Now that I am on summer vacation, I should be able to write some more, but I'm extremely lazy in updating, as you have probably noticed by now. (: I shall try to write more soon, but it takes me a while to come up with good stuff. I present to you, the reader (and reviewer? C: ), another chapter of Open Windows!

This fan fiction may display course language and violent scenes; thus, IT IS NOT acceptable to ALL audiences. Readers should be aware of this before reading.

IMPORTANT!!!

I'M GOING TO CHANGE THE TITLES OF CHAPTERS AND OF THE ENTIRE STORY SOON! I thought readers should be aware of this, so that they don't think it's another story. (:


Disclaimer: I do not own anything related to the anime/manga "Naruto"; Masashi Kishimoto owns "Naruto". Any trademarks, characters, storylines, plots, etc. from the anime/manga "Naruto" belong to Masashi Kishimoto. I would also like to say that ratings, page formats, chapter scroll bars, etc., (this goes for all of my stories and this one as well) that my stories are using are all thanks to this host website. "Wikipedia", the online lookup, also helped me with jutsus and moves that the characters use. I don't own the name "Wikipedia" either.

---The Lion, the Gambler, and the Project---

--- Chapter 9 ---

--- Normal POV ---

The redhead shot past tsunamis of sand dunes, feet hardly skimming the ground before he launched himself forward again. His mind seemed to have had enough of being used by Gaara, and refused to interpret anything going on around him.

A dark glow trailed continuously behind him, slowly dissipating as he became farther away. That glow came from chakra, which came from the many rings which Gaara was forced to behold. His muscles felt lightweight, super flexible, and they wouldn't feel tired, no matter how hard he pushed them.

Voices drifted into Gaara's head, like whispers. His sharpened sense of hearing identified a large group of ninja, ages varying. He headed towards that direction, his feet leading him there. It was time to commence the plan.

---

Lee stood, squinting into the distance, a gauze-wrapped hand shading his eyes so that his sight was 'better', although there was no sun at the time. "Hey! Gaara's coming this way!" He called. Some Genin and some Jounin stood to get a better look.

"What's he doing here?" Kurenai narrowed her crimson eyes, her dark hair shifting in the continuous wind of the desert. Asuma stood beside her. He plucked the cigarette from his mouth, and held it between his fingers, sighing out the smoke from his lungs in contemplation. He tilted his head slightly. "I don't think it's pure coincidence that he'd find us in this vast desert at this hour, especially with that suspicious chakra that he's glowing with."

---

The pack of alert ninja was becoming closer. The air seemed to be distilled from all of their heartbeats, and although he had no idea how he could notice that, he didn't really have the option to care. He ran up the side of a tall sand dune, then, hardly brushing the top of the sand dune, jumped from it. Midair, he pulled his outstretched arms inwards. The sand surrounding them rose up, and prepared itself to crash down like tides of water, with the Leaf Ninja as its target.

"Everybody MOVE," Shouted Asuma, cigarette forgotten in the swirling sand as he ran forth, acting as a herding dog to the Genin stragglers. The golden waves came crashing down upon Kurenai and Gai, but their forms transformed into logs before being crushed. A simple substitution was all they needed to avoid the situation.

Gaara landed securely, the sand shifting around him as if charged with surges of electricity. His penetrating eyes of steel shifted around, analyzing the area for any ninja of whom had dodged his launched attack. He began to move, sand crawling around his form loosely. They couldn't be too far off.

'Are we going to fight with him, or escape?' Asuma thought. 'That's probably why Kurenai and Gai stayed behind, to take care of him.' He turned to face the horizon; there was no sign of a changing landscape any time soon. All they could do was move as quickly as possible.

'Although it doesn't make sense to run away from a single enemy with this large of a trained group,' Asuma continued mentally, 'we don't actually know if he's on somebody else's side. We can't afford to lose any ninja now. It's too early in the operation.' Thus, the short-haired man confirmed his doubts, and continued to usher the Genin forth. It seemed that it would be a very long time until they would get any rest.

---

Gai smiled, teeth sparkling, and gave thumbs up to Kurenai, who would've deadpanned if the situation wasn't to-the-moment. The black-haired sensei nodded in response, then poked her head over the top of the sand dune slowly. She squinted, to reduce the amount of sand blowing into her eyes. Gaara was going after the larger group of Genin. Had he not noticed that two Jounin were stalking him?

