Gaara

is a major supporting character of the series, originally introduced as an antagonist. As the jinchūriki of the One-Tailed Shukaku, Gaara gained the nickname. In Part II of the series, he became the of Sunagakure.

Background
Gaara is the third child of the Fourth Kazekage and Karura, and the younger brother of Temari and Kankurō. Before Gaara's birth, his father ordered Chiyo to seal the One-Tailed Shukaku within him, in hopes that Gaara would become the ultimate weapon for Sunagakure as he was the only one of the Kazekage's three children to be compatible with the beast. He was born premature and therefore, was an unusually small and frail infant. Before she died, Karura passionately held her son, vowing to always protect him. Gaara was trained by his father, but raised mainly by his maternal uncle, Yashamaru.

Because of the power of Shukaku, the villagers of Suna hated and feared Gaara. Seeing him only for the monster sealed within him, for a time, Yashamaru seemed to be the only person who cared about Gaara. When Gaara would mistakenly harm others due to the subconscious abilities granted to him by Shukaku, Yashamaru would be the only one who understood that Gaara hadn't intended to harm anyone. The village's council, however, did not see Gaara in the same light, and viewed Gaara's frequent attacks upon villagers as a result of a failed experiment that was a threat to Suna, and Gaara's father did express disappointment at this lack of control.

Because of the danger Gaara imposed, his father decided to test him and told Yashamaru to corner Gaara psychologically, and lie to him about his mother to see if Gaara could retain control of Shukaku. As a result, Yashamaru told Gaara that his mother never loved him. He also tried to assassinate him, however he failed as Gaara dealt a lethal blow to him. But when Gaara realised who it was, he was horrified and screamed, before bursting into tears.

Although Gaara tried to dismiss Yashamaru's attack as an order of the Kazekage, Yashamaru lied to him, by saying that he had willingly accepted the mission to kill Gaara. He also lied that he never truly loved Gaara, Yashamaru hoped that killing Gaara would avenge the death of his sister, who had named Gaara after the phrase, a sign of her intense hatred for Suna, not as love for her son. In the last ditch effort to kill Gaara, Yashamaru detonated a number of exploding tags covering his body, asking Gaara to "please die". Using his sand, Gaara survived the blast, and lost the only person he thought had cared for him, while not knowing the true reason. Gaara then used his sand to etch the kanji for onto his forehead, indicating his first actual injury. Right after this, he lost control and transformed into the Shukaku, rampaging around the village before his father stopped him with Gold Dust. Since this incident, Gaara became an aloof and cruel person who would kill anyone to prove his existence and to obtain recognition from the village, all the while forfeiting his desire for friendship.

Seeing that Gaara was unable to cope with the loss of his mother's love, his father deemed him to be a failure. As a result, the Fourth Kazekage began sending assassins to deal with the child, numbering to six times, none of which were successful. Each attempt made Gaara fear and hate his father more. In time, Gaara's new ideals allowed better control over the tailed beast within, and his father would come to appreciate this and the uses he could serve, and cancelled all assassination orders to revive the idea of having Gaara as the ultimate weapon of the village.

Personality
While Gaara had initially tried to be friendly towards others, despite their fear of him, Yashamaru's actions and words changed him. Realising that nobody loved him, Gaara used his sand to create the kanji on his forehead, as a symbol of a "demon loving only himself", and to live up to his name, as what he believed Karura intended. Gaara became emotionally withdrawn, all but silent, and consumed with a bitter loathing for everyone but himself and "Mother": the voice of Shukaku in his head. He learned to find pleasure, and eventually a reason to live, in annihilating the numerous assassins sent to kill him – and, by extension, anyone who threatened his existence. This was only worsened by the occasional demand by Shukaku for blood to sate its blood lust, which resulted in Gaara being merciless, demonstrated when he murdered Baiu and Midare while ignoring their pleas. Gaara's insomnia, forced upon him by the fear that the demon inside him would eat away at him if he were to fall asleep, only furthered his instability and desire to kill. In fact, his hatred extends to his siblings, as he never saw them as such, and was fully willing to kill them were they to cross him.

Gaara's childhood was, in many ways, similar to Naruto Uzumaki's, though more unfortunate due to his lack of anyone to call a friend. Both were lonely and desired to be liked, loved, and acknowledged as an individual, free of others' prejudices — they were themselves, not the demons they were forced to "contain" — and both were driven into a desperate state. While Naruto consequently developed the misconception that pranks and mischief would bring him the attention he sought, Gaara came to the conclusion that he could preserve and confirm his own existence by killing any and all who challenged it, securing an extreme form of existentialism as his key personality trait. In the absence of others' acknowledgement, he could compensate by valuing only himself to the exclusion of everyone else. Furthermore, while Naruto eventually had Iruka Umino and Team Kakashi to acknowledge him, Gaara never had anyone to bond with, not even his father or siblings, as they all despised and feared Shukaku that dwells within him. The person who was closest to being friendly with Gaara was Yashamaru, who was ordered to act to betraying him, which turned Gaara into a lonely sociopath. As such, Gaara did not understand the concept of fighting for anything other than himself until his confrontation with Naruto.

