"Kazekage-sama!" The door to 24-year-old Sabaku no Gaara's office flew open to a medic-Kuniochi.
"Yes?" he asked, looking up from his paperwork.
"Your wife has gone into labor." She said between pants. Gaara's eyes widened, the baby was a month early! "She ordered us to have your children sent to Kankuro-donno." Of course, Gaara hadn't heard this, he'd used the sand to teleport to the waiting room of the hospital.
"Where's my wife?" he asked the nurse at the front desk. She looked up scared. 'Why is it every time one of the Kazekage's children are born, I'm at the front desk?' she thought.
"Um…down the hall, third door to the right." she sighed. Gaara nodded and walked quickly -I mean ran to the door. He opened it, but a nurse stopped him.
"I'm sorry, Kazekage-sama, but you can't be in here right now." she said. "There are…problems. Please wait." She pointed to a chair across from the door. She then shut the door in his face.
'What did she mean by problems?' he thought worriedly. There hadn't been problems with the other 2, and his daughter had been born almost three months early. Okay, that had been a problem, but nobody had to actually say it was, it was common sense.
He closed his eyes, trying to drown out the screaming and yells of profanities coming from his wife's room. "Hey Gaara." he looked up, it was Kankuro with 2 children behind him. "They begged to come."
"Daddy!" Gaara's 2-year-old daughter ran forward and jumped on him. "Ish mama okay?"
"Of course mama's okay, our little brother is just coming." assured her older brother, Aki.
"How do you know it's a bwother?" asked Sande-Ayame.
"Because why would they want another you?" she glared at her brother.
"Why would they want another you?"
"Want me to take them back?" asked Kankuro. Gaara shook his head and played his daughter's hair.
"You just go home, Kankuro, the triplet will be home from the academy soon." He told his brother. Kankuro nodded and left.
"Wow, mama's got a colorful mouth." laughed Aki, taking a seat next to his father.
"Yes, she does." Gaara continued to stare at the door.
The hours passed as the family sat in the waiting area, Aki and Sande-Ayame bickering every so often, ending in Sande-Ayame punching her brother. Finally , a nurse came out with a small blue bundle in her arms.
"I told you it'd be a boy!" bragged Aki.
"Up yours!" Gaara gave Sande-Ayame a warning look. "Sorry."
"Kazekage-sama, can I talk with you for a moment?" asked the nurse. He nodded, the nurse walked them just out of ear shot of the bickering siblings. "Your son is perfectly healthy but I'm afraid, there were complications that hadn't been foreseen and…your wife didn't make it. I'm sorry." Gaara just stood there in shock, until he finally asked when his son could leave the Hospital.
"Daddy, why we gotta get in black?" asked Sande-Ayame a week later as her father help her find an outfit.
"It's your mama's funeral."
"Why she gotta have funeral?" Gaara sighed and smiled sadly at his naïve daughter, she had yet to wrap her mind around the fact that her mother was dead.
"Because mom's dead, moron!" snapped Aki who had been walking by the door.
"No she's just on mission!"
"No she'd not, moron, she'd gone!"
"Stop it." ordered Gaara. "Aki, go get ready, Sande-Ayame, put this on." Gaara handed her a small black dress that he knew was too short to be worn alone and black pants as Aki stalked off.
"Is mama really gone?" asked Sande-Ayame. Gaara kneeled in front of her and kissed his daughter's forehead.
"I'm afraid so, my otome."
"I thought it was a cover. I thought she was just sent off on some important mission." whispered Sande-Ayame. "I thought Naruto-san was just being an asshole and giving mama that kind of mission."
"No, your mama would never take a mission that kept her away too long." whispered Gaara. Sande-Ayame wiped her eyes on her sleeve.
"Is that why nii-san is so mad? Is that why Kioshi-oto-san came home so soon?" she asked. "Karura-itoko-chan said he wouldn't be home for three days." Gaara nodded. "Why'd she gotta die, daddy?"
"I don't know, otome." He hugged her daughter close. "But you've still got me."
"You promise? You ain't gonna leave?"
"No, I promise I won't leave you or your brothers."
"I love ya daddy." Sande-Ayame wrapped her arms around her father the best she could.
"I love you too, my otome." He kissed the top of her forehead. "We'll be alright." He said this more to insure himself than his daughter.
"I hope so, daddy."
Translations:
Aki - Autumn
Sande-Ayame - Rejoicing-Iris
Itoko-san - Cousin
Nii-san - Big brother
Otome - daughter
Oto-san - little brother