Chapter 85

Friends: The Bond between Leaf and Sand

The Leaf and Sand made camp together before midnight.

No fire warmed them, nor was there the scent of a cooked meal in the air; they did not want to draw unwanted attention. Bland rations replenished their energy, and the calm air encouraged rest. 'Twas the ancient training of shinobi to rest, eat or sleep when possible. So they did.

Team Seven, mainly Naruto Uzumaki, regaled them with stories of past missions, enamoring the Suna rookies by boasting of his heroic deeds, only to be corrected by Sasuke Uchiha and Sakura Haruno throughout. Amaririsu giggled and let him tell tales of grandeur.

Gaara listened, asking questions at times, but otherwise maintained his silence. He was learning, she knew, about their individual personalities and the bond shared between these people who helped save them from darkness. Hikari enjoyed their comradery and kinship; 'twas a source of great warmth and happiness, their laughter and the smiles she could hear in their voices, no matter how foreign the experience was.

However, the selfish desire to steal Amaririsu away so they might speak one on one refused to fade.

Eventually the opportunity came.

As midnight drew near, the group of shinobis began to prepare in their own ways. Yaoki and Korobi checked over their puppets; Sasuke Uchiha continued to rest, breathing steadily; Sakura Haruno went over the operation with Kakashi, as well as their back-up plans; Naruto and Gaara spoke quietly, voices absent of boasting.

'Twas Amaririsu who chose to sit at the edge of their camp to stargaze before the battle.

Hikari approached silently, each light footstep leaving behind an imprint of her sandals in the cool desert sand. The dry and sweltering air of the afternoon had long departed since the sun entered its slumber. The rise of the night commanded the temperature to plummet, dropping beyond average summer nights due to seasonal changes and their current elevation.

Such was the life in a desert climate. Hikari was far more accustomed to the change of temperature than her Leaf counterparts.

The wind howled over the vacant dunes. Otherwise all was silent.

"'Tis a different environment, no? This desert devoid of wonderful trees and dew covered grass?"

"A little."

Hikari stopped next to the seated kunoichi and tilted her head to the side, lips curling in amusement. "A little?"

"Okay, it's completely different," Amaririsu giggled bashfully.

"Mmhm," she hummed, warmed by her laughter. Hikari settled down next to her friend, extending her left leg out and crossing her right beneath it. "I imagine 'tis a shock for you. The Land of Fire is burgeoning with so much life; the trees, the grass, the flowers and wildlife, they are everywhere, whether you look up to the sky or down to the ground. And I imagine the colors you see the world with must be as plentiful as the grains of sand surrounding us.

"Here there is very little that survives the desert, and that which does survive tends to be harsh or deadly. 'Twas quite the shock, my first experience within the Land of Fire. I spent many hours at a flower shop, exploring each flower I could find, caressing their soft petals and savoring their scents." She exhaled an embarrassed laugh. "The store owner must have thought me quite a fool."

"I don't think there's anything foolish about that," Amaririsu argued softly. "A lot of us take advantage of our sight. We're so focused on our missions, or our work or even just mundane day to day activities that we…stop seeing the beauty of the world around us. It's just a backdrop, colorful and awe-inspiring, but unseen as we focus on our role in this play we call life."

"That is…beautifully tragic," Hikari frowned. "I pity those who do not see it."

"It's a lot easier to succumb to jaded cynicism and darkness than it is to stand in the light."

Yes, 'twas far easier to give oneself to darkness. She witnessed that truth firsthand.

Hikari reached her hand towards Amaririsu, touching her mesh covered arm. She glided her fingertips down the mesh until she found her friend's hand, then curled her fingers into the gap between Amaririsu's index finger and thumb.

"Still," Amaririsu started, gently holding onto her hand, "it's refreshing to hear you talk about your flower shop adventure. We've only experienced each other in either a brief meeting in the streets or during the Invasion. In a way, we hardly know one another. Yet, at the same time, we know some of the most intimate details of our hearts."

"True." Hikari shifted her body to face Amaririsu. "Before we must part ways again, let us speak openly and freely as Amaririsu Yūhi and Hikari the people, not the shinobis. 'Tis your bond that gave me hope when I began to lose faith. 'Tis your light that illuminated my world and gave me warmth when the cold darkness consumed my precious person.

"However, as you said, I hardly know you." She shook her head. "You were but a stranger to me who offered compassion and empathy when I was alone. Although I learned we share a similar pain, a similar burden, there is more to us than the pain we experienced. So," she lightly pulled their held hands to rest on her crossed leg, "who is Amaririsu Yūhi?"

Amaririsu hummed. "If you ask my cousin, he'd say I'm a troublesome workaholic."

"He is wrong?"

"No, not even a little," she giggled. "Hm, I think I'm still figuring myself out, to be honest. But I suppose that's not really an answer, not a legitimate one. Well, Amaririsu Yūhi used to be just Amaririsu. And before that she had a different name and family—a name and family I only began to recall after becoming a Genin."

Hikari tilted her head in genuine confusion and curiosity. "You were orphaned."

Just like me.

"My birth name is Haya Uchiha."

"You and Sasuke are kin?"

"Well, we're of the same Clan, but we're not blood siblings. I don't know if we're cousins."

