The hospital room was cold, the air-conditioner humming softly in the silence. The window blocked out the hustle and bustle of the morning streets, while the drawn shutters allowed only thin slivers of sunlight to seep through. The dim light cast faint lines across the white sheets of the bed, where Gaara lay still.
After returning to the village, Yashamaru had left Gaara in the hospital for observation and taken Naruto home, who slept soundly in his arms as subdued cheers rose from the waiting Suna shinobi.
Sitting on a stool beside Gaara's bed, Naruto watched the slow, steady rise and fall of the boy's chest. Gaara's breathing was soft, his face peaceful—so different from last night, when he had been gasping for air, his features contorted in distress. Naruto's gaze lingered on Gaara's closed eyes, on his black lids that… resembled the monster tanuki's eyes…
Holding on to Gaara while injected chakra had been a challenge. Their grip had nearly broken more than once, not just because Gaara squirmed, but because of the unsettling changes in his body—dark blue markings creeping up skin that turned a sandy color, his right eye shifting into an eerie pattern of dark yellow and black, teeth elongating unevenly, a tapering ear growing above his temple.
It had been, in all honesty, frightening.
Despite everything, Gaara was a nice boy with incredible powers, and Naruto had enjoyed an amazing day playing with him. Back then, he hadn't felt afraid at all. He had even shouted at the people in the market, telling them Gaara wasn't scary.
But if Naruto was completely honest with himself…
He had been scared when he saw Gaara like that last night.
And that made him feel guilty.
Gaara stirred, and Naruto's grip tightened on the stool's edge. Was he still trapped with Shukaku in his mindscape? The thought made Naruto's chest tighten. For a second, he considered waking Gaara up, but he quickly dismissed the idea. No, that would be stupid. Gaara needed rest.
Tearing his gaze off Gaara, Naruto turned around on his stool and stared at the floor.
Only now did Naruto fully grasp why they had been taken so far from the village. had said Gaara's seal was very loose, proven by how easily they had entered his mindscape—and how easily his partial transformation had happened.
Naruto didn't know how tight his own seal was, but judging by the way Konoha villagers avoided him, it probably wasn't much better.
"We never know when it will come out again," he had overheard them say.
Now he better understood how terrified Kimimaro and Tayuya must have been when he sprouted a tail against the giant scorpion. He could even begin to imagine how the people of Konoha must have felt, especially since they didn't know that was actually pretty nice.
"Hnngh…"
Naruto spun around as Gaara's eyes fluttered open. The red-haired boy stretched lazily and turned his head toward him.
"Gaara, you're awake!" Naruto greeted him gently. "How do you feel?"
"Good. Very good." Gaara sat up and stretched again. "I feel so refreshed. My mind is clearer than ever."
"Did you dream about anything?"
"Hmm… no, I don't think so. The last thing I remember is lying down in the desert."
"Yay! We did it!" Naruto beamed. "Let me go tell Yashamaru-san!"
"Congratulations, Gaara-sama."
Yashamaru had entered, a stack of papers in hand. "I have reported our success to Kazekage-sama. He was surprised and seemed… pleased about it."
He chose to give Gaara the optimistic interpretation of the kazekage's reaction. The complicated expression on the man's face hadn't sat well with him. But he would think about that later.
Gaara's eyes sparkled.
"Then… then will Father let me go back home?" he asked tentatively, his voice a mix of hope and nervousness.
Yashamaru's heart sank a little at the question. Even though he tried to care for Gaara as much as possible, work kept him too busy to make their house feel like a real home. Gaara was lonely. Of course this life wasn't enough for him. Of course he would want to be with his sister and brother. And perhaps… the boy still needed his father. He was his only parent, after all. That was something Yashamaru could never replace.
"I will try to convince him," Gaara's uncle replied, masking the slight ache in his heart with a smile. "If you continue to show improvement, I believe he will grant it."
"I already feel better," Gaara huffed, his cute pout earning him a soft kiss on the forehead.
"We must be patient, Gaara-sama." Yashamaru ruffled his fluffy hair. "Let us start working on your sand manipulation too."
Gaara's face faltered. That was the real problem. Before he could be allowed to move back, he needed to learn to rein in his emotions and his sand in those situations. Getting proper sleep and muting Shukaku was only the first step.
"Hey, but you did amazing in your mindscape!" Naruto said, trying to cheer him up. "When the wind bullet and shockwaves hit us, you used sand to catch yourself."
Gaara lowered his gaze. "No… it wasn't me."
"Huh?"
Gaara hesitated, glancing at Yashamaru for guidance. His uncle gave him a small nod, encouraging him to go on.
Almost everyone in Sunagakure knew Gaara carried Shukaku within him, but most assumed all of his sand abilities came from the tailed beast. Only Gaara and his siblings knew the truth.
