Typhoon
Chapter Four
-Croquet-
Gaara walked down the streets of Konoha, an annoyed look setting in on his face. Last night had been horrible for his sleeping. Not sleeping with Sakura had affected him more than he thought it would. This didn't make much sense, since he could sleep fine in Suna when she was not there. He sighed, sure that it was because he had slept with her the night before and now that he was refreshed with her taste he needed more. But alas, he knew things would never go how Sakura wanted them to if they were together at night.
Finally turning the corner to Sakura's street, he went up to her apartment and knocked loudly on the door, waiting patiently for the first time.
She answered shortly after his knock, a bright smile on her face. "Hey, are you ready?" she asked, even though the answer was obvious.
"I'm always ready." He said simply, letting her lock the door behind her. They walked back down to the street and headed towards the Hyuuga District. "So…what is croquet?" he asked, glancing down at her.
"Well," Sakura began, unknowingly using her hands to speak. "What you do is you pick your color and then you get your own ball, plus its matching mallet. Then you set up the course with wickets, which are like small arches, and the goal is to hit the ball through the arches and hit the pole at the end. But then," she held up her finger, as if this was a twist. "You have to go through the course backwards and make it back to the starting pole. You can only hit once a turn, but if you go through a wicket you get another hit, or if you hit someone else's ball you can hit it again, or send them."
"Send them?" he asked, appearing confused.
She nodded, stopping in the middle of the street and demonstrating for him. "You just put your foot over your ball and then hit yours against theirs! And then it goes flying! It's really fun, I'm sure you will like it." She nodded happily.
Gaara just sighed, it sure did sound like something she would enjoy. Once they finally reached the private district, Sakura knocked on the large gates. They opened slowly and creamy white met emerald. "Hello, Neji and Tenten invited us over to play croquet." Sakura smiled, waiting patiently.
The man at the gate nodded and pulled the door open, allowing them entry. Sakura led Gaara through the streets and towards the biggest house in the closed area. A servant was waiting for them at the front, and led the two to the common room where Neji and Tenten sat drinking tea. As soon as their guests arrived Neji looked up, dressed in a comfortable grey kimono. Tenten smiled brightly and got up, wearing her own kimono that was beautifully decorated with greens. "Hi Sakura! We decided to play traditionally, so we have kimonos for both you and Gaara! You can change in the spare room."
"What? I have to change?" Gaara frowned at the brunette.
"Thanks Tenten. I can't remember the last time I wore a kimono." She admitted.
"Well come on," Tenten gestured them over and pushed them into the room next door. "Now hurry up so we can get to playing!" she giggled, going over to her husband and stealing him from his tea. "Come on Neji, let's go set up the game while those two get ready."
Gaara stared at the thing he was supposed to wear. "Come on…really?" he frowned, picking up the dark red and black kimono.
"Its fine Gaara just change." Sakura gave him a harsh look, telling him he better participate and try and to be human.
He groaned and began removing his clothing, finally putting his arms through the sleeves and tying the sash around his waist. "This is weird." He complained, looking over at Sakura, who was tightening her obi. She had clipped her hair into a bun with some chopsticks Tenten had graciously left her. Her kimono was a soft pink and white, intricate drawings all over it.
"I think it's cool," she smiled. He looked really handsome in his kimono, but she would admit that it was also weird for her. She was used to seeing him in either his Kage robes, or his battle armor. But she wouldn't tell him that, knowing it would only cause him to change back into his previous attire. So she left the subject alone, hoping he would do the same. Grabbing his hand, she led him to the vast garden behind the house.
As they approached the inner garden, he took notice of how nice her form looked in a kimono. He would make a note to get her one when they got back to Suna. "You look…very pretty." He said softly.
Turning back to him, she gave him an appreciative smile. "Thank you."
