A/N: Over 80 Reviews I love you guys :33 cookies for everyone ^-^ and now to the story to finally meet someone again.
Chapter 17: A detour
OC 14 years old, Itachi 20 years old
It took some month and more visits to the Akatsuki hideout until I could give Pain the scroll from Tsunade.
It was a peace offer between Konohagakure und Amegakure, so simply said Pain continued as the leader of Ame just this time official and Akatsuki will continue his originally purpose as long as his members want to, as ninjas of Ame, when not they could continue their live as missingnin outside of the organisation.
Konohagakure will support Amegakure by the negotiations with the other Kages about the part of missingnins becoming part of another village, normally it wouldn´t be a problem but this missing nins are a special case. While negotiating this, both would try to get a peace agreement between all the other great villages and even small villages, not counted Otogakure.
Pain was now one of the few peoples knowing the truth about me, at first, he was a bit disturbed about a 14-year-old teen girl sitting across from him with a so serious and old look in her face talking like a veteran diplomat and being painfully honest with the consequences of some of their early plans.
We stood in the place we first met it was time now to go home reporting back to Tsunade and Shikaku.
"It was really a nice time with you" I smiled at them. Konan may not know about me but she knows that I´m important so she still was very nice to me especially after I got Pein from his earlier plans.
Flashback
It was evening and I sat outside of the tower marvelling about the beautiful night sky with the stars seeming bigger and shiner than at home.
"Excuse me can I talk with you a moment?" The feminine voice of Konan drifted to my ear making me aware of her presence.
"Sure" It did look at her for a moment but then again up into the sky.
"it is beautiful here, I envy you. Able to see this every day" she was silent for a moment so I asked her.
"What do you want to talk about?" I now turned fully to her standing in that little room not far away from me.
"I wanted to thank you" She gave me on of her rarest smiles coming up to me.
"Here for you" She got a complicated folded water lily from her sleeve holing it out to me and I took it very carefully.
"Thank you it is beautiful"
´Wow´
´Yeah pity we aren´t THAT good at folding papers´
´You mean we can´t even to it because I have a tendency to cut myself at the paper´
´Pity´
´Yes but I will take care of this...maybe putting it into our box from Itachi..´
She smiled a last time and went back inside.
"You better come in it will rain soon" she said bevor disappearing inside the tower.
Flashback End
I met up with Jiariya and Naruto at the inn packing.
"Nee Yuuki?" Naruto asked when we were ready to go.
"Yes?"
"Suna isn´t far away..." He trailed off looking a bit shy.
"And I promised a friend to visit" He got this hopeful sparkle in his eyes combined with a puppy dog look I couldn´t resist already knowing who this friend is.
´Visiting Panda-kun sounds good´
´But I hate the heat´
´Suck it up´
´Hai hai´
"It is alright Naruto no one is waiting I already told them that I didn´t know when I would come back so we can easily go and see you friend right Jiraiya ?" I saw that he wasn´t really sure of this idea knowing the slight instable situation in Suna because of the new Kazekage
"You know that a certain ANBU head is worried like crazy and is surely waiting for your return?"
Naruto and I gave him a quizzable look.
"Itachi? Why?"
"On the day of your first meeting with Pain he came here looking for you. You know what it means right?"
´He left his post, traveling into enemies territory alone, and told no one about that´
I nodded.
´But why would he go so far?´
´You know we are more than a friend to him...´
´But surely Sasuke told him about our excuse?´
´...I don´t know´
´Better investigate after we are back´
"But I think it would be nice to visit Narutos friend. What is his name by the way?" I change the topic back to the blonde's suggestion.
"What harm could it do? We are now allies" I gave him a grin.
"Yes Ero-sennin let us go!" The number one knuckle head was already heading out leaving us behind.
"Naruto...Suna is that way" Jiraiya pointed into the opposite direction telling us in other words that he agrees with our detour.
