Chapter 6
Kazekage's Office
This was her second day working on Project Firebird as this was now being called. Since Gaara had many other obligations to attend to he had assigned her to go through all these files. There wasn't a structure to the project yet - it was pure information gathering. Once she reviewed the files she would come up with a way to assess the information based on connections and themes.
Hinata had set up Gaara's couch as her personal work area. He wasn't in his office very often so she had privacy for the most part to do her work and it was convenient, she was able to ask him questions when he had the time. This way she was also able to keep him as up to date as possible on the progress of this work.
It was going well so far. Gaara seemed a bit more standoffish in her opinion compared to the last time they'd spoken after her panic attack. He wasn't rude per se, but she had a feeling that he was distancing himself from her due to his own reasons. She didn't think too much about it, afterall she was here to complete a mission and then she would leave.
The answers she had sought when she first came here seemed within reach. She could understand how she would have fallen for Gaara having come to understand who he was as an adult. What she marvelled at more was how she'd somehow become a strong enough kunoichi to run away from home and Konoha at the risk of being labeled a traitor just to avoid having her life decided for her. She regretted not being able to remember how she'd grown to be so strong.
She was sad she had almost no memories with Naruto. She was sure each one of their interactions over the years must have held a special place in her heart. And she was also sad… to not remember her relationship with the Kazekage…
But he was right, they must move forward. He was clearly trying to direct his life in another direction and she would stay clear of that. Of course the possibility of another chance with the Kazakage teased her, but she didn't trust her feelings, she didn't trust herself not to back out… and frankly not to hurt him again.
"Hinata" she looked up as the woman that had been on her mind quite often walked into the office.
"Matsuri-san" she bowed her head from her place on the couch.
She'd noticed that Matsuri, Kankuro and Temari had free reign over Gaara's office. Even when he wasn't here those three would often drop by the office to pick things up or drop things off.
Matsuri's renewed dislike of Hinata was obvious. It was clear she hated the fact that she now had access to work from the Kage's office and she didn't hesitate to make that obvious when Gaara wasn't in the vicinity.
"How's the research going?" the brunette asked and Hinata blinked. Matsuri usually didn't care about her work…
"Um, it's going well, I am still getting caught up on understanding the background and history of each of the suspects so I need to read over all the files before I can start to make sense of the information."
Matsuri continued to give her a level stare, "Right… which is why it's so odd that the Kazekage picked you to do this…" she looked around. "Anyway it's not my place to say anything." she mumbled as she dropped her file onto the desk, turned around and left.
"Bye to you too". Hinata whispered as the door was shut.
Gaara deserved happiness. But if she was being honest, she would prefer it would be with someone other than Matsuri.
As the day progressed Hinata wrapped up her allocated hours of research and then went to the mailroom until 6 PM to work. After that she got some dinner for herself and Gaara and popped back into the office. She'd only been asked to help a few hours a day but she was behind in this research, she wanted to catch up. Hinata waited in the lobby with Nobu until Gaara's daily meeting with Sakura and Yuri was wrapped up and then she walked in with a knock.
"What are you doing here?" Gaara asked as she entered.
"I wanted to continue working Kazekage-sama, I hope that is okay?"
"... I guess so." he nodded.
After that they fell into a comfortable silence. It was much later when Hinata intentionally spoke to Gaara again.
"Um… Kazekage-sama, there's some details about the last war that's a bit unclear to me, do you mind if I ask you?"
Gaara looked up from his report as if exiting from a fog. It took him a second to answer but she was surprised when he nodded and then stood up stretching.
She looked away feeling warm. He did stretch quite often and she would be lying if she said she hadn't checked him out each time. His black t-shirt stretched extremely pleasingly over his tapered stomach, wide chest and shoulders when he did this.
"What were your questions?" He sat down at the other end of the couch looking at the files.
Hinata scooted a bit close to the Kage and showed her file. "What is this Zetsu?"
Gaara looked thoughtful, "Well…. In the war what we knew of as Zetsu was a humanoid creature half white and half black. The white half… was able to merge with vegetation and camouflage itself. It was a spy and scout…" Gaara scratched his neck almost as if he was getting agitated from this conversation. "The Black Zetsu…was created by Kaguya Otsutsuki…" he paused looking at her.
