"Gaara, I brought lunch. Sorry, I got held up on the way, so I'm a little late..."
The door opened, and Kankuro walked in carrying a lunchbox. The moment he saw his younger brother's state, his voice abruptly cut off.
Gaara was not handling official business. He simply sat there stiffly, his eyes unfocused and his brow faintly furrowed without realizing it.
Rather than looking like he was thinking, he looked more like... he was grieving over something, with nowhere to voice it.
Kankuro quickly stepped forward, setting the lunchbox on one corner of the desk. His voice was full of concern and confusion.
"What's wrong, Gaara? Did something happen?"
Hearing his brother's voice, Gaara gave a slight start. His unfocused gaze swiftly sharpened as he forcibly separated the lingering remnants of that ill-timed dream from reality.
"...Hm? Sorry, Kankuro, I drifted off..." He tried to make his voice sound as calm as usual. "It's nothing. I'm just... a little tired."
Yet no matter how hard he tried to hide it, the sense of loss he had brought back from the dream remained stubbornly on his face and in his eyes—like being briefly embraced by a warm world, only to be suddenly cast back onto an ice field.
Deep in his eyes, a small flame had just been kindled, only to be immediately doused by the cold reality. All that remained was a damp wisp of empty ashes, like something abandoned by happiness.
Seeing his younger brother like this, Kankuro felt both puzzled and heartbroken. He truly could not understand why his brother, who clearly had everything now, would still reveal this kind of... melancholy from time to time.
Sunagakure was far better off now than when Gaara had first taken office.
Because Gaara and Konoha's Uzumaki Naruto were close