Greetings!

I am soooooooooooooooooooooooooo sorry that this took forever. I was in a dry spot and wasn't able to write, only read. So finally I was able to write. I had to rewrite the whole chapter because I didn't like it. Maybe one day I might post it as a side idea, but for now, here is the chapter.

So let the story begin!

From Konoha to Hana

ARC 2

Chapter 12

A Tale of Two

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto

"It is not the language of painters but the language of nature which one should listen to, the feeling for the things themselves, for reality, is more important than the feeling for pictures." - Vincent van Gogh

Rei had known something was off when Gaara had picked them up instead, but since he liked the redhead he had lovingly come to know as Uncle Gaara, he let it slide. Kagerou was rather excited, though if a person didn't know him well enough, he looked the same care-less child that he pretended to be. Suna was known for their puppets and Kankaro was the best puppeteer there.

Kankaro had been going over Kagerou's amazing puppets since they had come here, giving him tips and tricks to move the puppet better. Not that Kagerou wasn't a master at making the puppets almost real like. His were made of a mix of porcelain, clay, and metal fragments to make it harder to break but looked real to the human eye. The mixture felt like skin to the touch and he even made it so their chest moved in and out like they were breathing. They blinked and looked alive. Not to mention Kagerou was a stickler for details. One practically looked like their mother, save his puppet had silvery hair like Amariris.

They had been here for a while and it was getting rather suspicious as to why they were not heading home already after being away for a week. His mother got lonely easily, so she never left them alone this long.

However, Rei knew for a fact that Ichigo was just as suspicious as he was of his mother's planning. Arisu probably knew what was going on, but trying to decipher her mini predictions were as easy as understand the immortality that Meikai and Voodoo seemed to have obtained. It was too hard, so even though the other children that weren't in his class of misfit geniuses considered him a genius, he didn't try to figure out the mystery call Arisu.

His twin looked over at him with those sparkling jade eyes as she fingered her keys. When they were little, she had come across the village treasure that was known as the Underworld keys. Anko had given it to their mother, but the keys had chosen his sister. He wasn't jealous though; she had a great sacrifice for being able to use them. It took a forth of her chakra and lived off of it. But then again it made her have large chakra reserves because of how much she needed to survive.

"What," Rei asked his sister, who though was very smart, tended to be naïve about some things.

"I was just thinking," Amariris said, "Do you think it could be possible to ever meet Father?"

Rei rolled his eyes. Not this again. His sister was obsessed over meeting their father, the man who his wonderful mother seldom spoke of. But when she did speak of him, there was nothing but nice and wonderful words. If he was so great, why couldn't he find them?

"I don't really care, Ammy," Rei said with a huff, "He's going to steal Kaa-chan away from us if he ever does show up. What's to say he'll even like us? I mean, yeah, we are some of the smartest kids around, but he'd only like us because he's our father and has to like us in order to get brownie points with Kaa-chan."

Amariris pouted a bit as she looked at her brother with an unhappy face, "I bet he wouldn't!"

"Would too," Rei sniffed, "He probably doesn't even want kids. Why would he? He's a bad guy!"

"He is not!" Amariris yelled, tightening her grip around her keys, "He's a good guy! I know he is! He just was placed on the wrong side! Jiji says so too!"

"He has to, it's his son!"

"He doesn't exaggerate the truth when it comes to Nawaki! Why would he do so for his first born?"

Rei was caught there. Their jiji didn't exaggerate the truth. So he just pouted and stormed off to find Ichigo. Amariris looked equally upset as her brother left.

Unfortunately, Amariris wasn't done, "AND YOU LOOK LIKE A GIRL!"

Rei let out a frustrated cry as he slammed the door. So what if he like being pretty? So what if he was a little vain? It gave him an advantage against his opponents when they thought littler of him. Looking like a girl gave him the upper hand in almost every situation. Why didn't other people see that? He fingered the hairpin in his hair before glaring that the first child he knew.

It was Meikai. She just asked him what crawled up his butt and died. So, he just stalked away. Darn Meikai, always making him feel like he was a sourpuss. Why did she have to become more vocal? He liked it when only Voodoo knew what she had said.

