"Gaara."

"Is he awake yet?" "What happened to him?" "Wow, he's cuter than I remember." "I wonder- OH SHIT!"



His head was pounding and the voices around him were giving him a headache. Cracking one eye open, Gaara looked around him to see pure blackness. He was surrounded by his sand. A faint smile appeared on his face but it was gone as quickly as it had come.



"Uh, Gaara-san? Can you put that away please?" It was a soft voice, feminine, familiar. With the wave of a hand, the sand went back into the gourd by his side. He sat up, realizing he was on a bed and looked around. The light was too bright and it smelled horrid in the place where he was. It was also a mess. Looking up, green eyes found several bodies, all turned to him. One was Sakura, the one who spoke. One was a blonde he vaguely remembered as Ino and then the byakugan user Neji. Kiba, his brother's lover, was in the corner with his dog Akamaru and in the other corner was Naruto. He looked to be eating something.



"How are you feeling Gaara-san?" Sakura walked over tentively, probably worried about the sand that was stirring in his gourd. He looked at it and it stopped hissing. The pink haired kunoichi sat on the bed next to him. "May I?" He nodded slowly. She took off her glove and a green light emanated from her fingers as she moved her hand around his head and down to his chest. "Nothing's broken and you're not bleeding from your brain." She slipped her glove back on and stepped away. Speaking of his head, Gaara reached back and rubbed the side of it. He had a raging headache.



"You know Naruto, you should really clean this place up. And it smells something awful!" Ino was complaining at the other blond who ignored her for whatever he was eating. His hands moved in fast, jerky motions.



"Naruto, stop eating long enough to talk." Sakura looked at her teammate and he stopped moving the chopsticks and looked at her. Something was on his face...anger. Why was he angry? Gaara swung his legs over the side of the bed and looked at the floor.



"What do you want Sakura-chan? You checked him over and there's nothing wrong so you can leave just like the rest of you." There was a bite in his voice and he continued stuffing his face.



"Fine Naruto. If you need anything you know where to find me." She turned on her heel, waving to Gaara and left the room. Ino sighed loudly and followed her. "I guess I better go as well or my training is going to take a turn for the worst." Shaking her head she smiled and waved at everyone. "See you all later." Neji was next to leave with nothing but a nod in both Naruto's and Gaara's direction and then finally Kiba with a pat on Gaara's back. When everyone was gone, Naruto stood and opened the door.



"Welcome to my house." He came back a few minutes later, something in his hand. It was a ramen cup. "Here. You have to eat something, or that's what Baa-chan said." He said her nick name with disdain but plopped down on the bed next to the red head. "I know you probably want answers and I won't lie to you but you aren't going to like them." Naruto's back was hunched and he was staring out the window. "She said something about your chakra pathways and how they were de-ter-ior-ating, deteriorating," he paused and looked to Gaara. "It means they are getting smaller and smaller." He turned back to the window. "Baa-chan said that because there was no demon inside of you that this...condition, could freely take over. She said that you would have had it earlier if not for the demon inside of your body. Something like natural disease, or that's what she said. She also said that because your pathways are getting smaller, it's putting strain on your organs and muscles and it will eventually...." he stopped talking and looked at the red head. "She said it will kill you."



Gaara looked from Naruto's blue eyes down to the ramen cup and without thinking about it, started eating. For some reason, after the news, it felt good to eat. Maybe he was what Temari said, an emotional eater. But it made no sense seeing as he had very few to no emotions.



"I tried to get your job back you know, but I was yelled at and Baa-chan got mad enough that she threw me out of her office with a kick to the ass." He chuckled a little and rubbed the side of a butt cheek. "Still hurts actually."



-Flashback-



"WHAT?! What do you mean that he's being removed from the Kazekage position?!" Naruto was staring at the councilmen of the Sand village and Tsunade. His eyes were wide and he was mad.



"Just what I said Naruto." He looked at her and then back to the men in the room.



"What is the matter with you guys?! He died for you! DIED! If not for Chiyo-baa he would have stayed that way and you know it! " Naruto was raving and ranting, looking at every single man in the room. "He protected the village with everything he had and this is how you repay him?! You tell him that he can no longer protect the village? That he can no longer sit in it's highest position just because he's sick? That would be like saying none of you could serve on the council because you are all old! He can't help it! Damn you!" His hands were clenched into fists and he turned to look at the floor. "Damn you all."