Amaririsu told Hikari of her family, her wonderful cousin Shisui, the fate of the Uchiha Clan, the man named Itachi who sealed her memories behind a genjutsu and her time within the orphanage.

Despite the time that had passed, Hikari could tell the loss of her cousin was fresh, and the pain of the orphanage was a lingering burden she could not let go of. Pain quieted her voice, dampened her light; the clutches of agony and grief refused to remove their jagged and piercing claws from her heart.

'Twas painful to hear it, even more so to hear the details of the betrayal she suffered and the cutting guilt in her voice.

"Ryu spent his last moments encouraging me. He was the one dying, yet he was the one who showed strength, offering me words of comfort and a smile as his life slipped away while I…while I could only cry and beg him not to leave me alone."

Hikari squeezed her hand but said nothing. No words seemed suitable.

"That's when Kakashi-sensei, my mom and two other Leaf Jōnin found us. Ryu was already dead. I didn't learn until later that someone else was involved in that day. I don't know if they manipulated Kasai or if he always harbored that darkness; I doubt the truth could change how I feel. But without the sacrifices of the Crows, I wouldn't be here. I'd be kidnapped by that person…and I'd likely be someone who only left death and pain in my wake."

"But that path is not the one you embarked on, and for that I am grateful to the Crows for their noble sacrifices. 'Tis because of them we were able to meet one another as friends, and that meeting changed mine and Gaara's life for the better."

"…Troublesome girl."

Hikari grinned. Those two words were all she needed to know her friend was blushing, and 'twas gratifying to do so.

"It took me a while to get my footing after that. Kurenai Yūhi, the woman who would eventually adopt me, showed me warmth and compassion while she helped me find my strength. Kakashi-sensei gave me guidance and shared his wisdom with me. I met my Uncle Shikaku, Aunt Yoshino and cousin Shikamaru then, though I didn't know at the time they were my real family."

"This Shikamaru, he is the one who calls you a troublesome workaholic?"

"Yep, that's him," she giggled. "And that lazy bones isn't wrong. I spent the next two years dedicating my time to studying and training. I tried to give up more than a few times, but my mom didn't give me that option. She kept pushing me to be the best I could be.

"Eventually, I started to advance and became the number one rookie of my class. But it wasn't immediate, and not all my growth was positive."

"Oh? How so?"

"Because of what I experienced, I thought I understood better what it meant to be a shinobi than my peers did. I saw them as kids playing at shinobi, some of them as brats. Sakura and I weren't close at all," she chuckled. "And Sasuke and I didn't speak to one another."

"What changed you?"

"Meeting a kindred spirit and a grumpy old man."

Hikari snorted. "A grumpy old man?"

"He deserves that nickname for what he said to me."

"May I ask what?"

"…'You're pretty tiny for a twelve year old. I'd be worried if I were you. You may never hit a growth spurt and become a woman.' That jerk. I'll show him. I'll hit a growth spurt and leave an imprint of my sandal on his butt."

Hikari did not want to laugh; the words of this grumpy old man were quite rude, after all. However, Amaririsu's vendetta against him and promises of vengeance made it impossible.

The giggles attacked her relentlessly.

"Hikari!" the Nara whined. "Don't laugh! I'm seriously worried I've inherited a short gene!"

Amaririsu's plea kept her giggling. Hikari slapped her free hand to her mouth, not to silence herself, but to hide the grin stretching from ear to ear.

The groan of defeat kept her laughing a few moments longer.

"Forgive me," she apologized with a smile. "'Tis not this grumpy old man's words to make me laugh, but yours. I did not realize your height was such a serious subject matter."

"You know, I thought, 'Hey, if there's anyone I know who won't laugh at my lack of height, it's Hikari. She'll reassure me I have nothing to fear.' But noo, you had to be troublesome."

"I suppose 'tis something you bring out of me," Hikari replied fondly. "Tell me of this kindred spirit and grumpy old man. They sound intriguing."

Amaririsu obliged her. She went over the battle between herself, the boy named Haku and Zabuza Momochi, explaining the intensity of the conflicted emotions she felt, which led to both a revelation of herself and an critical injury.

"I mistook understanding loss and grief for understanding the reality of shinobi life," Amaririsu explained. "I thought I was capable of killing then. That I could kill the kindness in my heart to do what was necessary, and in my arrogance and hatred I tried to destroy Zabuza for all the pain he caused me, my teammates and Haku. In the end, though, I only overestimated myself while remaining a naïve kid.

"Haku moved to sacrifice himself to save Zabuza. I jumped in front of Kakashi-sensei's Lightning Blade to save him, shattering my own foundation in the process. But it's because of that, and the scars I gained that day, I was able to open my eyes, find my nindo and change the path I was on. Plus I gained a really good friend out of it, so everything worked out for the best."

Hikari's fingers traced along the scars on the back of Amaririsu's hand. The texture of the scarred skin compared to the untouched areas was noticeable; each scar was different in shape, in curve, in length, and these few she could feel were single leaves on a burgeoning tree. Beyond the mesh sleeve were more. 'Twas inappropriate, but Hikari wished to trace them all, to learn the story they told and see her friend in her entirety—scars and flaws included.

"I think I would like to meet this Haku one day."

