A/N This is strictly a one-shot fanfic. I had this hilarious idea when I was actually eating pizza… So yea…
Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. This is non-profit.
RING! RING! RING! RING!
Kankuro bolted towards the window excitedly. When his suspicions were confirmed, he was about to scream that the ice cream man was making his rounds on their block. But before he could even make a make-shift megaphone with his hands, he got tackled to the carpet floor by his eldest sister, Temari. Before Kankuro could protest, he was silence by a withering glare.
"Are you crazy or are you really that stupid?" Temari half-hissed, half whispered in case the youngest of the sand children was within earshot.
Kankuro still looked clueless.
Temari rolled her eyes. Moron.
The puppeteer struggled against her, but Temari kept him under her hold. The resisting stopped with a firm fist connected to Kankuro's head.
"Ow! What was that for?"
"Because, don't you remember the last time Gaara went with us to get ice cream?"
Realization came over Kankuro. He blinked. The memory was still fresh in his mind from the scene Gaara caused last summer…
And speak of the devil, no pun intended, Gaara Demon of the Desert entered the room and looked puzzled. "What's going on?"
It's been months since Uzumaki Naruto changed Gaara's view of life. Who knew a simple head butt could change a person so drastically. Since then Gaara has calmed down his frequent killings and even tried being more friendly towards his siblings. So much, that he goes to great lengths as to bond with them. He would go on walks with them and play games every now and then, completely ignoring the terrified expressions of the other children around him.
And now there he was standing in the doorway asking a plain question that had a complicated answer.
Temari and Kankuro both froze, eyeing each other to find the perfect lie.
Kankuro responded first without thinking. "Uh nothing, just looking out the window…"
"Why?" Gaara asked.
Kankuro's eyes widened and his mouth gaped. He looked like a fish out of water unable to think of an explanation for observing nothing out the window.
Gaara started walking towards him and Kankuro practically pissed himself from fear. If Gaara saw who was on the streets below, the results would be disastrous…
Luckily, Temari found her voice and halted Gaara.
"It's nothing Gaara, just Kankuro being an idiot…" Temari show a glaredat Kankuro before he could even argue that accusation. Then she turned back to Gaara. "Anyway want to help me make dinner?" Temari knew about Gaara turning over a new leaf, there was no way Gaara would turn her down. Hopefully, Gaara will forget about suspicious window and help her.
"Ok."
Fortunately, Gaara did stop his advance and then turned his heel to head into the kitchen. But not before the most dreaded sound rang through the apartment. One that made it clear to everyone on the block that the ice cream man was here…
Temari and Kankuro's hearts leaped into their throats. Not again…
(A/N Flashback for the first time Gaara had ice cream. The timeline is still after the fight with Naruto. Gaara is polite.)
On a usual blazing hot day in Sunakagure, a pleasant man was pushing his cart while ringing his bell. The man had simple white and blue civilian clothes with a crisp white folded hat on. The cheery whimsical sound signaled the dehydrated villagers to come out and digest some cool ice cream. The ice cream man's, Krazi, cart had varieties of frozen treats ranging from classic cones, popsicles, and slushies.
Krazi soon found himself surrounded by children that ran from the playground as soon as they heard the familiar bells. Krazi grinned at the pleading eyes of the lot. Then he dug into his cart for something.
The kids waited patiently to see what kind of the delight Krazi the Ice Cream Man would give them.
But when Krazi finally reappeared, this customers slumped they're shoulders. But Krazi smiled kindly as he put the object in his hands on the cart for all to see. All the youngster's eyes lit up with glee.
A sign that read "Free Ice Cream Day!".
With all the little one's jumping up and down, Krazi quickly got to work handing out all the specific ice cream treats that the kids picked out from the pictures on the cart's side.
Busy with the fast orders, Krazi wasn't aware of the Sand Siblings that also lined up for ice cream.
"Okay you two, I saved up enough for everyone to buy their own ice cream. Everything only cost a dollar, so here." Temari held out her savings for both her younger brothers.
