Dan Katō's Death

Half a minute passed in silence. Dosa had finished gathering his chakra. "Kalo, move!" Kalo immediately moved away from the Konoha Ninja.

Dosa suddenly spread his arms. The earth shuddered violently. "Boom!" Two hands, each dozens of meters tall, rose from the sea of Gold Dust on either side. Between them stood several Konoha Ninja, tiny as ants.

"They can't escape this time, can they? [Magnet Release: Gold Dust Hell]!" Dosa brought his hands together, interlocking his fingers. The colossal hands of Gold Dust closed in as well. Tsunade wanted to help, but she couldn't. Katsuyu wouldn't make it in time either. Everyone was about to be crushed flat!

"I have to make it! [Spirit Transformation Technique]!" Dan Katō formed Hand Seals rapidly and forced himself to use the Spirit Transformation Technique. The instant his spirit appeared, it attacked Dosa, who was still performing his jutsu.

Dosa was startled. A mass of Gold Dust rushed in front of him, and he used his mind to control the [Shield of Gold Dust] and defend himself.

"It's no use!!" Dan Katō was in spirit form. He passed straight through a gap in the Gold Dust shield and reached Dosa in an instant, plunging his right hand into Dosa's chest.

"Ah!" Dosa clutched his chest and fell to the ground with a scream. The two enormous hands of Gold Dust, about to crush the Konoha Ninja, collapsed at once. All the Gold Dust lay inert on the ground.

Dan Katō was about to enter Dosa's body and finish him off, but his spirit suddenly weakened. "Damn it, I'm out of chakra!" A flash of white light, and Dan Katō's spirit returned to his body. He gasped for breath, utterly exhausted. All the chakra he had left was just enough to keep him alive.

As Dosa fell, Chiyo continued attacking Tsunade on the other side. She twitched her fingers, and all her puppets opened their mouths, sending poisoned needles flying at Tsunade from every direction. Tsunade punched the ground, and a powerful shock wave swept all the needles away.

Suddenly, the three puppets behind Tsunade arranged themselves in a triangle, secretly leaving a gap in the middle. Kalo, who had been beside Dosa, had taken advantage of Dosa using a wide-area jutsu to sneak around behind Tsunade. He sneered and launched a sudden attack.

"Ha ha! Die! [Wind Release: Vacuum Great Sphere]!" Kalo spat out a huge vacuum wind bullet. It shot toward Tsunade's back at cannonball speed, carving a trail through the air.

"Tsunade! Watch out!!" Dan Katō shouted, having only just returned to his body. Tsunade finally noticed the attack from behind, but she had been caught off guard, and the wind bullet was already upon her!

"Am I going to die here?" Tsunade thought in despair. The Wind Release was too powerful to withstand, Katsuyu wasn't nearby to help, and there was no time to dodge! But a figure appeared beside her, long pale-blue hair streaming in the wind...

At the last possible moment, Dan Katō used the last of his chakra to Body Flicker to Tsunade's side and knock her out of the way. The wind bullet struck him directly. Tsunade managed to lean aside just enough to avoid it.

"Dan!!" Tsunade watched helplessly as Dan Katō was thrown away from her. Then the wind bullet suddenly expanded and exploded, swelling into a huge sphere. Dan Katō took the full force of the Wind Release head-on. The fierce wind tore at him like countless blades, and its wild, violent force engulfed his body in an instant.

Dan Katō was blasted dozens of meters away and slammed into the ground, blood spurting from his mouth. The vest Riyue had modified for him absorbed some of the impact before the gale tore it to shreds. His clothes were in tatters, and wounds exposing the bone covered his body, pouring with blood. His entire body was mangled beyond recognition.

"Dan Katō!" Tsunade and the three remaining jōnin ran toward Dan Katō without hesitation.

"Dosa, hang in there!" On the Hidden Sand side, Chiyo, Ebizo, and Kalo also ran to Dosa, who had fallen to the ground. Both sides had suffered serious injuries at nearly the same time, so they chose to stop fighting for the moment.

"He's still breathing, Dosa! Hang on! Get him medical attention, quickly!" Chiyo and the others immediately decided to take Dosa for treatment. Chiyo and Kalo carried him away at once. He was the Third Kazekage's student, and he possessed the Magnet Release Kekkei Genkai—he could control Gold Dust! If Dosa died, the Third Kazekage would never forgive them...

Meanwhile, Ebizo stayed behind and ordered the other Hidden Sand Ninja around them, "Don't let a single one escape!" He led dozens of Hidden Sand Ninja in surrounding Tsunade and the others.

"Go! Move!!" As rain poured down, Chiyo and Kalo chose to retreat while Dosa was badly injured and their enemies were in disarray. Tsunade threw several Kunai bearing Explosive Tags. Amid the explosions, the three remaining elite jōnin carried Dan Katō and forced their way out.

A Konoha jōnin sacrificed his life so Tsunade and the others could break through. After shaking off the Hidden Sand pursuit, only four members of the original twelve-person squad remained, and one of them was hovering between life and death...

