Worrying about Rasa’s recent behaviour had given Pakura a headache. That and the bond-induced dreams delving into Lin Feng’s past that came to her at night, leaving her tossing and turning in her sheets. The worst thing was that they left very few impressions when she woke up in the mornings.

Something to do with her lack of a focused soul.

It was quite unfair that he had access to all of her past while his still remained wrapped in a shroud of obscurity.

After the fiasco at the dinner where she had fled in panic, they had decided to ignore the elephant in the room and maintain a semblance of normalcy.

But she had noticed the change in his vision night after night as a bit more of her past was laid bare to him. The way he looked at her was getting more and more… familiar… for the lack of a better term while to her, he was still an enigma.

She sighed again as she watched Rasa, dressed in ceremonial robes ascend the dais in the city centre along with Lin Feng who was attired in equally ornate garments.

Given how ambitious he was, the level of resistance Rasa showed towards vacating the seat of the Kazekage and handing it over to Lin Feng was extremely underwhelming. A token resistance at best, followed by complicity.

She was still suspicious of some underlying plot even after going over the arrangements for the umpteenth time.

It was nearly a fortnight after they had returned with the two legendary swords and in this time, Pakura had gone about drumming up support for the transition of leaderships.

Some difficulties were created by the hardcore loyalists of Rasa, especially from his clan and the Tetsu clan, but after he had declared his intention to step down, the political winds had blown in Lin Feng’s favour.

As per the wartime charter, all the bureaucracy was accelerated and that was how Lin Feng came to ascend to the seat of the Fifth Kazekage this day.

On the stage, surrounded by the crowded population of Suna, Lin Feng accepted the hat of office from Rasa and set it atop his head to muted cheers and more uncertain muttering.

Well, a mixed reaction was to be expected. After all he had appeared out of nowhere.

Raising his hand for silence, Lin Feng waited till the square had settled down before speaking:

“Fellow citizens of the Sand, the desert is a harsh mistress. Arid, barren, blazing in the day and frigid at night. Yet, we have managed to set down our roots in her unforgiving bosom.”

He raised both his hands and in the middle of the square a column of glass slowly rose from the ground. It was a dark green, tending to black with veined patterns of brown running through it.

“Irrigated by the blood, sweat and tears of your forefathers, the Hidden Sand grew healthy and strong in a place where there was nothing to be had.”

The column tapered of to a rounded tip, standing at a height of two adult men.

“Others coveted the bounty sealed within the walls of Suna and to protect it from them, brave men and women stood, fought and died. They were the Thorns of Suna, martyrs of the Hidden Sand. Just like the barbs on a cactus, they protected the vulnerable interior from encroachment, drawing their last breaths in the process.”

He waved again and small, transparent thorns grew out of the column, making it look like the Saguaro cactus. At the base of each of these thorns, if one looked carefully, one would notice that the brown venation had been arranged in a way that spelled out a name.

They were the names she had collected from the mouth of the Suna citizens in her rounds of the city.

“Their leader was the First Kazekage.”

At the tip of the column, a light pink glass flower bloomed.

“So, it was for the Second, Third and Fourth Kazekage’s reign.”

Three more glass columns branched out from the main one, curving upwards and growing up straight. The one representing the Second Kazekage began higher up and ended at the same level with the main column, indicative of the relative peace in that time and the fewer number of deaths in that period while the branch representing the Third began nearly at the base and grew to the top, demonstrating the frigidity of the Second Shinobi World War.

Rasa’s column too was quite short due to the brevity of his reign. Flowers representing the Kage bloomed at the tips of the branches with the numbers one, two and three spelled out in the venation.

“I hope that when I finally hand over my hat to my successor, my branch will be the shortest yet. Heroes are great men and women. Their families deserve to spend more time with them.”

Thunderous applause greeted the end of his speech as the Saguaro of the Fallen was added as a landmark to the new City of Suna.

Pakura stood transfixed, while staring unblinkingly at the flowers at the tips of the sculpture.

The noon sun shone on it casting colourful shadows across the square and lighting up the blossoms in a vivid shade.

They were Adeniums, also known as the Rose of the Desert.

She didn’t know what he meant by it or if he meant anything at all… but all of a sudden, her heart beat a little bit faster.