FIRST and foremost: did everyone see the new shipuden episode?! there is only one word that can describe it...AMAZING.
Anyways, i'm glad that you all liked that last chapter...i was a little worried about the whole background story on Gaara that i made up, but everyone said they liked it, so i'll keep the chapter the way it is.

here's the next chapter! i LOVE you ALL, for you are ALL amazing.

:-)

Upon returning to Suna, I transported my gourd to our house and covered myself with a long robe with a hood that I had bought off of one of the vendors in Konoha. I didn't want people to know that I had returned yet, I wanted to see what it was like to walk down the street and not have everyone around me react. I told Temari and Kankuro to go on ahead without me, which they did without question.

As I walked down the street, I watched in fascination how everyone around me went about their business without pause of fear.
I was simply dismissed as a passerby.
Vendors went about their business selling their products and trying to attract my attention to their shop. Street dancers shimmied themselves at me, some even brushed up against me…that had never happened before, usually they would stop dancing and run away.
A pack of children ran dangerously close to me as they chased after each other laughing and yelling.
But one of the stragglers didn't cut around the corner fast enough to avoid running into me.He hit me square on, knocking himself over and knocking my hood off.

Immediately the vendors stopped their yelling, the dancers' music stopped and the jingling from the bells attached to their clothing stopped with it.
Life around me stopped and silence echoed off of the walls.
Everyone around me was waiting…
waiting for me to react.
Waiting to die.
Waiting for me to kill them all.

I heard a woman scream as a crowd of people held her back. This boy must be her child…
I looked at her curiously as she fought with the people that were desperately holding onto her. Did they really think that I would kill such a pitiful boy? Then I remembered, that if I hadn't changed, I probably would have...he probably would have been dead already. Months ago, this boy would have been dead before he hit the ground, and his mother wouldn't be fighting against the crowd but would only be getting comforted by it.

When I reached down and picked up the boy by his shirt collar and set him, once again, onto his feet…everyone gasped.
Then, as if this was a normal every day occurrence, I just walked away..
I heard as the mother desperately yelled at her child as he sobbed in response.
I knew that I should return to the house since my cover was blown…

Leaving the confused crowd that had gathered behind me, I transported back to my home where the smell of another burnt dinner greeted me before I had even set foot into the house. Nearing the door, I could hear Temari and Kankuro screaming at each other.
As I opened our door, smoke billowed out at me and I fought off the urge to gag at the stench that I was sure would haunt our house for at least a month…

"Welcome home to me." I said to myself as I walked into the war zone, "welcome home indeed…"

Surprisingly, Sakura wrote me once a week.
At first, I figured she would do it for a month and then grow sick of it and stop doing it.
But the letters kept coming.
At two months, I told myself that she would grow tired of writing and never getting a response back…so then she would stop.
But the letters kept coming.
At four months, I decided that any day now she would find someone new to dote and swoon over and would stop writing.
But the letters kept coming in and kept getting longer and longer.

She would tell me about her week, and about Tsunade's training and all of the interesting things that she was learning. She said that I had sparked something inside of her that made her want to change herself as well; and she was determined to be as good, if not better, then Tsunade in the medical field.

At six months, I finally decided that I should maybe respond to one or two of her letters once in a while, so that she knew that I was receiving them. My only problem was, I had never written a letter.
The only formally written documents I had ever written were reports to my father or the elders about missions that I had been on…and that's exactly what my first letter to Sakura was like.
In it, I described in short and precise sentences how my training was going and how the villagers were slowly starting to lose their fear of me.
I knew it was a pitiful excuse for a letter, but I couldn't think of anything better to write…

After I mailed my letter, I received two letters a week, and Sakura got one once a month…maybe.

My letters remained in report form because that is what I was comfortable with. Each letter was maybe ten lines at the most, unlike hers which sometimes took up a whole scroll; but she never complained about it once.

But one day after training, I decided to stop at a nearby vendor for dinner since I knew that Temari was cooking again. After I was done eating, something happened that had never happened before: the owner gave me a bill.
I looked at it confused at first, expecting it to blow up on me or something, but when I saw that it was just a normal bill, I gladly paid it. I had never been asked to pay for anything ever. Most people were too afraid to make such a demand from me and my bill usually fell onto my siblings, much to their loathing.
But suddenly this man was asking me to pay!
This overwhelming butterfly feeling crept its way into my stomach and I felt lighter for some reason even though I was tired from training.
I knew that all of my training and efforts were paying off and the village was finally starting to accept me…and I had to tell someone.

