Naruto 1. Chapter One

_Kamikaze (literal meaning: Divine Wind)__ were Japanese pilots during World War II that would attempt to intentionally crash their aircraft – often laden with __explosives__, __bombs__, __torpedoes__ and full __fuel tanks__ – into enemy ships._

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**THE DIVINE WINDS OF SUNA**

**Chapter One**

When he had first seen her at the Chûnin Exams, his first thought was that they were nothing alike. He was strong – unimaginably strong – and she was so pathetically weak. He had what it took to end a fight, the will and drive to kill, and an instinct for intimidation. She could no more kill than speak a sentence without stuttering, and she had absolutely no killer instinct. He was dangerous and she was meek. He was a predator and she was prey.

With this in mind, he couldn't think of why the Godaime Hokage would send him someone so useless. Was it a joke? The few times they had met, Gaara noticed that the Hokage had what some people considered a 'personality.' That is – people thought she was humorous at times. But would she joke about such a serious issue? He had placed a formal request for assistance, and Tsunade had returned his plea with this…this simpering, stuttering girl who probably didn't deserve to wear her hitai-ite!

Gaara felt himself snort disgustedly as he read the missive once more.

_Kazekage-sama,_

_In regards to your request for assistance I am sending one of my highly trusted chûnin kunoichi. Please do not judge her on appearances, because I believe she is uniquely suited for this particular mission. Her name is Hyūga Hinata, and she possesses the legendary Hyūga kekkei genkai, the Byakugan._

_Please, feel free to contact me for additional assistance if needed._

_Lady Tsunade, Godaime Hokage_

He snorted again, tossing the scroll violently across his desk. The tiny girl jumped slightly, shrinking back towards the door. He stared at her with his typical impassive eyes, noting the way she fidgeted under his scrutiny. True enough, the Hyūga girl had the Byakugan, but then if Tsunade had wanted to give him aid in the form of the Byakugan (which was, truly, an inspired idea he had not thought of) she could easily have sent the boy Byakugan-user. At the Chûnin Exams, the boy had impressed Gaara far more than the girl.

Finally, Gaara grew tired of looking at her, what he considered a complete waste of space, and barked for his assistant. Matsuri rushed into the room, a typical breathless, needy smile plastered on her face. "Hai, Kazekage-sama!" she said excitedly.

"Please, have quarters prepared for Hyūga-san," he directed. With a nod, Matsuri turned to leave.

"Dōmo arigatō gozaimasu, Kazegake-sama," the Hyūga girl said softly, dipping her head and backing out of the room to follow Matsuri.

"_Not you_," he said sharply, watching with disgust as the girl nearly jumped out of her shoes in fear. If there was one thing he couldn't bear it was the look of fear on another's face. He had suffered through those looks his whole childhood – his whole _life_ – and to have to suffer them from such a weak, foolish individual as Hyūga Hinata grated on his last nerves.

The situation in Sunagakure had escalated in the last month, prompting him to write for assistance from Kaze no Kuni's closest allies. To be frank, Gaara was unsure if the situation had become completely out of his control, and he feared that the rebels would soon have the foothold they needed to cause serious damage. First, there had been a few political killings, but they had progressed to public bombings – usually of uninhabited buildings in the business district at night. They were calling themselves the Kamikaze, and their mission was to help Sunagakure – and all Kaze no Kuni – to reincarnate itself into a stronger nation. But, as they put it, to be reincarnated as something stronger, the current nation must die.

As politely as he possibly could manage, Gaara motioned for the kunoichi to sit opposite him before his desk. She did so hesitantly, looking down into her lap as she sat. Gaara found that if he just stopped looking at her he could control these nearly irrational feelings of irritation and viciousness.

He had thought that, over the years, time would level out his violent and unpredictable nature. Indeed, he had thought that he'd made great improvements here, especially after Shukaku had been removed. He was usually even-tempered, and not so edgy. He thought it was the situation here in Suna, the impending implosion of social balance, and the safety of the citizens he was responsible for. But, even when Deidara had been attacking the city, assaulting it with aerial bombings, Gaara had kept his cool, remained levelheaded and reliable, and barely shown any semblance of emotion at all. However, this enemy, the ill-named Kamikaze, was a hidden enemy, one that lurked in corners and was crafty and sneaky. You couldn't hit an enemy that you couldn't see.

Settling himself, calming his irritation with the Hyūga girl, Gaara purposefully aimed his eyes to the top corner of his office – not that she would notice with her eyes pinned to her knees! He stopped himself, exhaled softly, and tried to continue. "You can retire to your quarters when I finish briefing you, Hyūga-san," he said in an even tone.

From the corner of his eye, he saw her nod once. Forcing his eyes into a corner, Gaara spoke. "For the past months, there have been a series of assassinations and attacks within Kaze no Kuni," he explained, tensing when she gasped softly. "My ANBU force has tracked these events to a single organization that calls itself the Kamikaze. They seem to be based here in Suna, but their members and headquarters – if they have any – are unknown. The attacks are becoming more frequent and violent, though civilian casualties have been kept to a minimum. I have come to realize that things are quickly growing out of hand, and have requested assistance from your Hokage."

He paused, daring a look at her reaction to all this. Despite her former fear and hesitance, the Hyūga's face was now formed in an expression of concentration and seriousness. There was a slight frown on her lips, and she'd stopped fiddling with her hands, though she would not raise her eyes higher than the top of his desk. After a moment, Gaara continued. "My ANBU forces are…spread very thin…Kaze no Kuni is a large land, and our boarders are being tested by more than one nation. I wish for this organization to be neutralized, and for its leaders and participants to be jailed or put to death. Now is not the time – it is _never _the time – for Suna to implode on itself. It will not happen on my watch. I refuse to let the people of my city be threatened and terrorized by these madmen."

As he spoke, Gaara realized that he was going off on a bit of a tangent, and his blood was rapidly beginning to boil just thinking about the possible consequences of the Kamikaze. Gaara was not typically so verbose, but he felt the words pouring right out of him. When he realized that the girl was staring right into his eyes he promptly snapped his jaw shut, narrowing his brows. For the first time, Gaara got a good look at the fabled Hyūga kekkei genkai as the girl stared right at him. There was a slight ominous air to her gaze; the pupil-less, pearl mirrors seemed to reflect the passion of his short speech. For some reason, Gaara found it extremely difficult to tear away from her gaze, as though he was hypnotized by this girl's bizarre, yet somehow alluring eyes.

After a long, uncomfortable pause, in which the Hyūga girl's eyes pierced deep into his soul, Gaara cleared his throat, the gravelly timber of his voice jogging her gaze. Her eyes returned to her knees, and Gaara felt the spell break. "I want you to find the Kamikaze," he barked harshly. "I'm assigning you to the special ANBU group already investigating. In the morning you will report to Temari. Matsuri will assist you in the morning." For a moment, Gaara didn't know what else to say. "Dismissed," he finally grumbled, noticing the girl made short time to the door and closed it silently behind her.

Before long, Gaara realized he was frowning deeply, and he rose from his desk, opening the doors behind him to walk out on the balcony. Night was beginning to creep into the desert more quickly now that it was winter. There was never enough moisture for snow anywhere in Kaze no Kuni, but, in the fall, the monsoon season gifted the desert with the only precipitation it saw all year. Monsoon season had just ended, and the days were becoming shorter, while the nights were considerably colder and longer.

Gaara, of course, felt no chill underneath his Suna no Yoroi. Though the amount of chakra it took to keep up the armor of sand was great, Gaara did not have much time for training these days, and felt that he should at least keep improving his stamina if he was going to protect Suna. Much of his power had been channeled through Shukaku, and he'd been driven by bloodlust as a result. Now that Shukaku was removed, Gaara's powers were slowly returning. He did not have the chakra reserves he'd once possessed, but he was working to remedy this. Shukaku had provided much of Gaara's raw power, so now Gaara was forced to dig deep within himself to find his latent, natural strength.

As he was preparing to return to his office, knowing there were stacks of papers for him to mull over, he became aware of a familiar presence. Turning, he saw his older sister. She was leaning against the railing next to the door, smirking softly. She uncrossed her arms and approached him with her usual cat-like grace. "You must have had some day to not have noticed my presence until now," she reprimanded lightly.

He shrugged, letting down his guard a little. "Maybe you're just that good."

Temari snorted, looking amused. "I'm not that good, not even if my life depended on it," she replied, half-joking.

Though he knew his sister was good, Gaara should have been able to sense her presence. Maybe the stress was indeed getting to him. He frowned, watching his older sister wiggle her nose – a particular trait she had that betrayed her uneasiness.

"Was that the reinforcement from Konoha?" she asked lightly, following him into his office. She leaned against the edge of his desk, toying with one of the shiny baubles Kankurō had given him as a birthday present. "Kinda puny."

He hummed vaguely, narrowing his eyes. "Why are you here, Temari?"

"Oh, I don't know," she said sharply, "I could just want to check on my little brother. You've only had about seventeen threats on your life in the last month! Why would I be worried?"

Gaara felt a pang of guilt. Temari crossed her arms and looked away from him. The relationship with her and with Kankurō had been slowly growing from one based in fear and intimidation, to one based in mutual trust and compassion. He found it easier to open up to Kankurō, who was not as commanding and aggressive as Temari. Temari had the tendency to act like a mother hen, and, though he knew she hovered out of love, he was still the Kazegake. He could take care of himself.

Gaara shifted uncomfortably. "Temari…arigatō…"

The blond girl turned to him sharply, a strange look in her eyes. "You're my little brother, Gaara…" she whispered softly. There was a genuine smile that reached her eyes, and then she laughed. None of the sand siblings expressed themselves well, it seemed. "Besides, if you were dead, it would be just me and Kankurō…and his puppets…" She shivered dramatically, and Gaara humored her with a partial smile.

Temari stood swiftly. "Yah, well, I have some preparations to make…and you need to get some sleep…" she reminded him.

He watched her close the door behind her, leaving him to a night full of paperwork.

* * *

When Tsunade-sama had called Hinata into her office, Hinata had been, understandably, timid and nervous. The Godaime Hokage was a formidable woman, and not one Hinata would readily cross. To calm her nerves, Hinata tried breathing techniques (to no avail), meditation (which only caused her to obsess over the meeting), and blind terror (which came naturally to her). The time finally came to enter her office and Hinata felt as though a full-blown panic attack might strike.

However, at least the torture was fast. She was being sent on special assignment to Sunagakure. She would be briefed upon arrival. The mission was completely top-secret. She would leave immediately. But, before she was dismissed, though, Tsunade-sama pierced her with her golden brown eyes, and Hinata was unable to break the contact. The Hokage smiled, wished her luck, and sent her on her way.

Four days later and that gaze still bothered Hinata. What had the Hokage seen? What had she been looking for? Hinata was sure she had no idea how to answer any of these questions, and she had asked them over and over again on the three-day journey to Sunagakure. She had reached the sandy city near dusk as a chill was setting over the desert. As commanded, she presented herself and the message from Tsunade-sama to the Kazekage immediately.

In truth, there were very few people that terrified Hinata more than Tsunade-sama. Her father could be cold and harsh, and he intimidated her with the slightest look, but not like Tsunade-sama. And Neji-nii-san, who she now had a hesitant friendship, had long been a person that made her shake with fear… And then there was Gaara…the Kazekage… No one she had ever met instilled more fear than Sabaku no Gaara. It started during the Chûnin Exams, when she, Shino, and Kiba had witnessed the horrible massacre of the genin from Amegakure.

Despite Naruto's faith in the Kazekage, and the recent good relations between their two countries, Hinata's most vivid memory from the Chûnin Exams was not her loss to Neji, but the frightening episode in Shi no Mori. Even the thought of that time was enough to reduce Hinata to tears.

So, understandably, standing before the Kazekage, being forced to be alone with him, having to hear his frightening, gravel-toned voice, was something Hinata dreaded. She was so eager to be dismissed that she had embarrassed herself further by trying to leave with his assistant. Even as he spoke to her, Hinata couldn't bear to meet his eyes, in fear that if she did he would devour her soul, trap her in a coffin of sand, and end her pathetic life right then.

Then something quite surprising happened. His monotone voice began to change, and she could hear something in his words… It was the sincerity and passion of a leader that truly cared for his people. It was the protective, powerful confidence that Hinata recognized all too well – it was Naruto's words when he spoke of protecting Konoha. This realization spread through Hinata, empowering her and allowing her to raise her eyes to his pale green ones. What she saw there confirmed what she had heard in his voice, and for a moment she thought of him not as the murderous monster from the sand, but the Kazekage of Sunagakure, the man that would go to any lengths to protect his home. For a moment she knew his nindo.

He had dismissed her, but the memory of this realization about his character made Hinata have a little more faith in Naruto's judgment. Perhaps Gaara had changed for the better. Perhaps he wasn't the bloodthirsty demon she remembered. Hinata mulled these thoughts over as she prepared for bed, and in the morning she woke early and refreshed.

She was washing her face gingerly when a knock came on her door. "Please, come in," she called out from the bathroom. She was just zipping up her jacket and walking into the living area as the young woman from the night before set a tray down on the low table.

"I took the liberty of bringing you breakfast," the young, brown-haired woman said briskly. "You'll need to eat fast, though. Sumimasen, Hyūga-san." She handed Hinata a scroll. "Your instructions from Temari-dono," she continued. "Please, meet her in Building Nine as fast as possible."

The girl was preparing to leave when Hinata called out, "Matsuri-san?"

She turned, and Hinata was relieved that she accurately remembered her name. "Hai."

"Um…arigatō gozaimasu," she said softly.

Matsuri smiled. "Hai." Then she closed the door behind her, leaving Hinata to breakfast of grilled fish and a bowl of rice. She ate this readily, preparing herself for a full day. Though she wasn't sure what to expect, she suspected that her Byakugan might be of use in a situation like this.

Despite her slight frame and fragile appearance, Hinata was a highly skilled tracker. Years with Kiba and Shino had taught her tricks she was sure many ANBU nin didn't know. She was at least proud of her one skill that she might even surpass Neji-nii-san in. Her mastery over Jūken was little more than passable, and she had developed a few original chakra techniques, but her Byakugan was of the highest caliber. Indeed, Hinata felt confident that her Byakugan was every bit as sharp as Neji-nii-san's, if not more honed when it came to tracking.

After Hinata finished her breakfast, cleaning the bowl of rice bare, she opened the scroll Matsuri had left for her.

_Hyūga-san,_

_My apologies for not being able to assist in Gaara-sama's briefing. Now that you understand the situation here in Sunagakure, please join me in the top floor of Building Nine._

_Temari_

Hinata straightened her jacket before leaving her quarters and making her way hesitantly towards Building Nine. It was not difficult to find the building within the Kazekage compound – all buildings were numbered in large, black signs on their front. Building One housed the Kazekage and his offices. Building Two was the hospital. Each building was designated for a specific purpose. Hinata was staying in Building Five where visiting dignitaries and other important figures were housed.

Building Nine was to the northwest of Building One, and on the far side of the compound from Building Five. She crossed the barren compound timidly. Hinata wasn't quite sure what to expect, but within the Hyūga compound any empty area, like the one she was currently walking through, would have been filled with gardens, or perhaps a shaded overlook of a pond. _But then_, she scolded herself_, Suna has no greenery_.

It was true enough. Suna was in the middle of a desert, where moisture was a luxury not often enjoyed. During her journey from Konoha, Hinata had borne firsthand witness to the change from a green, summery land of blooming flowers and lush farmlands to the cold, barren wasteland of dry sand and endless dunes.

It was a frightening difference, but one Hinata almost appreciated in a way. The desert held a simplicity to it. In the desert you were literally staring death in the face. It would not deceive you, not pamper you, but accept you. If you could survive the desert's harsh conditions, you could find beauty in its Spartan nature.

Hinata found herself standing still in the middle of an empty courtyard, lost in thought. She shook her head, entering the building with a large '9' on the front. Taking the stairs to her left, Hinata climbed them solemnly until they opened into a large, long room with no doors or windows. Many men and women were gathered around a table, while others worked singly at desks. No one immediately turned to acknowledge her or ask her purpose, so she waited patiently by the stairs. A few minutes passed, and the men and women sitting around the long table dispersed. Hinata recognized the woman in the black yukuta as Temari – the Kazekage's elder sister.

"Hyūga-san," she said in a sharp voice, causing Hinata to jump slightly.

"H-hai," Hinata replied shakily, nodding her head in respect. "Temari-dono."

"Not so formal, Hyūga-san, if you don't mind," she continued briskly, leading Hinata over to a well-lit desk. Hinata thought it might be Temari's, for there was a photograph angled just so that she could see Gaara and the other Sand Sibling – Kankurō. The desk was neat and precise, and when Temari sat behind it she reminded Hinata of Tsunade-sama.

Hinata nodded and took the seat opposite Temari when she waved her to sit down.

"I'm relieved that the Hokage sent someone so well suited for this particular task," Temari said bluntly. "Anyone else and I might have turned them away." Hinata swallowed hard. This was not a woman she wanted to let down apparently. "You, however, will be perfect." Temari shifted a few papers around on her desk, and Hinata saw something that she thought looked like blueprints. "I have a few questions about your kekkei genkai, if you don't mind," Temari began.

"I…I don't mind," Hinata said in a small voice. Many people were curious about the Byakugan – among the kekkei genkai it was one of the oldest, the most pure. Even the Uchiha Sharingan was said to have been derived from it.

"Tell me," Temari said, pressing the tips of her fingers together before her face in concentration. "Tell me, can your Byakugan see anything?"

"Um, well, we are limited by distance, and to a certain extent obstacles…but there is no substance or material that is shielded from the Byakugan…if that's what you mean," she explained hurriedly. Giving away the secrets of the Byakugan was not something she was entirely comfortable with.

"So…you could see underground," Temari continued, looking over her fingers into Hinata's eyes.

"H-hai…for a distance…" she answered truthfully.

A quick smile brushed over Temari's lips. "Excellent." She sifted position, appearing very pleased. "You see, I have begun to suspect that the Kamikaze are using Suna's sewer system to move unseen through the city. We have been especially watchful for the past month, but unable to even catch a glimpse of anyone suspicious. In addition, in this meeting I've just finished, I was able to conclude that all of the attacks have been within twenty meters of an opening to the sewer system. I think the possibility is strong that they are using this to commute from location to location, and perhaps they are even based within it."

Hinata had already put two and two together, and saw that Temari was indeed every bit as bright a tactician as Shikamaru.

"I would like for you to begin surveying the sewer system for life signs…well, _human _life signs… I will assign you a three-man squad you can send to investigate any suspicious areas. Hopefully, you will be able to turn something up."

Hinata nodded. "If…if…"

Temari, however, was impatient. "If what?" she pressed sharply.

"If I could have a map of the sewer system it might speed up my search," she said very quickly, careful not to stumble over her words.

Temari smiled tightly, as if she was trying not to laugh. "Very well. I think that's an excellent idea, Hyūga-san."

As Temari began to sift through the papers on her desk, Hinata blushed silently. After a few moments, she grew curious as to how well she could actually see below the earth. She was easily able to see through rocks, but they weren't quite the same. She activated her Byakugan, sifting easily through the levels in the building to the ground. Although difficult, Hinata could see hazy passages that snaked around the building underground. They were more numerous than she expected, and on several different levels. In fact, the harder she forced herself to concentrate, the further down she could see.

Below the city was labyrinthine, twisting and turning tunnels – old built on new, dead ends, small openings collapsing and opening up into large passages. She was amazed, but intimidated at the task of searching all of Suna if all the sewers were this intricate and maze-like.

She retired her Byakugan as Temari handed her a thick bundle of scrolls. "You sure have a large sewage system here in Sunagakure," Hinata said softly with a timid smile.

Temari raised a brow at this. "Arigatō." She said this like a question, causing Hinata to blush in embarrassment.

Hesitantly, Hinata looked over the first one to check and see if she could read them, or if she would need assistance. She could read them…but could this possibly be right?

"Tem…" Temari looked up sharply at her. "Temari-san," Hinata said softly. "Um…where are the maps of the other sewage lines?"

"You can see the sewers from here?" the older girl asked in disbelief.

"A little," Hinata replied.

"Impressive…" Temari's brows drew together. "What do you mean 'other sewage lines'?"

"Well…um…" Hinata said, a little flustered. "You know, the ones below the newest ones…"

This time Temari scowled. "Just how many levels are there, Hyōga-san?"

Hinata swallowed. "Well…I think I saw two…maybe three…from this distance…and below the ground…it's hard to see that far…"

For a moment, Temari was deadly silent. Hinata made herself as small as possible in her chair, almost too scared to take her eyes off of the older girl. "Kuso!" Temari swore loudly, nearly shaking the room. "Kuso! Kuso! Kuso!"

* * *

Chûnin – the middle rank of ninja between genin and jōnin

Godaime – the fifth

Hokage – literally 'fire shadow'; leader of Konohagakure

Hitai-ite – forehead protector

Kazekage – literally 'wind shadow'; leader of Sunagakure

Kunoichi – female ninja

Kekkei genkai – literally 'bloodline limit,' or a trait that is limited to the members of one bloodline or family

Dōmo arigatō gozaimasu – thank you; used in very polite conversation

Sunagakure – Village Hidden in the Sand (usually shortened to Suna)

Kaze no Kuni – Land of Wind

Kamikaze – translates to 'divine wind,' and I know that's not very original, but I thought it was fitting

ANBU – abbreviated from ANsatsu Senjutsu Tokushu BUtai, a black ops organization that reports directly to the kage

Suna no Yoroi – Armor of Sand; Sand Armor (English TV); Gaara can cover himself in a compacted layer of sand for defense

Konoha – short for Konohagakure; Village Hidden in the Leaves

Arigatō – thank you; used in casual conversation

Sabaku no Gaara – Gaara of the Sand Waterfall; Gaara of the Sand (English TV)

Genin – lowest rank of ninja

Amegakure – Village Hidden in the Rain

Shi no Mori – Forest of Death; 44th Battle Training Zone

Nindo – ninja way ("Believe it!" …Muwaahahahahaah!)

Arigatō gozaimasu – thank you; used in every day conversation

Jūken – Gentle Fist

Yukuta – an informal, cotton kimono

Kuso – damn, shit, loud/upset expletive

* * *

**Author's Note:** For some reason I have a soft spot for Gaara/Hinata pairings. I've only read a few good ones, so I thought I'd write one to satisfy myself. This story doesn't have a real link to the Naruto series – it's set sometime after Shukaku is removed and after the conclusion of the Akatsuki/Orochimaru story. I'm not too sure…but it doesn't matter!

Please read, enjoy, and review!

Lovebites,

Eros ex Nihilo

* * *

**Edited: November 3, 2009**


	2. Chapter Two

**Author's Note:** Please read, enjoy, and review!

* * *

**THE DIVINE WINDS OF SUNA**

**Chapter Two**

As Gaara walked from one side of the Kazekage compound to the restaurant he normally frequented for lunch he was quite nearly struck dumb at the sight that met him along the way. He quickly looked around, trying to ascertain if anyone had indeed seen his wide-eyed blush.

On the ground, in the middle of the path, was a woman – he was positive she was female – on all fours with her hind-parts sticking up deliciously high in the air. There were, he noticed, many scrolls and pens strewn around, and her face was very close to the ground. He was curious as to what she could be doing, but not curious enough to stop staring so grotesquely.

Seeing her like that made him feel perversely turned on. Whoever this woman was she had a glorious ass. Her pants were stretched over it so tight that they left little to the imagination. Each cheek helped form a perfect heart shape, and down near the point was the faint, pretty outline of her sex. Looking at this made Gaara uncomfortably tight in his stomach…and down further into his pants. He knew that even if he tried to blot it out, this would be a fantasy he would think back to late in the night.

After all, Gaara might be socially awkward – _socially incapable_ as Kankurō put it – but he was still a seventeen-year-old man. Having sworn off letting his baser instincts (which, until lately, had mostly consisted of an overwhelming bloodlust) rule his life, Gaara had also, unofficially, sworn off women. Those around him were either simpering, wide-eyed fangirls, or his sister. Neither option was appealing to him – no matter how good-looking the girl. He had been rather unprepared for the sight of such a sexy ass that he was off-guard and thus, uncomfortable. None of his (very) limited social skills allowed him to deal with this tactfully, and he had the sick feeling of diving right into a situation he didn't understand.

"He-hey!" he said sharply. "What are you doing?"

The girl jumped about a foot in the air in shock, and Gaara saw that it was none other that Hyūga Hinata. The surprise of that alone was enough to take the words right out of his mouth. He let her sputter nonsense as he collected himself.

"M-moushiwake arimasen, Kazekage-sama!" she finally ended, her face the deepest shade of red he'd ever seen.

He watched her swallow, her throat contracting softly, as she stared emptily at his knees. Though it was hard for him to reconcile the previous image with this girl – who stuttered and stammered like a simpleton, red as a beet – with the image of the girl who's magnificently formed ass waved alluringly in the air – Gaara couldn't simply forget that they were indeed one and the same. "Well?" he asked after a moment, having not received any kind of answer to his previous question.

"H-hai," she said demurely, rising from her knees and wringing her hands slightly. "Tem-Temari-san has assigned me the d-duty of examining and m-mapping out the sewage system be-below since she be-believes that how the Kamikaze have been tr-traveling…"

Gaara grunted without comment at this, deciding that he would only further embarrass her and himself if he stayed much longer. She looked to be working very hard – little beads of sweat were forming on her forehead – and he didn't want to keep her from it. With a brief nod, he murmured, "Continue," and walked past her.

"K-kazek-kage-sama," he heard her stammer pathetically. "M-matte ku-kudasai…"

He paused, not turning to face her. The faster he was away from her the better.

"Um…well…I wouldn't know if…if you…b-but, did…did you know there are many passageways under Building One?" she asked softly.

Gaara's interest was peaked. He half turned towards her, noting that she was tapping her fingers together, head held low with a soft blush on her cheeks.

"And…and there's a-a large room down there…a s-secret room," she continued in her timid voice.

If Gaara had eyebrows, now was the time they would rise curiously towards his hairline. He glanced the Hyūga girl over once. Perhaps she was not a complete waste of space. That Byakugan of hers was impressive at least. After a short pause, he turned to her and said, "Show me."

Slowly, the young girl rose her pearly, haunting eyes to meet his. She swallowed and nodded her head. "H-hai, Kazekage-sama," she whispered.

He waited for her to roll back up her scrolls and pack them into a bag, which she secured over her shoulder. Gaara watched her suspiciously, noting that when she stood the bagginess of her clothes concealed any form or shape to her body. In the back of his mind, Gaara thought this was a shame.

"There's, um, a sewer entrance over here that sh-should lead us the right way," she told him, not looking back as he followed her.

Gaara wondered if his father had been aware of such passageways that existed beneath the city. The Kazekage before his father had not been able to train his successor – nor had Gaara's father been able to train him. The preferred tactic was for a Kazekage to select a successor, and then train him or her to do the job. However, the Kazekage of Suna seemed to meet tragic ends before able to select their replacements. If his father had known of any secret rooms or passages below the city, he had not bothered to share them with Gaara. Indeed, it seemed as though Temari didn't even know of them, and she was his chief tactician and in charge of information gathering for the Sunagakure ANBU forces. Briefly, Gaara wondered what exactly he would have done if this Byakugan-using girl had not been sent to Suna. It would have taken _years_ for them to flush out the Kamikaze…

However, as Gaara lowered himself into the foul-smelling sewers alongside the Hyūga girl and let his eyes adjust to the light of her flashlight, he realized that his previous thought had been dead wrong. There were curving tunnels and openings everywhere. She led him through a complex series of passages and tunnels that progressively grew smaller, more cramped, and poorly maintained. There were a myriad of openings and offshoots.

Truly, if not for this girl and her Byakugan, it would have taken more than years to flush out the Kamikaze – it would easily have taken _decades_…

He had to assume that the Kamikaze were aware of these intricate tunnels – the newer sewage system alone wouldn't provide them enough cover. They had time for exploration on their side, for who knew how long they had been mapping these tunnels. However, with the Byakugan-user in his employ, he would be able to catch them in no time.

"How far down do we these go?" he asked sharply.

She jumped, half turning her head to him. The light of the flashlight caused her face to glow eerily, and the shimmering surface of her eyes nearly made him gasp. "I-I don't really know. I-I haven't been able to map this far down yet…and it seems there are passages below us that I was not able to see with my Byakugan from the surface…"

"Hn," was his only reply. Though, it did make him curious…who had built these tunnels? And why? Were they built before the Kazekage? Gaara knew little of the history of Sunagakure before the Kazekage was put in power. Not many people bothered knowing about that time of war and strife. Now, however, it seemed he would need Temari to take a look into that time. Perhaps it would shed some light on why there was such an intricate system of tunnels…that no one seemed to know about…

The girl in front of him paused shortly, and murmured, "Byakugan!" under her breath. After a few moments she sighed and turned towards him again. "We – I – we have a slight problem, Kazekage-sama," she said timidly.

He waited.

"Um, it seems that the tunnel…that I wasn't able to see it clearly…that it…"

"What?" he growled, tired of her dancing around words.

"It's filled with water," she squeaked, backing away a few steps.

With a sigh he asked, "Well, why don't you just find another way around?"

At this she pursed her lips. "There is an entrance from under Building One…but there's a cave-in of almost a hundred meters between there and the room…" she explained in a soft voice. "Even skilled users of earth-release jutsu…they might find it difficult to plow through…as the city is right above us…" He watched her swallow, and even in the dark he could see her cheeks grow pink. "I…I think the only way is to swim the tunnel…"

Gaara grunted. This was becoming bothersome. His curiosity was too great to let the issue die. There could be all manner of scrolls or heirlooms of great power in that room…then again, there could be nothing… It was a risk he would take, however. Without endangering his city, there was only one way to access this hidden room, and that was to swim the tunnel as the Hyūga suggested. "I agree," he said solemnly. "Continue."

The girl nodded, and continued down an endless corridor of openings and passages. Gaara could see how easily he would be lost without her Byakugan eyes, and remarked again to himself how she had actually been more useful that he originally assumed. And to send her…that Hokage was smarter than he assumed as well.

Unconsciously, Gaara found himself studying the back of her head, the way she walked unafraid through the dank sewer system. Many girls would scream and cry – even many kunoichi. He was sure his sister would even have _one_ sarcastic or whiny thing to say. But this girl – Hyūga Hinata – didn't complain once, didn't make a peep, merely did her duty and led him through the maze of tunnels.

"Your Byakugan," he asked suddenly.

She glanced back at him. "Hai, Kazekage-sama."

"It works underground," he said awkwardly. Why was he starting this inane conversation? Of _course_ it worked underground!

"Hai," she said again, and to his relief she continued just as awkwardly. "It's not really m-meant for-for that, but we can train our eyes to-to see anything…chakra networks, the tiniest of bugs…even underground…though, it's unnatural…and d-difficult. Um, not many people bother."

"I see," he replied. Then, as if the words couldn't help but fall out of his mouth, Gaara continued. "Then…you are gifted…" He wasn't even sure if the things he was saying were questions or not!

"I-I d-don't know about that, Kazegake-sama" she stuttered, her embarrassment clear. "M-my grandfather…on my m-mother's side…he was said to be exceptionally gifted. Um, one of his sons specializes in underground techniques…he has a successful mining company…"

Gaara's eyes widened. Yes, Byakugan that could see underground would certainly be a great asset for a miner. He could see that she was not comfortable talking about her skill, whether it was because she did not want people to know the secrets of the Byakugan, or she was truly as humble and timid as she seemed. He seemed to think it was the latter.

For a few moments they walked in silence with only the clicking of their shoes on the stone floors and the light of her flashlight to leave evidence of their presence. The girl came to a halt as they approached a black hole in the ground. He could see a ladder etched in the sides of the stone. Were they….?

"I-I need a better look be-before we con-continue," she said, activating her Byakugan with a word. He let her work in silence, noting the way she was shivering. Not that he could really blame her. Without his Suna no Yoroi, Gaara would no doubt be freezing as well. They were not deep enough in the earth for the earth's core to heat them, nor shallow enough for the sun's heat to reach them. Combined with the cold air of winter, these tunnels were, not surprisingly, very chilly.

Finally, she turned to him, the veins sinking back into her face. "We-we'll need to go down…and then we'll m-meet the water. It…it is stagnant…and completely envelops the tunnel…s-so we'll have to h-hold our breath."

He nodded, removing his gourd, his long overcoat, and the tan armor that held over his shoulder. Gaara began to notice that she was looking decidedly away from him, a faint blush on her face. "Wh-what are y-you d-doing, K-kazek-kage-sama?" she asked in the softest of whispers. She glanced briefly up at him and then clasped her hands before her stomach.

"These things will weigh me down while underwater," he explained. "I'll leave them here and collect them when we return."

She paused. "O-oh…"

"That jacket will weigh you down as well," he said pointedly, noticing how deep her blush became. He had to admit, there might be some ulterior motive for him wanting her to take off the heavy jacket, but the chance of it weighing her down, or getting caught on something in the water-filled tunnel was too great a chance. Gaara was not the strongest swimmer, and he wasn't sure if he could carry her too if something went horribly wrong.

* * *

Hinata was at a terrified standstill of what to do. The Kazekage was taking off his clothes! In front of her! Yes, she was relieved that he wouldn't take off his shirt, but when he suggested she remove her jacket…she didn't even do that in front of family! It wasn't fair to say that Hinata was uncomfortable about her body…it had been changing a lot lately…and there were places that had grown… She couldn't even _think_ about it! And to remove her jacket…it was a sound idea – in _theory_ – but to do it in front of a _boy, _in front of the _Kazekage_… The thought alone was enough to send her into panic!

And he was looking at her now with those green eyes, that were such a soft color but betrayed nothing but harsh coldness…she blushed with the power of a thousand suns, sure she was lighting the whole cave with her embarrassment. He waited for her, calculating eyes unyielding, until she looked away and fingered the top zipper of her jacket.

Her jacket clicked one by one as she undid the zipper. It seemed like that was the only noise she could hear in the tunnel, echoing her shame with every snap. Finally it was off, and she was folding it on automatic at the floor of the tunnel, right next to Gaara's clothes and gourd. She swallowed, daring a quick look at her companion. To her relief he wasn't even looking at her. Hinata very nearly sighed, and then darted down the hole as fast as she could, stopping only when her foot reached the chilly water. Gaara was above her, and with her flashlight in her mouth, Hinata could see that he was looking down.

She removed the flashlight and said, "I-it's only a c-couple of meters down into the water…bu-but it's almost t-twenty meters until the opening on the oth-other side," she informed him. "I'll c-crack glow-sticks every couple of meters. Th-they should last unt-til we're ready to g-go back."

Without waiting for a reply, Hinata pushed herself into the frigid water – it was so much colder than her foot had told her! She gasped as the water sunk into her pants, and then the thin mesh of her shirt. She could already feel her muscles beginning to lock, and she looked up at Gaara. "I-it's r-really c-cold, K-kazek-kage-sama," she said, the jittering of her teeth causing her to stutter to amplify. "I-if we d-don't swim through f-fast, our m-muscles will l-lock u-up…"

He grunted in acknowledgement – or at least what she thought was acknowledgement – and Hinata took one last, large breath before dipping her head under the water. The cold water was bitter and murky when Hinata opened her eyes in it. She activated her Byakugan to see better than with just the flashlight, which she held in one hand. The other hand held several glow-sticks, which she broke all at once on her leg. She dropped the first one and turned behind her. Gaara was swimming a few meters behind her, and she could see him without her Byakugan.

She continued to swim, even though it felt like a thousand pins were stabbing her all at once. The water seemed to bite into her legs and arms, making them heavy and stiff. She dropped another glow-stick, amazed that she had enough dexterity left in her fingers for that. She couldn't feel her hands at all. After what seemed like ages she reached the exit. Her lungs – as opposed to the rest of her body – were burning, but she managed a quick look back to see that the Kazekage still followed her. He was close behind.

When she broke the surface she climbed the ladder swiftly, making room for Gaara to join her and take in some air. By the time he climbed out of the hole, Hinata was wringing out her hair and panting on the ground. She had not known that the water would do this to her body. She felt so sluggish and ineffective. Instinctively, though, she knew that she had to keep moving. If she didn't she would probably get hypothermia.

Stealing a glance at the Kazekage, Hinata was relieved to see that he seemed to be fairing far better than her. He was leaning against the wall, catching his breath, but he appeared to have full control of his muscles. Unlike Hinata, who felt as though her legs would shatter into a million pieces if she moved them. Painfully, like moving through needles, Hinata brought herself to her feet and tied her hair on top of her head.

"We should keep moving," he said to her, as if reading her mind. His voice was impassive, but unless Hinata was mistaken, there was a bit of concern in his eyes. Whatever it was, it vanished quickly.

She agreed, forcing her legs to move and be once again under her control. The more she moved the better she felt, but she was a far cry from comfortable. Her already small mesh shirt was clinging to her, and her pants stuck to her like a second skin. She felt naked and cold, and very, very uncomfortable. Hinata double-checked their path with her Byakugan before leading them far, and was glad to see they were clearly on route to their destination.

There was only the jagged sound of her breath and the shuffling of their feet. In relative silence, they made their way to a great wooden door. As they approached, Hinata could see it had been expertly carved, with dragons and phoenixes, lions and unicorns guarding the four corners. The handle was in the center, a large metal mechanism that was rusty with disuse.

She used her Byakugan to confirm, and then turned to Gaara. "Be-beyond this d-door is the room," she told him. She smiled shyly, embarrassed that the words even came from her mouth. "I…I don't su-supose you h-have a key?"

The blank look he gave her made her wish she was dead, or maybe just back in the water again. She turned away, hiding her ashamed face. After a moment, Hinata glanced back at Gaara, who was crouched on the ground. Crossing her arms over her chest, she watched as tiny dirt particles swirled off the stone surface of the tunnel under his hands. The pale-eyed Kazekage grunted then stood with a palm-full of dirt.

Without a word he began to sift it into the keyhole of the large lock on the door. Hinata gasped when the whole mechanism shuddered, clanking sounds echoing down the corridor. It finally gave a last shudder and the front portion of the lock came crashing to the ground. She dared a glance towards Gaara, noting his expressionless face despite the difficult task he'd just accomplished.

How he never seemed to show any emotion was a mystery to Hinata. She, who was afflicted with never being able to hide her feelings, found it hard to not be a little jealous of people who _could_ hide them. Gaara, however, was beyond hiding his emotions – he crushed them within his fabled Sabaku Sōsō, buried them in his sand, and stood over them with an empty look of victory. Hinata admired that he had such fine control over his emotions, over his facial expressions…she couldn't hide an emotion if her life depended on it…

Slowly, keeping her Byakugan pinned to the door, Hinata gave the wooden monstrosity a good push. Immediately, like second nature, her kunai leapt into her hand, fending off a series of shuriken. Her complaining muscles ached cruelly as she flipped backwards to block a second series of shuriken trained on Gaara. He was probably not helpless without his sand, but she didn't ever remember seeing him carry weapons of any kind.

As agile as she was typically, Hinata felt that her movements were sluggish with the cold water's affects on her muscles. Maybe this was why her arm couldn't keep up with her wishes. She could barely feel the shuriken as it imbedded itself into her shoulder.

She landed in a crouch, panting in pain. One of her legs gave out under her, and she collapsed onto the ground with a sharp exhale of air. Hinata clenched her eyes closed, her hand dropping the kunai and shooting to feel out the shuriken in her shoulder. She did not want to seem weak, but it really hurt – it hurt a lot more than swimming through the frigid water.

Hinata opened an eye as she heard a voice calling her name. It was so fuzzy, she felt like the blood rushing through her ears was deafening her. The face above hers was solemn, stony, and dominated by pale green eyes that were ringed in black.

"K-kazekage-sama," she moaned as he propped her up against the wall, ripping the shoulder of her shirt with the kunai she had dropped. "N-no," she muttered softly, knowing vaguely in the back of her mind that it was highly inappropriate for so much of her skin to be exposed.

She tried to sit up, embarrassed but unable to blush. A firm hand pushed her back down against the wall. Hinata winced in pain, looking up into the pale-green eyes again. "Hyūga-san," he said, his voice deep and gravelly. For some reason, it was hard for her to understand he was talking to her, the pain was blinding.

"H-hai," she replied softly, the sound of her voice so quiet she wasn't even sure if he heard it.

The Kazekage paused. "I'm not an iryō-nin; I have no healing skills. I need to take you back to the surface, Hyūga-san."

Hinata swallowed softly. "N-no," she said softly.

He gave her a sharp look.

"O-onegai shimasu, Kazekage-sama," she said softly. "I…I'm not so weak as I l-look," she told him, diverting her eyes. "I-if you c-could…remove the shuriken."

For a moment, Hinata found his face completely unreadable. Occasionally there was a flicker of emotion in his eyes – mostly anger, agitation, or annoyance. But now they were blank. Then he nodded, bracing two fingers on either side of the point of entry. For some reason, it was difficult for Hinata to feel anything as he quickly snatched the shuriken from her shoulder. She _could_, however, feel the warmth of blood as it began to dribble in thick ribbons down her bare arm…but she didn't feel the pain of the shuriken.

Though she was definitely in a state of shock, it didn't escape Hinata's notice that Gaara's eyes were fixed decidedly on the deep wound in her shoulder, and they followed the blood as it pooled in the limp palm of her left hand. She breathed heavily then employed the only medical ninjutsu she knew, covering the cut with her glowing right hand. She was thankful that many kunoichi were taught basic healing techniques in her village – though she occasionally resented the sexism of that policy, now it was coming in handy.

The blood stopped flowing as Hinata managed to at least begin enough of the healing process to knit the muscles together. Her skin was still red and open. Hinata looked up sharply as a ripping sound drew her attention. Gaara was crouching in front of her, his lips twitching and his eyes still flickering from her face to the shoulder wound. In his hand was the sleeve of his shirt. Though he wrung it out, the sleeve was still damp. Hinata thought to herself that it was better than nothing.

Gaara helped her wrap the sleeve around her shoulder, instructing him to keep the cloth taunt, and to tie it as tight as humanly possible. When he did, she grunted in pain, and his eyes met with hers once more.

After a moment he stood before her, and Hinata looked tiredly at his knees. "Hyūga-san," he said in a low voice. When he didn't continue, Hinata looked up at him. "You…should rest…"

"H-hai, Kazekage-sama," she whispered, looking away from him.

Apparently, though, he wasn't done. "You put yourself in front of me," he said quietly, and Hinata's eyes jerked up to meet his.

"Hai, Kazekage-sama," she replied, again in a whisper.

She watched as he pursed his lips together. "Arigatō…Hih…Hinata-san…"

Hinata was sure her eyes were as wide and pale as porcelain saucers. All the things she thought she would hear in her life, the Kazekage of Sunagakure thanking her…calling her Hinata-san…was not one she would have imagined even in her wildest dreams. Despite her lack of blood, Hinata felt her cheeks burn just ever so slightly. "H-hai," she murmured under her breath. Then, biting her bottom lip, unsure of her motivation, she said, "Kazekage-sama?"

He continued to look at her with that unreadable expression on his pale face.

"I…" But she didn't know what she wanted to say. She looked down again. "We…I mean…we m-made it all the w-way down here…" She paused. "We should at least go in…"

He didn't say anything, and Hinata couldn't force herself to raise her eyes above his knees. After the healing jutsu she was beginning to feel her shoulder and hand again. Her shoulder was painful, but she could move her fingers. The rest of her body was chilly, and she had lost too much blood to move around to warm herself. Hinata knew, though, that if she was forced to go back in that water the way she was now, if she ever got out of it she would be in serious medical danger. She seriously doubted, even if the Kazekage was able to help her through the water, and then help her through the tunnels, that he could find his way out all by himself. If she should pass out, or even die down here, he might wander these labyrinthine tunnels until he died.

After a few moments, in which it looked as though Gaara might be considering the same consequences as she had, he nodded his head and said in a harsh, monotone voice, "This situation is not ideal, and we may find something to benefit us within that chamber. Allow…" he stopped, and when he continued his voice was a little more tender. "Allow me to assist you, Hinata-san."

With a nod, Hinata raised her right arm so that he could wrap a shockingly cold arm around her middle. He lifted her from the ground easily, and when she was on her feet released her. Hinata, however, could feel the electricity as it reverberated through her body where his hand had touched her waist. She couldn't remember any time in her life…not ever…when this sensation had occurred. She followed him through the dark entrance, her eyes wide in wonder at the Kazekage of Sunagakure.

* * *

Moushiwake arimasen – I'm sorry; carries a stronger meaning and is meant specifically for your superiors

Matte kudasai – wait; used in formal situations, like speaking to a superior

Sabaku Sōsō – translates literally to "Sand Waterfall Funeral"; Gaara's Sand Burial (English TV); also called Imploding Sand Funeral (Viz)

Iryō-nin – medical-nin

Onegai shimasu – please; more formal than just 'onegai'

Ninjutsu – literally 'ninja techniques'

* * *

**Edited: November 3, 2009**


	3. Chapter Three

**Author's Note (Part 1):** At first I wasn't sure how I would be able to play Gaara's bloodlust into my story, so I'm glad I found a way. It's one of my favorite parts about his personality (um…I know…bizarre… … I swear I don't need therapy. … Anyways…) Please read, enjoy, and review!

* * *

**THE DIVINE WINDS OF SUNA**

**Chapter Three**

Gaara wasn't sure how he would survive the next few hours. Physically speaking, he had been in worse condition. There had been times when Gaara had been close to death, and he knew this was not one of those situations. Yes, he was very, very cold; the frigid water in the tunnel had probably driven him close to hypothermia. And yes, he was at a distinct disadvantage because he had left his gourd back in the tunnels. He had even been forced to abandon his Suna no Yoroi, since it would not withstand the water.

But Gaara wasn't terribly concerned whether his body would make it through this ordeal; he was more concerned about his mind. More and more his thoughts, his eyes, turned towards that Hyūga girl…Hinata… She clouded his judgment, made him unfocused and unreliable. If he had been concentrating more about what traps might be waiting for them in that secret chamber, maybe he would have been able to block or dodge the shuriken that had hurled towards his face. If Hinata had not been more agile, more instinctively protective, Gaara would be the one with a serious injury. He had tried to react with sand, but there was none, and without the armor on his chest, he was more exposed than Hinata.

…And how Hinata was exposed was possibly the thing that was distracting him the most. He cursed his weakness – hadn't he seen girls with less clothes than she wore? He was from the desert lands…women wore less just to get through the summers comfortably. He was never so bothered by their exposure in the past. But when Hinata had shed her jacket he was hard pressed not to stare outright. Gaara had sworn not to be ruled by instinct, he had sworn to let cool logic rule his life after Shukaku had been expelled. Something about Hyūga Hinata made it very difficult to follow his new nindo…even the sight of her ivory-colored skin made his stomach feel light and his blood rush through his ears.

Hinata was…very well formed. She made Gaara feel like a pervert just looking at her in her tight, mesh shirt. And after they'd exited the water, with her clothes sticking to her like a second skin…even in the darkness of the tunnels, Gaara had seen the way her muscles moved in her legs, the tight, fluid curves of her chest, and the swerving influx of her waist. In the darkness she seemed to glow, and it was taking the best of Gaara's sanity not to stare adulterously. She made him want to give into his baser instincts…it frightened him… Going back to what it was like with Shukaku frightened him…

But the straw that was going to break the camel's back was the blood…those beautiful, silky streams of blood, ruby-red and captivating… He could have run a kilometer in any direction, but he would have smelled that blood and sprinted right back. Gaara had been unable to look away after sliding the shuriken from her shoulder. Her blood flowed so freely, contrasting with the pale, bluish-white of her skin. If he was proud of any of his actions during that episode, it was that he had resisted leaning down and outright licking the blood from her injured arm. Her blood sang to the deepest part of his subconscious, the part that Shukaku had altered the most, where he had wreaked most of his havoc.

And now he was stuck with the tempting little Byakugan-user, struggling to keep from _molesting _her, much less simply_ looking_ at her. She would need more time to recover before they journeyed back to the surface, and in those hours he would have to be on the highest level of his guard if he was going to survive this sweet torment.

As he let Hinata go, Gaara took the lead with the flashlight into the darkness of the secret chamber, looking around speculatively. Perhaps this room could serve as a distraction from…from _her_… He tried to shut out the painful pants of the girl behind him, shining his light on the pitch-black room.

"Kazekage-sama," she whispered from behind him. Gaara turned back towards her, keeping the flashlight out of her eyes. "Sh-shine it back in-in that c-corner," she stammered out, pointing her right hand's forefinger. "It-it's an…"

"An oil lamp," he finished solemnly in a dry voice. He aimed a hand towards the door behind them, gathering the sand he had collected for bursting the lock. It would be more than enough… The sand moved quickly around the wick of the lamp, creating friction and heat enough to spark the string. However, to his surprise, when he did this several other lamps lit around the room, a chain reaction of light that circled around the bottom and then higher and higher.

Hinata gasped softly, and Gaara followed her eyes upward towards a very life-like carving of a dragon in the ceiling of the room. A final lamp was within the dragon's mouth, making it look as though he was breathing flames. With all of the lamps lit the room seemed impossibly bright, and Gaara squinted his eyes while they adjusted to the new light. As they did, however, the contents of the room became clear.

"There…there are so many…" Hinata whispered in awe behind him. He grunted in agreement, but 'many' was almost an understatement.

The room was cylindrical in shape, the top being the intricately carved dragon and the bottom being a decaying woven carpet that seemed to have once been a dragon as well. The curved walls of the room were lined with shelves, and on the shelves were literally thousands of scrolls of all sizes. There were statues around the base of the shelves, and in the center of the room there was a great wooden desk, filthy with dust.

Gaara glanced briefly at Hinata as she ran her fingers over the handles of some of the scrolls on the bottom row. "Byakugan!" she said under her breath, and a moment later gasped in surprise.

He waited while she turned to him, eyes wide and her mouth slightly open. "K-k-kazek-kage-sama," she breathed, her stutter worsening. "Th-th-that d-dragon…all these scrolls…they're all g-_gold_!"

Gaara looked around him. According to Hinata's Byakugan, he was officially the richest man in the country, even more wealthy than the Wind Daimyo he suspected. He inspected the closest scroll, and found that the bar used to wrap the fading paper around was indeed gold, just dirty and old. His eyes went to the dragon above his head, and he realized that its massive, swirling shape was at least several hundred kilograms, maybe more. "I see," he said stiffly.

Hinata moved around the room towards the desk, her steps sluggish and breath shallow. He watched as she bent down towards the desk, which had an open scroll atop it. Hesitantly, looking for his permission, she blew on the surface of the scroll. She blinked away the dust, and then motioned for him to come over. At first he held back, unsure if he could really be that close to her. In the end he found himself bending over her shoulder, trying not to sniff at her wound, and forcing himself to study the scroll before him. The sight of her skin made this difficult, as he was sure that nothing could be quite as interesting as Hinata's moon-pale skin.

"This must be more than a hundred years old," he commented, finally paying attention to the opened scroll before him. The page was dull with age, and something had begun eating at the paper, but it was clearly a map of Kaze no Kuni – Sunagakure was there in the center, though this map was so old that it was called by its ancient name.

"Suzushigai," Hinata whispered. "I-I d-don't think I've ev-ever heard it c-called that."

Gaara hummed, closing his eyes for a moment, collecting his thoughts. "Before the Kazekage we were a loose group of warring families, bound only to the Wind Daimyo. This city was his capitol…it was called Suzushigai – the City of Bells."

"Beautiful…" Hinata said in her soft voice.

Gaara opened his eyes soon enough to jerk his hand away from her neck. He had been about to touch her there without even thinking about it. He backed away swiftly. "Kaze no Kuni was much larger then…but not many things were known about before the Kazekage was established. Our histories are incomplete."

Something told Gaara that this room had just provided them with more history than the historians of Kaze no Kuni ever expected. He left Hinata to study the map and let his eyes follow the circular pattern of the room to an interesting statue. Actually, on closer inspection, he saw that it wasn't a statue at all, but a bizarre metal structure. It was a tube that was about a foot in diameter, with a wide-based cone-like top. At the base of the structure was an odd locking mechanism. He studied it closely. There was the word ON in Kanji and opposite that was the word OFF. There was a switch between the two, and it was pointed at OFF.

Before Gaara thought it through any more, he flipped the switch to ON. Immediately, he leapt back, skidding to a halt on all fours – it had _burned_ him! Hinata let out a sharp cry as hot ash spewed forth from the metal structure. As the ash settled, Gaara felt warmth began to reach his body. He slowly approached the vent, and saw that after the initial violent outburst, there was a fairly steady amount of heat radiating from the metal.

"Hinata-san," he murmured, beaconing to her. "Sit by this," he commanded.

He followed her with his eyes. She sat a few suspicious feet away from the vent, and immediately looked up at him in amazement. "Byakugan!" she hissed. "It's a vent that goes down…it goes down f-farther than I c-can see," she said after a moment. "Th-thermal heat?"

Gaara nodded, agreeing, and she knelt down before the vent, extending her hands towards it. Standing behind her, Gaara liked the way her butt rested on her feet, and the way her hips flowed into her waist. He stayed behind her, watching as she unpinned her hair, and it fell to her hips in a long waterfall. In a look that Gaara knew could be his undoing, Hinata turned and looked at him over her shoulder, eyes gazing up at him through dark lashes, a faint, rosy blush on the top of her cheeks.