"I'm sorry I don't know…"
"Don't worry about that for now. Both Zetsu were able to regenerate themselves and were very difficult if not impossible to beat in combat. Why do you ask?"
"Well the very limited intel we have on the Zensu, seems to indicate it might be a duplicate of the Zetsu.."
Gaara paused again in thought. He was very deliberate when he spoke again, "In that case this might be harder to crack than we think." As he finished speaking he sighed and leaned back, closing his eyes.
Hinata let him be and went back to her reading on the Zetsu, trying to find information on this Kaguya person. After another sigh Gaara too pulled out one of the folders she'd set aside for him to look over and opened it slouching further into the couch.
Both of them had no idea when they eventually slipped into sleep.
Hinata blinked her eyes open an indeterminate amount of time later. She tried to orient herself, she was in Gaara's office… on a couch. She sat up a bit and paused realizing she was laying on the couch sleeping with Gaara sitting down from her. He was exactly where he had been before but she had stretched herself out on the couch at some point and was even resting her feet on the Kage's lap!
She froze, afraid to make any sudden movements.
At this time of the night, the Kage office came to a calm stand still. Even the streets below were quiet and motionless. The atmosphere of the moonlight softly spilling through the windows caused a gentle glow over the room and the ticking of a clock echoed in the silence making the atmosphere cozy. Almost as if they were frozen in a bubble somehow.
Her mind wandered as she propped herself up, gently withdrawing her feet gazing at Gaara. He didn't stir as she settled herself. He looked exhausted. The red smudged circles around his eyes were more pronounced than usual and she wondered what had been keeping him up. Other than the work, stress, and worry over the state of the country.
She wondered if he was scared? He was clearly a target of these attacks as well… he didn't seem scared. Perhaps all Kage lived knowing they could die, similar to how all shinobi lived but… she was scared for him.
She'd learned a lot about him over the last few days. He hadn't given her files on his own achievements but Hinata had sweet talked Nobu into giving her some data on what Gaara's journey from a child to now has been like. She had read the tales of Gaara's painful childhood, where he had been shunned by his own village, imprisoned by his own sand, and consumed by the One-Tailed Beast within him. But despite that… he had managed to find light and forge genuine connections with others.
She admired him, she realized as her gaze softened watching the troubled expression on Gaara's face. Her hand itched to smooth lines of worry on his forehead and his scrunched brows but she refrained.
She knew his accomplishments as a person and as a leader, but …. She wished she could download the information she'd learned about him while being his girlfriend back then into her brain. She was curious about what laid beneath the mantle of the Kazakage. Beyond all the pain, glory, power and influence. She wanted to know his identity, vulnerabilities, and aspirations that lay hidden behind his calm exterior.
Lost in her thoughts, Hinata didn't realize Gaara too was stirring awake.
"What time is it?" he asked, sitting up.
"Ano… umm I think it's close to midnight. Um I should go, I apologize Kazekage-sama, I didn't realize I fell asleep."
Gaara leaned forward putting his head on his hands.
"Um..' she hesitated. "Are you alright?"
"Yes.. I'm fine" Gaara said quietly. "You should go… get some rest."
Hinata hastily got up and tidied up the files but looked back at him with worry. "Your head is hurting?" she asked almost nervously, spotting the signs.
".. yes, it will go away don't worry"
"Was it the way you were sleeping?"
"Maybe…" his voice was getting tighter and strained. "I've been having chronic headaches lately. It will go away." he sighed.
"Would you like me to help?"
He was silent for a while. "How can you help?"
"I can give you a head and neck massage," Hinata moved towards him. She could help him, she didn't want to waste time debating how.
He nodded as she got closer and turned giving her access to his back, neck and head. With practiced ease, Hinata began to massage Gaara's head, her fingertips tracing cool circles on his temple and along his scalp. She applied light pressure to his acupressure points and pulsed chakra alleviating the tension along his neck, shoulders and head.
It wasn't a long massage. Hinata was skilled in chakra manipulation and she was able to loosen his tendons within minutes and was even able to crack his neck to adjust the tension. She paused afterwards with her hands resting on his shoulders. There had been a familiarity to that.
"D-did I used to do that for you?" she asked in a bit of an unsure voice.
