Sand Away From The Desert

I hope you've all been enjoying my story so far. If you write reviews and show interest, I'll keep posting.



Also, I wanted to thank my first reviewer for this story, Sneakyfox. Thank you! I'm glad that you like the story so far. Naruto and Gaara is one of my favorite pairings, and I agree with you. Too often I read fics where they forget that the two of them don't know each other well. I like giving them the buildup of getting to know each other better, rather than changing the characters to get them together faster. I hope you keep enjoying it as I keep writing it. I'll do my best to keep it interesting!



And now onto the newest chapter...





Gaara sat in the waiting room, giving Naruto some time alone with Sakura. He looked up when he heard footsteps leaving Sakura’s room. He looked over to meet Naruto’s eyes, and saw that Naruto looked cheerful again. Naruto moved quickly over to Gaara’s side, paused for a moment, and then pulled him into a hug. Gaara was shocked by the hug and his entire body tensed. He felt his sand stir in the gourd on his back, but he quickly concentrated and calmed it. He kept his hands down by his side, but couldn’t help but notice the warmth of the body pressed against him. Naruto pulled back from the hug, not really noticing or caring that Gaara hadn’t hugged him back.



“Thank you for helping Sakura-chan so much yesterday. She told me how much you did for her,” Naruto said.



“I was just doing what was needed,” Gaara replied, still surprised by Naruto’s actions.



“It’s far more important than you make it sound Gaara. Sakura-chan is one of my most important people and you saved her!” Naruto insisted.



Naruto stared into Gaara’s eyes, daring him to downplay his actions again. Gaara took note of the boy’s insistence and decided not to reply. He instead let his mind drift back to moments earlier and how it felt to have Naruto’s strong arms around him.



“I need to go get back to my training now. See you later!” Naruto said happily, pulling Gaara forcefully from his thoughts.



Gaara nodded slowly and then watched as Naruto ran out of the hospital, his usual goofy grin back in place on his face. Gaara leaned back against the wall behind him, deciding to wait and see if anyone else would need his help.



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About a week later, Gaara left the Hokage’s office late at night after a long meeting. He was tired, but it was nice knowing that the negotiations would not take much longer. He was not in the mood to head back to his apartment after sitting still for most of the day, so he headed out to the woods in the hope of training a bit. He headed for the clearing that was usually empty and he was surprised to hear muffled noises coming from that direction. He concealed his chakra and slowly made his way toward the clearing, wondering what was going on out there.



Gaara stopped in his tracks when he could see the clearing and the boy standing in it. His blond hair was a mess. He was only wearing black drawstring pants and Gaara could see his t-shirt torn to shreds on the ground beside him. There were scrapes and bruises scattered across his muscular chest, but Gaara barely noticed them once he saw his face. Naruto’s eyes were angry and he was scowling at the forest in front of him. He clutched a kunai tightly at his side, his fingers white from gripping it. Gaara didn’t want to alert Naruto to his presence as he watched him fall down to his knees and jam the kunai deep into the dirt at his side. Naruto howled angrily and dug the kunai farther into the ground. Gaara was surprised to see the boy with such pain and anger in his face.



Naruto suddenly rose from the ground and wiped some of the dirt off of his cheeks. He dropped the kunai to the ground at his feet, and Gaara watched as Naruto’s shoulders slumped and some of the anger left his face. His chest was heaving, and he suddenly looked exhausted. Naruto began to collapse when Gaara suddenly noticed that his body was going to fall on the kunai beside him. Gaara knew it wouldn’t kill him, but he sent his sand out anyway and it caught Naruto just before he landed. Naruto was surprised to feel the sand wrap around his side and lift him from the ground. Naruto quickly propped himself up on the sand and looked around until he saw Gaara at the edge of the clearing.



How long has he been watching me? Naruto wondered.



Gaara moved the sand back toward him, still carrying Naruto on top of it. He tried to set Naruto on his feet in front of him, but Naruto stumbled and fell toward Gaara. Gaara placed his hands under Naruto’s arms and lifted him up gently until the boys were eye to eye. He kept his hands there, steadying the tired boy.



Naruto opened his mouth to speak, but quickly realized he didn’t know what to say. Gaara didn’t seem to care and just calmly used his sand to remove the gourd from his back. He lifted Naruto onto his back in place of the gourd. Naruto struggled a bit, but Gaara ignored it, grabbed Naruto’s legs, and pulled them around his waist. Naruto stopped struggling and draped his arms over Gaara’s shoulders, giving in to how tired his body felt. Gaara used his sand to carry the gourd behind him as he walked with Naruto on his back. Naruto closed his eyes and put his head down on Gaara’s neck. Gaara felt a small shiver go up his spine as Naruto’s breath blew across his neck. Gaara frowned and picked up his pace a little, walking quickly toward town.



