By the way, this is a long chapter and most was written before I began Chapter 1, so Yami and Gaara may seem a bit different- and the writing style may be a bit different in a certain area of this chapter.
Naruto growled, then roared loudly, catching everyone's attention. The fight stopped instantly.
"Kyuubi-sama!"
"Kyuubi!"
"General!" Excited demons screamed in happiness upon seeing their leader, certain that he was there to help him even though he had ordered the peace talks in the first place. Kyuubi noticed the nins draw away, some watching him warily. He even noticed some of his 'friends' watching him with suspicious eyes, drawing weapons to fight him.
'I never should have come here. I would never have met them then...' he reflected, but quickly began speaking before the demons took it as an 'okay' signal and continued to fight.
"Men! You all know what my orders were! We were to talk of peace with the humans and we were to honor our agreement! I gave no order to attack. Stand down and I'll deal with you later!"
"Kyuubi-sama- we can win! Wipe out the Leaf and we can take Sand easily!"
"Let us fight!"
"We can kill them all, sir!"
Kyuubi closed his eyes in exasperation, roaring once more to gain quiet.
"Konoha, Sand, and the residents of those cities are now under my protection. Attack them and go against me! Leave now and I won't kill you. Go!" Unsurprisingly, not a single demon turned tail and left. They all stared, dumbfounded, at their superior.
"You don't mean it!"
"No true demon would take humans into his care!"
"Do you want to fight me to see how much of a true demon I am?" Kyuubi asked smoothly, in a tone he only adopts when he's angry. A few of the demons actually shrunk back at his glare, but one demon spoke out from among the throng.
"We can take him if we all attack at once!" Like a tidal wave, the entire group of demons rushed at Kyuubi. Growling, Kyuubi leapt forward to meet them head-on, ripping through flesh and bone with his teeth and leaving nasty gashes with his claws. Several demons dropped, clutching limbs that were no longer there. A few were missing heads- those bodies reached for nothing.
"Try me again?" Kyuubi asked, licking his muzzle to try to clean some blood off of it. A few of the weaker demons actually did leave, holding their lives more dearly than their pride. The more sensible ones circled around his back, hoping to catch him off guard.
They almost succeeded.
As they jumped, Kyuubi looked behind him and lashed out with his tail at the demons aiming to fall upon his back. The blows threw the attackers into the trees, but the move left Kyuubi's front open. The demons he had been facing rushed forwards, a smaller, quicker demon latching onto the front of Kyuubi's neck and digging his teeth in. Kyuubi gave a pained yelp before swiping the pest off with his claws. By that time, another demon had latched onto his side, digging his foot-long claws deep into the fox's flesh. Kyuubi growled in pain, twisting around and swiping at the new threat, lashing out with his tails and teeth at the same time to avoid the other demons. The demon hanging on him was soon split in two, allowing Kyuubi to focus his efforts on the others.
'Twenty down- not bad. That still leaves about half their number, though.' Kyuubi thought, warily surveying the survivors.
"This is your last chance." Kyuubi said softly. "You're good men- I'd hate to see what your mates and pups would be reduced to if you all died tonight. Leave, now." Kyuubi was fully prepared for an attack, but to his surprise, none came.
A demon in the front dropped down to one knee.
"Kyuubi-sama, we'll cease fire. We see now that we cannot measure up to your skill. We will leave." Slowly, the demons loped off to some unknown destination, silently communicating with their fellows.
They were driven back, but how long would Kyuubi's love of humans last? They would be back- as soon as Kyuubi was gone, they'd be back.
Kyuubi was exhausted. The stress of the peace talks coupled with the stress and uncertainty of Sasuke finding out about what he really was and the battle... he wanted to sleep for the next few weeks. That's all.
He heard soft, uncertain footsteps on the ground behind him. He turned, large eyes blinking at the figure that stood before him.
It was Sasuke, the one person in the village that knew who and what he was- the only person Naruto knew had seen.
Sasuke wore such a lost, open look- he was obviously confused, hurt... and possibly betrayed? Was that anger? Was it hate? Kyuubi hated not being able to read the look- he had no clue how the man would react.
"Naruto?" Sasuke asked, almost hesitant. Naruto instantly recognized the emotion coating Sasuke's voice- and he hated it. Oh how he hated it.
