Hi guys,

Thank you for being patient with me. I'm going to be taking a break after this chapter because it's right about that time when life is going to get crazy.

I will update when things start to calm down again, or when I have a spare moment.

But for now please read and enjoy!

"We have an urgent matter from Konoha!"

It had been a little over four months since the new treaty between Suna and Konoha had been made. The village was in desperate need to regain it's strength and Konoha was the best source of goods that Suna had always depended on. This treaty had happened right after the failed attack and despite Konohagakure's grudge that Suna had broken their alliance they had no choice but to accept it to make sure that military strength would still be in control. Since the new treaty Sunakagure had promised to always assist Konoha in whatever matter was needed; this was kind of a trust exercise on both parts it would help to straighten the already broken peace that was between them.

The message that Baki received from Tsunade had been calling for back up. Uchiha Sasuke had left the village to peruse power from Orochimaru and while the Hokage had sent some of her best genin to bring him back, she feared that it wasn't enough. That's why she was asking for assistance to try and find him before he fell into the wrong hands.

Since Baki was acting as a temporary ruler all important business was sent to him and he clicked his tongue in annoyance as he read over the message. Baki had heard many things about Uchiha Sasuke, he was supposedly a genius among ninja. The last surviving member of the once proud Uchiha clan; he had heard rumors that Orochimaru wanted the young Uchiha's body for himself but other than that he didn't know much about Sasuke or what kind of power he possessed exactly; but if Tsunade was asking for help Suna had no other choice but to offer their help no matter the risk. He had summoned the three best genin in the village and in a few minutes Temari, Kankuro and Gaara were standing in front of him waiting to hear their newest assignment. It had been tough on them for a few weeks. They had been doing endless missions in order to keep from getting into financial trouble. But Temari had been wanting a real mission for a while now, so she was pretty happy on the inside that she would have a chance to show off what she had learned these past few months.

"Listen carefully you three, we received a message from the Hokage asking us to go on a retrieval mission". Temari and Kankuro looked surprised; when had Konoha gotten a new Hokage and under such short notice? And why didn't they hear of it sooner? "Hey Baki just who are we supposed to be retrieving anyway sounds like an awful lot of work". Temari gave Kankuro a small nudge as a reminder to keep quiet.

"Uchiha Sasuke".

"What?! What's all this about!"

"From the message that was given, Sasuke has decided to turn to Orochimaru in order to gain power. By doing so he has turned his back on his village. A retrieval squad has already been sent but the Hokage has requested that we assist them in the search".

Gaara's face remind stoic but his eyes told that he was a little understanding of the situation. Even though it had been a while ago he could still remember the look he saw when he looked into those onyx eyes, those eyes were as plain as day. They wanted power, a type of power that had a dark desire behind it. Power that could cause hurt and destruction to anyone that got in his way. He remembered well what that look in Sasuke eye's meant and it was only a matter of time till that overwhelming urge to have that dark power took over him completely.

"So what are we supposed to do?"

Baki gave them a stern look "You are to travel to Konoha and help to stop Uchiha Sasuke no matter the cost. You should also find a few Konoha genin along the way, if you can help it assist them in any means necessary. This mission is to determine the future that lies ahead for Suna and Konoha do not fail". Kankuro only grinned a bit "Relax we'll take care of it". Baki couldn't help but linger his stare on Gaara for a few seconds, he didn't know what he was thinking but this was a good chance to show the red head's improvement towards helping others. "Very well then be off". As soon as they were dismissed the three siblings were quick to leave the village before they started running into the vast desert of their home land.

"We'll this is a nuisance, seems like Uchiha has finally lost it".

Temari gave her brother a look "It can't be helped, Sasuke is being lead down the wrong path still it's our duty to help Konoha". Her attention turned towards Gaara he hadn't said a word so far, she wondered what he was thinking. Gaara didn't exactly like Sasuke but one could only guess why he was going out of his way to help out. She wasn't sure if Gaara was only doing this because it was a mission, with her youngest brother things were never as they appeared. Still it wasn't her place to question Gaara's actions so she kept to herself as she ran alongside her brothers.

The Land of Wind was huge with desert as far as the eye could see.

