Gentle Re-assurance

A/N: As of now, no one really knows how Gaara's sand attacks have changed since the Shukaku demon was extracted. I'm going here on that he is just as strong, if not stronger, because the general message in Naruto tends to be that when you're protecting something precious to you, you become stronger. Gaara protects Sunagakure, Temari, Kankuro, and you: all things precious to him. It works! :D I'm afraid I have had a bit of trouble writing battle scences for Kankuro in this particular time period since I don't know what his new puppet looks like. maybe I'll edit later when the next manga comes out. ^_^

Need to know Translations:

Gaara's Attacks:
Ryusa Bakuryu = Quicksand in the Style of a Waterfall
Sabaku Taiso = Desert Imperial Funeral
Daisan no Me = Third Eye
Suna Shigure = Rain of Sand

Temari's Attacks:
Kamaitachi no Jutsu = Cutting Whirlwind Technique
Kuchiyose: Kirikiri Mai = Summoning: Quick Beheading Dance

Other:
Sabaku Tatsu = Desert Dragon (I made this one up.)
Kekkei Genkai = Bloodline Limit

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It was hot. It was beyond hot. The scorching desert sun had spread its sweltering heat over Sunagakure and the surrounding Land of Wind as morning progressed into afternoon. Still full from the homemade cookies, the four of you had given into boredom, and were now making the long trek to the beach. Gaara had Kazekage business with one of the larger towns located on the country’s edge. As Temari and Kankuro went with Gaara on most of his treks, and you didn’t want to be left alone, you had agreed to accompany them. It had only been a few hours that you had been walking, but already your legs were protesting. Having just returned from a long stay at Konohagakure on a mission for Sunagakure a few days ago, another long journey was not what you had had in mind.

You regularly accompanied Temari to Konohagakure on her normal diplomatic assignments. She had been acting as a liaison between the two villages in preparation for the next round of Chunin exams. When the trouble with the Akatsuki had begun and the two of you had gotten word of Gaara’s capture, you had agreed to stay, a bit reluctantly, in Konohagakure in her stead. You were unable to return to Sunagakure for sometime after, and only rumors of Gaara’s death came from home.

You frown at the thought, nostalgia getting the better of you. He had died. Your Gaara . . . an involuntary shiver runs down your spine. There was nothing you could have done if you were there . . . right?

A gentle hand on your shoulder brings you out of the quiet revery and you look up to see Gaara, his aquamarine eyes full of concern. It was only then that you realized that you had stopped walking, and something warm and wet was falling down your cheeks.

Embarrased, you wipe away your tears and smile up at Gaara. Temari and Kankuro stand several yards ahead, looking a bit worried.

“Are you alright?” Gaara asks you, brushing another tear from your face with his thumb.

“F-fine,” you reply, still forcing yourself to smile. He watches you for a moment, but does not question you.

“Oui! We just gonna stand here all day?” Kankuro yells back to you, adjusting the summoning scrolls on his back. Temari glares at him and swings her closed fan at him. He ducks.

“Give them a minute!” she scolds him. You giggle and walk towards them.

He was alive. It would be okay. You would prove to yourself that you could take care of him as much as he took care of you. Little did you know how soon you would be able to do so.

Gaara watches you as you jog to catch up with Temari and Kankuro, following close behind. He had a feeling that you partially blamed yourself for what had happened to him. It was just the way you were; always questioning how things could, or should have gone. It wasn’t one of your best traits, but you did your best to hide it. Attempting to offer some small comfort, he falls in step next to you and takes your hand in his own, entwining your fingers together.

You blush lightly as his hand closes around yours. Temari winks at you and Kankuro rolls his eyes, averting his gaze. Glancing around you as your journey continues, you capture this perfect picture within your mind, committing it to memory. This was your family. Although you were no orphan, you had been best friends with Temari for as long as you could remember. It had been hard at first, with Gaara the way he had been, though now that you looked back on it, you were never really afraid of him. Whether it was bravery or just plain stupidity, you weren’t sure. But now . . .

You lean your head on Gaara’s shoulder for a moment. It should stay like this forever. Even if it meant you had to rescue your raccoon daily from Kankuro. And you were quite used to Temari’s mothering; though she could be overbearing at times, she was caring at heart, never the less.

The picture crumbles almost immediately as Gaara stops suddenly, the sand from the gourd strapped across his back bursting outward, preventing a wave of shuriken from burying themselves in his skull.

Temari and Kankuro react quickly, flanking Gaara and waiting for instruction. Gaara pushes you behind him where his sand can still protect you and glares out across the dunes rising before them. Whoever was attempting to ambush you was a fool. With the seemingly endless desert stretching out before you, Gaara had nearly unlimited power. He doesn’t waist any time in driving them out of hiding either. Quickly forming his hand seals, Gaara focus his chakra on his attack.

“Ryusa Bakuryu!”

A tidal wave of sand rises before him, growing to an incredible height before crashing downward across the landscape. Several unidentified attackers, more than he had expected, appear briefly before sinking back down under the rapidly shifting sands. Gaara crouches down and places his hands on the ground.

“Sabaku Taiso!”

A huge amount of the landscape physically sinks downward, crushing whatever lay underneath. Gaara stands and an eerie silence washes over the desert in the aftermath of the Kazekage’s assault. You step forward, eyes wide. It never ceased to amaze you how powerful he was. You stop when he holds out an arm.

