It was late as Inochi walked up the concrete steps. Wearing black jeans with a long sleeve blue shirt, he stood in front of the old church doors. He thought about the last time he walked inside a church and let out a small chuckle. He didn't remember. When it came to visiting the priest, they always met at a bar. Yes, his priest friend enjoyed a couple of beers here and there. However, the reason for his visit was different this time and he knew it would be better to meet at a church. Deep down in his mind, he figured that talking to his friend under the eyes of God would provide him some type of protection. But Inoichi wasn't a religious man. In truth, he just wasn't sure what to do.

Sighing, he opened the doors and looked inside. The church was small and old, built almost forty years ago. However, the priest did a good job at keeping the place in good shape. Rows of benches were situated on the right and left sides of the church. Yards away from Inoichi stood a large religious statue. Behind the statue sat a large piano; and narrowing his eyes, Inoichi saw the priest sitting down with a book in his hand.

Inoichi walked inside the church house, hearing the doors behind him close slowly. Lit candles surrounded the place and Inoichi stopped for a second in front of the religious statue. Bowing his head slightly in respect, he gave a small prayer. Whether God listened or not, who knows. But he figured that it didn't hurt to say a small prayer.

Standing straight, he walked towards the stage and looked at his friend.

"Pleasure seeing you in church for once, Inoichi." the priest said, his eyes still on the book in his hands.

Inoichi nodded and smiled. "You know I'm not a man of God, Kakashi."

The priest chuckled with a nod. "Oh, I know that. And considering you finally set foot inside one, I say that you must be needing something from me."

Kakashi was smart. Although Inoichi considered the man a friend, there was a lot he didn't know about the priest. However, one thing that he did know about the religious man was that before putting on the priest robe on and picking up a bible, Kakashi worked for a dangerous mob group as an assassin.

"There's something I need your advice on." Inoichi said, grabbing a stool and sitting down. "I broke my deal with Him."

Kakashi set the book on top of the piano and looked at him, the bottom half of his face covered with the collar of his robe.

"You...what?"

"I stole the orb back, and I'm going to destroy it." Inoichi said, eyebrows furrowing in determination.

"He's going to find out, and he's going to go after you."

"I know," he replied with a nod and a shrug of one shoulder. "But I'm going to make sure it's destroyed before he's even aware of it. Making a deal with Him was the biggest mistake I could have ever made. But I need to break my ties with Him. There's no point in living if I'm constantly having to look behind my shoulder or check the bottom of my car."

Kakashi gave him a long sigh before picking up his book again. "Make sure you destroy it by nightfall. And God bless you, my friend. You're going to need it."

Ino could hear the laughter behind the door of the house. Before knocking, she checked her outfit to make sure there were no stains or wrinkles. She wore a purple mini dress that reached just a few inches below her butt and showed a small amount of cleavage. Since it was her friend's birthday party, she decided to leave her hair down and her bangs neatly clipped behind one ear. The laughter behind the door grew louder and she wondered what was going on inside.

Ringing the doorbell, she stood about a foot away from the door and held a 'Happy Birthday' gift bag in her left hand. The night was beautiful and fresh, which she was glad for. She despised cold winters and bruttling hot summers.

The door in front of her opened revealing a brown haired boy. He had a red cup in his right hand and by the wide grin he was giving her, Ino could tell that Kankuro was approaching his limit.

"Blondie!" he yelled, opening the door wider and widening his arms for a hug.

Rolling his eyes at him, Ino stepped inside and hugged him. "Already drunk I see." she stated, looking at the content inside his drink.

"It's not a party if I'm not." he smirked before motioning her towards the large living room where the part was being held.

She stepped inside and looked around, putting names to faces immediately. There were a few people she didn't know at all. However, she recognized majority. On one corner of the room, Ino recognized a brown-haired hair girl with a man with peculiar eyes. Tenten and Neji, Ino recalled. She had met Tenten a few times in the past and was aware that the girl was seeing someone belonging to a rich family. With the way that the man had one arm around her while checking his smart watch with the other, Ino knew that that was the man belonging to the rich family.

Not too far away from them stood a guy with a puppy, and she recognized him as Kiba. Kiba was telling something to a guy dressed in all green and with a hideous bowl-shaped haircut. Rock Lee. Despite his out-of-this-world personality, Ino sometimes liked being around Rock Lee. Sometimes, of course…

"I see you finally made it."

Turning around, Ino saw Shikamaru walk towards her with some whiskey in his hand. It's been months since she had last seen him. Out of everyone in the house, she knew Shikamaru the longest. As a matter of fact, it was him who introduced her to Temari and Kankuro a couple of years ago.

She gave him a quick hug. "Where's Temari? I see everyone else getting drunk without her."

"She's in the back talking to her brother."

Ino tilted her head slightly and turned around. "But Kankuro's right there…"

Shikamaru snorted and shook his head. "You know there's another-"

"That's right…. H-He's here?"