It was very easy to get lost if one didn't know the geography of the region. But having been living in this wasteland their whole lives the three siblings knew this place inside out and they continued their journey to Konoha. Kankuro was in his own thoughts as he kept stealing glances at Gaara. Like his older sister it wasn't easy to know what his little brother was thinking. But perhaps it would have something to do with Uzumaki Naruto, Kankuro didn't doubt that Konoha's blonde knucklehead would be joining the search, even he knew that he was the Uchiha's closest companion. There was no question that Gaara idolized Naruto; he was the person that inspired him to make a change after all and maybe that's why Gaara didn't protest as he followed suit. Perhaps he was trying to think in terms of how the Uzumaki would.

The three siblings were quick to make it out of the Land of Wind and now they had to begin their three day journey to Konoha. The last time they made this travel it had been to destroy the village. But it was different now, very different from how things had been at the time. That still didn't stop a pang of guilt cutting through Temari, she never wanted to eliminate Konoha from the beginning but the mission always came first. Even now she still felt bad about the event but now wasn't the time to dwindle they had an assignment and it needed to be done.

"This means you might see that Nara kid again".

Her head snapped over towards Kankuro. "What's that supposed to mean?!"

He grinned "Nothing, nothing betcha you'll be excited to see him after a while that's all".

A blush went over her face as she glared at him. "Idiot! He's a lazy good for nothing bum, what makes you think that there's anything between us". Kankuro raised an eyebrow at her "Temari don't try to deny it. You were complaining for weeks that you weren't able to beat him and recently you've started talking about him". Temari's blush further deepened; she hadn't even realized it herself until just now. But that still didn't mean anything, there was no way she would fall for someone like Nara Shikamaru; it would be utterly impossible. She scowled at her brother. "Shut up Kankuro!" To that he only laughed "Okay, fine I'll keep quit but I won't say I told you so".

While his siblings bickered Gaara was in his own little world of thoughts. This mission was of great importance for helping Konoha particularly Uzumaki Naruto. He briefly wondered if he would have the chance to see the blonde ninja again. If he did what kind of effect would it have for both parties? Time had passed since their last battle and Gaara could only wonder if Naruto thought of him still as a monster. The two of them weren't so different if he really thought about it. They both had tailed beasts that resided in them, and both had pretty traumatic childhoods but despite everything Gaara respected Naruto well enough to actually call him his friend. That was the main reason why he was so focused on helping to bring back Sasuke. Gaara didn't think fondly of the Uchiha but he was a comrade to Naruto and as such the red head knew what he had to do. Friends were supposed to help each other and Gaara was much wiser now then he was in the past; he now had the knowledge to understand what friends were.

"Temari, Kankuro let us hurry".

"Right!"

After much running, the three siblings did eventually reach the border that Suna shared with Konoha. It was a great relief to finally be closer to their targets; they didn't have much farther to go at this point the enemy should be close to leaving Konohagakure and they would have to cross paths at some point. The odds appeared to be in their favor but it was best not to push their luck.

"We should be getting close, not much farther now".

"I think it's best if we all split up, we might be able to cover more ground".

"But should the enemy find us before we get the chance there will be trouble it's best to wait a bit longer".

"So then what if-"

"I sense trouble up ahead". The two older siblings stopped arguing as Gaara pointed north, "It appears as though the enemy has engaged in battle with a few Konoha ninja and they made need our assistance". His sand eye that was connected to his optic nerve had proved to be very useful in trying to track down their enemy. But he had no idea who these Konoha ninja were; no matter they still needed help. "So now what?" "Simple, we split up". With that the three siblings each went their separate ways. Gaara knew that his brother and sister could handle themselves but that still didn't stop him from worrying about them. Silently he wished them good luck should they run into battle and then he made his way straight ahead. He could sense two people out in an open meadow. One of them was definitely a strong opponent based on the chakra signature that he was giving off. The red head picked up the pace a bit, not wanting to arrive too late. He wasn't sure what he was about to expect but whatever it was he wouldn't back down not when he had a mission to carry out.

It was a good thing he arrived when he did, from what he could tell there was a young shinobi in a pair of green tights with a bowl cut hairstyle and unusually thick eyebrows. He was battling a challenger maybe a few years older and he was wielding bones as a weapon. He recognized the Konoha ninja as Rock Lee who had been his former opponent once during the chunin exams.

