Drip.
Blood from Kitsuchi's wound fell onto the sand cloud.
Gaara asked with concern, "Are you alright, Kitsuchi-san?"
"It's just a scratch. Nothing serious."
He'd only suffered some light burns on his skin from a Fire Release technique.
Kitsuchi glanced toward the area that had just been bombarded by the Sand Rain barrage and muttered regretfully,
"That monkey really does protect his master."
Hiruzen Sarutobi had lost the chance to dodge the attack. Enma had returned to his original form just in time, blocking the brunt of the assault for him.
Enma's body was as hard as steel. The sand bullets hadn't done much damage to him. However, under the weight of Kitsuchi's Added-Weight Rock Technique—possibly even the Ultra-Added-Weight Rock Technique—Enma couldn't so much as lift a finger.
The technique had made him so heavy that he could only collapse onto the ground. Though he wanted to protect Hiruzen from the incoming storm of sand bullets, he simply couldn't.
As for Hiruzen wielding Enma's staff form? Forget it. He might as well try lifting a mountain.
With difficulty, Enma used his eyes to signal to Hiruzen that he could no longer fight. Then he vanished in a puff of white smoke.
"You've done well," Hiruzen muttered, panting. He glanced down at the several minor bleeding wounds left on his body by the sand bullets.
The injuries were superficial at best. What stung more was the loss of Enma—his most trusted companion in battle.
Gaara, though young, was still a Jinchūriki. Like all hosts of tailed beasts, he had vast reserves of chakra and could use techniques without worrying too much about consumption.
Kitsuchi was a similar kind of ninja. His Earth Release techniques were as rugged and forceful as his appearance.
Hiruzen didn't think he couldn't beat the two of them. But to be honest, dealing with chakra powerhouses like them wasn't exactly his forte anymore.
"Closing the distance is the best option," he muttered to himself.
He unfurled a scroll and summoned a spare weapon—a long staff.
...
"Light-Weight Rock Technique."
Kitsuchi removed his hand from Gaara's gourd. Gaara immediately felt the shift—the sand had become noticeably lighter.
"I've decreased the sand's weight," Kitsuchi explained.
He clapped his hands together, focusing his chakra.
"Kazekage, buy me some time."
Gaara nodded. "Sand Hail!"
The sand cloud above Hiruzen opened up and rained down a barrage of tiny sand droplets.
They didn't do any real damage. Hiruzen realized that after parrying for a moment with his staff.
It was a diversion.
Suddenly, a pair of sand hands rose from below and grabbed his feet.
But they didn't hold long—Hiruzen smashed them apart with two swift swings of his staff.
His strikes were powerful and lightning-fast. Gaara couldn't react in time to form new sand hands. In the blink of an eye, Hiruzen vanished from his spot.
Gaara urgently lifted the sand cloud beneath himself and Kitsuchi, pulling them back!
A split second later, the place they'd just stood was struck by a mighty blow from Hiruzen's staff!
A massive plume of dust and sand burst into the air!
"Forget conserving chakra now."
Gaara forced his hands together in a seal, the sand beneath surging forward at his command.
He was slower and less experienced in close combat, but this was his way of restricting Hiruzen's movements—through sheer volume and pressure.
Thankfully, it worked.
Hiruzen was caught in a crushing wave of sand. When he burst out, another flood immediately closed in and entangled him again.
All the while, Gaara kept the sand cloud moving, ferrying himself and Kitsuchi farther and farther away to widen the gap between them and Hiruzen.
As the battle dragged on, Gaara's breathing grew heavier and faster. He glanced repeatedly at Kitsuchi.
Kitsuchi gave a subtle nod, and Gaara immediately let him down.
"Earth Style: Multiple Earth-Style Wall!"
A forest of earthen walls erupted between them and Hiruzen, creating layers upon layers of barriers.
The sand streams could no longer hold Hiruzen back, but even he couldn't break through this mountain of defenses all at once.
The sand cloud lowered Gaara to the ground beside Kitsuchi before dissolving away.
The boy suddenly collapsed. Instinctively, Kitsuchi stepped forward and caught him just in time.
"Can you still move?"
But the moment he said it, something clicked.
This time... the sand hadn't pushed him away.
Gaara had noticed it too but said nothing. He just gave Kitsuchi a look.
Though he struggled to stay upright, his pale face and sweat-soaked forehead betrayed him.
"I'm at my limit," he admitted.
Kitsuchi looked up to confirm the defensive wall was holding.
"Then let's retreat."
They'd known from the beginning that they likely couldn't kill Hiruzen. Their entire strategy had always been about finding a chance to escape.
Kitsuchi moved to carry Gaara, but the sand instantly reacted, repelling him again.
Awkwardly, Gaara said, "I can still walk on my own." He had enough chakra left to flee.
Wasting no time, the two turned and fled in the opposite direction.
...
Thud!
A sharp, sudden pain stabbed into Kitsuchi's knee. He collapsed without warning, his leg giving out beneath him!
