Naruto Fan Fiction ❯ A Matter of State ❯ The Wedding ( Chapter 5 )

Chapter Four:

 

The three day trip to Suna went by smoothly. With the amount of shinobi attending the wedding no one was idiotic enough to actually attack the large group. Tsunade had said her farewells to Ino at the gate - she couldn't leave Konoha vulnerable with her absence. Shikamaru, Choji, her mother and father, Hinata and Neji, Sasuke, Naruto, and Sakura all accompanied Ino on her journey - Anko had been unable to make it as she was out on a mission. Kurenai came as well, in Asuma-sensei's stead and as one of the bridesmaids.

 

The night they arrived in Suna the kunoichi threw a last minute bridal shower for Ino at the hotel, while Kankuro and Naruto hosted a bachelor party of sorts for the Kazekage.

 

Ino was enjoying herself, and relaxed completely for the first time in three days among the company of all her female friends. The journey hadn't been difficult physically, but mentally it had troubled her quite a bit. She was leaving her home and her family, and she was still no closer to the man she was going to marry. She'd barely even caught a glimpse of Gaara during the trip.

“Hey Ino, can we see your wedding dress?” Hinata asked. She had overcome her constant stuttering a few years back.

Ino grinned. Now that was one thing she was excited about. “Nope,” she said. “You're going to have to wait until tomorrow like everyone else.”

She was quite thrilled with her dress; she'd stumbled across it one evening with Temari and Sakura. The only other person to have seen it so far was her mother.

“Aw, Ino, you're no fun,” Kurenai grumbled, her son seated on her lap. “I really wanted to see it.”

“And you will - tomorrow,” Ino said with a slightly devious grin. “Besides, I need something to look forward to tomorrow,” she mumbled to herself.

The other's heard her, or at least caught the gist of it. In hopes of helping Ino relax they moved the conversation away from wedding related topics and gossiped happily about other things while filling themselves with chocolate fondue and fruit.

 

The male shinobi's evening was much more awkward. Unlike the girls, they were not all friends. In fact, some of them didn't get along at all, so it was a fairly quiet affair in Kankuro's living room, with beer and the television turned on to some sparring competition. Naruto spent his time running back and forth between Gaara, the man of the hour, and Sasuke, who didn't really get along with anyone else there. Kankuro remained glued to Gaara's side the whole evening, and Gaara spent the entire time desperately trying to both listen to and ignore the advice that Kankuro was giving him.

 

Back at the hotel, the girl's were winding down for the evening. Although slightly reluctant to broach the subject of Ino's wedding, they had a gift for her.

Temari presented Ino with the beautifully wrapped present. “It's from all of us,” she said with a smile. “Kankuro even came to help pick it out.”

Ino raised an eyebrow, her happy smile gaining a hint of wariness.

“He's got really good taste,” Temari defended, and Sakura, Kurenai, and Hinata backed her up with fervent nods.

Ino gently unwrapped the present, and blushed lightly when she saw what was in the box.

“It's beautiful,” she gasped. She reached in and pulled out a blue silk night dress of sorts. It was modest and covered her well, but looking at the design she could tell that it was fitted and would mold itself to her body perfectly.

The implications of the gift were obvious, but it was a wonderful and thoughtful gift. Truth be told, Ino had been wondering how to approach her first night of married life and what exactly was expected of her, and this night dress was perfect - not too bold and not too shy.

 

After the gift had been admired, the girls turned in for the night. After all, tomorrow was the big day, and they all (especially Ino) needed to be well-rested.

 

*****

 

The following morning found Gaara pacing back and forth in the living room of Kankuro's home. The other guests had gone to wherever they were staying at various points during the night, but Gaara had crashed at his brother's house. It was six o'clock in the morning, which meant that the wedding ceremony was due to start in four hours. Suffice it to say, Gaara was beside himself. Some part of him couldn't help but worry that something would go wrong, or Ino would realize that she'd made some mistake and leave. Maybe the Akatsuki would attack? All Gaara knew was that things never went right for him, and so this, potentially one of the most important days in his life, would probably not be an exception.

