The night in Sunagakure was as thick as ink, like a giant curtain blanketing the arid land.
In the shadow of the Village's tallest building, the Fourth Kazekage Rasa stood as still as a cold stone statue.
His sharp eyes pierced the darkness, looking down at the cruel script unfolding in the courtyard below without a trace of warmth.
The protagonist was his six-year-old son, Gaara.
At this moment, beside that familiar red hair, the deepest betrayal was being staged; Gaara's uncle, who was also the brother of Rasa's late wife, Yashamaru, was holding a Kunai, intending to assassinate his own nephew.
Regarding the assassination before him, Rasa felt no ripple in his heart.
Because this cruel command had originated from his own hands.
As the Kazekage, his will was the Village's will; Yashamaru's loyalty was beyond doubt, and there was only room for obedience.
The purpose of this meticulously planned assassination was cold and direct: to test Gaara's value, whether he could still suppress the churning beast within and perfectly control the calamitous power of the One-Tail Shukaku sealed inside him amidst extreme pain and betrayal.
To drive this test to the deepest abyss of despair, Rasa had set cruel lines for Yashamaru.
He had to tell Gaara that all past warmth and care were merely hypocritical illusions;
He had never loved this nephew, and his only purpose in approaching and raising him was to avenge his sister, who had been "killed" by Gaara.
Furthermore, Yashamaru had to personally crush the last comfort in Gaara's heart by telling him that his mother, Karura, who died in childbirth, also harbored deep hatred for him and never felt a shred of maternal love.
This was the complete destruction of a child's soul, aimed at uprooting all emotional anchors.
In the original "intended" trajectory of fate, Yashamaru would have died under Gaara's out-of-control Sandstorm, and this tragic end would have completely crushed Gaara's mental defenses, leading to Shukaku's total rampage, which would eventually be suppressed by Rasa himself.
That result would confirm Gaara's total failure as a "vessel."
Rasa also deemed Gaara a failure because of this.
Thus, he constantly sent assassins to kill Gaara, making him more lonely, bloodthirsty, and world-weary, all to forge a qualified weapon of war.
Now, the script was advancing toward that predetermined tragic end.
When Yashamaru, carrying the lies given by Rasa, stabbed the Kunai toward Gaara, the young red-haired child's eyes were filled with unbelievable shock.
Why would this relative, the only one who had cared for and taught him Ninjutsu in the past, suddenly turn into a life-taking Shinigami?
Then, those cold and poisonous words, like venomous icicles, stabbed hard into Gaara's ears and heart.
Yashamaru's voice was no longer gentle as before, but filled with the hatred and deception demanded by Rasa.
Gaara's teal eyes, as the "truth" was revealed word by word, went out like a candle in the wind, eventually leaving only emptiness and silence.
At the moment that despair reached its peak, a sudden change occurred!
Chakra violent enough to tear space, like a burst dam, suddenly exploded from Gaara's small body!
The sand around him seemed to be given life, or like a school of sharks smelling blood, spinning wildly—
Converging, it instantly swallowed his thin figure completely.
This was no ordinary sandstorm, but a sign of the seal completely breaking!
"Roar!!!"
A deafening roar, full of ecstasy and brutality, tore through Sunagakure's night sky!
The massive beast made of pure sand, the One-Tail Shukaku, taking advantage of its host's despair and the complete collapse of the sealing formula, broke free from all restraints and descended upon the Shinobi World in its full form!
Its signature laughter, filled with endless mockery and madness, echoed over the entire Village: "Aha ha ha! This lord is finally out! Freedom!!"
Rasa reacted quickly, activating Magnet Release to control heavy Gold Dust to lift his body, hovering steadily in mid-air.
His cold eyes stared fixedly at the rampaging beast below; there was no worry or surprise, only thick, unshakeable disgust and a cold conclusion.
As expected, this son was worthless.
If just this level of "test" could make Shukaku lose control and break the seal, what could be expected of him in the future?
"Hmm? I know you! It's you, you bastard!" Shukaku's giant eyes also locked onto Rasa in the air, recognizing the Kazekage who had suppressed it before.
Its wild laughter carried intense hostility as a giant sand arm slammed into its bulging belly.
Buzz!
Terrifying Chakra fluctuations condensed instantly, and a heart-palpitating hum rang in the air.
Next second.
"Wind Release: Air Bullet!"
From Shukaku's wide-open mouth, a highly compressed, giant wind ball containing destructive energy burst out, tearing through the air and blasting toward Rasa with thunderous force!