They finally stepped down into the large greenery. Tenten ran towards them, two mallets in her hand. "Here Gaara you can be red." She laughed, handing him the wooden mallet with the red stripes. "And here Sakura, I had this one made special for you!" the Hyuuga's wife handed her one with light pink stripes. "I just thought it would be so cute! Right, Neji?" she turned to her bored husband, who simply sighed.
"Yeah…totally cute."
"Well the course is set! It's Gaara, Neji, myself, and then Sakura. So go on Gaara, start us off." She gave him a small push towards the starting stick. He took the red ball from the pile and set it beside the stick, lining it up to go through the first two wickets, which were located right next to the stick.
"So I just hit it?" he asked.
Tenten nodded excitedly. He looked back down and gave it a hit, causing the ball to roll through both wickets. He blinked, he wasn't too bad. Little did he know the first two were the easiest, seeing as they were located about a foot away from the starting stick.
"Yay! You got it!" Sakura cheered. "Now you get two more shots, so be sure to aim the ball for the next wicket." She instructed, pointing to where the next one was located.
He nodded, seeing the next one was a bit farther. More power was probably what he needed. Neji picked up his cup he had brought and took a sip of the herbal brew. "Just make sure you don't hit too softly, sometimes that can mess you up."
"Alright." Gaara said, walking to his ball. He aimed the mallet and then brought it all the way up, as if he were teeing off for golf.
Tenten went wide eyed, "Gaara wait! Not that-"
Too late, the redhead hit the ball as hard as he could, sending it into the air and straight through a nearby window. Sakura and Neji stayed silent, but in shock.
"Not that hard Gaara." Tenten groaned, pinching the bridge of her nose. Both women glared at Neji, the 'words of wisdom'.
He simply coughed to clear his throat. "Well…you have one shot left now."
"Yeah, but now it's going to take him forever to find his ball. And now he has to maneuver through the house in order to get it out!" Sakura insisted, throwing her arms in the air. Then she put them on her hips, and turned to the Hyuuga couple. "Can't we just give him a break, since he's never played this before?" she asked, raising a brow at Neji, asking his permission.
"Sure, go get it Gaara you can have a redo."
He sighed and closed his eyes, letting his sand find it and then bring it back to him. Finally the ball came around the corner and was tossed at the redhead's feet. Neji stepped towards Gaara and sighed, "Now this time hit it hard…but not that hard."
"Ok," he took a deep breath and tried a more controlled approach. He hit the ball and it rolled across the grass not too far away.
"Now you get another attempt to make it through the wicket." Neji pointed, being surprisingly friendly. Gaara hit the ball again, but it only hit the side of the wicket. He growled in anger, knowing that he should have gotten it through.
"Alright your turn Neji," Tenten cheered, clapping her hands for him.
The brooding brunette walked over and expertly hit his ball through both wickets. He swung again, and the ball rolled swiftly across the grass and tapped Gaara's ball. "That's two hits left." He said simply as the Kazekage steamed, not liking that he was being shown up.
Neji hit his ball through the wicket, still having two more shots. He made it close to the next wicket but then stopped, seeing as his hits were up.
"My turn!" Tenten yelled, walking over to the stick. After hitting her ball through the first two, she aimed and shot again, her ball rolling across the field, stopping just short of Neji's and Gaara's. She walked over and hit it again, making it through the second wicket, but sending it into a small ditch.
"Tough luck on that one, Tenten." Sakura said, taking aim. She hit her ball with enough force to land right next to Gaara's, hitting it. She strolled across the grass, and placed her foot on her ball. Looking over at Gaara, she said, "No hard feelings.", and hit her ball, sending his across the garden and into a flowerbed. Having two shots left, she made it through the second wicket, and, by the end of her turn, was a mere foot away from the third one. Turning around and seeing her friend's astonished faces, she shrugged. Then she looked over at Gaara. "You're turn! I wish you luck getting out of there!"
