A/N:

A/N: I’ve decided to kill off a character, though which one it will be I still don’t know. At the moment, no one’s safe. Also, check out my new story called “The Minister’s Son”. I’ll make sure to update that one more often since it’s only about 10 pages per chapter.

Small Rant: I hate Quantum Mechanics and its stupid numberless math with all its Greek symbols, and then some!

Disclaimer: Characters are not mine, but the story itself is of my own creation.

Assassin

The Next Day

“Do you understand Naruto?” Juugo asked the blonde.

Naruto barely moved his head in confirmation, but the guard saw it. Juugo nodded his head to him then peered up at his guard for a brief moment before leaving the two alone, and returning to Sasuke’s side as Suigetsu finished going over the plan with him. Yamato’s face had been expressionless giving nothing away. If the guard was upset that they were asking him to place his ward in danger in order to keep their ward safe, he could not tell.

Seeing as the guards were busy talking to their ward on the other side of the room, Yamato took the opportunity to make sure Naruto was okay. At the moment, the blonde was still in shock. If he didn’t sit down soon, his knees were surely going to fail him.

“Naruto, sit down,” Yamato told him, placing a chair next to him.

For a few seconds, Naruto simply blinked up at him in confusion before he recognized the chair and sat down on it. However, as soon as he sat down he was lost in thought again.

Orochimaru had placed a prize on Sasuke’s head.

He was being hunted.

Naruto couldn’t believe what Juugo had told him, but after Yamato conducted his own investigation using his underground connections (which he was shocked his guard even had), he confirmed Juugo’s words.

Underground assassins! For godsake, he never even knew people like that existed. He always thought it was just some Hollywood fantasy—made up, not REAL!

Sasuke was supposed to be released from the hospital that morning and the two of them were supposed to walk out that front door and go to lunch and do all those things that old friends did when they were reunited after a long absence. He was supposed to get his best friend back goddamn it!

He almost screamed in frustration.

Too lost in his own thoughts, Naruto didn’t notice as the Uchiha walked up to him.

“You don’t have to do this,” Sasuke’s soprano voice stated, noting the flash of anger that crossed those sapphire eyes. “Juugo and Suigetsu are more than enough. I don’t know why I let them ask you to help us. It’s not your burden to bear.”

Naruto growled, knowing what Sasuke was doing. He was giving him a gracious way out.

“What do you expect me to say to that Sasuke,” Naruto spat, getting back to his feet so that he was face to face with the other. “Don’t insult me by telling me I don’t have to do this. Of course, I have to. I would never forgive myself if I left you to die at the hands of those bastards.”

“I don’t need your help Uzumaki,” Sasuke snapped back, angry at the blonde’s words. “I can get out of here on my own, and I will not die by the hands of anyone. When I die it will be by my own choice!”

The two glared at each other, neither willing to say more.

“We should get going,” Yamato said, bringing them back to the situation at hand. “If Naruto is seen leaving the hospital so late at night, it may look suspicious. After all, your relationship with him is no secret,” Yamato said, referring to their business relationship, though it might have been something else altogether with the way Naruto’s eyes widen, while the Uchiha immediately found the white walls of his room very interesting. Yamato made a mental note of their reactions, but said nothing on the matter.

Naruto quickly recovered his composure and turned to a similarly composed Uchiha.

“I’ll see you in two days,” he told the other, challenging him to say anything against it. Sasuke turned away from, but didn’t refute his words. Naruto nodded in approval and quickly left the private room with Yamato in tow.

Once Naruto was gone, Sasuke flicked his eyes toward Juugo, eying him carefully. If it wasn’t for Juugo, he would never have found out about the prize Orochimaru had placed on his head until it was too late—much too late. He was extremely fortunate to have such a guard.

Juugo’s connections to the underground world were the best. His family produced the deadliest underground assassins, and thus privy to information before it reached anyone else. So when word spread that Orochimaru had placed a bounty on his ward, Juugo was immediately contacted and warned. Though, they would do nothing more. If Juugo could not adequately protect his own ward, then it was his shame to bear if his ward died on his watch.

Sasuke pushed that thought away, and returned his attention back to Juugo’s other discoveries. Not only had Orochimaru placed a price on his head, he had also placed two similar offers on the most unlikely people.

One was on Kimimaro, a fact that made the Uchiha re-evaluate his opinion of his ex-guard. After carefully reviewing all the facts once more, he came to the same conclusion as Juugo: Kimimaro had saved his life.