Gaara couldn't take it anymore. He hadn't been able to relax at all the previous night. He resolutely stopped his pacing and pounded on his older brother's bedroom door.

An angry Kankuro stumbled out of bed and prepared himself to kill whoever was disrupting his sleep. He was not a morning person. However, the look of complete panic on Gaara's face made him change his mind, and he grudgingly got up to keep his little brother company.

 

The girls, of course, had already been up for over an hour, and were busy with last minute wedding preparations and getting dressed. Ino was locked in her room, having just emerged from the shower and was now drying her hair. Kurenai and Temari, both of whom were already ready, were helping her. Sakura was dealing with any last minute wedding glitches and threatening people left and right to make sure things would go off without a hitch. It was times like this that she really resembled her teacher Tsunade, and people went out of their way to make sure that things would go smoothly so as to avoid her terrifying wrath.

 

*****

 

It was nine forty-five am and everyone was seated, waiting for the ceremony to start. Since this was the wedding of the Kazekage, the designated area (it was an outdoor wedding) was packed. If one looked closely, they could even see a group of Gaara's fangirls seated about half-way back, some whispering maliciously to each other while others were bawling their eyes out.

Everyone was waiting for the ceremony to start, eager to see the bride many of them had never met.

Finally ten o'clock rolled around. The music began and an anxious Gaara was waiting at the altar in his Kazekage robes, his brother standing right behind him and to his side.

The music started to play and the procession of bridesmaids began to slowly make their way down the aisle. Finally, the bride entered.

Ino's golden hair was partly up, with curled tendrils coming down to angelically frame her face. A small tiara was perched on top of her head holding her veil that reached down to her chin in the front and to her waist in the back. Her white dress had a tightly fitted bodice that bared her arms and shoulders, but she wore opera length gloves to accompany it. The skirt of the dress gave the illusion of fullness while swaying and clinging enticingly with her every step. Everyone stared at her in awe; even the fangirls stopped making a racket. Most importantly, Gaara's eyes widened in shock and amazement when he saw her and when their eyes met both their faces flushed a becoming shade of red. Kankuro elbowed his brother in the back to remind him to breathe as Ino continued down the aisle, clutching her bouquet of dark purple and blue flowers that was scattered with hints of red that contrasted beautifully.

When Ino finally reached the altar and was passed off to Gaara by her father after she gave him a quick kiss on the cheek, the ceremony progressed. They exchanged their vows and their rings and were declared man and wife.

“You may now kiss the bride,” the old priest said. The young couple turned to each other nervously and stared for a moment. Ino glanced over Gaara's shoulder into the audience and noticed that the priest's announcement had shocked Gaara's fangirls back into their normal behaviour. Ino hid a grin - she knew how to deal with them. Gaara was her husband now, and while she wasn't quite sure what to make of that she certainly wasn't going to tolerate any obsessed fangirls.

Waiting patiently for Gaara to build up the courage to kiss her, she quickly built up her own courage for what she was about to do. She wanted this anyway, so the fact that those brats could see it was sort of an added bonus.

Gaara hesitatingly drew closer to her and lifted up her veil, his eyes asking her if this was okay. Ino smiled at him and moved in a little closer, encouraging him to go for it. Gaara drew in a deep breath and aimed his lips for hers in what he obviously intended to be a quick peck. It was his first time kissing a girl and he was nervous.

Ino, skilled as she was in this particular area, was prepared for this and when his lips touched hers she pushed herself a little bit closer to him and moved her lips against his in a way that made it next to impossible for him to pull away. She wrapped her arms around his neck to draw him closer, and his eyes slowly fluttered shut as if by their own accord. He still wasn't responding, but he wasn't pulling away either, so Ino pushed herself even more against him and his body finally took control. His hands rested gently against her hips, as if he was afraid he would break her, and his lips began to move with hers. An internally smirking Ino couldn't resist peeking an eye open to look at the fangirls' faces and making sure that they realized that they needed to give up. Fortunately, they got the message, and Ino allowed herself to get lost in the kiss for a moment before gently pulling away.