“What . . .?” you start; but then you hear it. A shrill whistle, nearly inaudible at first, but growing louder by the second.

Cannon fire. You were surrounded.

“Get down!” Temari exclaims, her fan expanding to show all three stars. Gaara spins around, grabbing you and forcing you to the ground beneath him. Kankuro ducks downward as Temari swings her fan in a large circle, sending her cutting winds in all directions. “Kamaitachi no Jutsu!”

The invisible wind slices through the air, capturing the incoming projectiles and stopping them in mid flight. Temari gives a satisfied smirk as they fall to the ground, useless. However, her victory is short lived as a second wave comes moments after the first. She didn’t have time.

“Gaara!” she yells. He is way ahead of her. Before his name had barely escaped her lips, walls of sand encompass the four of you, shielding you from the incoming projectiles.

The three sand siblings exchange glances as the attack is again brought to a halt.

“This is no ordinary assassination attempt,” Temari states, collapsing her fan and helping Kankuro to his feet. “I don’t like it. It’s impossible to tell how many there are.” Gaara stands, grunting his agreement and holding out a hand to you. You take it, and he pulls you to your feet. Then the sand closes around you all, plunging you into darkness.

You feel Gaara pull you close to him, guiding your hand to rest on his shoulder. He wanted to make sure you stayed close.

“Daisan no Me,” you hear him mutter as he opens his third eye. It appears outside of the dome, giving him a 360-degree view of the outside world.

“What’s going on out there?” Kankuro asks after a moment from somewhere behind you.

“They’re advancing,” Gaara replies. “From of the look of things, it’s a bunch of grunts. But I still sense someone stronger. Has to be their leader, but he’s a long ways off.”

“How many?” Temari inquires, not sure she really wants to know the answer.

“Hundreds.”

You unconsciously grip Gaara’s shoulder tighter. You can feel the can feel the apprehension in the air. Though, as usual, Gaara remains seemingly unperturbed

“H-hundreds?!” Kankuro reiterates. “How did we not sense them?” Gaara frowns into the darkness. That had been bothering him for sometime now. The only way so many could have been masked was with a very powerful jutsu . . . possibly even a kekkei genkai. He didn’t like it one bit.

“I’m not sure,” he says, still watching the small army approach. They were less that fifty meters away now. Gaara shifts uneasily. There was no time! “When I drop the shield, Temari, you take the west half, I’ll the east. Kankuro, pick off whomever breaks through. Stay close together.” There is small amount of movement as Temari and Kankuro shift to stand back to back with Gaara. You want very much to ask “what about me?” but hold your tongue. The sand begins to fall away from the top of the dome. As the light filters in, you find Gaara staring straight at you. “Don’t leave my side,” he tells you. You nod in reply. At least it hadn’t been “stay out of the way.” You were a Jonin too, after all. Just because you are terrible at close range combat doesn’t mean you didn’t have a few tricks up your sleeve.

“Suna Shigure!” Gaara commands. The sand from the dome bursts outward, sending needle-like formations of sand toward the enemy.

Temari once again lets her fan expand fully. Biting down hard on her thumb, she spreads a line of blood across its surface, then swings it outward.

“Kuchiyose: Kirikiri Mai!” A small, weasel-like creature carrying a sickle appears at her summons. You catch a brief glimpse of it before it disappears in a gust of wind, wreaking havoc over an enormous amount of the area, sending anyone it touches to their graves.

Gaara’s Ryusa Bakuryu bursts outward yet again, and is quickly followed by his Sabaku Taiso, destroying those that Temari did not. Kankuro holds his ground, the master puppeteer putting a stop to any strays who dare to come to close.

Still they come. Wave after wave of attacks . . . it was never going to end at this rate. You watch the three of them worriedly. Both Temari and Gaara are running low on chakra, and you were genuinely surprised (and impressed) that they had lasted this long. There were few options left. Things seem to be moving in slow motion from your point of view. You know you have to do something . . . but would you dare to unleash that?

“I’m at my limit,” Gaara says, faltering slightly and making up your mind for you.

Bear . . .

You were moving on instinct now, stepping in front of Gaara, ignoring his protests.

Dog . . . Bird . . .

You heard Temari cry out and the smell of blood reaches you as you complete the hand seals.

Monkey . . . Sheep . . .

You barely feel the pain in your hand as you slice it open mercilessly with a kunai.

“Kuchiyose . . .”

Gaara’s eyes widen, knowing now what you had in mind. But there is little he can do to stop you now.

“SABAKU TATSU!!” You slam your hands to the ground, the final seal spreading itself before you, written in you own blood. There is a pause in which all time seems to stand still.

Temari clutches a large wound on her arm. Kankuro is in mid-jutsu, warding off another stray. The army draws closer as Gaara’s sand waves plummet downward, now useless . . . and Gaara . . . he has his aquamarine eyes fixed on you in unmasked worry.

You wouldn’t let them die.

And then your summon begins to burst from the earth about you, and time rights itself again. Sad swirls up and around you in a gigantic cyclone, the four of you safely within the eye of the storm. It takes mere moments for the sand to form itself. A long lithe body, over 1000 meters long with four strong ligaments ending in dangerously sharp claws is curled around you, providing a protective barrier. Venomous spittle drips from rows and rows of razored teeth, and blood red scales cover its entire body, an impenetrable force of power.

Sabaku Tatsu: The Desert Dragon.