Kankuro snatched it greedily and marveled the simple currency by holding it in the sun. He muttered a quick thanks.
"Ice cream, ice cream, we all scream for ice cream!" Kankuro yelled to the sky, all the other children in line sang along too.
Gaara on the other hand held his hand out for Temari to give him the money. Temari didn't even move as the sand from Gaara's gourd swept the money from her hand. Once in his possession he nodded curtly at Temari and said a polite 'thank you'. Then he turned to his side and let Temari step in line ahead of him.
Temari released a breath she didn't know she was holding and also lined up. Temari knew Gaara was trying to be nice with the thanks, but she would never get used to the chilling effects of Gaara's sand. She lined up and tried to ignore the chill in her spine with Gaara behind her.
Kankuro still wasn't satisfied until he got everyone to sing with him. "Come on Temari! You too, Gaara."
Temari rolled her eyes and turned around to face Gaara. "Ignore him, Gaara. You don't have to."
But Gaara was already humming the tune as he waited.
Once it was their turn, the color literally drained from Krazi's face. You would have to be living under a highly compressed rock to not know who the Sand Siblings were. The screams that one child from the trio in particular caused every night. The next morning's aftermath was always grueling.
Kankuro was already too excited for getting his favorite flavor of ice cream, but when he read the sign on Krazi's cart, he exploded. "FREE ICE CREAM? AWESOME!" Kankuro jumped up and down. And then turned around to coax Gaara to jump in joy with him too.
"I'll take a strawberry ice cream cone. No wait! Since it's free, make that a triple scoop with vanilla and another spoon of strawberry! With nuts!" Kankuro exclaimed with his mouth watering.
But nothing happened. Krazi had heard loud and clear the order, but his eyes were glazed over in fear. What was stopping Gaara of the Desert from raiding his cart and then killing him? The thought of bolting and leaving the village was running through his mind instead of giving the puppeteer his ice cream.
Impatient that he wasn't getting his free ice cream, Kankuro was tempted to spook the man and take all the ice cream in the cart. "Hey, what's the deal? Gimme my ice cream!" Kankuro said with finality, stomping his foot.
Krazi jumped and quickly looked into his cart. He quickly prepared Kankuro's ice cream and handed it over to the temper-tantrum ninja.
Next was Temari who ordered a peach popsicle. (A/N See what I did there? Wink, wink. Nudge, nudge. ^_^)
Krazi dived into his inventory and retrieved it. Then Temari walked over to the shade umbrella where Kankuro was currently residing.
Normally it would be a relief to serve the last customer and move on to the next area on his list. But Krazi wasn't thrilled.
Gaara stepped up next and looked up into Krazi's eyes. "Is it really free?"
Krazi nodded his head frantically, fearing his life. A innocent smile graced Gaara's features. "Yay?" Gaara was still new at expressing any emotion besides terror and killing intent.
The sight of Gaara smiling sent Krazi off. Krazi's whole frame was trembling and his speech started to stutter. "W-what would y-you l-like?"
"What do you have left?"
As Krazi looked inside, the thought of closing the lid and running with his cart was interrupted by a chilling eery singing.
"Ice cream, ice cream, we all SCREAM FOR ICE CREAM!" That last part had a hint of Shukaku's voice in in. Apparently, Gaara was starting to get into the spirit of ice cream joy. The last bit went unnoticed by his brother and sister, as if intended for only Krazi to hear.
Krazi gulped. He already knew what was left, but too mortified to announce it. Chocolate…
It wasn't that bad a flavor, but for some reason, most kids would rather have a melted puddle of ice cream over having chocolate. Chocolate seemed to only appeal to Krazi's older customers. A mystery but one that was ignored.
Now here stood a child, a menacing one at that, asking for the remainder of frozen treats. The only choices floated through Krazi's mind; say chocolate and die a quick death or say nothing and still die painfully. Krazi let a tear fall down his face. Neither choice was good for his health. But Krazi eventually came to a decision.