Gaara instinctively took a step forward then backed away, trying desperately not to look at her as her gaze turned to soft questioning. "Kazekage-sama?" she asked quietly. "I…I think you sh-should sit here unt-til you're warm…the…the c-cold could cause hypothermia…"

His hands gripped at his sides, nails biting so hard into the palms he was sure they would cut through his skin. Clenching his jaw he shook his head. "I'll be fine."

He closed his fists tighter as she looked at him over her shoulder, then nodded and scooted a little closer to the vent. It took all his strength to back up until he hit the desk, his eyes could only look at her for a few moments before he forced them away.

For a long time, Gaara distracted himself by looking through the scrolls on the desk. Most were maps. He saw countries long destroyed, noting that Kaze no Kuni used to be nearly twice the size it appeared on current maps. There were landmarks he recognized, others he had never heard of. Soon he grew bored of maps, though; in truth, he was barely about to concentrate on them. Every few seconds he had to look up at Hinata to see if she was still there, still all right. She never disappointed him.

Gaara lost track of time, but after quite a bit of it had passed, Hinata stirred before the vent, standing and coming towards him at the desk. He admired the way her long hair swished behind her before reigning himself in once more. It was becoming more difficult, he noticed, not less…as he had hoped.

In silence, they both poured over the maps and scrolls before them. Gaara was unwilling to speak, thinking somehow that he would betray his nindo if he tempted himself further. Hinata had the pale look of one who was suffering, and this endeared him towards her. She looked like a frail bird, fluttering in his hands. This thought activated a more animalistic part of him, a part that wanted to jump on her and tear her apart. He didn't understand these feelings of aggression – she was no threat to him. Maybe she brought out something in him that made him want to own her.

Gaara's more logical side, however, knew that Hinata was not so weak as she looked – she had told him that quite clearly after the incident with the shuriken. Hinata's Byakugan was only one of her strengths, he was sure. She seemed to be an adept practitioner of taijutsu – she had the right muscle development. It was hard to think of her has strong, though; she was so petite.

Snapped out of his thoughts by Hinata's voice, Gaara was quick to divert his eyes – he had been staring luridly at her exposed back and neck – when she turned to him. "K-kazekage-sama," she said softly. He grunted for her to continue. Hinata looked uncertain, turning her gaze to the desk. "Do…do you th-think it's p-possible…that the Kamikaze…are l-looking for th-this chamber?"

He couldn't keep his surprise from showing through his eyes. "Why would you say that?" he asked.

Hinata blushed slightly, lifting one of the scrolls and showing it to him. "Th-this scroll talks about d-destructive force…an object I-I think… The…um, the writing is faded…a-and I d-don't recognize some of these kanji…" She looked down at the paper again. "But it's…it's all about this w-weapon and-and how it de-destroyed Suzushigai one n-night…" She paused again. "And, um, I…I think th-that whoever w-was w-working here last…was t-trying to find it…"

Gaara's eyes drifted across the cylindrical chamber, and then down to the maps on the desk. "Whoever it was has probably been dead many years," he surmised.

However, Hinata's idea about the Kamikaze…whether they were looking for this chamber or not, soon they would find it and if they were smart enough (which they seemed not to be simple) would definitely like to get their hands on whatever weapon the scroll spoke of. And if Gaara hadn't been so distracted by Hinata he would have figured this out, too. It made him realize that he was going to have to weigh Hinata's usefulness with the fact that she made it entirely too difficult for him to concentrate and do his job. First the incident with the shuriken and now this – his inattention to these clues was a direct hit to his pride. Hinata had caught his mistake again, and he was just as displeased with himself as he was when she took that shuriken for him.

After a few moments in silence, Gaara hummed loudly, moving towards the vent. "We need to leave," he said. "We've been gone too long, and someone will miss the Kazekage, I think."

"Hai," Hinata said in agreement.

Gaara turned the switch at the base of the vent to OFF. He was not looking forward to swimming back through that tunnel with its icy water. Now doubt the heat in this room had saved Hinata from hypothermia before, but now she would only have a jacket waiting for her on the other side of the water. It was entirely possible that her cut would reopen in the water, and her blood-loss would be considerable.

As Gaara weighed his options, ready to second-guess himself, Hinata moved before him, her head low. "I…I am strong enough, Kazekage-sama," she said in soft reprimand for his doubting her. Could she see that on his face, that he doubted her strength? Would he go out of his way to doubt any other of the nin working for him?

"Good," he finally said through gritted teeth.

When they put out the closest oil-lamp the rest began to flicker out as well. The lamp in the mouth of the dragon dissipated, and they were left only with a flashlight as guidance. After this convenience they exited the chamber, Gaara carefully closing the door behind them. He was not looking forward to the next part of their journey, but if he did not return to the surface soon there would be hell to pay.

* * *

Temari was prepared to go into full-blown panic mode. Her heart was beating so fast it felt like she had been sprinting forever. And she was pretty sure she was not overreacting when she said that she had – effectively – _lost_ the Kazekage of Sunagakure. More than that, she had lost her little brother. She could think of all the thousands of things that could have happened to him, and compared to some of these things, death was preferable.

Her first suspicion was the Kamikaze. And why not? They had made many threats against him – twenty in the last month at least! They had unlimited access to the city via the underground sewage system, opportunity, and motive. She had sent just about every genin, chûnin, and jōnin underground after Gaara was officially missing, hoping and praying her hunch was right. So far it was five in the morning – he'd been missing since noon the day before – and there was no sign of her brother…of the Kazekage. If he didn't return soon she was going to have to break down and write to Konoha…as shameful as that was…

A young chûnin was giving her a report on the situation in the south side of the city, saying that there had been some hostile action involving some ANBU and mysterious men in the sewers there. There was no updated information, and Temari sighed into her coffee – the only think keeping her mind focused. "But what about the Kazekage – no sign?"

The pretty kunoichi shook her head. Temari clenched her teeth. "Goddamn it, Gaara!" she growled loudly. Several of her subordinates who were organizing the reports looked up to her. "Goddamn it!"

Suddenly she felt a firm hand on her shoulder. She looked up from her coffee into the painted face of her younger brother. Kankurō was frowning deeply. "Temari-chan," he said soft so no one could hear. "You're shaming him," he continued. "Believe in Gaara."

Kankurō's words brought her the closest to a breakdown she'd felt all night. Tears welled in her eyes. Even when Gaara had been kidnapped by the Akatsuki she had not been so worried – though then she had been largely unaware of the danger. She looked into Kankurō's eyes, felt his warm hand squeeze her shoulder. "But," she whispered in return. "But…he's my little brother…"

"All the more reason," Kankurō said confidently. He held her gaze for a few moments longer, then walked away to confer with a few jōnin across the room.

Temari hung her head, ashamed that Kankurō would have more faith and confidence in Gaara that she did. She had always looked out for him, or tried. Their father had made her life miserable, too, and – as much as she had been allowed – Temari had tried to show her brother that he was loved. It was easier now…Shukaku was gone, no longer making him dangerous.

No, Gaara would always be dangerous. He had been warped too far to be considered tame or meek. But he was under control. That boy, Uzumaki Naruto…he had saved her brother in so many ways. He'd given her brother a new nindo to follow, and Gaara was a good man now. Flawed, but good. Temari snorted to herself. Who, of all of them, was not flawed?

Then, out of nowhere, Temari found inspiration. "I'm going into Gaara-sama's office," she announced, Kankurō's eyes meeting her briefly. "Perhaps there are some clues left there."

Kankurō followed her with the jōnin he had been conferring with, explaining as they traveled across the courtyard to Building One what their new search pattern would consist of. Temari was doing her best to pay attention, but there was some odd movement in the far side of the courtyard. She paused, squinting her eyes.

"There!" she said sharply, pointing towards Building Four. There was the muted shape of something coming up out of the ground. Temari paused – the Kamikaze wouldn't be so bold as to return to the scene of the crime…especially with so many active shinobi around. Without further hesitation, Temari sprinted like the wind, many steps faster than the jōnin and her brother, who called out as she dashed off.

"Oh, God!" she said, tripping and nearly falling to her knees as the shadows unfurled around her brother, his gourd, and the prone, pale figure of Hyūga Hinata in her brother's arms…wrapped in her brother's long, reddish coat.

Gaara stepped into the illumination of a streetlight, and all of Temari's relief rushed out of her when she saw the expression on Gaara's face. His jaw was clenched, his pale eyes bulging dangerously, and his neck was so tight the veins and muscles were literally popping out. He was so terrifying to look at, the rings around his eyes contrasting dangerously with the whiteness of his skin and red of his hair.

"G…Gaara-sama," she whispered in a choked voice. The shinobi that were following her had stopped as well, and she heard one gasp in fear. He was right to be scared – this was Gaara's killing face…if she saw _that smile_ she might run herself…

"Someone," he growled in a low, animalistic voice. "Someone…just take her away from me…take her to the hospital…"

No one moved, the oddness of his words and anger in his voice freezing even Temari's feet to the ground. When no one moved to do his bidding, Temari's breath caught in her throat as Gaara screamed a scream that sounded like agony and rage all at once. "Get her away from me!"

Kankurō broke out of the trance first, but Temari saw that his eyes were wide with hesitation. He took the tiny Hyūga girl – whom Temari had not even noticed the absence of – backed away a few steps, and then turned to run with her to the infirmary in Building Two. Temari first thought that Gaara was going to run after Kankurō – he growled deeply, taking a couple of steps towards where Kankurō was heading, then stopped himself abruptly, his arm shaking as he clenched his fist.

Temari wasn't sure if she should speak, but she had to say something. "Gaara," she said simply. "What happen –"

"Not now!" he barked aggressively. Then, after looking at the terrified Suna shinobi, gritted his teeth and said, "In my office, Temari."

Temari nodded once, swallowing before she followed her little brother…the Kazekage. He was moving at a fast pace, and Temari nearly had to jog to catch up to his quick steps. When she did she made sure to stay a few steps behind, fearing his wrath for the first time in years. She had seen him angered before, but since Shukaku had been removed there had been a sharp decline in his uncontrollable nature. Gaara truly had changed. But that look on his face, his words, his voice…if Shukaku was still haunting him, this would be how it would look.

Temari closed the door behind her and saw the room was still dark from disuse. Gaara did not light the room; instead, he tossed his gourd in the corner and flung himself into the chair behind his seat. She could only see the crown of his head, pale fingers laced through his hair tightly, painfully. She did not sit, but stood uncomfortably with her hands crossed in front of her lap. Because of experience with her moody brother, Temari knew she should wait for him to speak. A few minutes later she was proven correct.

"I…ran into _her _as she was surveying the sewer system," he began slowly, doing something Temari had never_ ever _seen him do in her whole life. It was something she_ never_ would have allowed of Kankurō, but she couldn't command the Kazekage. Gaara pulled out a bottle of rice wine and a small saucer. He filled it, not bothering to sip the liquid but just took it in one shot.

"_She_ told me there was a secret room down there…hidden…hard to get to…" He shook his head, pouring himself another saucer and disposing of it in a similar way. "We…we walked for miles. It's a well-hidden chamber directly below Building One…inaccessible except for through a tunnel that is filled with freezing water. There have been cave ins…it's the only way to get there."

Temari couldn't believe her ears. Or rather, she found it all very surprising. What had happened down there to cause Gaara such obvious distress? Why was the Hyūga girl so beat up? Why was Gaara so…_bizarre_ about her? She swallowed her questions, hoping Gaara would elaborate. He did, after his own fashion. Gaara did not like to speak for long periods of time, so getting him to tell a story was near impossible.

"When we opened the door – a great wooden door – there was a trap set. We were hypothermic, my reaction was to go for my sand…I had left it behind…" he spat this last bit out disdainfully. "But she blocked them all…put herself in front of me and blocked all but one shuriken." He took another drink of sake, and Temari began to fear she would have to carry her brother to his quarters if he kept going. "She was injured…so much blood…" He shuddered, but some part of Temari thought it might have been a shudder of pleasure. This disturbed her, but she said nothing.

After a moment, Gaara continued. "We pressed on into the room, and it was well worth it. You'll need to get some shinobi down there to remove the scrolls – thousands of them. And gold. Lots of gold…and this vent that opens to let in the earth's thermal heat. That probably saved her life." He sighed, but did not drink anymore, for which Temari was thankful. "So, when we left, she made it through the tunnel again, but passed out on the other side. I was lost for a while after that, but I began following the echoes of voices. And now…now I'm tired… I…I can't trust myself to lead right now, Temari," he confided in her.

At this Temari looked down into his face. He was glaring up through his hair at her, but to her he seemed to be in so much pain that she only nodded. "Please, Gaara-sama," she said after a moment of silence. "Give me the honor of wrapping up here. There is no more danger and I am capable."

Gaara closed his eyes, seemingly relieved. Then he stood, shoving his hand through the leather thong of his gourd. When he moved past her, however, he paused. "Temari…" he said in a soft, lost-sounding voice. "Ari…arigatō…"

When he left the room, Temari hung her head in relief, almost too glad to cry, but too tired to stop herself. She felt her eyes sting, but she bit her tongue, swearing never to shed a tear for Gaara. Crying would only shame him. No one should cry for the Kazekage.

* * *

Suzushigai – the City of Bells; I made this up!

Taijutsu – martial arts

Jōnin – highest rank of ninja below the kage

* * *

**Author's Note (Part 2):** Thank you all for the encouraging reviews, especially **jbramx2 **(who writes the most entertaining messages).

* * *

**Edited: November 3, 2009**


	4. Chapter Four

**Author's Note:** So, things are about to get mature up in here. I mean that seriously, though, typically, the phrase 'up in here' is utterly ridiculous. I'm gonna up the rating because of this. I had always planned for this story to get sexy, but not in Chapter Four…I guess I couldn't resist. M'kay…so, please, read, enjoy, and review!

* * *

**THE DIVINE WINDS OF SUNA**

**Chapter Four**

Gaara had made it to his room at a steady, but sluggish pace. His muscles complained viciously as he climbed the stairs to his chambers, and his mind wasn't too happy about it, either. After just three saucers of rice wine – compliments of Tsunade for his birthday – Gaara felt as if he was truly spinning. He had not eaten for a day, and the sake affected him more than he would like to admit.

As he shed his damp, chilly clothes, and then tossed his gourd into the corner, Gaara moved immediately to the bathing area and turned the shower water on as scaldingly hot as he could bear. Naked, tired, mentally demolished, Gaara sank under the water, steadying himself by bracing two arms against the tiled walls of his shower. The water was so hot his skin felt like it was peeling off his body, but anything was better than letting himself sink back to thoughts of Hinata.

Oh, Hinata… He was done for now. He had been so weak… How could he be so damnably weak?! How could he…?

She made it through the tunnel, the inky water, frigid and reminiscent of the jaws of death. She had climbed all the way onto the level above, and as she was about to retrieve her jacket she was out cold, falling face first onto the floor. Gaara had rushed to her side, turned her over and listened carefully for her breathing, a heartbeat, anything to tell him she was alive. He wasn't an iryō-nin; he couldn't heal her even if he wanted!

Glancing at her shoulder, it was clear that his torn-off shirt sleeve was not doing its job. It was a pale-red color, the cut having re-opened as they were swimming the tunnel and bled out into the cold water. Gaara remembered propping her up against the wall of the passage, untying his shirt sleeve from her shoulder and ripping a new bandage off her dry jacket.

That was when it happened, his moment of weakness. His hands were covered in her blood, her wound was seeping, and of its own volition, his mouth moved to her cut. To his shame, he had licked the wound clean, bizarrely excited by the taste and smell of her blood. When he regained control of his body he could hear her breathing softly, shallowly, still unconscious and cold as ice. He'd wrapped her in his cloak, forgoing his own comfort and gathering her in his arms.

And then they'd wandered…hours and hours they wandered. She could not help him with her Byakugan, and he was lost the first few turns through the sewer's intricate maze of passages. At first, when he began to hear voices, he truly thought he was insane. That was until he realized that those voices would surely be close to the surface. They echoed and misled him, but as they drew louder his hope grew.

And his despair was two-fold. Not only could Hinata lose her life if he was not fast enough, but he had to hold her in his arms, pale and weak, so tempting and beautiful in her deathwatch. Her neck was exposed to him, the scent of her blood still strong in his nostrils. Any second it felt like he would have to stop and burry his face in her neck, caress her hair and body. Sickened with himself, Gaara had resisted, ashamed that he had allowed himself the weakness of tasting her blood once already.

Now, though, in the heat of the shower, these visions were coming back to haunt him. Her pretty, slender, pale neck…exposed and soft…so close to his lips… And when he had first spotted her, her ass so perfect and round, bobbing around in the air…that faint outline of her female parts… And finally, her kneeling before the thermal heat vent, warming her hands and then turning back to him, her eyes so soft and glowing…

With a disgusted, harsh laugh, Gaara looked down to realize that his manhood was swollen and painfully hard. He pounded on the wall of his shower, a frustrated cry echoing off the tile on the bathroom walls. Gaara was a man, after all. He'd had an erection before, and never had cause to be ashamed of it. He was not ashamed of his natural body functions, but something about the perverse thoughts Hinata incited made him feel guilty and humiliated.

Slowly, dejectedly, Gaara grasped a-hold of himself, too mentally tired to keep visions of Hinata in the most sexual of positions out of his head. It wasn't difficult to give in. He would regret this later, he knew, but when he thought of Hinata the most shocking electrical current surged through his body. Gaara actually gasped as he began to stroke himself, each movement a testament to his obsession with Hinata. Her large, round, full breasts…her perfectly formed ass…slender legs…swerving hips…her eyes, glowing with a faint lavender…her hair, swishing luxuriously at her hips…and her mouth, full lips and timid smile…the way she blushed and looked away from him…

Gaara gasped again, pumping hard at his swollen member, his mind only clear enough to think of Hinata…Hinata below him in bed, writhing and blushing…Hinata kissing him, running her hands down his chest and stomach…Hinata screaming, keening his name as he forced her to climax under him…

Crashing to his knees under the steaming water, Gaara spent his seed, breathing heavily and pumping slowly to completely milk his uncomfortably hard cock. When the red-hot flash of his orgasm had passed, leaving him feeling like a perverted villain, Gaara stood, turned off the water, and collapsed into his bed. Light was creeping in through the window, and though Gaara rarely slept more than a few hours, when he felt his head hit the pillow he was out cold.

* * *

When Gaara finally woke it was dark out. He sighed, sitting in his bed as his eyes searched the room for his clock. It was nearly eight in the evening. For him to have slept this long was a truly rare thing. Instead of relaxing, Gaara rose from bed, shaking out the wet pants he had worn yesterday. A pinkish strip of cloth few off it, and Gaara caught it swiftly in his outstretched hand. He recognized it immediately – the strip of shirt he had originally tied Hinata's shoulder with…soaked in her blood…

Gaara sighed, pulling on a fresh pair of pants and hesitating before stuffing the cloth in his pocket. He didn't know why, but it felt like it belonged there. After he was dressed, Gaara decided to find his sister and relieve her. Temari was a reliable leader. It filled him with pride to know what she had accomplished in his absence, and how she had been levelheaded enough to organize a search rather than go off by herself as a one-man search party. He loved his sister, but knew that there were times, especially concerning Gaara and Kankurō, when she allowed emotions to conquer her logic. Temari's skills with logic were something that Gaara truly admired about her, and he attempted to model his rule by her example.

It was not long before he found Temari – she was sitting in his office, after all. She gazed up at him, a relieved look on her face as she took in his form. He knew she was searching him for any signs of the madness he had shown earlier in the morning. But Gaara was himself once more, and had a strong grasp over his baser instincts.

"I'm here to relieve you, Temari," he told her blandly.

She had a small smile on her lips as she gathered up some papers and prepared to give up the seat. She motioned for him to sit, and he did, leaning his gourd against the corner of his office. Gaara liked the way she always waited for him to speak, to gain his bearings. Once he had, he spoke. "I want a full report of the events of the last day," he said in a monotone voice.

Temari nodded, handing him a brief, timeline report as she read over a copy. "We figured you had been captured or ambushed, and that the Kamikaze were the culprits. Forgive us for assuming so, Gaara-sama," she added softly. He nodded and she continued. "After lunch, when you did not return to your office, we sent Matsuri to check out your typical lunch restaurants, but there was no one who had seen you. It was then that we began the search parties. We concentrated mostly on the tunnels. Before you and Hinata-san went off…without telling anyone…" she said under her breath, "Hinata-san had mapped out a considerable amount of the secret tunnels beneath the compound. We searched them as well as we could, dispensing manpower to the rest of the village's sewers. We had an incident in the southern sector of the city."

Gaara examined the report, impressed with Temari's planning for such an unprecedented incident. With her lack of resources she had devised this plan all by herself. "Impressive work," he said in a low voice.

Temari paused a moment, looking at him with observant, dark green eyes. "The incident in the southern sector resulted in a captive," she told him, her voice almost bragging. "I gave orders to suspend an interrogation until you were ready."

Gaara nodded his approval. Yes, Temari had done very well in his absence. "I would like to get to that…but it can wait a bit more…"

Temari said nothing, as if instinctively knowing he was going to speak. "This morning," he began again, looking into her eyes, "I was unable to give you a full description of the events that passed." Temari straightened in her seat noticeably. She was curious, he could tell. "It is…entirely possible…that these Kamikaze are looking for the exact chamber that Hina – that Hyūga-san and I located." He cursed himself, knowing that Temari would not miss such a slip-up. Indeed, her eyes flashed sharply for a moment.

He paused a bit, collecting himself. "A document that Hyūga-san uncovered describes a weapon of some kind, something that was able to destroy the ancient city of Suzushigai…"

Temari raised a brow. "Oh."

With a quick nod, Gaara continued. "It seems that the last person in that room was looking for that exact same thing…though it must have been more than fifty years ago…" He glanced briefly at her report. "If these Kamikaze are aware of the secret passages beneath the sewer, as I must assume they are, then I must also assume they are aware of this chamber, and its secret. Efforts must be made to remove those documents as quickly as possible."

Temari was silent for a moment. "Respectfully, Gaara-sama, I disagree."

It was his turn to be surprised. "Continue," he said flatly.

Thinking her statement through, Temari began carefully. "I agree that the Kamikaze are aware of the secret chamber you and Hinata-san discovered, and that it would be most disastrous if they were able to use any information contained within its ancient scrolls, but it may be too hasty for us to excavate that chamber just yet. Let me explain."

She rose from her seat, pacing in an excited fashion. "I propose that we continue mapping out the sewers and the passages beneath, but refrain from sending our shinobi down there to look for the Kamikaze rebels. Now that we know what they are after it is all too easy lure them into a trap."

She began tapping the back of her hand into the opposite palm. "It plays out like this," she said confidently. "They know that we were down in the sewers looking for you, Gaara-sama. But they only know that we were in the newest level of sewers on the southern side of the city, where we captured this man. They are completely unaware of our extensive knowledge of the passages, and have no way of knowing that _we_ know about the secret chamber. We set an alert system for whenever they get close, and when they trip that alert system we fly in and take them in one swoop! We don't have to go around looking and searching, they will eventually come to us, and when they do we will have them sitting pretty!"

Gaara nearly smiled at his sister's excitement…nearly. Her plan was inspired, and he found himself wondering about Nara Shikamaru. If Nara had defeated his brilliant sister at the Chûnin Exams in their youth – him two years her junior – exactly what kind of genius did the Hokage have at her disposal? "Temari," he said softly. "Make it so."

She shot a large, infectious smile his way. "Hai, Kazekage-sama!"

She smiled at him for a moment, but then her face lowered. "There is one other thing," she said softly. He nodded for her to continue. "This is not strictly business of the Kazekage," she told him. "It is from me, your sister."

Slowly, Temari lowered herself into the seat across from him at his desk. "Gaara," she began softly. "This is about Hinata-san."

Gaara felt himself stiffen, berating himself for thinking that his sister could be so thoroughly fooled. "Continue," was all he said.

Temari took a deep breath. "Hinata-san has been a great help to us, to all of Kaze no Kuni. Because of her we are aware of a dangerous threat, and have a way to settle it. But…" and here she paused. "But she can easily be replaced by another Hyūga. Hinata-san is not the only Hyūga with Byakugan."

Gaara said nothing.

Temari pursed her lips. "Gaara, let me say this once, and I will never speak of this again, to _anyone_," she said softly, her voice just above a whisper. "It's…we're a tough family – you, Kankurō, and I. We make it tough for people to love us. But you are my brother, and I love you…" She paused, apparently not finished. "Hinata-san is…she's a special girl. She's a talented kunoichi…and…very innocent…very pretty…"

Temari closed her eyes, taking a deep breath. As hard as this was for Gaara to hear, he could imagine it was just as difficult for Temari to say. "She affects you in ways you don't understand…" she alluded softly.

He knew the look in his eye confirmed this for her. "When you make your decision," she finally said, "try to imagine if it will be easier or harder if she is no longer around."

She stood swiftly after this. Her face betrayed nothing of the previous conversation. She was true to her word. "I'll be issuing these orders, and sending Matsuri in with the proper paperwork later tonight."

He nodded and she was gone.

* * *

Hinata woke to the brightness of morning. She was in a dim hospital room, where the windows let in the rising morning sun. There was a dull ache in her left shoulder, an ache she remembered all too well as the evidence of that shuriken. She was alone, clothed in a hospital robe, and more than a little curious about the Kazekage…about Gaara-sama…

Pursing her lips at the burn in her shoulder, Hinata rose and looked around for her clothes. She had freshly laundered pants, accompanied by a mesh shirt ripped at the shoulder, and a jacket with one sleeve missing. And there was a long, burgundy trench coat clean and folded nicely beside her belongings. Hinata was almost too embarrassed to put these clothes on, and wondered if someone would do her the favor of getting new clothes from her quarters.

Just as she thought that, the young girl – Gaara-sama's assistant Matsuri – bustled into the room and widened her eyes when she caught sight of Hinata out of bed. "Oh, my," the girl said breathlessly. "They didn't expect you to wake until tomorrow," she said softly. "I…I was just bringing you your pack just in case you woke today…"

Hinata blushed softly. "Dōmo arigatō, Matsuri-san," she murmured.

"Well I'll alert one of the iryō-nin," Matsuri said smartly. "And…and I'm glad you're feeling better Hyūga-san…" The young girl gave her a violent blush and rushed from the room. Hinata silently wondered if she had also been sent to retrieve Gaara-sama's coat.

She dressed quickly in her spare clothes, finding a light zip-up that she never felt comfortable wearing. She was just zipping the jacket as an iryō-nin entered, a chart in her hand. Hinata argued softly against further examinations, claiming she would be fine and only needed to rest. She was packing her laundered clothes when she put a hand on Gaara's coat. Guiltily, Hinata activated her Byakugan to make sure no one was around, and brought it to her nose, sniffing lightly at the collar.

The strong scent of the Kazekage had not been washed out, and she noted that he smelled vaguely of hot earth and cinnamon, spicy yet pleasant. Hinata immediately blushed, feeling a little dirty with the Kazekage's coat pressed against her cheek. It's just…she could remember that smell so well, remember being locked in the strong embrace of Gaara's arms, curled helpless in his coat. She could remember other things, too…or she thought she could. It was still up in the air whether or not those parts had been a dream or not.

Hinata didn't have any clear memories after she had surfaced from that godforsaken icy water. But she was sure…no, she was _nearly positive_, that when Gaara had leaned her against the wall…she remembered growling, frustrated howling, and then the soft warmth of his mouth on her shoulder…lapping at her wound, licking her neck…

No, she thought to herself. That…that _couldn't_ be real…Gaara – the Kazekage – would never do that. And yet…even if he had, Hinata was not nearly as disgusted as she thought she should be. Actually, that hazy memory filled her with warmth and…and something else… Pleasure? Maybe pleasure was a little strong. She considered this, touching her shoulder. No, the Kazekage…he could barely look at her…he would never…_lick_ her.

Hinata swallowed painfully, hooking her pack over her shoulder and gathering the Kazekage's coat in her arms. She left Building Two, walking slowly the path to Building One, the Kazekage's building. Shyly, Hinata wondered if he slept there, too. She couldn't imagine him doing anything but working, but surely he must eat…relax…sleep?

A secretary ushered her upstairs, though Hinata remembered the way easily. In front of his door she knocked lightly. At first there was no response, but a barked word granted her access. When she opened the door, blushing to be alone with him again, she looked down and closed it behind her. "Kazekage-sama," she whispered softly, realizing too late that she was crushing his coat against her chest.

"Hyūga-san," he said dryly, barely looking up at her from his paperwork.

Hinata swallowed. _How silly,_ she thought to herself. Of course he would no longer call her Hinata-san…there was no reason other than to comfort her down in the tunnels… She was ashamed that she would have hoped…or thought…or assumed that she was anything other than a kunoichi on loan. "H-hai," she said softly.

"I assume Temari asked you to come see me," he said in monotone, his pale-green eyes finally rising from his desk to meet hers.

She looked down quickly. "I…I haven't seen Tem-Temari-san, Kazekage-sama…" She paused, embarrassed even more now that she realized she should have reported to Temari – _not_ the Kazekage. "I…um…just w-wanted to-to return this… It-it was with me in the hos-hosptial." She cursed her foolish stutter.

Ignoring her previous statement, he continued as if she had never spoken. "I wished to inform you that as soon as you finish mapping out the sewers and the secret passages beneath, you will return to Konoha with Suna's gratitude. There is something I wish for you to give the Hokage in person, however." He pushed a scroll towards her, bound with a paper seal.

For a moment neither spoke, though Hinata knew she was just further making a fool out of herself for not leaving. Thinking maybe she had been special for a moment made her feel the most foolish. After a long pause, Hinata grabbed the scroll clumsily and murmured a quick, soft, "Hai," as she moved to exit the room.

"Hyūga-san," the Kazekage said in a soft, amused voice as she turned the handle of the door. She stopped. "My coat," he said blandly.

There were tears of shame building in her eyes. Slowly, Hinata turned and made tiny, unobtrusive steps towards the Kazekage's desk. She set the burgundy-colored trench coat on the corner of his desk, neatly folded. Then, looking him in the eyes, she whispered, "Moushiwake arimasen…Gaara-sama…"

Hinata could swear she heard him inhale sharply as she turned to leave, but she did not glance back to look at him. Instead she hurled herself down the stairs and tried to contain her anguish as she slowed down her pace through the Kazekage compound. She felt dead by the time she reached Building Nine, and had no emotion left for tears. She reported to Temari, who asked after her health, and told her to report to Gaara later that afternoon. She didn't bother telling her that she had already been.

Instead, Hinata gathered her pens, her scrolls, and a bag. She would continue mapping out the sewers, complete her mission, and go home as she was told. As she was about to leave, Temari halted her at the door. "Hinata-san," she said crisply. "I have set up a plan to trap the Kamikaze, and as a result, no one is allowed into the sewers or secret passages until their capture."

Hinata hesitated before answering. "Tem-Temari-san," she said softly. "There…there are passages too deep for my Byakugan…"

With that, Temari frowned. "I was afraid you might say that," she murmured grumpily.

Hinata apologized, but Temari shook it off. "I'll arrange something later, an escort for you. But, right now, I've got an interrogation to run. We were able to capture one of the Kamikaze the other night."

"Oh," Hinata said in surprise. She had not thought, but with so many shinobi running around the sewers the chances of flushing out at least one of the Kamikaze were good.

Hinata watched as Temari descended the stairs, heading towards her interrogation. Vaguely, Hinata wondered if Sunagakure had someone like Morino Ibiki…or maybe they had worse. She shivered at the thought – knowing how much Morino Ibiki intimidated her, Suna's chief interrogator was possibly more dangerous. Trying to focus on her mission, Hinata set aside her curiosity for what their prisoner would reveal about the Kamikaze. She gathered up her bag and began when she had left off two days earlier.

Before she had been interrupted, Hinata was almost finished mapping out the top three levels of sewers within the Kazekage compound – that is, all twelve buildings. Beneath these buildings was the most extensive, confusing, and old system of passages. She couldn't see all of them from the ground, but Hinata had already formed a plan on how she was going to map out all the hidden passages.

First she would map everything beneath the compound beginning with Building One – which was, of course, at the center. All other buildings were spaced evenly around it. She would move out in a spiral pattern, filling out blueprints (separate prints for separate levels) for the entire compound that was within reach of her Byakugan. She noticed that the further she got from building one, the less secret levels of sewer there were. Her maps would extend into the city, but they would be much less complex than the maps of passages below the Kazekage compound. Once she was finished with that she would return to Temari and ask to be escorted down to the tunnels too deep to see from the surface. She didn't believe there were too may of those.

Hinata had circled the compound four times already, so she knew there was not much more to map out (that she could see). She was passing by Building Seven for the fifth time when she began to feel a little light-headed. Hinata hadn't expected to heal in such a short amount of time. Comparing her recovery time to some of her friends, Hinata had discovered that she regained her full chakra almost half as slow as many people she knew. Naruto was an exception, of course, but even Sakura said that with a good night's sleep she would be almost two thirds her full potential after being drained the previous day.

Hinata rested in the shady side of the building, placing her head between her knees to keep from passing out. She knew that the feeling would fade soon, and she berated herself for not bringing water with her. Even in the winter, the desert was a dry and arid place. To be at her full capacity, she would need to remain hydrated. Though it was probable that her fatigue was more than just simple dehydration, Hinata decided to press on when she felt a little better.

A quarter of an hour later, Hinata felt her world begin to spin again, but this time she was so overcome that she felt darkness welling up behind her eyes. She was passing out. Hinata fought the sensation until she was on her knees, but she lost. She came to with a jolt when a strong smell entered her nostrils.

"Easy," said a deep voice, holding her down to the ground as she attempted to leap up. "That's what got you the smelling salts to begin with."

Hinata shied away from the voice, opening her eyes to see the Kabuki painted face of the middle Sand Sibling, Kankurō the Puppet Master. He held her lightly in the sitting position, stuffing the smelling salts into a pack at his side. He didn't look at her, but when he spoke she could tell he meant her no harm. "We really didn't expect you to be out of the hospital so soon, Hinata-san," he said in a familiar tone. "What, is Temari working you to the bone?"

She pushed herself up, flushing slightly. His arm slid off her shoulders, but he stayed crouched next to her. "No…no, not at all," she tried to assure him. "I…I j-just want to finish my m-mission…and return home…"

"Only three days and you can't stand the place already?" he laughed lightly, sitting on the ground beside her, crossing his legs lazily.

"No!" she said more forcefully than she meant, ducking her head. "No…I mean…I actually love the desert… Um, it's just…Kazekage-sama expressed a d-desire for me to complete my m-mission with haste…so I could l-leave…"

When she said this, she glanced up at the older boy hesitantly. He had a slight frown on his face, and he hummed softly. "Kazekage-sama, eh?" he asked, but Hinata wasn't sure what he meant.

"H-hai," she replied, looking away with a flushed face again.

In a fast, fluid motion, the puppet master stood, adjusting the scrolls on his back. "You look like you've been at it for a while, Hinata-san," he said cheerfully, holding out a hand to help her up. When she took it he continued. "Yah, you'll come with me and we'll get you some cactus tea – it's the best way to rehydrate your body."

The command was different from how Gaara or Temari might have phrased it, but the expectation of obedience was the same. Kankurō just made his demands seem more like invitations. She followed him, a few steps behind, as he told her a little bit about the desert and how to survive if she was stranded. Hinata had very little desert survival training. Actually, it was quite fortunate she didn't die out there according to Kankurō.

"There," he said, sitting down in a wire chair at a café-like restaurant. Hinata sat opposite him and let him order her some cactus tea. "It's pretty vile at first," he explained to her. "It's the salt. Tea enthusiasts say it enhances the cactus juice, which is naturally bitter. It kind of has a bite to it, but after a while it grows on you. You see, the salt helps you retain water in the desert, and the cactus juice is beneficial in it's own way. It helps block the sun's rays if drunken regularly. Most people do – we have to if we want to survive out here."

Hinata nodded and tried to look brave as the waitress arrived with their drinks. They were served in the hallowed tube of a cactus, and warmed to a temperature that took the sting out of Hinata's already-cold hands.

"Bottom's up!" Kankurō said, not very encouragingly, as he took the cactus tea like medicine – all at once and with a grimace.

Hinata braced herself, politely sipping the vile-smelling concoction. Immediately she felt the sensation of bile rising in her throat. She forced it down, along with the tea. She had tried to hide her reaction to the tea, but Kankurō laughed, so she must have made a face. After a cough, Hinata said softly, "It _could_ grow on me…"

Kankurō laughed even more raucously at this, slapping a knee. "I just love introducing people to cactus tea – everyone makes a different face. Never met someone who really liked it."

Hinata smiled, forcing down another sip of cactus tea, wishing she didn't know it was good for her. They sat in silence for a while before Kankurō cleared his throat awkwardly. "Hey, Hinata-san," he asked. "Can I talk to you about something?"

Setting down the drink, Hinata nodded, looking up to the much taller man. "Hai, Kankurō-dono."

He looked at her oddly – Hinata wondered if she was too formal – and continued. "The other morning…when you and Gaara were trapped in the tunnels…what really happened down there?"

Hinata shook her head truthfully. "I know as much as you, Kankurō-dono," she assured him. "Kazekage-sama found his way to the surface without my Byakugan…I'm afraid I wasn't much help…" she revealed, shaking her head and looking down, slightly ashamed.

Kankurō hummed speculatively. "It's just, well…" he sighed. "It's been a while since I've seen Gaara like that…he's changed so much, you know."

Hinata understood. Sabaku no Gaara from the Chûnin Exams terrified her. Gaara the Kazekage was a man she looked up to. "I guess," Hinata said softly, "I guess I really messed things up down there…"

Kankurō cocked his head to the side. "How do you mean?"

Hinata looked down into her hands, almost preferring to drink her whole glass of cactus tea to the direction this conversation had turned. "Well…" she began, flushing. "Well…I mean…be-before I got struck with the sh-shuriken…" she paused, her stutter returning in full force as she looked away from Kankurō.

"Yah?" he asked in encouragement.

She swallowed. "Before that…the Kazekage seemed…almost n-nice… I think…um…he might have re-respected me…because my B-Byakugan c-could see d-down in the sewers…and he could find the K-Kamikaze…" She swallowed. "But then…then when I let the shuriken hit me…he-he looked at my wound l-like it was t-_toxic_… And afterwards… he wouldn't even _look_ at me… I know…I know he th-thinks I'm w-weak now…"

She dared a look at Kankurō, who was staring at her incredulously, as if he had just solved a million-piece puzzle. He looked about to speak to her, but Hinata was thrown off her chair in a gust of pressured heat and a blindingly bright light. What seemed like seconds later she heard a booming sound, and she felt herself flying forward into blackness.

* * *

**Edited: November 3, 2009**


	5. Chapter Five

**Author's Note:** Please read, enjoy, and review!

* * *

**THE DIVINE WINDS OF SUNA**

**Chapter Five**

Gaara felt like his whole body was on fire as he forced himself to walk at a controlled pace through the hospital in Building Two. He had little reason to visit the hospital normally, but today his older brother and that girl – _Hyūga Hinata_ – had been involved in the first public bombing the Kamikaze had organized. There was very little information – Temari had been the levelheaded tactician, sending an elite ANBU squad out as fast as possible, but they had yet to contact her with a report. Gaara had desperately wanted to go after the Kamikaze himself, but Temari had convinced Gaara that his place was with his people for the time. He had an exceptionally trained ANBU force…

For the moment there were four confirmed dead, sixteen injured, and hundreds now cowering in fear for their lives within their homes. Gaara could not think of a better place for the citizens of Suna, so he had issued a Level Four alert and asked people to stay indoors for the remainder of the day. He would have to lift the alert soon, he couldn't keep his city from thriving, but for now he needed the streets clear – it would expedite the ANBU's manhunt.

The hospital was bustling with iryō-nin, treating the injured and shuffling people from one area to the next. It took most of Gaara's control to keep a professional pace and not sprint madly through the halls. When he finally reached the correct room he flew open the door, searching.

Kankurō was sitting on the bed, face-paint removed. He looked singed and battered, but clearly alive. An iryō-nin was standing before him, plucking bits of glass from Gaara's brother's wide chest. They clinked into a dish by her side. When he saw Gaara he looked up and grinned. "Gaara!"

"Where is she?" he growled in return.

"Yah, I'll be fine; thanks for your concern…" Kankurō muttered under his breath, looking a little put out.

"Where?" Gaara grit out from between clenched teeth.

Kankurō looked away. "They separated us, Gaara…" he replied in an uneasy voice. There was fear in it – not of Gaara, but _for_ Hinata. "She's…Hinata-san took the brunt of the blast…she wasn't sitting too far from the source."

Gaara, for the first time in his life, felt true fear. It was like a vast emptiness in the pit of his stomach, growing so fast it seemed to want to swallow him from the inside. Gaara couldn't explain the sudden surge of urgency that filled him, made him see red. He'd never felt the sensation before, and tried to shove down the feeling before it overtook him.

Slowly, Gaara turned from the room and confronted the first iryō-nin he saw. "You!" he barked sharply at the taller, older man. "I need you to find a patient for me. Her name is Hyūga Hinata, and she was in the bombing."

"Hai, Kazekage-sama," the older man replied with a bow. "Please, come with me."

Though he seemed hesitant to release information about Hinata's condition, the iryō-nin led Gaara through the hospital quickly, taking him down several flights of stairs. A sign they passed told him they were entering surgery.

As Gaara gazed through the window at Hinata's prone form, the iryō-nin began reading over a chart one of his assistants provided. She was on her stomach, and several healers were posed around her.

"Hyūga-san was brought to us by your brother," the man said. Gaara half-turned towards him. "Despite his own injuries…" He hummed and flipped a few pages. "There was minimal burning, but she's taken shrapnel pretty heavily to the back, and she has a head injury."

After a moment, Gaara whispered in a quiet, low tone. "And?"

The man was silent a moment. Gaara turned back to Hinata, knowing the answer. "It depends on how strong she is, Kazekage-sama," the healer murmured. "The removal of shrapnel is a delicate, long process. It cannot be rushed. The healers are worried about the blood in her lungs, and how often they need to drain it. The main concern is blood loss."

Gaara nodded his head, trying to project an air confidence, when he actually felt like a sandstorm raging in the desert. The healer wisely excused himself, leaving Gaara to observe the surgery. The healers worked quickly, and Gaara was glad to know that the operation was taking several of his most experienced, talented healers. Hinata was receiving the best treatment possible.

After hours of consideration, debating on Temari's words, Gaara had decided that Hinata was much too great a risk to his stability and dependability as a leader. It had begun right as she arrived, when the mere sight of her filled him with such an unreasonable anger that it made it difficult for him to relay her mission to her. This was a bizarre reaction for him; he who never cared too much about anything anyone did, as long as they were doing their job. And then the time he spent with her beneath the city, exploring the endless maze of passages that had brought them to the secret room and the discovery of the Kamikaze's goals. Sure, without her, that would not have been possible, but his behavior and reaction to her closeness had been so poor, had clouded his judgment so much, that he was unwilling to get that close to her again.

But he wanted to. He wanted to be so much closer to her. It dominated his thoughts at night, delayed sleep, and, when he did sleep, he dreamt about her. Most disturbing was that the visions he had of Hinata were far from appropriate. They were predominately sexual in nature, and varied from tender, sweet kisses to violent, stimulating visions of hot sex. He had tried to cleanse himself of these visions and the urges they caused, but without success. Gaara came to the conclusion that it was her proximity – he'd never had these thoughts of any other female, and they began with her presence. If she left, then things would return to normal. He would not be tempted, for she would be unavailable.

Then he had heard she was involved in the bombing in the restaurant district, one that involved a large number of his own citizens. And he didn't think of them – he didn't even think of his own brother. Gaara's thoughts were bent on Hinata. He _needed_ her to be okay. She _must not _die. Why should she affect him so much that he couldn't keep himself out of the hospital? He had other duties at the moment, things he should really be doing to help Temari manage the madness the city would dissolve onto. But somehow, Gaara knew his sanity relied on whether or not Hinata survived.

He felt himself teetering, the monster inside waking, calling for the blood of the men that caused this, that hurt his Hinata. _His_ Hinata, the girl he longed to be close to, but knew was unhealthy for him. She had, in the three days she'd been in Suna, caused the monster to rise twice – more in that short period of time than in the last three years. The monster inside was rising for her, she made him dangerous, and he needed her away from him. But could the monster be buried with distance? He was quickly beginning to doubt that.

Gaara clenched his fist, his subconscious raising the sand from his gourd, thinking they were going on a manhunt for the Kamikaze. After a frenzied moment he was able to reign himself in and cork his sand. He looked through the glass at Hinata, whose bare back was now exposed. Flesh was torn and muscles and bones were exposed. The iryō-nin were still removing tiny pieces of shrapnel from her thin, pale body. There was no telling how long, the other healer had said. They would continue until they were done, or until Hinata's body gave out.

_I'm not so weak as I look…_ Her words suddenly echoed through his head. She had told him this just the other day when she'd asked him to remove the shuriken from her shoulder. He chuckled darkly when he realized that not only had Hinata surely saved his life by throwing her body in front of him, but Hinata had also been the shield for Kankurō, who received only minor damage from the blast. With such a tiny, frail girl protecting his family, how could he _not_ feel safe?!

Gaara resolved, at that exact moment, to always do what he could to protect Hinata. The girl had sacrificed for him, for his brother…he couldn't afford to lose her just to survive himself…

"I _will _protect you, Hinata," he whispered to himself, gazing at the surgery before him as though his words would force the hand of fate to his will.

"She'll need you to," a voice said behind him. Gaara couldn't contain the growl that escaped him.

* * *

Temari was crossing her arms, covered in slime, dirt, and who knew what. Her hair was matted down, and her clothes were filthy. Temari would never remain in such a state if she could help it – for a shinobi, she was kind of a girl. "We have a problem," she told him shortly, her face an angry grimace.

Temari turned slightly as Kankurō came busting into the observation room she had found Gaara in. He was followed closely by Matsuri, who was helping a few healers try to settle the puppet master. "It can _wait,_ you nagging females!" he shouted irritably. There were gouges on his naked chest, some still bleeding as he pushed the women out of the room. "Get out!" He grunted, pushing closed the door. "I saw you pass my room, Temari. What's going on?"

She had always thought that the three of them worked well as a team. They had the ability to read each other flawlessly, something many teams needed years to accomplish. Temari gave Kankurō a meaningful look, glancing slightly at Gaara, who was now ignoring them in favor of the surgery beyond the window. Kankurō returned her look with one of understanding.

"Like I said," Temari murmured after a moment, pulling a messy scroll from her pack. "We've got a major problem. In fact, we can't be completely sure this room is secure enough to discuss it. Gaara…"

Gaara turned a blank, emotionless face towards her. Sand began to filter out of his gourd, sifting under the doors and into the vent above them. After a moment, when he must have formed several of his spying, third eyes, Gaara asked her in a flat, gravelly voice, "Only iryō-nin…what am I looking for, Temari?"

Temari grunted, sloughing off a slick layer of slime from the scroll she was unrolling. "We're looking for a traitor on your council, Gaara," she told them. "Our plan was compromised. In fact, our only saving grace was that Hinata-san had not yet finished the maps of the secret passageways."

Temari kneeled down on the ground, smoothing out the scroll and revealing a map of the sewers under the Kazekage compound. "These are the updated versions I got from Hinata-san this morning," she explained. "The blue lines depict the new sewers, beneath them are the orange, which represent the second level passages, then green, then red. These triangles are where I had trip alarms stationed – any access to that secret chamber."

She began drawing out a line with her finger, smudging the scroll slightly. It followed along the line of triangles directly towards the secret chamber. "This is the route that someone took to get to the secret chamber. The only reason it was not breeched is that an animal tripped an alarm, and one of our ANBU was resetting it. He killed the man in a fight."

"Kuso!" Kankurō swore, punching his palm with the opposite hand. "But how do we know they didn't just get lucky? They could have taken those passages by random."

"No," Temari disagreed, shaking her head. "There are too many factors unaccounted for. First of all, they didn't trip a single alarm – even some rodent in the sewers is enough to trip these alarms. Second, their route is the most direct to the secret room. Third…well, third, there was a distraction planned – the bombing in the restaurant district."

Temari sighed, pushing sweat off her brow. "Our enemy is either very close to us, or there is a very talented spy among the Kamikaze. I am unsure of which, but what I do know is that the Kamikaze are better organized that I imagined, and have better resources. There is no doubt in my mind that Hinata-san was the target of this attack. She is the biggest threat against the Kamikaze. These are men that rely on the shadows and anonymity to operate. A shinobi with the ability to see everything is their worst enemy."

Temari held her breath as she said this, trying her best not to look as terrified as she felt when Gaara's top lip raised animal-like over his teeth, growling slightly. Swallowing, Temari continued, her voice low. "Protecting Hinata is essential, for she is our greatest weapon against the Kamikaze…" Temari turned to look at Hinata as well. "However, I'm no longer sure who we can trust…not on your council…maybe not even among my ANBU forces…" She frowned. "I can only trust the two of you. We can only trust each other with this information."

Temari let this sink in, seeing Kankurō's look of determination and Gaara's quietly building rage. Possibly the stupidest thing these Kamikaze could ever have done was attack Hinata. Temari could see the monster fighting to break free behind her youngest brother's eyes. She knew Gaara well enough to know that he as in the midst of fending off his own bloodlust. She knew how difficult it was for him to curb these impulses, and the fact that it was Hinata in danger must only weaken his resolve.

"I have an idea," Kankurō said uncharacteristically. While Temari knew her brother was not unintelligent, he did not possess the cool logical process that Temari and Gaara shared. Kankurō did not often participate in these discussions.

"Well…?" Temari said after a moment.

Kankurō gave her a dirty look, then plugged his nose and coughed at her. Temari glared, thankful Gaara was not watching. "Why don't we write Konoha?" he asked. After a short pause, he explained himself. "I agree that we can only trust ourselves, but we can't do everything, just the three of us. We can either guard Hinata-san against further attacks while the Kamikaze hunt down in the sewers unrestrained…or we can track down the Kamikaze, leaving Hinata-san open for further attack."

Temari shrugged. "That's not actually a bad idea. But then, you would know about protecting multiple fronts, as a puppet master," she added. Kankurō grinned quickly.

Temari glanced towards Gaara, who was still looking at Hinata's prone body, his back and neck tense. After a few silent minutes, Gaara nodded. "Write the Hokage." Then, after a moment, "Call a meeting. All my council members must attend."

At this, Temari coughed uncomfortably. "That…may not be wise, Gaara-sama…"

She heard a light growl. "Continue."

"I suggest…" Temari began slowly. "I suggest that we take no action…and that our reinforcements from Konoha remain secret. We need to play as stupid as possible, without seeming like we're acting." Temari tried to stop herself from getting too far ahead. "We need to make a special request for Nara Shikamaru," she finally confessed. "He's the best they have when it comes to espionage, tactics, and black ops. Though he'll complain the whole time, that slacker…" she added under her breath. Shikamaru would be absolutely unbearable if he learned she specifically asked for him. She hoped that Tsunade-sama would be kind enough not to mention it.

"Fine," Gaara said shortly. "Send our fastest hawk, Temari."

Taking that as a dismissal, Temari and Kankurō left the observation room. Temari glanced back to Gaara once more, sharing another meaningful look with Kankurō. "Follow me," she told him, brushing off the healers as they passed Kankurō's room only to collect his puppet scrolls.

They were well on their way to Temari's private rooms when Temari spoke again. "We have another problem that I couldn't speak with Gaara about, Kankurō."

Kankurou nodded beside her. "If you're talking about Hinata-san, I've been made aware of that." When Temari raised a brow at this. "I was talking about how Hinata-san is in love with Gaara."

Slightly taken aback, Temari fought the urge to laugh. "Well I was talking about how Gaara is in love with Hinata-san," Temari informed him. "Are you sure?" she asked incredulously. It was not so far of a stretch – she had foreseen such a situation after speaking with Gaara about just this. Temari was more surprised that Kankurō was able to see something like that. Typically, Kankurō was not as observant of these things as, say, Temari.

Kankurō gave her a dirty look. "Yes. I spoke with Hinata-san…it's obvious enough even for me."

Despite his sarcastic comment, Temari nodded. "Well, any suggestions, Mr. Observant?"

Kankurō snorted. "Yah, I have a great one. Let's keep our fat faces out of it!"

It was Temari's inclination to do just that, but things had changed a little. "You saw him in the hospital, Kankurō," she reminded him. "He's unable to lead while his attention is on Hinata-san. He was like this not too long ago because of her if you need to be reminded…"

This time Kankurō gave her a truly nasty look. "And you don't think Gaara knows that, _onee-chan_?"

"Don't take that tone with me, _nii-chan_," she snapped back, unwilling to agree with Kankurō. "I'm trying to do what's best for Suna_ and_ Gaara. I just don't know what to do."

"Well, take some advice from Mr. Observant," he told her. "Gaara may be your younger brother, but he's the Kazekage. Unless you're going to turn traitor and start undermining him and his power because of your little plotting, overly-suspicious mind, you should shut the hell up and trust him. Quite frankly, you're annoying me. I'm tired of telling you to trust our own brother."