After being defeated by Naruto, Gaara was shocked to find that Naruto knew very well the pain that Gaara had endured all his life. He was even more surprised that Naruto never gave up hope on being acknowledged as a person and ultimately found friends who truly cared for him. Seeing the determination that Naruto had to protect his friends made Gaara question his own path in life. Realising that he gave up too easily, Gaara decided to follow Naruto's path, wishing to become Kazekage of Sunagakure so he could be connected to his people, and hopefully have them finally acknowledge his existence as a person. Over the next few years, Gaara's determination to find happiness became apparent from his decision to rely on his own power rather than his inner demon's. Gaara eventually formed a close friendship with Naruto.

Since Gaara has become a close companion to Naruto, he has been able to change people's personalities towards him, such as Matsuri overpowering her fear of weapons, Ōnoki in the Five Kage Summit, persuaded practically the whole shinobi nation as a team before the war, and even Naruto himself when reflecting upon what he will choose to do as Sasuke's friend. This seems to be a similar trait from Naruto, a way of showing how he has changed from before. Not also that, but because of his close bond with Naruto, he has also been shown to throw away any such grudge or hatred against anyone, even including his father, who was responsible for making Gaara's childhood miserable.

Gaara cares deeply for Naruto and his well-being and goals, and despite Sasuke's actions during his assault at the Kage Summit and his status as an international criminal, he went far enough to attempt convincing Sasuke out of the darkness one more time on behalf of Naruto, and when unconvinced, even shed a tear for the failure Sasuke has gone into, and the disappointment Naruto will see. Despite respecting Naruto's goals, his care for him does not block his personal beliefs, and believes his friend's well-being is more important. Gaara bluntly tells Naruto that chasing after Sasuke is foolish, as he sees him no longer possible to return to the light. Though he defies Naruto's goal to bring Sasuke back, he only says this for Naruto's well-being because they are "friends".

Although he remained ruthless against his opponents, Gaara appears extremely protective of his allies and innocent people, as seen when he protected his village from Deidara; and his siblings, Darui and even the Raikage against Sasuke. He also appears to deeply understand those who have suffered from loneliness and hatred in the past by the look in their eyes, such as Naruto, Kimimaro, and even Sasuke.

As a Kage, Gaara believes that the ideals of previous generations, that each village must mind their own business and solve their own problems without having to ask for the aid of others in order to keep appearance and honour, is a "ridiculous old-fashioned thinking" and that cooperation between the villages is fundamental in order to defeat Akatsuki.

Appearance
Like Naruto, Gaara is a little shorter than the average males of his age which unlike Naruto, is due to the fact that he was born prematurely. He has pale skin and short, spiky hair that is brick-red. He has green eyes however; this colour has alternated somewhat during the series. In a flashback of his youth his eyes are depicted as light blue but for the majority of the series they are depicted as being green the pupils of which, are mostly invisible. Gaara has no distinctive eyebrows either. He has two very notable traits in his appearance: firstly, he has tanuki-like black eye rings, having them since his birth due to insomnia caused by Shukaku. Secondly, he carved the kanji on the left side of his forehead, having it since Yashamaru's betrayal. Gaara's forelocks are parted from the left side, making the kanji more visible. Matsuri and Sari who both seem to have a crush on Gaara, have described him as the strong silent type, elite and very handsome.

In Part I, Gaara has been seen in two different outfits. When he was seen for the first time, he wore black full body suit with t-shirt-like sleeves, ¾-length legs, and an open neck. With this, he wore a white cloth over his right shoulder and the left side of his hips, and a wide leather band system over the left shoulder and right side of his hips. With this leather band, he carried around his gourd containing his sand. He also wrapped his forehead protector over the band. In his childhood flashbacks, he was seen wearing beige poncho-like clothing with full-length blue trouser and a short-sleeved black t-shirt.

In the Sasuke Retrieval Arc, and in the final pre-Shippūden filler arc, he switched his previous black overalls to a reddish-brownish one with longer sleeves and an upright collar. He retained the white cloth, but had mesh armour on his wrists and ankles. He used this costume in Naruto the Movie 2: Legend of the Stone of Gelel as well.

In Part II, battling against Deidara and during the Kage summit, he wore full-length dark trousers, with a pair of laces on each leg, respectively a few inches below the waist and the knees, a long-sleeved crimson coat with flaring hemlines on the front and the back, a grey holster vest held in place by a single strap over his left shoulder and by two buckled belts which he uses to carry his gourd. He also wears another pair of casually worn belts around his waist. He is also seen wearing Kazekage robes, and a simple black pants suit, the latter one greatly resembling Kankurō's suit, and worn for the memorial of Elder Chiyo. All the time, he has been seen wearing Sunagakure's standard shinobi sandals. As the Regimental Commander of the Allied Shinobi Forces, he added his village's flak jacket to his standard outfit.

