Unsolicited

Chapter Six

-Praise-

Sakura hummed to herself as she put together everyone's sandwiches for lunch. Today had been a pretty good day so far. Everyone had slept in, as they always did on Saturdays, having a wonderful family brunch of omelets and bacon. Then they all split up to go and get ready for their days. Gaara had taken Toshiro and Natsumi off to train with their sand, Satomi was out front pulling weeds from the flower beds, since she enjoyed gardening, and Akito was training in the backyard.

It had been two weeks since the incident with Akito attacking that other boy at the playground, and so far nothing bad had happened. Akito had picked up on the way things were run in their house, and was even doing chores around the house without having to be asked. She could even see a bit of a change in the stoic boy, and she had to admit it was a nice one. He and Toshiro were getting along famously, and he and Gaara were even able to joke around with one another occasionally. Natsumi was acting a little weird around Akito, but Sakura supposed it was just that she was still adjusting, and Satomi didn't really care one way or the other.

Finishing the sandwiches, she set them all on the table before going outside to the front where Satomi was. "Satomi, lunch is ready." She announced. She had sent a picnic lunch with Gaara for him and the other kids, knowing that when they were all three training together, they wouldn't be home until dinner time.

"Okay Mom, I'll be inside in a bit." The pink haired girl said as she pulled out another weed.

Sakura nodded before going inside and walking over to the back to inform Akito that lunch was finished. She went out into the backyard, stopping when she saw that he was in the middle of a difficult move.

He was holding Sasuke's sword, and it looked like he was working on a move with it. His body was tensed, and with extreme control, Akito turned and slashed out with the weapon. He then began to do a few fancy turns of the sword, before tossing it into the air and turning swiftly, taking out two kunai and throwing them into a nearby tree before holding out his hand and catching the sword with perfection.

Unable to help herself, Sakura began to clap, getting the boy's attention. "Akito, that was amazing!" she smiled, walking off the porch and over to him.

He just looked astonished and he quickly put away his father's sword. "You were watching?" he asked, sounding a bit alarmed.

"Just that last move. I didn't even know you knew how to do that. Did the instructor Gaara got for you teach you that?" she asked, stopping before him.

"No…" Akito looked off. "I taught it to myself."

Sakura smiled brightly at him. "Well it was really good."

His deep green gaze met hers, and he appeared confused. "But it was poorly executed. My movements were too slow, my spin was sloppy, and I almost didn't catch the sword as it fell. If I were in a real fight right then, my opponent had seven different openings in which to either kill me or land a fatal blow."

The pink haired woman just blinked. Did he really analyze all of his movements that critically? Then she remembered that Sasuke was this boy's father, and understood. Sasuke was a hard-ass, and so it made sense that he would critique Akito so harshly, as well as expect him to know everything he did wrong as well.

She smiled down at him, and squat so that they were eye level. "Akito," she placed her hand on his arm, "that doesn't matter. Nobody does a move perfectly when they are just learning how to do it. That's just ridiculous. But for someone who is just learning a move, you did a wonderful job."

"You…don't care that I messed up?" he asked softly, searching her face for deceit.

"No." she shook her head and stood, looking down at him. "Because the only reason we train and train so much, is to get better. If you performed your new moves perfectly the first day that you did them every time, you would run out of moves to do eventually." She explained. "Besides, the best moves take time to become great, you don't just learn them in one day."

He thought about her words, not finding any fault with her logic. "So, you don't think I'm learning it too slowly?"

"I think you are learning it faster than anyone else would be able too, and I'm very proud of you." She smiled brightly and placed her hand on his head. Her eyes widened then when Akito's arms suddenly wrapped around her waist in a hug.

"Thanks Mom." He said softly, only causing Sakura's eyes to widen even more. She smiled then, and returned his embrace.

"You're welcome son." She said softly, tears gathering in her eyes.

Then Akito broke away from her grasp and looked up at her. "I'm sorry! It was an accident, if you don't want me to call you that, it's okay. I understand, cause' I'm not your son, and-"

"Akito." Sakura said, stopping him. She was surprised, as this was the most he had ever said to her. She smiled reassuringly. "I would love it if you would call me mom, just like my other children do."

"But, I'm not one of your kids." He pointed out.

"Maybe not biologically." She said, brushing some of his hair from his eyes. "But I love you as much as I love my other kids. You are just as important to me."

