Last update before 2015 rolls around. It's been a busy year for me! But I'm grateful for all the support you readers have given me, and I can't express enough how happy and thankful I am to know that people love reading this story, because it truly is one of the few things that I've done that I'm very proud of. I hope I can have your continued support as we enter another year with Lion in the Desert!

Disclaimer: Naruto doesn't belong to me. I wish it did. loljk I do not have the capacity or the talent to appease the millions of Naruto fans around the world.

This story will not have any relation to Naruto's dream of achieving Sasuke Uchiha's return or defeating Orochimaru. This happens a little bit after the Rescue Gaara arc. In other words, kind of AU (Alternate Universe). Thought you should know.


"He's been standing there ever since the Konoha shinobi sent word that they had found that missing one."

"Really? The Kazekage has?"

"He must really be worried about the relations between our village and theirs, I suppose. After all, she did go missing while she was on a mission here. It doesn't look very good to the Hokage if he tells her that he lost a shinobi while on a no-risk mission here, after promising protection."

"Makes sense. Kazekage-sama is very altruistic, isn't he?"

The two shinobi looked down again, seeing their Kazekage standing on the ledge of the lookout post of the level below them. His face was a mask of calm, but unknown to the sentries on duty, Gaara was anything but. When Kakashi's message had arrived clamped between a canine's teeth, Gaara had been unable to concentrate on anything for more than a few minutes.

She was alive.

She was unhurt.

Despite that, Gaara couldn't help but feel anxious. It was a feeling that would only go away once he could physically see for himself that Kohaku was, in fact, alive and well.

"I see a platoon!" a voice from above him called out, "It's the Copy-Nin and his subordinates!"

In the distance, Gaara could make out a group of brightly-coloured figures contrasted against the sandy landscape. His heart lifted when he saw a familiar flash of gold and dark blue.

Kohaku.

He lifted his hand, and a waterfall of sand lifted the redhead off the ledge and streamed towards the Konoha shinobi. He landed seamlessly a few feet in front of them, and walked the rest of the way, stopping when they finally met halfway.

Naruto was, naturally, the first to speak. "Eh, Gaara? Aren't you supposed to be in your offi—"

"Naruto!" Sakura hissed as she clamped a gloved hand over the blonde's mouth, pulling him away from Gaara.

Kakashi half-smiled beneath his mask and stepped back, allowing Gaara to face Kohaku. She slowly lifted her head, and beneath her hooded cloak, her owlish eyes meeting Gaara's. She remained quiet, only staring at the Kazekage with an unreadable expression on her face. He stared back, allowing moments to pass by slowly as he took in every detail of her, before finally, he grabbed her by her shoulders and pulled her into a tight embrace, earning a surprised exclamation from Naruto, as well as a soft gasp from the stunned girl in his arms.

"Welcome back."

xxxx

Everything felt familiar, yet alien at the same time. As she sat in her dark, unlit room back in the apartment she shared with the rest of her teammates, Kohaku found it odd how she felt like she had arrived home, when Sunagakure wasn't even her actual home. What was odder, she discovered, was the fact that the alien sentiment of 'home' had come to her so naturally.

No one had asked her questions yet.

On the journey back from the Land of Water, Kohaku had been mostly quiet, save for the times when the others would talk to her or ask her questions that were completely unrelated to her disappearance. She knew that an interrogation would be unavoidable, and because of that she would have to sort through everything she knew and file away the bits that were meant for only Danzo to know about.

Did she want to let him know, though?

While she had been travelling back to Suna, not once had Kohaku thought of the Konoha elder. Her brain had unconsciously suppressed any information that she had discovered during her time with the Akatsuki; it was as if it had wanted Kohaku to take a break and return to her findings with a fresh mindset.

Now that she was back, she wanted answers to the questions she had, but she knew that it would be foolish of her to simply believe what either Sasori or Itachi had said to her. For all she knew, they could have been simply manipulating her into distrusting her superior. Still, for a man who killed his entire family, save for his brother, Kohaku felt like Uchiha Itachi was someone she could trust, and that in itself was ironic, considering the fact that he was a criminal.

Knock knock knock. "Kohaku?"

Hearing her name, Kohaku sat up on her bed. "Come in."

The door creaked open, and harsh light flooded the unlit room, making Kohaku wince slightly as she closed her eyes. Bright light was still an issue for the shinobi after having spent so much time in a dark base and blindfolded. The hooded cloak they had gotten in a village near the border where they had found Kohaku, had helped fend off most of the unforgiving solar rays during their journey back but she was still getting used to lights again.

