Arianna: OHMIGOD, we're actually updating this! And what's more, we're actually FINISHING it! - Yes, you heard right: this is the final chapter of 'Lack of Abandon'. It's been a great ride, kiddies, but we're pooped. And it's thanks to me (don'thurtmeplease) that we took so long. It got a bit... tiresome. But now it's done, and hopefully you're satisfied with the ending. :D
Super-special-awesome sidenote: "karezza" is the most epic K-word ever; very epic indeed. Know why? It means "prolonged sex avoiding orgasm". YES, IT'S TRUE. Go look it up. I found it on an 'unusual words, A-Z' website thingy.
Rianne:
So, yeah. It's the end. It's been an amazing time writing this, and I hope we can write something else together, but this has pretty much taken every ounce of love for each other right out of our system at the moment. Well, at least concerning Naruto. And writing. And shizz. .
I keep wanting to write more, just 'cause... But I'm feeling pretty satisfied with the ending-- and the fact that we got over 60,000 words! Can I get a "Holy shizz" and a "What, what"!?
But please, whatever you do, don't ask for an encore. =.='' I don't think we can handle it. But keep on lovin' us, 'cause we'll keep on lovin' you (at least, I will fercereal x3).
I hope that you'll forgive us (eventually) for holding out on you all for so long. But hey, we brought you an ending. So be glad!
'Specially that I helped bring it into being even though I've been puking all day and I have a terrible cough, resulting in my loss of voice. =.=''
Well. That having been said, love you all! I'll shut up now and let you enjoy the ride.
P.S. Sorry for lying above, but hey. I have to apologize for how many times I've made Gaara as OOC as Hidan would be if he started giving flowers out to little kids.
In Konoha, the grass, as well as the leaves on the trees, were swaying gently in the breeze. Gaara was on his way to Naruto's apartment, smiling, with a bouquet of roses similar to the desert roses Naruto had given him. All of them conveyed love and loyalty and passion.
Gaara's meeting with the council hadn't gone well, but the second had been a success. Gaara had suggested that they go to Konoha to both get Naruto back and tell Tsunade that the teme was dead, the fact that Gaara had his demon back, and that Suna had changed it's laws to make same-sex marriages legal, causing a boom in the marriage records. Apparently there were more bi/homosexuals in Suna than anyone had thought. When Gaara approached the door, he heard an all-too-familiar muffled sound. One that resembled, much too closely, a moan. Opening the door slowly, he froze. His hands involuntarily dropped the bouquet of roses, and he silently asked Shukaku to block the mindlink between him and Naruto. A strangled sob tore out of his throat as he did so, his eyes wide, lips parted, and he abruptly turned on his heel and fled the sight of Rock Lee kissing Naruto, the latter seeming to enjoy it.
On his way into the forest, he stepped on the roses he had bought for the blonde, the collective petals ruined beneath his feet as he ran.
When he stopped in a clearing surrounded by trees, he unconsciously brought a trembling hand to the 'ai' tattoo above his right eye, and the other to his chest, both hands clutching, respectively, pale skin and his burgundy battle wear. Tears streamed from his eyes, sobs wracking his body, as he tried to convince himself that he hadn't found his love kissing someone else.
Unbeknownst to Gaara, the moan-like noise had in fact been a groan of protest and surprise. You see, Lee didn't know any other way to express what he felt, and wanted Naruto to know, even if he understood that Naruto could never return his feelings like Sakura had before him. Moments ago when the redheaded 'Kage hadn't been there to stand witness, the following had occurred:
"Naruto-kun! May I come inside? There is something you need to know!"
"Uh… sure, Lee. Come on in." Naruto agreed, stepping aside to let Bushy Brows into his apartment. Little did he know what he was getting himself into…
Cutting to the chase, Lee burst out: "The times that we would fight youthfully for Sakura-chan's burning passion and we went on missions together to make our youthful flames burn more strongly, made me become aware of what was right in front of me – Naruto-kun, I'm in love with you!"
And that's when lips were crushed unexpectedly onto other lips, Naruto grunted and blinked, and – with Lee's hair and shoulders blocking Gaara's gaze from seeing Naruto's reaction – Gaara had came in at the wrong time to see what he had.
Now, Naruto was no expert, but did this count as cheating on Gaara or not? He gently eased Rock Lee off of him. "Lee… I'm flattered and all, but I can't… er… you know…?"
The taijutsu specialist nods sadly, backing off. Just like Sakura, rejection was imminent. But he had to let Naruto know, because he couldn't stand it any longer. He made it his personal mission today to tell – rather, show – the blonde how he felt, and now that it was over he slowly smiled. "I understand, Naruto-kun. I shall just have to admire you from afar like I had with Sakura-chan. Bai-bai!" he says suddenly with a wave and is gone out the kitsune's door.
Naruto scratches his head and looks to see a few rose petals on his doorstep. He frowns, thinking immediately of his action to Gaara back in Suna. Hey, wait; wasn't he supposed to see the redhead today? Jerking into attention, Naruto jogged out the door and glanced around. A conspicuous trail of random, multi-colored petals dusted their way down to the street below, and halfway up the street Naruto swore he saw a lump of something with similar coloring. "Eh?" he puzzles, jumping down and coming closer to the lump, realizing after a few more feet that it was a stomped-on bouquet of roses. The blonde frowns, staring hard at it. There was no tag, but he got a sinking gut feeling that they were from Gaara.
Now where was that village leader, anyhow? Briefly, he thinks aloud: Gaara, you'll never guess what just happened, 'ttebayo! ...Where are you? I have the weirdest thing to tell you.
Gaara didn't know what the other had tried to tell him, because of what he had made Shukaku do earlier. Sneakily, the tanuki allowed some of Gaara's despair and hurt leak through to the blonde, because the raccoon knew that Gaara needed to be comforted. The redhead fell to his knees, betrayal and pain fighting for dominance over the Kazekage. His fingers tightened their hold, and his fingernails would have cut him were he not wearing his sand armor, even if it was cracking through his loss of emotional control. Sand circled him warily, and the flow of tears increased, wetting whatever sand on his face that wasn't already broken apart and wet. He didn't bother trying to rein in his emotions, he was too overcome by them already. Unable to even think of doing anything else, he continued to weep, heartbroken. Naruto's love had transformed him-- and now, the thought of losing it, was doing the opposite.
The second he felt that sliver of Gaara's emotions, Naruto found himself running, dreading the worst. Random scenarios filled his head, ones of a different enemy or the same green-haired bastard coming back to life, or even Gaara catching Lee's kiss. Any of those would be bad, and even more filled his head, some less important and some more severe. Naruto swallowed hard at a lump that was forming in his throat. Where could Gaara be? The flowers had pointed towards the forest… well, checking there couldn't hurt.
It was then that he stumbled his way towards a low, broken sound, resembling a sob, but not quite. He followed it mindlessly, wondering if it was Gaara, and if so, was he injured? The blonde couldn't be sure, and silently he asked Kyuubi why their mind connection was so weak.
'Must be Shukaku's or Gaara's doing; they can cancel us out if they really need to,' the demon fox informs him. 'Shukaku's powerful enough to do that, and if Gaara wanted to ever be sneaky, he could purposely fall asleep to block you out. You never know.'
Naruto frowns in both worry and confusion at this. But why would be want to? He thinks dully to the demon as he wanders nearer to that sound. Faintly he sensed Gaara's chakra, and smelled his scent in the air. "Gaara? Are you out here?" he called loudly. If anything, the redhead could at least answer him via mindlink.
Gaara heard Naruto's voice, and a cry of sorrow and longing escaped him, along with the broken sobbing that wouldn't cease to torment him. The longing he felt was a longing to wake up, and find it was just a nightmare, or for Naruto to tell him Lee had randomly jumped him or something, but the redhead couldn't deny the moan that he had heard...
His hurt redoubled as he continued to cry, his sand armor finally breaking apart and joining the rest of the chakra-infused grains, whirling erratically around. His sand broke a branch off a tree, then another, and then scarred the bark of a sapling. Some of it snaked through the trees, forming a thinner, wider circle outside of and around the clearing, as if wanting to protect him...
Sand came into view, and Naruto didn't need to hear anything to grasp that it was, indeed, Gaara in the forest. He dashes about through some sand, surprised it doesn't turn to whip him in the face or something of the like.
