Adult-FanFiction.org : Naruto

Sand in the Leaves	By : ahmenet Category: Naruto > General Views: 1273 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto nor do I make any money from this fanfiction.

Chapter List
- 22
- 23
- 24
Chujohime Uboshita
peeked through the window of her small, cozy apartment to get a
better look at the two men walking past her door.

“I've already
told you, I'm not interested in dating your cousin.”

She smiled. Seemed
poor Neji-kun was never going to have any peace until he got married.
Good for Gai-san!

“This is not the
same cousin, Neji. If you will not explore the wonders of the
feminine blooms of this village or the next, then perhaps you will
find love in a hardier harvest. I have great respect for Gaara but
his time with us may well end and I would not see you heart broken
over the loss of youthful pleasures!”

Chujohime choked. Boy
did that man have it ALL wrong.

“Gai... what are
you talking about?”

“Satoshi, though
not as delicate as the petals of the cherry bloom, is fine and
beautiful and would be a worthy totem for your youthful adoration and
desire.”

“Uh, Gai?
Satoshi's a boy.”

“A graceful and
softly handsome boy!”

They were just passing
the window and, to her pleasure, just in time to see Neji stop and
turn far too wide eyes on the man walking next to him. She waited
for his usual anger to surface. For him to strike and find himself
on his back with a foot pressed to his chest. Instead, the young man
stood frozen for a moment before sighing and knocking on the door
next to hers. Her smile widened as the men waited for an answer.
Looked as though young Neji Hyuuga was finally growing up.

“Come on, Gaara!
We're due at the gates in fifteen minutes.” Neji frowned at
the door and knocked again.

The silence that
followed pulled her from her pleasant inspection of the men’s
profiles. She grabbed the wrap from her nearby chair and tossed it
around her shoulders but as she reached for her own door, Chujohime
stopped to check her hair in the small mirror next to it. At
forty-five she may not be a spring duck but that was no reason to
look like a hag in front of influential and attractive shinobi. You
were as young as you felt and she and her neighbor, Hisa Watari, felt
very young indeed living next to such well cultivated and uninhibited
young shinobi.

“Gaara?”
Neji called once more from the landing.

Chujohime stepped from
her own door with a soft, sweet smile and faced the two men standing
next door.

“Good morning,
Maito-san. Neji-kun.” She bowed in turn to each and was
rewarded with a bow from both men in return.

“Good Morning,
Uboshita-san! You are looking exceptionally beautiful this morning!”

She preened at the
complement and turned an expectant if not demanding eye on Neji.

“Good morning,
Uboshita-obasan. It's nice to see you again.”

Her sharp eyes took in
his features and the flow of his dark hair moments before she heard a
throat clear and caught site of Hisa on the other side of the
landing. She smiled as both men turned to greet the woman and winked
in thanks while studying their well toned backsides.

“If you're
looking for Gaara-kun, he isn't here.” The older woman
explained as the introductions finished.

Neji and Gai looked
confused. Hisa gave them a long look before turning her now serious
eyes on her friend.

“Didn't you say
Gaara had a visitor this morning, Uboshita-san?”

Chujohime nodded and
moved around to stand in front of Gaara's door. “He left this
morning after a young girl came to visit him. He seemed...
unsettled.”

Neji's face smoothed
into white marble while Gai's eyes sharpened on the younger widow.

“I saw the young
girl.” Hisa explained and both men turned their eyes on her.
“She was dressed rather oddly. Black isn't a color many of our
ninja wear and that hood was rather strange.” She shooed the
discussion of style from the air with a wave of her hand and honed a
beautiful if slightly lined smile on both shinobi. “But she
did seem genuinely happy to see him and I think he might have smiled
a little.”

“But you said he
was unhappy when he left. Did you hear any of the conversation?”
Neji asked quickly before one of the women could cut him off.

“Uboshita-san
said he was 'unsettled'. Pay attention.” Neji's eyes
narrowed. “And I didn't hear a great deal, my ears aren't what
they used to be, but I did catch a few things.” Hisa tapped a
finger on her chin.

