Gaara had a dream.
In the dream, a gentle woman seemed to be smiling at him.
Her eyes were tender. She lay on her side in bed, her gaze exhausted—but full of warmth.
"This child… is so small."
"No matter what happens, I will protect you… Gaara…"
(Gaara's mother)
(Karura)
Gaara!
That was his name!
Gaara opened his eyes.
The moonlight was bright tonight. And yet, sitting on the rooftop, he felt an unfamiliar sense of ease.
—At a time like this, Shukaku should have been at its most restless.
"You again? Hyuga Hanabi."
Gaara's expression went cold.
Being allowed to experience that kind of peaceful existence—of course it felt comfortable.
But he couldn't bring himself to like this beautiful woman.
This mysterious villainess always spoke in half-truths and hidden meanings. She seemed to know something, yet always held it back—just looking at her made his blood boil.
"Because tonight's moon is bright as a pearl—such a lovely sight."
[Tonight the moonlit pearl shines bright / as the full moon opens wide, is that it?]
[Gaara: how_old_are_you?]
[Why is it always you lmao]
The Close-Up Shot Card hadn't been wasted—Hanabi had specifically used one to give herself extra screen time.
Unfortunately, this wasn't an OVA. To carve out a standalone scene, sometimes one Close-Up Shot Card wasn't enough—you had to keep "topping up."
"I just had a feeling that Sunagakure might be making some rather curious little moves, so I came to have a look~"
Hanabi smiled.
"…" Gaara furrowed his brow.
He'd suspected it before—this woman had probably figured something out.
And now she'd come to probe him directly.
"Then tell me—what is Sunagakure planning to do?" Gaara fixed his gaze on Hanabi.
"Shukaku is calm right now, but the sand is still protecting me…"
Could it be—no, wasn't this just another one of this woman's manipulative lies?
"This year's Chūnin Exams have had quite a few surprises, you know. You're aware of that."
"Are you talking about yourself?"
With Shukaku calm, Gaara's mind had sharpened. He wasn't just a brute anymore.
During the second stage of the Chūnin Exams, an earth-shaking battle had taken place. Though Konoha had suppressed the news, Sunagakure still knew something about it.
In fact, Gaara's three-man team had even passed through that battlefield while tracking opponents.
Gaara had even sensed a particular Chakra that made Shukaku recoil in revulsion.
"Ara, thank you so much for saying so. Surprises are my very favorite thing." Hanabi waved it off. "Let me think… Sunagakure is in financial trouble, so they need a chance to perform well."
That logic was sound enough.
But when this woman laid it out like that, why did it give him such a dangerous feeling?
Gaara sensed something was off.
[Anti-fire, anti-theft, anti-Hanabi]
[It's over. Last time it was Zabuza, and now this round Gaara's going to get talked into a pretzel too]
[Not necessarily a con—Hanabi's seen through Sunagakure's financial crisis for what it really is]
"Of course, there's also another possibility—if Konoha itself were to collapse, then all those missions that no one could take on anymore would naturally fall to Sunagakure, wouldn't they?"
Gaara's gaze turned dangerous.
He couldn't tell whether this woman was making a speculative threat to scare him, or whether she'd actually deduced the truth.
He couldn't tell. He truly couldn't tell.
"What exactly do you want?!" Unable to determine whether this person was a Shadow Clone or the real thing, Gaara could only probe in turn.
Of course—the most critical point was that he couldn't beat her.
"It's not about what I want to do—it's about what you want to do. Sunagakure's problem is actually a problem the entire ninja world faces. Ninja organizations are tightly structured, which makes them superior to the administrative apparatus of the great nations themselves."
Hidden villages had very small populations. By all logic, organizations of that size should be ramshackle outfits held together with duct tape. But the villages' structures were remarkably stable—full of holes, sure, but the framework itself was solid.
For ninja, the village structure was a bit outdated. But for the great nations themselves, it was a perfect fit.
"What I want to do…"
Gaara was stumped.
"You're like a wild beast, you know. Acting purely on instinct." Hanabi said. "No—I should say Sunagakure itself is acting on instinct. No goals, no strategy. Just blindly following orders and obeying."
"I never expected a kunoichi of the Hyuga clan to possess this kind of insight."
A figure appeared behind Hanabi.
It was Baki, the Jōnin from Sunagakure.
After reporting to the Kazekage, Baki had just returned to Kikyō Castle.
He too was trying to confirm whether this was the real Hanabi or a Shadow Clone.
Hyuga Hanabi was far too dangerous.
If we can't eliminate or capture her here, it'll only expose our real objective. This woman is cautious—she might genuinely be just a Shadow Clone…
Baki deliberated inwardly.
"Ara, I'm the real deal." One sentence from Hanabi nearly made Baki jump out of his skin.
This one can read minds too?!
Baki's guess wasn't entirely wrong.
Because on the Stage, Baki's inner monologue had been rendered as spoken dialogue for the audience.
My guy, you're completely exposed!
"Is your suffering truly Konoha's fault, Jōnin Baki?" Hanabi smiled.
"…"
Baki fell silent.
From the audience's perspective, a flashback unfolded.
It showed the scene before the Sand ninja entered Konoha—Baki briefing Temari and her siblings on their mission.
On that mission, Baki had already stated: this was for Sunagakure's survival.
It was all Konoha's fault.
It was all because the Daimyō of the Land of Wind had been sending missions to Konoha!
"The one at fault is the Daimyō."
The one who said this wasn't Baki—it was Gaara.
"Gaara!" Baki was startled.
Those were treasonous words!
"I'm merely stating facts." Gaara's composure was unfamiliar to Baki.
—Is this person really Gaara? Baki couldn't believe it.
"Jōnin Baki—what do you believe the Fourth Kazekage's true objective is?" Hanabi asked.
"What are you getting at?!"
Baki was terrified of this woman.
The moment she asked a question, Baki's nerves frayed.
"A person who can treat his own child with such cruelty—is he truly a qualified Kazekage?" Hanabi smiled.
"It seems you really have dug up something."
How was this woman so adept at gathering intelligence?
Could it be that Kabuto Yakushi had turned double agent on them?
Baki knew that was impossible, of course—but Hanabi's intelligence capabilities were still alarmingly sharp.
"For the sake of the village, necessary cruelty is… necessary," Baki said.
"—You're saying that a man who'd order assassins after his own child can turn around and treat the rest of Sunagakure with kindness? Now why don't I believe that? A person who can't even love the people closest to him, yet claims to love an entire village with all his heart—ara, ara."
Hanabi laughed.
"My, that truly is a case of 'Kazekage Disqualified.'"
And not just the Kazekage—Hanabi had dragged Uchiha Itachi into the roast right alongside him.