New Revelations Chapter 2

EDIT: 10/19/05, Fixed some grammatical errors and made some revisions, nothing major to offset the balance of the story.

After his discussion with Naruto, Gaara found himself wandering through Konoha's streets, but his feet weren't the only ones wandering, his mind was drifting as well. Naruto gave him his friendship even after all the things he had done. His truly was an interesting character. Gaara envied him because of it. He continued walking aimlessly until he came across a familiar person. Her pink hair and red tunic…he had seen her before. It was her eyes that jarred his memory, back in the forest when he closed in on Sasuke; she had jumped in front of him her eyes glaring with determination. He had almost killed her as well, locking her in his sand he had threatened to kill her unless Naruto fought him. He almost hoped she wouldn't recognize him.

Sakura, however, instantly took notice of him. Her eyes widened in fear and surprise. "YOU!" She yelled, stopping in her tracks and pointing her finger at him. "WHAT ARE YOU DOING BACK HERE?" Her voice trembled slightly, understandably still deathly afraid of him after the incident in the forest. His black-rimmed eyes and lack of eyebrows made him look all the more menacing. Had he come back to kill Naruto, or her, perhaps even in search of Sasuke for a final death match?

Gaara's eyes widened somewhat at the look of fear on Sakura's face. Even after all these years he still hadn't gotten completely used to the look of fear people would sometimes shoot his way. He couldn't blame her though, he had tried to kill her, he deserved it. "You're Uzumaki Naruto's teammate right?" He said trying not to look at the panic that was spread across her face.

"Yes, but why…. what do you want with him?" Her voice was shaking perceptibly now. He wanted something with Naruto after all…maybe he really did want to kill him. She cringed as he came closer to her.

"I'm not going to hurt you." He said as he approached her.

"I know that!" Sakura lied. She didn't believe him. He killed anyone who got in his way.

Gaara knew she was bluffing. "You're a terrible liar. I can see the fear in your face."

Her heart pounded, "Am I so easy to read?" She wondered. "What do you want with him?" Sakura repeated. "If you try to hurt him I'll…I'll kill you!" Sakura knew even as she said this that there was no possible way she could defeat Gaara. Lee couldn't even do it.

"I have no intention of killing Uzumaki." He looked Sakura in the eye. "I can see that you are similar to him. Both of you, if someone important to you is threatened, you defend them." This girl wasn't very strong, but her determination was great. Even so if he were to fight her, he could still squash her like a bug if he wanted.

Sakura was totally confused. She was certain Gaara would have destroyed her by now if he really intended to kill her. He didn't need an introduction. She stared at him. His face was serious yet his dark ringed eyes looked as though he was hurt deep inside. This made Sakura even more confused as she was certain Gaara was the last person she would expect to show any emotion other than hate.

He stared down at the ground. "I'm going to meet up with my teammates." He began to walk past Sakura, who was still trying to figure out what was going on.

"WAIT!" She said stopping him in his tracks. "You never said why you were here." As soon as she said it her mind flashed back to the street where she, Naruto, and Sasuke first encountered Gaara and his team. She had asked a similar question to them then.

Gaara looked over his shoulder, "We're here to help Konoha defeat Orochimaru." This girl was persistent for someone who was so weak and afraid of him. Naruto kept some interesting company. He continued on his way to meet up with Temari and Kankurou.

Sakura watched him leave, he was still creepy as hell to her, but she couldn't forget the look of his eyes just now, they looked so full of pain, sadness even. She was curious and decided to see Tsunade about the Sand trio's return to Konoha.

Tsunade was in her office…playing solitare with her bottle of sake set right across from her when Shizune led Sakura in.

She looked up from her cards, "Sakura-chan? What can I do for you?" She leaned back a bit in her chair and shook her hair out of her face.

"Tsunade-sama…I was wondering if you had asked ninja from the hidden village of the Sand to aid us in our fight with Orochimaru."

Tsuande looked amused. "Yes Sakura I did."

Sakura looked a bit taken aback by the simplicity of her answer, "Why? The Sand betrayed us didn't they?"

"They were under the influence of Orochimaru. He stole the identity of the Kazekage and twisted things around. That's all been sorted out now." She took a sip of her sake. "Originally we would have chosen a team of Jounin to try and intercept Sasuke, but due to our weakened state I selected a strong team of Genin to do the job." She set down her cup. "Orochimaru, I already realize, has some very strong ninja on his side, they're good an regenerating their strength, that's where the Sand team came in. They owed us for their mistake and we needed an extra group of exceptional ninja." She smiled. "You understand now?"

Sakura was still trying to register all this information, but at the risk of sounding idiotic she nodded. "Yes I do thank you."

Tsunade went back to her cards, "I'll see you at eight tomorrow morning then my apprentice." Sakura nodded again, and Shizune escorted her out of the office.

When she thought about it, Gaara's team was pretty strong, stronger than most actually, the only thing Sakura wasn't sure of was Gaara himself. He was a killer right? Granted that made him all the more suitable for the job, but still…She looked up. It was getting dark out, stars began dotting the sky and the full moon was in clear view. She needed a place to relax and think. She made her way to a small wooded park.

She took a deep breath of the fresh air and stretched a bit. Looking up she spotted her favorite climbing tree. She had come here many times before just to take in the serene atmosphere that surrounded the area. Using her chakra as Kakashi-sensei had taught her, Naruto, and Sasuke back in the wave country, she scaled the trunk of the tree until she reached a sturdy branch to sit on. The moon was in perfect view here and it basked the park around her in its milky white glow.