Neji started to open
his mouth then shut it to hold in his curse as Gai stomped the heel
of his boot into the other mans instep.

“Anything you
could remember would be a great help to us, Watari-san.” Gai's
voice boomed.

“Yes,yes, give me
a minute.” Hisa waved the green suited man to silence.

Chujohime watched on in
admiration as Hisa skillfully told the ninja about the young Suna
puppeteer who'd visited with Gaara that morning and just enough of
the conversation to let them know the child had told him about his
brother’s death. It had always amazed the younger woman that
Hisa Watari, a delicate fifty-five year old widow, could smoothly
maneuver around most of the ninja in the village without actually
lying.

“He didn't say
anything about where he was going?” Neji asked. His face
smoothed back into perfect lines but there was a hint of desperation
in his voice.

“Gaara-kun is a
grown man. We aren't in the habit of asking him his every
destination.” Chujohime pointed out though it was just a bit
of a fib. “I assumed he was heading out for a mission since he
was wearing his travel cloak.”

The two men gave each
other a significant look before bowing to their elders and leaping
over the hand railing. A sight both women silently appreciated.
Just as the men’s feet hit the ground and they set off from the
nearest rooftop, Hisa called out to them with a cheery wave.

“By the way, that
young girl left with one of those nice young men in the adorable
little animal masks. I suppose she wasn't expecting to see him since
she looked really surprised.”

The two shinobi split
off in different direction and disappeared. Chujohime turned to her
friend and neighbor and sighed, “I don't know how you do it.”

Hisa smiled and patted
her young counterpart between the shoulders. Both her husband and
daughter had been shinobi, the later even making the ranks of ANBU.
Subterfuge and manipulation along with several other fun little
survival skills were all part of the world of a ninja wife.

“Don't worry,
dear.” Her softly wrinkled eyes twinkled. “You just
didn't get enough practice. When they bring Gaara back you'll have
plenty of time.”

“You mean, if
they bring Gaara back.”

“Oh no,”
Hisa's smiled turned calculating. “I mean when.”

0.0.0.0.0.0

Tsunade shut the door
behind her and indulged in a sigh before moving toward her desk. She
hated doing rounds almost as much as she hated paperwork. Didn't she
have a horde of students and medics to do this? But nooooo, she had
to make an appearance and show she was a diligent medic as well as
the overall protector of the village. Blah Blah Blah.

“I need a drink.”

“Well, you're not
getting one until I get answers.”

Sighing, Tsunade looked
up into the very angry eyes of Ino Yamanaka. She didn't have to
guess why the woman was standing in her office with steam rising off
her head.

“It was
necessary, Yamanaka. We're only covering the bases after the
attacks. You have to understand...”

“What I
understand is that my husband was taken into custody the moment he
stepped outside our house with no reason given.”

She moved past the heat
radiating off of her former student to round her desk. “They're
just doing their...”

“They treated him
like a common criminal and I want to know WHY!?

This time the sigh was
more than heartfelt. Tsunade pulled out her desk chair and sat
heavily. The years were catching up. If it hadn't been for a
friend’s request she wouldn't even be in this chair. Damn
Kakashi and his cheerfully deceptive mind.

“Ino...”
The girl opened her mouth but Tsunade forestalled her. “He
migrated here from Wind country. He eloped with the only daughter of
one of the most prominent families in the village. He is aggressive
and edgy toward most of his peers unless working.” Tsunade
ticked off each of her points on her fingers then sighed yet again at
Ino’s stubborn face. “You know the position this village
is in at the moment. We can not afford to be lax in any part of our
security. This is simply an inquiry. As long as he cooperates he’ll
be back home this afternoon.”

The look of anger and
agitation slipped from Ino’s face instantly. “And if he
doesn’t cooperate?”

0.0.0.0.0.0

Ibiki turned his back
on his current subject and tried to loosen the tension in his jaw.
Every other shinobi they’d detained had cooperated to the
fullest. Answering every question to the best of their knowledge and
sometimes volunteering information no one in the room really wanted
to know. No one had been in this room for more than an hour. Each
man had been prepared for interrogation and thankful none was needed.
Ibiki had to admit, he was thankful too. And then they’d
brought in Fudo Yamanaka. For three hours he’d stood over the
black sheep of the mind jutsu clan and asked any number of reasonable
and easily answered questions. The man hadn’t opened his mouth
to do more than yawn. He wouldn’t even give them his age.

