Hogwarts no Gaara-sensei

漏れ鍋

Chapter Two:

The Leaky Cauldron

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The first thing Dumbledore noticed about shinobi was that he was young. He knew that the shinobi had differing views when it came to what they considered to be the age of maturity, but nonetheless he had been expecting a more...middle-aged shinobi for what he believed to be their first excursion outside of their Barrier in the past century or so. But this...Gaara...looked like he could still be in school.

The next thing he noticed was the kid's—no, the shinobi's...unusual appearance. Red hair, dark circles that appeared unnatural, and that menacing-looking symbol on his forehead...he wondered what it meant. But this strangeness was to be expected, he supposed, from a nation that had been cut off from the rest of society for the past hundred years.

The third thing he noticed...was his expression. It looked...off, on such a cherubic, childlike face. It was unsettling, to say the least. These were not the eyes of a child; These were the eyes of someone who had suffered through horrible events, though war, and came out the other side still alive. These were the eyes of a survivor. And this cemented his belief that this "boy" was no child—this was a shinobi; a warrior.

When he spoke it was with a voice rough from lack of use, deeper and more gravelly than he would have expected of someone his size. Not much of a talker, then. "Dumbledore-sensei," he said, with the faintest hint of an accent.

"You must be Mr. Gaara," Dumbledore replied happily. "A pleasure to meet you."

"Likewise," the redhead responded softly. Very reserved. Polite, but not overly. Not very outgoing, one would think.

"Lady Tsunade and Mister Hatake told me a bit about you. They said you're from a different village?"

"That is correct. My village is Sunagakure," the small shinobi answered.

"Suna...that means 'sand,' yes? As in, the Village Hidden in the Sand?"

"Yes. Unlike Konoha, Suna is located in the desert, hence the name."

"Fascinating. But, more to the point, I'm told you don't have much knowledge regarding life on the other side of the Barrier?" Dumbledore had to admit, he was surprised. Considering the shinobi were the ones who'd put up the Barrier in the first place, he'd figured they would take advantage of it to come and go as they pleased...overall, he'd expected the "Barrier" to be more one-sided. But from what Tsunade has told him so far, after they'd put up the Barrier, they'd more or less forgotten about the outside world, completely isolating themselves instead. Dumbledore wonders, if he hadn't initiated contact, just how long would they have gone closed off as they were? Would they ever have crossed that self-imposed Barrier? Most likely not, from the sound of it.

"No. The little information we do have is centuries old, and likely no longer relevant."

"I see. Well I prepared for that, and have gathered a collection of tomes that I feel would be useful to you...among them you will find several historical texts, as well reports on modern-day wizarding life and common need-to-know spells. If you have any questions, you can send me a letter at any time. For now, Mister Hatake had informed me you would like to spend some time observing for yourself and studying what you need to know? For that very reason, I have had a room prepared for you at the Leaky Cauldron."

Dumbledore held out his elbow towards the young shinobi, who stared at it unblinking. "If you would take my arm, we can go now—your books are already there, waiting for you."