Unknown Intentions

Chapter seven

Naruto took the sleeping Nara off the bed and placed him in the sling before leaving the room so Gaara could dress. It was strange that he chose going to a doctor instead of asking his sister to take over for a day, but he wouldn't argue. A hand grazed his shoulder and Naruto looked up into Gaara's teal eyes.
"Let's go."
Naruto nodded, following behind the redhead as he walked out into the afternoon air. Stopping to slip on their shoes and lock the door, the pair made their way through the village. They passed by houses, as Gaara was leading the blonde a way he'd never been before. Winding through roads at an easy pace, Naruto found they reached the medical building in less than ten minutes.
"This is it." Gaara said, ushering Naruto in ahead of him. The blonde allowed this and walked into the building.

The man at the counter had a doctor with Gaara as soon as the leader had walked in the door.
"Kazekage-sama, this way please."
A female nurse was, rather rudely, pulling Gaara into a room where a man in a white coat sat. Naruto automatically assumed it was the doctor, in which it was. He greeted them before asking Gaara to sit on his exam table.
"Usually, I would ask you to leave, but the Kazekage has requested you stay so I will allow it."
Naruto looked at the doctor, then back at Gaara who nodded toward a chair in the corner. The blonde sat, watching carefully. First, the doctor looked over a chart that a nurse had handed him, then started asking about why Gaara was here.
"According to your chart, Kazekage-sama, you are perfectly healthy. What brought you in today?"
"He passed out in the bath." Naruto answered quickly, shrinking a little when Gaara glared. The doctor nodded, and turned back to the leader.
"Okay, and do you have any idea why this happened?"
Gaara shook his head.
"No, I have no idea why this has happened." He answered.

Naruto was sitting in the hallway, listening carefully to all that was being done in the hospital room Gaara was currently residing in. From what he could hear, it was merely a standard check up, but one could never be too sure. After all, he had been kicked out after the doctor said he could stay! The blonde listened harder to muffled voices behind the door;
"Hold out your arm."
A shuffling noise, followed by footsteps, and Naruto assumed that the doctor had either given Gaara a shot or took blood because he felt the powerful ninja's chakra ignite. Naruto was ready to burst into the room as he felt the chakra diminish slightly before resuming its normal level. Naruto relaxed, realizing that Nara was still on his back. He slung the boy around to the front and met with a pair of bright blue eyes. Nara giggled as Naruto lifted him out of the sling and set him on the floor. The baby sat a moment before crawling to the door leading to Gaara's room. Naruto grabbed the little boy and pulled him away, placing him on the floor in front of him. Nara pouted, and started toward the door again. Naruto pulled him back. Now the realization that his father wasn't going to let him go see his other father, the boy started to cry. Quietly at first, then much louder when the orange ninja tried to calm him.

Gaara looked toward the door when he heard Nara crying, and a feeling he didn't recognize creeped into his chest. He needed to get out there, but he didn't know why. Ignoring the protests of the doctor still poking and prodding at him, Gaara swiftly strode to the door and opened it. Sitting outside was Naruto, trying desperately to calm down a very distraught Nara.
"Naruto, what happened?" Gaara demanded, worry clear in his voice. Two pairs of blue eyes turned to his green, and suddenly he couldn't suppress the smile touching his lips. Everyone in the hall froze and stared as Gaara lifted the infant ever so gently into his arms and cradled him to his chest before reaching out his hand for Naruto. The blonde, momentarily stunned by the sight of something he thought he would never see, quickly recovered and took the outstretched hand. Gaara then turned to the doctor, who was also stunned by the smile still lingering in his eyes;
"I'm afraid we're done. You have no reason to examine me further, I no longer have the Shukaku in me."
The doctor was suddenly hard toward the redhead, upon knowing that he knew why he had kept him longer and made Naruto leave.
"Indeed." Was all the man said as he handed the Kazekage a note ripped from a pad on his desk.

