The Next Morning…outside the Nara Compound

"I can't believe we have to sit here and wait for some stupid signal," Kankuro grumbled as the three of us hid behind a few large rocks facing the south gate. "Why can't we just go in and beat the crap out of those guards?"

"Shut up," Temari hissed. "Just be glad we brought you with us in the first place!"

"What 'we'," I muttered darkly. The two of them were the ones that intruded on this mission, not the other way around. In fact I would have been happier leaving the two of them back in Suna seeing as how none of this was any of their affair. Why hadn't I just said no to them in the first place? Probably because I was caught up in the moment at the time…

"There's the signal," Temari murmured.

"Let's go," I said while standing.

The three of us rushed towards the gate to see Shikaku and Shikamaru standing over at least ten dead bodies, slightly out of breath. "Looks like Hikaku was wrong about the number of guards," Shikaku muttered. "At least this is a quite area though."

"Don't start complaining now old man," Shikamaru said while attempting to wipe some blood spatter off his jonin vest. "What a drag…"

"Where's the girl we're supposed to be taking," Temari asked. Shikamaru pointed behind the two of them towards a raven haired young woman frozen in fear. She was shaking; her eyes wide with horror at the sight of her kin being ruthlessly slaughtered. Her breathing was labored as she reached up to touch the blood staining her left cheek.

The woman opened her mouth to let out a scream, only to have Kankuro rush forward to push her against the wall of a building and cover her mouth with his hand. "Don't," he whispered in her ear soothingly. "None of us will hurt you…"

The young woman nodded slowly, her eyes still wide with fear. "I'm sorry you had to watch that Atsuko," Shikaku murmured while scratching the back of his head. "But you know as well as I do they wouldn't have let us walk out of here alive." The girl nodded again.

"Promise not to scream or shout when I take my hand away," Kankuro asked. Another nod. Kankuro did as he said he would and the girl swallowed the lump in her throat. "I...they…" she began in barely a whisper. "I betrayed them…"

"Atsuko listen to me," Shikaku said while calmly placing his hands on the girl's shoulders. "You didn't betray them."

"I did," she shouted. "I told them to open the gates for a messenger knowing full well you were there and…" Kankuro's hand flew over her mouth again and this time she screamed into it and shook her head violently.

"Atsuko," Shikaku said sternly as tears came to her eyes. "Remember why you are doing this; sometimes sacrifices have to be made for the greater good!"

Atsuko shook her head as the tears came streaming down her cheeks. "What a drag," Shikamaru muttered as Kankuro took his hand away again. The girl fell to her hands and knees, sobbing.

"It doesn't matter," she whispered. "They should not have died because of my selfish intentions…I'm nothing more than a coward."

"Wanting to be free of them isn't selfish," I said while kneeling on one knee in front of her. "You are not a coward for wanting to run away from them; in fact it's very brave of you. The men here paid the ultimate price yes, but in the process two innocents will be spared."

Atsuko looked up into my eyes and nodded slightly. Smiling slightly, I wiped away her tears and helped her stand. She threw her arms around my neck and held me close. "Please," she whispered since I was too startled to react. "Please save the woman you love…"

"I will save her," I promised.

"And the little boy…"

"Little boy," Shikamaru asked while looking over at his father.

"Sounds like Kusanagi's nephew is still here too," Shikaku said.

"Tanaka," Atsuko answered while letting me go. "He was taken from his mother by our ninjas and is going back to his father today. He was taken to the same place Suki was…"

"We weren't planning on leaving without him," Shikaku said reassuringly. "You have to get going Atsuko; if anyone sees you with us, regardless of whether or not you helped they will brand you a traitor and torture you to death. Those two will see you get out alright and the rest of us will meet up with you later."

Atsuko nodded and smiled kindly at me. "Suki was right when she said that you were a kind and considerate man Kei," she said. "She deserves your love."

I froze in place as Kankuro snickered a little. "See what happens when you don't tell the woman you love you're in love with her," he said. "You're mistaken for another guy that claims to love her."

