OK, well, once again it's that time of the week. I LOVED writing this chapter, so I hope you all enjoy reading it. Despite what anyone may say, the style in which I wrote this chapter was heavily inspired by a friend of mine who refuses to read this story on the principle that he's male, so he'll never know his contribution… Anyway, be glad because this version is WAY better than the last one I had started… With that said, please enjoy the chapter and don't forget to review… er, if you wanna, that is.

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Exodus

Chapter 6

"Don't forget our promise…" The tall blond man said, lifting Gaara onto his shoulder to carry him like a fallen animal back to his camp, "Your life now belongs to me."

Gaara closed his eyes in reply, wishing for sleep. It wasn't like he would be able to move any time soon, anyway, and he expected he would be dead long before even his own quick-healing body reached the point where he'd be able do anything. Right now he was so drained that he couldn't even form the most basic of sand shields; struggling was futile.

Waves of exhaustion flowed over him and Gaara found himself wondering exactly why he was still alive. Was his blond captor planning on taking him back to his companions to kill him in front of them? It seemed possible; these were animal-people after all. Maybe they devoured their enemies alive after defeating them, and this man, the one that had defeated him, was bringing him back for his family.

"Father…" The small white haired one was talking. "What do you want with him? Why not just leave him for his companions?"

"I can't leave him alone…" came the soft reply. Gaara felt a large warm hand ruffle his hair gently as the deep, almost compassionate voice continued. "Ganten… I want to adopt him."

Gaara's eyes flashed open as the man spoke, but neither his captor nor the white haired boy paid him any heed as they continued back towards their camp. What the hell was the man talking about, adopt him? He was… he just tried to kill their whole family, all of their friends and this man was throwing around words like adoption. What kind of a man was he?

The other boy, the man's son, seemed to have reservations as well, as the next words out of his mouth were, "ADOPT HIM? Are you insane? Daddy, this guy tried to kill all of us. On top of that he's got some crazy alter ego that he can't control, so even if he DOES follow your agreement - an' I'm not saying I think he will - there's still the problem of trying to stop that alter ego from destroying us all. You said yourself that if it gets past a certain point, you won't be able to stop the alter ego without killing this guy. What happens if he follows your agreement, we all start getting along and then the next thing you know, his alter ego breaks free and then you gotta kill him? Isn't that more cruel to all of us than just leaving him here? And why adopt? He's an adult, at least in his community. What the hell is he gonna want a new father for? Isn't that kinda condescending?"

For a moment, the large man's body shook and Gaara was certain he was angry. The shaking grew worse and then, to Gaara's amazement he realized that it was not rage, but laughter that was making the man shake. It was amazing. What kind of man laughed at having his authority undermined by his son? Even Gaara's father, who made it clear that he feared Gaara by sending a long stream of assassins after him, would not tolerate disrespect.

"Ganten…" The father said, still chuckling. His humor and affection for his son could be heard clearly in his tone. "You really worry too much. Do you really think that I would purposely place you and everyone else in danger? Or that I would force things on anybody?"

After a long moment the boy replied, "No. But then, what do you plan to do?"

"First things first," The blond replied. "We'll get back to camp and take care of everyone's injuries. As for what we're gonna do about him and his… alter ego," the man chuckled again, "I have a few ideas. We can worry about that later. For now, let's get back to camp and make sure everyone's OK."

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Back at camp Rin was doing less than OK. Things had been fine until the end of the fight. Moab was resting quietly in a makeshift crib Rin had created by strapping four of the packs together and throwing blankets in the center and Mina was sleeping as silently as death. Rin had taken advantage of the brief moment of peace he had after he knew the outcome of the fight with Gaara, the sand demon kid, to try once again to reach Mina's mind.

