The Village Hidden in the Sand sat nestled in the heart of the desert.
Dust and wind swirled, and in the distance, a fierce storm whipped up great sheets of sand, forming a terrifyingly powerful sandstorm.
Within this environment, where heaven and earth were blanketed in sand, the ninja of Sunagakure remained on high alert.
Faced with the near-daily sandstorms, the Sand-nin naturally had their own ways of dealing with them.
The tall, towering village walls could block the majority of the sand, and the remaining ninja would use their chakra to erect barriers.
And in the Kazekage's office, Gaara, wearing the robes of his station, sat calmly.
He gazed out the window at the relatively peaceful scene, his eyes devoid of emotion.
During the Konoha Crush Plan, he had met Naruto, a Jinchuriki just like himself.
And he had been deeply captivated by Naruto's charisma.
He had come to a profound realization.
Only by possessing power could one control one's own destiny.
Naruto had helped him reconcile with the Shukaku sealed within him.
In the days that followed, they had tried to communicate, to understand each other.
Once Shukaku stopped causing trouble, Gaara was finally able to live a normal life, to get a good night's sleep.
He began to control his temper.
He tried to be more like Naruto, to become gentler.
His change surprised everyone.
At first, they were just afraid.
But over time, the way they looked at him finally changed.
Through his efforts, he became the Kazekage, beloved by the villagers.
But no one knew.
The reason he became Kazekage was not because he loved the village.
It was because…
His intuition told him that Naruto's ambition was vast, and to achieve it, personal strength alone would not be enough.
That was why he had chosen to become the Kazekage, hoping to be of assistance to Naruto in the future.
"Naruto…" Gaara murmured, his voice a nostalgic whisper as he looked out the window.
"I am the Kazekage now. What about you?"
In the desert.
Naruto walked through the storm. An oval-shaped shield of Reiatsu solidified around his body, protecting him from the storm's assault.
This was a Kido he had created himself, another application of Reiatsu.
The difficulty of creating one's own Kido was not high.
In the world of the Shinigami, there were many who were proficient in Kido and had created their own exclusive spells.
After passing through layer upon layer of desert, Naruto soon saw the outline of Sunagakure.
This time, he had come alone.
He had left Rock Lee and Aburame Neri in Otogakure to receive guidance from Orochimaru.
The time allotted for the mission was generous, so he had enough time to travel to and from the Sand Village.
In the Kazekage's office, Shukaku, who was inside Gaara's body, suddenly let out a soft sound of surprise. "Hm? There's a very familiar smell!"
"It's that stinking fox!" Shukaku's face darkened, and he said in a strained voice.
"Naruto's here?!" Gaara's expression, on the other hand, lit up with joy.
"Hmph, hmph, Gaara, you little brat, you'd better put on your Kage airs. You're my Jinchuriki, you have to have your own dignity and style," Shukaku's voice in his mind suddenly became somewhat smug.
"My One-Tail's Jinchuriki has already successfully become the Kazekage, while that stinking fox's Jinchuriki isn't the Hokage yet. This round goes to me, hehehe~~~~"
"That stinking fox's Jinchuriki is pretty good, but unfortunately, he still lost to us. Hmph, hmph, Gaara, you're not bad, kid, not bad at all!!!"
Shukaku had always had a childish temperament.
After being sealed for so long, his heart was filled with resentment and other negative emotions.
Until he met the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki, Uzumaki Naruto.
This outstanding human was far more excellent than his own Jinchuriki, Gaara.
This gave Shukaku a sense of rivalry.
I, Shukaku, may not be able to beat the Nine-Tails, but my Jinchuriki can't be worse than the Nine-Tails' Jinchuriki.
So, after making the deal with Naruto, he had stopped tormenting Gaara mentally and had instead begun to help him with his training.
He might be a Tailed Beast, but he still knew a thing or two about ninjutsu.
Without Shukaku's interference, Gaara got enough sleep every day.
With his mind restored, his talent gradually began to emerge.
As the son of the former Kazekage, Gaara's own talent was not lacking. In just a few short months, his strength had reached near-Kage level, and he had successfully become the Kazekage.
This huge improvement made Shukaku even more smug.
He attributed all the credit to himself.
Whoosh. Just then, the air in the Kazekage's office suddenly distorted, and in the next moment, Naruto's figure appeared in the room.
"The power of a Shinigami is truly miraculous!!" Seeing this, Shukaku narrowed his eyes and whispered softly.
This move of Naruto's already showed the nascent form of spatial manipulation.
Seeing such a technique for the first time, Gaara was quite curious. He opened his mouth and asked, "It's been a long time, Naruto. Is that move of yours a space-time ninjutsu?" Gaara thought of the Flying Thunder God Technique.
"Not exactly. I just used Kyoka Suigetsu's control over vision to easily enter the office," Naruto said with a light laugh. He turned around, revealing his handsome face and a head of brilliant blond hair.
"It's been a long time, Gaara, Shukaku. I didn't expect you to have already become the Kazekage." He was quite surprised. "It seems you want to protect Sunagakure?"
"Protect?" Gaara chewed on the word, then shook his head. "To me, Sunagakure is just a faction. All I need to do is control it. What the villagers did to me can never be erased, and I can't just forgive them."
There was no hatred or any other emotion in Gaara's eyes, only a calm stillness.
This boy who had once lived in eternal hatred had grown a great deal.
As expected, those who can become Kage are never simple.
Naruto couldn't help but sigh in his heart.
"I'm happy that you've been able to change like this."
Naruto had a different kind of feeling for Gaara.
Gaara, like himself, had a tragic past, and they were both Jinchuriki of Tailed Beasts.
They were the same kind.
"By the way, Naruto, is there something you came here for this time?" Gaara nodded with a smile and asked.
"That's right!! This kid better have brought me a way to get out of this seal!!" Shukaku was jumping up and down inside Gaara.
His heart was filled with joy.
But at the same time, there was a tiny bit of disappointment.
As for why he was disappointed…
He didn't know.
"I came for Shukaku this time," Naruto said, taking a vial from his coat.
"This is the Shinigami Potion developed by Orochimaru. It can help humans and Tailed Beasts transform into Shinigami."
"So soon?!" Gaara was stunned for a moment, his face full of pleasant surprise.
"That's great. Shukaku has wanted to leave the seal and experience life outside for a long time."
He was genuinely happy for Shukaku.
Although the tsundere Shukaku would never admit it, in these past few months, the two of them had become good friends.
"Hey! You little brat, without me, your strength will drop by a whole level, you know," Shukaku grumbled with some dissatisfaction.
Gaara's attitude made it seem like he couldn't wait to send him away.
"Hahahaha, Shukaku, you haven't developed feelings for this little brat, have you? Hahahaha," the Nine-Tails inside Naruto's stomach burst out laughing.
"This is too funny, you guy, hahahaha, I'm going to die laughing."
The Nine-Tails' mockery made Shukaku's little face turn red with anger.
"Shut up, you damned fox! I would never develop feelings for a human! You, on the other hand, why are you still sealed! You can't bear to leave this little brat, so you're not coming out, are you?"
The two Tailed Beasts began to trade insults through their own private channel.