The Predicament

Hey, so it came to my attention that this story needed a make-over. Like, a real big one. So, I hope the changes are okay? Nothing more is happening to the story; I just couldn't help but grimace at it and this way it can stay online. Thanks for sticking with me all these years. -EvanescentWriter

"Hey, Pervy–sage, just what does Baa–chan want us to do when we finally reach Suna?" Naruto asked, her head tilting to the right slightly as her eyes found her sensei's. She watched her sensei sigh sadly before answering her.

"Apparently the Kazekage wanted to speak to you before you headed home. Luckily, we actually got the message before we made it halfway home." Jiraiya smiled slightly, but on the inside his head was pounding mercilessly. Yes, he knew just what the Kazekage wanted from his little Naruto. Glancing over towards her, he had to admit she wasn't as 'little' as she used to be.

"Why does the Kazekage want to talk to me?" Naruto asked, sounding surprised.

Jiraiya shrugged noncommittally.

Naruto no longer wore that atrocious orange jumpsuit that she was so infamous for. Instead she now had on an orange spaghetti strap tank top with a fishnet shirt underneath. She wore pants and fingerless gloves, both the color black, and standard ninja sandals. She carried her blue backpack on her back as she walked on, her eyes unseeing as she thought over something in her head. Jiraiya had stopped wondering what the girl was thinking. It was always nonsense, or about Sasuke. The girl still had her work cut out for her as she chased down her ex-teammate. So much had happened since they had left Konoha.

About what the Kazekage wanted, Jiraiya had known it would have happened soon. After all, her luck seemed to have run out the moment she was born. That, or luck had a fun way of evading her at strange times. Sometimes she was incredibly lucky, others, not so much. You never knew when her luck would come through.

As the two walked on in silence, Jiraiya took quick looks at the girl beside him while wondering how she would take the news. It wasn't exactly unknown that Naruto had a temper worthy of any Uzumaki, including her mother, Kushina. The girl was very much like her in every sense except the looks.

Naruto's long, spiky hair still had the yellowish tint to it that her father had. Even as her hair was down to her shoulder blades, it managed to stay untamed and wild. Her glorious sea blue eyes, though without that old sparkle in them, were still beautiful to look at, also much like her father's.

The silence began to take its toll on Naruto, although with the noise of the sand crunching under their feet was loud enough to replace their nonexistent idle talk. Naruto had grown throughout her and Jiraiya's trip, her usual pigheadedness was gone and left behind a good amount of intelligence that her father would have been proud of. Unfortunately, her brashness and hyperactive life style had remained.

"Why are you looking at me like that, Pervy – Sage?" She asked grumpily. "You better not be trying to get good ideas for your next book off of me." The warning within her words were clear and Jiraiya knew that if he ever did try what she had just implied, he'd be a dead man with all the pranks she had up her sleeve.

"No reason really, I was just wondering how you could still be so small." Thinking on the fly, the old perverted sage replied back nonchalantly.

"You didn't!" The girl exclaimed before raising a fist and beginning her pursuit after him. Jiraiya gripped his pack in his hands tighter as he ran, hoping the girl was still slower than him.

Time passed and Naruto did catch the man and gave him a nice beating. Soon enough they stood before the large Suna opening. The doors loomed over the two of them forebodingly. As Naruto scrutinized the large walls holding the door up, she wondered just how high the walls were. From what she could see, they appeared larger than Konoha's and sand covered every surface, much to her dismay. She had always liked the green and peaceful look of Konoha. Suna looked just about the opposite as her home, though. Dry, hot and fierce. Polar opposites; it pushed her out of her comfort zone.

The two guards at the entrance gave them both contemplative looks before asking their names.

"Uzumaki Naruto," Naruto said in an faux indifferent tone.

"Jiraiya of the Sennin," Jiraiya grinned proudly.

The guards shared a quick look before one of them ushered them quicklying, saying, "Please head straight to the Kazekage's office. He's waiting for you."

When the two had found the office, and the secretary shepherded them inside a room at the end of the hallway, Naruto gasped in surprise.