If Kimimaro truly meant to kill him, then he would be dead right now. The fact that he wasn’t spoke volumes, and Orochimaru wasn’t deaf. Though, Sasuke never had the guard’s loyalty, it seemed that neither did Orochimaru, and thus, the reason why he had placed a bounty on the white-haired man.

However, it was the second reward that most confused him. Why would Orochimaru place a reward on Hyuuga Neji?

He had been shocked, to say the least, when Juugo informed him. He didn’t know the snake even knew the Hyuuga, let alone have a reason to place a bounty on him, though in Neji’s case, Orochimaru had specifically indicated that he wanted him alive.

Sasuke had informed Naruto of this new development, and the blonde instantly went pale, and immediately decide to warn Neji.

Sasuke sighed. There were too many variables, too many ways for the people around him, especially Naruto, to get hurt. He couldn’t let that happen. Naruto didn’t deserve this.

Running a hand down his face, Sasuke made a decision. As soon as he got out of this mess, he would leave Konoha and all its inhabitants forever.

He would not return again.

2 Days Later

The shrill of the ambulance enveloped the entrance to the hospital. Orders were shouted above the noise and the trained staff responded accordingly.

“What’s the status?”

“Male. Early 20’s. Car accident. Possible concussion,” the paramedic reported to the pink haired nurse as they hurried through the waiting room. The paramedic pushed the stretcher through the corridor and into the E.R. leaving a whirlwind of confusion behind him at his sudden and chaotic entrance. Once the double doors closed behind them, Sakura looked back to make sure they weren’t being followed. To her relief the corridor remained deserted.

She picked up her pace, and caught up to the paramedic as they rounded the corner, and entered a designated room.

As soon the door closed behind them, the patient immediately got up and scrambled out of the stretcher.

“How long do we have?” Naruto asked as he pulled off his clothes and changed into the paramedic uniform Sakura handed him.

“Five minutes,” she answered as she helped Sasuke onto the stretcher. She then grabbed a white sheet from one of the cabinets and placed it over the Uchiha’s body, leaving his face uncovered for the moment.

Naruto felt his pocket vibrate, and he quickly pulled out his phone.

It was Juugo.

The blonde talked on the phone for less than a minute, before hanging up. Three pairs of eyes immediately locked onto him, waiting to hear the news.

Naruto ignored the two near the stretcher, and turned to his guard. “Juugo just reported that the man in the waiting room, the one with the sunglasses, is an assassin. I didn’t get a good look at him when you brought me in, but Juugo confirmed his identity.”

“You should get going then,” the guard told his ward.

Naruto nodded before quickly exiting the room. Yamato stared at the closed door with trepidation. This was the part of the plan he’d been dreading.

He was separated from his ward, and if anyone recognized Naruto as the patient that had entered the E.R. only minutes before, he would instantly fall into suspicion. It also didn’t help that their worst case scenario was coming true.

There was an assassin in the hospital.

The guards had hoped that they would be able to remove Sasuke from the hospital before any assassins entered the health center, but things had not worked out in their favor, and now, he was separated from his ward, while an assassin stalked the hospital.

“Let’s go,” Yamato said, turning to the Uchiha with cold eyes. He was the reason Naruto had placed himself in danger.

Sasuke gave him a curt nod, before pulling the white sheet over his face, and becoming as still as death.

Yamato grabbed the stretcher and within moments was briskly walking out of the E.R. with Sakura at his heels.

The two entered the waiting room once more, and the guard immediately found the man with the sunglasses, though his eyes didn’t linger for long.

“We need to hurry,” he told the pink haired nurse beside him. “The body is already decomposing. We need to get it to the hospital across town, before the organs are no longer suitable for transplant.”

Sakura nodded at him, before they hurried out the hospital doors to the waiting ambulance.

As the two drew closer to the ambulance, two paramedic’s rushed out to help them lift the body into the back of the ambulance. Within moments the stretcher was placed inside, and the ambulance took off with a loud commotion as the driver turned on the trademark noise maker.

Ten minutes later, Naruto (the driver) parked the ambulance near an alley, and jumped outside, where two real paramedics where waiting to take the ambulance back to the hospital.

The blonde tossed one of the paramedics the keys. “Tell, Tsunade that her ambulance needs a better engine,” Naruto told them, already picturing the outrage on her face when they relayed his words to her. Giving the two men a goofy salute, Naruto took off toward the discrete black car where Yamato, Sasuke, and his two guards were already waiting for him.