Temari was taken aback, but not only by the ferocity of Kankurō's words and the depth of his loyalty. It was rare when Kankurō attempted to reprimand her. He did not often choose confrontation with either Temari or Gaara; rather, he tended to aim his razor sharp tongue at those outside the family. He was widely known as an asshole with a sharp tongue, but Gaara and Temari rarely saw that side of him. "Kankurō…" she finally muttered, hanging her head. They were in her quarters by now. "I…"

"I told you that you were annoying me, Temari," he said in a kinder voice. "You smell, too. Get in the shower and I'll write the Hokage…a special request for your apathetic little boyfriend…"

Temari hung her shoulders a little bit. Kankurō was right about everything, and Temari couldn't fight or deny it. "Arigatō…Kankurō," she said.

Kankurō grunted. "What'd you do to get so filthy in the first place?" he asked, raising his nose at her.

For the first time, Temari was glad for the mud that covered her from head to toe. She flushed slightly. "I used my fan down in those tunnels…"

Kankurō paused then laughed loudly and fully at her stupidity. Temari laughed a little herself. She had joined a squad of ANBU in flushing out the Kamikaze, coordinating the efforts from below via walky-talky. She had attempted to flush out a suspected Kamikaze, but the wind ended up ricocheting off the walls and blowing back full in her face. She should have been able to foresee this, but now she knew.

* * *

Tenten flushed slightly when she entered the Hokage's office, noticing that she was the last to arrive. Tsuande-sama's assistant showed her in, where she joined Nara Shikamaru and her leo-tarded teammate, Rock Lee. It was early morning. During this time she would typically be training. She and Neji – when he was available and not on a mission – would usually train together in the very early hours of the morning. His impenetrable defense and close combat style challenged her mid- to long-distance style. They worked well as training partners, but not much else. In fact, Tenten was usually of the opinion that Neji was a snobbish jerk, and he thought she was a loud-mouthed female. Their teamwork was better than Tenten and Rock Lee's, but Tenten and Lee could stand to see each other socially.

This morning, however, Tenten had been alerted of the Hokage's need for her while she was training by herself. It had taken time to get back towards Konoha, since her preferred training yards were a long distance from the village. They offered seclusion and solidarity, things Tenten found she quite enjoyed. She would pack for several days of uninterrupted training and simply work herself to the bone in the forests around Konoha. This trip had been disturbed by the arrival of a messenger hawk, causing her to leave two days in advance.

Still a bit scruffy from the road, Tenten bowed slightly to the Hokage, acknowledging Shikamaru and Lee. "I apologize for my tardiness, Tsunade-sama," she said.

The older woman nodded. "I've just had word from Sunagakure, and they're requesting additional assistance on the mission I sent Hyūga Hinata on. I'll have to brief you here, however, for reasons you'll soon understand." The Godaime Hokage passed Shikamaru a scroll. "About five days ago I sent Hyūga Hinata on a very delicate mission to Suna. She was to use her skills as a tracker to locate a cell of terrorists that have taken to bombing Suna and assassinating political figures. She sent me an update a few days ago, alluding to the fact that there were some secret tunnels beneath the city that the Kamikaze were using to travel unseen. Her report was optimistic.

"Now," she continued, nodding to the scroll in Shikamaru's hands, "I received that request a few hours ago. It revealed that Hinata had become a target for the Kamikaze, and was in surgery after a failed assassination attempt on her life. Shikamaru was requested specifically for his tactical skills, but I think the two of you will be helpful additions. Please, leave immediately, for Hinata's life could still be in danger."

Tenten nodded her head, wondering exactly what qualified her for such a mission, wondering if the Hokage was bullshitting them, if they were just available. She shrugged. A mission was a mission. As she was about to leave, Shikamaru cleared his throat. "What rank is this mission?"

The Hokage leaned back in her seat, observing the young man with a speculative look. "I've decided to classify it as A-rank. But it could be closer to S-rank. Why?"

Shikamaru shoved his hands into his pockets, facing the ceiling as he grumbled. "I just wanted to know how much of a drag this all would be…"

To Tenten it didn't seem as if that was why Shikamaru wanted to know what rank the mission was, but she kept her mouth closed, noting that the Hokage didn't look like she believed it either.

"We shall all do our very best, Tsunade-sama! The power of youth will guide us to a valiant victory –"

"_Shuddup,_ Lee," Tenten hissed, dragging Rock Lee down by the ear, all the while smiling sweetly at the Hokage. She bowed the both of them out of the room, following the lazy steps of their team leader, Nara Shikamaru.

When the door closed behind them, Tenten let go of Lee's ear. "Why do you gotta embarrass me so much, Lee?" she asked, massaging her temples.

"I am close to becoming a jōnin, Tenten," he said, almost in a shout. "If the Hokage sees how dedicated I am to becoming a true ninja, she will _have _to make me a jounin."

Tenten rolled her eyes. "This_ is_ going to be a drag," she murmured, half mocking Shikamaru.

Still, she and Rock Lee continued following Shikamaru out of the Hokage's building. After looking up at the morning sky, he turned to them. "Meet at the main gates in thirty minutes."

Tenten nodded, noting how Shikamaru seemed preoccupied. Still, she made her way quickly to her flat and began to sort through which summoning scrolls she wanted to bring. After a while she glanced at the clock, unwilling to be late once again.

When she met Shikamaru and Lee at the main gates, Shikamaru still had that preoccupied look on his face. Lee was excited beyond reason, of course, but the three of them left immediately at top speed. Tenten knew that it was typically a three-day trip to Suna, but at this rate they would be there in a day and a half. Shikamaru was setting the pace, and Tenten wondered to herself if the speed of their pace had anything to do with that Suna kunoichi Shikamaru was always seen around. The pace didn't bother her much, and she knew that Lee would enjoy the challenge.

Hours of that grueling pace and Tenten was beginning to feel fatigued. Shikamaru had called for a brief break a few miles back, but they were still a few hours outside of the Kaze no Kuni desert. At this rate, when they reached Suna they would be too tired to be any good. Tenten was about to point this out to their team leader when he stopped abruptly, signaling for silence.

Down in a clearing they were about to pass over was a figure in black carrying something odd on its back. Tenten watched for Shikamaru's next move, but instead of his typical lazy expression there was an anxious look on his face. After a moment it became relief, and he leapt down from their trees.

"Shikamaru," the woman said, her voice a sigh on the wind.

Tenten almost felt embarrassed looking at the two of them gaze at each other. She pulled on the back of Lee's leotard, preventing him from joining the two jōnin on the ground.

"Hey!" he griped, but Tenten shushed him.

She pushed Lee back a few feet, glancing towards the ground briefly. Shikamaru and the woman were holding each other in a passionate embrace. Tenten could see the woman's pale hand reach around into Shikamaru's thick hair, pushing them together as close as possible.

* * *

**Edited:** **November 3, 2009**


	6. Chapter Six

**Author's Note (Part 1):** Please read, enjoy, and review!

* * *

**THE DIVINE WINDS OF SUNA**

**Chapter Six**

She could only describe the sensation as something like floating in warm foam. She couldn't see anything, but she heard the shuffling of feet, and occasionally voices. Wanting to speak, wanting to let people know something was wrong with her, Hinata tried everything just to wiggle her fingers. But it was like her brain couldn't tell her body what to do…it felt like she was dying… But surely, when you died, you saw a bright white light, or there was a shadowy figure to lead you into heaven, or something mystical. All Hinata had was the warmth, and the sensation that she was not alone, that someone was next to her.

After what could have been years, Hinata began to feel a tingling sensation. At first she thought it was good to feel her body again, but the tingling began to feel like stabbing needles, and the needles began to feel like burning pokers. And worst of all was that she wanted to scream, wanted to tell someone she hurt, anything to make it stop…but nothing… Nothing worked! She could feel a dampness on her cheeks, and realized that she was crying. Praying someone would notice, Hinata tried to move something, anything.

Soon she learned to live with the pain. She could almost dull it if she thought about something else. For a while, Hinata's thoughts strayed to the mission. She could remember the last few days, remember the embarrassing interactions she'd had with Gaara-sama, the Kazekage. She remembered meeting Kankurō, and how he had been the only person in Suna that was really nice to her. She remembered mapping out those filthy, dank, murky sewers…and her recent hospitalization…

But most of all she thought about Gaara-sama. Maybe it was like with Naruto…she had admired Naruto so much that she developed a crush on him. Hinata knew that Naruto had strong feelings for his teammate, for Sakura, but she had still loved him in her own way. Hinata's feelings had faded over time, after watching the budding romance between her two friends; she knew that Naruto would never see her like he saw Sakura. She couldn't help but be a little hurt over this, but Hinata was used to being hurt, to not being loved…she had more or less resigned herself to it.

But when she saw Gaara-sama…Gaara-sama who reminded her so much of Naurto, who she admired just as much as she admired Naruto… Hinata knew her feelings, whatever they were, would not be returned. Gaara thought she was weak. The way he looked at her, the way he spoke to her – it was how her father, and at one time Neji, had looked at her and spoke to her.

This despair made the pain she felt seem small in comparison. In fact, she found that she rather preferred the sensation of burning pokers. And just as she resigned herself to the fact that she would carry the misery of constant rejection her whole life, Hinata felt the lightest of feathery touches on her palm. In a way, this touch stung more than the searing, constant pain. It was like a reprimand…or just a reminder…

"Hinata," she heard him say, the softness of his whisper an echo of the softness of his touch. Long fingers brushed her palm again, but this time they wrapped around her hand. "Hinata, I need you to wake up."

Hinata was sure that if she had full control over her body she would be blushing outrageously. It could only be Gaara. Only he said her name like that…no one said her name quite like he did. She wanted to be able to respond to him, but nothing worked.

Suddenly, Hinata felt hot breath on her cheek. She could smell him, the cinnamon-tinged earth scent. The hand that held her squeezed painfully, but the breath on her cheek grew faster, hotter, closer. This was the second time Hinata could remember feeling this – wet warmth on her cheek, the silky sensation of Gaara's tongue, tasting her tears. The strength of his hand as it clenched hers would have made her call out in pain if she could move. But it let go.

She felt cold with the loss of Gaara's hand and warm breath. Hinata toyed with the idea that this too was all a dream, a hallucination her brain created as an escape from the pain. It seemed so real, every bit as real as the pain, but so much more cruel if it was a dream.

There was a shuffling sound, and Hinata felt desperate with the need to move, to speak, to do anything. She was awake after all, why couldn't she move? Without being able to accurately judge time, Hinata couldn't have said how long it took. Finally, she was able flex her hand – at least she thought she was. Soon she could flex both her hands, and also open and close her mouth. A little later she twitched her feet.

All the while the burning, searing pain in her back radiated to all the limbs of her body. She could tell she was lying on her stomach, her face turned to one side so as not to suffocate her. The pain in her back prevented her from moving too much, but she was getting control of her tongue and lips. She could open her eyes.

The room she was in was no doubt in Suna's hospital. The bed and the arrangement were familiar – she had been in Suna's hospital before, after all, and not too long ago. There was a window, but light only escaped around the corners of the shades. There was no other light source in the room, so it was quite dim. A full array of electronic devices beeped and flickered around her, and she could see that she was hooked into at least two of them.

There, in the far corner, facing the window, Gaara-sama stood, arms crossed. He was not wearing his gourd, but to Hinata it looked as if he carried some other, heavier weight. The haze that covered her eyes gently lifted, allowing her to focus more sharply on the young man in the corner. His long, burgundy coat – the same one he'd carried her in just a few days ago – swept at the ground below him, making the brick-red of his hair even more violently red.

Licking her lips, wetting the cotton-like texture in her mouth, Hinata called out softly. She tried to say something intelligible, but all she heard coming out of her mouth was a garbled mumble sounding something like, "Gaara-sama."

Gaara turned around swiftly, his dark-rimmed eyes pinning her with a sharp look. Then, after a few moments he blinked and walked swiftly out of the room. Hinata's heart sank back into her chest, retreated behind her veil of awkward shyness. _Of course, _she thought to herself. _Of course, he would not stay._

Hinata felt more wet tears on her cheek, knowing that it was not just the searing pain of her back that caused them. As much as she should be used to rejection, it hurt more and more each time.

Suddenly, the doors burst open. Lights blinded her, inundating her vision with white before she could adjust. When she did open her eyes she saw several iryō-nin, and Gaara was commanding them in no uncertain terms, his voice low and intimidating. "Now, she is awake. You will heal her immediately."

"Kazekage-sama…" a male healer said in a small voice. "Her vitals are not yet strong enough for us to attempt the next part of the healing process. She's just not strong enough."

Hinata would have shivered if that piercing glare and silent, seething look were directed her way. The iryō-nin backed away a few steps. "Do not assume to know how strong or weak Hinata-san is," Gaara snarled. "You know _nothing_ about her. _Now, finish the procedure._"

The way he spoke took Hinata back to when she was fighting Neji in the Chûnin Exams. Though no one believed in her, not even her own teammates, Naruto had encouraged her, had told her she wasn't weak. Naruto believed in her.

Gaara believed in her now…

"Gaara-sama…" she croaked out, drawing his iron-hard gaze down to her. When he met her eyes, however, his own softened slightly. "Dōmo arigatō…gozaimasu…"

She saw his jaw harden, and his pale green eyes flashed over with steel. Then he turned to the iryō-nin. "Begin healing immediately."

"Hai, Kazekage-sama," one of the healers replied courteously.

Hinata couldn't feel anything but pain for the next few hours. It was worse than before, when it had just been throbbing and burning. This time they probed her back, stretched her skin, re-grew dead tissue. She could feel her ribs exposed to the open air, feel the muscles in her back repair. Several healers for many hours worked, but Hinata didn't cry anymore. Her eyes locked on Gaara's, and he didn't look away even once. They didn't betray any emotion, give her any hint of what he might be thinking or feeling, but it was enough that he was there.

After several hours, Hinata's pain began to fade. She was still able to feel the newly grown skin and muscle tissue. It stretched achingly over her back, and it was too tender to touch or even wrap with bandages. She could see looks on the faces of the healers as they left the room. Relief and the lingering bits of fear remained in their eyes – either from Gaara's intimidation or concern for Hinata's wellbeing. Hinata was tired, and she was beginning to fade out of consciousness when Gaara's slow footsteps alerted her to his close proximity.

She knew that, under any other circumstances, Hinata would have been ashamed beyond reason at the full exposure of her back. She was almost too tired to care at this point as Gaara came to stand over her. When his eyes met hers they were soft again, not angry or hard at all.

"What…what happened to me…?" she asked in a small voice.

Gaara's eyes closed, his fists tightened. "Four days ago you were the target of a Kamikaze bombing in the restaurant district. You sustained heavy damage on your back and head."

Hinata could remember having some of that horrid cactus tea, and then the weightless sensation of being surrounded by bright light. "Kankurō-san?" she asked softly.

At this, Gaara paused. "You shielded him from a majority of the blast. He is on a mission right now…below the city…"

She swallowed. "Oh," she murmured, feeling very tired. After a moment she asked, "How…how does it l-look?" she asked.

His eyes met her swiftly. She noticed that he had not really been looking at her, but rather keeping his eyes pinned safely on the top corner of the room. Was he trying to preserve her modesty? She felt his eyes move to her back, sweeping over it leisurely. One of his hands twitched at his side, and moved slowly towards her back. "It's fine," he said sharply, clenching his hand back to his side. "It's perfect."

Hinata nodded, feeling a slight blush rise onto her cheeks. She averted her gaze as best she could. Gaara left her side, turning off the lights and facing the window once more. It was now dark out, and Hinata felt fatigued and half asleep already. With her eyes still on Gaara's back, Hinata let sleep take her.

* * *

When they entered the village it was dark. Temari signaled for absolute silence as she lifted the heavy metal cover from the sewer entrance. The three shinobi from Konoha jumped in swiftly, and Temari covered the sewer again. When the last ray of moonlight shrank into blackness, Temari cracked a glow-stick, lighting the sewer. Shikamaru's face had been hard and expressionless since they entered the desert. The girl, Tenten, had the look of someone who was studying and observing the situation intently. Temari knew her from their battle in the preliminaries. Temari also recognized the third shinobi, Rock Lee, as the taijutsu-user that had nearly defeated her brother in the Chûnin Exams a few years ago.

Temari brought out a map, allowing Shikamaru to stand beside her, holding one side to spread it evenly for them all to see. "This is one of the few maps Hinata-san completed before she was attacked," Temari explained in a low voice. The three Konoha shinobi looked up at her sharply. "Hinata-san's Byakugan can see beneath the ground. Her skill has been invaluable. It's my opinion that there's a spy or a traitor among the council members, and that Hinata-san was attacked because of her ability to sniff out the Kamikaze's location in the sewers with her Byakugan."

Out of the corner of her eye, Temari saw Shikamaru nod his head in agreement. "Unless the spy is within your own ANBU forces," he said quietly, "I'm disinclined to think it is a spy, but rather a traitor."

"I agree," Temari said with a nod. "This," she pointed to the map, "is the secret chamber Hinata found. Kankurō is guarding the only entrance, which is through about five miles of twisting sewer and twenty meters of frigid water. We'll meet him and regroup with Gaara and Hinata-san. Hopefully she will be healed. Her Byakugan is still a key weapon against the Kamikaze."

Temari began rolling the map back into the scroll. "I want to see the room," Shikamaru told her quietly.

"I do as well," Temari replied. "I've been unable to confirm any information that Gaara and Hinata-san gave me."

They traveled for several hours in silence and nearly complete darkness. Temari could only feel the coolness of the tunnels, could only hear the shuffling of feet. Shikamaru's breath close behind her was almost bewitching. It had been many months since she'd seen him last, and the passionate embrace they shared the night before was not nearly as satisfying as she would have hoped.

Never before had Temari met anyone she wanted to kill and kiss equally. Seeing Shikamaru in the clearing gave her such relief that her typically cold exterior melted. She knew he was not alone, but the look in his eyes, the need she saw in them, she couldn't stop herself from clinging to him. Shikamaru…she couldn't stand him most of the time. She wanted to kill him nine times out of ten. That one time in ten, the one time she felt tenderness. And more than that. Sometimes…sometimes Temari wanted Shikamaru to do things to her, to make her feel more. It was difficult to explain, even to herself. Most of the time she preferred to avoid thoughts like these, she buried herself in work.

Now though, with Shikamaru's eyes burning holes in the back of her head, Temari couldn't avoid her own imagination. She was a healthy, young kunoichi. Her body reacted to him; it reacted very sexually. Temari never had cause to be embarrassed of her body, she knew how attractive she was, knew how intimidating her beauty and lethality were. It was rare when a man could look past these things, when he would not be intimidated by her. But Shikamaru had never been intimidated by her, and his confidence was attractive…his intelligence was attractive…

As the four of them approached the area Kankurō would be guarding, Temari refocused herself and began thinking more about he mission. She would need to be alert and aware for the next few days. Temari couldn't get distracted by Shikamaru. No matter how much she might want to…

When they met up with Kankurō, Temari could see the fatigue in his eyes. Whereas Temari had been keeping a watch out for the Konoha reinforcements, Kankurō had been left down in the secret tunnels to guard against the Kamikaze. Gaara had stayed in the hospital with Hinata, fulfilling his Kazekage duties from there. There was no doubt that Kankurō had the worst of it, though – unable to sleep, having to constantly be on guard. When she relieved him, saying that she and Shikamaru would be venturing into the secret chamber, Temari could see the relief in Kankurō's eyes.

"Don't go into the compound if you can help it," she informed her younger brother. "Go to our family's home; stay in hiding until Shikamaru and I return." She paused. "If you don't see us by noon, send someone you trust. I don't want anyone but you, Gaara, and me to know of our reinforcements."

Kankurō assembled his puppets, sealing them back into his scroll. "Be careful down here. About a mile north of here I had a confrontation, but I couldn't see my enemy. They know someone is down here, but they think there are four people."

Temari nodded, watching as her brother and the two Konoha shinobi disappeared into the darkness, returning to the surface. Temari knew they would be safe – Kankurō would know the tunnels by now, and the two shinobi with him were not exactly pushovers. She turned back to Shikamaru, whose serious face betrayed the dangerous nature of the mission. If there was any sign she paid attention to, it was Shikamaru. If he was worried enough to lose his too-cool-for-school attitude, Temari should be worried as well.

They traveled in relative silence, Temari setting a quick pace, as they drew closer to the secret chamber. Soon they arrived at the hole they would have to travel down. According to Gaara and Hinata, the water was cold enough to cause hypothermia. Temari assumed that water drained down during the monsoon season, filling this tunnel with frigid water.

"It's twenty meters through frigid water," she told Shikamaru, motioning towards the hole and removing her giant fan. It would be useless when wet. She paused. Without it, Temari would be at a great disadvantage if they were attacked on the other side. In fact, down in these tunnels, Shikamaru was already at a disadvantage – no light, no shadows. When she turned to him, she saw he had already realized this. "Take off your clothes," she told him blandly.

Shikamaru gave her a look, almost sly, when she said this.

"You'll regret it when we come back out again and you only have the cold, wet clothes on your back," she snapped at him, untying the red sash around her black yukuta. When she slid the light cotton from her shoulders she shivered a little. Without the informal kimono, Temari was left in a very brief, bright red set of panties and bra. She refused to be ashamed of her body, which she knew to be at the peak of physical perfection. Still, a light blush covered her cheeks when she saw Shikamaru staring shamelessly at her long, toned legs. "Well?" she said insistently, pinning him with a hard look.

She noticed that Shikamaru blushed lightly too when he got down to his loose, red-striped boxers. Feeling as though they were at least back on even ground, Temari went down into the water first, hissing when she got up to her stomach. "I'm dropping glow sticks," she alerted him before plunging into the water.

Hinata's description of the water was not far off, but it was still different when Temari finally experienced it. She felt as though her whole body would betray her and stop moving entirely. She wasn't quite sure how she made it through at all, but somehow her head surfaced and she dragged herself out of the water. Shikamaru came up behind her, shaking with blue lips. Temari felt as bad as he looked.

"We need to keep moving," she said, teeth chattering as she hugged her middle. "Gaara and Hinata-san said there is a heat source within the room."

Shining ahead with her flashlight, Temari led the way (this part being short and unmapped by Hinata) towards the large, wooden doors. Shikamaru pushed against them, letting Temari shine her light around within. "Do you have anything to light those with?" he asked, directing her flashlight to an oil lamp.

"Sure," she snorted, giving him a doubtful look. "I keep waterproof matches somewhere in these panties. Let me check."

"Man, what a drag," Shikamaru complained, smoothing back his wet ponytail with one hand. "Hey, turn around, would you?"

"What?" she said, cutting back a gasp of surprise. "Are you some kind of pervert?"

Shikamaru groaned. "Like I could be right now – that water was brutal. Just turn around. I don't think I can do this with you watching."

Temari's eyebrow rose doubtfully. "Well now I'm _definitely_ not turning around," she told him matter-of-factly.

Shikamaru glared at her half-heartedly, moving so that his back was between her and the oil lamp. After a few mumbled words and several attempts at hand signs, Shikamaru stepped back from the newly lit oil lamp. Temari's eyebrow rose again. "Impressive…" she said softly. "Are you fire-natured?"

Shikamaru didn't reply, but his eyes widened as oil lamps began to light in a spiral up to the very top of the room. Each lamp illuminated another level of the cylindrical room, and more and more scrolls were revealed as the lamps went higher and higher. The size of the ancient library, and the amount of scrolls it contained, was almost enough to make Temari forget about the cold. Almost. She looked for the device Gaara described, the one that allowed thermal heat to warm the chamber.

She found it easily – it was so bizarrely shaped that it stood out. When she turned it on it spat a cloud of dark smoke, causing her and Shikamaru to jump slightly. "We should dry off," she suggested, sitting close enough to the vent so that it would warm her.

Shikamaru flopped down beside her, and his bare knee grazed hers as he reached his hands towards the vent. Since their passionate embrace in the forest they hadn't spoken much. Temari didn't know what to say, and you could barely strangle words out of Shikamaru if he didn't want to talk. She wanted to stay on task, complete her mission, but the memory of that embrace haunted her…the way he drunk her in, how safe she felt, how whole…

"Shikamaru," she whispered, almost so low that she thought he wouldn't hear. "I'm glad you're here."

"I told you, Temari," he said just as quietly. "You just have to ask."

The last time they had been together, alone, was almost a year ago. Temari had been promoted up in the ANBU ranks and couldn't fulfill her Chûnin Exam duties. When they parted almost a year ago, Temari had kissed him – a brief goodbye – and promised to write. But it was so hard to write him…she would put a pen to paper and nothing would happen. Everything she wanted to tell him seemed stupid and insignificant – she couldn't write love letters. So she hadn't written, not even when he wrote her. And after that, Temari could understand how Skikamaru would be cold towards her.

After a few moments of silence, Temari spoke again. "I never wrote you back… sumimasen, Shikamaru."

When he said nothing, Temari peeked a look at him. His face was hard, and he didn't look at her at all. "It's fine," he told her in a hallow voice. "I figured you were just playing your little games, Temari. You girls always gotta keep us boys on our toes, toy around with us. I get it."

"Shikamaru," she said softly, unsure of what she really wanted to say. She clasped her hands together.

"I just assumed you got boyfriend or something," he continued lazily, leaning back on his hands and looking up to the dragon on the ceiling. "You know…long distance things are such a pain…"

Temari flushed with anger, turning to face him. "You think I just go around kissing people and then dropping them the second someone else comes along?"

"You really know how to put words into someone's mouth," he growled back, a bit of heat on his cheeks as well. "It wouldn't have been a big deal if you did get another boyfriend, you know."

"And why is that?" Temari spat back, her temper getting the best of her. Only Shikamaru could get her so flustered so fast! "Did you go and get yourself a little girlfriend?"

Shikamaru snorted, looking away from her, a sneer on his lips. "It wouldn't be a big deal because I know I could never keep a girl like you anyway. I always knew you'd go for someone your own age – I was just there, along for the ride. I was just scratching post for you to sharpen your claws on."

Temari felt as if all the air in her lungs left, and then her chest deflated. So taken aback, she couldn't even sputter a reasonably snide remark. Shikamaru turned to watch her flounder, a dark look in his eyes. Temari did the only thing she could think of at the time, which was to slap him. Hard.

She stood, her hands set dangerously on her cocked hips. Shikamaru wasn't too far behind her, his eyes angry now, and one hand on his cheek. "What the hell was that for, you crazy female?" he barked.

"_You_," Temari began, seeing red, "you are such an_ ass_!"

"_Me_?" Shikamaru replied, pointing at his bare chest. "_You_ slap _me, _but _I'm _the _ass_!"

"Yah!" Temari shouted. "I never stopped thinking about you – just because I couldn't spout worthless love-me-knots on a parchment doesn't mean I didn't think about you! I can't believe you would think I had another boyfriend…"

He looked away from her then. After a few moments he spoke again. "Let's just focus on the mission, Temari," he finally said, still not facing her. "I'm warm enough already."

Temari caught herself from huffing or pouting. If this was the way he was going to be, Temari could play it cool as well. She could calm her expressions and smooth back her hair all she wanted; there was no hiding that he had hurt her – well, not from herself anyway. She tried to look away from him and gain her composure, but something kept stinging her from inside of her chest.

"Me, too," she finally said, moving to the desk. As long as she was here, she might as well recover accurate information on whatever threat Hinata and Gaara said they found down here.

* * *

_Sumimasen_ – an apology, but not as childish as gomen-nasai

* * *

**Author's Note (Part 2): **So, about the creepy, Gaara/blood thing…I want to explain my reasoning for this particular trait.

The way I see it, Gaara's got to be somewhat affected (damaged?) by Shukaku's demonic presence. As we know, Gaara's bond with Shukaku was very different from Naruto's bond with Kyuubi. While Kyuubi is sealed within Naruto they are completely separate entities. Gaara and Shukaku, however, were never apart – Shukaku had complete access to Gaara's spirit and mind. Even though Gaara was occasionally able to suppress Shukaku, he had to placate the demon with blood and killing.

Now, I've taken 18 credits of psychology (not that it makes me an expert by any stretch of the imagination) and I've found that childhood experiences tend to have a lasting, and often unexplainable affect on later sexual preferences. For example, if a child was molested, many times (though obviously not ALL the time) they associate sexuality with molesting children. Because of many studies I've read, I've come to believe that childhood experiences are connected with adult sexual preferences.

So, back to Gaara… In Gaara's case, we see the presence – not only presence, but constant companionship – of a demon with an unquenchable bloodlust. Because of this, Gaara associated love and blood with his mother, though he later figured out it was Shukaku's presence, not his mother's protecting him. I don't think it's unreasonable (within the realms of fanfiction) to assume that Gaara could be attracted to blood.

You should, of course, feel free to disagree with me on any point. Since nothing definitive has ever been written about this in the cannon, all my speculations are pure opinion.

* * *

**Edited: November 3, 2009**


	7. Chapter Seven

**Author's Note:** Sorry, but this chapter is a little shorter than the others have been. I try to make each chapter about 10 typed pages long, exploring ideas, plot, and characters to their fullest. Occasionally, I am able to do this in less than 10 pages. Next chapter will be longer though, I promise.

Please read, enjoy, and review!

* * *

**THE DIVINE WINDS OF SUNA**

**Chapter Seven**

Kankurō looked about himself groggily, wondering why he was in his childhood bedroom. _That's right, _he thought to himself,_ the Konoha shinobi_. His quarters on the Kazekage compound were sparse and undecorated – a testament to how often he was in them. As leader of the re-formed Puppet Brigade, Kankurō did little else but train shinobi of all levels in the art of puppeteering in battle. Though Kankurō was by no means a master of this art, he was still the only puppet-type jōnin left in Suna. As a result, Kankurō spent much of his time in Suna's Ninja Gakkō, training his students. When he was not there he could be found on missions, and occasionally, when time permitted, making new puppets.

His hand fell on one of his many failed puppet creations, sending it clashing onto the floor. His childhood bedroom was full of little treasures like this – strings, wooden limbs, heads with empty eye sockets, and an assortment of paints littered the workbenches, dressers, and even the floor. Moving aside parts and tools to make a path through the mess, Kankurō made his way to the baths, intent on a shower and a piss – he wouldn't be too particular about the order.

Dust covered the bathroom – just like all the rooms in the house. It had fallen into disuse after Gaara had become Kazekage. While Gaara had been the chosen son, allowed to live with their father in the Kazekage compound, Temari and Kankurō had lived with nannies in their home outside of town. It had been a sad time for Kankurō and Temari – their mother had just died, and their father more or less abandoned them to nannies. Kankurō had turned to puppets, and Temari had turned to fighting. Back in those days she would fight with just about anyone – but she preferred to beat up on boys…older, bigger boys.

Brownish water spewed from the showerhead for a few seconds, all the dirt and dust clearing from the stagnant pipes. After a few moments it cleared into hot, clean water. Kankurō watched as his purple face paint washed down the drain along with a long streak of dirt and grime from the sewers. He was pretty sure he had never been quite so filthy in his life, and he was glad to see the color of his skin again.

Wrapping a towel around his middle, Kankurō opened the bathroom door, steam following him for a few feet as he made his way back to his room. He used a towel to dry off his hair, walking past several empty guest rooms as he returned to his. He heard humming and the sound of metal scraping on metal as he got closer to one open door. Curious, Kankurō paused before the open door. He raised his eyebrow.

A girl was sitting in the middle of the room, bed unmade, as she used a whetstone to sharpen a kunai. This was not so unusual – if Kankurō could remember correctly, this girl was a weapons master. It was, however, particularly breathtaking to see her sharpen her weapons in nothing but a loose, high cut, sleeveless shirt and her panties. She faced away from him, her back curving gently as she sharpened her weapons. He had a great view of her ass as it dimpled slightly under her weight. She had long legs, and they were propped lazily against a large scroll of sealed weapons. The buns she typically wore weren't present, leaving her waist-length, honey brown hair dangling and swaying with every scrape against the whetstone.

After observing her for a while, Kankurō cleared his throat, leaning against the doorframe. "Who are you again?"

The girl half turned to him, piercing him with a lethal glare for several seconds. "Beat it, perv!" she snapped, flicking her wrist expertly and releasing the kunai in her hand.

Kankurō jumped back just in time for the door not to slam in his face. The kunai buried itself so deep in the wood it came out the other side – right in front of his left eye. Perturbed, but not really angry – more mystified – Kankurō called out lazily. "Hey, _you_ left the door wide open. Who's the perv now?"

A barrage of thunks assaulted the poor door, several shuriken pierced the wood, and the long, scythe-like blade of a kusarigama threatened to reach into his stomach. Kankurō shrugged, returning to his room and flopping down on his bed again. He briefly considered going back and bothering the girl again, but he was just too lazy at this point. His whole body ached, and his brain was still thick with sleep. Four days of vigilant, sleepless watch-duty, and then a pretty intense battle, was just about all Kankurō thought his body could handle. He did, however, manage to put on a loose-fitting pair of pajama bottoms before he completely relaxed in bed.

Unfortunately, his morning nap was interrupted by that female's high-pitched screaming. "I told you I was busy, Lee! Get out!"

A door slammed, and Kankurō groaned, burying his face in a pillow. Not too many seconds later there was an insistent knocking on his door. Pillow muffling another groan, Kankurō briefly lifted the pillow to shout, "Enter!"

"I have brought you sustenance, Kankurō-san!" the shinobi in the green leotard exclaimed loudly, excitedly.

Kankurō opened one eye, trying to focus on the green blob as it darted between puppet parts towards him. "It is nearly noon," the leotard informed him – that was all Kankurō could see at least. He hoped there was a person within it. "Temari-san and Shikamaru-san have yet to return."

Kankurō moved a wooden leg out of the way, finally sitting on his bed and looking up, bleary-eyed, at the Konoha shinobi with eyebrows like caterpillars. "What's your name again?" he asked. This was the taijutsu user that had nearly defeated Gaara at his first Chûnin Exam. Kankurō was not that good at names, and he was terrible with faces. Temari said that he just didn't care enough to bother putting names to faces.

"My name is Rock Lee, and I am –"

"Yah, yah," Kankurō mumbled, taking the plate of curry from Lee's outstretched hand. "Whatever."

"And this is the Curry of Life!" the boy in green continued, apparently oblivious to Kankurō's glare. "I was given the secret recipe by none other than –"

"_Whatever_," Kankurō said a little more forcefully, pinning he younger boy with a nasty stare. He was quickly remembering exactly how annoying this boy really was. Nearly ready to beat the boy senseless, Kankurō was interrupted when the girl passed by his room, pausing in the doorway.

"I'm taking over lookout now, Lee," she said, hoisting the large scroll onto the small of her back. Then she looked at Kankurō, her eyes turning to slits. "I wouldn't eat that if I were you," she told him blandly. Then she walked off, leaving Kankurō with the bizarre, annoying Konoha shinobi in green.

Glancing irritably at the younger boy, Kankurō motioned to the food. "Hey, what's wrong with this anyway, Caterpillar Brow?"

Shaking his head in sadness, Lee said, "Tenten does not like spicy foods. She does not have a taste for the flavor of life."

He frowned, thinking she too was pretty familiar. All those Konoha shinobi looked similar to him, but this one he thought he should know. Lee was yammering about something or another when it came to him. Interrupting the annoying, younger boy, "That girl –"

"Tenten is her name, and she has been my teammate for –"

"– Tenten," he finished with a growl. "She was in the Chûnin Exam preliminaries. She fought my sister."

Lee hung his head at this. Kankurō was beginning to note the overemotional reactions, and had to ball his fists to keep from pummeling the kid. "It was the most humiliating defeat Tenten has ever suffered," Lee confided. "Do not judge her by the Chûnin Exams, though, for Tenten has dedicated herself to living in the Springtime of Youth, and she is much stronger than you remember!"

For a moment, Kankurō wondered if the Konoha shinobi was pulling his leg or something. No one could possibly say that kind of stuff without feeling stupid – so was this some kind of bizarre Konoha humor that he didn't understand? The kid looked so sincere when he spoke, though, and his purity almost made Kankurō want to believe him. Or strangle him. Man, was this kid annoying!

Almost as an afterthought, Kankurō brought the curry into his mouth. It was then he realized something was very, very wrong. It was like his eyes wanted to melt out of his head – he couldn't even _feel _his tongue. Could it have incinerated on contact? And his whole face felt like it would catch on fire if it weren't for his profuse sweating. Stepping on all manner of incomplete puppets, Kankurō sprinted down the hallway and took the stairs by threes until he reached the kitchen. He was basically running his tongue under the water in hopes the burning sensation would fade.

Then Tenten walked in the room with a flat look on her face – or was there a bit of smugness in those curved lips? "Your brother is headed this way," she informed him. "I think he's carrying a corpse."

Kankurō tried to say something, but the only sound that escaped him was, "Huah coapse?"

The girl's eyebrows drew together as she crossed her arms. "I told you not to eat the curry."

* * *

The healers told him that if Hinata was to return to full strength as fast as possible that she would have to rest for several days. If Gaara had several days to sit around and insure her recovery, he would have done so. It was dazzling to be around her for so long, it pleased him to watch her sleep and be there when she would wake. However, Gaara knew he had other responsibilities, and they included the safety of an entire village – not just the safety of one kunoichi. He didn't have a choice. But he couldn't leave her in the hospital alone; the threat on her life was very much real and loomed over him every time he had to leave the room for even a moment.

Glancing at Hinata, Gaara saw that she was sleeping soundly, her chest moving up and down in a slow, familiar pattern. The day after the last healing session she had been able to lie on her back. Gaara was told this was a very good sign. In addition, when Hinata was awake, she would speak with him – usually this was all it took to wear her out, but today she had woken around eight in the morning and had been reading quietly for several hours while Gaara conducted some Kazekage business.

Gaara had taken to using Hinata's oversized hospital room to carry out his regular meetings and information briefings. If anyone thought it was odd that he should be doing his duties in the hospital, or that there was a foreign kunoichi witnessing it, they smartly said nothing of it. But now it was becoming more and more difficult to conduct business in the hospital, and Hinata needed to be guarded constantly against further attacks.

When his last meeting of the morning closed, Gaara noticed that Hinata was dozing lightly in her bed. It was nearly noon, and the sun was high in the sky. Hinata's IV kept her fed and hydrated, but Gaara was beginning to feel the pangs of hunger. He had not eaten or slept much over the last week – save that satisfying sleep after he and Hinata had returned from the sewers. Gaara was used to this, after all he was a shinobi. And when he played host to Shukaku he had barely slept more than an hour or two every other night. Perhaps he was getting soft as Kazekage. He wasn't able to train as he might have liked, and being able to sleep in a cushy bed every night, fantasizing about the beautiful woman before him, was not something he would have been able to do as a simple genin.

Gaara glanced back as Hinata moaned. Sheets rustled around her waist as she sat, her eyes immediately seeking him out. As always, the first thing she looked for was him. It gave Gaara the impression that he was needed, wanted – not something he was used to feeling… He liked it, and held her eyes for several moments before he told her, "We need to leave, Hinata-san. It is not safe for you to remain here."

Her pearly, lavender eyes looked up at him softly. "I'll always be safe with you, Gaara-sama," she said sincerely.

The innocence of her gaze, the gentleness of her tone, and the light on her face gave Gaara the impression he was speaking with a benevolent spirit of some kind. It took his breath away, the way she trusted him so implicitly. If nothing else her complete surrender of safety to his charge attracted him to her. It was amazing how just her trust in him affected his emotions. He was torn between wanting to establish his dominance, his position as protector, and wanting to touch her skin…to feel something…anything…he wasn't sure what.

A soft blush formed on her cheeks when he didn't reply, and all he could do was nod his head and mumble out, "Hn."

After several moments, Gaara cleared his throat, moving to stand next to Hinata. "I'm going to take you where you will be safe, Hinata-san," he said quietly, watching her wide eyes flicker. She knew as well as he did that she was in no shape to travel, but he could no longer guard her here and complete his duties. For a moment he was torn between his duty to Sunagakure and a feeling to duty towards her. "Temari and Kankurō are laying low in our family home – it's outside of town. You'll stay with them and some Konoha shinobi we've requested help from."

Hinata nodded her head, but Gaara could sense the disappointment in her actions. "Then…" she said with a pause. "Then you…you w-won't…"

"No," he said, a bit harsher than he meant to. She nodded again, this time her eyes pinned to her shaking hands. Gaara bit the inside of his mouth, resisting the urge to touch her once again – one of the thousand times he'd needed to do so over the last week. "Get dressed," he commanded, trying to make his voice a little softer.

Matsuri had been thoughtful enough to find extra clothes for Hinata – something Gaara would never have thought about. But her first pair would have been destroyed in the sewers, covered with blood as they were. And the iryō-nin had cut her other pair in half as they scrambled to heal her in the emergency ward. Gaara turned his back to afford her some privacy while she changed, but he could hear her struggled pants and grunts as she used muscles that she hadn't in several days. It took several minutes, but she finally cleared her throat, a sign Gaara took to mean she was presentable.

It was the first time in weeks – maybe months – that Gaara had cracked a smile. It didn't happen often, but sometimes Kankurō could say some off-color remark, or something particularly good would happen. Gaara never laughed, not even as a child. But he could smile if amused. And looking at Hinata amused him greatly.

Matsuri had found Hinata traditional Suna shinobi clothes. The pants were a light tan color to blend with the sand, along with light colored sandals. Typically, a mesh shirt was worn beneath, and if it wasn't too warm a light shirt to go over this. Then, atop all that, a cape to protect from the wind and sand, wrapped around the shoulders and head. Hinata wore the traditional pants and mesh shirt – a dark colored tank top over this – but had obviously been at a loss for what the cape was for. It sat lopsided on her shoulders, one side dangling too close to her feet while the other reached around her hip. She stood with a helpless look on her face, and it was that look that brought a small twitch to Gaara's lips.

When he approached her, Gaara noticed that Hinata's face heated considerably, seeming to give off its own radiation. Slowly, he brought his hands up, readjusting the folds and creases in the robe-like cape. She stood still as a board, allowing him to shift the sand-colored cape so it sat evenly at her knees. As he was bringing the corner of it over her head his fingers slid over her hair and the soft skin of her neck, sending a shiver of electricity up his hand and down his spine. Hinata's eyes were wide with surprise, watching him very intently as he moved the cape up over her nose so it covered all but her forehead and eyes.

"In the desert," Gaara explained, the space between them now small and slightly electrified, "we wear the cape like this – it prevents sand and sun from damaging our skin. Your skin…your skin is fair…you will need to wear it like this to prevent sun-sickness." He paused, pulling down the portion of cape covering her mouth and nose. He couldn't help but notice the sharpness and shortness of her breath. His face was so close to hers that he could feel it as it caressed his lips. Her breath smelled like tea and moisture. "In the village we usually wear this part down," he explained – unable to rationalize why he needed to be so close to her still. The cape was adjusted. She knew what it was for. Why couldn't he move away?

Suddenly her eyes fluttered, and she began sinking to the ground. With the swiftness of a cat, Gaara caught her falling form. _So light,_ he thought to himself, hoisting her up in his arms. With the aid of his sand the window swung open, illuminating the dim room with the light of the noonday sun. Despite the height of the sun in the sky, it was chilly out. During the winter the desert was a cold, unprotected wasteland, even during the hottest part of the day.

Protectively, Gaara brought Hinata closer into his chest, adjusting the cape around her nose and mouth to hide her features. No one would questions the Kazekage, but they might wonder why he was carrying the prone form of a foreign kunoichi through the town. This couldn't be avoided, however; Gaara leapt from rooftop to rooftop. He kept two of his third eyes at his flank, watching for danger. The third of his eyes he allowed to travel some distance ahead.

Gaara knew the family home by sight, though he had never lived there. All his life, Gaara had lived in the Kazekage complex, first with his father, then as the Kazekage himself. Even in the years between no one had ever asked Gaara to leave, so he didn't. Only Temari and Kankurō had spent any amount of time in the family home, though it had been years since either of them had lived there. They both kept rooms in the Kazekage compound, and that left the house they'd grown up in virtually empty.

As Gaara approached the house he ran along the canyon's edge. The house was backed up to a huge canyon, probably hundreds of feet deep, with Kaze no Kuni's major river dividing the steep cliffs. The greenish blue river had cut through the canyon, eroding the dirt, for thousands of years. The water ran off of the mountains to the north in Tsuchi no Kuni, but with the mountains frozen up during the winter months, the river was at its lowest point.

Drawing closer, he could see with his scouting third eye that a kunoichi was perched on the roof watching his approach. She stood and dropped down onto a lower, domed roof and then disappeared from his sight. When he reached the front entrance Kankurō and another shinobi – to Gaara's surprise it was Rock Lee – were waiting for him.

"We expected Temari and Shikamaru," Kankurou told him in a low voice. Kankurō eyed Hinata, a small frown on his face. "What are you doing here with her?"

"Gaara-sama!" Lee exclaimed, his face very serious. "Is Hinata-san alright?"

Gaara shifted Hinata's weight in his arms. "She will need time to recover, but I am no longer able to perform my Kazekage duties_ and_ protect her." There were very few Konoha shinobi – there were very few shinobi _at all_ – that Gaara had more respect for than Rock Lee. He was the first opponent that Gaara faced who had stood against him fearlessly, boldly. He was the first that treated Gaara like an equal. It took Uzumaki Naruto to bring out the human within Gaara, but Rock Lee had Gaara's everlasting respect. It was not something many people had. Gaara looked directly at Rock Lee. "I'm leaving her recovery and safety in your hands, Lee."

Without any words, Lee nodded and extended his arms. Gaara gently placed Hinata in the green-clad warrior's arms and watched as the Konoha shinobi carried her into the house.

"Where is Temari?" he asked Kankurō when Lee had gone.

Kankurou scratched the back of his head. "She and Shikamaru are down in the sewers. We met at the appointed time and she relieved me of sewer duty. She and that kid from Konoha were going to poke around in the hidden chamber." Kankurō paused, looking past Gaara for a moment. "She said she would be back by noon."

Silently, a small form dropped from above into a crouch a few feet away from them. Gaara eyed the Konoha kunoichi suspiciously as she stood, straightening the scroll on her back. She had eluded his third eye, and even managed to sneak close enough to drop down unnoticed next to them. Kankurō jumped slightly into the ready position, but Gaara only gave her a sidelong glance. She had two buns in her light brown hair, and wore Chinese style garments – a white top and red pants. The hitai-ite on her forehead flashed brightly in the sun when she stood up from her crouch.

"Gaara-sama," she addressed him with a respectful bow of her head. "I request your permission to go and find them."

* * *

Ninja Gakkō – Ninja School

Tsuchi no Kuni – Land of Earth

* * *

**Edited: November 3, 2009**


	8. Chapter Eight

**Author's Note:** Don't hurt me; I know the last chapter was pretty short. This one will be longer to make up for it. Please read, enjoy, and review!

* * *

**THE DIVINE WINDS OF SUNA**

**Chapter Eight**

Tenten was easily the stealthiest kunoichi her age – maybe not so stealthy as Sai, but not everyone could be such a freak. It was still rewarding to know that she could sneak up on kage-class nin like Gaara and his brother. Tenten had always been a natural at stealth missions. She preferred a good fight, a chance to cause some real, bloody damage with her array of edged weapons. But not every mission called for that exact brand of violence, and Tenten could appreciate the difficulty and challenge of stealth.

So she kept her smirk to herself when she surprised the two brothers below her. Of course she had heard them, and Tenten was just as worried about Shikamaru and Temari as they were. She wasn't particularly close with either shinobi, but Tenten valued their skills. Besides, if they were late, it could mean that they had run into some trouble. And some action.

Gaara regarded her cautiously, and Tenten was careful to show proper respect – especially after having surprised the two of them so thoroughly. It was dangerous to surprise nin of their level, but Tenten was a dangerous kind of girl. "Permission granted. You and Kankurō will go."

Tenten cast a sidelong glance at the shirtless Suna shinobi at her side, still a little sore that he had snuck up on her during her private time. Kankurō was tall – taller than anyone she knew – and big. Not really fat, not like Akimichi Choji, but big. His muscles were large, but mostly undefined under his skin – he lacked the muscle definition most male shinobi developed. His face had the kind of largeness that a chubby person's might have. _Baby fat,_ she decided.

Tenten nodded, leaving the two brothers to collect some of her other weapons. The only one she didn't bother sealing within a scroll was _Lioness. _Of all Tenten's edged weapons – and she had thousands –_ Lioness _was the only one she bothered to call by name. Many people called the jian the Gentlemen of Weapons. Its sleek, flexible blade allowed for the most graceful of edged weapon combat.

Compared to many of Tenten's weapons – which were gory things like shuriken and kusarigama (a personal favorite) –_ Lioness_ was perfection and beauty. It had been passed down for many generations along her father's side, but as Tenten was an only child, it fell to her. The animal's impression on the pommel had earned _Lioness_ its name, though its fearsomely long blade and devastating power also alluded to the viciousness of the female lion.

Tenten was more than proficient in wushu, it having been the first of the martial arts she studied under her father. Later, as she learned ninjutsu and taijutsu, Tenten became accustomed to other edged weapons. Still, the jian held special meaning for her. She smoothed her hand down the blade before returning it to its sheath. Since it was too long – eighty centimeters and nearly half her height – to carry at her hip, Tenten had rigged a sash that tied _Lioness_ diagonally around her back.

With her trusty scroll of edged weapons slung around her lower back, Tenten met Kankurō at the entrance to the Sand Sibling house. The air was chilly on her exposed forearms and claves, but she didn't mind it at all. She had grown up in a considerably colder atmosphere than Konoha's yearlong-summer in the southern parts of Hi no Kuni. She found the chill refreshing, not uncomfortable.

Kankurō seemed acclimated to the cold as well, wearing his baggy, black long pants and sleeves. He'd painted his face, the purple, kabuki-style design masking his features. He glanced over at her, his lazy, irritated look reminding her of Shikamaru. "And here I thought it took girls forever to get ready," he said sarcastically. "But I guess you were already dressed…"

He left the last part hanging, alluding to their interaction that morning. "And here I thought boys didn't wear makeup or play with dollies," she replied, her right eye twitching in annoyance as she tightened her fingerless gloves. "But I guess I can wait a few extra minutes if you need to reapply your foundation or something…"

Kankurō snorted, crossing his arms. She watched him regard her – if he thought that just because he was older or this was his territory that she would back down and play the demure female he was sorely mistaken. Tenten made sure he could see this in her stance, the way she looked back up at him confidently. Finally he shrugged his shoulders and grunted. "Just don't hold me up, woman," he grumbled.

A smirk flashed in the corner of Tenten's mouth. "Oh, you won't even notice I'm here," she jabbed, flying off ahead of him towards Suna.

He caught up quickly and set a fast pace through the desert. When they entered the village the streets were nearly empty. People would be inside for the noontime meal and possibly a quick nap before returning to work in the afternoon. Kankurō moved aside the manhole cover of the closest sewer, waiting for her to enter before sealing it again.

Like the first time Tenten had been in the sewers, their way was lit by flashlight. She had been studying the maps that Neji's younger cousin, Hinata, had completed with her Byakugan, and had a pretty good idea where they were going. Kankurō, of course, having spent several days down in the sewers prior to her arrival, would know the sewers and underground tunnels just as well, probably better.

Suddenly Kankurō switched off his flashlight – the darkness was so complete now that it could be considered cave darkness. A hand jabbed out, covering her mouth and pushing her against the dank wall of the sewer. Silently, Tenten removed Kankurō's hand, taking his meaning clear enough. Soon she could hear it as well – voices. They were coming closer…or going farther away? The echo made it difficult to place these sounds. She listened harder, focusing on each sound.

They were fighting! Tenten's eyes widened with the realization – she heard someone perform a fire-release quite clearly. Tenten was also fire-natured and recognized the spoken words. Though, she could be mistaken – Tenten was pretty terrible at nature-release jutsu. Suddenly a bright light found their eyes, and Tenten could see the expression on Kankurō's face. His teeth were clenched and his eyes were hard with anger.

"Someone's using a fire-release jutsu," Tenten hissed, leaping out and running down the tunnels. "We need to follow that light."

The light of the fire was already dying, and Tenten sprinted down the tunnels following the retreating light until she found the now dim source. Suddenly there was heat hurling towards her face.

"Amateur!" someone shouted viciously.

Just as a wall of fire was leaping down the tunnel, a large figure scuttled in front of Tenten's frozen body, protecting her from the blast. Tenten's hands went over her head as she ducked down to the ground. When she looked up as the fire died, Kankurō stood, arms outstretched, conducting a salamander-looking puppet with a large shield. "Baka!" he growled at her. "Who runs _towards _a fire fight?"

Tenten flashed her teeth at him, drawing _Lioness_. In such close quarters, her normal barrage of edged weapons would be useless. This fight would need to be close-range, and Tenten was just fine with that. _Lioness_ sang sweetly as she slipped the jian from its scabbard.

When Tenten rounded the corner she immediately assessed the situation. There was a wide corridor, caved in at the far side about thirty meters from where she stood. A line of fire lit the distance between the cave in (where Temari and Shikamaru stood) and five men (who had their backs to Tenten and Kankurō). There was a large man on the ground, presumably dead or seriously injured. And when Tenten looked over at Temari and Shikamaru, she saw that Temari was seriously injured as well, barely able to stand.