"You two would get along well. Maybe I'll be able to introduce you two in the future."

"I'd like that."

"After that, well it was the Chūnin Exams, which is when we met."

Hikari squeezed her hand and smiled. "A moment I would not trade for anything."

"All right, your turn. We still have time before midnight. So, who is Hikari?" Amaririsu turned the tables on her. "Before the Invasion, she was a stranger in need of aid, lost in foreign streets. During it she became a friend, a friend I would like to know more about."

"But you haven't yet told me about your adventures since we parted ways, or of your hobbies, your likes, dislikes," Hikari pouted. She wanted to know more, to learn everything she could about her precious friend.

"I will, but first I want to hear about the road you walked to our inevitable meeting."

Hikari continued to pout, but nodded. "'Tis only fair, I suppose. You shared with me many intimate and heartbreaking moments, and 'tis a privilege you would share your secrets with me. I will offer nothing less."

Speaking of her memories from her childhood, of the disdain of the Villagers, their verbal and physical abuse before her powers manifested, 'twas not easy. But, as she was for Amaririsu, Amaririsu stood a silent pillar of strength, comfort and empathy. She spoke of her first meeting with Gaara and the wonderful bond they shared, the happiness it gave her and light it brought to her dark world.

"Gaara made the cards I was dealt infinitely easier to bear. I did not and do not need the entirety of Suna to accept me. They may resent me until my dying breath, and I will still find happiness and joy in life, because I do not need their acceptance. I have Gaara." Hikari turned to her friend. "And I have you, Amaririsu. I have all I need to be content in this life."

"…It was selfish of me, but I kind of hoped you would come back to the Leaf."

"Come back to you, you mean."

Amaririsu's silence was the answer.

Hikari squeezed her hand warmly. "Selfishness is not inherently evil, Amaririsu. 'Tis not evil that you wished to give me a home or happiness away from the pain I have experienced; this desire of yours is sourced in purity. In warmth. I am grateful to have a friend such as you.

"But if we are being truly honest with our feelings, then allow me to say that I desired nothing more than to come back to your light." She turned her head back to the camp where their comrades waited, out of earshot of the two kunoichi. "Gaara did not approach me initially upon our return. I was alone for a stretch of time, and each day I cursed myself for not accepting your offer."

"If anything ever changes, it'll always be there."

Hikari turned her smile back to her friend. "And that 'tis why you are Konoha's greatest treasure." She squeezed her hand again. "Thank you. Truly. But Gaara and I have reconciled. We are as we should have been all these years we spent away from one another, and I hope to aid him on his path."

"I'm happy he can see you. I would have traveled all the way to Suna to kick his butt again if he left you alone."

Hikari exhaled a laugh and shook her head. "Never change, Amaririsu."

"Earlier, after we took down those Anbu guys, you told Gaara he'd become an excellent Kazekage. Is that the path he's chosen for himself? To become the Kazekage?"

Hikari nodded. "Yes. Suna has always treated him as a monster or a tool to be feared and resented. Gaara seeks to change that. He wishes to become someone more like you and Naruto Uzumaki." The Suna native frowned. "I will support his goal, but I fear I do not feel the same."

"Hm?"

"'Tis not us who should have to bear the burden of redefining this bond. 'Tis not us who treated children as monsters. Suna and its people are. No reason or excuse is valid. There was no reason to abuse me. No reason to shun Gaara for the Shukaku when they placed it within him. Why should I seek to earn their adoration when 'tis them responsible for my pain? Why should I be the one who must attempt to change their feelings when I am who I have always been?"

Amaririsu did not answer. Not immediately. Together they sat, attached in the silence by their held hands.

"I can't fault you for the way you feel. Honestly, I agree," Amaririsu spoke up. "If the Uchiha Clan wasn't massacred, I wouldn't want to seek to redefine my bond with them either. Not after how they treated me. And if my sudden growth or rise in the rankings made them start seeing me differently I'd probably still resent them."

"Because you have always been you, as I have always been me."

"Yes."

'Twas comforting to know she alone did not harbor these feelings.

"Still, all I ask is that you don't shut yourself off completely," Amaririsu continued. "You don't need to go out of your way to prove yourself to your people. But don't sneer down at them. Don't justify your pain by inflicting it on others. You'd only be lowering yourself to their immature level. You're better than that. You're better than them.

"If they finally begin to see the real you, like Yaoki and Korobi have, don't shun them. It'd be easy to, and you'd have every reason to. Trust me, in your position I'd want to make those who hurt me squirm now that I have the strength to stand up for myself.

"But you and me, people like us, we can't hold onto that darkness. It'll corrupt us. It'll devour our joy. Our happiness. Our love. If we only ever hold onto the past pain, we can never move forward. We'll be shackled to our past, blind to our present and unable to secure a brighter future where we can find our peace. "

"Mm," Hikari hummed in her throat, lips tugging into a smile. "You are wise beyond your years, Amaririsu."

"Pain is an excellent teacher…and that piece of wisdom didn't come without a heavy burden."

Concern caressed Hikari's heart. Amaririsu's voice expressed in exquisite detail the weight and the exhaustion the burden had already caused her. The solemnity created a chasm between them. How could her friend feel so close yet so far away at the same time?

