Date last revised: December 23, 2020
Betas: Toothless – thank you for making my writing less cring-y and dqueen07 – thank you for giving me direction.
Author's Note: I FINALLY GOT BETAS! Sorry it took so long, but I hope you enjoy! See you at the end of the chapter!
Part III: Departure
Tread the earth
X
"You called for me?"
Gaara-sama stood in front of Ikanago, back straight and arms folded by his chest. Ikanago wondered if it would be rude to mention he looked so much like his father, it physically ached.
Rasa may not have been the best Kazekage, but he was her best student. Studious. Diligent. Thoughtful. Under her tutelage, he had flourished, and she would forever be regretful she couldn't be there to guide him when he first took the title of Kazekage.
She should have been beside him in those first few years, but instead she had allowed his mind to be poisoned by those around him. In her heart, she knew she had a part to play in his death. Maybe that was why she wanted to guide the boy before her.
"You're usually so busy during the day, Gaara-sama, I figured it would be better to summon you at night," she replied. She gestured for him to sit down but wasn't surprised when he remained standing.
Instead, he raised a brow at her statement. "It's past midnight."
"I do hope it's not a problem?" she asked. "Is there somewhere you need to be?" It was well-known in Sunagakure of Gaara's insomnia. Countless deaths could testify to that fact. The question was mere courtesy.
"No," he replied. "Why did you ask me to meet you here?" Ikanago smiled thinly and leaned back in her chair. She had summoned him to the Academy. After retiring as head of ANBU, Ikanago took up teaching. Many questioned her decision, but she knew this was her calling.
She regarded Gaara with a critical gaze before sighing. They must not repeat the mistakes Rasa had made. She had made sure to teach Gaara what she knew, but reports had reached her.
"I received a letter from the daimyo just yesterday," she started. Gaara, for the most part, remained still. "He expressed...great distress at the thought of you being Kazekage."
He shrugged. "He wouldn't be the first."
She couldn't argue with that.
"If you became the Kazekage, he said he'll stop sponsoring our village," she said. "What exactly happened, Gaara-sama?"
Silence.
Ikanago sighed and rubbed her temples. "I can't help you if you don't tell me."
"I don't need your help," he said, frowning. "I can handle it fine." Ikanago pressed her lips together. Youth these days think they know better, but that was ignorance talking. Still, she was quite tired, and decided to let the matter drop for now. Besides, there was another matter she needed to address, and the reason why she called him to the Academy instead of going to his office.
"There are also rumours about you and that diplomat from Konoha," she said.
"Rumours?"
"That you've fallen in love with that pink-haired girl. That you're planning to marry her and betray the village to be with her. That Shukaku wants her as his mate." She saw confusion in his expression until her words fully sunk in. Shock and disbelief passed through his eyes before he quickly reigned in his emotions.
He shook his head and let out a breath as his fists clenched and unclenched by his sides. Ikanago wondered if perhaps she went too far and she would witness one of his infamous tempers in person.
After all, if the rumours were true, Shukaku would be angered at the disrespect she gave to his mate. And if the rumours were false - Gaara might call on Shukaku just to deal with the humiliation of her having brought up the topic. Subtly, her hands moved to the edges of the table before her, ready to throw it at him in case of emergency.
She worried for nothing. No killing intent seeped out from him, and his face was carefully blank. Still, she refused to lower her guard.
"I don't have any relationship with Sakura-san," Gaara said after a considerable pause. "She's a friend of a friend."
"And a diplomat sent here from Konoha," Ikanago said, reminding him. It was obvious the girl had been brought for another reason, but she was glad it wasn't because of any romantic interest on Gaara's part. How would she tell him his life after becoming Kazekage wouldn't be fully his anymore?
For this boy, whose selfishness caused the deaths of many, a restriction of that magnitude might have bad consequences. But there was no one else more powerful than him. He needed to become the Kazekage. For the sake of Sunagakure. And, though she hated to admit it, she needed him to become the Kazekage for her own selfish reasons.
With her guiding him, she might be able to overwrite her guilt for Rasa's death.
"I would like to meet this diplomat of yours and see for myself," she finally said. "To make sure nothing is going on between the two of you." Hearing those words, Gaara grimaced but nodded tightly.
"Whatever will put your mind at ease."
X
The rumour between him and Sakura was so absurd he wasn't sure if he should be amused or disgusted. If beating her within an inch of her life was what classified as romance these days, then maybe the rumours had some merit.
But as it stood, he harboured no such feelings. There were bigger things to worry about. His goal was so close. The Salt Ceremony was three weeks away, and he needed to be ready. Shukaku needed to be subdued before then.