"Yeah, he's back." Shikamaru said. He saw the strange look on her face. "He's actually not bad, Ino."

Ino moved closer to him and looked around with her eyes, making sure that no one else was around them. "He just...makes me nervous."

Shikamaru smirked at her, shaking his head. "Why? What has he done to you? And how many times have you seen him before?"

"He's done nothing. And I've seen him maybe...one...or twice before. He just...When he looks at me...I feel like he hates me."

"You're thinking about it too much." he replied. "Come on, Temari's about to come in and he's here...so just don't let his spooky stares get to you."

Ino rolled her eyes at him and followed him as he led her to his fiancee. Temari walked inside the house wearing a beautiful white mid-sleeved dress and bright pink earrings and pink high heels. Her face lit up the moment she saw Ino walking towards her.

"You're finally here! Now we can get really drunk!" Temari exclaimed, pulling her into a tight hug.

"Yes! But before we do, this is for you! Happy Birthday!"

Ino gave the birthday bag to her, watching as Temari opened it and gasped. She pulled out a white louis vuitton handbag. Next to them Shikamaru shook his head, muttering to himself about how Temari already owned too many handbags. But he knew better than to voice his opinion during her birthday. Instead, he nodded his head when she gave him the bag and asked him to place it in their bedroom.

"Come have a drink." Temari said, grabbing Ino by her hand and dragging her towards the table with numerous bottles of alcohol on top.

"Not too much, Temari." Ino said, watching as the birthday girl mixed a few drinks for her. "You know I need to get home later."

"You can sleep over if you want!" her friend replied, handing her the cup.

"I'll see…" Ino said. Knowing that her youngest brother was in the house made her feel nervous and she knew that it was better to not stay over. Therefore, she told herself to keep at three drinks...max.

Ino took a sip of the drink and let out a small cough, not realizing initially how strong Temari made it. The alcohol burned her throat and made her eyes watery and Ino immediately looked for water. Clearly her alcohol tolerance has decreased…

Noticing that there was no water nearby, she rushed towards the kitchen with the drink in her hand. Music began to blast and she knew that Temari had probably dragged Shikamaru to the dance floor by now.

Ino cursed herself for not sipping her drink more slowly. She could feel her face getting warmer and figured that her face as probably bright pink by now. Opening her eyes, she noticed a hand holding a glass cup of water in front of her and looking up, she slightly flinched as teal eyes met hers.

His red hair was slightly longer by the back and sides, and he bore the same facial expression as last year when she last saw him briefly. He wore dark gray slacks with a dark red long sleeve button-down shirt. She felt her heart race faster and wondered how he could keep his face expressionless.

Looking down at the cup he held towards her, she grabbed it and trembled as their fingers met briefly. Ino muttered a thanks to him and quickly hurried out of the kitchen, amazingly her cough already gone.

The shots were lined up in a neat row, and Naruto looked nervous. On his left stood an enthusiastic Rock Lee and on his right stood a determined Temari. In front of them stood Kankuro with a stopwatch.

"Alright on the count of three, whoever can take ten shots of tequila in thirty seconds wins!"

Ino watched with a smile as Shikamaru placed a kiss on Temari's temple, sheering her on.

"Three...Two...One...Go!" Kankuro said, and immediately the three of them began to take their shots.

Ino took a sip of her drink, feeling the content finally loosen her nerves. She laughed as she saw Naruto give up on his fifth shot and Hinata quickly run up to him as he stumbled back. Rock Lee stopped at his seventh shot, and Temari at her eight.

Years ago, Ino would have joined them and probably beat them. But while studying for her nursing degree, she had taken it slow with alcohol and getting back to her old habits was easier said than done. She looked at her phone for the time and casually looked around.

Almost immediately, her eyes landed on him as he stared back at her. He was leaning against a wall with his arms crossed in front of his chest, and Ino wondered what he was thinking. The stare he was giving her made her feel uncomfortable, and Ino looked away. However, she could still feel his eyes on her and she looked at him again. He continued to stare at her and a sense of embarrassment began to hit her. Was her outfit too revealing? His stare wasn't flirtatious or sexual… It was more serious and almost demeaning. Ino shifted in her seat uncomfortably and pulled the skirt of her dress down a bit.

Ino didn't realize that the competition was over until she heard loud clapping and saw a boasting Rock Lee running around.

Temari turned down the music and tapped her glass with a cup.

"Thank you all for coming!" she said, and Ino was amazed at how clear she sounded considering the amount of alcohol in her system. "Before the night ends, I have an important announcement to make! Our father is taking a sabbatical for almost a year, and therefore Gaara will be in charge of the family business. He has the best experience for that! Congrats, little brother!"

Ino raised her eyebrows in surprise as the room began to clap. She placed her drink down and clapped as well.

"That's freaking awesome, Gaara!" Naruto said, patting the red-head on his back.

