Standard disclaimers apply. I'm just borrowing these characters for a little while.
Author's note: Kishimoto-sensei's plan is to fit the entire 4th Shinobi War Arc into a matter of days in the Naruto timeline, but I'm taking the liberty of extending it since war is never so quick and clean-cut. Events from the manga will be added, removed or shifted around. Please pardon my impudence.
By the time Gaara and Sakura returned to their tent, it was with her asleep and cradled in his arms. The morning sun was still low on the horizon, and the camp should be alive with shinobi getting ready for the day ahead.
Except that it was curiously quiet, with seemingly everyone deciding that it would be a great day to sleep in for the first time since the war started.
Carefully, he lowered Sakura onto her bed; she was not a light sleeper by any means, but their spar and… activities afterwards must have drained her enough to render her deeply unconscious to the world. Gaara reached out to brush her fringe out of her eye, then allowed his fingers to follow the smoothness of her skin down to her slightly parted lips.
What would it be like to hear his name from those lips uttered in breathless abandon; to be caught up in a need so primal and carnal as they made themselves whole with each other?
He shook his head, suddenly angry at himself. His hormones were getting the better of him; he was the Kazekage and the Regimental Commander of the Allied Shinobi Forces - when duty called, he had to answer without distractions eating at him.
And Sakura was a very wonderful distraction.
Clicking his tongue in annoyance, Gaara decided that he needed a cold shower before he started his day. There would be a meeting at the headquarters, if Tsunade's promised intel arrived as she said. He needed all his wits about him, and he certainly didn't need to be caught daydreaming about a certain kunoichi while speaking to her mentor.
Perhaps last night was a mistake. Perhaps he should have denied her request to join him. Perhaps they should have waited as he told her.
Too many perhaps.
There was no use in lamenting the past - Gaara was a certified expert on that. He needed to focus on the immediate future ahead of him, so he gathered a spare set of clothes and started for the officers' mess hall where the showers were located next to.
And nearly walked right into Temari who was approaching his tent.
Temari took one long, deliberate look at him, sweeping her eyes from his head to his toes, then back up. She finally asked sternly, "Why do you smell like sex?"
Not so stern, it seemed, if the knowing smirk at the corner of her lips was anything to go by.
"Why do you know what sex smells like?" He retorted smoothly.
Despite how much of a wet blanket Shikamaru was at times, Temari still wanted to keep him around. Gaara did not need to know how amazingly useful the Nara heir's shadow jutsu could be in the bedroom, she decided.
Temari's expression shifted rapidly from shock, to horror, and finally to as blank a face as she could muster as she threw an arm backwards in a sweeping gesture, "Because the whole damn army reeks of it! Not every village issues contraceptive pills to their kunoichi, so I doubt most of them even know to properly use their allocated heavens Shizune-san arranged for those contraceptive teas to be sent around yesterday, because I don't know how we are going to ensure our precious kekkei genkai and guarded jutsu don't get stolen away by foreign kunoichi!"
Inwardly, Gaara scowled. It would do him no good to tell Temari that it had been a major concern for each village as the war worn on: scheming councils have been making plays for highly-valued kekkei genkai's, plotting seduction of these treasured bloodlines into their control through the feminine wiles of kunoichi. Contraceptives have been rationed out to their army since before the war commenced, but who was to say if a kunoichi was to toss her portion away by the order of their Kage or council?
At the end of the day, they were still Five Shinobi Nations, each trusting the other only as far as they could toss each other. Not the most apt of metaphors, seeing how strong some shinobi were, but the point was still there.
"Did you need something?" Gaara decided to redirect Temari's slightly flustered countenance to the reason as to why she was seeking him out.
"Yep," Temari promptly thrusted something maroon into his arms, and it took him a second to realise that it was his robe. More specifically, the robe that Sakura wore last night.
