Author's Note:

So some things to note:

1. Their society is modeled on Japanese society, so honorifics are used, and family names come before first names (i.e., Uzumaki Naruto, instead of Naruto Uzumaki).

2. For convenience, the sand siblings' family names are Sabaku no.

3. Sunagakure and Konohagakure are the capital cities of the Land of Wind and Fire, respectively.

4. Sunagakure is more old-fashioned and traditional than Konohagakure but the story still takes place in what we call "modern times".

Characters belong to Kishimoto-san.

Chapter 2: Welcome to the Land of No Manners

"So tell me again why we have to be here?" Kankuro complained for the fifth time as the four Sunagakure citizens got off the plane.

"Because it's an order," Gaara said calmly. However, his tone betrayed the warnings he was giving his older brother.

Kankuro scowled. "This sucks." He looked outside and caught side of the scenery, and his expression changed instantly.

"Are those trees?" Kankuro exclaimed.

Temari rolled her eyes. "It's not like you've never seen trees before."

"Yeah, but I mean look at the ones here! We've been to a bunch of cities back in Wind, but I don't think I've seen so many trees before! Look at all that green stuff! And what happened to the sun?"

As much as Temari didn't want to admit it, Kankuro was right. The scenery outside the airport was mostly grass and trees, but way more than she had ever seen back in Sunagakure. Furthermore, the sun was currently hidden by clouds and Temari imagined what it would be like to live here for a year, without having to worry about the sun burning her skin and blinding her eyes.

"Take your passports," Baki said, halting their sightseeing. "There's a security checkpoint for foreign travelers. Just answer honestly and try not to cause any problems."

The four of them got in line and soon it was Temari's turn. She handed her passport to the man at the desk.

Gaara would fit in well, Temari thought, noting the man's bored and impassive expression.

"Name?"

"Sabaku no Temari," Temari replied promptly.

"And what is your business here?"

"Exchange student from Sunagakure."

"How long will you be staying in the Fire country?"

Too long, Temari almost said, but held herself back at the last moment. "About a year."

"Do you have your papers with you?"

Temari stared at him. What papers?

The man sighed impatiently. "Your student papers. You know, to verify that you're actually here as an exchange student. Sunagakure citizens staying here, especially in Konohagakure, for a whole year is suspicious if you don't have evidence to back up your claims."

Temari bit back the urge to yell at him that she didn't even want to be here in the first place. If this were Sunagakure, the man would have been treating her like royalty. Instead, he was accusing her of being a criminal. Calm down, she told herself. Baki-sensei surely wouldn't make a mistake like this.

She rummaged through her pack to check if the papers were there, and sure enough, they were buried at the very bottom. Leave it to Baki-sensei to put it here without telling me. I must've been asleep on the plane when he handed them out.

She took out the papers and handed it to the man, trying not to look nervous. The man took his time, his gaze switching from her passport to her papers to her face for a long time, before finally handing it back.

"Have a nice stay, Temari-san."

.

"Took you long enough," Kankuro smirked as Temari made her way over. "Did you get detained or something?"

Temari raised her fist threateningly but did not hit him. "I'm surprised that wasn't you considering how suspicious your face paint and puppet make you look."

"Hey, there's nothing dangerous about paint!" Kankuro protested. "And this puppet is perfectly harmless!"

"Right, which was why security back home had to question you for about half an hour." Temari remarked. "We nearly missed the flight thanks to you! You should've just listened to Baki-sensei and put them all in your suitcase."

"Let's find our luggage now," Baki interrupted tiredly. He was getting a headache already. Having to deal with the Sand siblings was something he did not particularly enjoy at times.

"Yes, Baki-sensei," Temari said.

Kankuro simply shrugged. "Yeah, sure."

They were about to walk over to the baggage carousel when Gaara came over with all their suitcases neatly loaded on a cart.

"I have your suitcases," the youngest announced.

"Yeah, we can tell," Kankuro said.

Baki quickly ushered them outside and into the waiting limousine before the siblings could start another argument.

Once seated, Baki handed out more papers.

"Here's a map of Konohagakure, as well as a brochure. Please try to follow the laws here, especially you, Gaara." Baki gave his youngest student a pointed look.

The redhead said nothing, merely accepting the papers in silence.

