Author's Note: Wow! This chapter got really long on me. More for you all, I guess. Here's the promised luncheon, along with insights into a certain insect using ninja and some fluff to round it all out. Please read and review! Pretty please! *begs on her knees* It feeds my creativity!
Disclaimer: Naruto and all of it's components are not mine. I can't afford to buy them because I make no money off of this work...or any other work I've done recently. *sigh* Don't sue please. It will cost you more than you could get from me.
Sandstorms and Falling Leaves
Chapter Six: Butterflies and Bedtimes
Gaara and her sister found Hinata practicing her byakugan with one of her teammates. Gaara couldn't remember the insect ninja's name though she knew he was the one Kankuro fought during the disastrous chunin exam attack. The young man was much the way she remembered him, distinctive in the fact that he was almost entirely hidden under heavy clothes and sunglasses even in the warm, shadowy clearing.
Hinata spotted them immediately and dropped her jutsu as she turned to greet the redhead with a small smile. "Hello, Gaara-san." She squeaked out, twiddling her fingers nervously. "I-I thought you might not be coming today, be-because you were angry with m-me about yesterday."
Gaara's expression softened slightly. "I'm not angry." She assured the blue haired girl. "You were right." She said simply, trusting the perceptive girl to take that for the apology it was.
Hinata's shy expression transformed into a brilliant smile and her nervous fidgeting stopped as she relaxed. "I'm so glad. You look a lot better today."
Gaara nodded, her sister had already told her that, though not as politely.
"Do you want to train now?" Hinata asked hesitantly, shooting an apologetic glance at her teammate.
Temari took that opportunity to speak up. "Actually, I was going to treat my baby sister to lunch and we wanted to ask you if you'd like to come along."
Hinata's lavender eyes widened, surprised at the offer from the elder sand sibling. "Um...I would be honored to accompany you." She managed, growing shy again as she spoke to the blonde woman.
The hooded youth bowed to the two Suna ninjas before turning to his female teammate. "I'll see you later, Hinata-san." He said slowly.
"You can come too." Gaara wasn't sure, at first, what made her offer but the way the insect user froze and turned to her, disbelief visible in his posture and raised eyebrows, made her realize why she couldn't let him walk away.
The quiet teen seemed horribly lonely and in a way he reminded her of herself. He expected to be excluded from the outing, he was used to it, resigned to it. She briefly wondered why he was an outcast, before she remembered a lot of people disliked bugs and he carried a hive of them around at all times. 'That would do it, I guess.'
"I would not want to intrude, Kazekage-sama." The insect user finally said, politely giving her the chance to retract her offer.
"I insist." Gaara found herself saying.
"Yeah, come on, Shino-kun." Temari added suddenly. Her little sister didn't often reach out to people and she was not going to let such a rare attempt fail, even if she wasn't sure why Gaara was so adamant that the weird bug ninja join them for lunch. "You aren't gonna turn down free food. Are you?"
"Yes, Shino." Hinata added sweetly. "You never eat out with us. Please."
The quiet boy was smart enough to know when he was outnumbered. He was torn between his normal habit of avoiding public outings so he wouldn't have to deal with the way people viewed his family jutsu...and a sincere pleasure at having been invited along.
He bowed politely to the redheaded Suna leader. "Thank you, Kazekage-sama. It is my honor to join you."
Temari grinned. "Great! The more the merrier." She slapped the hooded ninja on the arm casually, earning a startled look from said insect user. 'Sheesh, he's almost as jumpy as Gaara used to be...' It clicked. 'He isn't used to people touching him willingly, because his family's jutsu is creepy. No wonder Gaara got so insistent; she can't stand to see anyone lonely like that.' The blonde outwardly ignored the heavily clothed boy's discomfiture, acting like she hadn't noticed. "Okay, so where do we want to eat?"
Hinata smiled at her teammate, genuinely pleased by his acceptance. "I know a good place we can go." She offered politely.
"Sure. Wherever you want is fine." Temari nodded and gestured for the blue haired ninja to lead the way.
Shino found himself following along behind his female teammate, with the two Suna ninjas following behind him; feeling rather surreal about the whole situation. He had spoken to the elder Suna sister once or twice in passing during her frequent visits to Konoha, but they were hardly friends. Even more strange, he'd never spoken to the Kazekage, and yet it was the ex-jinchuriki who all but ordered him to join them for lunch.
