There was currently only one person in the world that Gaara truly trusted, and that was Sakura Haruno.

But that didn't mean that trust wasn't sometimes difficult.

He had no idea why Sakura had suddenly decided to try and bring the Anbu operative into their fold. If he was being honest with himself, he actually resented it. Sure, the Anbu would be following them regardless unless they killed him, but that didn't mean they had to share their fire and food, and that didn't mean that Sakura had to waste time trying to get to know him.

(And maybe the real problem was that Gaara had gotten used to it being just the two of them, and he was beginning to learn that he really didn't like sharing.)

He didn't trust a word that came out of Sai's mouth anyway. Maybe Sakura wasn't as aware, but Gaara knew an emotional mask when he saw one. He'd dealt with his own for years before Naruto Uzumaki had finally cracked it, until Sakura had come in and started chipping away pieces. Sai wore a mask as solid as Gaara's had been, but what really irritated Gaara about it was that Sai didn't even had the decency to be apathetic with his mask. He faked emotions, smiling at Sakura's commentary, frowning when she was distressed, and even putting on a friendly front whenever he and Gaara were forced to converse. And because of those faked emotions, Gaara couldn't help but feel as though Sakura was falling for his two bit act, hook, line, and sinker.

"You could kill him." Shukaku commented, his voice so deep and thunderous it was almost like an ache in Gaara's mind. Killing Sai would make Sakura unhappy, so of course it was out of the picture. But maybe if he could convince Sakura to see reason, they could ditch this Anbu somewhere, somehow, and then it would be just the two of them again and everything would be perfect.

"On second thought, don't kill him. I can't stand the agony of the two of you alone together again. I've retched enough in this wretched mindspace."

It was a quiet night out, and small fireflies danced about in the meadow they'd set up in. He and Sakura had worked together to manipulate the earth into a small, vented hut, which meant they'd always at least have a warm space to sleep. (With room, of course, for Sai.) Sakura had left to use the restroom, and thus the two boys had been left alone together in awkward silence.

At the very least, Sai didn't try to make small talk. The quiet was better than having to fake pleasantries.

And it allowed him time to think about how to get Sai out of the picture.

It was beneficial even from a neutral standpoint. The Anbu was sending information on them to dubious Konoha sources. He could be ordered to turn on them at any minute. He could be ordered to capture Sakura and return her home at any minute. It just wasn't smart to keep him around.

"And it would be so much easier if you just killed him."

For once, Gaara couldn't help but agree with Shukaku, even if the idea was out of the picture. Strange, though, how Shukaku seemed to loathe Sai and yet, as of late, be neutral towards Sakura.

"You bullied me into neutrality. And since you don't like the Anbu brat, that means I can bitch about him all I want and you won't stop me."

It was true. And now Gaara couldn't help but wonder if he couldn't turn this mutual disliking to their advantage. They couldn't kill, but perhaps Shukaku had ideas for how to get rid of the problem in another way…

"Nope. I'm not falling for that crap. You can't manipulate me, kid, I've known your mind since you were born. Maybe you can threaten well, but you're no schemer. And if you can't manipulate me you're sure as hell not getting the Anbu out of here."

But wasn't that proving his own point? Gaara couldn't do it alone, but if Shukaku was willing to work with him, maybe it could be done.

"I said no, brat!"

"Are Jinchuuriki always so pensive?"

Sai's voice snapped Gaara back to the present. Shukaku had distracted him so thoroughly, damn it all, he needed to keep an eye on Sai…

He didn't answer. He simply looked to Sai in a way that he hoped would convey 'I would rather kill you than answer any of your stupid questions about the Jinchuuriki'.

The look Sai gave him in return was almost certainly 'There's nothing you can do to stop me from asking'.

Gaara really wanted to use his sand to wipe the fake smile off the boy's face. He didn't think he'd loathed someone as much since Sasuke Uchiha.

"You have to get him to show his true colors." Shukaku spoke up. "Beat him at his own game. Do what you did with me and annoy him into complacency."

...as much as Gaara wasn't fond of the idea of actively interacting with Sai, Shukaku did have a point. So, for the first time, Gaara willing spoke to the boy.

"Are Anbu always so nosy?"

Sai smiled that fake, infuriating smile. "It's my job to be nosy, Bag Eyes."

Gaara blinked. Bag Eyes? Was he...was he referring to the effects of his insomnia? Gaara should have been mad at the insult, but he was so baffled by the bluntness of the name that he actually couldn't even process anger for the first couple moments.

