Gaara was infuriated. Not only was the Hokage, a foreigner, intruding in on his business and treating him almost like a child, she had somehow managed to get the back up of the council. After Temari and Kankurou had made their reports, they had presented Tsunade and him with the scroll Hotaru had found. Gaara's council, having been called into the room on an earlier note, had latched onto the Hokage's off hand remark that a body guard might be a good idea. What's more, they had even taken into consideration the woman's suggestion that if Hotaru passed some checks, she might be a good candidate. Despite being a stranger, Tsunade had pointed out, she had skill to fend off high rank ninjas, street smarts, and could help with investigations since she obviously had some sort of gift for intelligence gathering.

Gaara had sat there, speechless with a mix of feelings, anger, indignation, and a touch of shock being the primary ones. By the time he could force the words of refusal out, everyone in the room had already made up their mind. Unfortunately, he was still under the council's eye, who made sure that his youth and past didn't cause Suna to fall to shambles. Apparently the fairly good job he'd done so far didn't carry any weight in this decision. They were already discussing other possibilities before they turned to walk out the door.

Gaara looked at the girl with a touch of malice. He knew it wasn't her fault, but she had unintentionally set this unwelcome happening in motion. He did note however, that she didn't appear thrilled with the idea either.

"A body guard? How am I supposed to do my work if I'm babysitting?"

Temari replied hastily, blocking the obviously angry remark to the word 'babysitting'. "If Gaara is indeed Giji's target, there's a good chance you could pick up clues just being around him. Plus you could give your opinion on any leads our hunters get, tell them anything you happen to hear."

Hotaru just frowned. "I know little of him, and he probably knows even less of me. I'm sure I wouldn't want a stranger keeping watch over me all the time. Why can't one of you or your ninjas do it?"

Gaara's anger at the girl cooled a bit. If he had to have a guard, he'd rather it someone of his own ranks.

Tsunade was the one to respond. "Your points are valid, but I think you'd be best for it. There are reasons for it that we will discuss later. For now, I must talk with the Kazekage. You look like you wouldn't mind refreshing yourself and resting. Gaara?"

Gaara closed his eyes and exhaled, hoping he could force the anger from his mind the way he was doing the breath from his lungs. Opening his eyes again, he looked at Temari. "Bring her to one of the rooms on the second floor. They will do until things are further settled." The furnished rooms were something like gilded cells. They were used for those who weren't truly in trouble, but were under suspicion or observation. His brother and sister guided the bounty hunter out. His cold eyes fell upon Tsunade.

"You have overstepped your boundaries."

The sannin looked at him with a raised eyebrow. "What do you mean? I only said it was a good idea. It was your council that declared it would be done."

"Your meddling does not amuse me. If I must have a guard, why her?"

Tsunade sat up straight and became more serious than Gaara had seen her in a long time. "Yozora Hotaru is not who we thought she was."

Gaara's eyes narrowed. "She lied about her identity?"

Tsunade shook her head. "I think what she did give us was mostly half truths. Amazing she could give that much."

"What do you mean?"

"I used chakra to check her brain activity. See whether she was on any drugs, monitor different stats to help determine if she was lying."

"She was stoic, but she did seem to be hiding something."

"More than you can imagine. Her memory is a wreck. It's like Anko's. Parts have been erased through jutsu. Some is just damaged, probably from injury or accident."

Gaara let out a sharp breath. "You don't think she is unwittingly working for our enemies?"

Tsunade looked at him indignantly. "If I thought that, why would I want her to guard you? Do you remember who we were trying to find for Hidden Energy before they shut down?"

"Their Kage's adopted grand daughter. But what-" Suddenly Gaara recalled the files given to him for his squads to help find her. Strawberry blonde hair and grey eyes, and not to mention Hotaru looked the right age. He scolded himself for the first name alone not ringing bells. Then again, she had been thought lost to the traitors since there was no trace of her. "You really think that's her?" Tsunade nodded. "Do we tell her?"

"I think it would be best to keep this between you and me for now. It's not just that she can keep an eye on you. You need to keep an eye on her. Energy's Kage had suspicions connecting some of Giji's motives to her. She may be good, but if she faces him alone, we might find out the hard way if those suspicions had any foundation to them."

Gaara thought for a moment. "What about the chakra she used?"

Tsunade shrugged. "Since Temari and Kankurou don't know her past, it was alarming of course. Giji was, and still is, a powerful ninja, and she trained under him. You, of course, know that better ninjas can feed chakra into their systems without having to mold it with the seals. Hotaru probably doesn't even know she does it."

Gaara nodded, and a frown tugged his lips. "I can see there isn't much choice in the matter. However, it's YOUR duty to convince her to do it."

