AFTER DARK | naruto

33 | half relevant half not: new years special!

"We'll miss your company in the sand, but I know it's time you go home." Gaara said, voice soft. "But if you ever find yourself lost, please remember the Sand is your home, just as the Leaf is." You and your teammates had taken a day to rest in the Sand—and now you were saying goodbye. Your hand in his, and he stilled the shaking of hands the two of you initiated.

Yes, it was time for you to go home—it's been so long, and just a few days ago, you were so excited to go home. But the circumstances were different now, Wendy—who was so curious, and wanted to learn about your hometown—was dead now. And Shisui, no matter how hard you tried, didn't appear. It could've been that meeting Itachi fulfilled what made him stay, or it could've been the possibility that, there was another [Lastname]. A foreign thought, not once in your sixteen years of living, did the thought cross your mind that maybe—there was someone out there with the same bloodline limit.

Why they targeted Shisui, a relatively harmless ghost, was beyond you. It could've been he'd done something to provoke them, but you doubted that too. Shisui was very well one of the sweetest boys you met, with the biggest heart, and a loyalty for you even bigger.

He had been so excited to go back home, but you couldn't take him. You were surrounded by people right now, but the feeling of loneliness spread throughout your entire body—starting from your aching heart. Yet, you smiled at Gaara, as genuine as you could make it, committing the feeling of his hand, warm with life, into memory. If you let go now, who knows if you'd ever do it again. "Thank you, Gaara. Temari, and Kankuro, too." You looked toward his siblings, giving them both a respectful amount of stare time—so that you wouldn't forget them, either.

So that you wouldn't forget their faces the way you forgot your family's—but you had a photo of them at home, with all four of you. At home, you had plenty of photos of people you loved, and in your bag, you had a photo of you, and the two people you had lost. Wendy and Shisui were at the front of your mind, despite the people around you now. "I'll miss you all... You made my time in the Sand amazing." Gaara noticed the lack of Shisui around, but he decided to not mention.

He took a look into your eyes, the familiar look of loneliness in them sent an unorthodox shiver up his spine. The tightening of his hand around yours a result, but he quickly let go. "... You're not alone, [Firstname]." He said—surprising you.

You stared at him, wide-eyes for a second before you smiled. "I'm not lonely, not when I'm surrounded by all these people I care for."

Gaara was silent, nodding. There's a difference between being alone, and loneliness. He thought, eyes trained on your face—"I understand... Give the Hokage my greetings..."

Your jaw became tight, your sudden nerves being displayed by your tense smile. "Heh, yeah... I'll let her know you said hi...." You hadn't thought about Lady Tsunade at all, but now, you could just imagine the lecture she'd give you.

A beating sounded more likely—the image of Tsunades angry face flickered in your mind. But your thoughts were preoccupied while on the road back home. You hardly cared about the looming threat of Tsunade, what you had to worry about was the fact that the Akatsuki decided to make you a vessel, and somehow, you got away. They knew where you came from, and there was no way they were going to let you go so easily.

You didn't pay much attention to the antics of your team for once, not when Guy decided to throw Kakashi on his back to speed it up, or when Lee requested Neji get on his back for the same treatment, though, he then turned toward you. "You must be exhausted, my lovely flower!" You tensed, his voice directed at you catching you off guard.