Three days later (after Sasuke’s Retrieval from the Hospital)

“Why are we still here?” Tobi whined as he walked beside the tall blonde.

“Shut up, Tobi!” Deidara snapped as he walked up to the guard outside the Hyuuga compound.

Ever since the incident with Gaara at the museum, the blonde had fallen into a long depression. He hardly ate, and sleep was all but forgotten in the wave of his grief. His emotions had gone through a roller coaster ride until he finally managed to get them under wraps. Once he could think clearly again, he came to a conclusion: though he still missed Sasori, he couldn’t waste his life mourning him. Sasori wouldn’t want that as Tobi had often pointed out. He needed to move on. Now that the puppeteer was gone, he had to live for both of them. That didn’t mean he was going to forget or stop loving Sasori; he didn’t think he could ever do that but it did mean letting go of his memory enough to love another.

He was ready to live again. However, he couldn’t move on until he made amends with the person he had wronged not long ago.

Even though he was going through his own break-down at the time, it was clearly obvious he had caused Gaara to go through a similar episode.

So, he searched for the red-head, but to his annoyance, he couldn’t find him anywhere. It was as if he didn’t exist outside the museum that housed his art.

His patron, Kakashi, was no help at all and refused to give him Gaara’s address no matter what he offered the man. Deidara was not used to being refused. People usually gave him what he asked and then some—the perks of fame.

So, he turned to public records and searched for the red-head in the news. After all that was where he had first heard of him. However, the few articles about Gaara didn’t mention his address and any family members were never named. The only people associated with the red-head were his patron Kakashi, who Deidara had already termed as a lost cause, and an Uzumaki Naruto.

Apparently the two were in a relationship. A strange thing indeed what with the way the Hyuuga had acted at the museum. Was Gaara stuck in the middle of a love triangle? (1)

Using that angle, Deidara searched for Naruto and was pleasantly surprised at how easy it was to find information on the blonde. But things were never as easy as they seemed.

For the last week, he’d been trying to get an appointment with the infamous heir to no avail. He had even tried going to his home, but he was quickly “asked” to leave by one of his bodyguards. No to be thwarted he sent Tobi to inquire about Naruto’s whereabouts and he too was “asked” (more like threatened) to leave by another bodyguard.

He had been frustrated to say the least. After thinking about the situation, he remembered another person with a connection to the red-head—Hyuuga Neji. He had almost smacked himself for his Tobi-like stupidity.

So, here he was just outside the Hyuuga compound inquiring about the man. Everyone knew of the Hyuuga’s, they were a very old and respected family, so it was rather easy to find the brunette unlike a certain red-head.

With a cheerful smile plastered on his face, Deidara walked up to the guard outside the compound and asked for Hyuuga Neji.

Five minutes later, Deidara was escorted away from the compound as Tobi yelled at the man for his rudeness. Apparently, they weren’t too fond of being asked such a simple question. The guard had immediately drilled him on the reason for his inquiry and had just about—scratch that—had threatened him if he even thought about laying a single finger on the brunette.

Deidara had not taken their rude treatment lying down and had gotten into a verbal spar with one of the guards.

He was immediately turned out of the compound after that incident.

x x x

100 meters away from the entrance to the infamous Hyuuga compound, a man dressed in black slacks and a dark shirt put away his binoculars.

He had seen enough.

It seemed he had lost the element of surprise. The compound was already on high alert if the scene with the blonde was anything to tell by. With a snap of his briefcase, the man left the roof of the building he had been occupying for the last four days.

He quickly made his way to the ground floor and walked in the direction the blonde and his companion had taken. Ten minutes later, he found the two at a small café. He took a seat next to their table and spent the next half hour listening to their conversation.

x x x

After their less than welcoming treatment at the Hyuuga compound, Deidara decided to try Naruto one more time. If he and Gaara really were an item, then the blonde would no doubt visit the red-head soon. Thus, he decided to tail Naruto and let him take him to the red-head. Plan made-up, he called for the check and left soon after. He never noticed the man behind him nor the smirk that crossed his face when he had mentioned Gaara and Neji’s probable relationship.

There was no point in returning to the Hyuuga compound. It was obvious Neji already knew of the danger he was in, and he doubted he could sneak into the compound while it was on high alert. His best option was to kidnap someone that was close to the brunette and since kidnapping a member of the Hyuuga Clan was extremely difficult, this Gaara character was the perfect target. Instead of trying to get into the heavily guarded compound, he would lure Neji out.

