"Maki-sensei," Gaara said, a hint of impatience creeping into his voice, "if you have something to say, please say it quickly. I still need to help Naruto fulfill his dream."
Despite his eagerness, he maintained respect for his teacher. Maki deserved at least a few minutes of his time.
"Lord Kazekage, no!" Maki's composure shattered. He threw his arms out in a blocking gesture, voice rising with urgency. "You can't do this!"
Gaara blinked. "Can't do what? Why not?" He studied Maki's face, genuinely confused by the sudden panic. "Maki, you're also Naruto's friend. As his friend, shouldn't you actively help him achieve his dream? Instead, you're trying to stop me from helping him. What's going on?"
"Lord Kazekage, you're right." Maki's jaw clenched, the words tasting like ash. "Personally speaking, as Naruto's friend, I should help him. That's what friends do."
The admission physically pained him to make.
"But," he continued, expression hardening, "personally, I want to help. Professionally? That's a different matter entirely."
Gaara turned and settled into his office chair, regarding Maki with sudden calm. His lips pressed together briefly before he spoke. "Then I'd like to ask you, Maki—professionally speaking, why are you trying to stop me from helping Naruto achieve his dream?"
"Because," Maki said, the word dropping like a stone, "this is a conspiracy."
Gaara shot upright from his chair, face finally showing alarm. His eyes locked onto Maki's. "A conspiracy?"
"Or more accurately, a scheme. Naruto's scheme." Maki began pacing, his analytical mind engaging fully. "Lord Kazekage, think about it. Why does Naruto want to befriend all of Sand's ninja? On the surface, it seems innocent—just making friends. But dig deeper, and even in this desert heat, you'll break out in a cold sweat."
He stopped, facing Gaara directly. "If everyone in the Hidden Sand becomes Naruto's friend, what does that really mean? It means the entire village becomes a tool in his hands. He could leverage friendship as an excuse, and who would dare refuse? Refusing would mean betraying that friendship."
Maki's eyes widened for emphasis. "Simple example: Naruto decides to attack the Hidden Cloud. He asks us, his 'friends,' to help. So tell me—do we help or not?"
His voice rose. "If we help, we become a blade in his hand, used whenever he wishes. If we refuse, we betray our friendship with Naruto. Either way, we lose our independence as a village."
Gaara's expression shifted from alarm to amusement. A smile tugged at his lips. "Maki, you're overthinking this. Naruto isn't that kind of person. Besides, your analysis has significant flaws that don't hold up under scrutiny."
He held up one finger. "First, if what you're saying is true—that Naruto could use friendship to make Sand attack the Hidden Cloud—then by the same logic, couldn't Sand use that friendship to make Konoha attack other villages? Have you considered that?"
A second finger. "Second, based on everything I know about him, he's simply not that kind of person. His dream is genuine and straightforward. No hidden schemes. Maki, you're complicating something that's actually quite simple."
A third finger. "Third, and most importantly—Naruto's stated goal is to befriend everyone in the entire shinobi world. Making friends in Sand is just his first step. After this, he plans to visit the Hidden Cloud, Hidden Stone, Hidden Mist... everywhere."
Gaara leaned back, an amused glint in his eye. "So tell me, Maki. If Naruto becomes friends with everyone in the entire shinobi world... what kind of conspiracy would that be?"
Silence stretched as Maki's mind grappled with the question.
"Became friends with everyone..." Maki muttered, thinking aloud. "Conspiracy... what would the conspiracy be..."
His eyes suddenly widened. "I've got it! Lord Kazekage—Naruto wants to unify the shinobi world!"
He clapped his hands together, excited by his deduction. "That's the only possibility! If Naruto truly befriends everyone in the shinobi world, then he's positioned perfectly to unite all the nations under his influence!"
Gaara stared at him, speechless. Maki-sensei's imagination really knows no bounds.
"Alright, Maki." Gaara stood, ending the conversation. "Stop being so suspicious. I'm going to summon the Sand ninja to the Kazekage Building."
