A/N: First off, I would like to apologize for the last chapter ranty thing. I'm sick and I get grumpy when I'm sick. I thoroughly apologize for overreacting.

Now! I fixed my Word problem and was able to finish 26, yay! It's a good thing most of my friends know about computers otherwise I would just drool all over mine. It's totally different when they know the hardware and you only know coding. Different worlds.

Enjoy!

"Sir," a harsh feminine voice began, pulling at the reigns of her horse to stop. "I have to say, I think letting Meroko go ahead of us was a risky move." Five other horses came to a stop beside their own, the sounds of their hooves clopping around them.

"I know you're not exactly fond of her," the woman snorted, only confirming his statement, "But she's the best at what she does. You should know that better than most." From behind the sheer curtain of the carriage pulled by two of the horses, she could feel eyes staring at her.

"I think you're just jealous of her," a male voice spoke, considerably younger in pitch then the man behind the curtain. He allowed a playful, toothy grin to spread across his face from the shadow of the hood that covered his face.

A broad sword was drawn, pointing the tip at the young man who sat on the bench of the carriage, steering it. "Watch your mouth boy."

"Enough you two," the man behind the curtain sighed. "I'm having Meroko play in Suna for a few days to see what that bratty Princess does but…I sent Nakomo to do a little of his own playing."

Ten pairs of eyes glanced back at the carriage. "That disgusting maniac Sir? Isn't that a little harsh?" the woman asked as she sheathed her sword.

There was a long silence, all of them feeling uneasy after learning about this particular man they knew. "Are you questioning me?"

"Of course not Sir, I just think using him is a little…cruel." Even though she was under his scrutiny, no one heard her quiver in fear.

Each one wore a hooded cloak as not to reveal their identities to outside parties in case someone knew them. However, three distinct forms were able to be determined merely by action and silhouette. One was Seira, the Wind Style user that had attacked Temari and Setsuko a few weeks ago. Sitting to her right was Tao, the lazy, biker dressed teammate she always fought with. Directly to her left was the big burly man who had never been named. He was the most dangerous out of the three, being a well versed Earth Style user.

Burning eyes casted a glance to the woman who spoke so boldly to their Master. "Just because you're new, doesn't give you the right to speak like that."

Fierce blue eyes narrowed back at her, "I'm not a frightened puppy like you lot are."

"Frightened puppy?! I'll have you kno-" she glared at the covered woman, turning it to her partner when he cut her off.

"Oh shut up Seira!" His bored sigh and yawn said more than enough of her yelling.

"All of you shut your traps!" their Master's voice roared in annoyance. They were all instantly silent. "They should have returned from that damnable Hidden Leaf Village by now. It's time to pay the brat a visit."

Three days passed before Setsuko and Temari returned to the village and the entire trip was silent. After the events of the first night, Setsuko seemed to have lost herself in her thoughts. Temari didn't push her either; she was sure that if something like that happened to her she would feel the same way, after murdering the man responsible of course. Although, even Temari could note the completely dead look she had held the entire way back home. It seemed more than just lost in thought; it seemed completely detached. She knew she would have to talk to Gaara about what happened but she didn't really want to. Somehow, it felt like she would be betraying Setsuko's confidence if she said anything. Even so, Gaara was their Kazekage and being that he was in charge of her safety some could draw conclusions and end their relations with the Sand Village.

Today of all days seemed to feel the hottest. Not a cloud floated by as the two girls walked under the sun and through the canyon that led to the village. Even for a desert dweller such as herself, Temari could feel beads of sweat start to form on her brow. Placing a hand on her forehead to shield her eyes, she looked up at the clear sky and at the harsh light of the sun. It seemed brighter than usual. Maybe it was a sign of good things to come. She only hoped that were the case. They were greeted by the Jonin that guarded the pass. Temari greeted them all with a pleasant wave.

"Temari…" Setsuko's voice was low, almost a whisper.

Teal eyes glanced down at the girl whose head was hung just as low as her voice. "Yes?"

"I'm going to go straight to the Inn. I need a bath." Her eyes still seemed so detached.

Temari silently nodded her understanding.

The two women separated at the gates, Temari watching Setsuko's back as it got smaller and smaller. With a heavy sigh, she shook her head and made her way to her brother's office. This was not a conversation she wanted to have. She had been stopped a couple of times on her way there, but brushed them off rather quickly. Her matter was urgent and she knew once speaking to her brother, that he would feel the same. Temari made her way into the Kazekage building, walking straight past the clerk who was suddenly on her heels.

"Out of my way," she growled as the young man stood in front of the door.

"I'm…I'm sorry ma'am but I can't do that." His eyes never looked directly into hers, finding the older sibling terrifying. "Lord Kazekage is in a meeting with a visiting dignitary. It's not advised that y-"

"Oh shut up!" Temari pushed her way past him and into the office, "Gaara we have to talk about-" she cut herself off when she saw what was going on.

