Chapter 6

Did He Just Give Me An Order?

Hello – Text

"Hello" – Talking

'Hello' – Thinking

Hello – Emphasis

oOoOoOoOo – Scene Break

xXx – Chapter Start

xXx – Chapter End

'Hello' – Important Title

xXx

oOoOoOoOo Tetsuo oOoOoOoOo

It had been a few weeks since he'd met Gaara, a little over three years since he started his apprenticeship with Chiyo. Every once in a while, they'd meet up at the entrance to the Village and head around town for a while. Sometimes they'd get something to eat, other times they'd just have a seat somewhere and talk for a little while. Shira had even come along a few times to hang out, though he was a little nervous at first.

All in all, it really wasn't so bad. Gaara was still a little nervous around him for a while, as if he was worried he'd up and disappear. He also got a little clingy once I a while, probably on a particularly bad day. The little kid seemed to consider him some kind of lifeline, someone he could look to for support, unlike his relationship with even his own father.

Of course, it wasn't really without a few problems.

"Oh my god, there he is again."

"How can he even stand being around that little freak?"

"Just wait for it. Gaara will kill him any day now."

Ah yes, like the whispers that drifted around whenever he and Gaara were seen together. You'd think the novelty of the whole thing would've worn off by now but, if anything, it only drew more attention as their meetings didn't stop. People were gawking at him as he walked through the streets holding Gaara's hand, staring at him like he was walking around with a rabid dog. He figured all the negative attention would probably ruin what reputation he was developing in the village, but he really didn't care. The opinions of idiots were pretty much worth zero to him, always had been.

The second problem, though, was much more worrying. He wasn't sure if he was happy with getting so much attention from the freaking ANBU, but it was getting kinda annoying. They stayed out of sight, always just outside of his vision and barely within his ability to sense them. He was pretty sure it was an intentional action, some kind of psychological pressure tactic meant to push him into a nervous breakdown and reveal whatever evil plans he had in store. Too bad he'd already seen and experienced much worse. These guys were nothing.

(The scent of burnt flesh and smoke searing his nostrils. The sound of screaming, death throes as children died under collapsing buildings shouting "MOMMY! DADDY!" Parents wailing over their corpses before death by a piercing bolt of lightning or slashing blade of wind. Earth cracking and upheaving as the writhing black mass roared and let out bellows of flame. Screaming. Dying. Running around as they burned to death.)

…..No. These guys were less than nothing. Not even worth a second thought.

Their boss, though? The fact that ANBU were following him made it clear that he'd attracted the Kazekage's attention. For better or worse, he couldn't say.

He shrugged it off. 'Ah well.' "Come on Gaara, let's get something cold. I dunno know about you, but the dryness in the air is killing my throat."

oOoOoOoOo ? oOoOoOoOo

He stared down at the sight before him, his frown hidden behind the turban over his lower face.

'I really don't know what to think of this.'

On one hand, Gaara finally seemed to have a friend. Someone he could just spend some time with and have an actual childhood. Someone who didn't care about him being the Jinchūriki of Shukaku. He had a chance to just have some time as a normal child before his Ninja training started getting more serious. This was good.

So why was he so suspicious of it all? Why did it seem so strange and unbelievable to him?

Well, one reason was the notable difference in age. Gaara was just 3 while the other boy, Tetsuo, was seven years his senior at 10. Not much among adults, but worlds apart at that point in their lives. He was also the apprentice of Lady Chiyo, an old woman known for her mind games. Could she have put him up to this for some reason? Some kind of plan?

…No. Even he could see such an accusation as nothing but paranoia. Maybe it was his own grudge against her talking in the back of his mind, that spiteful voice that peaked up whenever he remembered the part she played in his sister's death, but he still couldn't see her betraying her own village. Lady Chiyo might be apart from the inner workings and power games of the Hidden Sand, but that was all the more reason that she wouldn't bother with something like this. Besides, she was no traitor, for all her rather twisted sense of humor.

