Outside the battlefield.
Orochimaru watched Rasa commanding with composure, a faint smile forming on his face.
"This Kazekage..."
"He's truly willing to sacrifice lives."
A Konoha Jōnin beside him hesitated, then asked, "Orochimaru-sama, should we go and provide support?"
"There's no need to rush." Orochimaru shook his head. "Three fronts are under siege, but Sunagakure is only attacking one."
"If they need us to intervene here too, then when it's time to divide up the rewards, does Sunagakure really deserve a share?"
"If they want benefits, shouldn't they earn them themselves?"
The Jōnin suddenly understood and said nothing more.
Orochimaru turned his gaze back to the battlefield, his eyes devoid of pity.
The front line had reached a boiling point.
Rasa stood at the front of the formation, his hands moving non-stop. "Magnet Release: Gold Dust Imperial Funeral!"
Gold dust surged across the sky like a tidal wave, crashing violently against the earthen wall.
Boom!
The wall trembled violently from the impact. Loose stones tumbled down, but it did not collapse.
"Damn it!" Rasa gritted his teeth. "Why is Iwagakure's Earth Release so damn sturdy!"
Behind him, over two hundred Suna shinobi had already fallen.
Corpses piled up. Blood soaked the battlefield.
Yet the Iwa wall remained standing.
"Rasa-sama!" an aide rushed over. "Our casualties are too high. If this continues..."
"Silence!" Rasa roared. "This is a once-in-a-lifetime chance to crush Iwagakure in one blow. No matter the cost, we can't give up now."
"Continue the attack!"
"No one retreats without my order!"
The aide dared not speak again and quickly went to relay the command.
Rasa stared at the unyielding wall, his chest rising and falling.
The Land of Wind's environment was too harsh, and they were surrounded by powerful neighbors.
Now that they had reached Iwagakure's doorstep, they had to use this opportunity to break the deadlock.
They had to break through here.
"If the people below can't break it..."
"Then I'll do it myself!"
Before the words finished, Rasa's figure blurred, transforming into an afterimage as he charged straight toward the wall.
Dozens of Suna shinobi followed close behind.
"Magnet Release: Gold Dust Spear!" Rasa formed hand seals. The gold sand in the air condensed into a massive spear that hurtled toward the wall.
"Stop him!" Kitsuchi shouted. "Earth Release: Earth Flow Wall!"
More than ten Iwa shinobi formed seals at the same time.
The wall was reinforced once again.
Boom!
The wall shuddered, nearly collapsing.
"Again!" Rasa roared. "Magnet Release: Gold Dust Rain!"
Countless particles of gold dust transformed into a deadly storm, raining down like a hail of chakra-infused death.
Pfft! Pfft! Pfft!
The weakened earth wall was easily pierced. The dozen Iwa shinobi behind it were riddled with holes on the spot.
"Kitsuchi!"
High above, Ōnoki's heart clenched as he saw this scene.
"Dust Release: Atomic Dismantling Jutsu!"
He no longer hesitated. Forming hand seals, a white pillar of light descended from the sky, shooting straight at Rasa.
Rasa's expression changed drastically. He quickly pulled back. "Scatter!"
The light beam hit the ground, completely disintegrating a large section of earth along with the corpses upon it, leaving behind only a smooth, deep crater.
"Ōnoki!" Rasa looked up, his eyes filled with cold killing intent. "You've finally decided to act!"
Ōnoki hovered above the wall, looking down coldly. "Rasa, you want to break through Iwagakure?"
"You'll have to get through me first!"
Rasa let out a cold laugh. "Perfect."
"I've been wanting to test my strength against yours for a long time."
He slammed his hands into the ground. More gold sand surged up, swirling and condensing mid-air into several sharp spears.
"Magnet Release: Iron Sand Giant Needles."
The black spears howled as they shot toward Ōnoki.
Ōnoki's expression was solemn. He formed hand seals again. "Dust Release: Atomic Dismantling Jutsu!"
The white light beam fired once more.
Boom!
The spears collided with the beam of light.
A violent explosion shook the entire battlefield.
Below, the clash on the wall became even more brutal.
Taking advantage of the opening created by the Kage-level battle, Suna shinobi charged with renewed frenzy.
Iwa shinobi resisted with all their might. Both sides were locked in desperate close-quarters combat.
"Kill!"
"Defend the line!"
The roars of battle shook the heavens.
A Suna shinobi swung his blade. His Iwa opponent dodged, then shattered his skull with a backhand punch.
A moment later, a Puppet stabbed the Iwa shinobi from behind, piercing his heart.
Blood splattered as both collapsed to the ground almost simultaneously.
Elsewhere, bodies were falling nonstop.
The entire western front.
Had turned into a living hell.
No one retreated.
No one surrendered.
Only killing.
Only death.
Kitsuchi leaned against the earth wall, panting heavily. His body was already covered in wounds.
"Kitsuchi-sama!" an Iwa shinobi rushed over. "The southwest corner has been breached!"
"Damn it!" Kitsuchi's face changed. "I'm on it!"
He turned and dashed toward the breach, where more than ten Suna shinobi had already climbed onto the wall.
The Iwa defenders were being pushed back.
"Earth Release: Earth Spear!" Kitsuchi hardened his entire body into stone. He became a human battering ram, slamming into the enemy formation.
One punch sent a Suna shinobi flying with blood spraying.
Another crushed an enemy's chest with a dull crack.
By sheer force, Kitsuchi held the breach alone until reinforcements arrived and drove the remaining Suna shinobi off the wall.
"Guard this section!" Kitsuchi roared.
Without waiting for confirmation, he rushed toward the next battlefield.
But he knew very well this was just temporary.
Suna's offensive showed no signs of stopping.
If things went on like this, the western front would eventually fall.
He looked up at the sky.
Ōnoki and Rasa were still locked in battle.
"Father..." Kitsuchi gritted his teeth. "Please, you must win."
In the air.
The clash between Ōnoki and Rasa had reached its peak.
White pillars of light fired one after another.
Rasa moved swiftly, dodging while sending wave after wave of gold dust attacks.
Both of their chakra reserves were rapidly draining.
"Tsuchikage." Rasa panted. "You've gotten old. Your chakra must be nearly gone."
"You too." Ōnoki's movements had slowed. "Your gold sand is moving slower and slower."
Rasa's expression turned grim.
His Kekkei Genkai consumed chakra far too quickly.
If he kept this up, even if he defeated Ōnoki, he would have no strength left to continue the battle below.
"I need to end this now."
With that thought, Rasa formed hand seals. "Magnet Release: Gold Dust Imperial Funeral!"
He poured all of his remaining chakra into the gold dust. Countless particles surged in from every direction, aiming to completely bury Ōnoki.
Ōnoki's face darkened. He unleashed his Bloodline Limit once again. "Dust Release: Atomic Dismantling Jutsu!"
This beam was thicker than any of the previous ones. It disintegrated nearly half of the incoming gold dust instantly.
But the remaining half still surged forward with overwhelming force.
"Damn it!" Ōnoki was old, and his chakra reserves were running dry. He couldn't maintain Dust Release and was forced to use Earth Release to defend.
But the hastily raised earth wall crumbled instantly before the gold dust.
Boom!
The wall shattered. Ōnoki was struck head-on by the gold dust and sent plummeting from the sky.
"Tsuchikage-sama!"
The Iwa shinobi on the wall cried out in unison, their faces stricken with despair.
(To be continued.)