Now, Naruto already knew the worst things about him, and it hadn't stopped him from becoming Gaara's friend.
And a friend must be—if Gaara remembered Yashamaru's words correctly—someone he could share secrets with.
"It was the sand that follows me everywhere I go," Gaara said. "It's been around me as long as I can remember, and… it prevents me from getting injured."
Naruto's eyes widened. He opened his mouth, but no words came out.
"Because of the sand, I've never been injured, so I always wondered what pain felt like," Gaara continued, staring at his palms. "I even tried stabbing myself with a knife, but it's no use."
"Stabbing yourself?!"
"Gaara-sama, pain is an uncomfortable feeling," Yashamaru sighed. "Getting injured often makes you want to scream because the pain is hard to hold in," he explained, trying to describe the sensation to his nephew.
"Yeah, Gaara, you wouldn't like it," Naruto added, grinning wryly. Seemed like the red-haired boy had never accidentally bitten his tongue or the inside of his cheek while eating. Or was Naruto the only one dumb enough to do that?
"Please do not engage in such behavior again, even if the sand protects you," Yashamaru said with an exasperated smile.
"I won't," Gaara promised. "Because I think I know what it's like to hurt, now."
"What do you mean?" Yashamaru asked, eyebrows knitting together.
"It didn't bleed, but my head hurt so much before I fell asleep."
"Ah…" Naruto gasped, the memory of Gaara's partially transformed face flashing across his mind again. "I'm so sorry, Gaara. But it was to save you from Shukaku."
Gaara's head drooped. "It's okay. I will try to remember that feeling as best as I can. I think it will be good for me," he said, his voice tinged with regret. "I don't want to lose control of my sand and hurt people again."
Naruto placed a warm hand over Gaara's. "But you didn't mean to, right?"
Gaara frowned as if trying to recall something. "I just wanted to play with them," he said. "I didn't tell the sand to do anything… At least, I don't remember…"
Yashamaru sat down on the edge of the bed. "Mistakes happen, Gaara-sama. What matters is that you learn from them," he said. "And if remembering this feeling helps you control your sand, then perhaps it is not such a bad thing."
"You're gonna get better at it from now on, believe it!" Naruto gave Gaara's hand a little squeeze. "And if they don't want to play with you, then let them be! You can play with me instead, just like yesterday!"
Gaara blinked, as if the thought had never occurred to him. "Really?"
"Of course, we're friends!" Naruto grinned. "Oh, and I'll bring Kimimaro and Tayuya too! Don't worry, they're nice people!"
Gaara returned the grin. "Then I can't wait to meet them!"
Yashamaru glanced at the clock on the wall. "Gaara-sama, it's approaching noon, I shall notify the medical team that you have awakened and let them bring you lunch. I have a mission starting this afternoon, so I will have to leave with Naruto-kun now."
"Oh…" Gaara's smile faded.
"The doctors insist that you stay here for two more nights. I will come back to pick you up when you are discharged from the hospital."
"Okay," he nodded slightly.
"Well then, see you, Gaara," Naruto said, retracting his hand that was on Gaara's, but Gaara clasped his other hand on top, stopping him.
"Naruto, thank you… for playing with me yesterday, for helping me sleep, for saying I am not alone," he said earnestly, leaning forward.
"Y-You're welcome…" Naruto averted his gaze bashfully.
"Have fun at school." Gaara smiled again as he let go of Naruto's hand.
After Yashamaru closed the door, Gaara leaned back against the bed. He had forgotten to ask when exactly Naruto would come see him again, but then he decided it didn't matter.
He wouldn't have to wait too long. He just knew it.
Kimimaro and Tayuya spent most of the day idly exploring the kazekage's residence, surviving on nothing but microwaved leftovers for both lunch and dinner. In the evening, a shinobi wearing a traditional oni mask arrived at the gates, delivering an abrupt evacuation order as part of a military drill.
"Where are Temari and Kankuro?" the man demanded.
When they answered they didn't know and asked about their friend, he only sighed before ushering them into an underground shelter beneath a cluster of buildings. After leaving them there, he rushed off to locate the kazekage's children.
Being forced underground on their second night in Sunagakure was the last thing they expected. Tayuya grumbled about being crammed into a confined space like a rat, scanned the crowded shelter for Naruto—without success—then muttered a curse and crawled into her sleeping bag.
Kimimaro, however, stayed awake, silently taking in his surroundings late into the night.
The underground shelter was filled with hushed voices and the rustling of movement, yet there was no chaos. Civilians filed into the shelter quietly, following the shinobi's directions without objection. Shinobi patrolled the area, pausing to exchange a few words with families, offering brief nods or reassurances that kept the tension from escalating. Whenever one leader relayed an order, the subordinates would respond immediately. Even in the dim light, Kimimaro could make out their expressions—alert and attentive, without any sign of hesitation.