But what about her apprentice? He just appeared in the village out of nowhere and was suddenly recruited as her apprentice. She didn't exactly make a big scene about it, but it had still caused quite an uproar among the leadership of the Hidden Sand. Chiyo made her retirement from the village's roster quite a scene, even giving Rasa a pretty nasty headache. Thinking about it still brought a smile to his face.

But despite all their attempts to find some answers, they couldn't find any indication as to why she accepted him as her apprentice. Around the time she took him on as her apprentice, they'd noticed she seemed to be procuring funds and an ownership permit to her own home. A strange series of events, given how isolated she'd gotten after her official retirement. After learning about Tetsuo, they'd assumed she had done so to give him a place to stay, apparently hoping to enroll him in the Academy. So what changed? What did he do to perk her interest to the point of making him her apprentice?

And now, three years after he'd appeared and been taken under her wing, he'd suddenly made friends with the village Jinchūriki, one of their most prized military assets. Or at least someone who would become one of their most prized military assets.

Probably harmless, but it was still something to watch. That was why the Kazekage had sent him and a squad of ANBU out to watch over them whenever he and Gaara got together. It was pretty much a required response.

Still, assuming Tetsuo didn't have any ulterior motives, this little friendship between them would do Gaara quite a bit of good. He could only hope for the best, even as they planned for the worst.

Motioning for a subordinate nearby, he sensed him appear by his side with a Body Flicker. He didn't even turn as he gave his order. "Follow them for the day and give the Kazekage a report."

"Understood, sir."

As his subordinate vanished again, off to follow the order he'd been given, Yashamaru looked down on the two kids for the last time on that day. 'Let's hope this ends well.'

oOoOoOoOo Chiyo oOoOoOoOo

(The Next Day)

Ah. It really is the small things in life that make it so grand. The taste of good food. The feeling of wind on your skin. Or the perfect expression on Tetsuo's face as he stared up at her after she imparted her most recent news on his progress. She really should've gotten a camera for this moment.

Shaking off his surprise, Tetsuo glared up at her as if looking for some hidden trick. Not a bad move, considering all the pranks she liked playing on him. "What did you just say?"

"I said you're ready to begin the next stage of your Puppeteering training," she repeated. "I would've started earlier, but I wanted to make sure, beyond any shadow of a doubt, that your skills had improved enough. I'm confident that they have."

And his face lit up like Christmas came early.

'Alright, here it comes.' Taking out a scroll from her robes, she immediately unrolled and unsealed it to reveal the contents. A full combat model standard Puppet, spread out in scattered pieces. "First, I want you to give me a detailed report on the functions and purposes of each of these individual pieces, followed by an extensive sketching of the Puppet while fully reassembled, followed by putting it back together. I'll also want a full essay on the placement and function of every Seal on the chassis and a detailed blueprint of the final product." Seeing the look of dawning horror on Tetsuo's face, she wound up for the finishing blow. "Oh, and I'll need it all by the end of the week. That's…three days from now. Better hurry, otherwise I'll have to conclude that you're not ready and must restart your training. Good luck!"

Oooooh, there's the look she wanted. Yes, it was definitely the simple things that made life so grand. Like the perfect, panicked OH CRAP look on the little brat's face.

oOoOoOoOo Tetsuo oOoOoOoOo

'The sadistic old hag gave me HOMEWORK! Dammit, she's GOTTA be trying to get a rise outta me.'

"Crazy lady and her damned homework."

Jeez, she really liked to get a rise out of him like this. At this point he was pretty sure she was just straight up sadistic, or at least found some kind of sustenance in his suffering. Just when it looked like she was gonna start teaching him the good stuff, when it finally looked like he was gonna start getting to the actual Puppeteering, she just dumped this on him. There was seriously something wrong with her.