This was something he did whenever he got a moment to himself: in his current state it was the only thing he felt he could do for the Uzumaki family that was so kindly taking care of him. Unfortunately, thus far he'd had an impossible time of it. She was alive, at least her body was alive, but her mind… It seemed like she had retreated so deeply inside herself that not even Rin could find a trace of it. The only time he came even close to getting a reading off her was when she had a fit, and even then it was just feelings. Well, feeling, to be more exact- it was always the same thing. Fear. The only emotion the girl had felt since she went under almost a month ago. Other than that, there was nothing, it was like a blank slate. To be honest, that was why Rin almost felt relieved when she did have a fit. If there were emotions, there was a consciousness. The question was, how deeply was it buried?

With a grunt of self-loathing, Rin released Mina's hands, turning away from the girl. Nothing. Maybe he was too distracted? He was having an almost impossible time ignoring Ganten's mind as the boy raced back to him. It sounded as if the conversation he was having with his father was more than a little interesting, as well… With a determined shake of his head, Rin once again reached for Mina. This time he was going to get through. He would have good news for the family as they returned from their fight. It WOULD happen this time.

Once again closing his eyes, Rin grabbed onto Mina's head this time, allowing his mind to travel carefully into the void that was her consciousness. This was a trick that Rin's parents had taught him when he was young. Entering someone's mind was typically like entering someone's bed room, or reading their diary. With this technique, it was possible to do more than read a person's surface thoughts or emotions. With this, Rin could learn things about a person that the person themselves didn't remember. If it was stored in a person's brain, then it was accessible with this technique. It was too intimate to be used haphazardly and so, since the day of his family's death, Rin had not used it; not until he realized he may be of some help to Ganten's family.

Technically, Rin wasn't sure he would count his failed attempts at reaching Mina as actually performing the technique. Mina's mind was like a maze that was filled with dark shadows, but there was nothing tangible. With determination, Rin forced himself through the shadows. There had to be something more real somewhere, he just had to know where to look. If he could find her consciousness just once, then he should be able to reach her again.

Rin moved forward in Mina's mind, noticing that as he did so, an oppressive feeling welled up around him. The deeper he went, the greater the feeling grew until it was almost too much to handle, almost. Fighting off the feeling, Rin moved in even deeper. This was the first time he had even gotten a feeling from the girl and he was not about to back out now that he had something almost tangible to tell the others. A sound like a low wailing began to echo around the boy as he moved even further and it seemed like there was a faint light in the distance. Cautiously, Rin edged towards the light and the wailing got louder.

"M…Mina?" Rin called as he moved even closer, he could hear his own voice echoing back to him in response. "I'm a friend of your brothers, can you hear me? My name's Rin."

For a moment there was silence, even the wailing seemed to subside and Rin began to feel hope grow within him. She was responding to him! This was grea- And then, like a flash of pure energy, the light flashed towards Rin, enveloping his consciousness.

:BREAK:

With an insatiable grin, Tenmar leapt into camp, eager to see his father and youngest brother, body already feeling much relieved from the poison that had earlier been tormenting him. Of course, it had helped that Uzu had returned to his senses after the ominous presence of that boy had disappeared. His younger brother had, at that point, been all too willing to yank the daggers from Tenmar's back, giving the blond a certain amount of relief and allowing his body a chance to expel the poison as it healed. Tenmar's grin faded as his eyes fell on the campsite, in particular his sister's bedside.

"Oi!" Uzu hollered from behind him moments before his body, unable to stop quite as quickly as his brother had, rammed into Tenmar's back. "What the hell're you doing stopping like tha-" His words trailed off as he saw what his brother was staring at. In the center of the camp, near the fire, lied Mina, face twisted in silent rage, struggling desperately against the pair of frail hands that were clamped firmly around her head, hand's in the form of claws attacking the body of the one that was holding her viciously. Next to her, suffering the consecutive blows the girl was dishing out, sat Rin- face a pale mask of terror and pain.

For a moment both Tenmar and Uzu stared in silent horror at the scene. Tenmar was the first to come to his senses. "Uzu, help me pull them apart!"