"Amaririsu?"

"Remembering my cousin didn't come without a price. I saw…I saw his death." Hikari's hand unconsciously squeezed her friend's as she gasped. "Seeing him die, seeing him in my memories again and knowing I could never have him back…I embraced my darkness. Or I was swallowed by it. I don't know. All I could see and feel was hatred, agony and despair.

"Nothing else mattered. Only killing the people I saw as responsible did. The person I became, I hardly recognize her. But she was me." Amaririsu's other hand rested on top of their intertwined hands. "That's why I'm asking you to not shut yourself off. You don't have to forgive those people, but please, don't hold onto your resentment. Don't let yourself be shackled by darkness. It's…frightening."

Hikari rested her free hand onto Amaririsu's. "For you, I will try."

"Thank you."

The questions Hikari wished to ask escaped her after that. She became focused on the placement of their hands—one pair intertwined while the other two laid on top of one another. Gently, almost unconsciously, she turned Amaririsu's free hand palm up. With the touch of a feather, she explored her friend's palm with her fingertips, tracing over the curved and straight creases that lined it.

Her friend exhaled a shaky laugh. "That sort of tickles."

"Do you wish me to stop?"

"No."

Hikari smiled. Those were their final words for quite some time. Together they sat in the cool desert sand as silent as the night around them, connected by physical contact and their bond. The Suna native treasured both.

She honed in on this moment, savoring every slight twitch of Amaririsu's hand as her fingertips tickled her. She trailed unhurriedly from one crease to the next to map out every little detail, from the smallest of lines to the longest—the latter starting a little below her index finger and stretching diagonally almost to the other side of her palm.

Amaririsu's hands were soft. Not silky, but not calloused sandpaper either. Her nails, which the Suna native explored as well, were not rough or broken either. The tops were smooth, and their edges rounded and maintained. She took care of herself, it told Hikari.

Her inquisitive fingers glided down Amaririsu's four fingers, then down the crevasse separating her pointer finger and her thumb, over the smaller finger and to her wrist. Slowly, she began to move to the new, unexplored territory of her forearm. Little bits of hesitation wormed their way into her fingers, uncertain of the boundaries she could cross.

"I…I am not making you uncomfortable, am I?"

"Nope. Tickles a little, but it's soothing."

"Mm." Her hesitation evaporated but her fingertips continued their languid, exploratory pace. She'd forgotten Amaririsu's mesh long sleeve was only one sleeved. It left more skin exposed for her to touch, to feel the softness of and learn from.

I have yet to find a single scar on this arm.

Her exploration was far from over, though.

The muscles of her forearm did not tense beneath her touch, nor did Amaririsu's breathing sound stiff. She was calm. At ease. The Leaf kunoichi's thumb rubbed gently up and down the side of the pointer finger of their intertwined hands, encouraging the physical contact.

She obliged. The dance of her fingertips steadily worked towards her upper arm; no scars, no stiffness to the strong muscles her fellow kunoichi possessed. 'Twas impressive. The physical conditioning Amaririsu possessed proved her cousin true.

"You truly are a workaholic, no?" she asked, a tease in her voice.

"Told you," her friend giggled.

Her hand moved up to her shoulder, onto the smoother fabric of her tank top, which was quickly replaced by a firm harness as she moved closer to her neck. Her exploration found the forehead protector, the metal cold and the engraved symbol a sort of swirl with a triangle end to symbolize a leaf.

In her journey she found a thread—a necklace. Careful not to simply follow it into inappropriate and intimate areas, she gripped the necklace between her thumb and pointer finger, lifted it slightly off the chest of her friend to follow it to the pendent.

Amaririsu sighed audibly in relief.

A playful deviousness possessed Hikari at that moment.

"Is your chest off limits?" she asked, voice trained to be innocent and features neutral, fingers gripping the pendent in examination. Quite the strange symbol. She would have to ask in a moment.

The sigh became a sharp intake of air.

"Would it be too inappropriate?" she asked again, still as innocent as could be.

"I- uh- I-"

"Hehehe!" The stutters did her in quicker than she hoped.

"Hi- Hikari! You troublesome girl, you were teasing me!" her friend whined.

"Mm, I was," she replied, her amusement on display. "But you are to blame for it. While I am blind, I am still aware of the anatomy I was born with. Anatomy we share as girls." A stern look crossed her features. "Please, do not stay quiet out of politeness if I tread into areas that discomfort you. Tell me. Stop me. I cannot hear your thoughts or see your reactions. You must help me set boundaries in times like this."

"Right. Sorry."

"Do not apologize. We make mistakes. We learn. 'Tis the way of life. Now." She lifted the pendent up slightly. "What are these shapes? They seem…Hm. I wish to say incomplete, yet they make a whole."

"Well, they make me."

Hikari furrowed her brow. "I do not understand."

"Here." Amaririsu's free hand found hers. Guiding her index finger along the smooth circular shape, she explained, "This one is half the Nara Clan crest." She guided her finger over a dull needle point to the opposite side. "And this one is Uchiha Clan crest. Half and half create a whole. My papa," she guided her finger over the needle point again, "and my mama."

