Hello again!

You all should be THANKING me right now - I have AP exams tomorrow, and yet I dutifully said "screw it" to my studies, and instead decided to power through this entire chapter (it only took like, three hours!).

I expect feedback cuz of this, peeps!

IMPORTANT NEWS: I have a new fanfiction out! It's an Avatar: The Last Airbender fiction called Legend of the Unforeseen.

I think it's got great potential (it's so AU it'll make your head spin, but I enjoy it) so if you could, PLEASE GO CHECK IT OUT AND TELL ME WHAT YOU THINK!

Enjoy!

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Chapter 11

Gaara sat silently, Temari and Kankuro standing near the window across from him, both wary as they stood guard. The young Kazekage had spent the last two days traveling to the Land of Iron, where the Kage Summit was to take place. It appeared that the other Kage hadn't arrived yet, and so he was directed rather coolly to a spacious hallway with benches on either side to wait. In his hands was the large, triangular shaped hat that had the symbol of his country proudly stitched in plain sight, and he slowly placed it on a space of empty bench beside him.

The Sand-nin was unwilling to admit that he felt something akin to nervousness at the thought of convening with four other Kage that were inevitably older and more proud than he was. The former Shukaku host did not fully understand his feelings of unease, and so naturally he could not afford for them to be expressed on his face.

Even after all this time, the only emotions he felt truly bound to where fear, pain, and hatred. Those feelings had, at one time in his life, ruled him utterly and completely. Now that he was free of the demon that he had considered – and still considered to be, in a strange, inexplicable way – his only true ally, he felt rather lonely.

The demon had known everything there was to know about him, and to have lost the one being that knew such things with no hope of ever retrieving that same suffocating connection with someone…it left Gaara feeling strangely empty. It had only been a year and a half since the Shukaku had been torn from him. It was a long time, and Gaara had found that he rather enjoyed the comfort and blissfulness of sleep after so many nights of being unable to engage in the act. But even so…his soul needed to adjust, and Gaara wished that he could somehow alleviate the process. Perhaps this meeting will allow me to organize my thoughts, Gaara mused silently.

The red haired young man sighed, folding his fingers together and leaning his chin against them, staring out the window with pale-teal eyes. The Land of Iron was dim and unremarkable, with featureless hills surrounding the stone building in which the summit was being held. The sky was cloudy, the snow falling softly and blanketing everything in a shapeless white layer, and the trees that were visible were bereft of leaves as well as any animal life that might have inhabited the branches.

Gaara could see why it was such an appreciated neutral zone for the shinobi nations. There were no distinguishing elements nor colors to show or signify favor or influence, it was truly a place that did not partake in sides. It was merely itself, with nothing else to influence its decisions.

Gaara continued to stare out the window, and was distracted by a loud voice booming into the hallway. The young man turned quickly to see an impossibly short old man with a rather large and red nose being carried by a large, round-faced shinobi with a rather good-natured air to him. To the side of the odd looking pair was a slender young woman – she didn't look to be much older than seventeen or eighteen – with short black hair and eyes that were the strangest shade of magenta. Her face was set in serious wariness, but Gaara noticed that her eyes were sparkling with anticipation, betraying her concealed excitement.

The young Kazekage stood at their approach, his head bowing briefly to acknowledge the old man. From the two guards' headbands as well as the symbol on the old man's triangular hat, Gaara noted that they were from Iwagakure, and that the red-nosed man was the Tsuchikage. Gaara had never met the leader in person before this point, and so did not greet him by name, rather, he offered his own.

"Greetings. My name is Gaara, and I am the Fifth Kazekage of Sunagakure. These are my escorts, Temari and Kankuro," he said politely, and Temari and Kankuro each bowed to the Tsuchikage as they were introduced.

The old man motioned for the large guard to let him down, and the young shinobi did that without hesitation. The young woman snorted as her leader stumbled, and the Tsuchikage sent her a furious glare before turning to consider Gaara. There was a moment of tense silence, and the older man finally sniffed arrogantly, crossing his stubby arms over his chest.