Besides, how could he worry about a significant other, when he didn't plan to take a wife in the first place?
He knew himself enough. His personality wasn't approachable or amiable like Kankuro. He had a temper, and a dangerous one, at that. One wrong word from his wife on a bad day, and she would find herself splattered on the walls.
The thought made him laugh. He wasn't foolish enough to believe any girl would want to be tied down to the monster of Suna, Kazekage or no. And if any girl professed their love for him…Well, then they were the foolish one. That, or they're a spy planted by the Council.
He had no doubt marriage talks would occur once he became of age, maybe even before then. And once he produced a son, the Council would do their hardest to take him out of the picture.
After all, a small, innocent child would be easier to control than him.
The council as it was now held too much power. They were all too old, too rigid and too traditional. Shukaku was sealed in him with their permission...and it wasn't far-fetched to believe they suggested it to his father, all those years ago, either.
As soon as he became Kazekage, they would have to go.
X
In her dream, Sakura was back in her room in Konoha. The masked men had followed her from Suna and now surrounded her, in their hands a variety of weapons. Try as she might, she couldn't move. They approached her slowly, the leering smiles painted on the masks moving and mouthing silent words. Her chakra was gone.
She was nothing more than a powerless fourteen year old girl.
The men loomed over her, growing taller until their heads reached the ceiling. One of them grabbed her neck and squeezed hard. She couldn't move, couldn't raise her hands to push him away.
Through the slits in the mask, she saw familiar red eyes.
She screamed.
X
Sakura fell hard onto the floor of the Kazekage's office with a yelp. Her hands were clammy and cold as she pressed them to her neck, where the Sasuke in her dream strangled her. His eyes looked ready to kill, but Sasuke-kun would never hurt her.
Right?
Breathing hard and with shaking hands, she pushed herself back onto the couch. Gaara had allowed her to stay another night at the office which she accepted gratefully, although she knew she had to go back to the house at some point.
Which reminded her – she looked around and saw no sign of him.
Unwilling to dwell on her dream any longer, she moved towards the window, leaning her elbows on the ledge. The wind was cool, cooler than what she was accustomed to in Konoha.
Closing her eyes, she let her skin feel the wind. Usually, she would press her shoulders close to her chest and turn away. But tonight, she allowed her body to loosen, to let the wind move through her. She inhaled deeply, letting the cold air into her lungs and exhaling just as slowly.
Locks of her short hair moved, the wind caressing her with its cold fingers – down her face and dipping to her neck and arms, raising goosebumps.
Opening her eyes slowly, she looked at the Kazekage house in the distance. She didn't want to go back there. Not until she was strong enough to beat all those men with her own two hands. She just hoped Gaara wouldn't mind her intruding in his office for a little while longer.
X
When Gaara returned, he found Sakura seated in the middle of the office floor, surrounded by books on all sides. Her short hair was tied in a bun at the top of her head to clear stray hairs from her face, and her gaze at the books before her were as intense as the one she gave him during their spar.
For a second, he felt he wasn't supposed to be there - that he was intruding on a private moment. But the second passed, and Sakura raised her eyes to meet his before giving him a nervous smile.
"I couldn't go back to sleep," she said. "I hope you don't mind."
He closed the door behind him. "Not at all." He swept his gaze on the books on the floor. "Are these-?"
"They're from your bookshelf," she said, fingers twitching in nervousness. "About Shukaku, his history...anything to give me some information. Were they confidential?"
He didn't understand why she looked nervous. He couldn't care less about those books; it wasn't as if he planned on ever reading them.
"Feel free," he said as he took his seat by his desk. "If it's about Shukaku, I can answer any question you have."
Sakura tried hard to cover her surprise. "I was under the assumption you don't like to talk." He raised a brow, unsure whether to be amused or insulted. Even though it had been months, he liked to think his personality has improved considerably.
"I don't like small talk," he clarified. "But if it can help with your mission, I don't mind." He paused. Consciously, he turned his body towards her and uncurled his fists. Trying to look open and approachable, like what they taught him. "Is there anything specific you want to know right now?"
He wasn't sure if adjusting his body language worked, but Sakura looked slightly relieved. "Are you sure?" she asked, "I've been known to be annoying." Nervous laughter. He wasn't sure if he should laugh or agree or do both. The urge to agree was strong - after all, things had become much more complicated ever since her arrival - but he restrained himself.
People don't like the truth, Kankuro had advised him months ago. Especially truths about themselves. If you're unsure, half-truths are your best bet.