He left without waiting for a response.
Alone in the office, Maki replayed his own arguments in his head. Even to his own ears, they sounded increasingly far-fetched.
"Am I really overthinking this?" Self-doubt crept in, unwelcome but persistent.
As Kazekage of the Hidden Sand, Gaara commanded substantial authority. When he issued a summons, ninja appeared. Those who didn't respond... well, they'd likely been purged during his rise to power.
Grass was probably growing on their graves by now.
In less than thirty minutes, Gaara had assembled a large contingent of Sand ninja in front of the Kazekage Building. Roughly a quarter of the village's active forces—he'd kept the numbers manageable since befriending everyone would take considerable time.
Some were out on missions, of course. Those were special cases.
The assembled ninja stood in loose formation, murmuring among themselves about why the Kazekage had summoned them so suddenly.
After confirming everyone's arrival, Gaara instructed Temari and Kankuro to observe from the sidelines while he went to collect Naruto.
He found the Hokage in the residence's garden, practicing something unusual. Naruto's entire right arm gleamed with golden light, energy rippling along the limb in visible waves.
Gaara had no idea what technique Naruto was developing, but it looked incredibly powerful.
Nine-Tails lay sprawled on a stone table in the nearby pavilion, reading what appeared to be a cookbook.
"Naruto," Gaara called.
Naruto had sensed his approach already. The golden light faded as he turned, crossing the garden in a few quick steps.
"Gaara. You're here."
"I've gathered a group of Sand ninja at the Kazekage Building," Gaara reported. "If you're ready, you can meet them now and begin making friends."
He paused, then added, "Of course, if you need more time to practice or rest, I can have them wait."
"No need." Naruto's response was immediate, decisive. "Let's go now."
This was his dream. How could he make people wait? If anything, he wanted to befriend everyone in Sand immediately.
Nine-Tails's ears perked up at the mention of friend-making. The fox launched himself from the stone table, landing in front of Naruto with eyes literally glowing with excitement.
"Naruto! Are you about to start making friends?!"
"Yeah." Naruto nodded seriously.
"Wait for me! I need to get Sasuke!" Nine-Tails vanished in a blur of orange fur.
He found Sasuke in deep discussion with Nagato, the two of them bent over diagrams of chakra pathways related to the resurrection technique. Sasuke was asking surprisingly insightful questions, using the opportunity to learn from Nagato's greater experience.
After all, Nagato was a senior with the Rinnegan. Despite Sasuke's Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan, Nagato still had advantages in certain areas—particularly theoretical knowledge and years of combat experience.
Sasuke was gaining valuable insights.
"Sasuke!" Nine-Tails's voice shattered the academic atmosphere. "Get out here! Naruto's about to make friends!"
Sasuke immediately stood, research forgotten.
Nagato grabbed his arm. "Sasuke, Naruto's just making friends. Why are you so excited? Let's continue studying."
He genuinely didn't understand what made this so thrilling for them. It was just friendship. What was the big deal?
Sasuke pulled free. "Senior Nagato, don't stop me. Research can wait. Naruto making friends is a priority event."
"You keep studying. I'm going."
He was out the door before Nagato could argue further, closing it firmly behind him.
The heavy thud of the door made Nagato wince. Children. Can't focus on anything important for more than five minutes.
Nine-Tails bounced impatiently beside Sasuke as they walked. "Hurry up! If we're late, we won't get a good viewing spot!"
"What's the rush? We're guests. We can watch from anywhere."
"I guess." Nine-Tails paused mid-stride. "Wait. Sasuke, did you bring the snacks and drinks?"
Watching Naruto make friends required proper provisions.
"Don't worry." Nine-Tails pulled two bottles and a bag of sunflower seeds from... somewhere. Like magic. "I came prepared."
They found Naruto and Gaara waiting by the entrance. Together, the four of them headed toward the Kazekage Building.
In the plaza before the building, the assembled Sand ninja were getting restless.
"Why did Lord Kazekage summon us?"