Sasuke was afraid of him, and he felt betrayed. One of his best soldiers- one who had risen so quickly through the ranks, one who had been protecting him- had turned out to be the enemy after all. And not just an enemy grunt- the leader, the one who had been responsible for the entire war.
Coming from Sasuke, it hurt more than anything Naruto could remember. Sasuke was supposed to be strong and brave, not scared of him- him of all people!
Faintly, he heard gasps from the people who had come out from hiding when the demons left. Anyone who had heard Sasuke say his name was shocked.
"Sasuke." he acknowledged, bowing his head sadly. None of them had understood. He was an outcast here too- he was a demon, and none of the humans could understand. While his form was demon, he had a human heart. That had been his weakness as a demon, and his demon self was his weakness as a human. Where then, did he belong?
Jerking his head up quickly and ignoring the muffled screams of the humans, he leapt away from the battleground, running deep into the forest.
Once he felt he was far enough into the trees that he wouldn't be found, he turned back into his human self.
Naruto collapsed, bleeding, brusied, and emotionally broken. He curled into a ball next to a large tree, hiding his face in his arms.
Demons couldn't cry as they had no tear ducts or glands, but humans did and Kyuubi's heart- even though his body wasn't, most of the time- was human.
Naruto cried himself into the welcoming oblivian of sleep.
Sasuke stared at the spot where Naruto had been seconds before.
'Not Naruto- the demon general, Kyuubi. There never was a Naruto.' Sasuke thought bitterly. Why then, did he collapse to his knees as the shock wore off and the truth hit him?
"Sasuke?" he heard someone whisper. He looked towards the voice, shocked. He hadn't heard anyone approach...
"Why... did you say 'Naruto'?" Sakura asked, looking into his eyes, as though hoping he hadn't meant it like he had said it...
"That... thing wasn't Naruto. There never was a Naruto, only the demon masquerading as a human. Naruto never existed." Sasuke said hollowly. Sakura gasped, eyes going wide.
"Naruto... was a demon?"
"The leader of the demons himself." Sasuke said dully, hearing shocked murmurs run throughout the crowd. Some were more shell-shocked than others- some couldn't believe it.
"He was powerful yes, but a demon? I never... even thought..." Kakashi muttered to himself, unable to process the idea. He had grown to be almost fond of the blonde, seeing him as almost a surrogate son. His lover had ceratinly doted on the boy, acting almost like a parent when he had found out how much of a troublemaker Naruto was.
Naruto's small group of friends- people that had accepted him, like Sakura, Lee, Shikamaru and the others- had a difficult time adjusting to this new view of him.
'A demon? Naruto wasn't... human?' Lee thought. 'He was never cruel to me..'
'I never noticed.' Hinata thought. 'I always watched him, but I never knew...'
'How could this have gone unnoticed?' Neji wondered. 'Hinata could have been hurt by him, but-'
'He never seemed like a bad person.' Shino thought.
'He always shared his food-' Choji thought, recalling the times when he had been so hungry he could have eaten grass and Naruto had given him a bite to eat.
'He didn't tell us. Why? Why did he even come here in the first place?' Kiba asked himself, unconsciously petting Akamaru for comfort. The dog just whined at him, sensing his masters uncertainty.
'How could he not tell us? Did he not trust us?' Ino thought, angry for a moment before asking herself 'Why?'
'How did it slip by all of us?' Sakura thought, feeling numb with shock as Lee wrapped comforting arms around her.
Unnoticed by anyone save himself, a silent tear slipped down Sasuke's face.
'He regretted it. I know I saw regret! Does he regret telling me- revealing himself to stop the bloodshed and save my life? Does he regret meeting me?' Sasuke bowed his head, wishing the memories of the loud blonde would stop assaulting him.
'Naruto, why did you leave?' As much as he wanted to convince himself that Naruto had never existed, Sasuke knew otherwise. It was impossible for anyone to pretend to be so compassionate, so regretful, and so kind. It was impossible for a demon- a demon who was not supposed to have a heart- to have been his Naruto. It was impossible for a demon to act like that.
Naruto hadn't been acting. He had been real and he had been there, stealing Sasuke's heart during his all too brief stay.
And then he had left.
'Come back, Naruto. Please, just come back!'
