Yume: Hello, my Little Dreamers!

Yuki: Sorry for the century-long delay.

Yume: It wasn't that long… Besides, I worked very hard on this chapter. I'm getting better at writing dark! Yay!

Yuki: Suuuuure. Keep telling yourself that.

Yume: Hmph, whatever. Thanks to Airi-chan, guest, darkstardragon432, Goshikku Hime wa Yami-san, EatEmUp, and aliendroid for reviewing!

Yuki: You've kept them waiting long enough. Now let's get this story started!

And that was it. The beginning of the end.

Darkness is a beautiful thing, to those who accept it. It is protection. It is numbness. It is a promise that pain won't be so painful.

Gaara and Neji. They weren't the first to be called into darkness, they won't be the last. But for now, this story is about them.

It's at this time you may want to click away, because darkness does not let go. It will shroud, it will cower, but it will not let go. Ever.

The darkness shrouding Gaara and Neji is thick and choking, but the light holds more pain for them.

Darkness is safety, after all.

Xx_ Red Fate _xX

"Hey, look. It's the kids from Suna."

"Oh, yeah. They must be here for the Chunin exams."

"I hear one of them's a puppet master! We haven't seen one of those in a while."

"The blonde's a wind mistress. Not a common affinity in these parts."

"The redhead… Do you get a weird feeling from him?"

Whispers floated in the air like the leaves Konoha was known for. The citizens of Konoha were not known for their subtly. Their quiet whispers were more like sirens to the sand user we all know.

Gaara walked down the beaten path of the village, his siblings following behind at a distance. They made sure to never get close to him after the incident.

Xx_ Flashback _xX

"So where do you think this Gaara kid is?" a tired chunin named Oroko asked his friend and the leader of his group. They had just returned to Suna from a two-week long mission before he was sent on yet another retrieval mission. They weren't even given time to rest; they were sent on this mission with their chakra reserves semi-low. But this time, it wasn't so far from home.

The mission? Find the youngest son of the Kazekage.

Azamu just shrugged in response.

"That's kinda why we're looking for him, Oroko," the third member of their little group, Saishi, joked. Oroko rolled his eyes and decided to just keep his mouth shut.

Suddenly, the heartbreaking sound of screaming children pierced the silence. It silenced as quick as it sounded, but it left the three ninja shivering in fear.

"W-what was that?" Saishi asked, his limbs shaking involuntarily as he recalled the scream.

Azamu tried his best to keep a straight face, but his blood ran cold as he realized what happened. "I think… I know where the kid is," he whispered to his subordinates.

With reluctant courage, he began to walk towards the source of the screaming. The remaining members of the group stared at him wearily, not moving an inch. He looked back and for the first time since they had met him, they saw fear in his eyes.

The two looked at each other with uncertainty but followed after Azamu anyway. They saw the terror in his expression and couldn't leave him alone. Friends were to stick together, even at the cost of their lives. Besides, they were ninja. Dying was part of the job description.

The trio crept slowly to the source. It was far from the residential area, a big empty space where children usually play. In the distance, they could see a small figure, hunched over and drawing something in the sand. Even from where they were, they could see the bright red hair that gave away the figure's identity.

The smell of blood wafted through the air as they got closer. They could clearly see a shower of rain falling onto the sand, staining it.

"Rain?" Oroko asked. They were in a desert. Since when did it rain this much?

"No," Saishi mumbled in horror, "that's not rain."

They entered the shower and became drenched in this copper water. Oroko looked at his teammates before lifting his hands to get a closer look at the liquid. Blood.

Azamu felt sick. Saishi backed away from the spray, unable to handle standing in it. Oroko violently threw up.

Just in front of him was a large circle of red sand, bits and pieces of white bone scattered in it.

Oroko didn't know what to think. This boy… He killed all those children. He caused those screams. He was standing in their blood, admiring his handiwork. All those innocent lives, the future of Suna… They were gone because of this one boy… No… Because of this demon!

Oroko's face warped into a wicked snarl as he stared at this demon in front of him. This was no child; it was a murderer. It did not deserve to be treated as a child.

"You demon!" Oroko shrieked. "You killed them all!"

The shriek seemed to pull the boy from his daze. Slowly, he stood from his hunched position and turned towards them with his head down.

"Well? Look at us, demon!" Oroko continued.

Gaara lifted his head slightly and Oroko froze. His eyes… There was so much bloodlust swimming in those teal depths and… was that pride?

Whatever this demon was, it was pleased with itself, with its horrific actions.

Suddenly, it spoke in its low, hoarse voice, surprising everyone present.

"Demon…" it whispered. It lifted its head completely, revealing a malicious smile. Its teeth seemed to sharpen into fangs, and they glinted dangerously in the sun. "I'll show you a demon!"

Suddenly, red sand shot out at them like bullets. They tried to deflect it with their kunai, but how can you beat a sand-user in a desert?

