Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto…period.

Destinies Changed, Hearts Changed: Part V

They didn't hear her. They couldn't hear her over the sound of sand as it slammed into the walls of the buildings around them. Miraculously, every single one of those attacks missed her, basically none ever even came close to where she was.

Sasuke advanced onto Gaara as he dodged the waves of sand trying to wrap around him. The speed Sasuke moved at was able to pass the sand barrier and the kunai in his right hand pierced through Gaara's arm slightly before Sasuke was forced to divert his direction.

Hinata was able to see his face now that Sasuke's back was to her instead. His eyes were wide and he grinned, baring his teeth. He snarled, an inhuman personage seemed to have taken over him. There was a demonic aura around him, which darkened the afternoon sky around them slightly

"You won't get away this time."

The sand started to secede away from the walls and Sasuke, as it swirled around him. Gaara could feel it—he could taste it already—Sasuke's blood was going to be his. He could no longer hold it back, and released the monster within. He closed his eyes for the transformation.

"Hinata."

Sasuke glanced at her slightly.

"Get out of here."

She stared as Gaara slowly faded away from view as his sand covered him up entirely.

"W-What's going—"

"Now!"

Sasuke started to focus his chakra. Hinata saw his right hand start to light up as something silver sparked from it.

She didn't want to leave them. She didn't want to leave Gaara. He was her…friend now. Even if he never really talked much to her. He understood her…and it seemed to work out fine that way. Hinata didn't understand what was happening to them—or why they're so much against each other. It must be the thing Gaara tried to tell her about. But every time, he would shake his head and tell her it was nothing and to forget it. Everything seemed fine…until they showed up. She clenched her hands, nails dug into her palms.

//No…// She wasn't going to give him up that easily. Whatever is happening to him…she'll try to reverse it.

"Gaara!"

Hinata called out to him, only to have her voice be blown away by the force of the wind.

"Hinata, go now!"

Sasuke sounded impatient and the light in his palm flickered and expanded.

A cyclone of sand started to take in effect as it spread, with Gaara as the center point. As it scraped by the walls, it peeled the paint right off.

Gaara felt it now. He wasn't there anymore. He felt the emptiness around him as Hinata's voice echoed and faded into the background. He tried to search for it—for her, grasped the air in front of him, hoping to find her. Gaara opened his eyes to face nothing. There was nothing out there for him to reach. The barren void surrounded him as it glared a familiar sense. He had been there before. Many, many times before had he felt an ominous presence there with him also.

Gaara whipped his head around as he sensed something behind. It was only darkness—but he knew something was there. Gigantic green eyes glowered back at him.

//No//

Heh

He took a step back and a sloshing sound came to him. The floor was wet—water or something. He wasn't going to go there, he wanted to get out of there. Gaara spun around and started to run and splashed the ankle-high water onto himself. The dark path in front of him kept on opening, but he couldn't see a thing in front. It was like being blind…but he wasn't blind, it was just dark. The eyes behind him still held the same distance. He wasn't getting anywhere and stopped.

It's time now

A momentary flash paralyzed Gaara in his spot. It was like his joints were stuck and now all he could do was stare at the creature in front of him as it possessed him. He choked out a cry.

It'll be pretty…when it's all red

He sank onto his knees as the spell was released. His hand hit the wet surface as the other hand held his head. Gaara's eyes widened as he held up his drenched hand. In the dim greenish light of the monster's eyes, he could barely make it out as the water dripped from his hand and himself. It was too thick to be water. A familiar scent hit his nose.

He was soaked in blood.

It was a dark crimson color as it whirled around him. He could still see the faint light from the eyes. It came closer to him as the blood rose around him, and created a dome with him trapped inside. The stench was unbearable as he sank back onto his knees and held his stomach. There was no air except for the dank, mucky smell of blood and the dead all enveloped inside as the dome shrank, and suffocated him within. His stomach lurched as the thick scarlet liquid rose up his waist. He couldn't breathe anymore and his eyelids dropped, leaving him vacant and weak for his predator, who watched as his victim's subconscious slowly died, giving him leeway to control of the body.

"Gaara!"

He blinked.

//Hinata//

She was still there. Gaara opened his mouth to yell to her to get away, only to have it fill up with the salty fluid. He gagged and closed his mouth. His whole body was now paralyzed as the blood had reached his chin now. Gaara fought the urge to slip back into unconsciousness, but his surroundings spun as he dimly saw a large arm reach out for him. He tried to yell again, but the creature just laughed and sank in with the blood, which now drowned him under.

