Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any of its characters.
A/N: Yes! This is the actual Chapter 13! I apologize for the misunderstanding before. There were technical issues going on with FanFiction so I uploaded a "Chapter 13" but it was really just an announcement for inability to upload Chapter 12, but everyone thought I was trying to upload Chapter 13...it was a mess...and I apologize.
Truly, thank you to all who continue to read. I hope everyone is staying safe out there.
Please Enjoy! :)
I thought about the night before as I walked to medical training. I couldn't help but clench my fists as I pictured Sasuke being given back to Councilman Yura. That fucking asshole. I couldn't stand Councilman Yura. There was just something…off about him.
Gaara didn't speak much to me for the rest of the night. It was almost as if we were back to the old Gaara when he gave me dog-like commands like "Come.", "Sit.", "Sleep." It frustrated me, but I knew I could only test my luck so much. I feared I had taken a step back in…whatever kind of relationship we had. I wasn't sure what to do now, or how to move forward.
A cough from in front of me brought me out of my thoughts. I looked up to find the hidden leaf ninja they called Shikamaru, standing in front me. His hands were casually in his pockets, but he stared down at me intriguingly. I lowered my head and bowed immediately.
"You may be relieved." He said. I stood up from my bow, but kept my head lowered. "Are you heading to the Kazekage's office?" he asked.
I shook my head no. I heard him walk closer towards me until he stopped right in front of me. With my head still lowered in respect, I was now looking at the top of his sandals. The view of his sandals was interrupted when he brought his hand into my view. He held it so his palm faced down for me to see the top of his hand. I furrowed my eyebrows wondering what exactly it was he wanted? Maybe he wanted to get my attention? I was about to raise my head to look at him when I gasped.
Be Good.
The signal. He did the hand signal. My eyes now completely widened, I slowly looked up to meet his gaze. His seemed to be studying me a first, but as soon as he saw my reaction to the signal, he narrowed his eyes and the corner of his mouth rose.
"Just as I thought." He said. I felt my heart beat faster. How did he know that signal? Was he a former slave of Orochimaru too? Did he know Sasuke?
"Can you tell me what it means?" He simply asked. My eyes still wide; I furrowed my brows. He knew the signal, but he didn't know what it meant?
"I saw that male slave last night do this.." He did the signal again "..to you. And you seemed to respond to it…just as you are doing now." He said looking me up and down before locking eyes with me again. "Can you tell me what it means?"
I opened my mouth but nothing came out. We were caught. He saw us communicate together; the small signals that weren't supposed to be noticed by anyone but us. I didn't know how to respond. I didn't want to get Sasuke in trouble…but what if he thought this code was something more than it was? I knew I had to erase those suspicions right away.
"Be good." I blurted out. Shikamaru raised an eyebrow.
"Be good?" He repeated.
"Yes." I said "It's just…a sign to help each other out…to avoid getting in trouble with a Master…that's all it means." Shikamaru's lips went into a thin line as he analyzed. I could almost see the gears turning in his head.
"Shikamaru!" Temari called as she turned the corner. She lightly jogged up from behind him and stopped when she reached his side. I immediately lowered my gaze back down to the ground when she brought her attention to me.
"Did you need Sakura to get you something?" I heard her ask him. I could see from looking at his feet that he shifted his stance towards her.
"No" He answered. "I was just getting to know her a bit. I was surprised to see the Kazekage had taken a Royal Slave." He explained.
"Tell me about it, it was a shock to all of us to be honest." She agreed as if she was still questioning it herself. "Sakura, you're going to be late for medical training." She stated in my direction. I bowed immediately.
"Yes, Madam Temari." I said, and then bowed in the direction of Shikamaru out of respect before I quickly made my way around them and down the hallway.
(_)
Shikamaru shifted his eyes to the pink haired slave and watched as she quickly shuffled her way down the hallway.
Hn…what more was there to that girl? He thought.
Temari then stepped into his line of vision.
"I'm glad I caught you before you left. I actually have to head towards medical too; Gaara put me on supervisor duty." She said with a role of her eyes before she smiled. "But its okay if I'm a little late, I wanted to say goodbye." Her cheeks blushed a light shade of pink at that.
"The Kazekage has a slave in medical training?" He asked.
"Yeah." Temari said with a shrug. "He's actually teaching a small group of slaves medical ninjutsu."
Shikamaru raised an eyebrow at Temari. "Is he?" he asked "What for?"
"It turns out some slaves were taught the healing technique for themselves to heal their injuries against…you know…unforgiving masters." She explained "The plan is to see if they would be useful on missions."
"And you're supervising them?" He asked. Temari sighed but nodded
"Yes, just to make sure the slaves are in line and don't overwhelm Lady Chiyo."
Shikamaru brought his gaze back to the now empty hallway that Sakura went down and thought for a moment.
"Uh, Shikamaru, is everything okay?" Temari asked bringing his attention back to her. He gave her a small smile and stepped in closer to her. She straightened and looked a bit flushed at the proximity between them.
"Temari, would you mind taking me with you to this medical training? I'd love to see how it works before I go."
Shikamaru hated he was sort of taking advantage of this...chemistry he had with Temari. The truth is, he thought he actually quite liked the spunky girl that stood in front of him. She deserved better than this…
"Uh, sure. There's really not much to see, but I'd still be happy to show you."
Shikamaru's smile widened as he reached out and tucked a strand of her blonde hair behind her ear.
"Thank you, Temari."
(_)
I walked into the medical room and immediately bowed my head in Lady Chiyo's direction. Well shit…I was late.
"My apologies Lady Chiyo." I said with a light grimace as I bowed, waiting for her to reprimand me. A couple of seconds passed before I finally heard her voice.
