A.N.- So here is chapter 15 as well. It would really be the chapter I should have put out today instead of 14. So here it is! Hope you guys like it!FanggirlX ;)

Disclaimer: Naruto and co not mine.

Sakura and Gaara had left the 'damned gazebo' and were now up walking through the maze again.

Sakura suddenly had a craving.

"Hey, Gaara?"

He grunted. She took that as 'what?' and continued on.

"I want some waffles. Want to go out with me to that waffle place downtown?"

Gaara stopped and turned his head on to stare at her. Had she just…invited him out? On a date?

Gaara dismissed the possibility. She was just hungry.

"I'll drive," Sakura, suddenly feeling nervous under the powerful stare of his beautiful eyes began to ramble, "and heck I will even pay for you but please? I really, really want waffles all of a sudden. And I would usually just go grab some frozen waffles from my mini-fridge but see that's probably all I'll get to do once classes start and I was wanting really badly to try that place so if it gets late one night I might can go there and already trust that they either have good waffles or know that they have bad waffles. And I guess if they have bad waffles I probably won't want to go there late at night but see if I already know they have bad waffles by going to try them now then I saved myself a trip there at night time! And well we could you know use that time to maybe talk more if you had anymore questions or any thing because I like talking with you like that and well I was thinking that afterwards if you wanted-" Gaara couldn't take it any more.

He quickly pushed Sakura up against the hedge maze wall. He was a slight bit rougher than intended but she was at least now quiet.

In fact, she was simply staring at him, eyes wider than usual.

Great. He'd probably just scared her.

"Please." he whispered as he leaned close to her face. "Please, stop talking as much. I like your voice. But not that much. Not that fast."

He almost growled and the end of his words kind of were a bit gravelly but he'd done a fairly good job of controlling his temper if he said so himself.

Sakura's wide green eyes locked with his a moment then flicked down to his lips that were barely inches from hers and then she smiled a little nervously and asked, "You…you like my voice?"

Gaara stared at her in awe, she…she was just too much. He sighed very heavily and dropped his head onto her shoulder.

Sakura giggled. "Did I wear you out, Gaara?"

He simply took in her scent a moment then nodded his head against her.

Giggling again Sakura reached her hands up and ran her fingers along the bottom of his neck.

Gaara's breath hitched as she began to rub his tense neck.

"Calm down. I didn't mean to talk too fast. Slow your brain down again. I sometimes forget that you aren't used to so much conversation. I just get so caught up in having fun with you that I simply forget. And well-oops I was about to do it again, wasn't I?"

Sighing once again, he nodded.

Sakura continued massaging the base of his skull with her gentle silk fingers.

She came upon a bad knot of tension. Gaara must be under a lot of stress. Made sense. What with the committee watching his every move. The fate of his village resting on whether or not he succeeds in college. Then on top of that he is still struggling to understand all the ways of living around normal people.

Oh Gaara, Sakura thought sadly to herself.

Where he had his hands braced against the wall she could see his arms tremble. It twitched, like he wanted to move it.

"Gaara?"

Hesitantly he wrapped an arm around her waist.

Sakura smiled. It was cute some how to her the way he always touched her carefully. It really amazed her. The same hands that nervously clung to her now, were the same hands that expertly completed jutsu after jutsu with amazing body crushing power. He'd killed hundreds of people with these hands maybe. But now he protected his village with them. And with his ever lethal hands he was also learning to be gentle.

She smiled, "I want to tell you something, Gaara."

Knowing the silence would eventually end because Sakura enjoyed talking too much to remain quiet Gaara had expected her voice so he was able to refrain from huffing when she'd spoken.

He tilted his head slightly so he could watch her lips move as she told him what she wanted. He couldn't see the rest of her face, but her lips were a nice place to look anyway.

"Gaara, I am very proud of you." she whispered as her trained fingers continued to alleviate his stress filled muscles. "You are trying so hard to learn things that to you are really foreign. And that's hard but you haven't given up and you haven't given in. You still have that demon that drove you to murder so many earlier in your life. He's still there inside you. But you continuously fight him just so you can be accepted. And I think slowly and surely you are. Why, I believe with those nincompoops in charge of your village when you go back Suna will be ecstatic to have their proper Kazekage back."