Seeing the question in his eyes, she explained, "Your ANBU team felt your chakra vanish last night, and when they backtracked to the training field, all they found was your robe left in the middle of nowhere. They went to inform your Proxy Commander about this, and he had to reassure them that you were safe as can be despite being reportedly ensnared by a Konoha kunoichi just minutes before."
Gaara glared hard at the robe in his hand as if the article had personally offended him before tucking it into his pile of clothes. There was the question at the back of his head of how his robe made its way from Shikamaru to his sister, but he decided to save that mystery for another day. The camp was finally starting to stir, and recognising that knowing smirk on his elder sister's face, Gaara knew better than to stand around to be eavesdropped on.
"Walk with me."
Temari merely nodded, humming a familiar tune as she kept pace with Gaara, carefully sidestepping an upturn barrel of sake as she did so. She knew her youngest brother would never volunteer information on his own, especially if it involved his personal life; it was therefore her duty as a concerned eldest sibling to walk him through the confusions of adolescence.
"I always thought you were a stickler for rules, Gaara. So did you actually get laid last night?"
Gaara looked around quickly, allowing himself to address Temari only after he was certain that their conversation was not being overheard. "You know as well as I do that the Kazehime is to remain untouched until she ascends her title. I will not dishonour Sakura before that."
Nevermind if she had explained to him yesterday that there was no way to accurately tell if a kunoichi was actually a virgin and oh - she had totally told him she was ok with being his first right there and then, right?
Yet later that same night, she had refused his offer to provide her with pleasure. In the end, it was probably for the best that he never pressed the issue; The female mind remained an enigma to him on the best of days, after all.
His reply only served to confuse Temari; Gaara's skin had a rather pleasant-looking flush to it this morning, and he did seem marginally more relaxed. At least, he looked as relaxed as someone could be, being a field general of a war and all that. And there was the issue of how he had the rumpled appearance of someone who recently had a romp in the hay; Gaara's hair had been untameable since he was an infant, but it looked even messier than before; almost as if someone had run their fingers through them repeatedly.
"Gaara," Temari decided to approach the matter from a different direction, "You know that the Kazekime must know every step of each tea ceremony type, including the seven distinct variations unique to each of our vassal villages, right?"
"Three of those vassal villages have since been absorbed into Greater Sunagakure, but you are correct - they are still a required part of a Kazehime's education."
Temari nodded, "And the Kazehime is required to know how to embroider handkerchiefs to present as gifts to the Daimyo's wives and concubines on important dates, right?"
"A waste of time and effort, considering how those tokens are often discarded and forgotten when the Kazekage's gifts are usually the gesture most scrutinised for affront towards the Daimyo," Gaara threw a stern glare at her, "Your point?"
The blonde kunoichi heaved a long-suffering sigh, "My point, Gaara, is that traditions are often meaningless with the progress of time. We cling to them only to avoid upsetting the old farts on our council. Most of them can be done away with, given how sexist they are."
He could only shrug lightly at his sister's words. Temari always had a strong feminist streak in her. Born as a woman, she had no claim to the title of Kage, and had been relegated to learning to serve as the future Kazehime's right hand lady alongside her shinobi duties. When Gaara had risen to his title, he managed to convince his council that Temari was better off as a full-time Suna kunoichi rather than play at being a lady-in-waiting, and that effectively took her off those studies. The knowledge she had acquired, however, was coming in useful now.
"You are already planning to give everyone in Suna a heart attack by allowing a foreign kunoichi to compete for the title of Kazehime. What's one more transgression?" Temari grinned at him.
And really, no one should be discussing Sakura's chastity so openly.
"Her purity…"
"Did you know, dear brother, that I was already somersaulting in our mother's belly during her wedding to our father?"
Gaara came to a dead stop in his tracks, utterly disbelieving of what he just heard his sister say. When he met her teal-coloured gaze and saw the absolute seriousness in them, he could only blurt out a single word:
"How?"