He didn't know what to make of it.
The young Aburame was so caught up in trying to figure out Gaara's motivation, he didn't realize where Hinata was leading them until they were in the doorway. The Hyuuga heiress breezed through and he could hear the proprietor greeting her warmly. The spectacled ninja balked in the doorway, knowing he would not be so well received.
"Come on bug boy, we're hungry." Temari gave him a playful shove that caused him to take a couple steps into the restaurant just to keep his balance.
The proprietor's friendly tone immediately went cold. "Excuse me, Hinata-san." He said from where he had been leading the shy girl to a table. "You." Shino stiffened at the disrespectful tone. "Get out! I won't have you and your roaches in my shop!"
Shino sighed, the action well hidden by his layers of clothing. Not wanting to make a scene, he turned to the pair standing in the doorway behind him. "I'll go now." He offered quietly. "Please enjoy your lunch, Kazekage-sama. Perhaps I can join you another time."
His movement had revealed his company to the restaurant owner and the man's face went from crimson with fury to pale from shock as he took in the two Suna women.
Gaara stood with her arms crossed and her eyes narrowed in anger. Her lips were pressed into a tight line, and the dust from outside swirled in and around her feet, as she visibly fought to keep her temper in check. It was a habit she had developed to control Shukaku and even though she wasn't likely to go on a killing rampage anymore, she still didn't want to let her considerable temper get the best of her.
Her sister felt no such compunction. "You dare insult the Kazekage's esteemed guest?" The blonde snarled in a haughty voice she generally reserved for her duties as Gaara's official honor guard at formal meetings.
"No...Well, yes but...I mean...I didn't know..." The flustered civilian stammered, trying to salvage the situation and failing miserably.
"Hinata-chan." Temari's tone became kinder, snapping the pale eyed teen out of her stunned silence.
"Shino-kun." The shy girl approached her teammate and laid a comforting hand on his arm. "Let's go somewhere else, okay. The service here is terrible." Her pupilless eyes were hard as they swept over the sputtering restaurateur.
Despite his embarrassment, Shino had to hide a small smile. Hearing his normally polite teammate insulting a respected shop owner on his behalf was oddly gratifying.
The Hyuuga heiress mustered all the dignity that had ever been trained into her by her father as she swept out of the suddenly silent eatery. Shino followed her sedately, his emotions well hidden beneath his hood and glasses. Temari followed them, not as graceful as Hinata but still managing to exude an air of power in her fury.
Gaara had finally reigned in her temper enough to speak and what she said made the prejudiced man's knees go weak. "The Hokage will hear of this."
The furious redhead strode away with a swirl of dust to mark her anger, ignoring the panicked civilian trying to apologize. Overtaking the others quickly, she led them into the first deserted alley she found and rounded on the Aburame heir.
"What was that?" She asked sharply, already having her own suspicions but wanting to hear them confirmed.
Shino shrugged. "Some of the villagers do not allow my family into their establishments. They think we are...unclean, for our association with the kikaichu."
Gaara nodded. It was pretty much as she suspected, but something in the way the hooded teen so casually brushed off his poor treatment set her on edge, hitting far too close to her own issues. How could he be so accepting of being treated like filth by the very people he worked to protect?
Hinata interrupted just as Gaara was about to pose that question. The blue haired young woman's eyes were bright with unshed tears for her friend. "Shino-kun...is...is that why you n-never come w-with Kiba and I?"
The young man turned his face away from his teammate before nodding. "Having me with you would severely limit the choice of places you and Kiba could go. I did not want to be an inconvenience."
Hinata's lavender eyes finally shed some of the liquid she had been fighting to hold back and she shook her head to stop further tears. "Shino-kun, you are a brilliant ninja and a good friend...and that is the stupidest thing I have ever heard you say."
Shino turned back to the usually polite girl, a look of shock on his nearly hidden face.
Temari spoke up at that moment, having gotten over the bout of muttered cursing that had bubbled from her since they left the restaurant. "Your Hokage allows this sort of prejudice?" She asked sharply, her opinion of Tsunade taking a dive at the very thought. It seemed more like something the sand siblings' father would have done; and Temari's opinion of her father had bottomed out around the time he killed her mother to turn her baby brother...er...sister into a monster.