He spots red hair, red eyes and a pink nose, instantly getting a burn behind his own eyes at the sight of Gaara crying. He dodges some streams of sand to get near the young Kazekage, ignoring any painful contact he makes with it. "Gaara! What happened? Did someone hurt you?" the blonde asks repeatedly, finally reaching the redhead to reach a hand to the other teen's forearm, which currently was squeezing the blood flow in his other arm. He was in pain, and it made Naruto feel uneasy. "Say something…" he tries in a fretful whisper.
Naruto's act of innocence, as much as he longed to believe it, enraged the heartbroken teen. Yanking his arm out of the blonde's grasp, he glared at the blonde, but it wasn't very effective, as he was still crying. Sand whirling around the blonde, and it clamped down on the blonde's body, but not to the point where it would kill him. "DON'T ACT LIKE YOU DON'T KNOW," the redhead screamed out, his voice cracking. Despair and pain took over again and he let himself fall to his knees again, hugging himself in a desperate attempt to find comfort, his eyes shut tightly. He felt, distantly, his knees prickle where he knelt on sharp pebbles; and he felt uncomfortable kneeling there as the ground was rather hard; but he didn't even give these facts a passing glance, for he was much more preoccupied with Naruto, and the confusing pain he felt, clouding his judgment.
As Naruto was struck to the ground, and as Gaara's outburst processed in his suddenly shock-still mind, realization struck. He had seen. He saw that kiss Lee gave me. He thinks I've betrayed him the way he's been betrayed in the past...
Tears sprung to his eyes, and in a hushed, frightened (not by Gaara but by the fact that he had caused so much hurt to the person he loved) tone, he murmurs: "No... Gaara, no... Lee kissed me, and I didn't... what I mean is, he did it without me having time to react and... Gaara, I would never do that to you, you have to believe me! I only love you, remember? Mai ichi koi..." he said slowly at the end, framing each word with confidence. He just hoped it was enough as the sand whirled around him and the flushed, crying face of the redhead in front of him took in what he had said.
Gaara's sand fell slowly away from the blonde, and in an agonized tone, the redhead replied. "I can't tell if I should trust you or not..." The soft reply was regretful, and he slowly stopped crying, even though the heartbreak was still evident in his voice. "How can I trust you when all I know is I heard a moan, opened the door to see Lee kissing you, and the fact that you didn't push him away? You didn't push him away! You let him kiss you! How can I know to trust you!? I want to believe you, but how!?" The redhead shook his head as if to push away confusing thoughts, and focused on what he knew, and what Naruto was claiming. He wanted so badly to believe the blonde, but he was in a state of disarray, his emotions for once hindering him. It was clear he couldn't just talk this out over a cup of tea.
"Gaara-koi..." Naruto said softly, the tears in his eyes spilling over onto tanned cheeks. "I pushed him away almsot as soon as I realized what had happened. And what moan? I was groaning in protest! I didn't like it! It felt funny... like when I accidentally kissed Sasuke when I was 12: it kind of disgusted me, since Lee's my friend and I've never had thoughts of him otherwise. Gaara... please..." he cries, attempting to inch himself closer. "If you don't believe me, re-open the connection and let me show you. Even ask Kyuubi! He was there! And even ask Lee... he knows I can't return his feelings."
Naruto was practically begging, sitting up on his knees to face his love, hoping - praying - that he'd believe him. Gaara was delicate when it came to things like this, and he knew that. How could he have been so stupid? Why did he let Lee into his house? He shouldn't have even been home...
Gaara needed to be comforted, so he let himself lean against the blonde, but refrained from touching him in any other way. Something was tugging at him, a nagging feeling that Naruto was telling the truth. Gaara reminded himself that he needed to be more trusting if he was going to get anywhere in life... and he would likely go insane if he threw Naruto away, even after witnessing that kiss. "Please don't hurt me again," He asked softly, putting his forehead in the crook of the blonde's neck and telling Shukaku that it was alright to let thoughts through, but nothing else, for now. I don't think I'd survive another heartbreak like that, he finished mentally, a thought that wasn't meant to bring about a response. His sand slowly stopped showing any signs of promised pain; it settled in the grass like a predator snoozing away a large meal as the redhead exhaled shakily.
Naruto's face contorted upon hearing the word 'heartbreak'. Apparently, Gaara's heart was much more fragile than Naruto had thought, something so sensitive that if he was caught with a teeny kiss from another, it shattered the redhead's chest to pieces. More tears dared to try and flow hotly down whiskered cheeks, but somehow Naruto was able to hold them in. Swallowing a few times to find his voice, Naruto gently – with the lightest of touches since Gaara was so obviously wary of him at the moment – draped his hands around Gaara's front and told him: "I never wanted to in the first place. So you have my word that it won't happen again, ever; dattebayo."
His own phrase sounded out of place and childish in the somber scene, but it was a habit of speech Naruto found hard to break, so it had slipped out. He didn't bother to take it back, merely rocked slightly to console the Kazekage. I'd rather be here with you and have you be the only person to kiss me for all eternity, and yeah, that's kinda cheesy but it's utterly true. Lee meant it but I didn't, and I'm sorry it happened and I'm sorry you came in at that time, to have to see it happen… and the blonde trailed off, not sure what he was saying or what to say next. Talk about 'intense'. And for once, Naruto didn't try to lamely lighten the mood with a line like: 'So, we can get married in Suna now? Awesome!'. Instead, he kept quiet even in his thoughts, trying to settle them to a low buzzing without meaning. He simply waited for Gaara to show that he was okay again.
Gaara slowly brought his hands up to hold Naruto's arms, and softly squeezed them. "Gomen. Your present got ruined." The words were murmured softly as he let himself relax and sigh, glad that he had a reason still to trust the blonde; his sheer compassion, and his way of being able to soothe any hurt, was enough to calm Gaara down again. Naruto was able bring him back from the edge that he would have gone over on his own. Gaara kind of cuddled Naruto, like a child, but not quite. It wasn't a 'yay, go us!' type of hug/cling factor that children usually had; it was a type of solemn acceptance. An acceptance that yes, he was fragile, even if he could kill without remorse. An acceptance that yes, he was hurt and no, he didn't want to ruin their relationship. An acceptance that no, he didn't want to talk, that he didn't want to be around anyone but Naruto, that no, he didn't want Naruto to ever talk to anyone else. An acceptance that yes, things like this could happen, that Naruto had to talk to others, that life and love are rough and hard (which Gaara knew better than perhaps anyone else). But it was also an acceptance that if anything happened to hurt Naruto, Gaara would be there in the same way Naruto was there for him now; because he knows he hasn't been able to comfort Naruto the way he wants to, for the occasions (thankfully) haven't shown themselves.
Naruto gave a sigh of relief when hands met his arms, and he leaned into the other more to close as much space between them as Gaara allowed; he wanted to make it up to the redhead, because otherwise guilt weighed down on him. "I don't care if the flowers got ruined; so long as you still have some trust in me, I'm fine."
They sat there on the dirty forest floor for a while, not saying much. Then, Naruto proposed quietly, "We should probably go back into town soon. Someone might wonder where the hell we ran off to." He smiles a tiny bit, though it doesn't reach his eyes. Part of him still couldn't grasp what Lee had done and (especially) how the action had affected the teen in his arms.
Gaara shook his head. "You're not fine." He could tell, even without Shukaku releasing the block on the emotional factor of their link (Which Gaara had undone as soon as he realized it) that Naruto wasn't as happy as it seemed. He put a hand up to the other's whiskered cheek, and then put his hands behind the blonde's neck and brought him closer for a kiss, much more passionate than the one Lee had given the blonde. "There," The redhead said, his lips curling in a familiar, wry half-grin.
Shukaku, finally allowed to stop interfering with their link, crossed over to Naruto so that he could speak to the fox inside. "Ohayo, Kyuubi." Hello, friend, he thought, smiling.
Naruto let out a short sigh though his nose when Gaara caught him being not-so-'fine'. However, as soon as pale lips were pressed against his in a passionate, reassuring way, all his not-'fine'-ness was washed down the drain. The redhead gave him a lopsided grin, murmuring a small 'There,' to prove his point. Wordlessly, he pulled Gaara into him for a 'thank you' sort of response, giving him a tiny, hot blow in the ear, in turn tossing a bit of Gaara's crimson locks.
Meanwhile, Kyuubi glanced upwards through the bars of his seal-created cage and he smiled weakly. 'Ohayo,' he replies, standing and stretching out his limbs, his tails twitching and thrashing for a few seconds in small motions before he yawns. 'I was just resting my eyes a bit. Everything was so quiet and stressful a moment ago, and when things get that way I tend to turn the other cheek,' he explains dryly, not sure why he was saying so much. The demon fox shrugs, sitting on his back legs. Silently, he was glad for the company, somehow missing it. Naruto rarely decides to actually visit him in body, and only now decides to speak (well, think) to him.
