them to where their hideout is. We'll capture the remaining bandits, then we can close this case" Temari added rather proudly.
Naruto beamed. "Great! All we need to do is to set the right time for it!"
It was weird…
Everytime Gaara looks at Hinata, he experiences certain things that are new to him; such as feeling his heart do a somersault or feeling like only Hinata and he are present in a roomful of people. It seemed like only Hinata mattered to the world. This didn't happen just once, but a few times already. Her very presence earlier in the room made it hard for him to pay attention to the discussion.
Gaara was back in his room, reviewing reports in Suna. The meeting ended earlier than expected so he was using the time to do his work.
But Gaara was still bothered by his thoughts…of Hinata. He was particularly wondering about his relationship with the heiress. He considers Hinata as a friend, if not an acquaintance. But he has a feeling that she's more than that to him.
A best friend, maybe? That doesn't really put it quite right.
It's different with Naruto, since he considers the blond his best friend. Maybe because Hinata's a woman and Naruto's a man that the feeling between the two of them is different?
Whatever it is, Gaara was determined to find the answer.
Gaara spent the remaining of the afternoon visiting – no, looking for…more like close to stalking – friends around Konoha. Just a glance at them would suffice to answer his gnawing questions. And to his frustration, not one of them, men or the fairer gender, arouse within him the feelings he get whenever he's in the presence of the blue haired heiress. Is this what they call a "crush"?
Gaara felt his face heat up. That's impossible…right?
Right?!
He immediately shrugged the idea off his mind, though it wasn't an easy feat. Sabaku no Gaara does not know the meaning of crush or anything related to that. It would be preposterous to think that he would have a…a…
Nevermind. He doesn't want to think about it anymore.
He looked up at the sky. He hadn't noticed it was already evening. There were only a few remaining people on the streets, most of them closing their shops or stores.
He hasn't done at least one of the things he has to do today. He was tired…mentally. A part of him wanted to go to the waterfall place, where he knows Hinata would be. But seeing her earlier that afternoon, Gaara knew she didn't want to talk to him for what he had said to her.
However, that didn't stop him from turning on his heel and walking to the direction of their meeting place.
It didn't take long before he arrived. He spotted Hinata sitting down near the waterfall, her back facing him. He could hear her quiet sobs as he slowly walked towards her.
Hinata knew Gaara was there but she didn't acknowledge his presence. Not this time. She could feel him looking at her as he stopped just behind her back.
"Why are you crying?" She heard him ask in his usual monotone.
"Why am I crying?" Hinata repeated in a whisper as she wiped the tears from her face. It wasn't likely for Hinata to lose her temper. But this time, she could feel her anger rising. Unfortunately, Gaara caught her in a wrong mood and in a wrong time, especially because he was the main reason for her grief. "Why…am I…crying?!" she abruptly stood up and turned around. She locked gazes with Gaara, her eyes ablaze with fury. "WHOSE FAULT DO YOU THINK IT IS?!" She shouted.
Gaara couldn't hide the shock on his face. Hinata just shouted. She just shouted…at him!
"You ask me why I'm crying! You know why!" she yelled. She was willing herself not to cry in front of someone but failed miserably as tears ran down her pale face. "You're not an idiot, Gaara! You can very well figure out the reason!" her voice quivered and she closed her eyes as her tears continued to flow out.
Gaara was speechless. He stood in front of her, frozen. He didn't know what to do. Temari never had times like this, so he was currently clueless as to what should be done.
"You still don't know?" Hinata asked bitterly. She didn't wait for his reply and said, "I'll tell you, then. I cried because of what you said. That I'm a coward!"
He looked at her with an expressionless face. Her usually gentle and calm face was contorted with anger and sadness.
"And you're right! I'm a coward!" she continued, her voice mellowing as she went on. "And I blame myself for that. I blame my own fear for not being able to ask him. And I'm sorry. I'm sorry I'm weak. I'm sorry for not being good enough. I'm sorry because it hurts seeing the man I loved for years in the arms of another woman. I did my best to be the one for him. But my best was never enough. I was scared, I admit. But I can't handle anymore heartbreaks. That's why I gave up. If another is destined to make him happy then I should be happy for them both…because…I loved Naruto-kun."
Gaara didn't know what got to him as he pulled Hinata into his arms. She looked and sounded so sad and…alone. It made his insides feel like it shattered into a million pieces. He held her close and rested his chin on the crown of her head. He heard her gasp and stiffen against him for a moment before he felt her relax and cried her heart out.
The arms that held her felt warm and strong. Never had she felt the kind of security and calmness seep into her heart like this one did. Gaara's masculine scent made her feel like she can tell him everything. From her joys to her greatest fears and never would she be hurt. Gaara gently stroked her long hair and this made her sigh contentedly. This gesture on Gaara's part was surprising. Who would have thought that the Kazegake can become this gentle and kind? Hinata felt she can face anything after this. Finally calming down, she gently pushed away, a little hesitant to leave the comforting arms around her, and looked up into Gaara's jade eyes that captivated her so much.
"Forgive me" she softly said.
His face remained impassive but Hinata could see the confusion in his eyes as he asked, "For what?" It kind of became his habit to ask the same question to her every time she says sorry.
