Author's Note: It has come to a major turning point in the story. Woohoo! It is not an extremely long chapter, but it is an important one! Hehe. Alright, so, last chapter, it came to my attention that some people have been wondering about the whole Lee thing. I understand that you guys are curious and you want to see him again; however, I do have my reasons for him not being in the story at this point. Do you guys remember how I didn't have Lee's reaction chapter when he learned of the babies? It's the same concept here. Would you really want to read a chapter that was so predictable? It just wasn't all that important to write about Lee's depressing, anxious, worried days as he scoured the land for his lost love. I had other things in the story that had to happen for events to work out the way I wanted them too. I apologize if you guys wanted to read a chapter about Lee. I hope you don't hate me for it and stop reading. The finale is something worth waiting for! And if it's any consolation, you'll be seeing Lee in a couple chapters from now.

Gaara didn't know what to think. He was lying helpless in the center of a large bed, striped of his shirt and about to be raped, yet again. The man towered over him, smiling at Gaara's prone form. Gaara scowled at him. "Do you get some sort of sick pleasure from raping preg-"

"Do you really need to ask that?"

Gaara's eye began to twitch. What was it with these psycho paths who wanted to rape him? He was pregnant for crying out loud! Was his unbelievably fat body that attractive to the male population? Gaara just couldn't figure it out.

The man (whose name he still had yet to figure out) started tugging at Gaara's kilt, grinning like the fool who'd just found a treasure mine. Gaara closed his eyes praying that by some stroke of luck he'd be able to escape this loony.

An odd turn of events happened just then for Gaara. The door burst open, revealing a livid Orochimaru. Orochimaru's voice came out a bloodcurdling hiss. "Zaki…when did I ever say that I was willing to share my pet?"

Zaki jumped off the bed and took a step back, terror filling his eyes. Orochimaru quickly strode to him, grabbing a firm hold of his shirt and tossing him into a nearby wall. His body crumbled to the floor, but Orochimaru wasn't done. He flashed next to Zaki, lifting him up onto his feet. Orochimaru's hand disappeared and a moment later the metallic smell of blood filled the room, a kunai dug deep into Zaki's stomach. The snake master twisted the blade, earning himself a scream. Blood ran down Orochimaru's forearm, dripping onto the floor in bright spatters.

Kabuto stepped up to Orochimaru's side completely calm, as if his master wasn't tearing apart a man's insides. He placed a hand on Orochimaru's blood drenched arm and softly murmured, "I think that's enough."

Orochimaru gave one final twist before drawing out the blade. His breath came out in a huff and his glazed eyes turned to Kabuto. "Make sure he's healed properly. I'm going to change. I don't want to make a bad impression on our guests." Orochimaru looked at Gaara and snapped his fingers. Instantly, the invisible bonds loosened and Gaara was free to clumsily sit up again. Orochimaru gave him a domineering look. "Put on your shirt and follow me, you're going to help me dress." He turned to Zaki and growled. "If I ever find you near Gaara again, you'll wish that knife had killed you."

Gaara glowered at his captor before putting on his shirt and following him out the door. Kabuto began to tend to Zaki's wounds; however, the only thing going through his head was the insanity of his master and the little red-head who'd caused it all. 'Perhaps,' Kabuto thought while working, 'Master Orochimaru is getting a bit too attached to his newest weapon…'

Break-

It was now past the one month mark and Gaara felt the walls beginning to close in on him. He walked very little nowadays and was rarely let out of his room. Orochimaru had him confined. Gaara knew it had to do with what had happened at the party, but what he didn't understand was why Orochimaru was so angry about it. It wasn't like he didn't do the same act to Gaara himself. The only solution Gaara could come up with was that the snake man felt that Gaara was his to control and by Zaki raping him it would have undermined his authority. This thought irked Gaara to his limits. He was never Orochimaru's in the first place. If the man thought so he was sorely mistaken.

Dressed in a comfortable pair of pants that hung from below his belly and a huge billowing shirt that effectively covered him, Gaara was ready to do something. He sat on the corner of his bed, swinging his feet. It was night time Gaara knew, for Orochimaru never came at night. However, this night turned out to be a bit different then Gaara had expected.

Kabuto opened the door, smiling at the red-head. He held his hands behind his back while he entered. "Gaara, glad to see you're awake. I have something I'd like to discuss with you."

Walking over in front of Gaara, Kabuto pulled a sack from behind his back. "This pack," he began, "has enough supplies to last one such as you a good three to four weeks. It's light and easily carried because most of the food is ready made. Inside there is also a canteen, an extra set of clothes, and a pillow. In addition to these items, there is a pack of vitamins that a pregnant man would want to take everyday to keep up his strength. And if one wanted to get to Konoha from here they would head southeast once leaving the compound."

Gaara looked up at Kabuto confused. "What the hell are you saying Kabuto?"

Kabuto stood up and held out a hand to Gaara. "Now come. We don't have much time."

They left the room and to Gaara's surprise, there was no guard by the door. Kabuto halted for a moment and turned. He held out a small pill. "You better take this. You'll need it if you want to get a good head start." Gaara took the pill without question, following Kabuto through a winding labyrinth of hallways. They walked out a small side door.

For the first time in over a month, Gaara felt the chill of fresh air on his skin. He breathed in a huge sigh, loving the smell of the wilderness more then he ever had before. He turned his eyes skyward and saw the wide expanse of the universe staring back at him as if it'd never before seen such a creature as himself.

Kabuto broke him out of his daydream by grabbing a hold of his shoulders and looking him square in the eye. "Now Gaara; I want you to walk away. I want you to walk away from here and never look back. I want you to not question why you came or why you're leaving. Just know that the time is right and that it is time for you to finally return home. Now go. That is the direction you desire. Goodbye Gaara."

Gaara opened his mouth to reply, but Kabuto had already disappeared. Gaara was alone again in the world. It was him and his babies against nature. He decided right then and there that he would not fail this journey. He would not fail this test. Fate for once was with him and he would not dawdle in wait for the next terrible event to hit him. A new chapter of his life began.