In which Naruto gets a new playmate, Rasa wants a beer, and Yagura is mystified by paperwork.

Warning for deaths of unnamed background characters.

O-O-O-O-O

From his birth, Gaara had heard Shukaku in the back of his mind.

Although at first, he couldn't understand its words, the Ichibi had always been terrifying. It was an insistent whisper that grew stronger at night and almost unbearable during the full moon. Once he could actually understand Shukaku's words, the whispers only worsened.

'I'm the only mother you will ever have. If you release me, I will kill everyone in your way. Give me blood.'

As soon as he learned how to talk, he had asked Yashamaru about the voice. His uncle had frowned and asked him to ignore it. He had also told him to stay awake or bad things were going to happen.

Gaara didn't know what bad things would happen if he went to sleep, but he didn't want to test his limits. He always obeyed Yashamaru. Because of that, instead of sleeping, Gaara stayed awake all day and all night. He couldn't do it alone however, so his handlers turned to soldier pills for help.

He had been taking the pills since his birth.

Gaara hated the pills. He hated the effects that they had on his body. The pills kept him up, but they couldn't get rid of the deep mental exhaustion that came with not being able to sleep at all. The best he could do was close his eyes and lie down. As soon as he did, however, a masked man came into his room and forced him awake, giving him yet another soldier pill.

The medicine was meant to be taken in moderation and was created with an adult metabolism in mind. Yet, the medicine was the only way for Gaara to stay awake and avoid whatever bad thing Yashamaru said would happen.

Shukaku's voice was strongest at night, but despite that, Gaara always looked forward to the night. The kind voices almost always visited him then.

The first voice he had ever heard was that of a woman who always spoke in a gentle voice. She had talked to him often and during the worst nights, she would take some of the pain away. He barely remembered her voice now. He wondered if she would one day disappear from his memories all together.

The other voices came later and continued to speak with him, mostly at night. The most insistent of those voices was Fuu. She was a little over three years older than him. She talked to him about her day and about her shinobi training. She never stopped talking but Gaara always listened. She switched between calling Gaara her little brother and calling him Gaara-chan. Gaara called her Fuu nee-chan.

The other voice belonged to an older man. He tended to get easily irritated but was never cruel to Gaara. His real name was Roshi, but Fuu told Gaara that the man had a new name and he should start calling him "mama." Roshi got frustrated the first time Gaara used the nickname. However, his irritation was very mild and part of him thought the man liked it.

On a few occasions, the voice of a calm older man communicated with him. His name was Han and although he spoke with Gaara less often than the other two, Gaara enjoyed listening to him. Han also liked to explain the complicated things that Yashamaru couldn't. He didn't understand half of the words, but now he knew why the sky was blue.

The final voice belonged to Naruto. He was young, even younger than Gaara. The first time he tried communicating through the Door, he couldn't say any words. Instead, Naruto had babbled and sent his emotional impressions. However, Naruto was growing up and Gaara could understand more of what he was trying to say.

His companions said that they were jinchuuriki. It meant that they had a spirit sealed inside their body as well. Gaara guessed that their spirits must have been nicer than Shukaku because they didn't keep them awake all night.

Now that he was a little older, the dosage of the soldier pills had dropped and he only had to take one at lunchtime. Yashamaru always brought him one when it was time to eat.

"Gaara-sama," Yashamaru said with a small smile, "it's time for lunch."

The small boy climbed onto his chair, piled high with cushions, and stared at his meal. Yashamaru was a decent cook and he could make even simple dishes delicious. For the day, he had prepared a goat curry with rice. A soldier pill was sitting next to the dish.

Gaara gulped as he stared as the medicine. In addition to scrambling his mind, the taste was terrible. Once, while he was still learning to walk, Gaara had licked the bottom of the table. He was still not sure which tasted worse.

Yashamaru sat down in front of his own serving.

"Gaara-sama, take your medicine," Yashamaru ordered with another smile.

Gaara gulped but did as he was asked. He had to take a large gulp of water afterward, but the aftertaste was still strong. Thankfully, Yashamaru's cooking always got rid of that.

"Let's eat!" Yashamaru said cheerfully as he took a spoon and started eating.

"Let's eat!" Gaara parroted before doing the same.

