The Great Sand Ninja

By the afternoon of the fifth day, they finally reached the designated border. After traveling day and night, all the ninja were somewhat exhausted.

But...

Sunagakure's current situation did not allow them even a moment of relaxation. If Sunagakure was to survive this sudden war, they had to risk their lives.

No one could be trusted in these chaotic times. Even Whirlpool Country, which had once possessed the strongest allies, had now... been wiped out, hadn't it?

Being a wandering ninja was never easy.

No one would take them in, no one would trust them, and even if they were lucky enough to be accepted in the end, they would still be nothing more than tools.

Unlike the other ninja, who began setting up camp, Rasa frowned slightly as he sensed the direction of the wind. As the Third Kazekage's disciple and the only ninja in the village who had learned Magnetic Shield, one could say...

He was the hope of the entire village~.

Naturally, he was not weak.

Especially since this was the border adjacent to the Land of Birds and the Land of Rain. He absolutely could not let down his guard in the slightest.

And...

"Something's wrong!"

The moment he entered this quiet desert, he had felt something strange. After all, he possessed the talent to prospect for gold in the desert. Not even the slightest change in the sands could escape his eyes.

"Lord Rasa..."

When they saw Lord Rasa frowning and silently observing the surroundings, the other ninja also sensed that something was wrong. They gathered around Rasa and vigilantly watched the desert.

Yet before them... there was still nothing but barren wasteland, with no other sign of anything unusual.

However, at that moment...

"Exploding Tags! Defend yourselves!"

Rasa finally realized what was wrong. When he tried using Magnetic Shield to prospect for gold and earn some extra money, he discovered that beneath the sand and dust... there were Exploding Tags hidden one after another.

The moment he spoke...

The other ninja reacted swiftly as well. One of a ninja's essential skills was—quick reflexes!

No matter what danger they faced, they had to react immediately and act according to the most correct response their minds could produce.

Rasa also quickly formed hand seals and used his Magnetic Shield to protect the ninja around him.

"Magnet Release: Gold Dust Shield!"

At once...

A glittering golden wave of Gold Dust surged up from the desert, shielding the ninja around him.

As for the ninja outside its range...

"Earth Release: Earth Flow Rampart!"

At his command, they hurriedly used their own defensive ninjutsu.

Rasa sighed as he looked at the tempting Gold Dust before him and muttered, "Very good, another haul of gold?!"

This gold was impure, though, and had to be refined before it could be sold. Of course, some people bought raw ore too. After all, Gold Dust was essentially gold mixed with sand and gravel, with very low purity. Without the refining process, its purchase price was even lower.

Magnetic Shield could not only attract Gold Dust, but other metals as well.

So despite this dense, glittering expanse of gold, its actual gold content was not particularly high.

At present, Rasa had not yet begun supporting the village through gold prospecting, so he had not asked other ninja to help refine it.

Once he became the Fourth Kazekage and saw how the village's daily expenses exceeded its income...

He...

Would embark upon the irreversible path of a Gold Prospector.

Of course, that was the old him. The current him... perhaps... he could as well...

After all, didn't he still need to spend money?

As the impacts around them weakened considerably, Rasa controlled the Gold Dust and revealed the scene before them. Most of the ninja had been injured, but because he had warned them in time... their injuries were not severe. They could still clutch their Kunai, glaring angrily and warily at the ninja from another village who had suddenly appeared around them.

"Kusagakure?"

Rasa frowned slightly as he looked at the ninja who had inexplicably welcomed them with Exploding Tags, wearing forehead protectors marked with wavy seaweed-like lines.

"They actually set up an ambush here so quickly?"

Or rather...

Had they already prepared to start a war the moment they heard that the Third Kazekage had disappeared?

Did they intend to take advantage of the opportunity and replace Sunagakure as one of the Five Great Ninja Villages?

At the thought, Rasa sneered and shook his head.

Did this group of guys think they could do whatever they wanted just because they had allied with Konoha?

"Stay on guard!"

He lowered his head and spoke to the ninja beside him.

