Chapter 282: One Kick Per Kazekage
On the desolate Gobi Desert at the border between the Land of Earth and the Land of Stars, several rock fortresses built against the mountains formed the Stone Village’s outpost here.
At this moment, the air was filled with a thick blood scent and lingering gunpowder smoke.
Gravel and damaged weapons were scattered everywhere, with several Stone Ninja corpses lying in pools of blood, silently recounting a recent attack.
In one corner of the outpost, a severely injured Stone Ninja leaned against the rock wall, breathing heavily with difficulty.
His headband was already shattered, and multiple wounds on his body were still gushing blood, staining his earthy yellow ninja vest.
He widened his eyes, watching three figures wearing deep blue Star Ninja uniforms with five-pointed star emblem headbands on their foreheads slowly approaching.
“You… you Star Ninja…” The severely injured Stone Ninja roared with all his strength, his voice trembling from pain and anger: “Are you trying to start a war?! Stone Village will never let this go!”
The leading “Star Ninja” had his lower face masked, revealing a pair of scarlet three-tomoe Sharingan.
Kakashi, disguised as a Star Ninja, indifferently raised the ninja sword still dripping blood in his hand, its blade edge reflecting blinding cold light in the sunset glow.
He spoke a few words clearly in a deliberately altered, slightly hoarse voice:
“A mere Stone Village…”
Before the words finished, blade light flashed!
Pfft!
The ninja sword precisely pierced the severely injured Stone Ninja’s heart, ending his life.
The light in the Stone Ninja’s eyes quickly dimmed, finally freezing in disbelief and hatred.
“Captain, all resistance within the outpost has been cleared.” A Konoha Anbu member disguised as a Star Ninja stepped forward and reported in a low voice, his voice sounding muffled through the mask.
Kakashi nodded slightly, his gaze seemingly casually sweeping over a pile of collapsed rock ruins not far away, where there seemed to be extremely faint and suppressed breathing sounds.
He deliberately raised his voice, ordering his two team members: “Clean up thoroughly, disguise this as an attack site by those Sand Village guys. Move fast!”
“Yes!” The two Anbu members understood immediately and sprang into action.
They skillfully moved the corpses, deliberately leaving several Sand Village’s signature poisoned shuriken at the scene, and damaged some battle traces, attempting to shift the blame to the Land of Wind.
Not long after, Kakashi made a hand signal, and the three quickly withdrew from this bloody outpost, vanishing into the vast Gobi.
Only after their figures completely disappeared for a long time did an extremely faint chattering of teeth come from behind that pile of collapsed rock ruins.
Two young Stone Ninja, their faces covered in dust, eyes filled with the fear of surviving a disaster, huddled tightly in the rock crevice.
They had luckily escaped through a hidden ventilation pipe.
“Did… did they leave?” The younger one asked in a small voice with a sobbing tone.
“Don’t move! Wait a bit more!” The slightly older and somewhat calmer Stone Ninja pressed down hard on his companion’s shoulder, warning in a low voice, his own heart pounding wildly.
He had clearly seen that chilling pair of red eyes through the crevice earlier, the image etched into his mind like a nightmare.
Sure enough, about the time it takes to burn one incense stick later, the sound of wind cutting through the air rang out again.
Kakashi’s figure returned, quickly patrolling the outpost, his sharp gaze sweeping every corner, and only after confirming no survivors did he truly leave.
These two surviving Stone Ninja, in fear and suffering, hid in the crevice for several more hours until night fully fell, when a routine patrol team of Stone Ninja discovered the anomaly at the outpost, lit torches to investigate, and they rushed out tumbling and crawling like grasping at a lifeline, sobbing as they reported the situation to their fellow villagers.
The patrol team’s captain looked at the bodies everywhere and the two survivors still shaken, his face ashen, immediately realizing the severity of the situation.
“Escort them back to the village immediately! Report to Lord Tsuchikage!” He ordered in a deep voice, and the team quickly moved, protecting the two key witnesses as they sped toward Stone Village.
……
On a bald rocky mountaintop not far from the attacked outpost, three figures quietly appeared—it was Kakashi’s team returning.
One Anbu member observed the situation below through binoculars and reported in a low voice: “Captain, confirmed survivors have been picked up by the Stone patrol team and are on their way back to Stone Village.”
Another team member added: “This is the second outpost we’ve attacked at the Earth-Star border. However… Captain, with just conflicts at two border outposts, it’s probably hard to truly ignite a large-scale war between Stone Village and the Land of Stars, right? That Tsuchikage of Stone Village isn’t one to act impulsively.”