Shino blushed and was glad that most of it was well hidden. "I don't think anyone has ever bothered the Hokage with it. It is only a minor issue and she is very busy."
Gaara's aqua eyes narrowed and her voice was low and menacing. "Well, she's going to hear about it now. I will not let such an injustice stand."
Temari laid a nervous hand on her volatile little sister's shoulder, seeing a glimpse of the old Gaara in that fury. She wasn't afraid of her sister anymore, but not all of the murderous temper that had marked the redhead's younger years had been from Shukaku; and now that Gaara wasn't constantly worried about the one-tail taking advantage of her anger to rest away her control, Gaara had been showing her emotions a bit more easily, even the negative ones. It was a mixed blessing in the blonde sand ninja's opinion. "Well, we should still eat first. You know anywhere we can go where you won't get that sort of reaction, Shino-kun?"
Shino hesitated for a moment before nodding. He knew of a few places that catered to ninja and wouldn't bat an eye at his presence. However, he wanted to make up for the unpleasantness his company had caused, so he led the way to somewhere more personal to him.
Hinata, being more familiar with the layout of the village, realized where they were going first. Her eyes widened as they reached the gates that separated the Aburame homes from the rest of the village. Unlike her politically active family, the insect users were somewhat reclusive and she knew that few people ventured beyond those gates that were not part of the family.
Shino sent his insects through a hole in the center of the gate and a few moments later it swung ponderously open on well oiled hinges. "Please allow me to treat you all to lunch at my home." He bowed. "To thank you for coming to my defense earlier."
Gaara wondered if they were the first to ever do so. The insect user certainly seemed as if he hadn't expected it. "Thank you. You honor Sunagakure by allowing my sister and I into your home." She returned his bow with a nod as she graciously accepted the hospitality. She knew it was not lightly offered, and it displayed a lot of trust in the alliance between their villages.
Hinata bowed too. "I-I would l-love to see your f-family home, Shino-kun."
Temari simply patted the teen on the shoulder and grinned. "Thanks. So what are you cooking?"
Shino smiled behind his high collar, pleased that they hadn't even hesitated to accept the invitation. Visitors were uncommon in the Aburame household, and almost never comfortable about being there. He turned and led them through a space between buildings, coming out in his favorite area of the compound.
The garden stretched out in front of them; trees and flowering shrubs grew wild, interrupted only rarely by winding footpaths. The Aburame complex butted up against the forest surrounding the village and it looked like they had invited some of the forest inside their walls. Insects of all types flourished within the false forest and their voices washed over him in welcome.
Gaara looked around in wonder. She had seen forests before, had walked through them plenty of times; but the idea of having so much life just outside your door was still mind boggling to someone raised in a desert. Temari was in a similar state of shock, having never seen so many colorful plants and insects gathered in one place.
Only Hinata was able to find her voice, after a few moments to just take it all in. "Shino-kun, it's so beautiful." She almost whispered, afraid of scaring away the butterflies that were flitting not more than a foot away.
Shino held out his hand and several of the vibrant creatures landed on it, causing him to smile slightly. "Thank you." He gently shook the insects off and started walking down one of the paths. "This way please."
The three girls followed in silence, enjoying the lush atmosphere.
Shino led them to his home, one of the larger houses pressed against the village wall. The house was built in a very traditional style, with sliding shoji doors and tatami covered wooden floors. The hooded ninja slid the screen aside and entered the small entryway, toeing off his shoes and slipping into his house slippers as the others did the same with the provided guest slippers.
"I'm home." He called out.
"Shino? I thought you were going to see if that Hyuuga girl wanted to practice...was she training with the Kazekage again?" A female voice floated from the back of the house, followed by the appearance of a tall, slender woman wearing an apron and a kerchief, over dark hair that was just beginning to show signs of gray. She froze when she spotted the small group waiting by the door. "Oh!" Brown eyes widened for a second as she took in the company her son was keeping, before a slightly embarrassed smile spread over her face and she blushed to match Gaara's hair. "I see you found them..."