"Get out Naruto." His blue, blue eyes turned and he stared at Tsunade.



"And you just agreed with them?" His voice was naught but a whisper. "How could you?" She looked away from his gaze and then back again.



"Get out Naruto."



"Not until they give him his job back."



"It won't happen unless this disease just goes away and you need a miracle to do that."



"Chiyo-baa gave us a miracle, why can't any of you believe in another one?" There was silence for a time but Tsunade moved up and grabbed Naruto by his shirt.



"GET. OUT."



"Give him back his job." His eyes were emotionless now, just pools of endless blue as he stared up at her.



"I can't do that. They have to." She set him down for a minute and dragged him to the side, away from prying ears. "If you have time to argue his case then you have time to help me figure out how to help him Naruto." She rubbed her forehead. "I can't very well help Gaara with you acting like a gallant idiot."



"What does that mean?"



"It means your...sort of a shinobi in shining armor without the brains to back it up."



"HEY-"



"Shut up for a minute." She started talking and he listened carefully. When she finished, he asked her to explain everything one more time so he understood and then...then she kicked him in the ass and he went flying through the door.



-End Flashback-



Naruto looked at Gaara who had finished the ramen while he was thinking about the incident back at Baa-chan's office. "Want some more?" He was smiling to himself, having cheered up a little with remembering "the plan". Gaara looked to the empty ramen cup in his hands and then back to Naruto's smiling face. What was he so happy about? His green gaze fell back to the ramen cup and he handed it to Naruto.



"Yes."



"Coming right up!" Naruto paused in mid step and looked back to Gaara. "You don't have to stay here if you don't want too." He turned and walked off. Gaara stared after him and couldn't help but get the feeling that Naruto was planning something. Standing, Gaara looked around the room and walked out. Day was turning into night and he wondered how long he'd been knocked out. As he stepped into what appeared to be the living room, Gaara noticed the smell was still there.



It appeared that the apartment, the whole apartment, had a musky smell. There was a lump of something against a wall and Gaara thought it might be a couch. There were too many holes to tell indefinitely but it had the frame of a couch. There was a crate across from it covered in ramen cups and Gaara had the impression it was supposed to be a table. Apart from a sheen of dust covering everything, there was nothing in the apartment. It was empty. Why? So many questions and no answers.



There was a curse and Gaara followed the sound to what looked to be the kitchen. Naruto was sitting on a counter, back facing the door way and reaching into a cupboard. It was too high up to reach it by standing on the floor so that explained why Naruto was sitting on the counter to get to it. Gaara leaned against the door frame and watched as Naruto strained to reach something in the back. It was slightly entertaining.



"Got it!" Naruto hopped off the counter and looked at what was in his hands. The blond looked to the door and smiled. "The only one left." He held up a cup of ramen and it read beef in big, bold letters. "I guess I'll have to go shopping again..." his voice fell away as he moved to heat the cup of ramen.



Gaara moved into the kitchen and watched him fix the cup of food. It was so simple that it seemed rather stupid. You just open the top a little, stick it in the heater and wait. When the heater bings it's done. Was this all that Naruto lived on? There were enough empty ramen cups laying around to suggest it but...why? Another question to add to the growing pool of them. Standing up straight, Gaara moved to the fridge and opened it. He closed it immediately. Something green, blue and fuzzy said hello to him and the smell was rough even for his senses. Covering his nose, He opened the fridge again and looked around in it. Nothing but the green and blue fuzzy thing.



The heater binged and Gaara watched as Naruto pulled the steaming cup out and handed it to Gaara. "It's hot, be careful." The red head took the cup and looked at it. Nothing green, blue and fuzzy. Gaara looked around for the cup he'd eaten a few minutes ago and pulled out the same chopsticks. He wondered if Naruto bought them or...no, he had to buy them. Shaking his head inwardly, Gaara demolished the second cup of ramen. He looked around for somewhere to throw it away but couldn't find anything so he just set the cup aside.



