The two exchanged a glance.
The next instant, their figures flickered.
When they appeared again, they had already arrived near Rasa.
One in front.
One behind.
They formed a pincer around him.
"Die!"
They had no intention of asking any questions. The moment they arrived, they went straight for the kill.
Rasa's brow moved slightly.
"Crescent Dune!"
At once, a mass of sand appeared and wrapped around Rasa's right arm, changing shape according to his will.
Facing the sand bandit's attack, Rasa did not retreat.
Instead, he advanced.
One step forward.
Then he pressed his right arm toward the other man's face.
The instant the sand touched the sand bandit—
The bandit felt it.
An extremely powerful suction force descended upon his body.
Immediately after, some indescribable change occurred inside him.
The sand bandit felt his body shrivel at a visible speed.
The water inside his body was being rapidly extracted.
"What kind of ninjutsu is this?"
The sand bandit's eyes widened, his face filled with disbelief.
He had never seen a ninjutsu like this before.
He had only heard that Sunagakure's hero, Pakura, wielded the Kekkei Genkai Scorch Release, which could turn people into dried corpses. It was somewhat similar to his current state.
But Scorch Release came with intense heat.
Right now, he felt none of that.
This was a different kind of suffering.
Until his consciousness vanished completely, the sand bandit still could not figure out what was happening.
The blade in the other sand bandit's hand was already closing in on Rasa.
But before it could land—
A mass of gold dust condensed into the shape of a shield.
Clang!
The sand bandit's blade struck down, but not only did it fail to harm Rasa, the bandit himself was forced several steps back by the recoil.
Rasa turned around.
Only then did the sand bandit see Rasa's face clearly. His pupils suddenly shrank.
"Rasa?"
The sand bandit revealed an expression of disbelief.
"How is this possible?"
Was the Wolf Spider Sand Bandit Group some incredible organization?
Even if Sunagakure accepted a commission against them, sending a jonin-led squad would already be impressive.
If that happened, the Wolf Spider Sand Bandit Group might not be able to win, but at least they could run.
How could Rasa possibly come personally?
This was the dignified Fourth Kazekage of Sunagakure.
When Sunagakure was facing a desperate situation, he had led the village to stabilize the battlefield and gradually reverse the tide.
He had annihilated the Red Mountain clan alone.
He had killed four members of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen alone.
He had fought Danzo and his group alone, killed dozens of Konoha ninja, and heavily injured Danzo.
He had fought Minato Namikaze one-on-one without falling into disadvantage.
A ninja this strong—
Instead of handling so many important matters, he had come here to suppress bandits?
Was he that bored?
A look of grief and indignation appeared on the sand bandit's face.
"This is too ridiculous!"
"A dignified Kazekage came personally to deal with my Wolf Spider Sand Bandit Group."
"My Wolf Spider Sand Bandit Group really has face!"
"Too shameless!"
"But if I can die by Rasa's hand, then this life of mine is worth it."
"Still, if you want to kill me, I'll resist."
He threw away the blade in his hand, took a step back, and formed seals.
Rasa raised his hand.
"Sand Soldier Manifestation!"
The sand bandit released his ninjutsu.
Just before the ninjutsu struck Rasa—
"Quicksand Shifting!"
A sand soldier emerged from behind the sand bandit, and Rasa's figure appeared beside it.
A hand of sand reached toward the bandit.
It grabbed his head.
At once, the exact same thing that had happened to the previous bandit happened again.
This sand bandit's body rapidly shriveled.
After losing enough water, his life also disappeared.
Thud!
The sand bandit's corpse fell to the ground.
Rasa glanced at it, then withdrew his gaze.
"Sand Soldier Manifestation, Quicksand Shifting, and Crescent Dune can be used in combination."
"Just like how Minato Namikaze combines the Flying Thunder God Technique with the Rasengan."
"And my Crescent Dune is above the Rasengan."
"A larger attack range."
"Easier to land."
"Greater power."
"To be precise, greater destructive power against carbon-based lifeforms that contain water."
Of these two sand bandits, neither would have died instantly after being hit by an ordinary Rasengan.
But Crescent Dune had done it.
"My attack ability can now be considered raised as well."
Previously, Rasa's attack power certainly could not be considered weak.
Aside from the Kekkei Genkai Magnet Release: Gold Dust, he also had Danzo's full set of Wind Release techniques.
It was only weak compared to Rasa's own other abilities.
"Enemy attack!"
The deaths of the two sand bandits immediately alarmed the entire village.
A villager who had been kidnapped and brought here shouted loudly. He had probably already become loyal to the sand bandits and hoped to use this method to gain their approval and rewards.
More than a dozen figures rapidly approached from all directions.
"Who is it?"
"Who has that much nerve?"
"You even dare to break into our village?"
"And dare kill people?"
But the moment they saw Rasa, it was as though their throats had been seized by an invisible hand.
"Run!"
The moment that word fell—
The dozen or so sand bandits turned and fled without the slightest hesitation.
The villager loyal to the sand bandits was dumbstruck.
Rasa gave him a calm glance, then raised his voice toward the surroundings.
"I am Rasa, Fourth Kazekage of Sunagakure."
"I have come to exterminate the Wolf Spider Sand Bandit Group."
"After today, the Wolf Spider Sand Bandit Group will no longer exist."
After saying that, Rasa's figure flickered.
"Sand Soldier Manifestation!"
Fourteen sand soldiers appeared and chased after the fourteen sand bandits separately.
Rasa's figure rose into the air.
"Byakugan Scouting Technique!"
A single Byakugan, wrapped in gold dust, was hidden among the other sand. No one would notice it.
Through this Byakugan, Rasa took the entire surrounding area into view.
A sand soldier closed in on one of the sand bandits.
"Quicksand Shifting!"
Rasa's figure appeared instantly.
He reached out toward the sand bandit.
The next moment, Rasa appeared beside another sand bandit.
At that moment, Rasa suddenly noticed that the villagers were surrounding the person who had just warned the sand bandits.
"Beat him to death!"
No one knew who said it first, but the crowd surged forward.
No matter how that person begged for mercy, the villagers had no intention of letting him go.
Until he was beaten to death alive.
Rasa felt that apart from warning the sand bandits just now, this person must have done plenty of other things as well.
Otherwise, these people would not hate him so much.
Another sand bandit fell by Rasa's hand, turning into a dried corpse.
"It is indeed quite good."
"Its lethality is very strong."
"As long as it touches the target, it can draw out large quantities of water from the opponent's body."
"And it can change into many shapes."
"Its maximum length is nearly ten meters."
"The test is more or less complete."
"I'll finish the rest quickly."
"I still have to go receive Kirigakure's war reparations."
"And see what choice Kisame will make."