* * * * * * * * * * * *4a
A long time had already passed since he was awake.
Calmly eating, he was waiting for the other gennin to wake up.
He knew he would soon, because he had school. Unless he was going to skip classes.
He didn't understand what school was for. He had practically learned all the things he knew by himself.
He had never been around people that much.
He was "Gaara of the desert" after all.
And nobody did live in the desert.
But, now it was different...
A clicking sound made him raise his head.
"Hello..." the other boy said half-asleep.
Yes, now he had someone with him.
"Oh..." he exclaimed "Thank you..."
Gaara looked shyly at the blond gennin as he smiled at him.
That was something he had learned about his host: the guy did love food.
Whenever he saw food he would smile at him.
That was the reason why he had started making breakfast for him everyday.
He wanted that smile.
He wanted the other ninja to smile.
"Say...why are you always sitting down there?"
He startled.
For the week he had been there, he had always sat in this corner.
Wasn't it right for him to?
"C'mon..." Naruto said, tilting his head to the right.
He threw a blank look at his blond companion.
He saw him pat the empty chair beside his'. Then he understood.
Something broke inside him, releasing a feeling he had almost forgotten.
The feeling of being a human being.
Naruto lazily closed the manga he had been reading for almost two hours.
He turned his head, searching for Gaara.
He was nowhere to be seen.
He was certainly hidden somewhere in the branches.
It was his idea to spend some time in the forest. The fresh air was good. It was too hot.
"What is that book?" a voice coming from above asked.
"You scared me. Stop doing that..." Naruto complained.
Surprisingly, Gaara's face suddenly took something like a hurt expression.
Naruto swallowed guiltily.
"Ah...I...didn't mean to be..."
He left his crouched position to sat up.
"Well, umm...this book is called a manga..."
"What is so special about it?"
"Huh...I don't know...why do you ask?"
"Because...whenever you read it...your face is..." he paused "...glowing."
"Glowing?" he blinked. "I don't know...it's just that it is...like another world, you know..."
The blank look on Gaara's face told him he was clueless.
"I mean...when I start reading this, it's like I'm not here. It's like I'm living in the manga, with the guys in it." he looked down. "And I like reading them because,...it makes me forget I'm alone. It's like I'm not in this world, I'm not alone anymore, because I'm living in what happens in there..." he patted the book. "...and it makes me happy." he grinned.
"Aa..."
"You've never read a manga?"
The other boy shook his head.
"You should try, it's very funny sometimes..."
"Hn."
Naruto looked at the gennin's expressionless face.
"Say...have you ever smile?"
His companion nodded.
"Oh really?!"
"I...used to smile for...Yashamaru..."
"Who was that?" Naruto was now curious.
The answer took some time to come out.
"My mother's sister."
"Huh? Then...why didn't you stay with her?"
"She is dead... I killed her..."
He unconsciously shrank away from the Sand gennin.
"...because she tried to kill me. She hated me. Like everybody..."
Naruto's eyes widened, then gradually softened.
He understood.
To his surprise, he gave him a warm look.
"I understand..."
The blond gennin carelessly caressed the green grass.
"It feels terrible. Because you don't know why they hate you. You just want to make them stop. But there's nothing you can do about it..."
Gaara couldn't believe his ears.
"...Even if you hate them in return, everything remains empty. There is only loneliness."
Now he understood too.
He understood what the blue eyed ninja had told him months ago, when they had fought.
He understood why he had said they were the same.
No, they weren't.
The Leaf gennin had never killed anybody.
He had never enjoyed seeing someone else's blood flow.
He had never given himself to the demon of Hate and Resentment.
He was sinless.
But, HE was sinful.
Yet, he wanted to protect him. Like the blond ninja had protected him from the demon in him.
"You know, most of the people in this village hate me. But I don't hate them." he smiled. "That's how I've managed to live with them until now..."
Yes, he would protect him from people harming him.
It was the only way he found to settle his debt to Naruto.
It was the only way he found to pay for his crimes.
It would be his path to Redemption.
His eyes fluttered open.
He realized he wasn't in his room.
He realized there was someone next to him.
Gaara's face was not so far from his feet.
Surprisingly he was still asleep.
Naruto slowly sat up.
He had always thought the Sand gennin never sleep. Because of the weird monster in his body.
But it seemed that he had finally managed to rest peacefully.
They had spent the previous night playing cards because they hadn't found anything better to do.
They probably fell asleep during a game, for the cards were spilled over the floor.
Naruto carefully left the sofa. He was hungry.
It has become a daily routine to make breakfast for two. Before he knew it, he had gotten used to Gaara's presence in his house. To the point that he had completely forgotten the presence of a stranger ninja in the village was forbidden.
But Naruto did never bother what was forbidden or allowed.
He did what his mind told him to. And his mind was telling him there was nothing wrong in having the Sand gennin as an housemate.
He hadn't done anything wrong so far. Naruto was certain he would never.
And well... he was glad he had someone.
He felt less...alone.
Humming a tune, he interrupted the trail of his thoughts to concentrate on the breakfast.
"Damn that Sasuke!"
He heard the door being slammed. He quickly closed the manga he had been reading.
Naruto's face was covered with bruises and sharp cuts. His clothes carried kunai's marks.
Gaara made something like a frown.
"Damn him!"
He saw Naruto slump over the sofa.
He threw him an interrogative look.
"That bastard thinks he is better than me, I'll show him! I'll kick his ass next time!"
He still didn't understand anything.
What had the Uchiha done to Naruto?
After removing his shoes, Naruto picked up a wet towel in the bathroom.
He carefully cleaned the cuts on his cheeks.
Gaara was him wince. Several times.
He felt the familiar feeling raise in him.
"What happened?" he awkwardly asked.
"We had training classes. I ended up with that asshole." he pouted "He was acting so damn proud I got mad and didn't control my attacks. He ended up beating me." he pouted more. "Next time I will beat him!"
His eyes narrowed unconsciously.
"He hurt you...?" his voice had grown cold.
"Of course this hurts! Shurikens' cuts hurt like hell!! Even if..."
Before he knew it, he had gotten mad.
"...Urm...calm down. It's nothing really..." Naruto quickly added as he felt Gaara's chakra level raise up. "...It doesn't hurt that much at all...hehehe."
His anger settled down as he saw the familiar look on Naruto's face.
He was confused. Seconds earlier, he was hurting and now it was all fine.
"I thought he hurt you..."
"Huh?... oh...Well... it's true it hurts a tiny bit, but well...it's not like he hurt me..."
Gaara's face was showing total confusion.
"...I mean, it doesn't REALLY hurt. It's just some pain on my face but, it's not like he REALLY tried to kill me or hurt me." Naruto tried to explain. "We were just sparring...it wasn't intended for real..."
"You said it hurts..."
"Huh...yes, but...he didn't hurt my...feelings...so it's okay..." he said with embarrassment.
Eyes widened slightly.
Yashamaru used to say the same thing.
She used to say pain in the heart was worse than pain on the body.
He could feel pain in the heart.
He had felt pain in his heart when Naruto was wincing in pain.
But Naruto wasn't in pain at all.
Then, why had he felt pain? Why was it hurting him to see him hurt?
He didn't understand.
"Umm...well...thank you anyway...for bothering..." he gave a shy smile.
Gaara felt his heart was light again.
"...Still, I'm gonna kick Sasuke's ass later!"