Amaririsu took her hand from the necklace, keeping a gentle grip on her wrist as she guided it to a new location. Her fingers brushed against a hilt above Amaririsu's right shoulder. "And that's my cousin's tantō. I've got him with me too."

Hikari hummed and smiled. She released the hilt, hand resting on her harness covered shoulder. "May I see you?"

"See…me? Do you mean with my chakra cloak?"

Hikari stifled a chuckle and shook her head. "No. As I have told Gaara countless times: There are more ways to see something than with your eyes. I would have to touch your face, so if you do not wish me too, I will understand."

"Oh. No, that's fine. Just let me move my bandana and turn more towards you."

She heard the adjustment of the fabric and felt the shift of the sand. When Amaririsu settled once more, Hikari detangled her fingers from her warm hand and traced her way up her arm, to her shoulder and then the base of her neck.

"You are the second person who has let me do this. Thank you."

"Take your time. I'm in no hurry."

"Mm," Hikari smiled.

Carefully, investigative, she worked her way up Amaririsu's neck to her jawline. All the way she felt the strands of her long, unrestrained hair tickle the backs of her hands.

"How long is your hair?" she asked.

"Almost at my waist. I'm thinking about cutting it a few inches; makes it easier to maintain when it's closer to the middle of my back."

"Color name?"

"Blue."

"And what does your shade feel like?"

"What does it feel like? Hm. I've never thought about colors in how they feel before."

"Take your time. I'm in no hurry," Hikari teased.

Air brushed against her hands from an amused snort.

Her exploration of Amaririsu's jawline led her to her ears, where two piercings on each ear were found. The soft tickles of her hair along her skin coerced Hikari to weave her fingers into it, if for only a moment or two.

"When you were in the Land of Fire, did you come across any streams?"

"I did."

"Did you dip a leg or arm or your whole body into it?"

"I dipped my feet in."

"Then you know how it feels when the calm current is brushing against you. I'd say that's how blue feels. It's gentle and inviting. It's soothing. It's like…having you run your hands through my hair."

"I understand the first example perfectly. I hope the second is a good sensation?"

"Definitely."

She did not need the verbal confirmation to her question, not really. She could feel Amaririsu decompressing beneath her touch. Both responses were gratifying.

"'Tis the perfect color for you then," Hikari nodded.

From her hair she moved back down her jawline to her chin. Her exploration continued upwards; first tracing over Amaririsu's soft lips with tender caresses, then up and along her cheekbones.

When her right hand brushed over scarred flesh, she frowned. She knew it would be there. They'd only spoken of the scar Kasai left moments ago, but 'twas far longer and far more distinct than she thought. Touching with only the pad of her thumb, she followed it over the shut eye, through the hair of her eyebrow to the bandana it disappeared under.

"Pretty bad, huh?" Amaririsu asked, unbothered.

Yes, 'twas bad her friend had been hurt in such a way. But…

"No. 'Tis a part of you, and you are very pretty, Amaririsu."

"O- oh! Um, thank you. I…I think you're really pretty too, Hikari."

"Am I?" Hikari tilted her head to the side in genuine question, hands tracing their way back down Amaririsu's face, neck and arms back to her hands.

"I think you are," Amaririsu's reply came softer, bashful but truthful.

Hikari offered her a reassuring smile. "Forgive me, 'tis not something I am used to hearing. Gaara was the first person to ever call me pretty, and many years have passed since I have heard such a kind remark about my appearance. However, if you both consider me pretty then I am content."

It made her feel less like the monster she once believed herself to be.

Their fingers entwined with one another again. For the final time on this night they embraced this innocent intimacy they were sharing in.

"Sorry if I'm interrupting you two," Kakashi's cool-headed voice came before his approach. Neither relinquished their hold. "But it's about time for us to move out. Are you two ready?"

"Ready whenever you are, Kakashi-sensei."

"I am prepared as well."

"All right. Let's get a move on then," he said.

The rogue shinobi hideout was a lone, wooden two story building at the peak of the mountain, surrounded by an uninhabited flat sea of sand and nothing else. From a small guard tower erected on top of the hideout, a single guard patrolled, observing the endless horizons for any approaching outsiders.

Strategically speaking, the guard tower gave quite the advantage to the bandits. In this terrain any soul crossing the desert, whether a small force or a large one, could be seen from the tower, allowing the guard to warn his comrades of the approaching enemy before they could be engaged.

However, this strategic advantage only mattered if the bandit on sentry duty was competent. The guard tonight was not. Either too arrogant to believe they'd ever succumb to an assault, or too tired to do his job properly, the sentry missed the nine shadows advancing silently towards his base.

"All right, hold here," Kakashi halted their advance and signaled the team to wait in a crouch. "Amari, can you tell if the bandits inside know we're here?"

"They're completely unaware," she answered. Through her Byakugan she scanned every corner of the base. "The majority are on the ground floor. Sixteen total. Some of them are sleeping. Others are awake but enjoying themselves. I think they're drinking alcohol. Their weapons, though, are all within arm's reach—battle-axes, swords, the usual bandit weaponry."

Her eye flicked up to the second floor. "The other four are on the second floor. They seem to be in deep discussions about something; they're seated around a table on the west side of the room, one of them looks particularly happy about whatever they're planning."

