Meanwhile, as Pakura's squad chased 'Higashino Shinichi' and was ultimately lured back to the main camp—right into that devastating 'visit'—
The Battle of Kikyō Pass, the largest and most intense frontal engagement on the southwestern front since the outbreak of the war, had finally come to an end after more than half a day of frenzied slaughter and brutal attrition.
Eight thousand men attacked the mountain; over six thousand defended it.
Sunagakure's offensive was fierce, wave after wave, as if tireless—puppet corps, large-scale summoning beasts, poison units, Wind Release ninjutsu, Earth Release ninjutsu… all kinds of forces were deployed in succession, trying to tear open Konoha's defenses.
But Konoha held firm.
Both sides suffered heavy casualties.
At the foot of Kikyō Pass, corpses lay piled in layers, blood soaking every inch of the ground. Broken blades, shattered puppets, charred limbs were scattered everywhere.
Sunagakure never managed to break through Konoha's defenses.
"Pass it down! All frontline units—alternate cover, disengage step by step… withdraw."
By dusk, Rasa finally gave the order to retreat.
Sunagakure's offensive ebbed like a receding tide. The surviving shinobi covered one another, carrying the wounded, withdrawing from that battlefield that had devoured countless lives like a pack of injured wolves.
Of the eight thousand elite who had stormed the mountain in high spirits, fewer than five thousand remained upon withdrawal. More than three thousand lives had been left behind at the foot of Kikyō Pass, with the number of wounded beyond count.
...
Sunagakure Main Camp.
When Rasa returned to the camp with smoke still clinging to him and exhaustion etched into his bones, leading the battered remnants of his forces—
what met his eyes was not an orderly camp or welcoming troops, but a scene of shocking devastation.
He froze, stopping at the entrance, almost thinking he had come to the wrong place.
Pakura took a deep breath, stepped forward, dropped to one knee, lowered her head, and spoke: "Fourth Kazekage-sama, this subordinate is incompetent. The mission to hunt down Higashino Shinichi has failed. Not only did I fail to complete it, I allowed him to break into the camp and cause such destruction. I ask Kazekage-sama to punish me."
Punish?
Pakura?
Now?
Rasa stood there, looking at the ruins, then at Pakura kneeling before him.
He wanted to explode in anger.
Wanted to question her—three hundred elites chasing a ten-year-old brat, how did he escape? How did he turn around and smash the main camp? How did he even take the command banner?
But he knew even better—now was not the time for anger.
"What exactly happened? From beginning to end—explain it clearly."
Rasa forced his expression to remain calm as he spoke.
At his words, Pakura began reporting the pursuit in a concise and orderly manner. After hearing it, Rasa fell silent.
"How did he disappear? Konoha's Flying Thunder God Technique? Or…"
Rasa glanced at Pakura, still kneeling on one knee, but did not continue that line of thought.
Unity. Unity.
He repeated it over and over in his mind.
Though he wanted to punish Pakura, wanted her to pay for this failure—he understood even more clearly how important she was to the village at this moment.
After the battle at Kikyō Pass, Sunagakure had suffered devastating losses, morale had plummeted to rock bottom. If he punished Pakura now—this top-tier combat force of the village, this prodigy jōnin held in extremely high regard among the shinobi—internal conflicts would only intensify.
Morale would collapse even further.
And the battles ahead would become even harder to fight.
With that in mind, Rasa finally spoke.
"This matter is not entirely your responsibility."
"That brat, Higashino Shinichi, truly exceeded our expectations."
His gaze swept across the ruins, across the exhausted subordinates, and finally returned to Pakura.
"Stand up. The battles ahead still require you. Make sure you redeem yourself."
Pakura fell silent for a moment, then rose to her feet.
"Yes, Kazekage-sama."
Rasa no longer looked at her. He turned and strode straight toward a hastily erected ordinary tent nearby, temporarily serving as a command center. He lifted the flap and walked inside, then waved his hand, signaling the subordinates behind him to leave.
Chiyo stood by the tent entrance, glanced at him, as if wanting to say something—but in the end, she said nothing, only sighed softly and turned away.
Inside the tent, only Rasa remained.
The dim, wavering light above cast shifting shadows across his face.
It shouldn't be like this…
Rasa did not look at the scattered reports on the table. He simply sat there, staring blankly ahead, his usually steady and composed eyes now unfocused, hollow.
He, Rasa—relying on his Magnet Release bloodline limit—had stepped forward during the village's moment of crisis, when it had lost the Third Kazekage and was leaderless, beset by internal strife and external threats. Backed by the elders Chiyo and Ebizō, he had overcome numerous obstacles and finally ascended to the position of Fourth Kazekage.
He had ambitions. He had aspirations.
He wanted to prove to everyone—
that he, Rasa, was no inferior to the Kazekage before him.
That he could lead Sunagakure out of poverty… and into strength.
And this war against Konoha was a crucial step in his plan.
He would use the uncertainty surrounding the disappearance of the Third Kazekage to stir up a shared sense of outrage, launch a sudden strike with lightning speed, and, relying on Elder Chiyo's near-unsolvable poison techniques and Pakura as a sharp blade, open the situation. By seizing the rich borderlands and resources of the Land of Fire, he would win a decisive victory, establish Sunagakure's prestige in a single battle, and completely cement his, Rasa's, unmatched authority and power within the village.