Demon eyes steathily watched from the trees. He had been sent back by the newly appointed commander to watch until Kyuubi left and report back immediately.
The demon stretched his mouth in a wide, ugly grin. Kyuubi had just left, and would not be back anytime soon apparently.
'Time to go.' he thought, creeping away quietly and breaking into a run as soon as he cleared the trees.
Yami watched the open stretch of land before her quietly. She had been asked to pull a double as the next watch had only one person- the other nin had gotten sick and they were trying to make sure two people had watch every shift.
Yami didn't really mind- Gaara hadn't come back yet and she was worried.
'He never said when he'd be back, but it's so late. Maybe he just decided to stay with his friend?' Yami thought, scanning the horizen. She froze.
A very large, obviously demonic figure was rushing towrds the Sand, as though he'd die if he didn't make it. Yami turned, mouth open to call the alarm, but something made her pause. There was something... familiar about that figure.
Yami turned back, just in time to see the demon's form shrink and twist, ending up in a silhouette she'd recognize anywhere.
'Gaara?' she thought, shocked.
Gaara nearly swore, feeling the slightly deep cut across his chest. He couldn't bandage it -not that he had any bandages- from this angle. Since it wasn't healing and he still had some chakra left, he assumed that the demon that had hurt him had poison claws. He sat against a large tree in the copse he was resting in for a moment while he made up an excuse for his wounds.
A soft rustling in the trees caught his attention. His head snapped in the direction.
"Who's there?" he questioned. A small figure stepped out from behind the tree.
"It's just me." Yami said, staring at him a bit strangely. He ignored the look on her face.
"Yami." Gaara acknowledged, looking away, relieved that the demons hadn't split and attacked the Sand as well. He heard Yami gasp and suddenly she was standing next to him.
"How did that happen?" she asked, pointing to his chest. As his shirt was mostly in pieces, he was bare-chested and his wound was very evident.
He shifted a bit uncomfortably.
"It's nothing." he said.
"Nothing, huh? Why does it look poisoned, then?" Yami demanded, kneeling next to him. "I brought a first aid kit- let me see the wound." Gaara made a noncommittal noise but he did move his arms and sat facing her so that she could get a better veiw of the damage. She carefully looked it over before reaching into the small pack she had brought and getting out the first aid kit. She dug through it, talking to him at the same time.
"It's not as bad as I thought- the poison should be easily washed out and then we just have to bandage it up." She quickly went about her task, pretending not to notice the way Gaara let out a small hiss or the way he tensed when she used the disinfectant on his wound. In return, Gaara pretended that the way he tensed and the hisses he let out had nothing to do with Yami and everything to do with the sting of disinfectant.
Yami wrapped a roll of bandages around the reheaded man tightly.
"There." she said, letting her hands drop. Gaara inspected her handiwork.
"Thanks." he said.
"No problem." Silence fell as the tension rose. There was something that she was holding back and not wanting to say, but she didn't know quite how to say it. She chose the direct path.
"I... saw you earlier today. A few minutes ago- that's how I knew you were here." Gaara froze in his position, still looking at her.
"And?" he asked.
"I saw... I saw you transform." she blurted. She looked at him in shock- she couldn't believe that she had just blurted that out! He carefully kept his face and tone impassive, not letting himself feel the pain from her assumed disgust.
"Were you surprised?" he asked softly, leaning his head down so that bangs covered his eyes and made him more unreadable.
"Yes." Yami said in a small voice.
"Were you... disgusted?" Gaara replied, nearly whispering. He didn't know what it was about the occasion, but he felt the need to whisper. Yami didn't say anything. Taking this as another affirmitive answer, he stood. He turned and began to walk out of the clearing when Yami's voice stopped him. It was barely above a whisper, but he heard her clearly.
"... never." He turned, shock forming his features as he saw her crying.
'She... wasn't disgusted when she found out what I am?'
"I knew that you were different from the very first moment I met you. I never expected THIS, but..." she lifted her tear filled gaze to his. "...I don't care. I don't care that you're a demon. It doesn't matter to me if you're not human!" She suddenly stood, turning away from him in embarrassment.
'I didn't mean to say all that!' she thought, walking away.
"Wait!" she heard Gaara say, a wall of sand exploding up in front of her. She almost yelped, but knew that this was Gaara's doing, and she trusted him.
