Rating: Fairly PG stuff. Nothing you can't stomach.
Pairings: I can't bear to tell you now.
Disclaimers: This applies to the rest of the chapters as well. I do not own Naruto; Masashi Kishimoto does. There you go.
By the way: Naruto is twenty-three now. Just for the record. And you have to review after this. You can't not do it. It'd kill me.
Prologue
Five years ago.
It was an exceptionally hot day. The constant wind in the Hidden Village of Sand had reached storm proportions and the everyone had locked their doors and shut their windows quickly lest the wind blew sand into their houses, which could be a very irritating thing indeed because it ruined the delicate tatami mats.
A lone figure swathed in brown clothing sat calmly atop a roof, almost completely oblivious to the sand whipping about him. He stared vaguely into space. Unblinking, his face was unreadable, like a perfectly painted theatremask.
Yes, Gaara of the Sand loved his alone times. Then nobody could bother him about Kazekage duties and the like. He should create whirlwinds like these more often. Maybe one day he'd create one so gorgeously disastrous that it killed everyone in its path as it swept across the entire country. He felt a sliver of excitement at the thought, then squashed it hurriedly.
He had a proper reason to live now.
Suddenly his nose picked up two distinct scents coming from the corner of the street. An older woman and a young child. He flicked his turquoise eyes towards them, mostly out of boredom rather than interest. She wasn't an older woman, she was a teenager who appeared to be in her twenties (appeared, because you never know these days. Plastic surgery and all that). Undeniably attractive, but it was the little girl beside her who caught his attention.
Something stirred inside him.
He stared at the child, who couldn't be more than ten years old. Six years younger than him. Her older sister was clutching to her desperately. Sickening. It kind of reminded him of Temari and Kankuruo—
Her blood sang out sweetly and clearly to him. Better than Sasuke's, light years away from the Godaime's but good blood is good blood. And he was already feeling an incredible power surge inside him and rumble like thunder.
The girl looked around her nervously. Gaara almost thought she could sense him, but that was impossible. They were too far away and the suspended sand obscured her vision (without blocking his, of course). Sure enough, she lowered her head in a matter of seconds. But then she started running in the opposite direction, screaming.
The lady looked at her silhouette in confusion, then was after her in a split second.
"Eriko-chan!" she shouted, chasing after the child frantically. "What's gotten into you? Eriko!"
The Kazekage rolled his eyes and turned away. The wind blew more sand into his hair and across his torso. He had more important things to do than think about little girls. Even the potentially powerful kind.
And Eriko. What a stupid name.
Um, just in case you get worried, Gaara is not going to fall in love with any of the new characters or anything, because that's just wrong. May he be a bachelor for ever and ever. Huffah !
Onwards, review !