The two ate in silence for the rest of the meal. Yashamaru finished first and watched Gaara eat with a kind smile on his face. When Gaara finished, Yashamaru leaned over and ruffled his hair.

"Did you enjoy the meal?" he asked, "I tried to make it special for you. I know you don't like the taste of the soldier pills."

"Yes! Thank you for the meal," Gaara responded. "It's good."

The conversation paused as Yashamaru stood up to take the dishes to the sink. After mealtimes, Gaara usually went to his room to play with his toys, but Yashamaru seemed to like his company while he was cleaning up.

"Yashamaru..." Gaara started and his uncle hummed to tell him he was listening. "Why can't I sleep? Everyone else sleeps. You too."

Yashamaru paused before turning back to Gaara.

"Well, Gaara," Yashamaru explained, "if you went to sleep, something bad might happen. Shukaku is very strong, especially at night. And he's not very nice, is he?"

Gaara shook his head. Shukaku wasn't nice at all. Yashamaru smiled at him again.

"It's best to keep Shukaku away. If you sleep, he could do something bad."

Gaara nodded in understanding and jumped down from his chair. He went to his room to play. Yashamaru said it was a bad idea to sleep and Gaara would try to follow his orders. That didn't mean he had to like it though. Sleep looked amazing.

O-O-O-O-O

Naruto is growing quickly, Fuu thought. He could walk and run. He talked more and he had finally figured out how to say "Fuu." He stills called Roshi, "Mama" though, no matter how many times the man told him to call him "Roshi."

Han had laughed about Roshi's exasperation until Naruto had turned around, pointed at Han and muttered "Papa." The memory of Roshi's laugh of mirth and Han's shocked eyes would stay with her for a long time.

Following Naruto's example, Fuu called Roshi "Mama" and Han "Papa." While she got the impression that Han was exasperated with the nickname, she could tell that Roshi secretly loved his. He didn't frown when she called him "Mama" and she was pretty sure he had blushed in happiness a few times. She had even gotten Gaara to call them "Mama" and "Papa" too. It was her proudest accomplishment so far.

Her new mission was to get the Kumogakure shinobi to start using the nicknames as well. For some reason, they had started appearing more regularly. Although they claimed they needed the Room to train, she had never actually seen them without getting distracted by Naruto.

Once, she had appeared at the same moment that the blond girl, Yugito Nii, was chasing around Naruto in a game of tag. The older girl had immediately stopped and pretended to get angry at the interruption- to Naruto's confusion. She left the Room afterward, but not before ruffling Naruto's hair and saying goodbye.

Another time, she had appeared to find the older man singing a nursery song to Naruto. Unlike Yugito, he didn't seem embarrassed about his interest in Naruto. Instead, he introduced himself as Killer B and asked her to call him "Lord Jinchuuriki." She decided on calling him B-sama as a compromise. He liked to rap. While Fuu was slightly entertained with his rhyming, Naruto always looked at him in confusion.

More than two years after Kushina's death, Fuu had either met or talked to all of the other jinchuuriki. Yet, she had never met the vessels of the Three-Tails and the Six-Tails. She had asked Han about them, but even he didn't have any idea who they were. If their Doors weren't glowing with chakra, they would have assumed there were no jinchuuriki at all.

Fuu had tried to talk to them a few times, but she had only received complete silence. She wasn't sure if they were ignoring her or if they were somehow unable to communicate through the Room.

Although Fuu had been talking with Gaara for a long time, he also had yet to appear. Han and Roshi didn't seem particularly worried about it. Instead, they continued to communicate with Gaara as often as they could. Naruto had also started to talk with Gaara more, although his vocabulary was very lacking. He was learning new words every day, however, so it didn't seem like that would be an issue for much longer.

On a cool October night, Fuu entered the Room to find neither Roshi nor Han inside. That was not a surprise. They had told her that they might be out on a mission for a few days, if not a few weeks. The Kumo ninja were not there either, so she was completely alone. She knew she would be joined by Naruto soon, however, so she readied the Room for his arrival.

She conjured up a variety of toys. He liked stuffed frogs the most, so she forced the Room to make a lot of them. She also made sure there were plenty of blankets and pillows for them to lie on. Fuu laid down but she didn't have to wait for long before Naruto appeared.