"Sorry the place isn't up to par." Naruto chuckled and rubbed the back of his head. Gaara had come to find out it was the gesture that signaled he was nervous. "I should go sho-" his sentence was stopped with a knock on the door. Smoothly and quickly, Naruto slipped a kunai from somewhere and walked to the door. His face was hard and nothing showed on it, no emotions. It was familiar to Gaara. He had the same face. "Who is it?"



"Shikamaru." With a breath, Naruto opened the door and moved aside.



"What are you doing here Shikamaru?"



"Hokage-sama wanted me to come and get you. Says you have a meeting and you're late."



"Oh...that. Heh..." Naruto rubbed the back of his head. "Alright." He looked to Gaara. "I have to go but you can't come so...stay here and don't go anywhere okay?" Gaara just nodded and watched as Naruto left with the lazy shinobi. Once the door was closed and he heard no footsteps, Gaara took one last look around the apartment before he himself left. There was so much work to do.





"Here."



"What's it for?"



"For taking care of Gaara."



"What do you mean?" Naruto stared at the envelope in his hand.



"I mean that Suna is paying us to keep Gaara here. That money, a portion of it anyways, is going to you to help take care of him. If he needs anything then you are to use that money to buy it."



"They really don't want him anymore do they?" Naruto asked the question more to himself than to Tsunade or any of the other occupants in the room.



"No Naruto, the council doesn't want him. I imagine the entirety of Suna will be up and raging by the time those old geezers get back and give the news." Tsunade had her chin against folded hands as she watched Naruto. She was more worried about the blond. It was a low blow to him and Gaara both and even Sakura and Kakashi, but more so to the two boys.



"I understand." He stood and started for the door.



"I wasn't done Naruto." He groaned and stopped, shoulders slumping as he turned back to listen to her talk.





With the gates in sight, Gaara looked around him and took a breath. Slowly, he moved from the roof top he was on and towards the gates. He was stopped with a hand on his shoulder. "Where are you going Gaara-san?" The voice made Gaara turn around. He face a gray haired shinobi who's nose was buried deeply into an orange book. The book lowered just a little and one eye looked at him.



Gaara just shrugged the hand off and hopped down from the roof. When he was on the ground he started walking towards the exit. Kakashi was in front of him in seconds and Garra had to stop walking or bump into the jounin. "I can't let you leave Gaara-san." The book was away and Kakashi, even though he looked relaxed, was on fully guard. The sand in his gourd was hissing and moving around behind him and he shushed it with a thought.



"Move Kakashi-san."



"I can't do that Gaara." Kakashi took a step foreword and the sand started to spill from Gaara's gourd. When it pooled around his feet, he looked down at it then up to the jounin. "I'd ask that you put that away Gaara." The red head just looked at Kakashi who had pulled up his hetai-ait. One red eye gleamed in the darkening sky and to keep from any confrontation, Gaara willed the sand back into the gourd, turned, and walked back towards the village main.



Kakashi was like a shadow, following him, although at a distance, wherever he went. The thought was disconcerting to a point but Gaara ignored him and went about some business. He decided if he would have to sleep at Naruto's apartment even for a night -before making his escape- some changes needed to be made. His first stop was to get some food. He found an all night market that thankfully had more than just food.



Before he thought of anything else, Gaara grabbed some fruit, vegetables, ramen cups, milk, juice and anything else he could think of that wasn't in Naruto's musty apartment. On a whim, Gaara also grabbed some cleaning supplies betting that Naruto had never even heard of them. He needed help carrying what he'd bought so he looked to Kakashi.



"What?" The jounin raised an eyebrow in his direction after asking the question. Gaara just looked at the bags. Frowning, or what looked to be a frown from under his mask, Kakashi put his book away, grabbed up some bags and followed behind Gaara. The sand shinobi was using sand to carry the brunt of what he'd bought and it was a little disconcerting to watch, the way the sand rolled over the ground carrying bags and following behind Gaara like a willing slave. Kakashi shook his head and continued to frown all the way back to Naruto's apartment.



