Past meets Future

Chapter 9: Midnight Meeting

This was supose to be the last chapter, but it sorta didn't come out that way.

The better part of that night was spent with Naruto-mirai describing, in detail, Sunakagura to the other leaf-nins who had also never been there. Gaara-mirai sat in 'his chair' and listened to the blond nin ramble. Tsunade came over to him and stood behind his chair.

"Well?" she asked, not looking down at him.

"I'm ready," Gaara-mirai stated, looking over at the past nins, who were also listening. The past sand nins were asking questions and making small comments about his description.

"But?" Tsunade asked.

Gaara-mirai shrugged. "Something's holding me back." He drew his knees up to his chest and folded his arms over them. "I spoke to Shukaku last night."

Tsunade wasn't sure if he was changing the subject or adding something from the side. "I thought you could always here his voice."

"I can, but this time I called him out. I needed to ask him something."

FLASHBACK

ITS RARE THAT YOU WOULD TALK TO ME, BOY The low voice stated.

'I need to ask you something,' Gaara-mirai informed him. He was sitting on the roof of the inn they were staying at on their way to Sunakagura. Even though he knew he was alone, he was trying his best to hide his now feminine features with his four-demensional cloak. However his face could still be seen, now looked like a young girl's, his eyes now larger and rimmed with lashes. No one in Suna recognized him and thought he was just one of Konoha's 'representitives' like Naruto.

OH..?

'You know about our youngerselves that are staying at my house?'

He felt the Shukaku nod. THAT'S WHY THAT BITCH SENT YOU WITH YOUR IDIOT BROTHER Gaara-mirai froze, ridged in anger. WHAT? A WHILE AGO AND YOU WOULD HAVE SAID THE SAME THING.

'I've changed. Don't talk about my brother like that.' he mumbled boldly. 'And Tsunade-obachan isn't a bitch, usually.'

Shukaku roared in anger at Gaara-mirai's rebuke. Gaara-mirai clutched his head to get rid of the growing headache. Shukaku settled down to a low growl. TELL ME WHAT DO YOU WANT.

'When I get back to Konoha, will I have enough chakra to send them all back?' Gaara-mirai held his breath as Shukaku pondered this for a while.

YES. the dark voice responded.

'And erase their memories?'

A long pause followed. HMM... Shukaku thought for a moment, trying to recall memories of his knowledge of the Cards. THE SPIRIT OF MEMORY IS SUPOSEDLY A EASY CARD TO USE. SHINOBI WHO HAVE GOTTEN THEIR HANDS ON THE CARD US IT TO MAKE THEIR MISSIONS EASIER. EASY AS IT IS TO CONTROL, IT TAKES A LOT OF CHAKRA TO USE BECAUSE OF HOW COMPLICATED THE HUMAN MIND IS. I DON'T THINK YOU CAN DO IT WITH YOUR OWN CHAKRA.

The hint was almost painfully obvious. 'Will you lend me some of your chakra?' Gaara asked after a long hesitation.

UNDER THE RIGHT CIRCUMSTANCES Gaara-mirai could feel him grinning madly. He knew what those circomstancedes probably were. HOWEVER, Shukaku paused for a moment in thought. THE MEMORY SPIRIT CANNOT COMPLETELY ERASE ALL MEMORIES OF AN EVENT.

'Why?'

I SAID BEFORE, THE HUMAN MIND IS A VERY COMPLICATED THING. MOST MINDS, OR MEMORY CHAMBERS, ARE LIKE A LONG DARK HALLWAY WITH ONE DOOR. THERE ARE SOME EXCEPTIONS THOUGH. YOUR MIND HAS TWO DOORS. WHY?

Gaara thought for a moment. 'One for mine and one for you?' he ventured.

YES. NOW, BEHIND YOUR DOOR IS LIKE EVERYONE ELSES MIND, THE FACT THAT YOU HAVE TWO DOORS IS REALLY THE ONLY THING THAT'S DIFFERENT FROM OTHER PEOPLE. ON THE OTHER SIDE OF YOUR DOOR IS A BEEHIVE OF STORAGE COMPARTMENTS AND MEMORY FILES OF EVERY THOUGHT, EVERY EXPERIENCE, EVERY MEMORY YOU HAVE EVER HAD, WHETHER YOU CAN REMEMBER THEM OR NOT, THEY'RE THERE. TO USE THE SPIRIT MEMORY, YOU MUST ENTER THE MIND AND DESTROY ALL TRACES OF THAT MEMORY.

'That sounds hard.'

IT IS. AND YOU HAVE TO DO A WHOLE GROUP OF PEOPLE. HOWEVER, THE FACT THAT YOU KNOW THE PEOPLE MAKES IT EASIER, BUT THEIR MIGHT BE A PERSON WHO SLIGHTLY REMEMBERS WHAT HAPPENED TO THEM.