Behind the Kazekage's desk sat her friend, Gaara, who wore traditional Kage wear. His eyes appeared to be entranced by the papers he was reading until the door opened and a gasp was heard. Looking up, he set the paper down slowly before standing up.

A ghost of a smile made its way up the red head's face but the eyes were serious and calm. Walking from behind his desk he stood before the blonde haired girl. "Naruto, it's been a long time," He offered before holding his hand out for her to take. Naruto, still surprised, managed to shake herself out of it. Ignoring the hand, she reached out and pulled Gaara into a tight hug.

"It's been too long." She countered happily, a smile clear upon her face. Gaara, too surprised to do more than be held in the woman's arms, eventually cleared his throat. Understanding, Naruto pulled back and gave him a long look over. "So you're Kazekage, huh?" As she said it, her eyes curved slightly downwards but a smile still held a place on her face.

"Yes, and being so, I believe you and I have some things to talk about." He found his way back behind his desk and sat down on the chair he had originally occupied. Gesturing for the two to sit down, Naruto and Jiraiya sat before Gaara, one looking confused while the other looked guilty.

Taking that in, Gaara looked at Naruto in surprise. "You don't know…?" He asked.

"Know what?" Came her belated response. She glanced over to Jiraiya but he only watched Gaara, face contorting with pained expressions.

Seeing the look on Jiraiya's face, Naruto felt something drop inside her.

"If you have something to tell me, please do it…"

"Go for it, Kazekage–sama," Jiraiya encouraged quietly.

"Naruto, I don't know how long the councils were planning on keeping it a secret, but there's been a deal concerning the two of us. Originally when Suna had attacked Konoha, a new alliance was set in place. Suna, fearing Konoha would not believe their sincere hopes of creating a good alliance between them, offered a political marriage between a man and a woman." Gaara paused as Naruto thought it over.

"Okay," She complied quietly. "So what does this have to do with us?" Naruto actually had started piecing two and two together, but she was hoping Gaara would actually announce it was one of her friends. Sure she was really sorry for hoping it was someone else, but she also did not want to have to deal with the alternative.

Jiraiya rolled his eyes at her naivety. "Naruto–"

Gaara shook his head at Jiraiya and continued the story. "They came to the agreement during the time that both our villages had no leaders except the councils. When it was decided, you were out looking for the Godaime Hokage and we were looking for candidates for our Yondaime Kazekage."

"The council…" Naruto murmured, putting a name to the current aggressor in her life.

"Yes, and so they decided then that the marriage candidates would wait until they were older and more experienced in the life of ninja before having to take on a family role. Sadly, that was a big mistake. I think you do know who I'm talking about." And as he said it, Naruto sat there in shock. Those idiots had just ruined her life.

"As I am Kazekage and you are a Genin, I don't know how this will work out. I also know you strive to be the Hokage one day, so that's something else that we must discuss. I'm sorry to say this, but you might have to give up your dream. I apologize, Naruto," Watching her intently, he halted his explanation for a moment before continuing. "If I had known about our predicament I would have never agreed to become the Kazekage. I would have allowed you to become the Hokage and then I would have joined you in Konoha."

Naruto shook her head sadly before giving him a small, pathetic smile. "It's fine; it was only a dream anyway." Gaara pursed his lips together unhappily. He hated doing this to the girl who made an impact in his life – who changed his life. It was only because of her that he now saw his siblings as actual siblings rather than people who were in his way of his stupid ambition. The ambition itself was nothing to be proud of, to eliminate every last person in the world. Thanks to Naruto, he learned the meaning of precious people and protecting them.

The day that Naruto defeated him out on the battlefield was still engraved in his mind and was clearer than most other memories. The clearest memories almost all included Naruto. One of the memories was of the time that Sasuke had betrayed them and he had been sent after the Konoha Genin who had raced after the traitor. He remembered Naruto being carried in by her silver–haired sensei who claimed she was fine when in actuality she was far from fine. That was something he might never forgive the Uchiha for.