Kakashi didn’t answer immediately; he was slowly and methodically wiping the ninja sword that was already spotless, as if invisible blood still lingered on it.
Then, he reached up and carefully removed the Sharingan contact lens from his right eye, revealing his originally black-and-white eye.
His face remained expressionless, his voice calm without any fluctuation: “Two outposts are of course not enough.”
“Continue north, create several more ‘incidents’ along the entire borderline between the Land of Earth and the Land of Stars. Adjust frequency and scale as needed.”
He sheathed the ninja sword, his gaze turning to the northern borderline region with its continuous mountain ranges.
“Make Stone Village feel this isn’t a random conflict, but deliberate, ongoing provocation from the Land of Stars. When they can no longer tolerate it and start large-scale retaliation, our mission is complete.”
“Understood!” The two Anbu members responded in unison.
Soon, the three figures merged into the night again, sneaking north along the Land of Earth’s borderline, seeking the next target for chaos.
……
Stone Village, Tsuchikage’s Office.
That night, news of the second border outpost being attacked, with survivors bringing back key intelligence, was quickly reported to Third Tsuchikage Onoki.
The atmosphere in the office was heavy.
The short but imposing Onoki hovered in mid-air, his brows tightly furrowed.
The tall and burly Kurotsuchi, and the jonin Bun’ya in charge of intelligence and analysis, stood solemnly to the side.
Bun’ya pointed at the border map spread on the desk and reported in a deep voice: “Lord Tsuchikage, this is the second border outpost attacked in two days. Unlike the first time, there are two survivors this time. They both claim the attackers tried to disguise the scene as the work of Sand Village, and… they provided a crucial piece of intelligence.”
He paused, emphasizing his tone: “Among the attackers, the leader had… a pair of three-tomoe Sharingan.”
“Sharingan?!” Onoki and Kurotsuchi exclaimed almost simultaneously, their faces instantly turning extremely grave.
Kurotsuchi stroked his chin, his rugged face full of bewilderment: “Sharingan… this bloodline limit can’t be faked. But the Land of Stars just annexed the Land of Shadows, Land of Swamps, and Land of Snow, and took in Uchiha and Hyuga defectors from Konoha—it’s a time when they need to digest and stabilize internally. At this juncture, deliberately starting a border conflict with us—what benefit do they get? It doesn’t make sense!”
Onoki’s wrinkled forehead twisted into a “river” shape; he gestured for Bun’ya to mark the locations of the two attacked outposts on the map.
Looking at the area on the map at the junction of the two countries, mainly barren Gobi and rocky mountains, his old eyes widened like copper bells.
“I’ve heard that in recent years, the Land of Stars has invested heavily, mainly in transforming the western Ghost River Plains, trying to turn that vast tidal flat and wasteland into farmland. The soil there is relatively fertile, with ample water sources—it’s their development focus.” Onoki’s voice was hoarse, his logic clear.
“Meanwhile, our Land of Earth’s border area is mostly barren mountainous areas and Gobi, far less valuable than the Ghost River Plains. For them to stir trouble on our side at this time… the motive is indeed puzzling.”
Though Onoki was stubborn and conservative, sometimes seeming rigid, his decades-long rule over Stone Village demonstrated extraordinary political wisdom and strategic vision.
His scheme years ago to besiege the Third Raiden, wearing him down, fully showcased his cunning and ruthlessness.
Though he hadn’t anticipated the Third Raiden’s tenacity, leading to heavy losses for Stone Village as well.
Because of this, in recent years he heavily employed wandering ninja and mercenary organizations in the Land of Earth’s military actions, largely to preserve Stone Village’s native younger generation.
Kurotsuchi interjected: “Father, this Sharingan intelligence is too critical. Currently in the ninja world, aside from the Land of Stars taking in the Uchiha Clan, which ninja village can so easily deploy Sharingan? Even Konoha probably can’t muster a complete pair now.”
They evidently hadn’t yet learned that Sasuke Uchiha was still in Konoha.
Bun’ya agreed: “Lord Kurotsuchi is right. Whatever the Land of Stars’ motives, the consecutive attacks on our outposts are fact. We must respond immediately!”
“I suggest, on one hand, immediately dispatching more ninja to strengthen patrols and outpost defenses across the entire northern border; on the other, organize elite forces for equivalent retaliation against the Land of Stars’ border outposts—let them know Stone Village isn’t to be trifled with!”
Onoki hovered in the air, hands behind his back, falling silent.
The office was left only with his occasional soft “Hm…” sounds from thinking.