"Shut up," I whispered as Atsuko looked at me questioningly.

"You're not the man she's engaged to," she asked.

"No," I said slightly angered. "I'm not."

"Then who…?"

"My name is Gaara," I answered. "I've been a close friend of Suki's for almost five years now."

"You know, the guy that's been in love with Suki since they met," Kankuro said with a smirk.

"Please pay no attention to my idiot brother," I muttered as Atsuko looked at me wide eyed.

"That's the name she said last night in her sleep," she whispered with a small blush. "Suki practically screamed it while I was walking by her room…"

I felt my face grow warm as I looked away from the girl. She was obviously questioning my true relationship with Suki, but I didn't want to get into that because now was not the time for such a discussion. I also didn't know what our relationship would be once this was all over…she could very well tell me she wasn't ready for us to be lovers; hell, she could even say she didn't want to be lovers.

"We've wasted enough time," Shikaku said before pointing to Temari and Kankuro. "Atsuko, you're going with those two. Gaara, Shikamaru, follow me."

"Wait," Atsuko said as the three of us had turned to go. "Please be careful…"

"Don't worry your pretty little head about us Atsuko," Shikaku said while looking back at his niece with a smirk. "We're not going to go down without a fight."

"I'm so glad you said that," came a voice. "Because we're not going to let you get out alive…"

"Shit," Shikamaru said as he and I went back to back. "Now what?"

"It's Ikkaku," Atsuko murmured as her whole body began to shake.

Something inside me said that I should remember that name, until I saw his figure step out of the shadows. "You," I growled when I realized it was the man that had tried to rape Suki.

"Tsk, tsk, tsk," Ikkaku said while shaking his index finger at Atsuko. "Where do you think you're off to pretty little Atsuko? Don't you know that my brother will miss his future bride?"

Atsuko said nothing as Kankuro pushed her behind him while grabbing hold of the bundle on his back. "You know the penalty for betraying the clan is death, no matter what your station," Ikkaku said. He then shifted his gaze to Kankuro "I hope that she's already paid you with her body ninja, because neither of you will live after this."

"Sorry," Kankuro said while connecting his chakra strings to Crow. "I'm not exactly interested in this little tart…I would say you could have her back but just your face royally pisses me off."

"Looks like this is going to be interesting," Ikkaku said as fifty or more clan members came from behind the shadows.

"Enough talk," Kankuro said just as he activated Crow. "Let's do this!"

"No," I shouted angrily as sand blocked my sibling's puppet.

"What the hell dude," Kankuro shouted.

"Just take the girl and get out of here," I yelled. "You as well Temari!" She gave me a small glare and held her fan at the ready. "But you need our help!"

"That was not a suggestion you two," I barked as I continued to glare at the man in front of me. "It was an order!"

"The men can handle this sweetheart," Shikamaru said while sending a smirk Temari's way. I could feel the anger radiate off of her from behind me, yet she did as I asked and grabbed Atsuko before making a break for it.

"But what about that guy," Kankuro asked angrily. "His smug look just pisses me off…"

"He's mine to kill," I growled as a cold smirk played upon my lips. Ikkaku looked at me with interest and returned my smirk. "No one touches him," he said to his subordinates. "I will show him what it means to take on one of the Nara clan's elite."

"If you really were an elite," Shikamaru said while giving off a half smile. "You would be in the arena testing my sister." Ikkaku glared at Shikamaru but ignored his comment. "Shiro," he said. "Take your men and go after Atsuko. Bring her back alive so that my father can deal with her traitorous ways."

"Yes sir," said a husky voice as about half of the men disappeared.

"As for you three," Ikkaku murmured. "You will feel the wrath of the Nara Clan!"

Without a moment's hesitation, I leapt forward with my sand at the ready. Ikkaku's smirk never left his face as he preformed a few hand signs and I was suddenly thrown into the wall to the left of me. "Are you really that arrogant," he murmured. "Charging forward blindly like that is not the way an experienced ninja would start off…"

"You're right," I muttered as the hands and arms that had grabbed onto me held me tightly to the wall. "I'm usually a bit more tactical than that; it seems my emotions took over for the moment."

