A/N: So.. yeah.. Life.
Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. I am not making a profit from this work. Ideas, plot (such as there is), and typos are all mine.
It was dark and warm-comforting-the place where Gaara was, and yet, he was disturbed. There were no signs of life that he could detect, no external noise, no smells. He heard only the sounds of his ragged breathing, and the rapid patter of his own heartbeat. He was sure that his eyes were open, yet all he saw was darkness. He tried to turn his head, to sit up, but found that he could not move. A trickle of ice seeped into his veins, and his breathing slowed. Alert, he listened. He wanted, needed, a sign, a distraction from the picture that was forming in his head.
He worked his mouth, his dry tongue darting out to lick even drier lips. "Hello?" His voice cracked, and he coughed, suddenly aware that he was thirsty. "Hello?" he called again, but only the silence answered.
Gaara frowned, struggling to remember how he might have ended up...wherever he currently was. Flashes of a strange, bespectacled, disturbingly red-haired woman came to mind. Strangely, she reminded him of Naruto. Eyes widening in the dark, the puzzle pieces began to fall into place.
"Naruto," he rasped. He began to struggle in earnest to lift an arm, a leg, to sit up, anything. Twisting his wrists as far as they would go, he used his fingertips to feel around. What he felt shocked him, but made a chilling amount of sense.
Straps. He was strapped down, most likely to a bed or table. He had no idea how long he'd been there; the last time he'd managed to check his email, there'd been a message from Temari, telling him about Naruto's sentencing and begging him to come back. He'd ignored it, tough he could not stop the twinge of pain and regret that tightened his chest as he'd recalled his angry parting words to the other male. The things he'd accused his lover of!
The clicking of a lock had him tensing, waiting for the attack that was sure to come. A thin sliver of light appeared to his right, and in the glare, he could see the shape of a person.
"Water," he requested harshly.
A snort. Then, "I told you he was waking up. Suigetsu! Bring water for our guest."
From far off, he heard a male voice respond, "Get it yourself, you skeezy-"
"My darling Sasuke left me in charge, and I'm telling you to bring water NOW!" The figure moved, and it became clear that it was the red-haired woman he'd seen in his memory. She stepped close to Gaara, her hand lifting. Gaara tensed and shrank away from her, going as far as his restraints would let him. She smirked. "I won't hurt you...Gaara, was it? My darling Sasuke ordered me to help you. I'm so pleased that he needs me!"
Blankly, Gaara stared at her. He swore that there were hearts where her eyes should be. His brain caught up to her words a moment later, and he narrowed his eyes. "Sasuke. Uchiha." He growled, low in his throat, and the woman stepped back, suddenly uncertain.
"Hey!" she snapped. "Sasuke is helping you. Why, I don't know. Something about a debt to an idiot…" She made a movement, and low light flickered on in the room, allowing Gaara to see his prison.
He was indeed in a bed. A hospital-style bed, with bars and white sheets. The walls were soft beige, and thick, dark drapes were drawn tightly over what Gaara assumed were windows. A monitor beeped slowly from somewhere behind his head. Before he could inquire about his whereabouts, however, a slender male with spiky silver hair and strangely sharp teeth came barreling into the room, grinning wickedly and carrying a plastic cup filled to the brim with clear liquid.
He stared down at Gaara with a sneer, then addressed the woman with a snort. "So you're not entirely unuseful, Karin. He really is awake. Good. We can clear out and leave him here. Those ANBU assholes are on their way."
The woman, Karin, pushed her glasses higher on her nose. "I won't leave until my darling-"
"Oh, I didn't tell you?" the male, Suigetsu, Gaara assumed, smirked. "Sasuke sent a couple of texts. He said, 'Where are you morons with Gaara?' and then said, 'The idiot is safe. Sending him there.'" He peered down at Gaara again. "You're somebody special, I guess."
Karin screeched, "My darling called, and you didn't tell me?!" She balled up a fist and shook it dangerously close to Suigetsu's face.
"Texted, you crazy bitch. He texted!" Water sloshed out of the cup, and Gaara swallowed roughly. His mind, though sluggish, was processing the things he'd heard. As he thought, he felt the straps fall away from his person, and blinked. Karin has unfastened his restraints, and was now helping him sit up so he could drink.