I couldn't tell my siblings, because they would only laugh at the fact that I was excited about paying for something.
So I decided that Sakura would be the one I would tell about this since she was the catalyst to this whole changing thing anyways.

Not even bothering to go threw the front door, I jumped into my bedroom window and grabbed a blank scroll. I quickly jotted down what had happened and stopped halfway through when I noticed that my writing was not only more relaxed in form, but had taken up half of the scroll already…
Stunned, I dropped it to the floor and stared at it as if someone else had written it.

After about an hour or so of staring at it, I quickly finished up the letter and mailed it.
What was happening to me? I had just written a normal letter.
Everything was so different in my life:
I was becoming stronger then anyone could have possibly imagined due to my training.

Shukaku hardly talked to me or bothered my anymore.
Every now and then he would give his usual quip about something, but he no longer haunted my mind with overpowering bloodlust.

The village was slowly starting to respect me.
I could now walk down the street without anyone running away in fear.

The elders were no longer giving me missions in which they used me as a tool.

My siblings and I were becoming closer then ever…I had confided in Kankuro about my new outlook on life and my goal of becoming Kazekage.
And Temari was nothing but supportive in her own little ways; every now and then during training she would sometimes sneak by and leave an extra water canteen for me.
It was little things like that that reminded me that they really did care for me and this wasn't just some big act.

Sakura still wrote me letters, which let me know that she still was mine and no one else's.
This fact stuns me, but I accept it none the less.

I also noticed that the girls in the village were often whispering and pointing at me as I walked by.
When I asked Temari about this, she only laughed at me and made some offhanded comment about changing my name to "Gaara the Heartbreaker". This confused me because I hadn't killed anyone in a long time…when I asked her what it meant she only laughed again and said that I had so much to learn.
So I dismissed the whole idea.

Every now and then I received a letter from Naruto...

Everything was going right for once…and I was waiting for it to come crashing down around me…
I was never the one to have things go my way.
That seemed only reserved for Naruto…he was the one who was accepted and loved and had friends while I was left shunned and abandoned in my own hell.
I was the hated one.
I was the feared one.
But not anymore.
Now I was the one who was becoming accepted and loved…

That word alone brings about a whole barrage of emotions mostly directed towards Sakura…I was so grateful to that girl for what she had done for me, I don't think Ill ever be able to show it…

One night while I was reading one of Sakura's letters, I heard a timid knock on my bedroom door.
"What?" I demanded.
No one had ever knocked on my door before except for Kankuro and Temari when the knocked their goodnights to me.
"Can we talk?" I heard Temari's muffled voice through the thick wooden door.

Using my sand to open it, she slowly walked in and sat down on the edge of my bed.
That was probably the first time someone had used the thing…

Looking around the room and soaking up her surroundings she said, "I don't think I've ever been in your room before…"

"Not since I was little…" I said as I rolled up the letter and placed it on my desk. "What did you want?"

"Nothing really…it's just been such a long time since we've had a talk…so I figured since I wasn't busy and you weren't busy, now would be a great time to have one…"

"Temari, why are you here? There has to be a reason because, as my memory serves me, we've never had a talk."
That took the air out of her lungs.

"Alright, you caught me. I came here to talk about this…girl that's been writing you… What is she to you?"

I didn't have an answer for her. My siblings now had a higher respected role in my life…but I was still hesitant to trust them on certain subjects, and this was one of them.

"She's a friend." I said shortly and cautiously.

"Just a friend? Because I have friends as well, and none of them write me twice a week…"

I turned my gaze to the floor and started to ignore my sister. I was trying to decide what was appropriate to tell her and what wasn't…would she use this information against me?
Or would she just keep it to herself?

I heard her sigh as she stood up and opened the door.

"She believes in me Temari."

Temari closed the door once again and returned to her position on the bed.

"Go on…" she prompted.