Azamu threw his dulled kunai at the demon, but his sand grabbed it and crushed it. "Shit!" he cursed aloud. "We can't beat this thing! Retreat!"

The three ninja began to run back to their village like their lives depended on it; then again, it did. However, the sand did not let up. It continued to trail after them, like a shadow. As they ran out of energy, the sand got closer and closer. Suddenly, Saishi stopped running and faced the sand.

Oroko stopped momentarily to yell at his friend, "Sai! What the hell are you doing? Get your ass back to the village!"

Saishi turned his head in Oroko's direction but never truly faced him. A low chuckle rumbled from his chest. "Rookie," he began with an empty tone, "the mission was to find the kid. We found the kid. But what's the point of completing a mission if no one reports back? I'll meet you soon enough."

Oroko hesitated for a second before nodding and following Azamu. Saishi watched as his friend became a dot in the distance. He lifted his face to reveal cheeks stained with tears and eyes filled with determination as the sand approached. "I'll meet you soon enough," Saishi repeated as he raised his kunai. "I suppose it's more like you'll meet me soon enough. After all, dying young is what ninja do."

And with that, he jumped towards the boy, throwing kunai after kunai. The sand deflected it all, but he was succeeding in keeping him distracted. Soon enough, he ran out of weapons and a bit later, ran out of energy.

He fell to the dusty ground as the sand crept over his body.

"I'll die so my friends can live," he said to no one in particular. "I can't think of a better way to go."

With that, the sand crushed his body instantly. Every bone shattered into dust. The blood burst out of his body and seeped into the sand.

Gaara made his way over to Saishi's final resting place. The blood was still spreading as it was soaked up by the sand like a sponge. He had heard this foolish ninja's final words and couldn't help but scoff.

"Friendship is a useless thing. You died like a fool."

Still, the darkness had yet to fully take over Gaara, and he couldn't help but think as he returned to the village that scorned him.

'Would anyone ever protect me like he protected them?'

Xx_ Red Fate _xX

Things were never the same since then. The two Chunin that survived reported back and Gaara was placed in house arrest. Two nights later, he got out of his house and escaped to the roof, where he was ambushed by none other than his uncle. His uncle told him with his dying breath that no one will ever love him, that even his mother died just to get away from him.

The darkness took over Gaara that night. No more mercy, no more regrets, no more. He scarred the kanji of love onto his forehead to remind himself that he did not need love. The pain of his skin splitting as rough sand rushed towards his flesh would forever be the reminder of the pain that came with wanting love.

Gaara grew stronger. He needed no one but himself. He was left alone, for anyone who came too close were easily disposed.

However, there was one that Gaara seemed to care for. Many wondered where this mystery figure came from. Most believed it didn't even exist. But everyone agreed that whatever it was, it was not human.

On the days where Gaara spilled the most blood, he would speak of it to the corpse, or whatever the hell was left over. He would ask it if it was satisfied and if it was proud. The look of crazed bloodlust never left his expression; it was just accompanied by a sick happiness as well.

This figure he spoke to was the reason he killed. An inner demon that reflected the outer one.

And everyone was terrified.

This leads us back to Gaara and his siblings being in Konoha. The second there was a reason to leave Suna, they were barely even given time to pack before being thrown out. The less time Gaara spent in Suna, the fewer citizens "went missing."

"I wish these damn civilians would just shut up about us," Kankuro whined quietly to his sister. "Have they never seen other ninja or something?"

Temari stared at him like he was insane. Of course, Kankuro easily stood out due to his conspicuous war paint, cat-like ears on the hood of his suit and the large, mummified puppet strapped to him. "Have you ever looked at yourself in a mirror, Kankuro?" Temari questioned sarcastically.

The hot-headed teenage boy just rolled his eyes. "And your gigantic fan of doom is any less obvious?" he snapped back, only to receive a hard punch on his shoulder.

The two continued to bicker down the path, like all siblings do. They didn't notice the dark aura emanating from Gaara. They didn't notice all the civilians heading for cover. They didn't notice the deadly glint in his eyes as he looked at them. All they were paying attention to was their petty argument.

"Shut up," Gaara clearly stated. His hoarse voice stopped their argument mid-sentence as the aura hit them and shivers ran down their spines. "Or I'll kill you."

With that, Gaara continued walking, not even caring if they followed.

'Do not worry, my child. You do not need them.'

'I know, mother. I've learned well.'

'I am proud of what you have become, dear Gaara.'

'I know.'

Yume: And that concludes chapter 3!

Yuki: Dark… Ending with Shukaku again, I see.

Yume: I know! Isn't it great?

Yuki: … I worry about you sometimes.

Yume: I don't! *cackles in the background*

Yuki: … Okay. Well, we hope you enjoyed the chapter. All reviews are appreciated, even flames!

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto nor will I ever. I make no money from writing these stories. I own nothing but the plot and a few OCs. Peace out! ^^