Gaara smiled as Naruto embraced him, blowing in his ear and therefore also moving some hair away from it. He buried his face in the blonde's chest, feeling as if the kiss between the spandex-wearing shinobi and the blonde had never happened as far as he was concerned. It wasn't something that Naruto had enjoyed, so Gaara could forget it as long as it didn't happen again, but there would always be a lingering doubt, a suspicion, and a new edge on his protective nature. His arms pulling the blonde closer by the shoulder, Gaara breathed in deeply, smelling ramen, faintly; as well as vanilla, cinnamon, chocolate, and the blonde's strawberry shampoo. The smell was an intoxicating mix, one that Gaara could breathe in for eternity and never grow tired of
In turn, Naruto was taking in Gaara's warmth and scents, as well as the general feel of the other boy. To him, no one mattered except Gaara, not even Lee and his feelings or anyone else's. So, taking the redhead's offer of wanting to be closer whole-heartedly, he clutched him in his arms lovingly and felt every dip, curve, muscle and slight softness that made up Gaara's upper torso as they were pressed together in an embrace, heat surrounding the orange-and-black clad nin. He exhaled contentedly, scooping up a whiff of his kare's hair, which reminded him of sun and earth and coffee, and an added something else… blood? Why did he always smell or taste a vague hint of blood on the redhead? Was it from his past, or was that Naruto's fox-like senses kicking in to make him smell/taste Gaara's own life-giving fluid? Either way, he didn't care, since it was hardly there, only a phantom of what smells Gaara was truly made of. Like ginger. There was always some spice of ginger on him along with the other smells. But the blonde focused more on the feel of his body than the smell of his hair, since Gaara always felt better than anything else. Just the way he fit into Naruto when they embraced, like a missing piece… it was the greatest feeling in the world to him. Again he felt compelled to say a word that had become, as of late, frequently used in his vocabulary. "Aishiteru," he whispered. And, like the first time, he added, "Daidun."
Almost falling asleep, lulled by the comforting embrace and already very tired from the emotional stress placed on him, Gaara rubbed his face against the blonde. "I love me too," He joked, before returning the sentiment with a soft yawn attached. His hands fell from their position around the blonde, instead holding the blonde around the waist loosely, and the redhead's teal eyes slowly started to flutter shut, content in Naruto's arms. He felt unforgivingly warm in Naruto's hold, and that same warmth seemed to cover him so completely that he couldn't keep himself awake. He felt like he was floating, vaguely, floating in an ocean of comfort.
Pfft, as if. But still, he was comforted. And he wasn't alone.
The blonde peered down, smiling broadly when he became aware of Gaara's even breathing and closed eyes. He's asleep. He thinks idly, his hand mindlessly starting to track through red strands of hair. I'll let him rest. Everyone else can wait. Naruto himself leans back and rests his head against the bark of a tree, a breath escaping his lips: a breath he hadn't known he'd been holding in. A small breeze picks up through the forest and he relaxes completely, probably a mistake to let his guard down as a ninja but at the moment he didn't care. Distantly his stomach bothered him and demanded food, but again he didn't care, thinking Gaara came first; before even his stomach. And if the Kazekage wanted to rest, he would, and nothing – not even a rumbling tummy – was going to interfere. Although he was tempted to shunshin out from under the other boy to get something real quick, he didn't. Vaguely he wondered how it was Gaara could sleep, and then he remembered Kyuubi's magic and nearby strength; Shukaku probably didn't want to come out or eat away at Gaara's personality/soul when he knew Naruto would get angry with him and Kyuubi would use his forces against him.
Speaking of which…
'So what was it like, being out of your human host? I saw with my own eyes the effects of the whole Akatsuki incident,' Kyuubi asked, trying to make conversation with the desert raccoon.
Gaara shifted slightly in Naruto's arms, a small frown marring his features. Inside him, Shukaku looked away, ears pinned back. "Horrible.." He whispered, his voice soft compared to the rough, growl-like sound he usually produced. He noticed Gaara had fallen asleep, and sand trickled from the redhead's gourd to caress a pale cheek gently. "Shh, little one," He crooned softly, making the redhead smile a little in his sleep, the dream that was becoming a night-terror no longer such a frightful or horrible vision. Gaara relaxed in his sleep, curling up closer to the blonde, almost like a child...
Gaara's teal eyes fluttered open slowly, perhaps an hour after he had fallen asleep. He started to stretch softly, bumping Naruto's chin with his loosely-fisted hand accidentally. Realizing that Naruto was there, he grinned sleepily and brought his hands up to clasp them behind the blonde's neck and plant a kiss on his lips. "Gu-tenmorugen," He said, smiling. Good morning. A devious grin replaced his smile as he said, "Ready to ren'ai?" He expected to catch the blonde totally off guard with ren'ai, as it meant, literally, the act of making love, or to make love. A mental picture of Naruto underneath him, moaning and flushing uncontrollably, was blasted at the blonde with the wicked grin still in place. He concealed his nearly-uncontrollable urge to laugh, and his eyes twinkled with mirth as he watched Naruto, awaiting a reaction.
"N-now? In the middle of a f-forest?" he smiles crookedly with nervousness, unable to keep the flush from his whiskered cheeks at the mental image Gaara sent his way. He glances around, wondering what eyes could be in the trees. You never know when there could be someone hanging around in the middle of a wooden landscape, since ninjas were sneaky like that. "Don't you want to… uh… eat first, or go to my house or something?" he inquired, mostly thinking of his own stomach and how a bed would be much more comfortable than the ground. Although he didn't know if Gaara was teasing or not. He could be; the redhead does that sometimes, leading the blonde on and then stopping cold with a teeny 'I don't feel like it anymore' smirk on his face. Naruto squirmed slightly against the 'Kage, looking at him and trying not to think of how easily he could talk him into the 'ren'ai' even when he's not necessarily in the mood.
'Hmm, I've noticed something: years ago when Naruto first fought Gaara and you, you seemed more than eager to get out and wreak havoc. But now you're gentler with the red-haired boy; parent-like. Similar to Naruto and me,' Kyuubi remarks with a sly grin, trying to tease Shukaku into admitting he'd gone soft and holds a weak spot for Gaara. Normally Shu was portrayed as the most rugged and reckless of the tailed demons, especially with his funky voice, spiked tail, and black-gold eyes. Yet here he was, calling a human 'little one'. Which made Kyuubi smile, feeling a little better about himself and his weaknesses, as well as feeling a tad more similar to the other.
Gaara let out a chuckle. "Naruto, I didn't think you were such a sex fiend." Another kiss, a nibble on Naruto's ear, and Gaara spoke again. "Luckily for you, so am I." Taking Naruto's hand, he stood. "However, food does sound nice. We'll eat, then I'll show you a place I think is quite interesting, ne?" The redhead pulled the blonde up gently, before putting a hand to his collarbone and dragging it, just hard enough to be felt, down the blonde's chest and abdomen. "Come on, then. Ichiraku's might be closed for lunch soon, according to the sun. It's telling me that it should be around eleven thirty. You do want your heaping bowls of ramen, courtesy of my rather large income, right?" Gaara smirked as he realized that they'd been in the forest for almost two hours.
Shukaku smiled softly. "Yes, I have. I must say, after a while they grow on you, ne?" The Tanuki grinned at the fox, waving his tail softly, before his smile slowly faded. "It's his nightmares, that bother me. They're what made me want to protect him. He's hated by his own kind, and he has those nightmares- He sees everyone who he's ever reached out to betray him or say hurtful things to him before they die at his hands. Those nightmares are the true reason why he didn't sleep. I used to come out at those times to try and kill the bastards that would hate their own young like they do Gaara. However, he hated me for it. Soon I told him that if he didn't sleep, I couldn't take over even if I wanted to. I had no idea he'd be able to pull it off all those years. Now I'm just glad he's started sleeping again. I'm not too sure he knows that the occasional time he'd pass out before I was taken away, I'd stop him from having nightmares or dreams, instead making it seem, for him, as if he hadn't slept at all. It's just too painful for both of us. The only thing is, when I do, that it takes some of his soul away. I didn't want him to be oblivious, so I told him. He instantly started to drink coffee." Shukaku chuckled at the memory of how the red-head had scrambled for a coffeepot the minute the raccoon had admitted to the deed.