With a sinister smile on his face, the assassin asked for the check.

Two days later

Neji watched as the two figures talked near the fireplace in low tones. Though he couldn’t hear them, his keen eyes picked up every subtle gesture, every expression that passed between the two; the aura of affection starkly obvious.

The brunette watched as the blonde leaned in close to the red-head whispering unknown words for Gaara’s ears alone. Neji narrowed his eyes at the gesture, feeling a stab of jealously wash through him as he continued to watch their interactions until he was finally fed up with the two. If he didn’t leave soon, he was sure he’d say something that would only make him lose face in Gaara’s eyes.

Without a word, Neji got up and left the living room, walking up the stairs. He headed for the guest room, and promptly closed the door behind him as soon as he entered.

“Damn it!” he cursed once he was alone, feeling a sick churning in his stomach at the very thought of the two men downstairs. Taking calming breaths, the Hyuuga eventually regained his cool. He knew Gaara didn’t see Naruto in that light, but he couldn’t help thinking if that was a one sided opinion.

x x x

Half an hour later, Gaara walked into the guest room, his eyes immediately trained on the brunette sitting at the oak desk.

Neji lifted his head and regarded the new arrival with watchful eyes.

“What news did he bring?” he asked from his spot, his eyes betraying none of the curiosity he felt.

Gaara walked further into the room and sat down on the edge of the bed so that he was facing the Hyuuga.

“The Uchiha is staying with Naruto until his guards can secure a safe way to transport him to a different location,” he answered him.

Neji nodded at the information.

“Did he say anything else?”

“He spoke with your uncle and informed him of the situation. Hiashi was upset at first, but Naruto convinced him to let you remain here. As far as he could tell, no one knows that you’re here—”

“For the moment,” Neji cut in, staring at Gaara with grim eyes. “They’re trained assassins. I doubt they’ll remain ignorant of my location for long,” the Hyuuga said as he got up.

He looked down at Gaara and spoke with total conviction.

“I have to go. I can’t stay here anymore. I should have left as soon as Naruto told you about the reward.” (2)

When he had first received the news, Neji had been devastated. He didn’t understand why fate hated him so much. Right when he and Gaara were making tremendous progress yet another blow hit him, except this one not only threatened him, but it also put everyone around him at risk and that he would not tolerate. It didn’t take him long to make up his mind after that.

He knew his life was forfeit.

He wouldn’t ruin Gaara’s as well…He would remove himself from the other’s life once and for all.

Neji looked at Gaara with soft eyes. This was it; his time to leave. Without thought, Neji slowly leaned down hoping to take one last kiss from his love, but before his lips could make contact with Gaara’s softer ones, the red-head turned his face to the side so that the Hyuuga’s lips skimmed his cheek instead.

The sharp pain of rejection bloomed inside his chest, but Neji hid it well behind a sincere smile. He straightened back up and turned to leave feeling the weight of the other’s denial with every step.

“Don’t go. . .” Gaara murmured as he stared at the ground, face hidden from view.

Departing steps immediately stopped.

“I mean . . . I don’t want you—”

KNOCK! KNOCK! KNOCK!

The sharp raps immediately shattered fragile moment and teal orbs immediately met pale-lavender in mutual suspicion.

“That’s the door,” Neji said, looking at Gaara with sharp eyes. “Were you expecting anyone today?”

“No. Naruto left half an hour ago. He would have called me if he was returning.”

Neji nodded before going to the window, glad he always kept the blinds shut. He peeped through a small slit and saw a black car outside.

It was empty.

Neji didn’t like the situation. “You stay here,” he told Gaara still looking out the window. “I’ll answer the door,” he said as he turned back to an empty room. Gaara was nowhere to be seen.

“Damn it to Hell!” he cursed.

x x x

Gaara reached the door as another round of raps hit the surface. His door didn’t have a peephole so he couldn’t see who it was, and if he took the time to try and sneak a peek though the curtains, Neji would surely catch up to him.

He couldn’t let the brunette reveal himself.

He was certain that Neji would remain hidden if he opened the door himself knowing full well that they would lose the element of surprise if there was indeed a bounty hunter waiting outside the oak door.

Gaara quickly undid the locks. From the corner of his eye, he saw Neji stare at him with furious eyes before ducking into the kitchen and away from view.

