Naruto Fan Fiction ❯ Flowers in the Sand ❯ Chapter 13

Huggies to Magby! -wink-

 

Chapter 13

 

Neji opened his eyes slowly, blinking almost hesitantly. His fuzzy vision could see a figure hovering over him. Safaia?

 

“Neji? You're awake! I was starting to think you were going to sleep all week.”

 

His vision gradually focused and he blinked more confidently now. “Tenten? Wh-… what are you… doing here?” His voice sounded rough, unused. “I thought… you were on… a mission… with Gui and Lee…”

 

The young woman gave him a familiar smile. “You know how those two get. They had to get things finished and get back here in record time, as usual.”

 

Neji managed a wry expression. “Bakas… They'll never change.” He winced in pain. “How long have I been asleep?”

 

Tenten sat down in the chair next to the bed. “They brought you in here about three days ago, I was told. I got here yesterday.”

 

Three days ago… He sat up, mindless of his healing injuries, a look of tragedy on his face. “Safaia!”

 

His long-time teammate blinked at him. “Safaia? Who is that?”

 

Neji winced again, clutching at his bandaged shoulder. Looks like most of my body is in bandages… those bastards…how did they beat my Byakkugan? They were unnatural… “She is a Jinchuriki… she bears the Five-tails.”

 

Tenten tilted her twin-bunned head to the side curiously. “The Five-tails?” She leaned forward. “I think you need to tell me everything, from the beginning.”

 

For the next hour or so, Neji managed to relate the tale of Safaia's discovery, rescue, and twice-attempted abduction, ending with his failure to protect her from the Hidden Mist shinobi.

 

“It's my fault. I was so focused on trying to court her, I didn't notice them until they had attacked.” Neji gripped his bed sheets in apparent self-anger.

 

Tenten was quiet for a moment. “You're courting her?” she asked finally. “Does she know this?”

 

He shook his head violently as if trying to shake off his guilty feelings. “I was trying, but she remained polite, distant. I figured it was because she'd been raised without friends or family, with only Gobi to guide her. I thought…” he scowled at the sheets, “because she is blind, and I have the Byakkugan, that we were perfectly matched.”

 

“I see.”

 

Neji lifted his white eyes to Tenten's brown ones. “I have to get out of here,” he told her, nearly pleading. “I have to find her and atone for my failure to protect her.”

 

Tenten narrowed her eyes. “Absolutely not. If you left the hospital now, in your condition, you'd be killed. You are staying here until you heal, and that's that.”

 

A knock sounded at the door and they both looked over to see Naruto poking his spiky blonde head in. “Wakey wakey, Neji. How you feeling?”

 

Neji almost snorted. Almost. “Like I've been hit with a dozen or so shuriken.”

 

Naruto chuckled. “That's about right.” He stepped into the room and held his hands behind his head. “Just wanted to see if you were awake yet.”

 

“I need to get out of here,” Neji informed his Hokage. “I need to go after Safaia and rescue her from those Mist ninjas.”

 

“Oh? Didn't Tenten tell you?” Naruto looked puzzled.

 

Tenten scowled. “Tell him what?”

 

“I must've forgot to tell her. Anyways,” he continued cheerfully, “Kiba, Shino, Sasuke and Gaara followed after Safaia and brought her back here. There was no trace of the ninjas that took her, but she's okay. She's being treated right now by Old Lady Tsunade, so she should be waking up soon.”

 

Tenten's scowl disappeared, to be replaced by shock. “Sasuke? And Gaara?”

 

Naruto gave her one of his famous toothy grins. “Yup. Sasuke finally decided to come out of hiding and start living again.”

 

She heaved a sigh of relief. “That's great news! I was really starting to worry that he'd never recover.”

 

“Safaia,” Neji whispered hoarsely. “She's okay?”

 

Naruto shrugged. “She doesn't seem to have any injuries- but Old Lady Tsunade said something about her seal being more difficult or something like that.” He wrinkled his nose. “I try not to listen to anything that old hag says.”