"You…" Gaara took a breath. He could be composed. Shukaku was worse than this.

"I take offence to that."

"You really think calling people names will get them to divulge information? Anbu must be weaker than I thought."

"Names? You don't like it?" Strangely enough, Sai looked legitimately confused. "It says in my book that using nicknames can promote camaraderie, and to refer to someone by a distinguishing feature. Maybe it will work better with Haruno..."

So Sai had chosen...the bags around his eyes.

Maybe this Anbu was an idiot.

At that moment, Sakura walked into the hut, humming to herself as she sat down by the fire. "I think we're almost back to the main road. We're far enough north that we don't have to worry about Suna patrols anymore. It'd be nice to walk on an actual path, don't you think?"

Gaara nodded.

And then an idea came into his mind.

It was so simple he wasn't sure it would even work, but Shukaku had mentioned getting Sai to show his true colors, and now Gaara had one very easy way to do that, assuming he played his cards right. Thankfully, Sakura played right into his plan without even knowing it.

"So what have you two been discussing while I've been gone? Or is it all broody silence between you two still?"

"Sai was telling me about the nicknames he came up with for each of us." Gaara responded immediately.

"Oh...that's actually good, brat."

"Well, Gaara didn't seem very fond of his." Sai admitted, turning to Sakura (with that damned fake smile still). "But maybe you'll like yours better...Ugly."

There was a deafening silence following Sai's words. Gaara had to hold himself back, from laughing at Sai's complete and utter stupidity, and from sending him through a wall for even thinking calling Sakura that had been a go-

Gaara flinched as Sakura punched Sai right in the face. It was a good hit, and it looked like it hurt.

"WHERE THE HELL DO YOU GET OFF CALLING ME THAT, HUH?"

Sai at least had the decency to look shocked. Gaara just sat back and let Sakura tell the boy off, unable to prevent a few smug thoughts from crossing his mind. Shukaku had said he wasn't a schemer but…

"Well, you might be capable of learning."

The nicknames had been enough to make Sakura less friendly towards the Anbu, but not enough to chase him away completely. And Gaara got the feeling, now, that Sai's attentions had turned entirely onto him following that night at the meadow. It was probable that Sai hadn't thought Gaara capable of such scheming either, and that Gaara had now posed himself as more than just a physical threat. So Sai was now wary of him, and he and Sakura were now wary of Sai, yet somehow that hadn't been enough to free them of Sai's presence.

Gaara was beginning to remember why he hadn't been fond of his lessons in subterfuge back at Suna. Scheming was just such a fickle process. Shukaku was right, killing was far more direct, far more effective.

(And after Sai's 'nickname' fiasco, Gaara had the feeling he wasn't the only one thinking about killing Sai as they walked.)

They found the main road at about noon and began to follow it as it winded up the side of a rather large mountain. Gaara had known Iwagakure was hidden somewhere in a mountainside, and he found himself impressed by the notion that a village could form in a place so cold and treacherous. Even now at the mountain's base, he felt a chill through the sand that covered his skin, and he saw Sakura begin to shiver and hold her arms close to her body. Suna had forged itself in the heart of the hottest place on the continent, and Iwa, in turn, seemed to have formed itself at the coldest point. It was respectable, but now he was faced with the possibility of Sakura being a bit ill equipped to deal with cold. His sand would protect him from the elements, but Sakura…

"There's a small merchant village, a couple miles from here." He heard Sai comment. For a brief moment, Gaara wondered if the Anbu could read minds.

"What, are you saying I should find a place to shower, so I don't look so ugly?" Sakura retorted.

"Oh, that's an even better idea."

Gaara expected an angry retort, but he was surprised to see Sakura suddenly deflate. "My hair has been all limp since we left the plains." She admitted with a groan. "A shower would be awesome. And maybe we could find some heavier clothes."

Damn it all, she was agreeing with him.

(Even if, admittedly, stopping at the village seemed like a good idea. But Gaara wasn't going to admit it.)

So, one side road and a few miles later, they'd rented a room at an inn and Sakura had hightailed it to the shower. Sai had taken the opportunity to send out a few scrolls with those inked birds of his (likely the real reason he'd wanted to stop), and Gaara…

Well, he probably needed a shower too.