I can taste their blood already…can't you?

Gaara screamed as he flew back and was staked into the wall behind him. Sasuke pinned him to the wall as his Chidori had pierced through the sandstorm and located Gaara. His eyes glowed green as he glanced over to his wound where Sasuke's hand had embedded itself, and Gaara's blood flowed freely down his shirt and Sasuke's arm.

Hinata backed up against the wall furthest from the two combatants. Sasuke had merely missed Gaara's heart, and penetrated Gaara's left shoulder instead. Gaara now, had a sadistic grin on his face as his left hand staggered up and held onto Sasuke's arm, as the other arm slowly, as if forcing itself to move, reached up and grabbed Sasuke's neck.

He yanked the other boy's arm out of his shoulder and let the blood pour down now instead. Gaara's grip on Sasuke's neck tightened and he twisted Sasuke's arm until he heard a snap and the other boy cried out. He wanted to crush the boy with his sand and watch it rain, but he rather snap his neck first. Just for the satisfactory of listening to his neck crack under the pressure.

Shukaku heard a gasp from nearby and his gaze changed over to the noise. A girl was seated on her knees, and backed up frantically when his gaze had hit her. He smiled and stopped midway through his killing of Sasuke.

Ah…the little princess…

He tossed Sasuke aside and made his way slowly towards Hinata, his feet staggered at every step.

Her blood would be sweeter…

He licked his lips as he advanced on her, who cowered in the corner. The sand floated restlessly around him. His sand clone took care of the annoying Leaf boy behind him. He'll take care of her first.

Shukaku smiled at her. It was time. He had been waiting for so long. The girl whimpered and glanced up at him frightened; her silvery white eyes wide.

"G-Gaara?"

She whispered uncertainly as a tendril of sand wrapped itself around her ankles and wrists.

Shukaku grinned. It was time for the kill. He moved Gaara's arm to apply the finishing move on her ankles and wrists—to break her slowly.

His arm didn't move though. Shukaku staggered back away from Hinata and clutched his head. Gaara was awake again.

Sasuke by now had evaded the sand clone and charged right at Gaara with a kunai and stabbed him in the right arm. Shukaku's control slipped a notch as the pain seared through again and woke Gaara. The sand around Hinata whipped up and wrapped around Sasuke.

Kill him

The sand tightened its grip.

//N-No…//

It loosened and threw Sasuke back down onto his back.

Let him die…Kill him…

Gaara threw his arms up and thrashed about in his prison. Shukaku was going to kill Hinata. He couldn't trust the demon on his own. He concentrated his chakra and let it explode all at once, breaking the blood prison apart.

The sand seceded from Sasuke as Hinata watched Gaara clasped onto his head and sank down onto the ground. Sasuke tentatively pushed himself into a sitting position, cradled his broken left arm, and watched as Gaara agonized over control.

His shirt was now soaked and clammy, sticking to him as the pain shot through his body from the two wounds, one on his shoulder and the other his arm. Shukaku's persistence on keeping control also hurt his head. He dropped on arm onto the ground and clawed at the dirt.

It was like he was being ripped to shreds from the inside. Everything around him was to no importance, and was all distorted. Blood dripped from his shoulder as he shook uncontrollably. It was falling apart. Everything was falling apart. He was falling apart. The pain struck through his body again, and he reached up to his left shoulder. It was still moist. He pressed his palm to it and winced. It was like hot iron against his shoulder and then falling onto the rest of his body.

He screamed again, with choked sobs. Gaara just wanted to die right then, to get rid of all the pain.

Suddenly, a pair of arms wrapped around him, and cradled him tentively. He leaned towards the body of the person and closed his eyes, the pain ceded a bit, and left a dull sting in the rest of his body and his shoulder blade numb. He heard her whisper.

"I-It's…it's okay…now…"

Hinata held onto to him fearfully, she'd almost lost him that time. He reached for her hand and she gave it to him. Gaara clamped on, still shaking.

"…Hinata…"

~End Part V~

Um…yea…

Took me awhile to think of this chapter, after watching the fight between Gaara and Sasuke a few times… ^^

Hehe…well, REVIEW!

A/N: And this story will be strictly Gaara/Hinata, since many reviewers requested that it be kept that way…^^

Ame no Megami