Shino shrugged. "Yes, Kaasan. The Kazekage and her sister invited me to eat lunch with them...there was difficulty in finding a restaurant so I brought them here."
Intelligence and anger flashed across the older woman's face as she correctly deduced what sort of trouble her son might have had. "Hmph. I see." She almost visibly pushed her irritation away and smiled sweetly at her guests. "Welcome to our home."
"Kazekage-sama, Temari-san, Hinata-san; this is my mother, Shiori Aburame." The hooded teen introduced politely. "Kaasan, this is the Kazekage Gaara-sama, her elder sister Temari-san, and my teammate Hinata Hyuuga-san."
The older woman shot her son a grin to say she was pleased that he had remembered his manners and bowed politely to the three girls. "It is an honor to meet all of you. I apologize for my appearance. I was not expecting company." She fluttered, smoothing her apron and hair self-consciously.
Gaara nodded in return. "No need to apologize. We are sorry to have intruded unannounced."
"Nonsense." The woman waved off the apology. "I'm always happy to have visitors and anyone my son trusts enough to bring home most welcome indeed."
Shino closed his eyes in embarrassment, glad the action was hidden behind his glasses and beginning to think he should have just taken the group to one of the restaurants that didn't mind his presence. As much as he loved her, his mother had a knack for making him feel awkward.
"Thank you for the hospitality, Aburame-san." Hinata offered, smiled sweetly.
"Please call me Shiori." The woman ordered with a grinned, her dark eyes took in the shy, blue haired girl with a calculating gleam that Hinata didn't understand. "That goes for all of you. I'm not such a stickler for formality as my son...or my husband."
"Thank you, Shiori-san." the redhead nodded, a hint of a smile playing at the edge of her mouth. She found herself liking the Aburame matriarch immediately. "Please call me Gaara."
Shiori blinked, obviously surprised by the request from the high ranking sand ninja, but she recovered quickly and the redhead found herself the recipient of that blinding grin. "You honor me, Gaara-san. Now, Shino-kun said you were going to eat lunch so you must be hungry. The dinig room is back here. Anything you like, in particular?"
Gaara shook her head and Temari shrugged. Hinata blushed and looked at her slippered feet as she followed the vibrant woman deeper into the house, not wanting to be a troublesome guest.
They reached a small dining area and the bundle of energy that was Shiori Aburame soon had them seated on cushions around the low table, drinking tea as she prepared their lunch in the kitchen.
"Wow." Temari said softly, not wanting the woman in the other room to hear her. "She's...um...not what I would've expected of your mother, Shino-kun."
"How so?" The spectacled teen asked flatly.
The blonde shrugged. "She's just so...light."
An eyebrow arched from behind round lenses in response to that and the elder sand sibling pressed on, not wanting to offend her host.
"I mean...you and your dad are so serious and reserved...and Shiori-san is...er...not so much."
Shino nodded, a smile playing around his hidden lips. "Ah, yes. That's true."
Shiori chose that moment to enter with a laden tray of onigiri, pickles, and grilled fish. "That's right." She said with a wicked grin, unashamed to have been eavesdropping. "Someone has to get my son and his father to have a little fun every now and then. You girls will help me with Shino-kun, ne?" She winked at Hinata, causing the shy girl to blush and stammer in confusion.
Shino inconspicuously tried to sink into the floor, with no success. Gaara wasn't sure how to respond to that so she said nothing, but Temari laughed and clapped the embarrassed insect user on the back heartily.
"Sure, Shiori-san. He's in good hands. Kankuro and I have to do the same thing with my baby sister here sometimes." She said, nudging the redhead gently with an elbow. "We'll be sure to drag Shino along next time."
Gaara turned slightly red, but she forgave her sister for the teasing when she saw that it seemed to have helped Shino feel less embarrassed. Besides, Temari wasn't lying, she and Kankuro had often pulled the dedicated young Kazekage from her office to get her to relax for a little while. It was what family was for, or so they told her. Still, she wasn't going to take such teasing lying down.
"Yes." She deadpanned to the hooded leaf ninja. "Perhaps between the two of us, we can curtail my siblings' idea of fun...to something involving less property damage."
Temari looked affronted, but her eyes sparkled with humor. "Hey! That was just the one time!"