Abilities
Gaara is a extremely powerful shinobi, so much so that he was made Kazekage at the age of 15. His powers and status is even now well respected and praised by everyone in the Allied Shinobi Forces, including other Kage, as well as resurrected Kage. Even at age 6, he was able to defeat and fatally injure the ANBU Yashamaru. He was also praised by Deidara, who commented on his power after he captured him, after he himself lost an arm to Gaara's attacks. Out of everyone of his generation, he had the greatest increase in rank. Even though he had lost the Shukaku, he was still powerful enough to remain Kazekage, and his father recognised that he had surpassed him despite his Gold Dust having an advantage over his sand. The type of fighting style he uses is a stationary type, he rarely needs to move his entire body to attack an opponent. He has also shown to be a skilled teacher, teaching Matsuri how to use the jōhyō when he learned she was afraid of weapons. Like many Suna shinobi, he is skilled with the Sealing Tag, using Sand Binding Coffin in place of cloth to use it. He has also shown an affinity in the Wind Release.

Sand Control
As the host of Shukaku, Gaara possesses the ability to manipulate sand, typically moving it through the air to serve various purposes. Being a jinchūriki, Gaara has huge levels of chakra as noted by Kiba and thus is able to use many chakra-taxing sand-based techniques, sometimes in quick succession, before becoming exhausted. The amount of sand he can control at one time is immense: he could create a massive amount of sand to fully transform into the One-Tailed Shukaku, as well as create a tsunami of sand to fight Kimimaro. In Part II he is able to gather enough sand to shield the entire village of Sunagakure from Deidara's explosives, albeit at great physical exertion. If sand is lacking in abundance, Gaara can break down the earth minerals in the ground to create more sand. While he can control any dry sand, ordinary sand requires more chakra to manipulate, tiring him at a rapid rate. As a result, Gaara keeps his own chakra-infused sand with him at all times, in a calabash gourd also made out of sand on his back. Because this sand is already infused with his chakra, Gaara has a great deal more control over it, enabling stronger and faster attacks with it.

During battle, Gaara rarely moves, attacking with his sand from a single location, and rarely using taijutsu. When first introduced, his basic means of attacks is to first use Sand Binding Coffin to capture, immobilise, and potentially suffocate an opponent with sand. Once the opponent is subdued, he uses Sand Waterfall Funeral to cause the sand to crush the opponent with varying intensities. Though he comes up with other means of attack throughout the series, the "catch and crush" tactic remains at the centre of his fighting style. Gaara attempted to use it four times on Kimimaro but Kimimaro's sturdy bone structure made him a frustrating target.

As the second element of his stationary combat style, Gaara has a number of sand-based defences to be used in case an opponent gets too close. His primary defence is his Shield of Sand, an automatic sand shield that surrounds and protects him from damage whether he wants it to or not. Gaara can control the shield to some degree, strengthening it to steel-like quality or calling upon it to completely encase himself. While an effective defence, the shield can be overcome with high speed attacks, or simply be broken through with incredibly forceful strikes. Should this happen, Gaara has a layer of sand covering his body called the Armour of Sand. Although it's a useful secondary defence, the armour requires large amounts of chakra to remain active, and also has the side-effect of weighting Gaara down. The defence offered by his sand is so powerful, it has been named the. Furthermore, Gaara can crush the hardest minerals in the ground together to create a shield in shape of Shukaku's body or a spear in the shape of its arm for combat.

In addition to these basic methods of offence and defence, Gaara also has a number of miscellaneous techniques that, while capable of being used as attacks or defences of sorts, are not limited to such purposes. By making a sand clone of himself, Gaara can have an ally to be used in battle, or as a mere distraction to be used to buy him time. Unlike most other clone techniques in the series, the Sand Clone can retain its shape after more than one attack, and can even reform itself or capture an opponent upon being dispersed. With Desert Suspension, Gaara can use sand as a platform, to allow himself and others to float in the air. His Third Eye also allows him to create a floating eyeball of sand in any location, which he can see through as a means of spying, or to guide his attacks while completely enclosed by his defences. He also claimed that he can ride his sand to reach the Island Turtle, and would have been faster than if Ōnoki went there. His sand can also be used as sensing device: Gaara can detect when others come into contact with it, even from far away.

Despite the removal of Shukaku, Gaara can still use his sand like before. According to Sasuke at the Kage Summit, Gaara's Absolute Defence is still alive and well. Not only that, but the sand has also massively improved in speed, defence, and offence since last time. He could not only block the A|Raikage's power kick seconds before it touched Sasuke's Blaze Release: Kagutsuchi, but even block Amaterasu itself several times as well. During the Fourth Shinobi World War, Gaara's sand powers were so strong that his father believed he had fully transformed into the Shukaku and was later surprised to see that was not the case. Gaara was able to quickly manoeuvre his sand above his father's Gold Dust, despite its superior weight. He was also able to catch three Kage with his sand despite his father's efforts.

It was unknown at first whether or not Gaara sand defence was still automatic as it was believed that Shukaku was the source of the defence. However, the Fourth Kazekage states that Gaara's mother Karura was the source of the defence, as she truly did love him and vowed to always protect him.

Jinchūriki Transformations
In desperate situations, Gaara was able to take on the form of Shukaku by layering sand on his body, making him many times more powerful than he already is. Shukaku's personality grew more dominant during this transformation, increasing Gaara's homicidal tendencies. Once finished, Gaara assumed a human-sized version of Shukaku, wherein he relied on his brute strength to destroy everything around him.

