Chapter 24: Realization

He knew.

"But that couldn't be what it looks like, could it?" He gave Naruto a knowing look. "It looks obvious, but that would only raise further questions I have for you. So please tell me it isn't what it looks like."

He could have lied and come up with some crazy far-fetched story, but rather than fabricate another lie, Naruto did perhaps the first wise thing he had done all day and told the truth.

"Well… uh… Well… Yes, actually." Naruto sighed. "I did hypnotize Shino."

"And no doubt several others," Shikamaru assumed. "That's why several of our friends are acting weird. It's hard to overlook when Kiba starts eating from trashcans."

"So you noticed that?"

"It's kind of hard not to." Shikamaru folded his arms. "Ok. How'd you do it? You've never been able to do anything like this before so what changed?"

Naruto took out the necklace and showed it to Shikamaru. "I used this. I got this at a trinket shop on the way back from a mission."

"This is what allowed you to use hypnosis on people?" Knowing this must have been the object, Shikamaru made sure not to look at it directly. He only gave it a glance, then looked at Naruto's chest to make sure he didn't fall under the same spell.

"Yeah, that's right. The jewel came in a box with instructions. Well, not really instructions. Other than explaining that it would give me the power to hypnotize others, I had to figure the rest out on my own. I just did what the people do on TV and at magic shows. And it worked."

"I guess I should be thankful I've been so busy lately, otherwise you would have done the same thing to me. That would have been a drag."

"Not really," said Naruto. "Most people don't even know what they're doing. And going under is very peaceful, apparently. They just fall asleep and wake up without remembering how strange they acted or remembering that I put them under."

"I meant having me act a certain way," said Shikamaru. "Even if I don't remember doing embarrassing things, other people would see me do it. The fact that I acted like a fool is the thing I have a problem with."

"Good point. And even if they don't remember being hypnotized, they seem to be aware of what they're doing after they wake up to a certain point. Shino knows what he's doing but not why he's doing it or why he can't stop. But I fixed it. Now he won't be hugging people anymore."

"But you gave him a new command, so the problem is not solved. And how do you think he feels about being manipulated?" Shikamaru pointed out. "I hate it when people try using Genjutsu on me in battle and I bet you're a similar way. Imagine how they must feel."

"But it's not a jutsu."

"Doesn't matter. You're still manipulating them. If anything, this is worse because under Genjutsu, people don't start acting like dogs or chickens."

Naruto realized Shikamaru spoke the truth. "Oh, you have a point there."

Shikamaru gestured to the jewel, giving it another quick glance then looking Naruto in the eye. "So this is it? You just picked this up at a shop and that was it? Just the jewel and your own stupidity allows you to use it to hypnotize others?"

"Yeah. The jewel came in a box and that was it. I figured out how to use it on my own. It was a rocky start, but I got it to work."

Shikamaru found the whole thing to be a bit too simple. "You just bought this at a shop? Seems weird to me."

"That's the thing," said Naruto, tucking the jewel back under his jacket. "The lady at the store gave it to me. She didn't charge me for it."

"She let you have it for free?"

"Yeah. She said it was a reward because I was her first customer in a week."

Shikamaru wrinkled his nose. "You were her first customer in a week and she just gave you something for free? That doesn't strike you as odd? How would she make any profit if she just gives stuff away for free? That should have clued you in on something."

"I thought she was just being nice. She didn't charge me for the candy bar either."

Shikamaru sighed. "Read the situation. Why is it you can only do that at certain times of the day and not others? I guess your sense comes and goes."

"I'm not an idiot, if that's what you're saying."

"No, but I am saying that if someone hasn't had any customers in a while and hands you something for free, you should be suspicious."

"Can't you just believe in people's best?" Naruto asked with a shrug. "I figured she was being nice. And if someone gives you something for free, you're more likely to come back, right? She was a sweet old lady who said she wanted to help me out."

"If that was the case and she really was trying to help you out by giving that to you, then she must have thought you knew how to use it without getting into trouble. She probably thought you wouldn't misuse it."

"Misuse it? I didn't think I was misusing it. I was just having some fun."

"By making Kiba think he's an actual dog and have him rummage around in trashcans for the public to see? What if his friends saw him acting like that? Or a girl he likes? He'll never get his reputation back."

Naruto shut his eyes in horror. "Oh, crap. I hadn't thought of that. I just wanted to have some fun. I didn't think I was doing anything too mean to them. This is tame compared to the other things that crossed my mind."

"Then I shudder to think what else you would have had them do." Shikamaru narrowed his eyes again. "Did you do something to Choji? He's acting normal, but if you did…"

"No, I swear I didn't. I didn't do anything to Choji."

"Good." Shikamaru counted on his fingers. "So other than Shino and Kiba, who else have you done this to?"