"It was just a dream, but isn't there a way out of this? Gaara, not to disappoint you, but you're my best friend. I'm not in love with you…"

Gaara watched her with knowing eyes before shaking his head. "Even I, the Kazekage or even your Godaime Hokage am unable to change the situation. Once I had seen what the council was planning, which was a year after I became Kazekage, I contacted your Hokage. She assured me she knew, but was incapable of doing anything. I'm sorry, Naruto. Not all marriages are done out of love. Some are done for duty, some for money. Ours is for the sake of peace for our villages. Despite not being able to be Hokage, you'd still play a key role in the peace of your village if you agreed to this alliance."

"And if I disagree?" Naruto asked hesitantly.

"Either you will be sent to prison or you will need to become a missing nin." Jiraiya told her sternly. Naruto, finally looking him, saw the look of expectation undisguised in his eye.

How unfair is that? How could he just expect her to take this willingly? To give her life away like that?

She felt like her world was falling apart. Now she will no longer be able to the Hokage, and chances are that she will have to move to Suna due to her fiancé being the Kazekage. She'll potentially have to give up her search for her best friend, leave behind Kaka-sensei, Pervy-sage, Baa-chan, her friends…

She would be giving up her whole life. A sudden thought came to her and she gasped in surprise.

"Gaara, but what about the Akatsuki? Not only are they after both of us, but wouldn't it be harder for them to catch all nine of us if we were all separated?"

Gaara shook his head before responding. "If there were two Jinchuriki in one place, yes, they could potentially kill two birds with one stone. But, wouldn't it be hard for them to try to take you and I both down together rather than separately? Our teamwork could possibly keep us alive whereas if we were away from each other we couldn't help one another. In the end, this could help us greatly but it could also be the end for us. If they were to send twice the amount of people after us because there were two of us, then we would have a problem. But, we are forgetting that I do have guards."

Heaving a great sigh, she decided upon one last question. "And if I do say yes, may I continue my training with Pervy-sage?" Her voice sounded heavy, almost as if she had given up all hope. Gaara felt his heart tear at the look upon her face.

"I'm sure we have many people who could teach you here…" He offered lightly, not really answering her question.

"But they're not Pervy–Sage." Naruto countered tightly. Jiraiya felt his heart lighten slightly at the care of his student. She actually cared if he trained her or not. For a while there, Jiraiya thought perhaps she didn't like him, especially with all of his 'research'.

"I'm sure we can make an exception and allow that." Gaara allowed his eyes flick towards the perverted sage almost questioningly. Gaara himself did not know why the girl called him 'Perverted Sennin', but he was sure he didn't want to know. After all, Naruto was perverted herself but to call a man that, Gaara was afraid to know why.

The next minute passed in silence while both boys fixed their eyes on the blonde, their thoughts sorting through how the teen had reacted to the news. Jiraiya knew there was no doubt the girl would agree. Whether her devious side would rear its head and push her to seek out alternative choices is another matter, though. Gaara had no idea how she would answer his proposition, but Gaara had no wish for her to become a missing nin because of him. He wasn't sure his heart could take that kind of hurt.

"Then I agree, I will fulfill the alliance and marry you, Gaara, Kazekage of Suna." Although hesitantly, she managed one of her bright smiles before giving him a thumbs up. "I'll be the best wife you could possibly ask for. I promise this to you…and I never go back on my word. Because that is my ninja way. Dattebayo!"

Gaara sighed in relief before thrusting his hand back over towards Naruto. This time, she reached out and grasped it tightly then shook it slowly. Releasing each other's hand, they both stood, Naruto smiling almost a little too happily (and unfortunately, her efforts were wasted; it was obvious how much pain she was in) and Gaara with a sad look. Jiraiya decided now would be a good time to intrude.

"This is all fine and great, but that's my student. Treat her well or you will regret you were born. The title of Kazekage means nothing to me, a Sannin." He warned before reaching out for Gaara's hand as well.

"Of course. She is one of my precious people. I will not allow anyone to hurt her, not even the Akatsuki." He seized the Sannin's hand tightly then turned to Naruto who had watched the scene with amused eyes. Of course the name given to the three students of the Sandaime Hokage; Jiraiya, Tsunade and Orochimaru, 'Sennin,' or 'Sannin,' had title and with it, great respect. But it did not hold neither rights in other hidden villages nor placement above a Kage. Thankfully Gaara did not question that and just nodded knowingly.