If need be, Gaara could almost instantly create a life-sized version of Shukaku, should the human-sized form fail. In this form, he remained deep within the copy of Shukaku, safe from harm, though unable to move. Gaara could also unleash the spirit of Shukaku through his Feigning Sleep Technique, which forced him to sleep, allowing the Shukaku copy to operate at its full potential. To do so, however, Gaara must emerge from within the copy, leaving him open to attack for the duration of the technique.

In time, he began gaining better control over Shukaku, such that he could suppress its personality by himself towards the end of the anime's filler arcs. By the time Part II began, Gaara was even capable of using Shukaku's arms to attack numerous times, without losing control of himself. However, this could have merely been his improved control over sand in action.

Chūnin Exam Arc
Gaara participated in the Chūnin Exams, where he was quickly identified as a skilled competitor. He was able to pass the first phase without giving any indications that he was cheating. During the second phase, he demonstrated his thirst for blood, coldly murdering Team Shigure, who Gaara claimed had looked at him the wrong way, and threatened to kill his own siblings when they tried to reason with him. Gaara and his team finished this phase in an hour and thirty-seven minutes, beating the previous record by over four hours, with Gaara not getting so much as a speck of dust on his clothes, a feat that would be very difficult even for an experienced ninja.

In the preliminary matches, Gaara was matched against Rock Lee. Though not enough at first, Lee's formidable speed and strength were enhanced by weight relief and were then enough to bypass Gaara's Shield of Sand completely, forcing him to rely on his secondary Armour of Sand. Despite Lee's best efforts, Gaara's sand ultimately protected him from even Lee's Reverse Lotus, which left Lee in no condition to fight after its use. Gaara then used his sand to crush the weakened Lee's arm and leg, critically injuring him. Gaara tried to kill Lee, but Might Guy intervened before he could harm Lee any further. For the finals, Gaara was matched against Sasuke Uchiha. In the month before the finals, Dosu Kinuta tried to kill Gaara in order to ensure that he could fight Sasuke. Gaara promptly killed him with the power of Shukaku. He also came to the hospital where Lee was recovering, and tried to kill him. He was however stopped by Naruto Uzumaki and Shikamaru Nara, and told them about Shukaku. Before he could kill them, Guy intervenes.

In the final round matches of the Chūnin Exams, Gaara was to play a major role in Orochimaru's invasion upon Konohagakure, by releasing Shukaku within the center of the village. Prior to his battle with Sasuke, he brutally killed Shiba and Midori, both of whom tried to threaten Gaara to lose the battle for a bet. When fighting Sasuke, he realises he has taijutsu as high as Lee after the month's training. Not caring what happens, Gaara tries to transform. However, he was wounded by Sasuke's Chidori, disabling him from transforming or serving his role in the invasion. With Gaara no longer in a condition to join the battle, he and his siblings fled the village, while the invasion proceeded without them.

Invasion of Konoha Arc
Gaara was pursued by the members of Team 7, along with Shikamaru Nara and Shino Aburame, which forced Gaara's siblings to stay behind at different points to hold off their pursuers. Sasuke catches up and Gaara begins transforming into Shukaku. As his transformation progressed, Sasuke tried to use Chidori two additional times, but when both proved ineffective at stopping Gaara, he was left exhausted. Gaara tried to kill Sasuke, but was stopped by Naruto and Sakura's arrivals. This gave Gaara a short flashback of his betrayed childhood. Intrigued by Naruto's abilities, Gaara, having pinned Sakura to a tree, hurt her in order to force Naruto to fight. Naruto, scared, stayed to fight against him to protect his friends. Though Gaara seemed to have the upper hand, Naruto attacks the lower base of his tail, using One Thousand Years of Death learned from Kakashi Hatake, (only in this attack, Naruto uses a kunai with an exploding tag attached to it, which reduces Gaara's defence tremendously when it explodes, giving Naruto the upper hand in the battle). When beaten down by the massive shadow clones Naruto then summoned, Gaara, angered, releases the full body of the One-Tailed Shukaku. Naruto then summons Gamabunta right before Gaara could kill him.

After Gamabunta shows his strength, Gaara then emerged and used the Feigning Sleep Technique to let Shukaku take full control in the battle. Once Shukaku proved to be stronger than Gamabunta could handle, he and Naruto used their Combination Transformation technique to transform into a giant fox (the Nine-Tailed Demon Fox in the anime) so he can cling onto Shukaku for Naruto to hit Gaara for the beast to be resealed. This became successful, but Naruto's chakra became drained. Gaara trapped him, but Naruto used some of the Nine-Tails' chakra to break free, then headbutted Gaara, making Shukaku's body crumble.

With the last of their energy, the two exchanged final blows, Naruto ending up claiming victory. Gaara was puzzled by Naruto's undying devotion to his friends, causing Gaara to realise that Naruto's strength came from the desire to protect those close to him. As Gaara and his siblings fled the scene, Gaara openly apologised to Kankurō and Temari, which surprised and confused them. Thanks to Naruto's influence, the defeat proved to be a major turning point for Gaara.