"A grave mistake," Ikkaku said. "Now you die!"

Just before he could perform the correct hand signs for a shadow spike, my sand flew towards him and pinned him to the opposite wall. His jutsu broke and his face became contorted with rage mixed with fear. "The hell," he mouthed. "Without hand signs…?"

"I find them a bit of a nuisance," I said. "Although I do need them to perform certain jutsus; but just doing this is much easier don't you agree?"

Squeezing my left hand into a fist, the sand around his right hand tightened drastically and severed through the skin and bone. Ikkaku let out a loud scream of pain as blood spurted from the severed arteries and veins.

I licked my lips and found myself relishing in the scent of his blood. A monster was rearing its ugly head inside the very core of my being and I felt as though I was beginning to revert back to my old ways.

I wanted to rip him to pieces and allow my sand to soak in every drop of blood in his body just as it had when the Shukaku had been inside me. Although, this wasn't because I had felt the need to live; rather it was a need to protect the one I loved.

"Fuck you," Ikkaku shouted as I looked at him with a cold grin. "What kind of fucking monster are you?!"

"Monster," I questioned as the sand tightened its hold on him. "Yes…I suppose I am."

Ikkaku's face turned into one of fear as I licked a drop of his blood off my finger, the familiar metallic taste causing me to grimace. "Yet, I'm not as much of a monster as you," I growled while stepping closer to him. "You touched her inappropriately; shoving your fingers inside her after tying her hands with ninja wire…she was frozen in fear screaming for you to stop while you just kept hurting her!"

Ikkaku smiled and spat some blood from his mouth. "Bitch told you that huh," he asked. "Atsuko begs for it; she's an insatiable little…ugh!"

Having heard enough of his words, I punched Ikkaku in the gut angrily and felt my glare intensify. "I wasn't talking about Atsuko," I spat, although I had to say that the fact that he did this to more than one woman angered me even more than I had ever thought possible. I had thought that I had already reached my boiling point, but I was wrong.

Pure fury raced through ever vein in my body as I grabbed hold of his throat with one hand. All I could see was white hot rage burning in front of me. How could people call me a monster when all I had done was kill when I felt threatened? This so called man was more of a monster than I ever was.

"Suki," I whispered darkly into his ear as I tightened my grip around his throat. "She's the last person you will ever harm."

"That bitch," Ikkaku wheezed out questioningly with a smirk on his face. "She's probably been done by thousands of men…what was one more to her? She screw you and tell you you'd been something special? I got a news flash for you pal, a chick like that takes what she wants and goes on to the next victim."

A low growl passed my lips as my hand tightened. Sand began to swirl around us in a thick cloud and I could feel it wanting to strip every bit of flesh from his bones. "As far as I know, there has only been one man that has been with her," I muttered. "Possibly two."

"You one of them," Ikkaku managed to hiss.

"I personally have not laid one finger on her," I said; which of course had been a blatant lie but the two of us had never warmed the others bed.

"Then why would you care if I touched the little whore," Ikkaku spat.

"Because she's my best friend," I said, before adding in a low whisper: "I also happen to be in love with her…"

Ikkaku managed something between a wheeze and a laugh. "You have no claim over her," he muttered. "You're no one of importance."

"Perhaps not to you," I murmured back. "But to the people of my village I am. My name is Gaara, and I'm the Kazekage of the Sand."

"So you're him," Ikkaku muttered, the smirk not leaving his face. "The leader won't like that…but it doesn't surprise me that the bitch is friends with a monster like you since she's one herself."

"You're right about one thing," I said as coolly as possible. "Perhaps I am a monster, but only when I'm protecting the woman I love!" Sand enveloped Ikkaku and brought him up into the air while swirling around him at a high speed. "But Suki is no more a monster than a new born pup," I shouted while slowly squeezing my right hand together.

