When Shikamaru reached the hospital room door and placed his hand on it, he suddenly paused.
Nobunaga's perception was triggered at the same time.
There was Chakra inside. Very intense Chakra. It wasn't Lee's.
He recognized that Chakra.
Gaara.
Shikamaru pushed the door open.
The scene inside the ward came into view.
Rock Lee was lying on the bed, wrapped in bandages like a mummy. His complexion was terrible, but his eyes were open, looking at the person by his bedside.
A person stood by the bed.
Red hair, with a deep red character for "Love" carved on his forehead.
Gaara.
He looked down at Rock Lee, his eyes as hollow as two dried-up wells. A dangerous aura emanated from him, like a bomb ready to go off at any moment.
"You..." Rock Lee's voice was very weak, "Who are you?"
Gaara did not answer.
He just looked at Rock Lee. Looked at the person he had beaten into this state.
Naruto was the first to rush in.
"What are you doing!"
He blocked the front of Rock Lee's bed, glaring at Gaara.
Gaara turned his head and looked at him.
There was no emotion in those hollow eyes.
"He lost," Gaara said, "He should die."
Naruto's fists clenched.
"What did you say!"
Shikamaru stood at the door, his brow furrowing deeper. His hand had already reached into his ninja tool pouch, ready to pull out a Kunai at any moment.
But Nobunaga did not move.
He just looked at Gaara.
Looking at that young face. Those hollow eyes. That lonely, bewildered boy.
He thought of another world.
The Gaara of that world was just like this.
When he was a child, no one was willing to get close to him. He would sit alone in the sand for an entire day, with nothing in his eyes.
Later, he met someone.
That person crouched down to look him in the eye and said, "You're very cute."
That person taught him to control Shukaku. Taught him again and again, year after year.
That person watched him grow up, watched him learn to smile, and learn to stand in front of others.
Finally, that person watched him die.
Nobunaga closed his eyes.
When he opened them again, Gaara had already begun to speak.
"Do you know what is inside my body?"
His voice was very soft. So soft it seemed to drift in from a great distance.
Naruto was stunned.
Gaara continued.
"A monster. A monster called Shukaku," he said, "They call me a Jinchuriki. They locked the monster inside my body to turn me into a weapon."
He lowered his head and looked at his hands.
"Since I was small, no one has been willing to get close to me. No one has been willing to talk to me. No one has been willing to..."
He paused for a moment.
"Even my father wants to kill me."
The ward fell silent.
Naruto stood there, looking at Gaara.
Something was stirring in those blue eyes.
He thought of himself.
When he was a child, the way the villagers looked at him. Those whispers. Those pointing fingers. Those voices calling him a "monster."
"Me too."
Naruto spoke.
Gaara raised his head and looked at him.
Naruto looked back. In those blue eyes, a light was burning.
"There's a monster inside me too," he said, "The Nine-Tailed Demon Fox. It's lived in my body since I was born."
Gaara's pupils contracted slightly.
"The villagers called me a monster too. No one was willing to get close to me either. No one talked to me either."
He took a step forward.
"But..."
He paused.
"I met many people. Iruka-sensei. Kakashi-sensei. Sasuke. Sakura. And Pervy Sage."
His voice became firm.
"They let me know that I am not a monster."
Gaara looked at him.
Something was moving in those hollow eyes.
Like something that had been extinguished long, long ago suddenly flickered.
Nobunaga stood there, watching this scene.
He took a deep breath.
Then he spoke.
"Gaara."
Everyone's gaze turned toward him.
Gaara looked at him, a hint of confusion in those hollow eyes.
Nobunaga took a step forward.
"Do you know what a Jinchuriki is?"
Gaara did not speak.
Nobunaga continued.
"A Jinchuriki is a Village's deterrent weapon. It is an existence that locks a monster inside its body and uses its power to protect the Village."
He looked into Gaara's eyes.
"A hero."
Gaara's eyelashes trembled.
"What... did you say?"
"A hero," Nobunaga repeated, "A hero who protects the Village."
Naruto's mouth hung open beside him.
"I... I'm a hero too?"
Nobunaga glanced at him.
"Of course."
Naruto was stunned.
He stood there as if struck by lightning.
Something was welling up in those blue eyes, but he didn't let it fall.
Gaara looked at him, then back at Nobunaga.
"But..." his voice shook slightly, "But my father wants to kill me..."
Nobunaga looked at him.
"I won't comment on the fact that your father wants to kill you," he said, "But do you know what a Jinchuriki means to a Village?"
Gaara did not speak.
"If a Jinchuriki dies, the Tailed Beast will go out of control. If the Tailed Beast goes out of control, the Village will suffer."
Nobunaga said, "Murdering a Jinchuriki is equivalent to damaging the Village's combat power. If another Village were to commit the murder, it could even trigger a war."
He paused.
"Even if your father doesn't love you, he wouldn't do such a thing. Unless..."
He didn't finish.
But Gaara understood.
Something shattered in those hollow eyes.
It was the truth he thought he knew all those years. It was the hate he had always carried. It was the only answer he thought existed.
"You... you mean..."
His voice was trembling.
Nobunaga looked at him.
He wanted to say many things.
He wanted to say I know another you. He wanted to say that you were very cute. He wanted to say that he learned to smile, learned to protect others, and finally died before his sister.
But he couldn't say it.
He could only stand there, looking at this young, lost, and bewildered Gaara.
"I'm only stating facts," he said.
Gaara looked at him.
Something was surging in those eyes.
He took a step forward.
"You—"
Before he could finish.
A voice came from the doorway.
"Yo, everyone's here?"
Everyone turned their heads.
A man stood at the door. Green jumpsuit, bowl cut, thick eyebrows, and a thumbs-up shining in the sunlight.
Might Guy.
He strode inside and went to Rock Lee's bedside.
"Lee! Are you okay!"
Rock Lee looked at him and gave a weak smile.
"Sensei..."
Guy patted his shoulder.
"Don't talk! Get some rest! When you're better, we'll run five hundred laps together!"
Rock Lee nodded.
Guy turned around and looked at the people in the room.
His gaze lingered on Nobunaga for a moment before moving away.
Finally, it landed on Gaara.
"You're that kid from Sunagakure?" he said, "Here to see Lee?"
Gaara did not speak.
He glanced at Nobunaga.
There was too much in that glance. Things he wanted to ask, things he hadn't finished asking, and those things that had just shattered.
Then he turned and walked toward the door.
He walked out of the ward.
The sound of footsteps gradually faded.
The ward fell quiet.