He decided to spend time with Gaara.

"Did something happen?" Gaara asked knowingly as he continued working in his office, Rei had just come in and was standing at the door looking a little cross.

"Amariris keeps asking about Otou. I don't know why. He's a bad guy from what everyone else says."

Rei climbed up on Gaara's lap and sat and stared at him. Gaara just stared down at the child who only heard little of his father when his sister begged for it.

"Your father was a very talented shinobi. From what you're mother told Naruto and me, he was forced into Akatsuki. It was because of his talent." Gaara said as he set down his pen and scooped the child up so he was more comfortable.

"Wait, he's apart of Akatsuki! They are after Uncle Naruto! He's was just using her then, wasn't he?"

Gaara shook his head, "He had many opportunities to take advantage of your mother, but he didn't. He had changed after meeting her. Before, he was greedy and power hungry, trying to discover his place in this world. I fought him during that time."

"You… fought my otou? What's his name? What does he look like? What kind of attacks does he use?" Rei asked, leaning in a bit and looking at his Uncle with excited eyes.

He must of loved hearing about his father, since Sakura usually couldn't do it without feeling alone. She must have never told him much. Even though he was against his father ever finding them again, he still wanted to know what the man was like or even named.

"His name is Deidara. He looks a lot like your jiji, except he is a bit more vain when it comes to his appearance from what I could tell. A real… pretty boy," Gaara began, choking a bit at the phrase 'pretty boy'.

Rei just listened with eager ears, trying to understand his mother's love for the unknown man.

He recalled that day very well, "And my fight with him was the greatest match I have ever had…"

Rei had just sat there, listening wide-eyed as he listened to the finely detailed battle that Gaara described. His father was amazing! He was just as cool as his jiji had said. Gaara never bent the truth, so it was a little amazing to hear about this man that he never knew.

"So, he likes to blow things up too!" Rei said as he smiled happily, "I thought that was only me and Ammy! Jiji knows how, but he prefers not to do much more then teach us the little he knows."

"I am glad I could be of help," Gaara said as he petted the child's hair gently as to not upset the intricate hair style, "Do you still find yourself against him?"

"Yes," Rei said as he glared a bit, "How dare he hurt you! It just proves that even though he's a good fighter and cool, that he's not a nice guy."

"Rei, your mother wouldn't fall in love with a man like that," Gaara said as he pointed to Rei, "She fell in love with him because he changed. His eyes are no longer filled with hatred and darkness, but light and love."

"How do you know that?" Rei asked, not getting how Gaara could be so forgiving to the man that attacked and help kill him.

"Because I trust your mother. You should too," Gaara said before standing up with Rei in his arms, "Shall we go get some dinner with the rest of your family?"

"Sure, I just hope Ivy, Vine, and Anryuu keep themselves from eating the cat this time."

"I thought they learned self control since last time." Gaara asked him, raising a brow in question.

"Yeah, but they do it to tick off Kankaro-san. Since it was his pet and all."

"I shall make note of it."

Sakura paced back and forth at the meeting spot. Normally she wouldn't be this nervous, but Deidara had been running a fever when she had left. She would have stayed by his side, but she had told him that this was very important. He had nodded, waving her away, but she still felt guilty.

His lymph nodes were swollen and his nose was so stuffy it was red and the back of his throat was terribly red and raw. He had felt nauseated and had already retched all the breakfast he had consumed. If this hadn't been so important that she had to be the one to pick them up, she would have sent someone else so she could take care of him.

But this wasn't just any group of kids; this was her whole class of kids. From her children to her wards to her students, all of them were here and she had to make sure that they got home to their distinctive families safely.

She see felt their chakra before she saw them. Rei and Amarisis had some of the most distinct chakra signatures she had ever felt- especially her sweet little girl.

"Mommy!" Amariris yelled happily when she finally could see her mother, running up to her and being swooped up in a hug.

"Baby girl!" Sakura greeted as she hug her tightly, inhaling her scent that smelled of clay and flowers.

