"Damn you! Do you really think so little of us?" the Sunagakure jonin Jinhe roared.
"Everyone, use Wind Release to take him down!" Once Ebizo had recovered, he gave up on leaving and began directing the jonin forces.
"Wind Release: Pressure Damage!"
"Wind Release: Vacuum Wave!"
"Wind Release: Vacuum Sphere!"
"Wind Release: Vacuum Serial Waves!"
The Sunagakure jonin unleashed one Wind Release technique after another. Their jutsu tore through the air with shrill howls.
Wind Release chakra surged toward Uchiha Iori in a variety of forms.
Iori looked at the oncoming Wind Release attacks and shook his head, thinking, As expected of the weakest village. Not even a handful of their jonin know any A-rank jutsu. What a disappointment.
He sighed. His Mangekyō Sharingan activated in an instant, six-pointed stars spinning wildly in his eyes.
"Susanoo," Iori said calmly. "Behold this godlike power."
In an instant, a black giant took shape around him. The third form of Susanoo descended upon the world like a demonic Asura.
"You fools who dare attack a god—show me what you can do!"
Wind Release chakra slammed into Susanoo's armor again and again, sending ripples across it, but it couldn't shake the giant.
The Sunagakure Ninja's expressions changed drastically. Their attacks hadn't even made him consider defending himself or dodging.
In their despair, they could only look to their leader, Kazekage Rasa.
They hoped he could defeat Uchiha Iori—or, failing that, at least turn the tide.
Though Rasa wasn't confident, he knew he couldn't back down now.
He stepped forward, rapidly formed Hand Seals, and shouted, "Magnet Release: Gold Sand Cube!"
A massive cube of gold sand formed in front of him and hurtled toward Iori with tremendous force.
This time, Iori didn't try to block it head-on. He swung Susanoo's arm, and the cube shattered, splitting in two.
But to Iori's surprise, the gold sand didn't stop.
It quickly gathered together in midair and crashed into him again, seemingly just as powerful as before.
The gold sand slammed into Susanoo. It couldn't do any real damage, but it did manage to force the giant back by a step.
The Sunagakure Ninja relaxed a little. At least the giant wasn't invincible.
Protected by Susanoo, Iori applauded and said in surprise, "So you can control every particle individually. No wonder this is the secret art of two generations of Kazekage. Magnet Release techniques really are fascinating."
He gave Rasa an appreciative look. "You don't control the whole mass—you can control each tiny grain of gold sand? Impressive. Your control is every bit as good as Tsunade's."
Magnet Release: Gold Dust was unexpectedly powerful. If he hadn't used Susanoo, he would probably have been slightly injured if caught off guard.
It seemed he really shouldn't underestimate Rasa just because of his poor performance in the anime.
Rasa's face turned ashen. Not only had his attack failed, but his opponent had praised him from a position of superiority.
Humiliated, he burned with anger, but forced it down and gave a cold snort.
Just now, he'd noticed that Susanoo's feet seemed to be unprotected. That might be a way in.
"Keep attacking!" Rasa ordered at once. He wanted the Sunagakure jonin to distract Uchiha Iori and create an opening for him.
Wind Release jutsu came raining down on Iori like a storm. With his Mangekyō Sharingan activated, Iori took the opportunity to collect a wealth of jutsu data.
He couldn't directly copy and use high-level jutsu, but the parts he could copy would still help him analyze chakra.
The bombardment of Wind Release jutsu continued for three minutes.
Iori realized he'd copied all the Wind Release jutsu the Sunagakure Ninja had used.
He activated the autonomous mode of Gate of Babylon, driving the Sunagakure Ninja at the edge of the battlefield inward. Meanwhile, the black Susanoo began moving like a mobile fortress.
Its six weapons struck in turn. Against Susanoo's monstrous strength and the Noble Phantasms' sharp edges, the enemy had no chance of defending themselves and could only dodge as best they could.
The jonin's B-rank Wind Release jutsu felt like a gentle breeze against Susanoo. Iori couldn't be bothered to pay them any mind.
The black demon swept through the Sunagakure Ninja's counterattack, crushing it utterly.
Rasa watched calmly as the jonin were routed, his anger churning inside him.
All he could do was silently guide the gold sand toward Iori's feet, waiting patiently for the chance to kill him in one blow.
After Iori had killed a quarter of the jonin, Rasa had finally finished preparing.
"Magnet Release: Gold Dust Burial!" Rasa formed Hand Seals and slapped a hand against the ground.
He'd already replaced the sand beneath Iori's feet with gold sand without anyone noticing.
The gold sand rose from the ground like a venomous snake and slipped past Susanoo's defenses, tightly encasing Iori.
A smile spread across Rasa's face. "Die, you arrogant Uchiha!"
He used the gold sand to restrain Iori, intending to drag him deep into it and kill him in a massive explosion.
"Did you think I'd be caught unprepared? Did you underestimate my eyes?" Iori sneered and turned his head.
Rasa was shocked to discover that his gold sand couldn't move Iori.
Iori's chakra swirled around his entire body like a gale. Before that powerful current of chakra, the gold sand was helpless, able only to wrap around the chakra surrounding him.
This was the complete version of Mana Burst. Chakra enveloped his body, greatly strengthening him while also providing powerful defense.
"In that case, I'll deal with you first."
He'd originally planned to take out the other jonin first, so they wouldn't scatter in every direction once their leader was killed and make them harder to hunt down.
But Rasa was stronger than he'd expected. If he let his guard down too much, he might get hurt.
Iori pushed off hard, a ring of wind bursting around him as dust billowed into the air.
With chakra-powered Mana Burst supporting him, he easily broke free of the gold sand's grip. Like a cannonball, he shot straight toward Rasa.
Rasa's eyes narrowed. He quickly gathered a large quantity of gold sand and unleashed Magnet Release: Gold Dust Waves. The sand surged toward Iori like a towering tsunami.
Iori looked at the incoming gold sand and said calmly, "Trace On." He raised his right hand and drew a red spear from the void.
He swept the spear across the air. All the gold sand it touched slipped out of Rasa's control and fell to the ground, severing Rasa's chakra control by force.
The Noble Phantasm in Iori's hand was none other than Gae Dearg.
Seeing his jutsu so easily undone, Rasa was stunned. Cold sweat beaded on his forehead as he looked at the spear thrusting toward him.
At that critical moment, he used Magnet Release: Sand Cushion with the fastest speed of his life. The gold sand lifted him sharply into the air, and he narrowly dodged Iori's thrust.