Sasuke Retrieval Arc
The Sand Siblings were called by the Fifth Hokage to assist the Sasuke Retrieval Squad in retrieving Sasuke when he defected from Konoha. Gaara arrived to save Rock Lee in time, preventing Kimimaro's final blow. Though Lee tried to continue, Gaara stopped him, telling Lee that he is in no condition to fight since Gaara injured Lee during the Chūnin Exams. This showed Gaara's new personality. In the fight, Gaara showed off several new abilities, ending with Sand Waterfall Imperial Funeral, proving too much for Kimimaro. Once Kimimaro released the second state of his Cursed Seal of Earth, this proved too much for Gaara's ordinary sand and he was forced to use his Ultimately Hard Absolute Defence: Shield of Shukaku to protect himself. Despite Gaara burying Kimimaro deep underground, in the end he escaped and almost killed Gaara and Lee, only to be luckily saved by Kimimaro's unknown disease, which killed him.

After the battle, Gaara explains even a person on the side of evil has someone precious to them, and explains to Lee that he was like Naruto Uzumaki. Later, the two returned to Konoha. After this, Gaara and the rest of the Sand Siblings returned to Sunagakure, though in the anime, he and his siblings helped the village's Ninja Academy before leaving, as stated from Shikamaru.

Ultimate Weapon Arc
The Sand Siblings would later appear when they became teachers at a Konoha-style ninja academy at Suna. As an instructor, Gaara took on the only student who was willing to train under him, Matsuri. Because of Matsuri's fear of weapons, Gaara trained her to use a jōhyō, a relatively non-lethal weapon. When a group of people called the Four Celestial Symbols Men kidnapped her in order to get to Gaara, Suna then called for aid from the Konoha 11 to repay their help during the Sasuke Retrieval Arc.

Gaara first fought Suiko, then he caught and attacked the Four Celestial Symbols Men leader, Hōki, but was captured. Naruto tries desperately to save Gaara, though nothing would work. To escape, Gaara did a partial Shukaku transformation, reviving the Takumi Village's ultimate weapon, Seimei. Gaara stopped the transformation and later destroyed Seimei's armour with Ultimately Hard Absolute Attack: Spear of Shukaku, and killed him with a Sand Waterfall Imperial Funeral.

After this, Gaara rests in the Konoha hospital, and overhears Naruto's conversation with Jiraiya. Gaara and the rest of the siblings, including Matsuri, leave Konohagakure.

Kazekage Rescue Arc
Having become the Fifth Kazekage during the gap in time between Part I and II, Gaara was targeted by Akatsuki, who sought to extract Shukaku from within him. Gaara confronted and held his own against Deidara, crushing his left arm and had him on the run for most of the battle, but his inevitable duty to protect Sunagakure was taken advantage of by Deidara, who dropped one of his most powerful bombs on the village. Gaara prevented any damage being inflicted by summoning a vast amount of sand to cover it entirely, albeit at the cost of practically all of his remaining chakra, which left him open for capture. After having his Sphere of Sand shattered, he moved the sand he used to protect Suna into the desert and passed out. Being unconscious, he was taken to Akatsuki's hideout by Deidara.

Although Team Kakashi did their best to save Gaara, they did not arrive in time to stop Akatsuki's extraction of Shukaku, resulting in Gaara's death. Naruto Uzumaki cried in front of him, regretting his inability to save both Sasuke and Gaara. He blamed the rest of the Sand shinobi because it was on their behalf that Shukaku was sealed inside of Gaara in the first place, and because they let him feel so much pain as a child. However, Chiyo resurrected Gaara with the help of Naruto's chakra using her life-restoring technique, in the hopes that it would make up for her sealing of Shukaku into Gaara years earlier, and that Naruto and Gaara would both change the world, by bringing Gaara back to life at the cost of her own. Gaara awoke, shocked by being surrounded by his friends from Konoha and the Sunagakure shinobi that had gone looking for him, all relieved that he was all right. This was the first time Gaara truly felt loved and not so alone. Gaara later ordered everyone to pray for Chiyo.

Before Naruto went back home, he tried to say goodbye, but admitted that it wasn't something he was good at. Gaara used some sand to encourage and guide Naruto's hand, and the two shook hands, symbolising Gaara and Naruto's friendship, and Gaara's new characteristics. Even with Shukaku removed, Gaara still retained his ability to control sand and went on to continue his work as Kazekage.

Konoha History Arc
Gaara remembers a joint mission with Team 7. On the rendezvous point the two teams meet. In Gaara's team are two rookies: Korobi and Yaoki, who are at first scared of Gaara and his abilities. After Sunagakure sent Gaara on the mission, an assassination squad from Sunagakure, who were ordered to assassinate Gaara, followed him shortly after. With the help of Naruto Uzumaki, and his two rookie team-mates, Gaara defeats the Suna Assassin Captain and his squad. They then complete their primary mission of eliminating the bandits. In the end Yaoki and Korobi became some of Gaara's first friends, thus creating one of his very first bonds with people.