Naruto immediately brightened up, a wide grin on his face as he was pulled to his feet. A small, warm shiver grazed his spine as Gaara trailed his pale hand over his clothes, but other than that his mind was focused on eating ramen with the redhead treating him. Good thing too, because his toad money pouch is losing weight these days. Slowly, as they walked back towards the heart of the village, Gaara's words hit the blonde more strongly. He raised a golden eyebrow, a small smile on his lips. "Some place interesting, eh? Like where?" he asked with interest and curiosity, though both were hidden behind his teasingly light-hearted tone. Causally he draped his arm around the other's shoulders. "While I eat I'll be distracted with thoughts of where the hell it could be," he chuckles lightly. Suddenly, the time occurs to him and he realizes something. Ne, Gaara-koi, I think we've always had sex during the day for the most part… weird. It's like we can't wait for the "romantic hour", haha. He jokes, though the coincidence of the fact was mostly serious.
Kyuubi snorts to hold back his laughter, thinking it amusing how humans always turn to the quick-fixes, like caffeine. Turning more serious, he nods. 'Sounds like I misjudged you, Shu.' He says, the closest thing the fox can make to an apology. He shifts his position, tails rippling a red-brown river for a moment. 'And nightmares like that are understandable. According to what Gaara's memories have shown (I kind of hacked into them when I first set my magic to connect the two. I was curious who Naruto was choosing for a mate. You can't blame me...), those sort of tragic dreams come from his traitor uncle and people of the like. Poor kid. Some of Naruto's own nightmares involve things I'm not even sure I care to remember. A few of the older ones have that Uchiha constantly leaving and betraying and dying and the like. Annoys the hell out of me. I can understand that they were close like brothers, but quite frankly the sight of that black-haired sonuvabitch repulses me and makes me want to come out and rip his throat out. He's hurt Naru-to more than anyone else…' Kyuubi sighs, trying to swallow his rage. He shakes hisfurry head, listening for a moment to Naruto's thoughts. He chuckles airily and doesn't comment for once in his life, instead stealing a glace at the demon across from him. 'Now where does that leave us? They'll be busy and we'll be bored,' he jokes.
Gaara chuckled, smiling. "You'll have to wait to find out, and I'll blindfold you on the way there." The redhead leaned into the blonde's touch as he walked, grinning. "Hmm, you're right. Luckily, by the time we finish eating our ramen, and I get you to the spot I want to show you, it should be later in the evening, possibly almost night-time." Gaara grinned and handed Naruto a long, thick gray wallet that was a cloth-covered rectangle. On the front it had, embroidered, a perfect likeness of Gaara's eyes. No one in Suna could mistake who the wallet belonged to that way. Inside was almost a million yen, as the redhead didn't spend any of his personal income for long periods of time, instead saving every little coin. Grinning, the redhead explained the action. "Sky's the limit tonight," He said humorously.
Shukaku smiled in acceptance of the 'apology', then laughed nervously and blushed as several ideas ran through his head. "Don't ask me that again," He said jokingly. "We could trade embarrassing stories about Naruto and Gaara. Although, you already pretty much know everything about Gaara, so that wouldn't be very fun for you, ne? How about we keep talking like we have been? I, uh, really enjoy your company, so it doesn't matter what we do as long as you don't have to stop talking to me," He said.
"Sky's the limit, eh?" Naruto clarifies with a raise of a suggestive eyebrow. "Now I'm almost afraid of what the hell your mind cooked up to do tonight. And I hate blindfolds; can't you tell me where so we can go together?" he tried, but to no avail; Gaara sent him a look (he's been quite expressive these days; and always turning on a dime, it seemed) and he sighed, knowing the look meant: 'nope, you're being blindfolded and I'm leading you there and that's final'.
Konohakagure itself was within sight now, peaking out between a handful of trees. Shrugging about losing the blindfold battle, Naruto led the way to Ichiraku's, humming to himself some song or another as he slid his hand down from Gaara's shoulder to his milky-colored hand.
Inside, Kyuubi was a bit confused at first. 'Hmm? Why not?' But realization (or as much of it as his brain could concoct) hit, and he made a small nodding motion, turning his head the other way for a second. He cleared his throat, not quite used to talking to the other demon in this manner. Kyuubi was the sort to easily shrug it off, however. 'I enjoy your company as well,' the fox says slowly, 'And I guess you could say I've missed the demon race around. That damn Akatsuki has gathered seven – er, well, you're back, so I suppose only six now – of us original "legendary" demons, one of them being my own cousin, the two-tailed cat. What do you supposed happened to all of them? They were quite powerful, and yet were taken from the world like candy from a baby,' Kyuubi tries as a topic of conversation, his tone heated towards the cloaked gang. 'The stupid thing is, they only want us for our power. They want usas weapons. Which irks me; they try to use you that way for Suna because of your host's father and his village's financial problems. I hate that they did that to you, locking you away in a human just so they could have a weapon of their own. And I know Naruto hates it, since Gaara was said human.' A sigh escapes between sharp, gleaming teeth. 'No wonder our race is slowly becoming scarce; humans are unforgivable. Most of them, anyway. It's disgusting.' He glances up, suddenly chortling. 'I talk far too much since I've been talking to myself for so long. Please, you say something now.'
Gaara had grinned slightly when Naruto gave up the 'blindfold battle' per say, as well as the comment about being afraid of what Gaara cooked up. "Be afraid. Be VERY afraid," He said in a deep voice, before promptly laughing his ass off (well, to the extent that he ever laughed). When they got nearer to the ramen stand, he pulled his reserved, calm mask on and let go of Naruto's hand reluctantly. Explanation?
Look around. Villagers. I want their knowledge of us as a couple to come out when we get married. Y'know, dump it all on them at once. That way, they'll voice their complaints at least a day afterwards, giving us a little time to prepare, and then we can cuff them like a raccoon mother would a misbehaving youngling, shocking them and then telling them why they should keep their mouths shut. A faint smile once more adorned the redhead's pale features, and while he wouldn't hold the blonde's hand, he did walk half-a-step behind the blonde, and barely the same distance to the side of said blonde, meaning he would be walking much too close to Naruto for comfort, were they not a couple, or just very close.
Shukaku 'hmm'ed. "I have far too dirty a mind to be trusted, Kyu, you should know that by now." A grin later, and he replied to the request to speak. "It is a shame that we're disappearing, but at the same time, we're not. You see; Take Isonade, for example. Three-tailed shark. Remember the sword it has? Samehada? The blue, fish-like member of the Akatsuki has that same sword, and resembles a shark. Now Kaku, the seven-tailed badger. He uses clay camouflage. Remind you of the blonde? Now for Yamata No Orochi, the eight-tailed snake. Remind you of the former member, Orochimaru? The others (Raijuu, the 6-tailed weasel, who uses electricity, Hokou, the five-tailed dog, who has Wind, water, earth, lightning, and fire, Sokou, the four-tailed rooster-reptile, who controls almost anything poisonous, and Nekomata, who controls death, and possibly dead souls), while sketchy, resemble the other Akatsuki, ne? I have reason to believe the Akatsuki are sealing them inside themselves to gain power."
The demon fox steadily nodded. 'That makes a lot of sense. After all, they captured a bunch of us; why not get some profit from it?' Suddenly he begins to chuckle. 'Too dirty of a mind? Hmm, I suppose so; out of the nine of us, you always seemed the one with the most active sex life.' Kyuubi lightly shoves the other. 'I kid. And I'm also trying to avoid getting too angry at that damn organization. They make me want to…' he drifts off with a growl, staring hard at nothing in particular. Kyuubi shakes his head briskly. 'Still, it's not the same with the actual demons I've known and fought to be withering away. Kami knows I nearly screamed when I realized from Gaara's death that it meant I was one of the last two. It felt… lonely. Friends and foes, all gone. But now that you're back, I don't feel so bad.' One less power for the Akatsuki to have. And one more thing to converse with. Somehow, I missed the old 'coon dog, Kyuubi adds mentally and with a slow shrug of his shoulders.