 

“Who's an old hag?!” a deep and extremely threatening voice roared behind him. He swung around to be confronted face-to-face with Tsunade. She glared up at him, promising a lingering, painful death.

 

Naruto panicked. “Ehh… uhhh… I, uh… I think I… hear Sakura calling me. Yeah…” He ducked around the fuming woman and ran out of the room as if the hounds of hell were on his heels.

 

Tsunade snorted. “Baka,” she growled. “I seriously doubt that little punk ever really grew up.”

 

Neji cleared his throat softly. “Um… Tsunade, ma'am?”

 

Her gaze flicked to him and softened a bit. “Good to see you awake, Neji. But you need to lay down- your injuries aren't healed yet.”

 

“I need to see Safaia,” he protested as Tenten gently pushed him back down. “I need to make sure she's okay.”

 

Tsunade paused for a few moments, looking at him intently. Her eyes moved to Tenten briefly before returning to his face. She closed her eyes and sighed. “I will take you to her,” she said, “but only for a few minutes. She'll be waking up soon and I'm guessing you would want to be there.”

 

Neji inclined his head. “Thank you, Tsunade, ma'am.”

 

---------------------------

 

“I don't see why Old Lady Tsunade isn't saying anything,” Naruto grumbled. “Sakura's keeping silent too. What is going on?”

 

Gaara regarded his best friend from his stance next to the bed near the unconscious Safaia's head. “I assume that they will tell us soon,” he said logically. “Otherwise, why would they have asked both of us to stay here?”

 

Sakura poked her head in. “Tsunade-sensei is on her way,” she informed them, “then we'll see if Safaia is ready to wake up.”

 

Naruto looked confused. “You're going to force her awake?”

 

His wife smiled. “No… she woke up briefly while we were attending to her, and we had to put her back to sleep so we could finish. The effects of the sleep-drug should be wearing off any minute now.”

 

Gaara turned his gaze back to the lovely woman in the bed that filled his every waking thought. So many emotions he was unused to feeling were swimming through him now: worry, nervousness, concern, a trace of fear, uncertainty, and something else he was afraid to name. Naruto's words came back to him. “Oh ho HO!” Naruto chortled with glee. “I can't believe it! My stoic, detached, frigid, too-cool-for-bothersome-emotions best friend is in love!”

 

Love? Gaara mentally startled at the word. For so long I wanted to prove I could love another person, to show I was needed as more than just a weapon, to have people see me as more than just a monster. And Safaia… she is the same as me. She does not see me as a monster. Could I… could I… love her? Could she… love me?

 

Tsunade knocked gently before pushing a wheelchair into the room ahead of her. Gaara's eyes narrowed slightly as he saw a very bandaged-up Neji sitting in the wheelchair. Neji, however, only had eyes for the woman in the bed. Safaia…

 

Sakura exchanged a nod with her teacher and walked over to Neji's side, letting Tsunade move to Safaia's bedside. She pushed the white-eyed man closer, so that he was almost as close as Gaara and Tsunade.

 

Naruto frowned. “What's going on?” he whispered to his wife as she resumed her place by his side. She didn't say anything.

 

Tsunade lifted her hand from where it had been resting on Safaia's brow. Everyone held their breath as Safaia made soft moaning and whimpering sounds, as if her sleep had been disrupted. Her eyes closed, she stretched cautiously. She frowned slightly.

 

Struggling a bit, she sat up with Tsunade's assistance. She sniffed lightly. “Why… why can't I smell anything?” she asked softly. “Why can't I hear?”

 

“Safaia?” Tsunade leaned down next to the woman's ear and spoke clearly. “You should be able to hear just fine- just not as acute as you used to.”

 

“Why?”

 

Wishing she could postpone the inevitable, Tsunade sighed. “Gobi… has been sealed by those that kidnapped you. We are… unable to release the seal to the point where you co-existed with her before.” She rested a hand on the girl's shoulder. “Your senses are now back to a normal human's.”