"All I have left is chocolate." Then Krazi flinched his whole body away from the Sand-user.
But Gaara just stood there. To anyone else it would look like he simply spaced out. But the truth was something awoke from his deep slumber. Deep inside Gaara.
Shukaku farted himself fully awake once the words 'chocolate' passed through Gaara's thoughts. "Uh, what? Did someone say chocolate?" The over-grown raccoon sat up and immediately sent a flurry of controlling tendrils through Gaara's charka system.
Outside the mindscape the change was sudden. Gaara's eyes glazed over in a look of pure hunger, his mouth curled into a ear-splitting drooling smile, and his stance swung back and forth like someone drunk off their top.
'Shukaku' turned towards the voice that just said his favorite food in the whole world, demon or mortal. "CHOCOLATE?" Shukaku lolled Gaara's head to the side. "DID YOU SAY CHOCOLATE?"
Krazi pissed himself, then bolted down the street with his cart in tow.
The sight of Krazi running for his life fueled Skukaku so much that he fully transformed into his one-tailed form.
His new transformation towered over all the buildings and the air was suddenly filled with Shukaku's crazed laughter. "WHERE ARE YOU TAKING MY PRECIOUS CHOCOLATE?"
Meanwhile on the streets below, Temari and Kankuro both dropped their ice cream in the sand. One thought going through each of their minds. Ruuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuun!
They bolted, but didn't get far as Shukaku pulled them back with his sand. Absorbing them until he swallowed them whole. Then Shukaku formed them into each of his clawed clutches. "WHERE ARE YOU GOING? THE PARTY JUST'S GETTING STARTED!" Then Shukaku started skipping towards the trail Krazi left behind. The small smell of chocolate would lure Shukaku towards Krazi.
"I TELL YA, I HAVEN'T HAD CHOCOLATE IN AWHILE! And when I get my hands on that ice cream man for depriving me of my treat, I'm gonna… I'm gonna…"
But Temari wasn't listening to his bellowing voice. Instead, she was trying to reach Gaara by yelling his name. It worked slightly as Shukaku's ear began twitching every time she screamed. But the situation wasn't progressing. Shukaku seemed to be dead-set on getting his chocolate. Literally.
Shukaku brought both Temari and Kankuro up to his monstrous face and smiled insanely. Come on! Where's you ice cream spirit?" Shukaku roared as he swung them back and forth. "ICE CREAM, ICE CREAM! WE ALL SCREAM BLOODY MURDER FOR ICE CREAM! AH HAHAHAHA!"
Kankuro didn't sing along.
As we were running through Sunagakure, we spotted Krazi's figure hiding behind his cart near the entrance of the village. The guards seemed to be detaining him for concern of his sanity. The story of Shukaku being unleashed seemed a bit sketchy until speak of the devil, there he was casting a shadow over them. (A/N *Snorts like a dork* I'm on a roll today!)
The scent of chocolate reached Shukaku's nostrils and the results were explosive. "CHOCOLATE!"
End. Until I stop being lazy and finish the rest of this ONE-SHOT. Also, I want you to visualize the crazy as hell chocolate guy from "Spongebob Squarepants". Gaara did it first.
(A/N I know what you're thinking, why is Kankuro a spaz when it comes to ice cream? Because who doesn't like ice cream when you're in a scorching hot desert? And yes I know that the Sand Siblings aren't children but you're never to old to love ice cream.
For Example:
My friends and I, we're seventeen, waited until the ice cream man of our neighborhood was done serving the little kids. When he drove, we followed him and made him pull over by blocking him in with our bikes. He was only going 2 miles per hour. Anyway, afterwards we got off our bikes and circled the truck. To anyone else, it looked like we were about to rob him. But then I put money of the counter and ordered;
"We'll take two "Spongebobs", three "Power Rangers", and one "Dora the Explorer." That's all."
The ice cream man looked at us as if we were serious, we were, and then burst out laughing. We joined him and the day went on. I got the Dora the Explorer, problem?