With all the money and valuables spread out on the table in front of him, she wasn't surprised.

Kakashi nodded. "Okay. Since we've made it here without being seen, we'll go with our original plan. Yaoki, use your puppet to take down the sentry quietly. After you do, Hikari and Amari will head to the rooftop and plant a paper bomb to breach through to the second floor.

"The explosion will wake everyone up, but they're attention will be drawn to the second floor. That's when the rest of us move in. Sasuke, you'll breach the door with a Chidori. Take down whoever you can with it. Sakura will be right behind you, followed by Naruto and myself."

All of Team Seven shared a nod.

"With all the shinobi focused on us, Korobi will then enter with his puppet to guard Gaara as he uses his sand to immobilize anyone we haven't already taken care of. If all goes well, this will all be finished in a matter of minutes. Sound good?"

"Yes," Gaara agreed.

Kakashi looked to Yaoki. "You're up then, Yaoki."

"Right," he replied.

Amari hopped up onto Hikari's rock and crouched on the edge. They weren't looking for a long, intense battle against these people. Even if there were Chūnin or Jōnin among them, this assault strategy was meant to snuff out the fight before it could really begin.

For once the element of surprise was on their side. Amari liked it.

Yaoki attached his chakra threads to his puppet, took a deep breath then made his move. The puppet flew effortlessly through the sky, sweeping around the sentry to attack him from behind, wrapping its multiple arms around his mouth and torso.

The sentry's cry never reached his comrades.

"Let's go, Hikari," Amari said.

"At once."

Hikari guided them up to the roof, their approach as silent as a snow leopard stalking its prey in a blizzard. Amari kept her eye on their enemies, waiting for them to suddenly spring to alert because of a Sensory Type hidden among them.

No one moved.

Once over the roof, Amari hopped down and silently moved to place a paper bomb in the most effective place. It wouldn't do to put it directly above the bandits. If these were the ring leaders, which she believed they were, they wanted to capture them alive. Blowing them up would be problematic.

Checking the angle of the moon, blanketing the earth in pale moonlight, and her position, Amari nodded to herself and placed the paper bomb down then hopped back onto Hikari's rock.

"Paper bomb is set. You ready, Hikari?" she asked as her friend lifted them higher into the air, further away from the blast radius.

"I am. As soon as I am able, I will incapacitate them with my Iron Sand."

"They won't be able to dodge. I'll make sure of that."

Floating a decent distance in the sky at their elevation allowed Amari to see the two Land's separated by this mountain. On one side, the Land of Fire and the plentiful trees her home was known; on the other, the vast and endless sands of the Land of Wind.

What a wonderfully diverse world they lived in.

I didn't realize how cold it was up at this elevation. She shivered. Sheesh, I should have packed a sweater.

Clasping her hands in Snake, she detonated her paper bomb.

The silence that once covered the night erupted in orange, hot fire. Echoes of the explosion rippled over the mountain, echoes within echoes cascading all around. Hikari visibly flinched, brow furrowing in discomfort.

Amari reached over and wrapped her pointer finger and middle finger around the Suna native's pinky and ring finger, squeezing them lightly once. Then she hopped off the rock. Cold air whistled past her ears as she plummeted towards the moonlight painted rug and debris covered floor.

The loud air obstructing her senses passed for coughing and curses upon landing.

"Wh- what the hell is happening?" someone asked through coughs.

"We're being attacked, you idiot, that's what!" another shouted.

Four shadow tendrils darted across the floor, ensnaring all four shinobi within her grasps instantly.

"My body, it won't…"

"Move?" Amari finished for the third member. "You're caught within the Nara Clan's Shadow Possession Jutsu. You don't have a hope in hell of moving. And you're backup is being dealt with as we speak. You hear that, right?"

Chaos roared beneath them as the main team assaulted the sixteen other bandits. Shouts of orders from bandits, fists and jutsus connecting with flesh; their defeat was louder than the explosion that preceded it.

"Not so fun when a stronger force ambushes you, is it? Now you know how those innocent people you've attacked felt."

"When I get free, I'll make you regret this!" said the man Amari assumed to be the leader.

"Then 'tis good you won't have that chance."

Hikari floated down into the room, grains of her Iron Sand, illuminated by moonlight, floating around her.

"Tha- that sand!" the leader gasped, horrified.

"The Leaf and the Sand will not tolerate your banditry any longer," Hikari said. She clicked her tongue once then said, "Iron Sand: Infinite Darkness!"

The infinite needles rained down upon the four men, seemingly hitting whatever they wished to an outsider, but Amari could see the pinpoint accuracy in every needle. Their enemies shrieked in agony and crumpled to the floor when she released them of her Shadow Possession, alive but wounded.

"Huh, this has gone a lot smoother than my other missions," she mused out loud. "Usually there's more trouble than this."

"Fighting our Anbu does not count as trouble?" Hikari asked, amused.

"Well, they were a real drag, but nothing we haven't dealt with before." She shrugged. "Besides, you and Gaara pretty much made mincemeat of them. I only had to seriously fight a handful with Osamu, the Crows and Naruto backing me up before that. And they underestimated me."

A frown creased her lips. "Now that I think about that, it really perturbs me they didn't take me seriously. They took me lightly because of my age, which made it so much easier to outmaneuver them."

