Sandstorms and Falling leaves

Author's Note: Sorry for the delay. My computer has been weird lately and I have been busy. Thus, this is not betaed and barely proofread so you could get it more quickly. Please let me know if you catch any errors I may have missed. On to news! On the plus side, I just changed jobs and my new job leaves me a great deal more time for writing and other hobbies so updates should be more frequent (barring writer's block). On the downside, I have been attacked by vicious plot bunnies in the One Piece fandom and they have caused my writing time to be somewhat divided. Unfortunately if I do not let them out, they tend to take revenge by stealing all my inspiration so they tend to get their way. Ah, and now that you all think I am completely mad; on with the fic.

Chapter 32: Research and Announcements

Naruto walked Gaara to meet with Hinata for training and the couple shared a chaste kiss before he darted away. He had a mission to fulfill; a very important mission that could affect his future happiness and the woman he loved. He would not fail.

His first stop was the village library. All family records were stored there and anyone could request to see them if they wanted.

He walked up to the desk where a stern looking elderly man sat reading a book that looked suspiciously like one of Jiraiya's novels, and smiled nervously as the man leveled a glared at him.

"Hi. I'd like to take a look at my family records." Naruto said pleasantly.

The old man raised an eyebrow at him incredulously.

Naruto swallowed nervously and pressed on. "Um...I'm Naruto Uzumaki."

"I know who you are." The elder snorted. "I'm just surprised to see you in my library." The man's voice was as dry as the pages of an old book but his tone wasn't unkind. "Honestly, I would have expected you to come looking for that information years ago. Why now?" He asked curiously.

Naruto blushed. "I...I never needed to know before..." He said with a nervous shrug. "Now I do. So can you show me the records?" He finished eagerly.

"No." The man replied flatly.

Naruto felt a flash of shock that was quickly followed by anger. "No? Why not? Why won't you help me?" He asked furiously.

The librarian ran a hand through his salt and pepper hair and sighed. "It isn't that I won't help you." He explained evenly. "It's that I cannot help you."

"What?" Naruto asked dumbly, the anger draining off and leaving him confused.

"Those records are sealed and the Hokage is the only one who has access to them. I cannot tell you anything further." He seemed genuinely regretful that he couldn't help but it was clear he would say nothing further on the subject.

Naruto frowned. Why were his records secret? Was it because he was the vessel for Kyuubi? Was the Hokage afraid someone would go after his family if it was known who they were? Did that mean they were alive after all? His mind swam with possibilities until he felt oddly numb as he mumbled his thanks to the elderly gentleman and left the library.

His eyes were drawn to the massive tower that the Hokage called home and his resolve returned as he remembered why he was seeking the information in the first place. No matter why his lineage was being kept secret, he needed to know now; for Gaara's sake.

The leaf ninja set out towards the round building at a purposeful walk; thinking of how to phrase his questions as he traversed the streets that would take him to Tsunade's office, and hopefully answers. Answers to the questions he always had; but that suddenly seemed much more interesting than they had ever been to him before.

Gaara watched Naruto go, still curious about the dream that had driven him to her home before dawn just to hug her fiercely. She'd had enough bad dreams for ten lifetimes and she rarely shared the details of them with anyone, so she could hardly begrudge him his privacy on the subject. However, she hated seeing her love so upset and her mind kept trying to come up with ways to fix the situation despite her attempts to focus on her training.

"Gaara-chan?" Hinata called hesitantly, breaking the redhead out of her musings. "Are you okay? I called you three times already."

Gaara frowned at that. She really was getting far too comfortable if she had allowed herself to become that distracted from her surroundings. "Sorry." She said curtly.

"Let's take a break." The lavender eyed girl suggested with a small smile.

Gaara nodded and went to sit in the shade of a tree at the edge of the clearing they were using for practice. She drew her knees up in front of her and leaned her arms on them; one hand idly twirling the pendant Naruto had given her. She watched the two village emblems blur into one and it brought a strange feeling of peace as she considered the symbolism.

"That's a pretty necklace." Hinata said pleasantly. "Where did you get it?"

Gaara's long fingers stilled and she blushed as she realized she had yet to share the news of her engagement with the girl who had become one of her closest friends.

Hinata noticed the blush and smiled knowingly. "Naruto gave it to you, didn't he?"

Gaara nodded, her brain refusing to put words in order for her for a few moments before she could bring it back in order. "It's a custom in Sunagakure." She explained evenly. "Couples exchange handmade necklaces when they agree to marry." Her words came out faster than she would have liked and she was surprised to find herself nervous about Hinata's reaction.

Hinata's pale eyes widened and she let out a squeak of joy as she leaned over and gave the redhead a brief hug. "Oh wow! I am so happy for you both! Are you planning a long engagement? Have you set a date yet?" She gushed as she sat back and gave her friend room to breathe.