Sharingan…
This word stirred a memory deep in his heart filled with fear.
That powerful Uchiha Madara.
He dreaded the Land of Stars’ Uchiha Hikari, suspected to be Uchiha Madara’s descendant, and that enigmatic, unfathomably strong “Shura.”
Once full conflict erupted, just the Uchiha Clan alone would give Stone Village endless headaches.
But as one of the Five Great Shinobi Villages’ Kage, facing such blatant provocation without a strong response would shatter Stone Village’s prestige and embolden the Land of Stars.
After weighing the options, Onoki finally spoke, his voice decisive: “Kurotsuchi, do as Bun’ya says. You’re in charge—immediately dispatch two teams of elite ninja to strengthen northern border patrols, and form a strike team to find an opportunity… and take out one or two of the Land of Stars’ border sentries! Give the Star Ninja a taste of their own medicine, but don’t let the conflict escalate too far—control the scale!”
“Yes, Father!” Kurotsuchi acknowledged gravely.
“Bun’ya,” Onoki turned to the intelligence jonin: “Immediately, in the name of Stone Village and the Daimyo’s Mansion, issue the strongest diplomatic note to the Land of Stars, strongly condemning their attack, demanding they immediately explain, severely punish the culprits, and compensate for losses!”
“Understood, Lord Tsuchikage!” Bun’ya bowed.
Just as the two prepared to turn and execute the orders, Onoki seemed to suddenly remember something and called back Bun’ya: “Wait! Bun’ya, two more things.”
“Immediately notify Five-Tails Jinchūriki Han to halt all external missions for now; without my orders, he must not leave the village even half a step!”
“Then increase manpower to quickly find that stubborn old Four-Tails Jinchūriki Roshi! Tell him, no matter where he’s wandering, get back to the village immediately! This is the Tsuchikage’s command!”
Recalling how Roshi had stormed off after their last big argument over differing ideals, Onoki fumed.
“Yes! I’ll handle it right away!” Bun’ya bowed again, then quickly left the Tsuchikage’s Office with Kurotsuchi.
The office returned to quiet, leaving Onoki hovering alone in mid-air.
He rubbed his incessantly twitching right eyelid, that inexplicable unease lingering in his heart.
He tried to reassure himself: ‘It’s just a Uchiha Hikari, not that monster Uchiha Madara… nothing to fear… right, nothing to worry about…’
Yet, the more he comforted himself, the more that unease quietly spread in his heart.
………..
Northern Land of Wind, deep in the Sea of Death.
It was now noon the next day, with the scorching sun high overhead, baking the endless yellow sand until it was piping hot, the air distorting in the heat waves.
This death zone known as a forbidden land for life was now hosting a scene beyond mortal imagination.
In the distance, the terrifying Ten-Tails, hundreds of meters tall, was pinned in the sand sea, emitting dull, despairing howls.
Its ten giant tails were firmly restrained by adamantine sealing chains and pitch-black chakra rods, its massive body trembling violently yet unable to break free.
Meanwhile, that dark red Nine-Tails Fox Demon, like a greedy parasite, clung tightly to the Ten-Tails’ back, frenziedly devouring the surging, tangible flood of vast chakra from the Ten-Tails’ body.
The Dark Nine-Tails’ form seemed even more solid and massive than the day before, its aura of destruction growing ever more heart-palpitating.
Menma stood at the highest point of the Sand City ruins, the broken walls casting long shadows at his feet.
Arms crossed, he gazed at the distant absorption process, his brows furrowing imperceptibly.
In his mental world, he was communicating with the Dark Nine-Tails.
‘What’s going on, little nine? This absorption is much slower than expected.’ Menma conveyed the question in his mental world.
In his memory, even in the Limited Tsukuyomi world, the Dark Nine-Tails had never taken this long to devour the other eight Tails.
‘Menma, this guy’s chakra… is too massive! And the quality is extremely strange, carrying a kind of… uh, indescribable feeling.’ The Dark Nine-Tails’ voice echoed in his consciousness.
‘Hey, Menma!’ Then, with a hint of excitement: ‘Is this really just a juvenile? In my perception, its chakra amount far exceeds the total of all the Tails I’ve devoured before!’
Menma understood.
The Tails in the Limited Tsukuyomi world originated from human hatred and chakra aggregation, with no concept of the Ten-Tails.
But the Ten-Tails before them was a God Tree sapling, fundamentally different.
‘Correct, this is just a juvenile. The true complete Ten-Tails needs to absorb the planet’s natural energy to form.’ He explained, his mind racing as he recalled how Obito and Madara gained Six Paths Power with an incomplete Ten-Tails in the original story.