Outside, Naruto's lips jutted out into a small pout. But he nodded in agreement with Gaara's thoughts, immediately putting up a smile and lacing his hands behind his head as they entered the main street beyond the gates and made their way to Ichiraku's. He could almost feel Gaara breathing behind him, and was secretly comfortable with the closeness. Coming up to the old man's ramen shop, he sat himself down at a stool, hollering a 'hello' and a grin. "Two chicken-and-miso ramens, please! And load it with noodles!" he watched out the corner of his eye as Gaara sat gracefully beside him at the counter. The girl behind said counter made a 'o' with her mouth as she realized (and whisper-informed the old man) that the Kazekage of Sunakagure was gracing them with his presence. The two began to work their best and quickly, whipping up some damn good, flavorful soup and setting it – still steaming – in front of the boys. "Whoo-hoo!" Naruto cheered, plucking apart his wooden chopsticks and muttering a quick 'itadakimasu' prior to diving in. he slurped loudly and began filling his empty stomach, briefly wondering where the hell Gaara was going to take him…
Gaara slowly and delicately broke his chopsticks apart, holding them precisely to bring golden noodles to his lips daintily. Seeing Naruto was finished his third bowl already, he grinned somewhat. In between slow bites, he spoke. "You know Naruto's appetite, or should, by now. You might want to have extra ramen ready. I told him sky's the limit up to 80 thousand yen, but perhaps that wasn't very wise." A smile graced the owner's view, and dissipated just as swiftly. Red hair moves in the breeze, as the Kazekage finally finished his first bowl. Glancing over to the blonde, the redhead silently asked the other if he wanted more, and encouraged it if the blonde wanted to.
Shukaku smiled. "Well, I like being back too, Kyuu." The raccoon dog started to walk forward, but stopped, almost as if unwilling to bring himself closer to the fox.
Being the clever demon he was, Kyuubi noticed Shukaku's hesitation and briefly wondered why. Was he truly so intimidating? Oh, right; he was. To show things were fine, he nodded once to his companion and twitched a few of his many tails.
Meanwhile, Naruto was doing the opposite: he was shaking his head. He looked to the chef and smiled. "I'm stuffed! That was delicious! Thanks a bunch!" The blonde hopped down from his stool and motioned to Gaara to pay and get the hell out of here, he told the redhead mentally. His knew his feelings of curiosity and over-eagerness would spread to his kare, and he did so on purpose. Just what was Gaara planning, anyway? Their thought connection did nothing if one of them really wanted to keep a secret and push it to the back of their mind.
Shukaku hid the true reasons for why he'd hesitated behind a large, false grin. He moved closer until he was sitting next to the fox, his tail moving almost nervously back and forth, blushing ever-so-faintly. Was it suddenly warmer in there? "So, Kyuu... uh, what's up?"
Gaara smirked, and though he was feeling Naruto's impatience, he was agonizingly slow finishing his own bowl. Paying the something-odd-yen that their meal cost, Gaara led Naruto back to the village walls. Taking Naruto's forehead protector off him, Gaara smiled wickedly. "No peeking." Wrapping the forehead protector around cerulean eyes, he used sand to lightly layer the cloth, making it completely black for the blonde. Putting his hands behind the blonde's arms and under his legs, Gaara scooped Naruto up bridal style and took to the trees, jumping every few seconds. A small while later he touched down, and nodded in approval at the surrounding area. He set the blonde down, steadying him, before lifting Naruto's hitai-aite to its proper place, standing very close behind him.
In front of them was a secluded, rarely-explored area of the forest, a clearing at that. There was a small rock face to their right, meaning a source for Gaara's sand, and in the rock face there was a cave, more than big enough to store things, but with a small entrance that wasn't obvious. To their left, there was a large pond, obviously clean, because it stemmed from a waterfall coming down the side of said rock face and extending to the pond, another small stream branching off from it and disappearing into the trees. Behind them, and surrounding them, was a maze of trees that couldn't be navigated without a hell of a sense of direction, and throughout the clearing were tall trees that had unnaturally long branches, which continued the canopy for the most part, but still allowed a few small patches of sky to be viewed. In front of them, however, was the real shocker. A medium-sized hut, made completely of hardened, reddish sand, almost to the point of glass, stood two floors tall in front of them. It had windows, with actual glass panes, a door, black curtains, and an orange, brown and green roof in a camouflage pattern. Suddenly the reason why Gaara had been acting slightly lethargic whenever he was in Konoha made itself clear. "I worked on it every chance I had," he murmured softly. "It's all for you. Just for you, Naruto. Even when I'm not here." A tender kiss to the side of Naruto's neck later, Gaara continued. "Do you want to take a look inside?"
For a moment, the blonde stood trembling with bubbly excitement, practically speechless. "Wha–… how did you find…? And make…? And… Uuwahhh!" he squeal-sighed, leaping to hug Gaara tightly before skipping up to the beautifully crafted red hideout, throwing the door open and bouncing up and down like a little kid at Christmas. "Come on! Gimme a tour, Gaara-koi!" he exclaims. Who would've thought Gaara could be so romantic as to make him something like this? He almost felt like he didn't deserve the redhead sometimes. The location was perfect, allowing opportunity for nightly skinny dips and cave exploring and campfires and all sorts of other things he could think to do in the middle of a forest secretly, with or without Gaara (preferably with). It dawned on the blonde that a place like this, in the forest between Konohakagure and Sunakagure… it was the perfect meeting place for two lovers to escape. He grinned devilishly at the thought. Already he was planning things…
Tugging Gaara along by the arm, he walked down this tiny hallway and that, flinging open doors. He saw the kitchen first thing, it being an open space near the back and connected by an archway form the living room area that the front door had opened up into. Despite it's outward size, the hut was fairly big, at least compared to Naruto's apartment. The kitchen, to the blonde's delight, was orange, and the adjoining dining room a sunny orange-yellow mix. The flung open the cabinets, laughing as he found already an entire stock of ramen hidden inside one cupboard. He jogged out and went down another part of the lower half of the hut, finding a small, rich-colored cream-and-brown- with accents of mossy green- bathroom. Racing upstairs, he found a lovely burgundy bathroom with gold accents and a candle or two, connected to the master bedroom which held the softest, warmest gradient of sky blue to dark navy, like the ocean as it goes deeper and deeper into the earth. Again he spied candles, probably due to the fact that electricity this far out from the village couldn't be transferred. Taking a step around an oddly-grinning Gaara, Naruto explored a guestroom that held neutral hues although comforting and fresh, as well as a storage closet that was filled with all sorts of items, from a broom to towels to a few weapons. He could live here, it was so perfect. How did Gaara ever manage to…? But it didn't matter. It was a wonderfully sweet surprise, and again Naruto turns to give the 'Kage a hug, even slipping a kiss in.
Tearing up slightly, he smiles at his kouhai-to-be. "Thank you so, so much, Gaara… no one's ever given me a gift anything like this… I…" he smiles again, almost unable to think. Another kiss, but this time softly on the other's ai-labeled forehead. "I love you. And I can't believe you did something like this. Can we live here once we're… married?" he asks hesitantly, a pleading, shy, happy smile on his mouth. It's like the electric feeling wouldn't go away, and he liked it very, very much. Gaara… thanks again… you're too kind… I want to give you something, now, too, even if it can't be as big as all this.
'At the moment,' Kyuubi starts, 'I'm wondering where the hell your vessel is taking my kit. Oh, wait… I see now. Ha. Very clever of Gaara. I assume you knew a little about this, Shu?' he grins slyly, gesturing with a clawed paw at the red hut through Naruto's eyes. 'Maybe even helped him? Reminds me of something…' Though he doesn't mention what; he leaves it to Shukaku to remember. Briefly, the fox looks to the other demon, thinking all sorts of thoughts he hasn't thought about since before his rage at the 4th Hokage and all his bloodlust-filled days. Odd at how another's presence affects him.
A chuckle issued forth from his pale lips as Gaara replied. "Yes, silly. That's why I made it. Naruto, if you want to repay me, just stay with me. That's all I could ever ask of you, and it's more than enough to make me happy." Gaara grinned. "I've got another gift for you. You didn't check in the box on top of the dresser." In the master bedroom, there were indeed some beautifully crafted mahogany dressers, and on top of one, just under the window and across from the bed, which was in front of the door, was a small orange box. Wrapped around the fist-sized box was a dark red ribbon tied in a bow, preventing the slip-off shoebox-type cover from coming off. Instead of letting the blonde open it all at once, he only let the blonde take off the ribbon before putting his hand over the top. Smiling, he slowly revealed the contents, only to put said contents onto Naruto's ring finger.
The second present was a pure silver engagement ring, with a small diamond embedded in the thick band of the metal. On the inside was inscribed 'To the one food I can never get enough of; Aishiteru, Naruto-koi.'
A lopsided grin was offered, his forehead against Naruto's, as he withdrew his fingers from Naruto's hand, his other still holding the now-empty box, along with it's ribbon.
"I've got everything for the wedding set up in Suna, a few weeks from now. Tsunade said she can 'let the blonde twerp' go for a few days so that he doesn't miss the ceremony, so that's all worked out..."