Gaara's eyes twitched as he watched her move back from the field. He walked over to his ball, and, summoning all his sand, had it creep through the grass, ready to help its master. He was not going to lose such a silly game. He hit the ball with much force and it flew forward, having a bit too much of a smooth roll among the grass. It hit Tenten's ball, and he sauntered over with a grin on his face. He aimed for the wicket and shot it through, the sand along the ground pushing and guiding the ball through the arch. "That's another turn, correct?" he asked, fighting the smirk that was about to form. Neji watched carefully, the veins around his eyes bulging a bit. He held in a laugh and quickly found another object to draw his attention.
The redhead moved towards his ball and aimed it straight for Sakura's, now that he was through the second wicket. He hit decently and it swerved into the pink orb. Tenten gasped, "Wow! Good hit Gaara!"
"You think so?" he looked towards his pink haired beauty, picking up his ball and setting it next to hers. "No hard feelings…right love?" he smiled evilly, stepping on his ball and giving it hard whack as hers sped through the grass and into the far corner of the yard.
Her eyes narrowed at his maneuver. He shouldn't be this good after sucking so bad on his first turn. Something was up. "Right Gaara. I guess now I'll have to stop going easy on you, since apparently you've already caught the hang of it."
"Sorry, I'm just naturally talented I guess." He shrugged, smiling victoriously.
Neji laughed, "Yeah it's natural alright."
Gaara took his last hit and sent it through the next wicket. Deciding he didn't want to make his cheating too obvious, he hit the ball and missed purposely. "Darn," he cursed aloud, still smiling on the inside.
"Well I suppose it's my turn now," Neji said, walking towards his ball. He faced away from them, letting his byakugan appear on his face. He aimed and channeled his chakra to the mallet, swinging and sending the ball forward. It surged straight through the wicket and continued forward, even though it should have stopped. His eyes returned to normal and he laughed. "Well now that was a pretty good hit."
He hit normally the second time, nearly getting it through the arch but not enough. He sighed, facing them once more. "Oh well."
Tenten, oblivious to what was happening, since she wasn't very good at the game, took her turn, barely managing to get the ball out of the ditch. Sakura, however, had figured out that something was up, both with Neji and Gaara. Walking across the field to where her ball was knocked, she sent some chakra to her hands. Not enough to be detected, but enough to get the job done. It shot across the field and through the third wicket, allowing for her to go again. Walking to where her ball now was, she took aim. Adding even more strength to her swing, her ball flew forward, sending Gaara's sailing across the yard and into a small pond. "Oops." She said innocently. "I guess I just don't know my own strength."
She walked to where her ball stopped and sent it through the fourth wicket, not having to help it along this time. Wanting to be farther in the lead, she sent it over to the fifth wicket, allowing it to stop right before going through. This way, her victory was practically guaranteed on her next turn.
Gaara glared at her, knowing that she was cheating, but for obvious reasons said nothing. With a flick of his wrist, that went unseen, his sand crawled towards Sakura's ball settling beneath it so when she went to swing the next time it would not move, no matter how hard she hit it. He reached his hand into the shallow pond and pulled out his ball, drying it off in the grass before setting it back down near the edge of the water.
"Alright Sakura." He moved the remainder of his sand under his ball for an extra boost. He hit the ball with a loud smack. It flew through the air, though the sand was guiding it, and ricocheted off a solid wall, rolling through the forth gate and continuing on until it hit Sakura's ball right out of the way, the sand beneath it following as to keep his trap set. "Well would you look at that." He smiled, making his way over towards the fifth wicket and hitting his ball once more, his sand giving it an odd curve straight through the gate. "Sorry, it's just a game." He laughed, hitting his ball once more so it rolled next to the sixth arch.