Gaara, obviously still a little dazed, gazed at Ino with a slightly stunned expression as she smiled at him and then linked her arm through his and began guiding him back down the aisle. Everyone let out a loud cheer before following them.

 

The wedding had been exhausting for the couple, if only because it was so nerve wracking. Unfortunately, the wedding was only the beginning of a very long day. After the ceremony the bridal party had to take the mandatory pictures. Temari had found a nice spot, with a pastoral setting that suited Ino's personality well and softened the harshness of Gaara's. Two hours of posing left them all somewhat cranky and irritable, even Naruto and Ino. The pictures were good, and the ones of Gaara and Ino were slightly amusing to anyone who knew the couple at all well. The photographer had them pose in traditional ways, and seeing the two awkwardly standing in romantic poses had been enough to send some of the observer's (cough, Naruto) into unbridled fits of laugher. Even Sasuke and Neji could be seen hiding grins behind their hands. Well, Ino had managed to pull the poses off fairly well under the circumstances; she was used to that kind of intimacy with strangers. Gaara however was not. He had also put his sand armor back on over his face as soon as the ceremony was over. He had only left it off during the wedding at Kankuro's strict insistence. Gaara probably wouldn't admit it, but he was kind of glad he had listened to his older brother. As a result of the sand, and the fact that Gaara was once again wearing his gourd, it was difficult - even for Ino - to pose naturally around/with him. The one time the photographer had tried to take a kissing shot had resulted in Ino's spluttering and coughing. She was too hesitant around Gaara to ask him to remove it, and the photographer certainly hadn't been about to ask, so he quickly changed his mind about that particular pose.

 

The photography session was followed by the family luncheon. It was now quite late in the afternoon, but this gathering was fairly relaxed. It was a casual event - except for the fact that everyone was in their formal clothes, and was held in the park with picnic tables and a barbecue. Family in this case included all the special guests invited by either Ino or Gaara, since family for ninja definitely includes team mates and those they work with.

After a few hours of relaxation, the `festivities' continued with the formal reception. The wedding party stood in a receiving line for what felt like forever. Ino thought she was going to die, and was thankful for her kunoichi stamina. Most of these people were residents of Sunagakure, and she had never seen them before in her life. She kept casting glances at Gaara out of the corner of her eye, but he seemed completely unfazed and at ease - well as at ease as Gaara ever looks, which isn't really at ease at all, but still. She supposed he must be used to this sort of thing. Personally, if she had one more person exclaim about how pretty she was and how they were such a cute couple she would scream. Sure, it was flattering, but Ino knew they were only saying it because they had absolutely nothing else they could comment on.

 

Gaara was holding an internal debate. Yes, it was his duty to greet all these people, but they just kept on coming! He didn't want to disappoint anybody, but there was only so much he could take, really. It was becoming very flustering. He peeked glances at the blonde woman by his side - his wife, he reminded himself - and she seemed to be enjoying herself. Well, if this was what she wanted he supposed he could keep going...

“This line is never going to end!” Naruto exclaimed loudly from beside Gaara.

“Naruto's right man, time to call it quits,” Kankuro agreed.

“But-” Gaara protested. It was his duty!

Temari appeared beside him and grabbed his shoulder gently. “I know you don't want to disappoint anyone, but the entire population of Suna will run through here if you let them,” she hissed. “I'm exhausted, and so is everyone else. Give us a break here, huh?” she begged.

Oddly enough, the deciding factor was when Ino heard their conversation and looked at him while she waited for his decision. Her masked slipped and her eyes were begging him to end her torture.

“Fine,” Gaara said, leading the way to the head table.