Gaara shook her head slowly. "I...don't think we'll wait long." She said carefully, remembering Naruto's words about not wanting to be away from her any more than he had to be. "We can set the date once I hear from the council.

Hinata cocked her head and frowned curiously. "The council? What do they have to do with anything?"

Gaara shrugged and explained quickly as she had for Naruto just that morning.

Hinata scowled. "That's ridiculous!" She blurted. "They shouldn't have any say in who you can marry."

Gaara was taken aback by the usually timid teen's vehemence.

Hinata blushed at the bemused look the sand ninja was giving her and rubbed the back of her neck in embarrassment. "Sorry. I don't mean to insult your customs." She said with a small sigh. "It just...it just hit a little close to home." She offered sadly.

Gaara frowned before realization hit her like a mallet. "Shino." She said quietly, and it wasn't really a question.

Hinata nodded; looking utterly miserable. "W-we...we were dating each other secretly; after Father forbid it. We got caught a couple days ago and now my father has forbidden me from seeing Shino at all outside of missions and training with Kiba. He even said he was going to speak to Tsunade-sama about getting me reassigned to a different squad." She explained shakily as a tear leaked from her eye; only to be brushed away angrily as soon as the blue haired ninja noted its existence.

"Why?" Gaara asked, unable to think of anything terribly objectionable about the Aburame heir.

Hinata shook her head in frustration. "I can't say. It isn't my secret to share." She explained wearily.

"I'm sorry." Another voice cut in as Shino stepped into the clearing.

Gaara had felt him arrive but Hinata jumped slightly before the blue haired girl broke down in tears and ran into the insect user's waiting arms. He wrapped her in a warm embrace and she buried her face in his chest.

The redhead stood and nodded to the Aburame heir before quietly leaving the pair alone to talk. She hoped they would be able to figure things out. She didn't like seeing her friends hurting.

Gaara spent a good portion of the rest of the day working on fashioning a replacement for her shattered sand gourd. She had put the project off; disheartened by the slow progress in her training and not finding a great deal of need for the protection in the safe confines of Konoha's walls. However, the lack of easy access to chakra infused sand had begun to bother her more and more recently; and Deidara's attack had shattered any illusion of safety that the high walls of the village and it's cheerful residents had given her.

By early afternoon she had the familiar weight of the gourd slung comfortably across her back as she sought out a place to eat lunch.

"Gaara-san!" An eager voice called out from a side street.

The redhead turned to see Ino waving her over to where she was walking with her long time teammates. Choji waved a hand and continued to stuff chips into his mouth like a machine. Shikamaru looked away and shoved his hands into his pockets; clearly he had been against calling her over at all.

Ino smiled brightly, though it was slightly predatory. "Gaara-san, are you alone? Would you like to join us? We were just going to eat. My treat." The blonde added with a meaningful look at her two companions; her generosity instantly quelling Choji's objections and causing the Nara heir to huff and shut his mouth as well.

Gaara hesitated. She wasn't entirely comfortable around Ino and she hardly knew Choji. Nara she knew primarily from her sister's comments, which might not provide an accurate picture. Still, these were Naruto's friends, and they were making an effort to be kind to her. It would be rude to refuse.

She nodded reluctantly and the blonde girl grinned excitedly and began leading the way to her team's favorite barbeque place. Ino kept up a steady stream of chatter without much help from her three companions and soon the four of them were seated in a booth waiting on their food.

Ino smiled from her place beside the quiet redhead; having shoved the boys into the other side of the booth with some cheerfully ominous words about having girl talk with the exiled kazekage.

"So, Gaara-chan, how have you been? I haven't seen you in days." The blonde gushed eagerly.

Gaara considered the question and something Naruto had told her the first day she had stayed in Konoha bubbled to the surface of her mind. Telling Ino anything was pretty much the same as telling the whole village.

With that in mind, the redhead shrugged and answered evenly. "I'm well. Naruto and I are engaged."

"That's good. I'm sure..." Pale eyes widened as the words sunk in. "You're ENGAGED!?"

Shikamaru choked on the sip of water he had just taken, tuning in to the conversation at Ino's near shout. "What?" He blinked lazily at the now slightly smirking sand user.

Gaara nodded.

"To Naruto?" The blonde girl asked in blatant disbelief.

The Suna ninja nodded again.

Ino was at a loss for words, which was a rare occurrence.

Shikamaru didn't have that issue. "Crap." He drawled tiredly. "That woman is gonna be the death of me." He muttered with a roll of his eyes to the ceiling as if entreating any listening deity to help.

Gaara raised an eyebrow at that, but after a moment she realized who he meant and a small smirk played over her pale face.

The shadow ninja sighed and reluctantly stood up. "I gotta go...talk to the Hokage about something." He announced with a distinct lack of enthusiasm and a significant look at Choji. "You can eat my share." He told his large friend with a halfhearted wry grin.