Nodding quickly, the red head moved forward to wrap his arms around Rin's waist as Tenmar grabbed Mina by the forearms, stopping her silent attack on the dark-haired boy. With a grunt, Uzu pulled, using all the strength he had available to yank the smaller boy's arms off his sister. It took more energy than he would have dreamed possible to finally pry the two apart, and when they finally managed to do so, Uzu fell with a surprised 'oof' to the ground, Rin landing gently on top of him. Tenmar also fell headlong into Mina as the two finally separated.

"Oi, Rin! You alright?" Uzu called, gently turning the boy over so that he could see his face. One hand still holding Rin's wrists, he used his other to gently smack the boy's cheeks.

With a terrified gasp, Rin's eyes popped open, breath coming out in short gasps. "No, no, no!" He panted, desperately trying to escape Uzu's grasp.

In response, Uzu grabbed the boy more tightly, shaking him slightly. "Calm down, it's OK…" A wave of relief flooded over him as Rin's struggling stopped and the boy's breath seemed to begin evening out. Uzu shot Tenmar a questioning glance, to which the blond could only shake his head in confusion. At the very least, Mina seemed to have calmed down almost instantly.

After a moment of confusion, Rin rested his head carefully on the large chest of the man that held him, slowly allowing his mind to orient itself. Head still buried, he muttered, "Uzu…?"

"Yeah… it's me." The redhead replied, a slightly annoyed tinge to his voice. "What the hell were you doing?"

"I… I was trying to reach Mina's mind, I think and…" With a small shudder the boy clung onto Uzu's shirt, he felt hot tears pouring down his cheeks, but he couldn't quite remember why. "I saw a light and then…" With a sniff, the boy shook his head. "I don't remember anything after that, just this overwhelming feeling of fear and… pain." The last words came out in almost a whisper.

After a moment Uzu placed a sympathetic hand on the boy's head, attempting his best to provide comfort. He shot another questioning look to Tenmar, but his older brother did not seem to be paying attention, instead focusing on taking care of Mina. Uzu shrugged, still holding Rin when the thought struck him that if Ganten were to see this he would probably turn red in anger.

No sooner had the thought crossed Uzu's mind than did Naruto and Ganten burst quickly into camp. Uzu's eyes narrowed when he noticed his father carrying that redheaded sand bastard. "Oi, Daddy, what's HE here for?" It took him a moment to realize that drawing the attention of his younger brother to him was probably not the wisest thing to do considering the compromising situation in which he found himself.

Ganten rolled his eyes as his brother's words reached him. He opened his mouth preparing to explain that their father seemed to have lost a few screws during the battle, but when his eyes landed on Uzu holding a weeping Rin in his arms, his mind snapped. "What. Are. You. Doing. To. Rin?" Ganten demanded, storming up to his brother with a face that could only be described as more terrifying than any monster's.

Uzu opened his mouth to defend himself, but before he could get a word out, Rin pushed him away, suddenly throwing his arms around Ganten. The white haired boy's words froze in his mouth as Rin lay shaking against him, burying his face in the nape of Ganten's neck. Uzu raised his hands defensively as Ganten shot him another dark and quizzical look, "When Tenmar an' I got back, Rin was holding onto Mina's head and she was scratching him up pretty bad… When we got them apart, Rin was like this, that's all I know."

With a face that said clearly, 'If-I-find-you've-been-lying-I'll-kill-you', Ganten quietly led Rin to the corner of camp, helping him to settle down practically in his lap on the ground. /It's kind of nice being clung to like this…/ Ganten shook his head, clearing the thought away. That was besides that point. "Rin…" He whispered, pulling the boy slightly away from him. This was partially so he could look him in the eyes and partially to get him off Ganten's still bleeding shoulder. "Tell me what happened."

Wiping his hands across his face to clear away the tears Rin nodded, explaining to Ganten how he'd been hoping to reach Mina and the last thing he remembered. "Ganten, that emotion, that fear I tapped into… It's not normal. If that's what she's feeling constantly… You need to get her help, fast."

