Neko: -sitting atop Gaara's gourd-less back- Well now I've actually decided to write more, but I'm not sure how long it will be… I wasn't exactly sure how I wanted the rest to play out. Like the original story or my own twist on it? Hmm, so many choices to play with!
Neji: -walking by, Sakura hanging on his arm- Now look what you've done; she won't leave me alone to brood…
Sakura: -giggles- Oh, Neji-kun! –cuddles the ice cold boy-
Neji: -tries to drag her off-
Lee: -appearing out of no where- Sakura-san, will you marry me and make me- -is completely beaten by Neji-
Neko: -raises an eyebrow at Neji- I thought you didn't like Sakura-chan?
Neji: -sighs and turns to the author- I don't, but that doesn't mean anyone else can have her… -he growls as the author starts laughing at him-
Naruto: Neko doesn't own me or my storyline! The manga-ka (Has he been titled with that yet? Well he should be if he hasn't!) making all the money and who can actually draw me does…
Cherry Blossom in the Desert
By: Neko-Girl Lara
Chapter Two: Time to Play
"A whole month to train before the next round… what to do, what to do…so bored… What do these people do all day?" Sakura sighed as she lounged in a tree above the training ground of Team 8. The Hyuuga girl and the dog-boy were fighting the bug-boy who had won his round. Their sensei watched from the sidelines, occasionally shouting directions to them. So far the bug-boy had warded off all attacks with either his bugs or by his own fists. It was actually interesting to watch, for such weaklings.
Suddenly, but without scaring her, the Hyuuga boy appeared next to her on the tree limb. "Why do you watch my cousin and her teammates? I know you could beat Aburame-san without much effort…" He asked, sitting down. Sakura decided to answer with the truth.
"Because it passes the time… Why are you here?" The boy looked at her. She looked completely bored out of her mind.
"To keep tabs on the competition… Not that it will be any problem for you, but I, on the other hand, am in need of knowing my opponent's skills… I already know Kakashi-sensei has taken Uchiha-san into training, and Uzumaki-san has gone under the training of a legendary sannin…" He said. She looked at him, gauging him for his words. "And that your brother, the one with the red hair, has caused your opponent to forfeit from your match."
"WHAT!" She growled, startling the people below her. "He better have not! I'm not so weak I can't take care of myself! That selfish bastard!" He looked at her, surprised she could say such words about a brother that, supposedly, cared deeply for only her. He gauged this on how her sister and other brother acted around their younger brother. The people below them went back to training at their sensei's command, ignoring the Hyuuga boy and the Sand-nin girl.
"I don't think it was that… I think the Sound-nin attacked your brother and he just protected himself… It was only yesterday, on the full moon…" Sakura's eyes widened. She knew that the monster within her brother had stirred at the preliminaries, but she hadn't known it had awoken.
"This could be bad…" with that she was gone. Neji stared after the girl. He didn't know why he had told her all of that, but something inside had compelled him to say it. Now he watched after her with his piercing white eyes, looking for something…
Sakura burst through her brother's door. "Gaara-kun!" The boy with blood red hair looked up at his furious sister. He set the spoon down in his bowl before rising from the table he sat at. Temari and Kankuro discreetly left before the fight began, but kept at the door to listen. "Gaara-kun, why did you fight my opponent?" The boy with black-rimmed eyes looked at his baby sister.
"Your opponent tried to kill me, on orders from our dear father… And he got bloodthirsty… And you know I can't go against him when he gets like that…" Gaara said quietly. Sakura sighed. Her father was always sending someone after Gaara in hopes to kill him.
"Gaara-kun…" She sighed before breaching his sand and hugging the poor boy. Gaara stood rigidly, but accepted her within his personal space. "You know it won't always be like this… Father will eventually give up or die… But I'll always be here for you." She kissed the symbol upon his forehead before giving him a blinding smile and stepping back. She was the only person in the world Gaara allowed close to him, everyone else just trembled in fear of him. "Well now I'll have to face the winner of the first match. That Hyuuga boy or that loudmouth blonde, who's being trained by a legend I'll have you know…" Gaara raised a hairless eyebrow at this. And the two discussed what was happening in Konoha and the next part of their mission.
Outside the door Temari and Kankuro breathed a sigh of relief. Whenever their two younger siblings fought usually Temari, Kankuro, or both would be drawn in and beaten to a pulp. "Well, it seems baby sister has finally learned to curb her temper…" Temari mentioned. Kankuro nodded.
"So how about some training?" He grinned at her. She grinned right back.
"Okay, I'll take you on, tubby," she teased causing him to growl and chase her out of the hotel.
Finally the month had passed and the final rounds were to begin. Sakura chatted with Temari as the first match began between Uzumaki and Hyuuga. But it soon caught the girls' attention. 'Wow, he's kinda cute with that little mark,' Sakura thought looking at the Hyuuga and his curse mark. Suddenly Sakura looked up where the Hokage and the Kazekage sat. Sakura scowled at the Kazekage. "Temari-chan," she whispered to her sister.