Gaara reveled in her soft spoken words. He could not believe he'd just heard them.

This girl. She did things. Said things. Out of the blue that were just so amazing.

Emotion overcame him. This…was this love? She'd told him he could feel it with out fully understanding it. He'd wondered if he had. But…

Without warning Sakura found herself crushed against him.

He was holding her so tightly she could barely breathe.

But that was not what her focus was on.

Nor was it the way their bodies were completely touching, there was absolutely no space between them.

That barely registered either.

What Sakura did notice was the fact that Gaara's entire body was trembling.

"Gaara?"

He shook his head, begging for her silence and if possible he held her tighter.

Sakura took her hands from the back of his neck and moved them to his shoulders to press him back to see his face.

Then Gaara did something that horrified him.

He growled at her. It was low in his throat and it rumbled against her. It was a warning growl. He wanted her to keep her hands where they were, doing what they were, not trying to push him away.

Sakura was shocked.

Had he ever outright growled at her like this? Sometimes while talking one slipped out but had he ever just growled at her?

Maybe that time he'd been changing but he wasn't changing now, was he?

"Gaara?" she was worried for him.

He growled again.

"Gaara, you're being silly." she said.

His growling intensified.

"Gaara, use your words." Sakura said getting frustrated. How could he expect her to know what he meant if all he did was growl at her?

Then he moved his head and nipped at her fingers still pressing against his shoulders.

Shocked Sakura stared at him.

"Oh." was all she could manage as she put her hands back on his neck.

His growling lessened.

And when she started to massage his neck again it stopped completely.

"You're a strange boy, Gaara. Next time just say 'don't stop' or 'more please'. Alright? Growling doesn't work most of the time. You're lucky I figured out what you wanted." she chided him.

Gaara nodded against her.

He'd been trying to speak. But growls were all that came out.

Shukaku laughed, Score one for me. You may not let me have control but I can definitely make this little project of yours harder.

"Sorry." Gaara rumbled out. His voice still a little like a growl but at least words were coming.

"Want to explain what just happened?"

"Shukaku." was all he said.

Sakura waited. And when it didn't look like he was going to speak she asked, "So was that Shukaku growling at me?"

He shook his head.

"Oh, so was he trying to get out?"

Again Gaara shook his head.

Now Sakura was beyond confused.

"Gaara, what happened then?"

She sounded worried. Was she worried about herself or him? Gaara wondered.

"Gaara? Did Shukaku do something to you?"

Him, he realized, she was worried about him.

Her worrying for him…it pleased him to know such a fact.

"He was toying with me." Gaara admitted bitterly.

"Oh. But why?"

"He doesn't like my getting close to you."

"Oh. A jealous demon huh?" Sakura giggled.

I am not jealous! Shukaku snarled. Let me teach this insolent wench what for!

"He did not like that." Gaara said with amusement.

Sakura grinned, "Yeah, well I don't very much like him messing with my best friend so if he leaves you alone I will leave him alone." she said with a hint of defiant challenge in her voice.

Gaara stared at her.

Did she just challenge Shukaku?

Did she just challenge me? Shukaku asked bewildered. Tell me I didn't just hear her challenge me.

Gaara couldn't. It sounded to him like she had.

"Did…you challenge Shukaku just now?" he questioned.

Sakura smirked at him, "I guess so. That old coon won't know what he's messing with."

Gaara was in utter shock.

She did! She challenged me! Shukaku roared with a laugh. Oh, please! I could snap her like a twig!

Feeling a little reckless Gaara decided to play messenger. She seemed fine with accepting that the demon could hear what she was saying. She'd even spoken back to him in a way. He wondered just how this would go exactly.

"He says he could snap you like a twig." Gaara told her.

Sakura laughed.

"Oh, does he think so? In what way is he speaking? Fighting me or loving me? Because either way he will find I am quite resilient." she had a grin on her face that was cute but possibly a little wild too.

Shukaku was in silent shock.

Gaara could not believe it. For nineteen years he'd tried to shut the thing up and now Sakura succeeds with one sex joke.

Shukaku suddenly howled, What a woman!

What did he just say? Gaara could not be hearing correctly, had Shukaku just complimented Sakura.