:BREAK:

"You want to WHAT?" The four boys were standing around Naruto with shocked faces as he told them his plan. It was late now, as before they could have this conversation each of them needed to be patched up a bit, even poor Rin, who seemed slightly shaken, like the day had been a little much for his nerves. Not that any of them were in much better condition, a war between hunger and exhaustion was waging through each of them, and a large amount of jealousy on all persons' parts was welling up against Moab, who was still sleeping soundly in his make-shift crib.

Naruto smiled at the shocked faces of his eldest two sons. Ganten and Rin looked less surprised, but both seemed to have opinions on the mater. Deciding to savor the moment before all of his children opened their mouths to flood him with complaints for his plan, Naruto once again repeated himself. "I said I want to take him in, adopt him. Look, he's had a hard life and I can't just turn my back on him. What do you guys say?"

"But, Father! What do you really know about him? Do you even know his name?" Tenmar protested, hands flailing wildly as he spoke.

Four pairs of eyes turned to Rin, who shrugged. "His name's Gaara. He's twelve years old and he's had something called Shukaku, a demon or person or something of the like, inside him his whole life. He's a little confused, because he heard you talking about adopting him earlier, while heading back towards camp. Besides that he's wondering how long it'll take us all to convince you that we should kill him and he wants to know when his companions, Temari and Kankurou (also his sister and brother respectively), will show up to take him away, if they show up at all. He's not convinced they'll have the guts to come here and try to take him, nor is he convinced they actually WANT him around anyway. Hum… other than that, he seems to be a little hungry, he likes the color red, he's wondering how Naruto could be 'Father' to us all (he seems to think I'm yours, too) and yet only look a few years older than Tenmar and he thinks your family is extremely odd… Oh, and it seems like he wants his sand back. The stuff that you left behind at the place you fought. OH! And now he's wondering how I know what he's thinking." The group spared a moment to turn and glance at Gaara, who laid, eyes still closed, a good distance away. Well out of hearing range for most people; most normal people at least.

"Well, I know he's got good ears." Naruto said, replying to Tenmar's earlier question. "Look, what I want to know is, will you trust me to make this work? If you can do that, I got everything else taken care of." He glanced at each of their faces as he spoke, eyes for once serious.

At once four heads nodded and Tenmar, taking the position of spokesperson said, "Father, we all have full confidence in you. If you say you can do it, there's no doubt in any of our minds that you will. Do as you please." Again the others nodded, each wondering why, when they had grown up independent from their parental figures, they were so willing to place so much trust in the man. It felt like he had powers beyond that of a normal person, like by simply wanting something to happen the world would curve to make it so.

Naruto grinned, moving towards where Gaara lay. "OK, then I'm gonna go cash in on that whatever-I-want promise he gave me." He waved at his children, calling back, almost as an after thought, "You all really should get to sleep. I'll take care of things here until morning!"

Tenmar shook his head, "The one that needs the sleep the most is you, Father." He muttered to Naruto's retreating back. There was no doubt that Naruto heard it, but he seemed to choose to ignore the comment as he settled down next to Gaara and began talking in a low voice.

Ganten looked to Rin, "Before I go to bed I'm just gonna get some more firewood, it's a cold night." /YOU should sleep, though./

Rin nodded, eyes following Ganten as the boy trudged into the woods to grab some logs suitable for the fire. If Ganten thought he was going to sleep before he got back, the white haired boy was sadly mistaken. With all the excitement of the night, Rin's concern for his companion's safety was too high for him to relax.

Uzu shook his head, looking between Rin and the spot in the woods that Ganten had disappeared to. /For a smart guy, Ganten sure can be an idiot sometimes. Doesn't he realize Rin's not gonna rest until he's back? Guess there's nothing for it… I'm in slightly better shape than Ganten, anyway./ "Oi! Ganten, you sleep, I'll collect the wood. I still got some adrenalin runnin' through my veins from the fight." The last part had been a lie, but Ganten seemed content with it as he came immediately back to camp, nodding at his brother in thanks. Uzu noticed with a trace of annoyance that as soon as Ganten was next to him, Rin seemed to have no problem going to sleep. /How cold… And I did that for his sake, too…//

Ganten placed a hand on Rin's shoulders and noticed he was shaking like a leaf. "Are you cold?" He asked softly, leading his companion closer to the fire. /We should sleep together; it'll be warmer./ A mental picture filled the white haired boy's mind of himself holding Rin comfortably under a small pile of blankets. "Back-to-back. We should sleep back-to-back." He said quickly, attempting to cover the image over in his mind with a more appropriate one of them lying back-to-back.