But for the time being, he and Sakura had several things to consider. One was what they were going to do once they reached Iwa. If they started asking around off the bat about the other Jinchuuriki, they'd likely fall under suspicion. At this point, they were probably considered missing-nin, but Iwa had been at war with both Suna and Konoha several times in the past, and Gaara doubted that they'd be looked upon fondly just by association. They had to approach the village in a manner that did not suggest that they were spying on Iwa for their old villages and did not intend to start trouble.

Sakura's first thought was to go straight to the Tsuchikage and offer him all the information she had on Akatsuki as a show of good faith. As a village with two Jinchuuriki, they would likely value information that would help them keep their Jinchuuriki from being stolen. Gaara's concern with their openness was that they might see Gaara for what he was and attempt to take the Ichibi for themselves, which meant that they would need to ensure Gaara was unrecognizable in order for this tactic to work. Easy enough. They'd snuck out of Suna with none the wiser, so Gaara would just keep his hood up and not demonstrate any abilities that might make him stand out.

Both of them weren't exactly sure where Sai was going to fit in. He was under no obligation to help ingratiate them to the Tsuchikage, and, if he was at all loyal to Konoha, he might even consider it beneficial to his village to stop them from sharing information that Konoha was currently privy to. Sakura hoped Sai would understand that the villages all had a common enemy in Akatsuki, and that keeping secrets would simply give Akatsuki an edge, but…

Well, the Anbu boy was tricky, even if he was a social moron.

The only consolation that the two of them had was that they were fairly certain they could defend themselves from Sai if he tried to stop them, unless the boy had been holding back when he'd come after them before.

They'd cross that bridge when they came to it.

The second order of affairs was money. Gaara, both by being the son of the previous Kazekage and having gone on plenty of missions, had amassed a considerate amount before leaving Suna, but they couldn't rely on his funds forever. Unless they wanted to live in the woods for the rest of their lives, they'd have to find a way to make money somehow.

Which is how the two of them ended up doing odd jobs for the various merchants throughout the town.

Gaara had never done D-ranked missions before, which was what these jobs would have been considered back at Suna. Painting fences, repairing roofs, even walking someone's dog...all of those were menial tasks considered beneath the Kazekage's children. Sakura, however, had done plenty of these, taking to them like it was second nature.

"Our jounin instructor ran us ragged doing missions like these back at Konoha." She told him. "And when Naruto left with the sage, I did a lot of these on my own to make money. I don't know if we'll be able to do these in Iwagakure proper, but I'm sure a lot of these small villages won't mind helping hands." Currently, she was browsing a small building that had a collection of warm clothes, scarves, and boots for mountain hiking. "And that means we can afford to splurge on some nice clothes, so don't be afraid to pick out things that you like."

Gaara had never gone shopping in such a manner before. He had always gone to a supplier that had provided him with the basics. Jumpsuits, wrappings, and a belt for his gourd...that was all he'd ever needed. Shinobi, he'd been told, weren't supposed to make fashion statements. They were supposed to blend in. They were soldiers.

Konoha, it seemed, didn't have such beliefs. Sakura had immediately found the pinkest garment in the building: a long, thick scarf that she'd fallen in love with at first sight. That went in a pile along with a heavy red jacket, insulating pants, gloves, and long boots that reached up to her knees. She'd be warm, but she'd certainly stand out. Gaara remembered that Naruto, too, had worn bright orange clothing, which he supposed might have served him well during the fall when the leaves of the trees began to turn, but for every other season…

And yet, Konoha shinobi hadn't died out yet, so maybe they were just strong enough that sneaking around didn't matter. Plus, now that Gaara considered it, he'd stood out a fair amount with his red hair and massive gourd, yet he'd still managed to be fairly stealthy when the occasion called for it.

So...what did that mean for him? He needed warm clothing too, and though his first inclination was towards the dullest colored jackets in the room, he wondered if Sakura might be amused if he went for something more garish.

In the end, he settled for a happy medium. He'd found a brown, hooded overcoat with dark red sleeves. The coat itself reached nearly to his knees, and if he wore simple clothes beneath it, he could keep warm and...experiment with his style a bit. Coupled with some hiking boots, he'd be set for the cold peaks of Iwa.

Even Sai spent time finding a warm jacket for himself, and Gaara noted with a frown that he was carrying his own pocket money. (He could have chipped in for the rent.)

He had to admit, with the new clothes, they looked...different. Less like soldiers, more like...people.

And Gaara liked that.

"So 'Ugly' and 'Bag-Eyes' aren't good nicknames, then."