"Oh, I'm sorry," Kohaku heard the door close, and footsteps shuffled across the room as they came towards her, "I heard about the light sensitivity from Kakashi but it completely slipped my mind."

Feeling the mattress of her bed being weighted down as he sat gingerly on the edge, Kohaku opened her eyes, dabbing at the tears that had welled up from the sudden brightness from earlier. She could see Gaara very clearly in the dark, and wondered if he could see her too. "Why are you here?"

xxxx

He still couldn't quite believe it.

She was here.

Actually, physically here.

The moment he had set his eyes on her, the feeling of heavy burden that had haunted him in the past two months had disappeared. The ache in his chest was gone, and had been replaced by a skittish nervousness that made his stomach squirm in an uncomfortable way. Uncomfortable, but oddly euphoric.

Why was that?

"I…" He began to speak, but his voice faded as he realised he had no idea what to say to her. She had been gone for almost two months, and he knew that a lot had probably happened to her during her disappearance, but he didn't want to ask her about it. Not just yet.

She was different, he could tell, but not in the way he had expected her to be. Considering the fact that she had been imprisoned with the Akatsuki for a portion of the time she had been away, he had assumed that she would have been more guarded and cold towards him and everyone else. Yet, that wasn't the case. She seemed… free, though not in the literal sense. He could tell that she was still plagued with unspoken troubles, but yet, it was as if she had gotten rid of a heavy burden just like he had. Her eyes, which had been lonely, cold and empty when he had first met her, now had a certain warmth amongst the secrets that still haunted her.

Although it was completely pitch black, he could see her very clearly. There was his excellent night vision to thank for that, and he wondered if she could see him too, because her gaze met his in the darkness, and it felt like she was looking directly at him.

"Thank you."

Startled by Kohaku's sudden words, Gaara was stunned silent for a few heartbeats before he replied, "Why?"

"I was told that you were tirelessly working for my return, and for that, I am grateful."

"… It wasn't out of the kindness of my heart."

"I understand that it was your duty as Kazekage. Still, thank you."

"No, you don't understand, Kohaku."

There was a light furrow in her brow as she struggled to understand what he was getting at. "What have I misunderstood?"

Gaara inhaled deeply, and exhaled slowly and quietly as he formulated his next sentence in his head. "I—"

"Kohaku! Have you seen Gaa— oh there you are!"

Bright light filled the room as the door burst open, illuminating the space as Naruto practically bounced his way inside. He stopped short when he saw the flustered expressions on both Kohaku's and Gaara's faces, and how close to each other they had been sitting. A sly grin slowly took over the confusion on his face as he arrived at an assumption that was only partially accurate. "Did I interrupt something important?" the teasing tone in his voice made Gaara's cheeks flush.

Gaara hastily got onto his feet, and Kohaku followed suit, making sure to take a few steps away from him as she did so. Clearing his throat, Gaara shook his head before asking, "Were you looking for me, Naruto?"

"Temari and Kankuro are waiting for you outside. They said something about a meeting?" Naruto turned towards Kohaku, "They sent someone from Konoha, by the way, and he wants to see you. Are you up for it?"

An uneasy feeling filled Kohaku when she heard Naruto's words, but she managed a cool expression as she nodded. "Has he been waiting long?"

"Apparently he arrived a few days before we did, so I guess so," Naruto shrugged, "He's outside right now. Here, I'll bring you to him before I leave."

As Naruto left the room, Kohaku started towards the door, following him, when a tug on her arm stopped her. Looking down, she saw that Gaara's hand was clasped around her wrist, and she looked back up at him, her eyes meeting his frosty green gaze.

"I'll see you later?" Gaara asked, as he gently squeezed her wrist.

"Okay," Kohaku answered simply, surprising both herself and the redhead.

xxxx

Her stomach sank when she saw the copper-haired man dressed in black, sitting with Kakashi in the sitting room. Naruto had already left minutes ago, with an apology saying he was late for an appointment with Sakura. She cast a furtive glance in Gaara's direction as he left the apartment, joining his siblings, before the door closed behind his back, and strangely, the last semblance of security she felt disappeared. Shaking the feeling away, Kohaku stood in front of him and bowed stiffly. "Fuu-senpai."

The Root ANBU regarded his junior coolly as he acknowledged her with a nod of his head. "Shishimiya Kohaku. Please sit," he directed his gaze towards the sofa opposite of the one he was seated on, "We have a lot to discuss."


Lots of plot development coming up, and I'm excited with the way this story is turning out! I hope you all are, too. c:

Thank you for reading this far, and feel free to ask any questions if you have any! Or dropping a review to tell me how you liked it is good too. Heh.

Luv,

Pichuzilla