Rolling my eyes at my sister's nosiness, I continued, "She says that I can overcome all of the obstacles that stand in my way and…" I stopped there.
Would my next sentence be taking my newfound trust too far?

"And…" Temari prompted once again.

"She says she loves me."

Temari let out the girliest scream I had ever heard come from her and she lunged towards me and locked me into a big hug.

"I knew it! Oh, I'm so happy!!! Congratulations Gaara! She seems like a nice, honest, intelligent girl…she's quite the catch!"

"Temari, you're strangling me…" I said calmly as I tried to push her away.

"Do you love her?" she asked me as she let me go.

A shrug was the only answer I was going to give my sister, but I couldn't stop the slight smile that crept its way onto my lips.

Squealing and strangling me in a hug once again, Temari went on a verbal rampage on how exciting this was.
Only this time, I couldn't get her off of me…
Eventually I had to resort to using my sand to pry my sister off of me as I pinned her against the wall.
That calmed her down, but she was still beaming at me.

"You cannot tell anyone about this." I hissed at her. "The last thing I want to happen is for someone to use her as leverage to make me do things for them…"

"Your secret is safe with me…just promise me one thing Gaara."

"What's that?"

"Promise me you'll wait a few more years before you start having kids…I'm just adjusting to dealing with one of you, I don't know if I can handle little Gaara's running around right now…"

At that, I pushed her out of my room with my sand and slammed the door in her face.
I muttered quiet obscenities directed towards her as her laughing echoed down the hallways.

The next time I saw Sakura, we were both on a mission to rescue my student Matsuri.
Our only actual interaction was when she came over to heal me.
Nothing was said between us, we just looked at each other.
Words weren't needed…

After I was healed, my siblings and I returned to Suna.
Sakura was off on another mission and I couldn't help but notice the disappointment that echoed throughout me.
But I knew that she was busy on a mission.
And I also knew that one day I would see her again…

I was determined to show Sakura and Naruto that their beliefs in me weren't in vain, that it had went to a good cause…
I would become the next Kazekage. And no one was going to stop me.

Sometimes, all her letters would say is that she missed me.
And that made me think that maybe there was a slight chance that I missed her as well.
But this thought only made my insides feel slow and achy.
I had never been missed by anyone before…people usually celebrated my absence from their village, including my own; but not Sakura…

My inner sadness was also reflected in Suna. I watched as it slowly began to implode on itself.
The sun had been especially cruel this year so the crops had failed, which meant that a famine was inevitable.
Also, the rainy season was late, so our water supply was running dangerously low.
The village was falling apart.
It was only a matter of time before everyone turned on one another and destroyed everything… something needed to be done, and quickly.

During one of the meetings held by the elders, I burst in uninvited and demanded that something be done.
I yelled at their incompetence as leaders pointing out that the village was crumbling before them while they just stood by and simply talked.
The school that we had started for the children who were to become shinobi was doing well, but that was the only improvement made to the village; and most of the students weren't showing up anymore because their parents needed them to forage for food and water.

"We're trying our best." the head elder told me.

"Well it's not good enough!" I said as I slammed my fist down on the table, cracking it.

I watched as the elders tensed at my action. I may not have been as feared as I once was…but I was still effective.

"Leave the village to us Gaara, we have more important things for you to take care of for us…"

"Like what?" I asked suspiciously.

"We want you to kill this man." the head elder said as he handed me a picture of a foreigner who I had seen in the village a few days ago.

"Who is he?" I asked as I handed back the picture.

"That doesn't matter. All that matters is that we want him dead. So go do it."

"What has he done to deserve such a sentence?"

"He insulted me." said the head elder.

My blood began to boil once again…it hadn't done that in a very long time.
You see boy…all of your efforts were for nothing. They still see you as their tool…
Shukaku was right…
All of the sadness that I had expelled from my body returned because in one small order by the elders all of my training and actions to better myself and my image were erased…
I was still their tool.
I would always be their tool.
And no matter what I did, nothing would change that fact…

I gave up then.
I decided that I would deny their request and face the punishment which was probably death, but I found that to be comforting...
I may have been born a tool, but at least I would not die as one…

"No." I said crossing my arms over my chest and placing my feet in a firm stance.

"What?" asked the head elder, apparently he wasn't hearing right today.