When Kakashi left -in a huff no less- Gaara looked around the apartment and shook his head. The red head removed his shoes and gourd, setting them next to the door and started taking all of the food to the kitchen while leaving the cleaning supplies where they were. Before, however, anything went into the fridge, Gaara cleaned it out. Twice. After the kitchen was cleaned and the food put away, Gaara moved on to the living room and finally the bedroom and bathroom.



It was full dark and must have been early morning when he' finally finished and he was covered in dirt and grime. He felt dirty. Deciding a shower was in order, Gaara grabbed what he'd bought for himself and headed into the now, almost, sparkling bathroom. There wasn't any smell other than clean that came from any part of the apartment and he was slightly proud of himself. Stripping off his clothes and hopping into the shower, Gaara let the hot water pour over his body washing away dirt, sweat and grime. He would have been out quickly but the hot water felt good so he washed and stood under the hot spray a little longer than normal before getting out and toweling off.



Gaara had bought some mesh shirts, boxers and even some night clothes at the all night store but he just put on a deep maroon tee and some black pants under which he wore a new pair of green boxers. Why green? He didn't know. It was just a color he liked.



The red head was just setting up a place for himself to sit in the living room when Naruto walked in through the door and shrugged out of his shoes and sickly orange jacket. He paused and peeked around the wall to look at Gaara. "What happened?" Gaara just quirked a browless eye brow.



"It smells...clean...and looks clean." Naruto did a walk through and noticed that his apartment was clean. Even his dirty clothes were washed and hanging around the bedroom. He came back out and stared at Gaara who'd sat down and was eating an apple. Naruto collapsed to his butt and just watched Gaara peel the skin from the overly red fruit and eat it. "Why did you do it?" Gaara chewed the bit of fruit in his mouth and with a gaelic shrug that answered his question at the same time it didn't, he went back to eating the apple.



"How did you get that apple?" Naruto was scrutinizing the fruit closely, eyes squinted in concentration. He almost looked like the fruit would be...bad or something. It wasn't bad at all, in fact it was juicy and sweet.



"I bought it." Three simple words that had Naruto wide eyed and gaping at him. Why? Yet another question to be added to the ever growing pool of them.



"Where?"



"The all night market." Gaara finished the apple, stood and went to the kitchen to throw it away. "Hungry?" He looked back at Naruto who shook his head without thinking about it. The blond stood and walked into the kitchen behind Gaara and watched as the red head pulled out a cup of pork ramen, put it in the heater and then handed it to him when it was done. When both of Gaara's hands were free, the red head went to a drawer and pulled out a clean, new pair of chopsticks. Not disposable ones. They had the Naruto swirl on them but Naruto wasn't staring at the chopsticks, he was staring at Gaara.



"I- How- When-" Naruto was stumbling for words but Gaara pushed the cup of ramen towards him and the blond looked down.



"Eat." Naruto just nodded dumbly and started to eat. He left the kitchen, mind in wonder and sat on his holey couch. It was comfortable when you didn't sit in one of the deeper holes so Naruto kept it. Besides, he couldn't get a new one even if he wanted too. Shaking his head, Naruto slowed down his eating and thought over each bite. Why did Gaara clean the apartment? Naruto had thought for sure that he'd try to escape and go back to the Sand village but...he'd cleaned the apartment and gone shopping. It was confusing and Naruto's brain started to hurt from thinking so much. He was tired and the meeting with Tsunade had lasted so long. When he started nodding off she finally let him come home.



When he was finished with the cup of ramen, Naruto stood and set the empty carton on the crate table, stretched and headed off to his room. "Thanks Gaara-san. I'm going to bed. Goodnight." Gaara just stared at the empty carton. Naruto followed his gaze and had the graciousness to blush before he picked up the carton and scrambled off to throw it away. Gaara nodded to him as he walked to the bedroom. A few minutes later, the red head heard the shower and he let out a small breath. Well, it had gone better than he thought it might. Naruto hadn't even complained, not really anyways.



With the questions he'd had from the previous day, the answers to why he was in Konoha and some other information rattling around in his head, Gaara opened the living room window and hopped up to the roof to star at the stars. It was an old habit that hadn't died. Sometimes he even fell asleep on the roof he'd chosen to perch. It bothered him that he had to sleep like everyone else now and it bothered him even more when the need for sleep snuck up on him and caught him off his guard.