´Why again thought we that it was a good idea?´
´I don´t know´
I really hated the heat of the desert, but somehow, I bore with it, I changed my horse at the border against a camel finally understanding why they were called desert ships. The heat in the day the cold in the night I really was yearning for the village.
Somehow, we made it there after some days in that good dam sand. I was hanging on my camel like an overcooked chicken.
´Sooo hoooottt´
´There look shadow!´
We went through the passage into the village, the short relive of the heat refreshed me enough to dismount and begin to walk behind Naruto who was led by a sandnin to the Kazekage first before they could search for Gaara.
´We are the only one knowing that HE is the Kazegake´
´Narutos face will be priceless´
´It will only eager him on in his own goal´
´Heheheh´
At the Kazekage building my camel was taken from me for the duration of us begin in there.
"Ne~ why must we go to the Kazekage first?" Naruto complained.
"Because we are allies and visiting for the first time without any mission" Jiraiya answered already looking up the secretary which showed them to the office, knocking on the door.
"Enter" She gave us a short signal to wait.
"The Sanin Jiraiya, Naruto Uzumiaki and Yuuki Hanaka are here" She only said and then let us enter the office. Behind the big desk was a swivel chair with its back to us so we couldn´t see the person in it first.
When we were all in and greeted him with "Good day Kazekage-sama" and a bow the chair turned revealing Gaara sitting the with a shadow of a grin. I watched Naruto´s reaction.
First he blinked then his jaw hit the floor, his eyes got bigger and a hand came up accusing pointing at him.
"GAARA!?"
´He didn´t disappoint us´
´Hehehehe´
"Naruto" the red head responded calmly but still had that small grin in his face.
´You know ...Panda-kun is also handsome´
´And you know already-´
´But looking can´t hurt´
´True´
"It looks like we found your friend already" I remarked grinning at Naruto who still was trying to coup with this situation.
"Yeah..."
"So you must be Yuuki, nice to see you this time conscious" Gaara looked now to me with curiosity.
"?" I didn´t know what he meant by that beside that he seems to have already seen me while I was unconscious.
"Ah" Naruto rubbed his neck sheepish.
"I wanted him to meet you but...you were healing so I promised to take you with me when I visit" He confessed laughing a bit awkwardly looking between us.
Gaara let his serious air fading and let his smile bloom on his face.
"It is nice to remember your promise Naruto" He stood up from his chair.
"You sure will want to remain here for some days, you will stay with me at my home, follow me" and so he went ahead letting us follow him back to his home just some steps away from the tower, plain but just the right building for the desert.
Opening the door he led us to two rooms.
"This one is for you Hanaka-san and you two will share the other one"
"You can call me Yuuki, when you let me call you Gaara, someone wants us to be friends" I winked at him holding my hand out, which he took.
"Yuuki...-chan" he only hesitated for a moment letting me see a little glint in his teal eyes
´Did I see that mischievous flash right there in his eyes?´
´It was too fast I don´t know´
"That is great thank you Gaara" Naruto cheered already throwing himself on the bed in his room while Gaara turned to Jiraiya.
"How long do you plan to stay exactly?"
"Maybe a week we don´t want to agitate them keeping Yuuki away for too long." He smiled and sniggered mentally at the thought of a certain Uchiha pacing up and down in the Hokage office, irritating Tsunade to the end of her nerves until she sent out a group to get them back and this Uchiha from her own back. Unknow to us this scenario wasn´t far from the truth.
3rd POV
In Konoha, Hokage office
A group of ANBU were kneeling on the floor having given their report of their mission and waited to be dismissed or given a new mission.
Tsunade read the last part of the report and sighted.
"You are dismissed" she waved her hand and they all disappeared beside one who still kneeled down.
Tsunade didn´t need to look up to know it was Itachi who still remained and she also knows why.
"Uchiha stop asking always for that, I didn´t get any news, I would have already told you just to get you from my back, brat" her temper was slowly raising, but the man remained unfazed.
"Let me look for her"
"No I need you here, I can´t let my strongest Ninja go and look for a little girl that will come back when it is time" she sneered a bit at that, but only received narrowed onyx eyes.