"Its alright Sakura." She said. "Now get in line." I raised my eyebrows at her response. Lady Chiyo never tolerated tardiness. I fully expected her to scold me in front of the whole class. It was when I stood up from my bow that I noticed there was someone standing beside her. The young woman's hair was covered by a typical sand head scarf, just showing the ninja headband with the Suna seal underneath. Her face had tribal-like paint on it, going down her nose and chin, then across her cheeks and lower jaw. The only way I was able to tell she was a she was her feminine figure underneath her typical Suna attire.
There was something about this girl that was familiar, but I couldn't quite put my finger on it… The mystery woman then brought her piercing glare to me, her eyes shooting daggers in my direction. It actually made me take a step back…
"Sakura." Lady Chiyo called from beside her. I moved my wide-eyed gaze to Lady Chiyo. Her expression stern. She was not in her usual carefree mood. "You need to get in line." She directed. I nodded at her and made my way to my usual spot next to Ino. Her expression was tense. I slightly leaned in her direction.
"What's going on?" I whispered. From the corner of her mouth Ino whispered back
"Nothing good."
I leaned back into line and then noticed the slave in front of me. He was breathing heavily; he was trying to stand up straight and keep a respectful composure but was clearly failing at it.
What happened?
The unknown visitor walked towards us and stopped for a moment to scan all of us before her. I stayed looking ahead, trying to ignore the hurting slave in front of me. The woman then walked in between the two rows of slaves before me until she was standing in front of me but slightly off to my right side…I kept my stare straight, not daring to look at her.
Out of the corner of my eyes I could see her getting into a stance. She did a hand signal before she yelled "Kosoku!"
I just stood there, my gaze still looking straight ahead. She took a step back and paused for a moment as she looked at me. She turned around towards Ino and did the same stance and hand motion.
"Kosoku!" She yelled.
Suddenly the room was filled with Ino's blood curling screams. The rest of the slaves kept their attention forward, but I couldn't help but look at Ino, horrified. She was on her knees, her hands behind her and her head was thrown back as her back arched from the pain. The woman conducting the pain just stared at Ino, watching her with studying eyes.
"Stop it!" I heard the voice echo the room. I quickly looked around me, and it was only when I saw Lady's Chiyo's surprised/angry eyes that I realized….that voice came from me. I looked back at the painted faced woman and was met with narrowed yet curious eyes. She dropped her hands to her sides which caused Ino to immediately fall to the ground in front of her. Ino caught herself by the palms of her hands before she could faceplant to the cement. I felt relief flood through me now that the seal was no long activated.
"Ino-"I began but I was cut off by the fist that collided itself with my left cheek. I saw black and specks of white as I fell to the ground. My left hand went to my cheek as my right held me up.
She hit me. It had been a while since I had been hit like that…I almost forgot what it felt like.
"You just hit the Kazekage's Royal Slave." Lady Chiyo called from where she was sitting. "Did you know that?"
"It does not matter if she is a Royal Slave, she is still just a slave that spoke without permission." The woman said from above me. There was a slight ringing in my ears, but I ignored it as I tried to gather myself together.
"Get up." She demanded.
I'm trying, I thought.
I looked to my right and saw that Ino had already brought herself back to her feet, but she was just like how the slave in front of me was; hunched over and breathing heavily as she tried to compose herself.
"Why doesn't she have the seal?" The woman Lady Chiyo. I was still catching my breath, but my ears perked up a bit at her voice now that the ringing was dimmer. Her voice was so…familiar.
I had now brought myself to my knees, then pushed myself up onto one foot then the next before I fully straightened. I swallowed the blood I felt built up in my mouth, the metallic taste making me grimace.
"We were never told to place it on her." Lady Chiyo answered. The woman completely turned her head at her answer.
"Yes, you were." She stated. Lady Chiyo raised a challenging eyebrow.
"Oh yeah?" she said
"The Kazekage entrusted Councilman Yura to place the seal on all slaves training in medical ninjutsu. All of them." She said coldly. "I'm not sure how this one slipped through the cracks; but I'll fix that now."
Without missing a beat, the woman grabbed me by the back of the neck and began to drag me just slightly behind her, my upper body hunched a bit on her hold, I tripped over my steps to keep up with her.
I could see Lady Chiyo jump up from her stool and onto her feet, her hands now fisted by her sides.
"What are you doing?!" She scolded at the women. The women stopped in her tracks but kept her grip firm on me. My panicky eyes looked from her to Lady Chiyo.
"As I said, all slaves training in medical ninjutsu are to have the seal placed on them. If the Kazekage did not order for the seal not to be placed on her…" The woman then turned her cold eyes on me "then this Royal Slave is no exception."
She began moving again to the back of the medical room. I shot a look at Lady Chiyo, and her angry eyes glared at the woman's back. The woman kicked open the back door and threw me inside.
(_)
Gaara sat in his chair across from Councilman Joseki. He didn't understand why it was necessary to meet with them individually so much. He thought meeting with them at the council meeting should suffice but apparently it didn't.
So there he sat, doing his duty as the Kazekage, listening to Councilman Joseki's thoughts on the seal test trial they were doing. He sat with his elbows resting on his desk and is chin on top of his intertwined fingers.
"Lord Kazekage, I have some concerns about the slaves learning medical ninjustu. I'm certain rest of the councilmen do as well." Councilmen Joseki mentioned. Gaara stared emotionlessly at the Councilman's worn face, the dark circles under the councilman's eyes look bigger than before. He couldn't tell if this was just a general observation, or if Gaara was unintentionally picking out the councilman's faults because he was irritating him so much.
"And what concerns are these, Councilman Joseki?"
"We need to make sure these slaves will not go rogue. We are at an exceedingly high risk of this happening." Councilman Joseki roughly answered.