"No idea. The order just said to gather in the square. No details."
"Probably something good."
"Good? I don't know... I've got a bad feeling about this."
"A bad feeling? Lord Kazekage wouldn't harm us. Stop being paranoid."
"True. Maybe it's something important we need to participate in."
Temari and Kankuro stood off to the side, listening to the speculation. They exchanged glances, expressions carefully neutral.
Being Naruto's friend is technically a good thing, they both thought. Though the process is... memorable.
Maki emerged from the Kazekage Building, taking position beside Gaara's siblings. His face was a mask of complicated emotions as he regarded the assembled ninja.
This is inevitable, he realized. A general trend I can't stop.
He still couldn't understand Naruto's methodology. The boy beat people into friendship, and somehow they emerged genuinely grateful for it. There had to be some kind of technique involved, some psychological manipulation he couldn't identify.
Uzumaki Naruto knows some kind of sorcery. That's the only explanation.
"Lord Kazekage is here!"
The shout drew everyone's attention. Gaara approached in his formal robes, flanked by Naruto, Sasuke, and the miniaturized Nine-Tails perched on Naruto's shoulder.
The Sand ninja's chatter shifted immediately.
"Who's that person beside Lord Kazekage? He's so tall... and handsome..." Several female ninja went starry-eyed.
"That's Konoha's Fifth Hokage, Uzumaki Naruto," someone informed them. "I was with Lord Kazekage when he received Naruto-sama earlier. Apparently they're good friends."
"The Fifth Hokage? He looks so young!"
"I heard he became Hokage at twelve. Youngest in history."
Gaara led them to the front steps, then turned to address the crowd. His smile was genuine, warm.
"Everyone, this is Konoha's Fifth Hokage, Uzumaki Naruto."
"Hello, Hokage-sama!" The greeting came in a ragged chorus, ninja bowing with varying degrees of formality.
The Sand ninja's minds raced. Lord Kazekage introduces the Hokage first thing. This must involve him somehow.
"Hello, ninja of the Hidden Sand," Naruto responded, deliberately not calling them friends yet. That would come later.
"I've called you here," Gaara continued, "because there's something we need your help with."
"Whatever Lord Kazekage needs, we'll do it!" someone called out.
Gaara gestured to Naruto, giving him the floor.
Better if they hear it directly from him. More sincere that way.
Naruto stepped forward. "My dream is to make friends—many, many friends. Today, I'd like to become friends with all of you, the ninja of the Hidden Sand."
The plaza erupted in confused murmuring.
"Friends with us?"
"The Hokage wants to be friends with us?"
"Is that even... I mean, we're nobody special..."
It seemed impossible. They were ordinary ninja, and Uzumaki Naruto was the Hokage of one of the Five Great Nations. The gap in status was astronomical.
Naruto had anticipated this reaction. His expression grew more serious, more earnest.
"Yes. I genuinely want to be friends with you."
One ninja, braver or more confused than the others, raised a hesitant hand. "But Hokage-sama... why would you want to be friends with us? We're just... we're not important. We're just regular ninja."
The question hung in the air. Every eye in the plaza locked onto Naruto, waiting.
Naruto smiled. Not the bright, energetic smile he usually wore, but something softer. More vulnerable.
"Well," he said quietly, "let me tell you a story."
The murmuring stopped completely.
"The story begins with an orphan. He didn't know who his parents were. He was raised by others until he was three years old, then he started living alone. Eating alone. Sleeping alone."
His voice carried across the plaza effortlessly, drawing every listener in.
"You should know that a person's world is very lonely. Painfully lonely."
He paused, letting the words settle.
"He wanted a playmate. So one day he went looking for other children to play with."
Naruto's tone carried a subtle emotional current, something that bypassed rational thought and spoke directly to the heart. The Sand ninja found themselves unconsciously leaning forward, caught in the narrative.
In the background, Sasuke cracked open his sunflower seeds. Nine-Tails took a long sip from his drink bottle.
The show was just beginning.