FicWad

Fairly AU after Gaara's abduction by Akatsuki, many of the things from the manga are the same, some are not. For one, Gaara still has Shukaku.



Part One: A Leaf in the Wind



It was after midnight, and the waxing moon bathed the sleeping village of Sunagakure in its pale, eerie radiance. The scene was peaceful, the windless night was scented with the sharp, mineral smells of the desert, most of the residents of the village were asleep, and the night patrols watched over the village and the hostile sands beyond, alert for any danger to the citizens of the town. Another set of eyes watched the slumbering village from atop the central building of Suna, vigilant for any disturbance or problems within the village. But nothing disturbed the peace of the night, save the distant noises of the desert creatures, and the more immediate noises of nighttime Sunagakure: buildings settling, the scuffle of some cats, the keening of bats on the hunt.

The Kazekage surveyed his domain, his village, with a sort of grim satisfaction. This was his. The people were his. Safe in their beds, or on night duty patrol, they were his, and he would protect them. Since Akatsuki's attack and his subsequent rescue and recovery, Gaara had trained daily, nightly, hourly, when his duties as Kazekage did not otherwise command his attention. The result was satisfactory, things that had required so much concentration and chakra expenditure even six months ago, he could now accomplish more economically, without having to rely so much on Shukaku's massive Chakra. He also had a number of new jutsu he was perfecting in his spare time. Gaara was practical by nature, he had barely escaped Shukaku's extraction with the help of Konoha's forces, but should he be faced with a similar situation again, the loss of Shukaku should not affect his ability to protect his people. Nothing could be allowed to interfere with his ability to protect his meaning for existence.

Gaara called back the sand eye that patrolled the village streets, satisfied, for the moment, that his domain was safe and intact. He turned back from the edge of the roof, entering the government building at a crisp walk: he rarely wasted chakra with his sand transportation these days, save where it was useful in battle. Walking through the darkened compound was peaceful in its own way, solitary and solid, the only creatures in the complex were the Kazekage, the night guards, and those few clerks whose duties kept them alert and in action at all hours. Most of the latter were dozing at their desks, things had been calm for a few months now. With the final eradication of Akatsuki, and the complete lack of movement on Orochimaru's part for months before that, business had been mainly B ranked missions and lower with only the occasional A and S rank cropping up.

A part of Gaara was restless at the lack of action, the rest of him was perfectly content to let things remain peaceful, excitement, no matter how much it still thrilled a part of him, was contrary to his goal, his existence was confirmed by the protection of the people of Suna, and when things got exciting that endangered them. Better to be restless; even peacetime wasn't boring. After all, the running of a ninja village was a complex affair, made even more interesting by politics between ninja families, and from outside the village.

Gaara stopped outside the door to his office, eyes narrowed to slits. The door was partially open, he had left it closed. His own staff would not enter the officer if he did not answer a knock, they would instead slip a note under the door, and his siblings would have come to him on the roof. He hadn't felt any unfamiliar chakra, and the guards had not raised any alarm, nor had they given any of the telling signs of a genjutsu control when he had passed them in the hall on his way down from the roof. That left Gaara with two conclusions: whoever had broken into Gaara's office was very good, and therefore likely dangerous, and they wanted Gaara to know they had been there.

The cork in the gourd at Gaara's back made barely a sound as it popped out, falling gently into Gaara's waiting palm. The sand made a faint "shhaaaa" as it slithered from the gourd to float in fine grains around the Kazekage. Pocketing the cork, Gaara stepped into his office as calmly as if intruders wandered into the most secure building in Sunagakure every day. At least his face was outwardly impassive, his mind was ticking over the potential implications of this: he kept no classified documents in his office when he wasn't reviewing them, those were confined to more secure, jutsu sealed portions of the building, someone after secrets who was good enough to sneak into the building would have done their homework at least that far, so whatever the reasons behind the intrusion, the target was likely himself. Assassination was unlikely, an assassin would be smart enough to close the door, anything that put a target on the alert would be a stupid risk, but then what was intention?

Gaara did not have to ponder the implications long, there at his desk, sitting profile to the window was the culprit, skin deathly pale with only the moonlight to illuminate it, blood red eyes only adding an aura of the demonic to the man in the Kazekage's chair. Along suppressed part of Gaara hissed expectantly, prey!

Ignoring the bloody thrill clawing at his spine, Gaara quickly narrowed his eyes; surprise was not something he wished to reveal to this particular person.

"Uchiha." Gaara's voice grated like sandpaper over the silence as those bloody eyes fixed on him, never leaving his face.

"Yes."