"Uncle Gaara showed us everything and it was so cool because Suna has some of the rarest types of clay and he bought us some to use!" Amariris chatted happily as she pulled away and let herself drop nicely to the ground.

"Really? Well then, I guess we will have to get someone to teach you how to use it properly, won't we?" She said with a tender smile before looking up at the rest of them coming over the horizon.

As expected, Rei was being held in a gentle manner by Gaara who was staring at her with those eyes. Those eyes that told her that she was going to have to talk to her son about his father finally finding them and she better do it before he finds out himself or there would be a huge tantrum.

She gave him a silent nod, telling him she understood before she greeted the rest of the children.

"Did he return to Aunty Sakura?" Arisu asked, cocking her head and smiling mysteriously.

Sakura tried not to look startled, but Arisu had made a lot of sense in her usual nonsensical way. All that time… She had been predicting the return of Deidara.

"Perhaps," she whispered low, giving Arisu a wink, "perhaps not. What are you talking about dear?"

Arisu just shrugged, "Arisu doesn't know more than half the time."

Sakura greeted each and every one of her 'kids' before turning last to Rei. Amariris liked to be first, so she could move on with other things, and Rei liked to be last so that he could linger as long as he wanted. But only when it came to her.

"Hello Rei-chan," Sakura greeted, holding out her arms for him to switch.

He stared at her for a second or two. He could already tell that there was something about her that was different. Her saddened look that, though well hidden he could always see, was gone and she actually looked happy and not lonely for once.

He loved her being so happy. Her being happy meant she wasn't sad. The only thing he feared was her being taken away from him.

"Hi momma," Rei finally greeted, switching to her arms and was shocked at how warm her embrace was.

"Hi baby," she whispered, kissing his head gently, "I'm sorry I didn't come get you after you were with Uncle Naruto for a week."

"It's okay," Rei said with a nod, "Uncle Gaara was a lot of fun." He paused for a moment, thinking of if he should mention it, but decided to anyways, "He told me a story about my dad."

"Did he?" Sakura asked, looking up at Gaara with a questioning look.

"I have seen your children back to you and will be taking my leave. Good luck Sakura, I will see you at the festival in Konoha in a couple months." Gaara said, bowing out quickly before shushining out of there as fast as humanly possible.

He was not about to explain himself on this one.

Sakura glared at where the red head once stood before turning her attention back to her son, "Well, what did he tell you?"

"He told me about his fight with him, that his name is Deidara, and that if you had fallen in love with him, then he must be different than the man that he had fought."

"People can change Rei," Sakura said as she kissed his forehead, "Did Gaara tell you that?"

"Yes, but it is still inexcusable for him to attack Uncle Gaara," Rei pouted, "He didn't do anything wrong."

Sakura laughed lightly, "Come little ones, we are heading home."

She was still holding Rei, mounting Tsubasa and pulling Amariris up to ride with her as well. The other children mounted with the older ones of the bunch who could ride the other elk and followed after Sakura's. They all caught up in their own conversations.

"Amariris, what do you think about your father?" Sakura finally asked.

"I want to meet him one day and I want to play with him and see if what you said is true. I bet it is," Amariris said with a happy smile, "Mommy never lies."

"I see, so Gaara didn't tell you the story, did he?"

Amariris's eyes grew wide before she turned a glare onto her brother with her jade eyes burning with fury, "You got a story about Otou!?"

"Yeah, so?" Rei snapped back, folding his arms, "All I learned was that Father might have been strong, but he hurt Uncle Gaara on purpose and took him to his organization and the killed him."

"Nu-uh! Uncle Gaara is alive!" Amariris yelled, not at all happy with her brother at the moment.

"It's true," Sakura said calmly, "He took him to his organization and killed him for his bijuu. A woman named Chiyo traded her life for his."

Both paused, looking at their mother with awe. Did she really just agree with Rei about their father?!

"But that was when he was young. He made some poor choices at that age, but that's not where the story ends… or even begins. People can change if they are willing to change. I learned that when Naruto defeated Gaara," Sakura paused as she looked down at her two children, "Did you know that Gaara once had a black heart just like your father?"