"You're tolerable," he said instead.
X
X
Tsunade paced the Hokage office nervously. It was early morning, and she wanted nothing more than to sink into her bed and sleep the rest of the day away. She had called for Kakashi hours ago, but in typical Kakashi fashion, he was terribly late.
As soon as she felt his presence, she hurried back to her seat and calmed her breathing. Kakashi Hatake was a dangerous man, and it was foolish of Tsunade to underestimate him. She wouldn't make the same mistake again.
The two of them stared at each other before Tsunade gestured for him to sit down.
"Since when did you play politics?" she said, breaking the silence. There was no going around it – she didn't have the luxury of playing mind games.
He didn't bat an eyelash. "Since you decided to involve my student in that suicide mission."
"You know what you did could be classified as insubordination?" she hissed, rubbing her temple. Damn it. "How dare you bring Danzou into this! I should have you stripped of your rank right now."
"Danzou will take me back as ANBU, if you do," he replied, tapping his fingers on the table leisurely, as if he had all the time in the world to play verbal ping-pong.
Men, she thought in disgust. The fucking disrespect.
"Do you doubt me as your Hokage?" she said, gritting her teeth.
"I doubt your decision-making skills when you're drunk half the time."
Blood pounded in her ears. Anger surged through her like electricity and without realising, she had gathered her chakra in her hands. The table groaned from the pressure. "You're very close to crossing a line with me, Hatake," she said slowly. "Know your place." Kakashi stood up.
"If you won't let me go and see Sakura, Danzou will," he said, moving towards the door. "I'm sure he'll want to send someone there once he finds out about her 'mission'. It all depends on your decision, Hokage-sama." She pursed her lips.
"I don't take Sakura's life lightly," she called out. Kakashi stilled, hand on the door handle.
"Well, neither do I."
He slammed the door behind him.
X
Author's Notes:
This has to be the longest I've worked on a chapter! So many things has happened since my last update such as: my first nephew being born, finishing end of year exams and assignments, finishing my internship and part-time job, starting an art journal (of sorts). There were so many things, both good and bad, that has happened to me in the last few months, but know that I was not being idle!
Actually, I've been working on this chapter, and rewriting previous chapters. I've officially updated Chapter 1 to the point where I'm finally, FINALLY satisfied with it! I hope you guys have a read and see the improvement haha! I'm currently working on rewriting Chapter 2 until I'm also satisfied with it hehe.
This chapter was so, so difficult. Why? Because I rewrote it several times! Honestly, there were so many different directions I initially wanted to go in that I had to scrap because it was just too out of character, too soon. I have enough scraps of scenes to write another omake – just from this chapter alone! Pretty crazy, huh? Haha. My final revisions for this chapter wasn't beta-ed because it's December 23, and I'm sure my betas want to spend their holidays in peace haha.
When I say slow burn, I really do mean slow haha. But I hope that the pay-off will be worth it (for you and for me!). We are slowly but surely gaining steam. I'm pretty sure once the Salt Ceremony is done the plot will be too fast to stop lol.
For this chapter, I wanted to explore Gaara as a character more, and we see here several things: Gaara doesn't plan to marry, Gaara is not naïve/innocent, and Gaara is trying. Ooh, I'd love to know your thoughts.
We'll just have to see if Gaara changes his mind about getting married, eh? ;)
I really want to discuss my story with you guys in more depth huhu. I have a tumblr, so if you want to say hi or chat, please feel free!
I'd like to thank Ilikeoldfandoms7, Ester Izanami, Sarah, NinjaRoja, Mac000000000 and noominaome for reviewing on FFN!
Thank you to Diane_LTGSF, Genmastone, Bird_of_Pray94, Elle Blessingway, darthlokke, dollqueen, LadyDeasy, breezyxmii for reviewing on AO3!
Also, thank you to hyuugatenten for messaging me and re-reading the whole thing(!) aah, it made me so happy!
Again, I'd like to thank Toothless and dahqueen for their beta-reading. To Toothless, thank you for beta-ing even though you're not in the fandom haha, and to dahqueen who read MOAN and gave out solid feedback, thank you.
Finally, to the silent readers, those who put this fic in their favourites, alerts, bookmarks and subscriptions – thank you so much.
To all those who took the time to review, I cannot express how much your reviews mean to me. This year 2020 has been difficult and trying, but reading (and re-reading) your reviews brought me a lot of joy this year.
I hope this story has also brought you joy.
Enjoy your holidays, keep safe, and I'll see you in 2021!
Cheers, Elle.