The Tale of How the Sand Siblings' Parents Met

CHAPTER 1. New Moon

Note: Because I'm a major Fourth Kazekage fangirl, this is a relatively short version of how the Sand Sibs' parents ended up together.

The long version is my other story The Sand People. By the way, the Fourth Kazekage's name in this (and all my stories) is Kaze no Hiro.

Warnings: There are some sexual themes and scenes and some bad language in later chapters (there's four total).

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto and characters.

Times were harsh. The village hidden in the sand, although not a main participant in the ongoing Third Great Ninja War, was finding itself in the need of forming new alliances with small villages in exchange of material goods, as being located in the desert it wasn't known for its abundance in natural resources, and the villages it used to do business with were now mostly victims of invasion and violence. The governor from the village hidden in the ice, a small village that although was wealthy in gold deposits and lumber was isolated from most civilization because of its harsh whereabouts, jumped at the opportunity of associating itself with the powerful ninja village. Accompanied by his youngest son and daughter, he traveled to meet with the man commonly known as the Third Kazekage to discuss an alliance.

Sitting around a large table that held an exquisite banquet and rich wines, the villages' leaders were accompanied in the negotiations by the governor's previously mentioned daughter, a young woman by the name of Karura Kana, and a man not much older than her named Hiro of the Wind, regarded as the Third Kazekage's apprentice and future fourth kazekage as well.

The progressing talks were essential for the Sand village, but this was one of those rare times when the usually professional Hiro was utterly distracted. He couldn't help but notice that the young lady from the Ice village was one of the loveliest women he ever had the fortune of encountering. The girl sat on her chair politely, listening to the conversation his kazekage and her father were having, and giggling a laughter that sounded like the jingling of bells when the times were right. But her body language intrigued her. Although at first glance she was impeccable— back straight, eyes on the talking men, an interested look on her gorgeous face—upon closer inspection he could detect what resembled a devilish air about her. A combination of the way that her head titled up a little, turning her perfect smile into a sneer if you stared at it long enough, and the way her hands just dropped on her knees, giving her boredom away. She just looked so beautiful and snobby to Hiro; he couldn't stop himself from stealing peeks of her every so often.

"Hiro-san?"

Kazekage-sama was talking to him. He tore his eyes away from the graceful lady, afraid he had been caught staring.

"Excuse me, sir?" He cleared his throat softly.

"Do you have any plans before taking over as the kazekage?" the Third repeated himself, now aware that his usually diligent pupil was somewhere far, far away. And he had a good idea of where.

"Oh. Not really. I just want the war to end already," he replied simply.

"Well of course," the governor of the Ice smiled. "Even if the Sand isn't directly involved in the war, it's wise for you to start ruling until peacetime. Otherwise any bad consequences that occur will unfairly be blamed on you."

"Indeed," Hiro mumbled, his eyes shifting over for a second to the girl for one more look. He couldn't help it.

"But we mean something more personal, Hiro." His kazekage grinned. "You are so young. A child compared to me."

"How old are you, boy?" the governor asked politely.

"Twenty-two."

"Too young. Isn't there anything personal you would like to do before becoming the leader of such a big village?"

His whole life revolved about being a ninja. "Not really." He shrugged.

The kazekage, the governor, and the exquisite nymph laughed in unison.

"You need to take life a little easier, boy," the kazekage said. "It's not all about being a shinobi, even if you're the best one the village has."

"What we wouldn't give to be your and my Karura here's age again," the governor chuckled, squeezing his daughter's shoulder. "You should enjoy your youth a little more. Go out with friends, and with women!"

"I am a serious person, sir," Hiro said in his defense, voice soft but firm. "No offense. But that stage was… short-lived… for me, and now it isn't too appealing."

"He matured too fast, governor," the Third sighed as he explained. "He was in the Second War back in the days when he was a little boy, and he's gone on several missions for this war to aid the Leaf already. He's seen his friends die and killed other people's friends for years. He's truly worth of being kazekage; he is a hero to my village."

"Hiro the hero?"

Hiro glanced up. The beauty had finally spoken.

"Yes," the kazekage chuckled. "They call him the Sand's Hero. They probably confused his name with the word."

"Or he's such a good shinobi that he earned the title of being called a hero." The governor took a sip from his wine. "What do you think about marriage, boy?"

Hiro became visibly nervous. Tense. "Sir?"

The governor chuckled. "Not to me of course, but will you ever get married?"