She lowered herself again, returning the thumbs up sign to Gai for affirmation (although feeling embarrassed as she did so). Kurenai formed hand signs, making multiple clones of herself. One ran forth, over the sand dune. Gaara noted the oddness in presence, and sharply turned, darkly framed eyes vicious. The sand slowly twisted backwards, shooting at her. The form was punctured by sharp, hardened spikes of sand. It disappeared in a puff of smoke, and another launched itself over, distracting the dangerous teen furthermore.

The sand demon vanished as Gai's fist smashed down where he had just stood a half-second before. They waited for a moment, the sand stopping its anxious shifting slowly. "Damnit, we lost him!" Kurenai cursed while Gai gritted his pearly whites. They both disappeared in a puff of smoke, leaves reigning in the air for a moment before being swept underneath the cruel grains of sand. However, the duo could not locate Asuma and the group unless they knew where to go exactly, so they would be stuck with the old guess-and-check formula.

Invalid eyes, surrounded by the darkness of insomnia and a demon, peered from the dancing shards of earth. The anti-flamboyant orbs watched them with malevolent intent. Some members of the team were already short of breath, as they had traveled a long way. Yes, it was quite the perfect timing on behalf of Gaara, for if he had done his ambush any sooner, he would have had to actually put up a real fight.

His small, lithe, but heinous figure began to form above the surface of the ground slowly. It would be fun to watch their melancholy grow with his penitence as he put his plan into action. His face was consumed by an invisible layer of ice; he blinked his eyes once to focus them. The demon renting out his insides seemed to hover over him like the omen of a heretic, hypnotizing him into stealthily indulging in the experience. His crimson hair jutted in the wind as he leaped forward like the king of the cats, the lion himself.

---

"You're not freaking serious."

"Oh yes, I am."

"Well I'm not doing it."

"Yes you are."

"No I'm not. And you can't make me."

A pink-haired female and a raven-haired male were arguing in low voices in a rocky prison cell. The female had a malicious smirk on her face, and the male had a permanent scowl on his.

"C'mon, you have to try! For Naruto's sake, and anybody else that's trapped here!" She urged, the smirk falling a bit.

"How about we see who the next guard is? If it's a guy, you get to do what you tried to convince me into doing, and if it's a female, well… I guess I'm gonna do it," Sasuke said miserably, crossing his arms.

"Deal," Sakura said, that smirk gaining all of its potential again. "Just remember, the whole point of this is to get the heck out of here as quickly as possible." She said quietly. He nodded in exasperation, nearly rolling his eyes. Footsteps began to echo, as if on cue, and Sakura held a finger up to her lips, as if to silence even the tiniest spider crawling on the wall. The pink haired woman shifted to the corner of the cell and flattened her back against it, trying to remain unseen in the side of the opening. She had the maps and documents rolled up in a hidden pocket of hers. Around the bend came, low and behold, a female guard. Sasuke let out a low moan, and Sakura nearly giggled at his misfortune. She had to place her hand over her mouth to keep from bursting out loud.

Sasuke stood, letting out a sigh. The guard stopped, turned, and magically began to walk through the shield of impenetrable dark chakra. She was fashioned with solid metal bands. She carried the most grotesque of foods that they had ever seen. She put them down slowly, keeping her dead, glassy eyes on Sasuke with suspicion.

"Er… Hello," Sasuke said, taking a step forward. She froze, her hand immediately flying to her pocket to retrieve a kunai.

"Aww, you don't want to hurt little ol' me, do you?" As much as it pained him to say, he forced the words to tumble from his mouth. He forced one of his eyes to close in what looked like- well, was supposed to look like- a flirtatious, promiscuous wink, when a kunai went flying at him. He dodged it with a "whoa", emerging with a rip on the sleeve of his shirt.

A fist was brought down on the female's head, and she crumpled to the floor. Sakura puffed with pride, but did not waste time boasting. She looked through the pockets of the 'unconscious' person, and dug up a couple of the disks that she was wearing on her arm. They were glowing a dark purple.