"I believe that is what the seals are for, are they not?" Gaara said staring directly into The Councilman's eyes. The councilman's eyes furrowed.
"Yes, that is their purpose." The Councilman answered "But the council has yet to see the current progress. Is it confirmed that all the seals work?"
"All the slaves have been tested on whether they work after the seals have been placed." Gaara interposed in his monotonous voice.
"Then why do have we have no insight into how the process has been going so far?" The councilman countered. Gaara lifted his chin from his hands and straightened in is chair.
"You question my ability to run this trial, Councilman Joseki?" Gaara threatened more than asked. The guy was a close second to Councilman Yura with getting on his nerves. He always acted as if Gaara could not be trusted as the Kazekage. It pissed him off.
The Councilman's lips thinned, and his eyebrows raised, but yet he did not seem all that fazed by Gaara's threat.
"Lord Kazekage, I'm simply suggesting that you allow us a brief insight into how the process is going. We have no update to how the process has been thus far." He said in a calm tone. "Although I do believe with letting Councilman Yura's expert come in today to test and monitor the slaves in the trial is a step in the right direction." Gaara's eyes narrowed.
"What do you mean?" He pressed
"The expert that came in with me today. Councilman Yura sent me a message requesting if I could escort her here while he was away since I was already meeting with you today. I was pleasantly surprised you decided to have some sort of a test run." The Councilman lightly praised "I just wished you would have scheduled a meeting for the rest of the councilmen to be here to observe. Lord Kazekage, you are planning to take me to observe the training today correct?" The Councilman asked inching towards Gaara.
Gaara's lips thinned, and he eyes widened as he slowly raised from his seat, now practically hovering over the councilman.
"I specifically told Councilman Yura that I did not need his expert." Gaara said, his voice filled with venom. The councilman leaned back in his chair and stared up at Gaara in uncertainty.
"Councilman Yura said he owed you a favor and insisted his expert would be essential to the trial. He asked me to escort her here and I said yes…Lord Kazekage, were you not aware of this?" The councilman asked with genuine unease.
"Where is she?" Gaara demanded. He felt the fury within rising by the minute. Who the fuck did Yura think he was sending his expert anyway, against his order? Gaara did not like having someone in his estate that he did not authorize. Something just didn't feel right.
"She's at medical supervising the slaves in training. I escorted her there before I came to your office to meet you."
"In case you forgot Councilman Joseki, anyone coming into my home needs to be authorized by me." Gaara said menacingly. The Councilman now stood up from his seat. He did feel at fault for not notifying the Kazekage sooner, however he did not like the tone the Kazekage was giving him.
"Lord Kazekage, I understand but this project is bigger than you." The Councilman retorted "I guess I was foolish to think this plan had come from you." Gaara's eyes narrowed at the Councilman. His hand twitched as he could feel his chakra dipping into the sand in his gourd. He knew better than to attack the Councilman…but fuck…it would feel so good if he could. Just because he couldn't kill the man didn't mean he would take his shit.
"You can see yourself out Councilman Joseki." Gaara said then walked around the desk and past the Councilman.
"That is how you're going to end this meeting? Where are you going?" The Councilman called after Gaara. Gaara slammed open the door of his office, causing both guards outside to jump in alarm. He ignored the guards questions of concerns and continued past them.
"I'm getting this bitch out of my house."
(_)
I was thrown to the cold stone floor; scraping both knees and palms. I looked through the strands of pink hair that fell in front of my face to get a quick intake of my surroundings. The room was dark with stoned walls, and no décor. Dim lights lit in different parts of the ceiling but truly did nothing to brighten the room. I felt a shiver run through me as I felt the low temperature around me. The door slammed behind me and I heard her footsteps as she walked in. I then heard the click of a switch as the middle of the room suddenly brightened with LED lights.
In the middle of the room stood a stone bed? It was as if it came directly out of the ground. The bright lights specifically focused on this bed.
"Get up." Her command came from behind me. I pushed myself up from the floor and brought myself to my feet. My eyes kept jumping around the room. I found only one exit, and that one was the door behind me which we had come in from.
This was where they did it. This was where they marked the slaves with the seals…and I was next.
"Take off your shirt." She said. My questioning eyes jumped to her and she just rolled hers.
"I can't mark you with your shirt on." She responded impatiently. My trembling hands went to the hem of my shirt, then pulled it up and over my head. I let it drop to the ground, getting the feeling she didn't really care where it went.
"Your bra too." She instructed. I looked down at the ground, I felt my hair tickle my face as I reached behind me to unclip my bra. Once unclipped, I shrugged the straps off each shoulder and let that as well fall to the ground. I Instantly felt my nipples harden at the cold air around me. I crossed my arms over my chest to cover them.
"Lay on your chest with your arms above your head." She commanded. I looked up at her and her lips twitched in frustration. "Over here." She said pointing to the bed in front of her.
I walked toward the stone bed and did as she said. I hissed as soon as my breasts touched its cold stone. I forced myself to "relax" into it as I laid my body on it, and tilted my head to let my right cheek rest on it; my left cheek was still throbbing from her punch. I lifted my arms above my head; both my palms faced the stone as my one hand laid over the other.
I couldn't help but flinch as she placed both her hands, in what I assumed was a triangle shape, on the middle of my back. She pressed her palms roughly into my back and began saying a phrase I didn't…couldn't understand. I felt at first, a warmth circle my mid-back, but then spread to my lower back as she kept one hand where it was and slid the other to my lower back. The heat grew to a point where I felt as if my skin was beginning to burn. I bit my lip to keep from crying out, but the burning sensation continued to grow; it now felt deeper as if it was going through my spine and was branching throughout the nerves in my back. I gritted my teeth; I felt a tear escape and streak down my cheek.
