Chapter 264: A Crime Right in Front of the Brother? Taking Temari Out of Jail for a Drive
Akiyama Makoto nodded with satisfaction. It seemed that Naruto's Talk-no-Jutsu had been quite effective on Gaara.
What surprised him even more was that Gaara opened his eyes at this moment and actually nodded at him.
His expression was calm, without a trace of hatred.
Then Makoto understood. His killing of Rasa was also a liberation for Gaara. Because Rasa was the main culprit for all the suffering Gaara had endured.
Sealing Shukaku into Gaara's body when he was still an infant—there was no need to say more about this; it was standard operating procedure for a Jinchūriki's encounter.
In addition, he had treated Gaara with indifference for a long time, never giving him fatherly love, and allowing Gaara to be isolated.
Even worse, he had repeatedly sent assassins to kill Gaara to verify his value as a Jinchūriki.
If Gaara had not shown corresponding value, he would probably have killed Gaara and found a suitable host for Shukaku again.
Finally, he even made Gaara's uncle, Yashamaru, lie before his death: "Your mother died giving birth to you. She actually hated you, you monster. I'm only here to kill you on orders."
All of this completely destroyed Gaara's last desire for family affection, turning Gaara into a monster who only knew how to kill, just to ensure Shukaku's combat power and that his son's mental state would not be easily shaken.
Looking at all this, it wasn't hard to understand why Hiruzen Sarutobi seemed so kind to Naruto in comparison. Rasa was simply a conglomeration of the dark sides of Hiruzen and Danzō.
Thinking of this, a smile appeared on Makoto's lips.
Ignoring Temari and Kankurō, he reached out and touched the inside of Gaara's cell. The next second, he flew right in.
This scene startled even Gaara, and Temari and Kankurō screamed.
"Bastard! What are you doing to Gaara?!"
"Come at me if you want to do something! Don't hurt Gaara!"
Actually, Makoto didn't do anything. He even made a shushing gesture to Gaara, then smiled and pointed to the cell next door.
Gaara understood and listened to Temari and Kankurō's curses.
Although the two of them were cursing very nastily, the anxiety in their words and their care for Gaara were not diminished in the slightest. This moved Gaara. This was the first time he had so clearly perceived the existence of family affection.
As for why Temari and Kankurō were like this, it was naturally because Rasa was dead and Gaara's Shukaku was sealed. They were no longer at risk of being killed by Gaara.
Sharing a common enemy, the buried family affection naturally exploded out.
But this wasn't enough.
Makoto communicated with Gaara using spiritual power, saying, "Have you been able to sleep these past few days?"
Gaara shook his head. Not being able to sleep was a side effect of being a Jinchūriki.
The One-Tails Shukaku had a violent temperament. After Gaara fell asleep, it would look for opportunities to control Gaara's mind and manipulate Gaara to kill people in the village.
To prevent this from happening, Gaara could only control himself not to sleep, leaving heavy dark circles under his eyes.
However, this seemed ridiculous to other villages. In terms of violence, was Shukaku more violent than the Nine-Tails? How could Naruto sleep normally every day?
In the final analysis, the Sand Village's sealing jutsu wasn't up to par.
Of course, this also had something to do with Shukaku's ability to invade the Jinchūriki's dreams, but adding a spiritual seal would solve that, wouldn't it?
"It seems you don't hate me?"
Makoto was blunt. Gaara said calmly, "Ninja start wars and then die in wars. Why hate the other party for that?"
"In other words, if it's a private hatred or kindness, you would acknowledge it?"
Gaara nodded subconsciously. Then Makoto raised his hand, and his five fingers imprinted on Gaara's stomach.
The next second, a giant Shukaku appeared in front of Makoto.
"Ha! Where did this brat come from? I'll eat you!"
Shukaku rushed forward. Makoto spread his hands and unleashed the Formless Wave with all his might.
Shukaku's eyelids suddenly began to fight. It realized it was under a genjutsu and wanted to resist, but in the end, it fell to the ground with a loud crash and began to sleep soundly.
Gaara in reality also felt it and let out a muffled groan, which made Temari and Kankurō in the next cell scream even louder.
Makoto thoughtfully withdrew his hand and shook his head helplessly.
Now his spiritual power and genjutsu level had reached the point where he could take down a Tailed Beast.
But alas, without a dōjutsu, the power of his genjutsu wasn't enough. Otherwise, taking down Shukaku would have been over in the blink of an eye.
He now had Shisui's Sharingan, which harbored the power called Kotoamatsukami.
It was just that Makoto had no intention of transplanting this eye, because the enemies he would face next might not be affected by a half-baked Kotoamatsukami.
As for those who couldn't resist the power of Kotoamatsukami, Makoto's own power was enough to crush them, so why use Kotoamatsukami?
Unless there appeared a guy he couldn't kill but who had a particularly bad temper and had to be controlled.
Of course, Makoto could also try to research this eye next.
As for what he could research, Makoto didn't have much hope. The reason could be seen from the cloning process of Hinata and Hanabi's eyes.
Without the infusion of the original owner's will, the cloned eyes most likely only had the level of ordinary Sharingan. Let alone Mangekyō Sharingan, he estimated that even the three-tomoe wouldn't be activated.
Back to the point. After Makoto took down Shukaku, he began to apply the Eight Trigrams Sealing Style to Gaara.
The advantage of the Eight Trigrams Sealing Style was that it had extremely powerful sealing capabilities and could also allow the leaked chakra of the Tailed Beast to be used by the caster.
