„I just don't know what to do. My son was so excited about the academy and now...now it's over."
Speechless, I held Kiyo, my neighbor, in my arms and gently stroked her back. I had just found out from her that Rasa had introduced this rule. The shock was still deep in my bones. I felt her anger and endless sadness. I could only try to comfort her. Unless...
„I'll go to him...", it escaped me. „Maybe he'll let me talk to him..."
Kiyo paused and looked at me. There was surprise, but also worry in her eyes. She was fighting an invisible battle with herself. But maybe I had the chance to get through to him. After all, we had known each other since we were children. And he listened to me, he always had.
„Yeah, maybe..." Kiyo mumbled and looked away. „But I don't think it will work this time. Still, I thank you for your support. Even though your two girls aren't affected by this rule."
„That has nothing to do with it. It's a matter of fairness," I replied impassively.
Kiyo was silent for a moment, then she nodded and squeezed my hand gratefully. Before she turned around and disappeared back into her house. I looked after her in silence.
„Absolutely not," Taro said, shaking his head. „I don't really agree with the Kazekage's decision either. But you've already criticized him enough. Even if you know each other, that won't stop him from taking his anger out on you."
Surprised, I looked at my husband. I had actually expected him to agree with me. But now there was deep concern in his eyes.
„Don't get carried away with anything. This is a war you can't win."
„And what do you want me to do then? Sit at home and wait for the situation here to escalate? Rasa's decision is not something that people can just agree to."
Taro sighed softly.
„No, not that. But they know his motives. Our country doesn't have much money, especially not now, after the war. How are we supposed to support the education of our offspring? We'd rather use what we have to teach the genin who remain. So that they can defend our country."
„Then he should also take care of the welfare of his children," I snorted.
„Be careful with your choice of words. It may be different with me, but if you appear before Rasa like that, he'll..."
„I know," I interrupted him and slumped my shoulders slightly. Taro's tension eased before he pulled me into a gentle embrace.
„It's nice to know that you care so much. But we should trust Rasa. He's not doing any of this to hurt the country. We're important to him and he'll do anything to make sure we're okay."
But at what cost? Who has to suffer for it? Who is missing out? Rasa has not included all the inhabitants. The people from the Quarter of Ashes...they are part of it too...just like his son.
These were all the words that were on the tip of my tongue, but I couldn't say them. I knew what was happening to our country. But it was up to us to do something about it. Perhaps by forming an alliance with Konoha. Even if we had been enemies during the war. It wasn't good if this hatred and mistrust lasted forever. I had even lost people close to me in the war. My little sister had died. I had mourned her for a long time. At first I had felt a lot of anger and incomprehension. But by now I knew that it was useless.
It was an encounter during the war that had changed my thinking. A kunoichi from Kumogakure, she had saved my life even though I was the enemy. I had been weak and very badly injured. Even though I hadn't really fought and had been more active as a medic-nin, I had been attacked. To weaken the enemy. So that he could no longer help himself.
I had already been pregnant at the time. And the other woman probably hadn't missed it either when she had stood between me and the two enemy ninja. Short process. There was no other way I could have described this fight. It had been a long time since I had come across anyone with such strength and who wasn't a Kage.
It was an encounter I would never forget. And one that I had never told anyone about before. A secret that had a strong impact on me and changed my view of the world. To this day, I didn't know the stranger's name. But if I saw her again one day, I would recognize her.
My legs took me to the cemetery. Directly to Karura's grave. We had always got on well, but we hadn't been close friends. I had liked her. Her gentle character and calm, superior manner. Rasa had done well by her. He was known for his rather hot temper, but Karura had always managed to cool it down a bit. Sometimes he had even taken her to the council of elders, if I was to believe Baki's words.
Just recently, someone seemed to have put some withered flowers there. My fingers carefully stroked the engraved letters.
„I wish you were still here. Maybe you could do something about this and make Rasa see reason. This isn't going anywhere. Can't he see what's going on in his country?"
Silence. I received nothing but silence. The wind came up, sand swirled towards me and into my eyes. I held my hand protectively in front of it. Why so suddenly? Then I sensed a presence behind me. Chakra flared up. It was very strong. Far too big for a child. But nothing about him was normal.
Perhaps he had expected me to jump up and run away. But I stayed seated, listening to his footsteps as he stood next to me and wordlessly looked down at the gravestone. It was the first time in a long time that I had him standing so close to me. Out of the corner of my eye, I recognized the red scar on his forehead. The word he had carved there with sand.
Love
„Are you here to visit your mother?" I asked quietly.
There was silence for a moment.
„Why would I visit someone who never loved me?" he finally replied. His voice was devoid of any emotion. As if it left him completely cold.
„Who said that?" I managed to get out.
„It's not important," he simply replied and turned away slightly.
„Then why are you here?" I asked. He probably wouldn't answer me and would quickly lose interest. But to my surprise, Gaara stayed where he was and stared at me. What did he expect me to do? That I would stand up and shout at him? Like some shinobi did to him and his siblings? Or break down in fear?
Yes, I had a great deal of respect for the power that dwelled within him. But the little grain of fear in me was swallowed up by anger. My anger at the source of Gaara's cold-bloodedness. He was still a child. Something very bad must have happened. The only thing I knew about the day of Shukaku's outburst was that Yashamaru had been killed. By Gaara. It was more of a rumor. But everyone here seemed to believe it. Maybe it was true. But it couldn't have happened just like that.
„There's no one at this grave except my family," he said.
Yes, just me. Quite sad.
„That's how people are," I said quietly. „Did you let yourself be broken?"
„There's nothing," he replied curtly and I noticed the wind picking up a little. I tried to stand up, but my feet sank into the sand. He wrapped them tightly. It hurt. Chakra flared up inside me and for a moment the grip loosened. I used this moment to gain a few meters of distance.