Despite the discomfort of sleeping on the floor, no one complained. Even the elderly, shifting uncomfortably on the cold ground, merely gritted their teeth as they adjusted their positions. There was no pleading or arguing for extra space or supplies. Only compliance.
The way the shinobi communicated, the way the civilians obeyed—these people functioned as a single unit, moving in lockstep with the kazekage's will. Their loyalty and methodical way of handling emergencies amazed him.
It reminded him of that night in Kirigakure. He was commanded to kill anyone he saw, but he and his clan were quickly overwhelmed by the village's defenders. The Kiri shinobi moved in coordinated teams, taking down every aggressor but him with ruthless efficiency. They fought like seasoned hunters striking down rabid beasts, their years of disciplined combat rendering the Kaguya clan's ferocity meaningless.
Pushing his darkest memories away, Kimimaro's thoughts circled back to Naruto, wondering if his conversation with the kazekage had gone well and if he, too, had been evacuated to another shelter.
His confusion only deepened when they were sent back to the kazekage's residence this morning only to find it empty.
With nothing else to do but wait, Kimimaro resumed studying a map of Suna he had discovered in Tayuya's room—or rather, a study packed with books and scrolls, where she had locked herself up again. Kimimaro traced the map's lines, committing Sunagakure's layout to memory, until the sudden swing of the door yanked him from his focus.
"Naruto? Are you here?" A blonde girl called out as she stepped into the living room.
Kimimaro stood up from the sofa. "He hasn't come back since yesterday morning. Have you seen him?"
"He was with our brother when we went to see him," Temari replied. "He was going to help Gaara sleep after we left and said Father approved of it."
Kimimaro nodded. He had guessed right. Naruto had already formed a plan to help the Suna jinchuriki when they set out to confront the kazekage about his third child.
"But he should've been back by now," Kankuro muttered, closing the door behind him. "Unless this so-called military drill was actually something else."
Drills were always announced at least a week in advance—Temari and Kankuro knew that much. "Shinobi should be prepared for any sudden changes," was all they had gotten from the anbu member who found them on their way back home and took them to another shelter, where they spent a restless night trying to figure out what was going on.
"They wouldn't answer when we asked if Gaara was also being evacuated," Temari said, gripping her chin in thought. "This definitely has something to do with Gaara and Naruto. But how?" She and Kankuro had tried to dismiss the thought last night, but now the connection seemed undeniable.
Kankuro sat down on the other sofa, shoulders slumped. "We should've asked Naruto how exactly he planned to fight Shukaku. The risks must be serious if the whole village was at stake." He rubbed his face in frustration.
Ever since Yashamaru revealed that Gaara had a monster inside him, Temari and Kankuro had been trying to gather any information they could find about tailed beasts and jinchurikis. But Yashamaru would not explain further, and any written records on the subject were tightly restricted.
All they knew was that jinchurikis were meant to unleash their tailed beasts if the village was under attack. Only then, right…?
"What if… What if Shukaku got out?" Temari's voice dropped to a whisper. "What happens when a jinchuriki releases their tailed beast…?"
"If the evacuation order was called off this morning, that means there were no incidents last night," Kimimaro pointed out, trying to calm them down.
"Or they were dealt with," Kankuro countered. "But in what way? Is Gaara safe?"
Kimimaro's expression softened. "He's alright," he assured them.
The two looked at him doubtfully. "How do you know that?" Kankuro asked.
"Because Naruto wouldn't let anything bad happen to him."
Temari and Kankuro's expressions shifted to curiosity.
"Naruto has a gift," Kimimaro said. "He can befriend anyone, sometimes without even needing words."
He sat back down, folding the map spread out on the low table. "Naruto would give up his life for his friends, even ones he just met. Like when he jumped onto a giant scorpion to save me and Tayuya, despite having no real fighting experience."
Kankuro straightened, and Temari slowly sat down beside him, eyes fixed on Kimimaro.
"Gaara did say he made a friend in Naruto," Temari remarked.
"Then you have nothing to worry about," Kimimaro smiled. He knew it. That look in Naruto's eyes yesterday morning was the same one Kimimaro had seen when they first met in the forest—and again when they found Tayuya at the inn. It was the look Naruto gave right before befriending someone.
Kankuro searched Kimimaro's face and found nothing but unwavering faith. He sighed. "Well… thanks, uh…"
"My name's Kimimaro," he replied.
"Nice to meet you, Kimimaro," Temari said, her lips easing into a small smile. "Sorry we didn't greet you properly earlier."
The heavy gates groaned as they swung open. The three children froze for a split second before bolting outside. Across the yard, a young man in his late twenties and a boy stood beaming at them.
"Hey, guys! I'm back!"