'Who?'

WHO EVER THE YOUNGER ONES HAVE HAD HE MOST CONTACT WITH YOU OR YOUR YOUNGER SELF.

END FLASH BACK

"I see..." Tsunade leaned up against his chair and thought.

They both were silent for a while thinking their own thoughts on the matter. Gaara's however were interupted when Naruto shoved him to the side and sat down next to him.

"...And the Sand village has like only one flavor of ramen," Naruto-mirai continued completely oblivious to his friend's glares. "I talked to the people there who make ramen and they're going to make more flavors." Gaara-mirai tapped Naruto-mirai's shoulder. "And there's a music store right next to their house (Gaara temari and Kankurou's) and it's like as big as the academy and it's got like the biggest seltection of music. And--what?" Naruto-mirai finally turned to Gaara-mirai who had resorted to thwacking him on the shoulder.

"You're in my chair!" Gaara-mirai kicked Naruto-mirai off his chair and sent him flying farther then he intended through the dining room and out the back door. "The trip was horrible, Naruto ate ramen the whole time." Gaara-mirai said suming up the trip in two short sentences.

Several people laughed at this and at Naruto-mirai who came back in the room laughing as well.

LATER THAT NIGHT WHEN EVERYONE IS IN BED

Hinata sat up on her futon. She had had a bad dream, but not one that was very scary. In fact the only thing she remembered was that it was scary. She sighed and looked around the room. She, Sakura, Ino, and Ten Ten were sharing the room that was apparently Naruto- and Sasuke-mirai's when they stayed over. The other boys were staying in various rooms around the house that had been the other's room when they stayed over the Sand house. All of the future boys had been glad to hand their rooms over and from what she understood were all crowded on the sofabed downstairs.

"Hinata?" Sakura sat up in her futon. "Can't you sleep?"

"No," Hinata mumbled.

"Let's sneak down and get something to eat," Sakura suggested.

"I-I wouldn't want to wake the boys," Hinata said twidling her fingers.

"It's ok," Sakura said standing. "From what the older Lee-san told me, Gaara stays up all night so he should already be down there."

"He doesn't sleep?"

"Apparently not," Sakura led Hinata down the stairs were a funny sight met them.

Nine of the ten future boys and one dog living in the Sand house were indeed crowded on the regular size sofa bed (you know, the kind that only two can fit comfortably and three to watch tv). All of them refused to sleep on the floor and Gaara-mirai would let no one who he could terrify on his chair (Naruto just sat there when he felt like it and Gaara-mirai's scared of Tsunade) so they all were sleeping on the sofa bed. Shino-mirai and Sasuke-mirai had suceeded in securing each corner for themselves. Neji-mirai had claimed the thin space on the head board and pillows. Kiba-mirai was using Shino's legs as a pillow since Sasuke-mirai had the only remaining pillows after the previous pillow fight about a week ago and his legs were drapped across Neji-mirai's stomache with Akamaru-mirai sleeping on his lap. Lee was using Sasuke-mirai's legs as a pillow and Chouji-mirai was using Lee-mirai's. Kankurou-mirai was sleeping in the middle of the bed horizontally with Neji-mirai's feet propped up on his stomach. Shikamaru-mirai was curled up in a ball at the bottom corner and Naruto-mirai had the other one, closest to Gaara-mirai's chair.

"Oh, they're so cute!" Sakura squealed quietly. "I wish I had a camera."

"Already took a picture." The two girls jumped at the low voice and saw Gaara-mirai sitting at the kitchen table.

"Oh, ok," Sakura said nervously and sat down just as Gaara-mirai stood. "Where're you going?"

"Out," he said opening the back door. "I'm getting tired of watching them sleep, and it's nice out side tonight." And he was gone.

"Did we do something?" Hinata asked.

"I don't think so," Sakura assured her. "You want to something to eat?"

"No, I think I'll go to bed now so I don't wake anyone up." Hinata turned and sneaked back up the stairs.

Sakura shrugged and opened the freezer. Looking through the contains she found that the only ice cream left was Gaara's sugar free ice cream. She took that anyway and got out a spoon. Stepped out on the back porch, she sat on the swinging chair hanging there. She ate the ice cream for a few minutes, the silence only broken by crickets.

"What are you doing?"

Sakura didn't jump this time. She was beginning to tell their future selves from the ones from her time. She could tell this was the Gaara from her time. "Just sitting and eating ice cream." she replied.

"Why?"

"Cause I can sleep."

"I've never done that." Gaara informed her stepping up onto the porch.