Neji, unable to wipe the smirk off his face, marched up to his and gave it a skillful hit. It went through the fourth and just barely tapped Sakura's. Deciding to be a bit more vicious in this game, he set his ball next to Sakura's and gave her an apologetic smile. His byakugan activated and chakra pulsed through his veins and down the mallet. "Sorry Sakura," he said giving it a hard chakra charged hit of gentle fist. The ball flew so hard that it pierced the outer cement wall of the garden, a small hole the only thing seen. Gaara smirked as well, not letting his sand stop the abuse to his fiancé. It was payback, after all.
Tenten stared in awe at the natural talent of her friends and husband. She knew at that point that there was no way she was going to win, but decided to persevere anyways. She hit the ball, barely managing for it to get through the third gate. Hitting it once more, it went past the fourth, making it so that she would have to turn her ball around on her next turn. She sighed in defeat. It just wasn't her day.
Sakura walked over to the wall and hopped over it, landing next to where her ball had landed. It was so on. She readied her mallet, and sent chakra to her hands. Swinging expertly, she was startled when she heard a loud crack. She looked into the air, only to see that the bottom half of her mallet was flying upwards, having broken off when it connected with her ball, which was still in the same spot.
Her eyes widened in shock. She leapt onto the wall, an angry glare on her face. Pointing an accusing finger at the redhead, she began to yell, "You big cheater! Let my ball go this instant! Look what you made me do to my mallet!" Then she held up the broken end of her mallet, her face red from all the yelling.
Both Gaara and Neji burst into laughter. The redhead held his hand down, palm up, while the brunette gave him a low five. "We don't know what you're talking about Sakura." They said in unison.
"Don't try and blame this on me sweetheart, just because you missed and broke your own mallet is your fault." Gaara said coolly, a smirking Neji beside him, still trying to hold in more laughter.
"I didn't see Gaara do anything of the sort." He said simply, looking up at the fuming woman.
Her emerald gaze narrowed. "I'm sure you didn't Neji, even with your byakugan." She hopped off and marched towards Gaara. Snatching his mallet from his hand, she held up her knee and broke it in half, so that it matched her own.
"Now we're even." She said. Then she turned and went back over the wall. Picking up her ball and the other half of her mallet, she came back over, and set it down on the ground. "Since you were kind enough to give Gaara another chance, I'm sure you wouldn't mind giving me the same courtesy?" she asked, raising a delicate brow.
"Oh no Sakura." Neji shook his head, "Remember your own words. Since Gaara was a beginner he got another chance, you've played…many times. So go take your ball and place it back where it was hit." He shooed her away. Gaara laughed, crossing his arms, victory all over his face. "Here Gaara," the brunette offered his mallet to the redhead. "You can use mine."
"Why thank you," The sand master smiled, taking it graciously.
Just as Gaara hit the ball, she directed some chakra into her foot and leapt over the wall, causing the ground to split, and his ball to fall down the crack. "Did you make it?" she called over, already knowing the answer.
His eye twitched, looking down at his ball. He glanced over at Neji with a look of revenge. Understanding his new friend's gesture, he kicked up his ball and spun around quickly, similar to when he did his palm rotation, and hit the ball with a chakra surge. It flew into the air and bounced off a high wall, having just the perfect angle to hit Sakura's point blank, sending it even farther from the Hyuuga estate.
Jumping up onto the wall himself, Neji smirked down at her. "Sorry Sakura. But I get another hit." He jumped down, his byakugan still activated, causing him to hit with precise accuracy. With a bounce it landed on the roof and rolled off, then taking a guided ride down the rain gutter and landing on the grass. He came back over the wall, and walked over to where his ball had landed.
Glaring at the Hyuuga, she walked over to where her ball had stopped. Adding more chakra than was necessary, she hit it with enough force to send it back through the wall, creating an identical hole. Her ball flew towards Gaara, who just barely dodged it in time. It then hit the opposite wall, landed on the grass, and rolled towards the next gate she needed. Hopping back over, she smiled, please with her handiwork. "Darn, I missed."
"Of course you missed Sakura, you couldn't see where the wicket was." The redhead pointed out to her.