Having bathed and changed into her spare clothes, Hotaru was busy running a comb through her hair while giving her room a more thorough inspection. She could here ANBU roaming the halls. A pretty holding room, she thought disdainfully. She looked in the mirror. Orangey hair was more vibrant now that the film of sand had been rinsed away, and she realized her fair skin had gotten rather sunburned. Sighing, she pulled out the bottle of aloe she'd picked up in one of the desert towns she'd stumbled upon a couple weeks ago. Clean and comfortable, she leaned back in a chair to contemplate her options.

One, I can refuse and continue my work...and have them follow me while I do so. I won't get anywhere if I'm tailed...

Two, I can say yes, and sneak away first chance I get...and probably be labeled a criminal and be hunted myself...

Three, I can delay my response for as long as possible so I can play it by ear and see what happens...

Further thoughts were cut off at the sound of foot steps and a knock on her door. Getting up, she wearily answered it to find the Hokage at her door.

Hotaru opened the door to let her in. "...Hokage-sama. To what do I owe this visit?"

The leader of Leaf took a seat. "Please don't call me Hokage-sama. It makes me feel old."

Hotaru sat herself in a chair facing Tsunade's. "As you wish."

"I also hate small talk, so I'll skip to the point. Before you can be an approved candidate as Gaara's body guard, I'll need to ask you some questions. Answer truthfully; I'll know if you're lying."

"Then you'll know it's the truth when I say I'm not so sure I'm interested. Going from hunting down criminals to watching over the leader of Sand will be a big change, one I'm not sure I'm interested in undergoing."

"Fair enough. But we're willing to make the change worth your while."

Hotaru narrowed her eyes just slightly. "Oh? How so?"

"First, Gaara agreed that search teams will follow any leads you know of to find Giji Kouken. And if they find hints, they will let you do the research should you think a ninja wouldn't be able to bluff through."

"I could do that if I was out on my own."

"True, but we have you the resources of a Kage?"

"It obviously isn't necessary. You said it yourself. I'm out doing even your elite ninjas."

Tsunade's brow furrowed as she thought to herself. There's a real spit fire under the emotionless facade. Looks like I'll have to cut straight away to what I wanted to keep as a last resort. "I can see you're going to cut through any argument I have based on access to information, regarding staying among the elite, and even persuasion through a profitable paycheck."

"I admit while some of those things are tempting, I can get by with out them."

"Ah, but is there anybody who can help you with your memory?"

Hotaru's eyes widened, but she quickly composed herself. "What is that supposed to mean?"

Tsunade knew she had a winning hand. Now she just needed to wait for Hotaru to fold. "I'm the best medic nin there is. Even without being close to you, my techniques could tell there was damage to your memories. You probably don't even remember what your home in Balance looks like, or even which of the few villages there you're from."

Hotaru sat stunned. The stoic mask she wore as a bounty hunter had deserted her as she spoke with a shaky voice. "You can tell?" Tsunade simply nodded. "Did you tell anyone else? No one wants a guard without a spic and span past. Who's going to want one without any?"

"I have told no one yet." If the girl would stay because she thought no one knew, she wouldn't tell her that she had already told the Kazekage. Her next phrase was perfectly honest though. "And I don't intend to say anything. You'd just leave anyways if I did. If you're willing to work, I'm willing to help you. Even if it's been a long time since whatever happened, there are still methods to help unlock the mind. Nothing 100 percent guaranteed, but better than nothing."

"So if I play baby sitter, you'll help me?" Hotaru couldn't believe it. She could still take a hand in finding the traitor keeping her out of home, but now she didn't have to go about it so frantically. Time wasn't slipping through her fingers to get home, where ever it was, to answers.

Tsunade pulled out papers. "Just sign the dotted line, and I'll do what I can."

Hotaru looked at the paper; it was a contract. "So you mean I was already chosen if you found me trust worthy. Wait, I thought you were going to ask questions?"

"You've past my tests. Tabs will, of course, be kept on you."

Hotaru read the contract. She didn't find anything out of the ordinary. She would be paid a good fee, and would have access to lower level files. If she had questions, she could ask, though information would only be given if they thought she needed to know. Her duties primarily consisted of watching for terrorist actions on the Kazekage and giving asked opinions on intelligence gathering. Hotaru considered her options one last time, weighed what was being offered to her and what she would have to give up.

Four, sign a binding contract that'll keep me cooped up in Suna to baby-sit their Kazekage...and perhaps get help regaining my memory from the best medic nin alive.

Hotaru signed the contract, changing the course of her path with a few pen swipes.

Next time: ...Having the girl around was either sheer stupidity or genius..."If she thinks I told, her trust crumbles, and she leaves"...Temari was halfway back to the room when she heard Gaara's voice asking what was going on...