A/N: Alright, so this will be the last chapter before stuff actually starts to happen again. You'll get your scene in this chapter, so I hope you're satisfied with it.

Time for chapter 22

Enjoy!

"I'm kinda surprised they let you in here."

"They weren't going to, but I didn't give them much of a choice."

Naruto and Sasuke shared a low laugh. It was nearly sunrise, and the Uchiha had apparently forced his way into the blonde's prison wing to pay him a visit. It was a welcome arrival, as the only people the Jinchuuriki had been able to interact with for the past week had been Gaara, Danzo, and occasionally the guards. Limited selection, to say the least. Sasuke had arrived only moments earlier, but the blonde's mood had already lifted somewhat.

"Glad you forced your way through. How've you been since the invasion?" Naruto asked his friend in a hushed tone. Sasuke, who had not bothered to look closely at his teammate until the present moment, frowned.

"Other than the hospital time, I've been more or less fine. But, uh, what's that about?" he asked, pointing to Gaara as he spoke. Quickly realizing what he was referring to, Naruto sighed. The redhead was asleep, and she was still leaning against Naruto as she had been before. She had yet to awaken.

"She fell asleep, and she asked to use me for support." the blonde explained tiredly. Sasuke's frown did not falter at his explanation.

"And you let her?" he asked skeptically, clearly still struggling to understand what exactly he was looking at. Naruto glanced at his slumbering cellmate and then back to Sasuke.

"Yeah, I guess I did. She...doesn't sleep a lot. She'd be a hell of a lot worse if I didn't make her nap." he said. The Uchiha sat down in front of the cell and pursed his lips.

"You sound sympathetic to her. Why is that?" he asked. Naruto shifted carefully so as not to wake the girl resting on him.

"That's kind of a long story. I still don't trust her fully, but I'm pretty sure she isn't going to hurt me." he said. Sasuke studied Gaara silently, watching her breath and press on his teammate.

"You get why this bothers me, right? She hasn't really been all that pleasant. Not to anybody but you, apparently." he said carefully. Naruto nodded stiffly.

"Yeah, I get it. But still, I don't really think she's that awful. She's just a little erratic." he said. Sasuke sighed and looked the blonde in the eyes.

"No offense, but you haven't seen what I've seen with her. When you showed up, she changed. I don't know what history you two have, but it clearly altered her demeanor. She was a monster when Shino, Kiba, and I fought her." he said. Naruto drummed his fingers on the cold floor pensively.

"I know. I haven't forgiven her for what she did to you guys, but I still can't subscribe to the idea that she's just evil. I don't buy it." he said. Gaara then moved a bit, making a small noise as she did so. Sasuke tensed at the possibility of the girl awakening, but it soon came to pass. She was still unconscious, and her head was still leaned against Naruto's neck and shoulder.

"Maybe she isn't with you, but she's shown no restraint against everybody else. If you hadn't shown up when you did, she'd have killed me. Same goes for when I saved Shino and Kiba. She's ruthless, Naruto." Sasuke said. At his words, a recent memory returned to the blonde'

"So, they did hurt you"

Naruto shuddered slightly as he recalled the dead look in Gaara's eyes as she had prepared to raise hell on the security staff of the prison. Had Naruto not rushed to stop her, Gaara certainly would have added several more names to her ledger of violence. The triggering factor had been the blonde's injury at the hands of a guard, but Naruto still found himself wondering. Could it have all been an excuse? An excuse to crush another slew of people? A quick glance at Gaara's sleeping face brought about great turmoil within Naruto's mind.

The contrast between the brutal atrocities she had committed and the tranquil quality about her features was stark and extreme. Much of what Sasuke had said was clearly driven by a bias against the girl, but none of it was factually incorrect. She had indeed come close to killing three of his comrades, and there were rumours of another murder that had apparently occurred in Naruto's apartment building. Other than her strange interest in the leaf genin, her time in Konoha had been defined by savagery.

"Even if she is, does that really make her a monster? It's not like I haven't gone berserk before, and she was under orders to come and kill me." Naruto asked quietly. Sasuke nodded his head firmly.

"Yeah, I think it does. Especially since she was smiling while she was beating me up, and I swear to you, I heard her laughing while I was on my way to get Kiba and Shino out of there. She's a sadist through and through." he said as he scowled at the sleeping Jinchuuriki.

"I still want to believe that she's being honest with me. She seems apologetic about everything that's happened, for whatever that's worth." Naruto muttered. Sasuke stood up from where he was sitting.

"It isn't worth a damn thing. Besides, I doubt she means it. I'm sorry, but I can't get behind the idea that she was just 'having a bad day' when she tried to kill us." he said. His expression then tamed slightly.

"Look, I'm just...apprehensive. I don't think she can be trusted. Not by you, not by anybody. It's nothing against you, and maybe you know things about her that I don't, but please, try to understand where I'm coming from here." he said. At this, he turned around and began to walk away. Before he could disappear around the corner, though, he stopped.