But…
Since the war began, the overwhelming momentum and crushing advance he had envisioned had never materialized. In its place came stalemate, attrition, and even setbacks and humiliation.
Sunagakure was already poor to begin with; its national strength could not sustain a prolonged stalemate against Konoha. Every battle of attrition that failed to achieve decisive results was draining the village's already fragile foundation. Every Sunagakure shinobi who died was a loss the village could hardly bear.
And as Kazekage—as the initiator of the war and its supreme commander—he had to take responsibility for all of it.
Prestige?
The position he had only just secured—could it withstand such consecutive failures and massive casualties? Those factions who had already harbored doubts about his rise to power, or who favored Pakura more, what would they think? How much more of these battle reports could public opinion within the village endure?
Would even the Daimyō continue to firmly support them?
After all, they had not even informed the Daimyō before launching this war—and it was said the Daimyō had flown into a rage afterward.
"Fourth Kazekage? Nothing special…"
"Lord Rasa was too impatient…"
"If it had been Pakura-sama as the Fourth…"
"This war should never have been fought…"
A heavy sense of powerlessness welled up in Rasa's chest. It was as if he could hear the whispers behind his back, see those dissatisfied gazes—open and hidden—falling upon him.
Just as Rasa began to feel suffocated, the sound of footsteps came from outside the tent.
"Kazekage-sama, this subordinate requests an audience."
Rasa opened his eyes. The voice was familiar—the man was Sōjin, a jōnin from the advisory department, and one of his most trusted subordinates.
The man was capable, meticulous in thought, and most importantly—loyal.
For a newly appointed Kazekage like Rasa, loyalty was the rarest and most valuable quality.
"Come in," Rasa said, his expression already returning to its usual calm.
The tent flap was lifted, and Sōjin stepped inside. Of average build and plain features, he was the kind of person who would be impossible to pick out in a crowd.
After entering, he subtly and extremely quickly swept a glance over Rasa's expression and posture from the corner of his eye, then respectfully bowed.
"This subordinate—first, mourns for Kazekage-sama; second, offers congratulations to Kazekage-sama."
Rasa raised a brow slightly and said flatly, "Sōjin, what nonsense are you speaking? Our side has suffered setbacks. As Kazekage, I am deeply troubled—what is there to congratulate?"
Sōjin met Rasa's gaze and spoke slowly: "Kazekage-sama, within fortune there is misfortune, within misfortune there is fortune. Fortune and misfortune depend on each other. A great outcome may yet be achieved."
Rasa's brow furrowed even more.
"Explain clearly."
"Kazekage-sama, please look."
Sōjin nodded, took out an intelligence scroll from his robe, and presented it with both hands.
"According to our intelligence, Kumogakure has been making frequent moves. There are even rumors that the Third Raikage has already completed a large-scale troop mobilization, with total forces exceeding ten thousand. The deployment of various war supplies has also been completed. All signs indicate that Kumogakure's war against Konoha is imminent."
"As for Kirigakure, a large number of ships have recently gathered at the coastal ports of the Land of Water. Those shinobi who have long been shrouded in the Bloody Mist also seem unable to hold back any longer."
"As for Iwagakure, although the Third Tsuchikage, Ōnoki, still appears to maintain a wait-and-see stance on the surface, preparations in secret have already begun to accelerate. They may step in at any moment."
"Once Kumogakure launches its attack in the northeast of the Land of Fire, Iwagakure and Kirigakure will certainly not miss this opportunity."
"At that time…"
Sōjin paused slightly, a trace of excitement entering his voice as he continued: "Konoha will be facing pressure from four directions at once."
"And we, Sunagakure, can use this opportunity to rest and recover—letting the other sides wear each other down."
"When they have battered each other to mutual ruin, when Konoha is bogged down in multi-front warfare and exhausted…"
"Then we launch a new offensive."
"At that time…"
He raised his head and looked at Rasa.
"A great outcome may yet be achieved."
After a long silence, Rasa finally spoke. His voice had regained its usual steadiness. A trace of approval appeared in his gaze as he looked at Sōjin.
"Sōjin…"
"You're right. Fortune and misfortune depend on each other. It seems this setback may not be entirely a bad thing."
He stood up and walked to the crude map, his finger slowly tracing along the long border of the Land of Fire before finally stopping in the southwestern region.
"Pass down the order: starting tomorrow, all frontline units will shift to a defensive posture. Rely on existing positions, reinforce fortifications. Use small elite squads to carry out continuous harassment, sabotage, and reconnaissance. Avoid large-scale frontal engagements."
"Order the logistics department to accelerate the transport of supplies from the homeland—especially medicine, puppet materials, and a new batch of shinobi reinforcements."
"Notify the intelligence department to increase monitoring of movements from Kumogakure, Kirigakure, and Iwagakure—especially Kumogakure. I want to know the exact timing and scale of their attack the moment they make a move!"
"Yes! Kazekage-sama!"
Sōjin bowed to receive the orders, then turned and left.
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