Knees drawn up to his chest and arms around them, Gaara looked up at the small sliver of the moon and then around it to the stars. He wanted to go back to Suna and he had to find a way to get out of Konoha. As if his thoughts had drawn him, Gaara felt a presence but didn't turn around. The chakra signature was already known to the sand shinobi but it annoyed him that Kakashi was still hanging around.



"Beautiful night ne, Gaara-san?"



"Hm." It was beautiful in it's own way but it would never compare to nights in Suna. The moon illuminated the sands and the winds blew across the dunes making it seem like an ocean of blue fire at night. The sky was clear just like in Konoha but there were many more stars.



"I wanted to thank you for what you did." Gaara did look back and the jounin then, the question plain in his eyes. Kakashi sighed and walked over, standing with one hand in his pants pocket as he looked over at the village. "The village sees him as an outcast, a monster. You know what that's like." He looked down at the red head and Gaara nodded once then turned his gaze back to the village. He'd seen it when he'd arrived and even the first time he'd visited the village. "You did something for him when no one else would. Sure he has friends but he wouldn't like them for doing what you did. It's hard to argue with someone who doesn't argue back or even give a reason for why he does what he does." Kakashi started walking away. "Oh, don't try any escape attempts. Tsunade-Hokage has ANBU all over you and frankly, it would make my life unnecessarily difficult." He turned, one hand in the air as he waved, "Je-ne!" and he poofed away.



Gaara growled to himself before standing and walking off. he hopped off the roof and ran through the streets until he came to the Hokage's office. Without announcement, proper attire, his gourd and even escorts, he marched right into her office and made sure the door closed on his way in. She looked up from a cup of sake and glared daggers at him. "What are you thinking just b-arging right in here without announcement?!" She hiccupped and held a hand over her mouth. Gaara just looked at her, arms over his chest.



"Send me back to Suna."



"I can't do that Gaara."



"You are the Hokage."



"But I am not the Suna Council of Elders Gaara. I can't do it."



"Hm?" Tsunade just glared at him and called for Shizune.



"Yes Tsunade-sama?"



"More sake."



"Tsunade-"



"Don't argue with me. More sake. NOW." Shizune looked at where she was staring and gulped. She left without being told again and came back with a rather large bottle of sake. Shizune left again and Gaara moved closer to the desk.



"Send me back." His voice was clipped and emotionless; just plain Gaara.



"If I could, I would have done it already. No offense Gaara, but I don't want you here as much as you don't want to be here. It makes my life and my job much more difficult especially since I have to make sure nothing happens to you." She didn't bother pouring the sake into a cup but rather drank it out of the bottle.



"Then why am I here?"



"So I can try and find a way to cure you." He leaned closer and she stood, also leaning towards him.



"Send. Me. Back."



"No." They were a hairs breath apart and he could smell the sharp, sour smell of the sake on her but he was more worried about getting her to send him back.



"I am asking for you to send me back."



"And if you hurt any of my shinobi Subaku no Gaara, I will send you back in pieces!" She hissed at him and he growled back. There were sparks flying between them and the tension in the room spiked to unparalleled proportions. He suddenly wished for his gourd but it was back in Naruto's apartment.



"Call the ANBU off."



"I can't do that."



"If you won't send me back then fine but I will not be watched day and night like a dog. Call. Them. Off."



"I'll make a deal with you," she eased back, sitting in her chair, hands moved and crossed over her large bosom. "You don't try to escape again, hurt any of the villagers, shinobi or anyone under my protection and I will call off the ANBU."



"And?"



"I will start negotiations with your brother to get you sent back to Suna as soon as possible."



"But I have to grin and bear it?"



"And allow me to try and stop the process that is killing you slowly."



"Deal." He held out his hand and she knew that somehow she was making a deal with the devil. She held out her hand and they shook, the deal was sealed and there was nothing she could do about it now. As she watched Gaara leave, she called for the ANBU Capitan that was outside the window and told him to relieve those under his command from Gaara's watch duty. After the red scarved ANBU left, Tsunade picked up the sake bottle, looked at the four pictures above the door to her office and toasted to them.



"Here's to you," and she downed the whole bottle.