"I could explain the birds and the bees to you, but I'm pretty sure you know where babies come from," Temari nudged him openly, "Mother and father were dating long before her Trials. I always suspected that the Trials were rigged for mother to win, but I never did find any proof. In any case, my birth came only five months after she became Kazehime."
Gaara decided that he did not need to think about his own parents getting frisky before their marriage, but it certainly cleared up why his mother looked worn down in her wedding photos. He had always assumed that maybe she had been unhappy with her immediate child-bearing duties, as her task was now to focus on bearing the next Jinchuuriki for Shukaku. That she was instead already heavy with a child, perhaps even during the Trials themselves…
Gaara shook his head as if to clear his thoughts, then asked the one question that had been eating away at him for the past few months: "Why is everyone so invested in me bedding my medic?"
"Duh. Everyone is b-o-r-e-d," his sister spelt out, "There has been no retaliation from Madara despite the White Zetsu army being pretty much wiped out. Edo Tensei has been broken, and we're all sitting on our arses waiting for the war to move on to the next stage. The shinobi are wanting to see if your kunoichi fan club is going to flip out when they realise that their beloved Kazekage had lost his innocence to a Konoha-nin, even if your fanclub is also supposedly fantasising about you as an experienced lover. I swear, if one more kunoichi were to ask me about your bedroom proclivities…"
Fantastic. Boredom was the reason why he was being shoved towards stripping Sakura of her innocence (and his as well, not that he was particularly attached to the notion of male virginity one way or another - it was neither something to be shameful of, nor to be gotten rid of as soon as humanly possible). His personal life was not supposed to be some dramatic daytime soap, with each new episode being scrutinised and its outcome betted on.
Also, this was not a subject he wanted to discuss any further with his siblings.
Why were they even talking about this to begin with?
"Tell Kankurou that he is not to under any circumstances suggest to anyone that I am attracted to pink hair," Gaara grimaced.
Their war supplies were already short, and if a group of kunoichi were to steal dyes to turn their hair pink…
Well, that. And pink hair made for terrible camouflage for an army built on stealth. It worked magnificently for one individual, though.
"No promises. You know how he runs his mouth if he thinks that bit of information will get him some action as well," Temari shrugged.
The mess halls were finally coming into view, and the number of active shinobi had increased in the interim. Deciding that he had learnt enough world-changing information from his sister for one day, Gaara nodded in that direction.
"I'll take your suggestion on discarding some of our more outdated practices under advisement," Gaara conceded, "But Haruno-san must be left out of this."
Temari made an 'ok' sign with her hand even as she shook her head in mock vexation, explaining, "Gaara, she had been a part of this since the day she saved the life of a Kage's brother. And whether you like it or not, if you think this is too much scrutiny for her to be under, imagine when she registers as a candidate for the Kazehime Trials. Especially if she is the strong favourite to win."
With one final wave of her hand, Temari turned and headed over to get her own breakfast, leaving Gaara alone with his confused thoughts.
"Yosh," greeted Naruto cheerfully as Gaara blinked water droplets out of his eyes.
The Kyuubi Jinchuuriki had no sense of modesty, it seemed, seeing how he practically ambushed Gaara just as he took a single step out of the shower cubicle; he didn't even have the chance to reach for his towel that he had laid out on a nearby bench.
And most unnervingly, Naruto had leaned forward to squint at Gaara before he took an unmistakable sniff of him. The redhead took a step backwards in response, hastily wrapping the towel around his lower body instead of attempting to dry his hair off.
"Naruto?" He asked, trying to keep annoyance out of his voice.
The blond tilted his head to one side while bringing his fingers to his chin as he commented, "Something's different about you today."
"Yes. I just took a shower. This is probably the first time you've seen me completely drenched."
"Eh, not that," Naruto waved the thinly-veiled barb off, "I mean, your chakra looks different today. It's like… you're more chipper, but there's something confusing about it too."
