Disclaimer: Naruto belongs to Masashi Kishimoto and not me.

A/N: Hi, welcome here to my little collection of one-shots. These are quick pieces that I have written just for no reason other than I like doing that. Heh… anyway, a word of warning, some of these will probably have spoilers for the series, as well a couple pairing fics every now and then. Read the author notes at the top of each chapter to find out what it will contain.

This fic is a Gaara-centric piece. The summary is: What we think our destiny is may not be. But then… the unexpected twist may just fulfil our greatest dream.

Enjoy!

Gaara had always known he was destined for something. Even when he was shunned as a small child, he still knew he was meant to go somewhere, do something.

But, in his mind it was never something great. He had always imagined it'd be slaughtering hundreds of people in a pointless war, gaining greatness for the country, but not for himself. Regardless, at that time he'd relished the thought of the slaughter, even if he still felt some kind of jealousy that he was never meant to take the glory but the hatred.

That all changed though when he met Uzumaki Naruto. The blond-haired boy had given him hope to believe that maybe, just maybe, one day he'd be destined for something worth while. Slaughter was no longer a thought that was constantly on his mind.

Drifting, eventual, a look to the sky… the thoughts he once held melted away, replaced by something bigger.

And then that day had come, he was made Kazekage. Faces never held that look of disdain any longer. The lips never snarled at him – they turned upwards… a smile, Gaara realised. How long had it been since seeing one? How long had it been since he'd smiled back, not with jealousy and madness, but by reflecting the feelings of acceptance back?

"Acceptance," Gaara muttered to himself as he looked out over the desert.

"What'd you say, Bro?"

"Acceptance," repeated the red-head, glancing back at his older brother. "I found acceptance."

"Acceptance is a good thing," replied his brother with a nod. "You worked hard for it."

"I used to be jealous of people like you, and how everyone accepted you so easily."

"You don't have to be anymore, Gaara."

Gaara turned and smiled. "Yeah."