He threw open the door and outside stood a tall blonde and a shorter black-haired man.

“Gaara!” Deidara yelled, enveloping him in a bear hug.

“Sempai, you’re going to suffocate him!” Tobi warned the blonde as he watched in concern.

“Oh, you’re right,” Deidara yelped, quickly putting down a rather shocked red-head.

It took Gaara all of about ten seconds before his shock turned to anger.

“What the Hell are you doing here!” he yelled pissed.

The blonde wasn’t surprised at Gaara’s less than welcoming words; he had already known the red-head wouldn’t be happy to see him after what happened.

Deidara lowered his head and spoke sincerely. “I came to apologize for my actions at our first meeting. I won’t make an excuse for my—”

Gaara slammed the door on his face.

It took Deidara a few shock-filled seconds before he registered what had happened.

“Hey!” he yelled. “I’m trying to apologize here! How dare you shut the door on my face!” he continued as he pounded his fists on the door. “You should be grateful that I even feel the need to say I’m sorry. Now get out here and accept my apology!!”

“Get the Hell off my property!” Gaara yelled back.

“Not until you say you forgive me!”

“The Hell I will! Now get out before I call the police.”

“You wouldn’t dare.”

“Watch me.”

Deidara hadn’t expected the red-head to take this route. Angrily, the blonde let Gaara have this round. He didn’t want to get involved with the police.

“Fine! But I’ll be back!” he yelled. Now that he knew where Gaara lived, he didn’t he could always return. Besides, he knew the fiery red-head wouldn’t accept his apology so easily. He would give Gaara time to think about his words, then return. He could be stubborn and annoying when he needed too.

With a smirk on his face, Deidara left along with Tobi.

x x x

“What was that?” Neji asked Gaara once they heard the car leave.

Gaara glared at him. “How should I know that guy is crazy,” Gaara spat, still angry. “What I want to know is how he found out where I lived!”

“Maybe he got it from Kakashi or one of the newspapers that’s done an article on you?” Neji said, offering an explanation.

“Kakashi knows I’d kill him if he ever gave away my address especially to an obvious stalker like that, and I made sure my address along with my sibling’s names was never published in the media.”

“Well, he could have waited for you to show up at places your known to visit and followed you home, or he could have found someone that’s closely related to you and tailed them until they came to visit you, or asked someone close to you—What?” Neji said, at the questioning look he received from the red-head.

“You sound like you have some experience in this area,” Gaara commented, quirking an eyebrow at him.

“What—no. I would never stalk you!”

“Why so defensive Hyuuga?” Gaara teased. “Tell me, did you ever stalk me?”

Neji’s eyes looked everywhere except at the short male standing in front of him. “I told you, I didn’t stalk you,” he said again. “But I may have inquired about your address when you first moved to Konoha… and I may have volunteered to give Naruto a ride to your house that time his car was in the shop. But that doesn’t mean I was stalking you!”

“Yes it does.”

“Well, what was I suppose to do?!” Neji yelled a bit frustrated. “It wasn’t like you would have told me where you lived, even if I asked you. You barely spoke two words to me for the first few months. Do you know how hard it was to get you to say a complete sentence to me? . . . I just wanted to get to know you better. I didn’t know it back then, but I had already fallen for you,” Neji said coming closer to Gaara. “Nothing’s changed,” he murmured, leaning dangerously close to the other, but refrained from closing the distance between them, clearly remembering the rejection earlier.

Teals eyes looked at him with want and Gaara threw all thoughts out the window as he moved forward to meet Neji’s all too alluring lips.

Knock. Knock. Knock.

Gaara immediately pulled back, turning to the door, heart rate a little scattered.

“I’m going to Kill Him!” Neji gritted out, ready to pummel the blonde for the interruption.

“I’ll do it for you, now get out of sight Hyuuga,” Gaara told him as he tried to calm the frenzy beating of his heart.

Neji did as he was told; cursing all blonde’s the entire time.

Once Neji was out of sight, Gaara narrowed his eyes and turned to the door. The bastard would pay. He finally got the courage to make the first move and the idiot blonde had to ruin the moment.

Without warning, Gaara opened the door. “Didn’t I tell you to—”

The words died in his throat when he registered the gun aimed at his chest.

“Don’t make any sudden moves, or I’ll be forced to shoot you,” the assassin warned. “Now put your hands up in the air and slowly step back inside.”

Gaara did as he was told and slowly stepped back inside. “What do you want?” he asked.