"That doesn't mean I can't," she snapped back. Gaara glared at her and turned away. "You want some?" she asked suddenly.

"What?" Gaara glanced back at her.

Sakura was surprised she asked that, it just tumbled out. She smiled at him and patted the seat next to her. "Do you want some ice cream?" she repeated.

Gaara glanced at her, then at the seat and back up at her. After a while Sakura thought that he might refuse, but he finally came over and sat on the swinging chair next to her, or next to her just as far from her as he could. Sakura handed him the carton with the spoon stuck in it. He tasted it then had a few mouth fulls and handed it back to her.

"How come you're not sleeping?" Sakura asked him taking a spoon full her self (yes people their using the same spoon! There's nothing wrong with that.).

"I don't sleep ever," was the short reply.

"How come?"

"Because if I do, I'll kill everyone around me."

Sakura glanced at him. "Ok, sure."

"I'm serious," Gaara said frowning at her.

"And I'm the boogy man," she said giving him the no duh look that girls like to give guys.

Gaara looked away glaring at no one in particular. Sakura put the carton on his lap and used her feet to make the chair swing. "What are you doing?" Gaara asked not looking at her.

"Swinging is fun," she replied. Giving the floor one last push she laid back and enjoyed the motion.

"Why aren't you scared of me?" Gaara asked eating the ice cream away from her.

"I was when I first met you, but I know your older self is nice so I figured you're ok too."

"I'm not," Gaara replied. "I'm very different from--"

Sakura sighed and leaned against his shoulder, suddenly very tired. She felt him tense up and inch away from her. "Why are you so jumpy?" she asked him. "How come you never want to impress someone?" she asked thinking of their previous conversation.

"Because I fight only for myself. I don't trust anyone," he replied.

"That must be lonely," she stated. "You don't even trust you're brother and sister?"

"No."

"You don't love them?"

Gaara was silent for a long time. "I love only myself," he finally answered.

"How do you love yourself?" she asked. "How can you love like that?" Gaara didn't answer at all this time. How could he live like that? By killing others he found his reason to exist. But love he didn't have, receive, or gain. "If your brother or sister were killed wouldn't you be upset?" Sakura asked.

"Why should I be? They have never been what you call family to me."

"They never helped you ever? Never did anything nice to you?"

"They are scared of me," was Gaara's reply. Suddenly he had a series of flashbacks. When he was little and children were chasing him away from their playground and Kankurou scaring them off (SNG reference SNG: DAMMIT, THAT WAS MINE!!). Temari staying up with him at night because he was scared of the assasins the Kazekage sent after him. Kankurou carrying him away when Gaara tried to surpress the Shukaku and collapsed the mental stress. Temari smiling at him asking if he would try something she had made. "....."

Sakura suddenly sat up and hugged him. Gaara straightened in shock and tried to move away. He didn't understand what she was doing. Sakura's shoulders were shaking slightly. "I'm sorry," she said her eyes welling up. "I can't imagine growing up like that." Gaara tried to move away from her, uncomfortable and very confused, but Sakura held him tight. She suddenly turned her head and kissed him slightly on the cheek. Gaara froze like a statue with his eyes wide as sausers. "What now?" Sakura asked when she saw his face as she pulled away. "Hasn't anyone kised you before?"

Gaara didn't answer. He stood quickly and began to leave, but Sakura caught his hand. "I'm sorry."

"It's ok," he mumbled. "Why did you do that?" he asked quietly.

"Just because," she replied, not quite sure why she did it herself. She smiled at him and kissed him again this time on him mouth. When she pulled away, she could tell he was blushing. He mumbled something completely incohirent and jumped into the trees next to the porch. 'I can't believe I just kissed someone other then Sasuke-kun,' she said to herself as she went into the house to go to bed. However, she kinda liked it, she decided as the door shut behind her.

Lounging on the tire swing Naruto had set up in the big tree in the middle of the backyard Gaara-mirai turned to look back up at the sky. 'Well, that was interesting and unexpected.' he mused.

Ok, that was for all the people emailing and reviewing me begging for a romance bit. I'm sorry I suck at romance. I never had a boy friend to be romantic with. I have yet to find a guy I like. And I don't think I really want one. There for I have no experience and suck at writing them. So deal with it I tried my best.

SNG: And what's Dayel, chopped liver? (Kyuubi: Are you sure you can write in her fan fic?) Yeah... I hope...

H-R: He's definately not my boyfriend! He's like a brother! not a boyfriend.

SNG: You've slept over his house grins evilly

H-R: blush He slept on the floor and I slept on the sofa, we were watching tv....geez... besides, who would date someone who enjoys snowboarding off his three story roof.

Shukaku and Kyuubi: oh just shut up the both of you