(BGM: "Neji's Death," Naruto / "Sorrow and Suffering," Sixteen)

The rain kept falling, and the sky gradually darkened. In the forest, Dan Katō lay on the ground. Blood and rainwater mingled, staining the earth red. His torn vest had been removed, revealing broad, blood-red wounds across his body. He looked like a man drenched in blood.

Tsunade's face was smeared with blood. Gritting her teeth, she pressed both hands against Dan Katō's abdomen. Green chakra light flickered frantically as she fought the Grim Reaper for his life. The armed jōnin and another jōnin stood beside them in silence, their brows furrowed.

Dan Katō seemed to regain a sliver of consciousness. He opened his eyes and looked at Tsunade, who was trying to save him.

"Tsu... Tsunade..." Dan Katō managed to force out a few words, his voice faint as a mosquito's and utterly feeble. Blood trickled from the corner of his mouth.

"Dan! Don't talk!" Tsunade cried, increasing the flow of chakra from her Mystical Palm Technique.

"If I don't... there won't be... another chance..." Dan Katō murmured, his breath barely audible. His chest trembled, and when he exhaled, a rush of blood came with it.

"No, no..." Tsunade shook her head.

"Actually... I like... you. From the first time... I saw you..." Dan Katō drew on what little strength he had left and spoke in broken phrases, but the blood at the corner of his mouth wouldn't stop flowing.

"Dan..." Tsunade's heart clenched, as though it had been twisted hard. Tears mixed with the rain and streamed down her face, washing away the blood and grime. She didn't even notice.

"I... don't want... to die... I haven't... become Hokage... for my little sister... yet... I still want... to be with you..." Dan Katō's eyes half-closed. His consciousness slowly blurred, and he murmured as if he would never have another chance if he stopped speaking.

"Don't worry. The bleeding's stopped. You'll be fine. Dan, you're going to be all right!" Tsunade said, putting on a relaxed expression and smiling with narrowed eyes. But her body kept trembling, and she didn't dare look at Dan Katō. It seemed she was really trying to comfort herself.

The ninja beside them couldn't help turning away, grief in his heart. It's no use. He can't be saved. He's lost too much blood, countless bones are broken, and his blood vessels have ruptured. His heart, liver, spleen, and kidneys are all severely damaged, and his other organs are hurt to varying degrees... His whole body has been battered to pieces. Even Tsunade, one of the Sannin, can't save him... He can't be saved...

Hearing Tsunade's words, Dan Katō used the last of his strength to narrow his eyes and smile faintly. "Is that so... That's great..."

"Thank you... Tsunade..." Then he could no longer hold on. His consciousness faded, and his eyes slowly closed against his will.

"I don't regret... rushing over... to save you... not at all..." After Dan Katō softly forced out those few words, his eyes slowly closed, and the trace of a smile on his face faded away...

"Dan? Dan! Don't sleep! You can't sleep!" Tsunade cried out in alarm. Dan Katō didn't respond.

"Damn it!" Tsunade realized that Dan Katō's heartbeat was growing weaker and weaker, and his breathing was nearly gone.

"Stop the bleeding! Stop it! Stop! Don't bleed anymore! Stop! Stop!" Tsunade screamed, close to hysterics. Despair struck her, followed by grief. Tsunade felt afraid. There would be no miracle. She was about to lose something precious, and there was nothing she could do...

Dan's dead. I can't save him... Tsunade mourned inwardly.

"Stop! Don't die! Don't die, Dan!" As Tsunade cried out, Dan Katō's heart stopped...

"Stop! Don't die! Dan! Dan!" Tsunade screamed until her voice broke.

"Don't do this. He's already dead, Tsunade!" The ninja beside her shook his head and tried to reason with her.

At the ninja's words, Tsunade stared blankly, lost and helpless, her mind empty. She fixed her eyes on her blood-soaked hands, which trembled incessantly. She struggled to breathe. That crimson red filled her with terror, a profound terror! Pain, despair, regret, and guilt tore at her heart, shattering it.

"Who said he was dead?! Hm?!" Just then, a figure leaped swiftly toward them. The jōnin jumped in surprise and turned to look at the newcomer. It was a Konoha Ninja. Had reinforcements arrived?

"Phew! I finally made it! Looks like I'm a little late." Hyuga Nichigetsu landed on a treetop, panting, and looked at everyone with a stern expression. Seeing that Dan Katō had stopped breathing, Riyue furrowed his brow.

He used the Body Flicker Technique to appear beside Dan Katō and quickly examined his condition with the Byakugan. Because Dan Katō was wearing the specially made vest Riyue had given him, his kidneys had ruptured but were still intact. However, the rest of his body had been battered by the Wind Release. He was covered in wounds, with multiple broken bones. His internal organs were severely damaged, his blood vessels had ruptured, and he was suffering from massive internal bleeding and extreme blood loss. His breathing and heartbeat had stopped.

A few seconds later, Riyue looked up at Tsunade. Her expression was blank, her eyes wide open but lifeless. His gaze was firm and left no room for argument.

"Still, I haven't said he's dead, so he's not dead yet!"