"I am Ōnoki, the Third Tsuchikage of Iwagakure. This is Kurotsuchi," he motioned to the young woman, who did not bow, instead turning her head dismissively and examining her fingernails with a bored expression. Gaara held up a restraining hand to prevent Temari from responding angrily to the blatant lack of respect, and listened as Ōnoki continued.

"And this here is Akatsuchi." The young man politely inclined his upper body in a bow that was slightly deeper than necessary – a sign of goodwill – a kind small frown on his face as he glared lightly at his female comrade for not doing the same. Kankuro was scowling at Kurotsuchi, who was scowling right back, and with equal force. Gaara sighed, disliking the hostiles that were already forming – he could care less if the kunoichi chose not to acknowledge his position; there were more important things to worry about at the present.

Ōnoki glanced around, his thick brows furrowing when his gaze beheld only the empty hallway beyond Gaara and his siblings. "Has no one else arrived yet?"

"No, but I'm sure that it wont be long," Gaara murmured, his red hair gleaming in the bright fluorescent light that shone from the ceiling. Kurotsuchi scoffed at that, and Gaara let his gaze finally rest upon her. The young woman was smirking derisively, and he raised an eyebrow in silent question.

"Is there something you would like to say to me, kunoichi?" he asked quietly, letting a tiny bit of his irritation show in the use of her title rather than her given name. Kurotsuchi put her hand on her hip, and her magenta eyes narrowed.

But she said nothing.

Gaara sighed. "If you have nothing to say, then hear this. I am not your enemy in this current situation. Our nations have been enemies in the past, and very well may be at odds once more in the future. But in the present, here and now, we must put aside our discord and work together to fight a force that is bigger than all of us. Your obvious show of disapproval will do nothing more than create more conflict."

Kurotsuchi's lips pursed angrily, but she continued to remain silent under the piercing stare of the Kazekage. Gaara remained there for a few moments, and then turned away from the trio of Iwagakure shinobi. Kankuro and Temari followed Gaara as he made his way toward the meeting room. He would wait in there until the rest of the Kage arrived; he needed time to think, and it was obvious that he wasn't going to get any peace while under the scrutiny of Kurotsuchi and her Tsuchikage.

Gaara was about to open the door when Ōnoki's voice rang out in the hallway, loud and powerful for such a tiny man.

"You are close to the Nine-Tails Jinnchuriki, are you not?"

That made Gaara stop, and his teal eyes narrowed at the flippant use of the word "Jinnchuriki". The man made the word sound almost animalistic, a phrase that was used to describe something distasteful to him. That made Gaara's hackles rise almost instinctively. If he were a different kind of person, he might have turned and yelled at the Tsuchikage, angrily defending the title of Jinnchuriki.

If I were more like Naruto, Gaara thought grimly, and was glad that his back was still turned, because it gave him time to wipe his face of all anger before shifting to face the Tsuchikage. The older man was standing with his feet braced apart, his hand tenderly supporting his hip as he stared inquisitively at the Kazekage. Gaara felt a wave of dislike rise in him at the sight of the man's seemingly permanent look of arrogance that marred his brow.

"What of it?" Gaara asked coolly, and Ōnoki's brow rose at the young Kazekage's tone. The older man flared, his hands clenching as he rose up to his full – and rather diminutive – height.

"There's no reason to get snippy with me, boy! I was just surprised; it seems strange that such a close friend of the Jinnchuriki would still be ignorant of the situation," he said, his eyes narrowing.

Gaara's emotions flared at that, and his mind quickly struggled to figure out what could possibly be wrong involving Naruto. The Kazekage hadn't been in contact with Konohagakure for several months now, and it was only a week ago that he was informed of the Akatsuki's attack on the village, the utter destruction that the attack had caused, and the condition of the comatose Hokage as well as the name of the replacement that was being sent to the Summit. There had been no mention of Naruto or anything involving the Jinnchuriki…so what could possibly be amiss?

