A/N: I think everyone's getting a bit confused. This is certainly doing my head in, lol. ;P
In response to some of the reviews regarding a particular blonde haired bomber, might I suggest a re-reading of the A/N in chapter 1? From chapter 13 on I stopped putting in the storyline differences, but its 20 chapters in, so confusion is bound to crop up. I've never written a fic that's gone for this long, so I'm forgetting the etiquette on keeping the back story clear. *ahem* And there's one more important reminder:
The Akatsuki are all dead! ^_^
Thanks to StarKiss666, hyuugahinata247, Cindy Medeiros, I'mASanctimoniousA (ANON), Nightoshi, Illusions11, merzedez and my-threesome for reviewing chapter 20. Yay! 150 reviews! It gives me a warm, fuzzy feeling. Thank you so much! Lotsa hugs and love to you all. *blows kiss*
Enough of me, enjoy! :)
'Inner Sakura'
Chapter 21 – As The Dust Clears.
Sakura Haruno had always had this vision in her head. It involved her and Sasuke Uchiha, walking down the aisle amidst cheers and congratulations. Coupled with the very visual image of herself doing naughty, pornographic things to him, it was no wonder her "inner" was even crazier than she was. At least she could laugh about it now. Gone were the days in which Sasuke had plagued her thoughts, escalating the already present thought in her head that she did not deserve to be loved, with every failed attempt she made to try to save him.
Sakura wanted to save everyone precious to her, someone who would actually do the same for her.
The explosion brought back dark memories. Memories of the last invasion attempt on Konoha. That had resulted in a series of mini-explosions and shockwaves that went on for hours. It wasn't something she'd been expecting to hear or feel inside of Suna however, even after the Akatsuki's failed attempt to snatch Gaara away. That had been a onetime explosion. This however, was more like an earthquake, and sent ripples of shockwaves throughout the village, much like the ones in Konoha had.
Running from the hospital, Sakura knew that this wasn't like four years ago: not the attack on Suna, nor the one on Konoha almost six months later. This was not an invasion. She slowed her pace as she approached the prison, noting the figures that stood outside of it.
Baki was off to the right, ordering about some sand Shinobi, while Naruto was fidgeting, checking out the damage on one side (finally useful: she inwardly giggled at this thought). Gaara stood near the walkway that led toward an open area he used to visit a lot as a child. He was staring past it, deep in thought: she hesitated to interrupt him. He looked so forlorn, but thoughtful at the same time. Her heart skipped a beat as she walked slowly up to him. The pinkette glanced at the blonde, then turned to the Kazekage and tapped his shoulder gently.
"Gaara?"
The eyes of both Gaara and Naruto gravitated toward the pinkette and she felt the tension in the air. Suddenly, she knew that they had recently been fighting. Chalk it up to her instincts or her medical observations. Both were clearly caught up in this recent development, but the moment Sakura spoke, something felt off with them, not to mention that Naruto's breathing suddenly quickened and his eyes narrowed as he surveyed her proximity to Gaara. The red head's heart raced slightly, but Sakura decided that was just normal upon seeing her.
'Think a lot of yourself, don't ya pinky?'
'Fuck off.'
She growled inwardly, but the internal battle registered on her face. Gaara glanced at Naruto and then proceeded to ignore the blonde.
"Sakura," he said, "are you okay?"
She nodded her head. "What's going on?"
"The upper levels are ready to be cleared," Baki came up to them, cutting off Sakura's questioning and addressing his Kazekage. "We're just looking for something to leverage the collapsed pillars to get under that."
"No need," Gaara said and walked away from his subordinate.
