Land of Wind
The Fourth Kazekage, Rasa, was traveling with his personal shadow guard unit, heading toward Konoha.
In just a week, the final round of the joint Chūnin Exams would begin.
As the leader of Sunagakure, one of the Five Great Nations, his attendance was mandatory.
Rasa had already made all the necessary preparations a week prior.
Suna's elite forces were stationed near the border of the Land of Fire, under the flimsy excuse of conducting "military exercises" for the Land of Wind's feudal lord.
At his signal, those shinobi would pierce through Konoha's defenses and launch a surprise assault.
Additionally, following Mr. Hattori's advice, Rasa had hired the Akatsuki to act as mercenaries. The organization would coordinate with Suna in launching the assault a week from now.
Alongside them were:
9,000 sets of Chakra Armor acquired from the Land of Snow,
Orochimaru and Otogakure, who would assist in the attack.
Everything was ready.
All that remained was the final phase of the Chūnin Exams.
In Rasa's mind, even if Konoha wasn't completely crushed, they would at least suffer massive damage.
That would be enough for Suna to reclaim the missions and resources they had lost in recent years.
But as the group passed through a nearby canyon, Rasa suddenly stopped.
"How bold... to dare block my path."
Before he could finish his sentence, he saw who it was.
Standing in front of him was none other than Orochimaru, one of the primary architects of the entire operation—leader of Otogakure and a former Konoha S-rank missing-nin.
"Orochimaru… why are you here?"
Orochimaru chuckled lowly, licking his lips.
"I came specifically to deliver a top-secret message to you, Lord Kazekage."
"Top secret?" Rasa raised an eyebrow but didn't doubt him. He waved his guards back and stepped closer to Orochimaru to listen.
To Rasa, Orochimaru was a vital partner—at least until the plan was complete.
As for whether Orochimaru would betray him? That seemed unlikely. At this critical moment, what fool would sabotage the operation? What could they possibly gain?
And yet, they could gain a lot.
Even if Konoha took heavy losses from the plan, it wouldn't be destroyed.
Rasa had let his guard down.
In a flash—a gleam of cold steel.
A blade pierced Rasa's body, and blood sprayed violently from his wound.
It was the Kusanagi Sword.
"You—!"
Rasa could barely believe it. The man he thought was an ally had come to kill him.
"Lord Kazekage!"
His bodyguards shouted and rushed forward.
But then—
"Dance of the Willow."
A cold voice cut through the air.
Blades made of gleaming bone pierced through the members of the shadow guard.
Kaguya Kimimaro had arrived.
"Magnet Release: Gold Dust Spear!"
Despite the ambush, Rasa was still the Fourth Kazekage, a man who had defeated the One-Tail Shukaku head-on multiple times. He quickly recovered and retaliated, using his Magnet Release to launch a spear made of gold dust.
The spear pierced Orochimaru's body—but it dissolved into mud, revealing it was just a clone.
Another Orochimaru slithered out from beneath the ground.
"Orochimaru… are you betraying our alliance?"
"Is this some kind of Konoha conspiracy?!"
Rasa pressed a mound of gold dust against his wound and glared at Orochimaru. More golden particles surged from the earth, surrounding and shielding his body.
"No," Orochimaru said with a sly smile.
"I just find you… annoying."
"From now on, I alone will be running this plan."
"You think you can defeat me that easily?"
Even after being ambushed and poisoned, Rasa showed no fear.
Magnet Release users were incredibly dangerous in close combat.
He slammed both hands on the ground.
Several coffins slowly rose up.
"This will be your resting place, Kazekage."
From the coffins emerged several reanimated shinobi—each of them once infamous throughout the ninja world.
But the most eye-catching one…
Was the coffin engraved with the name: Third Kazekage.
"Let's test it out then—this power of Edo Tensei."
"You bastard!"
Rasa's eyes widened in shock and fury.
"You killed Lord Third?! You… you desecrated the tombs of the Kazekage?!"
Orochimaru was indeed despicable.
"???"
Even Orochimaru was momentarily confused by the sudden accusation, but now wasn't the time for conversation.
"Rasa…?"
The reanimated Third Kazekage slowly stepped out of his coffin, staring at the man before him.
"No time for reminiscing," Orochimaru said, shoving a kunai inscribed with talismans into the back of the Third's head.
He was now fully under Orochimaru's control.
Iron Sand (Magnet Release) vs. Gold Dust (Magnet Release)
As a living person, Rasa was still stronger than an Edo Tensei version of the Third Kazekage.
My head… it's spinning.
Just as Rasa was about to seal the Third Kazekage, a wave of dizziness overtook him. His body felt hollow—his strength draining rapidly.
Hot blood trickled from his nose.
"I've been poisoned…!"
"That sword!"
The Kusanagi Sword had been coated in poison—a special formula personally created by Orochimaru, tailor-made for Rasa.
By now, Kimimaro had already taken care of the shadow guard and returned to assist Orochimaru.
"Dance of the Clematis Vines!"
He opened with his strongest technique.
Orochimaru, still wielding the Kusanagi Sword, launched another assault.
Against the combined assault of three top-tier shinobi—after being poisoned and ambushed—Rasa could no longer hold out.
A final thrust pierced his chest.
He fell, consumed by humiliation and unwillingness.
"Impressive, Fourth Kazekage. You were… quite troublesome,"
Orochimaru remarked as he slurped the bloodstained Kusanagi Sword back into his mouth, unconcerned by the poison still coating it.
He then clasped his hands together, withdrawing all the Edo Tensei shinobi.
Looking down at the "corpse" of the Fourth Kazekage, Orochimaru turned his gaze toward Konoha.
"Kabuto… why can't I reach you?"
Since the second round of the Chūnin Exams, Kabuto had disappeared without a trace.
No matter how hard Orochimaru searched, he couldn't find him.
Had Kabuto… betrayed him?
Due to Kabuto's absence, Orochimaru had been forced to use Mizuki as the new liaison with Suna. Because of Mizuki's limited strength, Orochimaru personally enhanced his abilities.
Though not as skilled as Kabuto—and lacking the ambition to match—Mizuki's loyalty and discretion made him a passable substitute.
Orochimaru then reached out and peeled the skin from Rasa's face, revealing a perfectly intact facial mask.
Face-Stealing Technique.
Once Orochimaru and Kimimaro disappeared…
Two new figures appeared at the scene.
One of them stepped forward and placed a hand over Rasa's chest—sending a pulse of chakra into his body.
The "dead" Fourth Kazekage stirred—his breathing weak but steady.
"No face, no pride… but congratulations. You've just won your life back."
It was Naruto.
"Impressive as always, Kabuto. Swapping the poison without Orochimaru noticing."
The figure standing beside Naruto—was none other than Kabuto Yakushi, Orochimaru's former right hand.
"Orochimaru-sama simply didn't notice. Right now, his entire focus is on the so-called 'Konoha Crush Plan.'"
"Too bad… he's just putting on a show."
In the original timeline, Orochimaru's grand plan to destroy Konoha only resulted in the death of the Third Hokage and some damaged buildings and casualties among civilians.
On the other hand, Suna lost their Fourth Kazekage, blew a massive portion of their war budget, and were ultimately tied to Konoha's leash once Tsunade became Hokage.
Hard to say who truly came out ahead.
"Yang Release!"
Golden energy surged from Naruto's palm.
He channeled the power into Rasa's body. The skinless section of his face began to scab over rapidly.
As long as he was still alive…
Missing face skin wasn't that big of a deal.
Kabuto adjusted his glasses and bowed respectfully.
"Yes, Uzumaki-sama."
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