Author's note: As always, no sadly I do not own Naruto. This one's a bit of a sad chapter, but it's got Gaara in it as a child so you guys probably have already figured that out.

-midnathething

Gaara, at age three, had loved books. Books didn't call him monsters. Books didn't run away pleading for their lives when he didn't want to hurt them. Books gave him hope; hope that maybe one day he could be the hero. Books wouldn't betray him. Mother liked books too, so that had to mean something, right?

At age three Gaara could read because he never slept. One of the guards assigned to watch him had taught him how to read, to give Gaara something to do to pass the time he'd claimed. Gaara had liked that guard. He'd treated Gaara like what he was, a child, and not a monster. That guard had died on a mission.

Ever since Gaara had learned how to read he'd been reading, and when the guard had died the habit had only gotten more severe. Gaara had spent most of his time reading, hoping to find out how to make friends. When he wasn't reading he was outside trying to make friends, though the result was always the same. He'd always end up sitting on his own at the swing set, hoping that someone would see him and take pity on him and talk to him, like in the books.

Unfortunately by the time he was six years old that still hadn't happened. Gaara tried everything but still nothing worked. It didn't help that the sand would sometimes attack the people he tried to befriend. Then Gaara found something potentially life changing, a book about super heroes, people who could fly, people who could breathe under the water, people who could do all kinds of things. Everyone loved them, everyone respected them, and no one feared them.

Gaara had read the book many times. He could quote his favorite pages and name all the superheroes and supervillains in the book. Finally, Gaara reached a conclusion. If Gaara couldn't make friends, maybe a mysterious hero of unknown origins could. Finally Gaara had hope, maybe he could live a life with others after all, maybe he could actually meet his siblings, maybe… Maybe he could have a friend, even one would be the best thing in the world to him.

Gaara thought long and hard about a secret identity, because if the people asked who he was he'd have to tell them and if he told them he was Gaara they'd only become afraid of him again. Finally he decided on a name. Tanuki no shōnen (1). While it wasn't a very clever name, to six year old Gaara the name seemed great. Gaara snuck into his sister's room that night and swiped one of her ridiculous formal kimonos. Next Gaara snuck into his brother's room and he swiped his older brother "battle paint." Gaara knew at this point for Kankurō the paint was basically make-up.

After retreating to his room, Gaara got ready. First he cut a long strip of fabric from his sister's kimono, which he tied around his shoulders like a cape, next he took his Brother's battle paint and smeared it onto his face till he'd made a purple mask, which concealed the dark rings around his eyes and hid his emotions from his potential enemies. After looking in a mirror Gaara concluded that he looked like a superhero.

So he went, leaving his room through the window, which the guards didn't know he could do yet. Gaara wandered through the streets listening for pleas of help from the innocent. For a while he heard nothing, then, suddenly, a shrill shriek pierced the quiet night air. Gaara felt his eyes widen.

Someone actually needed help! This was his chance! Gaara rushed to where he'd heard the scream and was startled to see one of the girls from the park, the one who'd almost talked to him until her parents had said something and ruined it. She was cornered in an alleyway by a few big men who looked like hired gang men. Gaara slipped into the alleyway silently and edged closer to investigate.

"… This is what your old man gets for not paying up to boss!" The man closest to the girl said, pulling a long knife from his sleeve.

Gaara wasn't quite what sure what was going on, but he figured if it was anything like in the books he'd read the little girl's father hadn't paid some sort of debt or safety fee to the head of some sort of gang. Gaara quietly walked out of the shadows, glaring daggers.

"What do you people think you're doing?" Gaara demanded as loudly as he could, hoping he sounded fearless like the hero's in his books.

The men turned in shock to face Gaara, just who was the kid wide awake in the middle of the night, the kid who was standing up to them when full grown men trembled in fear because of them? As soon as they saw Gaara they burst into laughter.

"Go home brat, this doesn't concern you so scram." The biggest man managed between gasps for air and fits laughter.

"The safety of all of the people of Suna concern Tanuki no shōnen!" Gaara declared loudly, silently daring the men to try to attack him.

The girl sniffled. "Please, you don't have to do this! Leave before they decide to hurt you too, I couldn't bear it if you were to get hurt for my sake…" The girl trailed off, tears spilling from her eyes.

The man farthest to the left laughed. He stalked over to the girl and raised his fist to punch the girl. His fist rapidly moved towards the girl, getting closer, closer, closer to hurting her… Only to stop centimeters from the girls face.

After attempting to jerk his fist a few times, the man turned to face his arm. At about his elbow the arm vanished into a constricting blanket of sand. "I said, the safety of all people of Suna is a concern to me. You will not try to hurt that girl again, and if you do you will lose that arm." Gaara stated quietly.

Screaming erupted from the alleyway in seconds. Gaara was able to make out the words "demon," "monster," and "bloodthirsty." The mention of blood made Gaara's head throb as his mother demanded the deaths of the thugs.

Gaara felt the sand jerk as the man attempted to pull his arm away again and out of what felt like reflex made a crushing gesture with his hand. Gaara wasn't sure who screamed louder, the man whose arm had just been crushed, the girl who'd just been sprayed in his blood, or himself. The thugs ran away as quickly as their distinctly non-ninja legs could carry them. Slowly, and nervously Gaara looked over to the girl who was still cowering in the corner of the alleyway.

"A-are you okay?" Gaara asked, his voice shaking. The girl screamed, jumped to her feet, and ran away.

Gaara sighed and turned to make his way back to the tower. It was going to be a long, lonely walk back.

. . .

Gaara sobbed, tears running down his cheeks. "Why, why uncle? Why?" He screamed.

"Because…" Yashamaru coughed up blood. "My sister never loved you, I never loved you. She named you Gaara, a self-loving carnage, out of hatred for this village. Nobody ever has, or ever will, love you." His uncle pulled open his jacket, revealing row upon row of explosive tag. "This is it… Please die."

The young redhead only had seconds to process what his uncle had said, what his words had meant, before his uncle exploded with a burst of heat and light. As always, Gaara was protected by his sand.

Finally the boy processed what had happened, what the horrible words his uncle had spoken had meant, what had just happened. His uncle had tried to kill him. The only person who'd loved him had tried to kill him, and the sand that just earlier that night had crushed off the arm of a man, had protected him.

Rage and pain flared up from Gaara's very core. Dimly through the haze of pain and rage Gaara felt pain from his head.

"Fine…" He muttered. "If Suna won't let me be a hero… I'll just have to be the villain."

1: Tanuki no shōnen means Tanuki Boy.