She rolled her eyes at him. "No, I was aiming for your head. Oh well, there's always next time." She sighed, walking towards him.
His playful demeanor vanished almost instantly, replaced with a glare. Neji looked between the two, giving a loud sigh. They would definitely need some counseling or they might just kill each other. "Sakura, maybe you shouldn't say things like that." Neji pointed out, wanting to quail the fire burning in Gaara's eyes. Unfortunately, it was far too late to stop this new anger.
"Oh he knows I don't really mean it Neji. Gaara's not that sensitive." She said. Her competitive nature had taken full control of her, causing her to be reckless with her words.
Neji sighed, as Gaara's glare narrowed even more. He stomped on the ground, his sand reacting and tossing his ball up from the crack. He caught it in the air and dropped it at his feet. He tightened his grip on the mallet, and just before he pulled back to swing, they all heard a yell.
"OH MY GOSH I WON!" Tenten cheered, jumping up and down with glee. "I can't believe it! I WON!" she started laughing evilly. "HA! Take that bitches!" she cackled, holding up her croquet mallet and breaking it in half with her forehead. She threw the pieces aside and clapped her hands together happily.
Neji groaned, seeing his destroyed game. "Looks like I have to buy a whole new set now."
Gaara stared in astonishment. He lost? He couldn't believe it, then again the three of them were just trying to annihilate each other. This brought his previous anger back. Sakura, he thought furiously, glaring back at her.
She was simply standing there, mouth agape. She had been so sure that she had the game in the bag. But, you know what they say. Cheaters never win, and none of them had.
"Well that was fun." Tenten smiled, her odd moment gone. "Now who wants some tea?" she offered, getting a nod from Neji.
Gaara followed the head of the clan without even a word to Sakura. Once they were inside again he sat beside the dark haired man as Tenten poured them both some tea, getting out a cup for herself and Sakura as well.
The pink haired woman glanced at the redhead, wondering what was wrong. Looking back at Neji, she grimaced apologetically. "I'm sorry about your croquet equipment…and your yard. I can pay for the damages if you want." She offered, trying to smooth things over with him.
"It's alright Sakura, I was only kidding. No need to worry." He said simply, taking a sip of his tea. Gaara picked up his cup, drinking it slowly and silently.
"Well," Tenten spoke up, trying to break the awkward silence. "We should definitely do this…I mean some other kind of activity together again."
"Yeah it was fun." Sakura admitted with a smile. Then she took a sip of her tea and glanced sideways at her silent companion. "What do you think Gaara?" she asked, wanting him to say something.
He didn't gratify her wish with an answer. Neji watched the two sadly. This was definitely a problem. So he decided to try and help, but of course this needed to be handled carefully. "Tenten," Neji spoke up, looking at his happy wife. "Could you give us a moment, why don't you go check on Hanabi, she hasn't been feeling well."
Tenten blinked, a little unsure why he wanted her to leave, but knew it was important if he actually voiced it aloud. "Sure, I'll be back later then." She smiled and left the three. Once she was gone the head of the Hyuugas focused his pale gaze on the couple.
"You two are giving me an ulcer."
"Excuse me?" Gaara finally spoke up, glaring at Neji.
"How can you two even think about getting married? If you really want to make this extremely dysfunctional relationship work, you both need to quit the crap and start trying to work as a team. In everything." Neji crossed his arms, waiting for their responses.
Sakura raised a brow. "What are you talking about Neji? Gaara and I work great together." She asked, confused. She had fought alongside him, danced with him, verbally jabbed someone with him, made out with him, and it was all great. What else was there?
"You do realize you have a lot of hostility towards each other, don't you?" the brunette asked.
Gaara scoffed, "I do not have hostility towards her. She's the violent one, always trying to kill me or try and prove me wrong. Testing my patience and whatnot." He crossed his arms defensively.