Despite Kankurō's reprimand for jumping right into a fight – especially a fire fight – Tenten found herself with a dangerous grin on her face, sprinting towards the exposed backs of the men attacking her comrades. She used the tunnel wall to jump off of, giving her the advantage of an aerial attack (one she knew how to exploit quite expertly) as she made a deep slash into the man standing in the back. She was able to stab into him twice before he cried out, alerting the others to her presence. By then, though, Tenten knew he was no longer a threat – _Lioness_ was accurate, had stabbed him through the kidneys and he would soon bleed out.

Tenten felt a rush of air beside her coming up from behind, and saw a puppet had joined her – a three eyed creation with four arms and a cape. It turned to her briefly, crazy jagged teeth grinning. But Tenten didn't have time to study Kankurō's puppet – she dodged a double-team assault of punches and kicks. Both of her opponents were male, both were much larger than her, and both sported a cloth that obscured most of the lower part of their faces.

The taller one lunged at her with a kunai, which Tenten blocked swiftly with her jian. Immediately the shorter one grabbed hold of her sword arm. It was apparent to Tenten that these two were used to working in tandem. Unfortunately for them, Tenten was used to working against multiple enemies; it was one of the things her father trained her to do specifically. Utilizing her superior flexibility, Tenten balanced on her left leg, pulling the right one up behind her and bending forward. The man didn't loosen his grip, and was pulled down into the line of Tenten's right foot. She heard the sickening crunch of bones and the man let go of her hand, stumbling back with his hand over his broken nose.

Tenten leapt backwards, her long sword swinging in her wake. The taller man caught the tail end of it on his shoulder, and he hissed. Leaving no time for either man to recover, Tenten attacked with a series of jumping roundhouse kicks, lashing out with her jian after the fourth. _Lioness_ had a wider striking radius than Tenten's legs, and the tall man wasn't quick enough to adjust to the change. She caught him cleanly around the throat, blood spewing forth, grotesquely spraying her face and chest.

Tenten was unbothered by blood though – by trade her expertise was neither clean nor bloodless. That opponent was dead, but the one whose nose she had broken was still alive, and coming in for another screaming attack. With just one person she could focus on immobilization rather than killing. She blocked his badly aimed strikes. His broken nose was probably blinding him slightly, making Tenten's job just that much easier. She danced around him, smacking the backside of his head smartly with the flat of _Lioness_'s blade.

Eyes still searching for danger, Tenten wiped her jian blade clean on the clothes of her unconscious enemy. Kankurō had dealt with his two opponents almost as bloodily as she had – one was suffering from poison and the other had found death inside the barrel-chested Kuroari.

Just as Tenten was about to relax, Shikamaru shouted, "Move!"

"Donton: Ganban Kyū!" a deep, loud voice growled from somewhere behind her. That man she thought had been dead!

Two huge sections of the wall moved in towards her and Kuraori. Faster than she could move, Tenten felt herself be yanked backwards, harshly and swiftly, Kuroari right beside her.

"Donton: Arijigoku no Jutsu!" The earth around the man began to sift into sand, and he sank into it.

The air was knocked out of her forcefully as she slammed into something hard. She coughed, falling forward, but a strong arm caught her around her middle. She looked up to see Kankurō grinning wickedly.

"Thanks!" she hissed, elbowing the tall man in the stomach – hard. He let her go, wiggling his chakra-laced fingers in her direction. Tenten felt her hips move from side to side, and she suddenly understood how she was able to escape those earth-release jutsu.

"Don't mention it," Kankurō muttered, rubbing his ribs. With a snap of his fingers he cut the chakra-strings on her body.

Tenten looked around then shook her head. All the enemies were gone, sucked into the ant-lion hole that the earth-release jutsu-user had created to escape. The man she had incapacitated for later interrogation was gone. Then again, she was pretty fortunate not to be sucked into it. The sand had already solidified into stone once again, and she and Kankurō met Shikamaru and Temari down on the far side of the tunnel.

"It's about time," Temari hissed. Tenten noticed she was limping horribly even as she leaned heavily on Shikamaru's arm. "I thought I said_ noon_!"

Shikamaru's face was contorted with pain, and Tenten realized he had a pretty sizable gash running down his left arm. "I'm going to need to see Gaara-sama as soon as possible," he told them, grimacing.

"_I'm _going to need to see Gaara-sama!" Temari growled back, glaring at Shikamaru out of the corner of her eye.

"_You're_ going to the hospital," Shikamaru told her in a harsh voice. "You're useless until that leg is healed – think _logically_!"

Tenten rarely heard Shikamaru raise his voice – she'd thought it would be too much of a bother for him to put effort into yelling. The sharpness of his voice silenced Temari and Tenten raised an eyebrow in surprise. Temari was a woman that Tenten had a myriad of mixed feelings for. On one hand she admired the older kunoichi and wanted to be as strong as the Suna nin. But then she also held a slight grudge against Temari for beating her so thoroughly during the Chûnin Exams. Tenten knew that Temari was not a woman whose feelings were easily hurt, but Shikamaru had seemingly affected the older girl with his harsh words.

No one said anything for a few moments then Kankurō grunted. "We need to get moving. They could be back at any time, and the _both_ of you are useless, dead weigh to _us_," he said, motioning towards Tenten and himself.

Tenten glanced over at Kankurō's face, but found it exceedingly difficult to read. "I'd like to try and follow them," she told Kankurō. "You know I can be stealthy."

Kankurō seemed to think this over. "The game has changed, and we need to regroup with the Kazekage before proceeding."

Though she frowned, Tenten agreed. The four of them made it to the surface without incident.

* * *

With a sharp exhale of air, Temari found a more comfortable position around Shikamaru's shoulders. She was pretty sure her left femur was broken, or at least fractured severely. _Though, _she thought to herself,_ it could be worse – I could be dead. _

For a while she was pretty sure the two of them _were_ going to die. Not too long after they surfaced from the frigid water and got dressed again they were attacked by a group of six Kamikaze. One of them had been an extremely skilled fire-natured nin, and the other had and impressive array of earth-release type jutsu. Since the close quarters and darkness had basically nullified the effectiveness of both Temari and Shikamaru's strongest jutsu, the two of them were at a significant disadvantage.

If lazy, cloud-watching Shikamaru hadn't been practicing his fire-release jutsu the two of them would probably be dead. He had been so embarrassed at being caught at working hard at something that he had almost not lit the oil lamps in the secret chamber. But really he was quite good. Even after the earth-natured nin had broken Temari's leg, Shikamaru had thought to combine his limited fire-release jutsu with the power of her fan. With him supporting her she had managed to aim accurately at the very large, masked earth-natured nin.

It had been pure good luck that Kankurō and the Konoha weapons master had shown up when they had. It appeared that the kunoichi Temari had fought in the Chûnin Exams all those years ago was extremely adept at fighting in close quarters – she was the only one. Kankurō, Temari, and Shikamaru were all mid- to long-distance fighters, not ideal for underground tunnels. But the Konoha kunoichi – Tenten – had handled three of the Kamikaze, even taking down the nin with the fire-release jutsu by surprise.

The fight had been short and decisive thanks to the expertly executed surprise attack Tenten and Temari's brother had devised. Since Shikamaru and Temari had failed to completely incapacitate the earth-natured nin all of the Kamikaze had disappeared. They probably would never have attacked in the first place had Shikamaru and Temari had even one more person with them. But apparently six against two was about their style. It fit with their profile – sneaky, hit and run, evade and escape, guerilla-like warfare.

"Tenten," Shikamaru said. "Temari needs to have her leg splinted."

The younger kunoichi rose from her crouch, fingering a kunai that one of the Kamikaze had left behind. "Why are you telling me?" she asked simply.

"Well…don't all the kunoichi in Konoha have to take basic healing training?" Shikamaru said with a sigh, apparently stating something obvious.

Still studying the kunai, Tenten put a slight frown on her lips. "Do you know what I told Might Guy when he said I had to take those courses?" she asked lightly, turning the kunai so some of the firelight glinted off it. "I instructed him where he could store his shuriken," she continued in a light voice, shooting Shikamaru a nasty glare.

Despite the pain she was in, Temari snorted out a bitter laugh. That sounded something like what Temari would tell someone if they told her she had to take healing training. Temari was a warrior. Not that she looked down on kunoichi that chose to become iryō-nin. Many women naturally leaned that way, and nothing was stopping them from becoming warriors in their own right – like Lady Tsunade and that pink-haired Konoha chûnin…Hanuro Sakura. But Temari didn't really have the tenderness and motherly concern it took to be a truly gifted iryō-nin. It seemed that Tenten felt similarly.

"Uhhgh," Shikamaru groaned, smoothing his hair back and rolling his eyes. "What a drag." Part of Temari was just glad that the complaining, whining Shikamaru was back. It meant he didn't think they were in serious danger anymore. "I only know enough to splint it. We're going to need an iryō-nin soon to come on our missions…otherwise less and less of us are going to be coming back…"

Even though Tenten had expressed a distaste for healing, she did provide Shikamaru with two tonfa and offered to tie them against Temari's thigh. "Hold them tight, Shikamaru," the younger kunoichi said, a look of concentration on her face. "Um," she said with a pause, "I saw Might Guy do this once for Lee." With a frown, she continued. "It's gonna hurt a lot – do you need to bite down on something or will you scream?" she asked.

"Just get on with it!" Temari replied with a snap. The younger girl raised her eyebrows and then, with a quick, sharp tug, Temari saw lights. The pain was dazzling – almost worse than when it had been broken in the first place. She could taste the metallic tinge of blood in her mouth, and she spit it out with a muffled groan. With her tongue she felt the inside of her mouth, noting where she had bit her cheek hard enough to draw blood.

"One more," Tenten told her, though Temari wasn't really sure where the voice was coming from. Pain was still rocketing up and down her leg. Without warning, Tenten tugged again on the second length of rope, securing the two tonfa on the sides of Temari's thigh.

This time Temari barely felt anything – or rather, she was already in so much pain that it hardly mattered if there was a little more. Panting heavily she grasped for Shikamaru's hand, squeezing it tightly. When she looked up into his eyes she nearly forgot why she hated him so much.

They let her rest for a while, but soon they had to get going to the surface. It was slow going – Temari knew it was her fault. Even though they were perfect targets, no one attacked. By the time they reached the surface it was already dark out.

* * *

When Hinata woke to a fire-lit room, she heard nothing but the crackling of the wood and the wind beating against a window. It took a few moments of steady breathing, but soon she was able to sit and look around. She was no longer in the hospital; that was clear enough. And Gaara was not with her… He said they were going somewhere safe…his face had been so close to hers…and then everything went black. She couldn't even remember where he said they were going, if he had said at all.

With several, steadying breaths, Hinata pushed her legs over the side of the large bed, feeling for the floor with her bare feet. Instinctively, her hands went to her back. The skin felt tight and uneven as she touched it gingerly. The memories of the pain, of Gaara's encouraging words, and the hours of healing sent a shiver up her spine. How many days had she been immobilized? Was she allowed to move?

Frowning, Hinata shrugged herself out of the large, sand-colored cape that Gaara had adjusted around her shoulders. The room she was in had a fireplace that kept it very warm, and Hinata had sweat forming on her brow. It was a very large room with lots of pictures and memorabilia – all dusty from years of neglect. _Whose house is this?_ she wondered to herself, picking up the closest frame.

Cleaning it with the heel of her hand, Hinata saw a smiling woman with reddish-brown hair. She was pregnant, but she was holding a child in her arms and kneeling down beside a young girl with four pigtails in her spiky, blond hair. Eyes widening, Hinata realized that the woman must be the mother of the Sand Siblings – Temari being the girl with pigtails, the young child in the woman's arms being Kankurō, and the unborn child being Gaara.

She studied the woman, who had a wide, joyous smile on her face. Hinata wondered if Gaara's father had taken the picture. She frowned slightly, putting the frame back on the mantle of the fireplace. There was a door that opened into a bathroom. Hinata, eager to wash her face and arms, turned on the faucet to an ugly stream of brown water. The faucet coughed a couple of times before clear, clean water began to run out of it. As good as it felt to have a clean face, Hinata realized she had nothing to dry off with, and ended up stumbling towards the bed to find the cape.

Unable to think of anything else to wear, Hinata tried to drape the garment back over her shoulders as expertly as Gaara had shown her. It took several minutes, and by the end of that time she was panting heavily. How could she still be so weak? Why couldn't she just recover quickly like the rest of her friends?

She sat on the bed for several minutes before she found the door. It led to a brightly lit hall that ended in a long staircase. Hinata sighed as she approached the staircase. She would just have to take it one step at a time. So – _one step at a time_ – Hinata passed one, two, three levels. When she finally saw the bottom, Hinata realized she had been on the fourth floor, and wondered exactly how big this house was. The Hyūga compound was humongous, but it was built all on one level and spread out over a large amount of land. This house was probably easily as big, just vertical.

As she reached the bottom, Hinata could see and hear her friends, recognizing several from Konoha. Tenten, from her older cousin's team, was here, along with Nara Shikamaru. Gaara sat at the head of a long table with his brother, Kankurō, on one side and his sister, Temari, on the other. She smiled briefly, eavesdropping a little on their conversation. She didn't catch too much before she felt her legs begin to shake weakly. Hinata realized too late she had over exerted herself.

With a sharp cry, Hinata lost her footing and plummeted down the last five steps to the ground. Bracing herself for the pain of impact, Hinata stiffened her whole body in anticipation. However, instead of a sharp crack on the head, Hinata felt herself cradled by sand. It shifted restlessly beneath her, sinking down a few feet to rest her on the ground. She swallowed hard, opening her eyes. The sand was gently escaping from beneath her, sifting back into Gaara's gourd.

Kankurō had leapt to his feet and was helping her stand back up, but Hinata only had eyes for Gaara. His hand outstretched, calling forth his sand…Hinata almost imagined he was reaching for her. He let his hand fall, black-ringed eyes as hard as stone as he sat back down. Though she averted her eyes, she allowed Kankurō to guide her to an empty cushion around the table. She sat between Shikamaru and Tenten, and the place across from her was empty. All the while she could feel Gaara's eyes following her, drilling holes in her forehead. She felt the heat of it, and only nodded her head in his direction.

"Arigatō gozaimasu, Gaara-sama," she whispered softly, meeting his eyes for the briefest of moments. His face was impassive, but something lurked behind his blank façade that caused Hinata to turn away quickly, pinning her eyes to the table. Was he angry with her? What was this sensation building in her stomach? She swallowed, nodding as Kankurō asked if she felt all right.

"Then we can continue," Temari said, her voice tired. Hinata shot a glance at the older girl and saw there was a grimace of pain on her face. "It's better if Hinata-san is here anyway."

At her side, Shikamaru shifted so that he was sitting with one knee in the air, the other leg splayed under the table. Gaara sat very comfortably as well. Temari, Kankurō, and Tenten didn't seem to feel the need to be proper, either. In fact, Hinata was the only person present that had her feet stuffed uncomfortable below her. She was used to this, but with the pain her back caused it was a strain to be so proper. She tried to keep her breathing even and listen to what Shikamaru was saying.

"I think we can agree that we've lost the element of surprise," he continued. Hinata cursed herself for not paying attention earlier. "Three times in a period of one week they have attempted to seek out the secret chamber, and all three times they have been met – either by accident, by Kankurō, or by Temari and myself." He studied a map of the sewers – a map Hinata had drawn herself. Perhaps she had been useful after all. The thought filled her with pride. "All three of their attacks have been centered around the underground tunnels beneath Building One," he continued. "I think we can assume they know the chamber is there, but are unaware of how to reach it. That tunnel of water seems to be our saving grace."

Temari grunted, and Hinata knew how she felt. "I think we can also assume that some of Hinata-san's maps were leaked to the enemy," Temari added, grimacing again. Hinata wondered if Temari was okay, then she noticed a splint on the older girl's leg. "They have struck so many times in the past few days that whoever it is that is our true enemy might be desperate."

"Temari and I both studied the scroll you found, Hinata," Shikamaru told her. Hinata lifted her eyes to him. "But we were unable to make any more sense of it than you and Gaara-sama were. We've written down what we remember, but if you could look over it just in case we missed something…"

Shikamaru passed her the scroll, but when Hinata read over it she could remember nothing more than what they had written. There was _one_ thing though… "Um…Sh-Shikamaru-san…" Hinata breathed softly.

When he turned to her, Hinata flushed a bit. It made Hinata nervous to have so many people focusing her attention on her. "There was a c-column of kanji characters…a-at the very end…"

"Temari and I couldn't read it," he explained. "I didn't recognize any of the kanji. I thought it was a code. Do you remember it, Hinata?"

"A-a little bit," she replied. "The writing…it r-reminded me of some of the old H-Hyūga scrolls… Um, at the end there was usually our family motto – _Nothing is hidden. _B-but the characters were either so old or secret…it looked like gibberish…like the characters at the end of the scroll…"

Shikamaru made a speculative noise – something like a grunt and a hum at the same time. "If you could try and remember what they looked like, and then write down the Hyūga motto beside it. I'll study it later, see if I can make sense of it."

Hinata did as he asked, listening with one ear as he continued. "That might become helpful, but we need to analyze the information we have available to us right now."

"Agreed," said Gaara. Hinata noticed he did not normally speak, but when he did he seemed to have the same logical mind as Temari and Shikamaru. "We know that someone on my council of advisors is a traitor. We know that they know exactly as much as we did before Hinata-san was attacked – after which no information was shared outside this group. They also probably know that we are very aware of their goal – the secret chamber – which is why they have attacked with such frequency, and targeted Hinata-san." He was silent. "Shikamaru," Gaara continued, acting very much the Kazekage in Hinata's mind, "how long do you think we have until they discover the chamber?"

"It's not inevitable, Gaara-sama," Shikamaru replied after a moment. "They were severely delayed by Kankurō, and they have no way to know our numbers since Tenten, Lee, and I have joined you. They know the general location of the chamber…but one thing keeps bugging me…"

"The earth-release jutsu user," Temari said softly. Shikamaru nodded. "If they have such a powerful nin, why aren't they just blasting through the underground by force?"

Everyone was silent.

"The bombings…" Shikamaru said. "Exactly how much damage did they cause?"

Temari frowned. "Even the one that was targeted at Hinata-san and Kankurō did only cosmetic damage to the village. Actually," she seemed lost in thought, "most of the other bombings only caused cosmetic damage. Except for the one that assassinated Councilman Fong…"

"Maybe they don't want to destroy the village," Kankurō spoke up, a deep frown on his face. "Maybe they only want us to think they do. I mean, they could easily have demolished the underground tunnels – especially with that ant-lion jutsu."

"What they say they are doing and what they are actually doing seem to be two different things," Temari agreed.

The group was silent for a long while before Tenten cleared her throat. Hinata looked up at the older kunoichi sitting to her right. "You know…it might not mean anything…but the kunai they were using are a little interesting."

"Interesting how?" Shikamaru asked.

Tenten shrugged nonchalantly. "I don't get the chance to see much ironwork from Kaze no Kuni," she replied. "I mean, it's basically the same stuff we have in Hi no Kuni; it's all stamped with the symbol of the master's workshop." She began fingering the kunai, spinning it on her thumb. "In Konoha we see mostly stuff out of Master Zhang…some from Master Fujioka."

"So what's interesting about it?" Shikamaru prompted.

Tenten looked at him coolly. "Well, in Suna you have three major ironworkers that make kunai – Aizo, Goto, and Hanari."

"Everyone knows that," Kankurō told her with a sarcastic look on his face. "When I'm teaching my class on edged weapons and puppetry I tell them all to use Hanari. His are the most aerodynamic."

"Oh! Kawaii! Do they call you Kankurō-sensei?" Tenten mocked, an equally sarcastic look on her face.

"Hey!" Kankurō snapped defensively. Hinata could see this was quickly descending into chaos. "It's not like I _like_ the little snots! Really, I'm doing _you_ a favor. What if you lot from Konoha ask for our help and we send you a bunch of _panty-wearing_ numbskulls that can't even through a kunai straight to save their lives?"

The table shook at her knees and Hinata gasped as Tenten landed on it in a crouch. A kunai thunked between Kankurō's legs and another was poised in Tenten's hand. "And what's wrong with wearing panties, puppet-boy?" Tenten growled sweetly, baring her teeth.

"Tenten," Shikamaru said, breaking the silence. Hinata glanced nervously at Tenten, who was looking at Kankurō with a vicious glare.

Finally she stood, slipping off the table and crossing her arms. "These kunai are stamped with Goto's private seal – not the workshop seal. They're rare." With that she left, marching through a set of double doors.

"What _is_ wrong with wearing panties, _nii-chan_?" Temari asked harshly, staring across the table at her brother.

Kankurō's growl was audible. Gaara interrupted the oncoming sibling feud. "_Temari_," he warned in a low, monotone voice.

Hinata watched as both Kankurō and Temari bristled under Gaara's unspoken command to behave themselves. He was the youngest – aside from Hinata and Shikamaru – in the room, but commanded the most respect. He was, of course, the Kazekage. And at his word all argument and bickering stopped. The room was silent.

That was, the room was silent until Rock Lee came bursting in with a joyous look on his face. He was wearing his traditional training leotard – bright green with yellow leg warmers. Hinata stifled a little giggle when she saw it was accompanied with a faded, red kitchen apron. Lee carried three plates of curry in each arm with all the skill of a professional waiter.

"Dinner is served!" he exclaimed in an excited voice. When he saw Hinata a smile broke out on his face. "Hinata-san! You are finally awake!" Then he frowned slightly. "I will have to make another serving of the Curry of Life!"

* * *

Jian – a double-edged Chinese fighting sword often called the Gentlemen of Weapons (for a perfect example of this weapon, watch _Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon _where the main character wields _Green Destiny_, a jian blade)

Kusarigama – a traditional ninja weapon consisting of a scythe attached to a heavy, weighted ball by a long chain

Wushu – more properly known as kungfu, and it encompasses many schools of martial arts, including edged weapon fighting

Baka – stupid, idiot

Donton: Ganban Kyuu – Earth Release: Bedrock Coffin

Kuroari – Black Ant; one of Kankurō's puppets

Donton: Arijigoku no Jutsu - Earth Release: Ant-lion Technique (English TV "Ninja Art: Ant-lion Jutsu")

Tonfa – a Japanese blunt weapon, much like a modern-day police baton

Arigatō gozaimasu – thank you

Kawaii – cute; how cute!

* * *

**Edited: November 3, 2009**


	9. Chapter Nine

**Author's Note (Part 1):** I _LOVED_ writing this chapter… After writing this I may write a Kank/Ten one-shot full of awesomely naughty smut. Please read, enjoy, and review!

PS – There's some sexy in this chapter…tell me how you like it!

* * *

**THE DIVINE WINDS OF SUNA**

**Chapter Nine**

"I made it very mild for the sake of Tenten and Kankurō-san," Lee assured them, completely oblivious of the tense moment he interrupted.

As Lee served the plates of curry (exclaiming worriedly at his teammate's absence), Kankurō plucked the kunai out from between his legs, having to give an extra tug to loosen it from the tatami mats below. That weapons master was getting on his very last nerve. Kankurō was typically laid back and easy going. He could have serious moments – like during a battle – but he considered himself to be way less wound up than his older and younger siblings.

Kankurō knew most people thought he was an ass. He was used to that. After all, Kankurō didn't censor himself for a damn. He was crude, he spoke his mind, and he didn't really care who he offended. But he could take as well as he could give. That is to say, he could be an asshole at times, but if he met someone like him, nine times out of ten he would think the guy was hilarious. Kankurō thought he was funny, though most people didn't understand his dark, insulting humor.

But that…that _kunoichi_! She was seriously getting on his last nerve. She had no respect! Kankurō was a well-respected member of Suna; he was the leader of the Puppet Brigade, the Kazekage's brother, and a damn good shinobi. But she – _she_ couldn't take a joke, and she even had Temari siding with her. _Tenten._ He spat at the name. Who did she think she was anyway?

But, he had to admit…she'd picked up an important clue about the Kamikaze. Those kunai were rare, probably made by the hands of Master Goto himself. There couldn't be too many places one could find a kunai stamped with Master Goto's private seal…

As dinner progressed (and, true to his word, Lee had made the curry mild, and it was very good) Kankurō listened, only half distracted by his anger, as Temari and Shikamaru discussed strategy. Shikamaru seemed to think that Tenten's clue about the kunai was their strongest lead, and he decided to look into it tomorrow, enlisting Kankurō's help.

When dinner drew to a close, Kankurō noted that it was Gaara who escorted Hinata upstairs. Lee – the Oblivious Green Beast of Konoha – had placed her in Kankurō's parent's bedroom on the very top floor. Not only was that the master bedroom, but it was four stories up. Shaking his head at the stupidity, Kankurō left Shikamaru and Temari at the table. At least if Lee's dream of being a "splendid ninja" fell through he would have a bright future as a housewife.

He snickered at this, making his way out onto the balcony. Kankurō had many memories of this balcony. During the fall and spring, when Suna's weather was at its best, Kankurō had built puppets and practiced his chakra strings out on this balcony. It was wide and hung over the edge of the canyon, giving you the sensation of floating in space. If you lay on the benches next to the railing and looked up at the sky at night you could see every star like you were lying among them.

As Kankurō made to pass through the open doors to the balcony he halted, falling back into the shadows. The girl – Tenten – was standing on the railing. At first Kankurō had the urge to start fighting with her again. Without Gaara interfering they could probably get in a good twenty minutes before someone came to break it up. Though tempting, Kankurō remained in the shadows, simply watching her as he had done that morning. This time, he would not make the mistake of surprising her with a kunai in her hand. That girl had deadly aim.

Deep in the shadows, Kankurō watched her intently. It was apparent that she thought she was alone. She was standing, her back to the canyon, on the edge of the railing. Her eyes were closed, and she was letting loose her hair. Despite the cold she didn't shiver, or even seem bothered. For a moment, with the moon in her face like that, Kankurō thought that she actually looked kind of pretty. He scoffed at this almost immediately.

Tenten – a silly little Konoha kunoichi – was totally _not _his type. Kankurō liked them blond, hot, and stupid. Preferably buxom. Tenten was none of these things…most importantly she was not buxom_. Well, _he considered to himself, watching as the wind pushed her shirt against her chest, _she's not completely flat chested_. Then he shook his head. She was a smartass, that's what she was. A smartass tomboy. And she was kind of pretty when she let her hair down.

Kankurō frowned, suddenly very curious about what she could be doing. Tenten had collected eight kunai – one wedged between each of her fingers – and stood with her arms crossed over her chest. For a moment he thought…but no…no, she wouldn't. …Would she?

And as if she was just dying to answer his question, Tenten leapt backwards into the dark depth of the canyon below.

"Hey!" he shouted loudly, but it was far too late. Kankurō darted to the edge of the balcony, eyes straining to see the kunoichi. Could she have already reached the bottom? But he saw her, the white of her Chinese style shirt catching the light of the moon as she descended. She was throwing kunai – they glinted with the moonlight – at targets plastered on the far side of the canyon. He would have to wait until morning to be positive, but Kankurō was pretty sure she hit the bull's eye with each kunai.

Then, with a loud twang, Tenten's body jerked and began sailing back up into the sky. Kankurou caught the sight of a very thin wire as it glinted brightly in the moonlight. He crossed his arms, frowning, but also chuckling to himself. Like a bungee, Tenten flew upward, turning into a flip and bringing her feet towards her hands. She cut the wire tying her feet together with her last kunai and landed in a graceful crouch on the railing. Right in front of his face.

For a moment he thought he had surprised her, but when she grinned devilishly he knew she was playing him. "Beat it, perv," she whispered breathlessly.

Kankurō couldn't help but chuckle and shake his head once again. "Hey, _you_ left the door open," he told, pointing his thumb at the open balcony doors. She moved gracefully to sit on the railing. He couldn't help but notice that she didn't move away from him. Could she be flirting with him? It hardly seemed possible – Tenten was the biggest tomboy he had ever met, and he lived with a girl who used to beat up boys for fun.

"It's a nice night," she finally said, leaning back dangerously over the railing.

"Cold," Kankurō replied simply, wondering where all his anger went.

"I like it," she said with a sigh. "It reminds me of where I grew up. Not the canyon, the cold."

"You didn't grow up in Konoha?" he asked, surprised to hear the words coming out of his mouth.

Tenten shook her head, still not looking at him. "I was born in a small village at the very southern tip of the Hi no Kuni Peninsula," she replied. "When my mother died, my father and I moved in with his sister in Konoha."

Kankurō nodded. He had very few memories of his mother – it seemed as though Temari had been his mother for his whole life. One of the reasons he liked this balcony so much was because he thought he could remember his mother having loved it. He thought they might have played together up here.

There were a few moments of awkward silence, and Kankurō was pretty sure that Tenten hadn't meant to reveal so much. She seemed like the kind of girl who kept it all on the inside. She was looking down, biting her lower lip. Kankurō thought she looked very young just then. A blush was forming on her cheeks, barely visible in the moonlight. "Listen," she said softly. "Sometimes I have a bit of a temper…"

"An apology?!" Kankurō said with a laugh. This girl was full of surprises at least.

She gave him a dirty, sideways look. "An explanation," she clarified in a snide voice. She glared at him a moment longer. "Anyways, I always hit my target, so you were pretty safe."

"Always?" he asked, feigning disbelief.

Despite his jocular tone, Tenten straightened indignantly. "In the whole history of Konoha's jōnin exams, _no one _has_ ever _hit one hundred bull's eyes out of one hundred targets with a kunai. No one but _me_." She smirked wildly after having said this, the look of confidence in her eye making her particularly attractive for some reason. Kankurō felt the urge to pull his fingers through her honey brown hair as it floated freely in the wind. It looked so soft.

"Is that so?" he asked softly, leaning a little closer to her.

She either didn't notice or didn't mind. "I didn't pass," she continued. "But next year Guy-sensei thinks I'll be ready with a little training."

"Oh," Kankurō said, placing his hands on the side of her hips as they rested on the railing. He leaned a little closer, noticing how small she really was – she was easily ten centimeters shorter than him.

She finally seemed to notice how close Kankurō had moved, and her eyes became very wide, her blush more pronounced. Kankurō suddenly felt like a feline, stalking his prey and enjoying every moment of the hunt. He closed his eyes, drawn by some primal urge to kiss her.

Instead, he found himself flat on his back, coughing and sputtering as cold steel pressed into his neck. Tenten's face was very close to his, a sneer distorting her features. She had pinned him quite effectively, not that he couldn't toss her if he wanted. One of her knees was on his chest, digging into his sternum painfully. The foot of her other leg held his left arm down, while she dug her left hand into the flesh of his right bicep.

"You _are _a pervert," she hissed, actually sounding a bit surprised by the fact. She pressed the kunai a little closer for emphasis then leapt off of him. "Seriously, though, control yourself."

Kankurō lay there for several moments, completely baffled by what had just happened. She _had _been flirting with him…_right_?

* * *

Gaara was patient with Hinata as she slowly climbed the stairs. They had rested at the second story landing at his insistence, but Hinata seemed determined to be able to do this without his help. For his part, though, Gaara thought he was controlling himself quite admirably. Hinata was panting and gasping in ways that made Gaara think of her writhing beneath him. But he kept his hand poised over the small of her back, ready to catch her if she were to fall, but never close enough to touch her.

As they rested again at the third story, Gaara silently cursed Lee – who had placed Hinata on the highest story. From a tactical advantage, Gaara could see Lee's reasoning, but now Gaara wished Lee had simply put her on the second story with the rest of the guest rooms. He didn't know the layout of the house that well, having never lived here, but the other Konoha shinobi seemed to be keeping their rooms on the second floor.

Though Gaara didn't think he could ever be completely comfortable in Hinata's presence (at least, he was uncomfortable with the thought of being comfortable in her presence), the days he'd spent guarding her in the hospital had made it so that he was a little less guarded around her. He occasionally caught himself giving her soft looks, looks that he would never give another human even if someone was threatening his life. She had a way of disarming him. Even if he came at her with a full arsenal of blank expressions and monotone speeches, Hinata would manage to pull one, hidden emotion to the surface.

"Gaara-sama," she said quietly, looking down but turning towards him. "I'm not sure I feel quite right about…a-about taking this room…"

Gaara shrugged. "No one has lived in this house for years. It's not my home… You have just as much right to this room as anyone."

Her throat contracted prettily as she swallowed. "But…but it was your parents' room…"

"It's the only room with a fireplace," Gaara said dismissively, opening the door and leading her in.

Hesitantly, Hinata brushed by him, and Gaara caught the scent of her hair – sweet like jasmine and tea. The fire in the fireplace was dying, providing very little light in for such a large room. Gaara glanced around. It was the first time he had ever been inside his parents' room. There was a large bed in the center of the wall to his left. Directly in front of him was a large window that encompassed most of the far wall. The fireplace was on his right, and there were many pictures and things on its mantle.

He crossed the room, bending down to stoke the fire. Hinata was standing near the doorway still, apparently ill at ease. She fidgeted with her hands under Gaara's scrutiny. He couldn't figure out why he made her so nervous. He was the Kazekage…but hadn't he shown her kindness? He'd saved her life once. And he'd watched over her as she recovered a second time. Did she still fear him? Gaara would never normally care if someone feared him…but he didn't want Hinata to. He wanted Hinata to…he wanted her to feel something else…but he didn't know what.

"Dōmo arigatō, Gaara-sama," she said in her quiet voice, bowing her head slightly. "I wouldn't have made it up here w-without you."

Hinata began to sway a little bit, but Gaara was quick to her side. It electrified his senses to touch her, even through the thick cape. It was enough to feel her through that. He helped her to sit on the bed, unsure of what to do. He wanted to help her, to make her safe, to protect her. But there was that other side of him, that darker side, the one scarred by the One-Tail… That side saw a pretty, pale-eyed bird, fluttering on its last wing. He wanted to push her onto the bed and leap on top of her, claim her as his prey. These urges scared him, but also excited him. He didn't know what to think or what was right. He just knew enough to know that if he gave in to these primal urges that Hinata would probably get hurt.

Hinata's head hung low, and her breathing was slow. Gaara could tell she had nearly passed out just then. When she brought her head back up she looked into his eyes, a soft smile on her lips. "It's funny," she told him. "I spend my time training to be stronger…to…to p-prove that I'm not weak. But…but I can't even walk up a couple of flights of stairs without p-passing out."

Unsure of what to say to this, Gaara nodded. He was sure that he was supposed to leave at this point, to let Hinata rest and heal. But he _couldn't._ It was like she was this magnificently powerful loadstone, and her magnetic pull was all encompassing. He heard himself mumble something about helping her with her cape, felt his fingers pulling the heavy cloth from her shoulders. She didn't move. She didn't speak. She just looked up at him with solemn, wide eyes.

He was leaning over her now, so close that he could smell her breath. She was trembling, trembling like the most delicious prey he had ever seen. "You're afraid of me," he said, feeling his fabled self-control crumbling under the desire to just touch her.

She swallowed delicately, eyes still wide as she shook gently. "N-no, Gaara-sama."

Gaara broke eye contact with her, taking in her slender figure, the way her hips flared out gracefully, and the way her hair caught the light of the moon. She was quivering, but when he looked into her eyes he saw that she wasn't lying to him. "You're shaking."

"I-I…" she stammered. "You…you…" But words died on her lips.

"Don't stutter, Hinata-san," he said gently, cocking his head to the side when she began to blush. It kind of amazed him that one, tiny girl could feel so much, express so much.

Still quivering, Hinata lowered her eyes, the blush on her cheeks easing slightly. He liked it when she blushed, but her pale skin was so pretty in the moonlight that he wanted to reach out and touch it. "They're so confusing…" she told him softly, meeting his eyes again. He saw anguish in them. "These things I think and feel…and you never make sense to me…"

There was something about how the fire cast wispy shadows in the room. The moon seemed to create a pretty white light that picked up the sheen of her hair and the softness of her skin. He could smell her; he could taste her breath on his tongue. He could hear her soft, short breaths. With her so close he could even feel her trembling. His senses were so attune to her, all of his focus bent on her…Gaara leaned forward…

Their lips brushed, and Gaara fought the monster inside tooth and nail, pushing it back down into the depths of his soul. Her lips were so soft. He had never kissed another person before – not on the cheek, not on the hand, never. But it felt good to kiss Hinata…so good…

Hinata gasped lightly, and when her lips opened he deepened the kiss. Even if he had been able to stop…at this point he couldn't… He was drunk on her, and he only wanted more. Gaara felt himself pushing her back, leaning her tenderly on the bed. One of his knees propped him up as he bent over her, his hands on either side of her face. Gaara was almost afraid to touch her – he didn't want to hurt her, and she seemed so frail. If he touched her…he might not be able to stop…

Gaara nearly jumped out of his skin when her light fingers met the sensitive flesh of the inside of his wrist. She didn't pull or push, but held him there. She made some kind of noise…it was like a hum, only higher. It excited him. It excited him so much that he pulled away, breaking contact with her sweet lips.

When he looked down on her Hinata's eyes were closed, lips parted, and she was panting slightly. It made him want to kiss her again, harder, deeper…more. And she didn't seem upset. He might be "socially incapable," but Gaara thought he would be able to tell if Hinata was mad or scared or unhappy. She looked like maybe…maybe she had liked it.

Encouraged, Gaara captured her lips a second time. He liked the way her lips gave slightly, sliding open under the pressure of his own. He could almost taste her like that. The sudden urge to taste her took over, and he dipped his tongue between her lips, pleased when they opened. She was sweet, like the nectar of some foreign fruit. He brushed her tongue with his own, angling his face to the side when their noses brushed together.

This time he didn't miss the soft, long moan that vibrated from her lips to his. He heard himself moan as well, and of its own volition he felt his hand – the one Hinata did not have her fingers wrapped around – move to the base of Hinata's neck. Her skin was so amazingly silky and smooth that he ran his fingers up and down the exposed flesh. He could feel her pulse beneath his fingers, flighty and fast.

A rocket of heat sunk down below his stomach, and Gaara suddenly felt inflamed with desire. He moved down, only partly sorry that he had to quit the delicate dance with Hinata's tongue. But he had to taste more of her, taste all of her skin. His lips met her neck, the fluttering of her pulse exciting his senses. Gaara tentatively darted his tongue out, reveling in the velvety silk of her neck. He couldn't help himself as he licked and kissed her there on her pulse point.

Another soft moan escaped her lips, making Gaara tense for a moment when her hand tightened around his wrist. But she wasn't moaning her displeasure. He was fairly sure about that. Her low sighs continued as Gaara fought off the need to bite her. He was nibbling lightly, but the nibbling made her so vocal that he lost control. Immediately he wished he hadn't done it, but not only because he liked it so much. When he bit her neck Hinata let out a high, keening whimper, so pretty it almost broke him into pieces.

"Oh…Gaara…" she moaned breathlessly, such an erotic noise that Gaara shivered with pleasure, with anticipation. Her passionate response to the bite didn't help Gaara control his instincts any better, but he was slowly beginning to think letting go might not be so terrible. Hinata was behaving like she did in his dreams, moaning and writhing beneath him. Every time he bit her – and he bit her pretty hard at least once – she gasped erotically, her reaction so enthusiastic that it fueled his own desire.

He clamped down on her neck, enjoying the way her flesh felt in his mouth, the taste and texture of it, the throb of her pulse. He liked the way she responded, moaning unintelligibly, her body shifting beneath his.

"Please…" she gasped, her voice so soft and lyrical that Gaara had a hard time understanding.

He pulled back immediately, noting the panicked look in her eyes. "Please what?" he asked. He needed to know…did she feel the same way…warm and confused, delirious with pleasure, unable to control her mind, much less her body. "Please what?" he repeated, hearing the urgency in his voice.

"I…I don't know," she said sadly, seeming genuinely confused and upset. She turned her face way from him, her eyes closed, panting heavily now. The moon lit up her face, and he could see she was flushed, her lips plump and red from kissing. A large dark mark was forming on the side of her neck, and he watched with a sick kind of fascination as it grew and darkened. He touched it and felt her shiver beneath him.

"I hurt you," he said simply, regaining some of his higher motor functions along with his self-control.

Her tongue darted out between her lips and she shook her head. "No," she told him, meeting his eyes again. They were shining brightly in the moonlight, and he saw she wasn't lying, or even scared. She was…Gaara though he might be seeing desire in her eyes. "No," she confirmed a second time, her voice the lightest whisper. "I…I liked it…"

To emphasize she brought her free hand up to where he had his fingers resting over the bruise on her neck. She caressed the skin on the top of his hand, sending shiver down his spine. Then she pressed his hand firmly against the bruise, holding it there for several moments. The helpless look in her eyes, the gasp on her lips, sparked his arousal once again. He had the strongest desire to bite her again, but this time he wanted to see blood. Gaara squeezed his eyes shut, unwilling to give his instincts free reign. As it was he felt giddy and out of control – just being close to Hinata caused this…and he had done so many more satisfying things than that in the last few minutes.

"I have to go," he said in a flat voice, fighting to keep any emotion out of it. He watched for her reaction, almost glad when he saw sadness in her eyes. As much as he didn't want to leave, she didn't want him to leave either.

"I…I understand, Gaara-sama," she said in a soft, defeated voice.

Helping her into a sitting position, Gaara stood and looked down on the dark haired girl. His extremely limited social skills would not help him in this situation, and he felt horribly out of his depth. She looked equally as lost – he saw her flush with embarrassment. With a tough swallow, Gaara leaned down and kissed her forehead, his thumb lingering for a moment over the bruise on her neck.

"Gaara-sama," she whispered, turning her eyes up to his.

His eyes met her expectantly.

"Goodnight," she murmured sincerely.

Gaara had defeated enemies that would make demons seem like puppies. He had traversed the most difficult landscapes. He had battled and killed and destroyed. But nothing, _nothing_ was more difficult than walking out of that room and leaving Hinata for the duties of a Kazekage.

* * *

Tatami – compacted mats usually used in flooring in traditional Japanese architecture

* * *

**Edited: November 3, 2009**


	10. Chapter Ten

**Author's Note:** Please read, enjoy, and review!

* * *

**THE DIVINE WINDS OF SUNA**

**Chapter Ten**

Shikamaru had opted for a Suna-style cape. He was warm enough in the clothes he brought, but his objective was to blend in and gather information. For two days the Puppet Master of Suna and the Lazy Genius of Konoha had trolled the city streets, stopping by every vendor or collector that dealt in Goto steel. They had found plenty of places that sold his work, but no one – even collectors – had ever seen an edged weapon with Goto's personal seal on it.

Kankurō was clearly willing to call it quits, saying the only clue they had was really a dead end. Goto had, after all, closed his workshop several years before his death. No apprentice had been named when they explored his files from the Ironworker's Guild, and he didn't even have an heir to the fortune he made. It took quite a while to search through the documents, but apparently all his money had been donated to an orphanage.

That was where they were headed right then – Goto's School for Orphaned Boys and Girls. Goto hadn't founded the school, but his donations had funded it for so many years that the current headmaster had changed the name to honor Goto's memory. It was even the headmaster – Tian Jhao – who offered to take them on a tour of the facility and search through their records. He was an elderly man, kind and generous, and had been a monk at the Kaze no Tera, the country's largest nindera. While still a monk, Tian Jhao had dedicated most of his life to the orphanage, and spent little time at the temple.

"I understand you are interested in Master Goto," Tian Jhao said pleasantly, a crinkly smile on his face. "He was our greatest patron – we still receive an annual donation from his account."

"If I can ask…" Shikamaru said, accepting a cup of tea from a young man wearing a monk's robe. "If I could ask some…tactless questions, Master Tian Jhao…"

The monk seemed to find this humorous. "Of course, Nara-san."

Shikamaru suddenly felt like someone was talking to his father. "Did you know Goto personally?"

The monk shook his head. "Sadly, no. I had heard of him, of course – he was a great and respected master of his craft. But he didn't ever come to the orphanage. I only know him by his generous donations."

"Does his will specify what you should do with his donations?" Shikamaru probed.

Tian Jhao nodded. "It does. In fact, my assistant keeps a very detailed invoice of all the money donated and how it is spent. I can get you a copy."

Shikamaru thanked him as the elderly monk sent out his assistant for the papers. It seemed to Shikamaru that this orphanage was yet another dead-end to Goto. He'd not had any friends, no children, no wife, no apprentices, no one in his life he was close to. So why would he give all his money to this orphanage? Was it random? But Shikamaru didn't believe in random. Goto had written in his will very specific instructions about what was going to be done with his money. If it was random he wouldn't have bothered to be so specific. Shikamaru just didn't have all the information.

He frowned, waiting for the assistant to return. "Master Tian Jhao…" Shikamaru said quietly. "Do you have any inkling as to why Goto would choose your orphanage? Am I right in assuming this is not the only one in Suna?"

Tian Jhao seemed to think on this. "You are not wrong, Nara-san," he replied after a few moments. "We are one of three orphanages in Suna, and not the largest, I might add. I have questioned why Master Goto would choose to leave all his money to us, especially since he never made an effort to visit before his death… He could easily have split the money between all three orphanages…"

Shikamaru's eyebrows drew together. "Could it be…I mean, have you given thought to…"

He wasn't sure how to say it tactfully, but Tian Jhao chuckled lightly at his attempt. "Of an illegitimate offspring?" he finished for Shikamaru. Shikamaru tried not to flush in embarrassment. Tian Jhao was not a typical monk – all the ones he'd ever met were stuffy and, well, generally cantankerous.

Nodding, Shikamaru allowed Tian Jhao to continue. "I had considered that, Nara-san. However, with no way of knowing who the mothers of these orphaned children are, and being unable to ask Master Goto myself, it seemed I had no other choice than to let the mystery rest." He paused. "May I ask a question of my own, Nara-san?"

Shikamaru squinted at the older man. This was clearly a man who was educated, and intelligent. Shikamaru had no doubt that the headmaster was once a strong shinobi – though withered and old, traces of strong muscles still lingered under the wrinkled skin of his exposed arms. He held himself in a way that was both refined and alert, and his confidence betrayed his experience. Shikamaru nodded. "Of course, Master Tian Jhao."

"You did not introduce yourself as so, but you are a shinobi, correct?" the older man asked. It was not so much of a question as it was a statement though. Shikamaru nodded and allowed the headmaster to continue. "You are also not from Sunagakure," he said.

"Kankurō-san is my guide," Shikamaru replied, hoping to allude to some kind of official business.

"I see," Tian Jhao replied, nodding with a soft smile. "Tell me, Nara-san. What would a foreign shinobi care about the donations of some old Suna ironworker's will?"

Shikamaru pursed his lips. "That is something I am not at liberty to discuss. I can say, however, that your assistance is greatly appreciate by the Kazekage."

Clearly, Tian Jhao was intelligent enough to understand the meaning of Shikamaru's last statement. Combined with the fact that Shikamaru was accompanied by the Kazekage's bother, it would be easy for someone with elementary reasoning skills to see that Shikamaru's job was top secret.

Tian Jhao studied Shikamaru closer than the young man would have liked, but then nodded as his assistant arrived with the copies of the invoice. Shikamaru thanked the young man and read through the report swiftly. The assistant refilled his tea and sat back respectfully in the corner of the room.

"This is interesting," Shikamaru finally said, rolling the scroll tightly and stashing it within his vest. He had read through rather quickly, hoping to see some glaring accounting errors or something mischievous. Instead of anything illegal, Shikamaru noticed another oddity. "There's a waiting scholarship for any orphan who wishes to pursue an ironworking apprenticeship."

Tian Jhao nodded. "He was an ironworker after all," the older man reasoned.

"Has anyone ever taken advantage of this scholarship?" Shikamaru asked.

The old headmaster thought back, his eyes closing. "Four boys. They study under a master named Hidemoto." Then the older man looked at Shikamaru. "They're good boys – two are brothers, and the other two are very good friends."

Before Shikamaru could ask anything else, Kankurō entered the room with another young monk. Kankurō had opted to take a tour of the facilities instead of staying with Shikamaru to question the old headmaster. He had a frown on his face, and tossed a kunai towards Shikamaru. "Whadda you think?" he asked.

Shikamaru turned the kunai over in his hands. It had Goto's personal seal on it. "Where did you get this?"

"That is one of the kunai the children use to practice with," Master Tian Jhao supplied, nodding towards to kunai. "Some of our students wish to become shinobi, and all of Master Goto's weapons were donated to the school for practice tools. We even have all his old furnaces and ironworking equipment somewhere around here."

Shikamaru frowned, running his hands over the kunai. "This is newer," he replied, looking up at Kankurō and then to Master Tian Jhao. "Do you allow the orphans to use your furnaces?"

Tian Jhao shook his head fervently. "Of course, not – and, besides, we have no steel."

"Would you mind if we took a look at the furnaces, Headmaster Tian Jhao?" Shikamaru asked politely, turning the kunai over in his hands. Even he could tell the weight was off.

The old master nodded. "I am anxious to see them myself," he replied, rising with the grace and energy of a much younger man. "I will take you myself, Kankurō-dono, Nara-san."

One of his assistants objected softly, but Shikamaru watched as the older man shook him off and grabbed a cane. Tian Jhao led the two younger shinobi around the delicately designed gardens where many of the orphans were working or playing. He crossed a training field, and near the forest there was a large, decrepit-looking building with a sagging roof. It looked little used, just for storage. When Tian Jhao opened the creaking doors he ushered Shikamaru and Kankurō inside.

Aside from a surprisingly thick layer of dust, the storage shed held all manner of broken equipment, old chests, and mangled tools. The furnaces sat in the corner, along with several anvils, hammers, and basins. They all appeared to be unused. Shikamaru, however, was looking for something in particular. "There are no seals," he said flatly. "Are you sure this is all of it?" he asked the older master, who had a slight frown on his face.

"Yes," he replied evenly. "This was all of it. We have no use for the seals, and the children wouldn't be interested…they were only interested in the shuriken and the kunai for target practice."

Shikamaru frowned. "I think I'd like to see profiles of the four boys who apprenticed themselves to Hidemoto."

* * *

"You won't get any better by napping," the older kunoichi said harshly, yanking Tenten up sharply with a vicious grin.

"Do not give up, Tenten! Remember what Guy-sensei always says –"

"Shut it, Lee!" both of the girls barked, glaring at the boy in green. He visibly shrunk under their combined wrath.

Tenten gritted her teeth as Temari hobbled over to the table and took a long drink of water. Even while injured, Temari's wind attacks could withstand anything Tenten threw at the older girl. It was hopeless to try and engage her in short-range battle. Temari might not have any talent for it, but her long-range techniques made it impossible to get close. _Lioness _was useless – but, then, so were all her other weapons. She didn't exactly regret asking Temari to spar with her, but she did regret not having at least a battle plan.

Joining Temari at the table, she noticed that the older girl's face was really pale, and her breaths were quick and shallow. _She must be in unimaginable pain,_ Tenten thought to herself. _Still…I can't even touch her…_

"You're better, you know?" Temari told her shortly, not looking up. "I didn't think much of you at the Chûnin Exams, but you've gotten plenty better. You'll be a jōnin soon."

Keeping her mouth shut, Tenten nodded silently.

As if an afterthought, Temari shorted. "And, if it's any consolation, you could probably beat Kankurō – he's a jōnin, too."

Tenten thought that over. She was pretty sure it was a compliment. "Thanks," she said briefly.

Temari snickered, and Tenten looked at her oddly. "You could definitely beat him if you flashed him."

"What?!" Tenten gasped, feeling her face flush in embarrassment.

"Oh, come on," Temari sighed, taking a labored seat on the balcony to watch as Lee tired to help Hinata go through some easy kata. To Tenten, it looked as if the injured girl would pass out any moment. "Don't tell me all that flirting and you're not even going to toss him a bone?"

"Excuse me?" Tenten ground out. Sure, Tenten wasn't exactly the most feminine of kunoichi, but she _did _know how to flirt – and she_ certainly didn't_ flirt with that pervert. Her face flushed with anger as she turned to the older girl – who was grinning. "I do not flirt with your brother – he's the biggest pervert I've ever met!"

"Okay, sure," Temari said in an offhanded way, clearly sarcastic.

Tenten frowned. "He hates me," she replied stonily.

"Yah, tell me about it – he can't stop talking about you," Temari agreed in her sardonic tone. "Or _staring_ at you. It's repulsive."

Tenten crossed her arms and looked away. "I am _not_ talking about this with you," she said, her breath hitching as she huffed.

"Have it your way," Temari said lightly, looking rather pleased with herself, and Tenten couldn't figure out why. Was the older girl teasing her?

Temari grunted, raising herself up and hobbling towards the open arcadia doors that led from the balcony into the house. The healer had been by this morning as well – for the last two days Temari had been receiving healing sessions with one of the iryō-nin from Suna. They came out to the house, and so did many other messengers and ANBU. Temari's injury – combined with Gaara's order that they were to stay at the house – made it difficult for the older girl to function at her post as intelligence coordinator for ANBU. However, the Suna ANBU force seemed flexible enough to bring their intelligence to the house where they all stayed.

Even Gaara returned to the house at night, Tenten noticed. She knew that part of their mission was to protect Hinata until she was healed enough to finish her survey of the sewers. The other part of their mission was to range to sewers to protect against the Kamikaze from finding the secret chamber. With Shikamaru and Kankurō gone to investigate Goto, that left Tenten and Lee to both range the sewers and protect Hinata. Temari, of course, was always there to protect Hinata, but her limited mobility prevented Temari from going into the sewers. Tenten ran on very little sleep, something she didn't like but was intimately familiar with.

This afternoon was one of those rare times when Tenten, Temari, Lee, and Hinata were at the house together – Shikamaru had wanted to go back down into the hidden library room for more clues and Lee would be replacing him and Kankurō on sewer duty in a few hours.