The tears were coming from a mixture of pain and frustration; pain from the seal being placed on me, frustration from…the seal being placed on me. I couldn't believe this was actually happening. I thought I had been spared from this. I thought Gaara cared about me enough to save me from this….is this what he really wanted?
Gaara, I pleaded in my thoughts.
It was then when I felt a strong whoosh of air fly past my right side. I screamed as pain shot through my back as the connection had been abruptly broken. Soon after though, the burning dimmed as I no longer felt the woman's hands on my back; it was now just a throbbing aftermath, similar to my cheek. At the same time, I heard a loud noise of an impact with a grunt following it. I instinctively pulled my hands down from above me and tried to push myself up, but I shrieked as the movement cause an intense rug burn sensation in my lower back. I felt as if my skin was raw.
Still laying on the stone, I turned my head to my right and saw the woman sitting on the stone floor with her back leaning against the wall. Her face grimaced in pain as her head and her shoulders were slightly hunched over; one hand coddled the back of her head.
What? Gaara?! My heart skipped a beat at the thought. I curled my legs into my stomach, the fire shot through my lower back again
"Ahh." I groaned to myself, but I pushed past it as I again attempted to lift myself up from the stone bed, more slowly this time.
When I lifted myself to rest on my hip, I looked to the entrance of the room. My eyes widened as I saw Temari standing there. She was in a fighting stance, holding a large fan off to the right as if it had just swung in that direction. She breathed heavily with a furious look on her face as she stared at the painted faced woman on the ground.
"Madam Temari?" I choked out loud in disbelief. My vision of her was interrupted as another figure stood in front of me holding my shirt out to me. I looked up to find Master Shikamaru looking slightly off to the side as he held my shirt over my chest.
"Are you alright?" He asked, with his eyes still averted off to the right. I nodded my head; I knew he could see that from his peripheral vision.
"Good." He said. "Please, if you can, you need to cover yourself Miss Sakura." He said. I then looked down to my shirt and reached for it with one of my trembling hands. When he noticed I had a firm hold on it, He stood up and turned his back to me to give me some privacy.
"WHO THE HELL DO YOU THINK YOU ARE?!" Temari yelled from the entrance of the doorway. She stood up straight and began walking with ferocity towards the woman. The woman glared up at Temari from her spot on the ground. "You have no right to go off and make decisions of behalf of my brother, on behalf of the Kazekage!"
"These were his orders from before!" The woman spat up at Temari. She brought herself up from the ground, grunting as she did. She was now at eye level with Temari.
"Oh Yeah? Well why the fuck wasn't I notified of you? I'm supervising the training, and I have no idea who the fuck you are?!" Temari stopped right in front of her, her eyes wild with fury. "What is your name?" She hissed through gritted teeth.
The woman's stare was just as strong as Temari's. "Yuki Maru. I am Councilman Yura's assistant, and you're about to get punished for what you've just done, by your brother, the Kazekage." The woman, now known as Yuki, spat Temari's words back at her. Temari eyes widened just a bit, but didn't allow anything else to faulter. Temari then smirked.
"All I know, is Gaara for some reason cares about that slave more than even me and look what you did to her." She waved a hand in my direction. By this time I had pulled the shirt over my head, but I felt worn, I knew I looked it too. The bruising and swelling I knew that was forming on my cheek didn't help either.
"Let's see who wins bitch." Temari said with a caddy tone. Yuki's eyes flared and she moved into a fighting stance. Temari immediately got into hers, waving her fan into position. Yuki looked as if she were about to make a move when she suddenly didn't…she looked almost frozen in place? Her eyes darted frantically around the room and then landed on Shikamaru.
There he stood in a stance with a light smirk on his face. Yuki's eyes went from him to his shadow that stretched on the ground meeting hers.
"Well now." Shikamru tsked "That's not how you treat Royalty Miss Yuki Maru."
I didn't understand the whole situation, but it seemed that Master Shikamaru had control maybe? It was somehow through the intertwined shadows on the floor, and Shikamaru was the master puppeteer. The things these Ninjas could do were truly amazing, but the most amazing part right now was that they were doing this to protect me.
I looked around the room to see what I could use to help them. I didn't know much, but maybe I could throw a rock at her or something. I didn't have enough confidence to take her head on…I had just started my training with Gaara and my body didn't have enough stamina at the moment anyway…but I wanted to help.
"What is going on?" The deathly voice pierced through the crisp air. I turned to see Gaara, staring incredulously at the scene in front of him. Temari and Yuki in a fighting stance glaring at each other as Shikamaru held Yuki back with his shadow. Temari turned towards Gaara and began to speak when she saw his expression worsen as his eyes then fell on me. He stared at me for a moment, taking in my appearance.
I tried to give him a light smile, I wasn't sure why, I thought maybe it would help? I pushed myself off the bed now to try and fully stand up, but a sharp pain again shot through my back and I began to fall. However, instead of hitting the floor, I fell onto the strong body of the Kazekage.
Dam, he moved fast.
I looked up at him from his arms and softened at the concern in his eyes. His concern was even more present now than at that time at the councilman meeting when I had my melt down.
"What happened?" He asked anger spilling through his voice. Shikamaru stood up straight from his stance, he released Yuki from the hold that he had on her. It seemed he decided it was safe to do so now.
"Lord Kazekage, Temari and I came upon-" He began but Yuki cut him off.
"You're sister and this ninja attacked me when I was trying to-"
"Silence!" He commanded at Yuki, causing him to practically choke on her own tongue. He helped me sit back on the stone bed before he released me and turned towards Shikamaru and nodded him the okay to continue.
"I asked Temari to show me to the medical training of the slaves. When we got there, Lady Chiyo immediately notified us that the Councilman's assistant had taken Miss Sakura here to place a seal on her."
