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The Suna training grounds were a whirlwind of sand.
A sleepless, red-haired boy trained with his usual brutal intensity, driven by a single goal.
Nearly four months had passed since Suna, allied with Orochimaru, had launched the assault on Konoha. In that battle against Naruto, Gaara had been changed. He had found a new resolve. To become like the one who had reached him. To earn the title of Kage. To protect his village.
The ideal of becoming Kazekage remained. Even as those around him opposed him. Even as assassination attempts became routine. His determination was unshakable.
Swish swish swish swish—!!
Around the training field, semi-automatic puppets manipulated by seals launched a relentless barrage of shuriken—each one tagged with an explosive note.
Whoosh!
Sand surged from the gourd on his back, forming a rapid, defensive wall.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
Explosions rocked the air, swallowed perfectly by the shifting sands.
"This level of omni-directional attack is manageable. Time to increase the intensity."
Gaara moved to adjust the seals on the puppets. Then he froze.
His expression didn't change, but his awareness sharpened. To guard against assassinations from his own village's elders, he had scattered 'Sand Eyes' around the perimeter. Anyone approaching would be sensed immediately.
"…" He remained silent for a moment. Then, the sand flowed back into his gourd.
Outside the training ground, Suigetsu and Jūgo were about to force their way in when they saw him. The boy with the gourd stood atop the wall, arms crossed, his face an impassive mask as he looked down on them.
"That attire. You are not from this village."
Suigetsu didn't answer. He just stared, taking in the details. Red hair. Dark circles under the eyes. Deadpan expression. The sand gourd. It all matched Zetsu's description.
Target confirmed.
Suigetsu grinned. "You're the Jinchūriki brat of Suna, right?"
Gaara's voice was flat. "State your business."
"Easy. We're from the Akatsuki. We're here to capture you. Make it easy on yourself and come quietly."
"The Akatsuki." A flicker of something cold passed through Gaara's eyes. "So you're not sent by the elders. That means I don't need to hold back."
BOOM!!
A torrent of sand erupted from the gourd, flooding the sky!
Suigetsu and Jūgo blurred backwards.
—Sand Shower!
Gaara struck first. The sand morphed into countless bullet-like pellets, firing at the two with machine-gun speed.
But… Suigetsu and Jūgo moved. They weaved through the barrage not with panic, but with a precise, almost lazy efficiency, as if they knew exactly where each grain would fly.
"Hn?"
Gaara's eyes narrowed. Amidst their high-speed dodging, a faint, swaying crimson light followed the trajectory of their movements.
The Sand Shower ceased. As the two men regained their footing, Gaara's eyes widened slightly. "As I thought… Sharingan. The same as Sasuke Uchiha's."
"Gotta admit," Suigetsu chuckled, hefting the massive exploding blade, Shibuki, onto his shoulder. "These ugly eyes are surprisingly handy."
The scroll of explosive tags unfurled from the blade, snaking and coiling across the ground, rushing toward the wall where Gaara stood.
—Exploding Blade Technique: Eightfold Ruin!
BOOM BOOM BOOM BOOM BOOM—!!!
The entire section of the training ground wall vanished in a chain of violent detonations.
Dust and debris filled the air. Within it, countless grains of sand swirled, coalescing into a perfect, spherical shield of sand—Gaara's ultimate defense, standing firm amidst the rubble.
Suigetsu observed the shield with his borrowed Sharingan. "Condensing that much chakra into the sand… That defense is no joke~!"
—Great Water Arm Technique!
Sploosh!
His arms ballooned with water, muscles rippling. He charged, the massive blade swinging.
Gaara tracked him through his Sand Eye.
—Desert Wave!
As Suigetsu closed in, sharp sand spikes erupted from the smooth surface of the shield—a seamless blend of offense and defense, nearly impossible to counter head-on.
But Suigetsu, guided by the Sharingan, skidded to a halt, twisted, and brought the exploding blade down in a savage arc!
KABOOM!
The explosion engulfed the shield. Suigetsu didn't let up. He flowed around it, a watery phantom, striking from all angles with his detonating blade!
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
The unnatural, sustained thunder of explosions finally reached the ears of Suna's shinobi.
The first to arrive were the ANBU.
They saw the black robes with red clouds and froze. "Intruders?! When did they infiltrate the village?!"