"I said no. I will not kill this man simply because he insulted you. If you feel so insulted, you kill him. I will no longer carry out your stupid laundry lists of things to do."

"Tell me, Gaara, if I had said that this man had insulted our village, would you have killed him then?"

"Yes. Insulting you means nothing to me, but insulting our village is an entirely different matter."

The elders exchanged looks then and some of them nodded slightly.
Something was going on…was this some sort of a trap that I had not recognized?

"Then the council has agreed, Gaara… you will be the next Kazekage."

After that announcement, everything seemed to speed up.
I stared wide-eyed at the floor while the elders explained their reasoning for this decision…I didn't hear most of it though, I felt like it was all just some big joke.

I was in a daze as the announcement was made to the villagers, and I felt like I watched from the outside of my body as they all cheered.
I could tell that there was a slight hesitation from them, but I didn't let it bother me…I had fulfilled my goal.

Both of my siblings were proud of me.
When I told Temari the news, she cried, and Kankuro's face became thoughtful and he patted me on my back; which reminded me of how events had unraveled and lead me to where I am today.

I decided that in order to show both ethnic groups that I supported them, I would allow them both to hold their Kazekage initiation ceremonies.

For the first ceremony, I put on the Kazekage robes for the first time.
I stood in front of that full length mirror and stared at myself, but it wasn't me that I saw in the mirror, it was my father.
Temari and Kankuro reacted the same way, only they tried to cover it up.

"Wow…Gaara, you look great!" Temari said.

"I'm taking them off." I said and started to undo the robes.

"Wait! Don't do that…leave them on, they really do look good." Temari said as she reached out and grabbed for my hand.

"I look like him." I said and stared back at her coldly.

She let out a sigh and looked back and Kankuro for help.

"Gaara…" Kankuro said, "all three of us have bad memories of our father in those robes…now it's up to you to bring us some good ones."

They had won this one…
but I wasn't completely defeated yet, "I am not wearing the hat."

They both smirked at me then, "Good," Kankuro said, "it makes you look like a walking tent anyways."

When they left the room, I reflected on everything.
The village now trusted me enough to support me as their Kazekage, and I knew that I would do everything I could to protect them.
This village was mine now.
Mine to protect.
Mine to improve.
Mine to love…
And that's exactly what I would do.

I had to tell Sakura. I knew that she would be elated at this news…but I didn't know how to do it.
I decided that writing her a letter was to impersonal after all she had done and was still doing for me; and there was no way I could go visit her right now due to all of the work I had piled up…so I decided that I would wait for the right time.

"So, Kazekage-sama…" said the head elder one morning over a mound of paperwork that I was doing, "we did something to fix the problem. Now what will you do."

Putting down my pen and looking the man straight in the eye, I responded, "Tell Tsunade that I wish to have a meeting with her in order to discuss our alliance."

Gasps and murmurs were heard throughout the room as the elders all quietly voiced their opinions with one another.

"Tell her," I continued, "that I wish to meet with her in Konoha alone, without any other council members."

That brought protests from everyone.

Raising my hand to silence them all, which surprisingly worked, I ordered, "Do it."

There was a slight pause, but then the elders slowly shuffled into life and carried out my order.

"Temari," I said to my sister who was sitting smugly in the corner of the room smirking at the squawking elders, "you will be in charge while I'm gone. I trust you to do what is in the best interest for Suna."

"Yes Kazekage-sama," she said as she got up and bowed towards me.

My sand jetted out at her in order to stop her actions immediately.

"Don't do that, you're my sister, you do not bow to me."

Smiling at me slightly she nodded slightly and said, "As you wish Kazekage-sama." Then she turned to leave my office.

Her actions were learned from years of our father insisting that we bow and call him Kazekage…"afterall," he had said, "what kind of an example am I setting the village of my own children do not respect me in the correct fashion?"

"Temari, one more thing…"

She turned around and looked at me curiously.

"It's Gaara to you, not Kazekage-sama…"

Her smile grew at this and she turned to leave once again.

"As you wish…Gaara."

When the door closed I smiled.
Soon I would meet with Tsunade and if all went according to plan, I would bring this village something it has never had before: a life without the worry of hunger or thirst.
A life without the worry of invasion.
A life of peace…