"Hey! Lee," Tenten shouted, getting her teammate's attention. He was adjusting Hinata's stance, and the poor, pale girl was flushing awkwardly. "Go relieve Shikamaru and Kankurō. I'll be by after nightfall to take over for you so you can get a few hours of sleep," she said as she approached. "I'll take care of Hinata-sama."

Hinata flushed. "Please…Tenten-san…"

Tenten waved her hand. "Gomen, gomen – Hinata-_san_." It has hard to think of the girl as Hinata-san when Neji was always saying Hinata-sama. The girl flashed her a smile, her breathing a little heavy. "Let's get you inside," Tenten said gruffly, giving Hinata her arm as they followed Lee inside.

Though Tenten didn't typically like weak people – in fact, she detested them – she had made somewhat of an exception for Hinata. Sure, she wasn't strong in the traditional sense, but some of the things Neji had told her over the years made Tenten re-evaluate Hinata. She was an excellent tracker, and was sent on a lot of intelligence and reconnaissance missions. Maybe she wasn't a fighter, but not every shinobi was a warrior – some were healers, some were spies, some were trackers…

Tenten let Hinata take the stairs as slowly as she wanted – from what Teten understood, Hinata had just survived a bombing attack meant to kill her, and it was amazing that she was strong enough to survive the healing procedure, much less the blast itself. No, the Hyūga heiress was certainly not weak. Hinata thanked her softly as Tenten helped the younger girl into the large bed.

Tenten sat on the edge of the bed, making sure Hinata was okay before she left. When she returned down the stairs she was met with Temari, Shikamaru, and Kankurō. They were all sitting around the table, apparently waiting for her. With a frown, Tenten sat as well, taking a seat opposite Temari.

"We've found out some rather disturbing information regarding Goto," Shikamaru began. Tenten listened intently as Shikamaru and Kankurō told them about their visit to an orphanage – apparently Goto had donated all of his money and belongings to the children housed there after his death. "But this is not what worries me most," Shikamaru continued. "When Kankurō and I returned to the secret chamber we examined the shuriken that had been in the trap at the door. They have Goto's personal seal on them."

He tossed the shuriken on the table, and Tenten swiped one up between her fingers. True enough they had Goto's seal, and they were rather old and a bit rusty. "From what Hinata-san and Gaara-sama have told us," Kankurō said darkly, "the trap was old, but well set. It's possible that Goto was a shinobi, or he had a shinobi accomplice."

"That would have to be almost fifty years ago, though," Temari said in a gasp. "I mean, that room hasn't been touched in ages."

Shikamaru shrugged. "Even if it _was_ fifty years ago," he said lightly, "Goto would have been in his thirties, already an established ironworker…" There was a short silence. "Tomorrow, Kankurō and I will talk to those boys that took the ironworking scholarships," Shikamaru told them.

Tenten, still fingering the kunai that Shikamaru had brought from the orphanage, tossed the kunai up in her hand. She could feel the poor weight of it, knew the imperfections in the metal, and noticed the awkward angle of the seal. "This isn't a kunai from a master's hands," she said musingly. "But it's stamped with Goto's personal seal." She frowned. "I think I should go. I know enough about ironworking and weapons-making that I might even be able to tell which apprentice made this."

She looked to Shikamaru, who narrowed his eyes. "Alright. When Gaara-sama returns we'll discuss this with him."

Tenten nodded and they began to disperse. Tenten noticed that Shikamaru and Temari often stayed together when they were in the house at the same time. There had been rumors in Konoha about how much time they spent together, and Tenten had seen the passion behind their embrace when they greeted each other at the edges of the forest. Tenten frowned and decided to take advantage of the last few hours of sunlight to practice with _Lioness_.

Even while on missions, Tenten worked hard and practiced. Today had been an easy day for her, for she had been in the sewers at night, but that morning had been relieved and slept until the early afternoon. She had extra energy, and – as Temari had been so kind to remind her – she wouldn't get any better by lazing around. _Lioness_ sang sweetly as she removed it from the hilt, and she jumped down from her second-story window onto the large balcony below. Tenten was alone, just how she liked it.

First, she went through some relaxing kata, slow and deliberate, eyes closed. Her muscles complained only a little bit, straining under the excruciatingly slow speed of her movements. It was the best way to instill muscle memory, by doing these kata slowly. When she was in battle her muscles would remember these strokes, and they would be like second-nature to her. And it felt good – it felt good to have _Lioness_ in her hands, to move through the familiar motions. It felt so good that she almost lost herself in concentration. Almost.

"You know, if you wanted to see more of me all you had to do was ask."

Frozen in her motions, Tenten opened her eyes as saw Kankurō was upside down. _No, _she thought._ I'm upside down_. She was bent over backwards, her jian blade lined above her torso and the tassels dangling above her nose. She frowned and straightened herself, hefting _Lioness_ over one shoulder. Unsure of what to say (or if it would be considered flirting to make a biting retort), Tenten looked away and pursed her lips. Maybe if she ignored him he would go away.

The problem was, she was beginning to think maybe Temari wasn't so far off. Thinking back on the other night, some of the things she'd done could have been considered flirting. Though Tenten thought she had been rather firm about telling him not to be so perverted when he'd gotten too close. She knew he was flirting with her, maybe even trying to kiss her, but Kankurō's man-whore reputation preceded him. Tenten didn't have patience for men who thought they were all that and a bag of BBQ-flavored chips. Actually, she didn't have time for men, period.

He circled around her quietly, kind of like a jungle cat – his facial makeup made him look almost feline, too. "You're no fun when you're like this," he told her in a taunting tone. "Come on…" he said in a honey-smooth voice, coaxing her to talk. "Nothing?"

She didn't say anything, just looked away from him. "I get it," he said finally, raising his hands in a gesture of surrender. "You're still upset about the other night. Fine." Then he stuck out his hand. "I apologize."

Tenten eyed him suspiciously then put her hand in his. "It's all business between you and me," she clarified, shaking his hand swiftly.

"Yup," he replied, not letting go of her hand.

"So cut it out with that pervy stuff," she continued, noticing that he was neither letting go of her hand, nor moving away.

Actually, he was getting closer. He was looking down on her, a little smirk on his lips that made him seem handsome to Tenten. Now that he was leaning a bit closer she saw his eyes were an intelligent dark brown color. She swallowed as he leaned down, suddenly feeling as though her feet were made out of lead. She should run away. She should throw a shuriken at him. She should hit him with _Lioness_. There were thousands of things she should have done, and would not have done if someone hadn't cleared their throat.

"Kankurō! Gaara's back, and dinner's ready!"

Faster than lightning, Tenten leapt away from Kankurō, feeling like someone had suddenly put fire under her feet. Kankurō was scowling, looking back towards his sister. But Temari was smirking, and she winked once (maybe to Kankurō and maybe to Tenten, she couldn't tell which) before ducking back into the house.

Tenten sheathed _Lioness_, huffing and sneering in Kankurō's direction. "You _really are_ a pig," she said to him, glaring.

Kankurō only laughed, heading towards the arcadia doors. "You like it."

Tenten flushed, dreading that he was right. After all, her pulse had quickened as he leaned over her, and she'd felt this warm sensation rising from her toes to her cheeks. She had been nervous, but the kind of giddy nervousness one expects before a kiss… She feared that she might have wanted him to kiss her, and that was why she had hesitated attacking. Angry, Tenten grabbed a hold of Kankurō's sleeve, jerking him away from the door and pushing him against the wall. One hand planted on his chest (as she tried not to think of how warm it was) she glared nastily.

"I am _not _one of those silly, air-headed…_easy_ girls you sleep around with," she ground out, noting the look of surprise on his face. "And…and you don't impress me!"

With a huff, Tenten pushed past him and strode easily through the house. She felt better afterwards, like maybe she was now in control of however he was making her feel. She felt better knowing she didn't let him trap her and then take something from her. It would be her first kiss if she had let him kiss her. It's not like she was saving it for anyone, but she intended it to be special…not Kankurō of Suna…man-whore extraordinaire…

* * *

Kaze no Tera – Temple of the Wind

Nindera – shinobi monastery; ninja temple

Kata – detailed choreographed patterns of movements practiced either solo or in pairs

* * *

**Edited: November 3, 2009**


	11. Chapter Eleven

**Author's Note:** Please read, enjoy, and review!

* * *

**THE DIVINE WINDS OF SUNA**

**Chapter Eleven**

It had now gotten to where Hinata could climb up and down the stairs without help or resting. Normally, Lee would escort her, or Temari would see her to the second floor (for she had an injured leg), or after dinner Gaara would help her up to her room. Thinking of that made Hinata blush furiously. For the last few nights Gaara had done more than just help her into bed… The way he touched her, and the way he kissed her, made Hinata's heart flutter fast and crazy against her ribs. They didn't do much talking. In fact, Gaara didn't seem to say much except for, "Are you feeling better?" (which he never failed to ask) or "Goodnight" (which he said haltingly and awkwardly). _Though, _Hinata thought to herself_, it's not as though I attempt to make very stimulating conversation…all I ever do is stutter…_

Swallowing a flavorless mouthful of ramen noodles (it had been Temari's turn to cook), Hinata looked down the table. Gaara sat at the head, very farthest from her. To Hinata's left was Tenten, who glared nastily at Kankurō sitting across from her. Then next to Tenten sat Shikamaru, who wasn't eating anything. Across from him was Temari, who was busy trying not to laugh at something Hinata didn't understand. Every once in a while Hinata would turn to look at Gaara, and he was always looking at her when she did. This time she blushed and turned back to her food.

Finally, after Hinata had cleared the table (the better she felt the more housework she began to help with), Shikamaru beckoned for her to sit down again instead of doing the dishes right away. "We need to have a short briefing before Tenten goes to relieve Lee in the sewers," he said, pulling out a copy of the maps that Hinata had made. "But first," he continued, "I need to know when you think you'll be healed enough to begin helping us find the Kamikaze."

Hinata nodded and thought for a moment. She had steadily been getting better, stronger. Today she had gone through a pretty simple kata with Lee before she felt too faint to continue. She had always known she recovered slowly, but it had been four days since the iryō-nin finished healing her. The healer that came by daily for Temari's leg said that her chakra reserves were replenishing themselves, and that her back was healing at a nice, normal rate. "I-I know we don't have much time," she said softly, looking down at her hands. "But…um…two days… The iryō-nin said I sh-should have my chakra back up by then…and I don't mind the pain..."

Shikamaru nodded. "I wish it was tomorrow, but I want you at your best, Hinata," he told her honestly.

"Gomen-nasai, Shikamaru-san," she replied softly.

"That brings us to tomorrow," he continued, looking away from her. "I think that Tenten should go with Kankurō to Hidemoto's workshop and talk to those orphans apprenticed there. Kankurō's influence opens doors, and Tenten knows weapons better than any of us. All we need is some proof that those kunai come from that workshop, then we can send a couple of ANBU over and do some interrogations."

"I agree," Temari said quietly, looking intense. "I've been feeling much better as well, so I'll take a shift down in the sewers tomorrow morning. Kankurō and I will meet you down there after sunrise, Tenten."

With the plans settled, Hinata moved back into the kitchen to do the dishes. She was much more optimistic about the success probability of the mission now that Temari was feeling better, and that Tenten had found those clues with the kunai. It made Hinata realize that she wished she could be more like Temari and Tenten. They were both strong kunoichi, and they didn't take anything from anyone. True, both could be a little rude and aggressive, and Hinata knew she could never be like that, but they were powerful warriors.

All her life, Hinata had known she wasn't as strong as others. She wasn't cut out to be a warrior – she didn't have the killer instinct, the physical capabilities, the chakra reserves. All her father wanted was a strong warrior, so Hinata had tried hard. She'd tried harder than anyone knew. She never rested for long; she was always practicing, always trying. She wanted to be like Tenten and Temari, but she just wasn't strong like them. Then Naruto came along, and he told her never to give up, never to go back on her word, never stop trying. Maybe that made her strong, too, made her like Tenten and Temari.

Hinata swallowed hard when she heard someone enter the kitchen. She was just finishing, just putting the last bowl in its place, when she heard a shuffling of feet. It was Gaara. His arms were crossed, and there was a blank, unreadable look on his pale face. It never failed to amaze Hinata how dangerous, how feral he looked. Gaara was strength, while Hinata was weakness. Maybe she liked this best about him: that he was what she wished she could be.

Slowly he turned and Hinata knew that she was to follow him. His steps were slow for her sake, and when then reached the stairs he stayed a step behind her in case she was to fall again. When she made it to the top without tripping or resting she smiled at him. It was, of course, lost on his stony personality. Gaara almost never smiled, not unless he was laughing at someone. And not really even then. It was a smirk.

When he closed the door behind them Hinata took a few steps back, not immediately falling into the bed. Usually she was too tired to go farther than the bed, but she had more energy today. She moved over to the fireplace and felt him come to stand behind her. The other morning she had cleaned this room from top to bottom, making all the pictures spotless and clearing the dust from all the surfaces and airing out the rugs and linens.

Biting her bottom lip, Hinata angled a picture towards him. "Is this your mother?" she asked softly, turning towards him a little.

His face was expressionless and hard. "Hai," he said simply, emotionlessly.

Hinata knew she was dead, and had no wish to make Gaara uncomfortable, so she nodded. "Who's this?" she asked, pointing to a picture of a man that looked suspiciously like Gaara's mother.

This time Gaara paused, his eyes drawing together. "That was Yashamaru – my mother's twin brother."

"Oh…then your uncle is dead…gomen-nasai…" she murmured awkwardly.

"I killed him," Gaara said with a finality to his voice that made Hinata shiver slightly.

She paused, looking down. "I…I didn't mean t-to pry, Gaara-sama," she said in a small voice.

There was silence for a while. "It's fine," he finally said, turning around.

Biting her lip, Hinata fingered the picture with Gaara's mother, sister, and brother – the one where he'd yet to be born. "You're lucky to h-have pictures of her," she said suddenly, not really thinking. "Mm…my mother died when I was really young…and my father won't allow my sister and me to have pictures of her."

Gaara had moved a little ways away and was looking out the window, but he cocked his head to the side when she said this. "Why?"

Hinata shrugged, putting the picture back. "I think…he loves her so much…he-he can't look at pictures of her without being sad…"

Gaara made a humming noise, and Hinata could tell she was boring him. Gaara didn't like to talk, but she thought that they should get to know each other a little more…better than they already did. It would at least make it easier to be around him when they weren't…well, being intimate.

"Gaara-sama?" she asked quietly, looking at his silhouette in the light of the moon through the window. He didn't reply. She moved over towards him a bit, standing at his shoulder. The moon was large and clear in the distance, rising over the canyon. "Gomen-nasai," she whispered. "I shouldn't have asked you about your family."

"You shouldn't do that," he told her, not really looking at her.

"I know," she said. "Gomen-nasai. It's not my b-business."

"I mean apologize," he told her frankly, turning to face her. His eyes were intense, penetrating. If their expression wasn't so familiar she might have quivered in fear. "It shows your weakness when you apologize."

An apology tried to fly of the tip of her tongue but she bit it back. Swallowing hard she nodded. Gaara raised a hand to her face, touching her cheek softly and running his fingers down her neck. Her hair shaded the bruise he'd given her a few days ago. He moved it out of the way and pressed his thumb there gently. Hinata bit her bottom lip, looking up into his eyes. As men went, Gaara was not the tallest. He was still quite a bit taller than Hinata, who knew she was considerably shorter than many girls her age. She swallowed when he rubbed his thumb over the bruise, something she thought he did to convey affection. She liked it, like maybe he was saying she was his…his girlfriend?

His other hand was on her hip – when he touched her she felt slightly electrified. Slowly he drew her closer until she was pressed against his chest. She smiled a bit, realizing he was hugging her. Her arms found themselves around his slender waist, her fingers grabbing hold of the folds in his coat. The hand on her neck moved to cup the base of her skull. He turned her face up to him, and she saw that he was gazing at her, his eyes almost scientific in their examination of her features. She tried to remain neutral, not nervous.

He made her nervous, though, but not because she was scared of him. More…she was scared of how he made her feel sometimes. She didn't really understand her feelings, and they were so strong she was often completely swept away by them. It was thrilling and scary at the same time. She liked it. She liked it when Gaara made her feel like that, like she had lost all control of herself. She felt free…

"How are you feeling?" he asked her, his typically soft, expressionless voice a bit more tender.

"I feel much better today, Gaara-sama," she whispered truthfully. "Dōmo arigatō."

He nodded, lowering his lips to hers. She shivered a bit in anticipation, enjoying the sensation of his lips pressing heavily on hers. To her, Gaara always smelled faintly of cinnamon and dark, moist earth, the kind you used for planting flowers. She liked the smell, and whenever he was close she could inhale and sniff him discretely. She liked the way he tasted too, though she would be at a loss to describe it. Maybe kind of spicy, but not like peppers. Hinata sighed into the taste and velvety feel of his tongue as it probed her mouth.

Slowly, Gaara's grip on her waist was tightening, and Hinata knew she would have a fresh set of finger-shaped bruises when she woke the next morning. She didn't mind the pain, though. She was used to pain, and later on it would be proof that he had touched her. It never ceased to amaze Hinata that someone – especially Gaara – would ever touch her like this. She liked to have the proof of those bruises.

Gaara gently released her, his breathing hot and heavy on her cheek when he pulled away. "Goodnight, Hinata-san," he said quietly. He moved towards the door.

Hinata, her cheeks flushed and her breathing erratic, took several quick steps towards him, grasping onto the sleeve of his coat. "Matte…" she said impetuously. He turned to look down on her with an unreadable expression. "Stay," she said simply, quietly.

Gaara said nothing, but disentangled her fingers from his sleeve. "I must leave."

He was almost to the door when Hinata spoke again. "I know you are out there," she said softly. "At night…y-you watch over me…" She breathed deeply. "I can see you with my Byakugan."

He stopped before he turned the handle on the door.

"You could stay, though," she said to him slowly. "I d-don't mind."

More bravely than she felt, Hinata approached him and took a hold of his hand. He didn't resist when she stood on the tips of her toes and kissed his neck. Gaara stiffened immediately. She continued to kiss his neck, softly like he kissed her, occasionally darting her tongue out to taste his skin. It was salty and smooth. Hinata let her fingers unbuckle the bindings of his coat. She couldn't believe how brave she was being – she wasn't shaking at all. The fastenings on his coat opened under her fingers, exposing Gaara's mesh, long-sleeved shirt.

Hinata was unprepared for what happened next. Gaara's lips fell heavily on hers, pushing her back against the door roughly. Instead of searching, his tongue pillaged her mouth, tasting every part of her. Hinata gasped when he ripped the tan-colored cape off her shoulders, flinging it behind him. She could feel the warmth of his chest against hers, hear the growl deep in his throat when he ran his hands down her sides. His hands grasped Hinata's thighs tightly, pulling her up and pinning her against the door.

A shock of warmth and desire shot through Hinata like a spear of lightning. Gaara's hips were between her legs, and he ground into her, hands kneading the back of her thighs and her butt. Hinata felt so naughty for a moment, knowing this was significantly different from what they had been doing – what they had been doing was chaste compared to this. She was moaning into his mouth, unable to think of anything but the need building in her abdomen.

Gaara hitched her a little higher on the door, his mouth breaking contact with hers to lavish attention on her neck and shoulders. Gaara pulled roughly at the material of her shirt, moving it over her shoulder as he sank his teeth into the soft expanse of skin at the base of her neck. Hinata heard herself make a high-pitched sigh, and in response Gaara groaned lowly into her neck. With his hips moving in the most hypnotic fashion between her thighs, Hinata began to feel a delicious warmth spreading all over her body, accompanied by a lightheaded pleasure.

Though the words nearly stuck in her throat, Hinata began murmuring softly. "Gaara…" she moaned, wanting to tell him how good this felt. She said something unintelligible, moaning his name and running her fingers through his soft hair. She marveled at how fine his hair was – not at all rough like she imagined. "Gaara…" she murmured again.

And then he dropped her on the floor.

"Gaara-sama?" she asked hesitantly as he turned from her, clenching his hands tightly at his sides. "G-gomen-nasai," she said softly. "I…I…"

She could see he was shaking, his arms and back very tense, as if he was lifting something very heavy. "Don't…apologize…" he ground out. Hinata could hear the strain in his voice. When he turned Hinata really was scared. "Go…Hinata…" Gaara said in a low, frightening voice. He was so tense that the veins in his neck were straining against his skin, and his whole body shook.

Eyes wide, Hinat knew that if she moved, or ran, that he would fall on her like a predator. It was an instinct of prey, and she stayed very still, trying to shrink into the shadows of the room. For several moments they were frozen like that, and then Gaara turned back to her, his face more or less composed, and helped her to stand. "I _can't_ stay," he said simply, but to Hinata it sounded almost like a plea.

Softly nodding, Hinata made no complaints as he laid her down in the bed, his face as immobile as stone as he bent over, kissing her forehead. Looking down on her, Gaara's face shifted, his lips a gentle frown. Hinata watched him curiously. "I…I didn't mean to scare you," he said to her, sounding unsure of himself. Was this what an apology from Gaara sounded like? "You make me…" but he looked at her almost helplessly, unable to find the words.

Hinata took his hand between hers and looked into Gaara's eyes. He was conflicted, anxious…embarrassed? Hinata was no good at reading people's thoughts, not like Neji, who saw everything. And Gaara was a difficult read anyway. Somehow, though, she felt as if she could almost understand him. "I like you," she said quickly, her face flushing afterwards at the blank look Gaara gave her. "I…I'm not scared of you, Gaara-sama," she told him sincerely.

After a moment he nodded and stood. She felt the shift of the bed, but missed his warmth more. "Goodnight…Hinata."

"G-goodnight, Gaara-sama," she called after his back as he moved towards the door.

* * *

Stealthy as a cat, Tenten emerged from the shadows behind them, earning a frown from Kankurō, and a sharp jump to action from Temari. Kankurō hadn't exactly sensed her, but he's had a feeling that she would do something like this. Alone all night in the sewers, all there was to do was patrol and think. He'd done the same thing for many shifts. Just walk around, thinking to himself. He'd been careful, but there were no further incidents.

No one who'd been down to guard the secret chamber had seen hide nor hair of the Kamikaze. Kankurō was beginning to think that his plotting, suspicious sister and her like-minded boy-toy were slipping. He knew they were dangerous – the Kamikaze – but he wasn't sure they were as smart as Temari, Shikamaru, and Gaara thought they were. However, to balance that out, they were at least talented enough to have some powerful shinobi backing them up. Kankurō would prefer brawn over brains from an enemy any day.

Glancing at Tenten's confident smirk and dark olive eyes, he tried to remind himself that he preferred _looks_ over brains any day, too. She was one tough cookie, smart, too, with a vicious tongue. He shook his head, trying not to over-examine the events of the previous few days. The last thing he needed was to be distracted – Tenten would notice, and then all hell would break loose.

…It was just, after that moment Temari had interrupted on the balcony, Kankurō was pretty sure that Tenten was going to let him kiss her. It was becoming a matter of pride, getting this girl. She wasn't like the others, she didn't throw herself at him, she didn't bat her eyes and make come-hither gestures. And still, he was sure – almost positive – that she was attracted to him. Sure she'd threatened him with kunai and said… _You don't impress me._ He didn't want to think about how much that statement affected him, how angry it made him, how…stupid it made him feel.

No, he would just have to focus on the mission, focus on finding Hidemoto's workshop and wringing as much information out of those boys as possible. Shrugging, Kankurō followed Tenten out of the sewers, leaving a recovering Temari in their wake. It was more dangerous for her down her since she was at a disadvantage. Kankurō would never say this to her, however. She'd kill him, for one. For another, he respected Temari. His sister could hold her own.

Tenten stopped so abruptly that he nearly ran into her. She hissed at him to be quiet. "Guh, just rats," she said after a moment, turning back to him. "I've been down here _way_ too long. Let's get to the surface. I'm starving."

Kankurō felt his stomach grumble uneasily. He'd not eaten anything that morning either. "Seconded," he told her.

They made their way to the first manhole and returned to the surface. For a moment the light blinded his eyes – they'd gotten used to the half darkness, just like Tenten's had. She grumbled, shading her eyes with one hand.

As they sat together in a teashop, Tenten eating her rice and fish, Kankurō with a vile cup of cactus-tea, he took a moment to discuss the plan with her. "So, I figure we ask around the blacksmith district," he said, leaving enough coins on the table for both their meals.

Tenten frowned at him, and put her own money on the table. "Shikamaru said Hidemoto was in the Ironworker's Guild, right?" When Kankurō nodded, she continued. "Well, then there should be plenty of documentation about how much iron ore he purchased, how much he's sold, and who his buyers are. All guild members are required to report their quarterly earnings and purchases."

Kankurō frowned. "How do you know that?"

Tenten shrugged. "I make it my business to know everything about the weapons I use. You wouldn't use a puppet if you didn't know where the wood was from, would you?"

Kankurō raised his eyebrows at this, silently agreeing. "Then our first stop should be the guild's headquarters."

They were leaving the teashop when Kankurō shoved her money back in her hand, smirking at the look she gave him. It was somewhere between surprise and anger. Apparently she decided to let it go, but she didn't talk to him for the rest of their walk through the merchants' district. As predicted, Kankurō's presence opened doors, and soon they were being led down a hallway by the guild master's assistant.

"Aizo-sama," the young assistant murmured as he opened the door. "The Kazekage's brother – Kankurō-dono, and his guest, Tenten-san – Weapons Master of Konoha."

The guild master was an older-looking man with large, weathered hands. Kankurō noticed his hands first and foremost, for they were scarred and spotted with age. Weapons of many kinds hung from the walls, shuriken of all shapes, sizes, and varieties lined down almost half a wall. Kankurō noticed that Tenten was focused more on the weapons than the man, and also noticed that the guild master was far more interested in Tenten than he was Kankurō…the Kazekage's brother.

"Well, it's always nice to meet a fellow appreciator of weaponry," the older man said, his voice a deep, throaty grumble. Apparently he'd spent his fair share of time before a furnace. Aizo stroked his beard, his eyes sharp on which weapons caught Tenten's attention. "It's been a long time since a weapons master has visited." He paused, looking towards Kankurō. "And, of course, the Kazekage's brother is always a welcome guest."

Unlike the monk who had run the orphanage, the guild master – Aizo – seemed to prefer luxury and extravagance. His office was large, his desk an imported mahogany monstrosity – sparse, save an inkwell and collection of gold-wrought calligraphy brushes. Even the way he dressed was in opposition to the priest. Aizo wore an elaborate kimono, dark and fine with golden thread that created stylized chrysanthemum, and a golden obi.

"Unfortunately, Aizo-sama," Kankurō said in a stony voice, "we are not here to pay a social visit."

Aizo nodded and directed them both to two luxurious couches, facing each other with a low table between them. His assistant returned that moment to serve them tea from cups so fragile, Kankurō was unsure if the porcelain would break under the weight of his fingers. Damn, he wasn't good at things like this – having to be polite and cultured. Tenten was the roughest tom-boy he'd ever known, but when he looked at her he saw that she was much more comfortable than he was. She poured her tea and politely waited for it to cool. Kankurō was afraid to lift the teapot.

"That _is _unfortunate," Aizo commented, pouring tea in his cup as well. "It's not every day I get to see the _Lioness of the East_."

Kankurō, thoroughly confused, turned to Tenten. "_Lioness of the East_?"

Tenten ignored him and unhooked her sword from over her shoulder. "It would be an honor, Aizo-sama," Tenten said respectfully. The way she said it made Kankurō want to scream, "What the hell!? You aren't this polite to anyone!"

She shot Kankurō a haughty look. "_Lioness_'s sister-sword is the _Lioness of the West_. Unfortunately, the _Lioness of the West_ has been lost to time. Both swords were made here in Kaze no Kuni by Hiragi-sama. Some call him the greatest sword-smith to ever live. Not many swords remain from Hiragi-sama's workshop."

Aizo agreed with a nod. "He was my master's master." At this, Aizo sighed deeply, his fingers running over the blade. "I was hoping that you would know its location, as you carry the _Lioness of the East_. Alas, I suppose she really is lost to time…"

To his credit, Aizo really did appear regretful. "It was said that all blades are lessened by _Lioness of the West's_ presence, that she was the greater of the two sisters. I am fortunate to have seen her twin."

Still running his hands over the blade, Aizo looked up at Tenten curiously. "If you don't mind me asking, how did you come upon this blade? I never thought that I would see it in my lifetime. Illustrations and descriptions of its perfection are not exaggerated." Aizo then sheathed _Lioness_ and returned it to Tenten's outstretched hands. "The last record of its use is by Hiragi-sama's son, who died in battle during Kaze no Kuni's war with Kirigakure."

Tenten was slinging the long sword over her back once more. "It has passed through many masters since then. The best my father – and his father – have been able to figure, is that Hiragi-sama's son survived, and escaped Kirigakure. It's possible that one of my great-grandmothers or great-aunts nursed him for a while, for there are stories of a forbidden love affair. He must have died, leaving_ Lioness_ behind. It has been passed down along the male line until it reached me. I am the only remaining weapons master in my family."

"I see," he said after several moments. "I suppose you would be opposed to selling it."

Tenten smiled tightly. Kankurō nearly laughed. "I would sooner sell my arms. No, I would sooner sell my heart. Can you put a price on your fingers? Haggle with your hands?"

Aizo chuckled softly. "Well said, Tenten-san." Then, after a few moments, he said, "You are here for business. How can I help the Kazekage?"

Kankurō cleared his throat. Aizo's resentment did not escape Kankurō's observant gaze. "We wish to examine the quarterly reports from the workshop of guild member Hidemoto."

"Hidemoto!" Aizo replied, his voice both derisive and surprised. "Well, I'm afraid that will be impossible…"

Kankurō raised his eyebrow. "And why is that?"

Aizo snorted. "Hidemoto is an embarrassment. I would sooner use a blunt kunai to cut my wrists than buy weapons from that fraud. He hasn't been in the guild for nearly five years."

Kankurō cocked his head to the side. Now he wished Shikamaru was here to sort through all this information. _He_ would certainly have some questions to ask, but Kankurō was at a loss. "We were under the impression that he still took on apprentices, is that allowed?"

"It's not," Tenten said quietly. "To ensure the quality of iron coming out of any country, the guild has to certify each workshop and provide it with a seal – the seal tells who the workshop's master is and which country's guild has certified them…" She paused then, looking off in the distance. "That's why they've been using Goto's personal seal!"

"What?!" Aizo shouted, his face purple with anger. "Hidemoto has been using Goto's personal seal?"

"I take it that's against the rules, as well…" Kankurō commented darkly.

"It's not only against the rules," Tenten replied in an equally dark voice, "it's disrespectful to the master you steal from. Since Hidemoto's ironwork is obviously inferior, he's disrespecting Goto's work. It would be like if someone stole your puppets and started using them to murder innocent citizens. The reputation of your puppets – your iron – is at risk, but so is your own reputation as a puppet master – or as an ironworker."

"Needless to say, I'll be requesting a regiment of shinobi to seize Hidemoto's worshop. It may not be illegal for him to _sell _weapons without certification, but it is illegal for him to_ make_ them, and also to steal the seal of a better master."

Kankurō thought for a moment. "Aizo-sama…if you could delay that request for a few hours…" Aizo directed his outraged look to Kankurō. "Tenten-san and I have a need for secrecy during our investigation. We should be able to finish in a few hours. Then you can file with the Kazekage's office for immediate assistance."

Aizo seemed to think this over, and finally agreed. His assistant directed them to Hidemoto's workshop. Kankurō gave Tenten a brief look before they entered the small, dusty, empty workshop.

* * *

Matte – wait

Gomen-nasai – an apology

Kirigakure – Village Hidden in the Mist

* * *

**Edited: November 3, 2009**


	12. Chapter Twelve

**Author's Note:** Please read, enjoy, and review!

* * *

**THE DIVINE WINDS OF SUNA**

**Chapter Twelve**

Temari had a standing bet between her and whoever cared to take her up on it that she could run from Suna to Konoha in twenty-four hours. If someone had taken her up on that bet right now, she would have lost a lot of money. It was just damn embarrassing for the fastest, smartest, prettiest kunoichi in all of Kaze no Kuni to be so handicapped. The iryō-nin had said it was a severe fracture. Bones were harder to heal than muscles or tissue, so Temari had needed several sessions with a healer to get to where she was now. Oh, there was still plenty of pain, and the iryō-nin told her that in her condition she could easily break her femur clean through if she sustained a similar type injury.

Fortunately, Temari was relieved of her sewer duty in the early afternoon by that energetic boy in green. He was disappointed to hear that no one had attempted to get past the perimeter, and Temari was almost sure he was displaying some symptoms of madness. Not that Temari disliked the green-robed shinobi, for he had a good heart and an unwavering loyalty to his companions, but she'd been in a filthy sewer for the last several hours, tired and in pain. This situation didn't do much for her energy level, nor her mood.

Temari struggled back to the house. At first it had felt so awkward to be back – her room was this horrid lavender and pink catastrophe, and the decorative fans that had belonged to her mother were dusty with disuse. Her childhood home felt haunted with the memories of her mother, of extreme loneliness, and of so much anger. While Kankurō had retreated into puppets and imaginary worlds after their mother's death, Temari had taken it out on the world. She was almost four years old when her mother died, and she was the only one of her siblings that really remembered anything about her. It was still difficult for Temari to picture her mother's face in her mind.

Staying in her childhood home wrenched up many unwanted memories. She was glad that it was coming to some use though. The house was far enough out of Suna's farthest residential district that they weren't bothered by neighbors, and they could see any enemy for miles. Plus, there was a natural escape route backed up against their house – the canyon. Defensively, the house provided them with many advantages, and the possibility of being snuck up on was slim.

Sagging, Temari let herself into the house. She could see Kankurō on the roof as she approached, taking a lookout position. The fact that he was here meant that he and Tenten had completed their mission to gather information on Goto. Gaara would be in his office in the Kazekage complex, but Shikamaru and Hinata should both be in the house. Hopefully, Tenten was resting to take the next shift from Lee instead of bickering/flirting with Temari's younger brother.

Not that Temari ever made it her business to interfere with her brothers' personal lives (especially love lives), but she couldn't help but think Tenten was a little bit out of Kankurō's league. Kankurō, for all his charisma and personality, seemed to be rather offensive to many of the 'nice girls' here in Suna. Having grown up with the obnoxious lout, Temari often ignored her brother's oddities. Still, Kankurō cussed, and he was never polite, and he didn't care what people thought of him. He was intentionally offensive to people, and spoke loudly and irreverently. Temari could understand how many women would take offense to this.

As a result, most of Kankurō's female friends tended to be the adult teahouse type – girls that were basically paid to entertain, and sometimes more. Kankurō liked them young, dumb, and…horny. A girl like Tenten was – despite her age and ferocity – basically an innocent when it came to love and romance. Temari knew for sure that the younger girl hadn't even been kissed yet. She might as well have it painted on her forehead. Tenten wasn't the kind of girl that Kankurō normally chased after – and he _was_ chasing Tenten.

Though at an inopportune time, Temari was pleased that Kankurō's tastes seemed to have matured. Tenten had a sharp tongue, though she knew how to shut her trap, too. Temari wasn't lying when she said Tenten was strong enough to fight, and possibly beat, Kankurō. She was so much stronger than when they fought as genin…soon Tenten would be a jōnin; Temari knew it. In addition to her quick wit and fighting skills, Tenten was pretty (if not a little plain), and confident, and didn't take lip from anyone. She would be good for Kankurō. It had been too long since Kankurō'd had a real challenge, and Tenten would be his biggest yet.

So Temari had decided not to interfere any more in her younger brother's budding crush on Tenten. It wasn't her business. She would stay out of Gaara's way as well, despite the fact that she was pretty sure Hinata brought out both the best and worst in her youngest brother. Gaara was a grown man, the Kazekage, and he couldn't be bossed around by his sister.

Frowning, Temari looked up the stairs for a long moment, then down the hall into the empty sitting room, and the other way to the empty dining room. She slowly made it up the stairs and saw that Tenten's door was partially open. The girl slept with an arsenal of bladed weapons at her fingertips – probably in an attempt to scare off unwanted attention from Kankurō. She didn't see Shikamaru in his room, and she turned to the window at the end of the hall to look down on the balcony.

Hinata – pale and fragile – was practicing kata slowly and gracefully. Jūken was such a beautiful style of close combat, typically bloodless and stylized from years of being passed through generations of Byakugan-users. It fit Hinata's personality well, for Temari could not quite see the girl drawing someone's blood, or assaulting them with numerous bladed weapons like Tenten. Temari considered going down to watch over Hinata, but figured that Kankurō was keeping watch over her.

Gritting her teeth, Temari turned away from the window and limped slowly back to the stairs. Unwilling to stay in her childhood bedroom on the second floor, Temari had selected a guest room on the third floor. When she and Kankurō were children they had rooms on the second floor, and there were several empty rooms that were like nurseries and spare bedrooms for their nannies and other hired help. Temari and Kankurō lived on the same floor as the help out of convenience to their parents – though Father had never really lived with them, and Mother had died shortly after giving birth to Gaara.

The third and fourth floors of the enormous house were technically the penthouse floors – where their parents would have lived together. The fourth floor, the very top floor, was the main bedroom and bath area. Hinata was staying there in a perverse mirror of Temari's mother. From what Temari could remember, their mother was a beautiful, kind, gentle woman – their father had been hard, unyielding, and vicious. How they had loved each other was beyond Temari's understanding. Temari's mother stayed here in the house – like Hinata – while her father stayed in the Kazekage compound – like Gaara.

As a result, Temari's mother had decorated the third floor, the living quarters of the penthouse, to her tastes. This part of the house had been off limits to Temari and Kankurō as children. Even if their father was at the house – which was very rare – he would make it known that the third and fourth floors were out of bounds for them.

Temari still felt slightly uneasy about going up the stairs, but she had chosen a spare bedroom on the third floor to escape the embarrassment of her entirely too girly childhood bedroom. The room she took now would have been used by the wife if she did not desire her husband's attentions. Temari never remembered her mother staying there, so either she really had loved her husband, or her husband never allowed her to stay there.

However, as Temari was passing by the long, comfortable couches (there was an ancient television set that had probably never been used) and kitchenette, she spied a light on in the study. Temari knew there was quite an extensive private library of seals, ninjutsu, and genjutsu in that room, and remembered her father had spent most of his time at home in this room. Temari and Kankurō were never allowed in.

She stopped in the doorway, taking a moment to observe the intruder. To be fair, Temari, Kankurō, and Gaara had said the house was fully at the disposal of all living there. Temari wasn't at all upset about Hinata taking the master bedroom in the penthouse – as far as she was concerned it was a cursed room anyway. Her mother had died of loneliness and heartache just as much as from Gaara's birth. Still, it took Temari by surprise to see Shikamaru sitting in the dimly lit study, reading it through from one side to the other.

Shikamaru was a typically lazy boy, but Temari knew he took his duties seriously when he had them. One of his hands was flipping through pages and making notes on a blank scroll, while the other was propping up his head. The lamplight cast dark shadows over one side of his face, making him look like two different people – one light, one dark.

Temari cleared her throat and he looked up at her, his face going from neutral to agitated. It hurt Temari – hurt her in away that she couldn't really explain – that he was so angry at her, especially after she had given him her best apology. Shikamaru, the boy who couldn't be bothered with getting upset or worked up about anything, was visibly annoyed with her.

He leaned back in his seat – the large, dark toned leather seat that Temari's father had probably spent countless hours in – and gave her a blank look. "I take it you had no further run-ins with the Kamikaze."

Temari drew her brows together, wondering who put Shikamaru in charge of this mission. He was sure acting like the mission leader – but he was only the leader of the Konoha ninja. Somehow Shikamaru seemed to know what she was thinking, and before she could reply he frowned and said, "You asked for my help, Temari – I'm only trying to do my job."

Despite the truth of his words, Temari's eyes narrowed. Shikamaru was the one person she wished she could kill and kiss. He was special to her like that – not everyone could ruffle Temari's feathers. She almost liked the way he made her blood boil, because it attracted her to him. She liked the fiery anger in the pit of her stomach, she liked the feel of her fingers threaded through his thick hair, she liked the sparks when they kissed. It had been so long ago, but Temari hadn't forgotten. She would never forget.

"This was my father's study," she said in an offhanded manner, turning to examine some of the books and scrolls. He didn't respond, and she selected a dusty picture from the mantle – her father looking very young with a team of two other shinobi. It always struck her as bizarre how much Kankurō looked like their father, but couldn't have acted any more the opposite. Their faces and eyes were very much the same, Kankurō's hair was brown, while their father's was a ruddy red color. She put down the picture, unable to look at her father for too long. "He kept a lot of forbidden jutsu in here – I wouldn't be surprised if you found quite a few dangerous scrolls among his collection."

Shikamru nodded, clearly ill at ease. Usually she would find him to start a fight with him – that's how it had been since their visit in the hidden chamber. Temari could understand his hesitance, seeing as how she was going out of her way to be so pleasant. "I've come upon one or two," he replied suspiciously.

Temari flashed him a toothy smile, circling around the desk to look over his shoulder. "A Bingo Book?" she asked. The pages were faded, and she didn't recognize any of the people on the pages. There were several old Bingo Books lying around, opened to pages of men and women Temari didn't recognize. She was pretty up to date concerning Bingo Books – and all of these men and women were listed as being from Suna… "Just _how old_ are these Bingo Books?" she asked him.

Shikamaru leaned back a little farther, looking up at her. "They're about sixty years old – and they're not true Bingo Books. It seems the Shodai Kazekage listed all the shinobi in the village and grouped them according to ability and then talent level. I have about seventeen books of wind-natured jutsu-users from that era alone."

Temari narrowed her eyes again. "You know something, don't you, Shikamaru?"

His frown wasn't out of anger, more like concentration. "The other day, when Kankurō and I went to that orphanage, the headmaster told us about the scholarship Goto founded."

"I remember," Temari replied, dragging a chair from around the desk to sit next to him. It was large and uncomfortable. Temari thought they were made that way so that whoever her father had invited into his study had no choice but to sit up straight and pay attention. "Tian Jhao was pretty helpful."

Shikamaru's frown deepened. "Maybe not…" He handed Temari what looked like a preliminary report. It was divided into columns describing who provided what information and when. Leave it to Shikamaru to organize information in a way designed to catch lies. Temari read over it, her face mirroring Shikamaru's after a moment.

"Well," she murmured. "If this is accurate, than it's possible Tian Jhao was attempting to mislead you. The terms of that scholarship required that the one awarded must apprentice under a guild-certified ironworker. Hidemoto hasn't been in the guild for five years – Tian Jhao should know that. After all, his paperwork is impeccable from what you said."

Shikamaru didn't look at all satisfied with that. "I just didn't pin him for the kind of man…" he drifted off, lost in thought. "I think it's possible that this…this guild master – Aizo – could be deceiving us, not Tian Jhao."

Temari snorted. "What proof do you have?"

Temari noted the leisurely way Shikamaru drew his gaze up her front and to her face. She caught his eyes and he averted them quickly. "None – it's a gut instinct."

Temari raised an eyebrow. "How unlike you."

Shikamaru nodded. "Something Kankurō said – he said that the way the trap was set in the tunnels that it was possible that Goto was a shinobi."

"Or that there was one working for him," Temari added.

"But what if Goto wasn't only an ironworker – what if he was a shinobi, too?" Shikamaru asked, ignoring her previous statement. "If he was, then the Shodai Kazekage would have plenty of information about him."

Temari paused, looking over the Bingo Books. "But, Shikamaru…there are hundreds of these Bingo Books..." With a sigh, Temari wriggled her nose a little – a tick she had that betrayed agitation. Maybe sitting so close to him hadn't been a good idea. Shikamaru was warm, and being this close made Temari look for excuses to touch him. "What I mean to say is, shouldn't we be focusing on some more productive avenues of information gathering?"

She looked up at him for a moment, noting the frustrated look on his face. "Help me for the afternoon," he said. "If we don't find Goto in the Bingo Books by then I'll do it your way."

Exhaling slowly, eyeing the younger man, Temari got up. She heard Shikamaru snort disbelievingly, and she shot him a dirty look before picking up a stack of Bingo Books and sitting down next to him again. Shikamaru looked down at a book, a light pink color on his cheeks. "Arigatō."

Temari grunted, opening the dusty tome.

* * *

When he looked to his right just slightly, Shikamaru could see where the slit in Temari's skirt exposed her fishnet-encased thigh. _Temari has such fantastic legs_, he thought to himself. Back when he thought she might be in his league, Shikamaru used to fantasize about the day that she would let him rest between those legs. Her ass was perfect too, but he couldn't see it from where he was. Sometimes he caught himself staring at her from behind, and had to snap out of it before she turned around. She would kill him if she caught him looking.

Of course, to Shikamaru, just about everything concerning Temari was perfect. Temari was obviously beautiful, but she had the most perfectly shaped lips, plump and pink. She had the perfect figure – athletic, but overtly feminine. Temari had all the right curves, and the way she walked sent shivers down his spine. Even her voice was perfect, especially when she fought with him. She was the only woman he had ever met that could keep up with him intellectually, and she could read his mind perfectly. Temari was a perfect pain, too.

Shikamaru never really knew where he stood with her. One minute she seemed to want nothing but to kill him, and other times he could swear she wanted to kiss him. She was a hard woman to know, frequently vicious and bloodthirsty. But she had a softer side, too… It was a truly magnificent thing to have the whole of Temari's attention focused solely on him.

He supposed all that was over now. For the record, Shikamaru had probably actually been in love with Temari – he still might be. And he had really believed after that kiss during her last trip to Konoha that they would be together, like a real couple. But he had always known that Temari liked to play, that she enjoyed her games, that she enjoyed the thrill of the chase more than actually winning something. He knew that before he had fallen for her, so he wasn't sure why he was so surprised when she eventually grew tired of him.

Shikamaru didn't bother to stop himself when his eyes raked over her once more. It was electrifying to be so close to her, and it made his normally crystal clear thoughts feel slow and muddy. This time she caught his eyes, a slightly annoyed look drawing her brows close together. "See something you like, Nara?" she asked calmly.

Well, he sure as hell wasn't going to fall into any of her traps. He was pretty sure the only reason why he'd beat Temari during his Chûnin Exams was because she'd underestimated him. Since that wouldn't ever happen again, Temari always played him at the top of her game. It gave new meaning to the phrase mental exercise.

He watched a playful smirk cross her lips as she flipped a page in her book and re-crossed her legs. When her foot brushed his calf, Shikamaru knew it was on purpose. The smirk on her lips brightened her whole face with impishness. _How troublesome_, he thought to himself as he felt his hormones rage. If he could get through being a teenager and remain sane, it would be a miracle.

After a few moments, when his blood no longer felt quite so hot, Shikamaru turned the page in his book only to find what he had been looking for. He let out a short laugh, thinking there was a bit of irony to what the page contained. "I knew it," he said shortly, turning the Bingo Book for Temari to see.

She looked at him and raised an eyebrow, reading aloud. "Goto Mikurō. Earth Natured." Her voice sarcastic, she muttered, "Well, I guess that clears everything up."

Shikamaru actually scowled at her. "This page reveals more than it conceals," he said darkly. "Why would someone censor all of his mission statistics? His teammates? Who would do it?"

"Sounds to me like it just created more questions than answers," Temari replied. Shikamaru watched her as she scowled. "Although, maybe…" She drifted off, flipping through pages. She held the book up to him and showed him a page with similar censor markings. "I came across him, though he's about thirty years older than Goto." She paused. "Still…I feel as though I should know his name…Katsumata Hirato."

Shikamaru squinted at the page. Though aged and heavily censored, it did reveal one other piece of potentially important information. "Maybe we should ask Tenten," he suggested. "It says he's a weapons master."

Temari nodded her agreement. "I can't help thinking these two are connected. None of the other Bingo Books have been edited – and why would a Kazekage edit the information, anyway. It's like someone's intentionally hiding information about Goto."

Shikamaru leaned back, liking the way the chair molded to his back and allowed for reclining. If Temari wasn't here, he might actually put his feet on the desk. He agreed that the two were probably connected in some way, and that someone had gone through great lengths to conceal this information from everyone. "Why would your father have these old Bingo Books?" he asked. "They don't seem particularly useful."

He watched Temari's eyes sweep over the room. "He took a lot of things from the Kazekage's private library in Suna when he was researching demonic possession jutsu. He was probably researching bloodlines." She paused, seeing where he was going with this. "I don't think he would have censored these pages – he'd have no need. That means they must have been like this before he got them."

Shikamaru nodded. "That means the only other way to get information about Goto is to look through Aizo's records in the Ironworkers' Guild."

Temari grunted. "That Aizo's a slippery character," she said in an offhanded manner. "Kankurō and Baki always complain about him after council meetings."

"Aizo is on the council?" Shikamaru asked, a little intrigued. He wished that he had been able to meet the man instead of Tenten, but Tenten had discovered some important information that Shikamaru probably never would have been able to obtain.

Temari rolled her eyes. "Well, he was on the council when my father was the Kazekage, and a lot of the council members were grandfathered in from that era. Gaara listens to them, but he doesn't do what they say – and they're all too afraid to go against his edicts anyway. The council exists for itself, not for Gaara. And Aizo is the worst little self-worshiper in the bunch. Well, according to Kankurō and Baki, anyway…"

Shaking his head, Shikamaru said, "We just have so little information…how troublesome…"

Temari shifted at his side. "I know what you mean," she murmured, her voice a little silkier sounding to Shikamaru. He realized she was resting on her elbow, leaning towards him a bit more. "I've changed my mind," she said suddenly. "I think we need to find out as much about Goto as possible. And this man – Katsumata Hirato. But I don't think we can rely on Aizo until we know for sure who the traitor is within the council. It would be an unacceptable risk."

Agreeing with her, Shikamaru began considering his options. "Our objectives need to be as thus: information about Goto not gleaned from either Aizo or Tian Jhao, finding out who edited these pages and why, and finding any other edited pages in the Bingo Books and trying to make a connection."

"What about discovering the traitor on Gaara's council? Or finding the Kamikaze?" Temari asked, a little bit defensive. Her eyes sparked electric green as she spoke. "You know, things that you were actually asked to assist with."

"The mission has changed since we got here, Temari," he replied. "This information will give our search for the traitor and the Kamikaze direction. Without it we might as well go up to each house in Suna and demand to interrogate the residents."

Temari scowled, her eyes narrowing. "And in the meantime my brother is a target – Hinata-san is a target. We can't keep on protecting so many fronts. We'll get tired and start making mistakes."

For several long moments Shikamaru held Temari's eyes, noting the defiance and anger they held. He wondered what she was upset more about – him, or how he was redefining the mission. He also couldn't help wondering what it would be like to kiss her when she was this angry. Her lips were pouting sweetly, and her cheeks a little flushed.

"Oh, did I interrupt a moment?" a snide voice asked from the door.

Shikamaru groaned, watching as Temari jumped away from him as if burned to give a dirty look to her younger brother. "How troublesome…"

"What the hell do _you_ want, _nii-chan_?" Temari snapped with a vicious look.

Kankurō shrugged, leaning against the doorframe and picking his teeth rudely with a senbon needle. "Just thought I'd let you know Gaara's back."

Temari sighed. "Good. We have quite a few things to discuss with him," she said, giving Shikamaru a significant look.

Kankurō sucked his tongue against his teeth, making a small squeaking sound. "I wouldn't if I were you."

"Oh," Temari shot back, cocking her hips – something she did when she was about to challenge someone. "And why is that?"

Kankurō shrugged again. "Well…I'm not sure, but I don't think Gaara would appreciate it if you stepped in while he's trying to kill Hinata-san."

"…What?"

* * *

Shodai Kazekage – the first or founding Kazekage

Senbon – metal needles with a point at both ends

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**Edited: November 3, 2009**


	13. Chapter Thirteen

**Author's Note:** Please read, enjoy, and review!

* * *

**THE DIVINE WINDS OF SUNA**

**Chapter Thirteen**

Her muscles complained, but Hinata welcomed the burning bliss. It had been so long since she'd felt well that she almost forgot how sweet it could be to actually work hard. Lee had been very kind to her, working with her every morning to keep her muscles and skills from atrophying. He had explained that he knew all too well the sensation of being worthless, of not being able to fight because he was too injured and too weak. He knew what she was going through, and knew many exercises that would keep her body fit without tiring her so much she was unable to heal. But also, he'd given her many helpings of the Curry of Life, which may have even helped.

With a satisfied sigh, Hinata leaned against the railing on the balcony, looking out over the edge down into the canyon. The canyon was like a rainbow, with different shades of red, orange, yellow, and gold layered over each other. Greenish blue water and sparsely spaced trees at the base of the canyon provided a sharp contrast to the rocks. The river was running low and slow, and the shadows playing off the rocks and trees made the canyon like a different world than the rest of the desert.

In order to see the river with more accuracy, Hinata activated her Byakugan. The sharpness of her vision detected everything, but what caught her attention the most was a large stand of wild hollyhocks. Hinata smiled wanly – her mother's favorite flower was hollyhock. Hinata had inherited several priceless kimono with hollyhocks embroidered beautifully on them. The hollyhock represented plenty and fruitfulness, and Hinata used to think that her mother planted them in hopes that their clan would always be fruitful and never want for anything. As Hinata grew older, she knew her mother planted them in hopes that love would be plentiful and boundless in their home. It was sad to know her mother's dreams for a happy home would never become reality.