Naruto's breath caught in his throat, his excitement turning to melty surprise paired with a heated blush. Stay with him forever? Of 'course! And now a ring? He felt spoiled, and at the same time like his dreams were coming true. An odd mix of emotions it was to be sure, but slowly a gently, heartfelt smile reached his lips and he pushed against Gaara's forehead to bring their lips together softly. The sting of tears (of undeserving and content) nipped at the back of Naruto's eyes, but he ignored them. Instead he brought his hands around his fiancée's waist and laid his head on the other's shoulder. Grinning, he whispers, "Damn, you're pretty classy, Gaara. Setting all this up and stuff." He made a secret mental note to get Gaara a ring, wondering deviously what to inscribe on the inside, since Gaara's own to him had been both clever (if not a bit perverted) and sweet. The blonde nuzzled his nose into Gaara's neck, again murmuring 'thank you', but adding, "For everything," at the end. Idly, he twirled his new ring around his finger. He was never going to take it off, he knew that much.
Gaara put the orange box back on the dresser, as Naruto laid his head on the redhead's shoulder. Smiling as well, he let one hand come to rest on the back of the blonde's neck, the other amidst blonde hair. "It's the least I can do, for the one I 'can't get enough of'," he said. Gaara reluctantly pulled away and laid on the bed, his head near the footboard, to let his eyes droop as he watched his beloved. The blankets, pillows, and sheets were the color of Naruto's eyes, with blended patches of a seafoam green that matched his own. He seemed half-asleep, but at the same time, energetic and wide-awake. "There's an attic, too. Oh, there's yet another gift- last one for today, I swear – courtesy of my rather large income. Inside the top drawer. It's a painting of us."
The painting had the left side devoted to sand, moon, and the likeness of Gaara; the other side depicted grass, tree, sun, and Naruto. The two were clad in their signature outfits, facing each other and embracing tenderly. The ends of Naruto's forehead protector, dangling down, and the hem of Gaara's loose battle gear flowed to the left in a slight breeze. Their faces were close, their eyes half-lidded, as if they'd just kissed. Both wore a small grin, and their eyes, even in the painting, could express clearly what they felt, the emotion being love. In the center, just behind their likenesses, the time and location merged as it might if traveling; small bushes appeared, and in the sky it appeared to be dawn. The frame was simple; gold on Gaara's side, as if a continuation of the sand, and an earthy brown on Naruto's.
Delicately, Naruto picked up the painting and ran his hands over the double frame. He came and sat on the bed beside Gaara, tracing with his fingers the painting-Gaara's face and the sun on the painting-Naruto's side. He raised it above their heads as he laid down next to the redhead. "It's…" he searched for the right word. Beautiful? Gorgeous? Lovely? Romantic? "…Perfect." With a grin Naruto looked to Gaara. "But who'd you get to paint it? Someone in Suna?" He chuckled. "Or was it Sai?" Shaking his head like he didn't matter, Naruto set the painting down on one of the two bedside tables and snuggled up to Gaara's right side. "Arigato… mou," he murmurs into the fabric of the Kazekage's ribcage. Thank you… again. "These are the best presents anyone's ever given me, even if I've never received much." The blonde leans up and lays a chaste kiss on Gaara's clothes, roughly where his heart would be. He peers into those pupiless eyes and can't help but smile. This is a person – and a village leader at that – who cares about him, who wants to do good things for him, and who Naruto would never dare hurt or betray because he's done so much. Somehow, Naruto felt like he was going to cry. He even felt his eyes prickle and begin to well with water.
"Heh, you got me. Sai pulled out a brush as soon as I mentioned 'artist', asked me what I wanted, and said to come back in a few days." Gaara smiled silently at the kiss, brushing some of Naruto's hair out of his face with a pale finger. Noticing the possibility of tears through their emotional ties, Gaara let his thumb roughly but lightly wipe away the one droplet that dared to fall. "You're welcome," he said. "And I hope I can give you many more reasons to say thank you." Gaara felt his eyelids flutter slightly, itching to be closed and allow a nice nap. Sleep... Sleep sounded good. He'd overworked himself in the effort to have the house done by today, and unfortunately that one-hour nap earlier did nothing to rejuvenate him. Before he could stop it, a small yawn escaped him. Snuggling closer to Naruto, the redhead rested his head Naruto's arm, wrapping his arms loosely around the blonde's waist.
"So, what's your overall reaction to my several surprises, in one-to-three words?"
"One-to-three words, huh?" Naruto murmured into fabric now warmed by his breath. "Then how's this? I. Love. You," he grinned, framing each word. It really was the only way he could express his gratitude and surprise and all the other emotions running though his system. Mostly gratitude. He's never gotten so much and such big things before, and he just wished he could make it up to Gaara somehow. Well, he had a few ideas as to how, but he kept those thoughts to himself as the redhead fell into a light slumber in his arms; and soon, he followed, feeling warm and content.
Within a month, chaos broke out. Not your usual kind of demonic chaos, nor the enemy-based kind. No, this was a different kind of chaos that included stress, panic, and other feelings too strong to contain.
"Come on, let's go, ladies! We need to make this absolutely perfect!" Sakura called out. She bossed around just about anyone who would listen. After all, she needed every little detail to go smoothly for her best friend's wedding.
And no, she wasn't referring to Ino. She meant Naruto. And even though it was unusual, and Gaara had to make it legal in his village, she was happy for him. Naruto finally had someone to match him… and he was about to make it permanent, which couldn't be more exciting to the pinkette. Which was why she had to make sure her boys were taken care of. They're just men; what do they know about setting up weddings? So she promised to do all the hard stuff if they promised not to let their love fade.
Naruto had laughed at that as he had put an arm around Gaara. "That's impossible, Sakura. I don't think it can ever fade away."
"Let me see those yukatas!" she demanded as she scanned her list. Her face was more relaxed than her voice; she had to be loud in order to be heard over the murmur and clank of voices and objects (such as decorations and plates). Nearly everyone who worked under the Kazekage was present, composed of mostly women. It goes to show how fond some Suna girls were of their attractive leader, demon or no demon, in love with another man or not.
Matsuri was among these women, and she was like Sakura's right-hand gal. It was because the brunette had been fond of Gaara so long that she was willing to do anything that made him happy. Amongst the crowd, Matsuri waved a hand as she approached Sakura. "I have them, Sakura-san!" she said.
"Good; bring them here." Sakura replied. She studied the lovely blue-swirled, red-flamed, and gold-laced yukata for Naruto and already could imagine how it would bring out his eyes and compliment his figure. "Amazing," she smiled. "What about Gaara's?"
Matsuri held up the white yukata with silvery accents and black scrolling designs. There were tints of red here and there to match Naruto's yukata and to compliment Gaara's hair.
Sakura felt the fabric between her fingers. It was silky, and would hang off of Gaara in all the right ways. She grinned. "This is great! Gaara will look very elegant in this. Both of them will be so handsome," she sighed contentedly. She nodded to Matsuri and thanked her before moving on to the next issue.
"Ahh! It's almost the day of the wedding," Naruto fretted to himself. He felt nervous, excited, frazzled and eager; all at the same time. He also felt sick, because he hadn't seen Gaara for about two weeks now. He was beginning to go crazy from such an emotional combination.
The 'Kage was very busy in Suna making preparations. So Naruto was stuck traveling to and from their little abode and his apartment in Konoha. He wasn't supposed to see the bride – well, other groom – until the wedding, for some reason or another. Gaara said he wanted it that way.
"It'll make the wedding all the more romantic," the redhead had stated in all seriousness, "If you missed me, and if I missed you. That way, everything will feel fresh."
He understood the logic, but Naruto wasn't happy about it. He wanted to be there, and see how everything was unfolding. But instead he had to wait until tomorrow night to leave. Gaara had told him to wait at their secret place until two days before the big event, and to leave the evening before so that he would arrive just in time to be taken care of and sent down the aisle to wait for the br– 'other groom' to join him.
But Naruto couldn't wait any longer. He ceased his pacing and headed out the door. "I can't take it anymore. I'll just go a little slower and arrive a couple hours early; that should be fine," he reasoned.
And then he left.
