Burnt Beyond Recognition (Naruto Fanfic)

Burnt Beyond Recognition

 The atmosphere in the kitchen remained silent as Temari bustled around attempting to prepare dinner, and the young female shinobi's eyes drifted over to see her youngest brother sitting in a chair watching her. Prior to the chunin exams in Konoha this event would have proved unsettling, as one never knew what went on in her younger brother's mind. The look of anger, and also pain if Temari really though about it, no longer appeared in those beautiful sea foam green eyes of his, to be replaced with a look of fascination, and curiosity.

Thus Temari didn't think anything of the fact Gaara watched her preparing the meals in the household, particularly since her baby brother now seemed more inclined to eat foods outside of the small handful he'd eaten before, something that had driven Kankuro crazy due to the fact every meal seemed to be exactly the same. She turned her head slightly to look at him, and asked a question. "So, what did you do today."

"A D rank mission."

Temari's eyebrows shot up, and a rather amused look appeared on her face. Gaara never did D rank missions before, not because he per say thought the missions below him, but because those assigning missions thought limiting the young sociopath's social interactions with people was for the best. Gaara now went out of his way to ask for D rank missions, which at first was met with quite the panic, but then Baki, Kankuro and herself promised they would keep an eye on him. Now he simply did them on his own, though not many people trusted him, and some outright refused to let him be the one to do their D rank mission request.

"Good for you." She set a bowl of food down in front of Gaara, and watched him eat, deciding to sit next to him instead of across from him like she used to. Kankuro came into the house and glared at the food, knowing it was one of Temari's favorites, and a vegitarian dish.

It was the next night that she understood what Gaara had been doing that entire time, when she arrived home from a C rank mission she'd been sent on without her brother, meaning she was to tired to cook. She could however smell something from the kitchen, and it made her stomach grumble even more. The young ninja let her mouth twist up, wondering who could be cooking, as they'd quickly learned that Kankuro was a terrible cook. She wondered if Baki had chosen to pay them a visit, as their sensei and now legal guardian had a habit of checking in on them every so often.

The man fully understood that Temari was the only one cooking, and every so often would attempt to relieve the burden she'd taken on by herself.

Instead she found Gaara standing by the stove, and a lurching fear hit the put of her stomach, worried that he would get hurt, despite the fact the blond ninja should have known that his sand barrier would protect him from almost everything. Temari hurried over, but stopped when she realized that Gaara was doing fine, and had managed to replicate what she'd cooked the night before, and quite a few other nights since their father passed away.

"Gaara..." Temari watched as her younger brother turned to her, his delicate features revealing no emotion.

"This was supposed to be a surprise."

"It is a surprise. Can I see how you're doing, and taste it?" The auburn haired preteen stepped aside, allowing her to step in and taste the dish her brother made. Temari's eyebrows shot up, letting the soup sit on her tongue so she could savor it. She finally removed the spoon, and set it down. "Oh my."

"Did I do something wrong?"

"No, that's actually a pretty good job. How did you do it?" Temari turned her head, thinking Gaara had picked up a recipe somewhere, particularly since he'd never cooked before, and the dish was certainly better then her own.