Diamond in the Sand

Secrets...

Soon after the two picked up all the filled containers and headed back to the tower. By the time they had arrived, it was already dark and the violent storm had subsided. What was left was the eerieness of the lone desert void of any movement. Unlike the scorching afternoon, the dark night was cold, enough to make the ninjas shiver. As they entered the building they spotted the black-haired boy resting in his sleeping bag in an oddly perfect poise. 

"Guess we arrived rather late, where is the Team leader?", asked Gaara.

"He must be on the top of the tower on watch", Naruto answered filling in the Sand ninja on what he had missed on prior. 

When Naruto ended explaining he could not find anything else to say and the now normal silence fell upon them once again. 

"...Naruto...." Gaara began, "...about what happened earlier...I-" before Gaara could finish his sentence Yamato's steps could be heard as they glided down the stairs. 

"Great. You guys made it back I was worried something might have happened to you. Anyways did you get the water?" Yamato asked.

"Yes, we were able to gather water", Gaara lifted his hands to show the heavy containers, "Now, please excuse me I believe it's my turn to take over as watch".

Both Yamato and Naruto watched as the ninja walked up the steps onto the roof. When he was out of sight Yamato turned around and asked, " So how did both of you end up soaked". 

Flustered by the question Naruto stumbled on his words "Well...I-I mean we...uh.....f-fell...yeah-yeah...we fell into the water", Naruto cursed himself mentally hoping his teacher wouldn't continue to question him. If his stuttering was not enough of a giveaway the furious blush that hovered over Naruto's cheeks was the cherry on top. 

Thankfully, Captain Yamato was only good are reading battle attacks instead of the emotions of a lonely man.

"Well...I suggest you dry your clothing if you don't want to catch a cold." Yamato warned. Taking his advice Naruto slid off of his jacket and shirt to let them dry, although he could not do much about his wet pants, leaving them on. He saw his team captain entering his own sleeping bag seemingly tired from his duty. If not for his wet pants Naruto would have done the same and slept; however, his current (wet) condition did not allow him. He wanted to at least wait until his pants didn't feel gross so as a result, he found himself sitting next to a wall nodding off trying to not fall asleep. 

An hour passed and the Leaf ninja had been startled awake when he envisioned himself falling in a dream. Groaning and stretching he made his way to the already dried clothes and put them on to relieve the cool temperature. As he made his way into the warm sleeping bag, something in the back of his head reminded him of his sand friend. In his mind, he was arguing with himself attempting to prevent him from seeking out Gaara. 

"No, No, No. Don't do it, he's probably tired, and if I go, I'll irritate him more with my big mouth."  (Voice #1)

"Hehehe...but, you never know this is your chance, Gaara is all alone right now" (Voice #2)

"Chance? A chance for what?  Stupid. Stupid. What are you thinking?" (Voice #1)

"You know exactly what. And why not you have every right to lust after him. I know you want to $#&*% and $&$#&*, make him ^&^#$!* until he #^*#^$#$&." (Voice #2)

Just the thought of soiling Gaara was enough to snap Naruto back into reality. HAHHAHA...Naruto laughed maniacally, he thought he was losing his mind. He must be crazy for thinking about his friend in that manner, but even with such a reaction, he headed towards the roof. It was complicated to comprehend his emotions for his friend, sure he had many relationships with other people but that never exceeded friendship. He never felt such strong feelings towards anyone besides Sasuke. But, in turn, this felt different on a whole other level. Or did it? 

Before he continued his internal tangent, his eyes met a silhouette standing alongside the edge of the roof. Red-hair on pale skin seemingly glowing from the moonlight's shine. Handsome features, that made one wonder how it could fit in that slim face. Certainly, the Kazekage must have many admirers back home, being a strong and robust figure similar to the Uchiha. 

Naruto gulped, trying to swallow his thoughts. As he approached, it became apparent that the Sand-nin was trembling. In a moment Naruto reached for his shoulder feeling the moist fabric under his fingers. Gaara was startled by the sudden touch and quickly turned around to see Naruto. 

"Naruto?", Gaara asked quizzically.

Naruto didn't answer his question and instead said, "You're shivering". Pointing at his still-wet clothes. At the moment, Naruto reached for, his friend's forehead and used the other to feel his own temperature. Gaara's expression finally broke, his mouth parting ever so slightly to show a puzzled look. The simple action was nostalgic, remembering the feeling of Yashamaru's own hands who had taken care of him during his ill-ridden days. Maybe it was the embarrassing memory that made Gaara act rashly and out-of-the-box.

"I'm not cold!", Gaara responded, by slapping away his hand, surprising the other party.

"Ah. I'm sorry, I startled you, but it doesn't look like you have you have a fever", Naruto said trying to hide his disconcerted face. 

"I'm fine Naruto", Gaara responded rather sharply, seemingly gaining his composure again.

"But, even if you're not cold it must feel pretty nasty in wet clothes, so how about I give you my jacket, I dried it up perfectly," Naruto said quickly as to not give away his real intentions. But in his mind, he just wanted to see his friend undress. 

While Gaara in his mind was fighting his own mental battle. He was indeed cold, very cold, but on the other hand, he did not want to give Naruto the benefit of winning even if there was no competition. He cursed himself for being so weak to temperature; however, it was only reasonable as he grew up in the fucking desert where 100 degrees was the norm. Such to show his displeasure he pinched his nose and reached to the unbuckle his vest. 

Naruto seeing this was positively chipper. SUCCESS! He followed suit and unzipped his jacket, sliding it off. It took a couple of minutes until the Kazekage was able to remove the intricate vest and cloak, while Naruto secretly admired the slick movements Gaara made removing the articles of clothing. In a trance, Naruto did not see Gaara reach out his hand asking for his jacket.

In a delayed reaction, Naruto said " Oh, here", handing him the orange jacket. 

As he was putting it on Naruto grumbled realizing the show was over but was met with another grand sight. He would never have imagined the stoic Kazekage looking small; however, in Naruto's large jacket he looked like a small child. The spectacle was amazing and he wished to pocket the memory, never to share this with anyone, and selfishly hide him forever. 

So pretty Naruto thought. 

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WOW, Naruto is Freak-ay. Haha...sorry...but in reality, this gave me second-hand embarrassment to write. Also, I know this update is kind of late, but I'll try to update it more frequently since I have nothing else to do. 

I have also been interested in making new stories for other Naruto characters. So please leave your suggestions. 

Lastly, I was thinking of drawing Naruto/Gaara yaoi. But, I'm not sure if I can in this platform, or if it would be removed for being too "obscene". Anyway, I'd like to hear your opinions. 

Proxi.........out~