However, facing this strike capable of destroying mountains, Rasa's expression remains as indifferent as ice.
He simply extended his right hand, fingers spread.
Instantly, the ground below rumbled, and countless particles of Gold Dust with a metallic luster rose like a boiling golden sea, instantly constructing a thick, indestructible golden barrier in front of him!
"Boom!!!"
The Air Bullet slammed into the Gold Dust barrier, erupting in a deafening explosion and violent air currents, with shockwaves scattering and kicking up dust everywhere.
But the Gold Dust barrier only trembled slightly, steadily blocking the mountain-shattering strike without moving an inch.
Before the dust cleared, Rasa's hands had already completed complex and rapid hand seals.
His cold voice announced the end: "Magnet Release: Gold Dust Imperial Funeral!"
In an instant, it was as if golden angry waves surged from underground!
Endless Gold Dust, like a living golden tide with the power to submerge everything, swept toward Shukaku, who had just escaped and hadn't had time to destroy to his heart's content!
"Damn it! Bastard Rasa! I just got out! It won't be that easy for me to go back!"
Shukaku struggled violently and roared within the rapidly closing and squeezing sea of Gold Dust, its massive sand body twisting desperately, trying to break free from this Magnet Release sealing power specifically designed to restrain Tailed Beasts.
Its roar was full of resentment and fury.
Unfortunately, all this struggle was meaningless in Rasa's eyes.
He hovered in the air, watching coldly as the golden torrent swallowed and compressed the giant beast bit by bit.
His Gold Dust was the most suitable sturdy cage for suppressing Tailed Beasts.
Under the Gold Dust Imperial Funeral, Shukaku's rampage was like a brief, failed farce, destined to return to silence.
And the only conclusion of this farce was already clearly etched in Rasa's cold heart: Gaara was a complete failure.
On the edge of the dust-filled Sunagakure, Kazekage Rasa's face was also as heavy as iron.
Although he seemingly suppressed the One-Tail Shukaku easily with the Gold Dust Imperial Funeral, the power of a Tailed Beast was not to be underestimated; he had used almost his maximum power.
His "Gold Dust Imperial Funeral," executed with all his might, was like a giant golden pyramid, firmly suppressing the violently struggling One-Tail Shukaku within.
Shukaku's massive body emitted unwilling roars and growls under the heavy-as-a-mountain Gold Dust, every shake causing the earth to tremble.
Seeing the time was ripe, Rasa formed hand seals, Chakra condensing at his fingertips—it was the critical moment to perform the Sealing Jutsu and seal this out-of-control disaster back into the Jinchuriki's body!
Suddenly!
A sharp explosion tore through the air, like a thunderclap from the highest heavens exploding right by his ear!
"What?!"
Rasa's heart jolted; the sudden shock wasn't from an auditory hallucination but from a strong warning sign of Shinobi instinct!
This was definitely not an illusion!
He snapped his head up, his pupils contracting at the sight before him.
The dozens-of-meters high, indestructible Gold Dust triangular prism was collapsing with an inconceivable speed that almost defied common sense!
Countless particles of Gold Dust were being disintegrated and thrown out from the inside by an invisible, irresistible force, like a golden waterfall flowing backward!
Rasa could clearly feel that his Magnet Release control over the Gold Dust hadn't completely failed, but a terrifying power was standing in the way.
He tried his best to stabilize the collapsing Gold Dust, but it was like trying to row a boat in a surging countercurrent; every step was extremely difficult, and his control was being shattered by the impact of that brute force.
"Ow ow ow!!! Which bastard?! How dare you hurt me!!"
The moment the Gold Dust restraint shattered, the freed Shukaku let out a deafening howl of pain, its giant body swaying as it stood up, orange Chakra churning violently on its surface, its beastly eyes scanning the sky with shock and anger.
Rasa and Shukaku's gazes locked onto the uninvited guest hovering in mid-air at almost the same time.
A pair of giant Chakra wings, condensed as if solid and emitting a faint, cold light, spread silently behind him, trembling slightly in the wind.
Most heart-palpitating was the eerie and cold fox mask covering the newcomer's face!
"The Collector?!" Rasa exclaimed, his voice carrying unbelievable shock.
This mask was known to almost everyone in the entire Shinobi World!
It represented mystery, power, and the terrifying existence that had stirred up massive waves on the Kumogakure battlefield!
Takuno, however, turned a deaf ear to Rasa's exclamation.
His gaze, hidden behind the fox mask, observed the newly freed, furious Shukaku with interest.