Drawn to the flowers like a magnet, Hinata gathered chakra into her feet and skipped easily down the cliff side. It was several degrees cooler in the shade of the canyon, and the low, greenish river moved lazily in the chill. Hinata knew hollyhocks flourished in moist, well-shaded areas, and was pleased to see how healthy and numerous the hollyhocks were. She inspected them quietly, admiring the paleness of the pink flowers. Some were a stark white, while others were a pale, rosy color of pink. She smiled, lost in memories of her mother.

Suddenly, drawing her out of the morbid memories, hot breath caressed the side of her neck. Before she could turn around, rock-hard, vise-like hands gripped her around the wrists, immobilizing her. Instinctively, Hinata activated her Byakugan, startled that it was Gaara gripping her so tightly. She relaxed, exhaling his name like a sigh. "Gaara-sama," she said softly.

His hands only loosened a tiny fraction as he brought her back flush against him. She could hear and feel him exhaling on her neck. His feathery, brick red hair fell against her cheek softly as he ran his lips down the side of jaw and throat. Involuntarily, Hinata trembled as Gaara released one of her biceps only to entwine his fingers between hers.

"You are alone," he whispered, his voice vibrating against her ear.

"Hmm…hai, Gaara-sama," she whimpered. He was kissing the inside of her wrist, darting his tongue out to taste her skin. Even though they had done many more erotic things, this seemed to affect her more since the skin on the inside of her wrist was so delicate. She keened high and soft as he grazed his teeth against the milky blue veins of her wrist.

Then he released her swiftly – so swiftly that she fell forward into the hollyhocks, barely able to keep her balance. Flushed with desire, Hinata turned between the large stocks, rubbing one of her wrists as she glanced shyly up at the Kazekage. He was looking down on her, his eyes hard and unapproachable.

"You did not sense my presence," he said in a cold voice, the muscles in his neck bunching tightly.

"Su-sumimasen," Hinata murmured, averting her eyes. "I – I was –"

"And you are alone," he said, interrupting her. Hinata had long ago noticed that Gaara rarely asked questions. Instead, Gaara tended to make statements that people would agree or disagree with – more often than not people tended to agree with Gaara. Mostly out of fear of the young, slender Kazekage.

"Hai," Hinata answered softly, not trusting her face to remain as emotionless as his. She stared down at his knees, biting her bottom lip. Wind brushed a hollyhock against her side, the petals of one sweeping across her jaw. She dared a look up at Gaara to see the hard steel of his eyes. Despite their soft green color, there was nothing gentle about Gaara's eyes. Ringed in blackish blue – evidence of how little he slept – Gaara's eyes were hard as agates. "Sumi –"

"I told you to stop apologizing," he said harshly, holding her chin tightly between two fingers, forcing her to face him.

Mouth slightly open, eyes wide, Hinata couldn't even move to shake her head. "H-hai," she replied in a soft voice. Though Gaara looked in control of himself, he was obviously upset. Hinata realized he was upset with her. "Gaara-sama," she said in a small voice. "I didn't mean to upset you. If –"

"Upset," he said stonily, as if saying a word he had never heard before.

Hinata swallowed hard, watching him carefully. His fingers released her chin when he crossed his arms over his chest. "I didn't mean –"

"You don't seem to understand the danger you are in every day," he said simply, releasing the sand from his gourd. It floated threateningly above them.

Hinata moved back a half a step. "Wh-what?" she asked, unsure if she'd heard him correctly. But sand was filtering out around them, and Gaara's face was changing, becoming more frightening. Instead of a stoic, emotionless mask, the corners of his lips were turning up, the points of his eyeteeth showing through partially parted lips. "Gaara…sama…" she whispered.

She had recognized him with her Byakugan – no one would be able to fool her Byakugan! Was this really Gaara grinning at her so manically, so madly? Hinata backed away into the hollyhock.

"I will illuminate you," Gaara murmured lightly as the sand in the air began to caress her skin, circling her neck softly. His manic grin spread further across his features, and Hinata cowered slightly, her eyes welling with fear. The sand that was caressing her neck was slowly becoming tighter and tighter – she didn't understand! She looked at him, pleading as the pressure grew uncomfortable, then painful. "Fight back, Hinata," he said in an unpleasantly vicious voice. "An enemy would not give you time, but I am being kind. Fight back before you suffocate."

The sand was so tight around her neck that Hinata couldn't even swallow. But she stood there like a lost puppy – even if it was kicked to the curb, it still loved its owner. "Gaa…ra…" she managed weakly, unable to draw another breath.

But his eyes were hard on hers – there was no pity, no gentleness, nothing. She couldn't breath, and she grasped against her throat. She couldn't tear the sand away; it wasn't possible. She could barely move. She lacked the oxygen and the physical strength. And Hinata became very scared all of a sudden.

Gaara was going to kill her.

Gasping for air, desperate for the burning in her lungs to cease, Hinata began to struggle. She couldn't fight the sand, and as a last ditch effort to live, she activated her Byakugan. She would have made a wager with Tsunade that this was indeed Gaara, for his technique was unable to be duplicated. The chakra that manipulated the sand was the same – no earth-release jutsu-user could imitate it. Desperately, Hinata did the only thing she thought might work.

With the last of her strength, Hinata brought her hands around her neck, covering the suffocating sand. Then she drew chakra to the outside of her hands. She didn't know if it would work, but she hoped that by injecting her own chakra into the sand – which was not unlike the chakra pathway system in the human body – that it would break the bonds of Gaara's chakra.

Hinata gasped for air and stumbled to the ground, sand falling down her front. The sweetness of oxygen in her lungs came as such a relief that she nearly cried. Her throat hurt, and she was slightly dizzy, but she could hear dark, demented chuckling above her. She lifted her hazy eyes, and the image of Gaara – demon-like and terrifying – filled her vision. She felt like prey. Looking up at Gaara, she knew she was…

Fight or flight kicked in, and Hinata activated her Byakugan, once again drawing chakra into her fingers. Gaara gave her no time to recover – wave after wave of sand crashed down on her. She knew how to break the chakra in the sand, and it fell uselessly to the ground. But it was simple for Gaara to infuse it once again – his weapon became unlimited, while hers would only survive as long as her chakra did.

The hollyhocks were trampled, but Hinata didn't have time to regret their destruction. She was too busy escaping, clinging to the side of the cliff with chakra-infused soles. The earth under her feet had the tendency to turn to sand, and Hinata felt herself constantly off-balance and less able to defend herself. Still, she got the feeling that Gaara wasn't really putting his all into this fight. She wasn't sure if that reassured her or made her upset.

Anger did not come naturally to Hinata – it wasn't in her temperament to become enraged. Still, it was a little upsetting that she was fighting as hard as she could, but Gaara seemed cool, collected, and absolutely unruffled. He stood on a platform of sand at the base of the canyon as Hinata jumped from cliff side to cliff side, dodging sand and breaking it apart before it came to close to her. If her goal really was to fight, then she would never be able to win. Gaara's absolute defense was impenetrable, and she didn't have Rock Lee's speed and agility. She was flexible, fast, and generally agile, but not on the same level as Lee.

But it wasn't Hinata's goal to fight – it was to flee. Gaara kept softening the ground under her feet, making it difficult to climb up out of the canyon. He wanted to keep her down here, where limited space allowed him to corner her when she ran out of energy and chakra. Her best hope was to reach the balcony of the house and rely on the others to aid her.

Hinata was scared, though. Scared to fight Gaara, because he was so much stronger than her. Scared to die. Scared to be weak. Scared that she wouldn't be able to prove to herself that this wasn't really Gaara.

Had she misjudged him so drastically? Was he really the monster everyone thought he was? It hardly seemed possible. Hinata liked to think she knew the Kazekage, at least a little bit. Hinata liked to think…maybe…that Gaara had feelings for her. If so, why would he attack her? She wanted so badly for this not to be Gaara, but she knew beyond a doubt it was.

He sneered at her as she lost footing again on the side of the cliff – he was wearing her down. "Are you afraid, yet, Hinata?" he called out to her as her foot sunk into another sandy trap. "Do you fear for your life?"

"NO!" she heard herself shout, surprised by the ferocity of her own voice. She never yelled, but it felt good. Even if she was scared, she wouldn't be scared of him. She didn't know what kind of game he was playing, but she didn't want to let him win.

Gaara seemed to think this over, and then he doubled his attack. Hinata was forced to the ground again, and infused her feet with chakra as well so the sand gathering at her feet couldn't sink her down. Slowly the sand began hovering closer and closer – using Juuken to break the chakra-infused-sand was too slow a process. She needed something that would be a defense and offense.

Concentrating for a short moment, almost lost in the sand, Hinata cried out, "Shugohakke Rokujūyon Shō!"

While dodging sand and executing fancy footwork, Hinata had assessed the situation with her Byakugan, just like Neji had taught her. She chose this jutsu for the specific reason that it could hit multiple targets. The sand might not look like multiple targets, but the way chakra manipulated it gave it similar attributes to the human chakra pathway system. If you cut of certain points in the arms, no jutsu could be used. You could take out the liver, the heart, even the brain with the right tenketsu disabled. Like the human body, the sand could be disabled with the right amount of chakra. Though Gaara could easily reconstruct the chakra that bound the sand together, he was not connected to every grain of sand. Rather, he was connected to some of the grains, which connected to more and more grains of sand.

Hinata chose Shugohakke Rokujūyon Shō specifically because it could hit multiple points in fast succession. It was a complete defensive maneuver that could cut more than just chakra. Hopefully it would take Gaara more time to gather sand around him if he had to reconstruct all of his chakra connections at once. This might give her the chance to escape up the canyon walls and to the balcony.

The streams of chakra released from her fingers were long and sharp. They severed the chakra in the sand. Though Gaara was too far away to be affected, she could see his face. She was unable to read whatever emotion it held – if any. In the second after she finished releasing chakra, Hinata sprinted as fast as she could up the canyon. With her Byakugan she could see behind her that Gaara was amassing his sand once more, moving towards her on a levitating platform of sand.

Hinata leapt easily over the guard railing of the balcony, searching the humongous house for life signs. Shikamaru and Temari were on the third floor. Tenten was asleep on the second floor. Lee was gone. Kankurō was moving towards Shikamaru and Temari, apparently unaware of the fight down in the canyon. Before she could shout to alert anyone, Gaara appeared on his levitating platform of sand and hovered above the balcony.

She turned to face him, setting herself in the stylized starting position for Jūken. Gaara gazed down on her, arms crossed, as sand sifted through the air in an intricate, almost beautiful dance. He had a frown on his face, but was otherwise expressionless. "Have you experienced fear?" he asked her solemnly, his voice betraying nothing of his motives for attacking her.

"I won't fear you, Gaara-sama," she said, her voice stronger than she could have thought.

He said nothing, but as soon as he settled on the balcony, sand sifting into his gourd, there was a noise at the doorway and Hinata jumped around. Temari, Kankurō, and Shikamaru were on the balcony, looks of fear on their faces.

"What's going on here?" Temari asked, her eyes going to Hinata's activated kekkei genkai.

Hinata was breathing heavily, and she knew there were dark bruises around her neck. But she didn't answer, and Gaara didn't either. Hinata deactivated her Byakugan.

"Well?" Temari asked, her voice becoming shrill as she looked from Hinata to Gaara and back again. Finally she glared, her nose wriggling in annoyance. "Lover's quarrel?" she asked disdainfully, giving Gaara a hard look.

Gaara turned away from his sister with a dark look on his face, but Temari didn't seem daunted. "God knows I've tried to keep out of the middle of…_whatever_ you two are doing," she finished, her face a hard mask, but her voice betraying her discomfort. "But we still have a mission – unless you've forgotten, _Kazekage-sama_."

Gaara looked at his sister sharply, not bothering to hide the anger in his eyes. "It does not concern you, Temari."

"Like hell it doesn't!" Temari shrieked. Hinata fought not to cover her ears at the harshness and shrillness of Temari's voice. "What the hell were you thinking fighting with Hinata? She's not the enemy! She's –"

"_Temari_…" Kankurō cut in, his voice a warning as he put his hand on his older sister's shoulder.

"Piss off, _nii-chan_!" Temari cried viciously. "This has gone far enough –"

"Yes, it has," Gaara interrupted. Even as he spoke, though, Hinata knew he was speaking to her. "Forget it. It's over."

Temari was glaring, assuming he was talking to her. Hinata knew better. He had tried to end it in the beginning, before things got too carried away. He'd tried to send her back to Konoha, to get her away from him. But now he did have to end it…whatever _it_ was…

_It_ was something intangible, not confirmed with words, only alive at night, when no one could see. _It_ was something they did, not something they were or defined themselves by. They were not lovers, as Temari put it. They were not even friends. There were no words for what they were, and so they were not real. _It_ was over, and Gaara would forget about it.

She didn't know why it hurt so much – how could something that wasn't real hurt so damn much? But it was worse than a shuriken in the shoulder. It was worse than an explosive throwing her into darkness. It was worse than countless hours of bleeding and healing. It was worse than death.

Hinata tried to still her hands, but they were shaking violently. Her mouth was suddenly too dry to talk, but that was fine because her eyes were wet and overflowing on her cheeks. Crying silently, Hinata felt her knees turn to water, and she sank to the ground.

Someone was talking to her, but she didn't really hear. Was she hurt?

"N-n-no…"

Her vision was shutting down too, and everything was getting fuzzy. Did she need to go lie down?

"H-hai…"

The fight caught up with her, and Hinata fell into darkness.

* * *

There was a story that her mother used to tell her, and Hinata never really understood it until now. In the story there was a beautiful young woman named Kiyo, and she was a very wealthy princess. She had long, thick black hair, and smooth white skin that rivaled the moon's shine. Everyone who looked at her fell in love.

One day, a traveling priest named Anjin saw Kiyo-hime standing by the Hidaka River and fell deeply in love with her. In secret, Anjin wooed her, and they carried on a passionate but brief love affair. As a priest, Anjin was sworn to celibacy, and soon he regretted breaking his priestly vows. He overcame his longing and refrained from meeting Kiyo-hime any further.

To escape from Kiyo-hime, Anjin hired a boatman to take him across Hidaka River and instructed the man not to give Kiyo-hime passage. Enraged that he would try to escape her, Kiyo-hime leapt in the river and swam after her lover. In the violent currents of the Hidaka River, Kiyo-hime's rage transformed her into a giant serpent.

When Anjin landed on the other side of the river, he saw Kiyo-hime in the form of a serpent. Anjin rushed to take shelter in the Dōjōji Temple. The priests there hid him in the temple's great bronze bell. However, Kiyo-hime was able to smell Anjin, and with her tail she rang the bell three times, trying to draw him out. She cried to him and begged him to love her, but Anjin would not relent. In the form of a serpent, Kiyo-hime belched a massive ball of fire, melting the bell, and killing Anjin. Grief-stricken, Kiyo-hime returned to the Hidaka River to live out the rest of her days in misery.

Whenever her mother told Hinata this story, Hinata always wondered why Kiyo-hime would want to kill the man she loved so dearly. It didn't make sense to her how Kiyo-hime could do such a horrible thing. Anjin was a priest; Kiyo-hime should have known not to fall in love with a man dedicated to the gods. When her mother told the story, Hinata always pitied the poor priest, and vilified Kiyo-hime for being so selfish.

Now though, Hinata couldn't help but feel that Kiyo-hime was a much more sympathetic character than Anjin. Anjin had fallen in love with _her_, carried out an illicit affair with_ her, _and then had left_ her_. How was Kiyo-hime supposed to react? The man who loved her had left her – she had been so innocent before him! She gave him everything freely, and he pushed her away for his duty.

Hinata felt like there was a serpent winding its way around her insides, fighting to be released. It wrapped its scales around her heart, her throat, her stomach, making her feel sick with despair and confusion. Kiyo-hime had every right to transform into a serpent if this was how she felt. Hinata felt like turning into a serpent…but she didn't have revenge on her mind. She just wanted to slink back into a river and wallow in her own misery until she died.

Voices seemed distant to her as she stared at Lee's curry. It was probably very tasty, and he had put a lot of work into it, but Hinata didn't know if she could even raise her chopsticks. She sat straight-backed and proper at the opposite side of the table from Gaara, steadfastly keeping her eyes on the food before her.

After their fight, Hinata was a little drained, but otherwise uninjured – save the violently purple bruises around her neck. She had looked at them in the mirror and imagined them as a kind of trophy necklace – the last bruises Gaara would ever give her. The thought filled her with such sadness and longing that Hinata didn't leave the bathroom for hours. Lee had come up and informed her that dinner was soon ready and she was needed downstairs to go over the mission plan.

Hinata had tried to look presentable, but she knew her skin was pale and drawn, that her lips and eyes were puffy and red from tears, and that her hands shook every time Gaara spoke. She hoped that the briefing would be over as soon as possible, that way she could burry herself back in the corner of the closet where she longed to retreat to. She didn't want anyone to see her, and she didn't want to see anyone. Even the curry was pushing it right now, so she closed her eyes.

"Temari and I found another clue in the Yondaime Kazekage's study this afternoon," Shikamaru reported. Hinata's ears pricked up at the mention of 'Kazekage,' and she felt rather foolish for it. "It seems that Goto was in a kind of Bingo Book, but all the information on him was erased."

Temari cursed softly. "With all the…_excitement_…" she finished wearily, "we forgot to ask Tenten about Katsumata Hirato."

Hinata heard Shikamaru sigh in response. She snuck a look at the two, noticing how close they sat to each other. Hinata looked down before she could be tempted to glance further along the table.

"Sounds familiar," Kankurō commented with a full mouth.

"Manners, baka!" Temari snapped, flinging a single rice grain off the tip of one chopstick and snickering as it stuck to Kankurō's forehead.

"That's what we thought," Shikamaru said, interrupting the sibling banter with a smoothly executed Kageyose no Jutsu, restraining Kankurō's arms as he made to lift his plate of curry to hurl it at his sister.

"Not fair!" Kankurō growled, struggling against the shadow restraints.

Shikamaru ignored him. "This man had his whole profile edited as well. We know when he was born, when he died, and what nature-release jutsu he could perform – same with Goto."

"And you think there's a connection," Gaara said, his deep, rumbling voice making Hinata shiver slightly.

"Hai," Temari replied. She sneered at Kankurō again as he struggled. "Since we know Goto was in the Ironworkers' Guild, we plan to seek further information about him there. But, we need to do it without Aizo's knowledge – his position on the council still makes him a suspect."

Gaara nodded noiselessly. "Tonight."

There was little discussion after this, and Hinata allowed Lee to take her plate away before she headed up the stairs by herself. Since she was well again, she had assumed she would resume mapping out the sewers, and maybe even helping to find the Kamikaze with her Byakugan. No one mentioned anything of that sort, and Hinata was beginning to suspect that there was a reason. Not two nights ago, Shikamaru had been desperate to get Hinata back into action. After all, the Byakugan was a perfect weapon against the Kamikaze.

When Hinata sat down on her bed, she activated her Byakugan experimentally. Temari and Shikamaru were in the study one level down. They were sitting very close. Lee was in the kitchen, and Kankurō was down in the second floor messing around with some puppets. Gaara…Gaara was outside her window about ten meters, floating on a platform of levitating sand.

A rush of anger filled Hinata – she was not prone to anger, but now she felt it. She imagined this was what Kiyo-hime had felt when she saw her lover departing across the Hidaka River. She rose from the bed and rushed to the window, throwing it open. With her Byakugan activated, she could see the look of surprise on the Kazekage's face, then how he hid it not a second later when she appeared at the open window.

She said nothing. She watched him regard her with his passive face and expressionless eyes. She saw him descending towards the ground, his eyes never leaving hers. She turned away, her back to the open window, unable to say or do anything. Meeting his eyes, knowing he was still watching her, made Hinata feel a little wild. The serpent under her skin writhed hotly, threatening to break free, threatening to overtake her. With a shudder she shoved it back down, resolving to take a different path than Kiyo-hime.

Hinata wasn't weak little princess. Hinata wasn't frail and had confidence in her abilities. Hinata wasn't scared because she was a kunoichi.

She was a kunoichi – a _strong _kunoichi. She had been sent to Suna for a reason.

Packing a bag with kunai and shuriken, Hinata wrapped the sand-colored cape securely around her shoulders. She hated the way it smelled faintly of Gaara. Then she stepped out the windowsill and glanced around with her Byakugan. Gaara was nowhere to be seen.

She jumped out the window into the moonless night.

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Shugohakke Rokujūyon Shō – Protection of the Eight Trigrams Sixty-Four Palms; Protective Eight Trigrams Sixty-Four Palms (English TV)

Yondaime Kazekage – the fourth Kazekage

Tenketsu – the 361 nodes in the human body from which chakra can be released

Kageyose no Jutsu – Shadow Endgame Technique; Shadow Pull Jutsu (English TV); Art of the Shadow Pull (Viz)

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**Edited: November 3, 2009**


	14. Chapter Fourteen

**Author's Note (Part 1):** So, a lot of you reviewed and said, (A) dude, why was Gaara trying to kill Hinata that doesn't make sense, or (B) WHY DID GAARA TRY TO KILL HINATA I DON'T UNDERSTAND! Well, I assure you that I don't just leave that in Crazy Unexplained Event Land. But Gaara doesn't have a POV in this chapter...so you'll have to wait to understand his motivations.

Please read, enjoy, and review!

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**THE DIVINE WINDS OF SUNA**

**Chapter Fourteen**

There weren't many things Shikamaru liked enough to get worked up over them. In fact, he really couldn't think of any but one right now – he was a little bit distracted. Temari was wearing a pitch-black cat suit. She had her kunai holder strapped to her thigh, and was covering her hair with a black cap. Only her face was visible in the darkness, but she would remedy that soon – she had handed him the face-paint first as she bent over to strap the shin protectors behind her calf. She was giving him the most fantastic view of her ass. Damn those skin-tight pants.

"I feel like a thief," she said with a smirk, taking the face-paint – courtesy of Kankurō – back from him and smearing it over her cheeks. "And you missed a spot," she told him, her nose wriggling a bit. She dipped her fingers into the paint and caught his jaw.

Shikamaru felt jolts of electricity and struggled to appear slightly annoyed. Temari would have a field day if she knew she could still do this to him. After all, it was her fault he was so high strung these days. Being around her, so physically close, made Shikamaru on edge. He didn't enjoy the sensation; it was one he strove to avoid. Or, maybe, he enjoyed it too much, but knew how troublesome it was. Shikamaru sighed, reveling in the love/hate relationship he was forming with Temari's skin-tight top.

"We're fortunate," Temari said as they made their way across the sand towards Suna. "No moon."

"No shadows," Shikamaru grunted.

She winked at him, giving him a sly and sultry look. "Don't worry, Shikamaru – I'll protect you…"

The way she said it made Shikamaru's belly feel really warm. He didn't answer, but pulled ahead so that he didn't have to see the way her hips moved as she ran swiftly over the dunes.

This wasn't good. The last few days he'd been around her entirely too much. It was fogging his normally crystal clear mind, making it difficult for him to do much more than lust after her. He knew just enough of her anatomy to know he wanted to see more. His relationship with Temari when she had been the Suna liaison was mostly physical. He enjoyed the fact that she took advantage of him, and he liked to think that she enjoyed taking advantage of him.

He'd hoped…well, as bothersome as it was, he'd hoped she was a little more serious about…them… It sounded stupid, even in his own head. Temari was a creature of the moment. She didn't do permanence; she didn't plan for the future. She enjoyed fighting, she enjoyed being a smart-ass, she enjoyed passion…she didn't like to be pinned down in emotional obligations. The only thing Temari was really dedicated to was Kaze no Kuni, and by extension the Kazekage.

Shikamaru didn't know what made him want Temari. She was incredibly attractive – anyone could see that. But she was difficult. She was opinionated. She was argumentative. She was violent. She was bossy. She was exactly the kind of girl he'd always avoided. …She was like his mother. If the thought disturbed him he didn't let it bother him for long. He supposed he'd always known, deep down, that he would be stuck with a troublesome woman just as shrill as his mother.

When he sighed at this realization, Temari turned to look at him. It was difficult to interpret her facial features with the face-paint, but she looked curious. "Nothing," he said, adjusting the guards on his forearms.

Soon they were in the blacksmith district. All the furnaces were off, as it was very late at night. There didn't seem to be anyone around, but Shikamaru and Temari were alert anyway. Shikamaru wasn't typically a reconnaissance type ninja. Despite all appearances, he was a battle-type. This kind of job was good for a ninja like Hinata. If Naruto was of better temperament, his Kage Bunshin no Jutsu would be perfect for spying and recon missions. But Shikamaru's strengths were battle plans, strategy, and analyzing the enemy.

Temari was a battle type ninja as well, but both of them were smart enough and skilled enough to pull off this kind of mission. They were strategists, but could infiltrate if the plan called for it. He turned to her, and saw there was a look on her face similar to his. Grim determination.

"Ready?" he asked, his voice soft so as not to carry to any listening ears.

Temari nodded resolutely, and Shikamaru folded his hands in front of him, motioning for Temari to jump. She took a few steps back then skipped gracefully into his intertwined fingers. She flew up like a dancer, turning an extraneous summersault in the air before landing noiselessly on the first tier of the roof. Temari pulled the fan off her back and for him to grab onto. She pulled him up easily, and they picked their way up to the third level of the building. Kankurō and Tenten had given them a basic layout, saying the guild master's offices were on the third level. They would start there then spread out.

Temari found a window. She unlocked it easily, revealing a trick Shikamaru had never known. Temari could pick locks. He raised his eyebrow at her, and she smirked as if to say, "Don't think you know everything about me, Nara Shikamaru."

Shikamaru resisted the urge to roll his eyes at her, but mostly because she was climbing through the window in front of him. It gave him a fantastic view of her ass. He shook his head and followed her. This was all just too damn bothersome.

From the outside they hadn't seen any lights, but that didn't mean the window-less rooms were empty. They would still need to be careful within the structure. According to Kankurō and Tenten, Aizo's office would probably be worthless, but both Shikamaru and Temari agreed they should at least start there. They found it easily enough, and Temari immediately began to shuffle through Aizo's desk.

"It feels like there should be traps," Temari said quietly, closing another drawer. She opened the next and held up a bottle of sake. "This is a waste of time. He clearly doesn't work in here."

Shikamaru agreed on both accounts. "We'll move out to the other rooms. Keep your communication device active."

Temari gave him a mocking salute – he'd come to expect nothing less from her. He took off down the halls, peeking his head into office after office. He was really looking for a library or the old files room. Goto's records should have been kept quite studiously since he was one of Suna's premier ironworkers.

He found a library, but it was filled with scrolls about different metalworking techniques. For a moment he considered how much the Konoha metalworkers would probably enjoy reading those scrolls, but he put that to the back of his mind. He wasn't here to steal; he was here to gather information. Frowning, Shikamaru turned took the stairs down to the basement. He was hoping to find a file storage room, but instead he found an armory. Curiously, Shikamaru examined the weapons – there was a wall of katana that were particularly well crafted. He examined one with a scabbard made of jade.

"That name again," he said to himself. The seal at the base of the steel read 'Katsumata Hiragi.' The surnames couldn't be a coincidence, not when the given names were so similar. He frowned and replaced the katana in its place on the rack. He examined a few more, noting how they were sealed with Katsumata Hiragi's stamp. He must have been a very successful and talented sword smith. He would have to talk to Tenten, for she would know better than him.

There were a few weapons down in the armory with Goto's seal on them, but they were the workshop seal and not his private one. Shikamaru noticed that Aizo didn't have many of his own weapons down here, or else Shikamaru couldn't find them. Feeling as though he had learned all this room had to tell, Shikamaru ascended the stairs to see if Temari had any better luck.

He was moving down the second floor hallway when he heard voices coming from a room down the hall. Temari must have heard them, too, for her black-capped head popped out of a doorway to his right. She caught his eye a little frantically. Shikamaru looked to his left and right, noticing a small storage closet – probably for cleaning supplies. He motioned for Temari to follow him. He wasn't sure what these others were looking for, but he was fairly certain they wouldn't be needing anything from the cleaning closet.

Temari closed the door behind her silently, backing up uncomfortably close to Shikamaru. As much as he didn't want to think about it, Shikamaru found himself breathing in her scent. There was a glisten of sweat on her neck, and the black face-paint was running down into her shirt.

"You're a ninja, and the best place you can think to hide is a cleaning closet?" Temari berated him in a hushed whisper.

Shikamaru fought the urge to shush her, rolling his eyes. She backed up a little further into him, the curves of her butt melding to his crotch. "Don't get any ideas," she told him, her voice a husky murmur. She bent down, and Shikamaru's eyes bulged. He hadn't imagined something like this would happen in a closet, but now that it had it wasn't something he'd be likely to forget. She grunted softly, pulling something up out of her boot.

When Temari rose up again she moved away from his tightening crotch, turning around and clicking something next to his face. The little flashlight released a thin beam of light towards the ceiling. Shikamaru could see Temari's smirk as she pointed up. "Ventilation shaft," she whispered.

Shikamaru frowned. He'd be lying if he said he didn't pay special attention to that second word. "Lace your fingers," she told him, placing her hands on his shoulders. It shocked him how much this simple touch could distract him.

He laced his fingers obediently, waiting for Temari to slide her fan silently into the ventilation shaft. Apparently it opened immediately into the attic rather than any ducts, and when she helped him up they had to balance on rafters silently. They located the room where the voices originated from – the lights shone up through little cracks in the ceiling.

Temari hoisted her fan over her shoulders once more, crouching low on a rafter to hear the conversation. Shikamaru did the same.

"…still hasn't shown any signs of distrust," a man was saying. Shikamaru wished he could have seen the people speaking, but there was no way through the ceiling tiles. "His brother, however, has been around to both the orphanage and Hidemoto's workshop. I think the puppet-master suspects something."

"Do you want us to take him out?" another man said. His voice was softer, more calculating.

There was a brief silence. "That might be unwise. That sister of his is a sharp one – I'm sure she's having Kankurō sniff around for clues. He brought some foreign shinobi with him the other day…"

Shikamaru frowned then looked to Temari. "Aizo," she mouthed, shrugging her shoulders.

Shikamaru nodded.

"This would all be null and void if you idiots could just locate the Chamber of Histories," Aizo muttered angrily. "We have the blueprints, what's taking you?"

The other man replied in a calm tone. "They've posted guards down there. The Kazekage is more aware of us than he seems. He may even know of the device."

"I told you not to speak of that, Kurogō!" Aizo hissed.

Shikamaru could sense tension in the room. "This job is getting more and more dangerous. The scuffle a few days ago cost me four men and I barely made it out. I'm going to have to ask for more money."

"More money?" Aizo seethed. "I'm already paying you your weight in gold."

"Double it and we'll talk," Kurogō demanded.

There was another dangerous, tense silence. "Capture one of the guards the Kazekage has placed down there. Torture the location out of them. I don't care. It's getting too late for subtlety."

"And the gold?" Kurogō demanded.

"I'll double it after you find the chamber. I've put enough money up front for you to know I'm good for it," Aizo replied stonily.

"Deal," Kurogō said after a long moment.

Shikamaru looked over at Temari, who had a calculating look on her face. They needed to get down to the sewers immediately – Tenten was the only one on guard.

* * *

The only thing Tenten could hear was her own breathing, low and deep. She made absolutely no other noise, and didn't move a muscle. To conserve the battery life of her flashlight, Tenten kept it off most of the time. Her eyes never adjusted to the perfect darkness in the tunnels, but she was forced to stretch her hearing to the maximum limit. Tenten knew that she would hear an enemy before she saw him or her, so it didn't make sense to simply wander around with a flashlight. They would hear her first, and she would lose the element of surprise.

Tenten stationed herself a few tunnels away from the one that led to the icy water, and subsequently the hidden chamber. She would easily hear anyone coming for the chamber where she had positioned herself, and so she sat and waited. _Lioness _sat on her knees, but Tenten knew her scroll of weapons would mostly be useless down in the tunnels. She kept a typical shinobi's amount of shuriken and kunai on her, but_ Lioness_ would be her greatest weapon in such close quarters.

Letting her eyes close and balancing _Lioness_ across her knees, Tenten waited in perfect silence and stillness for any tiny sound that might give away intruders. It was difficult to be on guard duty by yourself, for you had the tendency to let your mind wander. Tenten tried hard not give in to these fantasies, especially when they pertained to Kankurō.

Tenten's teammates – Neji, Lee, and Guy – were all very proper and formal. It was the kind of atmosphere she'd been raised in, despite the fact that she came from a ninja family. Her father argued that just because they were shinobi by trade, didn't mean they couldn't observe traditional manners and customs. Her aunt taught her how to pour tea like a lady, and her father taught her how to wield a jian sword. It was a dichotomy not found in many kunoichi. Hinata was raised in a very traditional family, but Tenten would be surprised if Sakura's parents made her learn tea ceremonies. Actually, Tenten doubted Sakura's parents made her do anything Sakura didn't want to do.

Kankurō was shocking and loud, brash and unrestrained. He spoke out of turn and was crude and vicious as the day was long. He was so much different from the men she was raised around.

Tenten liked it. He excited her. Something about Kankurō was just wild enough to put Tenten on edge. She felt like she walked a very fine line with him – she walked just between giving in to his advances and driving a kunai through his fingertips. Was that what attraction was like? Lust?

Tenten broke the silence with a sigh. She didn't want to delve too deeply into that subject. Tenten was a remarkably driven kunoichi – she didn't bat an eyelash at men even if they hit on her, but show her a new style of shuriken and she'd be in heaven. That wasn't to say many boys her age had ever asked her out. Sometimes she thought Neji and Lee might have a big brother complex with her. Tenten knew Neji was practically beating boys off with a stick when it came to Hinata. Lee would do anything to uphold her honor.

It was nice to have someone attracted to her; Tenten rarely got to feel that way. Kankurō made her melty inside…melty was definitely the right word. She knew he was the flighty kind of guy that had a new girlfriend every other week, but his persistence regarding her was almost flattering. And Temari…well, Temari had said some rather interesting things… Tenten preferred not to think about that.

The lightest of footsteps interrupted Tenten's meandering daydreams. She cursed herself and rose ever so silently to a crouching position. _Lioness_ was already drawn – she'd done that so the enemy couldn't hear her sing as Tenten removed the jian from its hilt. Tenten was silent, and didn't turn her flashlight on. Whoever it was would need a light of their own, and she didn't want to reveal her position until they were right on top of her.

Tenten's muscles flexed in an irritated manner as the footsteps drew closer, but no light could be seen. She knew her eyes weren't closed anymore, so whoever was creeping around down here did so in absolute blackness. Tenten wished she knew whatever jutsu this intruder was using.

_Lioness_ poised before her, Tenten listened to the footsteps, and then a very quiet whisper. "Tenten-san?"

Her form dropped ever so slightly. "Hinata-sama?"

"Hai," the girl said softly. "Um…Tenten-san…please, d-don't –"

"Ah, gomen, Hinata-san," Tenten said, relaxing. "I won't forget again." She drew the flashlight out of her thigh pouch and clicked it on. Hinata's kekkei genkai was activated, and her lips and cheeks were a bit red. She looked as though she might have been crying.

"You can use Byakugan in the dark?" Tenten asked. It seemed like something she should know, but how often did she and Neji train in pitch blackness? She assumed Neji just had great night vision.

Hinata nodded. "The Byakugan doesn't require the presence of prismatic light," she replied in a soft voice, eerily reminiscent of Neji's dulcet tones.

"Good to know," Tenten replied. Then she paused. "Are you here to take the next shift? You're a bit early."

At this the younger girl shifted, looking very uncomfortable. "Um…not really…"

Tenten drew her brows together. Shikamaru had informed her of an incident between Hinata and the Kazekage, and that Tenten should keep her eyes open for anything odd. He didn't elaborate, but Tenten wondered if Shikamaru meant the way Gaara's eyes never seemed to leave Hinata for long. The way he always escorted her up the stairs and didn't return. Tenten had tried to keep her nose out of that, but she could see there had been some incident between the two. Hinata looked as though she'd been crying. "I see. You're here by yourself then?"

Hinata's flush of embarrassment confirmed Tenten's suspicions. "The Kazekage is going to kill me when –"

"I'm not scared," Hinata said in a voice that was both insistent and gentle. Tenten felt slightly humbled by the girl's fearless declaration, as though Tenten was the frail little heiress, and Hinata was a strong, older kunoichi.

Tenten shook her head. "Well, let's poke around. We're already damned. When they find out you're missing, the Kazekage will be pissed. We might as well have some good intelligence to report."

Hinata gave Tenten the slightest of smiles, and bowed her head. "I'd like…I'd like to revisit the hidden chamber," she told Tenten in a hesitant voice.

Tenten nodded, leading the way. Then she paused. If Hinata could escape the Sand Sibling house, if she had the guts to defy the Kazekage, she could certainly run this mission. Tenten stepped back for the younger girl, letting Hinata move ahead. Hinata gave her a wide-eyed look before she flashed Tenten and brilliant smile. Feeling oddly sheepish, Tenten grinned back.

"Shikamaru-san and Temari-san were in the house's library most of today," Hinata told her in a soft, business-like tone. "They found these old Bingo Books and confirmed that Goto was a shinobi as well as a blacksmith. Shikamaru-san and Temari-san are investigating Aizo-sama's offices tonight, but I don't think they'll find anything."

Tenten didn't think she'd ever heard Hinata speak for so long without stuttering. Actually, she'd never heard Hinata speak for so long _period_. Tenten wondered if spending time with Temari and herself was rubbing off on the young girl. Hinata would always have a soft, childish voice, but if she could speak with a little more confidence that it would keep people from treating her so much like a doll.

Also, though, Tenten realized that Hinata must have put a lot of thought into what she was doing. Hinata was nothing if not hesitant, but that wasn't always a bad thing. Neji always thought out what his battle plan would be, but no one called him hesitant. Hinata was the same way, but since she stuttered and was skittish, people called her weak. Maybe she wasn't an analytical genius like Shikamaru, but it was clear Hinata had a good head on her shoulders.

They approached the submerged tunnel, and Hinata looked a bit wary of it. "This will be unpleasant," Hinata told her, and shrugged off the pack she was carrying. Tenten had just noticed that it was quite a bit bigger than usual. She gave Hinata a questioning look. "I packed it with extra clothes…but I don't think you'll fit in my pants. I brought you an extra jacket."

Tenten nodded and began to undo the toggles on her shirt. She saw Hinata's face growing red. "We're both girls, Hinata-san," she said in a light reprimand. "You don't have anything I haven't seen before."

Slowly, Hinata removed the Suna-style cape and one of the shirts she wore under it. Tenten untied the red pants at her hips, folding them on the ground next to Hinata's dry pack. She wore wraps under her clothes around her bust and stomach, then down around her thighs. She'd gotten into the habit after several injuries, and hadn't felt right without them in place. She unwrapped these too, leaving her in her sports bra and underwear. Not a particularly demure or prude girl, partial nudity didn't much bother Tenten. Obviously, it bothered Hinata quite a bit.

Hinata had described the water as unpleasant, but as Tenten followed the younger girl down into the murky tunnel, Tenten realized just how understated that was. Unpleasant was for when you had to dress up in formal wear, or for when you got stung by a wasp. Swimming through that frigid water was a hellish nightmare that never seemed to end. It was worse when you realized that you had to do it again to get out.

Tenten grit her teeth on the other side of the water, resolving not to chatter and shake like a wimp. Hinata was attempting to hold her own too, and the young girl led shakily through a magnificent set of wooden doors. Tenten was relieved to see that Hinata had brought waterproof matches, and soon the room was lit from top to bottom, revealing its secrets.

Tenten wasn't one for history – not that she was opposed to it, it just didn't interest her much. The only history she really cared to learn was the history of weapons making or possible historical fighting styles. Otherwise, family histories or national histories were quite dull. Tenten was entranced with this room though. Gold glittered on every scroll – the dragon at the ceiling – and priceless antiques filled the room.

Hinata moved towards a bizarre-looking vent and with a click, warm air filtered into the room. "This is a-amazing," Tenten said, her teeth only chattering a little.

Hinata nodded her agreement, moving over to a large desk. Tenten joined her. "I've thought a-about these kanji quite a b-bit," Hinata said softly, running her fingers over the odd-looking symbols. "I know they must be some k-kind of clue."

Only half interested (Tenten was a lot more interested in the rack of swords rusting in the corner) Tenten glanced at the kanji, agreeing that they were quite weird. Then she squinted, looking back at them. "Oh my God," she said, drawing _Lioness_ from her sheath. "I recognize that."

Hinata turned to her, eyes wide, as Tenten set down the jian blade on the paper next to the kanji. "They're the same," Hinata whispered, running her fingers over the etchings in the sword. "Do you know what they mean?" she asked, looking up at Tenten.

Tenten shook her head. "_Lioness_ was made by Katasumata Hiragi – arguable the greatest sword smith in history. This is the Katsumata family creed – Hiragi-sama etched it on his most valued creations. It's rare to find it these days."

Hinata was giving her a look she had seen on Neji's face many times. The silent, stoic look of someone who had just figured out what was missing. "Was he related to Katsumata Hirato?" she asked, as if she already knew the answer.

"Hai," Tenten answered. "His son. Hirato was a ninja of great renown. He was said to have died in Kirigakure, but he actually escaped and some of my ancestors took him in until he died of his wounds. That's how I got _Lioness of the East_ – it was Hiragi-sama's gift to his son."

Hinata looked down at the sword again, frowning, when Tenten realized something important. "And Aizo said that Hiragi-sama was his master's master! Maybe he knows about this chamber and he's the one trying to find it."

Hinata smoothed her fingers over _Lioness_ – Tenten realized the girl was doing some hard thinking to be so distracted. "In the Bingo Books Shikamaru-san and Temari-san found, Katsumata Hirato and Goto's profiles were heavily censored. They think there is a connection between the two, since no other profiles have been edited down to nothing."

"Makes sense," Tenten agreed. It was a long shot, but it was an intelligent long shot.

"But this proves that not only could Hirato and Aizo somehow be connected, but Hirato and Goto could also be connected. …And what if…" she died off, taking her fingers off _Lioness_ guiltily.

"What if all three are connected," Tenten finished for her. Hinata nodded.

With a frown, Tenten moved out the wooden doors and examined the remnants of the trap. She fingered the rusty old shuriken, appreciating the weigh and consistency of the metal, giving it a toss to affirm its aerodynamic spin. Then she turned up to the trap. "I agree with Shikamaru and Temari – this was definitely set by a ninja. If Goto was in a Bingo Book he was definitely a ninja. Katsumata Hirato's presence in a Bingo Book isn't a surprise either – we know he was a ninja. But I think Aizo might have been a ninja as well."

Hinata cocked her head to the side. "Why, Tenten-san?"

Tenten was silent for a moment. "He just looked like he had more experience with weapons than a blacksmith would. He handled _Lioness_ like someone who appreciated more than just the fine metalwork. He appreciated her killing grace, the subtlety of the edges, and the way it sang out of the scabbard. I could tell he's used a sword in battle." Tenten paused. "Goto and Aizo were contemporaries of each other, and both had a style similar to Hiragi-sama's – what if they were his apprentices?"

Tenten and Hinata looked at each other, sensing there was a greater mystery at work than just the Kamikaze trying to find a device that could destroy a whole city. "We have to find more information about all these men," Hinata said softly, her hands clutching at her sides.

Tenten could see the determination in the younger girl's eyes, and liked the way Hinata reminded her of Neji.

* * *

_Kage Bunshin no Jutsu_ – Shadow Clone Technique; Shadow Clone Jutsu (English TV); Art of the Shadow Doppleganger (Viz)

* * *

**Author's Notes (Part 2):** Kurogō will play the villain for this story, but I won't say too much about him. I thought long and hard about the name (as I do for all OC characters) and decided that Kurogō would do nicely. _Kuro _means 'dark' or 'black'. _Gō_ can translate into many things, including 'threat,' 'proud,' 'fine feathers,' and 'Buddhist Karma' – all of which fit his personality or are ironically well suited for him.


	15. Chapter Fifteen

**Author's Note:** So, a lot of you reviewed saying "GAH! I JUST GOTTA KNOW WHY GAARA ATTACKED HINATA! TELL MEEEEE!" I feel kinda bad. I know I wrap the plot up like a mystery writer, and so I think some of you are expecting this big, mysterious thing... I mean, yah, it is kinda, but not like LIFECHANGING.

So, anyway, please read, enjoy, and review!

Lovebites,

Eros ex Nihilo

* * *

**THE DIVINE WINDS OF SUNA**

**Chapter Fifteen**

Hinata shivered violently as she pulled the dry, mesh shirt over her still-damp skin. Tenten was wrapping cloth around her hips speedily, her skin a little blue as well. Hinata activated her Byakugan and inspected the both of them – both had signs of hypothermia but it wasn't very advanced. With dry clothes they would be fine. Hinata wrung out her hair and the lingering cold water splattered on the ground.

Looking up again, Tenten was dressed, giving her a short smile. "I think we've got something to report, Hinata-san," the older girl said, securing her sword around her back.

Hinata nodded. There was a little dread that swirled around with the serpent in her belly. She knew how rash and unprofessional running off to do her own investigation was, but maybe since they were coming back with such fantastic information, maybe all would be forgiven.

A shuffling sound in the tunnels alerted Hinata, and she saw Tenten stiffen. Tenten pointed to Hinata's eyes then shut off the flashlight. Doing as her teammate instructed, Hinata activated her Byakugan and searched the tunnels. Hinata sighed with relief when she recognized the chakra patterns of the two people advancing on them.

"It's Shikamaru-san and Temari-san," Hinata breathed, deactivating her kekkei genkai.

Tenten sighed as well, turning on her flashlight. "Shikamaru, Temari-san – we're next to the submerged tunnel."

There was a series of echoes, but a few moments later Hinata heard Temari's distorted voice. "Stay there!"

Tenten sighed again, this time with a small smirk in the corner of her lips. "I got all excited for another fight – too bad."

"Tenten-san," Hinata said, looking down worriedly.

"Yah, I know," Tenten replied, shining her light down the tunnels. "But I'm tired of waiting around at the Sand Sibling house – and I would have thanked you not to have discovered these sewage tunnels, either."

Hinata was pretty sure the older girl was joking around – Tenten had the oddest humor. Hinata smiled softly and waited for Shikamaru and Temari's footsteps to become louder. They turned the corner, and Shikamaru gave her an apprehensive look.

"What are you doing here, Hinata-san?" Temari questioned harshly, putting her hands on her hips. Hinata cowered a bit – she'd seen Temari do that to her brothers before she was about to yell.

"Well…I…I…" Hinata began, not sure how to explain herself. This was the first time Hinata had deliberately gone against orders, and she had never just run off on a whim. If she was Naruto she would probably just call Temari a hag and tell her to get over it. He would get beaten up a little, but no one would question him further. Though vulgar, Naruto had a way of not making people question him when he did something stupid. It was like they expected it. No one expected Hinata to make such a rash mistake.

"Well?" Temari said, her voice raising an octave.

"I…um…thought I had a l-lead…" Hinata said, stumbling over her words sloppily. She inhaled deeply, shuddering as she released the air from her lungs. "We –"

"We?" Temari asked. "Were you in on this, Tenten?"

Hinata glanced shyly at Tenten, and could tell the older girl was weighing her answer carefully. "Well, I can't say I liked the idea of her coming down without telling anyone…but when push came to shove I didn't stop her." She paused, flashing Hinata a smile. "I guess I am in on this."

Clearly this wasn't the answer Temari was looking for. She looked from Hinata to Tenten, then back at Shikamaru. "You lot in Konoha sure do run a shoddy operation, Nara. You deal with this…I don't think my nerves can take it!"

With that Temari leaned against the wall, breathing large, angry breaths. Tenten turned to Shikamaru. "Yell at me and I'll kill you, _Nara_," she said threateningly.

Hinata blanched, but Shikamaru said nothing. Hinata felt herself blush under Shikamaru's scrutiny, lowering her eyes. "Don't call me 'Nara,' first of all – Nara is my father." Tenten snorted softly. "Second, you look too smug to have just run off, so tell me what you found out." Then he frowned. "Tenten – you're still on watch. Please, report to your post while Hinata-san debriefs Temari and me."

Tenten didn't complain, and gave Shikamaru a brief nod of her head. Hinata noticed that she smirked at Temari a bit, causing the blond kunoichi to growl irritably. "Your report, Hinata-san?"

Hinata swallowed. "Well…"

She glossed over seeing Gaara, and how that prompted her to escape out into the moonless night. However, she didn't skimp on details of her findings after she met up with Tenten in the tunnels. After a few moments, Temari came over and began questioning her alongside Shikamaru. When she had finished, Shikamaru and Temari turned towards each other.

"ANBU will pickup Aizo soon – we definitely have enough information to warrant an official interrogation," Temari said then sighed. "I had hoped to deal with this unofficially…"

"We have no way of knowing their numbers now, so it can't be just us fighting. That Kurogō didn't seem too upset about losing his men, and if he is who I think he is, he's one hell of a ninja," Shikamaru continued on.

"We'll need to look _him_ up in some Bingo Books, but I can be fairly certain he's not from Suna," Temari added, her nose wriggling slightly. "From what we heard earlier, I'm pretty certain Kurogō was the Earth-release jutsu-user that attacked us in the tunnels and broke my leg. I know it's difficult to categorize shinobi just by the nature of their chakra, but I'm fairly certain Kurogō was from Tsuchi no Kuni."

"He had a rather distinctive accent," Shikamaru said, pausing for a moment and stroking his chin. Hinata had seen Shikamaru's father do this, and thought it made Shikamaru look a little silly. "We need to regroup on the surface with the Kazekage, your brother, and Lee."

"Agreed," Temari replied, her voice clipped. Then she turned to Hinata with a frown and gave her a look that made Hinata feel as if she was some kind of science experiment. "When I first met you, I thought you were the kind of timid, weak kunoichi that doesn't deserve her hitai-ite." Then she grinned broadly. "It's good to see you have some spine, Hinata."

Hinata blushed awkwardly, noting that Shikamaru was complaining how troublesome it was to have so many disrespectful females around. Hinata was about to thank the older girl when Tenten came sprinting back down the passageway. "I counted three voices, but it's really difficult to tell."

"Gaara?" Temari asked Hinata.

Hinata had already activated her Byakugan and was studying the forms moving through the tunnels. She shook her head. "There are six," she said, frowning. The tunnels shook a little bit, and Hinata said, "One has just used an Earth-release jutsu and sealed off that corridor. There is only one escape route now, and it's behind us through the submerged tunnel.

"Kuso!" Temari spat, flicking out her large war fan. "Kurogō?" she said to Shikamaru.

Hinata was aware of the scuffle in the tunnels several days ago, and knew that their opponents had been strong. If Tenten and Kankurō hadn't shown up when they did then Shikamaru and Temari might not be alive now.

Shikamaru nodded softly, his brows drawn together. "Fair guess," he said lightly.

Tenten stationed herself in front, with Temari and Shikamaru side-by-side in the center, and Hinata in the back, forming a diamond. Tenten had drawn her sword, and it rang out with a chiming ring – Hinata could see why it was named _Lioness_. It had the most beautiful roar Hinata ever heard.

A man appeared through the darkness – the group behind him carried lanterns and leered dangerously over towards Tenten, Shikamaru, Temari, and Hinata. The man in front had long, black hair with silver cuffs holding it to the side of his head. Hinata thought he was handsome in a traditional way – he looked like the kind of man her father would associate with. Cold, hard face, well groomed, stoic black eyes, and a hint of snobbishness in the way he dressed and held himself. The man looked at Tenten and sneered – he towered over the girl, but Hinata could see the smirk on her lips.

"If you want, we can all turn around while you lay down and play possum again," Tenten offered viciously, rolling up to the balls of her feet in anticipation of a fight. Hinata didn't really understand.

The man's aristocratic face sneered even more disdainfully. "You killed three of my men, weapons master," the tall man said, his voice frigid and calculating.

Tenten shrugged, not looking particularly intimidated. "And here I thought the third would definitely live…"

"You're Kurogō," Shikamaru said, interrupting Tenten's banter with the tall man. Looking slightly surprised for a moment, the dark-haired man's face fell back into his sneer. Shikamaru didn't wait for any confirmation. "You may have us outnumbered, but you don't have us out-classed," Shikamaru continued. "Money doesn't outweigh the risk. The logical decision is to retreat."

"The money…" Kurogō murmured in reply, chuckling. Then he narrowed his eyes. "The risk is well balanced."

Hinata watched the play between Kurogō and Shikamaru. Shikamaru had fought Kurogō already, and probably had a strategy in mind. "When we discovered who was behind the bombings we knew that ANBU hadn't been compromised. Your employer will be arrested soon; you won't ever be able to collect." Shikamaru paused. "The money is bad."

There was a lengthy silence. Hinata sighed a breath of relief when Kurogō motioned to his men. Slowly they began to retreat into the darkness of the tunnels.

Kurogō had a grim smile on his mouth, and the way he eyed Hinata made her shiver slightly. "You are Nara Shikamaru of Konoha," he said to Shikamaru, his eyes never leaving Hinata. "The Lazy Genius of Konoha…"

Shikamaru adjusted his stance.