So, what transformation would the Dark Nine-Tails, fused with the eight great Tails’ chakra and now absorbing this juvenile Ten-Tails, ultimately bring?
Could it help him reach the Six Paths level threshold?
At that moment, light footsteps came from behind.
Tsunade’s figure appeared at the edge of the broken walls, her golden ponytail swaying slightly in the hot wind.
She looked at the two colossal beasts still entangled in the distance, her face unusually grave, took a deep breath, walked to Menma’s side, and asked with irrepressible heaviness: “What… exactly are you trying to do?”
She hadn’t slept all night, this question echoing endlessly in her mind.
She’d heard of Tails fighting, but one Tail systematically and greedily absorbing another’s chakra like this completely overturned her understanding.
A thought emerged: if all Tails’ power merged into one, what terrifying existence would be born?
She didn’t dare imagine the impact on the ninja world.
Menma turned his head, looking into Tsunade’s eyes filled with bewilderment and wariness, and pondered for a moment.
“No harm in telling you.” Menma’s tone was calm, as if discussing something mundane: “But it involves Otsutsuki and higher-level powers, which you might not understand now. Simply put, what I’m pursuing is power at the level of… the Sage of Six Paths.”
“Six Paths… Immortal?” Tsunade murmured the mythical name, her beautiful eyes filled with disbelief.
“Isn’t that… an ancient legend? The founder of the Ninja Sect…”
A faint arc tugged at Menma’s lips, with a hint of teasing: “Legend? No, the Sage of Six Paths isn’t a legend. In a sense, he’s still ‘alive’ now.”
‘Though in the form of soul and chakra.’ He added inwardly.
Tsunade was struck like lightning, frozen in place!
A figure from a thousand-year-old legend, still alive?
If true…
Her mind was in chaos, barely able to think.
As Tsunade sank into massive shock, Menma’s brows suddenly twitched, his left Byakugan instantly activating, veins bulging, his sight piercing through layers of sand dunes toward the distance.
In his perception, a large number of fast-moving chakra signatures were racing toward this direction!
“Hm?” Tsunade also immediately noticed Menma’s change and the faint vibrations from afar, snapping out of her shock and looking in the direction of Menma’s gaze.
Soon, amid the rolling sand dust on the horizon, the figures of a not-insignificant ninja force gradually came into view.
“It’s Sand Village people!” Tsunade’s eyes sharp, immediately recognizing the leaders’ characteristics.
“Fourth Kazekage Rasa, and those two old folks Chiyo and Ebizo… Looks like this commotion has alarmed Sand Village after all.” She turned to Menma, her tone carrying complex meaning.
“What are you going to do?”
Menma lightly patted non-existent dust from his miko robe, his demeanor relaxed, as if what approached wasn’t a village Kage leading elite troops, but uninvited flies.
“What to do?” He chuckled lightly, his gaze suddenly turning cold.
“Of course, make these nuisances… get lost.”
As soon as the words fell, his figure vanished from the spot, leaving Tsunade behind.
………..
At the outskirts of the Sea of Death, Sand Village’s elite troops halted.
Thirty-six ninja, led by Rasa, Chiyo, and Ebizo, fanned out, all stunned beyond words by the apocalyptic scene before them!
“That… that’s the Nine-Tails?! Did Konoha’s Nine-Tails jinchūriki go on a rampage? Why is it here?!”
“No! Wrong color! It’s dark red!”
“What… what is it doing? It’s absorbing that monster’s chakra?!”
“Ten tails… Does a Ten-Tails monster really exist in the world?!”
Exclamations and doubts rose one after another; even these battle-hardened Sand elites couldn’t help but waver in the face of such a cognition-shattering scene.
Rasa suppressed his inner shock; as Kazekage, he must stay calm.
He was about to order careful reconnaissance and strategy formulation.
At that moment!
“Careful! One o’clock direction, someone on the sand dune!” Ebizo’s sharp perception detected the anomaly first, shouting sternly!
Everyone instantly went on alert, gazes snapping to that sand dune!
There, a black-haired boy had silently appeared atop the dune at some point, his black-based red-edged miko robe flapping loudly in the gale!
The most heart-palpitating thing was his pair of heterochromatic pupils.
Three tomoe appeared over the crimson red of his right eye, blue veins bulging on his left eye!
Cold eyes swept across the entire field, carrying undisguised contempt and killing intent!
“Watch his eyes!”
“What is that?!”
“Sharingan and… Byakugan?”
“Impossible!”