"Thank you, everyone." Gaara said, his eyes scanning the room before quickly landing on hers.

Ino stared back at him and gave him a small smile. Although she still felt intimidated by his presence, she knew that such an opportunity was rarely given to someone his age.

The party resumed with Ino catching him staring at her numerous times. What made her more nervous was the fact that he never looked away when she would catch him. Did he want her to know that he was looking at her?

Sipping her last drink, Ino checked her phone and groaned as she noticed that it was close to two in the morning. She walked towards Shikamaru, who happened to be holding a very tired Temari by his side.

"It's getting late, I need to get going."

"Want me to call you a cab?" he asked.

Ino shook her head. "N-no, that's fine. You know I don't live far from here. And I'm not that drunk."

"No, let me see if Kankuro can walk you home."

"Kankuro's asleep in the living room, and most people left already."

"Then let me check with Gaara-"

"N-No, that's fine. I'm honestly not that tipsy. I'll be fine. I'll text you as soon as I get home!"

Reaching for her handbag, Ino waved at her friend and left before he could protest. Although the town she lived in was mostly safe, she knew that walking at two am in a mini-dress was probably not the best idea. Bars were still opened during this time. Nonetheless, her small apartment was about a fifteen minute walk and she knew that if she jogged, she could get there in ten.

However, she was far from tipsy and knew that if she tried to jog, she would just end up falling on the ground and ruining her dress. Walk it is then.

She checked her phone to see how much distance she had left to her apartment and groaned. Her small high heels were starting to hurt her and she wished she had at least burrowed Temari's running shoes. She quickened her pace as she began to pass by some bars. Ignoring the whistles and sexual comments by men standing outside with their beer, Ino took a right turn quickly. She could see her apartment building was just a few more long blocks away and she began to feel satisfaction.

However, that satisfaction was suddenly replaced with fear as she felt a cold tight grip on her arm. Before she could register what was happening, she felt her body midair before hitting the concrete ground.

Ino groaned in pain as she tried to sit up. However, her head had hit the ground hard and she was having a hard time registering what was going on.

"I knew finding you wasn't that hard."

Ino heard a low growl say. Finally opening her eyes, she looked ahead and gasped as a man with bright yellow eyes jumped on top of her. She opened her mouth to scream but his hand quickly covered her mouth.

"No screaming, or else your death will be more painful, Ino Yamanaka."

Ino's eyebrows furrowed as she wondered how he knew her name. She began to move her legs frantically as she saw the man's facial expression change as hair began to grow from all over his body and his nose resembled that of a wolf. Tears began to roll down her face as the man, who now seemed to have transformed into a beast, leaned down towards her and took a long sniff before bearing his large canine teeth.

"I'm about to rip this pretty little neck of -"

Ino gasped loudly as she suddenly felt that the man was no longer on top of her. Groaning in pain as she began to sit up, she saw the hairy creature hit the ground hard as a large body of sand swirled around him. She looked at the sand strangely, wondering how there was even sand in the middle of the city.

She saw the creature snarling at something, or someone, behind her and turning around, she gasped as she saw Gaara standing there with his arm extended. Sand swirled around his arm and it took her a couple of seconds to realize that he was the one controlling the sand.

The creature that attacked her made a disgusting sound and Ino looked back at it, screaming as she saw the sand contract and suddenly squeeze the creature tight. Blood began to pour out from the sand and Ino looked with wide eyes. She heard footsteps behind her and saw as Gaara walked towards the large pile of sand. She heard him say something before all of the sudden the sand swirled around and disappeared.

Did he… Did he just do that? Did he just kill that thing?

Ino didn't realize he had walked towards her until she felt his presence right in front of. She quickly flinched back as she saw Gaara kneel in front of her on one knee. She stared at him with wide eyes as she saw his hand touch her bruised knee. His eyes travelled upwards as he looked at her bruised arms.

"Are you hurt anywhere else?" he suddenly asked.

Ino took a moment to respond, her mind finally registering the severity of her injuries. Her knee was badly scraped, as well as her arms. But the injury that hurt her the most was on the back of her head. Tilting her head sideways, Ino groaned as she felt some liquid by the back of her head. As a nurse, she knew that she would have to get her head checked out for any concussions or other internal injuries.

He closed the space between them and Ino almost jumped backwards as Gaara's left hand reached out and touched the back of her head.

"You have a head injury."

She gave him a slight nod as she felt her eyes become heavy.

Don't faint...Don't faint...Don't….

Ino gave him a confused look as he shifted to her side before picking her up bridal style.

"Wh-What...What…"

Gaara looked down at her, and for once she saw his eyes soften. She saw his lips move slowly but couldn't register what he said as darkness took over, pushing her to unconsciousness.

Author's Note: What do you think? This is completely AU, taking place in the 21st century but there's still some magical things going on. Please leave a review so I know whether to continue or throw this out. This idea came to me yesterday.

Please review! Provide feedback! Criticism welcome!