It had been over an hour since she left him with these Puppet parts, telling him to thoroughly analyze everything and give her an extensive written report by the end of the week. In three days! Fortunately, he'd gotten a pretty good head start and was almost done with the Anchor Seals and outer functions of the chassis. There was a number of hidden external compartments that could hold a variety of different weaponry, like launching mechanisms for kunai and senbon needles. There weren't any Seals used for storing larger weaponry, but that was expected given this Puppet was a standard model. More advanced Seals were a personal addition, only executed with the help of a Seal master or extensive experience and study. Tetsuo was confident enough in his own skills to give it a try, but he'd rather do it on his own Puppets, not Chiyo's. He was pretty sure she'd tan his hide if he even tried.

It had been roughly an hour since Chiyo had left him with the pieces of her disassembled Puppet and gave him this little test, since she gave him a timetable to get all the work done. If he didn't know better, he'd probably wonder if she even wanted him to pass at all. This wouldn't be easy, even for him.

On the other hand, this was him. Tetsuo had spent the last three years learning about these Puppets inside and out, including all the mechanics that allowed them to work and be such dangerous weapons. Three days was kinda pushing it, but he was confident it was enough time, and he already got a decent head start.

He was currently in the process of writing down his analysis of all the Seals used in its construction and functions, plotting them out and hammering out the reasons for their placement. He was suddenly very grateful for all the Sealing manuals he'd studied over the years, this would practically be impossible if he hadn't.

Unfortunately, it looked like that was all he'd be able to do right now. He could hear someone approaching from one of the halls and, judging from the haste in their steps, it looked like it was urgent.

Turning around, he saw Chiyo open the door with an unusual degree of force, practically slamming it to the wall as she opened it. The look on her face was even stranger, some kind of expression of panic. Well, maybe panic was a little too strong, but she was definitely nervous, that much he could easily tell. What the hell was going on here? "What's up, Chiyo?"

"Tetsuo," she began, instantly putting him on edge. She almost never used his name when talking to him, definitely not to his face. "Come on, the Kazekage wants to speak with you."

Oh boy. This probably wasn't good.

oOoOoOoOo

Looking around, Tetsuo couldn't help but feel a little disappointed at the office. This was supposed to be where the Kazekage overlooked the Hidden Sand Village, his seat of power and influence, the room where all his policies were dictated before being set in motion. He'd always imagined it to be a very impressive place whenever he thought about it, but it was just so…unadorned. Spartan, even. There were barely any furnishings here at all, it was just a room with the bare basics for it to work. Guess poverty reached all the way up, huh?

As his eyes landed on the Kazekage himself, though, he realized it seemed to rather suit the man. Without that ridiculous hat on his head and being this close to him, he finally got a good look at the leader of the Hidden Sand and had a chance to start forming a better picture of him. He didn't wear any kinds of accessories or adornments, nothing flashy to highlight his features or draw attention. Perhaps a sign of frugality? Or maybe he just didn't care to pretty himself up for others. His face was hard with the beginnings of some stress lines, kinda expected with the current problems Hidden Sand was facing.

But what stood out most was his eyes. Dark and flinty, the eyes of a man who would do whatever it took to win and survive. An attitude that was modified to place the Hidden Sand above his own interests or anything else. The eyes of someone who could come down on any threats like the hammer of an angry god of war.

It might've been impressive if Tetsuo had any respect for him, but he was far past that point. This was a man who screwed up bad, someone who apparently had no idea about the consequences of what his actions really were. Putting the village first, the greater whole first, was fine. It was even necessary. But Tetsuo just couldn't bring himself to ignore the man's idiocy. Something the Kazekage seemed to pick up on, if the look in his eyes was any indication. His choice of words made the man's notice even more obvious. "You don't like me very much, do you."

"No." He could hear Chiyo almost hiss in the chair beside him at his bluntness. He ignored her, shrugging off her warning to watch his words. "To be honest, I think your some kind of idiot."

The room went so quiet you could hear a senbon hit the floor. The ANBU in the room went still as statues, probably too nervous to move and become the next centers of the Kazekage's attention. None of them wanted to be on the receiving end of his current glare.

Tetsuo had to admit, it was a pretty good glare. His eyes turned sharp and piercing, cold as ice instead of hot as fire. That was probably a better glare anyway. Heated glares tended to come across as too unfocused, implying a lack of control to hone it all on one person.

