In the Name of Love

Susanoo reached out and grabbed Rasa, crushing him gently. Rasa turned into a pile of sand.

A sand clone!

Summerwood dispersed Susanoo, his Sharingan spinning rapidly.

Instantly, he detected the chakra response under a distant layer of sand.

Summerwood stepped forward swiftly, throwing three kunai into the sand.

Ss... the explosive tags ignited.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

Rasa was blasted out of the sand, looking somewhat dishevelled.

Summerwood leapt forward, landing a palm strike on Rasa's chest.

A large sealing pattern spread across Rasa's body.

"Sealing jutsu!?" Rasa was shocked. "You sealed my chakra!?"

Sand continuously fell from Rasa's face. But this time, it wasn't a sand clone; it was Rasa's last line of defence, the Sand Armor.

Summerwood dusted off the sand from his clothes and exhaled.

His chakra reserves were still plentiful, a trait of the Uzumaki clan.

"Rasa, nice to meet you. I am Uchiha Summerwood."

Rasa's face turned ashen. "I know you are Uchiha Summerwood. What do you want?"

"Aren't the Uchiha clan independent from Konoha now? Why are you causing trouble in the Land of Wind?"

"Let me think..." Summerwood pulled out a scroll, taking out his desert travel essentials: table, chair, umbrella, and cold tea. He poured himself a cup and drank it.

"I want to ask you, if you're afraid of the Tailed Beast going berserk, why don't you strengthen the seal instead of constantly provoking Gaara?"

"How do you know our village's Jinchuriki is Gaara!?" Rasa's eyes widened in shock and anger.

Though it wasn't a secret within the village, the fact that an outsider knew and could accurately name him was alarming.

Summerwood tapped his head, realising his need for more interrogation skills.

"Now that you're my captive, answer my questions honestly."

Rasa snorted, "No comment!"

Summerwood frowned. "If you don't believe your son can seal Shukaku, why don't you become the Jinchuriki yourself?"

Rasa turned his head away, unwilling to speak with this lunatic. Are all Uchiha this insane?

As the village's Kazekage, what would happen to the village if he became the Jinchuriki and lost control? Besides, making Gaara the Jinchuriki wasn't his idea.

Seeing Rasa's non-cooperation, Summerwood shrugged. "I guess you're thinking, as the village leader, you can't risk becoming a Jinchuriki because if you lose control, the village would suffer."

"But if you don't trust yourself, why seal Shukaku in your son and keep testing him? Are you out of your mind?"

Rasa was taken aback, recalling his time in the illusion.

His lips moved, but he remained silent.

Summerwood lost patience, grabbing Rasa and prying his eyes open.

Summerwood's Sharingan spun furiously, his eyes turning blood red.

...

Sunagakure.

A drunkard staggered forward with a bottle in hand, brushing past a red-haired child.

The drunkard stumbled, almost falling.

"Watch where you're going, you little brat!" the drunkard hiccuped.

The red-haired child slowly turned his head.

His cold, lifeless eyes and heavy dark circles sent a chill down the drunkard's spine. "You are..."

Here it was again, that same gaze.

Gaara's expression was filled with hatred.

His mind was flooded with images of being bullied and despised.

"Get lost, you monster!"

Why... why...

Gaara's eyes gradually filled with blood.

"Ah..." A blood-curdling scream echoed as the bottle shattered on the ground.

A group rushed out, only to see Gaara's retreating figure.

"What happened!?"

"It's Gaara!"

"He's dead!"

The incident was quickly reported to Sunagakure's higher-ups.

"The Fourth Kazekage left instructions. If Gaara loses control again, he must be killed," Yashamaru said, his eyes full of pain.

But this wasn't Gaara's first killing.

Sunagakure had already faced budget cuts from the Land of Wind's Daimyo. The village's situation would worsen if news of Gaara's actions spread.

Given that, Yashamaru made a decision. He stood up.

...

"Things still aren't going well..."

Gaara sat on a railing, looking helplessly at his hands, tears streaming down his face.

"Why... why am I the only one who turns into a monster?"

"What am I...?"

Gaara suddenly remembered Yashamaru's words.

"The medicine to heal a wounded heart is love."

"Yashamaru..."

Gaara cried, clutching his stomach in pain.

Unaware of the six kunai flying towards him.

Thunk!

Sand exploded from Gaara's back, wrapping around him protectively.

Startled, Gaara turned to see a masked Suna-nin throwing more kunai.

Why, why is it always me?

Gaara's expression twisted with rage. It's always like this! Always like this!

Gaara extended his hand, and sand quickly enveloped the attacker!

Just as the assailant was about to be crushed by Gaara, a shadow from the sky knocked the sand away, pulling the Suna-nin to safety.

Bastard!

Gaara's face contorted with anger, his small hand outstretched as the sand accelerated.

The shadow kicked it apart just as it was about to catch up.

With a few swift movements, the two figures disappeared.

Gaara, in pain, crouched on the ground. He had little chakra left, feeling his body torn apart.

Who wants to kill me!?

Suddenly, a figure appeared in front of Gaara.

Looking up, Gaara saw Yashamaru.

Yashamaru's clothes were pristine, his expression mixed. He quickly hugged Gaara.

Gaara's heart instantly calmed down.

"Yashamaru, just now a Suna-nin tried to kill me." Gaara's small body trembled.

Yashamaru's expression softened, murmuring, "I'm sorry, it's okay now..."

Gaara cried, "Is it because I'm a monster that everyone wants to kill me?"

Yashamaru gently stroked Gaara's head. "Don't think that way, Gaara. There are people who love you. The Kazekage and I, deep down, have always loved you."

"My favorite sister gave her life for you. You are her legacy, the most precious treasure in this world. I love you very, very much."

"When my sister gave birth to you, she loved you deeply. Since then, I've always wanted to protect you, to watch you grow."

"She named you 'Gaara' in the name of love, to cherish yourself and live well."

When Rasa ordered Yashamaru to kill Gaara, he worried his deceased sister, Karura, would disagree.

Over the years, Yashamaru has seen that Shukaku has influenced Gaara's violence. He knew Gaara was kind-hearted.

Tonight, Yashamaru painfully attempted to assassinate Gaara, but Rasa saved him, saying there was another way to handle Gaara and no more testing was needed.

Having narrowly escaped death, Yashamaru's heart was in turmoil. Holding Gaara, he didn't want to let go.

Feeling Yashamaru's love, Gaara cried, but they were tears of happiness this time.