Of course. Naruto's training with Killer Bee to evolve his bond with the Kyuubi must have granted him new powers. It was how he had been able to detect the White Zetsu that had infiltrated them after all.
"And you smell different, too!"
Inwardly, Gaara scowled. After Temari had left, he had tried to discern what lingering traces it was on his clothes that may have given him away, and if it matched the smell of debauchery and alcohol that had permeated every part of the camp this morning. But he supposed he must be too used to his own scent to tell the difference.
Naruto smacked his fist into his palm in sudden realisation, all but yelling out, "That's it! You smell like Sakura-chan!"
"We sleep in the same tent, of course I'm going to smell like her in some ways," Gaara prayed his Jinchuuriki brother had enough sense to drop the subject, because the last thing he wanted was to tell Naruto that -
"AH! You slept with her, didn't you?!"
- Yeah, he was trying to avoid that confrontation. From the surrounding showers, a few other officers had stuck their heads out and were openly listening to the loud exchange. Growling softly to himself, Gaara headed towards the entrance of the shower area to grab a towel for his hair; Naruto followed hot on his heels, openly snickering at the redhead's obvious discomfort.
"Man, I can't believe this. First, you beat me at becomin' a Kage, then you beat me at getting a girlfriend, and now you beat me at getting la…"
"Naruto," Gaara interrupted him as he too-fiercely dried his hair off, "I did not dishonour her, if that's what you're implying."
"I dunno, Gaara, you can lie to me all you want, but I can see how that chakra point of yours is now unblocked."
Was that really a thing, or was Naruto just trying to mess with him?
"Believe what you want. My conscience is clear," Gaara finally resigned himself to Naruto's antics.
He was, however, not prepared for Naruto to take a long, conspicuous glance in the general direction of his genitalia as he reached for his boxers; there was an awkward pause as jade-greens met blues, and Gaara practically forced his friend to meet his eyes by the harshness of his gaze as he pulled his pants on.
He pretended not to hear Naruto murmuring something about someone named Sai and comments about "not being dickless, it's just the competition", whatever that meant.
"So," Naruto asked as he watched Gaara discreetly re-apply his Sand Armour using sand from his gourd, "Did you have a good birthday at least?"
Gaara nodded, and Naruto took that as a sign to nudge him lightly in the ribs to comment, "Bet that has to do with Sakura-chan, huh? You dog, you!"
"Tanuki," Gaara corrected him.
Naruto, however, acted as if he had not heard him. Instead, he kept pace with the Regimental Commander as they both headed towards the mess hall for breakfast. Gaara chanced a glance in Naruto's direction every now and then as they walked - there was a twitchiness in the other man's shoulders that had not been there last night.
"Did you?" asked Gaara.
"Buh?" Naruto replied intelligently.
"Did you have fun with the Hyuuga heiress last night?" It was Gaara's turn to smirk knowingly.
The blond had turned a deep shade of pink; now that the tables were turned, he was just about as forthcoming as Gaara about his romantic interest.
"Ok, ok, I get it. I'll lay off you guys!" Naruto pouted, then mumbled, "It's not as if I went and caused a panic with the War Council by bailing on my own party."
There was no denying that he pretty much did what Naruto accused him of, so Gaara continued to walk in silence. Naruto's continued presence here was not unusual - after returning with Sakura and hearing about the birthday bash planned, he rushed straight to his Hokage and promised a night of entertainment provided by none other than himself. Before anyone could argue that yes - it was stupid to throw caution to the wind in the middle of a war - Naruto proudly declared that he had personally cleared out any signs of enemy activities for a hundred kilometres' radius, so suck it up - everyone was going to par-tay.
It was oddly awe-inspiring, the way Naruto's power had skyrocketed after reconciling with the Bijuu within him. It made Gaara wonder what his own relationship with Shukaku could have turned into if he had more time with his Bijuu.