If Gaara had acted when he did, Lee was sure to meet his fate. Because his sand reacted at that moment and shielded the killing blow that would've ended Lee's life. It was fairly obvious that he was in no condition to fight, not with his present state. Gaara could see the blood dripping from his arm and the pained expression on his face. That's when he remembered his previous battle with him and it made him feel guilty that he had inflicted so much damage onto him. It was any wonder at all that Lee even recovered from such a fight. He was much slower from when the last met and he didn't have that much fire in his eyes like before, which was understandable. Still, Gaara knew that he would have to fight he did owe one to Lee as well as to Konoha. With his mind made up, he approached the enemy with his sand defense already up and running.

"I will handle this do not interfere".

Kimimaru had proved to be one of the more difficult opponents that Gaara had ever faced. It was by sheer luck that he even survived the battle had Lee not been there on the few times to assist him. But in the end, neither of them would be seeing the misunderstood shinobi in this life. Kimimaru had died from his illness but it was a very lucky break.

Gaara knew that his siblings could handle themselves, but that still didn't stop him for wondering how they were doing. They both had their own challenges to overcome.

He would have to have faith that all was well with them, he needed to get Lee back to Konoha for treatment. Dusting himself off he bent down "Give me your arm". There was a bit of surprise from Lee's part as Gaara gently hoisted him up so that he could use his body as support. "I will take you back to Konoha". They had a long walk ahead of them but Gaara didn't say anything; he was feeling a bit drained himself since he had nearly used up all his chakra but he needed to help an ally of Suna for his own good.

"You seem to be different".

"I am".

"But why?"

Gaara looked over to Lee, he kinda expected that he would be questioned like this. But he would answer anyway.

"I decided to change myself for the greater good".

"Change yourself?"

"It was a decision that needed to happen for the better. I decided to move on and start anew, I don't ever want to be the person I once was ever again...Uzumaki Naruto inspired me to make that change and I am in dept to him for everything".

There was a moment of silence before Lee's eyes started to sparkle.

"Turning over a new leaf, now that is one of the many primes of youth!".

Gaara didn't seem to mind as Lee rambled about youth, it was a little strange but he felt content knowing that at least he was of service to him. He did feel a little relieved though when he saw the village it meant that having to listen to the hyperactive ninja was finally over as he wasn't used to being around people like him. Gaara was nice enough to take Lee to the hospital which of course is where he met up with Temari and Kankuro. Both looked a little worn out but otherwise alright. They all agreed to stay in Konoha for a few days to try and be of any help. However while Tsunade was pleased that the three had been of assistance, there wasn't any hope for the Uchiha. Not even Uzumaki Naruto was able to stop him from going to Orochimaru. The blonde had received many injuries and it would be some time yet till he was strong enough to hold his ground against him. There was sort of mixed atmosphere of emotions for everyone.

The three had completed their mission, but at the same time it was kind of a one-sided victory. Despite all the efforts Sasuke hadn't been persuaded to come back, if anything it made his hatred grow even more. Naruto was deeply upset about this and that of course made Gaara upset for him.

"Gaara you don't have to feel anything for Uchiha, let the rat be".

"Kankuro does have a point, but as allies to Konoha we must do what we can".

The red head was in his own little world at the moment. Arms folded across his chest as he remained deep in thought. He could only imagine the suffering that the Uzumaki was going through at the moment, that feeling of losing a friend. It bothered him a lot to see Naruto degrading himself for not being able to stop Sasuke. The Uzumaki was his role model and how was he supposed to prove that he had changed when the one person he was relying on was hurt.

It gave way to a new emotion that he was just starting to understand. The feeling of pain for others. It was hard to say whether Gaara was able to feel Naruto's pain, but maybe it was something similar to it. Or perhaps it was something completely off. Whatever the reason, the red head felt something for the blonde. And he made a silent promise to himself to get stronger so that he could assist Naruto whenever he needed it.

"Uzumaki Naruto...he may be the only one capable of bringing Uchiha Sasuke back".

Finally done, this took me a few days because I had to go back and remember what happened around this point in the story. Next chapter is not going to be for a while, but I will be back so don't worry too much. I am not going to leave this story unfinished.

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Thank you for reading this!