Hiro looked down at the table sheepishly, trying to hide the slight reddening of his cheeks; annoying blushing during awkward situations had afflicted him during his entire life, and even though his face remained its stony self the chagrin he felt was nakedly exposed. "I don't know. I might if I ever find a woman who wants to marry me. I'm a busy man, though. Don't have the luxury to date. I mean. I have dated women before but it never worked out. Who wants to spend the rest of their life with a person like me?"

He pursed his lips to keep from babbling, and the trio laughed at his expense. He felt sweat forming on the back of his neck.

The governor, shaking in laughter, managed to say, "You're a good, hard-working man, Hiro-san. What girl wouldn't be proud of a husband like you?" As his amusement died down, however, he sat up straighter and looked at him intensely. "Tell me, what do you think of my daughter? She's beautiful, isn't she?"

"Dad!" The fascinating girl shrieked, her humor suddenly gone as well.

Hiro was speechless; the hostage of a nerve-wrecking shyness he couldn't break free from.

"Hiro-kun?" kazekage-sama nudged him in the ribs.

The blonde girl looked flustered and angry—for she hated it when her father would suggest a man marry her— and Hiro had a feeling that going along with the governor would only feed her ire. But then again he couldn't just brush off the question, or even worst speak ill of the delightfully pretty woman just to content her. It would anger her father. It's just a comment, he encouraged himself to look into the pair of bright, teal eyes. Cold eyes, he noticed. Nonetheless his courage returned by looking into their hypnotizing depths.

"You have a truly beautiful daughter, sir," he said quietly, quickly looking away from the woman's now also blushing face.

Who knew how it had happened. It had only been a comment. He was being polite and saying the words the governor of Ice had wanted to hear. Yet here he was now, engaged. Engaged to the least enthusiastic bride the world had to offer.

She would grimace every time she saw him, scowl every time he would touch her, roll her eyes every time he would talk to her. She hated him more than words could explain, and as much as he hated that there was nothing he could do to make it change.

Kazekage-sama had told him that not only he would get a beautiful wife out of the arranged marriage: the union was important as it would guarantee an unbreakable alliance between the Sand and the Ice. He wasn't marrying the girl just because he yearned for her affections and was, in spite of himself, smitten with her unearthly good looks. Their holy matrimony was like a mission on its own.

She understood that much. Her older sister had been married off into the most prodigious family in her village, and now she would share a similar fate. She was twenty years old already; it was only a matter of time.

The fact that she was marrying a man from another village though was what made her so mad. Her sister was living in the Ice, so why was she expected to move to the village of dirt? The wedding would be soon, so they wouldn't even return to the Ice so she could say goodbye. She simply would never sleep in her room again, she would never see her friends again, she wouldn't see her siblings and father every morning again, and she wouldn't ever see snow and ice again. Just sand. Dust, dirt, dread, and infernal heat… that's all that lay before her.

Anger flared in her chest, and she directed it towards her sweet, tall, dark, and handsome fiancé. What type of flowers did she want to import for the ceremony? None were necessary because the cacti were okay. Did she want an indoors wedding or outside surrounded by the beautiful desert landscape? It would look ugly either way. Did she want to wear a red, white, or purple kimono? She couldn't care less. What about the music, the food, invitations, and details? He could take care of them. Would she at least pick the cake herself? No.

Hiro was frustrated. She didn't want to cooperate, didn't even want to try. More than making him angry, however, he felt sad. The situation was much harder on her, and he sympathized. The poor girl probably cried a lot at night. It really was a shame since she was so pretty.

So to make her life a little easier, he took care of organizing the wedding as best as he could. He was all man, didn't care for sophistication and elegance, but did his best to keep it nice and simple. She would wear white, and he would wear blue. It would be indoors for her comfort, and simple white flowers would do. The Sand's Desert Festival music performers would grace them for the night, and the best cooks in the village would prepare a variety of dishes for everyone.

He hoped his friendly gesture would appease his otherwise unruly fiancée.

Everything was ready. Hiro of the Wind from the Sand, the future Fourth Kazekage, would marry Karura Kana from the Ice in less than three weeks. The excitement was evident in the air, as the ceremony was being considered the event of the year, and the only apprehensive ones were the bride and groom themselves.

She was angrier than ever, extremely upset, and feeling utter hopelessness. The fact that the wedding plans were ready was barely sinking in, and her inability to control her fate was maddening. How had her foolish, shinobi betrothed gotten everything ready so quick? What was his hurry anyway?

Hiro on the other hand was content but increasingly becoming nervous. Not necessarily about the ceremony, but more about what he would do when he took Karura home. It was clear that she didn't like him at all, even after all he'd gone through trying to give her a dream wedding, and he was now aware that behind her perfect girl façade she was nothing but an ungrateful brat that wanted everything her way. Would she have enough sense to actually behave like the bride she was expected to be, or would she be blatantly defiant and against him? He had a feeling he knew the answer.