She huffed at what he said. "That's only because you challenge almost every decision I make. You always have to argue with me, and when you don't get your way you pout. And I'm not the violent one, you are!" Crossing her own arms, she sent the redhead a glare. "If anyone's patience is being tested in this relationship it's mine."
He scowled back, their contest beginning. "Maybe if you made the right decisions we wouldn't have that problem."
Neji growled, growing more agitated with every word. "Shut up! Both of you, are you hearing yourselves? Does that sound harmonious to you? I am only saying this because I am your friend. I would rather not have Konoha destroyed, and I happen to wish happiness upon others." He leaned back and crossed his arms.
"Listen you two, to be in harmony you need to focus on two things. Gaara, you need to show Sakura love, not only physically, but emotionally. Women need to be shown they're loved at all times." At this Sakura stuck her tongue out at Gaara, already liking where this 'therapy session' was going.
"Sakura." Neji cut the pink haired woman off from making more facial gestures. "You need to show Gaara respect. Always. Which is something I know you have problems with. Respect is very important to a man. The most important thing for a woman is love, and the most important for a man is respect. If you just try going along that, you will find yourselves fighting less and less. How do you think Tenten and I are so compatible?"
Her shoulders slumped, dejected. Neji was right, she did need to show Gaara more respect than she did. It seemed there were a few things that she needed to learn before she could marry him. She turned to him and placed a hand on his knee. "I'm sorry Gaara. Neji's right. I was wrong to do what I did. It's just…I've never really been in a relationship like this before…and I guess there are still a few things I need to learn." She hoped he would forgive her, since admitting that she was wrong and apologizing for it was extremely difficult for her to do, especially when there were witnesses.
Neji's eyes shifted from her to the redhead. Gaara placed his hand over hers and gave her a small smile. "It's alright Sakura. I'm sorry as well…I've never been in a relationship before…so I should have gone to someone in the first place…so I would know how to treat you correctly." He looked over at the brunette, "Thank you Neji…I'm sorry about how we were acting. But still…thank you."
"It's alright, I was just making sure you two had some advice before you started hating each other." He smiled back, proud of his work and that things had calmed down.
"Oh I would never be able to hate Gaara, no matter what happened." Sakura nodded, completely confident.
At this, Gaara's gaze lowered in shame. He remembered the time he had thought that she was just using him to get to the Uchiha, and how he had hated her then. He let his hand fall from hers and faced Neji, a pained look on his face. His hands clenched into tightened fists, grabbing the fabric of the kimono. "I understand." The redhead bowed his head to the Hyuuga, understanding fully now what it meant to actually have a relationship. It was one thing to love someone, but something entirely different to be with them.
Neji tried to give him a comforting smile. Apparently he had struck a chord deep inside the Kazekage. Sakura let her hand return to her lap, not fully understanding the pained look in Gaara's eyes. She would have to ask him about that later.
"Well we should probably be heading out now," Gaara stood then, bowing respectfully. He had finally found a male he could talk to. He waited for Sakura to stand and then they walked to the room where they had changed. There was silence between the two as they dressed, but they heard Tenten enter the room and start speaking with Neji. So much joy seemed to be around both of them. That was what he wanted, to be at peace with Sakura and not fight like they seemed to do all the time.
Hearing Tenten's laugh bubble out of the room, Sakura paused in her dressing. Would she and Gaara be like that some day? If they worked out their problems? She certainly hoped so, since that was how she had always pictured married life to be like. When she finished putting her standard ninja clothes back on, she turned and faced Gaara, who was also finished. She wanted so badly to ask him what was wrong, but didn't want to open that can of worms until they were alone.
"Come on," he said sliding the door open and walking into the common room.
Tenten waved to the two, "Sorry you guys are leaving, we'll have to play sometime soon!" she nodded, leaning her head on Neji's shoulder. The brunette male pat her leg and then held her hand reassuringly.
"Yes. It was definitely…interesting."