"Why are you here?"

"I wanted to talk to you."

Gaara folded his arms, taken aback by that for a moment, though nothing showed on his face but his usual cold expression. What could-/prey-/a missing ninja from Konoha possibly want to talk to him about?

"Then talk." Gaara's voice was cold, a degree more hostile then his usual neutral monotone.

The intruder, Gaara stubbornly ignored the continued insistence of his instincts that the Uchiha was prey, leaned back in the Kazekage's chair, turning his dangerous eyes away from Gaara, out the window to the sleeping moonlit village. It was a strange move; almost, but not entirely, submissive. His bloodier instincts almost snarled in triumph, gloating that this was the act of prey. The part of Gaara that was the Kazekage interpreted it differently. The eyes were still red as blood, still extremely dangerous, a weapon loaded and ready, but now this weapon was no longer pointed directly at Gaara. It was, if anything, an attempt at a peaceful gesture. It failed to make Gaara relax, if that had been the intention, but it did add another level of intrigue to the meeting.

The silence stretched as Gaara watched the Uchiha's profile, nothing was revealed in that marble face, it was as unreadable as Gaara's own mask of sand. Though Gaara was not practiced at social nuances, he was incredibly versed in the language of threats and fear, nothing in the Uchiha's posture indicated fear, and his early movement, turning his eyes away, was exactly the opposite of a threat. All confidence then. Gaara wasn't surprised at that, this was the man that had been the first to really make him bleed, whatever had transpired after that event, he was certain they were both much stronger.

"I want to ask for sanctuary here."The words seemed to come out of nowhere, so gently spoken that the silence nearly swallowed them. Gaara didn't respond. "I know Sunagakure has taken missing ninjas from other villages as part of their forces in the past. In terms of strength, I would be an incredible asset to this village." Uchiha Sasuke paused, lips tightening almost imperceptibly. "I would take the necessary loyalty trials, probation, whatever the requirements of course. However I will not reveal my bloodline secret, nor move against Konoha."

"Why?"

"Even though I was the one to leave, Konoha is still-"

"Not that." Gaara scowled. "Don't play stupid with me. Why here? Konohagure would take you back if you asked."

Sasuke shrugged, still not looking at Gaara, eyes still red. "That doesn't concern you. My reasons for wishing to become a part of Suna and not return to Konoha are no danger to your village."

Gaara walked forward, expressionless, to stand in front of his own desk, facing Sasuke, who faced away. "I will be the judge of what endangers my village." His voice was icy.

Sasuke raised a shoulder in a half shrug, so casual and relaxed seeming, but Gaara could read the coiled tension in his shoulders now, this close. "My reasons are personal." Sasuke's voice was equally cold. "Personal and nothing to do with Suna."

Gaara lifted his chin, regarding Sasuke expressionlessly. "You wish me to take on a missing ninja who /could/return to his village, if he chose, and whose acceptance here might very well endanger Suna's relationship with that village, on nothing more then that? At the very least taking you in instead of apprehending you and sending you to Konoha for judgment would be a breach of our alliance. Do you still say Suna has nothing to do with your reasons?"

Sasuke actually frowned, darting aglare at Gaara before quickly turning those threatening eyes away. "I have finished my goals, the ones I left Konoha for. However much some in Konoha may be willing to accept me, others will not. It would easier to settle in a new village where everyone suspects you openly, then put up with being quietly suspected where you were once welcome."

Gaara felt the very strong urge to do something incredibly violent and possibly terminal to the Uchiha. "Do not lie to me." His control over his voice didn't crack, but sand hissed and skittered like agitated wasps around him. His eyes narrowed to the smallest slits. "If you were so weak Naruto wouldn't have been so attached to you. Your village wouldn't still want you back after all this time. Do not take me for adrooling idiot. Explain yourself. Now."

Sasuke's look this time was completely neutral, despite the chilling affect of his eyes. He was weighing Gaara, sizing up the Kazekage's control, the way the sand shifted, the lack of expression, the stance, probably everything Gaara had said to that point as well, Gaara could recognize a measuring look when he saw it.

"You're different." The Uchiha's voice this time was more like what Gaara remembered, cold, with an edge that could cut. Gaara didn't deign to reply, and Sasuke continued. "I do have reasons to wish to become a part of Suna for now; they shouldn't endanger your people." Sasuke leaned back in the Kazekage's chair, eyes still fixed on Gaara's face, though not attempting to make eye contact, still not trying to threaten, though his very posture had shifted slightly, less tense, but at the same time much more dangerous, the Uchiha himself was a threat, coiled and deadly as a snake. Gaara's less civilized instincts growled with excitement, the prey had become infinitely more interesting. The rest of Gaara just wanted this dangerous and unpredictable creature out of his village, Konoha was mad for wanting him back. Perhaps as mad as the people of Suna, with their monster of a leader.