"Uncle Gaara has a heart of gold, Kaa-chan!" Rei said, his eyes wide with disbelief and horror that his mother would suggest that his Uncle Gaara was ever evil.

"He did," Sakura insisted in a motherly calm tone, gazing up as she remembered, "Naruto had to defeat him because he had wrapped a sand claw around me and threatened to kill me."

She gazed down at her children to see both eyes glued to her wide with surprise.

"He defeated him and save me, and Gaara left with some words that Naruto had parted with him before he left. It changed him. He no longer was bloodthirsty and he tried so hard to right his wrongs. Your father hasn't had that chance entirely, but his heart was changed nonetheless. When I met him, he was lying in a forest bleeding out because the heavy rain he had accidently flown into dissolved his bird. He was going to die."

Rei swallowed hard as he looked at his mother in desperation, "And you saved him? Why? What good ever came out of being with him?"

Sakura smiled as she looked into his eyes, "Yes, I saved him, Rei. I saved him because I do not think it is right to judge one based on what others say. I had done that once with Naruto, and I was gravely wrong. I saved him because I couldn't bear to let him die like that. I'm a medic. I don't like to kill."

"But what good came of it? You had to leave your home and you had to leave Konoha and Naruto and your family!" Rei cried out in anger, "Was it worth it!?"

"Yes," Sakura smiled, "Yes, all of it was worth it. I fell in love with a man who loved me deeply. I had to leave my home, but I received something wonderful from it."

"And that is??"

Her jade eyes glowed. Rei had never seen them glow like this before. They glowed with love and passion and kindness and joy and happiness that made him stop to wonder what in the world was so wonderful that made her so happy.

"Because of him, I became kage of my own village, I learned about what was precious to me, I gained friends, and what's most important… was he gave me my children."

Rei was silenced. He couldn't think after that. It was all overwhelming. This was the first time that his mother had ever opened up about his father and he felt as if he was drowning in the amount of affection she had for him. It was… nice though. His mother seemed happy about her love and her decision.

"Okay," Rei nodded, "I get it."

"Me too, Mommy," Amariris said with a gleeful nod, "So, he is good now?"

"Yes, your father is a good man now." Sakura said, her eyes tender, "Now, when we get back, remind me about a surprise."

"Okay Mommy," Amariris said before turning the subject to what they had done in the last two weeks.

Deidara sniffled unhappily as his stepmother (he mental shuddered at that) was giving him an exam.

"Come on Deidara," She said, putting the stethoscope from around her neck on put the buds in her ears, "Don't act like you are dying."

He severely flinched when she pulled up his shirt and placed that cold disk on his burning skin.

"Cold," he whined, unable to move or pull away as he lied there helplessly.

"Breathe in," Tsunade told him as she focused on her work.

She was being kind actually, this was a perfect opportunity to get some petty revenge on him, but he was her stepchild and he was ill. She wasn't about to reap a vengeance on him while he could only lie there being miserable with this flu.

He managed to take a deep breath, coughing as he breathed out and groaning. She moved the disk to several other spots before moving it to his back, getting another whimper for the cold disk touching his hot skin.

"Your lungs are fine, you are just congested," She told him, taking the thing out of her ears and back around her neck, "This is what happens when you don't take care of yourself when you have a poor immunity like yours."

Deidara looked at her tiredly. Tsunade ignored it as she moved her hands to his lymph nodes and touched them. He let out a pained noise as she touched the swollen nodes.

"Those haven't gone down," Tsunade said with a tsking sound.

"Why are your hands so cold," he complained as he screwed his eyes shut.

"Hush, you shouldn't be talking." Tsunade told him before pulling back his covers a bit more.

Okay, so she would reap her petty revenge before he was able to actually fight back.

"I'm almost done with your exam," She told him before initiating her master plan.

Deidara learned just how cold her hands were when she quickly inspected his lower regions.

"Ah, so you do take after your father," She said wickedly as she quickly finished her exam, "There you go, let me get you something to eat and then something to knock you out cold for a while."

"I probably deserved that," Deidara croaked with his hoarse voice, "But why are your hands so cold, yeah."