The water was delicious nectar, cold and sweet. He drank deeply, and gagged. He sputtered, and Karin whacked him on the back. "You have to slow down. You're slightly dehydrated, and your heart rate only just stabilized. You've lost a lot of blood, but you should be pretty safe now."
Gasping, Gaara asked, "Wha...what are you talking about?"
Karin cocked her head. "You don't remember? When that Naruto dude's trial started, Sasuke had us track you down. You were out of your mind, fighting anyone you could. You stumbled into a really dangerous bar and demanded the strongest person fight you. He tried to kill you! Luckily, we happened to be there."
"I lost?"
"No," Suigetsu filled in. "You won. We think you might have killed him; we didn't stick around to find out. We grabbed you and got out of there." A mouthful of sharp teeth filled Gaara's vision. "Did you know you cry in your sleep?"
"I-I slept?" Shaking his head, Gaara asked the questions burning his tongue. "Where are we? Where's Naruto?" He tangled a trembling hand in his hair, waiting for the hammering pain of his father's ghost, but nothing came. He frowned again, this time in wonder. "Where is he?"
A new voice spoke up. "Naruto is on his way here. We're about 50 miles outside of Konoha proper. He should be here within the hour." The newcomer, despite his large size, looked meek and peaceful. He extended a bundle to Gaara. "Clothes," he explained. "If you can stand, there's a bathroom through that door, and I'll leave some food in the kitchen. Karin, Suigetsu, we need to move."
"Juugo! I'm the one in charge. My darling-"
"Told us to move. He doesn't want ANBU to get a hold of us. They're only letting him walk around free because his brother made some sort of deal with them." Juugo moved to leave the room, then turned back. "I hope things turn out okay for you."
"So do I," Gaara murmured as the strange people left the room.
Naruto fidgeted in the back of the truck as the miles flew by. He was tempted to ask, "Are we there yet?" but Shikamaru has made it clear that if he uttered those words again, he could get out and walk. Shino, who was driving, was eerily silent, and even Kiba, who they'd picked up along the way, was strangely subdued. Aside from a fierce, crushing hug when he'd first gotte in the car, Kiba had not said a word, which Naruto found really, really weird.
The ride was longer than he'd expected, so Naruto had plenty of time to think.
"Gaara, I love you. I want you here," he'd said.
"Even though you have your Uchiha back?" the redhead had challenged.
Naruto sputtered. "What? I mean, sure, I'd like he and I to restore our friendship, but-"
"Isn't that how all of this started in the first place? He hurt you! He doesn't deserve to breathe."
"Gaara!" Naruto admonished. "That's crazy!"
Gaara's eyes had narrowed as he stared into the camera. "So now I"m crazy?"
"WHAT? No! Gaara!"
"You obviously don't need me anymore. Have a good trial."
"GAARA!" The screen went blank, then the ominous words "disconnected" flashed across the monitor. An ANBU agent, who was stationed just outside, walked in to unhook the setup, but quickly ducked out again when Naruto picked up his chair and threw it at the wall.
Shaking off the memory, he tried to engage his friend in conversation. "So, Kiba, how's training?" Once the smoke had cleared, Kiba, Lee, and Sai had all applied for ANBU training. Naruto was itching to get started, as well, but first he needed reassurance that Gaara was alright.
"It's cool." Kiba's usually loud voice was low and mellow.
Naruto cocked an eyebrow. "'It's cool'? That's it? Dude, what's wrong with you?"
"Why do you think there's somethin' wrong with me?"
"You're quiet! You're only quiet when you're sick or somebody died. Oh my gods, is it Akamaru? Is your dog okay? Your mom? Hana?"
"They're fine, Naruto." Kiba sighed. "Everybody's fine."
Naruto pointed an accusing finger at Kiba. "It's worse than I thought, isn't it? You sighed! You never sigh!"
"Gods, you're loud," Kiba muttered, raising a hand to pinch the bridge of his nose.
Horrified at this display of unKibalike behavior, Naruto whipped his head toward the front seat. "SHIKA! What have you done to Kiba?"
Shino answered. "Kiba is being well taken care of in his training. Why? Because he is in my unit, and we are friends."
Naruto sat back in a huff. "Fine. Tell me nothing, you bastards." He directed his gaze out of the window. "Are we there yet?"