Sakura looked at the same coloured chakra that was blocking their freedom, and then at the chakra-engulfed ring, and made the connection. "Quick, slip this on!" She said, throwing him one, for there were only two. She fit the metal band over her dominant arm, and it tightened down to a death grip. She frowned and gave it a tug, but it wouldn't budge. Her heart leapt to her throat, but she ignored it for now. "Let's get out-" A pain was suddenly caused in her left leg, and when she looked down, a couple thin streams of blood streamed down it from a puncture wound from a weapon. The unpleasant woman had gotten up, and was standing behind her, wielding that sharp object. Sasuke had muttered words and formed hand signs while Sakura was still in shock, and blew fire at the creature. A howl escaped the reincarnated female, before she fell to the floor again, smoldering disgustingly like wax, only worse. The deadened thing on the floor gave out a couple of defeated twitches.

Sakura had to look away at the sight, and quickly ran at the barrier in fear. She shot right through it with some difficulty, and landed on the other side, staggering. She was shaking like a leaf. Sasuke was soon by her side. "Now we know they can regenerate." He said.

Sakura took a quick look at the figure Sasuke had set on fire, and noticed that the twitching was becoming more and more frequent. Soon, the guard was beginning to make signs of getting up again.

The duo fled. While they were running, Sakura pulled the map from her pocket, and unfurled it erratically. 'Naruto-kun, where did you go?' Sakura thought in a panic. Sasuke gave a small tug at the ring on his dominant arm. "Huh, these things won't come off… Do you even know what they are?" He asked, raising an eyebrow at his team member. Sakura let out a tiny, nervous laugh. "I thought of it on the spot, okay? It's not fool-proof."

Sasuke came to a halt, grabbing Sakura's arm to keep her from running ahead. "Wha-" The male ninja covered her mouth with his hand hastily and pulled her behind a rock that was jutting out of the ground nicely.

Two guards were walking down the hallway. As if they could smell the hidden ninjas' blood, they stopped right beside the rock. Sasuke and Sakura both held their breaths, hearts beating fast. Sakura now understood what Sasuke had sensed. There was an omnipresent force in the gigantic cavern, one that could be sensed everywhere, as if dark chakra was floating in the air. However, when one of those guards came by, it became stronger.

The two guards continued on their paths, down the hallway that the duo had just emerged from. Sakura stood, and then quickly scanned the area for any more guards.

"Let's go," Sasuke muttered, and the two took off at an even faster pace. They would almost immediately be discovered as missing, and they had a dangerously high chance of getting caught.

---

Sandy tendrils zoomed along the ground, reaching ominously towards their intended target like twisted, morbid vines. The predator, Gaara, was crouched at a distance away from the herd of ninja, an invalid smirk on his face. The sand suddenly jumped, seizing one of the enemies.

Asuma came to a stop, and ran back at the cocooned genin. As the victim tried to get out, the sandy cage bulged like a water balloon pressured under chakra. It then became still and smooth, like an undisturbed lake surface. The victim had stopped struggling. Asuma, using his spiked knuckle weapons, punched at the barrier that separated him from one of his students, but to no avail.

"No!! Shikamaru!" Ino yelled, prepared to step in. Choji gaped; their third squad member had been just behind them, when suddenly, the sand snapped up and swallowed him. Kurenai, who had found the group of genin not long ago with Gai, placed a hand on their shoulders. "Ino, Choji, stay here," Kurenai ordered firmly, then ran at the cocoon.

"Follow me!" Gai yelled, trying to herd the rest of the ninja away from the scene.

Kurenai shot large balls of chakra at the solid cage of sand, but it just reformed before it could be completely obliterated. Asuma breathed heavily, only having made a small dent in the sand since he had started. With a snap-like movement, the sand withdrew, and its victim, Shikamaru, disappeared with it. Asuma fell to his knees, and strained his fingers through the sand where his student disappeared.

"We'll get him back. The faster we can get there, the faster we can rescue him… I think it's all connected." Kurenai said, hoping to get the defeated Asuma standing again. "Don't forget, we've got Tsunade on our side."

After a moment, the sensei stood and nodded, a completely furious face exposed. The two ran forth, catching up to the fleeing giant squad.