Hikari chuckling softly drew Amari's attention to her friend. She was seated on the edge of her rock, the Iron Sand snaking around her as it returned to her gourd.

The fond smile on her friend's face made her exhale a laugh as she asked, "What's with that smile? Why'd you laugh?"

"I enjoy your company, Amaririsu."

Heat flushed her cheeks. "I enjoy yours too, Hikari."

"Sounds like the battle below has reached its conclusion. Shall we join them with these four?" Hikari asked.

"Yeah."

Amari created four Shadow Clones to tie the four men up. As they worked, she strolled over to the Suna native and wrapped her arms around her waist, lifting Hikari up off the rock and down onto the floor. Hikari hugged her arm.

Together, with Amari as Hikari's guide, they made their way down the stairs to regroup, the four bandits slung over her clones shoulders. The bottom floor displayed a chaotic scene despite the lack of movement. Bodies lay strewn across the room. Tables were broken or toppled over; one particularly had a bandit crashed through it, his battle-axe discarded haphazardly on the floor behind him.

Her team and Gaara's, however, were in perfect health. No scratches. No cuts. No wounds.

"Seems everything went according to plan down here too," she noted as she looked around.

Even when they reached the bottom step, Hikari did not relinquish her grip. Then again, Amari didn't want her to.

Naruto, who stood beside Gaara, grinned at her and puffed out his chest. "Hehehe! You bet it did! These guys didn't stand a chance against us!"

"No trouble with those four?" Kakashi asked.

"Besides having bad attitudes? No." Amari answered. "Captured them with my Shadow Possession then Hikari took them down with her Iron Sand." She lifted her chin towards the leader. "He recognized the Iron Sand. At a guess, he used to be a Sand shinobi since the others didn't seem to know what it was. Or he's an expert of Suna's history."

She looked around at the bandits the others were tying up. "Either way, the ambush worked perfectly, Kakashi-sensei. If any of them were Chūnin or Jōnin, they didn't get the chance to show us their strength."

It's better this way, though, she thought. With such close quarters, and so many bandits, we could have had a lot harder time taking them all down if they were prepared for us. Who knows what kind of traps they may have set, or what kind of jutsus they possessed.

It could have been an uncoordinated mess on their side. If it hadn't been for Hikari, Gaara, Yaoki and Korobi being willing to listen to Kakashi's strategies, this battle could have been a lot different. Bloodier, even.

And the rift between Sand and Leaf may have grown.

But looking at the Suna kunoichi on her arm, the warm smile on her lips and the teamwork her allies showed, what could have been a disaster turned out into something wonderful.

Our bond grew, too. Amari smiled and guided Hikari further into the room.

She looked forward to seeing how it bloomed in the future.

"Gaara, may I speak with you?" Amari asked.

Gaara, although visibly confused by her sudden approach, nodded. He seemed to sense the urgency and importance of the conversation the Nara wished to have.

The two teams, after apprehending the bandits, settled on resting at camp before going their separate ways. It was almost sunrise when Amari finally found the chance to approach Gaara.

Hikari sat with her fellow Sand shinobi, hand held in his as they waited for the departure. That was fine. She needed to hear what Amari had to say too.

"Is there something wrong?" Gaara asked.

"No. Or, not between us, I should say," she amended her statement. "Our quarrel ended in that forest. You're Hikari's friend, and any friend of hers is a friend to me."

The soft smile on Hikari's face didn't go unnoticed by Amari. Gaara's shocked expression did make her smile, though. "Don't look so surprised. You weren't the first person trying to kill me to become an ally. As long as you treat Hikari well, you and I won't ever have a problem."

"I owe you an apology—"

"No, you don't," Amari interrupted. "I'm not here to dredge up our past, Gaara. I'm not here to demand you to apologize to me or my friends—your current actions are worth more than words." His eyes widened a fraction at her statement. "I can see that you're different, it's in how you hold yourself and the actions you take. I can see it in how you treat Hikari, too.

"So, like I said, you don't need to apologize. You don't owe me one. Our battle showed me my weaknesses and helped me to push past my limits. And I was able to meet and save Hikari, which I'll always be grateful for."

"As will I," Hikari said.

Amari moved to sit across from them on the sand. Her features turned serious. "I need to talk to you about a group called the Akatsuki. They're a group of S-rank shinobi who infiltrated the Leaf in an attempt to capture Naruto because of what he contains."

Gaara's browless features became severe. "I see."

Hikari frowned. "You believe they will also seek the Shukaku."

"I do," Amari nodded. "It's too high of a possibility to deny. If the Shukaku had one tail and the Nine-Tails has nine, I have to assume there are seven others, which means they're all in danger as well. This group, the Akatsuki, they are an incredible threat to the entire shinobi world. But especially to you and Naruto, Gaara."

"Do you know the individuals who comprise this organization?" Gaara asked.

"I know only three. Kisame Hoshigaki, former Mist Seven Swordsman who wields the blade Samehada. His weapon devours chakra, even if it doesn't touch your skin. Then there are Itachi Uchiha and Aimi Uchiha."

"Uchihas?" Hikari gasped.