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Gaara stopped walking when he was near their apartments. He reached up with one hand and gently shook Naruto’s shoulder, but Naruto was already passed out and snoring softly into his neck. He barely stirred as Gaara shook him a little harder.



“Naruto,” Gaara said, turning his head a little toward the boy on his back.



Naruto didn’t move this time and just continued to breathe slowly against Gaara’s neck. Gaara thought for a moment, wondering if he would be able to find the young boy’s keys. Gaara decided against it and just began to walk in the other direction toward his own apartment. He felt Naruto shift on his back, but the exhausted boy did not wake.



Gaara arrived at his apartment moments later and unlocked the front door. He used his sand to toss his gourd into the corner of the living room before carrying Naruto inside. He closed the door softly behind him, trying not to wake the boy on his back. He carried Naruto into his bedroom and carefully put him down on his bed. The bed was neat and covered with clean sheets since Gaara didn’t use it much as a result of his insomnia. Naruto rolled over onto his side and flung one of his arms across the bed. Gaara looked over Naruto’s muscular body and could see his chest rising and falling slowly with the breath of someone asleep. Naruto suddenly clenched one hand into a fist and pulled his other arm in close to his chest. Gaara thought that the boy looked angry and in pain even in his sleep. Gaara frowned and quietly moved toward Naruto.



Gaara kneeled down beside Naruto, watching his face twist in anguish. Before Gaara thought about it, he reached out his hand tentatively and touched Naruto’s cheek. Naruto’s face relaxed a little under Gaara’s touch, and Gaara felt a little happy to see he actually had a positive effect on someone.



“-ra,” Naruto mumbled softly in his sleep.



Gaara leaned in a little closer to Naruto, trying to make out whatever he said. Naruto shifted in his sleep and pushed his face against Gaara’s hand on his cheek.



“Gaara,” Naruto mumbled.



Gaara leapt back from the bed, shocked back to reality by hearing his own voice. He looked at the young man sleeping in front of him and felt his chest tighten. Naruto pulled both his hands in close to his chest and shivered. Gaara cautiously moved back toward him and pulled a blanket over the young boy. Then he quickly turned around and left the bedroom, unable to stand there any longer.



****************************************



Naruto woke up in the morning and looked around the room, confused. He slowly sat up in bed and winced when he felt the pain radiating from his spine. The night before suddenly flashed through his mind and he remembered injuring himself and then Gaara catching him with his sand and carrying him away from the forest.



But where am I?



Naruto was about to ignore his aching body and rise from the bed when he heard a noise outside the bedroom door. He relaxed when he saw Gaara enter the room and look at him with his serious green eyes.



“Gaara, is this your apartment?” Naruto asked.



“Yes. I tried to wake you last night. I didn’t know where you kept your keys, so I just brought you here to sleep,” Gaara replied calmly.



“If I was in your bed, where did you sleep?”



“I didn’t. I rarely do.”



Naruto frowned, suddenly remembering how Gaara’s demon affected him. Naruto unconsciously put his hand on his bare stomach, thinking of Kyuubi.



“Would you like something to eat?” Gaara asked.



Naruto shook his head, not wanting to bother Gaara more than he already had. Naruto slowly rose from the bed, wincing as waves of pain ran down his spine.



“You’re in pain,” Gaara said.



“I’m fine,” Naruto whispered.



“Sit down,” Gaara said firmly.



Naruto sat back down on the edge of the bed, worried that Gaara was angry with him. Gaara leaned back against the wall, feeling a little afraid of getting close to Naruto.



What am I thinking? I don’t fear anything, and certainly not this boy.



Gaara crossed his arms across his chest, feeling anger build within him at the boy who was affecting him that way.



“I’m sorry that I troubled you last night,” Naruto said quietly.



Gaara’s anger melted away when he remembered how Naruto had looked that night, filled with anger and pain.



“What were you so angry about?” Gaara asked, unembarrassed.



Naruto blushed when he realized that Gaara had seen more of his ‘training’ than he had hoped. Naruto looked away from Gaara’s curious eyes and stared out his window. Gaara waited patiently, not understanding why it would be difficult for Naruto to answer. Naruto rose from the bed again, this time ignoring Gaara’s glare.



“Thank you for your help. I should go see Sakura-chan,” Naruto whispered.



Naruto brushed past Gaara quickly and rushed out of the apartment. Gaara looked over at his now empty bed and frowned.