Author's Note: I took a bit of a longer break than I intended. I thought I would get at least two chapters out over Christmas vacation, but my schedule was more hectic than I realized! I'll be updating more often after this week (midterms...). Sorry this chapter is a bit shorter than I wanted it to be. Hope you all enjoy the newest episode of A Complicated Situation! Read, review, and as always...enjoy! XD

If you're new to the story, catch up on the other chapters and please leave a review to tell me what you think. I love hearing what you all have to say. Any comments, questions, or suggestions are welcome!

Same disclaimer and summary as other chapters!

Episode 57: Getting In The Way

Sasuke reached out to knock on the door, but his hand stilled when he heard a familiar laugh. Sutefanii? What is she doing here? He listened more intently and heard the sound of her giggles again, music to his ears. Finally, he rapped on the door with his knuckles before twisting the knob and slowly pushing it open. Naruto and Sutefanii were seated on the bed in the far corner of the room, still in hysterics. When they heard the door creak open, Naruto turned around and nearly fell off the bed. Sutefanii was facing the doorway and her hazel eyes went wide and a blush spread across her cheeks when she saw him standing there. The blonde boy propped himself up on his elbows and glared at the dark-haired boy, annoyed until he saw the other boy's expression.

"Whoa, hey Sasuke. W-what's wrong? You look freaked –"

Sutefanii cut Naruto off by springing from the bed. "Seriously, Sasu-kun, what happened? You're paler than usual."

"I was…I was training with Kakashi. I went a little overboard," he answered softly as Sutefanii came towards him. Naruto got up off of the floor and crossed his arms.

"That's not all…" the blonde guessed from Sasuke's expression.

"And…Gaara came after me," the other boy murmured, his dark eyes flashing.

Sutefanii's breathing stopped for a moment. "Are you OK?!" she asked, her gaze running over his body, checking for injuries, trying to keep her mind from lingering on the image of him without a shirt. His stricken expression morphed into one of faint amusement for a moment and her blush deepened when their eyes met. Naruto, unaware of their discomfort, still looked concerned.

"It's not really anything to worry about…Kakashi and I are both fine…just a little shaken. Gaara…had some sort of fit and…stopped himself before he could hurt us. It was weird. Kakashi sent me to find you guys while he searched for Gaara's team…" The dark-haired boy said quietly. Sutefanii gasped as he staggered towards her, nearly falling right into her arms. Naruto stepped forward and gripped his teammates' arms to hold him up and led him towards a chair. The brunette girl grabbed a glass from a cabinet and filled it with water, sliding into the seat next to Sasuke, and pushing the cup towards him. How often has she been here? She knows where he keeps his glasses, the raven-haired boy thought vaguely. He nodded in thanks and sipped from the cup.

"Apparently you really did over-do it," Sutefanii said dryly, as Sasuke drained the glass. Naruto's normally bright blue eyes were clouded with worry, but they narrowed as he watched his female teammate rest her hand gently on Sasuke's shoulder. What exactly have those two been up to while I've been training with Pervy-Sage? he wondered. Sasuke better not be getting in the way of me and Sutefanii's future together!

Kakashi was still shaken by the Sand genin's actions. I know the boy contains Shukaku, the one-tailed demon, much like Naruto is the vessel of the Nine-tails…but I've never seen anything like that before, he thought, quickening his pace. Gaara of the Desert seemed to be completely possessed one moment and the next he was…sane, I guess. He was warning us to get away as fast as possible, realizing that he was about to lose control again. The rings of darkness around his eyes…he obviously doesn't get much sleep. In fact, he's most vulnerable when he's asleep – that's probably how Shukaku gains the upper hand! I have to find Baki and stop this demon from terrorizing my genin team!

The silver-haired ninja slowed down to a brisk walk and panted slightly. He had broken into a cold sweat, causing his mask to cling to his face. His uncovered eye scanned the nearby crowds in the market. A familiar face jumped out at him.

"Kurisuten," he called to her. She turned away from the fabric she'd been touching, her eyes widening at the sight of him. A bright smile lit up her face and she pushed a strand of curly brown hair behind her ear.

"Kakashi-kun," she nearly purred, "What brings you here today?"

"Business," he replied curtly. Her brown eyes flashed with hurt and he felt a pang of regret. He normally would have taken the time to chat, flirt, and catch up with her, but with Gaara's attack still fresh in his mind, he didn't have time for his usual distractions. "Have you seen any of the Sand shinobi around here today? I'm looking for them…"

"Um, the blonde girl and her sensei are actually right over there," she pointed at a weapons stand further down the road. "Listen Kakashi, I was wondering –"

"This is going to have to wait, Kurisu. I have urgent business with them,' he waved a hand at her and sped off down the road. Kurisuten's gaze followed him, her cheeks flaming with embarrassment.