"You don't always have everything figured out, boy," Kurogō chuckled darkly. "Money_ is_ of interest to me…but you have too little information to know the true treasure I seek…"

He flashed hand signs like lightning. Apparently Tenten recognized the jutsu, and understood the meaning of the man's words. Hinata watched her friend move quick as a flash, leaping backwards over Temari and Shikamaru to ricochet with one foot off the wall.

"Denton: Arijigoku no Jutsu!"

Hinata was roughly ploughed to the ground, rolling over Tenten several times. The older girl pushed Hinata away, and Hinata watched in horror as Tenten sunk into the earth, sand enveloping her. Before she could react, the ant-lion jutsu swallowed Hinata as well, expanding to drag her into the sandy trap.

* * *

Matsuri was prattling on about some treaty or trade agreement, cradling her clipboard like a child. Gaara would be lying if he said he'd heard anything the younger assistant had said in the last half hour. He knew it was important. He thought maybe it had something to do with Konoha. But the second Matsuri had mentioned that village, Gaara's thoughts went to Hinata.

He had tried to be reasonable, logical. Not only did emotions completely mystify him, Gaara wasn't sure he was able to feel them. He had a hesitant grasp on friendship, and understood that it required emotions and fondness to be meaningful. Naruto was a friend, and Hinata was most likely a friend, but there were things he desired from Hinata that he had no interest in from Naruto. Hinata was, to the best of his understanding, a different kind of friend. This kind required much closer study and observation before any decision could be made.

Gaara was also beginning to learn about family, and he felt as though he really did understand – if not care for – his family. Kankurō and Temari had an odd way of showing affection, and Gaara wasn't always able to return it, but he liked to think he understood what they meant. Never before had Gaara felt he was a part of his family, and over the years their bond had changed and evolved into something he valued and found precious. He would protect his family at all costs.

He wanted to protect Hinata at all costs, too… Despite the fact that her presence was highly disruptive to him, that it tipped the precarious balance of his sanity, Gaara longed for her. He was happiest when he was around her. He lusted after her, obviously, but there was something else. He cared for her in a way that was different from Naruto and his siblings.

Because of, or maybe in spite of – he wasn't sure which – the way Hinata affected him, Gaara had no choice now but to continue with the original plan. Distance equaled safety, and the farther away she was the safer he was from himself. Not only that, _she_ would be safer, too. The Kamikaze would never have focused on her if he had simply sent her back to Konoha when he'd wanted. She wouldn't have been in that bombing, and she wouldn't be in danger right now.

But Hinata wasn't only in danger from the Kamikaze…Gaara knew she was in danger from him, too. He longed for her in a completely physical way, thought about her bared flesh and curving hips. Then, when he was alone with her, he couldn't stop from indulging himself in the sweet taste of her skin. He hurt her; he bruised her; he was unable to control the animal within. He wanted to dominate her, to pin her beneath him and make her writhe and scream… It wasn't safe for her to be around him.

Gaara had known since their last encounter, when he had wanted nothing else to stay in the dreamland of Hinata's moon-lit skin and pleading eyes. _I know you are out there…you could stay, though…I don't mind…_ The way her eyes had danced with desire – if he'd stayed, Gaara wasn't sure if he would have killed her or violated her. Either option would have meant trouble, for the thought of possessing Hinata in such a way was a thought that distracted him late into the night. Gaara had known since that night that if Hinata was to remain safe – safe from him and from others – she would have to be far, far away from him.

He'd tried to impress that on her, to make her understand that she was in danger here, that she should not only be afraid of him, but of shinobi much worse than him. He should have known – Hinata was not weak, he knew she wasn't because she'd proved it so many times. So he should have known she wouldn't not have understood the warning, that she would have fought and not cowered before him. It made him proud that she could be so strong, but angry knowing how easily he could have crushed her. She had fought him admirably, but if Gaara was really going after her blood, nothing she did could have stopped him.

"Kazekage-sama?" Matsuri asked, her voice hesitant as she peeked over her clipboard. Gaara looked at her slowly, waiting for her to continue. Her eyes looked back down to the clipboard. "Should we go over this later?" She paused. "Perhaps a break…I could have some food brought in." Matsuri smiled shyly, a little blush on her cheeks. "I worry you aren't eating enough, Kazekage-sama."

Gaara didn't reply to this. Instead he turned from his desk and looked out his window. "Make sure I'm not disturbed," he instructed her.

She moved slowly out of the office and closed the door behind her. Gaara was aware of Matsuri's fawning, and did not encourage this behavior. She was a helpful and thoughtful assistant – Temari said, though, that if he complimented Matsuri, it would only encourage the poor girl. Gaara didn't question Temari's judgment in such things, for Temari had a much better understanding of girls and their crushes than Gaara.

Gaara was thinking about what way would be best to dismiss Hinata from this mission when he heard a crashing noise down the hall. He stood, and not a second later Temari slammed his door open. "I told you it was an emergency – don't look at me like that, Matsuri!"

Shikamaru, Rock Lee, and Kankurō came filing in after Temari. Gaara frowned as his older sister slammed shut the door with a growl. "Hinata and Tenten have been kidnapped," Temari said in a flat voice.

When the Akatsuki had attacked Suna for Gaara's tailed beast, Gaara was already beginning to control Shukaku's influence over him. As the Kazekage for less than a year, Gaara's infamous control was already gaining him trust among his people. Despite the handicap of Shukaku's insatiable, debilitating lust for blood, Gaara had pushed his demon back even in a fight for his life. There was no doubt that a shadow of Shukaku remained. Gaara hadn't retained any power that Shukaku had given him – control over sand was Gaara's natural talent, though Shukaku had enhanced it. But Gaara had been scarred with the inability to comprehend or feel emotions, as he desired to do. Gaara had to constantly control his baser impulses to attack or kill, and he was never comfortable around other people.

So, when Gaara found himself restrained by inky-black hands while Temari sliced ribbons of wind through his sand, it took him a few moments to come back to himself. It was as if Shukaku's shadow had reared its ugly head and was demanding blood, demanding revenge.

He let the sand drop, looking blankly from Temari to Kankurō – both had a familiar, hesitant fear painted on their faces. This was how they looked at jinchūriki Gaara, not Kazekage Gaara. "I must go to Hinata," he said, voice low and dangerous.

"No," Temari replied, her voice shaking slightly.

Gaara actually growled at her – as a jinchūriki and as a Kazekage, Gaara was not used to being told _no_. Temari took a step back, and Gaara found he was still solidly restrained by the shadow hands. "Release me, Nara," he instructed, turning his eyes to the shinobi, gritting his teeth and straining.

Shikamaru, instead of releasing him, turned to Temari. "I can't refuse his direct order, Temari."

Temari nodded, and Gaara felt the hands slide away from him, joining Shikamaru's shadow. "Just listen, Gaara-sama," Temari pleaded.

Gaara had already shouldered his gourd, but he knew it would be foolish to not listen to Temari. He had appointed her as one of his advisors for a reason. "Quickly," he told her.

Temari drew a deep breath. "Hinata ran off last night on a hunch – probably sometime after Shikamaru and I infiltrated the Ironworkers' Guild offices. She met Tenten on guard outside the secret chamber, and the two of them connected Aizo to the chamber."

Gaara watched her take a piece of loose paper from his desk – probably some important trade agreement document – and began to draw something on the back of it. "Meanwhile," Temari continued quickly. "Shikamaru and I overheard a conversation that incriminated Aizo beyond a shadow of a doubt. I sent ANBU to pick him up, but when they arrived at his house it was ransacked. We heard Aizo speaking with a man named Kurogō, and when we heard their plan to capture the shinobi on duty – Tenten – we rushed to her aid."

Temari held up the paper an arm's length away from her face and frowned, continuing to draw and talk. "We found Tenten and Hinata, but Kurogō was probably waiting, and he used his ant-lion jutsu to swallow Hinata and Tenten. He blocked Shikamaru and I in the tunnels – damn near killed me – and left us to dig ourselves out of the cave in. And – damn it – they almost broke my fan, Gaara!"

She breathed in again, deeply, as she had said most of this on one breath. "We met up with Kankurō and Lee, who have been searching for Hinata since dawn." She paused. Then wet her thumb and began to smudge the paper with one eye closed. "It would be wise for you to take on Aizo – we have to assume he now is in possession of the weapon as we don't know his whereabouts. Kankurō is a fair tracker, so we should send him and Lee after Kurogō."

She handed Gaara the drawing she was working on – it revealed a middle-aged looking man with a strong, aristocratic jaw and dark hair and eyes. Temari was a good artist when she put her time in it, but this was just sloppy enough to be a very, very rough first sketch. Still, it was probably a good likeness. "I don't recognize him," Gaara said quietly. "Kurogō…"

"Hai," Temari said.

Gaara was torn. On one hand it was his undisputed duty to protect Suna and all its people. He would die for this village if he needed; he would sacrifice his happiness with Hinata; he would kill anyone who threatened it. But Hinata was also in great danger, and he had sworn to protect her, too.

"You put your trust in me, Gaara-sama, and I let Hinata-san escape. Please allow me to bring her back to safety." Lee had bowed his head low, and had his hands gripped tightly at his sides.

Gaara gritted his teeth.

"Your duty is not to rescue two kunoichi from Konoha – it is to protect your people from what Aizo has planned for that weapon," Temari said quietly, not really looking at him. "You're the Godaime Kazekage…"

* * *

**Author's Note (Part 2):** Sorry, but this chapter's about a page shorter than those I've written in the past. Rest assured that the next few chapters will be much longer, as I plan to wrap this story up in the next three chapters.


	16. Chapter Sixteen

**Author's Note (Part 1): **So, I haven't updated for three weeks. Some people have been all, "Dude, wtf? Why are you so lazy?" So sorry! But this is a long chapter. Hope that makes up for it... Please read, enjoy, and review!

* * *

**THE DIVINE WINDS OF SUNA**

**Chapter Sixteen**

Shikamaru closed the greenish Bingo Book and narrowed his eyes at no one in particular. It was all beginning to come together. Aizo…Goto…Katsumata Hiragi and his son Hirato…and now the last man Shikamaru would have expected. He wrapped himself tightly in the sand-colored cape that Suna shinobi typically wore.

Hinata and Tenten had been missing for about ten hours – Kankurō and Rock Lee were on the trail of their kidnappers. Kankurō had reported about two hours ago, reporting that he and Lee had followed the tracks into the desert, and if they didn't hear from him in five hours that reinforcements should be sent en masse. Shikamaru had reported this to Temari, who was aiding Gaara as they tried to track down Aizo. They were having even less luck than Kankurō and Lee, which was more worrying than Shikamaru cared to think about.

Thankfully, Shikamaru had other things to occupy his mind. When he and Temari had reported to Gaara earlier that morning, Gaara had agreed that Shikamaru should request an additional team of Konoha shinobi to search for Hinata. Shikamaru had written a short, coded message to Lady Tsunade, which he expected to arrive in Konoha late in the evening – probably in about ten more hours. He requested tracking specialists, but he hoped for Inuzuka Kiba especially, since Kiba was probably very familiar with Hinata's scent.

Later, after Shikamaru and Temari had reported to Gaara, the two of them decided that Shikamaru should continue to focus on the mystery of Aizo. Since they now knew Aizo was tied to Goto and Hirato, it was even more important to get to the bottom of whatever trouble Aizo was causing.

So, when Shikamaru found Aizo Osamaru's name and profile – heavily edited – he wasn't terribly surprised. However, when he found another edited profile in a Bingo Book for wind-release jutsu-user, Shikamaru was more than a little baffled. Could he have been wrong to write off this man? Aizo's guilt seemed so certain…but could he have been the puppet of someone else's plan?

Anything was possible.

Shikamaru stood in the midday sun, looking out at Goto's School for Orphaned Boys and Girls. There was a small group of older children – probably twelve or thirteen – hanging around the outside and half-heartedly sweeping the front walkway. One was smoking, and when Shikamaru passed through, he puffed the smoke in Shikamaru's face, snickering.

"What a drag," Shikamaru muttered under his breath, fanning the foul-smelling smoke away. How he had ever managed to finish Asuma's last pack he never knew. Each rolled stick was a newer, more nauseating sensation than the last.

He opened the front door and slipped inside. One of the monks greeted him, and Shikamaru asked if the headmaster was available.

"Master Tian Jhao is currently indisposed, Nara-san," the slightly pompous monk replied. "Please, come back later."

Shikamaru shrugged, glancing up at the staircase. He knew Tian Jhao's office was just to the other side of this staircase, around the corner. "Hey! Old man! I got a question for you!" he shouted, sounding lazy and lethargic enough for the urgency of a shout to be ingenuine.

The monk scowled at him. "I think it's time for you to –"

"Nonsense," a voice called from down the hall. With the aid of a cane, Tian Jhao shuffled through the hallway to the foot of the stairs. "Nonsense. I've been expecting you, Nara-san." Shikamaru raised an eyebrow. "Took you long enough, though…" Now he frowned.

Shikamaru followed the older monk into his office, sliding the doors shut behind them. A new fixture was in the room – a shogi board with two pillows on opposite sides. An older gentleman in monk's robes was sitting on the far side, studying the board. "I was enjoying a relaxing game of shogi, Nara-san. Please, have a seat. I'll summon for tea."

"I didn't come for tea," Shikamaru replied bluntly, removing his eyes from the shogi board and resting them on Tian Jhao. The old man was slicker than he thought.

"I know, but indulge an old man," Tian Jhao replied.

Shikamaru purposefully sat so that his shadow would be behind him – if needed he would restrain Tian Jhao, but didn't want the headmaster to see it coming.

"You're a ninja," Shikamaru said, half an accusation.

Tian Jhao nodded, moving a shogi piece on the board. Shikamaru frowned. He had hoped to accuse Tian Jhao in private, but the other monk didn't seem to even notice Shikamaru was in the room.

"You're the exact same age as Aizo Osamaru," Shikamaru continued. Again, the old monk nodded. "And Goto Mikurō."

"I could tell you were a bright young man, Nara-san, but you impress me over and over." A flash of a grin was on Tian Jhao's lips, but Shikamaru knew before then that the old ninja was mocking him.

"All three of you were born in the same year, all three of you were shinobi, and all three of you were edited out of the Yondaime Kazekage's secret Bingo Books," Shikamaru finished, his voice even and emotionless.

"All old people know each other, don't you know that?" Tian Jhao asked, not seeming particularly impressed.

"Along with Katsumata Hirato – the leader of your genin team," Shikamaru concluded, watching the older man's face. It did register a bit of surprise, even though Shikamaru had been guessing, fishing for any kind of reaction. He wasn't very surprised to find he was right. The ages matched up perfectly.

"And how did you find out about that?" he asked curiously.

Shikamaru paused. "Intuition."

The old man nodded. "Very good. You are correct, of course. You already suspected that."

"You lied to me," Shikamaru accused. "You said you'd never met Goto. You said –"

But Shikamaru was cut off by the sliding doors as they opened with a snap. The pompous young monk from outside was bringing in a tray of tea – three cups. Shikamaru frowned to himself, waiting for the young man to leave. He seemed disinclined to, and Tian Jhao had to shoo him out. "Where were we?" the old monk asked in a bemused fashion. "Oh, yes – you were accusing me of things. Yes, yes, I did them all."

Shikamaru's jaw clenched. "You admit to withholding pertinent information about an investigation relating to the safety of Suna?"

Tian Jhao sighed, turning to his shogi partner. "Are the young always so thick-headed, my friend?" The other man looked at Shikamaru, then looked back to Tian Jhao and blinked his eyes. "I suppose you're right. Patience is a virtue of the old, not the young. Very nicely put, old friend."

Shikamaru felt his eyebrow arching slightly. If he wasn't missing anything, the other shogi player hadn't said a word. Shaking his head, he continued. "We know all about the hidden chamber – we found Katsumata Hiragi's histories there. We know about the destruction of Suzushigai…"

But Shikamaru faded off as he saw Tian Jhao just nodding in approval. "Very, very good, young Nara," the older man hummed lowly. "And you're here to arrest me, I suppose?"

Shikamaru paused. "I suppose not. Seems like a waste of time…you were just trying to protect the chamber, I guess. You didn't know we already knew about it."

"How did you find it, by the way? Aizo's been looking for the Chamber of Histories for over a decade – since Goto died. How did you find it so quickly?"

Shikamaru bit the inside of his mouth. "The Hyūga kekkei genkai."

Tian Jhao's laugh was like a bark, though his shogi partner remained stoic as ever. "Byakugan! How perfect! You Konoha shinobi are becoming so strong! So many kekkei genkai at your disposal, and to use them so effectively – wonderful!"

Unsure of how to respond, Shikamaru stayed silent. Tian Jhao, however, moved over to his small, discrete desk and riffled through a drawer. "This is the four of us – take a look, young Nara."

Shikamaru took the photograph between his fingers – it felt as if it might turn to dust at any time, so he handled it gently. Though the colors were faded, and the corners were rag-tag, the photograph had retained most of its integrity. There were three boys of about the same height, and a very tall, very handsome young man. Two of the boys – one with reddish brown hair and the other with pitch-black locks longer than his waist – had their arms slung over each other's shoulders. The third had a deep scowl on his face, and was dressed in very expensive, fancy-looking robes. The man Shikamaru assumed was Hirato had his arms crossed, and there was a shadow of a smile on his thin lips.

"That's me on the very right – can you believe how much hair I had? God-awful red color! When I entered the monks' temple I was glad to shave it. Course, I miss it now." The headmaster chuckled in a deep voice. "And the one next to me is Mikurō – we were better than friends; we were brothers. Old bastard kept his hair until the day he died. All the ladies loved his hair…"

The old monk sighed. "Goto Mikurō and I grew up together in an orphanage much like this one. We always said when we were great shinobi no child would ever have to suffer like we did. We worked hard to qualify for Suna's Ninja Gakkō – in those days you had to qualify. I had quite a bit more fighting skill than Mikurō, but he had other skills. Back then, it wasn't uncommon to be a ninja, but have another profession. Suna was at peace when we were young."

"Goto and Aizo were apprenticed to Katsumata Hirato in more ways than one," Shikamaru said softly. "Aizo called Hiragi his master's master, wanting to brag, but not say his true relation with Hiragi and Hirato."

"Indeed," Tian Jhao said quietly, seeming a little lost in memories. "Aizo Osamaru…he was always a vile child. Never met a child I didn't like, but even now he would have made my stomach churn. He was just so entitled, like the world should bow down to his every whim. He worked only as hard as he had to, and didn't have any real talent for ironworking or ninjutsu."

Shikamaru shook his head. "Then how did he get apprenticed to someone as skilled as Hirato?"

"Politics," Tian Jhao replied. "Aizo is the bastard child of the last Omatsu Wind Daiyo. He never had any legal heirs and the Ashikaga are now the royal family. Aizo's mother was a vicious, blood-sucking harpy, and demanded full concubine status since she'd given birth to son. Back then, if concubines gave birth to females they were both usually killed. A son was different though… And the Wind Daimyo didn't want people to think he'd spawned a weak son, so he shuffled off Aizo to his second cousin – Katsumata Hiragi. Well, Hirato was something of a third cousin, and he trained Aizo, Mikurō, and I for many years."

Tian Jhao took a long sip of tea, still playing shogi with his silent partner. "Even after the Wind Daimyo died, and his mother was assassinated, Aizo remained as Hirato's apprentice. Hirato and Hiragi were honorable men, and wouldn't break a promise to the dead. Even so, Aizo resented them, as they were full royalty, and he was just the disinherited bastard son of the former Wind Daimyo. He was nothing without that connection. I suppose he was always sniffing around for power, following Hiragi and Hirato everywhere, jealous that Mikurō and I were favored over him."

Pieces fell together for Shikamaru. "He planned to use the device that destroyed Suzushigai to leverage a position in the royal line – probably the Wind Daimyo himself… But how did he know about that – how did anyone know about that?"

Tian Jhao played a few moves before answering Shikamaru's question. "Hiragi-sama was an amateur historian as well as an unparalleled sword smith. He had a natural curiosity for anything mysterious, and would often go digging out in the desert in the ruins of ancient cities. He brought home many treasures. I always assumed he was just doing some exploratory digging in Suna when he found the tunnels. They weren't sewers, since the sewers were built over them and then forgotten. He mapped them for more than twenty years before he found what he called the Chamber of Histories.

"Now, about the time that we were going to war with Kirigakure, Aizo took to following Mikurō and I around, convinced Hiragi was sharing secret jutsu with us and not him. Truth was, Mikurō had a strong love for history, too. He and Hiragi would spend hours down in the Chamber of Histories, which was very suspicious to Aizo. To the best of my knowledge, he one day heard Hiragi and Mikurō discussing the destruction of Suzushigai and the tunnels. As years went by it was clear to Mikurō and I that Aizo didn't know where the chamber was, and Mikurō went through great lengths to hide it from anyone who might happen upon it accidentally."

Shikamaru took all this in, knowing he never would have figured it all out without the help of Tian Jhao. It was a mystery left to time, and only someone who had lived through it would know the story in its entirety. "Aizo seemed fairly certain on the location of the chamber. Even before our Byakugan-user found it, he'd probably been circling for months. The maps she created just helped him pinpoint it."

Tian Jhao nodded, moving around shogi pieces with greater speed. "When Mikurō died – quite naturally from old age and smoke inhalation, I assure you – the orphanage was the sole benefactor to his will. A few months later I found his belongings had been raided in our storage facility, but nothing appeared to be taken. He must have recovered some clues to the chamber's location. I had assumed he was looking for our master's swords."

"Hiragi crafted the _Twin Lionesses_," Shikamaru said dumbly.

"Hai," Tian Jhao replied. "He made them for his son – Hirato – arguably the greatest swordsman to ever live. Hirato took them to war with him…they've been lost ever since."

Shikamaru shook his head. "_Lioness of the East _has a new owner now, a Konoha kunoichi named Tenten…though she has been kidnapped by Aizo's henchmen…"

Tian Jhao hummed sadly. "So, Aizo will finally get my master's_ Lioness of the East_? She is inferior to the_ Lioness of the West_, but still the greatest sword surviving from Hiragi's collection."

"She's only lost if my teammates fail to recover her and her new owner," Shikamaru argued, not feeling very confident. Tian Jhao nodded, but Shikamaru still had one question that was bugging him. "How could you not know that Hidemoto wasn't a registered guild ironworker? He filtered students out under the pretense of fulfilling Goto's scholarship, and you never questioned it?"

At this, Tian Jhao looked uncomfortable, and the man playing shogi with him smirked a little. "Aizo pulled the wool over my eyes as well, boy. Perhaps if I'd seen it sooner then you would have been saved much trouble. I could have…well, it doesn't matter now." He sighed, giving his playing partner a dull look. "You're trapped, my friend." The older, silent monk crossed his arms and studied the board.

"Aizo was providing Hidemoto with falsified certificates. He didn't have to sell anything, just put up a front with some lousy ironwork. Hidemoto's job was to search the tunnels, and the boys were made to help. I've taken care of Hidemoto, and the boys are in the hands of skilled ironworkers once more. One, I've heard, even has a fair amount of skill."

Shikamaru nodded once. Everything fit into place. He was glad to know that he wouldn't have to fight the old monk. Based on the game being played, he wasn't sure if he could beat the old man. "I've just got one more question, Master Tian Jhao."

"Hai," the monk said, moving another piece further up the board.

"Ever heard of Kurogō? He's got long black hair and an Iwagakure accent."

The monk's hand stilled. "He's a very dangerous man."

Shikamaru frowned. If Tian Jhao thought he was dangerous, then Shikamaru's suspicions were confirmed. Their enemy was more than just Aizo. "He's working for Aizo. My…guide and I overheard a conversation between the two of them regarding payment for kidnapping my teammates."

Tian Jhao was frowning. "Kurogō doesn't need money. He's the Earth Daimyo's youngest brother. He's in exile. I didn't know he was in Suna..." The man stopped playing. "That's a very dangerous man, Shikamaru. You'd do well to stay clear of him."

Shikamaru frowned, standing up. "Surely by now you've heard of Hi no Ishi," he said in a hard voice.

Tian Jhao narrowed his eyes. "I see."

"A Konoha shinobi would be considered worse than scum if they turned their back on a teammate. That's our nindo." Shikamaru frowned, leaning forward and moving a shogi piece from the silent monk's side of the board.

"See you later, old man," he called behind him. The sliding doors snapped shut, and he heard the old monk curse in a very irreligious way.

* * *

Hinata woke up very slowly, as if there was a heavy fog separating her from consciousness. Her stomach was reacting very badly to whatever they had injected her with back in the tunnels. Whatever it was had put a complete block on her chakra and knocked her out within a minute and a half. Hinata felt the sickening, acidic burn of vomit as bile rose in her throat. She couldn't keep it down and she leaned over, wishing she could clutch at her stomach as she vomited copiously and painfully on the ground in front of her.

She spat distastefully, trying to get the sting out of her throat and mouth. Afterwards her stomach pumped again, but with nothing inside, just rolled around painfully. Hinata leaned against the wall and tried to let her eyes adjust to the lack of light. She frowned, trying to find a comfortable position with her hands tied behind her back. They had restrained her so that the tops of her hands were facing each other – no way she could sign for ninjutsu even if she did recover her chakra.

Unfortunately, without chakra, Hinata couldn't take advantage of her Byakugan. She was in pitch black still, but she could hear the heavy, even breathing of someone nearby. There seemed to be voices somewhere far away, but they were very difficult to pinpoint. If she hadn't been conscious enough to hear that dark-haired man – Kurogō – give the orders to retreat from the tunnels, Hinata would have thought that she was still in Suna's impressive sewage system. She inhaled sharply at the pain she felt in her shoulders as she shifted for a more comfortable position.

The person beside her, the one whose heavy breathing she could hear, groaned in his or her sleep. Hinata sincerely hoped it was Tenten and not some villain. But when the person vomited with a crying moan, Hinata felt fairly sure it was Tenten.

"Tenten-san," Hinata whispered as loud as she dared.

A decidedly masculine cough was her reply. Hinata, startled, moved as far away from the sound as she could. Unfortunately, whatever cell she was in wasn't very large, and she ran into a wall gracelessly after a few shuffling steps. The man vomited again, this time clearing his throat.

"Who's there?" he asked, his voice gruff, but a little frantic. "Tenten-san?"

Hinata tried to scoot further away, not afraid but unwilling to be so close to someone she didn't know. In her efforts to get away, however, Hinata plowed face first into someplace very soft. She pulled back immediately, knowing instinctively she'd just done something supremely embarrassing.

"It's me…shhh…"

This she knew was Tenten, and she gracelessly removed herself from the older girl's cleavage. She sat close to her though, feeling as if she was lighting up the cell with the brightness of her blush.

"Who's there?" the man said, now angry. "I demand you reveal yourself! Someone come in here! I won't be treated like this! Like some common criminal!"

He continued until a small light from a lantern appeared. The man holding it was tall and rough looking, with leathery skin and a handkerchief that covered the lower part of his face. All Hinata could easily see were his dark eyes, and they glittered maliciously in the lantern light.

In the light of the lantern, Hinata was allowed to see her cellmate. Tenten was resting against the wall, her face very pale with a large gash across the temple. Loose, brown tendrils of hair were stuck to her face with thick, drying blood. Her lip was bleeding and puffy, and bruises had closed her right eye swollen shut. She was stripped down to her chest wrap and red pants, and there were angry red and purple bruises on her stomach and chest. Hinata gasped loudly, but Tenten shushed her by placing her forehead against Hinata's. "Tell them nothing, Hinata-sama," she whispered softly, sounding as if she had a sore throat. "Gomen," the older girl said with a dark chuckle. "Hinata-san."

"Tenten…"

All the while the man had been yelling at the jailor who'd come in with the lantern. The jailor laughed then pulled the older, well-dressed man out of the cell. The iron bars rattled as the gate closed. The jailor manually dragged the other man down the corridor, he was screaming the whole way, and the light of the lantern was left behind.

Hinata turned back to Tenten, concerned for her friend. "Could you move away from my shoulder, Hinata-san?" Tenten asked, her voice thick with pain. "I believe it's been dislocated."

Hinata leaned away, curling her legs under her bottom and facing the older girl. She looked really terrible, as if each breath was more painful than the last. "Wh-what _happened _to you, Tenten?" Hinata asked in a low voice, almost scared that any sound she made would alert another, leathery-faced man who would drag her away, too.

Tenten grunted, rolling her head back against the wall. Her eyes were closed, and the one that was swollen shut looked even more livid with the light of the lantern. "My best estimate…" she began, pausing to think, "is twenty-four hours. Someone comes by every four to inject you and Aizo with something that keeps you asleep."

"But," Hinata said when Tenten quieted, "but what happened to _you_?"

Tenten didn't answer right away. "They'll come and get me again soon…they want to know the location of the secret chamber you found…"

Hinata felt her eyes widen. They were torturing Tenten… Hinata didn't know why she didn't understand that before now – perhaps the drug they'd administered had more side affects that she didn't know about. "How…how many times…?" Hinata whispered.

Tenten sighed. Then she shrugged. "Just about every hour or two. They'll kill me soon…gomen-nasai, Hinata…I did my best."

"What?" Hinata asked, her pitch rising alarmingly with Tenten's fading smile. Tenten jerked awake again as Hinata nudged the older girl a little roughly. "What are you talking about? Why are you apologizing?"

Blood spattered over Tenten's chest wrap and a bit on Hinata's cheek. Tenten coughed again, turning her head so no more blood would hit her. A bit dribbled down her chin. "I told…told them you were a Hyūga. I told them you would have a big ransom if they kept you healthy and alive."

"Tenten…"

"Neji would do worse if he knew I allowed them to torture you, Hinata-san," Tenten said with a dark chuckle.

A bit taken aback, Hinata looked down, gnawing on her lower lip unattractively. She was about to speak when more footsteps echoed down the hallway. Hinata moved closer to Tenten, whose breathing had become jagged and labored. Hinata could hear the other girl's heart beating swiftly and erratically.

"Finally awake, Hyūga-sama?" the tall, dark-haired man said in his odd accent. Hinata shied away mistrustfully. This was Kurogō. "I know you won't mind if I borrow her, Tenten-san," the man continued snobbishly.

"No!" Tenten shouted, surprising Hinata by leaping to her feet. She fell to her knees almost immediately, and Hinata was able to see the soles of the older kunoichi's feet. They were blistered and pussing with yellowish red slime.

Another man entered the cell and laughed at Tenten's attempts to move. He didn't laugh when Tenten's left leg shot out and took him down at the knees. Tenten growled viciously, rising to her knees before the man could get up and slamming her shoulder into his neck. Kurogō was in the cell in seconds, pulling Tenten off the other jailor by her hair. Tenten screamed and flailed before Kurogō punched her in the gut. Hinata screamed and Tenten opened her mouth wordlessly. Blood hissed out between her clenched teeth and bubbled down her chin and neck.

"Now, if only my men had as much determination and strength as you, Tenten-san," Kurogō was saying, dusting off his hands as he kicked the man on the ground in the stomach. The man groaned pitifully. "If I had an army of men like you, I'd rule the whole world."

Looking dizzy, trying to recover from the blow, Tenten rolled to her side and braced herself against a wall to get to her knees. "You bastard – you said you wouldn't touch her!" Tenten yelled, her voice sounding scratchy. "You fuckin' said you wouldn't lay a hand on her!"

Kurogō backhanded her, sending Tenten flying. Hinata tried to move to Tenten, but the other jailor rose from the floor to restrain her, dragging her out of the cell. "Onegai shimasu, Kurogō-sama," Hinata pleaded, tears filling her eyes. "Onegai shimasu, leave Tenten-san alone…"

Kurogō's smile scared Hinata more than when he reached a hand towards her face. She braced herself for impact, but found he was caressing her face and hair softly. She shuddered and closed her eyes tightly. "So polite…" he said in a smooth, cool voice. It hit her like a winter storm, making her legs and hands shake with cold.

"You could learn a lot from her, Tenten-san," he said snobbishly, half turning to Tenten as he locked the cell's door behind him.

Hinata opened her eyes and saw Tenten had risen to her feet and was bracing herself against the steel bars of the cell. "Take me –" she began, cutting herself off. Tenten fell to her knees, her forehead resting on the ground against the bars. "Onegai shimasu, Kurogō-sama, take me, not Hinata-sama. She's worth so much more alive and well than in my condition."

Kurogō smiled a smile that didn't reach his eyes, but he seemed entertained none-the-less. "Had I known that taking a young lady to tea would affect your manners, Tenten-san, I would have done so long ago." He turned sharply to Hinata. "Let's go, Hyūga-sama."

Hinata didn't have a choice as the other jailor manhandled her through a low corridor. She could hear Tenten's desperate screams for a few seconds before they died into echoes. The corridor was steadily getting lighter until Hinata felt blinded by the sun as she was led towards the brightness. Her eyes squinted painfully for several moments, and when she focused them she saw the most wondrous sight.

A waterfall was plinking sweetly a few feet away, and a beautiful green oasis extended for about twenty meters in every direction. A small bridge extended from where she stood to the other side of the watery wonderland. Exotic plants and tall palms shaded the walkway as it floated on inflated, rubber balloons. It swayed slightly as her jailor forced her to follow Kurogō. Hinata dared a look back and saw that they had exited out of a low opening next to the waterfall, almost completely hidden by greenery.

Stepping off the bridge, Hinata saw the oasis was populated by a group of rough looking men in desert capes much like hers – a little more worn perhaps. There were tents set up, but also some more permanent-looking structures. One such structure was a stylized pavilion with a tent as the roof and large beams supporting the frame.

"Hide," Kurogō said, not turning around. Clearly he was addressing the man who was forcing Hinata to walk. "Hyūga-sama's hands." He paused. "Let her get cleaned up – I'm sure she wouldn't want to take tea smelling like vomit and blood."

Her guard – Hide – pushed her roughly back to a large tent, throwing her inside as he simultaneously cut the ropes tying her hands. "Don't try to escape, girly. Your feet will look like your friend's if you do."

Inside, Hinata was alone. She frowned, shrugging painfully as the circulation in her arms and shoulders returned. The tent was dim, but she could see there was a sizable amount of loot stashed in chests and boxes. Most of it was cloth and clothes, but there were pots and ornamental goods as well, along with some dry sacks of rice and hanging spices.

Hinata looked down at her sand-colored cape and saw it was smeared with her own vomit and dirt. She unwrapped it, sniffing herself discretely. She did smell like blood and vomit. In the back of the tent was a large tub-like basin filled with water. It looked as though several people had already bathed in it that day, a thought that sickened Hinata. She checked behind her, never feeling the loss of her Byakugan more, as she stripped off her shirt and pants. She was quick and business-like with the rag, dipping it in the tub and cleaning off her skin. Without a mirror, Hinata couldn't tell if her face was truly clean, but she did her best. The tips of her hair were hard with vomit, and she nearly gagged looking at them. She washed her hair hesitantly at first, then dunking her whole head beneath the grayish water. It was better than nothing.

It didn't take her long to find a stash of formal women's kimono. She bypassed them for a less formal, but still stylish, dark blue yukuta with a silvery pink obi. She wouldn't be able to tie it well by herself, but she could make it look presentable. Hinata was combing her hair when the man unceremoniously opened the flap of the tent. He looked a little disappointed. "Looks like you clean up well, at least," he muttered, taking her by the elbow and pulling her up and out the tent behind him.

Hide was far from gentle as he dragged her through the camp and up to the pavilion. At the center was a large table with a map of the world. Hinata was pushed past this and up a few stairs onto a raised, shaded platform. Hide deposited her roughly at the low table, causing Hinata to fall on her hands and knees.

"Hide!" Kurogō murmured, sounding like he was scolding the man. "Manners, Hide – Hyūga-sama is a guest."

"Hai, Kurogō-sama," the scraggly-looking man replied. "My apologies, Hyūga-sama."

Hide backed away, and another man – dressed well and clean – approached with a tray. He knelt to place cups of steaming tea before Kurogō and then Hinata. Though he didn't acknowledge the man, Kurogō nodded slightly to Hinata, taking the tea and sipping lightly. "I have to say, when I first heard of the legendary Hyūga kekkei genkai, I was thinking they would be creepy and off-putting. But your eyes are beautiful, Hyūga-sama." He paused. "And a stunning choice of obi – you really are a well-bred young lady."

Not knowing what to say, Hinata treated the man as if he was on the Hyūga council of elders. They were men and women that Hinata feared for many reasons – her fate was in their hands, but they were also very powerful politically. "Dōmo arigatō gozaimasu, Kurogō-sama," Hinata said, never raising her eyes above the table's edge.

She was tense, sitting with her feet tucked underneath her on a soft pillow. A breeze moved through the air, sweet and slow. It reminded her of Gaara the way it was slightly earth-scented. "Your tea, Hyūga-sama," Kurogō said in a light, slightly board tone. "Before it gets cold."

Hinata nodded. "Dōmo arigatō gozaimasu, Kurogō-sama," she said in a small voice, sipping the tea. If it was poisoned she would be in trouble, but it hardly mattered. She wasn't really in any position to refuse Kurogō. She had to play the demure female – yes, please, master; thank you so much, master. Hinata could do this; she'd done it her whole life. In any other situation Hinata might have enjoyed the sweet, earthiness of the tea, but now it was dirt in her mouth. "I am fortunate, Kurogō-sama – this is delicious."

"I'm glad you are enjoying it, Hyūga-sama," he replied lightly. "It's a blend my mother perfected – one of her many hobbies."

"She must have been a very talented woman, Kurogō-sama," Hinata said politely, taking another sip. Now she wished it had been poison. It was torture to have to act this way.

"Indeed," Kurogō said, his voice disinterested. "When I was eleven I had her killed. I found out she tried to strangle me in the cradle. Mothers are traitorous murderers."

Hinata swallowed slowly, her throat contracting and sweating a bit. She was beginning to understand that Kurogō was possibly insane.

"How maudlin," Kurogō drawled. "Let's discuss you, Hyūga-sama. Are you truly the Hyūga heiress? Tenten-san can be a might unpredictable, but I think we're breaking her."

Hinata nodded slowly. "Onegai shimasu, Kurogō-sama…don't hurt Tenten-san anymore… I'll tell you anything you ask…just don't hurt her anymore…"

Kurogō shook his head. "Such a tender child! How could you ever be a kunoichi? It's clear you'd never hurt a mouse. How disappointed your father must be." Secretly, Hinata agreed. It was still slightly painful to hear this vicious, black-hearted criminal say it. "But we have all the time in the world to talk about business, Hyūga-sama. Tell me, have you met the Fire Daimyo? He's something like a third-cousin of mine, several times removed. It's been ages since I've heard from him…getting on, you know…"

Hinata swallowed again, and listened to the older man prattle on about court life and things that had nothing to do with her situation. Hinata just wanted for that smell on the winds to really be Gaara, coming to rescue her…

* * *

Shogi – strategy game that Asuma and Shikamaru are so fond of

Onegai shimasu – "please," but more formal than just onegai

Iwagakure – Village Hidden in the Rocks

Hi no Ishi – Will of Fire

* * *

**Author's Note (Part 2):** See! I told you it would be longer. I wouldn't lie to you guys. Well, our characters have a lot to get done and just three more chapters to do it. Better get moving!

Also, you may have noticed that I'm a thief. Bonus points to the person who knows where the line "All old people know each other, don't you know that?" comes from. No cheating, though! Don't Google that shit!


	17. Chapter Seventeen

**Author's Note (Part 1):** Wow, this is the longest chapter of the story! I know I've been a complete jerk by not updating regularly, so I really apologize. Sometimes things get hectic in an author's life... Anyway... Please read, enjoy, and review!

* * *

**THE DIVINE WINDS OF SUNA**

**Chapter Seventeen**

Kankurō had called for a break. As was typical, Lee protested it. Kankurō knew the desert better than the green-robed shinobi, and understood that a body needed water every so often to stave off heat exhaustion and other nasty things that caused death. They were exerting a large amount of energy, sweating and breathing hard, so they were losing water in their bodies fast.

"Drink a mouthful, Caterpillar Brow," Kankurō barked breathlessly, handing the younger ninja a canteen filled with cactus tea. Kankurō had been making them drink it off and on for the last thirty-two hours to conserve water and protect themselves from the sun. As usual, Lee made a face but did not complain. At least Kankurō could say that Lee didn't get on his nerves by whining – that boy never complained about anything. Except for maybe how slow they were going…

Now the sun was reaching its highest point in the sky, and they would need to make a shelter to survive the afternoon's storms. Even if it was the summer, and sun wouldn't be their main enemy. Sandstorms would kill them just as easily. A shelter would prevent them from getting lost in the storm, and also being buried alive. They'd done the same thing the day before. Lee had wanted to continue through the storm, but Kankurō had seen better men killed in lesser storms than these.

This time Lee set up the tent, crawling in. The wind was picking up, and Kankurō was grateful for good timing. "We'll both need to sleep – no use standing on guard in a sandstorm. Just a few hours until the sun is lower. We'll continue then."

Lee nodded silently and dropped into a meditation pose, legs crossed and hands resting on knees. Kankurō leaned back and tried to get a few hours good sleep. He was driving himself crazy with worry. It was as bad as when Gaara had been kidnapped. Though, in the back of his mind, Kankurō had always thought Gaara would be able to take care of himself. But Hinata sure as hell couldn't take care of herself! And Tenten might be made of sterner stuff, but that didn't mean that she couldn't be defeated.

And why did Tenten have to taunt that vicious-looking earth-release jutsu-user? That crazy female was always throwing herself into situations without thinking them through. She was too brave, trying to save Hinata like that. And now they were both kidnapped. If anything happened to her…

Kankurō couldn't sleep when he thought about that, so he turned over and shut his eyes. The howling of the wind outside deafened him, creating a white noise distracting enough to distance himself from those thoughts. Several hours later Lee was shaking him. The sun was lower on the horizon, and the wind had stopped battering their small tent.

They had to dig themselves out of the sand a few feet, but not long afterwards they were headed northwest again. After loosing the tracks during yesterday's sandstorm, Kankurō and Lee had looked in every direction for more tracks to appear. It was difficult to mask movement in the desert, and soon they were trailing their prey again. It would take several hours of searching to find the trail again, but the general direction the group had headed was northwest, so they would start off that way. The problem with having to waste time looking for the trail was that they became just that much farther behind their quarry. They moved faster, however, and that made up for some of the time wasted looking for the trail after every sand storm.

Night fell, but they pressed forward. Night was the best time to travel in the desert. The air was still and calm, the stars were visible for plotting and keeping direction, and the heat wouldn't sap all the water from your body. Still, the cold was their major enemy at night, but since they were moving quite swiftly their body temperatures weren't in danger of dropping too low. They moved faster under the light of the waxing moon, just a sliver in the sky. Lee occasionally orated poetry about it, and Kankurō kept reminding himself that he'd need the Konoha shinobi to recover Tenten and Hinata.

The sun was rising up above the horizon when Lee spontaneously stopped, putting a hand out to signal for Kankurō's attention. Lee frowned, then pointed at a half-exposed kibaku fuda in the sand. "Either they know we are following them, or we have stumbled upon an alert system for a more permanent residence."

Kankurō had a hard time believing something intelligent had come out of Lee's mouth, but bent down to examine the script on the paper. "This is an odd way to write this seal. It's almost worth setting it off to see what the explosion will look like."

Lee frowned, holding a thin wire in between his fingers. Sand fell off it and exposed another kibaku fuda. "I would advise against that, Kankurō-san."

Kankurō nodded. "I'll send Karasu out in front in case we miss any tags."

Lee was still holding the wire. "I think we can use these tripwires to our advantage, Kankurō-san," Lee said speculatively. "We could penetrate their base then detonate these explosives remotely. They would rush out to meet the intruders, and we could be free to infiltrate. Since we are out numbered by far, this plan would be to our advantage."

It was probably a full minute before Kankurō remembered to close his mouth. "My god, Caterpillar Brow…that's a great idea…"

Lee's face broke out into a smile so ridiculously huge it seemed to defy the laws of space and time. "Guy-sensei says to be a splendid ninja you must use both your mind and your battle skills. I will be a jōnin in no time!" Lee struck the silliest pose, giving Kankurō a humongous thumbs up.

Shaking his head, Kankurō smirked a little. "Keep up like that and you will be for sure, Rock Lee." He now understood a little bit why Gaara put up with Lee.

It took them the better part of the morning to realign the kibaku fuda so they could be remotely detonated. They circled an oasis Kankurō had never known about (there were several hidden away in the desert of Kaze no Kuni), never once seeing a sentry or guard. Kankurō reasoned they didn't really have much need for them as far out in the desert and as well hidden as they were. If someone did approach by accident the kibaku fuda would alert the whole encampment.

By noon they had realigned all of the alert system flawlessly. The air was beginning to move, and both knew by now that the sandstorms were coming on the afternoon winds. Lee set up the tent efficiently, and they both bent over a rough map Kankurō had sketched as they adjusted the alert system to their needs. Both ninja were running low on sleep, and hadn't eaten since early that morning. Lee had some soldiers' rations that needed water, but water was so low now that they couldn't risk it. They ate some dried, salted jerky from Kankurō's pack, and drank the very last bit of cactus tea.

"The oasis is not at all fortified," Kankurō said, reading over the observational notes he'd taken on the map. "They seem to rely heavily on the fact that they are hidden, and they clearly have no idea that they were followed. That much is evident by the fact that there are no extra security measures beyond the kibaku fuda."

"A mission of subterfuge," Lee said, excitement in his overly round eyes. "With the moon still small, night will be our greatest ally!"

Kankurō nodded. "We'll wait for the darkness of night. When we are close to the encampment, we'll hide and set off the kibaku fuda."

Lee agreed enthusiastically – though, to be fair, everything Lee did was enthusiastic. Annoying as it was, Kankurō couldn't help but share in Lee's excitement. Their plan was a good one, and the universe was lining up advantages for them to manipulate.

Kankurō studied the map for a several more minutes then lay his head down to catch a few hours of sleep. As much as he would like to say that it was a restful sleep, when he woke it was frigid out. They were now in the heart of winter, and out in the desert that meant temperatures near freezing. No one stopped to think that the desert could be cold, but it could, and the bareness that allowed the heat to burn so fiercely also allowed the cold to permeate everything. Men had frozen to death this deep in the desert, frozen in the sand like it was snow.

Kankurō and Lee woke up frigid and stiff. Neither were wearing anything more protective than their sand-capes, and when they stepped outside the tent the cold air bit at their noses and cheeks.

Looking over at his companion, Kankurō held out his hand. "If we make it out of here alive, you and I are going to get shitfaced at a bar in Suna."

"Guy-sensei says I am not allowed to imbibe alcohol," Lee replied sadly. "I do not know why."

Kankurō scratched his chin. "Too bad – there is no greater challenge in Suna than a drinking contest between good friends…"

"Friends?" Lee said, his furry eyebrows shooting up to his hairline.

"Yah…but if you're not up for it…"

Lee grinned. "I cannot resist a challenge – especially not from a friend! You are on!" He stuck out his hand and grasped Kankurō's firmly. "Now, to rescue Tenten and Hinata-san!"

Kankurō felt a giddy feeling, adrenaline rushing through his body with the thought of incoming battle. Perhaps Lee felt the same way, for his grin was just a bit sharper, more confident. All shinobi felt that way on the eve of battle, the ones who truly enjoyed fighting for the pure pleasure of matching their skills against an enemy. There was no greater thrill than knowing your life was on the line.

And then Kankurō realized what must have attracted him to Tenten in the first place – she knew how to enjoy a good fight. She was like Temari in that sense, always ready to verbally or physically spar. Tenten was not just a kunoichi, she was a warrior. He didn't know why he couldn't see it earlier – every time she picked a fight with him she was challenging him, and Kankurō couldn't resist a good challenge.

Kankurō grinned to himself, following Lee's swift steps over their kibaku fuda. The oasis came into view, a secluded wonderland of water and greenery. The dimness of the moon aided their unnoticed infiltration, and they took cover in a thickly overgrown area to detonate the explosives.

Lee took the detonation seal and smeared a bit of blood on it. Not three seconds later there was the distinctive, popping explosions of kibaku fuda. The noise circled the encampment, lighting the sky for a few moments. Immediately there were voices yelling, men mobilizing, and others running out in nothing but their sleepwear. Torches were lit, and Kankurō saw that this base was not just a bunch of tents. The tents were designed in a style not typical of desert nomad-types that lived in the deep desert.

He studied the men that passed, and listened to their foreign accents – these were not men of the desert. To him…it looked as if they were from Tsuchi no Kuni. When only one or two had run by in the last thirty seconds, Lee and Kankurō moved into the main area of the encampment. The center of the oasis encampment was a permanent-looking pavilion with a green tent stretched across the top. When Lee and Kankurō moved past it to a likely-looking series of tents, Kankurō's arm shot out to catch Lee.

There was a person on that pavilion…a child?

The person turned, and there was just enough moonlight for Kankurō to get a quick look at his or her face. He frowned. "Hinata?"

Whoever it was gasped and ducked behind a wide-table then hesitantly peeked up above it. "Kankurō-kun? …Lee-kun?"

Dumbstruck (and feeling a little silly about launching a rescue mission for a girl who didn't seem to be in any particular need of rescue), Kankurō stood up from a crouch and scratched the back of his head. "What are you doing, Hinata?"

He couldn't see how he would think she was a child at first. As Hinata approached, Kankurō saw that she was dressed quite nicely, her hair in fancy pins with bells and ribbons fastened into it. She was wearing facial makeup that Kankurō had seen worn by royalty when the Wind Daimyo's sister had visited Suna. She had a desperate look on her face, and her eyes shifted from side to side.

"Is…is that you, Hinata-san?" Lee asked, sounding unsure of himself.

At first, Kankurō thought that Hinata was shaking with the cold, but then he realized she was shaking with anger. "That…that _man_ injected me with something that's blocked my chakra!" She actually stamped her pretty little foot. "And a good thing he did, because if he hadn't I would have stopped his heart!"

"What?" Kankurō asked, still a little miffed about the whole situation. Hinata was dressed up like a court lady, issuing death-threats, and looking like someone had pissed in her tea.

"That man is _crazy_! He played _dress up_ with me all afternoon!" Hinata hissed angrily. Then she looked at the both of them. "I know where Tenten is – follow me."

She began to shuffle towards the center of the oasis, moving so slowly that Kankurō wondered what was wrong. "Hinata…we're kind of in a hurry…" he said softly. He wasn't sure how, but Hinata had begun leading the mission, and it didn't look like she had any intention of taking his direction.

"Kurogō had my feet bound – _they're all the rage_," she said mockingly.

"What did he do to your feet?" Kankurō asked, his voice rising in anger. He didn't know what the hell kind of that torture was, but it made Hinata move like an old lady.

Hinata sighed and lifted up the hem of her formal kimono, its long, furisode sleeves dragging against the ground. She stuck her foot out, only half-balanced, and Kankurō saw that her feet were tightly wrapped with tough linen so that they looked like dead fish…tiny dead fish…just hanging off her ankles. "Ew," he said tactlessly.

To him it looked like Hinata was fighting the urge to roll her eyes. Had being around Temari and Tenten rubbed off on the girl? If so, it could only be considered an improvement – Hinata had been too quiet and timid by far. "Just come on," she said quietly, leading them to a waterfall.

They crossed a floating bridge, and hidden among the underbrush was a low opening. Hinata had taken the lantern from the other side of the bridge, and led them down into the earth. It was pitch black in the cave, reminding Kankurō of the sewage system beneath Suna. Soon, Kankurō caught a glint of metal, and Hinata shuffled even faster after it.

"Tenten," she whispered harshly. "Tenten!"

When the lantern lit the tiny, caged cell Kankurō could see the pale-skinned, rumpled-looking form of Tenten, lying on her side with loose hair covering her face. "Tenten!" Lee shouted, taking grasp of the cell bars and pulling the door fully off the hinges. "Tenten! Say something!" Lee grabbed the girl around the shoulders and held her like a child.

"Lee…you're embarrassing me again…"

Kankurō breathed a sigh of relief, crossing his arms. Lee cut Tenten's bonds, and the girl pushed loose hair out of her face to reveal a puffy, bloody mess. The right eye was swollen shut with blood, and her lips were cracked and bleeding freely. Bruises dotted her chest and arms, livid things with deep lacerations connecting them like spider webs.

Kankurō got a look at her feet and frowned. What was it with this man and feet? Hinata's were bound like little mummies, and Tenten's were pussing with blood and a yellowish fluid. They looked to be burned.

He sighed. "We'll have to carry them, Lee," he said quietly.

"Like hell you will, puppet boy!" Tenten protested, staggering to her feet with a pained expression on her feet. "Just let me put my shoulder back in its socket."

"Tenten!" Lee almost shouted. Tenten ignored him and grasped her bicep, falling heavily on the wall beside her. Kankurō grunted with disgust at the crackling pop that echoed off the cavern walls. Tenten's mouth opened noiselessly, tears pricking in her eyes. Then she passed out.

"Yah, you're a big, tough girl," Kankurō murmured softly, picking up Tenten's limp body easily. She was so light – who was she fooling?

"Can we please cut these off my feet?" Hinata asked desperately. "I don't want to be a burden…"

Kankurō nodded to Lee, and he made short work of Hinata's feet. Kankurō frowned at the amount of fabric used to bind her feet. When she stood, Hinata fell immediately to the ground, Lee catching her under the arms. That was when Kankurō noticed that Hinata was actually beginning to cry. She hiccupped lightly. "You've never had a cramp like this…" she murmured softly, biting back tears.