"Kitsuchi-san!"
Gaara called out in panic, eyes wide as he saw the blood quickly soaking through Kitsuchi's pants at the knee.
What just happened? He was injured? But from what?
"Ahahahaha!! May Jashin reign eternal!!"
A maniacal voice echoed through the battlefield.
Both Gaara and Kitsuchi froze—shocked and suddenly understanding.
That man's ability...?
During the battle, all of Gaara's techniques had focused on reshaping and demolishing the terrain around them.
To avoid getting caught in the crossfire, Hidan had fled far from the center of the fight, disappearing from view.
Gaara and Kitsuchi had remembered his presence when they were planning to escape—but he hadn't been close enough to pose a threat. Or so they thought...
They were within the enemy's attack range—there was no point wasting time searching anymore.
"Judging by the sound, he's at least four hundred meters away."
Their opponent had a long-range attack technique that was completely outside their understanding—possibly even invisible.
They had finally managed to pin down Hiruzen Sarutobi, only to be faced with this bizarre new threat.
They had no choice but to take Hidan seriously.
Gaara, with barely any chakra left, could only rely on his Third Eye to locate Hidan's position.
Kitsuchi pulled up his pant leg. A clean puncture wound was visible on his knee, but there were no signs of any physical weapon or tool.
"I don't know—ugh!"
Before he could finish his sentence, Kitsuchi coughed up a mouthful of blood, clutching his abdomen as he dropped to his knees, groaning in pain.
"Left side this time… punctured again!"
"Hahahahaha! That's it! That's the rush I live for! Lord Jashin will be most pleased with the sacrifice I'm offering!"
As Kitsuchi's condition worsened, Gaara grew frantic, trying to pinpoint Hidan's location by following the direction of his crazed voice.
"Got him!"
The man stood on a jutsu circle drawn in blood, his body covered in black patterns over a dark base, white lines crisscrossing him like bones.
A sharp, long needle was stabbed deep into his left side—straight through to his back!
"The same spot where Kitsuchi was hit…"
There was no time to dwell on the implications. Just as Hidan began to pull the needle out, Kitsuchi's wound worsened in tandem.
He had to be stopped immediately!
Gaara's sand hand shot forward and gripped Hidan's arm, halting him mid-movement as he tried to stab the needle again.
But Hidan's strength, bolstered by his intact chakra, easily overpowered the exhausted Gaara. The needle slowly inched toward his own flesh.
"You bastard! How dare you interfere with my offering to Lord Jashin!"
Driven into a frenzy, the zealot suddenly shifted his target. The long needle swerved straight toward his own heart!
Gaara's eyes widened in shock. In a flash, his sea-green pupils transformed into Shukaku's cross-shaped pattern.
"Not a chance!"
The sand hand clenched tighter, yanking Hidan's arm just enough to throw off the aim. The needle veered to the side, missing by inches.
Before Hidan could curse, Gaara's sand lashed out and hurled him out of the blood-drawn ritual circle.
He had borrowed power from Shukaku for this strike—and didn't hold back.
If Hidan was hurt, then Kitsuchi would suffer the same injuries.
So Gaara gambled. He bet that Hidan's twisted jutsu only worked as long as he remained within that circle.
"Kitsuchi… are you—"
He turned to check on Kitsuchi's condition.
But before he could see clearly, his vision was nearly blacked out by a hand reaching toward him.
His sand responded instinctively, lashing out in defense. But it passed straight through the attacker's body—and the hand reaching for him.
"Get away from him!"
Despite his injuries, Kitsuchi threw himself at the intruder!
His body passed right through the man—but so did the attacker's hand, which phased harmlessly through Gaara's head.
If not for that, Gaara might've been sucked into another dimension already.
The masked man—Obito—spun around and delivered a heavy kick to Kitsuchi's chest!
Gaara realized just how dangerous the situation was. He quickly raised his hand and sent a wave of sand crashing toward Obito.
At the same time, he manipulated a cloud of sand to catch the falling Kitsuchi before he hit the ground and made his injuries worse.
Obito walked out from the sand without a scratch.
'It's him.'
Gaara recognized the man. Both the Kirigakure and Amegakure shinobi had warned him about this one.
He couldn't help but feel a little overwhelmed. He hadn't grown up pampered, but this was a lot to handle.
This was his first mission outside the village since becoming Kazekage. And the enemies he was encountering? A brutal awakening.
...
[Shukaku]:Ugh! That disgusting Uchiha stench—kid, I can smell it through your guts. It's even worse than Kurama's damn fox sweat. Don't you dare let yourself fall into his hands!
...
Gaara began to transform. Shukaku's sand-patterned tail stretched out behind him, enveloping his body in the cloak of a Tailed Beast.
BOOM!!!
A thunderous crash erupted behind him.
Hiruzen Sarutobi had broken through the Earth Release wall!
With Uchiha Obito in front of him and Sarutobi closing in from behind...
Gaara was completely surrounded.
----------------
Pls Drop some Power Stones
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