"Fuu nee-chan!" he screamed before jumping on her with a big hug.

"Naruto-chan! You're here!" she replied, returning the hug and ruffling his hair.

"Where Mama?" he asked, a pout on his face.

"Mama is on a mission, I don't think he's coming tonight," Fuu explained calmly. "We will have to play together without Mama, okay?"

Naruto pouted and scrunched up his face. Fuu could feel a tantrum coming. Naruto was getting older and more independent, but as a consequence, he was also increasingly obstinate. Now that he was a toddler, temper tantrums were the norm. Fuu winced. Roshi could deal with his moods better than she could.

"I want Mama!" he yelled, tears already beginning to roll down his cheeks. Fuu winced again. She hated whenever he got like that. It was very difficult to calm him down.

"Naruto-chan!" she tried, "Why don't we talk to Gaara-chan? He's lonely and he would be happier if we talked to him, don't you think?"

"No! No talk! No talk! I want Mama!" Naruto yelled back.

Why can't he be a cute little baby anymore? I miss when all I needed to calm him down was a hug. The only strategy she had was misdirection. She blurted out the first distraction she could think of.

"Hey!" she started, "Mama can't come today, but what if Gaara comes to play with us instead? He hasn't seen the Room yet, don't you want to play with him for real instead of just talking to him?"

Her suggestion seemed to stick in Naruto's mind. In an instant, he stopped sobbing and stared at her with as much contemplation as a toddler could muster. He looked less angry and he nodded at her. Fuu knew Naruto liked talking to Gaara, but it was frustrating to be unable to see him. They didn't even know what he looked like yet.

Besides, Gaara is the last jinchuuriki I've talked to but haven't seen. Plus, Gaara was so lonely and bored at home that spending some time in the Room with Naruto could only be a good thing. I just hope that we can actually get him in here.

Mind made up, Fuu took Naruto by the hand and dragged him over to stand in front of Gaara's Door. She gritted her teeth before she opened the communication link. She had gotten used to the pain that came with touching his Door, but it was still difficult.

'Hello, Gaara-chan,' she said. 'How are you?'

'I'm okay, Fuu nee-chan,' Gaara answered immediately.

'Gaara-chan,' she continued with her usual cheer. 'Naruto-chan wants to meet you! Can you come and visit us in the Room?'

'Okay,' Gaara answered immediately. 'How do I go?'

'It's easy! All you have to do is go to sleep! When you are sleeping, you can come visit me and Naruto-chan in the Room,' she explained.

Gaara hesitated before he answered her.

'Yashamaru says I can't sleep.' Gaara sounded worried. He always listened to Yashamaru, whoever he was.

'Everyone needs sleep. You don't have to sleep for a long time. You can visit us quickly and then go back home. Naruto really wants to see you!'

Fuu wondered why Gaara was not allowed to sleep. She slept at least nine hours every day, if not more, and she knew that Naruto slept even longer. Fuu didn't know how Gaara could live a life without sleeping.

The mention of Naruto seemed to make up Gaara's mind because Fuu felt determination emanating from his Door. She couldn't see exactly what he was doing, because his window was too high up for her. She hoped she would grow taller soon.

Naruto started fidgeting with impatience.

"When is Gaa-chan here?" he asked with a frown.

"Be patient, Naruto-chan," she said, "Gaara-chan will be here soon. He needs to go to sleep first before he can come here."

Immediately afterward, she sensed a presence emanating from behind her. Gaara-chan. He must have been really tired if he can fall asleep that quickly. She turned around and saw him in person for the first time.

He seemed intimidated to see Fuu and Naruto because he kept his face down. He had messy red hair, aquamarine eyes, and very pale skin. He had black rings around his eyes, probably a side-effect of his bijuu, much like her orange eyes.

"So cute!" she shrieked as she ran over to Gaara, bent down, and hugged him.

Naruto held onto her but he had moved to stand behind her legs. His mind was presumably trying to connect the Gaara he knew through the Door with the stranger in front of them.

Gaara flinched at the unexpected touch but relaxed when he recognized her voice. It was his first time to see her in person too. He started to return her hug, although he still felt tense under her arms.

"Fuu," Naruto interrupted and pulled at her hand, "This is Gaa-chan?"