"Well, let's see." As Naruto listed names, Shikamaru tallied them off with his fingers. "There's Shino and Kiba. Then there's Neji. He was the first. And Sai… Lee… And Gaara."

Shikamaru held up five fingers and as he started to raise a sixth, he stopped and gave Naruto a wide-eyed expression. "Did you say Gaara?"

"Yeah." Then Naruto gasped. "Gaara! I left him alone back there!"

"What did you have him do?" Shikamaru looked worried.

"Nothing! Well…"

"Please tell me you didn't…"

"It was nothing that bad."

"I hope it's not as bad as I'm thinking."

Naruto took Shikamaru to where he had last left Gaara but he wasn't there. Naruto looked around and found Gaara on a bench on the quiet side of the street.

There was very little foot traffic which made it the perfect napping spot for Gaara. All his energy had been sapped out of him and he just wanted to sit down. As soon as he did so, his body felt heavy and he wanted to lie down. When Naruto found him, he was semi-conscious, drifting in a daydream.

"Gaara? Gaara!" Naruto shook him. "Come on, sit up. Get up, Gaara."

Gaara reluctantly sat up with a yawn.

"What did you do to him?" Shikamaru asked.

"I don't know. I thought I snapped him out of it but he keeps falling asleep."

As they were speaking, Gaara's eyes started to close again and he had to be shaken awake.

It was worse than before. Gaara being more alert as they walked around gave Naruto hope that he would be able to shake it off, but that wasn't the case. Gaara was even more tired than before.

Naruto was kicking himself for leaving Gaara alone. He was only gone for a minute but it was enough to wear Gaara out.

He pulled Gaara to his feet but, unable to stand, Gaara fell against Naruto, forcing him to support the listless redhead.

"Gaara..!" Naruto struggled to keep him from falling. "Use your legs! You can stand up on your own, can't you?"

Gaara was completely limp. He was in no condition to walk, let alone go to a meeting.

"Naruto, why did you do this to him?" Shikamaru asked. "You know he has a meeting today, don't you? Surely, he told you that, or maybe you did this before he had the chance."

"I told you, I didn't do this on purpose. I thought I snapped him out of it, but he keeps falling asleep. I have no idea what went wrong. None of the other commands are still in effect, so I have no idea what this is."

"Could it be a side-effect from the hypnosis?"

"I don't know. I have no idea why he's like this." Naruto started to take out the jewel.

"What are you doing?" Shikamaru asked, seeing the jewel.

"I've got an idea. Maybe I can make him have more energy."

"Naruto, I don't think…"

"Gaara look over here." Naruto started swinging the jewel in front of his face while Shikamaru looked the other way. "Keep your eyes on this jewel. Focus on the jewel."

Gaara gave the jewel a tired look.

"As you watch the jewel, you feel yourself getting very sleepy. You're getting sleepy. Very sleepy."

Gaara let his eyelids droop. His eyes closed and Gaara slumped onto the bench behind him.

With Gaara out like a light, Naruto tried putting his plan into action. "Gaara, when I snap my fingers, you will wake up and be full of energy. You will not be sleepy at all. You will wake rested and refreshed."

Naruto snapped his fingers but Gaara didn't move.

"Gaara?"

He snored.

"Gaara!" Naruto started shaking him. "Gaara, wake up!"

Shikamaru turned around. "Naruto, what were you thinking?"

"I thought this could give him more energy. I mean, if I can make Kiba think he's a dog, why couldn't I make Gaara more alert?" Naruto made sure the jewel was safely tucked away before pulling Gaara to his feet. Gaara's eyes were still closed so even if the necklace was exposed, he couldn't see it. There was no reason for Gaara to be this tired. He should have been wide wake. "Come on, Gaara, wake up."

Gaara opened his eyes briefly, feeling himself being pulled off the bench. He had no strength in his body. If Naruto hadn't been holding on to him, Gaara would have fallen on his face in the dirt. Naruto forced him to stand, but Gaara remained as limp as a rag doll. Every time Naruto tried to make Gaara stand on his own, he would start to fall over.

Wrapping both arms around Gaara's torso, Naruto tried to keep Gaara standing. "I don't get it," he moaned. "It should have worked. No matter what I do, Gaara just wants to sleep. This doesn't make any sense. I don't understand why he's like this."

Shikamaru helped support Gaara by slinging his arm over his shoulder. "We have to get him off the street. Let's take him back to your place."

"Ok."

"And from there, we can get help. We can tell Lady Tsunade-"

"No!" Naruto shouted. "We can't tell her about this."

"Why not?"

"Because she'll blame me for this."

"You are to blame," Shikamaru growled. "It is your fault."

"We can probably do this on our own. Please, Shikamaru?"

Rolling his eyes, Shikamaru complied. "Fine. For now." It was Naruto's neck on the line, anyway.

