Night was falling.
The Iwagakure commander knew they couldn't keep this up much longer. No matter how many shinobi he sent, the Sand ninja—Rasa—kept conjuring his gold dust and fleeing.
Was this Third Kazekage's disciple planning to take down all the Iwagakure shinobi single-handedly? His ambition seemed boundless.
But time was running out! Who knew how the Kusagakure shinobi, ambushing the Sand ninja elsewhere, were faring?
If more Sand reinforcements arrived, Iwagakure would be in danger.
As the commander, it was his duty to ensure his subordinates survived. Yet the bizarre scene before him left even this veteran of the Second Great Shinobi War uncertain.
Caution, vigilance, observation—these were essential ninja skills. As an elite, he had to be more careful than most. That was the secret to his survival.
His expression flickered as he watched Rasa disperse his chakra again in the distance. [Why does he have so much chakra?]
After countless cycles of gathering and dispersing, Rasa showed no signs of stopping.
[Does he have Uzumaki blood? Or…]
His gaze fell on the small bottle of pale blue liquid Rasa pulled out. [A new chakra-restoring item developed by Sunagakure? Could it be… Chiyo, that old hag's work?]
The commander's face darkened. If true, this could complicate Iwagakure's plans to claim a share of Sunagakure's territory.
"We need to get that potion!" he declared. If they could deliver it to the Tsuchikage, Iwagakure might replicate it. Turning to his shinobi, he said firmly, "We must seize that potion. The Third Kazekage's disciple…"
He glanced at Rasa, who was frowning. [Looks like he's getting impatient too!]
"Forget him for now. Prioritize the potion!"
"Understood!" the Iwagakure shinobi shouted in unison.
Seeing the Iwagakure shinobi abandon their game of cat-and-mouse, Rasa's heart skipped. [They figured it out?]
How did these guys suddenly get so smart?
Couldn't they just keep chasing him for fun?
Let the desert winds be their companion, living free and easy.
His second gacha pull was almost ready. The first one… ugh, don't mention it. The drop rate was abysmal, yielding nothing to solve his current predicament. Still, he got a small bonus: Stamina +1. Without it, he'd be exhausted from all this running.
But now, the Iwagakure shinobi charged with grim determination. Their expressions screamed seriousness.
"Surround him! Throw kunai!" the commander ordered.
The Iwagakure shinobi sprang into action, hurling kunai at Rasa.
Clang! Clang! Clang! Sparks flew as Rasa halted his gold dust refining, enveloping himself in a protective barrier of gold dust.
When the attacks subsided, he peeked through a gap… only to see explosive tags plastered everywhere.
"…"
Rasa had some choice words he wasn't sure he should say. Sighing, he reinforced his defenses, but the sheer force of so many explosive tags detonated by multiple shinobi was overwhelming.
It made him want to puke.
Seizing the chaos, he sold off the gold dust that had served its purpose, regathered more with his chakra, and thought, [This feels like grinding a dungeon while buying gear.]
Except the recycling rate was garbage—a trash game! He chugged another red potion from the set he'd pulled, instantly recovering some stamina. [Are these Iwagakure guys finally getting serious?]
His eyes narrowed, his face flashing with anger. Then, gathering his gold dust again… he turned and bolted. So many Jōnin—he wasn't an idiot!
Sure, in theory, Rasa's strength could let him solo the One-Tail in the desert and seal it, but he'd only been in this world a month.
He needed time to adjust to ninja combat! He wasn't the Third Raikage, who could single-handedly fight ten thousand shinobi for three days and nights before dying of exhaustion.
Wait—that hadn't happened yet.
Meanwhile…
"What the—?!"
The Iwagakure shinobi stared, dumbfounded, as Rasa fled again, dispersing and regathering his chakra mid-escape. If they didn't realize by now that this "Third Kazekage's disciple" had no secret weapon, they'd be unworthy of being ninja.
"Chase him! He's mocking us!" the commander roared, his face alternating between rage and humiliation as he waved his shinobi forward.
Why did this Sand ninja keep gathering and dispersing chakra? [Wait…]
A thought struck him, his eyes narrowing as fury built in his chest. [Mentally broken, incoherent… maybe he can't properly refine his chakra because of his trauma?]
Gasping, he pointed ahead. "He's a fraud! Get him!"
"Yes!"
"???" Rasa glanced back at the furious commander, feeling wronged. A fraud? What had he even done? He'd been running this whole time without saying a word!
Sighing helplessly, he couldn't dwell on it. If he didn't keep moving, he'd be beaten to death.
Seeing he'd finally gathered enough for another gacha pull, he hesitated. Ten thousand ryō was a lot, but… might as well pull now!
Gritting his teeth, he clicked the draw button, thinking, [How's the Sand ninja team doing? Why no reinforcements?]
Ding! A cheerful, celebratory chime rang out.
Rasa's eyes widened at the interface. "This?! Did I finally get something good?"
---
Meanwhile, on the Sand ninja's side…
Having escaped Kusagakure's ambush, the Sand shinobi found a place to rest briefly.
"Momu, what now?" one asked, looking worriedly at the temporary commander appointed by Rasa-sama. "With so many Iwagakure shinobi… Rasa-sama must be in danger."
"This…" Momu hesitated, seeing the concern on his comrades' faces. He was about to lead them to aid Rasa when he recalled Rasa-sama's serious expression, his heartfelt trust, his resolute gaze…
[I can't betray Rasa-sama's trust!]
His face hardened with determination as he addressed the Sand shinobi. "No! We can't let Rasa-sama down! He drew the Iwagakure shinobi away so we could survive. We must not let his sacrifice be in vain."
Raising his fist, his expression radiant, he declared, "We'll defend Sunagakure to the death!"
"We'll defend Sunagakure to the death!" the others shouted, raising their fists with resolve.
"We must not let Rasa-sama down!"
(End of Chapter)