"The wedding will be soon, a couple months at most. Do you wish to have a part of the details or should I have my sister Temari take care of them for you?" Gaara asked, his eyes focused on Naruto's.

Naruto thought about it for a second before answering him quietly. "I don't wish to bother her with it…" She left the last of the sentence hanging, unsure how to continue on. She really didn't want to bother her, but she really had no wish to plan the wedding.

"She wouldn't mind, plus she might like a break from training other ninja."

Naruto nodded slowly. "Thank you. I was hoping to continue my training with Pervy–Sage for a while longer before becoming independent." Flicking her gaze over towards the window behind Gaara, she saw the sky beginning to darken. They had just lost their chance on leaving the village. Of course they still could, but so many factors lay beyond just leaving.

One; the desert area became cold with the sun no longer looming above the village, sending off great heat waves to every and all creatures that inhabited it. The coolness she and Jiraiya could easily deal with, especially if they bought warmer clothes. That, and using chakra to regulate your body heat.

Two; it was slowly becoming night out and it was easier to be attacked under the darkness of the dreary sky, only few stars to light their way. Yes, by pushing chakra into their eyes they could see much better than not to, but then they risked using unnecessary chakra. Who knows when they could be attacked and by who? Itachi could come leaping out of the tree, eyes trained on Naruto, and she'd be out like a candle. Damn Uchihas and their stupid Sharingan.

Three; they clearly needed to rest after walking in the desert for so long and to just ignore their need to rest would not be good for anyone.

"Oi! Brat! Are you listening?" The sage griped impatiently at the blonde. Snapping out of her thoughts, she turned to glare at the older man.

"Shut up, Pervy–Sage! I was just wondering where the nearest hotel was. Dattebayo!" Snapping her neck over towards the red head quickly and said man raising an eyebrow as he nearly heard the crack from her moving it in a bad position, she smiled slightly. Just as she was about to say something, Jiraiya quickly interrupted her before she could get a single word out.

"If you had been listening you would have heard him offer his house, brat." Jiraiya sighed loudly through his nose, his eyes rolling exasperatedly. One would think that Jiraiya was being rude and seemed to hate the young girl, but the truth was just the opposite. Jiraiya loved her like she was his own granddaughter. Heck, he was her godfather. Knew her parents, taught her father and even checked up on her every once in a while when she was little. He had to have taken a liking to the girl for him to even have agreed to the three year training trip. The girl was a pain, dimwitted, and could act so much like her mother that Jiraiya swore Kushina had somehow taken over Naruto's body and made it her own. But, despite all that, Jiraiya could never say he disliked the girl. The possibility of that would be zero, for no one disliked the girl except the ones who had gone mad; Orochimaru and Sasuke were good examples. She changes people with only a few quick words…

"Breakfast may not be the most enjoyable with my sister Temari gone for a diplomatic talk with your Hokage and so it will only be you two and my brother and I. But please feel free to use my home. You are my guests, and I don't want to make you stay at some hotel because you are running out of money. I can only guess that would be true due to the fact you must not have been able to take up many jobs during your training." Naruto could swear this was the first time she had heard Gaara speak so much in one day. When had the guy gotten so talkative? Last time she knew, he was trying to get over the bloodlust that lie deep inside him.

"Don't worry, I had to make my own food during training or else I would've starved. Jiraiya was busy most of the time, so I had to take care of myself. Any kind of food at all will be fine." She smiled at him.

"What did he do?" Gaara asked almost casually, making a small gesture with his head to point to the sage beside Naruto. Although nonchalant, Naruto could hear the curiosity in his tone. Naruto gave a short bark of laughter before shaking her head.

"'Research'." Naruto lifted her hands and jerked her fingers downwards to imply quotations around the word.

"Research?" Gaara lifted a pale, almost non-existent eyebrow, curiosity burning quietly deep inside his eyes.

Naruto rolled her eyes before letting out a huge breath. "You know, peeking on women in the hot springs, stalking girls, and writing about his exploits. He's the author of the 'Icha Icha' series."

"Shut it, brat!"

