Chapter 56

They didn't make it. Hours after they left, the message from Suna came, requesting assistance and informing us that Kankuro had been poisoned and Gaara had been taken. Tsunade sent Team 9 to back them up. 

… 

They ran in silence toward Suna. Sasuke looked over, seeing the look on Naruto's face. "Dobe," he called, "What's wrong?" 

Sakura looked over. "You can tell us." 

Naruto frowned, "It's just… the Akatsuki… they're after Gaara because he's a Jinchuuriki." 

"Jinchuuriki?" Sakura asked quietly, "So… Gaara… he's got a demon inside of him? Just like you?" 

Naruto didn't answer, and they kept running. "Yeah," answered Sasuke, "The One-Tails."

"Yeah… he has the One-Tail, Shukaku, and I… I have the Nine-Tails." 

The other two are silent and Naruto continued to speak, "I used to hate Gaara. I thought he was a monster. But… now I get it. He's just like me. Everyone was afraid of him, and he was always alone." He clenched his fists, "Do you know what it's like to have a monster locked inside you?! Everyone looks at you like you're not even human. Like you're something dangerous… something evil… Like you are the monster." 

Sakura began to tear up, realizing how the other villagers shunned Naruto. 

"I had Rin-nee and you guys, but before that, I didn't have anyone. And Gaara? He didn't really have anyone." Naruto continued to speak, "I understand him. I know how much it hurts to be alone. That's why… I can't let them do this to him. I'm going to save Gaara." He whispered, almost too quietly for them to hear. 

The emotion and sadness in the moment was broken when Sasuke spoke, "Speak up Dobe, I can't hear you." 

Naruto laughed shakily, and Sakura smacked Sasuke on the head, making him yelp. 

They ran for another ten minutes in silence until Sakura began to slow down. "There's someone up ahead," she said. 

As they drew closer, they could make out a figure with blond hair and a large… fan? "Temari!" Naruto called out. 

They landed in the clearing in front of her. "Took you long enough," she muttered, "Come on." 

… 

Finally, they reached Sunakagure and ran towards the buildings. The two shinobi waiting seemed extremely happy that they were finally there. "Temari-sama! Follow us," said one, his head wrapped in cloth that hung down the sides, protecting his face from the harsh sunlight and blowing sand. 

"How is my brother?" asked Temari as they entered the building. 

"His condition… has worsened greatly." 

Temari's eyes widened, worried for her brother's health. "And Chiyo-sama …?"

"She can't seem to figure it out," he replied, "None of the healers can." 

"Let me take a look," said Sakura. She threw off her bag as they entered the room and ran towards Kankuro, who was lying on the examination table. 

"You!" All heads turned as Elder Chiyo charged toward Kakashi, leaping up to attack. 

Sasuke and Naruto ran in front of their sensei, reacting immediately. Sasuke grabbed her fist, stopping the punch. At the same time, Naruto made a shadow clone and aimed a punch at her face. She kicked his shadow clone in the face, and it poofed out of existence. She grabbed his fist and jumped back, putting space between her and the two boys. 

"Hey," said Naruto, "What do you think you're doing? We're here to help you, not fight. Why are you attacking us?" 

"Hatake, Sakumo," she growled, "Konoha's White Fang. How are you alive? You're dead!" She glared at him, ready to strike. 

"Ahhh…" Kakashi let out an embarrassed chuckle, "I'm actually his son…" 

"Don't lie to me," she said, "I may be old, but I'm not blind. You look just like him. Take off your mask." 

"Wait," said the 2nd elder, Ebizo, "Look closer." 

She squinted at Kakashi, who waved sheepishly at her. "Oh, you aren't Sakumo." She started laughing. 

"Agh!".They turned as Kankuro began groaning on the table. Sweat pooled below him, and he was drooling. The purple paint had been washed off his face. He choked, his hands reached for his neck as he tried to breathe. His body spasmed and shook. 

"Kankuro!" Temari called out in alarm. 

"Let me take a look," said Sakura. She pulled her hair up into a ponytail and pulled out a flashlight. "Can I get some space?" 

Kakashi, Naruto, and the Honored Siblings left the room as Temari stood, frozen at the sight of her brother's poisoned state. 

She pulled open his eyelids one at a time, checking his pupil response, then she checked his mouth. 

"Who are you?" asked one of the healers. They were dressed in red, and their hair was covered in white cloth. 

"Haruno, Sakura," she said, "Healer and a student of Tsunade." 

She got back to work, calling things out for the others to write down. Then she was ordering them around. "Could I get a bowl of clean water, no, at least three bowls, a cloth, and some people to help hold him down?" 

They returned quickly with the water. "Hold him down," she said, letting her chakra flow through the water. She lifted it and gently lowered it into his body, looking for the poison and starting with the heart. 

The moment it entered his body, he sat up, screaming in pain. "Hold him down!" she repeated, continuing to force the water in. "I can feel it," she said, then she pulled. 

She could feel the pumping of his heart, how it struggled to keep going. Then she felt the poison and pulled, removing it from the organs and bringing it into the water. Beads of sweat dripped down her forehead as she worked. Kankuro was still writhing beneath them. With her other hand, she pulled out. It came out cleanly, the water, no longer clear, was filled with the poison. It was purple and malicious. She dropped the water unceremoniously back into its bowl. "That was in him?" Temari gasped quietly. 

"Next," said Sakura. 

Someone wiped the sweat on her face, and another handed her the second bowl of water. She continued this methodically, losing track of how many bowls they went through until finally, the poison was cleared from his organs and his body. Or… at least as much as she could handle. "Done!" she declared, "He should be fine now. We can use the poison to find an antidote." 

Baki sighed in relief as Temari stumbled backwards and slid down the wall into a seated position. "Thank Sage," she gasped, "Thank you, Sakura." 

Now, they just had to wait until he woke up. They had no leads on where Gaara could be. Kankuro was the only one who might know something, and he was still unconscious. Sakura worked with the Suna healers to find an antidote. 

"There's a letter for you," a chuunin ran up to Kakashi, "In the message room. The bird won't let any of us touch it." He pointed to the red spots on his forehead and the holes in his sleeve. 

"Show me?" asked Kakashi. He motioned for Naruto and Sasuke to follow. 

The bird flew at them, happily landing on Kakashi's arm and letting him remove the scroll. He tossed it to Naruto. Sasuke promptly caught it and unrolled it. "Hey," whined Naruto, "That's mine." 

"Dobe," he said, reading from the scroll, "Tsunade-sama is sending Team Guy as backup." Then he tossed the scroll to Naruto. 

"Granny's sending backup?" asked Naruto, still having no respect for leadership. "Cool." 

Sasuke rolled his eyes. "Let's go back." 

When they returned, Kankuro was awake. His breathing was shallow and raspy as if every breath hurt. (It probably did). His voice was hoarse when he spoke, "Where's Crow?" 

Baki nodded to the side of his bed. Laid out on a piece of purple fabric, the remains of Kankuro's puppet lay. "There-" he winced, "There's a piece of his fabric in the hand. You can use it to… find Gaara." 

"We'll find him," said Naruto, "I promise."