Five Kage Summit Arc
Because of Akatsuki's increasing activity, the Fourth Raikage calls for a meeting of the five Kage. Gaara, with Temari and Kankurō as bodyguards, is the first of the Kage to arrive in the Land of Iron. When the other Kage arrive and the meeting starts, Gaara is the first to speak. He indicates that, because he was captured by Akatsuki and died when the Shukaku was extracted from his body, he considers the organisation very dangerous. He adds that he had previously requested collaboration between the villages against Akatsuki, but that only Tsunade of Konoha responded. Gaara is repeatedly interrupted by the other Kage for the rest of the meeting and his input is dismissed because of his young age. Only the Fifth Mizukage was willing to listen to Gaara; even at one point defending him from Third Tsuchikage's disrespectful behaviour.

When Sasuke is revealed to have infiltrated the meeting and the Raikage goes to fight him, the Tsuchikage offered to give him tips on how to be a good Kage. Gaara voices his concern with the others' lack of ethics and says that a world without faith and understanding would be a world with only fear. Gaara, Kankurō, and Temari then leave to join the Raikage's battle with Sasuke. When they arrive, Gaara uses his sand to stop the Raikage and Sasuke from fighting, insisting over the Raikage's objections that it is for the better. While the Raikage begrudgingly has his injuries tended to, Gaara tries to convince Sasuke to stop living in the darkness, citing past experience by saying no good will come of it. Sasuke could not be convinced.

With a tear in his eye, Gaara shifts his sand to a battle position. Sasuke attacks Gaara with Amaterasu, but his sand proves to fast for it. Sasuke admits he is impressed that Gaara's sand could guard against his attacks so easily, commenting that his Ultimate Defense was in good shape. Gaara then joins Kankurō, Temari, and Darui in attacking Sasuke. While their combined efforts would ordinarily be unstoppable, Sasuke's Susanoo completely protects him. He then produces a cave-in to distract them; Gaara shields the others from falling debris with his sand while Sasuke escapes. They follow him to the Summit hall, where they are met by Madara Uchiha. Madara sends Sasuke away and tells everyone in attendance about his Eye of the Moon Plan. Because Madara concludes by requesting that the Kage give him Naruto and Killer B, Gaara refuses. The other Kage agree, so Madara declares the start of the Fourth Shinobi World War. With this new development, Gaara repeats the need for collaboration. The Kage agree to a Shinobi Alliance, but will not allow Konoha to join unless someone more trustworthy than the current Hokage can be found from the village. Gaara volunteers to approach Kakashi Hatake.

Gaara and his siblings find Kakashi in a nearby motel, in the company of Naruto. Gaara tells them about the what happened at the Summit, Sasuke's actions, and the war. He adds that, because of how crucial it will be that Naruto and B not be captured by Akatsuki, that the Kage have decided not to allow either on the battlefield. Much of Gaara's effort is focused upon convincing Naruto about Sasuke, telling Naruto that he sees no redemption for him and has given up on him. He adds that, if Naruto truly wants to be Hokage, he must realise when to do the right thing. Naruto remains silent, and Gaara and his siblings leave him to reflect, returning to Sunagakure. When they arrive there, they hear that the daimyō have approved the formation of the Shinobi Alliance.

Confining the Jinchūriki Arc
To make preparations for the approaching conflict with Akatsuki, Gaara goes to Kumogakure to meet with the other heads of the Alliance. He reiterates the need to send the Nine-Tails and Eight-Tails into hiding. When the Fifth Hokage objects to this, he reminds her that she must take others' views into consideration. She agrees and the jinchūriki are sent to the Island Turtle. When they learn that Akatsuki has discovered this hiding spot, it is decided to send the Tsuchikage as extra protection. As the Tsuchikage leaves he breaks his hip, so Gaara offers to go instead. The Tsuchikage goes anyway, and when he returns Gaara shows him the new Allied forehead protector that has been designed in his absence.

Shinobi World War Arc
Gaara is made Regimental Commander of the primary fighting force as well as Commander of the Fourth Division. When a Suna and Iwa shinobi began quarrelling in the ranks, nearly coming to blows, Gaara broke them up. He explained to the joined forces that he himself is a product of the hatred between the villages, yet his fellow jinchūriki, Naruto, bore him no ill will. At the end of the speech, everyone was united and all went out for battle. The divisions split up, each headed for their assigned destinations.

The Fourth Division settles along a rocky terrain. Gaara surrounds their position with his Sand Sensing, allowing him to detect approaching enemies. In doing so he catches the revived Mū. He uses his Third Eye to gather intel on the situation, in doing so learning that Mū is not alone; three other revived Kage are with him, among them being his own father. This information is relayed to headquarters and the Tsuchikage is sent to provide assistance. Gaara reasons that there is no reason for the Tsuchikage to strain his back, and is told that his earlier words are the reason Ōnoki is picking up his principles again.

On the second day of the war, Gaara and Ōnoki decide to advance. Gaara attacks with a long ranged attack, but his father counters it with his Gold Dust. Emerging behind the attack, his father is surprised to see Gaara controlling the sand and not the One-Tailed Shukaku. After capturing his father and the other previous generation Kage with his sand arms, his father asks Gaara where Shukaku is and Gaara replies that it's gone and that he is no longer a jinchūriki. He then reveals that he died when the Shukaku was extracted from his body, but he was revived by Chiyo. He also reveals that he is now the Kazekage and had come to understand why his father tried to kill him, declaring that he no longer hated him as it was for the sake of village.