Gaara didn't reply immediately. He moved out of her touch and twisted his neck this way and that way resettling himself.
"Yes…" he replied after a few moments, turning to make eye contact with her. "Thank you Hinata… I feel much better."
She wasn't able to reply because as Gaara turned she felt her stomach swoop and fall. She was still trying to process that feeling as she continued to watch his face. A few seconds of silence trickled by and as she found herself locked in a prolonged gaze with the Kazekage a frisson of awareness passed between them. The air crackled with unspoken emotions and a subtle frisson of sexual tension began to weave its way into the mix.
Hinata's heart raced as she felt a surge of electricity tingling across her skin. She couldn't help but feel as if she was falling as she continued to gaze into Gaara's eyes. Time seemed to slow, and the world around them faded into insignificance leaving only the two of them in a moment of intimacy.
A torrent of emotions surged within Hinata—desire, longing, and a sense of vulnerability that she had never experienced before. There was something irresistible in Gaara's presence, something that ignited a fire deep within her, challenging what she knew to be true.
Gaara, too, sensed the electric charge in the air, his own heart pounding in sync with Hinata's. He recognized the unspoken invitation in her eyes, it was a desire that mirrored his own. But before either of them fell into a situation they couldn't paddle out of he cleared his throat and stood up, moving away from her towards the Kage desk.
"It's late," he said in his cool voice. He had shut down.
Hinata paused in a state of shock blinking away tears. She wasn't sure why… but her emotions were all heightened.
"Yes.." she answered back briefly.
"You should go." His voice was tight and she didn't reply as she ran out of the room, closing the door softly behind her.
.
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One week later - Sunagakure training grounds
It was 5 AM and the Suna sun was still gentle on the skin. This was Gaara's favorite time of day to train.
As the situation in Suna was stabilizing, Gaara had started to resume his morning training sessions with his brother. They both stood facing each other on the shifting sand dunes, surrounded by training dummies and obstacles.
Gaara took a deep breath channeling his chakra and the sand around him began to stir, creating a protective barrier that wrapped around his body. He stepped forward, sand trailing his footsteps.
Kankuro reached into his pouch, extracting his puppet scrolls. He unfurled them, revealing the intricately designed Crow and Salamander. The puppets come to life, their mechanisms clicking as they prepare for battle.
"Let's see if you've gotten any faster, brother." Gaara narrowed his eyes, his sand pulsating with anticipation. He lunged forward, sand extending from his gourd, forming a whip-like appendage. Kankuro swiftly maneuvers his puppets, sending them darting towards Gaara with calculated precision.
Gaara's sand whip clashed with Crow's razor-sharp beak, the sound of metal scraping against sand resonating in the air. He jumped back, a smirk forming on his face.
Kankuro grinned back, his fingers dancing across the puppet's controls. Crow swoops down, flapping its wings, while Salamander's tail whipped towards Gaara.
Gaara countered with his sand, creating a swirling vortex that repelled their attacks.
The battle intensified as Gaara's sand formed shields and weapons, his control over the granules becoming a formidable force.
Kankuro's puppets darted and weaved, launching a barrage of projectiles and slashes, testing Gaara's reflexes.
As the training session continued, sweat glistened on Gaara's brow, but his focus remained unwavering. He used sand to block, strike, and counter with precision, his movements fluid and calculated.
Kankuro readjusted his strategy. There was no one who knew Gaara as well as he did. So he decided to aim for Gaara's blind spots, exploiting any gaps in his defense. But Gaara, his instincts sharpened by years of experience, anticipated every move.
"You've improved, Kankuro. But it's not enough." Gaara finally said but he was short of breath. Kankuro definitely kept him on his toes.
"Okay let's stop" Kankuro too, put up a peace sign as the Suna sun started to feel a bit harsher on their skin. It was only 7 AM or so, but the dessert was unforgiving in terms of heat. Especially in the summer months.
Gaara nodded understanding and the two brothers got on a sand platform without further ado. They both had long days ahead.
"So you are heading out today?" Gaara looked at his older brother.
"Yeah… around mid morning, I have a squad ready. I should be rendezvouing with Naruto in 5 days or so."
"Send me a clone if there is even a hint of trouble."
