Gaara's platoon was huddled on the underside of a curved rock, with the Kazekage using his sand to shield them from the sudden sandstorm. They were less than half a day's journey from the guard town, but the sandstorm was delaying them and Gaara knew that the aid teams he had called for would be delayed too.
"It seems we may not make it as quickly as we had hoped, Lord Gaara." Jirobu stated and Gaara had to agree. There had to be some way for them to move forward, even through the storm. Pursing his lips, he worked to fuse his chakra with the sand in the ground at his feet. After a few minutes, he eventually sat down, surprising the team.
"Lord Kazekage...?" Sari questioned, shifting awkwardly on her feet. Gaara looked up at the three.
"One of you sit beside me and the other two behind us." He instructed. Sending each other bemused looks, the ninja complied, seating themselves around the Kazekage. Silently exhaling, he got to work. The sand he had been using to shield them surrounded them like a ball and the sand they were sitting on became a kind of mat. They were in a sand globe. Closing one eye, Gaara activated his third eye and lifted the sand globe off fhe ground and in the direction of the Gold Mountains.
After travelling in moderate silence for a time, the storm stopped a few hours after they resumed their journey and Gaara undid his justu, setting them on the ground before the sand crumbled away and his special sand returned to his gourd. Panting a little from the chakra he had expended, he nodded at his team and they continued.
By the time they reached the guard town several hours later, Gaara's chakra had been replenished. But the sight that greeted them when they entered had his team reeling.
The guard town had been trashed. Debris from fallen buildings lay scattered on every path. Body parts and blood spatter were just barely visible among the mess; there wasn't a single living person in plain sight. Stepping forward, Gaara scanned the area. Had the townspeople been completely annihilated?
"Is anybody here? We are from the Sand Village, responding to a distress signal. Are there any survivors?" Gaara called, his calm voice booming through the emptiness of the town. Looking back at his team, he held two fingers up. Nodding, the team split off, with Sari and Mastuna going in one direction whilst Gaara and Jirobu moved in the other.
It was only after searching for close to an hour that they discovered the hidden townspeople. Nearly at the back of the village, the pairs had regrouped and continued together, stumbling upon a hatch behind a store by accident.
Instructing his team to step back, Gaara opened the hatch himself, unblinking when his sand moved to shield him from the attack of arrows that came. Creating a small hole in the sand shield to show his eye to the attackers, he stared down at at the large group, all huddled together as they looked up in terror. One of the men who had attacked pointed at him.
"That- that sand! The sand that acts as the ultimate shield! You must be Gaara of the Desert! Th-the Kazekage!" He stammered. Nodding, Gaara relaxed the sand and looked down at him properly.
"Yes, I am the Kazekage of the Sand Village. We came in response to a distress signal. I apologise for being late." Gaara apologised, noting the way the people looked at him with shaken eyes. They were surely in shock. Whatever happened to them must have been awful.
Bit by bit, the people cautiously made their way out of the underground hideout, looking miserably at the state of their town. People divided, some going towards Sari and Matsuna as they performed first aid on the injured, and others that were able gathering around as plans were made to clear the rubble.
Gaara was stood to the side, listening to the town's chief, Shujin, as he laid out the plans when two of the young men who had been standing in front of him suddenly protested, surprising everyone.
"What about the people of the mountain?" The one with dark brown hair said, his hazel eyes sparking. The townspeople murmured with dissatisfaction. A large man came up to them and knocked them both on the heads.
"You brats! Can't you see that your own people have been hurt? Why are you worrying about others?" He growled. The pair rubbed their heads, grumbling.
"They are the ones those ninja were after! I know that we've been hurt and hit bad, but just think about them who don't have any connection to the outside world other than us. We-we were supposed to protect them, lr at leadt warn them!" The other youth with navy hair argued. Gaara noted the look of guilt that befell the townspeople and stepped forward.
"Then why don't the three of us make our way there ourselves?" He suggested. The pair turned to stare at him in surprise, as did many of the other townspeople.
"Lord Kazekage!" Matsuna hissed at him from where she was seated bandaging an elderly man's arm. He sent her a pointed look and she pressed her lips together.
"My team will remain here and more aid should be arriving within a few days time. There will be more medical ninja to tend to your wounded as well as extra hands to help begin repairing your town." Gaara stated. The town's chief nodded at him.
"Alright, I'm sure that you as Kazekage will be able to keep these rascals in check. Please be wary, the people of the mountain aren't very friendly with strangers." He mused, rubbing his moustache.
Nodding, the Kazekage gestured and the two young men followed him off to the side as the rest of the people organised themselves. Gaara crossed his arms and scanned the pair. They seemed to be in their teens just as he was, but they were certainly older than him. He decided to make the first move.
"Firstly, shall we introduce ourselves? I am the Fifth Kazekage of the Village Hidden in the Sand, Gaara of the Desert. You both are?"
"My name is Ryuichi of the Naya family, the son of the town chief." The boy with the brown hair introduced. The navy haired boy bowed a little.
"I am Gihei of the Oba household." He introduced shortly. Accepting it, Gaara readjusted his crossed arms.
"Do either if you know the way through the forest to get there?" He asked. Ryuichi stepped forward.
"I do, my father showed me the way in case there was ever a time he was unable to go himself. It will take us up to a day to get there on foot, half if we run." He said.
"Jirobu." Gaara called. The young men blinked, surprised when the ninja suddenly appeared before them.
"Yes, Lord Gaara?"
"I will be making my way up the mountain to check on the people there. If Temari and the reinforcements get here before we return, send her and a medical ninja up the mountain- I'm sure the chief would be willing to provide assistance." He instructed. The ninja nodded and moved away as quickly as he had appeared. Releasing his hands, Gaara gestured toward the forest behind the town.
"Please, lead the way."