Baki nodded to Sakura and Naruto and they cleared the area. The intelligence operative called out in his booming voice for the other nearby Shinobi to move out of the way. It was interesting to Sakura, watching in fascination as Gaara used his sand to do something that an ordinary Shinobi might take an hour or more to do, just as safely. He moved the pillars with ease, taking great care not to let any of them fall in the vicinity of the prison. There was still hope that people were still alive under there. The pinkette had watched him move half of a crumbling building four years ago while waiting anxiously and ready to run into the rubble at a moment's notice. Her medical skills had been tested during those months and a part of her had admired how skilfully Gaara had handled the rescue and clean up.
'Maybe I really had started to like him back then,' she thought.
But Sakura had still been hung up on Sasuke at that point, so she hadn't noticed her accelerated heartbeat at the sight of the Kazekage sweating under the harshness of the sun. No matter the season, Suna still had its hot days. The strain on Gaara, using his sand over and over, while stubbornly taking only stolen moments in which to pause, had earned him her eternal respect in the first day after arriving in Suna back then. Consciously however, she'd admitted to herself that it wasn't just the sun that was hot that day.
Gaara finished what he was doing, and snapping out of her reverie, Sakura glanced sideways to notice that Naruto was looking at her oddly, even for him. Had he been staring at her this entire time?
"Yes Naruto?" She asked, as though not reading his mind.
She knew him well enough to know he was debating the meaning behind the fact that she'd been staring so intensely at Gaara. But she didn't want to have this conversation with him. She needed to get back to the hospital. She wanted to help, and it was the first thing that occurred to her she could do.
"Nothing," the blonde said haughtily, and turned away from her.
'Naughty boy.'
Sakura sighed and reached out to him to wipe at his shirt. "Are you going to be distant with me forever Naruto?"
He spun around to face her, pulled her closer to him, and lowered his voice so that only she could hear him.
"I'm trying to figure you out Sakura."
She wrapped her arms around his shoulders and whispered back. "You didn't attack him did you?"
Naruto snorted softly. "Of course I did."
She sighed… again. "You're a knucklehead, you know that, right?"
"Believe it."
She giggled. "Well at least you've got it out of your system now, and you're both still alive."
"Am I supposed to pretend that I don't want to kill him anymore?"
"For your own safety Naruto."
He sighed. "I love you Sakura, but I can't help how I feel."
"I know, but please, Naruto, let it go; at least for now. There are more important things going on right now."
Naruto pulled away from her as Gaara glanced over at them. "I promise Sakura."
The Kazekage spoke in whispers to Baki, who nodded and the red head moved toward Sakura.
"There are wounded ninja," he said to her. "Baki is about to pull them free. Can you–"
"Of course," she said, smiling at him. "You needn't ask."
Gaara spared her a faint smile and she took his hand, giving it an affectionate squeeze.
"This doesn't need your personal attention," Baki said to Gaara, coming up behind him. "And the council will be looking for you."
Gaara nodded, let go of Sakura's hand and, ignoring Naruto's intense gaze, shunshined away from the prison. Baki stepped away from the leaf ninja to organise the extraction of survivors. He understood the Kazekage's desire to be out here and help further, but he couldn't avoid the council forever.
X X X
Temari ran through the streets, heading toward the hospital. She'd just come from the council room and was furious. Someone had blown up the prison, there were people still in the rubble and the council wanted to put the entire village under martial law! What the hell was that supposed to do? It was just the one building, away from the residential areas, hell, even too far from the rest of the official ninja controlled buildings. The logical course of action would be to sift through the rubble as quickly as possible and determine if anyone was missing. It would point them to the perpetrator without having to resort to martial law.
It was too much of a coincidence. Firstly, the escalating problems with the Amegakure rogues, then the prison explodes. It had been centred in the lower levels; the same level where the captured rogue was being held.
Temari decided to leave the council to Gaara, knowing he wouldn't be stupid enough to agree with them. She had another concern.
On her way to the bomb site, she'd heard that Baki had gone ahead and started to search for survivors anyway. A special Jounin she knew well told Temari that medics had been by the site and carried a handful of ninja away on stretchers. The blonde Kunoichi was terrified at the sound of this. She'd sent Matsuri Hamanaku to the prison over an hour before the explosion. She couldn't find her anywhere and needed to see if the Chunin was in the hospital or not.