Naruto giggled lightly while Gaara stared at the two disbelievingly. That disgusting 'Icha Icha' series that Kankuro guards so heavily in his room is written by the Toad Sannin? He wrote those awful "romance" novels? Gaara, slightly disturbed, could only wonder why Naruto willingly allowed herself to be trained by that pervert.

"If you're not proud of being a pervert, then don't do it." She snapped back after her fit of laughter.

"I'm not a pervert! I'm a super pervert!"

Rolling her eyes once again at the ridiculousness of her sensei, Naruto grinned happily at Gaara. "Thanks for the offer, I think we'll take you up on it. But we'll most likely leave as soon as we eat breakfast. We promised Baa-chan we'd be home tomorrow."

"You won't make it in time; it takes three days to get to Konoha from Suna when you're running in the trees. It takes about five days of walking." Gaara pointed out gently, hoping not to insult the blonde.

The blonde, now giving Jiraiya a punch in the stomach for muttering something inappropriate under his breath, turned back to her best friend and nodded. "We know, we'll be late of course. We just want to make it home soon, though."

"Just rest for now. I'll have someone show you the way to my house. I'll talk to the secretary about leaving a note for Temari about the wedding." With that, Gaara called for the secretary.

The secretary walked in and stopped for a brief moment in the opening of the doorway before making her way over to Gaara.

"Naruto, she's going to take you my house." Gaara caught the young blonde's attention. She nodded slightly.

"Is this – this conference a secret?" Naruto asked.

"Tell a few select friends if you want to, but I don't want Akatsuki getting a hold of this."

Naruto had to resist the shudder that ran down her back at the thought of the Akatsuki figuring out about their engagement.

"You know, brat, you'll have to give up your search for Sasuke now that you're engaged." Jiraiya patted the younger on the back once with a big smile on his face. Opening the door to the large mansion – like home, he strode in.

Naruto, not that far behind, felt anger well inside her. "I'll never give up! I will bring Sasuke back to the Hidden Leaf Village. No one can stop me–not even him! Dattebayo!" Thrusting a thumbs-up at the sky before following after the pervert with a fake but large smile curling at the corners of her mouth.

As the two travelers made their way into the house, they were called out by a loud, boisterous shout. "Oi! This is the Kazekage's mansion, leave!" Jiraiya and Naruto just shot each other a look, both unsure of what to do. When they refused to move with small shrugs, the owner of the voice paced towards them, his arrogant stride looking surprisingly more confident than even Sasuke's. Quietly Naruto wondered if that was even possible.

"I said leave–" As the young man stopped in front of Jiraiya and Naruto, Naruto instantly recognized him. She smiled slightly, a sheepish grin making its way back up her face. With her right hand, she rubbed the back of her head while her left waved carelessly at the older boy.

He wore dark black pants that matched the rest of his outfit. His shirt hung lower than the rest of his outfit and his sleeves came to his wrists. He wore black fingerless gloves, with a hat, his Sand hitaite hooked onto the front of it. The murky purple face paint traveled across his nose, parting just at the sides and down to his chin. From there it traveled just below his lip and up to meet it. His lips, pulled into an unconcealed frown, told Naruto and Jiraiya all they needed to know.

"Who are you?" He deadpanned and Naruto felt her heart shrink slowly although she had expected as such. He was always one for disrespect. (She knew deep in her heart that she was pretty disrespectful herself, too.)

Jiraiya, deciding to stay out of the conversation, just turned towards the girl next to him, hoping she would come up with the right words.

"I'm Naruto and this is the Pervy–sage, Jiraiya." Seeing the still blank expression of Kankuro's face, Naruto rolled her eyes. "…I fought Gaara in the invasion during the Konoha Chunin Exams?"

Kankuro's eyes widened marginally and he immediately grinned. Nodding to help express his thoughts, he then turned stern and scrutinized Naruto's face. "You've changed."

"Of course I have! But you haven't. You're still carrying around those dolls." Inwardly smirking at the aggravated look on Kankuro's face, Naruto immediately regretted her decision when she found herself pulled toward the angered teen by her small tank top. Pulling her arms up in an "I surrender" position in front of her, she grinned awkwardly. "Uh…hey, you don't want to hurt your guest now, do you?" She felt his hands slowly and almost regretfully let her go.