"Your father doesn't complain," Tsunade said with a grin, "I think he likes my hands."

"Too much information!" Deidara whimpered weakly, "I do not need that in my head, regardless of if you are his new wife."

"Does it bother you?" Tsunade asked, her expression and tone turning serious, "That he got remarried to me? That we have a child together?"

Deidara looked at her. His face was pale from being sick and he had black rings under his eyes from being tired, but his eyes were not dulled.

"No," He relented, shaking his head weakly, "It doesn't bother me. I haven't seen him in years, yeah… he deserves happiness and if he gets that from you, I should be happy with his happiness."

"Well, perhaps you aren't too terrible after all," Tsunade said as she pulled off her gloves, "No there is no possible way for me to still be angry with you. You're just a natural charmer, aren't you?"

"Yep." He croaked with a smile lightly on his lips, "How do you think I got such a fine catch as your student, yeah?"

Tsunade laughed as she got up, "Alright kiddo, I'll give you points for that one. Let me get you something to try to choke down before I give you enough medicine to knock you out for the rest of the day and well into tomorrow."

"That would be wonderful." Deidara groaned, "Can we skip the meal though?"

Tsunade gave out a huge laugh that shook her whole body.

She stopped suddenly and looked at him with a serious look, "No."

"Can't blame me for trying, yeah."

When Sakura came back home, it was late. She had seen most of the children back to their different homes and took her mass of children home.

"Well, if my little lovelies aren't home at last!" Azora said as she put the last plate on the table, "Come, sit and eat your food."

"Arisu has missed this sooooo much!" Arisu exclaimed as she skipped over to her designated chair and smiled happily.

Kagerou sat next to Arisu on one side, Ichigo on another, Amariris next to him, and Rei next to his sister and mother.

"What about our surprise?" Rei asked, looking at his mother with a questioning stare.

"After dinner," Sakura promised, taking a bite from her meal with a quiet smile.

Rei looked over to his grandparents, "Well do you know what it is?"

Both of them casted looks at each other, before looking back at him with unreadable looks, shrugging at the same time.

"That's not fair! You're both trained shinobi!" Rei exclaimed, pointing at both of them.

"Eat your dinner Rei," Tsunade said before putting her spoon in her mouth, "This is something I am not crossing your mother on."

Rei looked over to Nawaki who was sloppily eating his meal, "Nawaki?"

"Yes Wei-nii-kun?" Nawaki said with a bright smile on his face.

"Rei," Sakura warned, "don't go asking around. Now eat your dinner or you won't get your surprise."

"Su'pwise?" Nawaki asked, crinkling his brow, "T'ey get a su'pwise, hmm?"

"You've already seen it Nawaki-chan, now no more talking just each your dinner, hmm," Haitaka told his son, before taking a bite of his food and putting it to Nawaki's mouth.

Rei was mad that he couldn't get anyone to tell him throughout dinner. Amariris didn't mind, she concentrated on eating so she could get the surprise. Kagerou and Ichigo were curious, but knew it probably was only something that would have great meaning to the mismatched twins.

Ichigo figured that his twin knew what it was, but at the same time didn't. You didn't ask her unless you wanted a headache.

Finally, after what seemed for be forever, dinner was over.

"It's over now," Rei told his mother, looking up with big eyes as he pleaded to her mentally to finally show them the surprise.

"I don't know," Sakura said with a teasing smile, "Tsunade-kaa, do you think I should show them?"

Tsunade knew that was a question meant for her about his condition. If he was out enough not to wake up while she was showing them their father.

She heaved a big sigh, pretending to be put out by it and rolled her eyes playfully, "I suppose so."

"Alright then, I guess it is time to show you," Sakura said with a playful smile, but quickly turned to her other charges, "Would you like to see as well?"

"No thanks, I'll see it later," Ichigo shook his head.

"I'm tired. No doubt I will hear of it tomorrow," Kagerou stated.

"Arisu already knows, so why would Arisu go?"

"Right," Sakura said, picking up both twins, one in each arm, "I guess that means it's just us, hm?"

"Yep," Both chimed happily.

