Chapter 16: Sunagakure's Upheaval
The subordinate froze, unable to believe the order he'd heard.
Disperse the crowd? The hope on the villagers' faces wasn't faked. Wouldn't this incite a riot?
But one look at Rasa's livid expression, and he didn't dare say another word. He turned and sprinted toward the shinobi barracks.
The cheering in the square continued. Gaara stood in the center, his red hair stirring in the wind.
Just a short time ago, he believed he was doomed to live in loneliness and hatred.
But then, a sudden flood of memories had disrupted his life. At first, he'd dismissed them as delusions. But then, that very morning, several shinobi had rushed to his home to pledge their loyalty.
Soon after, Temari and Kankuro arrived. It was only then he understood: the memories were not delusions. They were the future.
In those memories, he wore the Kazekage's hat, looking out over Suna. He wasn't alone; he had friends.
Even more unbelievable: his mother, Karura, her chakra had been protecting him, her youngest son, all along. The sand control he'd always attributed to Shukaku was, in fact, his mother's undying protection.
And yet, none of the shinobi who held this future knowledge had said a single word to the current Fourth Kazekage.
Gaara wasn't sure if that was a tragedy for Sunagakure, or a tragedy for his father, Rasa.
"Gaara-sama!"
"Gaara-sama!"
The crowd chanted. Among them, only a few were shinobi with memories; the vast majority were ordinary villagers who knew nothing.
Gaara looked at the people surrounding him. These same villagers who used to avoid him at all costs... were now shouting his name.
He suddenly remembered a village riot from his memories, how he had stood alone against the crowd. He was a different person now.
"Thank you, everyone." He took a deep breath, his voice catching. "I know you used to fear me. But please believe me... from this day forward, I will use this power to protect you."
A new, even more passionate, wave of applause erupted. Standing further back, Temari quietly tugged Kankuro's sleeve. "See? I told you he could do it."
"You're right," Kankuro said, moved. "Only Gaara can lead Sunagakure to a better future."
Suddenly, a commotion came from the back of the crowd.
"Break it up! Everyone disperse!"
"Lord Rasa has given the order! Disband this assembly immediately!"
The cheering died instantly. The smiles on the villagers' faces froze.
Someone flinched back, but the person next to them grabbed their arm.
A white-haired elder stepped forward, leaning on his cane, his cloudy eyes fixed on the shinobi. "We are only listening to Lord Gaara speak. What rule have we broken?"
"Exactly! He's talking about protecting the village! What's wrong with that?"
"On what grounds are you dispersing us?"
The challenges came one after another. The subordinate, standing behind the squad, felt his palms slick with cold sweat.
His worst fear was happening. Lord Rasa's order was a boulder thrown into a pot of boiling oil, and it had just caused a violent eruption.
The standoff in the square grew more tense. Villagers and the shinobi sent to disperse them were locked in place.
Gaara, from the center of the crowd, looked past the sea of heads and saw him—his father, Rasa, standing at the edge of the square.
Rasa could not believe what he was seeing. The villagers of Sunagakure were defending that... that "monster." The same "monster" whose very name used to fill them with disgust.
"How... How has this happened to our village?"
Rasa suddenly felt a sharp pain in his chest. He had never imagined that his years of tireless, back-breaking work would result in this.
He thought of the countless nights spent in his office, poring over stacks of scrolls, agonizing over the budget, losing sleep over a few bags of grain.
He thought of his chakra running dry in the desert as he mined for gold, just so his shinobi could have new tools.
He thought of fighting on the border, returning to his duties covered in wounds that hadn't even healed.
He believed the villagers saw this. That they understood his sacrifice.
And now? Now, they were openly defying him, all for the child he had always considered a threat.
"Why..."
Had all his hard work been for nothing? Had the people of Suna forgotten everything he had done for them?
In the square, the confrontation continued.
The two sides were a mess, about to come to blows. A few hot-headed shinobi tried to shove a villager, but the old man blocked them with his cane.
"You dare lay a hand on us!"
"Lord Gaara is Suna's hope! No one will harm him!"
Just as the situation was about to explode, Baki pushed his way out of the crowd.
"Lord Rasa!" He hurried to Rasa's side, his voice low. "The situation is out of control. Using force now will only escalate the conflict... it could lead to a riot. Please, think about this!"
"Baki... even you side with him?" Rasa clutched his chest.
Baki was silent for a moment, but finally spoke. "I am not siding with anyone. I am siding with the future of Sunagakure. What Lord Gaara said... it moved many people. Including me."
Rasa just stared at Baki, unmoving.
Up front, the conflict was escalating, about to turn into an all-out brawl.
At that moment, Gaara stepped forward.
"Everyone, please calm down." His voice wasn't loud, but it carried clearly to every ear.
The villagers' heads snapped toward him. The shinobi Rasa had sent also froze, instinctively looking to this boy who had suddenly earned the crowd's loyalty.
"They are only following their orders. There is no need to make this difficult for them."
"Father." Gaara said, looking at Rasa. "Please, stop this."
The word "Father," in this moment, was unbearably piercing to Rasa.
"Silence!" Rasa's composure finally broke. "Who gave you the right to call me that? You are nothing but a 'vessel'! It is not your place to challenge the order of Sunagakure!"
"I am a 'vessel,'" Gaara replied, his voice steady. "But I am also a citizen of Suna. And I am your son."
"Son?" Rasa's eyes were full of mockery. "If it wasn't for Suna's military power, do you think I would have let you live this long? The years I spent testing you, watching you... it wasn't so you could learn to use the word 'Father' to challenge me!"
Just as the tension between them stretched to its breaking point, the crowd parted, making a path.
"Fourth Kazekage. That is enough."
The two great elders of Sunagakure, Chiyo and Ebizo, had come to mediate.