Sometimes, the Tailed Beast Cloak wasn't just for boosting combat power.
It was also great for… stamina.
Kai watched Ōnoki moving normally again and couldn't help patting the old man's shoulder, giving him a sideways look.
"Already out of steam from moving this little dirt, Tsuchikage-sama?"
"…Don't tell me you're not up for it?"
"The Raikage next door's working like a furnace."
Ōnoki's face darkened instantly.
"Bullshit!"
A man could never admit he wasn't capable!
Even if… he actually wasn't.
Even worse—being called out for it.
He glanced at the Raikage, who was sweating bullets while digging rocks nonstop.
Then at Kai, standing there leisurely like he was watching a show.
A strange feeling suddenly rose in Ōnoki's chest.
He had to prove himself—
In front of this brat.
Grinding his teeth, he squeezed the words out:
"Don't. Worry."
"That muscle-brained idiot's all show—no substance!"
The white glow of Dust Release in his hands intensified immediately.
Kai nodded.
"Good. Keep it up."
He withdrew the hand that had quietly planted Spore Deity, then looked down at the Iwa ninjas below.
FWOOOSH!
The moment he finished speaking, crimson chakra cloaks bloomed into existence—
Wrapping around the eight-man squad.
They stared at Kai gratefully.
Only one thought filled their hearts:
This young Uchiha is worried we'll get tired… and even spends chakra helping us recover!
What a good person!
…
BOOM.
THUD.
Heavy impacts echoed a hundred meters away.
The Fourth Raikage, A—
Was currently shirtless, hauling rocks.
His scarred, muscular torso glistened with sweat, highlighting iron-like muscle lines.
Every inch of his upper body looked like it'd been forged from steel.
He reached out with his only remaining left arm, fingers digging deep into a massive granite slab four or five times his size.
"HRRAAAH—!"
With a beastlike roar, every muscle in his body bulged to the limit.
Feet spread.
Knees bent.
Waist anchored.
Like a fully drawn war bow unleashing explosive force.
CRACK!
The giant granite split apart.
He hoisted the massive chunk onto his shoulder.
The nearly ten-meter-wide stone forced craters into the ground with every step.
KRAK—
Spiderweb fractures spread beneath his feet.
Sweat streamed down his back.
Dripping—
drip… pfft…
Onto scorched earth and rock below.
He trudged over to Ōnoki.
BANG!
Dropped the stone.
Turned.
Went back for another.
Meanwhile, Ōnoki continued dismantling the rocks into building material.
Their workflow had become strangely efficient.
After setting down one load, the Raikage glanced at the crimson cloak surrounding Ōnoki.
His face twitched slightly.
He said nothing.
But inwardly scoffed.
Old man's already worn out… relying on outside help this fast.
By the tenth rock, he still felt disdain.
By the hundredth—
The Raikage finally paused to breathe.
"HEY! Thunder Lump! Why're you slacking off?!"
Ōnoki's irritated shout came from afar.
They'd already processed the rocks!
Bricks were ready!
Why wasn't there enough raw material?!
The Raikage sighed and forced himself to keep going.
He wasn't at peak condition.
Missing an arm.
A good chunk of chakra sealed by those cursed chains.
To get this far using mostly raw strength—
He knew he'd already done more than enough.
But—
He couldn't lose.
Especially not to that old geezer.
Even if they'd teamed up to ambush Konoha, the blood feud between Cloud and Stone hadn't vanished.
After three seconds of hesitation, he turned to Kai and barked:
"Hey! Uchiha brat—give me one too."
It was just a chakra cloak, right?
With that, he'd carry rocks like they were feathers.
"During work hours, call me Chief Engineer."
Kai shot him a look and immediately flicked him on the head.
At the same time, quietly planting Spore Deity.
"You—!"
The Raikage raised his head angrily.
As the Fourth Raikage, one of the fastest men alive—
No one had ever dared smack his head like that.
But the moment he saw Kai…
A strange sense of guilt rose inside him.
Right… I hate being called by name while I'm working too.
Putting himself in Kai's shoes—
He suddenly felt the smack was… justified.
In fact, if there weren't so many people watching, he might've asked for another.
"…Weird. Something feels off…"
Muttering to himself, he turned back and resumed digging with renewed vigor.
Under the chakra cloak's boost, he worked like a tireless pangolin—
Hammering away at the rocky hills of the Forest of Death.
…
"Heave-ho!"
"Heave-ho!"
Soon, bricks piled up one after another—
Like mixing concrete with spaghetti, chaotic but effective.
"Move these fresh brick molds to the west side!"
Earth Release: Rock Golem Technique!
More than ten Iwa ninjas formed hand seals.
A massive stone construct rose—
Carefully hauling the bricks away.
A famous Earth Release combat technique…
Reduced to a cargo hauler.
If word got out, Iwagakure would never live it down.
BOOM!
Five hundred meters away, the temperature suddenly spiked.
WOOOOSH—
A gigantic kiln loomed like a crouching beast, its mouth dark and cavernous.
In front of it—
Yugito, half-transformed into her Tailed Beast state, knelt awkwardly on the ground.
Her clothes were already burned to tatters.
Thankfully, the blue-black chakra cloak obscured most of it.
Just like three days ago—
A collar still hung around her neck.
Muscles taut.
Eyes simmering.
"Meow—HAAA—!"
With a mix of grievance and reluctance, she opened her mouth—
And blasted out a torrent of flames.
"Too hot! Too hot! The temperature's spiking again—this batch'll be ruined!"
Yamanaka Torifu shouted immediately while monitoring the kiln.
"Quick! Add water to cool it down!"
"And Yugito—tone down the fire! Don't burn so hot!"
Yugito: …
She inhaled sharply.
For a split second, she wanted nothing more than to crush Torifu with a single claw.
But—
The cold sensation from the collar around her neck brought her back to reality.
Suppressing the urge, she exhaled again.
Fwooo—
The blue flames gradually stabilized.
Not far away, Kai watched the scene.
And suddenly, a thought popped into his mind—
A sexy wildcat… live-streaming some fire-stoking?
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