Towards Prominence, Take Hold Of The Government

Upon returning to the Shie Hassaikai compound that afternoon, Gaara sat alone in the back gardens, thinking of what Lee had said earlier that day.

"Chakra could cause a quirk to change or evolve." Gaara muttered to himself.

"Wait, really? That's so cool!" Suddenly a voice exclaimed from behind him as Kurono suddenly appeared, carrying a plate of sliced apples.

"Kurono, you're back from your classes?" Gaara asked in surprise as Chisaki appeared with a tray containing three cups of tea.

"It's the golden week so they're on a break." Chisaki informed, passing a cup to Gaara who gratefully accepted.

"I see." Gaara smiled, watching as the cherry blossoms fell from the tree in the courtyard, drifting with the wind and bringing the sweet scent of spring with it.

"You look tired. Did something happen?" Kurono asked in concern as he took in Gaara's appearance.

Gaara sighed tiredly. "It seems that I have been pulled into a tricky situation."

"What kind of situation?" Chisaki asked, raising an eyebrow as he adjusted his gloves. For some reason, his gloves seemed to keep changing textures these days but when he took them off to see what was wrong, they'd revert back as though nothing happened.

"I've met two troublesome children recently and, due to a series of circumstances, I'm now teaching one of them about jutsu while Lee teaches the other." Gaara took a slice of apple and bit it viciously.

"That doesn't seem to be so bad." Kurono mused to himself. "Unless you're against teaching people."

"That's not what bothers me." Gaara frowned. "You should be aware of the effect that chakra can give. It's like giving a power-up to a world already filled with powers. If it lands on the wrong hands, things can easily turn chaotic."

Kurono nodded in understanding. "But, you could also use it for peace, right?"

To his words, Gaara just shook his head. "I don't want to be the cause of another Akatsuki incident."

Tilting his head in confusion, Kurono asked. "Akatsuki? What's that?"

"It's a bit difficult to explain." Gaara rubbed his nosebridge, feeling a headache coming.

"Then, in your own understanding, how would you be able to describe the Akatsuki as?" Trying to make it easier for the boy, Kurono asked curiously.

Gaara paused thoughtfully, trying to think of how he really saw the feared shinobi group. "A strange organization of powerful emo's and undead who wish to achieve world peace by waging a devastating war."

Sitting in the corner, Chisaki choked.

"So, they're the anti-hero version of All Might?" Kurono tilted his head.

"What?" Gaara looked taken aback, not expecting Kurono to say something like that so suddenly.

"I mean, the whole reason why the crime rate is so low in the country is because All Might beat up villains so badly that they decided crime simply wasn't worth it." Kurono shrugged.

Chisaki looked to the sky, begging for death.

"I see." Meanwhile, Gaara had an expression on his face that made it seem as though he had suddenly been enlightened. "So violence is the key to peace. Perhaps the Akatsuki were really on to something."

"End me." Chisaki muttered to his tea.

"By the way, some weeks ago, while I was fetching a body from the formalin pool for my autopsy studies, I ended up slipping and even almost fell into the pool." Kurono said casually as though it were something normal, making both Chisaki and Gaara to shudder in disgust upon getting a morbid mental image. "Somehow, before I fell, I kind of froze? Midair? Like that was so weird. It never happened before."

"So, what happened next?" Gaara asked, intrigued.

"You know, the usual. I kinda just chilled midair for an hour or so until some other med student came along to pull me back on land." Kurono shrugged as Gaara chuckled in amusement. "I wasn't just gonna let myself fall in a pool of dead bodies, alright?"

"That is, indeed, quite understandable." Gaara's eyes creased with mirth, covering his mouth to hide his laughter.

"So, I was wondering what caused that since my quirk never had that effect before." Kurono asked, rubbing his chin thoughtfully.

"Ah, perhaps it has something to do with your recent use of chakra." Gaara answered him, thinking back to Lee's discovery. "Apparently, using quirks together with chakra may cause the quirk to change somehow."

Chisaki gave his gloves a pointed look, seeming to finally understand something.

Poking his arrow-tipped hair, Kurono grinned. "Noice."

...

"Feed me, woof." A young boy with long red and gold streaked hair said with a lopsided smile, sharp dog ears perked up in attention as a black tail wagged wildly behind him.

"This is stupid, nya." A blonde cat-eared boy snorted arrogantly, his white feline tail flicking in annoyance. "I better be paid for this or else I'm suing you, nya."

As spring turned to summer, and summer turned to autumn, the spooky season rolled in with much fanfare from the younger generation as in this season, the Hidden Leaf Factory, a newly established toy company under the Shie Hassaikai Group released a brand new product.

"Um, does my brother know you're doing this? Does my father know you're doing this?" A red-haired boy asked cautiously, sandy-brown tanuki ears lowered in apprehension as his hands clutched his fluffy tail on his lap.

"Wheee! Nyoom! I'm fast as heck boi!" An auburn-haired girl speeded past, her orange fox ears flicking about in excitement as her puffed up tail stuck out behind her.

Attachable mutations.