"Where were you all this time little brother?" Temari asked Gaara as he entered the room he and his team were given when they arrived in Konoha. She noticed he looked deep in thought.

He regarded her coolly. "I had some things to take care of."

Temari and Kankurou exchanged worried glances. They knew Gaara had been different since his battle with Uzumaki Naruto, but this statement made them wonder if he had gone back to his old pattern of things. They were still unsure of him, so they didn't press him for details.

Temari smiled awkwardly, "Well you're just in time for dinner, so that's good." She began setting the table with plates of rice and stir-fried chicken and vegetables.

Gaara said nothing, and they ate their meal in silence. He stood up when he finished and began to walk to the door. He stopped halfway there and turned to them.

"Thanks Temari. I'm going out for some fresh air for a while, I'll be back." He left and slid the door shut behind him leaving his teammates wondering what was going on in his head.

"He's definitely been different since that day." Kankurou said still staring at the door.

"Yeah, he's still quiet, but other than that he's been almost kind." Temari agreed as she cleared the table. "Perhaps we should have asked him what "things" he had to take care of."

Back at the park, Sakura once again found herself thinking about Sasuke. What exactly was he doing right now? Was he with Orochimaru? It seemed like too much to take in. "Sakura…thank you." He had said.

"That's right!" She thought. "I confessed to him! He knows how I feel about him now!" All these years she had harbored her love for him, waiting for the right moment to tell him. However, the outcome in her fantasies had been different than the actual event. He was supposed to say, "Sakura, now that I know you feel the same way…I could never leave you." She blushed at this cheesy dream of hers.

"BAKA! That would never happen in a million years!" Inner Sakura raged. Sakura sighed. She knew Sasuke would never say that to her now. She looked up at the moon and wondered if perhaps Sasuke was safe and looking at this same moon right now wherever he was.

"You like staring at the full moon too, eh?" A familiar voice said to the right of her. She turned to see Gaara standing on another tree branch about five feet away from her.

"AIEEEE!" She jumped in fright, sliding off the tree branch and free falling towards the ground some ten stories below her.

"Great, I'm going to die because of him!" Sakura's mind hissed as she crossed her arms in front of her chest, and squeezed her eyes shut preparing herself for impact. She felt something snake around her and soften the blow, her body still jerked from the force of impact against the ground, but not as badly as she expected. She opened her eyes slowly and then realized she was lying on a huge pile of sand. "He saved me?" She looked up into the tree at Gaara who was still standing on that same branch with his arms crossed staring down at her.

He disappeared in a cloud of sand and reappeared a few feet away from her. "You're okay right?" He asked her, with his arms still crossed.

Sakura's body felt like jelly. "Yeah, I think I'm okay." She stood up slowly her limbs shaking from her near death experience. She stared at Gaara. "Why would he save me?" She had no idea what his intentions were and she eyed him suspiciously.

Gaara closed his eyes. "You're still afraid of me aren't you?" He opened his eyes and looked directly into Sakura's hoping to tell what she was feeling.

Sakura's eyes widened. She couldn't lie to him, not now. "Yeah…I guess I am still a little." She said cautiously expecting him to snap. He remained silent. "What are you doing out here?" She asked stupidly.

"You seem very interested in where I go and why." He said.

Sakura looked embarrassed. "Well I guess I'm just nervous because you…well you tried to kill me once before."

"If I hadn't fought Uzumaki Naruto that day I probably would have killed you." He admitted. "And Uchiha Sasuke." He added. "Your friend Uzumaki is a very interesting character. I spoke with him today." Sakura stared at him. "After our fight I needed to know some things. In my entire life, no one ever once truly acknowledged my existence because of what I was." He looked sad to Sakura like he was remembering something painful. "Uzumaki told me that he was alone too, only he found people to accept him and he was willing to do anything to keep them safe. I wondered at the time if I would ever have people like this in my life. I said this to Uzumaki and he said I wouldn't have to worry because he would be my friend." His eyes softened and his features became more relaxed and human.

"That Naruto." Sakura thought. Naruto just had a knack for befriending the most unlikely people…with the exception of Sasuke. She felt warm after hearing Gaara's little speech. He wasn't so scary after all. He must have been so alone at times. Sakura remembered how alone and insecure she felt when she was younger.

"I can understand what that must have been like." Sakura said. Gaara looked surprised. "I can't say that my experience was as bad as yours, but it still made me feel alone." Her eyes teared slightly. "When I was growing up the girls used to tease me about my big forehead." She laughed a little. "It hurt me so much even though it was something so trivial. I would sit by myself and cry a lot because no one would talk to me. Then I met Ino and she told me to stop crying." She smiled. "She said my big forehead was cute and I shouldn't hide it under my hair, so she tied it back with a ribbon and said, 'There! Now you look much better.' Sakura smiled at Gaara. "I guess you could say that Ino was my special person who acknowledged my existence."

Gaara stared at Sakura in wonder. This girl identified with him. The severity of the two experiences was different, but the same meaning was there.

Sakura sighed, "It's late I should be getting home, I have to see Tsunade-sama at eight tomorrow morning." She was about to turn around, but stopped herself. She looked back at Gaara over her shoulder, "Thank you." She said with a smile and a little wave.

Gaara remained silent. This had shaped out to be a very interesting day indeed.

End of Chapter 2