"Lee…" Kankurō said, motioning to Hinata. Hinata sighed in resignation, and Lee helped her onto his back. "Let's go," Kankurō said quietly, hoping their diversion was still…diverting enough.

Turns out, it really wasn't. When Kankurō, now feeling rather damp with Tenten's blood and sweat, exited the cave with Lee and Hinata, he frowned. If he counted Karasu, Kuroari, and Sanshōo, and, of course, Lee (he couldn't count Hinata and Tenten for the obvious reasons), then it was roughly five to thirty.

"Hinata-sama, you disappoint me," the man in front with long, ebony hair said in a sadistic coo. "You've removed your foot bindings." He shook his head. "Remember how much you cried when we put them on to begin with? And we'll have to do it all over again."

* * *

Upon his return, Neji had learned that Hinata had been sent on a mission to Kaze no Kuni. The Kazekage had need for a tracker, it seemed. To be honest, Neji would have much rather it been one of Hinata's teammates. Hinata was a gentle girl, some would say weak. Neji knew better, of course, knew better than to call her weak. Hinata had a different kind of strength that not many valued. Hinata's Hi no Ishi burned brighter than many others in the village, perhaps brighter than Neji's even. Still, she wasn't a fighter, she wasn't a killer, and the mission she was on had now been classified S-rank. Even Neji only had a handful of S-rank missions, and only two were on the books.

Naturally, when Neji returned to Konoha from his solo mission, he had tried to look up Tenten for some training. For a training partner there could be no one better. Lee was perhaps a stronger hand-to-hand combatant, and had better endurance than Neji even, but Tenten wasn't half as annoying.

…Tenten wasn't annoying at all…

That was not a thought Neji allowed himelf often, and he pushed it away as soon as it arrived. Thoughts like that would only serve to cloud his judgment and hinder his ability to make sound, logical decisions. Thoughts like that would destroy the chemistry Lee, Tenten, and he had as a team. Thoughts like that…thoughts like that were not allowed. Ever.

Neji stared at the ceiling in his room, unable to sleep. It was too comfortable here. For a month he had been sleeping only two or three hours at a time, constantly watching, constantly waiting…occasionally killing. It was not his first solo mission, and it wasn't his most dangerous mission, but it was certainly his least pleasant. It was also not on the books, and never would be. It was a personal request from Lady Tsunade, and no one else could know of it. Not even Hiashi – who wouldn't ask anyway.

It was too comfortable to sleep, too late at night to train, and too bizarre to take a walk at this late hour. Neji sighed, thinking if Tenten was here he could wake her up at any time to train. Tenten never said 'no' to training, even if she hadn't slept for days. Tenten was dedicated, and a good kunoichi. Neji knew she was close to becoming a jōnin, and it would be a well-deserved promotion.

With a frown, Neji made himself stop thinking about Tenten. He was aided by a sharp knocking on the wood outside the shōji doors of his room. He could see a large, slender shadow, and recognized it immediately. Without waiting for a reply, Hiashi entered his room wearing a black sleeping yukuta. Neji was on his feet, but didn't have time to put anything else on. He felt strangely naked before his uncle, though that was unreasonable. Hiashi had seen him in less than a simple pair of pants. Had it been because he was thinking about Tenten?

"Neji," his uncle said, his voice crisp as a whip. "Ready yourself for a mission. Be quick about it, I will explain as you prepare."

Without question, Neji began to dress and put together a traveling pack. First he tied the leather thong around his forehead. He tried to convince himself that was why he felt so naked when Hiashi had entered the room, and not that other reason.

"I received notice from Tsunade-sama a few moments ago that Hinata and your teammate Tenten have been kidnapped." Hiashi paused, as if curious to what Neji's response would be. He didn't even hesitate as he tied his pants over his hips. "The Kamikaze have taken Hinata and most likely intend to torture mission information out of her and your teammate. When they find out who Hinata is, it will put our clan in significant danger."

Hinata – because of her ambiguous position as heir of Hyūga – had not received the curse seal that Neji was afflicted with. Neji had always assumed that the reason for this was because Hiashi did not want to seal Hinata in case Hanabi was to die. It would be inappropriate to seal Hinata if she was forced to be the heir, even if that only meant she would become a brood mare for the clan. Now Neji thought it was because Hiashi loved his daughters too much to seal either one of them. It was not something Hiashi seemed to want to discuss, and not even the council of elders mentioned it.

"I have requested for you to lead the team to rescue Hinata." Neji nodded, now fully dressed. "I'm sure I don't need to remind you, but I cannot impress upon you how important it is that Hinata be recovered…dead or alive…"

Neji schooled his face into an expressionless mask. "We would not want the secrets of the Byakugan revealed."

It was Neji's turn to gauge his uncle's reaction. Hiashi's face remained blank, but a flicker of something glinted in his eyes. "Hai. It would be…unfortunate…" Neither man said a word. With men like Neji and Hiashi, words were seldom needed. "Report to the western gates. Your team will be waiting with Tsunade-sama's instructions."

Hiashi turned swiftly without another word. Neji did not expect any, not from a man like Hiashi, but Hanabi was standing outside her room in her pajamas, arms crossed. Neji stopped briefly, bowing, "Hanabi-sama."

Hanabi was frowning, her pixie-like, twelve-year-old face hard as Hiashi's. "I don't care what otōsan says – bring Hinata back alive, Neji-san."

Neji studied her for a moment. He could almost imagine that Hanabi said this out of affection, but the girl betrayed not a single emotion. How different she was from her older sister. "Hai, Hanabi-sama."

The young girl – recently made chûnin just a few months after her twelfth birthday – was a true Hyūga genius, and would be a capable leader one day. It would stir things up a bit that she was female, but she would lead with an iron fist – just like Hiashi.

Neji was at the western gates within a few minutes, wasting no time in arriving. The guards on duty were two chûnin a bit older than Neji, but he didn't know their names. They were not his teammates though. Neji frowned when one pulled the hood of her cape down, revealing brilliant pink hair. A humongous ninken leapt down from the wall, the leather-wearing Inuzuka Kiba on his back. Sakura flashed him a brief smile, but Kiba growled. "What, did you need some extra time to straighten your hair, Hyūga? Come on!"

Neji frowned. "As leader of this mission, I require a certain amount of respect afforded for my station."

"Oh, your fragile Hyūga pride," Kiba retorted.

Sakura sighed and handed Neji a map as she relayed to him the mission information. "According to Shikamaru, Hinata and Tenten were kidnapped approximately twenty hours ago by a group of rebels that call themselves the Kamikaze. Their goal is unknown, but there is possibly a device of some kind, buried beneath Suna in their sewer system, that can destroy whole villages.

"Hinata's mission was to – with the use of Byakugan – map these sewers and aid in the capture of the Kamikaze. She was personally attacked a little over a week ago along with the Kazekage's older brother. At that point the Kazekage requested additional assistance from Tsuande-shishō, and she sent Shikamaru, Lee, and Tenten to Suna.

"Their mission was the same as Hinata's, but Shikamaru uncovered deeper levels to the Kamikaze's plot. Apparently, the man behind the Kamikaze is the master of the Suna Ironworkers' Guild named Aizo Osamaru, and he may or may not be in possession of this massively destructive weapon. The Kazekage and his older sister are hunting him down.

"Lee and Kankurō the Puppet Master have been tracking Hinata and Tenten through the desert for the last fifteen hours. The red dots signify where they were when they last reported in. However, no further information is available."

Neji nodded silently, and frowned down at the map. He had been doing calculations in his mind to project how far and fast Lee and Kankurō were able to travel. "They appear to be heading northwest of Suna. I have plotted their trajectory based on their speed and desert restrictions. If they continue at that rate, at our fastest speed we can meet them in about twenty hours…here…" He pointed and if they continue in that direction we can meet them near the boarder of Suna.

"That's in Kawa no Kuni," Kiba said with a frown.

"As we get closer we will have to rely more on your nose than a mathematical trajectory," Neji said, noting that Kiba sounded pleased with that. "We leave immediately."

A well-trained, highly capable jōnin with good endurance could travel from Konoha to the Hi no Kuni-Kawa no Kuni boarder in a little less than ten hours. Neji cut the time down to eight hours by not stopping for any longer than five minute breaks. A few hours after the sun had risen they were standing at the boarder of Hi no Kuni and Kawa no Kuni for their second break. Hinata and Tenten had been missing for about twenty-eight hours. While Neji was sure that Tenten could survive under duress for that long, he wasn't so sure about Hinata. She was a fragile girl…

They were taking a little longer break for Kiba and Akamaru to scent the area. Kiba and Akamaru jumped out of the brush, but the ninja shook his head – he'd smelled nothing.

They continued, passing through Kawa no Kuni's northernmost parts, and even a bit into Ame no Kuni. As they were moving quickly they were not in hostile territory for long, and soon they were at the edges of the Great Desert of Kaze no Kuni. They stopped again to let Kiba scent.

"It's hard to tell, but the dryness of the air and the wind are to my advantage. We should head west across the desert and angle south just a bit," Kiba said, his arms crossed.

Neji nodded and they were moving again – west and just a tiny bit south. Out in the desert Kiba would stop every once in a while, scenting the air and conferring with Akamaru. Occasionally he would have Neji adjust their direction, but mostly they kept heading west. It was a little past noon when they stopped again, and this time Kiba had a frown on his face.

"Akamaru says a storm is coming – a big one. We should take shelter."

"I don't see anything," Sakura said, searching the horizon. The wind picked up her bubble-gum hair, framing her in a pink halo.

He wouldn't dismiss Akamaru's nose, nor Kiba's, so he activated his Byakugan. Something useful that Hiashi had taught him was using his kekkei genkai to detect thermal patterns in the atmosphere. He could study clouds and, with enough practice, predict their movements. He didn't see anything threatening about the sky – there were no clouds – but the wind was beginning to move.

"Suna has sandstorms strong enough to rip a man's flesh from his bones," Neji said. "It might be wise to take shelter, as Akamaru says."

It turned out to be a very wise decision indeed, for no sooner had Neji given the order than a gust of wind hit them with such force that Neji had to fight against it. Setting up the tent was difficult, but when they did Neji was thankful. However, waiting out the sandstorm took several hours off their estimated time of arrival. When the sandstorm broke, Kiba seemed upset.

"That storm washed out most of the scent," he explained, digging through his pack. "Wherever she is, the wind is carrying her scent in our direction, but the sandstorm broke up the trail, so now it's faded."

"Kiba…what is that?" Sakura asked, her voice rising in pitch.

Kiba had brought out a filthy rag, covered in blood and dirt. It had the look of something someone might use to mop the blood off their body after battle. "One of Hinata's bloody shirts," he replied simply, bringing it to his face and inhaling deeply.

"And why do you have Hinata-sama's bloody shirt?" Neji asked, trying to keep his voice even.

Kiba gave him a look that clearly conveyed that the answer should be obvious. "I keep objects with everyone's scent on them…I have a lovely pair of pink panties with 'Sakura-chan' embroidered on them…" he snickered nastily.

Kiba was probably the quickest, most agile shinobi of his graduating class, a skill that saved his life as Sakura's fist created a massive crater where he had been standing not a second before.

"You…" Sakura threatened, her eyes glinting madly.

"Before you get mad, _Sakura-chan_," Kiba laughed, "Tsuande-sama told me to. After that Uchiha left, she thought it would be better if I kept a scent dictionary of all the shinobi in the village."

Sakura's breathing was loud and sharp. "So where did you get my panties, _Kiba-kun_?" she asked, her voice sounding almost too sweet to be genuine.

At this Kiba smirked. "I got them from Naruto."

"NARUTO!"

Neji made a note to himself that he would like to someday have a battle with Sakura. Her strength was rather impressive, enough to catch his eye. She pummeled the earth for several moments, creating her own little sandstorm. When she returned she looked calm, albeit sweaty, and she smiled alarmingly wide. "Let's go," she said in a cheery voice.

The sun had set just shortly before Kiba started getting really excited. Kiba said he and Akamaru were closing in on Hinata's scent, so Neji began to use Byakugan, stretching out his field of vision as far as possible.

Kiba laughed at him. "Hinata would be able to see it," he taunted with a toothy smirk.

Neji frowned, but didn't rise to take the bait. As much as he hated to admit it, Hinata had been gifted with a particularly strong Byakugan. It was probably superior to any Byakugan-user in the clan today. Not only was she able to see particularly fine detail and minute objects, but she could see more than twice as far as Neji and Hiashi. In addition, Hinata's ability to read and interpret chakra within the human body was impressive. It gave her an edge for tracking and observation, though did little to improve her combat skills. True to what the doggy boy said, if Hinata was here, she would be able to search a much larger area much more quickly.

As the night sky became inky and dark, little stars appeared in the cloudless sky. The moon – which was only the slimmest of slivers – did little to light their way. Soon, though, that did not matter. A bright light illuminated an area about ten kilometers away. With the flatness of the desert, and the brightness of the light, both Kiba and Sakura could see it. The light was brief, but directly in the line of approach that Kiba was sprinting along.

Kiba stopped, sniffing the air and consulting Akamaru. "Kibaku fuda," he said. "Hinata's there, and Tenten. And I'm picking up the scent of many people. Rock Lee for sure, but another scent…I can't place it, but it's familiar."

Sakura cracked her knuckles, rolling her head from side to side. "I'm ready."

Neji nodded, and they were like the wind over the dunes, feet barely touching the ground as they moved. Neji activated his Byakugan again, and this time he was close enough to make out the numbers they might face. He counted about thirty-five chakra signatures, and there were several running off into the desert, away from what appeared to be an oasis hideaway.

They passed the scorched earth left by the exploding kibaku fuda, and a few short minutes later they were knocking on the door of the oasis. Kiba lost no time in transforming Akamaru, shouting, "Jūjin Bunshin!" The two of them ripped into the darkness towards the enemy, and Neji lost track of them.

Sakura, true to her iryō-nin training, slipped into the darkness, searching out the injured. Neji was left to assess the situation. The puppet master and Lee were fighting off a group of thirty or so. Hinata was on the ground, holding the unconscious form of Tenten. Hinata appeared frightened, but otherwise safe. Tenten was showing life-signs, but was obviously seriously injured.

Neji leapt into battle, taking some of the enemy ninja by surprise. Kiba was razing the right flank, while Sakura had moved around him silently towards the left. Neji's steps were quick and decisive as he cut a swath of chakra through the backs of his opponents. "Hakke Rokujūyon Shō!"

Jūken could be extremely affective against great numbers if the user was swift and agile – Neji was both. Men fell bloodlessly, cleanly, crying out in agony at the loss of their organs. He struck several in the heart, and incapacitated a great many of the enemy before someone used an earth-release jutsu and he was forced to retreat back a few steps. The man was tall and stately. If he'd had the Hyūga eyes he could well have been a Hyūga.

Kiba was continuing his bloody attack, and Sakura had reached Tenten. Lee was protecting Hinata, Tenten, and Sakura – Neji would rather have had no other ninja at his back than Lee at that point. The puppet master was fending off about seven highly-skilled ninja, all of whom used earth-release jutsu to attack. All but one of is puppets – a large, salamander-looking one – seemed ill-suited for the task.

"Another Hyūga," the man in front of him said. "How fortuitous! Like a family reunion!"

The man flashed some hand signs, ground beneath Neji began to shift and sink. But Neji recognized the jutsu, and wouldn't fall for such a simple trick. Neji attacked, but his chakra-infused fingers were swept away or blocked. The man knew more than just earth-release jutsu. He was quick, taller than Neji by almost five centimeters, and had a very muscular build. He was also aggressive – a little too aggressive to be considered a smart fighter, but clearly not unintelligent.

With his Byakugan, Neji saw the other men were joining in on the attack. "Hakkeshō Kaiten," he said, spinning and releasing chakra to rebuff the attack. It caught several men, but the large man he'd been fighting stepped smoothly out of the way.

"Impressive, boy," he laughed.

Neji didn't respond except to advance with sure-footed grace. He avoided the gaping canyons the man created, and went on the offensive once more. Though neither of them were landing strikes, Neji knew the man was beginning to doubt victory. There was a little bit of fear in his eyes, creeping into his face and mouth. All around him his men were falling – none had his talent for earth-release jutsu.

Though Neji had spent time studying earth-release jutsu, he was not familiar with the hand signs the man was flashing. The earth rumbled, and then fifteen stone warriors began to rise from the earth. They were each three meters tall, wearing reddish brown armor, and their eyes were closed. Neji tried to find their chakra source, detect how the stone warriors functioned as independent weapons.

The tall man cackled, and the stone warriors opened their eyes. Blackish brown sludge erupted from their mouths, and Neji executed a hasty Kakkeshō Kaiten. It had the unintended affect of spraying everyone else with the sludge – including his allies. Stone soldiers descended upon Neji, but also Lee, Kiba, and Kankurō. Kankurō had managed to use his salamander-looking puppet to block Sakura, Tenten, and Hinata from the slime. Neji saw that Kiba and Lee had been sprayed with the vile-looking substance.

"Kuso!" Kiba growled, trying to slough off the slime. It stuck to him though, and Neji realized it was highly viscous material infused with chakra. This gooey substance was meant to slow enemies enough for the man to use other earth-release jutsu.

Neji frowned, but didn't have time to further analyze his situation. Stone soldiers were attacking. Though their movements were unrefined, Lee and Kiba were having a difficult time moving to compensate for the soldiers' strength. Neji remained quick and agile as ever, though his attempts to use taijutsu to break them apart or destroy them failed. Neji knew only one technique that would defeat them, but it was a drain on his chakra. Jūken would be no use. Lee's taijutsu (which was even better than Neji's) had little to no affect, though that could have been because of the slime.

Neji gathered chakra, mimicking Kakkeshō Kaiten around his palm. "Hakke Hasengeki!" A burst of white chakra erupted from his palm towards three of the stone soldiers. One lost an arm, and all three were cracked, but they continued to attack.

Kankurō continued to protect the three girls, though it seemed he needed to rely more and more on Lee. Kiba, though slowed, was using Gatsūga with Akamaru to about the same affect as Neji's Hakke Hasengeki. The soldiers were cracking, but not crumbling, and Neji was beginning to worry that the excessive use of Hakke Hasengeki would drain his chakra to a level to where he would not be effective against the leader of these earth-release jutsu-users.

Suddenly, the stone soldier to his left was completely vaporized with a deafening cry. "_Shānnarō!_"

Dust settled around the crumbled stone soldier, revealing the disturbingly pink and grinning Sakura. Neji might have smiled if it was in his character to do so. It was as if Sakura was specifically bred to fight earth-release jutsu-users, and especially these stone soldiers. In a matter of seconds, three more soldiers were nothing but dust and rubble. Kiba was having more luck with Gatsūga, since the slime was flinging off during the fast rotational movements. More stone soldiers were crushed, and even Lee managed to destroy a few before Sakura got to them. She seemed to be enjoying herself.

After the last soldier fell – the last two or three human enemies having fled into the desert – Sakura dusted off her hands and smiled. "That was fun – I should go on more missions with you, Neji-san."

"Hm," Neji replied, scanning the area with his Byakugan. He could see two or three men sprinting into the desert, but there was no sign of their leader. He was at an impasse: On one hand, his mission was to rescue Hinata and Tenten, and didn't outline specifically the capture of the enemy. On the other hand, this man had hurt Hinata and Tenten, and it didn't sit well with Neji to just let him escape. There was something going on here that couldn't easily be explained with just a ransom/kidnapping attempt.

He glanced in Tenten and Hinata's direction. Lee was helping Hinata to stand, wrapping an arm around her waist and smiling. Tenten was sitting now, Sakura's healing having improved her condition considerably. The puppeteer was standing close to Tenten, a frown on his face as he spoke with her in a voice too quiet for Neji to hear. Suddenly, Neji's feelings for Suna's puppet master went from neutral to vicious.

Neji frowned. "Hinata-chan will be fine," Sakura said from his side, mistakenly thinking Neji was looking at his cousin.

"Hai," he answered quickly. Too quickly, and Sakura noticed.

She smiled a little bit. "Tenten will be fine, too. Her injuries were extensive, but she's a strong one."

Neji did not look back at her, but moved forward towards Tenten. When she saw him she looked up with a roughish grin. "Should have known you would be the only one to come out of this without any slime in your hair," she said chuckling a little.

"Hm," Neji replied. There was some superficial bruising on her arms and face, but Sakura seemed to have taken care of the more serious injuries on her body.

"Neji-kun," Tenten said in soft voice, looking down. Neji made a real effort to school the emotions away from his face. "I have to apologize…I told Kurogō that Hinata-san was a Hyūga…"

Neji's eyes narrowed. "You put the whole clan in danger."

Tenten opened her mouth, her eyes wide with pain. "I…"

"If she hadn't then Hinata would have been tortured just as badly as Tenten," the tall puppet master said from Tenten's side, frowning deeply. The purple face-paint he wore was flecked with brown, and his eyes were narrowed together dangerously. "She did it to protect, Hinata."

"This is not your concern, Puppet Master," Neji replied coolly.

"Ki-sama –"

"It's okay," Tenten interjected forcefully, trying to stand. The puppet master shot Neji a dirty look, and helped Tenten to her feet. Neji felt like ripping his arms off.

Tenten said nothing else as she hobbled towards Sakura, leaving Neji staring down Kankurō. Spontaneously, the taller boy grinned at him. "You've got a little…" he motioned to Neji's face, "it's just right there…right next to your chin…just a little of that goo…"

Neji didn't reply, just stared down the puppet master balefully. The oddly dressed shinobi grinned a bit, walking off with a hitch in his step. When he was sure the man was gone, Neji reached to his face, feeling a gooey smudge of mud on his cheek, right next to his chin. No wonder Tenten had been grinning at him.

"Kuso," he said softly, whipping off the slime.

* * *

Kibaku fuda – paper bomb; Exploding Tag (English TV)

Karasu – Crow, Kankurō's first puppet

Furisode – literally translates to 'swinging sleeves'; a style of kimono distinguished by long sleeves; the most formal kimono worn by unmarried women to denote their availability for marriage

Kuroari – Black Ant, Kankurō's second puppet

Sanshōo – Salamander, Kankurō's third puppet

Shōji – sliding, paper doors used in traditional Japanese architecture

Otōsan – father

Ninken – nin-dog

Shishō – a master of a certain discipline

Kawa no Kuni – the Land of Rivers

Ame no Kuni – fan-name for the country whose hidden village is Amegakure

Jūjin Bunshin – Beast Human Clone; Man Beast Clone (English TV)

Hakke Rokujūyon Shō – Eight Trigrams Sixty-Four Palms; Gentle Fist Style: Eight Trigrams Sixty-Four Palms (English TV)

Hakkeshō Kaiten – Eight Trigrams Palms Heavenly Spin; Eight Trigrams Palm Rotation (English TV)

Hakke Hasengeki – Eight Trigrams Mountain Crusher; Eight Trigrams Shatter Whitecap (English TV)

Gatsūga – Dual Piercing Fang; Man-Beast Ultimate Taijutsu Fang Over Fang (English TV)

Shānnarō! – no literal meaning; translated as 'Hell yeah!', 'Hell no!', or even 'Damn it!'

Ki-sama – means "you," but very, very rude; can also be used alone (as a curse word) to mean "son of a bitch"

* * *

**Author's Note (Part 2):** So, there were a lot of people who knew the quote from the last chapter. It was from King Bumi of Avatar - I love that crazy old man. Like I would marry him. In a heartbeat... Well, maybe that's going a little over the top.

So, anyway, thanks for waiting. I understand how slovenly I've been - not updating my story, not reading and reviewing the storise I typically read... This time of year is really hectic for me. So I apologize. I wish I could update more often.

I would like to let everyone know how totally pumped I am to be over the 300 reviews mark. Not many Gaara/Hinata stories reach that mark, and I'm so proud and so happy that everyone who has reviewed (and pumped up my ego). Thank you SO SO SO much!!!

Only one last thing - I ask that you thoroughly read the author's notes for the next chapter. They're super important...and annoying.


	18. Chapter Eighteen

**Author's Note (Part 1):** Please take the time to read all the author's notes, as information about **THE SEQUEL** will be released. Otherwise, please read, enjoy, and review! This is the **LAST CHAPTER**! Wheee!!!

* * *

**THE DIVINE WINDS OF SUNA**

**Chapter Eighteen**

Hinata sighed, sinking deeply into the scalding water. She hoped it would burn off all the sickly sweet perfume and oils that Kurogō had insisted she use. Her skin felt tender to the touch after she'd scrubbed it so thoroughly, but it was better than feeling like a silly dress-up doll. She almost would have preferred Tenten's torture than what Kurogō had done to her. At least that way she would have been seen as a real kunoichi.

Hearing something fuzzy and unclear through the water, Hinata raised her head above water level. "You almost done in there, Hinata-chan?" Sakura was calling from the other side of the tent flap.

In search for a real bath – not that cold, muddy-looking tub in the hording tent – Sakura, Tenten, and Hinata had run across a large, extravagant bath-house style tub. The wooden frame was suspended a few feet off the ground, and beneath that was a heating fixture to warm the water. The three of them had each carried water buckets from the oasis to the bathtub, and all agreed that Tenten should have the first bath.

"Um…just a f-few minutes, Sakura-san," Hinata called out, flushing. How long had she been in here?

"Hai, it's fine. Let me know when you're done. I want to look at your feet one more time," the pink-haired kunoichi said.

Hinata finished up quickly, drying off her hair before slipping on one of the many yukuta she'd found in the other tent. Sakura was waiting outside, and she smiled at Hinata as she entered. "Got ahead and sit down," Sakura said, motioning at the carpeted ground.

Hinata's feet were still tender, but when Sakura's healing chakra touched them the muscles relaxed and loosened. It was hard to imagine how wrapping feet up so tight and tiny was attractive, but Kurogō had assured her that it was the peak of style for ladies of high breeding.

Compared to other ninja families, the Hyūga were pseudo-royalty, but they weren't the same kind of royalty as actual feudal lords and ladies. Being the top tier of ninja society was almost like being a minor noble in royal society, and not nearly as important as it sounded. Kurogō had said with a good marriage, Hinata had the kind of breeding to truly be royalty – a statement that both confused and scared Hinata.

"Well, I can't say I care for the affects of this foot binding," Sakura said after a few minutes, pushing her hair back to look at Hinata. "Women who have their feet bound all the time must be in constant need of healers."

Hinata nodded. "Dōmo arigatō, Sakura-san," she murmured, nodding her head politely.

"My god!" Sakura exclaimed, brushing Hinata's hair away from her neck. "What happened here?"

Hinata backed away, bringing the collar of her yukuta up around her neck. "Nothing," she murmured, dashing out of the tent.

She heard Sakura calling after her, but she didn't stop until she reached the large tent that she, Tenten, and Sakura had designated as theirs. With a long exhale, Hinata sat on her sleeping mat and looked over towards Tenten. The older girl was sleeping, and her hair was still loose and damp around her head after her bath. Hinata sighed, combing out her hair and preparing to sleep.

Though her imprisonment had been much less stressful than Tenten's, Hinata was still trying to recover from the mysterious after effects of the injections. Sakura had said the effects would wear off eventually, but she didn't have the proper tools to create a more instantaneous antidote. In light of Tenten and Hinata's incapacitation, Neji had elected to write both the Hokage and Kazekage to report their location and brief results of the mission. He said they would wait at the oasis until the two leaders replied with further instructions. Hinata was relieved not to have to travel without the aid of chakra, for she would be slow and their pace would be significantly delayed because of her.

It was nearly morning now, but Hinata hadn't slept for several days. She had been too afraid to sleep with Kurogō around, and then the explosion and appearance of Neji, Kiba, and Sakura had prevented sleep until now. She was so tired though, and welcomed the sleeping mat despite its musty smell of sweat.

* * *

_It was the same place where she met him the first time. For so long the docks had represented a freedom she would never have, and she would look out over the Hidaka River and wonder what life would be like on the other side. She knew her life on this side of the river would always be a prison – a prison of pretty dresses and perfect face-paint, a prison of glittering baubles and even shinier lies. And she had no choice in the matter._

_As a child, Kiyo had not been willful. She was the perfect little lady, speaking softly, moving gracefully, and never putting so much as a toe out of line. And all of that had not brought her happiness. All her life she had done as others expected – behave well so your father is proud, look pretty so your mother is happy. None of it had been for her; everything she did, she did it for someone else. She was empty inside._

_And then _he _had come, a handsome young man that saw her sadness. He erased it with his love, made her feel as though – in the whole world – there was one thing for her, and she would not be alone. It was his heart he gave to her, and she'd given hers wholly back._

_Now there was a serpent in her belly, writhing hotly, squirming around her heart and squeezing painfully. Kiyo fought the urge to vomit, tears filling her eyes as she watched the dockworker push the boat out into the tumultuous waves of the Hidaka River. Anjin was on that boat, returning to his duty as a monk. Had she always known he would place his duty to the priesthood over his duty to her heart? Was this her own way of torturing herself, by loving a man who would not…or_ could not_…love her?_

_Kiyo felt warm tears filling her eyes, blinding her even as the rain began. It soaked her hair, rinsed out the expensive perfumes and oils she was adorned with. The overcoat of her furisode was becoming heavy with rain, and she untied the obi awkwardly, letting the kimono fall to the dirt. Would her mother scold her for ruining such a beautiful kimono? Kiyo sighed, pulling pins out of her hair. She slid off her fancy zōri and left them by her kimono._

_Her body felt numb and lifeless as she walked towards the water, the wet, high grass soaking her tabi and chilling her feet. Kiyo moved silently into the freezing river, feeling heated by the serpent slithering around in her insides. Waist-high in the frigid water, Kiyo cried out his name in a sweet, pitiful voice…_

* * *

"Gaara!" Hinata shouted sitting up so fast her whole body tensed with adrenaline.

She was breathing heavily, alone in a cold, dark tent. She relaxed, falling back on her sleeping mats. She had kicked off the blanket in her sleep, and she made sure to fold it back at the foot of her bed.

Hinata couldn't shake the feeling that the dream had been all too real, and that she would turn into a serpent like Kiyo-hime if she wasn't careful. She brushed out her hair, washing her hands and face in the basin near the tent flap. Smiling, she saw that someone had managed to find her regular clothes – the clothes Matsuri had brought her in the hospital. She was grateful to wear her hitai-ite around her neck again.

No sooner than she had stepped out the tent she was face to face with her cousin. In the dark his face looked particularly solemn. "Neji-nii-san," she said softly, her head bowing slightly. She was almost embarrassed to have slept through the whole day.

"Hinata-sama," he said stiffly, emotionlessly. "Now that you are awake I expect a full report so I can include it into my mission debriefing for Tsunade-sama."

"Oh, give it a rest, pretty boy," Kiba growled, leaping easily to Hinata's side. "_I'm_ glad you're safe, Hinata-chan," he told her. Hinata flushed as he wrapped an arm around her shoulder. "I'll bet you're hungry," he said kindly, leading her off towards the center of the encampment.

"Neji-nii-san –"

"Hai," Neji said, looking especially stiff and on edge. "You should eat, Hinata-sama."

"Dōmo arigatō," Hinata said softly.

The pavilion near the center of the oasis was lit with several lanterns, and there were stores of food found in one of the tents sitting on the table. Sakura, Tenten, and Kankurō were sitting around the table eating. Tenten and Kankurō were bickering, clearly getting on Sakura's nerves as she plucked swiftly at her rice. Sakura's jade-colored eyes zeroed in on Hinata's neck when Hinata sat with Kiba.

"Lee made us something other than curry this time," Tenten said with a grin as Hinata and Kiba settled themselves across from the other three. "I mean, it's only soldiers' rations, but it's pretty good."

"Dōmo arigatō, Tenten-san!" Lee said formally, bowing with a silly grin on his face. "I know I can always count on the most beautiful flower of Team Might Guy to –"

"Shuddup, Lee! You're embarrassing me," Tenten hissed, glaring daggers at her verbose teammate.

"So has your chakra returned yet, Hinata-chan?" Sakura asked, her eyes studying Hinata closely.

Hinata shook her head sadly. "I'm afraid not, Sakura-san."

Sakura frowned at this. "Later I'll want to take another blood sample. Whatever they injected you with clearly takes time to cycle through your system. Unfortunately I can't analyze it –"

"Give it a rest, brain," Kiba growled. "Can't you just let her eat?"

Sakura scowled at Kiba. "Of course. Sorry, Hinata, professional curiosity…"

Hinata nodded and forced herself to eat slowly and politely. She was so hungry that she could have stuffed her face with all the food – to her it looked like a feast. Hinata ate quietly, listening to the others talk. Apparently no one had seen hide nor hair of the men that dashed off into the desert. More importantly, no one had seen Kurogō. He had apparently escaped with a few others after creating the fifteen stone warriors. There were several dead, and the rest had been locked down in the cave beneath the oasis.

"And – _damn_ that vile snake – Aizo escaped with _my _sword!" Tenten exclaimed, breathing heavily out her nose. "If I ever see him again, he's dead."

"He's got more to answer to than just stealing your sword, Tenten," Neji said, appearing from the darkness beyond into the well-lit pavilion. "I just received word from Tsunade-sama," he continued. Hinata turned towards her cousin a little. "Tsunade-sama would like for us remain here for a while – with the Kazekage's permission, of course. She says to wait for Shikamaru to regroup with us and leave when Hinata-sama's chakra is released."

Kankurō scratched his chin. "Temari's hawk arrived earlier today and she said that she, Gaara, and Shikamaru would be arriving here sometime after sundown. I'm expecting them any minute."

Neji frowned. "Impossible with the sandstorms. Morning at the earliest."

Kankurō snorted, rolling his eyes. "Listen, my siblings are true children of the desert. My sister controls the winds and my brother controls the sands. What makes you think a simple wind storm can stop them?"

Neji didn't respond. "I will take first lookout tonight. Lee and Kiba, I'd like for you to relieve me, and Tenten, you and Sakura can take the morning shift."

People began to disperse from the pavilion. Lee and Kiba needed to turn in for guard duty later that night. Sakura gave Hinata a lingering look before returning to the tent as well. Hinata finished her food, but when she looked up she saw that Tenten and Kankurō had already left.

She sighed deeply and cleaned off the table, extinguishing a few of the lanterns to conserve them for later. The air was still, but very cold, and the moon was waxing into a crescent in the sky. Hinata looked up at it as she stepped off the pavilion, unable to stop thinking about her dream of Kiyo-hime. She found herself at the waters of the oasis almost by accident. She hadn't meant for her feet to take her there, but here she was. At the edge of the water, Hinata crouched down, wrapping her arms around her knees as she brought her legs against her chest.

Just like Kiyo-hime. It was so cold, but she didn't feel any of it. She was numb and lifeless…

* * *

"Wow, Temari," Kankurō said with a sly smirk. He and Tenten had been having a fight of some kind when Gaara arrived with Temari and Shikamaru at the oasis. Nevertheless, neither shinobi looked terribly upset. Unless Gaara was mistaken, Tenten actually looked happy. And Kankurō had a sloppy grin on his face. Gaara frowned. "I mean," Kankurō continued, "you just look really terrible. Maybe you should –"

"Maybe you should shut the hell up, puppet boy!" Temari growled warningly.

Kankurō only shrugged. "I told you that Hinata-san and Tenten were safe in the message – don't see why you all needed to come. How many ANBU did you take with you anyway? Ten?"

"Six," Temari snapped. "And we didn't receive your message until after we'd already left. Hidemoto rolled over on Aizo, and told us that Kurogō had betrayed them all and kidnapped him. Apparently you all let both of them slip through your fingers…" She sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose. "Besides, we'll need an escort to get the ones you captured back to Suna." She paused. "How are you, Tenten? How's Hinata?"

Gaara did his best to look uninterested – or at least keep his mask of composure blank. Tenten shrugged. "I guess I can't really complain. Sakura spent all yesterday healing me up. Hinata still hasn't recovered her chakra – they injected her with something bizarre and Sakura can't counteract it until she gets into a lab."

Temari nodded then looked towards Shikamaru. "I'll help you fill out your mission statement. Come on."

Shikamaru shrugged his shoulders and sighed. He followed her, however. "Whatever…"

"Yah, filling out mission statements – like any of us believe that!" Kankurō called after them. Tenten elbowed him hard in the gut, sneering. Temari made a very rude hand gesture.

Kankurō chuckled to himself, turning to Gaara. "Hey, Gaara, can I talk to you about something?"

Gaara nodded, glancing quickly at Tenten. The girl's face betrayed nothing, and she didn't seem interested in leaving. "This concerns her, too," Kankurō said.

With another nod, Gaara murmured, "Continue," in a low voice.

Kankurō was frowning. "Listen, we know that we screwed the pooch on this mission. Sure, Tenten and Hinata are okay, but Aizo and Kurogō slipped through the cracks."

Gaara accepted this as an apology. He hardly thought it would have been a reasonable expectation for Kankurō and just four other able shinobi to recover two hostages, defeat almost forty ninja, and capture their powerful, S-class nukenin leader. After some research, Shikamaru had found some information about Kurogō, and discovered exactly how powerful the exiled prince was.

Gaara was one of the very few S-class nin in Suna that would have stood a chance against such an experienced foe. He was playing everyone easy down in the sewers, and probably here at the oasis as well. It was clear he was planning something here in Kaze no Kuni, and manipulating people like Aizo and Hidemoto, and who knew who else. This was not an enemy to be taken lightly.

"Tenten and I want a joint mission to go after Aizo," Kankurō continued. "He's stolen a very valuable piece of Suna's history, one which Tenten and her family have been keeping safely for almost a hundred years."

Gaara said nothing. Temari had explained the historical and cultural significance of Katsumata Hiragi's _Twin Lionesses_. It would diminish Suna's reputation to have such a vile character such as Aizo carrying one of Hiragi's masterpieces. Plus, Aizo was a traitor on the highest level, and nothing would save him from his punishment.

"Kurogō would put me in the same cell as Hinata and Aizo to rest between torture sessions," Tenten said in a bland voice. "Aizo talked to himself quite a bit – ravings mostly, but other things, too. I'll tell you all I know, including information about where he might have escaped to. But I want _Lioness _back."

Gaara looked at her mildly. "You're attempting to bribe me."

Tenten scowled. "I'm _bargaining_. I know full well my Hokage can order the information out of me, but I'd rather you request me for this mission." She paused, looking into his eyes. "_Lioness _is my blade. I've done nothing but honor her and her creator for my whole life – just like my father and his father. She may be part of Suna's history, but she's part of _my_ history, too." She bowed her head respectfully. "Onegai shimasu, Kazekage-sama…"

Finally, Gaara nodded his head. "I will request for you to accompany Kankurō on this mission."

Gaara felt awkward with how grateful Tenten was, thanking him profusely. He eventually shrugged Tenten and Kankurō off and was able to order his ANBU forces out into the area. Tomorrow they would escort the prisoners back to Suna, and Gaara would probably have to leave as well.

If he was going to be truthful with himself, there was only one reason for him to accompany Temari and Shikamaru – and six highly skilled ANBU – after Aizo and Kurogō. He knew they were capable, and there was only one reason for him to be at the oasis.

She was crouching before the shimmering waters, the light of the moon playing off her hair, making it look like it was streaked with quicksilver. He watched her for a moment, trying to turn his feet in the other direction. He knew though, after traveling for so many hours after her, that he could not leave without seeing her just once. And her skin was always so pretty in the moonlight. It was a brilliant reflection of the moon's ethereal glow, and made her look almost like a spirit.

Gaara shook his head. Why was he torturing himself? Hadn't he already come to the most logical, intelligent decision? She was possibly the only person in the world that could destroy him. She brought forth his innermost demons. She was the one person that made him lose control. He couldn't have her near him anymore…it would tear down the levees that kept the demon at bay…

Involuntarily he stepped towards her, his feet moving of their own accord. Then he stopped himself, watching as she gracefully stood from her crouch. She looked beautiful, her eyes shimmering like pearls, her skin glowing softly. A waterfall sang sweetly in the distance, but it wasn't as sweet as her voice.

"Kazekage-sama," she murmured softly, bowing her head. She did not seem surprised to see him. Had she regained access to her chakra?

He was sure for a moment she would flee. "I…should leave…" she said in a soft voice, looking up at him for a moment. She swallowed. "Should I leave?" she asked, taking a hesitant step towards him.

"You should," he told her, hoping it would make it easier for her to go. At this point he couldn't move away from her. His only hope was if she turned around and never looked back. If not…if not he would cage her here, never let her leave. He would consume her nightly, fall prey to her beauty and innocence, and eventually be unable to control the demon that screamed for her body, her blood…and her life…

Hinata's lips turned into a smile. But it looked painful. Gaara recognized this expression as a grimace. "I…I want to say something. I hope you'll understand." She bit her lip. "I _feared_ you – it seems like years ago now when Hokage-sama first sent me here..."

Hinata stepped towards him, and Gaara remained like a stone. "But even then I admired you. I admired you because you were like Naruto-kun – you'd do anything to protect your village."

Gaara felt his right arm tensing and shaking with the effort of not moving. Could she know that just her proximity made him wild? Did she know what she was doing to him?

"No one but Naruto-kun ever believed in me. And you stood up for me…and you were so much stronger – I want to be like you! Strong a-and powerful and trusted – no one thinks I'm worth anything…except maybe you did…" There were big shining jewels in Hinata's eyes, threatening to fall down her cheeks onto the shifting sand.

She bit her lip again, this time biting so hard he thought she might draw blood. It would be the end of him to see her blood again. "I…I never hoped for anything," she whispered. She'd gotten so close. He could smell her, the sweetness of her hair and skin. "I didn't think you…it's not like I expected you would fall in love with me or…" she finished, blushing hotly. "You're special to me, and –" her bottom jaw began to shake, and a tear slid quickly down her cheek onto the ground. "– and it just _hurts_ so much…inside… Like you took something out of me…" She looked down on the ground. "I…just wanted to say that…I knew all along…if you had to choose…you would choose duty…"

She didn't look at him, and her shoulders were shaking softly as if she was cold. He knew she was crying, though. The tears hurt him, like each one was a point of a kunai driving into his chest. "As the Kazekage," he said softly, watching her cry salty tears, remembering the way they tasted. "As the Kazekage it is my duty to protect my people," he continued in a hard voice. "The desert does not tolerate weakness…and my people do not deserve a weak leader." Hinata looked up at him, her lips slightly parted with objection. "You make me weak, Hinata," he said finally, watching as hurt filled her eyes. "The things you make me feel…make me weak against myself…"

To his surprise, her smile was gentle and genuine. She looked so pretty, tears welling in her eyes as she smiled up at him. "Hai, Kazekage-sama," she said, though her voice didn't reflect her smile. "Weaknesses…must be…eliminated…" she murmured softly, almost to herself. She sounded like it was something she'd heard before.

"Hinata…" he began awkwardly as she began to walk away.

She looked a little flustered. "Of course…gomen-nasai," she said softly. Then she bowed nicely to him. "I won't ever forget you, Kazekage-sama."

"What did I tell you about apologizing?" he asked harshly, watching her shrink before him.

She nodded, swallowing. "Hai, Kazekage-sama…it shows weakness…" Then she looked up at him again. "I already know I'm weak…I would rather stay with you than ever return to my home. …I would give in to my weakness." She smiled softly. "That's why I admire you so much…you aren't weak…"

He _was_ weak though, and he was ashamed at the way he grabbed her roughly, pressing her soft body against his. She moaned against him as his hand traveled up the side of her body and around her back. He buried his fingers in her hair and pressed her lips even closer to his. She was clutching at his shoulders, trying to brace herself against his jerky movements.

To a stranger it would look like this kiss was more out of cruelty than affection. Gaara's fingers dug into her hair, pulling even as he pushed her closer. His other hand was grasping her hip, causing bruises with the pressure of his fingers. And Hinata was crying, her sobs even permeating their joint lips. She would murmur his name every few seconds, and it alternated between sounding desperate and unhappy.

Gaara felt crazy with the sensation of Hinata moving against him, her strangled cries edging him closer and closer to losing control. He moved aside the collar of her shirt, and she begged him to stop in little whispers. All the while she was gasping and clutching at him, unwilling to let him go.

He tasted her flesh – still bruised from where his sand had suffocated her a few days earlier. She keened so loudly that he thought she might draw the attention of her teammates. Her hips shifted towards him dangerously, making contact with a shallow thrust. His hand moved from her hip to cup the sweet curve of her backside – she repeated the movement much to his dismay, and cooed his name in a high, irresistible voice. "Gaara…"

Gaara closed his eyes, kissing her neck much more gently as he disentangled himself from her. Hinata was panting, looking lustily into his eyes. He shook his head and kissed her chastely on the lips. "No," he replied.

And then he left her, walking away dispassionately even as he heard her drop to the sand in sobs.

* * *

Zōri – woven sandals worn with formal kimono

Tabi – traditional Japanese socks with a high ankle and a separation between the big toe and other toes

* * *

**Author's Note (Part 2):** I just want to sincerely thank everyone who read, and especially everyone who reviewed, _The Divine Winds of Suna_. I had so much fun writing this story, and even more fun reading all of your fantastic reviews.

I know this seems like a terrible ending, and you're all so disappointed, but never fear…**THERE IS A SEQUEL!!!** Yay for sequels – you know I love 'em! I've already begun writing, but will need a bit of time to collect the story in my mind and edit chapters to suit my grammatical madness. Madness, I say! Madness!

Also, before I start posting **THE SEQUEL**, I'll be releasing a mini-story off shoot for Kankurō and Tenten titled _Dance on Strings_. It takes place between _The Divine Winds of Suna_ and the **THE SEQUEL** (is that annoying yet?), and chronicles Tenten's mission with Kankurō. I'll go deeper into their relationship, and it will definitely be lemony fresh.

So, since this is this ridiculously long author's note, I'm including something for those of you who made it this far. A teaser for **THE SEQUEL!!!** (Extraneous exclamation marks – it's annoying now!)

* * *

**THE SEQUEL**

"Naruto," Gaara said softly.

The blue-eyed boy turned, mouth full. After a hard swallow, Naruto coughed and smiled broadly.

"Yah, thanks for all the food! This is really great! I mean, the treaty is great, too, but the food is _amazing_."

Gaara attempted a smile, knowing most people found this fully creepy. Naruto didn't seem to mind. "I…have a question…" Gaara attempted hesitantly.

"Shoot!" Naruto replied, grinning.

But Gaara didn't know how to say what he was feeling, much less ask what to do about it. After a few moments of silence, Naruto gave him a look. "Hey, are you okay? You look kind of pale."

"I'm not sure…" Gaara replied truthfully. "I saw someone today…and I can't stop thinking about her…"

"Oh," he said, raising his eyebrows. "Was it Hinata?" Naruto asked, lowering his voice.

Gaara nodded, then wondered if news of his relationship with Hinata had been something of interest in Konoha. Hinata hardly seemed the kind to boast about something like that, but he wouldn't put it past her companions.

And then Naruto gave him a concerned look. "I saw her earlier today in the Hokage's office, and she was pretty upset about the appointment, too. I knew Suna was a tough place, but I didn't realize how much she really hated it."

Gaara shrugged, feeling as though he wasn't quite sure what Naruto was really talking about. Still, it disturbed him that Hinata had such strong negative feelings towards Suna…probably because of him. She'd risked her life for a foreign village…and she hated it. He frowned.

"Don't worry though," Naruto continued, rather oblivious to Gaara's pensive thoughts. "Hinata won't let you down. She never gives up, and she always keeps her word – it's her nindo!"

Unsure of what Naruto was referring to, Gaara sat in silence for the rest of the meal. Maybe he looked like a smooth rock on the surface, but beneath he felt like a rockslide. He wanted to be near her. He was always thinking of her – all day long, despite the importance of the treaty, she was on his mind. He wanted to touch her, feel the skin that looked so pale and soft, put his fingers in the hair that was so silky and shiny, press his body against hers… He couldn't explain the source of these feelings, he just knew…he just knew that without her, he would be in pain…the pain of love would be in his chest if he couldn't have her.

Still mulling this over in his mind, the Hokage stood (taking the arm of her anxious-looking, dark-haired assistant) and prepared to make an announcement. "I wanted to make a lovely speech about teamwork and trust…but I forgot it in my office…or I never wrote it…" she mumbled this last part to herself. Gaara wondered how much alcohol the Godaime Hokage had imbibed. Her assistant laughed nervously. "But I would like to show a gesture of good faith, and present the group of Konoha merchants, instructors, and students that will be leaving later this week for Sunagakure."

Gaara rose a little higher in his seat. He was a little curious about what enterprising merchants and vendors would be willing to undertake such an uncertain venture. He knew that Konoha was sure to send some of its most talented instructors and students – these Konoha ninja were nothing if not true to their word. But they couldn't make the merchants go to Suna.

The Hokage raised an arm, and a line of men and women shuffled through the door on the far side of the room. "I would like to present Master Hishima of the Ironworker's Guild and his apprentices." An older gentleman bowed slightly to Gaara, and one of the three young men presented Gaara with a finely crafted katana. He noticed that on the hilt was the kanji for love.

"For many years Master Hishima was the Guild Master, but has come out of retirement to aid in the treaty between Suna and Konoha."

As the Hokage cleared her throat, another man of middle years came through the far doors, a pleasant-looking young woman following him with a large bowl in her hands. "This is Master Teuchi of the Restaurateur's Guild, and his assistant Ayame. They will be opening their very first branch of Ichiraku's Ramen Bar at the Suna-Konoha Trading Outpost."

"No!" Naruto cried out piteously, huge tears welling in his eyes. "Not Ichiraku! _Anything_ but Ichiraku!"

"Naruto!" the Hokage hissed, glaring at the forlorn boy.

The woman flushed outrageously as she placed the humongous bowl of ramen before Gaara, bowing with her eyes low. "We also serve tsukemen," she said quietly.

There were six other representatives from the various guilds in Konohagakure. All were very respected members of society, and all offered small gifts to the Kazekage in hopes of a fruitful business relationship. The merchant from the Knickknacks' Guild even went so far as to present Gaara with an oversized, spun sugar maneki neko. The frumpy, elderly woman giggled outrageously and hurried off with a smile.

Gaara was pleasantly surprised with the caliber of merchants willing to make a new life in the trading outpost. Konoha even had a master from the Construction Guild that wished to transplant his entire business to the outpost. Gaara knew that when his people learned of the high-quality merchants and guilds that were planning on participating in the Suna-Konoha Trading Outpost that they would not want to be outclassed. It seemed as though the third part of the treaty would be very successful.

"Next I would like to introduce some of the instructors and students that will be accompanying the merchants to the outpost, and then on to Suna," the Hokage continued with a smile. "We didn't want to send too many at first, and this group will more or less be the testers, so we can figure out what does and doesn't work. I have chosen three of my prized instructors, and they, in turn, have chosen three of their prized students." A group of four entered through the doors at the far end of the room. They were dressed very nicely for the occasion, and lined up on the left side of the Hokage.

"This," the Hokage said after a moment, "is Yamanaka Ino, and she specializes in urban infiltration and camouflage. She also teaches special classes to our kunoichi regarding blending in to foreign countries." Gaara thought that Yamanaka Ino was very familiar looking. She was a very beautiful kunoichi with long blond hair and a golden smile. She looked like she could charm just about anyone. He nodded to her and her three female students.

"Nara Shikamaru," the grinning woman continued, "has been an instructor on and off at the Konoha Ninja Gakkō for many years. Students in his class learn the value of strategy and analyzing the enemy."

Gaara recognized Nara Shikamaru, and gave the shinobi a familiar nod. Of all the genin at the Chûnin Exams during Gaara's first attempt, Shikamaru was the only one to pass. He was widely considered to be the lazy genius of Konoha, and was also one of the very few people to defeat an Akatsuki single-handed. Even Gaara had not done that. Gaara recognized the value of such a man, and he was pretty sure his sister didn't mind that Shikamaru was coming to Suna either. As he turned to Temari, he saw a slight blush on her face as Shikamaru and his students bowed in their direction.

"Finally," Lady Tsunade said as the doors opened once again, "I would like to present Hyūga Hinata and her three students."

Gaara felt his fingernails digging into the palms of his hands as the young woman walked through the doors and stood between him and the Hokage. Her head was bent forward, and her hair was pulled up, but he could recognize her almost by the aura she put off. It was her – the woman he'd been obsessing over for the last two years. The woman he thought he'd finally put behind him. The woman he could never put behind him. The only woman he might ever be able to love.

She would be going to Suna?

The Hokage continued, her voice full of pride. "Hinata specializes in chakra manipulation and the human chakra pathway system. Her classes are a favorite among many of our academy students."

* * *

**Author's Note (Part 3):** So...if you've gotten this far I totally commend you. How many author's notes do I even have for this story!?!? Estimating...like a bizillion...which is not a real number.

Anyway... I need some public opinion. As they say in manga – Don't just decide everything by yourself!!

Since there is now a **SEQUEL**, I've been debating whether or not to post it separately from _The Divine Winds of Suna_ or just continue on after the last chapter?

_Pros of posting separately: _Less confusing to the reader; looks like I've written more stories; and it looks prettier on my author's page.

_Pros of posting together:_ No one would have to subscribe to another story; it would look like I have a lot of reviews; and no one would get lost from one story to the next.

Well, tell me what you think…


End file.

Naruto, Adventure, Romance