"Next… I'll report what happened here to the main body."
He dispelled the Shadow Clone himself. White smoke drifted by—then the spot was empty.
At that very moment, Hanzo—stationed in the Land of Earth—suddenly sensed something, and a knowing smile tugged at his lips.
He didn't even know what he was smiling about… but the two people in front of him had absolutely no mood for it.
Good thing he had moved ahead first.
Otherwise, he really wouldn't have made it in time.
It had only been three days since he "delivered" that notice to the Suna. And yet the Third Kazekage and Chiyo had personally arrived at the Land of Earth front.
What baffled Hanzo was that there was still no sign of Rōshi on the battlefield.
Don't tell me something went wrong?
Could Kakuzu have gone over to settle a grudge?
If that was the case… Hanzo might end up fighting on Iwa's behalf today.
"Salamander Hanzo—what are you trying to pull?" Chiyo spoke first.
"Have you really decided to make an enemy of Sunagakure?"
"What are you even talking about?" Hanzo replied. "Didn't I already make it clear to all Five Great Nations? The Land of Rain is absolutely neutral."
"No passage. No borrowing routes. Anyone who enters without cause will be treated as a provocation against Amegakure and the Land of Rain."
"Sir, I know you're strong," the Third Kazekage said, voice hardening, "but Sunagakure isn't something you can push around."
"Our cooperation with Amegakure has been pleasant. We don't want to ruin that."
"But if you insist on standing in our way… then don't blame us."
Black sand-iron began to surge up from beneath the Kazekage's feet.
"Third!" Chiyo slapped a hand down, stopping him. Then she looked back at Hanzo.
"Salamander Hanzo—we don't want to fight you. If Iwagakure offered you something, Sunagakure can pay the same price."
"Once we start for real, nobody wins."
"And let me tell you something else—a little secret."
Chiyo's eyes narrowed.
"I've already cracked your salamander poison."
"I collected plenty of your toxins on previous battlefields. I've developed an antidote."
"And we've studied your forbidden jutsus, too."
"That penetrating jutsu you used to break Iwa's barrier seems to require a long preparation."
"And your explosive forbidden art… it drags you into it as well. You have to sprint away at full speed to avoid your own blast."
"If we really fight, I won't give you the time. The Kazekage won't either."
"In other words, that move of yours is only good for mutual destruction."
"And don't forget the Third Kazekage's Iron Sand defense, plus my puppet barrier formations. Explosions aren't guaranteed to do much."
"So tell me, Hanzo of the Salamander—is it worth risking your life here for Iwa?"
"Heh… hehaha… hahahaha!"
Hanzo's muffled laugh rolled out.
"My Land of Rain just announced absolute neutrality, and you show up immediately asking to pass through. That's not 'cooperation'—that's slapping me in the face."
"If I let you through, then the letters I sent the Five Great Nations become toilet paper."
"If you cross from here today, you're stepping on the Land of Rain's face—and on mine."
"I have a bottom line."
"And besides… you fought Iwagakure for that long. How many chances did you have to just punch through earlier?"
"But you didn't."
"You waited until Iwa finished building their defenses—then you come to borrow a route."
"Are you two out of your minds?"
"Only a few days after we broadcast our notice to the entire shinobi world, you come demanding passage."
"Do you think Amegakure got drunk on blood this war and forgot itself… so you came personally to 'remind us' of the gap between us and the Five Great Nations?"
Chiyo and the Third Kazekage were furious too.
The timing really was absurdly convenient.
But how were they supposed to know Amegakure would suddenly stop "making trouble"? Until recently, Ame had been killing with the most enthusiasm of anyone.
The Third Kazekage's gaze flickered.
"Speaking of which… Salamander Hanzo, why are you even here in the Land of Earth? We just arrived—and we ran into you immediately."
Hanzo narrowed his eyes. "What, you're questioning who I am?"
"Of course," the Third Kazekage said coldly. "If you're an Iwa shinobi in disguise, then this is a joke we can't afford."
"Imagine it: me, Chiyo, and three thousand Suna shinobi… being shouted back by some nobody using the Transformation Jutsu."
"That would be humiliating beyond words."
"And don't forget—right now you're alone. Not a single Ame shinobi at your side."
"So how do you prove your identity?"
"You really want to make me your enemy?" Hanzo snapped. "Iwa's front line is right there—and instead you insist on stirring up trouble with the Land of Rain!"
He turned his head toward Iwa's defensive line in the distance.
Towering earthen walls—over ten meters high—layered one after another. Iwa shinobi packed the top in dense ranks, outnumbering the Suna several times over.
In front of and within the line, massive magnetic spikes flashed with arcs of lightning—clearly prepared specifically for the Third Kazekage.
The Kazekage took one glance and understood: if he tried to drown them in an Iron Sand sea, the power would be cut at least in half.
With defenses this complete, charging straight in would be suicide.
Even if they somehow broke through… how many would survive?