He gave her a small, hesitant smile, until it turned into a full one. "Okay." He said, then, just as quickly as his smile was there, it vanished, and he gave her a serious look, appearing very much like his deceased father. "But you can't tell anyone, or make a big deal out of it. Because if I find out you did, I will never call you mom again." He threatened.

"What? But that's not fair." Sakura whined, sounding like a child.

"Life isn't fair Mom, you just gotta deal with it." he crossed his arms. "Do you swear not to make it a big deal?" he raised a brow.

The woman sighed in exasperation. "Fine. I swear not to make a big deal out of it."

"Cross your heart?"

"Cross my heart." She made the motions on her chest where her heart was.

"Good." Akito nodded. "So, what did you come out here for?"

Sakura smiled. "I just came to tell you that lunch is ready. I made grilled chicken sandwiches."

"Awesome, I love it when you make those." He began to walk back towards the house. Then he turned around and pointed his sword at her. "You're not allowed to make a big deal out of that either."

"Well," Sakura smirked, walking over to him and placing her hand on his shoulder as they walked into the house together. "Aren't you bossy all of a sudden."

"Yup, you'll just have to get used to it." he smirked as well. Sakura chuckled as she closed the door, following him towards the kitchen where Satomi was already seated and eating.

She would admit that this was an unexpected turn of events for her day, but she was not displeased with it. Akito had finally called her mom, and had even complimented her cooking. Yes, today was going to be a pretty good day indeed.

Akito sat in the center of his bed, carefully and precisely sharpening his father's sword. It had been a few days since he had first called Sakura mom, and he was pleasantly surprised that she had actually followed her word. She hadn't made it into a big deal, nor had she announced it to anyone else in the family. It was nice, and he was actually glad that he had gotten to have that moment with her.

When he finished sharpening the sword he pulled out a polishing kit and began to polish the blade with the utmost care. He stopped then and looked up, seeing Satomi standing in the doorway of his room. He just stared at her expectantly, knowing that she was probably standing there for a reason.

"Do you want to make pottery with me?" she asked, actually not sounding like her normal bored self.

"Pottery? Like with clay?" he asked, slightly confused.

She nodded. "Yeah. I can teach you if you don't know how."

"Okay." He said, putting away the polish. "Just let me put away my father's sword real quick." Once he put everything away he turned back to her. "So, where are we going to make the pottery?"

"The art room of course." She rolled her eyes, turning from him and heading down the hall.

"I didn't know we had an art room." He said, following her.

"Yup." She told him. "We do." She led him downstairs and down one of the halls he'd actually yet to go down, and they came upon a large room filled with different types of artwork. "Here's the art room." she gestured to the room. One wall was filled with supplies on shelves. On the opposite wall from the door were four bookcases, three filled with different styles of crafts. She walked over to them and glanced back at him. "This is where we put all our stuff." Then she stepped aside and touched the empty one. "I put this one up for you."

Akito's eyes widened and he walked over, looking at the shelf. Then he looked at Satomi, and smiled slightly. "Thank you."

"It's ok. I thought you might want a place to put your stuff when you were done so we could show it off too." She smiled slightly.

"It might take me a while to fill it up like your shelf, but I think I can do it." he said. Then he looked over at the two pottery wheels. "I kind of know how those work, but not the specifics. I've never made art before." He admitted, shrugging a bit sheepishly.

She went over to the shelf and opened a sealed container and then pulled out two large blocks of clay. She set one on the wheel he was going to use and placed her own down as well. "That's okay. If you want you can watch me at first. And then try, it's all about shaping." She explained, setting her foot on the motor and causing it to spin. She wet her hands in one of the prepared bowls and started to round the block.

Akito watched her for a few seconds, before going over to his own and doing the same. It was a bit weird at first, but he felt like he was getting the hang of it. He continued to glance over at Satomi every once in a while, until he was sure he knew what to do. The only difficult part was shaping it into a vase, and then adding a design into it while it spun.

They continued to do this for about an hour, both working in silence, only speaking when Akito asked her a question, or when she was giving him a helpful hint. They even discussed the weather, but it wasn't in the corny way that people do when they are trying to come up with conversation, it was actually really casual.

When they finished, they placed their vases on the drying shelf and washed their hands. "How long until they will be done and ready to paint?" Akito asked her curiously as they scrubbed the clay from their hands.

"Well it'll be about three days. Cause' they have to dry. Then we can paint them with the high gloss and put them in the kiln." She dried her hands then and tossed the towel to him. "So, want to get something to eat?"