Concern tugged at her heart as she picked up the pace, bursting into the medical core building without hesitation. Temari looked around at the mess in the arrival area. Nobody here looked like they'd been in an explosion, but there were civilians and ninja alike that looked shaken up. Ignoring the half hearted glances, the blonde moved through the ground floor of the building, heading toward the emergency department. Surely someone there would know what was going on with the survivors rushed here only fifteen minutes ago.
Temari spotted Hana Kudamono a few minutes later and immediately strode up to the nurse.
"Hana," she said, accidentally startling the teenager. "Has a Chunin named Matsuri come in with the injured?"
Obediently, the brunette checked her clipboard, which seemed to hold a list of said injured.
She shook her head. "N-no Lady Temari."
"I can't find her," the Jounin said desperately. "Then I heard there were casualties…"
"Most of the injured are fine," Hana said carefully. "Your student wasn't among those brought in though."
"She's not my student."
Temari glanced toward the emergency room, concerned. If Matsuri wasn't here, then where was she? She had definitely been given the orders to help out with Baki's operation in the sub levels, so she should have been in the prison, or even just nearby. There was also the possibility that she was still there. The blonde trembled. That was not a pleasant thought.
Honshu Uzunara, the oddball that was related to the head doctor, appeared next to Hana, much to the girl's irritation. He ignored her, glancing at Temari as he put his two yen's worth in.
"She's probably stalking the Kazekage or something. She's nuts like that."
"Honshu!" Hana snapped. "You shut your mouth!"
Temari glanced at the man. He was twenty-nine years old, tactless, and spent his time off work getting hammered. The head doctor wouldn't let him shirk his responsibilities. At least he wasn't allowed to tend to patients directly, let alone unassisted. Looking at him now, she could already see the baggy, bloodshot eyes that indicated he had a hangover. She didn't have time for this. She needed to make sure Matsuri was okay.
'And I need to find Shikamaru.'
He entered her mind, uninvited, as he had done four years ago when she first slowed down after Deidara's explosion. Temari had been on her way home when it happened, but something, call it a gut instinct, had driven her to travel as quickly as she could. She wasn't one to believe in omens, but there had been so many signs that hinted to her what had happened. Terror like nothing she'd ever felt before had taken a hold of her as soon as she'd seen what was left of her home. There were whole days when all she wanted to do was crawl into a ball and shut her eyes, hoping it was all a dream. But she was the sister of the Kazekage, and a respected Kunoichi: she would never allow anyone, ally or foe, see her cry.
Temari sighed and left the hospital, her thoughts now on Matsuri Hamanaku instead.
"Tactless freak," Hana murmured to Honshu before he scuttled off. Another nurse had just called him over.
"I don't suppose there's much use for me is there?"
Hana spun around to face a masked, Konoha Anbu. He had brown hair and an easy going stance. She smiled suddenly, at ease herself all of a sudden.
"I suppose not," she said. "But I heard the Kazekage is over at the bomb site before, maybe that's better suited to your talents."
Yamato nodded. He hadn't actually come here to get a crash course in medical ninjutsu. He had sent the other Anbu over to the bomb site, to whoever was in charge over there, thinking they might want to know the status of the people who had already been rushed here.
"Is there any news he should know?" He asked.
"You'll have to ask Shima-Sensei, as the head doctor isn't in today," Hana said, smiling. "He'll know what's going on."
"Right, I'll go see him then."
"He's not in the head doctor's office. I can show you where he'll be," she said almost tripping over herself.
He chuckled. "Lead the way."
Shima Katsunohu was just outside his office, talking in whispers with a Jounin medic. He looked up at the approach of Hana and the leaf Anbu. The brunette girl blushed slightly at the sight of Shima, as usual, and as usual, he pretended not to have noticed.
