Frostbitten Sand (Naruto Fanfic)

Asundered Sand

Hot water poured over sour muscles while Rasa swallowed away his frustration, his dark eyes closing. The auburn-haired man's fist clenched together, not liking how he acted weak in front of his daughter. Emotions the man normally kept in check welled forth, but not to the point he completely broke down. The head medical ninja said something about his stress boiling over, but Rasa's thoughts skirted away from the idea something was bothering him, only to keep coming back to the answer.

"You broke your promise to Karura."

A knock came at the door, and the medical ninja told him he'd been in the shower long enough. The auburn-haired man came out of the shower on his own, changing into night clothes before sitting on the bed. His eyes drifted over to the nightstand next to the bed, where Gaara's teddy bear and nightclothes remained, then to the cactus he let remain on the shelves. The medical ninja remained, handing him a cup of tea, and reluctantly Rasa drank the concoction.

The forth let out a disgusted sound upon hearing the man tell him he had medicine prepared, and Rasa swallowed, wondering if Temari would tell Gaara about his breakdown. The man soon found his eyes fluttering shut, with the hope he wouldn't have to dream of Karura. Eventually, his eyes opened back up, and groggily he forced himself up, glad that the medicine to make him sleep had apparently worn off. He turned his head, his dark eyes noting his crutches by the side of the bed.

Rasa lifted himself up, and hobbled out to the sitting room, looking for someone to find out what had gone on. The auburn-haired man stared at the mess, the many board games sitting in the room in various states of gameplay. The man's mouth opened, wondering what his children had gotten up to. "Do I really want to know?"

Rasa's eyes noted the light coming from the kitchen and headed in that direction. The man stopped in the doorway, noticing Gaara at the stove with a few pots. The auburn-haired man noted the flame, and his throat tightened as his son pulled one of the pots off the stove without turning off the burner. The man moved forward, concerned at what the fourteen-year-old was up to. "Gaara, what are you doing?"

The young auburn-haired teen startled at the sound of Rasa's voice, one of the handles slipping from Gaara's hand. The man felt his body surge forward, quickly grabbing the handle with his free hand, burning his hand slightly in the process. Despite the older man's hand steadying the pot, allowing Gaara to set the pot on the container by the sink. The fourteen-year-old remained focused on the task he'd set himself to, something Rasa never thought would happen. On calloused hand reached up to touch his burnt hand lightly, only for the auburn-haired man to quickly shake off the pain.

Rasa reached out for the over pot, to find kenchinjiru cooking on the stove. "Gaara is cooking." The man glanced over at the sink to see Gaara attempting to pour the water out of whatever else he was cooking, pouring towards himself instead of away. The auburn-haired man felt his entire body tense up. "Good lord, Gaara is cooking unsupervised!"

The man moved forward, grabbing the handles of the pot just as hot steam came up, and some water spilled over the edge of the sink towards Gaara. "Careful! Away from you, not towards you!"

The sand leaped into action, only to prove ineffective as the water soaked into the sand, clinging to the left sleeve of Gaara's clothing. Rasa saw Gaara's face twist slightly, indicating the boy felt pain, making the panic in the man's chest worsen. He opened his mouth, only to stop short when Gaara spoke up. "I can't see what's in the pot."

"You don't need to see what is in the pot Gaara." Rasa felt the handles of the pot twist towards the correct direction and watched as the water drained. The fourteen-year-old then moved away and placed pot back to the stove. Rasa watched Gaara head over to the table to sit, the teens seafoam green eyes staring at the wall. Rasa took in the fact Gaara wasn't wearing the clothes he wore for shinobi duties, and instead something more casual. The man turned his head back to see the pot filled with potatoes and quickly turned off the burner. Rasa stepped over and sat down. "Gaara..."