Cold Eyes || Gaara x Reader

||4||

"If you were a sand nin then you'd be completely protected from those who wish to kill you. When they find out you're still alive, I'm sure they'll come back running," he interrupted the wind picked up and ruffled our clothes within the silence, "I swear, as a nin of my village, as the Kazekage of Sunagakure... you will be protected."

I just watched him for a moment before sighing and giving him a small nod, "Fine. Though I doubt you would have taken no for an answer anyway. Am I right, Lord Kazekage?"

He nodded and then turned as a guard appeared on the roof behind him, not too far off Temari who, for this whole interaction, didn't seem to quite decide if she wanted to say anything or not. Her continued silence caused me to conclude that she didn't particularly want to say anything. Probably best. All you'll have are questions, Temari, and I cannot answer them. Doesn't matter if you're one of my favourite characters—no. I should treat her like a real person now, after all, this world is just as real as the one I'm originally from. Yes. This world is real. These people are real. It's not a game, or a manga, or a show anymore. It's life.

"Lord Gaara, Shikamaru Nara has arrived for Lady Temari," the new nin reported, Gaara nodded and motioned for us to follow.

"Shikamaru, huh? Your boyfriend?" I teased as I fell into step with Temari, deciding to break her out of her little trance and gauge just what she's feeling around this time in the story, you know, just because I know what will happen in the future. She just laughed.

"Like I'd ever date an idiot like him," she shook her head as we stopped outside of Gaara's office. We waited for him as he disappeared inside.

Oh, if only you knew...

When he re-emerged from his office he had a headband in his hand and passed it to me.

"You'll join the jounin ninja of the sand village," he told me. Huh? Really? This feels too easy... Was it this easy to get such a promotion in the show or manga? I don't remember...

"Shouldn't there be some kind of test?" I asked him, he just gave me an annoyed look as he shoved it closer to me.

"You beat Kankuro. That was your test. Now, if you don't put it on yourself, I will have to do it for you," he said emotionlessly. Do it... For me...? I blushed and snatched the headband from his hand and tied it around my upper arm.

"No need," I said quickly, trying to hide my blush behind a hand. He just nodded satisfied and lead us to the entrance of the village were a familiar leaf village chuunin was. Lazy aura, a slouched form, that black hair tied into an impossibly shaped pineapple. Yep. I knew who it was the moment I laid my eyes on him.

"Come on, Temari, this whole thing is such a drag. Can you hurry up please? The chuunin exams aren't going to wait the whole week for you!" Shikamaru shouted at Temari.

She just stuck her tongue out at him as we finally reached him. He hummed at the sight of me.

"Hello, I'm f/n l/n. I believe this is the first time we've met," I introduced myself, he nodded and shook my hand.

"Shikamaru Nara," he replied, "are you new around here or have you just been hidden behind the walls until now?"

I smiled.

"Am I new..? Did I just avoid people..? Now, that is the question," I winked before allowing my attention to be snatched away by a bird. Looks familiar.

"She's a strange one..." Shikamaru commented before turning around, "if you don't come, I'll be leaving you behind."

"I'm coming! You'd think you'd never heard of patience before," Temari rolled her eyes to the leaf nin before turning and saying a quick goodbye to her youngest brother before chasing after the extremely bored Shikamaru who'd barely even made it ten steps away before she'd caught up to him, giving him a swift push once she'd reached him. Probably payback for rushing her.

"Y/n," Gaara called after me, I looked back to him.

"Lord Gaara?" I returned, he just shook his head.

"Just Gaara," he told me, his eyes narrowing slightly. Something tells me he doesn't quite trust me yet, fair to him though, "Will you teach?"

"Teach?" I asked.

"Take on a student. A straggler if you will," he started walking again and I followed close behind.

"I'm not sure. I guess I could?" I replied awkwardly, how the hell did I suddenly end up with not only a higher rank than I'm probably worth and a student, "why?"

"I have a boy who needs a teacher. Didn't have enough kids to make another team of three and no one wants to take the last of the class. I think you're perfect for him. Consider it a test, if you will. Of course, you don't have to take him straight away," Gaara told me as we walked past a group kids who were throwing a ball back and forth, "I understand you'd probably like to settle and get used to the village and being a nin here before you take on something so... permanent."

"You're right in that assumption. Not to mention I think I'd like you to trust me before I take a kid on to teach," I told him, he hesitated for a moment, "I'm not blind and honestly, I think it would be stranger if you did trust me straight away. You're only being a good Kazekage. Question everything and everyone. Especially someone who appears like me in an unexplainable show."

Though, I can't help but wonder why he took me in instead of throwing me out. Surely Sunagakure isn't that low on nin that they'll take in a stranger who clearly has some bad history. If I were him, I probably would've thrown me to the sand once I was fully healed and perfectly capable of travelling alone again.

I should just be grateful. That's the exact scenario that I really don't want to happen.