"Enlighten me," Gaara stated curtly, his tone leaving no room for argument. The young kunoichi beside Ōnoki gasped in astonishment, her eyes flaring as she stepped forward in furious outrage. Kankuro and Temari tensed immediately, and the young woman reluctantly stepped back once more under their stony glares, her face set with anger.

"Hey, you have no right–"

"If you have any sense of self-preservation, I suggest that you be quiet," Gaara snarled. Kurotsuchi blinked at the cold anger that was being exuded from Gaara's form, and her voice immediately trailed into silence. Gaara took a deep breath, and turned to Ōnoki. "If you cannot teach her proper manners, I will have no choice but to do so myself. To you I am impossibly young, but I assure you, I have no qualms in removing your guard's arms if she dares to question my authority again."

Kurotsuchi's face did not reveal any fear, instead darkening in hatred as she defiantly turned her head to the side. Ōnoki did not acknowledge the threat, instead eyeing Gaara with smug eyes. Gaara knew that he had just proved Ōnoki right in mocking his youth; he had let his emotions rule his actions, and for that he would pay in the battle of politics that was to be fought sooner than later. But Gaara did not waver in his resolve, and after a moment he took a deep breath and straightened. Ōnoki smirked.

"How such an unstable boy such as yourself became Kazekage is beyond me…"

Gaara did not take the bait that Ōnoki was tempting his anger with, instead smiling slightly. It took all of his self-control to keep his voice neutral and cordial, and he crossed his arms over his chest as he spoke.

"It isn't an issue of how I became Kazekage, the reality of our situation suggests otherwise. Unless you are planning to eliminate my presence from this world in the near future, I am currently the Kazekage of Sunagakure, and I will retain my position until I choose to relinquish it. Here and now, we are equally influential leaders of great shinobi nations. That fact cannot be disputed. As such, I ask that you inform me of the situation involving Naruto Uzumaki."

Ōnoki scowled. "Cheeky brat. But you make a good point. The situation is that of the Nine-Tails Jinnchuriki's whereabouts. Sasuke Uchiha has kidnapped him and is – we believe – planning to trade the Nine-Tailed-Fox for something in return, something precious that the Akatsuki have within their grasp. The Uchiha is now marked an S-rank criminal, and is to be killed on sight."

Gaara's eyes widened, and the air went deathly still as his mind labored to comprehend what had just been spoken.

Naruto's eyes were wide and warm as he grinned sheepishly. "I guess this is the part where we're supposed to shake hands, but I don't know if you want to–"

What happened next was instinctive. Gaara didn't think about it, nor did he care that no thought had gone into the action. He wasn't going to bother himself with the feelings of uncertainty, it was time that he just let the emotions come and do what they will.

Gaara's hand rose, and with it, a small tendril of sand rose as well – weak and faltering, as a result of the absence of Shukaku – and tugged on Naruto's hand, urging it to rise. Not a word was said between the two of them after that, but Naruto's grin of happiness said it all. The two boys shook hands, the sand tightening around their palms and Gaara's lips twitching upward in a small, but impossibly relieved smile.

They were friends.

Gaara cleared his throat, struggling to contain himself as his voice echoed sharply in the tense silence.

"Naruto…kidnapped?"

Hinata was terrified, to say the least.

Somehow, by the act of some merciful god or other entity that was unknown to her, she had managed to fool the other high-ranking shinobi into thinking that she was in fact Neji Hyuuga. How she had pulled that off was still a mystery, but Hinata was too focused on the mission at hand to give it much thought.

As was decided at the beginning of the mission, she was running rear, her legs struggling to keep up with the rest as they sped ahead of her. The snow was covering everything in a glittery, beautiful layer of snow, and the air was crisp and clean, biting at her lungs as she breathed in and out. Her Byakugan was out, dutifully scanning the trees for potential enemies, her mind swimming with underlying panic.