Kankuro looked at his baby brother fondly. "Will do Kazekage-sama, but… typically the last thing I want to do is take you into danger with missions of this sort. But given Hinata and Matusri being here…. Maybe you are better off coming with me."
Gaara looked at his brother puzzled. Kankuro said things sometimes that didn't make sense to Gaara, but his brother didn't elaborate this time. He only slung his arm around Gaara's shoulders and redirected the conversation.
Hinata woke up as usual and completed her morning training and stretches. Since that… moment… between herself and Gaara a few days ago, he had pulled himself away from her even more. He now only spoke to her in a few words and there was a glacial wall of ice that seemed to have been erected between them.
She sighed, brushing her hair and sipped her morning coffee. She wished she had someone to talk about these things with. She was the most confused she had ever remembered being and she felt selfish. Like a person who didn't want a toy but also didn't want to give away the toy. This is not the type of woman she wanted to be.
Do your job. She reminded herself as she finished doing her skincare routine. You are here to do a job. Do it and then you can leave.
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11 AM - Kazakage's Office
Hintata paused with the file she was reviewing as she heard voices coming down the hall.
"Of course, I understand" she heard Gaara's voice as he walked into the office with a few dignitaries. "Hinata can you give us some privacy?"
She nodded and walked out. That was common, sometimes Gaara needed the office to himself, so she either left her work or took a break. Today she headed over to the kitchenette and started warming the lunches she brought for Nobu, Gaara and herself.
His eating and working habits really were abominable. For example she had no idea how much coffee he drank throughout the day, but it was a shocking amount. She hadn't seen him eat unless she brought food for him… but surely he had to eat at some point?
"That smells so good Hina-chan" Nobu peaked over her shoulder and she smiled, handing him his portion.
When she walked back into Gaara's office later he was elbows deep in paperwork again. She sighed, not able to watch this anymore. "Can't you get another assistant to help with that?"
"What?"
"It just doesn't make sense why you have to go through that much paperwork yourself."
"Oh... they do review it, and screen and take care of a lot of things themselves" he smiled the lines at the end of his eyes crinkling. Don't get distracted, Hinata, she sternly talked to herself. "Not everything needs my attention or approval, but I can't sign the things that do, without reviewing them and adding adjustments as required. It's time consuming."
"Aa" she nodded and placed his lunch in front of him.
With a thanks, Gaara resumed his work while he ate.
Hinata too refocused her energy and moved the rolling library ladder attached to Gaara's massive bookshelves in the office. After getting to the right spot, she climbed up the steps and started organizing and storing away some of the documents she had taken down to cross reference her work with.
Suddenly a flash of a picture tucked away on the top shelf caught her eye. She couldn't quite reach it… but she tried leaning on her tippy toes to get it. She was so focused on getting the picture that she didn't notice her grip and balance on the ladder completely giving away. She flailed once, twice and thrice before falling towards the floor.
Despite the way her heart skipped a beat, Hinata closed her eyes and tucked her head but a few seconds passed and no impact was felt.
When she opened her eyes she realized she was cocooned in a sand bed. Gaara looked up, blinking and registering the situation and that's when she realized that the sand had protected her on its own.
She released a shuddering breath as the adrenaline caught up to her making her shaky. She smiled with shock and gratefulness and relaxed onto the surface of the sand trying to calm down. She ran her hands through the soft grains without even realizing as she stared at the ceiling. It didn't feel grainy like sandpaper.
Instead the sand felt soft and luxurious, and cold in a soothing way.
Suddenly flashes of something came back to her. Hinata closed her eyes, grimacing.
What were these images…?
Were they memories?
She saw flashes of herself laying in the sand, its softness caressing her body, teasing, tickling, and sometimes holding her in place ...encircling her wrists and ankles… She gasped sitting up as sparks of heat ran through her.
"W-what?" she blinked and by now Gaara was next to her concerned and he pulled her out of the sand assisting her into a standing position.
He looked worried at first but the more closely he observed her flushed face the more confused he looked. "What is it… Hinata?"
"I-I" she stammered, turning red. Her heart racing, her lower stomach was throbbing and she felt overstimulated as if she wanted to rub against something. "I…" she touched his face lightly and something dangerous flickered in his eyes... an answering need to what she felt.
Gaara tensed as Hinata cupped his cheek running her thumb over his cheekbone. He inhaled sharply clenching his jaw and grabbed her wrist moving it away from his face.