Gaara was sitting in his office waiting for news that his sister and Setsuko had returned to the village. It was already half way through the day and he hadn't heard anything, from anyone. He wasn't beginning to worry, he was more annoyed that they were taking so long. Obviously he should have made them leave when he and Kankuro did. Stretching back in his seat, he felt the strain in his shoulders from hunching over to work and heard his knuckles crack from being so tight. Leaning on one elbow, he tapped his pen against his desk as he sighed. Letting his eyes fall onto the document in front of him, he pursed his lips in what could only be described as annoyance. The document in question was about some foreign policy that was being signed by all the Kage. Honestly, he didn't really care about it. Lazily, his eyes looked up and wandered to the windows that surrounded him. If he had to really think about it, he would much rather be outside, under the sun, cultivating his cacti than sitting in his stuffy office reading papers.

Despite what many people may think about the stoic Kazekage, he was as human as the rest of the world. He was also a teenager. He had a short attention span and urge to do things that made him happy; or potentially killed him. It wasn't enjoyable to be cooped up in an office all day reading official documents and having your brain bleeding every day. And unknown to anyone, he occasionally played hooky. It wasn't often enough to be noticed, but he still did it. Every once in a while he needed a break; a well-deserved break. He had spent the last three years getting people to like him enough to realize his dream of becoming Kazekage and that had been tough. Joining the regular ninja had been a chore in itself. Many Jonin had tried to kill him and his teammates because they were simply put on his team. Korobi and Yaoki helped more than they might have known back then. Other than Naruto, they were his first real friends and just like the Jinchuriki, he considered them his best friends.

His daydreaming was interrupted suddenly by the guy that called himself a receptionist, "Lord Kazekage?"

Gaara looked up slowly, "What?"

"There's someone here to see you. He says he's with Princess Setsuko." The young man jerked when he saw the glare that was suddenly directed at him.

"Let them in." Someone who claimed to be with Setsuko? He hadn't heard of anyone coming for a visit from her homeland. Was it possibly another assassin trying to gather information?

The young man nodded and stepped back to let the person in. An older man, who looked to be somewhere in his thirties, walked in with an air of superiority around him; something Gaara hated. His gray eyes stared directly into his green eyes, never once seeming to break contact, like he was assessing a battlefield. The man's posture was similar to Setsuko's, regal, alert, and straight; it was obvious he worked close with royalty of some kind. If he really was 'with' Setsuko though, he doubted it. This man even held his long, slightly graying, brown hair in a loose ponytail at the base of his skull. Gaara wanted to sever his head right at that spot, he didn't like the guy.

"Ah, you must be the Kazekage I've heard so many rumors about," he said as the door behind him closed.

Gaara narrowed his gaze at his words. "What kind of rumors?" He adjusted himself in his seat and sat up straighter.

The man seemed to grow a smirk, "That you were a mass murdering Jinchuriki and survived extraction by some miracle."

He felt his eye twitch angrily. However, he couldn't deny that the man was well informed; somehow. "You must have amazing contacts if you know so much about me."

"It pays to be well informed." Finally the man began to show the slightest bit of respect when he bowed, "Let me introduce myself. I'm Kazeku Banki from Aisugakure, right hand advisor to Princess Setsuko Ayani of Aisugakure."

"Of course, you're the one who asked for our assistance in your political problems." So he was finally meeting the man behind the letters. Gaara's mind briefly flashed back to each of the letters. Even then there seemed to be something dubious going on.

Kazeku straightened, "Well your Lordship, when you put it like that it makes us sound dependent upon you."

"Are you not?"

"Not as much as you might think Sir."

"How do you know what I think?"

"Excuse me, wrong choice of words me'haps. I simply meant that we can handle the problems ourselves, we just chose to kill two birds with one stone. Taking care of the Princess' safety and establishing political bonds."

"So you chose you use your Princess as a patsy for your political ends."

"Oh my no! We all care deeply for Her Majesty. She's the one that rules over us with her kindness and radiance. But she is still young and inexperienced."

Gaara didn't like where this conversation was going; straight to his blood boiling. He sighed heavily and leaned back in his chair, "Why are you here?"

"I'm here to see the Princess-" He could see the young Kazekage was becoming uncomfortable under his presence.

"No!" Gaara had cut him off so quickly that he barely had any time to finish his sentence.

Kazeku tilted his head a bit, confusion on his face but at the same time he seemed to be trying to read Gaara. "Lord Kazekage?"

Gaara leaned forward, his arms resting on the wood of his desk and a finger tapping rapidly in an effort to contain his anger, which was failing miserably. "You put her in my care, I can't just let people see her at their leisure. I will let her know you're here and she can meet with you here, in my office."

"Gaara, we have to talk about-" Temari suddenly burst in, both men looking at her silently, but Gaara's look told her now was not a good time. Looking over his frame, she could see his finger tapping at such speed that she knew he was already angry.

There was utter silence in the room as Temari felt it all directed at her. She wasn't the type to feel embarrassed easily, but right now, she did. Her teal eyes flickered over to the older man standing just barely feet away from Gaara's desk, looking over his shoulder at her with a glare that was only reminiscent of having interrupted something important. The look on Gaara's face was even worse than the stranger, but he had twelve years to prefect the look of striking terror into people. All of their attention was torn away from the heaviness of the room when a large explosion echoed throughout the entire village. Gaara jumped out of his seat and Temari raced to the window beside him, another explosion erupted the entire village. The two siblings didn't even need to say anything to each other before both of them were rushing out to protect the villagers and find out what was going on.