“I’ll be asking the questions here. Now tell me, who else is here?”

“I live alone.”

Before he could register the movement, Gaara was thrown back as the assassin’s fist connected with his left cheek.

“That’s not what I asked you, now was it. I’d appreciate it if you would answer my questions appropriately, or I’ll be forced to discipline you.”

Gaara glared at him from the floor, wiping the small dribble of blood from his mouth. “There’s no one else here except for me,” he spat.

“Now that’s better. Though, I can’t trust your word for obvious reasons,” the assassin pointed out.

“Then what’s the point in asking—”

A combat boot came crashing down on the red-head’s stomach, making him double over in pain as the air rushed out of him at the well-aimed kick.

“You will not talk back to me, am I understood. You will only speak when spoken too. You got that?”

Gaara couldn’t say anything as he was still trying to gulp down precious air.

“Get up.”

Gritting his teeth, Gaara stumbled to his feet, still clutching his stomach with one hand. His eyes filled with fury.

“That’s a good-boy. Now turn around.”

His first instinct was to protest, but he squashed it down and did as he was told. The next thing he knew his hands were being tapped tightly together behind his back. Once the assassin was done, he pushed the red-head forward, making the shorter male stumble into a wooden chair.

“Now sit down,” he ordered.

Gaara sat down on the wooden chair, his eyes glowing in barely concealed rage.

The assassin smirked at him, amused at his display of anger.

“I’m going to tape your legs to the chair now. Don’t do anything stupid, or you will pay,” he warned the shorter male. “After I’m done with you, I’m going to check the house and see if you were telling me the truth before.”

With that being said, the assassin bent down and placed his gun near Gaara’s right leg. He reached for his back pocket and grabbed the same roll of duck tape he had used on the red-head’s hands.

With silent steps, Neji slowly entered the living room, catching Gaara’s eye as he did so. The two exchanged silent words. Gaara would provide a distraction and Neji would take out the guy. The two nodded to each other understanding their roles.

Gaara returned his attention to the man bending down in front of him. He watched as the assassin pulled out a large piece of tape, but before he could tape his leg to the chair, Gaara attacked with his still free legs. He kicked out with his left leg hoping to catch him on the temple, at the same time he used his right leg to kick the gun across the room.

The assassin dodged his left leg, but was unable to grab his gun before Gaara kicked it out of his reach.

“You’re going to pay for that,” he gritted out standing up to deliver a painful blow to Gaara’s sternum, but before he could hit the red-head, he was tackled from behind.

The two figures landed on the floor kicking and punching. Gaara wasted no time and got up from the chair making his way to the kitchen in search for a sharp knife to cut off the tape. He quickly found one, but it was harder cutting off the tape than he first anticipated. In the end, he wound up slicing his wrist, but avoided any arteries.

Hissing in pain, he ripped off a piece of cloth from his shirt and tied it around his bleeding wrist. After he took care of his wound, he ran back into the living room, where the two men were still fighting.

Neji was keeping up with the assassin’s every step, blocking blows, and side-stepping those he couldn’t block. He delivered kicks of his own which were easily dodged or blocked. The two were an even match, and they both knew it. So, when Gaara entered the living room the assassin immediately broke away from Neji and with a speed Gaara had only ever seen Rock Lee produce, was at his side within moments, grabbing him from his bleeding wrist, and pulling him toward him.

The man had been too fast for the red-head to react in time. He tried to struggle out of the man’s grip, but the assassin’s hold on his injured wrists was too painful.

Neji was about to rush the man in an attempt to get Gaara away from him, but before he could make a move, the man produced a knife from out of nowhere, and had its sharp blade on Gaara’s throat before the Hyuuga could blink.

Gaara felt the cold steel press into his soft skin and stayed as still as possible.

It was over.

“You lied to me,” the assassin hissed in his ear, applying pressure on the blade so that the tip sliced through his soft skin. A dot of red blood emerged from the pierced skin, marring the ivory color.

The assassin looked at Neji, watching the turmoil of emotions pass through his eyes as he hurt the red-head in his arms. With a smirk on his face, he addressed the Hyuuga.

“I will kill him if you don’t do as I say,” he told him, and watched as those pearl eyes hardened with anger. He knew he had won. “Now lay down on your stomach with your hands behind your back, and don’t move, or I’ll slit his throat,” he emphasized his threat with another sharp jab at the artist’s delicate neck.