But before she could process what she was doing and before he could pull away further she was on her toes wrapping her arms around his neck. He felt nice, secure… broad… muscular.
She inhaled his smell and pressed herself flush against him making a slight sound in the back of her throat in satisfaction. It seemed to her that Gaara had stopped breathing.
"I need…" she whispered, moving closer to his lips… and then paused unsure before grazed his lips with hers softly. They both gasped at the electricity.
Hinata looked at Gaara confused looking for answers. But his eyes had none … instead his pupils looked huge, she thought strangely.
Gaara tried to pull back from her then with his arms turning to steel but she tightened her hold stubbornly locking her hands with chakra where it was interwoven at the nape of his neck.
"Hinata… I c-can't" he said, shaking a bit from the effort to pull himself out of this sudden situation he found himself in. But disregarding that she moved up and pressed her lips against his… firmer. He made a rough sound as she kissed him slowly a few times now cupping his face with her hands biting his lower lip… looking for entrance. She nibbled and caressed and teased him, getting frustrated until finally he kissed her back.
She felt herself completely getting swept away moaning in happiness as their lips clung and parted from each other heatedly. His one hand was at the nape of her neck holding her securely while the other was curved over her backside squeezing, and shaping her. He used that arm to lift her and she gasped, closing her eyes leaning against the bookcase as he grazed his teeth down her jaw to her neck.
"Oh god…" she shuddered, wrapping her legs around his waist. She wanted to take his clothes off.
Yesss, she thought as he kissed her neck nipping, licking, sucking… until she was a mindless puddle of goo shivering clutching his shirt. She shook in pleasure as he he interwove one hand in hers and pressed them firmer into the bookcase as he nuzzled his nose into her ear, gently biting the lobe.
Hinata was completely mindless and shaking so it took her a few seconds to realize it had stopped.
When she opened her eyes Gaara was leaning back from her but he was caressing her waist with his thumb. His face looked thoughtful as he kept his gaze focused on his thumb.
He really was handsome.
She had thought that before but right now flushed with passion, he was breathlessly captivating. His usually stern expression was softened, his eyes filled with a mix of desire and confusion. Hinata's heart raced in her chest as she tried to gather her thoughts amidst the overwhelming sensations that had just consumed them both. Unbeknownst to her, her hands were moving up his wrists and forearms and all the way to the biceps. He was firm to the touch and muscular. How wonderful would it be if he was shirtless, was all she could think until a tiny draft whisked past them making Hinata shiver.
That was when she realized that she was sitting here wrapped around the Kazekage with a sweater that was unzipped and a see-through mesh shirt and a tank top underneath that barely covered her breasts.
Gaara's voice, barely above a whisper, broke the charged silence. "Hinata, we need to stop."
"Oh" she gasped self consciously… reason returning.
"Wait…" he stopped looking down at her, almost as if memorizing the way she looked.
After a second or two had passed and when he said nothing more she climbed off of him, backing away and she was treated to the spectacular bulge that graced the front of Gaara's pants. She turned scarlett as she looked back at his face.
"I'm going to go... freshen up" she said lightly and Gaara nodded, clearing his throat. She didn't look back to see what he did after she bolted from the room.
Gaara seemed to have made himself busy and scarce for the rest of the day after she returned from the washroom. He was nowhere to be seen and Nobu instructed her that he had left on an urgent matter and would not be returning in the afternoon. She didn't ask questions but she asked for Nobu's help to take down the picture she had noticed earlier. The man looked a tad nervous but after a slight hesitation he climbed the ladder and was able to easily obtain the frame for her.
It was dusty, but after she cleaned it she was able to see a picture of herself and Gaara taken outside in the sand dunes… perhaps when they went sand surfing from the looks of their gear.
Scarves were hanging around their neck and their appearance was disheveled from the wind and red from the sun. She was leaning into Gaara's chest and he had his arm wrapped around her tightly. She looked happy… very happy, and Gaara was laughing.
Without saying anything she asked Nobu to put back the picture to where it had been and packed up heading home for the night. That night she wasn't able to hold back her tears.
She didn't know why she was crying. But she sobbed uncontrollably until all the feelings she were feeling were cried out and she slipped away into sleep.
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