She was stunning and he didn't want to hurt her. Heck, he was too damn smitten with her to hit her anyways if things got that out of hand. All Hiro really wanted was to get over with all formalities and have the pretty, not angry girl naked on his bed. But if she turned out as uncooperative as she had been so far—and dared reject him as a man despite their martial status— what in the world would he do with her?

Her obstinate, insolent behavior did not blink nor waver. She would not attempt meeting him halfway. He was running out of ideas on how to make her happy. And their union was around the corner. Was a docile woman who could cook and clean for him really too much to ask?

Because not only was she a brat, he was sure she was useless and unknowledgeable about the art of domestic chores.

But she was really cute and infinitely provocative. And when they had talked him into marrying her, instead of the Sand and Ice permanent alliance, it had been the prospect of having his way with her that had convinced him into agreeing more willingly than not.

So they would get married and that was that.

"I want Yashamaru to stay with me."

"W-w-what? Yashamaru? Karura, are you crazy?"

She wasn't, but she would lose her mind if she stayed alone in the Sand village. The company of her little sixteen year old brother was all she asked for as her wedding gift.

"Karura, Yashamaru is the best shinobi our village has! I can't just let him stay here in the Sand!"

"Why not?" she challenged. Yashamaru was the best ninja Ice had— had just become a chunin even at his tender age— but there were plenty of good ninja still laying around their village, enough to protect it from any unexpected event until Sand sent reinforcements. Both villages were now sisters, so it was only natural for the Sand to protect the weaker Ice. "Besides, it's not like we are known for being a great ninja village. Our economy relies on our lumber and our gold and mineral deposits, not on missions. Yashamaru could reach his full potential if you let him work for the village hidden in sand. It's one of the five great villages after all. He would learn so much, daddy, and I bet he'd be happy."

"What do you mean, Karura?" her father asked worriedly, pinching the bridge of his nose in frustration. She could be so childish sometimes.

"What future does he have if he stays in Ice?" she replied. Big Brother was future governor, and Sister was now part of what could only be called aristocracy in Ice. She would soon be the wife of the future Fourth Kazekage, and Yashamaru? He would be a talented shinobi in a village that didn't really need ninjas? Sure, he would do D-rank missions—also known as chores—around the village all the time, and he had gone to a couple of C and even B missions from time to time, but surely he deserved better. Ninja-wise, Ice's only costumers were those who could not afford the quotes from the big villages but were desperate for any kind of ninja to take the job, even mediocre ones. Yashamaru was incredible, but sadly he would never make a name for himself by staying in his homeland. "Let him stay with me instead, father. The Sand needs people like Yashamaru in these times of war, and Yashamaru needs the experience the Sand can offer him in these times of uncertainty. I will take care of my brother; will make sure he lives close to me. Just, please, give him up to the Sand."

"B-but what if Ice ever needs Yashamaru?" the governor gulped anxiously.

"You're talking to the future Lady Kazekage, pa. Once I'm married and settled here, I will make sure there's at least twenty experienced Sand shinobi stationed in our village at all times just in case. It's a win-win if you think about it. You give up Yasha, and in exchange you get a lot of professional men and women. They could even train our ninjas some, and meanwhile Yashamaru gets stronger here. If Ice ever really, really needs him he'll be there, undefeatable, and if he decides to move back to Ice after some time you can take him back. He'll be perfect!"

Her father considered the decision, knowing that she was correct about everything, but it still pained him to lose both Karura and Yashamaru in such a short amount of time. Maybe the Sand village didn't even want Yashamaru, since their ninjas were so tough all the time. "It's probably not a good idea, Karu. Think about it. What if your brother gets hurt? This village is in a war!"

"But Sand seems to be on the winning side!" she pointed out. "And besides, I am sure he can work in the village itself and not out there! He'll be fine!"

"You're being silly," he scowled. "Pick a normal wedding gift."

"I don't want one! I just don't want to be alone. That's all I ask for, company."

"You'll have your husband, Karura!"

"I meant family, dad, but if you want to play that game, remember that Hiro of the Wind is a shinobi who is going to become kazekage. He will always be busy and I will always be alone!"

"Karura…."

"Please, daddy?" she gave him the most irresistible puppy eyes she could manage. "At least let me talk with Yashamaru about it. Let him decide."

She was stubborn, and she was scared. Her father let out a sigh and nodded. "Alright. You win."

She kissed his cheek and sighed. She might have won, but she had never felt so defeated.

Thank you so much for reading chapter 1! Review?