The trip back to Naruto's apartment was somehow longer than it had been after he'd gone shopping. The air was chilly and Gaara felt a shiver run down his spine. The red head took to the roof tops and walked over them, watching as Konoha slept. He didn't want to stay here, in a place that treated those who would die for them like monsters. The thought burned in his mind and he knew that to survive around here, he would have to become an apathetic drone. It was the way his shinobi were when dealing with him. Well, they weren't his anymore and somehow, that thought hurt more than anything.



Gaara hopped through the window to Naruto's apartment and did a check to make sure it was only him and Naruto that were there and when he was satisfied, Gaara closed the window and moved to turn out the kitchen light. The only source of light was the moon through the window and he sat in the midst of it, legs crossed, hands draped against his knees and he let out a long, heavy breath. Opening his eyes, Gaara found a spot on the wall across from him and focused on it, willing his body to relax, starting at his feet and working his way up. When he was lost in meditation, the spot disappeared and he was looking inside of himself.





Naruto woke with a yawn, scratching his chest and then his thigh, wincing when he ran his hand over the bruise on his ass. He looked around the room and didn't find Gaara so he wandered out in his stripped pajamas and hat, his small stuffed animal in his hands and stopped in his tracks at the door. There was Gaara, eyes open, sitting and staring at the wall. He walked over and waved a hand in front of the red head's face. When Gaara didn't acknowledge him or make any movement to suggest he was awake, Naruto bent down in front of his face and looked into his eyes. There were focused but it looked like they were dead...or at least not there. Empty. Slightly worried, Naruto moved his hand to touch Gaara and still got nothing. His hand moved to the red head's neck and when he felt a pulse, he relaxed a little.



"Can I help you with something?" Naruto turned around slowly and saw Gaara gazing right at him. He jumped backwards with a yelp and fell on his bruised ass. He hissed, winced and started rubbing it.



"Damn it Gaara! Why'd you have to go and do that?!" Gaara just raised a browless eyebrow in question, his arms moving to cross over his chest in a Gaara-like pose. "Why'd you have to go and scare me like that?! I thought you were dead!" A small ghost of a smile appeared on Gaara's face but was gone quickly.



"I was simply meditating."



"Simply meditating..." Naruto stood up and scoffed. "I'll remember that when you're looking up at me almost lifeless again. 'I was simply meditating.' Phtt." Naruto headed back into his bedroom and came out a few minutes later dressed in a black shit that had the Naruto swirl on it, sickly orange pants and some white socks. He had his arms crossed over his chest. "What's for breakfast?"



"Are you hungry?"



"Well duh."



"Can you cook?" Naruto scratched the back of his head in thought for a minute.



"I know how to cook ramen." Gaara shook his head and stood. It was obvious he'd be doing the cooking. The red head moved to the kitchen and got out some eggs, milk, vegetables and pulled some rice out of the cupboard underneath the silverware drawer. As he started to mix and cook, Naruto just stood in the door to the kitchen watching. "Where did you learn to cook?"



Gaara stopped for a moment and sent a glare at him. Naruto just shrugged and watched as the red head went back to what he was doing. It was obvious he wasn't going to get an answer so he just went onto the next question.



"Where did you go last night?" There was that gaelic shrug again, the one that answered his question at the same time it didn't. Naruto watched Gaara pull out some spices, open them and start using them. It was like Gaara was some big chef or something...he wondered who'd taught him how to cook and clean. "Why do you move around my apartment so comfortably? I mean, shouldn't I be the one taking care of you? Why did you clean my apartment? Why are you so...so...I don't know but you should be mad and you're not. You should be marching up to Tsunade baa-chan and ordering her to send you back home and you're just moving around my kitchen cooking...like you...live here or something."



Gaara stopped moving, stilled to the point that Naruto thought he might disappear if he looked away and Gaara turned to look at Naruto. There was something in his eyes but Naruto being himself couldn't place it, but it made a shiver go down his spine. Gaara turned back and before Naruto could start talking again, shoved a spoon of something into the blonds mouth. Naruto melted around the spoon and Gaara went back to cooking.



"You talk to much."



"Yea, and you don't talk enough." Naruto looked at the spoon and licked it. "That was good what was it?"



