After years of being kept in the dark of her past and of her family, Kari Yamada finally knows the truth. However, there's something still missing, something detrimental to gain the peace she strives to find. With the Akatsuki breathing down hers an...
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"What... what is this?"
"They all came running to help ya," Naruto tells him, unable to stop smiling. "You've had everyone worried half to death!"
"Gaara!" a voice shouts from within the sea of Sand Shinobi. People begin stepping aside to let whoever had called out, pass. I'm unsurprised to find that it's Kishibi. Panting heavily, pale, and her hair a ball of frizz from the heat of the desert, she falls out of line, tripping over her own feet, and landing a few feet away from the wide-eyed Kazekage, himself. "Gaara... you're all right..."
"Kishibi," he breathes, sounding stunned. When he nods, everyone breaks into loud, raucous, and relieved laughter, and Kishibi grins from ear to ear.
"Welcome back."
"You sure had us worried there," Naruto says. I have to hold myself back from giving him a look. With their history, who knows what's gone on between them these past three years. I wonder if they'd reconciled...
"No kidding," another voice says. We all turn, and discover it'd been Kankuro who'd spoken. "You'd caused us a whole lot of grief there, little brother."
"Ugh, would you three stop putting on airs, already?" Temari, who'd only just joined us, snaps. "Gaara's the Kazekage, remember? Show a little respect, you nitwits."
Naruto growls, only to be pushed away by her.
"Gaara!" she cries. "Talk to me; how do you feel?" In response to her question, Gaara tries standing up, but struggles to make it more than a foot off the ground. "Easy—don't push yourself too quickly."
"You haven't fully recovered from rigor mortis, yet," Kishibi tells him, and with a gentle hand, she pushes him back.
"Oh, thanks be to the heavens!" a Sand Shinobi exclaims. "I thought we'd lost him, our Lord Kazekage—""Get a hold of yourself!" another Shinobi snaps, having hit the other upside the head. "There's no way we'd ever lose Lord Gaara!"
She, and a third Sand Shinobi, begin squealing on their way toward the group, incidentally pushing both Naruto and myself out of the way. I groan when I come to a rolling stop.
"That was so completely unnecessary," I grumble, my face in the grass once more. Kishibi, who'd been in their way, refuses to budge, and when they begin to get slightly on the more physical side, she stands up. As I'd expected, even a single look from her is enough to send them scampering away from their "Lord Gaara". I can't help but laugh.
Kishibi's... kind of possessive, I note. Not that I've any interest, but... I'll remember that for future reference.
Seeing this kind of camaraderie is rather refreshing. It's almost as like, Gaara had never had the One-Tails inside of him; he was never a Jinchūriki; the village didn't despise what he'd been. It's funny... and a little sad. Almost as like... before now... he'd never been a person at all.