I could hear the man's muffled screams as the sand whipped around him, slowly tearing off every layer of flesh he had. It wouldn't take very long for him to die, but it made sure that it would be excruciatingly painful.

Living in the desert, I had learned that sand being whipped around at high speeds caused erosion; cutting threw just about everything in its path. Since sand was the main component in glass, I could safely say that Ikkaku felt as though thousands of glass shards were stripping away at every inch of his skin.

When the screams finally subsided, I withdrew the sand slowly and bleach white bones fell to the ground. I felt a sort of contentment in knowing the man would never again hurt anyone and something akin to elation since he would never lay a hand on Suki again.

"Suki," came a small boy's shout followed by a scream. Inside I felt my heart stop as I searched for her chakra signature. It was extremely faint, but still there. "Go," Shikaku shouted while binding one of the offending Nara's with a jutsu. "Go and bring her back alive or I will personally rip your head off boy!"

Knowing the man was far from joking, I quickly ran full speed to where Suki's chakra signature was coming from. The problem was that it felt a little strange…as though it was morphing into a different signature altogether. That didn't seem possible, but it could mean that she was giving up and…

"No," I whispered before allowing the sand to envelop me and teleport me to where she was. It was something I should have done in the first place seeing as how it instinctively knew where she was.

She was in an open dome like arena, much like the Leaf Village had for the chunin exams. Elite ninja had surrounded her almost unconscious body and one was moving in for the attack. Anger returned to me and I sent a tendril of sand straight through his chest.

"Don't you dare touch her," I shouted as I landed in front of her. Sand slowly collected around her and lifted her into my arms. "Gaara," she murmured with what looked like tears in her eyes.

"I told you I would come for you," I whispered as a small smile came to her face. "Suki, I…no…NO!"

I fell to my knees with her motionless body in my arms. Her chakra signature had evaporated into nothingness and she was no longer breathing. "Don't do this," I whispered while brushing a hand against her cheek. "Please don't die…I love you Suki…"

There was no response and I felt my throat close. There was nothing I could do now…I was too late. Looking down at her body I slowly pressed my forehead against hers and kissed her softly. "Not like this," I whispered when I felt no response. "Please…don't…"

Tears landed on her cheeks when the world suddenly began crashing in on me. Despair flooded my entire being as I realized there was no way of getting her back. Regret started to seep in, now that I knew that she had never known just how much I had loved her, how much she meant to me, how much I needed her with me. Not being able to take it anymore, I threw my head back and screamed.

Never again would I be able to look upon her smiling face, or hear her voice call out to me. I would never hear her laugh again or watch the sky with her at night. I would never be able to hold her warm body close to me or feel her soft lips with my own; Suki was gone forever.

Once I had finished screaming, I looked back down at her and held her close; imagining that this was all a dream and that she would wake up at any moment and wrap her arms around me with that kind smile she always had.

A rustle of movement brought me back to the present and I could feel the opposing ninja's standing at the ready, unsure of what to do. "If you're going to come at me then come at me already," I shouted to them as sand began to swirl around me defensively.

This seemed to snap them out of their stupor as they all came rushing towards me, all except one that hung back with a distraught look on his face. The others had began their attack, only to be knocked away by the sand while I held Suki's still body close to mine.

"None of you will live to regret this," I shouted while extending my left hand. Sand began to rush towards the other ninja's as I felt the urge to kill. What they had done to Suki was inexcusable, and they would not live to see the light of the next day.

"STOP," came an order from above.

The ninja's skidded to a halt as I looked up towards a balcony that contained two men and a small child. My sand retreated back to my gourd as one of the men stood up and walked towards the railing of the balcony. He was tall, with long black hair and cold brown eyes that would render any other man motionless.

"Who are you," I asked angrily.

"That is a question I should be asking you sir," he said harshly. "My name is Sadao Nara, and I am the leader of this clan. Now would you be so kind and tell me who you are?"

"My name is Gaara," I answered, staring back at the man just as coldly as he was staring at me.

"That was not what I asked," Sadao said. "You are strong, of that much I am sure since it would take a considerable amount of strength to even get to this arena unscathed by the other guards; yet what I don't know is who you are and why you are here."