"Cocky brat come to your sense, no woman like a overprotective boyfriend" she huffed out but cooled down seeing the Uchiha becoming wordless with a...she wasn´t sure if she should bet on that, but it looked like embarrassment. He recovered fast and still stood in the office, still pressing the matter without words.
"Two weeks then I will send a letter to Jiraiya to hurry up, and now out of my office brat" Tsunade gave away to this cold pressing stare of the Uchiha and took out her sake.
3rd POV End
The next day in Suna
I heard banging at my door but I tried to ignore it in favour for my sleep so I snuggled deeper into the comfortable bed.
The door swung open banging into the wall, letting in an energetic hyperactive blond.
"YUUUU-CHAN GOOOD MORGNING!" He was only greeted with a glare and an accurate thrown pillow.
´Don´t kill him the world needs him´
´You still like him as a friend?´
´I know he is such a lucky guy´
"Heh no morning person? Come Yuu-chan, Gaara is also up let's do something together" He came up pulling off my thin blanked and also tried to get my pillow only to have me clutching it tightly and shooting him a death glare. Having suddenly an idea he let go of my pillow having a wide foxy grin spread over his face.
"You know...it is said that the ice creme in Suna is the best" he drawled giving me a knowing look.
´That´s just too obvious as if we would fall for that´
But I was already out of bed and changed in record time in the bathroom and just 2 Minutes later I stood ready on my doorframe looking at the surprised Naruto.
"What do you wait for?" I said waiting for him to take the lead.
´You let him bribe you?´
´Ice creme, hello, the best ice creme I won´t miss that´
´Sometimes you are too easy´
´...the little things are that what we should cherish´
"Gaara waits downstairs so let's go" Naruto quickly took the lead and I just followed already arguing with my inner which sort we should take.
"Good morning" Gaara greeted us this time not wearing his Hokage robe but some more casual clothes beside him stood Jiraiya grinning widely.
"Good morning Gaara" I gave him my best dazzling smile to only get a sceptic look from him surly not used to a female smiling so early in the morning.
"So, then everyone is here" Jiraiya grinned.
"I will do some research so behave kids" he waved and made his way eagerly to some bathhouse, I was sure of it.
"I will give you a tour. Temari and Kakuro will tack along later they are training some academy kids" Gaara informed us and turned around to begin and we followed.
Suna in short was first of all hot, but they have built their boring looking houses so that the heat doesn´t get inside. Despite the missing green it was also an oasis and they really cherish their water. Naruto tuned that part in Gaaras tour out and focused more on the food stalls and so on or interrupted talking about ninjutsus and asking about the puppeteering.
It was around lunch time when Temari and Kakuro walked up to us adding some small talk and other information like the new clothing trends in Suna or the progress in developing new poison.
Gaara lead us into a nice little restaurant for eating and as a dessert he ordered the promised ice creme for everyone. This morning I thought Naruto exaggerated about how good it would be, but it proofed to be even better than he told me.
It was a smooth ice creme dream of cold cherry and vanilla or simply said just perfect.
The other half of the day was spent in the rest of the tour and talking at the home of the sand siblings until a bit after dinner. Naruto soon hit his bed like the others even Jiraiya just shortly showed his maimed face and went to bed, surly tried out from running away from angry sand-women.
I on the other side went up on the roof to look up to the stars. In Ame the view was just great but here in Suna it wasn´t bad either no cloud was up there so I could the clear sky in its fullest.
´We archived all what we set for us...so what now?´
´A good question...I don´t know just live and let everything just happen?´
´No dream?´
´Something like a goal?...I don´t know...´
´A husband?´
´We both know that I´m a hard nut to crack you know that I don´t believe to find one´
´But this world is different why shouldn´t be there anyone...like Shikamaru´
"This place is really good for thinking" the voice of Gaara reached my ears and I turned around to the insomniac redhead.
"Yes, it is" I gave him a smile and looked up to the stars.
"What do you think about?" He asked silently walked up to me and sat town on my side.
