Gaara's Love

"Don't be fooled by how weak I am. Lord Kazekage specifically assigned me to look after you and protect you at all times..."

Yashamaru paused, then smiled warmly.

"So please don't hurt yourself in front of me. Besides, the sand will protect you automatically! You won't get hurt even when I'm not around!"

"I'm sorry... Yashamaru!"

Gaara had a vague feeling that he had done something wrong. He silently lowered his head.

"Does your wound still hurt?"

"It's really not that bad. It's just a superficial wound. It'll heal soon!"

Yashamaru glanced at the bandage on his hand and continued answering Gaara in his usual gentle voice.

"..."

Gaara suddenly furrowed his brow again and asked,

"Yashamaru... what does pain feel like?"

When Yashamaru's expression shifted slightly, Gaara hurriedly continued,

"The sand... you know... I've never been hurt before, so I don't know what pain feels like at all."

Yashamaru stood and paced a few steps, seeming to think carefully about the question.

He scratched the back of his head and spoke hesitantly.

"How should I explain it? Is it a feeling of suffering or sadness...? Anyway, being in pain isn't pleasant..."

Yashamaru stumbled over his words, seeming troubled that he couldn't give Gaara a good answer.

Gaara listened quietly. A trace of sadness suddenly flashed in his eyes.

He asked tentatively,

"Yashamaru... do you... hate me too? Like everyone else?"

Looking at the little boy's anxious expression, Yashamaru felt conflicted.

He was still so young... and this child, whom he had spent so much time with, was so lonely!

After a moment's thought, he bent down again to face Gaara's helpless little face, his own expression full of warmth.

"In life, people will inevitably hurt others, or be hurt by them."

Yashamaru paused for a few seconds, as if weighing his words, then continued,

"But... people don't just hate others so easily!"

Gaara abruptly raised his head, his eyes shining with delight. He looked earnestly at Yashamaru.

"Th... thank you, Yashamaru!"

But then he fell silent for a moment before speaking again.

"I think I understand what pain feels like now."

Yashamaru was slightly taken aback. His confusion slipped out before he could stop it.

"Huh?"

"Does that mean I've been hurt too, just like everyone else?"

Gaara's voice was soft, but his eyes were filled with an indescribable pain.

He slowly pressed his right hand against his heart, as if it were bleeding.

"I always feel like it hurts here... Even though there's no blood, I still feel... so much pain."

Yashamaru could sense the deep loneliness and helplessness radiating from Gaara.

A light flickered in his eyes, as if he were thinking about how to continue the conversation.

Slowly crouching down, Yashamaru took the dagger from Gaara's hand.

Shk—

As Gaara watched in surprise, Yashamaru kept smiling gently and lightly cut the tip of his left index finger.

Drip, drip...

Blood trickled from his fingertip, drop after drop, splashing onto the ground.

Yashamaru looked earnestly into the boy's eyes, his own eyes warm with a smile.

"When the body is hurt, it does bleed, and it may look like it hurts a lot. But that pain fades naturally with time, and medicine can help it heal faster..."

He put the dagger back on the table, then pressed his hand against his own heart, just as Gaara had.

"But the wounds in your heart aren't so easy to heal."

"The wounds in your heart?"

Gaara couldn't quite understand what Yashamaru meant. His expression grew a little confused.

"Wounds in your heart are different from wounds on your body. Unlike physical wounds, there's no medicine for them..."

Yashamaru shook his head slightly.

"They may even last a lifetime without healing."

Gaara's right hand, pressed against his heart, slowly clenched. The light in his eyes gradually dimmed.

"But there is something that can heal the wounds in your heart!"

Yashamaru's tone suddenly changed.

"What?"

Gaara asked urgently.

He had a feeling the answer was very important to him!

Yashamaru smiled again and continued,

"But it isn't easy to get. You have to receive it from someone else."

"That is... love!"

Young Gaara didn't seem to understand what the word meant. He asked, confused,

"What do I have to do to get something like that?"

Yashamaru smiled gently and picked up the photograph of Gaara's mother from the table.

"Lord Gaara, you already have it."

Looking at the smiling face of his elder sister in the photograph, Yashamaru's voice grew even gentler.

"Love means sacrificing yourself for the people you cherish most and protecting them with compassion."

Yashamaru pointed to the woman in the photograph, and Gaara's gaze followed his.

"Just like your mother..."

Gaara stared silently at the woman in the photograph, a hint of longing in his eyes.

Yashamaru continued,

"I think your mother loved you very much, because Shukaku of the Sand was born only to kill..."

"But the sand still protects you on its own. I think that's because it loves you. I think your mother's will is contained in that sand..."

Yashamaru's face was tender with affection.

"Even after she died, your mother still wanted to protect you."

"Love..."

Gaara, who had been barely conscious, suddenly felt himself return to his body. He gradually came to.

His eyes shifted. He looked at Kankuro, who was carrying him on his back, then at Temari running beside them.

These two... were his older brother and sister!

His throat was hoarse. He seemed hesitant, but he spoke anyway.

"Temari. Kankuro."

"...I'm sorry."

When the words "I'm sorry" reached her ears, Temari's eyes widened.

She turned to look at Kankuro, and saw the same surprise in his eyes.

But before long, their surprise softened into warmth.

Gaara... seemed different.

"It's... it's okay!"

Kankuro suddenly found himself stumbling over his words.

Yet some inexplicable strength seemed to flow into him and Temari.

Gaara... was their little brother!