“These are simple
question, Yamanaka. If you give me the answers I want you’ll
be home in time for dinner.”

Still no answer. Ibiki
didn’t turn to look at the man. He simply nodded to the guard
at the door who stepped outside and closed it with a soft click. The
silence stretched on for several minutes before Ibiki finally turned
and looked at the man he now had to consider a dangerous suspect.
Fudo merely stared back.

“You’re
trying to prove a point where it’s not needed. Stop being so
stubborn and answer the damned questions.”

Silence. Ibiki slammed
both hands down on the table, shaking the legs and the small glass of
water in the center. Fudo didn’t flinch. Ibiki pulled back
enough to stand straight then allowed himself to sigh in resignation.

“Stand up. Walk
to the far wall and face the center post.”

Fudo stood and turned,
taking a deep breath and letting it out slowly as he took his first
step. The door behind then opened and two masked ANBU stepped into
the room and headed in their direction. The guard from before closed
the door and stepped in front of it. Ibiki watched Fudo step up to
the center post and moved to join him.

“I suppose this
will be good for you. At least maybe we can knock some of that chip
off your shoulder.”

Fudo snorted.

0.0.0.0.0.0

“Run!”

Tsubasa jumped from the
roof and took up step with his teammates as they retreated from the
inn. Two sand ninja stepped smoothly from the door but did not
follow. The three genin ducked into an open alley and dropped
against the walls. Two on one side, one on the other. They waited,
but no one pursued them. After another few minutes, Tsubasa sighed
and relaxed against the stone wall he occupied with Mayu.

“That was close.”

“What happened?”
Mayu, one of the two female members of their team, bent at the waist
and closed her eyes in an effort to center herself.

Wafa sighed and slid
down the wall. “The bored looking one noticed the lack of
cohesion.” She lifted her head and turned wide pale eyes on
her teammates. “But I think the rest hadn’t gotten
enough time to notice yet.”

“So, this could
work if I can compress the sand more.” Tsubasa smiled.

Mayu stared
thoughtfully at the opposite wall. “We could manipulate the
setting in our favor. Late in the day or possibly at night when he’s
less guarded.”

“This could
work.” Wafa nodded and a slow smile spread over her face. “We
could do this.”

All three grinned then
started to laugh as they leapt to the rooftops and headed for the
practice fields.

0.0.0.0.0.0

Kakashi watched the
retreating back of one of Anko’s genin and thanked the Hokage
they were smart enough to hide their chakra signatures before pulling
a stunt like that. He glanced at the only other man to notice the
difference in the sands movement and substance. Kin was going to be
a problem. But at least Anko’s team had solved one problem for
him.

“Genin pranks.”
The quiet and largely inconspicuous Kin stared at the retreating
backs of the younger shinobi.

“Yeah.”
Kakashi, his Shiga guise apparently holding up well enough to fool
most of the village, leaned back against the door to their room.

“These leaf ninja
are too lax in their discipline.” Kin turned to step back into
the room. “But at least we now know Gaara Sabaku was once
here. We’ll need to find out where he’s heading in order
to finish the mission.”

“What makes you
think he isn’t still here?” Kakashi looked across the
street. A number of pedestrians were eying them from the far side of
the road.

“He’d be a
fool to stay here and the Hokage would be even more of a fool to
harbor him. He was most likely treated and sent on his way to keep
focus off of the village.”

Kakashi nodded and
listened to the door to their room close. Kin was definitely a
problem but at least he was convinced Gaara wasn't here. It was a
point in their favor and gave him a small amount of time to work. He
watched three blurs race over the rooftops and sighed. No one was
going to make this job easy for him.

0.0.0.0.0.0

Matsuri stared at the
mask more than the man. A mistake, she knew, but it was just hard
not to stare when ANBU showed up on your doorstep. She'd never
gotten used to seeing them no matter how often she'd come here with
Gaara.

