Gaara quietly indulged in his creamed wheat, from the largest bowl in the mansion, as he watched Naruto converse with Sakura. Sakura hadn’t been in Konoha for so long. She wanted to know, with some reservation, what all their old comrades were doing. Naruto was only too happy to talk. Naruto’s mouth went from holding fluffy golden eggs and sausage to spewing facts about Konoha Gaara may have been happier to never know.

“Well, Ino and Choji have been doing well so far,” Naruto said, “Ino’s the same as always, but she’s been gaining weight with the baby. She looks healthier actually. She looks like she’s going to be a great mother and Choji just dotes on her. He’s been so excited. This is their first baby and Choji is going all out. He shows off Ino and her baby bump as if she were a priceless piece of art.”

Sakura nodded, “She wrote to me. She said she’s been doing good. How’s Hinata?” Naruto swallowed hard, “She’s been good. She’s still the same as ever. She and Kiba have been hanging out a lot. She’s really blossomed, womanhood agrees with her.”

Gaara looked at Naruto carefully and then heard a fork hit the plate to his right. Shikamaru was beet-red and his sister Temari’s eyes were half mast as she was close to Shikamaru and obviously enjoying herself. Gaara glared at Shikamaru who paled slightly. Kankuro was also glaring at Shikamaru. Gaara knew that women could do strange things to men. He felt sorry for Shikamaru and softened his gaze. Shikamaru calmed and smiled sheepishly.

The fact that his sister had probably groped poor Shikamaru was as good a reason to forgive him as could be. It wasn’t Shikamaru’s fault. Gaara felt a soft thigh brush up against his. He looked down and saw Sakura’s leg rest next to his. He looked at the creamy skin and swallowed hard. He crossed his legs instinctively. He felt his natural impulse compel him to do something he knew was far from gentlemanly. He quickly swallowed his food and focused on the burn to take his mind from other heats. He looked at Sakura again and his eyes fell to her neck. He noticed a puff of white.

Gaara reached to grab it and pulled back his hand. He blushed and whispered, “You have a feather in your top.” Sakura looked down and turned away. She stood up from the table and walked out after quietly excusing herself.

Gaara felt a sharp kick in his shin. He glared at Naruto who gestured for him to follow her. Gaara stood up, feigning anger, and waltzed out of the room. Naruto grinned at Temari who winked at him. Kankuro sighed and shoved a forkful of pancake into his mouth. “You two don’t even know what you’re doing,” he said. Naruto grinned, “I’m only nudging him the way he was already going in.”

Naruto finished the rest of his food. He smiled and left for his room. He shut the door and sat on the edge of his bed. He slammed his fist onto his thigh and sighed. Kiba and Hinata were basically an item now. They went everywhere together, happy as could be. He flopped onto his bed and curled up into a ball, “Hinata…”



Gaara followed Sakura to her new room. He slipped in gracefully as she shut the door. She picked the feather out of her shirt and turned to him and smiled. She blew the feather at him with a knowing look. She said, “So, now what are you going to do?”

Gaara locked the door. He decided to heed Naruto’s advice. Gaara walked over to Sakura and ran his fingers along her neck. He grabbed her hair on his large fist and whispered hoarsely, “Do you really want to know what I want to do with you?” She smirked, “I sure would.”

He kissed her. He bit at her lips with animalistic nips. He shivered as she nibbled on his ear. He nipped at her neck. She whispered, “You can do it harder.” He felt the heat centering in his body as all of his blood rushed to one place. He pulled the sleeve of her dress down and place harsh kisses along the ledge of her collar bone. He let his large canines graze across her pale skin.

She shivered under his touches and slid her leg in-between his heavily muscled thighs. She felt him quake and she tightened her grip, slightly pressing the bones of their pelvises closer. Gaara moaned and place his hand on her waist, just below her full breast.

Sakura looked up at him. Her eyes were shining with her impish intent. His blue eyes closed as she pulled the dark fabric across the ebony button of his jet-black shirt. He felt the muscles of his stomach shiver as he felt her fingers linger across his skin. Sakura kissed the defined lines upwards as she unfastened the last button, kissing the depression of his collarbone and nuzzling ghosting touches into the angle of his outstretched neck.

Gaara ran his large, strong hands up her chest, and settling on her, he pressed her body to his with such force Sakura gasped. He took the opportunity to mesh there lips together, his mind boiling from the catalyst of her touches. He let go of her, only for a second, as his shirt slid down arms to hit the ground with the slightest sound.

Sakura wrapped her arms around his neck, pulling him down in her barrage of deep nips across his lips. He growled. Gaara grabbed the slack fabric of her dress and bawled it up in his vice-like grip. She yelped as his teeth took hold of the tender flesh of her thin, delicate neck. Gaara’s breaths were growing raspy and frantic. He never felt so disconnected to his higher consciousness.