"About...how to call it right...my future path? My goal? I have done everything that I wanted to do...I don´t desire more...but also I feel a bit lost without anything bigger to do..."
He blinked a few times not expecting such deep thoughts.
"Humans always desire something" He stated looking up to the stars.
"Most of the time they desire money or power" he gave me a short glance but then pointed his attention up to the stars.
"A family" I said.
"I want a family...that is why I gave up to become a ninja...and also that is something that I can´t influence it will happen...or not" I lost myself in the night sky remembering someone with eyes just a little shade darker than the night sky watching me with unspoken warmth.
´He would be a great father don´t you think so, too?´
´...He would be...´ a short smile crossed my face imaging Itachi holding his children telling them a story smiling his warm smile at them and then turning around greeting his wife with a sweet but smouldering kiss letting her know how much he missed her after that mission.
´But he will marry someone out of the clan...I also think Shikamaru would be also a great but lazy dad´ I could image Shika laying dozing on the porch while the children were knotting his hair and his wife were cooking lunch calling him until she had enough coming up to him only to be pulled down in a kiss.
´They really would be great fathers and husbands to their wife and children...what more could a woman wish for´
´That you would be the lucky one´ I buried that thought spoken from my inner deep inside of me.
´It isn´t wrong you know...to wish for it´
"What do you desire Gaara?" I asked to distract myself from the cold feeling of desperation for just that a family...love and warmth. My heart twisted at the memories from my former life, trying to find someone to have a family with and failing every time. The feeling to want something that feels like you will never have.
"Love and acceptance" He answered we both still didn´t look at each other.
"Someone like you will maybe have a hard way ahead but I´m sure you will get what you desire...just like Naruto" I gave him a genuine smile that he hesitantly returned. We both fell silent watching the stars lost in our own images of our wishes come true. When the sun began to rise he broke the silence.
"Why does Shukaku not desire your blood?" He mumbled silently but still in this early silence over the village I heard him.
"Maybe because he knows that it isn´t possible for me to hurt or hate someone even a demon like him" I answered now standing right beside him.
"Why not? He is a bloodthirsty demon full of hate."
"But didn´t we made him like that? Hunting the tailed beats for power, hurting them and caging them, no wonder he hates us humans" I smiled.
"I know you have problems with him, maybe now a bit older and wiser is the time to talk to him showing him the other side of what humans can do" I grinned getting on my toes I gave him a kiss right on his tattoo.
"Good morning Gaara" I said and returned inside the building leaving a confused Gaara and a manically laughing Shukaku behind.
Inside I met Jiraiya standing on the wall beside the stairs.
"It isn´t nice to listen to others old man" I turned to the hall down to my room but stopped for a moment.
"In a few days is Naruto´s Birthday...I think we should return to Konoha for that" I gave him a short smile and went to get some sleep bevor a hyperactive fox boy will wake me up.
´You know it would be best to also use the chance and get a present for Shika and some souvenirs for your friends as an apology for being away for so long´
´Gosh I forgot!´
´?´
´I fogot Shikas birthday´
´Shame on you´
´Deserve that...we need a really good one...he was upset the last time´
´I still wonder why´
´God only know´
Just two hours later said fox boy swung my door open and hollered.
"Rise and shine!, it is a perfect day for going out!" again my answer was a pillow but this time he evades and even managed to grip my cover.
"Come on Yuuki let us have some fun" he ignored my death glare sitting down on the floor grinning up to me, melting my anger away.
´With that smile I can´t stay angry at him´
´Or you just don´t want to accept that you are going soft on cute things´
´Only over my dead body´
´...does your former dead body count?´
´...oh...´
´So you are soft´
´I would call it "having a soft heart" but yes...strange I more and more like I always lived here...beginning to forget´
´That is good don´t you think?´
´Yes´
A short smile crossed my face and I gave Naruto one of my own grin.
"When you little pervert would just leave my room, I could change and come out to have, as you said, some fun"
Naruto blinked for some seconds progressing what I said, when slowly some redness raised from his neck up to his hair.