„I am not your enemy," I said firmly.
„Words. Nothing but words."
Then he attacked and I jumped aside, waiting for the next blow to follow. But a wall of golden sand had moved between us. I recognized Rasa. Anger was in his eyes as he looked down at his son. Cold, nothing but cold struck us. Cold and hate.
„Gaara. What do you think you're doing?" Rasa asked in a low but menacing voice. His son looked at him. Nothing on his face even flinched. There was nothing left of the little boy who had always seemed very sad. Only a constant coldness and indifference.
The chakra of both of them increased. I grabbed Rasa's shoulder courageously. He didn't move, just stared at his son. But I knew that he was listening to me. He tilted his head slightly. As if he expected me to speak to him quietly. But the roar of the wind alone prevented that. Especially as that was not my intention.
„I think it was my fault. Perhaps something about my words angered him. After all, our conversation was about Karura."
Rasa paused. His gold sand still protected us from possible attacks. But nothing of the sort came. When the Kazekage carefully removed the wall, there was no sign of Gaara.
„Can we talk?" I asked him quietly.
A little later, we found ourselves in the tower of the Kazekage. Rasa had taken a seat behind his table, while I stood in front of it to tell him my request. Despite the previous tension, I had the feeling that some of it had now subsided.
„I don't have much time," he said. „Yun will be here soon. There's a lot to discuss with him too."
I tilted my head in confusion.
„Yun?"
„He was appointed leader of the city guard. At least temporarily. Yuma was injured during a mission near the Quarter of Ashes and is temporarily hospitalized."
A nod. That was all I could manage. My mind was whirling. I knew Asna lived there. I wondered if she knew the person who had hurt Yuma. Or was she fighting her own battle? Which side was she on? And did it even exist? Didn't we all have our reasons, but didn't talk to each other enough to understand?
„You wanted to talk to me about something, Kairi?" Rasa snapped me out of my thoughts. He seemed almost amused by my mental absence. It was nothing new to him either. After all, I had been known to be anywhere but in reality with my thoughts at the academy. To the great amusement of the class.
„Yes..." I began, trying to find the right words. „Why do you forbid children who have no skill in either Gen or Ninjutsu from attending the academy?"
As feared, Rasa's eyebrows drew together.
„Taijutsu alone won't do the country much good," he said quietly. „That is why we must put our capacities into what we have left. Many of my previous attempts to restore our country to its former greatness were failures..."
He didn't finish the sentence. But I could guess what he meant. And he evaded me.
„How much does a life mean to you, Rasa?" I asked. He looked at me. Then he began to understand what I was hinting at.
„I have to look at the big picture. I can't take individuals into consideration. Not even with my son."
I would never have expected him to choose his words in this way. Although it seemed to annoy him, he also accommodated me in a certain way. Nevertheless, I remained cautious. This supposed calm could change quickly. After all, I had known Rasa long enough by now.
„Yun will be here soon," he pulled me out of my thoughts again. „I can feel him coming. We still have something to discuss about the people in the Quarter of Ashes. That's where the half-blind girl from the orphanage has gone, isn't it?"
Rasa's voice had taken on a completely different tone. Anger resonated in it. Earlier he had told me about the clash between the city guard and the people there. There was more. Things he wasn't telling me. Of course there were. That was politics. However, everything there in that district also affected Asna. And her well-being was close to my heart. Even though she wasn't my daughter, this girl had taken up residence there.
„Her name is Asna," I said in a calm voice, while a storm raged inside me.
„Baki said you had spoken to her."
I resisted the urge to sigh. Of course Baki had relayed everything to Rasa. As the Kazekage's advisor, he had to. He was loyal to him.
So I nodded curtly.
„The night Shukaku broke out, she saved the lives of his foster son and Temari. I had a moment to speak with her."
Rasa said nothing, so I continued.
„She said that she has no place among the shinobi and therefore prefers to stay in the Quarter of Ashes."
„Which she's probably right about. A wild thing like her doesn't belong in our system. However... this area of the city worries me. Who knows what..."
But now my calm was really over.
„If something is brewing there, it's only because we're not helping them enough and many of the donations aren't arriving. If we pay taxes..."
„Are you Kage or me, Kairi? Huh?" Rasa interrupted me angrily. He had stood up and rested his hands on the table. I looked at him, waiting. He didn't seem to have finished talking for a long time.
„I'm trying to help the country. Can't you see that? I will do everything in my power to make us stronger again. Even if that means..."
He broke off and his eyes became lost in nothingness.
„Don't you see how the villagers treat your children? Doesn't your son mean anything to you?" I asked in a low, trembling voice.
„The experiment with Gaara has failed. Now it's up to me at least to protect Kankuro and Temari," he replied.
„The experiment?" I echoed. „As if he were a broken toy that you then throw away. Doesn't that trigger anything in you? Don't you care about him at all?"
Rasa slammed her palms down on the table with full force. It crunched menacingly.
„Kairi, that's enough!", he snapped. „If you weren't constantly thinking about other people's problems, you might have your life a little better under control. Why don't you ask Ayame what she thinks?"
I flinched at the mention of my late sister's name. She had died because of some stupid carelessness on my part. Because of me... My lips began to tremble. My field of vision blurred. I roughly wiped my eyes with my sleeve.
„What has become of you?" I asked quietly.
„Kairi," he began, but I shook my head.
„No. I understood," I interrupted him, bowed and turned towards the door. Yun stood there and looked at me. When had he come in? I hadn't heard him at all. There was concern in his eyes, but I shook my head.
„Kairi," Rasa said again. I paused for a moment but didn't look back.
„Don't do anything reckless."
A warning, then.