"I'm sorry Gaara." Temari stepped in before Shikamaru could continue. "I barged in here because I didn't think you would want the seal placed on Sakura."
"She attacked me, Lord Kazekage." Yuki said from her post coldly. Gaara's furious eyes shot to her once again, which shut her up immediately; he then brought them back to Temari.
"I was late to training…or I would have stopped her from the beginning"
"I held her up, Lord Kazekage." Shikamaru's interjected "That one is on me." He said with an apologetic bow.
Gaara looked at Shikamaru but didn't respond to any of them. He turned towards me and knelt down in front. I heard more footsteps coming from the entrance of the room; I looked up to find an elder gentleman standing there with an irritated look on this face. A picture of his grumpy face sitting at the round table with the rest of the councilmen popped in my mind. I recognized him as one of its members.
"Lord Kazekage! What is going on?" He demanded more than asked
The Kazekage ignored him. I felt his hand gently touch my chin to bring my gaze to him.
"May I look at your back?" He asked. I stared back at him incredulously that he was asking me for permission. I mindlessly nodded my head at him, unable to form words. He stood up and lifted the back of my shirt just enough to see the damage, but not enough to show too much skin to the room. I tried not to flinch as he did, but I couldn't help but shift a bit as I felt strands of the shirt painfully peel off my wound when he lifted it.
"It looks like we made it in time." I heard Shikamaru say. "Her wounds look like burns from the process, but it's not actually completed."
Gaara gently placed the shirt back down, I winced again as he did.
"Thank you Temari." My gaze shot up at his as soon as he said that. I then looked at Temari and saw she was just as surprised as I was. Temari had a hunch what she was doing was right, but actually having him thank her for it? The Sabaku siblings were clearly not used to this.
Gaara then looked at Shikamaru and gave him a nod in silent thanks as well. Shikamaru nodded back. In the next second, Gaara shot his attention to Yuki with his hand outstretched towards her; sand immediately spilled out of his gourd to her. She watched frantically as the sand quickly surrounded her until it made itself into the shape of a coffin. She was completely helpless as Gaara raised his hand higher in the air, causing the coffin with Yuki in it to lift as well.
I turned my gaze to from Yuki to Gaara. His eyes were narrowed, his jaw was tightened, and his lips were in a thin line. His bright green eyes showed a sense of fulfillment as he watched Yuki in the air stuck in the sand-like coffin he formed around her.
"Lord Kazekage!" The Councilman at the entrance yelled, but Gaara ignored him easily. The edges of Gaara's fingers begin to curl in slightly.
"San-" Using the strength that I had left, I quickly reached out and placed my hand on his cheek, causing him to pause his next words. He brought his death glare towards me with a mixture of surprise in his eyes. I didn't really know why I did it…but I knew if I didn't, nothing good was going to happen next. I didn't want him to prove to the audience around us that he was the monster they made him out to be.
His hand was still outstretched towards Yuki as he stared at me. I softened my eyes and gave him a light smile as I held his cheek. I then simple shook my head no, only hoping he would listen to me. His thin lips moved into a small frown, but his eyes did seem to soften a bit. He lowered his hand and the sand trickled back into his gourd, causing Yuki to fall on her back on the floor.
Gaara then leaned down and placed one hand under my knees and the other in the middle of my back. He looked at me in question and I nodded at him, giving him permission. He then lifted me as best as he could without brushing my burns; I tried to be as subtle as I could but again, I winced a bit at the movement. I instinctively wrapped my arms around his neck and nestled my face into the crook of his neck.
He was here. He didn't want me to have the seal. The thought of that made the weight that was previously on my chest lift right off; relief and…something else taking its place.
"Lord Kazekage?!" I heard the Councilman say from not to far in front of us. "What…what is going on?" he asked with a mixture of disbelief and aggravation.
I felt Gaara pause for a moment, his body in the direction to the Councilman.
"Councilman Joseki, for allowing Councilman Yura's assistant in my house without my final confirmation, you are suspended from the council for the next two meetings." He said with authority overflooding his voice.
"W-what?! Lord Kazekage you cannot possibly be serious? I have been on the Council longer than you have been alive!" He said in disbelief, anger and frustration spilling from him. "And almost killing his assistant over a misunderstanding?! Councilman Yura is going to be furious! This entire trial is his idea!"
"Councilman Yura will have no say in the matter because he is completely removed from the Council."
The room went completely silent at Gaara words. He then shifted his body towards Yura's Assistant.
"And You..." He said in her direction. "Miss…" Gaara trailed off thinking, trying to remember if the Councilman mentioned her name to him before
"Yuki Maru." Temari chimed in all too cheerfully. Gaara shifted towards Temari.
"Thank you, Temari." Gaara said.
"O-of course." Temari stammered slightly, she clearly still needed time to get used to this foreign phrase coming from her little brother
"Yuki Maru.." Gaara Continued. "You are banished from the Sand Village. Effective Immediately."
A gasp, I assumed Yuki's, was heard throughout the room.
"Temari, can you please see her out." Gaara asked Temari
"With pleasure." Temari said with a light sneer in her voice. Gaara then shifted his stance forward and began walking towards the exit of the room
"You cannot do this Lord Kazekage! A removal of a Councilman needs to be approved by the majority of the Council!" Joseki angrily exclaimed. Gaara didn't stop this time, his continued his walk and passed the councilman as he said
"I'm the fucking Kazekage. I can change the rules."
(_)
Lady Chiyo pulled down Sakura's shirt and gently patted her back.
"You can sit up now, Miss Sakura." Lady Chiyo said as she stepped away from the table.
