"Who is this 'Gojo''sensei'?" Kankuro wondered aloud.
"How should I know?" Temari shot him an exasperated glance before turning her attention back to Gaara. His defense had just been broken, and her voice turned serious. "Gaara's going to get serious now."
"This is bad," Kankuro said, his face darkening. "When Gaara gets serious, we're all done for."
Gaara, the ultimate weapon of the Sand Village, could be terrifying. And when he flipped that switch? Bloodthirsty and ruthless.
Slowly, Gaara raised his hand. A cold, murderous aura radiated from him, and with a flick of his wrist, sand snaked around Naruto's legs like it was alive, gradually encasing his entire body.
"Wha—what's going on?!" Naruto gasped, his body frozen by the crushing weight of the sand. "It's too heavy!"
"Idiot," Sasuke muttered, making hand signs as he prepared to act.
"Gaara, stop!" Temari shouted, panic creeping into her voice.
Gaara licked his lips, his eyes gleaming with something dark. "Don't worry, sis. You'll get your turn to drink his blood soon enough." With a final flick of his wrist, he formed a fist. "Sand Binding Coffin!"
There was a loud bang, and all the sand fell to the ground, leaving Naruto sprawled out, dazed but still breathing.
"Is it always this lively here?" A nonchalant voice cut through the tension. Everyone turned to see Gojo standing there, casually sucking on a lollipop, his hands stuffed in his pockets.
"Gojo-sensei!" Naruto immediately perked up, completely relieved, though he was now lying on the ground. He leaned back against Gojo's legs as if it was the most natural thing in the world.
"Geez..." Sasuke let out a breath he didn't realize he'd been holding, then gave himself a mental shake. Why was I worried about that idiot again?
Temari blinked in disbelief, eyeing Gojo. "So... handsome!" she muttered without realizing.
Gojo shot her a playful smirk, "Little kid who's clearly craving maternal affection. You still want to fight? Go ahead, but if you think you can beat me, you're gonna die."
He pointed at Gaara with his lollipop.
Gaara, who had been ready to unleash destruction, paused. "You're strong," he said flatly, sizing up Gojo with a look of quiet appraisal.
"Yeah, no kidding. Most ninjas rely on their chakra reserves, but you and Shukaku combined don't even have a fifth of what I've got." Gojo's voice was so casual, it almost sounded like he was commenting on the weather.
Kankuro and Temari froze, shocked. How the hell did he know about Shukaku? That was supposed to be a Sand Village secret!
"Well, I'm bored now," Gaara said, his usual indifference returning. He gathered the sand back into his gourd. "Not interested anymore."
Temari, still eyeing Gojo in a daze, asked cautiously, "Are you...Gojo?"
Gojo rubbed his chin, a proud grin spreading across his face. "Am I famous or something? You know me, huh?" He casually kicked Naruto aside, who had been lounging at his feet, with a grunt of indignation.
"Hey!" Naruto yelled, clutching his sore behind. "I'm still injured here!"
Ignoring Naruto, Gojo produced a clipboard and wrote something down. "Alright, I'll sign something for you—if you're lucky."
He scribbled a few things on the board, then looked at Temari with a raised eyebrow. "Three points for effort, two for looks, and zero for... the rest."
Temari's eyes flashed with anger, her fist clenching. "Who do you think you're talking to, you jerk?"
Gojo gave her a lazy wave. "Don't get so worked up. You've got a nice figure, for someone who clearly skipped leg day. Anyways, I'll only sign for people who aren't sticks in the mud."
"I don't want your autograph!" Temari hissed, fury burning in her eyes.
"Noted." Gojo grinned like a cat who got the cream. "So, you're the one who keeps yelling my name. That's cute."
He turned to Gaara, unimpressed. "Hey, Little Sandball, drink more milk, alright? Stop yelling at Mommy all the time."
Kankuro's eyes widened in disbelief. "Sandball?"
The nickname hit Gaara like a slap, and he glared at Gojo. Kankuro, on the other hand, felt a chill creep up his spine. "You... You just insulted Gaara?"
Gaara didn't even flinch. "Let's go. This guy's stronger than me."
That was the first time anyone had seen Gaara show even a hint of weakness. Kankuro and Temari exchanged stunned glances.
"Wait, what just happened?" Kankuro muttered, completely confused.
"Don't worry, Gaara," Gojo called after him, grinning wider than ever. "You'll grow into it one day."
Gaara and his siblings walked off, leaving the area in an awkward silence.
"You got lucky today, brats." Kankuro threw one last glare at Naruto and Sasuke before following his brother. "Don't let me see you again in the Chūnin exams."
Temari hesitated, looking back at Gojo, but quickly turned and walked off as well, her face still red from embarrassment.
"That's what I was going to say!" Naruto shouted, fists clenched in frustration.
"Shut up, you're annoying." Gojo rolled his eyes, already done with Naruto's tantrum. "It's like babysitting two hyperactive toddlers. One of you yells constantly, and the other is always brooding."
"Where's Sakura?" Gojo scanned the street with his six eyes. He couldn't spot Sakura anywhere.
"She went ahead to the exam venue," Naruto replied.
Gojo cracked his knuckles, slurping his lollipop with relish. "You brats better not die in the second exam. Especially avoid any creepy snake-like ladyboys. They're bad news."
"Just you wait, Gojo-sensei!" Naruto punched his palm, pumped up. "I'll make you proud! I won't let you down!"
"Sure, sure, good luck with that," Gojo said, unphased. "But don't get yourself killed, alright? No one's impressed by a corpse."
With that, Naruto and Sasuke walked off toward the Chūnin exam, each of them fully in their element—Naruto, eager and pumped, and Sasuke, as cool as ever, his hands stuffed in his pockets.
Gojo, meanwhile, stood there with a grin, biting his lollipop and watching them go. "Man, this feels like watching kids go off to school. It's a weird feeling... Like I'm their dad or something. Ha! Yeah, right."