Hanzo could see it too. If they bypassed from here, Iwa's defensive line would become meaningless—like a wasted fortress wall.
"Looks like he really thinks he's a god," the Third Kazekage said to Chiyo at his side. "One man, trying to handle two Kage-class opponents… and nearly three thousand shinobi."
"A loudmouthed arrogant fool like that doesn't deserve to live."
Chiyo's voice was flat. "Now we can be sure he reached some kind of deal with Iwa. Otherwise he wouldn't appear here at this exact moment."
"Prepare to strike."
"Be careful," she added. "You know his speed. And that jutsu of his—watch it. Don't let him close."
"And our troops can't rush in either. If they do, he'll wipe them out."
"Understood." The Third Kazekage nodded.
"My Iron Sand is wide-area suppression. No matter how fast he is, he can't outrun the entire field."
"And we're both long-range fighters. I'll lift us into the air with Iron Sand—let's see what Hanzo can do the—"
"So you really intend to fight," Hanzo said, drawing his sickle from behind him.
At the same time, he opened the left eye he'd kept shut the entire time.
"Byakugan."
The Byakugan really was convenient.
In that instant, he saw every hidden strand of Iron Sand beneath the ground—including its flow and trajectories.
…Chiyo's body.
…Sasori?
That was Hanzo's first reaction.
'Chiyo… she turned herself into a human puppet?'
'That's not right. I remember she only modified one arm. Why is her entire body remodeled like Sasori's?'
'Is this another butterfly effect from my interference?'
"Byakugan!" Chiyo and the Third Kazekage recognized it instantly.
"How does he have the Byakugan?"
"Doesn't matter," Chiyo said coldly. "Kill him, then take it. We'll accept this 'gift'."
Chiyo unsealed a scroll. Six puppets of different shapes unfolded into the air.
"Perfect—I'll test the results of my research. Third!"
"Mm."
The Third Kazekage raised both hands. Great sheets of black Iron Sand surged up from the ground.
But to Hanzo's Byakugan, it was far more than that.
Within several kilometers, iron-rich particles were being drawn toward the Kazekage's Magnet Style—everything pulled in like the center of a vortex, even the soil of the Land of Rain behind Hanzo.
Beneath Hanzo's feet, a black iron spike was already forming.
"This kind of attack is obvious to my chakra-sensing domain," Hanzo thought, "but without the Byakugan I'd still need an extra move or two."
"And I couldn't casually use broad sensing while scouting the Hokage Tower—this is where the Byakugan shines."
"…And I actually used it before to peek at the same 'reference material' as Jiraiya. What a waste."
Hanzo tapped his heel.
Earth Style rippled outward, hardening the ground—locking the Iron Sand beneath his feet in place.
But compared to the endless Iron Sand tide, that was just a drop in the ocean.
In the blink of an eye, the Third Kazekage had already formed two massive Iron Sand bricks.
And the six puppets in front of Chiyo—shockingly—also condensed several Iron Sand spikes and fired them together at Hanzo.
"Earth Style: Lightened Boulder Jutsu!"
As the huge brick crashed down toward him, Hanzo raised one hand and pressed it against the underside.
He didn't even retreat half a step.
There was no thunderous impact. No earth-shaking tremor.
Hanzo caught it like it weighed no more than a feather.
From the distant perspective of Iwa and Suna troops alike, it looked like an ant hoisting a slab thousands of times its size.
"Earth Style: Rampart of Flowing Soil!"
The ground flipped up into a barrier. The Iron Sand spikes Chiyo fired all lodged into it.
Hanzo casually tossed the giant brick away. The moment the weight-altering effect ended, the crash finally erupted in a deafening roar.
"Iwa's jutsu really are convenient," Hanzo muttered. "Worth the effort of splitting thirty-plus shadow clones just to master them."
He looked up at Chiyo and the Kazekage, now lifted into the air by Iron Sand.
"By now, you should be convinced who I am. But if you still want to fight…"
"…then I'll 'learn' from both of you properly. After that—don't complain when blood is spilled."
"Iron Sand: Scattered Showers."
"Sand Tsunami."
Chiyo's Magnet Style puppets formed dense storms of senbon in the air.
The Third Kazekage manipulated that limitless Iron Sand sea, sending it surging toward Hanzo like a tidal wave.
"…Damn it," Hanzo clicked his tongue. "So I really am doing contract work for Iwa today."
He brought his hands together.
"This is a jutsu I prepared specifically for you two. Let's see how it performs."
"Secret Jutsu: Rain Severance."
In that instant, monstrous chakra flared up like a towering ancient tree—so thick it was visible to the naked eye, as if made solid.
Chiyo and the Third Kazekage widened their eyes.
"This kind of chakra… even our Jinchūriki might not have this much."
"Hanzo… what kind of monster are you?!"
No matter how shocked the Kazekage was, Chiyo still slammed her arm down.
"Don't hesitate. No matter how much chakra he has, it doesn't matter—crush him."