"For losing my temper and for taking it out on you" she replied. Her eyes lowered to his chest and she gasped. Gaara followed her gaze and found his clothes damp in the chest area where Hinata cried. "I'm so sorry for wetting your clothes!" she said as she ran a hand on his chest. She felt him shaking and as she curiously looked up at Gaara's face, she found him trying his hardest to hold back his laughter but failing terribly. This was not the first time she heard Gaara laugh, but his relaxed expression and the sound of his laughter still surprises her. Laughter made Gaara's features look boyish and more mysterious under the moonlight.
"It really suits you, Gaara, to have a smile on your face." Hinata thought out loud before she could stop herself. Gaara's laughter stopped. His eyes widened at Hinata but his face immediately softened. A smile formed on his lips and a blush grazing his cheeks made Hinata flash him one of her own warm smile.
"You should smile often" Hinata said.
"Why?" Gaara asked, still with a smile.
"Because…" Hinata trailed off as she looked away from him, a blush coloring her cheeks.
"Because what, Hinata?" Gaara coaxed her to continue.
"Because you…you look…" she stammered. Great…her stuttering was back…
"I look what?"
"Oh, because you look cute when you smile!" she exclaimed, her face turning beet red. Hinata watched Gaara's smile falter. He quickly looked away and she watched his face in amusement turn different shades of red until it matched the color of his hair…or maybe more, if that was even possible. He had a hand covering his mouth as if it could hide the redness of his entire face.
"Gaara, you're blushing!" Hinata said in awe, her own blush fading. Her remark only made Gaara blush deeper to the extent that it made him feel dizzy. Hinata giggled.
Gaara took a deep breath to calm himself. His heart was still beating wildly in his chest. He was caught off guard when Hinata called him cute. It even made him unable to stop his face from heating up. It was embarrassing.
As soon as he was able to calm his nerves, Gaara straightened up and crossed his arms in his chest. His face became impassive once again. But he found himself unable to look directly into Hinata's eyes. "Hinata," he started as he cleared his throat. "I also want to take this opportunity to apologize for the things I have said that offended you." He said.
Hinata looked at him, surprised, but didn't say anything.
"I also want to apologize for meddling in your personal life…in your," he paused and frowned at the words he was about to say. "Love life" he finished.
She smiled. "Gaara, you didn't have to apologize. In fact, I thank you for doing so" she said. "If it weren't for you, I wouldn't have enough courage to try and ask Naruto-kun."
"You're going to ask him?" Gaara couldn't help but ask.
Hinata nodded. "Tomorrow" she said. "I'm still scared of what he'll say. But I want to know. I want to hear it directly from him."
Gaara just gave her a small smile. In response, Hinata wrapped her arms around Gaara's waist and pulled him into a hug. This surprised Gaara but he soon had his arms wrapped around Hinata as he pulled her closer to him.
"Thank you, Gaara" Hinata softly said. "You're a kind and good friend."
"I'm kind and good?" Gaara asked with a hint of disbelief in his voice that made Hinata giggle.
"Yes, you're very kind and good" she replied. "Or maybe, even more than that" she added.
Gaara fell silent as he pondered on Hinata's compliments. No one has ever told him that before. Not ever since the day he was born. And hearing it from someone who was gentle and kind herself, made Gaara happy. "Thank you…Hinata"
"N-naruto-kun, can I talk to you for a while?" Hinata asked the next day inside the Hokage's office.
This is it.
The moment of truth. The moment she thought would never come. The day she'll ask Naruto of his reason regarding what happened three years ago between him and Sakura. The time has finally come.
"Sure, Hinata-chan!" Naruto beamed. "What is it?"
Hinata looked at the ground beneath her. Oh kami! She was nervous…very nervous. How she wished Gaara was there! Just his presence would be enough to encourage and assure her.
"Um…" she began awkwardly, her eyes wandered almost everywhere in the room except to Naruto. "I would like to ask you…something."
"Yeah?"
"It's about what happened thr –" Hinata got cut off by a very loud bang behind her indicating the opening of the wooden door to the room.
"Jeez, Sakura-chan! Don't destroy my door again!" Naruto exclaimed.
"Well, I wouldn't be doing this if you just had your almighty Hokage ass on the meeting room now!" Sakura retorted. "You're five minutes late, idiot!"
Naruto froze as realization hit him. "Oh crap! I forgot about the meeting!" He shouted, more to himself than to Sakura. Then to Hinata he said, "Sorry, Hinata-chan! I gotta go!" With that, the blond Hokage was gone in a flash.
"Hinata? Oh, you're here?! I didn't see you!" Sakura said apologetically. "Did you need Naruto for something?" she asked as she stepped inside the office and closed the door.
"N-nothing important" Hinata said. "What meeting is Naruto-kun attending?"
"It's a meeting with the council regarding the Naoshi clan. He's going to report about the plan he and the Kazekage came up with to capture the bandits." Sakura answered.
"He's going to be busy, then" Hinata stated.
"Yes, probably for the next few weeks or until the safety of the Naoshi clan" Sakura said.
Hinata suppressed a sigh. She had the feeling she would have a hard time asking Naruto alone.
A/N: I want to thank my big sis for proofreading and for the few paragraphs she suggested. Well, what do you guys think? Sorry for the OOC, though. And I know you guys are dead tired on reading about the Naoshi blah blah blah (Believe me, I'm tired as well) But please, bear with me for just a little longer and they'll be gone in the story.
Reviews please! I need encouragement, you guys! If you have suggestions, ideas and whatnot, feel free to tell me!