Gaara opened the door to his, and now Naruto and Nara's, home.
"What does it say Gaara?" Naruto asked, following behind the shorter boy. Gaara handed him the paper, and Naruto scanned it quickly.
"Kazekage Sabaku no Gaara is to remain out of his office for the next week, he is suffering from stress and needs a break."
Gaara listened to the younger boys voice as he read, it was soothing in a way, and now the redhead had an entire week to enjoy it. It was a pleasant idea to him; he had never had a week to do nothing. Usually he would train on his days off, and nights were always passed by while he tried to sleep.
"Gaara…"
The older boy looked up.
"Have you ever been to a hot spring?"
This surprised Gaara.
"Yes I have, although it was a long while ago."
Naruto was suddenly all smiles, and Gaara had to think that he was planning something. For now though, he would let it go. It had been a long day, and for once Gaara though he wouldn't have any problems falling asleep.

The next day found Gaara waking up as the center of a 'Gaara sandwich,' so to speak. He was lying on his side, while Naruto cuddled him to his chest with his arms wrapped around his chest. Gaara himself held Nara to his chest. It was slightly awkward to Gaara, he had never shared his bed with anything other than a teddy bear, and now he had his best friend using him as one. Although he slightly enjoyed it, Naruto's body was warm, and it wasn't as though it was uncommon for two men to sleep next to each other on missions… and now that he thought about it, he knew other shinobi who had married the same gender as each other. Baki, his mentor, had a relationship with a shinobi in his squad, and even the copy ninja Hatake Kakashi had a crush on the ninja teacher Iruka. Gaara remembered this as Naruto had told him once that he caught the two kissing in a janitorial closet. Naruto stirred behind him, waking Gaara from his thoughts.
"Gaara…?" A sleepy question came from the blonde as he slid his arms away and sat up. Gaara followed suit and sat as well.
"I'm so sorry Gaara! I didn't realize I was… cuddling you." Naruto said, a pink blush covered his cheeks and nose.
"It is fine." Gaara responded, brushing a few stray hairs from Nara's face as he slept. Naruto on the other hand was scratching at the whiskers on his right cheek with his index finger.
"Strange. I've slept right next to Sasuke like that before, but I've never woken up cuddling him…" Naruto mused. Gaara frowned, Naruto slept that close to the Uchiha? For some reason, he didn't like the idea of that.
"Oh! Gaara! Get dressed!" Naruto nearly shouted, apparently forgetting Gaara was right next to him. With a glare, Gaara obliged, changing into his red pants and coat, strapping the gourd on with the breastplate lastly. Naruto nodded, then stood and dressed himself.

Later that morning, after eating, Gaara was being drug halfway across the village, and even out of Sunagakure. Needless to say, he was curious as to where Naruto was taking him, but he stayed quiet and followed. Even in the morning sun, the desert was blazing hot, and the hand Naruto was using to drag Gaara along was starting to get sweaty.
"There you two are!"
Gaara looked up, and saw Temari, Kankuro, and Sakura standing in front of a lonely building. All around it was nothing but sand and rocks. The redhead frowned. Rocks weren't a common occurrence in this part of the desert, yet here they were surrounding them.
"Are you coming Gaara?" Naruto asked quietly, his hand was still holding Gaara's. Reluctantly, the blonde let the other boys hand drop. Gaara nodded, following behind the rest of the group inside.

"Are you sure you want to leave him with us?" Sakura asked as Naruto handed Nara to her. He nodded.
"I think he would be better off spending some time with someone other than me and Gaara."
Gaara watched as his sister conversed with the woman at the front of the room. It turned out that Naruto had taken him to a hot spring. Apparently, it was just going to be Naruto, Nara and Gaara, but when Naruto had told Temari, she insisted her and Kankuro came and left Baki in charge. Sakura on the other hand, was not invited. It turns out she was following Naruto, and decided to invite herself by following his siblings and making it look like it was an accident. She most likely did it to keep an eye on Naruto, he realized bitterly.
"Come on Gaara! Let's take a bath Temari and Sakura agreed to take Nara with them!" Naruto cried, taking Gaara's hand and dragging him down a hallway and into the changing room. Gaara followed, folding his clothes neatly and setting them in a basket while Naruto merely tossed his into the one next to it. Quickly wrapping a towel around his waist, Gaara followed Naruto out to the bath and into the water. It was warm and the red head found himself already relaxed once he was fully into the water. He chose a place in the far back near a corner and settled into a comfortable position. He was glad Naruto had taken him here.