"I think that answer should be obvious," I shouted. "I came here to rescue Suki!"

"You had said your brother is not strong," Sadao said in a low tone while glancing over at the other man. The man shook his head and I had come to the realization that it was Tessi that had been standing up there watching this whole ordeal with the clan leader.

"That is not my brother," he answered while glaring at me. "Just a nuisance that my brother has had past dealings with; some call him Gaara of the Sand while the people of the Sand Village call him 'Kazekage'. No doubt my brother hired him to rescue his beloved fiancé."

"I came of my own free will," I barked as Sadao looked back at me with semi approval.

"So you're the infamous Gaara of the Sand," he murmured. "I had thought you would be much older but you are still a mere child. Your reputation precedes you."

My grip on Suki's body became tighter as the man looked me up and down in an almost sympathetic manner, a half smirk dancing across his lips.

"It makes me wonder," he said in a thoughtful voice. "Why would the leader of an entire village of ninja come to the rescue of an insignificant woman such as her? You are the Kazekage, of that I have no doubt since it would take your level of skill just to get this far; but since you are a man in a position of power, why not amass an army to get her back?

"Better still," Sadao continued as he started to pace back and forth upon the balcony. "Why even come to her aid at all? As I said before she is insignificant, and from a different ninja village to boot. One that was an enemy of yours for many years, am I correct? This is all very curious to say the least. The only answer to all these questions that I can find is not one that would benefit my clan."

"You say she is insignificant," I murmured darkly. "Yet you were the ones who took her from her loved ones and family. Why would someone who was so unimportant, be important to you?"

"The body itself was important," Sadao answered while glancing at me with his cold eyes. "What can be done with the body will benefit this clan in many ways, no longer will the Nara be apart of the dim. We will show everyone our superiority!"

"So you killed her for your own personal profit?!"

"A regrettable loss, but one with a wonderful cause," Sadao said. "The woman had her chance to survive. If she had found a suitable mate, she would have more powerful offspring which also would have benefited the clan; but she decided against it."

"In other words she denied the man you chose for her," I said.

"She chose men that would not have benefited the clan," Sadao simply said. "I don't see why this loss should affect you so. It is in my opinion that you came here to take away our ultimate weapon. You must know that we are trying to draw out the ancestral soul that resides within that body. You must want that power for yourself."

"That's not why I'm here," I said angrily while holding Suki's body close to me. The clan leader looked at me with a small amount of amusement. "Oh no," he asked. "Tell me then, why would a man of your station be here, clinging to that body if he didn't want the power within it?"

"Because I'm in love with her," I shouted while glaring at Sadao. "I've been in love with Suki since I first met her!"

Sadao's amused look turned into one of shock after hearing my confession. "I see," he said while regaining his formal manner. "Well, that would have been a fairly appropriate match but what's done can not be undone. We have our ultimate weapon, and you will surrender it to us."

"I would rather die," I growled as shadows started to swirl around Suki's body.

"Then you will be its first victim," Sadao said with a smile. The body in my hands stirred and I felt a sort of relief thinking Suki was still alive. "Suki," I whispered while looking down at her.

My eyes widened as I felt a chill go up my spine. Suki's skin was a lot paler than it used to be and it felt as though I was holding a block of ice. When her eyes opened, they were no longer the kind honey brown I was used to, but a cold unyielding black.

Without warning, something shoved my chest, causing me to drop Suki's body and pushing me a good twenty feet away from her. She sat up and rubbed the back of her neck before turning her head to face me. "Still an ever present thorn in my side," Suki said; her voice much colder and harsher than it was before. "You cause trouble for me wherever you go Sabuko No Gaara."

"You," I growled, remembering the voice from last night. Suki smirked and let out a snort. "Yes," she said. "Me…although I'm not quite me just yet."

Sand swirled around me defensively, knowing there was danger but unwilling to act upon it since the danger happened to be inhabiting the body of the one I loved. Suki's smirk grew as she stood with a stretch; the shadows moving all around her.