"Gaara?" she questioned, ready to turn and face him when she felt strong arms envelop her in a comforting embrace.
Gaara had no clue what came over him. He just knew that the one he loved had said that she didn't care that he was a demon.
And now she was leaving.
The wall had exploded up in front of her almost of its own free will. He reaized that she was getting closer- his body had been instinctinvely moving towards her.
"Gaara?" he heard her say, just before he wrapped his arms around her from behind. It just felt so right, to hold her like this. The wall of sand dropped, no longer needed.
"I've killed many people before." Gaara said. Yami nodded. "I have killed many humans. I could kill you."
"I don't think that you would." Yami said evenly. She believed it too. She trusted him.
"I confirm my existence by killing. What makes you think that I won't kill you?" Gaara asked, more curious than threatening.
"I trust you." Yami said.
"You're not disgusted or repulsed? You don't hate me?"
"I could never hate you, Gaara. Of course I'm not disgusted."
"How can you trust something like me?" Gaara asked, his eyes taking on a soft, sad shine. Yami broke free of his arms to turn around and stare him in the face.
"You are not a 'thing', Gaara! You are a person, a man, and whether you're human or demon I don't care! I love you." Yami said, so caught up in what she was saying she didn't realize what she had revealed. Gaara stared at her with wide eyes, totally caught off guard.
'She... loves me as well? She said that she didn't mind me being a demon, but not minding and loving me despite that are two very different things.'
"-I can't believe that you just called yourself a th-"
"You," he interrupted, ignoring the look Yami shot his way. "-love me?" Yami's eyes widened as she went back over her speech in her mind.
"Um..." she said, looking at the ground. She didn't notice Gaara lift his arms to hug her again until she was already in his arms. She looked up, blushing.
"Gaara, what-" her question was cut off as Gaara took that moment to kiss her softly- almost hesitantly- on her lips. Her eyes widened, but her mouth knew what to do. She began kissing back, relishing in the softness and sweetness of his lips. They were softer than the finest silk and the taste reminded her of a sweet mango.
Gaara was in his own private heaven when she started kissing back. He had dreamt of kissing her, just like this. Soft and sweet. Her lips were as smooth as rose petals and she tasted sweeter than a rose smelled, if that made any sense. They slowly broke apart, Gaara staring intently into her eyes for some sign that she liked the kiss. She blushed again at the hungry look in his eyes, slightly dazed as she put a hand to her lips.
"Gaara..." she breathed, then tenatively inched her face forward until she kissed him again. He responded to her chaste kiss, not allowing it to deepen just yet. They broke away again and she leaned her head against his bare chest, hands coming up behind him to keep him close.
"I love you so much..." she said. He kissed the top of her head.
"I know. I love you too." he said. She smiled as tears of joy streamed down her face. He felt the wetness on his skin and used one of his arms to turn her chin up so he could look into her eyes again.
"What's wrong?" he asked, eyes showing concern. She smiled.
"I'm just so happy." she said, eyes widening as he leaned down. He slowly kissed the tear tracks, stopping them from flowing.
"Don't cry." he said simply, almost as if begging her. She nodded, leaning up to capture his lips in another kiss. He returned it, but this time deepened the kiss by forcing her head back farther as he plunged his tongue into her mouth. She gasped, but soon enjoyed the kiss and returned it. The kiss seemed to go on for an eternity, but it only lasted a few minutes. They were both breathing a bit heavy at the end of it, and Yami was in a total daze.
Sounds in the trees alerted them to the approach of other nin.
"I guess I should have told them where I was going." Yami muttered. Gaara just smiled at her, letting his emotions onto his face freely for the first time in a long time.
"Let's go back." Gaara grabbed her hand lightly, finally allowing himself to show her affection now that he knew of her emotions.
"Yeah. Let's." Yami squeezed his hand slightly, and together they walked towards the nins searching for Yami.
Sorry... The whole confession thing was written before the start of this fic, so they might be a bit OOC here. I altered to scene slightly to fit in better, but I just couldn't rewrite it. Gaara was a bit too open, but I did change some of his responses so he'd be more like the Gaara we all know and love and have come to expect from this fic. I tried to explain it at the end, but I don't know how well this worked.
See ya next week!