The two Suna siblings were rewarded with a small chuckle from the hooded ninja and a lighter round of giggles from his mother and Hinata, the latter of which tried to stifle hers behind her hands.
Shiori passed out the plates and smiled brightly. "I'll leave you kids to eat. If you need anything, just call out."
As she left the room, she glanced back and smiled at the sight. Shiori was overjoyed to see her son making an effort to interact with someone. She loved her family dearly but her boy was too much like his father when it came to dealing with people, and she had often worried about him being lonely.
'And that Hyuuga girl...' The Aburame matriarch's intelligent eyes glittered thoughtfully. 'Shino talks about her a lot, and the girl seems genuinely sweet and caring.' Shiori went about her business with a happy smile for the rest of the day.
Gaara went to bed that night with a pleasant day's thoughts to lull her to sleep, but even they failed to keep the nightmares away and she bolted upright with her teeth clenched around her knuckle just a couple of hours later.
The redhead fought with herself for a few minutes. She could try to go back to sleep, just to most likely repeat the whole process several more times before dawn. She could get up and stay awake the rest of the night, which had led to her poor health the last couple of weeks. The last option was the most appealing but also the most distressing: she could go back to Naruto and see if it really was his presence that had allowed her to sleep in peace the night before.
It was wrong by Suna's laws and it could get her removed from her position as Kazekage. 'Though I'm not really the Kazekage right now anyway...' Her tired mind pointed out. She put her feet on the floor and rested her head in her hands, debating.
"Go ahead." A sleepy voice suddenly broke the silence.
"Temari?" Shadowed aqua eyes blinked in shock at the blonde leaning in her doorway.
"You need to sleep, Sis." The older teen said with a shrug. "If Naruto's presence lets you do that, then it's okay. I trust you not to let him take advantage of the situation and I won't tell anyone." The wind ninja sighed and looked away. "I just can't stand to see you hurting like this, Gaara."
"Temari...I..." Gaara gave up on words and was across the room in an instant, thin arms wrapped around her sister.
Temari smiled and hugged the redhead back fiercely. Gaara wasn't one to casually touch people, the concept still difficult for her after going without real human contact for so long. The eldest sand sibling treasured the rare moments when her sister would reach out to her...or to anyone for that matter.
The embrace lasted only a few seconds before the redhead pulled away. "Thank you." With that the younger girl was gone, not even bothering to grab her coat or her shoes.
Temari shook her head in amusement, and made plans to remind her sister of those important accessories the next morning. Satisfied that Gaara would be okay, the blonde retired to her own bed.
Gaara knocked on the window nervously.
Naruto hadn't even fallen asleep yet, so he was quick to let her in with a wry smile. "Hey Gaara. You...um...need to talk again?"
The little redhead shook her head as she slipped inside the dark room. "No. I...can I sleep here?"
Blue eyes widened, but the leaf genin nodded, his blush visible even in the low light. "Okay, you...uh...want me to take the couch or something?"
Gaara shook her head again. "No...stay."
Wordlessly, the blushing blonde teen slid over to give her room and she crawled in beside him, hiding her face in his chest and clutching his t-shirt in her fists as she had the previous night.
"Gaara..." Naruto said as he draped his arm over her waist and rested his chin on her hair. "Why me?"
The redhead stiffened for a moment before relaxing into the loose embrace. Her response was slightly muffled but he heard it well enough. "Because...you are my most precious person."
Naruto grinned and lightly kissed the top of her head. "That's good...because you're mine too."
The pair was asleep within minutes.
Naruto woke the redhead at dawn and she was back in her own apartment in time for breakfast. Temari smirked knowingly and Gaara's face tried to coordinate with her hair but neither said anything. By unspoken agreement they behaved as if their late night conversation had never happened; as far as anyone needed to know the young Kazekage had spent the night in her own bed.
The next night the window was open and Gaara crawled into his waiting arms without having to ask.
To be continued...
Author's note: Okay. There you have. I'm not sure how I feel about this chapter. Is it too much filler? Hmm...you tell me. Next chapter: We finally meet the mysterious third member of Naruto's chunin exam squad! Too bad the exams are starting the next day... O_o' Please review and wish Naruto luck! He'll need it!