Makoto also added a bit of spiritual sealing formula to it, enough to deal with the chakra leaking from Shukaku. From now on, Gaara could sleep freely.
Of course, Makoto didn't do these things for nothing.
In the Eight Trigrams Sealing Style, Makoto also mixed in the Hiraishin formula, as well as a backdoor that could close and release the Eight Trigrams Sealing Style at any time.
After all, this was technology introduced by the Sand Village from abroad. Wasn't it normal to have a backdoor?
"From today on, you can sleep as much as you want. The One-Tails can no longer disturb you."
"But usually you can also try to make friends with the One-Tails. Only when the Jinchūriki and the Tailed Beast reach an agreement can your power be maximized."
When Gaara came to his senses and felt the changes in his body, a look of surprise flashed in his eyes.
He looked at Makoto for half a minute, squeezed out a "thank you," and then asked, "I don't understand. Why did you help me?"
"Hmm... I've taken a fancy to your sister?"
"—Huh?"
Gaara's eyes widened suddenly. Makoto's words caused a severe impact on his young and pure heart.
He had thought it was because Makoto felt he was a teachable talent, or for the peace of the village, or at least because Naruto had begged Makoto, his "Big Brother," to do it.
It turned out to be because he was addicted to beauty?
Temari's side also fell silent abruptly. Even Kankurō was stunned, and then cursed, "Bastard! My sister won't marry you! You are our enemy! We—"
"Kankurō, shut up!"
Temari suddenly shouted, leaving Kankurō stunned on the spot.
He asked Temari in disbelief, "Sister, you're not moved, are you? You—"
"I told you to shut up! Didn't you hear me?! Do you still have any respect for me as your sister?"
Kankurō shut up. Temari covered her face with her hands, organizing her thoughts.
Was Makoto telling the truth?
In Temari's view, there was at least a fifty percent chance it was mockery and teasing. She shouldn't fall for it.
But even if there was only a thirty percent chance that Makoto had taken a fancy to her beauty, even if he was pretending to take a fancy to her beauty, should she gamble?
She and her two brothers were still in Konoha's prison and could lose their lives at any time.
The Sand Village had suffered heavy losses. If they didn't return to the Sand Village, war might break out between the two sides, and the Sand Village might even be destroyed because of it.
Now she had a chance to change all this, as long as she could become Makoto's wife...
"No, I don't agree."
Gaara suddenly spoke. His voice wasn't loud, but it was enough for Temari and Kankurō to hear clearly.
"I've lived until now, and I've already dragged down my mother and uncle. I can't drag down my sister and brother anymore."
"Akiyama Makoto, take back your sealing jutsu. I thank you for letting me feel a moment of peace. But if the price is my sister's happiness, I'd rather die now."
Temari's eyes widened suddenly, looking in Gaara's direction through the wall.
Tears gradually blurred her vision. At this moment, as the oldest in the family, the panic and uneasiness in Temari's heart were gradually replaced by a sense of responsibility.
She was the big sister. How could she let her brother sacrifice himself for her?
What's more, Temari was one of the few people who knew about Gaara's experiences. Knowing those experiences, no matter how crazy Gaara was, it wouldn't be excessive.
Now Gaara had actually returned to normal and had obtained Makoto's seal. It was possible for him to live a peaceful life from now on. As a sister, even for this point, she could sacrifice herself.
Temari let out a long breath and said, "Makoto... kun, we can talk."
"Sister!" x2
Gaara and Kankurō exclaimed. Temari shouted loudly, "Shut up! This is not just about us, but about the Sand Village and Konoha. The war should end, and we should pay the price!"
"I'm just a small part of the price—you two need to have a clear understanding!"
Temari's words silenced Kankurō and Gaara. If Temari was sacrificing herself for the safety of the village, they really had nothing to say.
"Good."
Using the same method, Makoto arrived in Temari's cell.
Seeing Makoto appear suddenly, Temari couldn't help but shrink back, but unfortunately, she had her back against the wall and had nowhere to go.
Plus, wearing a prison uniform and shackles, and with her usually flamboyant four pigtails let down, Temari appeared a bit weak and uneasy.
But as soon as she opened her mouth, a stubborn spirit rushed towards him: "Sorry to let you see me in such a miserable state, but I should look twice as beautiful if I dress up."
"You really took a fancy to me because of that treatment, right—I felt your eyes were a bit strange at the time, but actually you're not bad either. Handsome and strong."
"I heard you're a great writer with literary talent, it's just—"
Temari couldn't continue, because Makoto stepped closer, put his hand on the side of her face, and then lowered his head towards her.
Temari quickly closed her eyes, and her tight lips slowly relaxed under the force of her will, making an enticing pose for a kiss. But just as Gaara and Temari waited uneasily, Makoto spoke.
"Alright, stop trying to be brave. Tears are flowing down to your chin."
"Eh?"
Only then did Temari realize that tears had flowed out at some point, completely uncontrollably, and she hadn't even felt it.
This was because her whole body was tense, and the feeling of tears flowing down her cheeks wasn't qualified to enter her brain's perception.
"Sorry, I'll wipe them off right now. I don't hate you, I just—"
"Let's go. I'll take you out for a drive."
"—Dr... drive?"
Temari looked at Makoto in disbelief. Makoto said to the ninja standing quietly on guard in the distance, "I'll be back in an hour."
Then, Makoto and Temari disappeared from the prison.
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