He's so small. That's Kankuro's first thought as he looks-really looks-at his little brother for the first time in years.
His memories of Gaara are blurred and vague. Father had made sure Kankuro and Temari didn't interact with their younger brother unless absolutely necessary.
Kankuro feared Gaara-everyone in Suna feared Gaara. It's hard to remember that though, hard to remember when he watches the small boy clutching at Uncle Yashamaru and looking around with wondering eyes.
Temari shifts into a battle stance subtly, aiming a glance at the man talking to tou-san a few feet away. He joins his sister in watching the stranger, noting his bright blue eyes and the hair, red like fire, that's cropped close to his scalp. Kankuro's sister looks at him then, a silent dare to go up to them in her eyes, when they're interrupted by a shape slamming into Gaara.
Everyone freezes before Kankuro steps back and Temari reaches for her kunai, before they realize Gaara hasn't even flinched.
Instead he's smiling at the girl practically hanging on him, actually smiling at the girl chattering away into his ear.
She has the same hair and same eyes, the same nose and same smile as the man talking to father. That's all Kankuro's managed to notice before she turns and aims a blinding smile at him.
"Hey! I'm Uzumaki Akemi! Who're you?" she asks, bouncing on the balls of her feet.
He blinks, looking at this loud and strangely enthusiastic girl, this girl that's touching his little brother without a trace of fear.
"I'm Kankuro, and this is Temari. We're Gaara's siblings."
"Cool! My tou-san is over there. His name is Kurama." she says, turning to point at the man talking to their father. "He's the one that fixed Gaara's seal."
"Fixed his seal?" Temari ventures.
Akemi shrugs. "Tou-san said Gaara was acting all homicidal because the seal was broken. He said the Ichibi was making him do things."
Kankuro blinks. He didn't think they could actually fix his brother.
He looks closer at Gaara, notes how the ever present circles under his eyes are gone, how he doesn't look like he's about to either fight or flee.
For the first time in his life Gaara seems at peace.
She's used to thinking of Gaara as a sandstorm. He's always been something unpredictable and vicious, a force of nature with no care for the destruction he leaves in his wake.
Now though, while she's feeling unusually poetic, Temari's tempted to compare him to one of the rare few oasis found in the desert.
He's calmer than she's ever seen him, his usually thrashing chakra still as water.
Her brother is smiling, actually smiling, and it's not even a bloodthirsty grin. No, it's something gentle, something that looks entirely out of place on his small face.
He looks like a real child. He looks like just another boy, not the demon container the shinobi whisper about or the monster the civilians pray will never notice them.
For just a moment Temari contemplates the boy in front of her being an imposter or a replacement.
But then Gaara's smile fades as he looks at them, his eyes reverting back to their previous blank stare, and she reconsiders.
He's not an oasis or a sandstorm. He's like one of the snakes or spiders that wait in their holes and burrows for prey to pass by. He was vicious and wild before. Now he's still dangerous, but it's tempered by patience and a calm she never thought he'd achieve.
Temari shifts her gaze then, eyes drifting to the girl beside her little brother. The girl with a sunshine bright smile and bright blue eyes, the girl with Uzumaki red hair.
Kankuro, from his place beside her, is focused entirely on Gaara. Temari doesn't blame him, he's never shown father's knack for politics.
Temari has though, has inherited their father's shrewd nature and strategic talent.
Uzumaki Kurama has made Gaara even more dangerous, turned him from a mindless force to a future killer with patience and calm. This man will be dangerous, she knows, but not nearly as dangerous as his daughter.
Her little brother is clinging to the girl, his eyes on her once again. He looks almost adoring, a smile blossoming again as the girl twines her hand in his. Uzumaki Kurama may have tamed her brother, but his daughter is the one controlling him.
The voice is gone. Mother is no longer screaming at him, urging him forward and onward, yelling that he ought to make them bleed.
Gaara looks down at his hands, watching as he presses his fingers together. His body feels like it belongs to him again.
He doesn't feel like one of Kankuro's puppets anymore, doesn't feel like one the marionettes the street performers dance with, doesn't feel like someone is pulling his strings.
The voice is gone, and now he feels strangely empty.
Gaara's happy, of course he's happy that he's not being controlled anymore.
But it's lonely, to go from years of constant noise to complete silence.
That thought is cast aside, though, when a hand reaches out to his. He curls his fingers around Akemi's, turning to look her in the eyes.
Gaara is smart for his age. He knows that a man suddenly showing up just to fix the seal is suspicious. He knows this Kurama has to be plotting something.
But it's hard to care when Akemi is smiling at him. It's hard to care when she didn't fear him, even though she must have heard the rumors. Tou-san masked it well, but Gaara knew he was still afraid. Uncle was frightened, Kankuro and Temari stayed away.
But this girl has accepted him, has asked for nothing but a smile in return.
The silence is overwhelming, this strange seal master is plotting, and he sees the way Temari watches him, cautious and still afraid.
He doesn't care though. He doesn't care when Akemi's smiling at him so brightly, nothing but acceptance and honest happiness in her eyes.