At the same time, as Hanzo's chakra "burned," a savage storm abruptly descended over the battlefield.
A torrential downpour struck Chiyo and the Kazekage first.
The instant the rain fell, the Third Kazekage sensed danger and raised the Iron Sand beneath their feet.
"Rashōmon Shield. (Demon Shield)"
An Iron Sand shield formed overhead like a lid.
Then the rain hit.
Szzzt…
Plop—
The first sound was the shield softening.
The second sound was it falling.
In mere seconds, the "lid" melted into sludge and dropped out of the air.
The Iron Sand beneath the Kazekage's feet—and Chiyo's puppets—were no exception.
When the raindrops hit their bodies, both of them felt their chakra flow turning stiff and sluggish.
"Chakra corrosion!" Chiyo hissed.
The senbon floating in the air were swept down into the ground by the rain.
The Iron Sand tide that had been rising like a tsunami turned heavy and sticky—like mud.
"This height will kill us if we drop!" the Third Kazekage shouted. He formed a tight Iron Sand armor around his chest—the portion protected by clothing hadn't been soaked yet.
He grabbed Chiyo with one hand and forced his remaining Iron Sand to slow their fall—
—and they slammed down onto the soaked battlefield.
"You alright?!"
"I'm fine," Chiyo answered. Then her expression tightened.
"Bad—my chakra threads won't extend. My puppets—!"
Crack! Crack! Crack! Crack!
The puppets that fell shattered to pieces.
"Sorry," the Third Kazekage said, eyes trembling. "Saving you took everything I had. I couldn't spare focus for the puppets."
"Hanzo's technique is basically the natural enemy of Magnet Style… and puppet masters."
"His jutsu won't last long," Chiyo said quickly. "His chakra corrosion is the most basic type—one-for-one. That means he's burning the same amount of chakra he's draining from us."
"No matter how vast his reserves are, he can't keep this up forever."
"And avoiding chakra corrosion is simple."
Chiyo opened a scroll and produced a puppet umbrella, snapping it open.
Then she handed the Third Kazekage a cloth, motioning him to wipe the water off.
"Still corroding?"
"No," the Third Kazekage said. Then he frowned. "So it's that easy to counter… I didn't expect it."
Even as he spoke, he raised a hand again.
The Iron Sand sea beneath them… began to move.
"I can't control the top layer—the layer soaked by rain. But the lower layer hasn't been touched yet."
"The water hasn't seeped down. I can still control it."
Using the upper layer as a shield to block Hanzo's rain, the lower Iron Sand pushed the whole mass forward like a moving fortress—charging straight at Hanzo.
"What?!"
Hanzo didn't hear their conversation, but he saw it clearly:
Chiyo opened an umbrella for the Kazekage.
Handed him a cloth to wipe rain away.
Then the Kazekage suddenly surged forward again.
They looked like a couple flirting under the rain.
"…Did my jutsu just get broken by their power of friendship?"
This is my jutsu—what the hell are you doing in it?!
For a moment, Hanzo felt personally wounded.
"But that's not my limit," he said aloud.
"What I just released was only half my chakra."
"I left the other half for you."
"You think I only have one trick?"
He brought his hands together again. Massive currents swirled around him.
"Sage Art – Water Style: Giant Vortex Jutsu"
"Sage Art – Water Style: Water Dragon Jutsu!"
A roaring sea surged out.
The Iron Sand tide collided head-on with it.
Three enormous water dragons erupted from the wave.
The Iron Sand swarm—like an ant colony—was blasted backward at the moment of impact.
For an instant, the Third Kazekage's Magnet Style lost control entirely; the Iron Sand was swallowed by the water and hurled back.
"Retreat!" Chiyo shouted.
She and the Kazekage fled toward the Suna army behind them.
"Use Earth Style defenses! Now!" the Third Kazekage's roar spread across the battlefield via a projection technique.
Chiyo's back suddenly split open, revealing two jet-like tubes.
Blue flames burst out.
She grabbed the Kazekage and rocketed forward.
Earthen walls rose one after another—
But even after they reached the Sand army's defensive line, the Third Kazekage instinctively lifted his hands to reinforce with Iron Sand…
…and froze.
Within several kilometers, there wasn't a single trace of iron he could control.
He couldn't exactly manipulate the Suna shinobi's weapon pouches.
The sea crashed in.
The Suna army's earthen walls were pierced like paper.
Countless Suna shinobi were swept into the flood.
The Third Kazekage and Chiyo stood on the water's surface, struggling just to keep balance.
Then Hanzo's voice boomed across the entire battlefield.
"Third Kazekage… I've changed my mind."
"Since you attacked first, then whatever comes... Brace yourself."
"I'm taking your lives."
"And this Suna army won't be going home either."
Cold sweat poured down the Third Kazekage and Chiyo's faces.
"…Looks like I'll have to pay Sunagakure a personal visit."
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