Disclaimer: Don't own Naruto.

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Oh c'mon, you don't think I would leave y'all with such a cliff hanger like that, do you? I'm not that cruel.

Ok, maybe I am.

Speaking of which, I'm prolly gonna lose my net again. And I don't know how long for. Money's tight, and I simply don't have the resources to cart the story around and upload on other computers.

So please don't flame me. I'll try to get up some more chapters before I'm gone, k?

-Olly BaaBaa-Chan

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Sakura pulled her car lazily into a parking space, not caring that her parking job was slightly off and her tires at an awkward angle. She took a quick glance in her rearview before stepping out. Already, the dyed parts of her hair were beginning to fade. Perfect. Nothing was going right this morning. After Temari had called her the night before, she'd been worried about Gaara, getting on his bike out of nowhere and riding out into the night without even a hint of where he'd gone. Temari had thought Gaara would've gone to her house, but as far as Sakura herself knew, he hadn't. And she was still upset with him. From what she had seen of the stupid man, he still wasn't talking with her.

Needless to say, this all served for a very difficult night's sleep, leaving Sakura grumpy and tired.

Actually, there was at least one thing to brighten her day. Akamaru had been released from the Animal Hospital, as Kiba explained to them that morning. The vets had been worried about possible internal bleeding, but in the end it proved to be a false alarm. Kiba's puppy pal was going to be alright.

Of course, the Subaku siblings weren't present for this announcement. All three of them were missing from the tree. Sakura subconsciously glanced around for a glimpse of red hair through the sea of students, but her search came up empty. The only thing that did catch her eye was a pair of onyx ones watching her from across the grounds. She didn't keep eye contact with Sasuke, though; it gave her chills. The slash on his cheek had scabbed over neatly, but she was almost certain it would scar. Suddenly, it was as though that mark finally shattered Sasuke's illusion of perfection. Perhaps now, if people could see that scar, they could see the evil in his soul, too.

Hinata had already told her father that Sakura was staying after for detention, and it had also been confirmed with her parents. Sakura wondered if her friends were suddenly going to be recruited as body guards while she sat and read some lame book in Kakashi's classroom. As it turned out, they had no such plans, but she was expected to call as soon as she left and also the second reached the Hyuuga household. Sakura nodded exhaustedly to these terms as the bell rang. The group advanced inside with the rest of the herd and parted ways to class.

Kakashi's classroom was quiet that morning. He'd given up trying to watch Sakura and her friends, especially now that Gaara was absent. He lounged at his desk and pulled out his orange book, while the rest of the class worked on a reading assignment. All was dull and routine.

"Well, what an honor, ladies and gentlemen," Kakashi mused. Everyone's heads snapped up to look at what their sensei might be referring to. He gave a curt nod toward the door. "It seems Gaara has decided to grace us with his presence."

Sakura felt light headed as she turned to glance at the doorway. Sure enough, Gaara was standing there outside the door. Another student stood up to open the door and let him in. He trudged slowly into the room and took his usual seat. Sakura took advantage of the moment to take in the young man's appearance. Gaara looked sick. His clothes looked dirty and disheveled, and it didn't look like he had shaved in a while. His skin was paler and his eyes darker than usual. He shouldn't have been at school right then. He should've been at home resting, with a bowl of chicken noodle soup or something.

Gaara said nothing. His head was killing him. Why had he even come to school, anyway? Through his peripheral vision, he got a glimpse of worried sea-green eyes watching his every move. He didn't like worrying Sakura, but at the moment there were sharp pains splitting through his skull, and they were, admittedly, a little distracting. Instead of opening his book, he simply tried to apply some pressure to his temples, hoping it might weaken his headache and help him remember the night before. The only thing that kept running through his head was that dream… that memory. And then he woke up on the living room couch.

And then there was Temari's bruise…

And Kankuro's worried glances.

Gaara knew he'd done something. He knew it was probably himself that had hurt his sister. Guilt flooded inside him, but… he couldn't remember it. Something else had overtaken him, and it obviously didn't register in his memory. He'd woken in the early hours of the morning with a migraine and extreme nausea. Temari had suggested he stay home for the day, but Gaara wanted to come to school.

Yet, he couldn't really remember the reason for that either.

The bell rang for class change, sending another wave of pain through Gaara's head. The students filed out of the room, with only Sakura staying an extra few seconds to look back. Kakashi stood up slowly and walked over to where the crimson-haired man sat.

"Detention."

Gaara looked up in confusion, squinting his eyes in the light, at the slip of paper being held in front of his face. His gaze shifted to that of Kakashi. "Fuck you."

Kakashi chuckled and set the paper on Gaara's desk. "You were late to class today, Gaara, and now you're cursing in my classroom. Either take the detention today after school or you and I can perform a little waltz up to Tsunade's office right now."

Gaara weakly imagined he and Kakashi dancing down the hallway.

"Since when do you care if we're late to class?" Gaara growled. But Kakashi said no more. The younger of the two men growled and snatched the paper up angrily. 'Detention'. Fuck that. He couldn't be forced to sit in detention. He might even leave school early to go home and rest.

Gaara stopped. Go home? He would have to face his brother and sister again, and that wasn't exactly something he was bouncing off the walls in excitement to do. Maybe… Maybe I can go to the detention to clear my head, he thought. It was settled then. It was unlikely Kakashi would actually make him do anything anyways. He would probably sit there and read his book, giving Gaara the perfect opportunity to rest his cheek on the cool of the desktop marble and try to remember just what exactly had happened the night before.

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Alright. R&R por favor.

-Olly