He caught the towel easily, drying his hands. "Sounds good. I'm starving."

They left the art room then, heading off to the kitchen to make themselves something to eat.

Four days later found Akito and Satomi standing back in the art room, both examining their vases. "Wow, they came out really nicely." Akito said as he turned his in his hands.

Satomi nodded and looked over to him. "So what do you want to do with them?"

"We should give them to Mom and Dad. Isn't that what kids do when they make stuff? Give it to their parents?" he asked, giving her an unsure look.

The elder twin blinked, looking like she was deep in thought. "I've actually never given them anything I've made before. Alright." she actually smiled. "Let's do it."

Akito smiled as well, and the both of them went into the living room, where Gaara and Sakura were seated on the couch, snuggled against each other and each reading a book. Sakura looked up from what she was reading and blinked, as both Akito and Satomi were standing before them and holding something behind their backs. She cleared her throat, looking over to her husband. Seeing that he was still reading, she rolled her eyes and nudged him in the side with her elbow.

The redhead glanced at her and then up at the two, closing his book and looking at them. "What?"

"Mom. Dad. Akito and I made you guys something." Satomi said, revealing her vase she had made and offering it to her mother.

"I made you this one." Akito said, revealing his own vase. It wasn't as perfect as Satomi's, being a bit misshapen with a few lumps. Then he smiled brightly, as did Satomi.

The elder Sabakus blinked, before exchanging a look with one another. Gaara focused back on Akito and the gift he'd been made. He took it carefully and assessed it. Sakura did the same with Satomi's, returning her daughter's beautiful smile.

"Thank you sweetie. It's wonderful." She said, reaching out and bringing her daughter closer, kissing her forehead. "I love it."

Akito glanced sideways at the two pink haired females before returning his gaze to Gaara, waiting to hear what the redhead thought about his vase.

"You made this for me?" Gaara asked, still looking at it.

"Yes." Akito responded.

He smiled somewhat and met the boy's gaze. "Thank you. I really like it."

"Really? You don't care that it isn't perfect?" Akito asked, seeming a bit astonished.

"Uh…no. Does it matter if it's perfect? I mean, you made it and that's really nice. None of my children have ever given me something they made before." He shrugged. Sakura couldn't help but smile at the entire situation, since she knew firsthand Akito's insecurities about perfection. Something she was sure would take time to get rid of.

Akito smiled once more. "Thanks. I'm glad you like it."

"I'll put it somewhere special." The redhead promised.

The young boy just nodded. Sakura let out a sigh and stood. "I'm going to go start dinner." She kissed the top of Satomi's head, and then Akito's, which he surprisingly allowed. "Thank you both for the wonderful presents."

"You're welcome." They both said at the same time, still smiling. Akito looked at Satomi then.

"You wanna go out front and pull up some weeds while dinner's being made? I saw some this morning, and I don't want you to have to do it by yourself. Plus it's cooler since its evening."

Satomi nodded and then the two headed out into the front yard just as Natsumi was coming down the steps. She walked into the living room and sat by her father, who smiled lovingly at her. "Hello sweetheart. How have you been? You've been strangely quiet for a while. Is something wrong?" he asked, wanting to make sure his youngest was alright.

"I'm fine Daddy." She sighed looking forward. "I'm trying not to be so annoying."

Gaara sat up straight and stared down at his daughter, alarm written on his face. "Did someone tell you that you were annoying?" he demanded.

Natsumi shook her head and sighed. "No…I just know I am, so I'm trying to be mellow. Kinda like Satomi, since everyone really likes her."

The redhead sighed and leaned back, placing his arm around his daughter. "You know, I think Natsumi's pretty great too." He smiled.

She returned it, but only slightly. "Thanks. But I'm sure it's for the better." She pat his leg and got up, heading out to go into the backyard. Gaara watched her leave and stood, meeting his wife in the kitchen.

"Natsumi's been…strange as of late."

She looked at him as she cut up vegetables for their dinner. "I know what you mean. She doesn't seem as…vibrant as she usually is." Her brow furrowed slightly. "Do you know what's wrong with her?"

He shook his head and leaned against the counter, crossing his arms over his chest. "She says that she's annoying and wants to be like Satomi."

"What? Who told her she was annoying?" Sakura asked, stopping in her task.

"She said no one. And I don't think anyone did, or she probably would have come home crying." He explained, but then shrugged. "I don't know. It's weird."