Shortly after their return home after the failed attempt at invading Konohagakure, Gaara had taken to the desert to roar and rage at the sand demon inside of him. Sandstorms whipped and stirred the lands around Sunagakure for days, and no one had dared to venture beyond the safety of the village walls.
On the fifth day, just as suddenly as they appeared, the sandstorms vanished.
On the seventh day, Gaara returned to Sunagakure, his Sand Armour battered but still holding.
Shukaku, quietly impressed by his vessel's desire to regain control and to fight for something other than himself, had retreated into the deeper recesses of his mind. From that day forward, a strained stalemate formed between them; Both knew they would not be rid of the other. Seeing how he would not be able to dispose of his human charge, Shukaku agreed to loan Gaara his chakra. Gaara had not offered anything in return, as his strong conviction towards serving the people of Sunagakure had shorn up his mental defences against the demon's rage.
Could he have tapped into a greater reserve of power and fought off Akatsuki two years ago, if he did more than simply tolerate Shukaku? If he had reached out a hand in friendship? Would he have prevented this devastating loss of human lives that marked this Fourth Shinobi World War?
"Hey, Gaara."
On hearing the other man's suddenly quiet voice, Gaara stopped in his steps to turn to face him. He was taken aback by the serious expression that he was not expecting to see on Naruto's face.
"Actually, Tsunade baa-chan sent me. We're supposed to go to the headquarters after breakfast."
Whatever appetite that Gaara had worked up from last night and this morning promptly vanished.
The promised intel was here. He was going to learn who the secret Konoha operative was that was sent to eliminate Kabuto and end Edo Tensei; for some reason, he did not relish the fact that he was about to be party to some of Konohagakure's inner workings, even if he knew on some level that it would allow him better understanding of Sakura's recent distress.
"Fine, let's go."
"Hey, wait a minute! I didn't get to eat yet!" Naruto argued as he gestured towards the mess hall lines.
Gaara scowled, suddenly impatient, "We'll feed you at the War Council. They have their own kitchen there. I'm sure we can convince the cook to make you some ramen."
With the magic word thus spoken, Naruto whooped aloud and proclaimed, "Well, then what are we still standin' around for? Let's go already!"
Gaara waved his hand to summon his sand, and was abruptly stopped by Naruto lifting his hand up to his face, a mischievous grin tugging his whisker marks upwards.
"Don't you have to hold my hand or something like you do for Sakura-chan?"
The loud smack of a sand fist connecting with the back of Naruto's hard head echoed as they vanished from the curious eyes of the loitering officers and captains.
In the end, Gaara's mad race to get to the headquarters was for nothing; The Hokage was currently slouched over the tiny desk in one of the interrogation rooms, eyes squeezed shut as she channelled healing chakra to her temples through her twitching fingertips. Naruto had shuffled off in the general direction of the kitchen to find his promised ramen, and that left the two Kage alone for now.
"Should I request for Shizune-san?" Gaara offered.
Tsunade frowned and shook her head, "I'm not in a mood to get lectured by more brats."
A reminder of his youthfulness for a Kage, if an unintentionally mean one.
Deciding that he would not comment on the prudence of attempting to heal oneself with chakra while drunk, Gaara took his seat in front of the table and waited quietly instead; even if his mind was anything but calm after the summons.
They were rudely interrupted by Naruto bursting into the room, his entrance quite obliterating the series of seals applied to keep intruders out. The shinobi world was not ready for a ninja with his magnitude of power, it appeared. Tsunade winced and made a mental note to have Ao re-apply the seals after they were done.
Naruto proudly slammed a tray down on the table between the two Kage, and several bowls of ramen wobbled precariously from his enthusiasm. Gaara counted five bowls and only three pairs of chopsticks.
"Urgh, get that out of my face, Naruto!" Tsunade groused, covering her nose as she did so, "The last thing I need is to puke from the stink of grease!"
"No one pukes from the smell of ramen!" Naruto argued, but he shifted the tray closer towards Gaara instead.