"Heh, One-Tail Shukaku," he whispered in his heart.
He had originally planned to arrive in Sunagakure in a few days, only because the monitoring crow he sent back reported the news of Shukaku's full-body rampage.
How could he miss such a good opportunity? After all, a Tailed Beast's total rampage was not common.
He immediately crossed the desert at maximum speed, finally intervening at the last moment before Rasa's Sealing Jutsu was completed!
That thunderous punch that crushed the Gold Dust was the strongest note announcing his arrival.
Rasa, completely ignored, felt the fire of anger from being slighted ignite in his eyes, but logic, like a cold shackle, forcibly suppressed the impulse.
The opponent's speed, which exceeded the limits of his visual capture, and the power shown by disintegrating his proud "Gold Dust Imperial Funeral" with one punch, far beyond his imagination, clearly reminded him of the chasm in their strength.
"Your Excellency, Collector!" Rasa forcibly suppressed his churning emotions, his voice cold like the friction of sand.
"Shukaku's rampage is an internal affair of Sunagakure! Konoha and Sunagakure have lived in peace for years. As a member of Konoha, what is your intention in intervening so boldly now? Do you intend to personally ignite the flames of war between the two Great Shinobi Villages?!"
He tried to use the threat of inter-Village war and the peaceful relationship between Konoha and Sunagakure over the years to force back this uninvited guest.
However, the truth was that when Konoha and Kumogakure were in a fierce battle, it wasn't that Sunagakure didn't want to take advantage, but years of war had already exhausted the national strength, making it impossible to start another conflict, so they could only stay put.
Looking back at the situation where Konoha ultimately remained safe, Rasa even felt a trace of lingering fear and relief.
"Hmm? Konoha?" Takuno finally turned his head slightly, the empty eye holes of the fox mask "looking" at Rasa, the voice from behind the mask carrying undisguised mockery and playfulness.
"The war between Sunagakure and Konoha, what does it have to do with me?" He paused deliberately, the sarcasm in his tone even stronger, "Do you... naively think... that I am a member of Konoha?"
Rasa was suddenly speechless.
Although there was no ironclad proof, The Collector's active performance on the Konoha battlefield had long led the entire Shinobi World to assume his relationship with Konoha was extraordinary.
Takuno seemed to find this topic dull, his tone returning to its previous casualness: "You want to declare war on Konoha? Suit yourself."
He waved his hand lightly, as if shooing away a bothersome fly, "I won't interfere in your war. Because by then—"
His voice suddenly turned cold, with a chilling implication, "the things I need to take from you will have already been obtained."
Rasa shuddered!
Intelligence from Kumogakure spies flooded his mind; The Collector had an extraordinary desire to collect Tailed Beast Chakra!
Combined with The Collector's almost literal title.
Could it be that his real purpose in helping Konoha repel Kumogakure was the Eight-Tails' Chakra?
And Konoha only managed to get this powerhouse to act by promising the Nine-Tails Chakra?
The Collector's words revealed that he had already obtained the Nine-Tails Chakra, and there was indeed no intelligence of him snatching Konoha's Nine-Tails—
All these clues instantly connected in Rasa's mind into a terrifying answer!
"Your goal is the One-Tail's Chakra?!" Rasa's face became incredibly solemn and ugly, his voice low as if squeezed from sand.
The other party's words sounded as if he would definitely get the One-Tail's Chakra today, so there was no need to wait for a future war between Konoha and Sunagakure.
This attitude made him very uncomfortable.
"Congratulations," Takuno let out a short chuckle, confirming Rasa's guess, "You got it right."
"If—" A flash of determination crossed Rasa's eyes, the dignity of the Kazekage making him straighten his back, Gold Dust faintly churning around him, "—I refuse?!"
"Hmm?" Takuno's gaze fell back on Rasa, those Chakra wings seeming to tremble slightly, and an invisible pressure suddenly descended.
He didn't even take a combat stance, but the threat contained in his flat words weighed over a thousand pounds.
"Do you think... you... can stop me?"
He didn't need to remind him; just the speed of his arrival and the power of that punch made the answer obvious!
In an instant, Rasa felt his breath hitch! Invisible pressure squeezed his chest like a physical object.
He stood there, his face changing rapidly under the moonlight and sand dust, shifting between light and dark.
His clenched fists trembled slightly, and the Gold Dust churning around him seemed to have lost its usual agility and power, becoming sluggish and heavy.
The Kazekage's determination, faced with an absolute gap in power, fell into painful struggle and silence.