The pink haired woman sighed. "Do you think I should talk to her about it?"

"I wouldn't worry about it. I mean, it's not like it's completely a bad thing. The house isn't as loud, even with four kids."

"True. I'm sure she'll be fine after a while. After all, there's no way she'll be able to stay like Satomi for too long. I don't think she has it in her to be that quiet." She chuckled, beginning to chop the vegetables once more.

"Exactly." The redhead smirked, moving behind his wife and wrapping his arms around her waist, pressing against her from behind and kissing her neck. "But enough about the kids, let's focus on us." He whispered, grinding against her.

"Gaara." She moaned softly, putting the knife down and placing her hands over his. "Dinner will be late you know." She smiled, turning her head backwards and kissing the underside of his jaw, nipping it lightly.

He moved to kiss her lips, enjoying the feel of her body against his. "Mom!" Toshiro yelled, making them both break apart, cursing under their breath. The younger redhead came in and sighed. "Satomi and Akito threw dirt at me!"

"So go wash it off sweetheart." She said, trying her best not to be irritated with her eldest just because she was horny now.

"But I don't want a shower, and they got it in my hair! I need you to help me." He huffed. Gaara sighed and went to his son, pushing him out.

"Come on pansy. Let's go clean your hair."

"Dinner will be ready shortly, so don't take too long. And I'm making something special for dessert." She winked at her husband as she picked up the knife once more.

The Kazekage smirked, already excited as he led his son off to help him get dirt out of his hair. The rest of the night progressed normally, and dinner went smoothly. And Gaara and Sakura designated the kids to cleaning up and hurried upstairs before their self-control broke free.

Toshiro and Satomi took to washing the dishes and handing them off to Akito and Natsumi to put away. And after that was done, they all got ready for bed and went off to their separate rooms, drowning out the sounds coming from the master bedroom down the hall.

The next day Akito made his way to the Kazekage Tower, having been asked by Sakura to take Gaara his lunch, since he had forgotten it at home. He walked into the building and waved at the receptionist before heading up the stairs and going to the redhead's office.

He walked right into the office, since he didn't really see the point in knocking. It wasn't like Gaara was in a meeting or anything, and he didn't sense any other chakra signatures in the room. The Kazekage glanced up with the disturbance and nodded to Akito. "Hey punk." He said, continuing his paper work.

"Sup." He walked up to the desk and placed the bento on it. "You forgot your lunch, so Mom asked me to bring it to you."

"Thanks. Now I don't have to take a break to go get it." he replaced the pen in his new holder that was set up on his desk, and took the box to look inside and see what was prepared.

Akito watched his movements, and his eyes widened when he realized that what Gaara was using to hold his pens was in fact the vase he had given him the day before. "You're actually…using my vase?" he asked in astonishment.

The redhead glanced up at him and then to the gift. "Isn't that what you're supposed to do? I've actually been looking for something to hold my pens and it was perfect. Very useful actually." He touched the rim and turned it slightly. "So thanks again."

Akito felt something akin to happiness well up inside his chest. He actually didn't expect Gaara to put it anywhere special like he said he would. He just figured that it would be either thrown away, or put up in a box, where nobody would see it. But the fact that it was now sitting on his desk, where everyone would see it, and when asked, he'd say that it was from him, Uchiha Akito, it just made him happy. He felt like he had actually accomplished something without meaning too.

The ebony haired boy smiled. "You're welcome…Dad." He said softly, looking a bit unsure. "Is it okay if I call you that?"

Gaara looked surprised and at first he didn't answer. "Of course you can Akito. As long as you want to." The redhead gave him a small smirk. "You are my family. So it does make sense and for you to see me as such…really means a lot. I'd be happy if you did."

"Okay." Akito's smile widened. Then he ran around the desk and hugged Gaara, quickly letting go before he became embarrassed and then running from the room. Not even a second later Akito poked his head back in. "Bye Dad, have a good day at work." And then he was gone, closing the office door behind him.

The Kazekage stared after him, absolutely astonished with the young Uchiha's actions. He leaned back in his chair and smiled to himself. It turned out that Sasuke was right in sending him here, and he actually felt like he was getting through to him. Everyone in the family loved him as well, and the villagers were even seeing him as the Kazekage's son, instead of the last Uchiha.

Gaara had a feeling that everything was going to turn out just fine. Because for once, everything appeared in order.