“You need to keep
a leash on your student.” The mans voice was soft and light.
Almost feminine in it's timbre.

“I didn't realize
they were on restriction in the village.” Kane straightened as
Midori moved to his side.

“She was in the
residential areas. You understand why she would need an escort if
she felt the need to visit a friend.”

Matsuri didn't miss the
subtle warning. She looked to Kane's student questioningly. She
looked a little frightened but not cowed. In fact, the young
puppeteer was smiling just a little. He hadn't threatened her but
she'd definitely been somewhere she wasn't suppose to be and it
didn't have anything to do with lack of escort in a residential area.

“Of course. I'll
let the others know as well.” Kane eyed the man.

“Please do.”
His masked face tipped down to the young girl who's fists tightened
at her sides. “And I would advise you not to peek in windows
again, young lady. Some people find premature disturbances
bothersome and potentially unsettling.”

Midori nodded with
slightly widened eyes and the masked man disappeared in a cloud of
smoke. All three shinobi stared at the open door for a moment before
Kane walked over and closed it. He turned his back to lean against
the wood then glared at his wayward student.

“We told you to
let this go. Are you the only one who went out 'exploring'?”

Midori lowered her head
and nodded. “Yes, Kane-sensei.”

He stood and paced the
entrance while Matsuri moved up to place a hand on Midori's shoulder.
The young puppeteer turned her crystal blue eyes on the older woman,
her face nearly blank but for the tiny lines tipping the corners of
her lips and the bright hope in her eyes.

“You found
nothing.” Matsuri spoke firmly.

“Sensei?”

“You found
nothing. His presence here was a long shot at best.” Matsuri
continued.

“He's long since
moved on.” Kane continued, seeing the hope and now pain in his
young students eyes. “You understand, don't you, Midori?”

Frustration warred with
bliss as the young puppeteer nodded her understanding and agreement.
She wouldn't say a word to her teammates or comrades. Their escorts
to the village wouldn't find out from her that the man they were
looking for was less than a fifteen minute walk away. But she wanted
to. She wanted to shout to the world that she'd found their
Kazekage. Their real Kazekage. She sighed and turned toward
the short hall holding one of the rooms she and her teammates were
using. She wanted to tell them but maybe this was for the best
because she wasn't sure, no matter how much they wanted him, that the
Kazekage was willing to come back.

0.0.0.0.0.0

Neji stopped on the
winding steps of the Hokage mountain and looked at the still bare
sakura tree just above the sixth Hokage's head. The hint of red
peeking from one of it's branches was a little too dark to be
considered an early blossom. In the fading light he continued up the
mountain and moved to stand on the other side of the trunk. He
looked up into a thicker branch shooting out over the mountains edge.

“How far did you
get?”

Gaara looked down from
behind the smooth wood and shrugged. “Not far. Circled around
once or twice then stopped here.”

Neji concentrated and
walked smoothly up the side of the tree. He settled on the branch
just above the one Gaara was now sitting on, stretching full length
on his belly and looking down on the still figure of his teammate.

“Gai was
worried.”

Gaara looked up at him
and Neji wished he hadn't. He'd expected to see cold indifference or
at least his usual mask after so many hours of solitude. Instead he
met bleak sorrow and a penetrating loss. Gaara's feelings for his
brother ran far deeper than any of them had known.

“Kankuro's dead.”

“You don't know
that.” Neji slipped a hand under his cheek to shield his skin
from the cold bark. “You can't take the word of a Suna genin.”

“She wouldn't
lie, Neji. Kane's and Kankuro's students did a lot of work together
and several missions. They were nearly one team.”

“She may have
been lied to. It's not much of a stretch once you see the escort
that came with them. It's more like an execution party the way they
act around those kids.”

“Are you saying
they're in danger?” Anger replaced a little of the pain in
Gaara's eyes.

“Decide for
yourself. You'll be seeing them in a few days won't you?”
Neji watched Gaara fall back into that quiet solitude he was so well
known for.

Minutes passed before
the red head turned his gaze to the horizon. “Who took the
patrol?”