With another wave Gaara led Sakura out of the house, walking through the maze of a district. "So…what do you want to do now? We could either go somewhere for lunch, or I can make something. You pick." She said, not really caring as long as they could spend more time together.
"Let's go out, I don't want you to have to cook." Once they had left the Hyuuga Estate he looked around, finally seeing a place that looked promising. They were seated quickly, handed menus, and left alone. Now this was the kind of service he liked.
"I've never eaten here before." Sakura said, looking around the restaurant. "What made you pick it?" she asked, wondering if he had perhaps been here on a previous trip.
"When I looked inside, I didn't see anyone I recognized." He said simply, opening his menu and looking through it. Konoha had such weird foods it was hard to decide what was actually good.
She burst into laughter at his admission, fully understanding what he meant. She opened the menu, and without hesitation knew what she wanted. Placing it back on the table, she linked her hands together and stared at him, unashamed if she got caught. Now that he was hers, she could do things like this often and not have to explain herself to anyone. She sighed in contentment, praying that they would be able to eat this meal without any problems for the first time. It would make everything perfect.
He frowned down at the menu, not really liking anything he saw. Konoha was just too healthy for his taste. "You just order for me," he sighed. "It all looks awful. In Suna the food seems much more appetizing." He finally looked up at her, wondering why she was staring so intently. Trying to be inconspicuous about it, he moved his hand to his face. Was there something there?
She suppressed a smirk. Deciding to mess with him, she brought her right hand up and rubbed slightly at her nose, not breaking eye contact the whole time. Then she re-laced her fingers, and waited to see what he would do.
He tried not to glare, noting that when he got embarrassed he got angry. So there had been something on his face. Now he just felt foolish. He wondered how long it had been there. He muttered a 'thank you' to her, trying not to make a big deal out of it.
She simply kept staring, watching as he brushed away what wasn't there. When he made eye contact with her again, she crinkled her nose, as if she was quelling an itch. She wondered idly how far she could take this before he figured it out.
"What?" he demanded, needing to know why she was acting so oddly.
"Oh nothing." She said, faint humor in her voice. The waiter came back to the able then, ready to take their order. She ordered her tempura, and then for Gaara, a new dish that included some type of salty meat. Knowing that he liked salty things, and meat, she figured it would be safe. If not, she could always make him something later.
After the waiter left, she turned back to him, rubbing at her nose in the process. Maybe just a little longer, and then she would put him out of his misery.
"So…" Gaara began, trying to pull away from the awkwardness. "Today was…fun." he said, trying not to sound as uncomfortable as he felt.
"Yes, it was." She agreed, scrunching her nose again and giving him an odd look. If she could just get him to wipe at his nose one more time, she would be happy.
His discomfort returned, was it still there? He glanced around, using his peripherals to see his face through any reflective surface. Luckily there was a mirror in a nearby wall. He saw nothing wrong with him, so why was Sakura making such strange faces. "Is something wrong?"
She snickered, and then began to laugh at the look of confusion on his face. Finishing with a sigh, she looked back at him. "No, not anymore." She said with a devious smile.
He did his best not to get mad, since she was starting to aggravate him with all her secrets. Gaara took a deep breath and just let it go. The waiter came by, setting their food in front of them and wishing them a good afternoon. Without another word, the redhead picked up his chopsticks and hesitantly tried the dish.
"Hm. It's…alright." He muttered out, taking another bite. It was actually very good, but he would never be caught saying anything was better than his home food.
Picking up her chopsticks she began to eat as well. "I'm glad you like it. I wasn't sure if you would or not."
He shrugged, continuing to shovel the food down. He was very hungry after all the activities. It was nice having a quiet lunch with Sakura, he couldn't remember the last time he had actually had a peaceful meal with her.
"GAARA! SAKURA-CHAN! There you are!" a loud, irritating, shrill voice broke through their silent setting. Gaara's chop sticks snapped in half from his tightened grip, his eye twitching. Naruto ran up excitedly to their table, giving it a shake. When Sakura looked at Gaara, it was obvious he was doing everything in his power to remain silent and calm.
