"I'm just a passing Kamen Rider. Remember that!"
Kiyosuke pointed a finger, then burst into laughter.
"Rasa, the Fourth Kazekage—today is the day you die!"
"You won't talk? Fine, I'll make you talk."
Rasa snorted coldly. This was his territory. Killing him here wouldn't be easy. With a wave of his hand, golden sand surged forth like a tidal wave, roaring with devastating power.
Heat circulated through Kiyosuke's body, transforming into strength. He kicked off the ground and shot forward, narrowly dodging the encroaching sand.
He had to end this quickly.
They were too close to Sunagakure. If this dragged on, more of their shinobi would arrive.
To avoid blowing his cover, he couldn't recklessly use his true abilities. Even if he had to, it would have to look like a Fire Release technique. That made killing Rasa far more difficult.
Fine. Time to use Sage Mode.
He pressed his hands together, drawing in natural energy from his surroundings and channeling it into his body.
"Sage Art: Object Transmutation!"
In an instant, the desert transformed into a lush forest.
Rasa stared in disbelief as Kiyosuke vanished into the dense foliage.
"Genjutsu? Release!"
Rasa immediately disrupted his own chakra flow, attempting to dispel the illusion.
But it was useless.
The forest remained vivid and alive, insects chirping in the air around him.
"Impossible… I already released the genjutsu, so why am I still trapped inside it?"
He was shaken. His opponent wasn't just powerful—they also excelled at illusions.
Kiyosuke's voice echoed through his mind.
"You're the first shinobi to ever face this technique. Consider it an honor."
Rasa kept calm, sneering.
"Impressive illusion... but you overlooked one thing. Even within a genjutsu, I can still control my gold dust. You can't kill me."
Kiyosuke chuckled.
"How do you know you're even awake right now? How do you know... I'm not standing right behind you?"
"What?!"
Rasa whirled around—but saw nothing.
He let out a sigh of relief… only for dread to return immediately. If he was trapped in a world of illusion, then what was happening to his real body?
If his mind was imprisoned here, then his body was helpless—completely defenseless.
What should he do?
How could he break out of this?
His thoughts raced as he desperately tried to devise a plan.
He had never faced a genjutsu like Object Transmutation, which didn't directly act upon the victim. Instinctively, he assumed he was caught inside a genjutsu space and grew desperate to escape it.
Meanwhile, Kiyosuke stood nearby, silently watching the show.
If this guy ended up killing himself, that would be hilarious.
But that was unlikely. Time to finish this.
"Sage Art: Inorganic Reincarnation."
The sand beneath Rasa stirred.
Without a sound, it slithered up behind him.
Rasa, still distracted trying to escape his "illusion," didn't notice a thing.
The sand hardened into a sharp spike.
It lunged straight for his back.
Agonizing pain erupted as it pierced him.
He gasped and quickly reacted, shielding himself with gold dust to block the rest of the spike.
"How?! Genjutsu? No—this isn't genjutsu!"
The pain was real. That much was certain.
But what about the forest surrounding him?
There shouldn't be a forest anywhere near Sunagakure...
He quickly plugged the wound with gold dust.
It was a crude fix, but if he didn't, he'd bleed out.
Yet keeping the wound sealed with gold dust meant infection would eventually kill him anyway.
The forest faded away.
It was replaced by a jagged stone field—an eerie landscape filled with grotesque rock formations.
"So it really is a genjutsu... but his attacks seem to affect reality."
That was his theory, and now he had to test it.
…
Kiyosuke had no idea what Rasa was thinking.
This was his first time using Object Transmutation against an enemy. He was a bit excited—and decided to have some fun.
He created a series of shadowy figures using chakra.
"Go."
The figures rushed toward Rasa, who immediately went on alert.
"What… is this?"
"Just a bunch of passing Kamen Riders."
(T/N: The Kamen Rider Series is a Japanese superhero media franchise. Maybe some of you saw it as a child, like me, but most likely now, in short, that superheroes on motorcycles, I will remove some parts, but it is very integrated into the plot, so it cannot be completely removed)
"Defeat them, and I'll let you go."
"Hmph! You expect me to fall for that crap? I'm the Fourth Kazekage—I'm not that naïve."
"Then there's nothing left to talk about. Attack!"
The Riders didn't speak.
They simply attacked.
Rasa clashed with them, quickly realizing they were nothing but paper tigers.
They looked strange, but had no real strength.
He sneered and crushed them all with ease using his gold dust.
Kiyosuke watched the "dead" Riders and burst out laughing.
Perfect.
He raised his hand.
"Sage Art: Inorganic Reincarnation."
The Riders were created using sage chakra. When Rasa crushed them, that sage chakra was absorbed into his gold dust.
Now, Kiyosuke could manipulate it.
He clenched his fist.
The gold dust around Rasa twisted and writhed, coming alive. It transformed into dozens of needles and shot straight toward him.
"Impossible!"
Rasa tried to force the rogue dust back under control.
He couldn't.
The gold dust he had always considered an extension of himself… was being hijacked.
Was this magnetic release too?
The thought chilled him.
He started trying to deduce his attacker's identity.
But no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't figure it out.
He was the only one in Sunagakure who still possessed Magnet Release.
None of his children inherited his kekkei genkai.
The only other Magnet Release users were in Kumogakure—but their version didn't manipulate gold dust.
So who was this man?
"Did it fail? Well... I guess this is good enough."
Kiyosuke sensed Pakura's chakra approaching, along with a group of unfamiliar signatures.
Time to wrap this up.
He removed his mask, revealing his mouth.
"Sage Art: White Rage Technique."
He opened his mouth and unleashed a red dragon.
The dragon spiraled through the air before merging into a black orb.
BZZZZZZZZZZT!
A piercing screech exploded near Rasa.
He immediately tried to shield himself with gold dust—but it no longer obeyed him.
His bones felt like they were being shaved away with files. The agony was unbearable.
"AAAAAHHHHHHHH!!!"
"This is the final blow!"
Cracks appeared on Kiyosuke's cheap-looking armor.
He raised his hand, forcing the sage chakra–infused gold dust to surge into Rasa's mouth.
…
And with that—
Rasa, the Fourth Kazekage, died in agony!