 

Safaia's head jerked back, her body trembling slightly in fear and disbelief. Her eyes squinted shut, she shook her head back and forth in denial. “No… no, you're lying. I… I can't live without Gobi…” But her voice held the proof- she could no longer sense or talk with the Five-tails.

 

Tears filled her tightly shut eyes and cascaded rapidly down her cheeks. “No… why? Why did this happen?” She sniffed. “If Konoha had just left me and Gobi where we were… we were safe in Grass Country…”

 

“The ninjas that kidnapped you did this,” Tsunade said again, ignoring the looks of restrained concern from both Neji and Gaara. “If Konoha's shinobi had not rescued you from your home in the Grass Country, these ninjas still would have found you- and we would not have been around to save you.”

 

Tears continued to fall in the silence. Gaara clenched his fists.

 

Tsunade stopped whatever he was thinking with a simple Look. She turned back to Safaia. “You may have lost Gobi,” she told her, “but you have gained friends. And these friends will help you in any way you need.”

 

“That's right, Safaia,” Sakura added, speaking for the first time. “Naruto, Gaara, and Neji are all here because they are concerned about you. Why don't you open your eyes?”

 

Safaia shook her head slightly. “Didn't Naruto tell you? I'm blind. Even if I open my eyes, it won't matter. Now, with Gobi gone, I can't even use her heightened senses to sense my surroundings. I'm useless… and hopeless.”

 

“Open your eyes, Safaia,” Neji said softly, placing a hand on the bed. “You may not be able to see, but we can, and we want to be able to see your beautiful eyes.” Gaara scowled at the injured man, but did not protest.

 

“Yeah, come on,” Naruto prodded cheerfully. “With your eyes closed, it looks like you're trying to ignore us.”

 

She snorted softly, wiping tears off her cheeks. “Maybe I am.”

 

“Unlikely,” Gaara finally said. He stepped closer and knelt by the side of the bed, gently grasping her nearest hand. “Please,” he said softly, mildly shocking everyone in the room. The Gaara they knew wasn't prone to begging anyone. But there he was, by the bedside, on his knees, begging her to open her eyes.

 

Safaia gave in to the gentle sound of his voice, that voice which always made her feel more at ease with the fate that had been dealt her. Slowly she opened her eyes, not really knowing why she did.

 

She blinked several times, slowly at first. She… she could see! Extremely fuzzy images, but not the total blackness she was so used to! She blinked more, staring in absolute wonder, her jaw slack, as her vision slowly cleared.

 

And saw Gaara for the very first time.

 

Her eyes widened as far as they could go as she gazed at him, taking in every detail that had been visualized in her mind previously when she had run her fingers over his face. His short hair… his almond-shaped eyes… the tattoo above his left eye… he was Gaara- there was no mistaking it.

 

Gaara's own eyes widened slightly as he realized her eyes were darting back and forth as if… as if she could actually see him. Impossible…

 

Tsunade placed a gentle hand on Safaia's shoulder. “Are you okay?” she asked quietly.

 

“I… I can see…” Safaia managed to say, breathless with shock. “I can see you… Gaara…” She lifted her other hand to his face, lightly touching his hair, his cheek.

 

“Safaia?” Neji asked, his voice full of disbelief.

 

She turned to him and blinked some more. It sounded like Neji… long hair… and strange eyes? Was it really Neji? Questions arose. Why were his eyes like that? Why didn't he have markings around his eyes as well? What were the markings on his forehead? She was nearly drowning in confusion.

 

Naruto nudged Sakura. “Did you and that old hag plot this?”

 

The pink-haired woman smiled cheerfully as she replied. “I had thought it might be possible to restore her sight, to see if there was some error that had been made when she was still in the womb. Tsunade-sensei agreed to look into it with me and we discovered that her optical nerves hadn't developed as they should have. We fixed the problem and simply hoped that it would work.”

 

He kissed her. “You never cease to amaze me, woman.”

 

“I would hope not.”