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gaara has lost many people he has loved in his lifetime.
but he won’t let his wife, sakura, be one of those people.
the day started like any other. gaara was always the first one to wake up between the two of them, having spent his childhood being deprived of sleep because of shukaku. his morning routine consisted of waking up, pressing a gentle kiss on his darling wife’s lips, then he would get ready for the day as the kazekage.
he would then get started on reading multiple scrolls, have meetings with his council, and go back to his personal chambers by lunch time as sakura placed great importance on them eating lunch together, even with their busy schedules.
but today, sakura was nowhere to be found during their lunch time.
maybe she had a sudden meeting at the hospital, gaara thought.
but for some reason, he felt something in his gut. something wasn’t right. gaara trusted his wife, she was the strongest kunoichi he has ever known, he knew she could defend herself at any danger.
but something just felt wrong, so the dignified kazekage walked briskly to the hospital, only to find out sakura hadn't shown up today.
okay, that’s the confirmation that something was wrong. sakura never ever missed a day in the hospital, even when she was sick, or even when gaara told her she didn’t need to work so hard.
he immediately called upon his shinobi, wasting no time in setting things straight, “the kazehime has been kidnapped. scatter around and find her!”
if even a single hair is harmed on his wife, god forbid.
gaara was not afraid to be a mad dog once again if it involved sakura.
their marriage started as a political marriage, a way to secure the alliance between konoha and suna when tsunade was still the hokage, but eventually they found love with each other.
and gaara was utterly crazy about sakura.
everybody knew that. the council never dared to speak a single thing about her, they learned their lesson the hard way when they were almost crushed by sand when they pointed out that sakura had to bear an heir immediately after marriage.
sakura’s birthday was treated like a festival in suna, as during her birthday, there were cherry blossoms scattered around their place despite it being impossible due to the climate they live in. he found ways to make the impossible possible just for sakura.
who on earth would be stupid enough to kidnap the kazehime?
nobody would be, as this was all planned for gaara’s surprise birthday celebration.
every shinobi and the ANBU were aware of this, as it was all sakura’s idea. knowing gaara, he probably forgot that it was even his birthday today.
“i can’t believe we pulled it off! gaara’s searching high and low for you!” kankuro said mischievously as he was controlling his puppets to set up the balloons, “perks of being his wife. he would’ve killed anyone who even thought of breathing inappropriately in your direction.”
sakura couldn’t help but to blush at his brother-in-law’s comment. it was true that gaara tended to be a bit possessive of her, she can’t count the times gaara made a shinobi face plant into sand because they flirted with her during a medical mission. in his defense, he was just protecting his wife.
“he’s here. get into positions everybody!” sakura says to everyone, temari turned off the lights with her wind as they all quiet down. gaara’s panicked footsteps could be heard approaching.
as soon as the door busts open, “sakura!” a panicked gaara looked around the room. his sand could recognize her chakra anywhere, which made planning a surprise quite difficult, hence the reason why they were happy that they pulled it off.
as soon as the lights opened, everyone jumped in glee, “happy birthday, gaara!”
to say gaara was stunned would be an understatement, as he just stood there still, with his lips parted slightly. it took a while for him to process what was even happening.
but one thing was for sure, sakura was not in danger, so he rushed to wrap his arms around her, without a care in the world about the other people in the room.
“oi gaara, we’re here too, ya’know? i travelled from konoha for this!” naruto breaks the silence, earning a few laughs from the room.
after hugging his wife tightly, gaara scanned the room, and he was joyful. the room was filled with the people he cared about and cared about him — temari, kankuro, naruto, shikamaru, and his nephew, shikadai.
“thank you for travelling such a long distance, naruto, temari, shikamaru. i’m sure it’s not easy to travel with a child. come shikadai..” he says and holds his arms out for his nephew.
“you’re not even going to acknowledge me? shikadai didn’t even let me hold him either!” kankuro complained, which shikamaru chuckled at, “sorry brother, it must be a middle child thing.”
shikadai was turning two, but he clearly showed favoritism with his uncle gaara. sakura smiled at the view, her husband was good with kids, making her birthday gift for him perfect.
“happy birthday, anata.” sakura says with a smile.
“you ought to be disciplined, my dear kazehime. you almost gave me a heart attack.”
“yuck, don’t talk like that in front of a child!” naruto interrupted the conversation between the couple, earning him a slight smack on the shoulder from sakura, “get your head out of the gutter for once!”
“i believe it’s time for your birthday gift..” temari says and winks at sakura, “shikadai will have a playmate!”
“you really didn’t have to.” gaara says and gently gives shikadai to shikamaru, facing sakura who was suspiciously wearing his robe in a weird fashion.
as soon as sakura removed the red robe she stole from gaara, she revealed herself with a ribbon around her stomach area. gaara titled his head, “are you my gift, sakura?”
temari could only laugh at his brother’s obliviousness, but sakura found it extremely endearing, “remove the ribbon and feel it for yourself.”
now gaara was more confused but he silently obeyed his wife until it finally clicked.
“you’re with child?”
sakura nodded with happy tears in her eyes as gaara hugged her tightly, lifting from the ground. he was the happiest man alive.
“congratulations sakura-chan and gaara! you better name that baby after me! i was the one who told tsunade baa-chan to marry the two of you after all!” naruto says as he joins the hug, genuinely happy for his best friends.
gaara gently placed his palm over sakura’s stomach, soon a small swell would be visible, and he couldn't wait for that day to come. this child is the proof of their love for each other.
“happy birthday, gaara.” sakura says and gives him a gentle kiss.
“the best birthday gift i could ever ask for.”
mission complete for a surprise party for the kazekage’s birthday.