Several months passed, and now, it was finally time for a certain plan to unfold.
And standing at the heart of that plan were the three figures before us.
The Hidden Sand Village's three-person team: the blonde Wind Release kunoichi Temari, the puppet master Kankuro with his face painted in strange symbols, and—
"Konohagakure, the village where that so-called 'Aoki Sora' resides..."
The panda-eyed boy gazed toward the sky in the direction of Konoha, his voice low and steady.
"According to the intel we've gathered over these past few days, that guy's real name is Aoki Sora. He's about the same age as Gaara, just graduated from Konoha's ninja academy a few months ago. When he isn't training with his squad or taking on basic D-rank missions, he spends his days running endless laps around the village," Kankuro reported, his tone serious. "They call him 'Konoha's Circle-Running Prodigy.'"
"A hardworking type, huh… interesting." Temari let out a soft, amused laugh. "But just being diligent doesn't make you Kage level."
"There's no detailed report on his actual combat ability. They say he was pretty average at the academy, nothing that stood out. But there are also rumors he's been hiding his true strength," Kankuro said. "After all, according to that vision we all saw, their Fifth Hokage nominates him to be the Sixth Hokage just a few years from now."
"Sixth Hokage..." Gaara muttered, his eyes narrowing.
In that instant, a familiar surge rose within him.
A deep, primal urge.
The desire to destroy.
The desire to kill.
The desire to taste the blood of a strong foe, to feel the pleasure it brought...
"Anyway, the Kazekage said we're not to provoke him without knowing his true power," Temari reminded him.
"Not provoke him?" Gaara's gaze darkened, his voice cold. "Are you saying I would lose to him?"
Temari froze for a heartbeat, her heart skipping in shock.
"No! I didn't mean that at all!" she blurted out.
"Yeah! What she meant was, you're definitely stronger. But if that guy turns out to be really stubborn, it might slow us down. We've got a mission to focus on, right? We can't afford to get sidetracked," Kankuro added quickly.
Both of them felt a cold sweat run down their backs.
This was Gaara, the One-Tail's jinchuriki, and their little brother.
But even as his siblings, they had to tread carefully.
Because Gaara's emotions were unstable. When he snapped, people died — family or not.
"Hmph..."
Gaara's expression eased slightly as he gave a soft snort, then turned away and started walking toward the Land of Fire.
Temari stood still, exhaling slowly.
That was close.
Was I just dancing on the edge of death again?
All for saying something that didn't sit right with him...
Seriously, this little brother of mine is anything but cute.
No. He's downright impossible to like!
If he ends up getting beaten by that Aoki Sora guy, I won't lift a finger to help.
Nope. Not even a little.
Absolutely not.
Temari fumed inwardly, muttering to herself.
Then, just as they continued on their way—
The light in the sky shifted suddenly.
"Is it... happening again?!"
Temari, Kankuro, and even Gaara all looked up in unison, their gazes sharpening.
It had been months since the last one of these visions.
Could it really be happening again?
Above them, a vision flickered to life.
"Temari? What's wrong?"
A man's voice echoed from the image above.
The three stared as the vision unfolded.
Just like the one where Hinata had confessed to Aoki Sora… just like the one where Yugao had done the same…
This time, it was a blonde girl facing him.
Her hair and distinctive spiky style were unmistakable.
There wasn't another girl in the world with hair like four miniature porcupines perched on her head.
It was Temari.
Temari froze on the spot.
What… what is this?
In the vision, a slightly older version of herself — maybe from a few years in the future — stood across from Aoki Sora.
She hesitated for a moment, then spoke.
"You let Gaara go that first time. And now… you've saved him again…"
"That's hardly anything to make a fuss about," Aoki Sora replied. "You already repaid me for sparing Gaara by serving as my maid for half a year. And I wasn't the only one responsible for saving him this time either."
"No matter what, I owe you too much," Temari said. "I've thought it over… I don't think I can ever repay all of it."
She took a breath and added,
"So… how about I just marry you?"
The vision faded, leaving behind nothing but stunned silence.
The legendary Aoki Sora hadn't responded, once again leaving the world to fill in the blanks with their imaginations.
All across the world, people stared in shock.
Including Temari herself, who stood rooted to the spot, clutching the giant iron fan on her back.
"Pffft…!"
She nearly choked on the air, coughing so hard she almost spat up blood.
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100 P.S = 1 Extra Chapter