Luckily for Ganten, Rin was not in a playful mood. The other boy simply nodded and began pulling out his bedding and laying it safely near the fire. He felt mortified at his own powerlessness that day and embarrassed at his own outbursts. He'd cried on Ganten's shoulder TWICE today, and even allowed Uzu to see him over-emotional. It was good that everyone seemed to have too much to worry about to notice his almost womanly display of emotions, but that fact provided little comfort. He had never been this weak before, never thought of himself as sympathetic, yet here he was, crying for Mina's pain, terrified for Ganten and the others during their fights… It simply wasn't like him.

Ganten watched as Rin toiled away, putting out the bedding in a way that they could lay comfortably next to each other. The brown haired boy's bangs were covering his eyes, making it hard for Ganten to guess at his feelings. It was a trick Rin often used when he was embarrassed or upset, or even happy. The boy used it as a way to hide emotions that up to this point he'd had no need of. A small smile formed on Ganten's face as he watched Rin continue to toil at his efforts. /He's kind of… cute when he's vulnerable, though./ Rin's motions stopped cold as Ganten's thoughts seemed to reach him, causing the white haired boy to fight off a sudden feeling of terror. /Shit, he heard that… I gotta apologize I gotta-/ "Sorry." He said quickly before he could dig himself in any deeper.

Rin shook his head, pulling himself into the make-shift bed before looking up at Ganten through large brown eyes. Ganten had just spent a long day traveling, following that he'd gone off to fight a demon-child and even now his body was toiling away in an attempt to heal him at a rate that could only be considered non-human. How the hell did he get the energy to worry about anything, let alone Rin's feelings? Rin didn't even have the energy to argue, and he'd done far less throughout the day. "Are you coming?"

Large green eyes widened as Rin pulled his shirt off and flopped himself down, under the covers. /OK, now he's TRYING to bait me…/ Ganten decided with certainty, moving to the other side of the bedding and crawling into it after removing his own shirt. He wasn't certain which direction Rin was facing, the boy had done some turning under the covers after he'd pulled them over himself, so when he pulled the covers up to reveal Rin's back Ganten let out a slight sigh of relief. //Not that I necessarily object to holding him all night… NO! I mean, I don't know if I would object or not. I mean, he's nice and sometimes I think of it, but…/ "Rin?" Ganten whispered, praying the other boy wasn't taking his thoughts the wrong way. "I'm sorry, I mean, I know this probably isn't the-" His words caught in his throat as he noticed the heavy breathing of the other boy. Rin had fallen asleep.

"Good night." Ganten whispered eventually, turning his back to his companion and trying desperately to ignore the light snickering coming from the area of camp that Tenmar was in. /Oh well… at least Uzu didn't see that…/ He could have sworn he heard Tenmar muttering something about him being cute between stifled laughter.

:BREAK:

"Do you understand what I'm telling you?" The tall blond man asked.

Gaara stared at him through unresponsive blue eyes. He felt no compulsion to make either a nodding or shaking motion, as from what he could tell, he was not really being given an option. The blond, he'd introduced himself as Naruto, had simply informed him of what was about to happen. It didn't matter. Gaara had promised to listen to this man, the man that defeated him. His opinions no longer mattered in this situation.