A few stunted speeches - no one was really willing to talk about how they were the perfect couple, and there were no cute stories to share about how they'd met - and the lights dimmed for the dance to begin. Of course, Ino and Gaara opened the dance floor. Ino was quite a skilled dancer - Gaara was not. With his gourd on he was too bulky and he was only vaguely familiar with the steps. Ino's grace was enough to make anyone look good, but it was obvious she was leading him around the dance floor as they waltzed. When the mandatory dance was completed Ino danced the traditional dance with her father, before being passed off to various partners. Unlike at most weddings, her most frequent partner was not Gaara, who had resumed his seat after a dance with Temari that she had forced him into. Gaara did not like dancing, and had sent murderous glares at anyone who approached that looked as though they might be thinking of asking him to dance. He spent the evening watching Ino blossom and relax in the company of her friends. She danced with Sasuke, Naruto, Shikamaru, Choji, Neji and Kankuro multiple times. Kankuro was actually her most frequent partner, and Gaara could tell that his brother was attempting to not make it too obvious that she was not dancing with her husband by keeping her occupied. She didn't come back to the table once during the course of the evening, and Gaara couldn't help but feel a twinge of jealousy and regret. Why did he have to be so awkward around her? Why couldn't they relax and talk and joke like she had no problem doing with anyone else? He didn't love her and she didn't love him, but she was his wife and it hurt that she was so much more comfortable around everyone else - anyone else, really; even the random village boys who begged a dance with the beautiful blonde.

 

As the evening drew to a close, people began leaving. Finally the shinobi were all who remained and they said their farewells to each other. The leaf shinobi actually had to leave early the next morning, as they could only stay absent from Konoha for so long when they weren't on actual missions. After the tearful farewells they all went their separate ways, Ino trailing after Gaara as she realized she had absolutely no idea where her new home was. Temari assured her that Kankuro had dropped her bags off earlier, so all that was left was to follow and see where it was.

It was a modestly sized house, one that could support a family if the two ever felt so inclined. Walking inside and up the stairs after Gaara she found herself in their fairly spacious bedroom. It was a nice room, if a bit spartan. It really did need a woman's touch, she thought to herself with a small smile. Opening up her small purple suitcase, which held all of her immediate essentials, she grabbed the necessary items before standing back up.

“I need to have a shower,” she informed Gaara. He nodded his head in the direction of their bathroom - it was attached to the master bedroom but unobtrusively off to the side - and Ino made her way to it, locking the door behind her out of habit. Quickly jumping into the shower the exhausted kunoichi began washing all the guck out of her hair and her make-up off her face. Her dress was hanging nicely on the back of the door, ready to be packed away. When Ino was able to pull herself away from the relaxing stream of almost boiling water - quicker than usual due to her tired state - she quickly dried herself off and blow-dried her hair before dressing herself in her new nightdress. A nervous glance in the mirror showed her that it fit her even better than she had imagined. The girls had been right, Kankuro did have good taste. Gulping, Ino made sure the bathroom was neat and her stuff stashed properly away before exiting the bathroom and going to her closet - which she idly noted was a walk-in - and hanging the dress. She would finish unpacking tomorrow; right now all she wanted was sleep.

 

Gaara sat on top of the sheets on his half of the king size bed, his back against the headboard. He had some paperwork that he was reading through when Ino had emerged from the bathroom. He hadn't really noticed her, she was holding her wedding dress carefully in front of her and she went straight to her closet (Gaara had left his open, so she knew that it was hers through her amazing deductive skills). It was when she emerged from the closet that she had almost given Gaara a heart attack. That - that nightdress shouldn't be legal, Gaara's thoughts squeaked. He wasn't sure what his objection to it was, but it did funny things to his body and made his face flush a very bright shade of red. He watched her walk to her side of the bed - sway was probably a better word than walk, he mentally amended - and fold back the sheets before slipping in and pulling them up around her.

Turning to look up at him she quietly said “Goodnight” before turning onto her other side and falling asleep.

 

When Gaara finally regained his ability to function he shook himself a little and turned his attention back to his paper work. This was actually the part he dreaded the most about getting married. He had a hard time trusting people, and the only people who he felt comfortable sleeping around were his brother and sister - otherwise he felt too vulnerable. All well, he'd never gotten much sleep anyway, and he always had a lot of work to do.

 

It was much later in the night when his attention was pulled from his work to the woman sleeping next him. She was shivering in her sleep and curled up in a futile attempt to warm herself. She wasn't used to the cold desert nights, Gaara idly noted.

Sighing, he rose from the bed and exited the room, returning a few minutes later with a large wooly looking blanket that he carefully tucked around the sleeping blonde. Her shivering was distracting, he reasoned.