"And those are?" Gaara had already half decided to send the Uchiha out of the village-since attempting to imprison him would probably prove fruitless-post extra patrols (not that he was confident that would do much if Sasuke wished to return, the Uchiha had already proved he could waltz into the village easily), and send a dispatch to the fifth Hokage informing her of the incident. But curiosity and prudence demanded he at least attempt to extract the purpose behind this visit.

Sasuke made the silence before his answer seem more like consideration then hesitation. When he did speak he leaned forward, eyes turning black as coal and meeting Gaara's pale gaze head on. "There's a very dangerous man in Wind Country, I've tailed him here to Sunagakure several times, he doesn't know I'm on his trail. If I show up as arecruit to Suna, it will cause comment, but not as much as if I were just here visiting." Another considering silence. "He's a lord of the Daimyo's court, but his ties to the criminal underground are incredible, I could have killed him along time ago, but I want his organization. With the legitimacy of being an official ninja of Wind country, I will have much more freedom to gather the information I need to destroy him."

"And this isn't dangerous to Sunagakure in the least." Gaara's grasp on sarcasm had gotten rather more pronounced in the last four years.

"It's less dangerous then leaving this man unchecked." Sasuke's expression was still cold, but the edge in his voice was distinctly sharper. "Among other things, he helped fund Akatsuki." If Sasuke expected Gaara to jump at that one, he'd have to be disappointed. "I suspect he has contacts and spies here, important ones, for him to visit as often as he does. I'm not sure what he's up to now, but that's why I'm here. If he shared Akatsuki's goals even a bit, and he must have, to have funded them, then Suna is still a good place to stir up trouble, especially since it's been proven the Kazekage can be taken down."

Gaara's scowl could have melted the desert sands into glass, but Sasuke just met his gaze. "Does this man have aname?" Gaara asked finally, though he already suspected he knew who Sasuke meant, and he really did not want the headache all this was going to cause. That annoying, vicious whisper in the back of his head was already salivating with excitement at the prospect.

"Lord Shin Kadu." Sasuke replied, completely neutral.

If Gaara had been more like his brother, he'd have cursed the air blue at that point, instead he met Sasuke's level gaze with a slightly bad tempered glare. Shin Kadu was an extremely powerful, wealthy man of the Daimyo's court. Not only was he influential in Wind, but he had several important friends among the other countries as well. He himself wasn't a fighter, but he employed powerful body guards, and as enemies went Sasuke could not have dropped a worse one, politically, in Gaara's lap unless he'd discovered the Daimyo himself plotting the downfall of the Hidden Sand.

"Your Hokage is going to give me an earful." Gaara never whined, but he didn't have to be happy with the situation either. "Get out of my chair, I need to write her a dispatch."

Sasuke's eyes widened, as much expression as Gaara was likely to get, aside from the earlier playacting. "You can't tell her, the less people know the real reason I'm here, the less likely Shin's spies will pick it up. I'm sure he has spies there as well, and dispatches-"

Gaara cut him off with a glare. Who did he think he was lecturing? "Dispatches can be intercepted, codes can be deciphered. Besides, if he has as many spies as you think, or at least has bought those in high enough positions it wouldn't matter if I hand delivered aletter or shouted it from the rooftops." Sasuke stood as Gaara rounded the desk, giving way to the Kazekage. "Turn on the lights." Gaara ordered absently, finding paper and ink by the moonlight. Sasuke obeyed, surprisingly enough, and came back to watch Gaara as the Kazekage began his letter. "I am telling your Hokage that I have accepted your request to become a ninja of Suna, and you are now under my command, and no longer a concern of Konoha. We'll tell Temari and Kankuro the truth. You're still officially a Genin? We'll need to remedy that, but for now you can bunk in the Jounin bachelor barracks. You'll need freedom to pursue this matter, so we'll work out missions and possible teams tomorrow. Tonight, you will tell me everything you know." Gaara finished his letter to Tsunade and looked up at Sasuke, the man was watching him impassively, still standing. It might have been the lighting, but for a moment Gaara almost saw afamiliar predatory glint in the Uchiha's eyes, the sort of gaze of a snake waiting to strike.



Reviews are always appreciated and help my muse. I have no beta for this fic so if you notice typos, errors, or inconsistencies of any sort, feel free to point them out, I appreciate it!