"Well well," he said, waving the Jounin medic away. "You here for a status report?"
Yamato nodded.
"Of course, of course. But it's merely preliminary. Give me another hour and I can have everything you need. It's probably Baki over there right now though, not the Kazekage. I heard he was in session with the council over what happened."
Yamato didn't respond outwardly, thinking Shima was probably right though.
"Not very talkative are you? You Anbu never are."
He hummed, moving back into his office as Hana gave the Anbu a weird look and the two followed.
"Okay," Shima said, rubbing the back of his head gently.
He wasn't exactly getting too old for this: but he felt like he had crossed that threshold weeks back. Shima was twenty-seven going on fifty these days. The head doctor had been piling a lot more on him than usual.
"Here it is." Shima handed Yamato a clipboard. "Do with it what you will."
Yamato nodded to him. "I will take this to Baki immediately."
The Anbu disappeared using Shunshin and Hana sighed.
"I can't wait until I can do that."
X X X
The last of the critical patients had been stabilised hours later, and finally, Sakura let out a raggedy breath. She was so exhausted, having ignored her stomach around lunch time when it growled at her. This was more important anyway, and she silently celebrated the victory. No-one who had so far been pulled alive from the rubble had died on the operating table. The pinkette was so relieved that she didn't notice at first that Hana was trying to get her attention. The girl was timid enough, did she have to become even more shy around her?
"Yes Hana?"
"There's one last patient. He's not in critical condition, but the other doctors are busy…"
She trailed off and Sakura sighed. "Show me his chart."
The patient was a fifteen year old Chunin, who had been on the upper levels, so escaped with only minor cuts and bruises. But he was complaining of a pain in his stomach that had started at the prison and even with the medication, wasn't easing up.
"Okay–"
"No you don't," Shima said, coming up behind a startled Hana. He ignored her reaction. "You need looking after too you know."
"I don't–"
"I'll deal with him," Shima said gently, taking the clipboard from her roughly to avoid her ninja reflexes. "You've already done more than necessary. Head out, eat something, and for Kami's sake sleep. You look like crap. Doctor's orders," he added cheekily when she moved to complain.
Defeated, Sakura only nodded her head before heading to the changing room and leaving the hospital. Another thing she needed was a shower. She hadn't been to the V.I.P suite that was normally set up for visiting ninja yet on this visit, so wasn't sure where was the best place to shower, there or Gaara's place. She'd spent the previous night in his bed, so the shower wasn't over stepping things, right? She grinned at that, but mentally slapped herself for the x-rated thoughts that entered her head. She decided to look for Ino, deciding to answer the growling of her stomach first. But the blonde was nowhere to be found.
Annoyed, Sakura went back to Gaara's place. She'd left her travelling bag there anyway; no need to take it all the way to the suite just to shower. But still, she felt weird, like she was receiving special treatment or something. And Ino was on her own, while Naruto had Shikamaru to bug, in their separate room.
'So what? Fiddling with the Kazekage is more important.'
She couldn't argue with that logic: crazy, mental logic. She was suddenly too hungry to care anyway.
So Sakura showered in Gaara's bathroom, left the mansion to get something to eat (the fridge in his kitchen didn't have anything she felt like eating), and found herself in a market district. The problems at the prison and the hospital were easing off, so she didn't have to feel guilty about indulging her sweet tooth. Having too many people there would just got in the way anyway. She perused the shops as she moved through, deciding to take her food "to go". It was keeping her mind preoccupied and off her desire to return to the hospital and see if there was anything else she could do to help.
Seriously, she wasn't the only medical ninja. She didn't have to take on more than her fair share. Spurred on by her new outlook, the pinkette didn't notice at first that she was receiving more than her fair share of stares.
'I must be losing my mind, to keep missing things like this today.'
There were a few children whispering and pointing at her, their curiosity evident in the widening of their eyes as she noticed them. Sakura looked around and caught a young man staring at her, his expression one of blatant shock. What was everyone's problem? Was it the pink hair?