"Hmm?" Temari looked at her little sister, taking her eyes away from a good match.
"That's not father…" Sakura said. Temari looked up to where her "father" sat, and then nodded.
"It's not… Do you think he killed father?" Kankuro and Gaara walked up to them.
"That's the man who hired us for this…" Kankuro said, looking at the "Kazekage". Gaara scowled.
"Don't say anything… This is part of the plan…" Gaara said softly. They turned back to the matches. Finally it was the Uchiha against Gaara.
"Woo! Go Gaara-kun!" Sakura cheered, earning her an evil smirk from him. Temari and Kankuro stared at her, and then went back to the match. That's when all hell broke loose as the Sand-nin and the Sound-nin attacked Konoha.
Someone had actually beaten Gaara… Sakura, weak from her own fights, stared at her battered brother, before hoisting him up on her back. Looking back at the blonde, who was being taken care of by his sensei, who had just arrived, Sakura smiled. 'Thank you, Naruto-kun…' She didn't know why she was thanking him; she just knew that she should.
Meeting back up with Temari and Kankuro, Gaara softly said words he'd never said before, surprising them all. "I'm sorry…" With that he fell asleep as the Sand Siblings made their way back home to Suna. What lay ahead for them would test them all.
"Gaara-sama, we wish for you to take your father's place," the Suna council members said to the collected siblings. Temari, Kankuro and Sakura looked at each other in shock. Gaara stared down at the members.
"Why? You have only let my father try to kill me for the past twelve years… Why do you wish for me to take his place? I will not easily be welcome in the position," He said, voicing his concerns. They discussed this for a moment.
"We understand your… concerns, but we insist that the strongest of the Sand Siblings take the title of Kazekage. Once you show your opponents your strength none will oppose you," the leader of the council said. Gaara nodded.
"Fine, I accept…" Sakura smiled at her brother. This was going to be fun. "But only if you make Sakura-chan take my place in my absence…" Sakura's eyes widened.
"But, brother, I-" Sakura began.
"Next to me you are the strongest of us all," he said softly, not turning around to face her. "And Temari-chan and Kankuro-kun will be good aids to us. They can more readily speak with the people than either you or I can…" Sakura nodded, knowing this as the truth.
"Fine then, Gaara-sama, I accept." She bowed her head to his back. He nodded in reply.
With this Gaara was sworn in, becoming the Kazekage of all Suna and Wind Country. As expected lords rebelled, disliking the choice of the council, but they soon calmed when a peace agreement was signed with Konoha, so their fears of war was calmed.
Months passed as Gaara got acclimated to his new position in society. Temari bossed the now calm Gaara around and pulled pranks on him, and Kankuro filed paperwork being the best at it. Sakura watched as her brother began to relax around people, slowly accepting them into his life. Although he still lost his temper at times and it took all three of his siblings to keep from killing whoever had upset him.
Sakura soon took a liking to healing jutsus, wanting to be of more use in missions than a fighting machine. Finding she excelled in the smaller jutsus she began writing to the new Hokage, who was claimed to be the best medic-nin of the time. A few days later word reached them that Uchiha Sasuke had run off to join Sound, and, as an ally of Konoha, Gaara agreed, sending himself, Temari, Kankuro, and Sakura to help.
Once the mission had ended, having failed to retrieve Uchiha, he was officially pronounced as a missing-nin. Sakura, under the guidance of Tsuande, began to help heal the wounded. She was given the Hyuuga to help.
His chakra had been completely depleted, making him look very fragile. She smiled at him as he finally came to three days later. "Hey there, sleepy head, how do you feel?" She asked softly, checking his vitals and other such things.
"Sakura-san?" She smiled at his confused look. "What are you doing here? Where-?"
"I'm just here to help in your healing. I've recently taken up the art…" she said, moving her glowing green, chakra infused hand over one of his cuts. He blinked as the skin closed and began it's healing. His white eyes looked the sand-nin over.
She wore a new outfit of navy blue with cherry blossom pink satin wrapped around it, tied in a bow at the back (think of Sheena from Tales of Symphonia game, but with short shorts instead of pants), the blue fabric stopped at her hips and she wore black spandex shorts underneath. The leather strap was still on her back, but her pole was by the door. She wore black, fingerless gloves that stopped just short of her elbow with brown leather straps to secure them. She also wore the black fabric around her thighs and down her shins with the same straps secured around the top and just under her knees, leading down into her black shinobi sandals. All in all she looked as cute as ever, but she had cut her long hair short so it just touched her shoulders.
She smiled at him after he had looked her over, and then went to the door. "Your uncle and cousins have been waiting for you to awaken; do you want me to get them for you?" He nodded and she left with a little wave. Soon his family members entered with Sakura leading them. "Now, you can't stay for long, he's due for some more tests, but I'll give you an hour." With that she left the family to talk.