She gingerly reached up and straightened her tank top out but earned a glare from Kankuro.

"So you're staying with us?" He growled out, but sounded more curious than angry.

"Yup! Gaara said so."

Naruto and Jiraiya were a day and a half from the Village Hidden in the Sand and Naruto was already missing Gaara. No, not romantically but in a more friendly way. She couldn't help but worry about him. What if the Akatsuki came before she managed to get married to Gaara? What if his demon was extracted and he died? Many scenarios found their way into Naruto's imagination, each worse than the last. Eventually she called for Jiraiya to stop.

"Gaki?" He asked questioningly.

"I'm just worried about Gaara. I'm anxious. I'm…afraid." She clutched her stomach with a hand, right where the Kyuubi was sealed. "I keep thinking about the Akatsuki extracting his bijuu. It's getting me nervous. I know Gaara should be fine, but I can't help but think–"

"You're just over thinking things, gaki. I bet he's in the Kazekage tower doing work right now." Just as Naruto was about to reluctantly agree, she felt people nearing them and whipped out a kunai from her back pouch. Raising it in front of her defensively and facing where the newcomers were coming from, Naruto immediately realized the direction was where Konohagakure no Sato was. Jiraiya put his hand up in a motion meant to relax Naruto, telling her these were not enemies.

Minutes later a group she easily recognized who stopped before the two. Kakashi landed in front of her, not looking any older nor different. The gravity–defying, silvery and spiked hair was being held back from his face by the black hitaite, the same hitaite hiding his Sharingan eye. The blue face mask covered half his face as usual, hiding his mouth and nose. The one showing eye did not hold the usual lazy look, but the eye smile was not present either. Looking at his appearance, Naruto realized he was clothed and had the weapons for a mission.

Behind him was the pink–haired Sakura equipped for battle as well, and her clothes much different from before. She no longer wore the red dress but now sported a sleeveless red shirt, a pink skirt with black leggings that went to her knees, Gauze wrapped around her upper right thigh, pink elbow covers swathed her elbows tightly and black gloves were the highlights of her outfit. Like before Naruto had left with Jiraiya, the hitaite was wrapped about her head and allowed her bangs to hang freely before her face.

Beside Sakura stood Temari, the Kazekage's older sister. Wearing a black dress with red cloth tied about her middle, Temari looked beyond different. Naruto was used to her usual purple clothes but the large white and purple fan was a relaxing usual sight.

"Ah, there you are." Kakashi stated. "We have a mission. Sorry, you weren't given notice until now."

"What's going on?" Naruto demanded, not at all surprised. The pieces had clicked together easily in her mind. The remaining people of Team Seven were headed to Suna, Naruto had an internal sense that Gaara was in trouble, and the Akatsuki haunted her mind.

Kakashi gave her an even look before stating under his mask, "Suna was attacked by Akatsuki. They took the Kazekage, Gaara." That was all Naruto needed before she dropped to a knee, pulled her pack from her back, and scavenged through it. It looked almost as if she were searching for something. Pulling out two hair bands, she yanked her bright yellow hair into pig tails much like when she was younger. It made her feel like a child again, but she'd never truly go back to that phase. So much had happened in the time she spent away from Konoha. When that was done, she yanked her pack on her back and stood up.

Temari looked impatient, but no one commented on it.

Naruto began to shake in anger. "We have to go now!" She glanced to Jiraiya and saw his expression–a tightness in his face, preparing for a fight and resigned for what's to come, whatever that may be.

Not long after Naruto was at the front of their formation, pushing the other three quicker and faster.

Remembering Gaara before she left, Naruto couldn't help the tears that sprang into her eyes.

Naruto slammed the front door open but was surprised to see Gaara and Jiraiya already there speaking in hushed tones.

"Ah, there you are. I thought you would never wake up." The old Sannin teased lightly.