The situation was unclear, so they absolutely could not act rashly. Moreover, whether this operation had been decided by Kusagakure alone or instigated by Konoha from behind the scenes was also extremely important information.

And since they had dared to show themselves after one round of Exploding Tags, Rasa did not think Kusagakure's commander was an idiot!

They definitely possessed some method they believed could defeat Sunagakure, especially since this time, Sunagakure's vanguard consisted of fairly capable Jonin and Chunin.

"If something's wrong, immediately arrange for people to retreat!"

First, he had to give his companions a warning like a man. Otherwise... wouldn't it look embarrassing if he simply ran away later?

However, the moment he finished speaking...

Whoosh, whoosh~

Another group of ninja leaped out around them, wearing forehead protectors different from those of Kusagakure's ninja.

"Iwagakure?!"

Rasa's expression immediately darkened, and his heart trembled as he looked at the villages surrounding them.

Why was Iwagakure getting involved with Kusagakure at a time like this?

And if Kusagakure was getting so close to Iwagakure, were they not afraid of Konoha's reproach?

"The Third Kazekage's disciple... Rasa."

A Jonin who appeared to be Iwagakure's commander stepped forward. Looking at Rasa before him, he frowned and pondered for a moment.

"According to our intelligence, Rasa suffered a mental blow over the Third Kazekage's disappearance and became delirious. I didn't expect him to be sent out at a time like this."

And as a commander, no less?!

So... was the intelligence wrong, and this disciple of the Third Kazekage had not actually suffered a mental blow, which was why he had been sent out as commander? Or had Sunagakure truly reached such a severe shortage of manpower?!

However, none of that was important. As ninja dispatched by the Tsuchikage to investigate the situation this time...

The information before them was enough.

The Tsuchikage would then borrow passage through Kusagakure, and the main force would directly descend upon Sunagakure!

It was not only Kumogakure that had its eyes on the leaderless, hollowed-out piece of meat that was Sunagakure. Iwagakure... coveted it just as much!

"Attack!"

Next...

They would test how much strength Rasa, the Third Kazekage's disciple, still possessed!

Then, amid Rasa's bafflement and confusion, all the Stone Ninja charged straight at him!

"???"

What was this supposed to mean?

They suspected he was a Lunatic, so they planned to test him with an attack?

That was far too much bullying!

Rasa hurriedly turned to the Sand Ninja beside him and said with a solemn expression, "The village's hope is in your hands. You must escape!"

"Lord Rasa!"

The Sand Ninja were moved to tears by Rasa's inexplicable words and were about to say something.

Whoosh~

A golden tidal wave rose from beneath Rasa's feet, carrying him straight into the distance.

This was too terrifying! They were outnumbered by dozens—what was there to fight for?!

Without another word, Rasa fled. In any case, he had already entrusted the troops to another ninja. That whoever-it-was... uh, what was his name again... Rasa thought highly of him!

However...

"Pursue!"

Seeing this, the Stone Ninja Commander also waved his hand without hesitation and led the Stone Ninja after him.

Meanwhile.

After seeing their commander run off without leaving behind so much as a word, the Sand Ninja were utterly dumbfounded.

"Moomu, what do we do now?"

A moment later, all the Sand Ninja looked at the Sand Ninja who had been entrusted as their temporary commander.

"This..." Moomu, with a headscarf wrapped around his head, had no idea what to do either. He looked at the Grass Ninja before them, who were equally bewildered by Iwagakure's departure. Could they win?!

It was only a small ninja village~

Even though they had slightly more people here, they seemed to have far fewer Jonin~

But if they fought head-on, their side would also suffer considerable losses.

After pondering for a moment, he looked at the Grass Ninja, who were watching him with equally complicated expressions. Finally, he gritted his teeth and said firmly, "Retreat!"

At that moment, he remembered the serious expression on Lord Rasa's face when he had drawn the enemy away alone.

Lord Rasa... had decisively lured the enemy away because he wanted him to preserve their fresh forces for the coming war!

At once...

Reverence welled up in his heart!

What a great Sand Ninja Lord Rasa was!