"Yup!" Fuu answered with a cheerful grin. "Gaara-chan is here! Isn't that nice?"

The two boys looked at each other nervously. Gaara was older and taller and Fuu could tell that Naruto was slightly intimidated. Naruto was not a coward, however. He inspected the older boy once again before coming out from behind her legs.

"Want play?" he asked and extended his hand.

Gaara looked a little surprised at Naruto's extended hand. He nodded and took his hand tightly. Together, the two boys ran over to the conjured toys and pillows. They were both smiling now, although they were still wary around each other.

Fuu sighed in gratitude. Naruto seemed to have forgotten about mama for now. Crisis averted.

O-O-O-O-O

The Fourth Kazekage, Rasa of Sunagakure, was getting ready to end the day. He had tucked in his two oldest children into bed and read through the last of the neverending paperwork. The Daimyo was still refusing to increase funds for Sunagakure and had instead decided to invest his money in Konoha. He wondered if he could ethically and legally possible kill the Daimyo. But that was a question for later. All Rasa wanted was a cold beer.

As Rasa opened the fridge to grab his drink, an ANBU operative flickered into his kitchen in panic. Rasa sighed. An ANBU in his kitchen could only mean bad news. Can't I get a night off like normal people anymore?

"Lord Kazekage!" the ANBU operative yelled, "the vessel has been compromised! The container has fallen asleep and the Shukaku has been released!"

"What?! How could this happen?" Rasa yelled. "We have constant monitoring for the vessel. It is never supposed to be without supervision!"

"We don't know, Lord Kazekage," the ANBU answered. "Perhaps its handlers have gotten careless now that the vessel is older."

Rasa swore. Drink forgotten, he slammed the fridge door. All of their careful planning to prevent Gaara from falling asleep had been for nothing. He vowed to himself that he would execute Gaara's handlers as soon as he got the chance.

With the ANBU at his side, Rasa flickered away from his home. His Gold Dust was the only technique that could stop Gaara. The gold was heavier than the Ichibi's sand. If he could layer his golden sand on top of the beast, he could wake Gaara up.

The two shinobi ran to the site of Gaara's home. For the safety of Temari and Kankuro, the vessel lived with only Yashamaru as a caretaker. He was the only one allowed to spend long stretches of time with the boy.

Even before they arrived, the Kazekage and his ANBU reserved could see the huge body of Shukaku. It was laughing wildly at nothing as it destroyed buildings, most of them residential. It probably knew that it would be subdued sooner or later. It seemed to be enjoying the time that it was in control by destroying as much of the village as possible.

Rasa grit his teeth and concentrated. Flushed with anger, he summoned chakra. Dark rings appeared around his eyes as the Gold Dust answered his call. Rasa clenched his fists and willed the sand to move at his command.

It didn't take long for the sand to respond. The air shimmered as his chakra manipulated its movement. With more willpower and thought, a wall of golden sand rose to surround the beast.

Finally distracted, the tanuki spirit looked around wildly in surprise. Before the spirit could react, however, Rasa buried the beast in tons of golden sand. It screamed out in rage as its rampage ended, as abruptly as it had begun.

Rasa felt sweat dripping down his face as he struggled to keep his jutsu concentrated on top of the beast. The bijuu was strong and Rasa was not sure how long he could hold it down. He needed to increase the pressure in order to wake up Gaara and cede control back to the vessel.

He sent a quick prayer to any deity that might be listening before he channeled as much chakra from his reserves as he could. He didn't want to kill Gaara, but in order to wake him up, he needed to hurt him. He exhaled a breath he hadn't realized he had been holding. He ordered his sand to collapse upon the Ichibi. Defeated, he heard curses and screams of pain from the Shukaku as the golden sand buried the beast.

Gaara's screams came soon afterward.

O-O-O-O-O

It's nice to see Naruto-chan playing with someone his own age. I'm going to get Gaara-chan to come here as often as possible, Fuu decided.

Fuu looked at the boys as they played. While they had been wary of each other at first, Naruto's persistent cheerfulness had gotten the older boy out of his shell. Now, the two boys were trying to build a fort out of the pillows she had conjured. While Gaara was very careful and neat, Naruto's fort looked more like a squashed mountain than a defensive wall.