"I'm not saying it's gonna be forever." Naruto continued in a low tone, as if not to disturb those sleeping. "But I think it'll be better for you this way, too. Now, just stay as still as possible." After one last look at the boy's unflinching pale blue eyes, Naruto closed his own, hoping that his actions would be read as well-intentioned as he meant them to be. /I wish he'd just show SOME kind of emotion… At least if he were struggling tooth and nail I'd know to toss him somewhere his companions could find him… Oh well, he's probably more confused right now than I am, so, here goes…/

Naruto focused the chakra he'd managed to gather in the two or three hours since their fight to his hands, allowing it to flow slowly into the boy in a complicated pattern. Each small strand created patterns that formed a kind of spiritual phrase, each phrase combined to tell one very particular story. He could feel Gaara's body begin to move on its own accord, attempting to reject the foreign power searing through it in search of only one thing, but it was too late.

As the body tried viciously to break free from the bindings of Naruto's power, the blond spread his hands, exerting control over the small frame and forcing it to still. It was good that his new charge was still almost completely out of chakra, it would have been near impossible to do this while he was brimming with the stuff. As it was now, his body was almost like a living shell or marionette. Naruto simply needed to pull one of the chakra strings and the body would dance or laugh or cry or do any number of other things, whatever Naruto asked it to do. Whatever he TOLD it to do. The feeling was at once exhilarating and overwhelming.

Pushing those thoughts aside Naruto focused on the task before him, he was searching for a very specific type of energy and he needed to work quickly. He had no idea how long Gaara would be out of chakra or how long he could hold up with his own limited supply. As if to add to the looming threat, there was not a doubt in Naruto's mind that this boy's companions would be coming for him shortly. At the very least, if they lacked the capacity to love him as siblings, he was still too important a weapon to simply ALLOW a possible enemy to take him. It would have been smarter to have at least one of his children stay awake to aid him in case of danger, but they had all looked so tired. As their father, he couldn't bring himself to deny them of their sleep.

Thoughts of anything besides his current work were pushed aside as Naruto felt the tips of his chakra weavings touch against two very distinct centers of energy. One would be the boy, Gaara himself, the other Shukaku. Telling the difference between the two would be difficult as they had been entwined the entirety of Gaara's life, but it was not an impossible task. On the surface, each felt like the same person, each filled with anger, a desire to destroy. It would be their motivations and feelings that would distinguish the two.

Probing gently, and with a certain feeling of obtrusiveness, Naruto explored the two centers, disentangling them as he worked. When they were completely separated Naruto took an extra few moments. It was vital that he not mess up in this. Besides possibly destroying Gaara, there was the after effect that such a mistake would have on his family the following morning. As soon as Naruto was certain, his chakra snaked out, coiling around the energy and viciously yanking it towards the center of his chakra 'story'; effectively binding (at least for the time being) the energy that Naruto recognized as Shukaku.

With a gasp Naruto's eyes flew open, his task was done. Looking down, he saw that Gaara's eyes had closed, his breath was even. A small grin formed on his lips as he rose unsteadily to his feet, reaching for a blanket for their new 'guest'. His hands barely managed to clasp around his own roll of bedding before his legs gave out and he tumbled headlong towards the ground. A warm pair of arms wrapped around him, stopping his fall.

"Geeze, Daddy, you should really take better care of yourself…" Uzu muttered, laying his father out gently on the ground and tucking the blanket around him. "You've done too much today." As an after thought, Uzu wrapped his own blanket around their young guest. "Great, now what am I gonna do? It's frickin' cold…" His eyes landed on the lump that was Ganten and Rin and he grinned.

:BREAK:

The ship swayed softly in the darkness of the night, moving constantly towards its destination. Throughout the passenger cabin, hordes of people lay cramped together, one family practically on top of another. Shikamaru and Sasuke had managed to get a rather secluded corner, mostly because people took one look at Sasuke's bitter disposition and chose to move a safe distance away.

It seemed there was only one person unable to sleep after a long afternoon of travel. With a final glance at his sleeping companion, Sasuke threw his bedding off, standing and stepping gingerly to the ladder that led above deck. A beautiful night like this and he couldn't sleep… It had to be Naruto's fault. The closer they got to possibly meeting up with the blond, the more anxious Sasuke felt. With a sigh, he moved to stand at the edge of the ship, looking out over the dark water. /He better be OK…/ Sasuke thought, wrapping his arms around himself to block some of the chilled wind.