Gaara hissed as he felt the sharp knife pierce his skin once more. Neither cut was deep. It barely pierced his skin, but they were acutely painful.

Neji did as he was told. The assassin nodded in approval, before turning his attention back to the red-head in his arm.

“In what direction did you kick my gun too little one?”

“Like I’d tell you,” Gaara spat, bracing for the blow he was sure to receive for his words. But the blow never came.

“No matter, I can find it easily enough,” the assassin said.

After a few minutes of searching he spotted the item near the front door. He dragged Gaara with him and ordered him to pick it up and hand it to him.

Gaara bent down slowly, feeling the knife on his throat the entire way down. He couldn’t do anything but do as he was told, yet he knew that once the man had the gun in his hand, it would be all over for him and Neji.

The artist’s mind worked overtime trying to figure a way out of this situation, but nothing he thought of had a possibility of working. He needed a distraction. Earlier he had tried talking back to the man, hoping he’d hit him or something and maybe provide a distraction that way, but he assassin did nothing. He knew he had the upper hand, and would do nothing to lose the advantage.

Gaara tried to think of something to do, but nothing came to mind, and all too soon, he was low enough to grab the gun.

“Grab it slowly. Any sudden movements and I slice your throat,” the assassin warned him.

Gaara grabbed the gun with his hand, but before he could start to rise up again, the door slammed open, pushing the assassin forward and making them both crash to the ground, the knife thankfully away from his throat.

“HA! You though I left!” Deidara yelled, making his grand entrance into the Sabaku’s home.

Tobi had forgotten his scarf on Gaara’s porch, so Deidara had decided it was a good as time as any to make good on his promise and annoy the red-head. Wanting to catch the glass artist off guard, he and Tobi had quietly approached the cabin and to Deidara’s immense pleasure, he found the front door slightly ajar.

“Now accept my—Omph”

Deidara’s words were cut off as he was pushed aside by a livid Neji. When Deidara had made his very distracting entrance, Neji had wasted no time and was on his feet within moments.

He got to the assassin and was about to deliver a fatal blow to his unguarded head, when the man twisted aside, bringing the knife with him. He slashed at Neji, only to miss him by a couple of centimeters. Gaara used the opportunity to deliver a few choice blows of his own.

“What’s going on?!” a very confused Deidara asked as he saw the scene unfold itself in front of him.

All three men ignored him.

Neji and the assassin were soon on the floor fighting over the gun the assassin had taken from Gaara.

Gaara turned around to yell at the blonde. “Deidara Get Out of HERE!”

With that he ran to the two men to try and help Neji somehow.

Neji struggled with the assassin as both tried to gain control of the gun.

“Gaara get down!” Neji yelled as soon as he realized what the man was doing. He was using all his strength to aim the gun at Gaara and Neji wasn’t strong enough to stop him.

“GAARA!!”

Neji used all his strength to yank the gun away from his love.

BOOM!

The deafening sound of the gun stopped all movement within the cabin.

“Gaara!” Neji yelled as he looked at the red-head who was covered in too much blood.

Gaara stared at Neji in shock.

“SEMPAI!!” Tobi yelled as he caught Deidara’s falling body, blood pouring from the gunshot wound.

(1) Neji acted like the jealous lover when Dei first met the brunette and now the newspaper is saying that Gaara and Naruto are an item, so Deidara thinks that Gaara might be in the middle of a love triangle. Obviously, there is no such triangle. This is just what Deidara thinks is going on with the information he knows.

(2) After Naruto finished talking to Sasuke in the beginning of the chapter, he immediately tried to warn Neji, but when he asked about him, he was told that he was with Gaara (he was shocked to say the least). So, he informed Hiashi’s about the situation and after convincing him that Neji would be safer with Gaara (since almost no one knew of their connection; they don’t know nothing of Dei role in all this) he immediately contacted Gaara and told him the whole story, which Gaara recounted to Neji afterwards.

Question: Last shot to guess who Deidara will end up with? The answer will be revealed in the next chapter!

So, Deidara was shot, Neji is still struggling for control of the gun and Gaara is a little shocked since the bullet was a little too close for comfort.

In the next chapter, everyone will finally be under the same room where they will plan their next move. This includes, Itachi, Sai and all other key players.

Remember, I’ve decided to kill someone off, who that is I’ve yet to decide.

Thanks for reading. I hoped you liked this chapter.

All reviews are welcome. Thanks. Till next time. ;)