Meanwhile, Gaara was sitting in a simple room inside the church, looking at himself in the mirror. He felt no doubt, had no second thoughts. Gazing upon his reflection, he wondered idly if the dark eye shadow he was wearing (on top of a far thinner layer of eyeliner) looked good. His hair was almost straight, flowing nicely to the right, exposing his Ai tattoo with pride. His hair was a little lighter, more like a deep honey-red than it had been before, and longer; it was almost shoulder-length, all of it; except he'd cut it about a half an inch shorter, and it didn't seem as long since it was light and remained close to his neck instead of spreading out all over the place. He seemed a little paler, too, but that was alright; it kept up with his apparent 'image' of grace and regality. He stood slowly, and imagined himself wearing his yukata; it was different from a kimono in that it had a large ribbon around it, called an obi. The Obi for his yukata was almost an extension of the white, silver, red, and black; but it was a tad darker. That was he liked best about it; though it was suffice to say that he felt nervous about wearing a yukata, as he'd never done so before.
Gaara sighed and grinned ever-so-slightly; the couple had figured out that, yes, their mental connection could serve to bridge the gap between Suna and Konoha (or their home), albeit being a little fuzzy. Idly, he sent a few reassuring and warm thoughts Naruto's way (emotions always transmitted better than thoughts at such a distance) and sighed, glancing down at his rather casual clothing – a red t-shirt (a black long-sleeved shirt underneath it) and dark jeans. Sakura had persuaded him to wear it, saying that he should 'live a little', as only Naruto had thrown a bachelor party (which had resulted in many boys getting wasted out of their minds and an unpleasant phantom hangover for Gaara).
He waved to Sakura, and told her softly that he was tired and going to go home, and that he absolutely loved what she had done with the place, careful to flatter her (and Matsuri, who showed up again a few moments after) with similar comments, including "I'd never have been able to do this myself, and Naruto... well, he'd likely try to have a cake made out of ramen," for instance. After this brief exchange, he waved goodbye to both Sakura and Matsuri, and left in a little 'poof' of sand, which promptly swirled itself out the door, so that no one had to clean it up. How considerate of him.
Upon reaching his home, he laid on his bed, and smiled to himself again, a faint half-smile that only Naruto knew to be the equivalent of 'beaming' and a 'Naruto-Ramen-smile', both of which were very unlikely to ever grace his lips.
His eyes fluttered closed rather quickly, his previous trouble with sleeping gone even with Shukaku's presence; the nightmares no longer bothered him, and his personality was no longer ravaged by the dreams he experienced.
Grinning to himself, Naruto did his best not to leak his surprise of arriving early to Gaara through their connection. He was grateful for the warmly reassuring thoughts that were sent his way, however brief they were. He also did his best not to peek into Gaara's head to see what the church looked like. He wanted to be surprised, too; not merely the surprise-r. Was surprise-r even a word? Bah, who cares? Naruto wasn't one to think about correct grammar. What he cared about was the drumming in his chest as he raced toward Sunagakure, toward his future, and toward his lover.
His emotions were skyrocketing as he grew closer and closer, and he felt as thought he were about to burst. Naruto bit his lip and kept moving, and as the desert cruel sands beat around him, he saw the village's walls within range. He could almost hear the bustle of people in the streets.
Feeling lightheaded with both a minor case of dehydration and exhilaration, the kitsune burst into the village and got directed to the church by a few of the guards at the front gate who knew to look for him.
"We weren't expecting you quite yet, Uzumaki-san," one of them said.
"Which is why I need you to keep my arrival a secret," Naruto winked, "Because I'm not supposed to be here yet. I got overexcited."
"Ah," one of them nodded. "I see. Well, come with me; I'll show you where the church is at. Your friend Haruno-san should be there to recive you."
"Thanks," Naruto smiled a bit tiredly. He ran all the way there…
"Naruto?!" Sakura exclaimed as soon as she saw him. "What are you doing here? You're so early!"
"Shh, pipe down, Sakura-chan," he told her with a wince in his voice. "I wanted to surprise everyone."
She closed her eyes and shook her head. "Okay. Fine. My lips are sealed. But boy, do you really need fixing up! Come sit over here. Let's see if we can't get a bath going for you to get that sandy residue off. And then, we need to get you dressed and maybe add a little makeup –"
"Are you crazy? I don't want makeup! I'm a man, not a girl!"
"But a little eyeliner on your upper lids would really bring out –"
"No. Way. In. Hell," Naruto growled. "Just gimme my bath and clothes and help me make my hair a bit more decent, and I'm all set."
"Sure, sure," Sakura sighed. "Whatever you think is best. This is your wedding, after all."
"Trust me," Naruto smiled, "I'll be plenty sexy if you keep it simple, stupid."
She laughed. "Until the K.I.S.S., one of the oldest rules in the book. I got it."
And with that, they went to work to make the groom presentable, as challenging as that might sound.
The church was in even more of a buzz than normal. Well, that was to be expected, with the wedding taking place in a few hours. Matsuri had taken over with Gaara, and she was now helping to tug his yukata on smoothly; patting it down to remove any wrinkles, she tied on his Obi rather efficiently, using a few traces of chakra to make sure it was perfectly smooth. Then, she took out mascara, eyeliner and eye shadow (which Gaara regarded as if she was carrying a weapon) and applied as thin a layer of eyeliner around his eyes as possible, using a little mascara to bring out his rather light eyelashes. Then, adding to it with a trace of almost silvery-gray eye shadow, she smirked and pulled out lip gloss. This new object Gaara absolutely glared at her for, but grudgingly allowed her to do whatever damage she wanted. Thankfully, she wasn't completely evil- she only put some shiny nude gloss on his lips, giving them a little shine, as if they were porcelain. Truth be told, in this getup, Gaara did look quite like a doll, or perhaps a (very clearly male) geisha. Matsuri left his hair down, but straightened it and sprayed some hairspray (which Gaara thought must have been toxic gas) in it to make it 'luscious and shiny', she said (she'd already forced him to wash it in what Gaara counted to be at least ten different shampoos and conditioners, resulting in a very soft, rather attractive (if he did say so himself) hairstyle. She then took a bit of lip liner that was just a shade lighter than his Ai scar, and outlined it before blending it with her fingers, making it look more attention-grabbing and giving even it a bit of glamour. Then, as she deemed Gaara's nose was shiny, she took some foundation that matched his skin color and dusted it all over his nose, cheeks, and forehead. Sweeping his bangs back over his forehead and using a well-placed (so as to be invisible) bobby pin, Matsuri stopped them from completely covering his right eye. Then, for no reason that he could think of, she made him stand again.
"There!" She exclaimed, stepping back to observe her masterpiece with her hands on her hips. Pulling out a mirror and a camera, she snapped a digital picture before he could object, gave him the mirror, and bustled off to show Sakura and Gaara's other fangirls.
Sighing and glancing into the mirror, Gaara almost started in wonder. He looked... good. Almost like... a model. Like someone that wasn't a demon-carrier.
Smiling softly, he put the mirror down, and opened the door – only to find he had a self-appointed 'guard', one of the many women that had volunteered to help out.
"Tut-tut! You know better, Gaara-sama! You shouldn't go to see the b– er, groom – just yet! It's supposed to be bad luck! Wait until tonight, when you get to run off to who-knows-where with him to, ah, consummate your marriage. Besides, I'm not sure if he's even here yet."
Gaara glared at her half-heartedly as she basically told him to wait until later to have his way with the blonde, but that wasn't his intention in the first place. Closing the door and returning to his now so-called holding cell, he rolled his eyes good-naturedly as he heard her stifling a giggle.
"The things I go through for you..." he muttered, the half-smile returning, shaking his head minutely.
"Uhg! Stop fussing over me, Sakura-chan! I'm fine, really," Naruto insisted. He turned to face a mirror, as if to prove to her that he looked fine. He could see her frowning face behind him. He smiled. "See? Never sexier," he joked.
Sakura blew at her bangs and gave up. After a moment, she realized that he was right. Sure, he was lacking everything except a bit of basic foundation, but he looked pretty good. His long lashes made it appear as though he had a hint of eyeliner on, and his lips, when he licked them, gave a natural sheen to them that was as good as – if not better than – lip gloss. His hair had been blown dry for once, and angled slightly, so that it fell into his eyes in a styled manner and fell around his sideburns and at the nape of his neck nicely. His unruly spikes had been tamed enough to make him look softer and more mature, and yet held enough spunk to still seem Naruto-ish.
The pinkette didn't even have to admit how damn well his yukata clung to his muscular frame, or how the obi section of it tied off just-so, to almost give Naruto hips. The manly kind, obviously, but hips nonetheless.
She began to giggle. "Okay, so you were right. You do look… um…"
"Sexy as hell?"
"Maybe not 'sexy', because that wouldn't be appropriate for a wedding; I wouldn't allow you to look 'sexy'. No, you look… extremely handsome, actually. I didn't know I could say that about you, since your dorky-ness always got in the way before," Sakura complimented as she gave Naruto a friendly hug. She patted him on the back. "Now then, are you ready to take your place at the altar?"