Amariris might have been quiet, but she was no less impatient as her twin. She just knew that showing it usually ended up in her mother's teasing. She wished her brother would figure that out. But he was curious and stubborn. He would never change; he was too much like their mother.

They approached their mother's room, but she paused.

"Now, whatever is in here, you must stay silent. Whisper if you must but you must be quiet. No shouting at all." Sakura said, making it clear to the twins that she was not screwing around.

"Hai, mommy," both said in a whispered tone.

Sakura smiled, kissing both of them on their foreheads before silently opening the door and entering.

The lights were off in the room, but there was a little light coming from the window as the sunset. It was just enough to see into their mother's room.

Amariris was the one who saw the surprise first, before Sakura began to approach the bed. There was someone sleeping there in her mother's bed. She could hear Rei also gasping. She peered over to see his eyes wide as well.

There, sleeping in their mother's bed was a blonde male. He was pale and his face was covered in sweat. His nose was red and there were black rings under his eyes, but there was no doubt who he was. He looked too much like their grandfather.

"Is he," Rei breathed silently.

"Daddy?" Amariris finished for him.

"Yes," Sakura whispered, "He is your daddy."

She watched as both her children stared at him in an awed silence. Rei was silenced. He didn't say a word, but she knew that he was not going to take Deidara with open arms. Amariris was already smiling as her jade eyes twinkled happily.

"He's very sick right now," Sakura told them, "So we can't overwhelm him. So I want you two to be very considerate to that."

Rei tore his eyes away from his father's sleeping form.

"What?" He whispered violently.

"Rei," Sakura warned, "He's going to be staying. He's your father and he will love you." She turned her head Amariris. "Both of you. He will love both of you."

"Alright mommy," Amariris said as she wiggled, sliding down out of her mother's arms and quietly approached her father.

Sakura watched as her daughter gently stroke her father's hair.

"He's got the flu?" She asked, her jade eyes glowing like embers in the setting sun, such like her natural affinity with earth and fire.

"Yes. Right now his immunity is low. He is very weak right now. He's hurt and trying to recover."

"He looks malnourished," Rei added in, the first time he had really spoken without being upset.

"He was very sad when he couldn't find me," Sakura told them, her eyes dimming, "He had given up on life."

Rei wiggled, a bit, "He loved you that much?"

"Yes," Sakura told him, giving him a kiss on the cheek before setting him down next to his sister, "But he has us now. We will fatten him up and get him as healthy as a horse again."

"Yeah," Amariris said excitedly in a whispered tone.

"I guess," Rei allowed, finally touching his father, as if to see if he was real.

He wasn't too happy about this, but he felt as if he understood more than before. Gaara had prepared him for this, he realized grudgingly, and he had good points about it too. He would trust his mother's judgment for now, until he could make his own decision.

"When do you tell him about us?" Rei asked, looking back up to his mother.

Sakura's expression grew clouded for a moment. She bit her lip for a second.

"I don't know how to," she finally said, "I don't want to scare him or overwhelm him when he's like this…"

"It would be worse to keep it a secret." Rei told her, taking the rag in the bowl of water next to the bed and wrung it tightly before wiping his father's face clean of sweat, "if he's anything like you have told us, he will want to know."

Sakura smiled as she stooped down to her son and daughter's height.

"Well then, I guess when he wakes, one of you should be there to greet him huh?" She whispered as she stared at her lover.

"Yeah," Amariris said happily, "Could it be me, mommy? Please?"

"Alright baby," Sakura said as she kissed her daughter's soft locks of silvery white wisps.

"Thanks mommy," Amariris said before she looked at her lovingly.

"You're welcome baby," Sakura said, pausing for a second before swooping both children up in her arms and pulling them away, "Now, let's let Daddy rest and get to bed ourselves."

"Yes mommy," both whispered in a fit of silent giggles.

Cut, that's a wrap!!! Yes!!!

Other then that, you know the drill:

Tell me what you think! Your input is used in my stories, so give me what you think!

Alright, that's it for now.

Till next time

Unknown Artist of Hanagakure

signing out

-bleep-