Tetsuo swore he almost saw some of the ANBU flinch back as the man smiled slightly. "An idiot, huh?" His voice came out smooth, controlled with a barely discernable threat. Most dangerously though, was the apparent amusement. "I assume it has something to do with my son, Gaara." Tetsuo nodded in the affirmative. "If you have a complaint, let's hear it."

He heard Chiyo groan in her chair as she saw the glimmer in her apprentice's eyes. Ignoring her, he took a breath and said what he'd been thinking since he'd first met Gaara. "You didn't just screw the pooch, sir. You rammed a foot long iron dildo up its ass without any lube and expected it to ask for more. I can't really think of any way you could've handled it worse."

Chiyo looked like she was gonna faint in her chair as her face went white as a sheet and her body went limp as an inert Puppet. The ANBU in the room actually seemed to be inching to any place that could give them a way out. There was even one ANBU in particular that seemed to be holding back his laughter, if his slightly bulging eyes and the tremors in his body were any indication.

But the Kazekage didn't even flinch at the words, didn't seem at all surprised at being so scathingly called out by some little kid. He really didn't seem to react at all on the surface, but that was why Tetsuo was watching his eyes.

The cold, sharp glare was gone, replaced by some kind of….measuring look. He didn't seem angry or annoyed, not even surprised. If Tetsuo wasn't so sure he was about to get his hide tanned for speaking out, he'd even say the man actually looked a little impressed. Pleased, even.

"What makes you say that?" There was something in his tone. Not exactly hopeful but…..expectant? Was there something in particular he wanted to hear? Well, no turning back now.

"You sealed Shukaku into your own son and just tossed him to the wolves. You're expecting him to be a military asset when you forget he's still just some 3 year old kid. You're just letting him wander around in a village full of people that are scared of him at best or hate him at worst and you actually expect that to be good for his head? You've pretty much set him up to be a ticking time bomb in your own territory and you're not even trying to do damage control, you're letting the clock tick down. You needed stronger Shinobi, I get it. Making your son a Jinchūriki was the quickest way, I get that too. What I don't get, is why you though it was okay for you to do such a half-assed job and just let the dice start rolling. With an approach like that, I'm a little shocked you're still the Kazekage at all."

'Wow. It's a miracle how the atmosphere could change just by saying the right words.'

The room was quiet before, but after his little exclamation it went as silent as a graveyard. He was pretty sure everyone had stopped breathing, unwilling to make the slightest motion.

Well, everyone except for the Kazekage. He was still much the same as before, still calm and in control. He must've had one hell of a poker face to keep up that calm mask after such a bad insult regarding his leadership. In all honesty, Tetsuo was a little surprised he was still alive after saying all that.

"I see you've developed Chiyo's sense of bluntness. Let's hope you don't get her humor to go along with it."

He heard the hag choking on air beside him, probably trying to keep herself from having a heart attack in the office of her own boss. That'd be an embarrassing way to go.

But, with his choice of response, a little life seemed to come back to the room. The ANBU became a little less skittish, some noise became discernable again, and –perhaps most notable of all- he could swear the Kazekage's lips tilted upward slightly. Was he really smiling?

"Everyone leave. I'll speak with the boy alone for a moment."

The ANBU left on demand, but Chiyo took a moment to glare Tetsuo down for almost giving her a heart attack. Come on, it's not like he was doing it on purpose.

In less than ten seconds, he and the Kazekage were the only people in his office and Tetsuo was a little curious why the man wanted him to stay. It didn't look like he was actually angry with him for the choice of words, but why else would he keep him here?

"Curious why I wanted you to stay?" What the…? Could this guy read minds or something? "No, I can't. It's just an expected train of thought for someone in your circumstances."

The Kazekage moved, leaning back slightly in his chair as he let out a light sigh. "Do you have any idea how many times I've thought over that choice?" he asked. Something told Tetsuo it wasn't really a question, though, so he remained silent. "Almost every single day. It was for the village, for our survival, for a chance at prominence. Those are the reasons I kept telling myself. What I kept repeating when it looked like everything went wrong."