"And here's a guidebook to Konoha High. I've drawn out the paths from Konoha High School to our hotel on the map. As usual, I will be taking the three of you to school in the mornings. After school, you may do whatever you like, but be sure to be back by ten p.m. Call me if anything happens, and please try to stay out of trouble. You only have to be here for a year, and remember, you are here to represent not only your father, but also Sunagakure and the Land of Wind. So try to be polite to people, Kankuro, and Temari, don't hit people."

"Yes, Baki-sensei," Temari and Kankuro muttered.

.

The limousine arrived at their hotel, the Leaf, and Baki checked them in.

"We're on the top floor," Baki explained. "The entire top floor is reserved for all the Wind country exchange students."

"But no one else from Sunagakure," Kankuro said. "Because we got sent."

Baki ignored him and continued explaining. "The Leaf is owned by the Sarutobi family, which is also the family the leader of Konohagakure, the Hokage, belongs to. He will be meeting with us for dinner tonight so dress appropriately. I expect no puppets at the dinner table, Kankuro."

"Yeah, I got it, Baki-sensei," Kankuro said, rolling his eyes. "I won't bring my puppets, and I won't make crude jokes, and I'll be sure to wear a suit and be super polite to everyone."

Baki nodded approvingly. "Here are your rooms. Temari on the left, Kankuro the middle room, and Gaara is the room on the right. My room is this one, directly across from Kankuro's. Feel free to wander around for a bit, but keep in mind that dinner is in three hours."

The three siblings nodded and went into their rooms.

.

Temari had just finished unpacking when there was a knock on her door. She opened it to discover Kankuro.

"What now?"

"You wanna head out to the game room with me?" Kankuro pleaded. "Just for a bit. I just wanna see what it's like, and then you can do whatever it is you do."

Temari sighed. "I might as well."

She followed her younger brother out and into the elevator.

"Okay, so according to the map I saw earlier, the game room should be either the fifth or sixth floor. What do you think, Temari?"

Temari shrugged. "Go with whatever you want."

Kankuro shrugged and chose the sixth floor. As the elevator door slid open and Kankuro took a step out, someone suddenly ran into him.

"Ow!" Kankuro glared at the offender, a young boy dressed in a cape, with goggles on his head, making him look more childish than he already did.

"You little shit!" Kankuro forcefully pulled the boy up by his shirt collar, making eye contact with him. "That hurt, you know."

The boy stared up at him in terror. "It was an accident."

"Maybe I should teach you a lesson." Kankuro snarled. "You don't seem to be aware of who I am."

"Yeah, well you don't seem to know who I am!" the boy replied defiantly.

"Well, you're lacking in manners, aren't you? Is this how they treat elders in Konohagakure?" Kankuro asked, raising his fist.

"Konohamaru!"

The two Sunagakure siblings looked away from the boy to see two more young children running towards them, with two older ones following close behind.

One of the older children stepped forward, bowing her head. She had pink hair and looked about the same age as Gaara.

"We're so sorry," the girl apologized. "It was an accident."

"Yeah," the older boy said, nodding his head. "Accidents happen all the time. They're little kids, you know? You don't have to be so rude about it."

Kankuro growled. "I happen to dislike disrespectful little kids like you and him."

"Hey, I'm not a little kid!" the boy protested. "You wanna fight, huh?"

Kankuro smirked. "After I deal with this little kid, then I'll deal with you."

He was about to hit the small boy when a wooden staff stopped him.

"What are Sunagakure citizens doing on this floor?" The voice belonged to yet another boy about Gaara's age.

"And who're you?" Kankuro retorted.

The boy made no comment, keeping his wooden staff aimed at Kankuro's throat.

"Kankuro."

The two sand siblings jumped in fright as Gaara appeared, his signature frown on his face.

"Let the boy go, Kankuro," Gaara ordered. "Remember why we're here. Do you want Baki to report your actions to Father?"

"Ah, well, no, not really, Gaara," Kankuro said, setting the boy down immediately. "See, I let him go already. It was just a misunderstanding."

Gaara turned to face the boy with the wooden staff. "I apologize for my brother's behavior. He got lost on his way to the game room, and instead ended up on the Sarutobi family's floor."

The raven-haired boy nodded and withdrew his staff. "What's your name?"

"Sabaku no Gaara, and you are…?"

"Uchiha Sasuke."

Gaara nodded as if confirming something. "Temari, Kankuro. Let's go."