He took a deep breath. "Yeah, I think so. No, I know so. Let's go!" he moved around her toward the door. He stopped short when he noticed something that hadn't been there a while ago. It was sitting on one of the end tables near the door. "What's that?"
"Nothing," Sakura said as she hid the picture Matsuri gave her of Gaara while the blonde had been dressing. She didn't want him to see the other groom before it was time. But she had to hint: "It's nothing you won't be seeing in a few minutes, anyway."
Cocking an eyebrow at her and thinking that it was simply a photo of the church all decked out, Naruto left the room.
Bright lights and dozens of faces met him. He came out from a door that led onto the top of the altar, near the justice of the peace who would join the blonde to his soul mate in a different way then they were joined already; and by 'a different way', he meant 'legally bound'.
Staring across the church in the sandy village opposite his own, Naruto took a step forward and took his place at the left of the elder with the tome on marriages in his hand. "Are you joyous, lad?" the man asked.
Naruto chuckled. "I'm the happiest I've ever been," he said. But his hands were shaking.
Gaara exhaled shakily as Temari and Kankuro argued over who'd take him down the aisle, and he rolled his eyes.
"I'll go down by myself," he said.
Temari looked at him oddly, and Kankuro raised an eyebrow, both clearly wanting him to explain.
"I'm not exactly a bride up for show. The only reason I'll be walking down that damn aisle will be because they want me to, being the Kazekage and all. Plus, apparently I look more feminine."
"But it's tradition for a fath-" Kankuro paused in the middle of the word before continuing. "-er to take the girl down the aisle, showing that he's giving her away and giving them his blessings! Someone has to walk with you, Gaara."
Gaara rolled his eyes. "Fine. Both of you can, then. I don't care."
Moments later, after they had decided and Temari had fussed over how gorgeous Gaara was, she left and sat in one of the church pews, leaving Gaara and his brother by the large, brown oak doors. Music started playing, and Gaara almost jumped at it; he felt a hand squeeze his reassuringly before letting go, and he cracked a small, solemn smile.
Then he stepped through the heavy doors that his brother opened for him, and walked down at a relatively normal pace, only slightly slower than a walk; his brother accompanied him and then stepped off to the side.
Gaara smiled, relieved, as he gazed into Naruto's eyes, giving him a discrete once-over before turning his attention to the priest.
"Thank you again," He whispered to the priest; not very many would be willing to marry two men.
As the priest opened his mouth to speak, Gaara gazed at Naruto once more, letting the words wash over him as if in a haze.
"Well, I'd say that went smoothly," Naruto cooed with a shit-eating grin on his face, one that would put the Cheshire cat to shame. He had carried Gaara all the way to their home after the redhead had shunshinned them into the forest surrounding it.
"It was smooth if you don't count the vows you stuttered over quite epically," Gaara retorted with a roll of his eyes, although he was secretly smiling along with his new husband.
"I mean, you sounded like Hinata!"
Naruto shrugged as he set Gaara down next to the front door. He swung it wide open and dragged the redhead inside. "You weren't so smooth, either, if you count the slightly-too-passionate-for-the-public-eye kind of kiss you gave me at the end," the blonde teased. He yanked Gaara into their bedroom and pinned him to the bed with one hand. The other fiddled with the obi of the Kazekage's yukata as if he was about to take it off, but he didn't just yet. "Of 'course, I realize you couldn't help yourself, but that's no excuse to scar the audience."
"They weren't scarred," Gaara protested. He looped one arm around Naruto's neck, his fingers weaving themselves into the golden locks just above it. "I daresay it made them jealous, if not a bit uncomfortable in their pants."
"Hmm, I'll go there with you," Naruto chuckles softly. "Because I know any kiss we share is usually erotic enough to get anybody going." He leaned down and placed a kiss on Gaara's finger, where a ring now shone (engraved with a nice inscription good enough to rival Gaara's). He moved to kiss Gaara's face, but he paused. "All that makeup is going to get sweaty and rub off, I hope you know. And it'll be nasty."
"Our lower regions are about to get a lot nastier because of a different substance, and you're worried about the light amount of makeup on my face?" Gaara said with a quizzical expression.
"Point taken," Naruto sweatdropped. It was then that he rolled them over and stared up at Gaara. He smiled in a manner that spoke for him, and yet he said the smile's meaning anyway by telling the other: "Did you ever think we would get this far, Gaara? When you met me, and even after that, did you ever see us getting married or anything crazy like that?"
The redhead kissed the kitsune's collar bone. He was waiting for the blonde to speak his own opinion to the questions first.
"…I didn't, you know. I honestly hadn't seen any of this coming."
"But?"
"But… I'm glad. So glad that I could die right now and be content with the way I lived my life."
"Don't talk about dying, Naruto," Gaara threatened. The blonde knew how touchy of a subject that could be.
Naruto shook his head as he slipped a hand into the side of Gaara's parted yukata and began massaging his narrow back. "Sorry, I won't. I'm just saying… it's one of those phrases that make a point, y'know?" He winked.
"I didn't see it coming either," Gaara admitted, silently agreeing that yes, the phrase had hit home, quite solidly.
"But I felt it, the first time I met you. As if you were more important that I thought you were back then."
Naruto nodded, understanding what he meant, before grinning lewdly. "Now then, where were we? Oh yeah, I was about to take off that obi of yours…"
With the clasping of hands and the sensual merge of one body to another, the two celebrated having completed the final step there was to binding them to one another for all eternity. It meant one thing to be a couple, another to be lovers, and yet another to be soul mates. It meant something else entirely to be spouses. And for one matching set of people to be all four… it meant more than the human tongue could ever speak or for the human hand to ever jot down.
And so it came to be that the Kazekage and Hokage, through thick and thin, the good and the bad, sickness and health, distance with longing and togetherness with infatuation…
They lived happily ever after.
Or, at least, as happy as any two people can be.
.THE END.
Arianna: REVIEW PLEASE, if there are still peole out there who read this RP fanfic! XD
we love you~ #hearts#
Rianne: I feel a little sad now that it's over, hmm? But I like the ending. I mean, who doesn't like a wedding that gives you the whole WAFF moment thing? (WAFF: Warm And Fluffy Feeling). It was an amazing thing working on this with Ari, and I hope you all enjoyed it as much as we did (even if it tired us out a little). So: I want to hand out a few awards of my own for once (almost like Ari did with Detrimental Benefits.)
The Awards of Review and Length: Definitely The Devastating Sisters. Berry and Kitsune, you guys reviewed every chapter (even chapter one was in the second chapter review, too, though we updated so quick~) :3 You gave such encouraging (and so MUCH) feedback that I wanted to squeal, and Ari was amazed because you guys are the best peeps out there and if you reviewed, it practically makes us famous. x3 So thanks for being such awesome reviewers, and I hope you enjoyed the ride. :3
The Award of Curiosity: Definitely goes to X-Sugared Kiss-X. You were interested in what was going on, and you gave awesome feedback. You didn't review much lately, though, or else I'd nominate you for Review, too; but hey, you're awesome. :3 Be proud that you finished our ultra-long fanfic! Have a wonderful time, hun.
The Award of Nonsense: YamiTenshi (Arianna must cut in to say: I LOVE YOU, GIRL!) gets this one, no doubt about it. Your review made me laugh so hard I cried. And I was coughing too, that didn't help. ^_^ Live on, and keep being random-- insanity only spices life up. So keep living free, and enjoy yourself. :3
The Award of Epic Fail Concerning Length: -siarafaerie-101-miss, xxxxxBeginningxxxxx, carmade, and Knyghtshade, you guys definitely get this one. You only posted two or three lines; but even so, it made me wanna hug you all, 'cause it's feedback, and letting us know you liked it. So, enjoy yourselves; and be proud that you got an award. ;3
The Award of Pervertedness: x3 Mortuus Moenia Manus Manus, demonic blood shed666, The Devastating Sisters, you guys definitely get this award. You were so enthusiastic about the smut that it made us laugh (or at least roll our eyes and chuckle). Keep on rocking, and I hope you find more smut that appeals to you, you pervs. x3
Arianna: Especially demonic blood! Dude, your reviews rock. I, like, fo shiz love your reviews. SOOO amusing! XD
Rianne again: Those are the only awards I have; but if you all review again, you might get more~!
I hope you have a wonderful day and week and year and so on! Keep living life to its fullest.
Write (and read) on, and let your words flow freely.
Love, Rianne