The ANBU captain held up a hand, his gaze sharp. "Wait. Look who they're fighting."
The ANBU followed his gaze to the figure commanding the sand, defending and attacking from within his spherical shield.
"It's… Gaara!"
The captain's eyes darkened. "Report to the elders. Request instructions."
The ANBU were efficient. Three minutes later, the reply came.
"The elders' directive: As long as they target only Gaara, we are to stand down and observe."
BOOM! CRACK! The battle's intensity grew. More Suna shinobi, roused from sleep, gathered at the periphery.
They saw who was under attack. And not a single one moved to intervene.
Cold eyes watched. Whispers spread.
"The intruders are doing us a favor. Getting rid of that curse for us."
"That ill-omened monster never should have drawn breath."
"Kill him! Kill Gaara, that incarnation of Shukaku!"
Suigetsu noticed the growing crowd. A pang of something like pity hit him. Tobi was right. This kid… he really has no one.
"Lucky for us. Otherwise, ten lives wouldn't be enough."
Seeing the stalemate, Gaara acted. The sand shield dispersed. The sand at his feet formed a platform, lifting him swiftly into the air.
Suigetsu didn't panic. His grin widened. "Too bad. We know all about your little flying trick. You think I wouldn't prepare for it?"
His free left hand gave a sharp tug. A faint glint of light flashed in the air above.
"That light…?!"
Gaara realized too late. Thin, nearly invisible wires had been attached to his sand platform.
Zing!
Suigetsu yanked hard. Gaara, with no footing in the air, was violently pulled down!
At the same moment, from a hidden spot in the ground, the long needle-blade Nuibari shot upward—aiming to pierce Gaara's chest as he fell!
"YES! DO IT!!!"
A cheer erupted from the watching Suna ninja.
But… the Gaara that was impaled and hit the ground dissolved into a pile of loose sand.
A Sand Clone.
The real Gaara emerged behind Suigetsu. "I understand your abilities now."
—Quicksand Waterfall!
WHOOSH!!
The very ground of the battlefield churned, turning into a flowing river of sand!
Suigetsu's footing vanished. His movements became sluggish, trapped.
Some abilities couldn't be countered by intelligence alone. Suigetsu didn't have wings.
Gaara extended a hand, fingers curling slightly.
—Sand Coffin!
Using the external sand to hinder movement, the special chakra-infused sand from his gourd surged forth, swiftly enveloping Suigetsu's body.
Trapped, Suigetsu watched the encroaching sand through the Sharingan. "You can control outside sand, but to finish someone off, you need this stuff from your gourd, don't you? The stuff packed with your chakra."
"Knowing changes nothing. My Sand Eye confirms you are not a clone. It ends here."
Crack.
Gaara clenched his fist tightly.
—Sand Burial!
CRUNCH—!!!
The sand encasing Suigetsu compressed violently, collapsing in on itself with terrifying force. Few could survive that crushing pressure—perhaps only Kimimaro with his cursed seal-enhanced Dead Bone Pulse.
But from within the flattened sand came Suigetsu's cold laugh. "Heh. Pity. My ability is practically your natural counter."
Sploosh…!!
A flood of water began seeping out from between the grains of sand.
Gaara's pupils constricted. "That is…"
"Jūgo… now!!"
Jūgo, who had been watching with a dark expression, finally moved. The cursed seal spread across his skin like ink in water.
Gaara was taken aback. "That mark… it's the same as Sasuke's and Kimimaro's…!!!"
BOOM—!!!
A wall of sand rose to block Jūgo's cursed-seal-enhanced fist.
Half of Jūgo's face was covered in the dark markings, split between light and shadow. His voice was low, dangerous. "Answer me. Did you kill Kimimaro?"
Seeing the mark, Gaara wasn't surprised by the name. "Kimimaro. If I must claim it… then yes."
Jūgo's brow furrowed. "'If you must claim it'?"
Gaara's voice was factual, devoid of pride. "Had he not been terminally ill, the one who died would undoubtedly have been me."
"Then you admit you killed him."
—Blast Crush!!
BOOM—!!
His cursed-seal arm smashed through the wall of sand, the borrowed Sharingan in his eye swirling with raw, savage killing intent.
At that moment, Suigetsu's fully liquefied body finished dissolving the Sand Coffin from within. He reformed, grabbing Shibuki and charging once more!