"Can't sleep?" A voice said near Sasuke's ear. The sudden, unexpected presence made the boy jump and he turned to glare at the intruder, who spread his hands out in an innocent gesture. "Sorry, sorry. I didn't mean to startle you." The man moved to stand comfortably next to Sasuke. "You're a ninja?" The man asked eyeing Sasuke's forehead protector.

The boy grimaced. He knew, logically, he should have taken the item off, it would do him no good on THIS mission, and, more likely than not, he was now labeled as a missing-nin, which made it even more dangerous for him to flaunt his origin. It was just… he found the idea of tossing the protector away more than a little painful. He still had full plans on returning to Konoha WITH Naruto. Rather than explaining his story to the man, Sasuke nodded.

"On a mission?" The man asked, then shook his head. "Oh, I probably shouldn't be asking, eh?" He said with a light self-mocking laugh. "As for me, my daughter and I are heading out over the Great Sea…" He stared at the water for a long moment and Sasuke thought that perhaps he had realized that his conversation was not appreciated. "I'm from another land originally," the man said when he spoke again, "I stepped onto this continent and immediately fell in love, but my wife died last year and… Everything I see reminds me of her. It's selfish to uproot my daughter, but I had to get away… There's nothing more painful than the loneliness of losing those you love…"

Sasuke stared at the man as he looked sadly over the expanse of darkness surrounding the ship, feeling, for a moment, an understanding and connection deeper than he would have liked. There were no words he could think of to express this, so he simply nodded, allowing his eyes to follow the man's gaze towards the nothingness.

"Argh…" The man exclaimed suddenly, turning to look at Sasuke. "I'm sorry, I'm sure you have better things to do than listen to the complaints of an old man like myself." He bowed, adding, "I should go back to my daughter."

Sasuke watched as the man walked away. Despite the fact that he had called himself an old man, he hardly looked as old as Kakashi-sensei had been, and he was certainly younger than Naruto, of course Naruto was a special circumstance as his oldest son almost looked older than he did. No sooner had the name 'Naruto' gone through Sasuke's mind than did his anxiousness return, accompanying it was the typical annoyance he felt whenever he was thinking about the blond. With a dissatisfied grunt he returned his glare to the water. It was obvious that he was not going to get any sleep tonight.

:BREAK:

So what did you think? Hurm, I tried to throw in some cute Ganten/Rin moments, but I was told that they might have been a little subtle, so I hope you all caught it.

Anyway, my characters that received the most 'we wanna know more about them' comments were clearly Ganten and Rin (not that a majority of people actually voiced a preference which leads me to believe that I am doing perfectly… heh heh heh). Ganten actually beat out Rin, but part of that is because RukaIayLomperGay voted for him twice (yes, I caught that, very tricky… ) and the other part, I think, is that people wanted to see Ganten as he develops in relation to Rin, right? (correct me if I'm wrong…)

Hooray for Shinigami11 who at least read both the latest issue of Shonen Jump AND my author's notes last time! Yay! At least one person reads my Author's Notes! Ahem… anyway, as promised, I'm mentally projecting to you a large chocolate chip cookie, which you may or may not receive and probably won't be able to eat and hopefully are not allergic to and… Perhaps you'd prefer a mental pat on the back instead?

As a side note, I did get a question last time, so here it goes;

izumi asks: Gaara never met Naruto here?

My response: Nope… Again, 'Cause I started Embrace before the exams and then totally skipped them they didn't have a chance to meet. I'm trying to remember if I had him lurking somewhere in Embrace or if I simply meant to have him lurking somewhere and never quite got around to it… Ah well, either way, they've meet now, right? And that's the important thing, I think.

So, I'll end with just this one last question… M-python-girl, was this update quick enough to avoid and unnecessary deployment of the religious fanatics? I do hope so…