Sand filled the sky, whipping into a blinding storm, then just as quickly settled back into silence.
Akio glanced at the shattered sand gourd in front of him, now reassembled by his chakra, and smiled.
"Well now. An honest kid, aren't you?" he said lightly.
"So, was it this sand gourd you dropped? As a reward, you can also have this ice...no, wait. That won't do."
"Wood Release: Wooden Gourd Technique!"
"This one too. The ice gourd and the wooden gourd are both hmm?"
Two kunai suddenly flew in from impossible angles, aimed straight at Gaara's back.
Before Akio could even raise a hand, a curtain of sand burst from the gourd and blocked them effortlessly.
"Aren't those two supposed to be Gaara's ANBU guards?" Akio muttered.
"Missed their throw? Come on, at least pretend to be professionals."
The two masked figures answered him with action, charging forward with kunai in hand.
Their target had always been Gaara.
Akio frowned slightly.
"That's a shame," he said calmly.
"Guess I can't give you the bonus gourds after all, kid. These two seem to want them instead. Go on."
Thud! Thud!
The two "masked men" hit the ground unconscious, clearly having no interest in gourds of any kind.
Akio dusted off his hands and turned his head.
"What's this supposed to be?"
"An assassination attempt on the One-Tail's jinchūriki inside Sunagakure?"
Chiyo's brow furrowed.
"I don't know. I haven't been paying much attention to village affairs lately."
Akio laughed softly.
Classic grandchild first, village second.
"Blood… kill you… your blood must taste wonderful… Mother…"
Gaara's voice twisted as his sanity began to slip.
"Oh, it's delicious," Akio replied casually, weighing the Truth-Seeking Gourd in his hand.
"Premium-grade ancient blood great for digestion, glowing skin, and long life.
Hey, big tanuki. Want a sip? Got the guts?"
Inside Gaara, Shukaku responded with a string of colorful curses.
"Blood…" Gaara's expression grew darker.
"Elder… is this the one you were looking for?" Karin asked hesitantly.
Akio nodded.
"A perfectly good kid, ruined like this. Sunagakure really outdid itself."
"Good-looking?" Karin said skeptically.
"Let him get a proper night's sleep," Akio replied.
"He'll clean up just fine."
In a flash, he appeared in front of Gaara, crouching down and pressing a hand against the boy's abdomen.
"Four Symbols Seal."
The sealing formula formed instantly.
Akio lifted the now-unconscious Gaara and gently placed him atop the Truth-Seeking Gourd.
"Carrying a gourd all day must be exhausting," he said with satisfaction.
"Let it carry you for once."
Raising his gaze, he noticed two actual Sand ANBU rushing toward them. His eyes narrowed slightly.
"Chiyo," he said,
"Take us to the Kazekage."
Ten Minutes Later, Kazekage's Office
After hearing the Fourth Kazekage's explanation, Akio genuinely didn't know what expression to wear.
He glanced at Gaara, sleeping peacefully atop the gourd, and shook his head.
"This kid… his name's Gaara, right?"
According to the Fourth Kazekage, he had once ordered Gaara's uncle Yashamaru, the only person who ever showed the boy kindness to assassinate him, as a test of emotional control.
Yashamaru died in front of Gaara.
That night marked Shukaku's first rampage.
After suppressing the beast with gold dust, the Kazekage deemed Gaara a failure and continued sending assassins, again and again.
Akio didn't bother holding back.
"It's a miracle this kid's still alive," he said flatly.
"His father's an idiot."
The three children behind him nodded in unison.
Chiyo could only smile bitterly.
Akio looked straight at the displeased Kazekage.
"Your name is Rasa, right?"
"Don't think of me as the elder of a great nation. Don't think of me as someone who could wipe Sunagakure off the map alone."
"Just think of me as an old man who's lived a century longer than you," he said calmly.
"Humor me for a moment."
Rasa fell silent.
After a long pause, his displeasure faded into weary resignation.
"…Go on."
Akio nodded in satisfaction.
"Someone once said that if people showed a little kindness, the world wouldn't be such a terrible place."
"…Who said that?" Karin asked innocently.
Akio froze, frowning in thought.
"Was it… some philosopher?"
He coughed.
"Anyway, my point is this: tailed beasts can't be handled through brute force alone.
You need understanding. Look at Konoha's Nine-Tails worked out pretty well, didn't it?"
"In that case," Chiyo said quietly,
"Please help us… understand Shukaku."
Akio gave her a knowing look and nodded.
"Don't worry. I'll take care of Shukaku."
"As for your Kazekage…"
"That part's on you."
Without another word, he crouched again, pressing his hand to Gaara's abdomen.
The world shifted.
Inside the Seal
A vast desert stretched endlessly.
Akio stood calmly before a massive cage.
"Well, well," he said cheerfully.
"Big tanuki. Been about fifty years, hasn't it? Miss me?"
"ROOOOAR!"
Shukaku shrieked.
"You bastard! You've got the nerve to show up here?!"
A tidal wave of sand surged toward Akio.
He frowned slightly.
"With my Four Symbols Seal stacked on top of theirs, you can still move this much power?"
"Sunagakure's sealing work really is decorative."
Red sealing chains burst forth from Akio's body, piercing Shukaku and locking down every trace of chakra.
"RAAAAGH!" Shukaku screamed.
The storm died instantly.
Akio sat down cross-legged, smiling.
"Relax. It's been decades. Don't you have anything you want to talk about?"
"Talk to you? Not a chance!"
Akio's smile vanished.
"Calling me that again?"
"Let me ask you something, have you ever known despair?"
"…Do you want to know what your existence is actually for?"
Thirty Minutes Later
Akio's consciousness returned to his body.
"Four Symbols Seal release. Eight Trigrams Seal."
With the final technique completed, he stood and clapped his hands together.
"All done," he said pleasantly.
"Shukaku's stabilized, and the seal's reinforced. You won't see another rampage."
A faint line of text flashed before his eyes, unseen by others:
Major divergence observed: Gaara's childhood timeline altered.
Witness Points acquired: 10 × 8.
"Just as I thought," Akio said, smiling wider.
"Definitely worth the trip."
"Thank you, Elder," Chiyo said sincerely.
Akio nodded, then paused.
"One problem solved," he muttered.
"But fixing the kid himself… that's not exactly my specialty."
He scanned the room, his gaze landing on Haku.
"…No. No, that won't work."
---
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