The Kazekage watched as Sakura slowly brought herself upright from laying on her stomach. She brushed her hair out of her face as she looked towards her back and back at Lady Chiyo in disbelief. Lady Chiyo smirked and raised an eyebrow at her.
"I wouldn't be where I am if I wasn't a good healer." She said with confidence. "That doesn't mean that you don't need rest though. I can only do so much, now the rest is up to you." Lady Chiyo turned toward the Kazekage and he gave her his full attention.
"There will be no scaring, and she is pretty much completely healed, but her body has been through a lot with the power of the seal being placed on her and the connection being abruptly torn off when Madam Temari intervened. It has taken a tole on her internally, she just needs to let those muscles rest for two to three days, and she should be good as new."
The Kazekage looked at her for a moment before he turned his attention to Sakura. Sakura straightened at his stare but lowered her eyes. He stepped in and placed his hand underneath her chin, lifting her head lightly at an angle so he could get a closer look at the cheek where Yura's assistant had hit her. He then shifted his eyes to Lady Chiyo, initiating his question without asking.
"That part of her is completely healed. She had a light fracture to her cheek bone, but it was an easy fix."
The Kazekage's lips twitched down for a second when she said "light fracture" but he quickly brought them back into the line they were usually in. He then nodded his head in her direction.
"Thank you, Lady Chiyo." He said genuinely, dropping his hand from Sakura's chin. Unlike his brother and sister who were shocked at his thanks, Lady Chiyo just smiled at the Kazekage and bowed.
"My pleasure, Lord Kazekage. I'll take my leave now and give you two a moment." She said. Lady Chiyo locked eyes with Sakura briefly and gave her a wink before she turned around and exited the room.
Silence passed between Sakura and Gaara. Sakura wasn't sure what to do, but she felt like…she needed to say something.
"Lord Kazekage, I'm sorry-"
"It's not your fault." He cut her off quickly. She tensed at his short answer, then relaxed again when she felt his hand underneath her chin again. He lifted her chin to bring her gaze back to him and held it there not painfully, but firm.
"I'm sorry." He said as he stared at her deeply, full sincerity in his eyes. Her eyes widened but his hold didn't allow her to break her gaze from him. "That will never happen to you again." He promised, a certainty in his voice.
She felt her vision blur as unexpected tears began to fill it. She was utterly overwhelmed by his words, by him. One tear slipped by and Gaara quickly brushed it away with his thumb.
"Okay?" He asked.
"Okay." She answered. The Kazekage then released his hold on her chin and leaned down to wrap one arm under her left shoulder and around her back while his other arm went underneath her knees, lifting her in one quick swoop. Her eyes widened as she felt herself being cradled in the Kazekage's arms, but she again wrapped her arms around his neck, and he simply walked out of the room into the medical foyer.
"Lord Kazekage, you know I'm fine to walk right?" Sakura said, but secretly loved his hold around her.
"You need to rest." The Kazekage answered. "That means even walking to my quarters."
Sakura looked up at him in bewilderment but also appreciation as he stared straight ahead.
As they entered the hallways, he ignored the stares of the other slaves and workers of the estate. It was easy to ignore them as they even tried to not stare themselves, fearing their lingering gaze would get them in trouble. However, it was…unheard of to see their fearsome Kazekage carrying a slave.
Sakura's cheeks reddened at the stares, so she leaned her face into his chest to hide herself from the rest of them. Her reward was his musky scent, she leaned in some more, relaxing into him as she enjoyed his hold, his warmth, and his smell.
She felt him pause briefly as she guessed he waited for his bedroom doors to be opened by the guards, She heard their greeting, the opening of the doors, and then heard the doors close behind them after he had walked into his bedroom. He walked to his bed gently and placed her on it bed.
She made a face as pulled himself away from her, loosing the warmth she just had. He quickly knelt in front of her and lifted her chin for her eyes to meet his. He searched her eyes with concern.
"Are you in pain." He asked. Sakura's eyes widened slightly as she realized he saw the weird face she made. How embarrassing.
"No, Lord Kazekage." She answered. He brushed a hand through her hair and leaned into her, his eyes half lidded.
"Gaara." He said in a low voice. Her breath caught in her throat at his tone, but she still willed herself to say it.
"Gaara" She repeated. He sucked in a breath before he placed his lips on hers. His kiss wasn't rough yet there was definitely force behind it; his hand in her hair turned into a light fist to keep her in place.
She kissed back with more force then he did actually. She was overwhelmed by his kindness, his concern for her, and more than anything…the fact that he did not want the seal to be placed on her. It meant so much to her that he wanted to spare her from it.
Her heart felt full at his actions towards her…at his affection. She felt herself wrap her arm around his neck and pull herself closer to him. She spread her legs open as they hung over the bed and placed her weight on her tip toes so she could be that much closer.
He accepted her invitation. He leaned in to her, putting his free arm around her waist to pull her even completely against him. She was enticing, invigorating…She was nothing like any other women he had known. He hated what happened to her today. He was angry at himself for being oblivious and not stopping it from the beginning. It drove him crazy how something like this could happen to her under his own roof.
At this moment he could feel her need towards him. He needed her too. He needed her to forgive him. To forgive him for not being the Kazekage she needed him to be. His hardness was straining against is pants. God, he needed her; to slip into her silk folds and feel her warmth and wetness around his cock.
His tongue intertwined with hers when she opened her mouth to let him in. He moved both hands to her ass to pull her in closer if it was even possible; He then lifted her off the bed, and her legs immediately wrapped around him as he did. He had both arms cradled under her ass as he held her and crawled onto the bed with his knees. When he was in the middle of the bed, he left one hand on her ass and placed the other in the middle of her back to gently place her down on the bed, their lips parting from each other as he did.