"What is it Naruto? Can't you see we're eating?" She glared up at her friend.
"I know! I know! I'm sorry but, I just heard from Hinata-chan that you guys played croquet with Neji and Tenten and went to the spa with Shikamaru and Temari the day before. So I thought it would be great if we all hung out tomorrow! What do you say?"
"…What would we be doing exactly?" she asked, suspiciously. The last time she had hung out with Naruto resulted in her being covered in honey and chased by an angry bear. All because he wanted to play with a beehive they had come across, and had upset them. So, in an attempt to be a good friend, she tried to get rid of the hive. The rest didn't really need to be explained. Needless to say, she was reluctant to agree before she knew what she was getting herself into.
"Well I thought we could go swimming! And play some games, like marco polo, chicken, you know, stuff like that." The blonde grinned, awaiting their answer.
Gaara seemed reluctant, since he wasn't too comfortable in water. He preferred heat and dry. "I don't know Naruto…today was so tiring…"
Excited about the opportunity to swim, since she hadn't been in forever, Sakura gave Gaara a pleading look. "But, I just bought a new swim suit. This would be the perfect opportunity for me to test it out."
Still hesitant on the matter, the thought of seeing Sakura in a swimsuit intrigued the redhead. "Fine." He agreed, getting a cheer from their friend.
"Great! I'll go tell Hinata-chan! See you guys tomorrow!" Naruto waved and dashed out of the restaurant, knocking a couple people down from his speed.
Gaara sighed and looked back at Sakura, trying to imagine what she would look like tomorrow. She merely smiled at him, eyes widening as she realized something. "Hey Gaara, do you even have a swimsuit?"
"Of course I have a swimsuit Sakura, who doesn't have a those awful clothes for water?" he questioned, grabbing some more meat from his plate and tossing it in his mouth.
Resuming eating she shrugged. "Well, last time I was in Suna there wasn't really a place to swim. I didn't want us to go swimming and you wind up having to borrow one of Naruto's hideously orange ones." She shuddered at the thought. No man of hers would be caught dead in that color.
"There's plenty of pools in Suna…I just don't go to them." He said finally. "And like hell I'd ever let those disastrous clothes touch my body. Temari had mine custom made. So don't worry." He nodded. He wasn't too excited about ridding himself of his sand for the day though, that might pose as a problem.
She giggled and finished her meal. "Well, what are you going to do with your sand gourd?" she asked, as if reading his mind.
"Well I'm not leaving it if that's what you mean. I'll just…set it aside, or inside wherever we happen to be." He nodded. There was no way in hell he would ever be without his most trusted weapon.
She smiled at him. "It's ok. If anything happened, I'd be there to protect you." She teased.
"I don't need to be protected." He spat out quickly, at least keeping the glare off his face.
She stuck out her lower lip in a playful pout, widening her eyes innocently, for the full effect. "You don't think I'm strong enough to protect you?" she asked, continuing her joke.
He could hold back his anger no longer, "Are you insinuating that I cannot protect myself?" he asked, trying to think back on what Neji had told him. He took a deep breath and tried to release his negative emotions.
Sakura, also remembering that she needed to show Gaara more respect, wiped the pout off her face. Looking down at her ring finger, she sighed. "No. I was just kidding." She locked gazes with him. "If anyone here can protect themselves it's you." She said, trying to smooth things over.
It seemed to do the trick, for Gaara let out a deep breath and became calm. Pulling his wallet from his pocket, he tossed more than what their meal had cost on the table. "Come on, let's go. Tomorrow…should be interesting." He sighed, getting up and offering his hand down to Sakura.
They left the restaurant hand in hand, planning on spending the rest of the day just relaxing in the park. After all, they needed to save their strength for what tomorrow had to offer.