The Sand Ninja crowd looked at those eyes, a chill sweeping through their bodies.
“How could there be such a dojutsu combination?!” Chiyo Granny also widened her old eyes; having lived for over fifty years and experienced three Ninja Wars, she truly found it hard to understand.
“Since you all want to die,” the boy spoke, his voice not loud but clearly entering everyone’s ears, carrying bone-chilling coldness.
“Then I’ll oblige you.”
“Prepare for battle!” Rasa’s pupils contracted sharply, immediately roaring.
However, before his words could fully land—
Whoosh!
The boy’s figure on the sand dune suddenly vanished!
In the next instant, Rasa only felt a fierce wind rushing at his face!
Menma’s figure appeared before him like teleportation, a seemingly casual but lightning-fast spinning whip kick, carrying a screech that tore through the air, viciously whipping toward his abdomen!
“What?!” Rasa had no time for any effective reaction.
Bang—!!!
A muffled giant crash!
Rasa felt as if his organs had all been kicked out of place by this strike!
Sharp pain instantly spread through his body; his entire body flew backward like catapulted, spitting a mouthful of blood, crashing over ten meters away and heavily into the sand, kicking up clouds of yellow sand!
“Lord Kazekage!!”
“Protect the Kazekage!!”
Shouts of alarm rose everywhere!
The surrounding Sand Village ninjas reacted extremely quickly, countless kunai and shuriken shooting toward the just-appeared Menma like a rainstorm!
However, after landing the strike, Menma’s figure flickered again, retreating lightly backward as if strolling leisurely; all ninja tools fell into empty space.
He returned once more to that sand dune, as if he had never moved, coldly overlooking the chaotic Sand Village crowd below.
“So… so fast!” Chiyo Granny sucked in a cold breath, her aged face filled with shock!
She hadn’t even seen clearly how the opponent had moved!
This speed had completely surpassed the scope of conventional Body Flicker Technique!
“Medical squad! Hurry!” Baki was the first to rush to Rasa’s side, helping him up, shouting anxiously.
Rasa coughed violently, struggling to stand with Baki’s support, blood still trickling from the corner of his mouth.
He tore off the damaged white miko robe on his body, revealing the battle suit underneath; golden sand grains emerged around him like living things, protecting him.
His eyes were filled with humiliation and rage!
“Damn… ambushed!” Rasa stared deathly at Menma on the sand dune, his voice trembling with anger.
“But now it’s clear—this guy is the mastermind manipulating those two Tails! We absolutely cannot let him go!”
Ebizo’s long eyebrows furrowed tightly, his tone extremely grave: “No matter what his goal is, we must stop him! Otherwise, the consequences will be unimaginable!”
Rasa took a deep breath, forcibly suppressing his injuries and rage; the golden sand’s glow solidified further: “Everyone, attention! Form defensive formation! Puppet troops, prepare! Sealing Squad, stand by! The opponent is extremely fast—don’t give him the chance to pick us off one by one!”
He refused to believe that, with preparations made, he could still be hit so easily!
However, his confident command had just been issued—
Whoosh!
Menma’s figure suddenly vanished again!
“Behind you! Be careful!” Chiyo Granny’s cry of alarm rang out!
Rasa turned in horror! He saw Menma had somehow appeared at his side again, still with that simple yet extremely fast whip kick!
“Gold sand shield wall!” Rasa roared; the gold sand around him instantly condensed into a thick, gleaming shield in front of him!
This was his proud absolute defense!
Boom—!!!
Menma’s leg viciously struck the gold sand shield!
Enormous force exploded outward!
The sturdy gold sand shield shattered like fragile glass, kicked apart with golden powder scattering everywhere!
And Menma’s leg barely slowed, passing through the collapsing shield and precisely kicking Rasa’s abdomen in the exact same spot again!
Pfft—!!!
Rasa spat out another large mouthful of blood, his body flying backward like a kite with cut strings, even more miserably than last time, continuously knocking down several Sand Village ninjas behind him before barely stopping!
The entire Sand Village team instantly fell into dead silence!
Everyone stared dumbfounded at this scene, their faces filled with incredulous fear!
Twice!
The dignified Fourth Kazekage, under full alert and in plain view of numerous elite Sand Ninjas, couldn’t even withstand a single move from the opponent?!
Even they, these elite Sand Ninjas, couldn’t even see the opponent’s movements clearly?!
Chiyo Granny and Ebizo exchanged a glance, both seeing unprecedented shock and a trace of fear in each other’s eyes.
This boy…
What kind of monster was he?!
【Illustration: Rasa and Gaara】