As the blond shinobi slurped away at his late breakfast, Gaara could only sit back to watch Tsunade complete her healing session. She finally heaved a sigh of relief and sat up straighter as Naruto started reaching for his third bowl.
"I will not repeat myself, Hokage. I know not to ask for information that will affect inter-village relations. So I am to assume that what you are about to share with me, it can only help our war efforts and nothing else?" Gaara asked.
Tsunade clicked her tongue as she levelled her gaze with Gaara's, saying, "Of course, Kazekage. I trust that whatever I say will not leave this room?"
Gaara's nod was the only answer she needed, and Tsunade decided to cut straight to the chase, "Our secret operative was Uchiha Itachi. He sent us one final missive as Edo Tensei broke, to let us know that Kabuto had been defeated. Unfortunately, since he had been bound to our realm by that same jutsu, by breaking it, he ceased to exist as well."
Gaara's folded arms tightened around himself at Tsunade's words; he had no love for any member of Akatsuki, and he certainly had no positive feelings towards the Uchiha clan murderer. That Konoha would knowingly use a mass murder to further their war efforts, even if the outcome was an expedient one, did not sit well with him at all.
It had nothing to do with how Itachi's actions from over a decade ago had set off the chain of events leading to a certain pink-haired medic's distress - Gaara reminded himself.
"You used a mass murderer and Akatsuki member against his own? Do you even trust your intel?" Turning to Naruto, Gaara demanded, "How can you so readily take his words at face value, after all he did to his own family?"
Naruto had the good sense to lower his head as he muttered, "It's not that simple, Gaara. I can't tell you everything, but you have to believe me when I tell you that Itachi was never the bad guy in all of this. He had always been working for Konoha, and…"
"Edo Tensei controls the resurrected," Gaara growled out.
"Yes, but he implanted one of his birds in me that came out when we met recently," at this, Naruto made a gesture akin to pulling a fair-sized ball out of his mouth, "It was a jutsu to bind the receiver's loyalties to Konoha. Itachi had been working only for us since."
Mentally blinking away the image that Naruto had conjured up, Gaara frowned. He knew Naruto would never lie to him, and while Naruto had been a great judge of character, he was also a too-big believer of redemption for one and all.
"Suppose I believe you," said Gaara, raising a hand to prevent interruptions, "And let's say Kabuto's Edo Tensei is no longer an issue; that we no longer have to worry about infiltration by the White Zetsu. Where does that leave us?
"Why did he not go after Madara? Why not send the Uchiha against the greater threat? Surely the prodigy of the Uchiha clan will be the perfect candidate to fight against his clan founder?"
There had been rumours about the immortality of the Uchiha clan founder from even before the war; about how this manipulative man had his claws in his clansmen even decades after any normal human had business of walking amidst the living. That Gaara wanted the corpse of this madman laid out before him was the bare minimum he demanded as the Regimental Commander.
Tsunade scoffed, "Clearly you understand priorities, Kazekage? You will have us fighting amongst both ourselves and Akatsuki when we can focus on eliminating the threat of resurrected friends and foes who conveniently know all our weaknesses?"
"If you took out Madara, you could have ended the war already!"
"Arhhhh!" Naruto slammed his hands down, the action drawing the attention of the two now-standing Kage's, "Look, Gaara, I know Itachi is good, but there's no way he's good enough to take out someone like Madara! Baa-chan decided not to take that risk, and I agreed with her. And since Edo Tensei is broken, that means we won't be fighting our own people anymore!"
"Is Edo Tensei truly broken? How do we know that there hasn't been a failsafe implanted somewhere like Itachi did to Naruto?" asked Gaara.
The sudden silence from Tsunade only made him more tense.
When Tsunade cleared her throat, Gaara knew to brace himself for what was to come next.
"Edo Tensei was conjured up with a specific series of seals. It can be counteracted if you know them."