"Thanks!" Choji replied happily. "Good luck!"

"Yeah, yeah." The dark haired teen waved lazily over his shoulder as he headed for the door.

Ino narrowed her eyes in confusion. "What's that about?" She asked the heavyset teen across from her.

Choji shrugged and shoved the last of his snack into his mouth before answering. "Probably wanting Tsunade-sama to hurry up and tell him what he has to do to get promoted to jonin."

Ino raised an eyebrow. "Why? I mean I know he asked her about it but what's that have to do with Gaara-chan getting engaged?" She was trying to figure it out but somehow she felt she was missing some key piece of the puzzle.

Gaara's smirk grew a little but she said nothing. It wasn't her place to tell the Nara heir's secrets.

Ino noticed the smirk and the gears in her head began to line up but she still felt like she had lost something important to this piece of gossip. She reluctantly pushed the puzzle aside in favor of tackling the more readily available source of information sitting beside her.

"Well, nevermind him. So how did Naruto ask you?" She smiled encouragingly at the redhead.

"He made me this." Gaara said simply, holding up her pendant and spinning it to show them both sides.

The food had arrived and Choji was too busy eating to give the necklace more than a cursory glance and a grunt of acknowledgement. Ino, on the other hand was very intrigued.

"Oh that's pretty. He made it himself?" Her eyes sparkled. "That's so sweet. I wouldn't have thought he could make anything nice like that. He was always a terrible artist in school."

Gaara let the pendant fall back against her shirt and shrugged. "It's tradition." She said carefully.

"Really? Must be a Suna thing I guess." The blonde grinned. "So when's the wedding?"

Gaara shrugged again.

"Will it be traditional or are you going to have a modern ceremony? What sort of color scheme are you thinking of? Oooh, what will you wear?"

The redhead frowned and shook her head minutely at the barrage of questions. "We haven't discussed it yet."

"Oh, right, sure." The eager leaf kunoichi smile sheepishly. "Well, if you need any help just let me know."

Gaara nodded her appreciation for the offer and then stood and picked up her gourd where she had rested it beside her on the ground. "I should get home." She said awkwardly, suddenly not sure she should have told the blonde about her engagement at all.

"Oh, okay." Ino looked crestfallen but offered her a smile anyway. "See you around."

Gaara nodded again and Choji offered her a brief wave as he continued eating. Then the exiled Suna ninja made a hasty exit from the restaurant.

Naruto stretched and yawned as he got ready for bed. Tsunade had been in meetings all day and he had been forced to make an appointment to see her the next morning. It was a bit frustrating but he was optimistic that the hokage would be able to answer all his questions about his family.

The leaf chunin was just stretching out on his narrow bed when he heard a familiar but unexpected rap on his window. He opened his eyes and hurried to let his fiancee in.

Gaara stepped into the room and stood there for a moment, awkwardly looking at anything but the leaf ninja.

"What's wrong?" Naruto asked with a concerned frown. "Did something happen? Did you have a nightmare or something?"

The redhead shook her head briefly. "No."

That seemed to stump the hyperactive leaf ninja but he moved to her side and wrapped his arms around her tense frame anyway. After only a moment, Gaara felt the pent up emotions from the day beginning to melt away and she was able to relax and return the embrace.

"Is it too late to elope?" She murmured into his warm shoulder where her head had come to rest.

Naruto blinked and seemed to consider it for a moment before he shook his head with a wry smile. "I think your family might object...and I'd like to live through our honeymoon."

Gaara huffed a quick laugh and then sighed. "What are we going to do then?" She asked cautiously. "I have no idea how to plan a wedding or be a wife." She admitted with the faintest hint of worry marring her features.

Naruto's grin widened into a genuine smile as he realized this was source of the emergency visit. "We can figure it out together." He assured her easily. "And as for being a good wife; you're already a better cook than I am and who gets to tell us what a wife is supposed to be anyway? As long as you're here and you love me you're going to be the most perfect wife ever."

Gaara felt the worried lines of her face relaxing into a peaceful little smile as she leaned back and regarded him with eyes that sparkled in the moonlight streaming through the open window. Words were insufficient so she simply leaned forward and met the blonde's warm lips with her own.

Naruto was quick to return the soft kiss but pulled away after only a few moments. "You should get home before somebody comes looking for you." He reminded her reluctantly.

Gaara nodded and slipped from his arms. She hesitated on the windowsill for a moment before vanishing into the night without a sound.

Naruto flopped back in bed with a sigh that was both pleased and slightly frustrated. One thing was certain in his mind.

"I hope she doesn't want a long engagement." He murmured to the empty room.

To Be Continued...

Author's Note: Hope you liked it. Please review and let me know what you think. Next chapter: Will Naruto finally get the answers about his parents? What will Suna's council say about the match?