Wooing Girls for the Rise of Sand

"Boom, boom, boom..."

Sonic booms rang out in succession, drowning out the sound of various irregular metal objects falling into the desert.

Every piece of metal perfectly skirted Pakura's body; a master of human-shaped outlines, the barrage completely sealed off the entire area around her.

If Pakura dared to move even an inch, she would be riddled with holes. Ninjas were, in truth, just like that; there were only a handful of people in the entire ninja world with high physical resistance.

Pakura collapsed listlessly into the desert, her eyes vacant, lips trembling slightly, and her delicate little nose twitching—she was on the verge of being beaten to tears by Rasa.

She hadn't suffered a single injury, but that was precisely the perfect manifestation of Rasa's control.

If her initial defeat had been due to carelessness and the bizarre nature of Rasa's abilities, there was absolutely no excuse for this failure.

The gap in strength was comprehensive; she was absolutely no match for that arrogant redhead. At this moment, he likely already possessed strength as formidable as the Kazekage.

Pakura was shocked by Rasa's power, while Rasa was reflecting on his own shortcomings, seeking further improvement.

First was his chakra and mental energy; the energy available to drive electromagnetic force was still insufficient. That final "Metal Rain" had actually consumed thirty percent of his chakra.

Secondly, as the quantity and mass of the metal controlled simultaneously increased, the consumption rose geometrically.

Therefore, while it appeared as if all the metal had fallen to surround and suppress Pakura at once, it had actually been electromagneticized and accelerated in batches, then left to surround her using inertia.

In other words, aside from the initial use of electromagnetic force to give all the metal a relative repulsive force for acceleration, the metal had actually been out of his control for the rest of the process.

What surrounded Pakura was Rasa plus inertia, and Rasa's goal was to be able to do this with ease even without relying on inertia.

Only by striving for perfection could one make progress.

With a point of comparison, Rasa finally had some understanding of his own strength. Dealing with Kage-level powerhouses was one thing, but at the very least, bullying the weak was truly stable.

Below the Kage level, they were like grass, ripe for the harvest.

Ceasing these thoughts, Rasa manipulated the cluster of metal before him, weeding out substances with lower hardness such as gold, silver, and copper.

He twisted the remainder into the shape of a long blade, using electromagnetic force to suppress the movement between atoms as much as possible, causing it to cool rapidly.

It was thanks to Pakura's help that he could complete such precise manipulation; otherwise, he couldn't have done it alone.

A long blade capable of severing a hair was thus completed. He then used the discarded impurities to craft a scabbard, sheathed the blade, and hung it at his waist.

Rasa finally moved, walking toward Pakura against the wind and sand. Behind him, the sun blazed brilliantly.

Pakura looked up; her beautiful face, even if somewhat haggard, remained a one-in-a-million beauty.

Gazing up at Rasa's tall figure, she felt a moment of dizziness from the scorching sun behind him—so dazzling.

Perhaps it was the man, perhaps it was the sun; in Pakura's eyes, the two seemed to merge into one.

Pakura curled her lips and smiled bitterly: "You win.

So, are you here to mock me, the loser?"

Her heart was a complex mix of emotions. The two were known as the Twin Stars of Sunagakure, peers of equal brilliance. After experiencing the pain of losing their teacher, Rasa had taken a massive step forward, while she had made no progress at all.

"We are both ninjas of Sunagakure, what are you saying?"

Rasa crouched down to look Pakura in the eye. Their gazes met, and after a few seconds, Pakura's heart rate accelerated suddenly, like a startled deer.

Rasa smiled, raised a finger, and two Iron Butterfly landed upon it, saying: "Your shuriken, returned to you."

He pinned the Iron Butterfly into Pakura's hair as an ornament, and for a moment, the already beautiful Pakura gained even more charm.

Looking Pakura over from left to right, Rasa laughed: "Actually, looking closely, you're quite pretty."

Baka!

You only just realized this lady is pretty now?

Pakura's heart beat even faster. She dared not look into Rasa's eyes, lowering her head to fiddle with the sand on the ground.

Karura's eyelids twitched. Have I been NTR'd on the spot? Unfortunately, the distance was too great, and she could only see the two of them exchanging a few words.

"Seduced the brother-in-law already, what a slut!"

Yashamaru muttered, cursing under his breath: "I wondered why she kept making trouble for brother-in-law; turns out she had her eyes on him. What a schemer.

Sister, you must not let her succeed—at the very least, you cannot be the second wife!"

Ninjas were generally monogamous, but the nobles in the capital of the Land of Wind often had many wives; Yashamaru was already accustomed to this.

"What are you saying? Your brother-in-law isn't that kind of person."

Karura scolded Yashamaru, then walked quickly toward her boyfriend. Her unsteady gait revealed a simple fact: she was panicked.

Seeing Karura approach, Rasa and Pakura quickly stood up, pretending nothing had happened.

Karura wrapped her arms around Rasa's arm, her face blooming with a smile as she said to Pakura: "You aren't hurt, are you, Sister Pakura?"

Does being hit and suffering internally count?

"No, no." Pakura stammered.

"That's good."

Karura nodded, then leaned against Rasa's shoulder, saying tenderly: "We haven't seen each other for days. Yashamaru said you had something very important to do, so I didn't dare disturb you.

If you aren't busy now, how about keeping me company for a stroll? Let's talk and walk together."

Asserting sovereignty!

Pakura, whose head was never particularly sharp, unexpectedly understood the meaning behind Karura's actions, a slight bitterness welling up in her heart.

Who would even want your red-headed boyfriend!

Rasa chuckled in amusement. Even the Yamato Nadeshiko-like Karura had a side capable of playing little tricks, but that was precisely what made her even more adorable.

Patting Karura on the shoulder, he whispered, "Since we're free, let's find a shop and sit down together."

"Mm."

Karura nodded, linked her arm with Rasa's, and led him away from Pakura—a woman who was dangerous in every sense of the word.

Who wants your red-head, guarding against me like I'm a wolf!

Pakura watched their retreating figures, gently stroked the Iron Butterfly in her hair, tidied up the scene, and left as well.

With Karura's arm linked in his, Rasa began to visualize the Starry Sky Vortex within his mind.

[Points: 169]

It had originally been 143, and after consuming 100 points, 43 remained. Over the past few days, due to the various pre-war preparations in Sunagakure, the butterfly effect had boosted it to 78.

Simply defeating Pakura and flirting with her along the way had yielded a harvest of 91 points; it felt fantastic.

In the original plot, the relationship between Pakura and Rasa was terrible. Both were candidates for the Fourth Kazekage, acting like two rotten fish fighting in the mud, at odds like fire and water.

Then, due to Rasa's betrayal, Pakura died at the hands of Kirigakure ninjas, her beauty cut short. It was precisely because of this that Rasa was able to ascend to power smoothly.

Now, by doing the exact opposite—first using his strength to temporarily subdue Pakura and then flirting with her—he had certainly influenced the trajectory of the world.

Pakura was an excellent source of points that could be further exploited in the future. Rasa made a decision in his heart:

To flirt for the rise of Sunagakure, and sell his own charms.