"Ah! Oh...Yeah...Sorry!" He closed his eyes fleeing the room at ninja speed.
´Hahahaha the wonder of puberty...OH!´
´?´
´It may be a bit early and to forward to think without proof but...what if Shika is in that phase too and because of that he acted so strange getting aware of a girls/women´s body and so on´
´?´
´Girl you aren´t so naive to miss that´
´Yeah as you said It could be an option but...somehow I don´t think so, It could also be that he already begins falling for Temari, because of the early friendship between this villages she also started early traveling between them...I know that they had some meetings´
´Hmmmm...we solved so far, every puzzle we got but Boys/men's are the only one we couldn´t solve so far´
´I think it that feeling is mutual´
´True we are as much an irresolvable puzzle to them like they are to us´
With a much better mood I changed and went to meet Naruto and Jiraiya outside to plan what we do today.
"Ne Naruto I thought that we should go back to Konoha and celebrate your birthday at the festival like always" I told him my idea that I got before going to bed.
"That sounds great" He grinned and then pulled me into a bear hug.
"A then I think I should send word to Tsunade. I think she dies to hear from us" Jiraiya grinned understanding the look I gave him over Naruto´s shoulder.
"Good and Naruto will help me finding souvenirs for our dear friends"
"Yes!" Naruto cheered pulling me along down the street just too happy to return home to our friends and to show them how strong he got on his journey.
3rd POV
A bit later the same day, Hokage office
"Good dammit Uchiha! I already told you last time to wait for two weeks!" A sake bowl hit the floor beside the kneeling head ANBU.
"Something doesn´t feel right" He just responded.
"You are ANBU you doesn´t just run inside a situation just because you are "feeling" something isn´t right, you should know better after the last time when your cousin covered your ass so you could travel to Ame!"
"Hokage-sama!" Shizune interrupted the tirade.
"What!?" Tsunade barked not looking away from the brat.
"Jiraiya sent word they will be back one day before Naruto´s birthday" Shizune handed over the letter to Tsunade, so she could read for herself.
"Heard it brat? They will be back in a few days and yet...OUT! And Shikamaru better not letting me catch you eavesdropping a third time!"
Only the tips of the pineapple head were seen before he took his legs in his hands while the Uchiha disappeared in the trademark poof like every shinobi.
3rd POV End
Next day at the entrance to Sunagakure
"Sorry Gaara that we only could stay such a short time" Naruto apologized to his red head best friend.
"It is alright Naruto just visit again" Gaara graced us with one of his rare smiles.
"Wait!" Temari ran up to us before we could say or last goodbye.
"Sister?"
"I will go along, you know to bid for some help in or little problem with our hospital" she explained and also reminded Gaara of this problem.
"I forgot but you are right this is a good chance to use...I´m sure you will watch over my sister, right?"
We got a dangerous glare telling us to not get any hair on her head hurt.
´Woah sister complex?´
´Nah more family complex but understandable, they are all what is left of it´
´Sadly we couldn´t help him then, but he turned out good and now he even won´t be kidnapped still having Shukaku he will show his village that even with him he could be a good man and leader´
´He will, just like Naruto...everything is on a good way so far...but Madara is no easy opponent´
´I know hopefully everything will fall in place before he makes his move, you already made enough plans, like...50?´
´Not enough to cover every move from him sadly this isn´t chess and the choice of movements are endless, maybe I should concentrate on this from now one´
´...sometime you should think of yourself´
´Later´
´You always say this´
With this we said goodbye to Gaara and I gave him a short hug when the others turned around to start the journey back home.
"I´m sure your wish will come true" I whispered in his ear stepping back and followed the others where Naruto offered to carry me so they could get out of the desert a bit faster and back to Konoha leaving my camel behind in Suna. I got on his back looking a last time at the entrance waving to the little red spot and then hold on thigh on Naruto who began picking up his speed.
Next Chapter they will return ^-^ please leave some reviews :D Thank you