Every jutsu had a weak point, and for most of them, the weak point was the fact that they could be reversed once the correct seals were employed; Clearly, Edo Tensei had that same flaw as well. Even Naruto had grimaced at this bit of information.
On to the glaring issue, then.
"Where is Madara now?"
"Ao's team is working on it," replied Tsunade, "Some are speculating that the devastating loss of their White Zetsu army had effectively crippled them; so just as we are having to come up with new strategies to locate and counter Madara, they need to come up with a way to eliminate our forces with minimal manpower now."
"The answer is right in front of you, Hokage," Gaara forced himself to keep his temper in check, irritated that the obvious was being missed, "There is no need for them to attack our army at all. They simply need to take out all five Kage's in one shot, and with us all gone, capture both Naruto and Killer Bee as their final step."
"Exactly!" Tsunade snapped her fingers at Gaara, almost flicking him in his forehead, "So why didn't they attack last night when all five Kage's and the final two Jinchuuriki are all in one place? That'd be very convenient and will certainly win them this war, right?"
Naruto watched Gaara lean back into his seat, a thoughtful expression in his jade-green eyes as he pondered what Tsunade had just told him. The Allied Shinobi Forces had practically handed themselves on a silver platter to Akatsuki yesterday, and the party's plans had begun weeks ago - that gave their enemies more than enough time to prepare an attack, didn't it?
Unless…
"They don't have the ability to take on both the five Kage's and the Jinchuuriki's at the same time," Gaara concluded, blinking at the sudden clarity he gained on their circumstances, "If we had stayed together, and brought a united front instead of having secreted Naruto and Killer Bee-san away…"
"That would not have given this knucklehead here the time or space needed to learn how to control his Bijuu powers," Tsunade pointed out, ignoring the loud cry of annoyance from said Jinchuuriki. "We have struck them two devastating blows: destroyed their army and taken back Yamato, thereby limiting their ability to rebuild an army, and we have also ended Edo Tensei's terror. They will be desperate, and in that despair they can make very dangerous moves."
Gaara laced his fingers together as he leaned forward to rest his elbows on the table, "What do you propose we do now, Hokage?"
"If they are too scared to confront us, we need to bring the war to them instead," Tsunade declared as if it was the most obvious solution to their problem, "Provided we can find Madara and separate him from the Bijuu's, but I highly doubt that. And you can expect them to be trying to separate us as well, in order to get their hands on Naruto and Killer Bee."
"And I'm going to do just that!" Naruto grinned winsomely at the two Kage, "Kurama just spotted the trace chakra signatures of all the Bijuu and their Jinchuuriki's in Lightning country. They vanished from us the last time after we had to bring Sakura-chan back. So that means Akatsuki is up to no good again, and me and Bee are going to intercept them and stop them before they hit our forces!"
"Kurama?"
Naruto scratched his head sheepishly, then explained, "Oh, yeah, I guess I forgot to tell you guys. The Kyuubi's name is Kurama. With yours having a name as well, I wonder what those other Bijuu are called."
Gaara could only blink in absolute bafflement at Naruto's chosen area of focus. Names? He was concerned about the names of the Bijuu's instead of why six Jinchuuriki were still walking amongst the living when Edo Tensei had been broken?
Tsunade's open look of shock indicated that she most likely shared Gaara's concerns as well.
"What?" Naruto asked at their continued silence.
"Either Edo Tensei is more powerful than we thought," grumbled Tsunade, "Or there is something about the Bijuu and how they continue to have an effect on their dead Jinchuuriki's."
For Gaara, though, there was one other concern as well: there were nine Bijuu in their world, two of which still held within their human vessels. Naruto just said he located six of them. So that left one missing…
"Where is Shukaku?" asked Gaara.
His Jinchuuriki brother closed his eyes and folded his arms, appearing deep in thought. After several minutes, he opened his eyes and turned to Gaara with a shake of his head.