Naruto rolled her eyes. "It's not my fault I couldn't sleep with your loud snoring. I only got the sleep that came from you sneaking out and peeking at women, pervert." Sticking her tongue out at him, she was rewarded by the sight of Gaara glaring at Jiraiya. Although the look and KI was sent to the Perverted Sage, Naruto couldn't help the shiver that found its way down her back.

"I did not! Don't lie, brat!" Sighing slightly, Naruto only paid half attention to his continued yelling.

Gaara soon walked over to Naruto and pulled her in for a tight hug. "Naruto… I hope I will make a good husband despite all that I'm taking from you."

"No, Gaara, I already said it: it's okay."

Even though she wasn't all that fond of the marriage alliance, she couldn't let Gaara, a jinchuriki like her, die. She loved Gaara. Whether that was in the friend or lover sense was still unknown to her. All she knew was that she felt the unnerving urge to protect him. And then. And then…she'll make him happy, happy for the rest of his life. Was that love?

When all was said and done, from defeating the Akatsuki members and rescuing Gaara's body, Naruto was still unhappy.

Currently Naruto sat with the whole group; Team Gai joined them mid-mission and managed overtake the seals. Sakura and Chiyo managed to kill Sasori, the puppet master. Sakura was attempting to heal Gaara but by the way she was frowning and Gaara was still not breathing, all hope appeared lost.

Where they sat, stood and watched appeared to be a large meadow or clearing, the grass brighter than Naruto had ever seen it and the wind strong enough to push them around a bit. The sun shined down on the large group, appearing almost happy in the midst of the Kazekage's death. The sun and sky betrayed Naruto's emotions; looking so happy, so calm…it sickened her.

Sakura had grown, Naruto could see. Not just physically but mentally and in her ninja ways. Her medical jutsu and knowledge rivaled Tsunade's at this point. But, even as her hands glowed with the jutsu at her fingers and her hands upon Gaara's non–breathing chest, Gaara was not reviving.

"Sakura–chan…" But the girl shook her head at Naruto before extracting her hands from the Kazekage's chest. She sported bruises, scrapes, a healing stab in her abdomen and cut clothes. Her face was bruised and swollen, but none of that mattered compared to the pain in her eyes. The physical pain Sakura felt was nothing compared to the emotional kind that she was dealing with now. She could almost see the agony and hopeless look Naruto had on. Her green eyes shut slowly and opened.

Nobody said anything as the wind picked up and Naruto fought back tears. Sakura stood and walked towards Naruto. Placing a comforting hand on her shoulder, she refused to look in her face but hoped that the gesture was enough for her.

Naruto's body shook, but her eyes stayed on Gaara. Walking away from Sakura's firm grip, she came to stop in front of Gaara's body. By now she was shaking so hard they could hear her teeth chatter and her breath coming out in gasps. Tears finally found their way down her face. Still nobody said nor did anything.

"Why? Why is it always Gaara?" She mumbled between her chattering teeth. "He can't–if he dies like this–he just became the Kazekage. He's the Kazekage. He found people to acknowledge his worth, he found his precious people. He can't die...He just became the Kazekage!"

Granny Chiyo looked on at the sad scene in front of her with exhausted eyes. "Please try to calm yourself, Naruto Uzumaki."

"You! Shut up!" Naruto finally turned to face the crowd of her friends, tears streaming down her face and falling into the grass below her. Her hand swiped to the side, motioning for Chiyo to stop. Surprised, the old women's eyes widened and a small gasp fell from her lips.

"This is all your fault." Naruto spat. "It's always about what you guys want and it's never about the jinchuriki. It's never about how they feel, their lives. You–you killed him!"

Kakashi flinched, but his eternal rival, Gai, just stood solemnly. Together they watched the scene in silence despite the guilt in their eyes. Neji, Tenten and Lee watched their blonde female friend with wonder. Why was she so emotional over this? Of course Gaara was her friend but this? Chiyo observed with entranced eyes while Sakura bit her lip nervously. She felt bad for her friend. She couldn't imagine what Naruto had gone through.

No one could ever know how a Jinchuriki felt except another Jinchuriki, that was obvious, but others knew the life of one was hard. People hate you, people blame you, there are assassination attempts, and your parents may even hate you. That was the life of a Jinchuriki.