"I know that you probably feel attached to her because she's like you, but trust me, Naruto. That girl's more thorn than flower." he assured the blonde. A moment later, he was gone from view. His footsteps slowly faded into silence as he walked away. Once he was gone, Naruto released a breath he had been holding.

'Since when are you a poet, Sasuke?' he thought to himself in reference to the Uchiha's final words to him. Sasuke's visit had been fairly brief, and it hadn't been particularly positive. The moment he had noticed Gaara's presence, he had become agitated. It wasn't difficult to understand why that was, but it was disappointing nonetheless.

"He's right, you know."

The blonde flinched at the sudden noise. It was spoken right into his ear. Looking down and to his left, he saw that Gaara's eyes were now open.

"How much of that did you hear?" Naruto asked. The girl exhaled through her nose and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear.

"Nearly all of it. I woke up early on into the conversation. I remained silent for obvious reasons." she explained. The blonde tensed slightly, a reaction Gaara easily noticed.

"You're so expressive. Especially when you're afraid. How cute." she muttered, pressing herself into him further as she spoke. Naruto reddened at the increased contact.

"What did you mean? Just now. What was Sasuke right about?" he asked in an attempt to change the topic.

"About me being untrustworthy. You yourself said that you'd never forgive me for what I did. I despise Sasuke Uchiha for a variety of reasons, but I agree with him on this one thing. You trusting me is foolish." the redhead replied. Naruto frowned and glanced down at her, causing his ear to brush through her hair.

"What's gotten into you? Yesterday, you were almost begging me to trust you. What changed?" he asked. Gaara took several moments to answer him.

"My nightmares were memories this time. Memories from the invasion. They returned me to the day of the invasion. I relived the entire thing. From my encounter with Shino Aburame and Kiba Inuzuka to my battle against you. I could see everything. I swear I felt it all again. Every punch, every drop of blood." she said, her tone unsettling and dark.

"What are you getting at?" Naruto asked nervously. Gaara wrapped herself around his arm and clamped down on it.

"He was telling you the truth. I laughed, I grinned, and I enjoyed myself. I was buoyed by their fear and pain." she said. Naruto stared at her wide-eyed, extraordinarily uncomfortable with the information being revealed to him. By this point, Gaara had pressed her face into Naruto's shoulder.

"I know how awful it is. I know...I know...I know…" she said brittly, repeating the final two words several times before lapsing into silence. It was then that Naruto noticed that his shoulder was damp. She was crying. Her sniffles were audible, and her body was wracked with tremors. Naruto needed to respond. He needed to speak, and he knew it. Unfortunately, the shock of Gaara's sudden shattering had affected him as well. His mouth was dry and paralyzed.

"I know I'm a freak. I know I'm insane. I k-know it's wrong. I don't w-want to kill, but I can't stop…" the girl stuttered tearfully. Finally finding his voice, Naruto spoke one word.

"Why?" he asked hoarsely. The redhead bit her lip and crawled fully on top of him in his lap. It wasn't a gesture of domineering confidence. It was akin to an infant seeking comfort. This sentiment was further evidenced by what she did when she had fully settled. She didn't glower over him. Instead, she curled up and pressed her face into his chest.

"He won't get out of my head. He won't leave me alone…" she whimpered fearfully as her tears soaked his shirt. Naruto instantly understood. The very same thing that prevented her from sleeping was to blame. At least somewhat.

"Gaara…" he whispered quietly. Gaara tensed and reached up. Her hand then covered his mouth.

"Don't say my name. It's ugly." she said weakly. The blonde slowly peeled her palm from his face and kept hold of it.

"No, it isn't. Even if you've done some awful things, you did them to keep your sanity. Maybe I still can't forgive you, but you aren't ugly or a monster. You're human." he assured her gently. At this, Gaara straightened her back and removed her face from his chest. Her hands then found their way to the sides of his face.

"I love you so much." she said shakily as she gazed up at him desperately. Her cellmate maintained eye contact and studied her.

"I don't really get why. Even now." he said honestly. Gaara slid herself up on his lap and put her hands on his shoulders.

"You're the purest person I've ever met. You've given me some hope, if only a little. That's more than even my own family has ever done for me. You have the husk of my heart." she said. Without warning, she crushed her lips to his messily. After a few moments, she pulled her mouth from his.

"You make me feel warm and safe." she whispered with her forehead leaned against his. The leaf genin looked away from her guiltily.

"I can't say how I feel right now. I don't know yet." he said. Gaara ran her hands through his hair and smiled softly.

"I don't expect you to love me. I'm arguably insane, I've killed in cold blood, and I hurt you tremendously. I have no right to expect you to reciprocate." she said sadly. Her cheeks then gained a red tint.

"But...could you let this wreckage kiss you a little bit? I want to thank you. For everything you've done for me." she requested. Naruto met her eyes and nodded. Gaara then tilted her head to the side and pressed her lips to his softly with her arms draped over the back of his neck. They cycled through breathing and kissing for nearly three minutes until Gaara made space.