Neji turned his eyes to
the sky's as well and watched the ripple of clouds float by at a fast
clip. “Konohamaru and his group. Moegi got into some trouble
for the stunt she pulled at the festival so she's trying to get back
in the Hokage's good graces. The boys don't mind helping her out.”

Gaara only nodded.

“Choji offered to
let you bunk at his place for a few days if you want. His dad can do
amazing things with an eggplant and salmon.”

The corner of Gaara's
lips tipped just a little.

“Though you may
have to fight Hinata for a plate... and Choji.”

A snort carried on the
wind out over the village.

“Shikamaru
offered to get you drunk again.”

“NO!”
Gaara's response nearly toppled both of them from the tree.

Neji looked down at a
now red faced Gaara and laughed to hide his relief. The longer the
afternoon had carried on the more he'd been sure Gaara had found a
way to slip the gates and leave the village. Though he understood
the reason he'd still been unwilling to accept it and he'd found
himself feeling jealous of a man he'd not seen in years and barely
knew at all. When he'd seen the flutter of fabric over Naruto's
carved face he'd felt a sense of satisfaction he was nearly ashamed
of. But then Lee, TenTen and Gai had spoiled him.

“That was not
funny.” Gaara grumbled from behind his crossed arms.

“Says you.”
He felt something grip his ankle but didn't have time to disburse.
Gaara yanked him down to the next tree limb with his sand. The
branch groaned under their combined weight and both men started to
get to their feet. There was a crack and a swift rush of air before
both men found themselves flat of their backs on the ground, hugging
a broken limb.

“Uhm...”
Neji blinked up at the now night sky.

“Yeah...”
Gaara pushed himself to a sitting position and looked at the fallen
branch.

Neji pulled himself up
with a groan and looked at the branch as well. “Guess we were
too much for it.”

“I guess.”
Gaara's eyes left the tree and scanned the area.

Neji stood and brushed
off as best he could. He reached down and lifted his pack then
offered a hand to Gaara. When his teammate didn't respond but
continued to look out into the darkness, Neji activated his byakugan
and searched the area.

“What are we
looking for?”

After a moments silence
Gaara stood and settled his gourd back on his hip. “I was
looking for Anko's little demons.”

“Well they're not
here. At least not that I can see or sense.” Gaara gave him a
withering look. “I double checked the blind spot. No genin is
that fast. Not even a Hyuuga.”

“As you say, but
there are drawings of my naked ass all over this village that confirm
just how good she is.” The red head gritted out as he rolled
his now bruised shoulders.

“It's not my
fault you dropped the towel.” Neji turned to the stairs and
started down. “Besides, you're bare assets aren't the only
ones on display around town.”

“It's my only
consolation.” He followed suit, moving smoothly down the stone
steps.

“You're a prude.”
Neji shot back and smiled when Gaara did nothing more than snort.
“Hey, at least now the world has seen a softer side of you.”

Gaara growled.

“Neji!” A
familiar voice called from far bellow.

Gaara came to a stop
behind him and Neji turned to watch those bright sea green eyes in an
almost ethereal face as they shifted from irritation to trepidation.
He understood the look. Death was painful. Pity was agonizing.

“Would you like
to spar for a while? You've been up in that tree long enough to get
stiff in this cold.”

“Neji! Is he
with you?” Gai's voice boomed up to them.

Gaara blinked. Neji
watched his eyes shift toward him and hoped Gaara didn't look at his
request as another form of pity.

“No thank you.”
Gaara stepped past him on his way down. “But you can treat me
to Oden and a bottle of hot sake.”

Neji grinned at his
back and followed him down the steps.

0.0.0.0.0.0

Everything hurt. Even
his pores hurt. Kankuro took in a very shallow breath and began to
cough. The sudden jarring motion making every rib feel as though it
were cracking.

“Easy. Easy.”

Large, weather roughed
hands touched the tender skin of his face. He hissed and coughed
again not sure which pain was worse at the moment.

“I said, take it
easy.”

Something warm touched
his chest and began to seep through the skin. The warmth spread out
over his body and Kankuro lay there, feeling the least amount of pain
he'd felt in months.