By combining the latest emotion sensing technology along with realistic mutations developed using real DNA of various mutation quirks, the attachable mutation accessory was successfully created.

As of now, four basic variations had been released to the public which included the cat, dog, tanuki, and fox. With each one of them coming in various colors and even specific breeds.

Each set included a pair of attachable ears along with a tail. Just press the button at the base of the ears and tails and place it on the desired location. The accessory should stick with no problem.

"I should have never agreed to this." Gaara sighed as he watched his own face being shown in an electric billboard.

"Hey, Gaara! Look! We're famous now!" Lee grinned happily as he shook Gaara's shoulders back and forth.

...

One particular day in November, Lee suddenly invited Gaara, Monoma, and Saraba to eat out after their weekly chakra training for seemingly no reason.

Well, not one that Monoma and Saraba knew, of course. But, Gaara knew.

It was Lee's birthday. Rock Lee, instead of Hiryu Rin.

With a small smile, Gaara thought back to the special set of golden weights that he had ordered from Tokyo to be engraved with Eastern Dragon patterns which he had given to Lee the day before.

Needless to say, Lee was in tears when he recieved it, embracing Gaara in a tight hug as he promised to cherish it for the rest of his life.

When they first got to the shop, Gaara was left speechless. It was Ichiraku Ramen. It even had the same name and appearance as the one he knew from Konoha.

Sitting down on the booth, all four quietly made their orders, each thinking of different things.

"Naruto fishcake ramen?" Gaara snorted, making Saraba and Monoma look at him curiously while Lee just shook his head in amusement.

"I knew that would be the first thing you'd notice." He grinned knowingly.

Saraba and Monoma glanced at each other in confusion. Was there an inside joke they weren't getting?

"Ho! Little boss! Back again for the usual?" Appearing from the kitchen, a bearded man spoke with a jovial tone, wiping his hands on his apron.

"Yes, the usual please, Furikake-san!" Lee grinned with a thumbs-up.

"Aye! One usual for the little boss! What about the rest of you kiddos?" Furikake-san asked.

"One Naruto ramen please." Gaara said, putting down his menu.

"Naruto ramen for me as well." Monoma said absentmindedly as he busily tapped on his phone. "Let me just tell my mother I'd be out for a bit longer."

"One seaweed ramen for me please!" Saraba smiled brightly.

"Coming right up!" The chef chuckled as he headed back into the kitchen. Barely five minutes later, their food had arrived in front of them.

"So, little boss, huh?" Saraba suddenly turned towards Lee as they each got their own disposable chopsticks.

"Yeah. Well, technically, I kind of own this shop?" Lee rubbed the back of his head in embarrassment. "My uncle got me this for my birthday. He even let me design the storefront and the menu."

Gaara and Monoma nodded in understanding.

"Now that I think about it, we've never really talked much about our families, haven't we?" Saraba suddenly pointed out as she slurped her ramen. "Except for Gaara's brother."

"My family?" Lee furrowed his brows thoughtfully. "I suppose I came from a long line of Taoist priests but my current parents are outliers since they both chose to work for the Chinese Triad. Plus, my uncle delved into the restaurant chain business."

Monoma nearly choked on his food, staring at Lee in both disbelief and confusion. Was this guy serious? What the heck even is his family? Is this legal?

Meanwhile, Gaara's eyes shifted to the side, mouth twitching in amusement.

"Hueh? That's quite the family you got there." Saraba whistled. "Not like mine. My parents are doctors while my grandparents were theatre actors and surgeons. Pretty boring when compared to yours."

"If you wanna talk boring, my entire family are politicians." Monoma snorted, rolling his eyes. "Actually, you might know my grandfather. He was the former Prime Minister.

As the three each finished speaking of their family, they all turned towards the final member, waiting for him to speak his turn.

"My family runs a Yakuza Group." Gaara said awkwardly, averting his eyes away from the three. "Though we're currently doing business, I suppose."

"Yakuza?! That can't possibly be real, right?" Monoma said in disbelief, his ramen already forgotten at the side. "I mean, we already met your brother once and that guy can't possibly be a gangster! I've even watched some of his interviews before! I say, no way!"

"Mn. Sure." Gaara smiled wryly as Lee tried to hide his laughter behind his hand.

As they finished their food amongst Monoma and Saraba's idle chatter, Lee gave Gaara a meaningful glance.

Later that day, after the other two had left, Lee took Gaara to the temple, having needed to tell him something important.

"Is there something wrong, Lee?" Gaara asked as he gave his friend a concerned look.

With furrowed brows, Lee glanced at Gaara's forehead, towards the Rinne Sharingan which was kept sealed outside of battle. "By any chance, do you know about what the Rinnegan is fully capable achieving?"

Gaara tilted his head in confusion, realizing that Lee was pertaining to his usage of the Rinne Sharingan.

"Not really. I have never met anyone who possessed the Rinnegan before so I don't really have much to compare. I've only been using what I know the Sharingan is capable of."

"Oh, right! You haven't experienced the war for yourself so you don't know. I forgot." Lee exclaimed in sudden realization. "But, maybe I can help you with that."

