A Battle That Made His Name

For a supreme blade master like Sakumo Hatake, who relied not on ninjutsu of any particular nature but on solid taijutsu and miraculous swordsmanship, there were almost no natural enemies capable of completely countering him.

If there was one, Magnet Release was certainly among the few, and it countered him utterly. After all, even the finest blade was made of iron.

"What an excellent sword! No wonder it's the legendary White Fang of Konoha." Keiko turned the renowned divine weapon over in his hands and could not help but praise it. At that moment, the weapon's owner was slumped against a wall, coughing up blood.

Inside the collapsed fortress, only a handful of Hidden Leaf Village ninjas were still breathing. Hundreds of elite Hidden Leaf Village ninjas lay sprawled in pools of blood, their blood nearly coating the floors and walls. The pungent stench of blood filled the entire space.

The entire Lishi Central Fortress covered roughly six hundred square meters. The limit of Keiko's Iron Sand control range was eight hundred meters, and so many people were crammed into this neither-too-large-nor-too-small, perfectly suited semi-enclosed space.

This was practically a battlefield custom-built for Keiko. In this environment, there was nowhere to dodge and nowhere to hide. Keiko simply released all twelve tons of Iron Sand he carried with him, sealed within scrolls. Just as Sakumo Hatake raised his blade to launch his final strike, Keiko spread the Iron Sand throughout the entire fortress.

Hidden Leaf Village ninjas across from me, I've surrounded all of you by myself. Keiko thought with wicked amusement.

What followed was horrifying. Countless streams of black Iron Sand suddenly surged from every direction like a raging flood. In an instant, the massive fortress became a slaughterhouse, like clothes endlessly churned inside a washing machine.

Scattered, broken kunai and shuriken mixed into the black "flood" as it rolled and roared through the crowd. Countless pained howls and shrill screams from Hidden Leaf Village ninjas were mixed in as well.

Some Hidden Leaf Village ninjas reacted quickly and retreated at once, only to find their escape route already cut off. Before they could leap and maneuver through the air more than a few times, the churning Iron Sand pierced through their bodies.

Other ninjas released Water Release and Earth Release techniques in an attempt to stop the black "torrent." But the "torrent" came from all directions. Defending against it from one direction alone was terribly fragile. Water Release Water Dragon Bullets posed almost no obstacle to the iron current, while earth walls formed by Earth Release rapidly crumbled beneath it like paper, utterly destroyed.

Those acts of resistance were like a few bubbles rising in a flood, vanishing without a trace in the blink of an eye.

This battle became the one that made Keiko, the Third Kazekage, famous. Later, many Hidden Leaf Village ninjas passed around these words: if you smell iron while fighting a Sunagakure ninja, retreat immediately—you may still have a chance to live. But once you see black Iron Sand on the ground, your name is already on Death's list.

Keiko could hardly be blamed for being ruthless. In wartime, life-and-death struggles on the battlefield were perfectly normal. Besides, he had just taken office. He needed some bloodshed to establish his authority, or he would not be able to keep either allies or enemies in line.

"Save him. He should still be useful." Keiko flipped open Sakumo Hatake's eyelid and said.

"Yes, Kazekage-sama." Akasuna Guimu answered on one knee. He was now completely convinced by the mighty Third Kazekage.

"I'll clear out the stragglers around the perimeter. You all rest first." Keiko turned to leave.

"Kazekage-sama, please be careful. We set some traps in the outer positions," Akasuna Hideki reminded him.

"Oh, really?" Keiko formed hand seals with both hands and created several Shadow Clones.

Land of Wind, Night-Cry Sand Sea Frontline

Inside a tent, Elder Chiyo was fitting on a prosthetic limb she had just made. She flexed her fingers, and an unsatisfied look appeared on her face. Picking up a screwdriver with her left hand, she immediately began modifying it.

As the wife of Reto, the First Kazekage, she had personally witnessed her husband overpower all rivals with blade and spear, establishing a village in the desert through sheer strength. Nearly every brick and tile in that village had been laid under Chiyo's watchful eyes. She regarded the village as her own child and loved it more deeply than anyone.

The current Chiyo was not the frail old woman from Shippuden who liked to play dead. Though she had inherited her late husband's will and was already over fifty, Chiyo possessed the same bold, domineering nature as Reto, along with a shrewd and calculating mind. Among Sunagakure's upper ranks, she was the leader of the militant faction and an absolute supporter of Shamon, the Second Kazekage's plan to invade the Land of Rain.

Eighty percent of the Land of Wind was desert. Resources were scarce, internal unrest was frequent, and the various clans constantly fought among themselves. Although Reto had completed the unification, the land was still poor where it was poor and lacking where it was lacking. Even at the first Five Kage Summit, the First Kazekage would rather select only one tailed beast than spend money on another.

Why? Because they were poor! The Land of Rain had abundant rainfall and plentiful resources. It was also a strategic location that could contain Hidden Stone Village to the north and draw in Hidden Leaf Village to the south. If they could seize it, they could not only ease the village's dire economy but also gain the strategic initiative in advance. But now...

"Ah, I can only hope little Keiko can turn the tide." Chiyo muttered to herself as she watched the flickering candlelight.

"Lady Chiyo, supplies from the rear have arrived!"

"A little more on the left. Ah, yes, a bit more." Keiko directed Pakura as she controlled Scorch Release fireballs, instantly melting the Iron Sand into molten iron and continuously filling the holes in the fortress. Keiko called out, "Pour!"

"Sizzle!" Rasa dumped a bucket of cold water over it, and the red-hot molten iron instantly solidified.

"Good. That counts as finished." Keiko looked at his handiwork with satisfaction.

Rasa was highly efficient. In a day and a half, he led more than three hundred fully reorganized ninjas to Lishi Fortress. Although the battle had already ended, intelligence obtained by interrogating prisoners indicated that Hidden Leaf Village could organize a second wave of attacks at any moment.

Rather than fight to the death in Sunagakure and endanger civilians, it was better to keep the enemy outside the nation's borders. Keiko used several tons of Iron Sand together with Pakura's Scorch Release to weld a half-iron shell directly over the half-collapsed central fortress. As a result, the fortress's defenses had instead improved considerably.

"This is only a temporary fix. The wind and sand here are harsh, and the iron sheeting will corrode quickly. We'll still need to build a layer of bricks outside it later," Keiko said.

"Yes, Kazekage-sama." Rasa and Guimu nodded in response.

"All right, that about settles matters here. Rasa will oversee the fortress's defenses. Guimu, your injuries have not healed yet, and this is your territory, so you'll assist him." Keiko put on wind goggles and wrapped a veil around his face.

"You're leaving already?" Guimu was somewhat surprised.

"Hidden Leaf Village suffered a major loss here. Whether they will continue attacking Lishi Fortress is something their higher-ups will have to weigh carefully. Hidden Leaf Village should already know that our reinforcements have arrived. With their surprise attack no longer possible, this so-called westward advance plan no longer means much. The place that will truly decide victory and defeat is now the Night-Cry Sand Sea." Keiko pointed south.

"By the way, Guimu, do you have a son?" Keiko gathered chakra, preparing to depart.

"Yes, Kazekage-sama. My son is Sasori of the Red Sand. He just turned five this year," Guimu answered honestly.

"Heh, Sasori of the Red Sand? How about this—once the war is over, I'll take him as my godson." Keiko smiled confidently.