“I don't... know
who you... are...” He swallowed. His voice was rough and
didn't sound anything like him. “but could you do... that
again?”

“Not even a
please. That's gratitude for you.” The voice that belonged to
those hands was both tender and harsh, if that were possible. The
contradiction was too much for Kankuro's muddled brain at the moment.

“Is he awake?”
That voice he did recognize.

Kankuro put every
effort into opening his eyes and though he thought he was succeeding,
he couldn't see anything but darkness.

“Am I blind?”
He asked with only a small quaver in his voice.

The face that peered
over him nearly made him choke again. He blinked as best he could
with partially swollen eyelids and tried to focus on the mans face
above him.

“You're dead.”

Kouhei blinked and
raised his brows. “I was about to say you're eyes are fine but
if you think I'm dead then something is definitely wrong with you.”

“Shut it,
Kouhei.” Yugao leaned over the puppeteer, her mask situated on
the back of her head. “He's not Naruto. He's the medic. Can
you see my face clearly, Kankuro-san?”

Both shinobi watched
him squint his eyes in an attempt to see more clearly.

“Don't force it.
You'll only give yourself a headache.” Kouhei leaned in and
touched purple marks on his face.

“Every thing's
dark and blurry.” Kankuro lifted his arm and groaned.

“Yeah, bad idea.”
Kouhei gently helped him replace the arm on the mat. “Try not
to move too much. Your muscles are in bad shape and some of the
broken bones have healed improperly.”

Yugao watched as the
young mans breath hitched and started to speed up, causing him to
wheeze. She cut her eyes to Kouhei as the medic leaned his head down
over Kankuro's chest. “Was that necessary?” She hissed.

“Thanks for...
the con... concern,” Kankuro groaned between breaths. “but
I don't want... him... lying to me.”

“Stay quiet.”
Kouhei hissed. “I hadn't planned on leaving anything out.”
He lifted his head and sat back. “I will say, most of the
damage is reversible if we can get you back to the village. However,
you have a sever infection in your lungs as well as some of your
wounds. I can counteract some of this but not all. I need you to
cooperate with me.”

“You... said if?”
Kankuro winced under the medics glare.

“I said be quiet.
You're friend here will answer all none medical questions. I'm just
here to poke and prod you.” Several snickers could be heard
from the outer edges of the branch stakes that walled them into a
small thicket of trees.

Yugao rolled her eyes
but inwardly smiled. “You asked for that.”

“I don't get it.”
Kankuro whispered.

Yugao touched a spot on
his arm that was relatively injury free. He turned his head just a
little and cracked his eyes open. “Don't worry.” She
smiled. “You'll have plenty of time to hear all about it and
get in a few jabs yourself.”

“Sounds good.”
His eyes drifted shut and his breathing eased.

Yugao watched their
charge relax into sleep then shifted her gaze to the man currently
setting up scrolls and drawing out seals.

“You think they
can fix everything?”

He looked up at her
then turned back to his task. Light from the fire a few meters away
cutting through very little of the starless night sky. “Maybe.
I've seen Tsunade-sama work greater miracles but a lot of it depends
on him.”

“He's tough.”
She looked over Kankuro's still body and pulled up another blanket.
“You won't have any problem getting him to fight.”

“Yeah, well,”
he lifted a seal and placed it on Kankuro's forehead before
preforming the hand seals to activate it, “fight is only going
to get him so far. There's just no way to know what can be salvaged
and what can't.”

“So what's your
personal opinion?” She asked with a hint of resignation in her
voice.

“Personally?”
He placed another seal over one side of Kankuro's chest. “I
personally don't want to bring back a dead puppeteer.”

“That afraid of
his brother?” She smirked at him. A few more snorts and
snickers came from the dark.

“Naruto and Hiro
have taken a strong liking to Gaara-kun.” He replied.

Suddenly, the night
seemed much colder and a lot quieter.

0.0.0.0.0.0
- 22
- 23
- 24
You need to be logged in to leave a review for this story.You need to be logged in to leave a review for this story.
Report Story

Sand in the Leaves