The man rose from his seat, walking to one of the windows to see the village below. "It was necessary. I've accepted that, but did it really work? Do you know how frustrating it is when you want to know just how badly you screwed up so you can start doing something to fix it? Especially when nobody even has the nerve to tell you what you actually did wrong." The Kazekage turned to him, all the frustration becoming obvious on his face. "I don't like when people tell me I made a mistake. But just like having Shukaku sealed into my son, it's necessary. And if it helps to support this village, I will do whatever is necessary, including having my mistakes spelled out to me."

Walking back to his own seat, an odd weight in his movements, the Kazekage sat down and stared at him with an odd look of approval. "So, imagine my surprise when it's some child, of all people, who calls me out on it."

'Wait, he's not pissed?' That was…a little shocking, really. He was half sure that the man would've wanted his hide tanned for speaking out at him so bluntly in front of his own people. Tetsuo hadn't exactly been soft with his choice of words, either.

"My son has actually talked about you, you know." Well, that wasn't too surprising. He never really told Gaara not to talk about him, so maybe he should've expected this. He didn't miss the slightly guilty look on the Kazekage's face. "He thinks the world of you, in fact. You're his first friend, or the first person he's ever really called a friend. The only other person to spend time with him is his uncle, Yashamaru. He's been assigned as his caretaker, due to my own lack of available time to spend with him." Clearing his face of the slightly guilty look, the Kazekage put on his leadership expression again. "I'd like for your time together to continue. You were right when you said he was a time bomb, and he needs someone to help keep him from going off. Just you getting to know him has done a great deal to help with his mental stability." His lips went up in a wry smile. "You don't really need to consider this an order. Something tells me you'd keep spending time with him either way. You're dismissed."

It took a moment for the last words to register and Tetsuo's body to respond. Getting up and heading to the door, he thought over just what the hell happened. Seriously, how was he even still alive?

He was so caught up in his own thoughts that he didn't notice Chiyo before she gave him a hard conk on the head. "Ouch! What was that for you old hag?"

Red-faced, Chiyo all but screamed, "You know what that's for, brat! I almost died of a heart attack in there because of you! Do you have some kind of death wish? Because if you do, you're keeping me out of it!"

Seeing her march off in a huff was so funny that he almost forgot what happened in the Kazekage's office. Almost forgot what the man told him. I'd like for your time together to continue.

Was that it? Was that really the only reason the freaking Kazekage had called him down here? To tell him to keep hanging out with his son?

No, that couldn't be the only reason. The man might've had the power to do that, but that didn't sound right to him, it would just be a waste of time to tell him to do something he knew he was already doing. But what about the rest of the meeting, when he talked to him about the situation with Gaara? Was it a test of some kind to see if he'd finally found someone willing to point out his mistakes? Possible, but….

Dammit, this was making his head hurt. Maybe he was reading too much into this. The man didn't seem to disapprove of him and Gaara hanging out, so he'd leave it at that. It's not like he disliked going around with the kid, he was just a little nervous now that he knew the Kazekage would be keeping an even closer eye on him.

'Ah, screw it. I'll meet up with the little guy tomorrow, anyway. No point in driving myself crazy from overthinking his dad's crap.'

Following after Chiyo, he mentally went over all the work he'd done on the Puppet already. He was interrupted before he could do anything especially comprehensive, but if he pushed himself he could probably get it done before going to see Gaara tomorrow. At least he had a schedule. That was a little help.

xXx

Hey everybody. So, it looks like Tetsuo has gotten the Kazekage's attention for hanging out with his son, and we get a little glimpse of his character. It wasn't exactly expanded on in canon, but Rasa struck me as a guy who was very aware of how badly he screwed up at his job and wanted to fix it somehow. I'm trying to portray him as more than just Gaara's failure of a father who horribly bungled up his situation and make him a little more fleshed out. Did I do a good job or bad on that front?

Please review and have a nice day!