Naruto was missing. Whether the reason was to rescue a friend or something completely different and unrelated, the prospect of Naruto alone with only Sasuke to protect him still sent fear trickling down Hinata's spine. Along with the fear, Hinata also felt sadness and embarrassment. At the thought, her stab wound – it ached and stung, still healing after the sword she had taken to the abdomen – tingled ominously, and she gritted her teeth to ward off the pain.

Hinata had finally told Naruto of her true feelings.

After nearly five years of trying to express her feelings, she had finally done so, and in front of everyone. There had been no stuttering, no hesitation, and most of all…no fear. But now that it was over, and nothing had been said by Naruto or by anyone else concerning the proclamation, reality was slowly settling in.

She should have expected this. Of course Naruto wouldn't want to hurt her feelings too badly, and so he had effectively let her down easy by not mentioning it and embarrassing her further. Or perhaps he had forgotten the declaration entirely, and that was an even worse realization to accept.

She really was nothing to him but a strange, shy girl who always fainted whenever they were in close proximity. How could Hinata even hope to compare with strong, beautiful, confident Sakura? There wasn't any hope for her, so why was she even entertaining the thought that maybe…just maybe…Naruto was thinking of her?

Hinata had always been a hopeless romantic.

But she was also a kunoichi, and so she had trained herself to accept disappointment with a straight face, and to push aside personal emotion in favor of the task at hand. Well…that's what was expected of her, anyway. Emotions were often impossible to conceal completely, even for elite shinobi.

No wonder Hinata's father favored Hanabi. She was so much stronger than Hinata was; in skill and in containing her emotions.

The kunoichi winced as her foot landed on the branch rather awkwardly, sending a sudden jolt of pain up her stomach, and Sakura glanced back worriedly. The pink-haired medic slowed, running alongside Hinata, green eyes scanning Hinata's form.

"Neji, are you alright?"

Hinata was still having trouble responding to her cousin's name, and so it took her a moment to respond. "Yes, I am fine."

"You don't look fine, Neji. Are you sure…wait…is that blood?" Sakura's voice rose in surprise, and Hinata's heart nearly stopped as she looked down. Her stitches had torn open, and her wound was bleeding again. The red was soaking through her shirt – it couldn't be covered by the illusion – and Hinata blinked rapidly to keep back panicked tears. Her eyes locked with Sakura's, and Sakura's face frowned as her green eyes noted the shiny sheen to Hinata's eyes – to the medic, they were the uncharacteristically teary eyes of the oh-so stoic Neji Hyuuga.

Hinata could practically see Sakura's brain working and clogging away – remembering the stab wound she had treated on a familiar Hyuuga not three days ago, the location, the size – and Hinata's stomach turned when a look of pure and unadulterated shock creased Sakura's face. Those emerald eyes grew so wide that they bulged slightly, and Hinata's eyes lowered in shame that she had been found out so easily.

"H-Hinata?"

Sakura's voice was impossibly soft, and before Hinata could say anything, there was a sudden sound as the ninken Murasaki barked loudly, putting the entire group on alert. The Inuzuka – Ashi, her name was – called back, her voice muted in the strange muffled air of the snow.

"We've got Kumogakure shinobi up ahead…it looks like the Raikage and his guards on their way to the Kage Summit!"

Bou frowned. "Alright, we're going to intercept them, just so they don't think we're enemy ninja tracking them. They've probably already sensed our presence, so there's no point in trying to hide."

The rest of the team nodded before slowly beginning their descent from the trees, and Sakura sent Hinata a silent look before tugging a roll of bandages out of her bag. Hinata winced as the medic began wrapping the cloth snugly around Hinata's middle, effectively putting pressure on the wound and covering the blood. It really was quite a feat, seeing as they were still in motion, and Sakura gave Hinata a serious look as she tugged the Hyuuga's cloak shut over the bandaging, hiding it from sight.

"You're going to explain this to me later," Sakura whispered, her voice stern.

Hinata nodded, and the two of them separated, both landing in the snow almost silently, running to catch up with the group.