"Don't worry about him. When he's 'on a mission', so to speak, nothing can get in the way," a voice said from behind her. The elder Jeraado girl spun around to see Hana Inuzuka smirking at her. Kurisuten flipped her hair over her shoulder, trying to look care-free.

"I know that. I don't really care anyway," she sniffed. Hana continued to smile mischieviously.

"It's obvious you like him…the question is what he sees in you. I know a lot of kunoichi and citizens alike that have failed to catch his eye. What makes you so special, that he actually stops to talk to you, even when clearly agitated about something?" Kurisuten blushed even further. The Inuzuka heir laughed, her sharp teeth flashing in the sun. "Don't worry; I'm not trying to steal him away. I'm intrigued actually. I don't normally see you around here – you're clan is rather secretive…Well, except your little sister. She's stirring up quite a lot of trouble." The Jeraado girl scowled slightly.

"Want to get some lunch?" Hana quickly changed the subject, her keen nose sensing the shifting emotions of the other girl.

"Sure,' Kurisuten managed a smile. Trouble, huh? Maybe I can dig up a little more about what Sutefanii's been up to lately…

Kakashi finally reached Baki and Temari. The sand sensei spun towards him, sensing hostility. The silver-haired jonin held up his hands, showing his lack of weaponry.

"I'm here about one of your other students. Gaara came and tried to attack me and my student today –"

"The Uchiha?" Temari jumped in.

Kakashi frowned. "How did you kn– never mind. He had some sort of attack. Unless he recovered, he should still be where we left him –"

"Where?" Baki growled.

"Follow me," the Leaf shinobi answered.

The Sand sensei turned to the blonde. "Get the other two as quickly as possible and meet us…" he looked at Kakashi questioningly.

"The open training grounds near Konoha's south gate," the jonin filled in swiftly, anxious to question Baki when Temari left. The blonde girl nodded curtly and sprinted off without another word.

"Alright, alright," Cherushii laughed. "You said you needed help training with your puppets, but this was not exactly what I had in mind…"

Kankuro grinned impishly at her. "This is a training method for me," he said, jerking one of his chakra strings to make Cherushii take a step forward.

"This is stupid," she tried to pull away, but he stopped her motions with a flick of his wrist. "I'm a human puppet! Now I know what it's like to feel completely helpless…it's annoying," she tried to scowl, but ended up laughing as he spun her around in a circle. "Kanky…let me go!"

He softened at the nickname, but shook his head, letting his hood flop off. Without saying a word, he made her do a cartwheel and a back hand-spring. He smiled at his success – no tangled strings, a good sign. Cherushii rolled her icy blue eyes at him. Kankuro retaliated by jerking his chakra strings towards him, forcing her to walk right up to him.

"What?" she asked him. He twisted his hands and suddenly all of her movements were constricted – the strings were wrapped tightly around her, pinning her arms to her sides and holding her legs in place. "No fair," she complained jokingly, looking up at him. The serious expression on his face caused her breath to catch in her throat; his dark eyes seemed to gaze through her to her soul. His hand caught her chin and he tilted her face up towards him, leaning in. Her eyes fluttered shut as she felt his breath on her face.

The door banged open. "Kankuro, Cherushii, Gaara needs –" Temari's voice faltered. The two younger genin sprung apart, Kankuro quickly retracting his chakra strings and ran a hand through his tangled brown hair. Cherushii smoothed out her shirt and looked guiltily at the floor, before anything registered in her mind. Her head shot up.

"Wait, what about Gaara?" she asked, suddenly panicked.

"He needs us. Now. Let's go, I won't even ask what was going on in here…" the blonde muttered the last part, heading out the door. Cherushii followed quickly, flying past Kankuro without a backward glance. The brown-haired boy sighed. As usual, Gaara found a way to get between us…now Cheru-chan won't even look at me. She'll get over it, but…damn my brother. I'm much better for her…

Questions to be answered: Is Kakashi's theories about Gaara true? Will Deividdo find out about his daughter's outside life, with Kurisuten's devious help? Will Sasuke and Sutefanii's romantic spark last through the final rounds of the Chunin Exams? Will Naruto find out what's REALLY happened between them? Will Gaara be OK? Will Kankuro try to kiss Cherushii again, and will she let him? How will Gaara react? Will Hinata ever stand a chance with Naruto? Will Kurisuten ever stand a chance with Kakashi? These questions and more will be answered in future episodes of A Complicated Situation! Stay tuned!!

Hey guys, I finally finished my fanfiction named "Dream Girl". Neji x Tenten fans should be pleased.

Also check out my newest fanfiction "Shikamaru Nara Must Die" a sort of parody on the movie John Tucker Must Die mixed with some canon and non-canon Naruto pairings and tons of fun! Only two chapters so far, but new chapter up hopefully SOON!

REVIEW PLEASE! Try not to flame unless it's truly constructive criticism. I'm sorry if some characters don't seem like themselves, but hey it's my story/life! Hope you liked this next chapter, please check back for updates often!

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