"Gaa-chan! How you make the wall?" Naruto pouted as he looked at his side, frustrated.

"You have to be careful, Naruto-chan," Gaara answered. "You gotta plan what you need to do first and then move the pillows one by one. Here, let me help you. Pass me a pillow."

Naruto gave control over the building to Gaara and dutifully handed over a pillow. Gaara tore down Naruto's hard work and began anew.

Fuu didn't know if Naruto had ever listened to anyone so intently before. She wished Han and Roshi were there to see the scene. She wondered why Gaara hadn't been able to enter the Room before when all he needed to do was sleep. He said that his caretaker, Yashamaru, prohibited him from sleeping. She didn't understand why. There didn't seem to be any side effects at all.

As she looked at the boys working on their new and improved pillow fort, Gaara dropped to the floor and clutched his chest as if in pain. Terrified for him, she started to run toward him when she felt a sudden pressure going throughout her entire body. She shut her eyes in pain as she collapsed on the floor.

Her ribs felt like they were being squeezed from all sides. Her body weighed so much she couldn't move a finger if she tried. She was unable to control herself at all.

From the ground, she heard Gaara and Naruto both screaming in pain. She was not surprised that a scream escaped her lips too. It felt like her body was being pushed from all directions.

It was the first time she'd felt hurt while inside the Room. Eyes clenched shut, she heard a noise that sounded like a sandstorm spreading throughout the Room. She felt gusts of wind and earth scatter around her body as it moved in the direction of the two boys.

She forced herself to open her eyes. She was greeted with the sight of golden-colored sand converging upon Gaara's tiny body. She caught a glimpse of Gaara's red hair before it was buried alive by the moving sand.

She reached her hand out uselessly, trying to get closer to the boy and provide any assistance she could. However, she was too late. Before she could truly process the scene in front of her, Fuu was forcefully expelled out of the Room.

She woke up screaming back in her bed in Takigakure. She was trembling so hard that her bed frame started to rattle. She wanted to check on Gaara and Naruto, but her mind was too frazzled to even attempt to sleep.

Fuu forced herself to take deep breaths in and out. By the time she finally calmed down enough to try her hand at meditating, it was already dawn. Fuu forced herself to enter the Room anyway.

Inside the Room, no one else was there. There were also no more signs of the mysterious sand that had caused all that pain.

She ran to Naruto's Door, the closest one to hers, and put a hand on it. She could feel Naruto crying painfully. Through the Door's connection, she heard the exasperated words of his caretakers. Although he was still reacting from the attack inside the Room, he was safe for the moment. She sighed in relief.

She ran over to Gaara's Door next. The sand had been converging upon him. She promised herself to reassure the boy as much as she could. However, when she tried to communicate, she only received silence in return.

O-O-O-O-O

Through the Room's connection, all the jinchuuriki felt the Gold Dust trying to crush them.

Naruto woke up screaming and crying. His screams of pain and fear were so loud that he woke up many of the other children. His caretakers entered his Room, fearing the release of the Kyuubi. They were relieved when a crying toddler soaked in sweat and tears greeted them instead. The caretakers couldn't deal with a broken seal but they could deal with an orphan's nightmares.

Roshi and Han were almost impaled by enemy shuriken in the split second they paused to process the pain. Only the quick reflexes that came from decades of training saved them from the attack. They countered viciously and efficiently. Once there were no more enemies, the two shared a look. They knew something had happened to the children and they needed to figure it out.

Yugito screamed at the sudden pain. She squeezed the shuriken in her hands and blood spread across her palms and forearms. While her bijuu healed her injuries, the blood remained on her clothes. Nearby, Killer B fell into the river that he had been meditating on. Only his bijuu's quick reflexes kept him from sinking to the bottom. Once he emerged, the two Kumo ninja looked at each other in surprise and fear. They knew something had happened in the Room although they had no idea what.

Elsewhere, a boy who had vowed not to visit the Room ever again woke up with a scream. As he worked to get his breathing back under control, the boy wondered if he could continue ignoring the other jinchuuriki for the rest of his life.

O-O-O-O-O

Fourth Mizukage Yagura Karatachi felt like his body was being squeezed by a giant. He startled awake.