You damn right I did. This girl is feisty! I like that. I will let her live. Shukaku answered smugly.

Gaara smirked, She will not take well to you letting her live.

Tell her anyway.

"He says, he likes you now. He will let you live because you are feisty." Gaara informed her with amusement on his face.

"Oh, he said that did he?" Sakura asked calmly.

It was the calm before the storm.

Her eyes flashed.

"You want to come out and say that to my face, you old raccoon dog! I bet you are nothing but a big whimp hiding behind Gaara's power! You talk big but you can't walk the walk can you old man? You're going to let me live? How dare you! How arrogant! How full of yourself! No, you know what you're full of?! You're full of shit you know that!? Why, you come face me and I'll show you what I'll let you do! I'll let you beg for mercy when I'm done beating your face in, you jerk! Come out and fight me!" she screamed angrily.

Sakura sighed inwardly. It was so troublesome to have an inner…

Gaara stared at the girl before him. She changed so fast. It was hard to believe that this was still Sakura. Granted he knew she had an inner, slightly more evil side but he had not seen her this close up.

Whoa. Was all Shukaku could say.

Suddenly the demon was clawing for freedom.

Gaara was so unprepared for the attack or the desperation behind the attack Shukaku nearly made it out.

What are you doing?! Gaara yelled angrily.

That's my kind of woman! You can have your sassy little tart! I want the one with fire!

What? Gaara asked confused. What do you mean the one with fire? That is Sakura.

Shukaku laughed, You fool.

Then Shukaku was free!

Sakura watched from inside herself as Gaara's face took on a slightly crazed look as he dove on her.

What the hell is he doing? Sakura shrieked.

"What the hell are you doing!" her inner unknowingly repeating the words her other half had just screamed as she struggled to push Shukaku possessed Gaara off of her, "Get your damn hands offa me you bastard! You don't just threaten to let someone live like you're king of the friggin' world and then jump them! Get off! You got no damn right!!" Inner Sakura bellowed.

"Oh, god. You're hellfire! You're…mine!" Shukaku cackled as he crushed her lips to his.

Sakura watched as 'Shukaku' wildly kissed her inner via hers and Gaara's bodies.

This should have been weird.

It really should have been.

And later once she and Gaara had control again it probably would be. But right now all she could think was, Wow, I look good kissing him. He looks good kissing me. We look good. Together.

Suddenly 'Shukaku' was pushed off.

Inner Sakura practically growled herself, as she threw the boy against the wall.

"What the hell is your problem!?" she demanded.

'Shukaku' shook his head, eyes never leaving hers.

"You're fucking amazing." he muttered.

Inner Sakura wiped at the blood on her lower lip where he'd nipped her too hard.

"Yeah, well you're fucking insane!" she countered angrily.

Then she smirked cockily, "But I don't see you letting me doing anything. If anything, I'm letting you walk away after pulling that stunt. Be lucky, coon. Most wouldn't be able to."

With that she blew him a teasing kiss goodbye and disappeared back into Sakura's mind.

While 'Shukaku' was in a stupor Gaara quickly reclaimed control.

Then Sakura found herself eye to eye with Gaara.

Both blushing no better than the Hyuga heiress herself.

"Well…" Sakura began.

Gaara remained silent. He simply stared at her red, well kissed mouth. And the tiny bit of blood still lingering there on her bottom lip.

Empowered by the scene he'd just beheld, Gaara stepped forward boldly and took Sakura's chin in his hand.

"Well." he said repeating her, as he brushed his thumb across her lips taking her blood.

He stuck it to his mouth. It was sweeter than anything he'd ever tasted.

"We should probably go get you those waffles." he said with a smirk as he gently brushed her lower lips with his thumb once again.

Nodding, Sakura took his hand and began to walk off.

"Sakura."

She turned at the sound of his voice. She still looked dazed.

His smirk was incredible as he pointed towards the other direction.

"The exit is this way." he replied feeling very confident.

She didn't have to say that she'd liked what she'd seen. He could see it in her eyes. On her face. In her actions.

Now…Sakura Haruno was thinking about kissing him.

Which was great except for one thing…now Gaara actually owed the damn demon one.