"N-Neji-kun, how do you feel?" Hinata asked her cousin, coming to sit in a chair next to him. His uncle and younger cousin stood on the other side of his bed.
"Better… I'm sorry to have worried you, little cousin," he said to her with a soft smile. Shortly after he had lost to Naruto he had grown close with Hinata, Hanabi and Hashi (A/N: Is that his name?). He and Hinata had worked on her confidence while he had taught Hanabi to work on her ego. His uncle had welcomed him back into the inner family's arms, where Neji took it upon himself to make the Branch Family's needs known, working on peace in the family. Hinata smiled at her cousin.
"I-I've brought you my salve to h-help with your-your cuts, it-it should e-ease any aches. B-But tell me, N-Neji-niisan, how did-did you e-end up in s-such a st-state?" He told them of the Sound-nin with his spider-like abilities and the monster he had become. Soon he finished and asked his own questions.
"How are Choji-san, and the others?" Hinata frowned, twiddling her fingers in her nervous fashion.
"C-Choji-kun is in serious condition, b-but Hokage-sama has f-faith that he sh-shall be fine… S-Shikamaru-kun, Kiba-kun, a-and Lee-kun came back with m-minor injuries, but N-N-Naruto-kun…" She paused. "A-After going after S-Sasuke-san they engaged in a horrible battle that left N-N-Naruto-kun drained of e-everything but the s-smallest of life… S-Sasuke-san e-escaped…" Neji digested this news and tried to sit up. "N-Neji-niisan! Please, lay down!" She tried to push him back down and succeeded, but only after the boy put up a good fight.
"I want to talk to Naruto-kun!" Neji demanded.
"I'm afraid you can't do that, Hyuuga-san," Sakura said from the door. "He's still out of it…" She smiled at the small family gathered, walking into the room, and coming to stand next to Hinata. "Well, now, it's time for some blood work, Hyuuga-san." Hashi guided his daughters out as Sakura pulled up a wheelchair. "Alright this should take you right to Tsuande-sama." Neji scowled at her and the chair.
"I can walk…" he said, removing the blanket himself, and then swinging his legs off the bed after sitting up.
"Okay, I'd like to see you try…" She challenged. He stood and took one step before he almost fell flat on his face. Sakura wrapped his arm around her neck. "You know, illness can be seen as a humbling experience or a weakness. I wonder how you see it…" She slid the boy into the chair and then wheeled him right out the door. Neji sat in silence, mad that he had to look so weak in the face of a very strong woman. But she was right, this was a humbling experience. He had never been so weak before, and this new experience taught him that he would have to train his body harder than ever before, and to work on his blind spot. "Here we are," she said, wheeling him into a room where Shikamaru, Kiba, Lee, and Choji were, all with needles in their arms, pumping out blood. Neji shivered at the sight.
The other boys smiled as he was brought in. "Hey, Neji-kun!" Kiba hollered happily. Akamaru lay in his lap, bandages around most of the poor puppy's body. Choji gave him a weak grin, his body thin and fit. Shikamaru gave him a thumb up.
"Now, why don't you talk to your friends while I get things ready?" Sakura said before parking his wheelchair next to the other boys, and then walking off to talk to the Hokage. Neji looked at the boys again. Choji was wrapped in so many bandages he looked like a mummy. He also had a feeding tube hooked into his other arm. Kiba's midsection was heavily bandaged, as were his hands and arms. Shikamaru had a wrapping around his head and a few others placed here and there; he looked utterly exhausted (more so than his usual lazy-assed self).
He looked back up as Sakura walked up to him. "Now this shouldn't hurt a bit, but tell me if you feel any uncomfort," she said before sticking a needle in his arm and dragging forth his blood. Neji cringed for a moment then looked forward, only to be looking directly at Sakura's chest. He gulped and blushed slightly. She stood again and walked back to where the Hokage stood talking to her aid, Shizune.
Now what in his right mind made him blush? He'd seen a woman's chest before… just not that close. He sighed and caught Kiba grinning at him. Neji scowled and concentrated on the needle in his arm. Sakura turned and made eye contact with him, and gave him a stunning smile.
Neko: Okay I'm going to stop it here for now. Did it get a little hot in here or is it just me? -giggles-
Sakura: -looking at her new outfit in a mirror- I look so battle ready and cute!
Neji: -looking Sakura over… from behind- I must agree… -he grins lecherously-
Sakura: PERVERT HENTAI! –she slaps him across the face with the strength of Tsuande-
Neko: -watches him fly then crash into Hokage Mountain (sorry don't know the real name of it) and winces- Ouch… that has got to hurt… We'll like I said in the first chapter, if I've misspelled anything or gotten some names wrong, please tell me, because I still do not have a beta-reader… -sighs and sulks off to eat a package of Oreos-