Her hands moved to the hem of his shirt and gave it a tug, initiating she wanted it off. He crossed his arms so his hands could reach the hem of his shirt and swiftly pulled it off himself, throwing it then to the ground. She placed her hands on his chest and trailed her fingers down his abs to his V-line, her eyes admiring his body as she did. His dick twitched in response at her lust-filled admiration. He leaned in and placed his fingertips underneath her shirt, lifting it up her body with his intention of taking it off as well. She crossed her arms and grabbed her shirt from the hem. She began lifting it off her body and arched her back to help free herself from the shirt but immediately tensed at the sharp pain that shot through her lower back.
The Kazekage, noticed her reaction and quickly helped her finish lifting the shirt off her. Her tits were now exposed as her bra was still laying on the floor of the stone room where she almost had the seal placed on her. The Kazekage placed his fingertips at the arch of her back and his gaze stared at it in concern.
"You're in pain." He stated more than asked. She trailed her hands up his arms as she tried to shrug off her reaction to the pain as best as she could. The pain didn't linger, it was only for that short moment, so she wanted to forget it and continue what they were doing. She would be more careful.
"I'm fine" She hastily said.
"No." He responded, giving her a side eyed look. His glare was interrupted by the site of her. Her eyes half lidded, her hair in light disarray from when he had his hands through it. His eyes trailed to her lightly parted lips, the edges a bit swollen from his kiss. His gaze then moved down to her perfect perky tits, exposed for his touch. He wanted to lean in and pop one of her hardened nipples into his mouth, but he resisted. Fuck, resisting this woman was hard.
"Sakura." He lustfully grunted. This woman really did something to him. He remembered the first time her saw in his palace.
He noticed her when she was mopping the foyer, it must have been her first week since he was sure he had not seen her before. She stood out from the others. Not only because of her pink hair, but because of all of her really. Her smooth porcelain skin, her slim and strong frame, the way she furrowed her eyebrows as she concentrated on one spot on the floor…it made her look cute…the word cute had never came across is mind before…
Though he was clearly infatuated with her, he turned around at that moment and decided to take a different way to the training grounds. He didn't like thinking anything was "cute", so he figured he'd remove himself from staring at her.
But then there she was…on her knees with her head lowered in shame in front of him while Temari and Kankuro stood by her, spewing nonsense of some broken statue. He heard what they were saying, but his eyes were fixated on the pink haired slave in front of him; the same slave he had tried to avoid just a few days before because he thought she was cute. He didn't care that she broke a statue…the décor of his home truly meant nothing to him. It had been like that since he could remember, decorated by who the fuck cared? He quickly decided to stop avoiding her and take advantage of the situation; he instead decided to have her for himself. So, she became his Royal Slave, and he got to look at her every day.
It started as an infatuation that he accepted. She was beautiful… he wanted her and as the Kazekage he would get what he wanted. Her first night as a Royal Slave he had originally planned on fucking her. He actually couldn't wait to feel her warmth around his cock, but when it came to down to it…he couldn't do it. She would have let him; she wouldn't have had a choice, but regardless, she would have obeyed anything he asked of her.
But as he watched her stand there obediently, waiting for his command or for his touch, he noticed how her fingertips were fidgeting on her sides. He noticed her trying to hide the fact the she was having a hard time maintaining a steady breath pattern; she failed obviously, but she tried. He noticed her fear…and it made his stomach churn.
Everyone feared him. His slaves, his own people, even his brother and sister. He was used to it. But this was a different type of fear. Not a fear of death, but instead a fear to be wrongfully touched by him...
He had fucked slaves before, he was the Kazekage of the Sand, but he was also still a man. Those other slaves though through themselves at him to avoid death, not feared sex more than death. That night, instead of using her like he wanted, he tucked her bed and laid beside her, barely getting any sleep.
He didn't understand why he did that; he was even a bit angry at himself the next day for being so caring towards her. But she made him feel differently, she made him think things were cute. She continued to fuck with his mind the longer she stayed with him. When he did finally have her, fuck her pussy was better than he could have ever dreamed. If his mind wasn't in shambles before, it definitely was after their first time. Even worse, he had felt terrible he had been so rough with her, not knowing then she was a virgin. He couldn't help it, he got so lost in her and he could tell that she wanted him too; that feeling just threw him over the edge…
But if he had known…he might have tried to make that night more….comfortable for her.
All of these thoughts flew through his mind as he stared at her. Her long milky white legs wrapped around his waist as she sat there in just her shorts, her parted lips and perky tits begging for him. She didn't fully know it yet, but he was wrapped around her finger. He wanted to give in and climb on top of her, to kiss and caress every part of her until she came, but she needed to rest. But maybe….hmmm
His eyebrows raised at his own thoughts. Sakura stayed there searching his eyes in anticipation on if he would fulfill her need, on if he would fill her. He leaned in and placed a kiss to her forehead…then the corner of her mouth…then the spot right under her ear.
"Lay back on the bed, Sakura." He gently commanded. She shivered at his breath against her ear and shifted her hazy eyes towards him in question. He had a hint of a smirk on the corner of his lips. He leaned in and gave her a kiss on the lips but pulled away before she could deepen it. Her brows furrowed at that; he suppressed a chuckle. Fucking cute.
"Lay back." He said again softly.
Sakura did as she was told, watching him as she did. He gently hovered over her, careful not to put any of his weight on her. When she fully laid back, he leaned in and placed a kiss right between her breasts, then traced his lips down to her belly button, dipping his tongue inside of it before giving that a kiss too. Sakura let a small moan escape her lips, he then trailed his lips from her belly button until right above the hem of her shorts.
He swiftly pulled her shorts down her thighs and off her legs, tossing it behind him on the floor. She took in a sharp intake of breath at the cold she felt now hitting her bare body. Adrenaline rushed through her, fueled by anticipation at what he was going to do next.