When he opened his eyes, he was sitting behind the Mizukage desk but he didn't remember how he had gotten there. He stared at a collection of papers on the desk and didn't know what they said. He didn't even remember the date.

What the hell happened? The last thing I remember was meeting up with a possible informant.

He stared around his office some more. It looked slightly different than he remembered. There were towers of paperwork on the desks, shelves, and even on the floor. There was also a large map behind him of the Land of Water. There were various pins and markers on the map to indicate battles, victories, losses, and enemy movements.

I don't remember needing THAT. Kiri isn't involved in a war.

Yagura reached his mind out to contact his bijuu. Although Isobu preferred to sleep while Yagura worked, he was always ready to talk. If he had been under some kind of genjutsu, then Isobu was too.

'Isobu? Are you there?'

'I'm here, Karatachi,' Isobu answered. He sounded worried. Yagura understood why. A jutsu that was strong enough to affect a bijuu was definitely something to worry about.

'Do you remember how we got here?' Yagura clenched his fist to keep himself from panicking. 'The last thing I remember is going to meet up with a potential informant.'

'No. And that's worrisome.' Isobu hummed in deep thought. 'Karatachi, don't panic. We must have been acting under a genjutsu. The one who put it on us might still be nearby. Try to act natural.'

Yagura was not sure how he could act natural considering the circumstances. Nevertheless, he followed Isobu's advice and forced his heart rate to slow down. He stared down at the papers in front of him, hoping for any kind of answer. He read the top of the letter and checked for the date.

'Isobu?'

'What happened, Karatachi?'

'What was the date when we met up with the supposed informant?'

'October 18, right?'

'Isobu, it's October 25.'

'Ah, that's not so bad Karatachi, only a week.'

'No, Isobu, it's October 25 three years in the future.'

Isobu almost never cursed and Yagura felt rather than heard his coarse language. What the fuck indeed.

O-O-O-O-O

Rasa glared at the two jounin on the execution block. They were the two ANBU whose sole mission was to prevent the Ichibi Jinchuuriki from going to sleep. They were kneeling on the hard wooden deck and had their hands tied behind their backs.

Rasa had made a promise to himself and he was going to keep it. How hard is it to keep a toddler awake?

The Kazekage turned back to look at the beginning of the entire mess- the vessel of the Ichibi. My son.

The boy was not even three years old and he had already killed more people than many of his ninja. Gaara was crying softly and was staring at the floor. It was obvious that the boy was in pain. Getting hit by his technique must have felt like being buried alive. He felt a stab of pity for his son but forced himself to extinguish it.

Gaara's power was too unstable. If it weren't for his wife's dying wishes, Rasa would have already killed Gaara with his Golden Dust. It was the only technique strong enough to subdue the sand of the Shukaku. He hoped Gaara would learn how to control his power. Yet, he also feared that he would have to assassinate the boy for the good of the village.

For now, Rasa would give Gaara more time to learn control before making a final decision. The jinchuuriki were too useful as weapons to waste them. Part of him, probably his paternal side, wanted to love Gaara. However, the power and safety of Sunagakure were more important than even his own family.

Rasa screwed his hands into fists before turning over to hear the last words of the failed ANBU. He didn't pay attention, however. He doubted that they were saying anything important and he had advisors to listen for him. Their words became muttering in the back of his mind, as important as the wind blowing in the background.

The Kazekage gave the order. The ANBU commander pulled back their heads. A second later, an executioner ran a sharp kunai through their exposed necks.

Rasa turned back to his crying son. Gaara was not only his son. He was an asset to Sunagakure. He would either learn how to control his power or he would not. Despite his pity, Rasa couldn't afford to comfort his son.

"I expect no more deaths, Gaara," he demanded.

Gaara flinched and drew further into himself. He looked like he wanted to cry more, but he stopped himself. Rasa almost wanted to congratulate him on his emotional control but he couldn't. He couldn't get attached to a weapon when it could be lost at any time. Instead, he simply walked past the boy and went back home, not sparing his son a second glance.

Shinobi Rule #5: A shinobi must always put his village before himself.

O-O-O-O-O

A/N: This chapter was a difficult to write because so many things happen from so many points of view.

You can contact me on Tumblr at waffledogwrites. I'm ready and willing to answer questions or talk there.

Next chapter: Fuu learns a new technique.