Sensing the renewed danger, Gaara immediately recalled all his external sand—including the grains that had been saturated by Suigetsu's water-style chakra.
The Shield of Sand reformed around him.
Suigetsu's eyes gleamed. "Plan succeeded. The sand my water body contaminated is now mixed into his primary defense. That's the weak point! Jūgo, it's on you!!"
"GRRAAAAAGHHHH…!!!"
Driven by hatred for Kimimaro's death, Jūgo finally let go. The killing intent he usually suppressed surged out. The cursed seal consumed him completely, his form undergoing a horrifying metamorphosis. Gray-black keratin plates covered his entire body. Grotesque, fume-venting pores opened on his back.
He had surpassed State Two. This was a level only he, the origin of the cursed seal, could achieve.
—Cursed Seal: State Three!!!
In this form, even the Sharingan's influence was a tenuous leash against the primal rage within.
"K-KILL! KILL THIS DEAD-FACED BASTARD!!! A SACRIFICE OF BLOOD AND MEAT FOR KIMIMARO'S SPIRIT…!!!"
ROAR—!!!
With Jūgo's deranged howl, a terrifying torrent of chakra erupted from the pores on his back!
CRUNCH—!!!
He shattered the ground underfoot and became a storm of violence, closing the distance to the Shield of Sand in an instant. The Sharingan pinpointed the exact, weakened section contaminated by Suigetsu's chakra. His arm, a battering ram of pure force, hammered forward!
The watching Suna crowd screamed, "FINISH HIM!!!"
—Axe-Hammer Blast Crusher!!!
KRA-KOOOM—!!!
His fist tore through the compromised section of the sand defense!
Gurgle gurgle gurgle…!
The pores on his back convulsed, channeling and concentrating a devastating mass of cursed seal senjutsu chakra into his forearm, shaping it into a focused, drill-like cannon of energy.
Zzzzzzt—!
Inside the shield, Gaara's eyes widened in genuine horror as he stared at the gathering, golden-hued chakra point-blank. "It's over…!!"
"DIE…!!!"
KABOOOOOOOOOM—!!!
The terrifying cursed-seal senjutsu cannon detonated inside the Shield of Sand.
The sphere of sand bulged to its limit, then, with a sound like shattering stone, cracked and exploded outward.
Gaara stumbled, shoulders slumped. The 'Armor of Sand' covering his body cracked and fell away in shards. He wavered, then collapsed face-first onto the scattered sand.
"HAHAHAHA… Still alive? What a tough bastard. Let me send you to meet Kimimaro!!!"
Jūgo raised his monstrous arm for the final blow.
CLANG!
Suigetsu blurred forward, placing the flat of his blade against Jūgo's shoulder. His Sharingan met Jūgo's crazed gaze.
Zzt!
"Hey! Cool it!! Don't forget, Tobi wants him alive!!!"
"Urgh… Guh."
The murderous light faded from Jūgo's eyes. The cursed seal receded rapidly from his body.
"Ugh…"
Suigetsu stumbled, using his sword to prop himself up. He clutched his right eye in pain. "The Sharingan's useful, but damn… the strain is no joke."
He looked at Gaara's still form. "But… the hunt's done. Now we just take this poor, unloved brat back and collect our—"
ROOOOOOAAAAAARRRR—!!!
An unexpected roar cut him off.
Gaara was moving. He pushed himself up, body trembling. A guttural, agonized sound ripped from his throat—a sound not entirely human.
"Hey… no way…?!" Suigetsu's eyes widened.
Jūgo grabbed the weakened Suigetsu and leaped back, putting distance between them.
Their eyes were drawn upward. The sand around Gaara wasn't just swirling—it was building. Constructing something massive.
Suigetsu's expression shifted from confusion to deep, chilling dread.
A monstrous silhouette of sand was taking shape, towering over the training grounds.
The gathered Suna shinobi, who had moments ago been cheering for Gaara's death, now stood frozen, faces pale as ash.
"Im-impossible… Has he lost consciousness? Has the One-Tailed Shukaku… been released?!"
The man who had cheered the loudest for the "enemy" now had sweat pouring down his face. Desperation choked his voice. "If that's true… and the Fourth Kazekage-sama is dead… how do we stop that monster from rampaging?!"
In an instant, a palpable blanket of terror settled over the entire Village Hidden in the Sand.
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