Kami, Amari hated this. Hated that she had to warn these two of Itachi and Aimi when she knew they weren't evil. She didn't want them to die. She wanted to save them, damn whatever Itachi wanted. But she had to do it. It was the only way she knew how to prepare these two for the Akatsuki.

"Yes," the reluctance slipped into her voice. "They are masters of the Sharingan and prodigious geniuses. Hikari, you're relatively safe from their genjutsu because you're blind. But Gaara, if you ever see them, you have to find some way to fight without ever meeting their eyes. One look and you'll be finished.

"Aimi can use Lightning and Fire at a high level. Itachi can use Fire, Wind and Water. Plus he has rogue Crows he can summon. Do not take them lightly, not even for a moment."

"We won't," Gaara replied. "Is there any way we can distinguish these people from regular shinobi?"

"Well, Hikari should sense their strength immediately. Especially Kisame. He has monstrous amounts of chakra, on the level of Naruto." She chuckled despite the seriousness of the conversation. "Fortunately, they all wear black cloaks with red clouds on them. The three I encountered also cut a line through the Village symbols on their forehead protectors, likely to signify their status as rogue shinobi. That makes them easy to see."

Amari sighed. "I don't have much else, other than that there are a minimum of nine, likely a few more than that, though. Hopefully, with the growing bond between our Villages, more information will be shared about this group. That way we can all be prepared for them."

"Yes, I agree." Gaara dipped his head in a small bow. "Thank you for telling us this. I will do what I can to prepare myself and our Village."

Amari hopped back onto her feet and began to brush the sand off the back of her shorts. "Don't mention it. I was just helping out my friends."

With that she left, never seeing the smile on Hikari's or Gaara's faces. Conversely, they did not see the guilt stricken look to consume her.

Itachi…Aimi…I'm sorry. But this is all I can do right now to protect the future.

She hoped her attempt to protect the future wouldn't cost them their lives.

Team Seven and the Sand squad parted with pleasant farewells and high hopes. Amaririsu and Hikari, specifically, shared in a final embrace that warmed the hearts of those who watched. Even Gaara could not deny the warmth of witnessing his truest friend be embraced so willingly by another, giggling as the Leaf kunoichi twirled her once through the air.

As Team Seven reached a hill of sand they would soon disappear behind, Naruto turned around and began shouting over the sands about their next meeting, waving both arms over his head and grinning wide enough for everyone. The other Leaf shinobis offered waves and smiles of their own.

Still, Gaara could not help the…odd feeling in his heart. It was strange. Foreign. Alien. But it did have a source.

"Yaoki, Korobi…" he spoke up in a hesitant voice, eyes lowered to the sand between them. "Tell me again."

The pair, who had been waving and shouting back to Naruto, stopped and turned to face Gaara. Their expressions spoke their confusion.

"Tell me again what you said back there. Just one more time," he requested.

His request caused the two Suna rookies features to fall.

"We're sorry we abandoned you," Yaoki apologized.

Gaara shook his head quickly. "No, not that! The other thing. Before that."

Understanding, like the sun rising over the desert, dawned upon the pair. They both shared a smile. "Oh, of course."

"We're your friends!" they declared in unison.

The foreign feeling touched him again. Warm and alien.

During the incident with the Anbu, there'd been a single moment where he began to doubt his goal. A single moment where it all began to seem hopeless. He'd seen the fear in Yaoki and Korobi in their interactions. And then the Anbu, the Elders, they refused to see him as anything less than a monster.

But perhaps…

"Those who would so willingly betray their comrades are the worst scum in this world! And that's why I won't stop until Gaara and Hikari are safe! They're my comrades, my friends, and I won't let you hurt them anymore!"

"Your current actions are worth more than words."

Yes. As long as he held true to his new path. As long as he continued to prove through his actions that he was not a monster.

"They were the first to accept me for who I am. They're my friends!"

"Don't let what those Anbu guys said make you doubt yourself. Hikari, Amari, me, even Kakashi-sensei and the others believe you can do this. It's gonna take a lot of work, trust me. But keep pushing forward, that way we can meet as Hokage and Kazekage in the future."

Then perhaps one day he too could be like Amaririsu Yūhi and Naruto Uzumaki.

Gaara's lips unconsciously tugged upwards.

Acceptance, that's what this feeling was. A new bond. Between him and his people. Between the Leaf and Sand.

Between friends.

Review response to Guest: Yep, Gaara already had that talk with Kankuro. Temari and Kankuro will still be around and be apart of a squad with Gaara; this was just a filler from Shippuden, where Gaara was with the regular forces at the time before the Sasuke retrieval arc, showing some of the first shinobi of the Sand who accepted him before he became Kazekage.

Naruto was probably quieter in the last fight, but Amari sort of had the yelling handled for him in that battle. Also, because the chapter really focused around Amari and Hikari's bond as the sort of symbol for the growth between Leaf and Sand, it was a sort of stylistic choice to make Amari the one who was most infuriated, especially after the Anbu called Hikari a mistake, saying she bastardized the legacy of the Iron Sand and then because they hurt Hikari visibly.

Nothing you said was impolite or came across that way. I like Naruto and Gaara's relationship, too, how it is in canon, so that will still grow the same. I'm glad you're enjoying Gaara's character still.

Thank you for the review!