"What gives you the right to label us?" Naruto continued between breaths, her sobs becoming louder and her words sounding somewhat slurred from the deep gasps for breath. "You have no right to decide anything about us, anything about our lives! Damn the jinchuriki."

Everyone who hadn't known now knew the truth. Naruto is a Jinchuriki. This was her fate, be hunted and have her biju torn from her. Pain, loneliness and death were the fate of a Jinchuriki.

A long moment passed where no one did or said anything with the exception of Naruto's sobbing. Finally Chiyo stood up and brought her hands down on Gaara's chest. Ocean blue light soon shadowed her hands.

"What are you doing?" Naruto demanded, curious. Wasn't Gaara dead?

"I'm running out of Chakra," the old woman responded, ignoring the question.

Sakura gasped. "No! That technique will–"

"I know; I must atone for my sins."

"If you know some medical jutsu to save Gaara and you need chakra, then you can use mine!" Naruto bounded over quickly and pushed her chakra into Chiyo.

As the two worked on healing the dead boy, Chiyo turned to Naruto and said in a steely calm voice: "I'm happy that someone like you has appeared in the world of shinobi that we foolish old people created. Everything I've ever done was a mistake. But now, at the end, it looks like I'll finally be able to do the right thing. The Sand Village and Konoha. Their future will be much different than the way things were back in my day. That strange power of yours that Kakashi mentioned… That power will have a strong influence on the future. Become a strong kunoichi."

Naruto, surprised, did not say anything else.

The old woman turned to Sakura next, hands still glowing, and talked to her about Sakura's kindness towards her.

Chiyo turned to Naruto one last time. "I request something of you, Naruto…an old woman's last request…You and Gaara are the only one who know each other's pain…help him out, please." With that, the light disappeared and the old woman slumped backwards.

Sakura caught her, tears now falling from the pinkette's eyes.

Naruto watched Gaara. A few minutes passed and she heard a crowd forming around them. Looking around, she saw the villagers watching them with curious but sad eyes. When did they get here? Did they really care for Gaara that much? Naruto pulled the Kazekage in her lap as a few more tears cascaded down her cheeks.

Please, please wake, Gaara. Please… Clutching him tightly in her arms, she barely heard the Kazekage's siblings, Temari and Kankuro, thank her and demand for their brother back. She shook her head, though, despite having heard little of what they had said.

Her thoughts continued on quickly, and she couldn't deny it anymore. This feeling of love for Gaara only grew stronger. This want to protect him, this need to make him happy was becoming almost too painful for her to bear. He had to wake. She wouldn't be able to withstand it if he didn't.

"Naruto, give them the Kazekage…" A tired Kakashi commanded.

"No!" Her grip on him tightened and her friends came up to her, each watching her with worry.

"Naruto…"

"I love him!" She blurted and felt numerous eyes watching her confusedly. "I–I can't–" The villagers all began gossiping at once, their tones disbelieving and accusatory.

A gasp was heard and everyone looked down at the red head as he stared up at them, surprised. "Naruto? Where…I…You?" He wondered, the words spilling from his lips.

"Gaara!" The blonde cried and pulled him close for a hug. The Kazekage, confused, managed to lightly wrap his arms around her petite body.

The crowd cheered, happy their Kazekage was alive.

"We knew you could do it!

"Thank goodness you're alive!"

"We missed you!"

"Thank you!"

Naruto released him from the hug as his eyes roamed at the whole crowd that was the village. Trying to stand, Gaara got to a knee and tried to push himself up but found he was unable to. Naruto gripped his arm and yanked him up, a large smile caressing her whiskered face.

He glanced up at her and was shocked to see her hair in the cute pig tails that they were in three years ago. "Naruto, what's going on?"

"The villagers wanted to make sure you were all right. How are you feeling?" Just as he was about to nod, Temari rushed over and forced herself into his arms.

Naruto pulled away just before the two impacted for a hug. Feeling a hand grip her wrist and pull her backwards, Naruto found herself staring at a non-make-up Kankuro.

"For the record," He started, his voice low and his eyes flicking over towards Gaara. "He really likes you, too."