It was night, and Sakura had long since gone to sleep in the warmth of the inn's bed. Sai, typically, had been a light sleeper, and Gaara wasn't surprised to see him up, but he was surprised to see that the boy was still stuck on the nicknames business.

"I've thought about some alternatives, but clearly I don't have the mind for it. So, Gaara, would sort of nicknames would you use for Sakura, then? Or for me? Maybe you can help me find something that works."

That was the last thing that Gaara wanted. If he was going to give Sai any sort of damned nickname, it would be…

"Dumbass." He turned to Sai. "For you."

Sai blinked.

And then, somewhat unexpectedly, he laughed.

And even more unexpectedly than that, as far as Gaara could tell, the laugh seemed genuine.

Gaara couldn't remember the last time he'd laughed. (Not in a way that wasn't murderous, anyway.) Sakura had made him smile, had even, perhaps, gotten a chuckle out of him, but laughter still seemed out of reach at times. He'd pushed his emotions down for so long that allowing laughter to happen seemed...difficult.

And yet here Sai was, laughing as though it was the easiest thing in the world.

Gaara felt...jealous. Jealous of that ability. Jealous of that freedom. Even an Anbu, it seemed, had more humanity than him.

"Alright then, Grumpy." Sai finally answered. "I think that helps me out a lot, actually."

It was like Sai really was a mind reader, calling him 'grumpy' now. The nickname was probably fitting, at least, and perhaps a bit less harsh than Bag-Eyes. So, for now, it would be acceptable.

And Gaara would learn how to laugh, even if it was out of spite.

When Sai finally slept, Gaara blinked, and he was face to face with Shukaku once again.

It had happened a couple times since the first, on the tower in the fortress. It was disorienting at first, but Gaara had been getting used to it quicker and quicker. He wasn't quite sure why Shukaku was dragging him in here, (and, he figured, it had to be Shukaku doing it, as when he tried on his own he could never trigger the event), but in a strange way he didn't mind. Being face to face with his demon helped put the demon into perspective.

"You're heading into the lion's den." Shukaku began. He let out a long breath of air, and the black sand at Gaara's feet began to swirl with an unnatural energy. "I've seen how Iwagakure treats its enemies. The instant they learn what you are, your lives will be in danger."

"I know." Gaara answered. "But it is what Sakura wants to do, and it is the only way we can find the other Jinchuuriki."

"They're all probably like you used to be. Cynical, murderous, withdrawn. They won't trust you, even if they know what you are. Not everyone's like that kitsune's brat."

"We still have to try."

"But what do you want, brat?" Shukaku huffed. "You're no longer killing everything, you're just blindly following that girl without any other purpose. You went from being a tool of Suna to being a tool for Sakura."

"I'm not a tool!" Gaara protested. "I'm helping her because she's my friend!"

"And will you die for her, too, if Iwa turns on you?"

The answer came out of Gaara quicker than even he could have expected.

"Yes."

Shukaku let out a thundering growl, shifting his body underneath the chains that held him down. The bells that usually chimed had silenced, leaving the room eerily quiet.

"That Kyuubi boy, that's where it all started. I don't know what's gotten into Kurama that he let that boy be so insufferable, but...I suppose it might be a sign."

"A sign of what?"

"That humanity might be able to change."

It was...perhaps the kindest thing Shukaku had ever said to him, that admission of hope. Gaara sat himself down on the black sand beneath him. If Shukaku could be civil about things, so could he. Maybe they could even reach some sort of understanding.

Maybe that had been what Naruto had done. Naruto had broken free from the loneliness of isolation. Naruto had friends who cared about him, friends like Sakura that had traveled across the continent to find information that could help him. Naruto had strength. The Kyuubi's strength, and his own strength. Had Naruto spoken with the Kyuubi like this, one on one? Had he helped the fox see that bonds were...something to be cherished and sought out? Could Gaara too convince Shukaku of such?

"I want to live in a world where no one has to live in solitude and loneliness ever again." Gaara found himself saying. "I want to live in a world where...shinobi aren't tools to anyone."

"The only way such a world is ever going to exist is if someone works to change it."

"Then I'll be that change. We'll show all the other Jinchuuriki that they have friends, even if the shinobi world shuns them. We'll bring them all together and make the world a better place."

"Bold. Stupid. Impossible." Shukaku huffed. "And I'm stuck along for the ride, so I might as well try to enjoy it."

Gaara blinked, and he was in the inn once again, though Shukaku had one more thing to say.

"Go out the window and get out onto the grass, brat. It's time someone trained you properly."