He lifted one of her legs and pulled off its sandal, kissing her foot after he did and then moved to her other to foot to do the same. With just his two fingertips on each knee, he slowly pushed them apart to reveal her beautiful pale lips, her shine in between beginning to reveal itself.
She shivered as she felt him staring in between her legs, moments passed, and he was still staring…she was beginning to feel self-conscious and vulnerable at how bare she was to him. Her reaction was to push her knees closed but his fingertips resisted her, keeping them open.
"Sakura." He growled." She didn't look at him, but she froze. "Keep your legs open for me." He commanded. She bit her lip and opened them just a bit wider for him.
Just looking at her was driving him crazy. He could see her wetness spilling even more now down her lips. He leaned in close, his mouth now just a breath away from her. Tonight, was going to be about making her feel good…and he was going to enjoy every moment of tasting her.
He leaned in and touched is tongue just at the bottom of her lips then pressing it in between her folds licking through to the top, pausing just at her clit before swirling it with his tongue. She moaned and unintentionally tried to close her knees again as she bucked her hips into his mouth. He smirked into her, but pushed her legs apart with his fingertips and used his authoritative Kazekage tone.
"Sakura." He called from in between her legs.
"Yes?" She breathed her hands now griping the sheets.
"Legs open." He commanded again.
"Yes, Lord Kazekage."
"Gaara." He growled into her pussy, then opened his mouth and aggressively sucked in her clit. She arched her back and moaned out loud, trying her hardest to keep her legs open.
"Say it." He demanded.
"Gaara!" She breathed out turning her head to the other side as she felt him give her clit another swirl with his tongue. He continued the circles around her clit, slow yet firm for her to feel everything. She began to slowly roll her hips with his mouth, following a steady rhythm. She lifted her hands to her own hair and ran her fingers through them as she arched her back lightly and let out another moan.
This feeling…this was something completely different from what she had before. Yeah, she was new to sex in general, but this was something she never even expected a Master to do for her…but then again, she never expected a Master like him in the first place.
"Ahh!" She cried out in pleasure as his momentum began to increase on her clit. His entire mouth was on her now, devouring her as if he couldn't get enough of her. Her clit was pulsating from the increasing pleasure.
There was then an intrusion in her entrance…no she shouldn't call it an intrusion as it was most definitely welcomed. He inserted one finger in her, then two…slowly pumping inside her as his tongue worked its magic on her clit. The sensation of both was driving her over the edge. Her heart was racing, her stomach clenching, she could feel she was close. Her hands then went into Gaara's hair and she bucked her hips into his mouth as the speed his fingers pumping in her now began to increase.
Fuck, she was beautiful as she squirmed under his mouth. He let a husky groan when her hands gripped his hair, her pussy fucking his mouth.
"Gaara, please." She begged, as she continued to fuck his mouth. He full on smiled…a very rare site indeed, a smile he would keep hidden from her at least for now.
"Your close." He stated, as he kept his pace with his fingers.
"Yes!" she moaned out loud. He placed his mouth back on her clit and sucked in the pink nub again, causing her to lift her upper body off the bed and cry out. He curled his two fingers up in her and pumped even faster; her moans grew louder, one after the other. He wasn't going to make her wait, he was going to let her finish, let her feel the ecstasy she deserved.
Her thighs trembled, her grip on his hair tightened but he didn't give a fuck. His tongue was swirling, licking, flicking, giving her everything he had until she screamed out and her body completely fell into a short series of convulsions. He kept his mouth glued to her pussy to help finish her off as she rode out the wave. He pulled from her clit when he saw she body begin to relax. She released her grip from his hair and rested her arm at her sides, her eyes still closed.
He pulled his two fingers out from her pussy and sucked her remaining juice off them as he stood up from the ground. He stood there in front of her and watched as she laid on her back, her eyes closed and her head leaning to one side with a couple strands of her hair falling on her face while the rest of her hair framed wildly around her head. The sun rays beaming into the room were shining on part of her face and her tits…she was mesmerizing. He wondered if she even knew how beautiful she was.
He shifted his hard cock in his pants, he would have to take care of that himself later, but right now he needed to make sure Sakura got the rest she needed. As she laid there still catching her breath, he walked around to her side of the bed and pulled a corner of the sheets down to make room for her. He then walked back to her and saw her eyes beginning to flutter open. He leaned down and pressed a kiss to her forehead, and then gently swooped her into his arms.
"Wha-"She began as she tried to bring herself to the present "What are you doing?" She asked. Gaara carried her around to her side of the bed and tucked her legs underneath the covers, laying her back down onto the bed. She looked at his hands perplexed as he brought the covers over her and laid them down onto her chest. She began to lift herself to an upright sitting position when he placed a hand on her chest and gave her a stern look. His eyes were now the eyes of the authoritative Kazekage.
"You need to rest." He ordered more than stated. She looked up at him, her head was still in a fog from the mind-blowing orgasm she just had. Resting…didn't sound so bad. She laid back down on the bed, her head sinking into the soft pillow underneath it. Her eyes were half lidded, but she still was looking at him. She reached her hand up to him, trying to touch his face. He caught her hand with his and soothingly kissed the bottom of her wrist.
"I'll be back." He promised. "and I'll bring food."
She smiled at that, then closed her eyes. Food sounded nice. She already felt herself drifting off as Gaara placed her hand down over her chest. She began to imagine eating with him on his bed, the thought making her heart feel light, but sleep then quickly overcame her.
A/N: I hope you all enjoyed! I will do my best to keep up with this story. I truly love writing it.
Thank you all for your patience with the technical error!
As always, reviews and critiques are welcomed. I read everyone of them. 3