"My Lady Tsuki," Sadao said as she turned to gaze up at him. "We welcome you back to the Nara compound with open arms. Whatever you ask we shall give to you."

The other ninja got down on there knees and bowed to Suki as though she was some sort of queen. "And if I were to ask for all your heads on a silver platter you would give it to me," Suki asked while folding her arms. Slowly I stood, sensing there was an impending blood bath.

"How would we serve you if all of us were dead," Sadao questioned. Suki let out a shrill laugh that was not her own. "That was not the answer I was expecting," she said while brushing some hair behind her ear. "Tell me, what is it that you want in return for your undying loyalty and servitude?"

"Only a small amount of your strength my lady," Sadao answered. "To bring the clan back to its former days of glory."

"In other words," Suki said. "You put me in the lap of luxury so I can go to war for you at any point in time?"

"You don't seem to understand," Sadao said. "You could have any home of your choice, any treasure you wanted, and man of your choosing…"

"There is only one man that I want," Suki murmured in a hurt tone. "And I'm growing tired of your arrogance and stupidity in thinking you can control me…"

Shadows began to move every which way towards the ninjas and to the ones on the balcony. "Tanaka, shut your eyes," I shouted just as a shadow was sent through his father's chest. Blood dripped onto the boy's body as he stood there frozen in fear.

Without hesitating, I used my sand to take hold of his frightened body and bring him towards me. As the sand came closer, I could hear him sobbing in fear and knew that this would scar the poor child for the rest of his life.

Once he was unwrapped from the sand, Tanaka ran towards Suki, trying to find some manner of solace by wrapping his arms around her waist and burying his head in her stomach. "Stupid brat," Suki muttered. "Had I not promised to get you out of here safely I would ripped your head off…now get off of me!"

Suki grabbed the boy by the shoulders and shoved him so hard Tanaka fell right to the ground. "All that sniveling and whining just gets on my nerves," she said while glaring down at a shocked Tanaka. She raised a hand to slap him across the face only to have it be held back by my sand.

"Tsuki," I shouted. "Don't you dare lay a hand on that boy!"

"The knight in shining armor," she snorted while turning her gaze towards me. "Sorry but you're a little late to save the woman you claim to love, don't you think?"

"What have you done to her," I growled as Tanaka scrambled towards me; knowing I was the safer choice at the moment.

"She was a hindrance, so once I took over her body I destroyed her soul," Tsuki answered. "To put it in layman's terms, she's dead."

"I don't believe you," I murmured.

"It makes no difference to me whether you believe me or not," she said. "Regardless, Suki no longer exists. She's gone for good and there is nothing you can do to bring her back."

"I don't believe you," I shouted once more.

"Tedious," the fake Suki muttered. "Suki denied your death as well; it's sort of entertaining to watch those who can't face reality hope that it was all a mistake and that the reality never happened."

"Every word out of your mouth is a lie," I spat. "Suki is still alive, although she is a prisoner in her own body."

"Tell me," Suki whispered while slowly taking a step forward. "If she really were still alive, do you think she would let me do this?" With just a wave of her hand, shadows shot out from all directions towards me.

Sand came to my aid quickly by forming a dome around me, only to be pierced by the shadows. I could feel one of them scratch my cheek and knew that if I moved even an inch, I would be impaled by one of the countless ones that had invaded the shell of sand.

"Had Suki really been alive," I heard Tsuki's voice from outside say. "She would have stopped my attack and saved you." Once the dim retreated, I allowed the sand to retreat back into my gourd. The look on Suki's face was one of clear shock and I could feel myself smirking slightly despite myself.

"You were saying?"

"A fluke," she hissed in a low tone. "Nothing more…" Suki raised her hands and just as she was about to attack, the presence of more ninja was felt. A smirk graced her lips and she chuckled darkly. "They will all die," she said smugly.

Before Suki could make another move, I enveloped Tanaka, herself, and I with sand before using it to teleport us to the meeting place the rest of us had agreed upon.