---

"Pathetic humans." Gaara muttered in his monotonous voice, the sand cage following him at an unrealistic speed. "Finally, the plan's almost set…"

---

"Sunagakure." Tsunade looked upon the sand-blown gate that barricaded her from her destination. 'I have a feeling that this is the city where my problems reside.'

The blonde lady pushed the gate open powerfully. The wooden panels swung open quickly, as if they feared the angry hokage. Guards leapt to their feet, unveiling kunai. However, once the sight of the hokage reached their eyes, they immediately came to a halt in their actions and bowed.

'They have funny looks in their eyes.' Tsunade analyzed them suspiciously as two walked around her to close the gate.

"Hokage-Sama! It is a pleasant surprise." Baki walked into the scene, as he was one guard on shift. He bowed in front of the visitor.

"Baki," Likewise, the hokage did a quick half-bow, and then spoke. "I need to speak to the Kazekage immediately. Would you please direct me to him?"

Baki spoke with an apologetic voice, but his sly eyes deceived him. "I am terribly sorry, but the Kazekage has an extremely tight schedule for this week, and he has no time for extra appointments. Please check with me again next week." He bowed again slightly, and disappeared before Tsunade could say anything.

She sighed, continuing to walk into the town. 'I guess I must confront the problem by myself.'

"Hokage-Sama," spoke one of the Suna guards shakily, "may I ask you what your business is within Sunagakure, Land of the Wind?"

Tsunade closed her eyes and flipped around, lifting a threatening finger in the ninja's face.

"Do you not know who I am?! DO YOU NOT KNOW WHAT THIS BRIEFCASE IS FILLED WITH?!" Shrieked Tsunade. In fact, she yelled so loud, the poor ninja's bangs seemed to blow backwards with the sudden force.

"IT'S FILLED WITH MONEY! YOU GUYS HAVE GREAT CASINOS AND BARS! NEED I SAY MORE?" Tsunade huffed in his face. "Good day." With a quick bow, she scurried out of view.

'Phew. That was close.' The young-looking elderly woman walked through the busy streets of the desert city, before coming to a halt a ways away from a heavily guarded massive building.

'This is it. Here I come, Kazekage, busy or not!' A sly smirk crossed Tsunade's face as she slipped out of the crowd, into a deep alley, unnoticed.

---

"Haku." An omnipresent voice spoke.

"Yes, Yorukage," The zombie-like figure with long, black hair, replied.

"You are going to assist in The Project, which I have already explained to you," The shadowed figure spoke slowly, ominously. "At all costs, you are to keep Naruto and Gaara under perfect condition, and at the directed time, you are to fuse the Kyuubi and the Shukaku into one. With this ultimate jutsu, a new monster will be created, and we shall have total rule with it." The figure stood from its perch, shadows licking at its heels. "If you fail this ultimate mission, I will send your soul into the bowels of hell. And don't think I can't. Because I absolutely can."

Haku stared glassily at the floor.

…

'We could've been friends…' Blond hair ruffled in the slight breeze blowing on the bridge. 'I'm sorry it had to be this way.' Sapphire eyes, full of sorrow and guilt… 'If only we had the chance to be friends… If situations were different, I wouldn't have to do this to you, but I'm left with no other choice.' The eyes of hurt were shiny with unshed tears, and eyelids gently closed over them. 'It just so happens that you are with the enemy, and I am your opponent. My friends are in danger because of the enemy. I am going to protect them at all costs. I'm sorry… but this is goodbye.' The blue eyes opened, and with a newfound energy, the blond raised a fist and punched out with a growl.

A snap…

A creak…

The mask split.

…

Haku raised his expressionless eyes slowly. "Understood, Yorukage."

C: I hope you liked that chapter! Please review. It's not a great chapter, I know... It isn't my longest chapter either, but heck, I really wanted to get something out sooner than later.

OOoooOOOOoooh! What's up with Haku? ;) You'll just have to wait and see! (Hopefully this time you won't have to wait longer than a month. X.x Sorry about that!)

Thank you for reading! Please review, if you can! I really appreciate all comments!

Phoenix-Roar

P.S. DON'T FORGET! I'LL BE CHANGING THE TITLES OF MY STORY/CHAPTERS SOON!