He felt Sakura’s fingers beneath the fabric of the back of his pants and he grabbed at her so roughly she nearly fell over. She bent backwards in a gentle arc as he held her in a suspended dip. He planted his sharp kisses down her breast, stopping at the middle of her abdomen.

Gaara was panting, so was Sakura. The two of them locked eyes. He felt the back of his skin flush as she caressed it, looking up at him in her wanton innocence. He watched as her skin grew feverish as his own felt. He felt his heart about to burst in his chest. He realized his felt a hard point form beneath his hand, he looked down, only to see his hand cover her breast. He was panting. His mind was leaving him more and more with each second that passed.

He tightened the grip of his fingers and watched her eyes close and the part of her mouth grow wide with her hasty ventilation. He was faintly aware that this was the sound of  suffocation. Sakura couldn’t take much more suspense. She slid her hands across his chest, his one arm holding her up as her legs anchored her between his, and went to unfasten the fly of his pants.

Gaara moaned and nearly dropped her. He caught himself, barely, and held her suspended like a sleeping volunteer in a magic show beneath him. He pulled them both up with his powerful back. He kissed her again, lifting her, and walking to the bed at the same time. He set her down in one long motion and ran his hand along her leg to her thigh beneath her dress. He looked at her eyes.

The green gems he had long-memorized since he was a child drew him in and chained him. He felt, in one fleeting thought, how he never thought he would be at this point with anyone, let alone the girl from the forest.

He thanked whatever force had brought her into his life. He had never had felt as torn as he had then. He thanked Naruto Uzamaki. Who was the one who had showed him that even he could walk away from his forced loneliness. He smiled at her, his grin predatory.

Sakura smiled at him again, she loved his smile. His large, white teeth were perfect. She kissed him. She pulled him closer to her, shivering from the contact on the outside of her thigh. She pulled his tongue into her mouth, and his, ever accepting, slid over every part of her mouth. She could taste the sugar he used to sweeten his food as it still lingered on his lips. “Gaara,” she said breathily.

Gaara had begun to kiss her jaw line when he heard her name, “Sakura.” Gaara wanted to say more, but his tongue was incapable of forming the eloquent speech he had become famous for. He kissed her again. He realized he had lifted her dress to her waist, exposing flower-patterned, silken white lingerie. He felt his throbbing flesh hurl into overdrive. This was exacerbated by the fact she had unzipped his pants. The two looked at each other, suddenly unsure of what to do.

Gaara slowly pulled the hem of her dress down. He felt his agony tremble more as she stared at him. He couldn’t do it. Not this way. He looked at her again. At her crystalline green eyes. He decided that he would do this right. He loved her. He longed for her. But he could wait until the day she was completely his. He would never dare cheapen or desecrate the most beautiful thing in the world for one moment of selfishness.

Sakura had redone his pants while he was in the midst of his contemplation. He kissed her, “I love you, Sakura.” He said her name with the sweetness of a goofy lover. She looked at him, the cutest face he had ever seen, “I love you more.” He kissed her. He felt his face grow hot as he remembered what was beneath her dress. He blushed foolishly. She tapped his arm and he wrapped it around her, holding her close to his naked torso. Both of the shivered; her bare shoulders resting on his heavily muscled chest. “I love you more,” he said.

The two looked at each other and burst out laughing to shake off the tension that clung to both their skins. He felt a loss. She kissed him, on the cheek, and held him. Gaara pulled them both down by letting his weight fall freely. There weren’t as many dust angels today. She had dusted the bed. He looked at her and kissed her. A small crown danced about her head. He had to end the moment. They had to pack. There was no way he was going to delay their trip to Konoha.

Gaara suddenly felt a chill run up his spine. He curled his long toes and ran his slender fingers through her long, pink hair. He kissed her. Whatever that shiver had been caused by couldn’t be that bad. He sat up. “We need to pack,” he said.

Sakura sighed. “We should give Naruto that pin too,” she said quietly. Gaara nodded, “Should we give him a free-ramen coupon too?” She looked at him in utter shock, “Are you insane?”

Gaara looked at her, unsure of what to think, “But he likes ramen so much.” She shook her head, “He eats so much free-ramen already! He’ll turn into a bowl of ramen if we give him more!” Sakura sighed. It was just like Gaara to encourage Naruto’s antics. She kissed him. “I’m already packed.”

Gaara looked at her and kissed her forehead. “Well,” he said, “I should go pack.” He stood up and turned to look at her, “Let’s leave tonight, Naruto can come with us.” She smirked, Naruto wouldn’t like this arrangement. Gaara picked up his shirt and slipped it over his broad shoulders and buttoned it with his dexterous fingers. “Naruto and I,” Gaara said, “have errands to run, we’ll see you tonight, get some rest.”

Sakura watched him leave. She cuddled up and listened as the door closed. “If he breaks this one,” she chuckled, “I’ll have to sleep in his room next.” Sakura pulled her sleeves back up and blushed, “I don’t think Tsunade would approve of this.”