The Fourth Kazekage, shocked at how far Gaara had come, decided to test his son's worth again by facing him directly. Raising his sand above his father's Gold Dust, Gaara is able to subdue his father and the other Kage. Gaara's sand takes on the form of his mother, greatly shocking his father. The Fourth Kazekage then finally reveals the truth to Gaara: that his mother loved him and that she vowed to always protect him and that the strength he wields isn't the Shukaku, but his mother Karura's strength. As Gaara learn the truth of his mother and her love for him as well as the truth behind Yashamaru's actions before he died, Gaara is overcome with emotions. After his father apologises for robbing Gaara of so much throughout his lifetime he is sealed and Gaara turns around to face the battlefield with new determination.

Riding his sand, he sets out towards Ōnoki. Upon reaching the area he senses Mū right behind Ōnoki and tries to warn him. This attempt however was unsuccessful and Mū attack throws Ōnoki's back out. Gaara then positions himself between the two Tsuchikage, as Mū prepares to attack both him and Ōnoki with his Dust Release. Gaara suddenly glimpses Naruto preparing to attack Mū from behind with the Planetary Rasengan. Even though he is shocked to see him, Gaara quickly uses his sand to create a foothold for Naruto so as to counter-attack Mū in mid-air after his initial strike fails. After Mū is defeated, Gaara seals him in sand and then binds him. Facing Naruto now, he asks for an explanation as to why he was on the battlefield and Ōnoki suggests that they mobilise while talking. After hearing Naruto's explanation, Gaara asks him if it was OK for him to be using the Nine-Tails' chakra so much to which Naruto retorts that he was going to be Hokage someday and until then, he would not die, so Gaara shouldn't treat him like a child. As they split off, Gaara and Ōnoki head off to another battlefield while Naruto took the other.

As he arrived on the battlefield and faces the Second Mizukage once again, he is seen visibly winded as he fights him causing the Second to ask him if that was all he had. After the Second begins to rant about them going after Mū first, when he was clearly the strongest, Gaara tells him that he learned a long time ago not to judge a someone by their appearance. He later detects the Giant Clam with his sand and raises a platform of sand that Ōnoki uses to prepare his attack from. After Ōnoki's assault on the clam is successful and the mirage of the Mizukage that Gaara was speaking to vanishes, Gaara immediately activates his Third Eye technique to locate them. With Ōnoki's life seemingly in peril as the Second shoots him, it is revealed that Ōnoki was in fact sand clone which begins to restrain the Mizukage. The Second's Hydrification Technique activates immediately however but before he can free himself Gaara uses his Sand Waterfall Layered Imperial Funeral technique which seemingly successfully restrains him. Before the shinobi can rejoice, a huge explosion occurs and the Second's face appears in the sky. As Gaara watches on in horror, he wonders if it's genjutsu again, Ōnoki says no, telling him that this was the technique Mū could do nothing about: Steaming Danger Tyranny.

Legend of the Stone of Gelel
Gaara and Kankurō came to the aid of a band of Suna villagers who came under attack. A group of seemingly invulnerable armoured warriors attacked the shinobi, and it was only Gaara's sand manipulation abilities that saved the group from certain defeat. The Suna ninja then destroyed the warship that brought the warriors, only to come under attack from knights wielding the power of the Stone of Gelel. Gaara engaged one of these warriors, called Ranke, who wielded lightning powers, and was able to thwart her using his sand. When Ranke transformed into a monstrous form of greater power, she seemingly outmatched Gaara, until he crushed her using Sand Waterfall Imperial Funeral. By doing this, he made lightning rods to drain her lightning. He is later seen amazed by the destruction the Gelel caused. It is unclear whether Gaara met Naruto after the incident. Later, he and Kankurō safely return to Sunagakure.

Naruto Shippūden 3: Inheritors of the Will of Fire
Gaara watches the skies as Hiruko introduces himself, claims responsibility for the disappearance of shinobi with kekkei genkai and announces the Fourth Shinobi World War. As he and other Sunagakure shinobi travel through a rocky terrain, San's bird creature attacks the convoy with its exploding feathers. The convoy is saved by Jiraiya and Gamabunta. Jiraiya talks with Gaara, updating him on Konoha's actions, including Kakashi's will to sacrifice himself. Gaara gives Jiraiya some special sand, which when thrown in the air gave the Suna troops a temporary cease-fire notice. He leaves to Hiruko's lair, by soaring through the skies as sand in the wind. He reaches Naruto, Sakura and Sai, telling Naruto that he won't risk the lives of shinobi in a war. He removes Sakura and Sai from combat and fights Naruto in a fierce battle, combining his sand techniques with taijutsu as well, but retreated after his defenses were breached and hearing Naruto's words of resolve. Later, when Shikamaru finds him, Gaara tells him that by fighting Naruto again after years, he was once again touched by his resolve, and allowed him to pass. Gaara returns to the troops and proclaimed that the issue has been resolved, relieving the troops anxious to return home.