Shikamaru and Naruto helped walk Gaara back to the apartment. On the way there, Naruto noticed Neji and called to him. Neji went back to being Naruto's servant and helped them get Gaara inside.

"Why'd you bring him?" Shikamaru asked, pointing at Neji.

"An experiment." Naruto closed the door, then snapped his fingers in Neji's face. "Sleep."

Neji fell backwards into Shikamaru who had to drop Gaara in order to catch him. Thankfully, Gaara was sitting on the floor so he wasn't injured. Shikamaru lowered Neji to the ground then went back to help Gaara into a chair.

"What did you do that for?" Shikamaru asked Naruto.

"I want to see if the same thing happens to Neji when I snap him out of it. That way we'll know."

Shikamaru rolled his eyes. "This is your doing. I'm just a bystander here."

Naruto grabbed Neji's arms and dragged him across the floor.

After getting Gaara settled in the next room, Shikamaru went back to find Naruto doing this and asked, "Why are you doing it that way?"

"I'm trying to get him over to the couch, but I put him in a trance across the room. I know I should have waited until he was closer, but…" Naruto dragged him a little further. "But it's a real pain. Neji's so limp, it's making him heavy and hard to drag him."

"Then why don't you make it easier by telling him he's stiff as a board? Or better yet, tell him to walk to the couch himself?" Shikamaru suggested. "It'll be easier than dragging him."

Naruto hadn't considered that until now. "Neji, stand up."

Neji stood, keeping his eyes closed.

"Walk over to the couch behind you."

Neji turned around and, with his eyes still closed, walked across the room. Naruto told him to stop as he got closer and told him to lie down on the couch. Neji did as he was told.

Naruto wouldn't have Neji as a servant anymore, but if it was to help Gaara, he was willing to let Neji return to normal.

"Neji, when you wake up from your trance, you will no longer be my servant. You will return to your normal self and not remember being hypnotized." Naruto hoped this would be enough. He snapped his fingers. "Awake."

Neji opened his eyes and saw Naruto and Shikamaru staring at him. "What's going on?" he asked.

"Are you alright?" Naruto asked. "How do you feel? Are you tired? In pain?"

Neji sat up. "No, but I am looking at a pain. What am I doing in your apartment? What's going on?"

Neji didn't seem to be like Gaara. He wasn't tired. He had returned to normal, which left Naruto confused. So confused that he couldn't come up with an explanation for him being here.

"Well?" Neji pressed.

"Uh, well, you see, uh…"

"Naruto found you near the training grounds," said Shikamaru. "You were unconscious so he decided to bring you back here to see if there was anything he could do. He couldn't just leave you there. I saw him carrying you inside and asked him what was going on. I told him he should have taken you to the hospital or something, but he didn't think it was that serious. You woke up pretty quick so I'm guessing you just got a bump on the head by something."

If Naruto had given the explanation, Neji would have been suspicious. Since Shikamaru had been the first to speak, and knowing he wasn't the type to normally lie to his friends, Neji took his word for it. Besides, it sounded plausible. Lee could have kicked him in the head and not realized as he was going by. Given the strange things going on in this village lately, anything was possible.

"Well… Alright." Neji started to stand up. "I think I'm ok, so I'm going to go."

"Fine," said Shikamaru. "Just be careful."

Neji left the apartment acting normal.

Which left Naruto and Shikamaru baffled as to why Gaara was in such a state. They had no explanation, but theories. Gaara was just plain tired.

"Any bright ideas?" Naruto asked, looking down at Gaara asleep on his bed.

"You already know my idea on the subject but you refuse to go along with it."

"There's got to be something else we can try."

"Whatever it is, you better do it soon." Shikamaru looked at the clock. "Gaara's meeting is in less than an hour."

Naruto flinched. "Ohh! This is bad!"

He didn't know what else to do. If Gaara was tired, perhaps they should have let him sleep it off. If the meeting was that close, then they couldn't afford to let Gaara take a nap without the possibility of him waking more tired than before. The only other option he could think of was simply keeping Gaara awake until the meeting was over, then let him sleep all he wanted.

"Come on, Shikamaru," Naruto said, pulled Gaara to his feet. "Help me out here. We have to keep him awake. Help him stay awake!"

Shikamaru sighed heavily. "Ah, this is so troublesome."

Grasping his shoulders, Shikamaru walked Gaara around the kitchen as he gave him math problems. He hoped the movement would help him stay awake and the math problems would help keep his mind focused. It was all a desperate attempt to help keep him awake, but it wasn't a solution to the problem.

"Five times nine, Gaara. What's five times nine?"

"Forty-five."

"Good. Five times six?"

"Seven… eight…"

"No, times six. I'm not asking you to count. What is five times six?"

"Times six..?"

"Yes. What is five times six?"

"Uh… It's…Th…" His head started to bob.