"Kurama couldn't find him. Sorry."
The answer did not sit right with him at all; Shukaku had been among the first of the Bijuu extracted from their hosts, and would have been fiercely guarded by Akatsuki. Why did they not wield the One-Tailed Tanuki as a weapon as they did with the other six?
Unless… It had to do with the fact that he - the last compatible host for Shukaku - was still very much alive.
"I am coming with you," Gaara announced, "I am a former Jinchuuriki, and I know the techniques and strengths of the others. I can offer more fighting by your side than sitting back here, waiting for news of Madara and Akatsuki."
Reckless. Gaara knew that what he just voiced was a foolhardy venture; he was the Regimental Commander and had no business abandoning his post. Also, he had no Bijuu inside of him now - against six other Jinchuuriki's, he was sorely outclassed.
Tsunade's frown said she thought just as much of his ridiculous demand, "Stop being stupid, Gaara" - she seemed partial to addressing him with his given name whenever she wanted to make a point - "You're the field commander for our operations. You think we're going to risk your life on a hunt for some minor players in this war?"
Gaara was going to argue that, no, Jinchuuriki's were not considered small pawns; but in the face of certain facts, like how Akatsuki had avoided attacking them when they presented a consolidated front, it seemed very much a move to split up their forces once more. Were he to leave with Naruto and Killer Bee, there would only be four Kage's left to confront Madara if he chose to attack them then. He was not prideful enough to consider his powers a major factor in any battle waged alongside four proven Kage's, but his sense of duty prevented him from casting them aside.
"Dude," pouted Naruto, "Did something happen with you and Sakura-chan besides the bump-and-grind? Because I swear, it's almost as if you're trying to avoid her or something."
Gaara leaned over sideways in time to avoid the empty ramen bowl that was flung at his head by a certain busty Hokage.
Positively fuming after hearing Naruto's words, Tsunade's voice took on a note of challenge as she said, "Are you trying to run away after you had your way with my apprentice, Gaara? Because I swear, if your intentions for her were as fleeting as how long it takes for you to get off…"
Wow. Low blow there.
"Hokage," Gaara smoothly replied, "I am merely worried for Naruto and Killer Bee, and I have actually studied the history of my fellow Jinchuuriki, as was required of my education as a living weapon for my nation. You will find my knowledge an asset in this venture."
He was partially lying.
Last night was a mistake.
He had a taste of what a more intimate relationship with Sakura had to offer, and the fact that it only left him wanting, craving for more… It was a massive distraction and a complete affront on his responsibilities as a Regimental Commander. A leader to an army that had since shrunk to less than half their initial numbers and fast losing morale from their stalemate.
So he had to push to make the pieces on their chessboard move again. And if it meant inserting himself into a situation to provoke Akatsuki into confrontation, he would.
The sooner the war ended, the sooner he could focus on her.
"Vetoed," Tsunade declared to his face, "And I assure you, the other Kage's will vote the same way as I just did. You will stay with your Division, and we will intensify efforts to locate Madara. Go back to Sakura and fix… whatever it is you need to fix."
"I don't think…"
Tsunade's fist connecting with the table effectively broke it into two, sending dishware crashing to the ground. Naruto's little flinch was amusing to watch, considering he was likely more powerful than the Hokage now - his body's reaction was more instinctual than anything else.
"Don't take me for a fool, Gaara. I've been around enough snot-nosed brats to be able to tell when someone is being an idiot and trying to dodge a situation they don't like being in. So help me, leave now before I punch that pretty face of yours and ruin it for my apprentice."
There really was nothing to say in response to being so easily laid bare and read, so in one last face-saving gesture, Gaara rose and opened the door, casting one last backward glance as he replied, "I will be back tomorrow for the next War Council meeting. I assume that our plans to send out scouting parties have not changed; I want to see things moving by then."
"Don't we all, Kazekage?" Tsunade mused to the loud slam of the door.