Creation and Conception
Masashi Kishimoto created Gaara to be a foil to Naruto, giving him a similar background to Naruto, where he was rejected by his peers and fellow villagers for being the host of a tailed beast, a situation that Kishimoto refers to as being "very much like Naruto's. He was universally rejected and ignored, living a superfluous existence". Gaara's development from this state into a highly withdrawn, sadistic character was intended to induce sympathy for him from readers, as it was contrasted against Naruto being a cheerful troublemaker.

Gaara's initial attire, along with the costumes of his siblings, were difficult for Kishimoto to draw, resulting in a change of costume during the Sasuke Retrieval Arc, with Gaara receiving an outfit with an upright collar. As well as being easier to draw, it was used to show the change in relationship between Gaara and Naruto following their previous fight. Kishimoto cites The Matrix, one of his favourite movies, as the inspiration for Gaara's new costume. He considers it to be his favourite costume out of the three siblings.

Trivia

 * When Gaara was first named in the English Shonen Jump, his name was rendered as "Gāra".
 * Up through Naruto chapter 58, Gaara is seen wearing multiple earrings.
 * In the manga, Gaara's Kazekage hat is green. In the anime, it was originally light blue. They were recoloured as of Naruto Shippūden episode 199, showing the Kazekage hat as coloured green.
 * In the Naruto character popularity polls, Gaara was placed in 7th in the first, second and third, 8th in the fourth, 10th in the fifth, 7th in the sixth and 4th in the last and most recent poll. He is one of four characters who stayed in the Top Ten of every Character Popularity Poll.
 * According to the Naruto databooks:
 * Gaara's hobby is battling and cultivating cacti.
 * Gaara's favourite foods are salted tongue and gizzard, while his least favourite are yōkan and marron glacé.
 * Gaara and Naruto are both the same weight and height by Part II.
 * Gaara wishes to fight Sasuke Uchiha and anyone, if it is for the sake of his village.
 * Gaara has completed 34 official missions in total: 0 D-rank, 9 C-rank, 8 B-rank, 14 A-rank, 3 S-rank.
 * Gaara's favourite words are, in the first and second databook,, and in the third databook, and.

Quotes

 * (To Yashamaru) "What does pain feel like?"
 * "I finally understand… I'm alone. I won't believe in anyone, or love anyone. I'm alone."
 * "The corpse's bitter crimson tears flow and mingle with the endless sand, filling the chaos within me - and making me stronger."
 * (To Seimei) "Someone like you, who only see people as weapons, won't understand."
 * (To Kankurō) "I will work hard, because I want to become acknowledged by others. That's what I thought when I look at Naruto Uzumaki. Bonds with others… Up until now, I only known them as hate and murderous intent. But I wonder, what is that bond he longed for? Now I understand, even only a little. Pain, sadness… and joy. These feelings allow you to understand others."
 * (To Naruto and Shikamaru) "I am a relic they want to get rid of, so why do I exist and live? In order to exist you need a purpose, to exist for no reason is the same as being dead… I would love only myself and fight for only myself. If all other people exist to magnify that love, then there is no more a splendid universe than this one…"
 * (To Sasuke) "You have the same eyes as I do… the eyes, filled with hatred and death, that long for strength… just like mine… your eyes tell me how badly you wish to kill the one who put you through the hell called loneliness."
 * (To Naruto) "I shall kill you. I will not cease to exist."
 * (To Rock Lee) "You're the same then. When you feel the honour of your idol under scrutiny… you become enraged, as if it were your own honour being questioned. The more precious your idol is to you… the harder you fight for him."
 * "Perhaps the companionship of an evil person is preferable to loneliness."
 * (To Ōnoki, the Third Tsuchikage) "When did you forsake yourselves?"
 * (To Madara Uchiha) "Peace under an illusion is not true peace. It's only meaningful if the real world manages to accomplish it."
 * (To Naruto) "For the sake of the ninja world and as the Kazekage, I will guard you with my life."
 * (To Naruto) "If you're truly prepared to take up the mantle of a Kage, then as Sasuke's friend, you know what you have to do."
 * (To Naruto) "I think of you as a friend. I used to think "friend" was just another word… Nothing more, nothing less. But when I met you, I realised what was important was the word's meaning."
 * (To Tsunade about hiding Naruto) "I know him well. He takes too many risks when it comes to his friends… that's why."
 * "This is where it all starts for me. Starting with this small bond. I too want to become someone who is needed, instead of a weapon that is feared. And as the Kazekage of Sunagakure."
 * (To Kankurō about Naruto) "He was the one who taught me to deepen my bond with my people. Thanks to him, I was able to regain my true self. That village has him, the one who cherishes a friend's bond more than anyone I know. Naruto Uzumaki…. Knowing him and the friends he holds so dear, they will overcome this disaster and grow even stronger from it."
 * (To the Allied Shinobi Forces) "There are no enemies here because we've all suffered at Akatsuki's hand! So there is no Suna, no Iwa, no Konoha, no Kiri, and no Kumo! There are only "shinobi"!"
 * (To his father about Shukaku) "Gone forever! I'm no longer the jinchūriki you created!"
 * (To his father) "…Mother definitely was amazing… but, this is the first time you've ever given me "medicine", father…"