Then Sakura remembered something, something that only an idiot would forget. Over a week ago, rumours had started about her and the Kazekage, instigated by the two of them appearing out of thin air in the council room, their arms around each other. Where was her brain today? She hurriedly finished what she was doing and left the market district, heading back toward Gaara's mansion. Shima was right: she needed to sleep.
But under the covers, half naked and comfortable, the pinkette still couldn't sleep. So she climbed back out, redressed herself, and left again, fidgety. Sakura headed over toward the council building now, thinking to see if Gaara was finished. She was feeling so useless right now, wondering where Ino had gotten off to, if Naruto was still helping out at the bomb site, if Yamato or any of the Anbu were nearby, or if Shikamaru was in some open area, staring up at the clouds. She felt like she was the lazy one, for not being in the hospital or at least off somewhere, doing something...
'I need to do something!'
At the entrance to the council building, she found the area oddly empty and quiet. Sakura entered, walking toward the council room with trepidation. It was closed, and there were no guards posted, but she sensed that they were inside. She could feel Gaara's chakra in there as well. This gave her something to do: she decided to sit out here and wait for him. He would know what was going to happen next, and she would be in the perfect position to be the first person to do something about it.
Crazy, crazy…
An hour later, the doors opened and Gaara exited, alone. He looked slightly put out, but at the sight of the waiting pinkette, his expression softened.
"Sakura?"
She stood up rather painfully, realising she'd been sitting too long. She hated just sitting around.
'Seriously, what is wrong with me today?'
'You're fucked in the head.'
'Pfft!'
'Well you're not PMS'ing, so it has to be your lack of mental stability.'
Sakura sighed loudly at that, ignoring the confusion on Gaara's face. Where was the stoic man she loved? She decided to fiddle with him, like her "inner" had suggested earlier. The pinkette closed the distance between them and wrapped her arms around his neck, pressing her body against his. The Kazekage immediately responded, his arms encircling her waist.
"Are you sure you're okay?" He asked, referring to his question earlier that day.
She nodded, running her hand up the back of his head, her eyes intense on his. Her mood had shifted again and suddenly, she was feeling extremely horny.
"Well maybe I need a release," she said cheekily. "One you'd be only too happy to provide, I'm sure."
She lifted her other hand to his face and pulled him down to her. The kiss was sensual, without going overboard, and a soft mewl from her mouth told Gaara she was just getting started. The sweetness of her touch, the way she reacted to his hand moving along her arse; it was all just a tease. He wanted to take her back to his place and tear her clothes from her body... right now.
"What the fuck?"
They broke apart at the sound, their hearts hammering in their ears louder now that the imaginary world where only they existed shattered around them. Sakura and Gaara looked over as Naruto gawked at them, not caring that they had been rudely interrupted. But it wasn't him who'd spoken: Baki and Kankuro were standing next to him. It was the older brother of the Kazekage who looked dumbstruck and affronted at the same time. He didn't get it. He rarely ever got anything. He hadn't heard the rumours, and had "conveniently" forgotten how cosy they'd looked appearing out of thin air in the council room over a week ago.
But to be fair, they hadn't been lip smacking then. He glanced at the two Shinobi on either side of him. Baki wasn't surprised, neither was Naruto… So who else knew?
And better yet, why did nobody ever tell him these things?
X X X
A/N: Okay, since I've forfeited my concern over feeling weirded out at the idea of mentioning how many reviews this has gotten, I have a favour to ask. *bats eyelashes*
I've started another GaaSaku and would love for you guys to read it. I know some of you already have and I LOVE YOU LOTS for it. *blows kiss* It's called 'The Spoils of War'. It was going to be the next GaaSaku I posted after finishing Dark Sands, but I couldn't wait to post it. I'm delinquent in that respect. ;P
As for Dark Sands, love it or not, please tell me! ^_^
R&R.