This one came out a little more drabble-ish than I'd intended, and I feel kind of like I've already covered this… (For more information, please see SoulOfAFangirl684—My Stories: Legacies.) But this has always been such an interesting time for me—the aftermath of Gaara's resurrection—especially because they don't really cover it. Naruto moves on to his next adventure, and we're left with a bit of a blank until the Sand Sibs come back into the story.

This was originally meant to be focused a lot more on an angsty Temari… It kind of became more about Baki and his awkwardness though. I'm rarely in a position where I have to choose between Angst or Humor for the category… Well, I guess you'll see for yourself.

Shaken

'Shaken' was not a word often used to describe the Fourth Kazekage's oldest child and only daughter. She was too well-trained for that. They all were. But that was the only way Baki could think to describe her the first time he saw Temari after their run-in with the Akatsuki. He supposed he shouldn't have been surprised. Their Kazekage—her youngest brother—had just returned from the dead, after all. If that wasn't enough to shake things up, he didn't know what was. But still, the sight of Temari coming undone certainly unnerved him a little.

They met in the Kazekage's—Gaara's—office. It was quite late. Baki had intended to stay only long enough to drop off the most recent batch of paperwork, but he froze when he realized the room was not empty, as he'd expected.

Dark, but not empty. Temari had not bothered to turn on the lights. She was standing at one of the windows beside Gaara's desk, staring out at the stars. Or, that was how it appeared, anyway. But he soon realized, specifically when she didn't react to his interruption, that Temari wasn't seeing much of anything at all. She was too lost in her own thoughts.

He cleared his throat as he set down the paperwork he'd come to deliver. He had also chosen not to turn on the lights, so her face was in shadow as she snapped around to face him. It took a moment for his eyes to fully adjust, and when they did, he saw a pair of tired, haunted eyes staring right back. Temari clearly hadn't been getting much sleep, and he couldn't say this surprised him.

"Tomorrow will be another busy day," he said, his words a bit gruff. "After all, the village is still recuperating… You ought to get some rest."

"I would…" she said in a ragged voice, "But every time I close my eyes…"

"You see Gaara," he filled in, thinking back to the sight of the Kazekage's lifeless body lying on the ground himself. But she cut him off sharply.

"No. Not Gaara… Kankuro."

This one threw him for a loop. Kankuro? Sure, the middle sibling had had his brush with death as well, but they'd caught it so early. And, though a part of it was surely due to the boy's own tenacity, he'd recovered before the whole ordeal had even come to an end. Kankuro's crisis had already been nearly forgotten in the face of his brother's more high-profile danger. Baki was guilty of it himself. But Temari would not forget.

"I was intercepted by Kakashi's squad before I was even halfway back," she explained quietly. "They explained their mission, what had happened to Gaara… At the time, it felt like the longest three days of my life. I didn't even think to worry about Kankuro until we got back and found out he was on the verge of death too…"

"We had no way to get the message to you mid-journey…"

"You don't get it," she groaned in frustration, and Baki did not argue. There were a lot of emotions rolling off of her in waves. He didn't really do emotions. He felt very, very lost. "I should have known Kankuro would go after Gaara, even if he didn't have backup."

Baki was not sure what he was supposed to do next. "Kankuro has always been stubborn. He likes to push boundaries… But Kankuro's decisions are his own. You can't blame yourself for that. Even after all their progress, I never thought Kankuro would take such reckless measures for Gaara."

Temari just shook her head. The brothers' bond was quiet, but it was there. He understood that now. It was strange… Baki had been one of the Fourth Kazekage's advisors. He had watched these three grow up, since even before their shinobi days. But he was starting to think he didn't really know them at all.

"I should have known, though," she repeated, as if he had not spoken. "I asked him to."

This hung in the air between them for a moment. Baki was starting to worry that the lack of sleep was truly getting to her. She had asked him to? How was that even possible? Temari had been away from the village at the time of the attack. But she went on before he had to ask.

"Years ago… When Gaara decided to become part of the regular shinobi corps… Kankuro and I were both against it. But nothing we said could stop him. So I asked Kankuro to keep an eye on him. I know Gaara can take care of himself, but Kankuro took to watching over him whenever he was off-duty and smoothing things over with those who still didn't trust him from the background. Maybe he didn't need protecting… But we did it anyway. So I should have known. If I'd spared even a second of thought for Kankuro, I would have realized he'd gone after Gaara."

"Temari… Even if you had known, there's nothing you could have done. There's no use lingering on the past like this." And it was unlike her to do so. Really, all this sentimental bullshit was starting to make him uncomfortable.

"But that's the thing…" She had turned back to the windows, her voice quiet. "I haven't learned from the past. I always do this. I've never looked out for Kankuro like I should have. When we were younger, back before we were really a family, I think it flattered him… That I trusted him to take care of himself, I mean. But now… he must know that it stemmed from weakness on my part. I've failed him."

Baki was silent for a moment. "Well, then I suppose you'll just have to make up for it now."

She didn't turn to acknowledge him as he made for the door. Baki stopped in the doorway as one final thought occurred to him. Perhaps he was getting the hang of this emotions thing after all. "You know… Kankuro likely would have gone after Gaara whether you'd asked him to or not. Remember, Gaara is Kankuro's brother too."

Review please!

I don't own Naruto!

I actually had a separate piece planned, looking into Kankuro himself, but this one was short, so I figured I'd get this out first. Just a little drabble-y piece about Temari feeling guilty over prioritizing one brother's well-being over the other's. Kankuro really needs more love…