"Come on, Gaara, think! Concentrate. Five times six!"

"Thirty. It's thirty."

"Right. Now try five times…"

"I don't think this is working, Shikamaru," Naruto complained. "And not just because watching you guys pace my kitchen is making me dizzy."

"I'm trying to stimulate his mind. It might help keep him awake." Shikamaru pushed Gaara around the room, making him walk.

"But won't the math problems just make him sleepier? I mean, they tell you to count sheep before bed."

"That's why these are math problems and not counting."

"And won't the walking around just tire him out more?"

"If you have a better idea, I'd like to hear it!"

Naruto groaned. "I tried all my good ideas. Every time I tell him to snap out of it, he just goes back to sleep. I'm worried about trying to hypnotize him all over again because he might not wake up at all and go into a coma."

"Stop trying to fix this with more hypnosis," snapped Shikamaru. "That's what got you into this mess in the first place. Anything you try to do through it is just going to exasperate the problem."

"And it would probably make it worse, too."

"That's what I just said, Naruto."

"But I've been trying to snap him out of this. Logically, if hypnosis started this whole thing, then I should end the hypnosis. I tried putting him back into a trance and told him to wake up with a lot of energy, but that didn't work. I told him he wasn't under hypnosis anymore and that didn't work."

"You know what might work?" Shikamaru said as he made Gaara walk around the table for the hundredth time. "Tell the Hokage and come clean. Ask her for help."

"I told you, I can't! You know how much trouble I could get in for this?"

"About as much trouble as you trying to fix it yourself which clearly isn't working."

"We'll come up with something. You're smart."

"And I'm telling you how to fix this!"

"But-"

"Gaara has a meeting in less than an hour and he's not getting any better. He can't show up in this state."

"But we can't tell Grandma Tsunade."

"I'm not seeing another option here."

Naruto started to pull out the necklace. "Shikamaru, you will find a way and not tell..."

"Don't even," Shikamaru said with a glare.

Naruto put the necklace away. "It was worth a shot."

Gaara moaned tiredly. "Can I stop?" he asked sleepily.

"No, you have to stay awake." Shikamaru gave him a shove. "Come on, what's seven times four?"

"I don't know."

"Yes, you do. Think. Seven times four."

"Maybe we should just let him sleep so he can recover his energy," suggested Naruto.

"You said before that you were worried that he could fall into a deeper sleep by doing that."

"I was worried about that, but maybe that's what he needs."

"What he needs is help and we're not giving him the help that he needs. I say you get over this fear of being punished and tell the Hokage what you did so Gaara can get better."

"Are we sure we've tried everything?"

Shikamaru took his hands off Gaara to throw in the air. "Naruto, he cannot attend a meeting like this! Face facts! He is not getting better doing what we're doing now. We need to try something else and if that means telling the Hokage the truth, then so be it."

THUD!

Gaara had fallen to the floor. Without Shikamaru to help support him, Gaara didn't have the strength to hold himself up.

"Crap!" Shikamaru bent down and picked Gaara up, shaking his shoulder. "Come on, wake up! Wake up!"

Gaara moaned but wouldn't open his eyes.

"You have to stay awake, Gaara!" Shikamaru pried his eyelids open with his fingers. "Naruto, look at him! We need to get him help!"

"You're right. You're right. Let's just pick him up and bring him to her office."

"Wouldn't it be easier to ask her to come here rather than carry him outside?"

"If we leave him here, he could get worse."

"Which is why one of us will stay here and the other one will go and get her."

Naruto paused. "Oh, yeah."

Shikamaru passed Gaara off to Naruto. "I may end up regretting this, but I'll go and get her while you stay and watch over Gaara. Part of me feels you might chicken out so it might be better for me to go."

"Gee, thanks for the confidence."

Shikamaru walked to the door. "Keep an eye on him. I'll be back as soon as I can." With that, Shikamaru left.

Naruto felt Gaara rest his head on his chest. Naruto half dragged, half walked Gaara over to the couch and sat down. Gaara snuggled against him and started to drift off to sleep.

Naruto waited. Time ticked by and there was no sign of Shikamaru. He waited and waited, but he never showed up. It shouldn't take this long for him to get back, especially if he told the Hokage it involved the visiting Kazekage.

Thinking there was a problem, Naruto decided to go look for him.

He felt Gaara slid and quickly grabbed him. He couldn't leave Gaara here by himself. He had to take Gaara with him, but if he couldn't walk, it would hinder his search. This posed a problem.

Getting another idea, Naruto bent in front of the couch, presenting his back to Gaara. Gaara flopped on top of him and Naruto stood up, wrapping his hands under Gaara's legs. He would piggyback Gaara through the village. It wouldn't be very inconspicuous, but it would be faster than making him walk and possibly having to drag him all over the place.

"Ok, Gaara, let's go find Shikamaru."

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