"Go away."



"It's my apartment!"



"Would you like to cook then?" Gaara turned to him while mixing something in a bowl. Naruto took the hint and left the kitchen to sit in the living room. He sat on his holey couch and waited. And waited. And waited. He waited so long -only minutes in reality- that his stomach started making noise at the smell coming from the kitchen.



"Are you done yet?" he seemed to start asking that question every twenty seconds and Gaara got fed up and handed him an apple. Naruto looked at the fruit and his eyebrows drew together. How did he eat it? Thinking for a moment, he saw Gaara peel the skin and just bite into it so, deciding that was how he ate it, he went to get a knife and started to peel it. Gaara stopped him when he noticed Naruto carving the poor fruit to shreds.



Taking the knife, Gaara salvaged as much of the fruit as he could and handed it back to Naruto all peeled. "It doesn't look like your apple."



"Hm." Naruto looked at him and sighed. It was just like Sasuke, answering with a sound and not actual words.



"Just like Sauske-teme." Gaara winced when that name was mentioned. A burning sensation in his left shoulder started and he pushed the pain from his mind and watched as Naruto left the kitchen once again but this time munching on the sweet and juicy fruit in his hands.



They ate breakfast in relative silence, Naruto using chopsticks and Gaara using his fingers. The blond had made it a point to tell Gaara that eating with his hands was disgusting but Gaara had let a part of him that he showed very few people out. He ate with his hands just like his siblings and most of the older people in Suna. There was nothing wrong with it and they used chopsticks when they had to but it was just a...well it was just normal for them he supposed. He'd done it ever since his childhood and he hoped Naruto would be rather accepting. After telling him it was disgusting he hadn't said a word. Gaara thought that meant acceptance but when breakfast was over, the blond made another point to ask him why he didn't use chopsticks like he had the night before. Gaara just gave him one of his infamous shrugs and went to washing the dishes.



"You don't have to do that you know." The red head looked over his shoulder and watched Naruto as the blond walked over and rolled up his sleeves, hands delving into the hot dish water. "You cooked, I should wash the dishes." There was a small smile on his face that Gaara couldn't read. The red head nodded and pulled his hands out of the water, drying them on a small towel and moved away to watch Naruto from a distance. Well, Gaara was proved wrong. Naruto did know how to clean but it seemed from how dirty his apartment was he didn't much care for it.



When the dishes were done, they were sitting on the roof and looking out over the town. It was early afternoon or late morning depending on who you asked and Konoha was bustling with life. "So what do you want to do today? There isn't much to do in my apartment."



Gaara thought over the question and looked over to his friend. "What do you usually do?"



"Train." Naruto watched the town, his face shutting down slowly and Gaara put a smile on his face that felt fake but looked rather genuine.



"Let's train." Naruto looked over with an answering smile that was genuine and they got up to head back inside. Naruto let Gaara borrow some spare weapons and the red head noticed they were in wretched condition. They were sharpened but it was in a bad way. The metal of the shuriken and kunai were scratched, and some even had gouges in them. He would have to do something about them. Naruto tossed a few scrolls at him and quickly changed into some training clothes. Gaara turned around and also changed. He grabbed a mesh shirt and threw a black shirt over it and went to find his pants. He'd have to wash them after their training and he'd have to polish his armor. Looking for the plate that covered his chest Gaara accidentally bumped into Naruto who was watching him.



"What are you looking for?"



"Armor."



"It's on the dresser." Gaara looked and sure enough that's where it was. Did he leave it there? Shaking his head, the red head moved and strapped it into place and tied his gourd to his back. When he was ready, he looked back to Naruto and nodded. Together, they headed out to a training ground they both recognized. It was still in a state of mess. The trees had just started to sprout up but there was very little grass and it wasn't used anymore. It was perfect for the both of them.



Naruto stood at one end of the demolished grounds and Gaara was on the other. The cork in his gourd came out and sand spilled out around his feet. Naruto pulled out a kunai for each hand and they stared at each other. A sense of familiarity filled the air and a true smile splayed on Gaara's lips while on of equal merit formed on Naruto's one question in both of their minds as they took their stances:



Who was better now?