"Let's start with the simplest one; the five nature transformations." And, with that, a full afternoon consisting of lessons about the Rinnegan commenced.

By the time Gaara came home, his head was filled with knowledge about the Five Nature Transformation, Black Chakra Recievers, and the Six Paths.

He realized how badly he had been misusing an extremely OP ability beforehand. Inwardly, he apologized to the Rinne Sharingan for his ignorance.

...

Set on training the Rinne Sharingan to its full capabilities, a year and a half passed in that manner. Soon, the day came where Kurono would graduate from his studies.

Standing at the gates of Kyoto Medical University, Kurono stood, holding his diploma along with a business card as Arima proudly patted his back.

"Congratulations, my boy." Arima smiled as he gave Kurono a warm hug. "You're now about to join the league of tax-payers for this economy."

"Congrats." Nemoto said sarcastically, a pocky stick hanging from his mouth like a cigarette.

"Welcome to adulthood, I guess." Irinaka shrugged.

Cluelessly, Gaara handed a bouquet of flowers to Kurono while Chisaki just nodded, saying nothing.

Kurono smiled wryly, the corner of his lips twitching. Somehow he had the sudden urge to hit someone.

Why couldn't these people just be normal for once?

Kurono sighed as he thought back to the business card he had just recieved from a recently established Hero Agency.

"Nighteye Agency, huh?" Kurono played with the business card between his fingers. Apparently, they had been looking for someone who could be a Frontline Medic for them and, after screening several people from thousands of medical graduates this year, they had finally settled on him along with a few others.

If he played his cards right, he might even get a chance to be promoted as a full time hero by recommendation just like Recovery Girl did.

But, the key lied in the Nighteye Agency.

Kurono was hesitant since this Agency had barely been opened for a year. Although Sir Nighteye had just recently debuted as a stand-alone pro hero, he was more widely known as All Might's former sidekick. Alone, he didn't have much reputation.

"Would it really be wise for me to leave my future to his hands?" Kurono muttered quietly inside the car.

"You're still young. What you lack the least is time. Even if this choice ended up being a mistake, you can still remedy it anytime. Atleast you'd gain something to add on to your resume when you change jobs." Arima placed a hand on Kurono's shoulder, reassuring him.

During the following days, Chisaki made himself busy by contacting the family of one of Gaara's more recent friends; the Monoma's.

He had already made his name known throughout the business world and captured the hearts of the common people, but now, it was time to move on to the next step of his plans.

Conquering the government by latching onto the high society.

Through establishing a cooperation with the Monoma Law Firm, they made use of the Monoma's influence and reputation in the political circle along with massive amounts of funding from the Shie Hassaikai Group in order to create the Izanagi Security and Information Agency.

For this, of course, as most business deals do, costed quite the hefty sum from Chisaki, which included 15 percent of the Shie Hassaikai Group's total shares as a free gift along with some others.

Though that didn't mean the Monoma's didn't lose anything as they had to pull quite a few strings in order to bend the laws slightly to accommodate the Izanagi Agency's future operations.

But, in the end, both parties got what they wanted and left satisfied.

...

When Lee and Gaara finally turned twelve, Lee's grandparents decided that it was time to send their grandchild to a proper school. And while Gaara was free to run his life as he pleased, having already finished up to his high school materials a year ago, he was eventually convinced by Lee's pleading to attend school with him.

It wasn't like he had anything better to do anyways. Might as well cross out 'Experiencing a normal childhood' from his bucket list while he was at it.

In the end, they were both enrolled to Inarizaki Private Academy together. Coincidentally enough, both Monoma and Saraba were set to attend classes there as well and all four of them were even in the same class.

So, when the first day of classes began, four students rushed through the doorway of the classroom just a second before the bell rang, nearly late due to the fact that Lee kept getting distracted by the many food stalls lined outside the school.

With them being the last to arrived, everyone else had already picked their seats and sat down, chatting with their friends. Fortunately, the last four seats were fairly close to each other, with two being directly beside each other at the back. Needless to say, Lee directly dragged Gaara towards those and sat satisfied.

"Safe!" Saraba shouted as she slid to her seat next to the window right as the teacher entered.

"Kiritsu. Rei. Hajimeyou."

...

EXTRA:

Recently, Gaara's hair had increasingly been getting longer to the point that it was getting a bit out of hand. And, since it was almost time for them to go to school, Lee decided to take it upon himself to give Gaara's hair a make-over.

He never knew how much he would regret that decision later on.

Gaara's Long-Haired Adventures:

Deidara Gaara: Art is an Explosion and Love is just one hand-mouth away.

Madara Gaara: Everything you believe in doesn't exist. Only pain and suffering is eternal.

Haku Gaara: So, I am dead. The good thing is that I was best girl for a short while. Until I showed them my ****.

Orochimaru Gaara: Nothing to see here. Just your everyday snake doing ordinary snake things.

Kimimaro Gaara: I'm gonna die in a bit but, before I do, lemme show you my bones real quick.

In the end, Lee fully gave up, leaving Gaara to tie his hair in a messy man-bun.