"You taste sweet." she said affectionately. Naruto blushed uncharacteristically and averted his eyes from Gaara's loving gaze.

"T-thanks. You...you're a lot better than you were yesterday." he said awkwardly. The redhead smiled proudly and let him shift underneath her to make himself more comfortable.

"My only happy dream was about kissing you, so you could say I had practice." she said somewhat shyly. She then shrunk down into him again and tucked her head underneath his chin.

"But, we don't have to kiss anymore. That's perfectly okay with me." she said. Naruto proceeded to pleasantly surprise her by wrapping an arm around her and hugging her into himself.

"I...actually didn't hate it. Your lips are soft." he said. Gaara turned pink at the compliment and nuzzled her face into the crook of his neck. A spell of silence then cast itself over the pair as they held one another in the face of the rising sun. After a time, Gaara broke the silence.

"Even if you leave me in this cell when you're released, please don't forget about me. That's all I ask." she said quietly. Naruto shook his head.

"I'm not leaving you in here. Not a chance in hell." he said firmly. Gaara chuckled and ran her hand along his abdomen.

"What do you plan to do then? I could break my way out of here without much effort, but that would require me to kill." she asked. The blonde pried her off of him just enough for their eyes to meet again.

"We're breaking out of here, and we're doing it cleanly." he replied. The redhead smiled at his determination and gave him a peck on the nose. She then collapsed into him again, this time closing her eyes while she used his chest as a pillow.

"That sounds wonderful. Wake me when you're ready." she said with a rare yawn. Naruto frowned and glanced down at the girl in his arms.

"Are you sure you want to sleep again?" he asked, greatly concerned by the prospect of Gaara encountering more nightmares.

"I'm happy, Naruto. So happy. Even if I have nightmares, I'll have you in my core." she said as she drifted off to sleep once again.

"If it's too much, and you wake up, please don't hide it from me." he said. Gaara nodded slightly and closed her eyes.

"I love you, Naruto." she said finally. The leaf genin kept to his silence for a moment or two, searching for the proper and honest thing to say.

"I'm glad. Don't stop. I'm getting there."

Sasuke flopped down onto his bed and removed his forehead protector, tossing it onto his nightstand upon pulling it free from his head. Despite having awoken only an hour earlier, he found himself feeling utterly exhausted. His trip to the prison had been tiring in a number of ways. Practically breaking past the guards had been stressful, maintaining his calm in the face of a sleeping Gaara had been nearly impossible, and listening to his teammate speak about the very same girl who had wreaked havoc on them only a few days earlier in a sympathetic light had been fairly jarring.

'She's off her rocker, Naruto. I don't care how nice and gentle she is with you. It isn't real. It can't be.' he thought to himself in frustration. The Uchiha had more or less made his thoughts on the girl vocal during his visit, but he had still suppressed many of his harsher comments for fear that Gaara had been silently listening. The subtle degree of fear Sasuke had experienced opposite the pair of Jinchuuriki had been infuriating. Fear was a limiting emotion, and it had greatly restrained him.

'No matter how much I hate it, she's still stronger than me. I can't afford to start a fight with her if she gets released at some point, or if she ever decides to smash her way out of that cell. Even if Naruto can beat her, she might just kill me quickly a third time around.' he admitted to himself. Gaara was contained, and yet he still felt powerless. Both literally and metaphorically. The image of her head leaning on Naruto's shoulder sickened him.

'You were screaming for blood. You had us dead to rights. You'd have taken your time killing us if you weren't operating on limited time, and you still have the nerve to get touchy with Naruto. You're a sadistic whore.' Sasuke growled within his mind. His jaw was clenched, his hands were curled into fists, and his eyes were narrowed. He hated the situation. He hated it strongly. Above all else, he despised Gaara. She was an enemy, but more than that, she was a parasite. One that ate away at a person.

Before he could fall too far into his darker thoughts, Sasuke let out a sigh. It was pointless to mull over things he couldn't control. If bygone history was any indication, he would get his chance. To do what, he did not know, but a chance would present itself. An opportunity to right the wrongs of the present situation. In the back of his mind, though, there was a sinking feeling. A feeling that things would not be resolved easily. There would be tremendous struggle. Perhaps against an unexpected foe. It was an off-putting feeling, and it drew a shudder from the Uchiha.

'I'll just play this by ear. No point in letting it distract me from everyday life. Naruto will be released in early February, so it won't be too long until he's away from her. Yeah, this will just sort itself out.' he assured himself with a deep breath. It was possible that he was convincing himself of a false reality, but it mattered not. He needed to remain calm and focused. Life would not cease. Especially not with a war on the horizon. If anything, his attention would be required more than usual.

'Strange times. Not particularly good ones, but strange all the same.'

A/N: Just so you know, it's currently November in the fic, so Sasuke's referencing the three-month sentence when he says he'll be released in February.

They'll be breaking out very, very soon, so get ready for that. The real fight is about to begin. Tell me what you thought of this chapter :)

See you next chapter! Read and Review!