Deidara, Itachi, and Kisame led the way, followed by a squad of elite Root operatives and a team of ANBU elites.
When it came to traveling, Deidara had it the easiest. Riding atop his Clay Bird, he conserved a significant amount of stamina.
"I heard the Fourth Kazekage also uses Magnet Release, similar to Sasori's puppet of the Third Kazekage," Kisame, whose immense chakra reserves made traveling a trivial task, said casually, sparking some idle chatter.
"There are some differences," Deidara replied. "The Third Kazekage's Magnet Release uses Iron Sand, while the Fourth Kazekage's Magnet Release uses Gold Dust. In terms of power, Iron Sand is stronger, but in terms of value, Gold Dust is far more lucrative."
"I've heard the Fourth Kazekage often sells gold. His ability is pretty convenient," Kisame quipped.
"If Kakuzu had this ability, he'd probably die of laughter," Kisame joked.
"Then we should have Sasori turn the Fourth Kazekage into a human puppet and lend him to Kakuzu. That way, the old man wouldn't have to roam the ninja world every day," Deidara added with a smirk.
The three continued their conversation—well, it was mostly Deidara and Kisame chatting, while Itachi remained his usual silent and enigmatic self.
"Speaking of which, if the meeting ends up being held in the Land of Wind, my combat effectiveness will take a significant hit," Kisame said, a bit troubled.
"That kind of terrain really limits the use of Water Release."
"True. The Land of Wind is almost entirely desert, so Water Release wouldn't be very effective," Deidara agreed.
"Moreover, whether it's the One-Tail Shukaku or Magnet Release, they're not considered particularly strong outside the Land of Wind. But within their home territory, they can unleash unimaginable power," Deidara added.
At this point, a sudden thought struck Deidara. He turned to Kisame and Itachi with a glint in his eye. "I just had a bold idea."
Kisame grinned, his shark-like smile revealing his excitement. "I bet the Sand Village has the same idea as us."
Indeed, thinking about it this way, the Sand Village's insistence on holding the meeting in the Land of Wind wasn't necessarily out of fear of Danzo.
They were likely planning to use their home-field advantage to execute their own decapitation strategy.
"This is getting interesting," Deidara said with a chuckle.
"Still, the Sand Village has miscalculated. Even if they bring Shukaku along, the Fourth Kazekage and Shukaku together wouldn't stand a chance against Itachi-san," Kisame said confidently, glancing at Itachi.
"Don't worry," Itachi replied calmly.
The meeting location was set in Maeda Village, a small settlement on the border of the Land of Wind. Built around a rare oasis, the village was modest in size, home to only about a hundred households.
Today, however, this obscure and remote village was hosting some of the ninja world's most prominent figures. The Fourth Kazekage, Rasa, had already arrived with his entourage of elite guards.
Compared to other village leaders, Rasa was relatively young and not particularly powerful. After he assumed the role of Kazekage, the Sand Village had remained quiet and subdued for a long time, relying on gold sales to sustain itself rather than engaging in wars.
However, a recent event had inflated his confidence. With this newfound strength and facing an opponent like Danzo, an aging relic, he didn't believe he could lose.
If he could kill the Hokage, he could lead the Sand Village to invade Konoha and seize the Land of Fire. Perhaps the Sand Village could even replace Konoha as the number one ninja village.
"Lord Kazekage, thank you for waiting!" Itachi, disguised as Danzo, greeted him.
"Not at all, Lord Hokage. Please, come in," Rasa replied, his tone courteous despite the murderous intent boiling within him. His composure was evident—after all, this was the man who had betrayed Pakura with a smile.
The two leaders walked side by side into the village, their respective entourages maintaining a tense but restrained vigilance. When it came to protecting their leaders, there was no room for carelessness.
After some polite small talk, they got down to business.
"Lord Kazekage, what are your thoughts on this meeting?" Itachi, still disguised as Danzo, asked, pointing a finger at Rasa.
It was a simple gesture, and Rasa didn't think much of it, following the direction of Itachi's finger.
In that instant, his mind went blank.
Slash!
Blood sprayed through the air!
A kunai slashed across Rasa's chest. He broke free from the genjutsu's influence sooner than Itachi had anticipated, barely avoiding a fatal blow.
Watching from the side, Deidara broke out in a cold sweat. Itachi's genjutsu was terrifyingly powerful. No, he thought, I need to work on my Genjutsu Resistance!
"Lord Hokage! What is the meaning of this?" Rasa retreated, his guards quickly surrounding him in a defensive formation, their expressions tense and battle-ready.
"Isn't it obvious? We're here to kill you!" Kisame said, dropping his disguise. Holding Samehada in his right hand, he was already itching for a fight.
"Fine! If Lord Hokage wants to play dirty, don't blame me for doing the same," Rasa sneered, finally realizing that both sides had come with the same plan in mind.
But this was the desert, his home turf. Here, his power was amplified to an epic degree—there was no way he could lose!
"Gulp! Gulp!" Rasa pulled out a small green vial and drank its contents in one go.
As a surge of energy coursed through his body and the wound on his chest healed visibly, Rasa smirked confidently. "Danzo, you even colluded with rogue ninjas to kill me. But it doesn't matter. Today, none of you will leave here alive."
"Confidence is good. Arrogance, not so much," Kisame said, clapping his hands together.
"Water Release: Great Waterfall Technique!"
A massive torrent of water surged forth like a tsunami, forming an enormous, almost absurdly large sphere of water. The entire village was submerged, reduced to mere pebbles at the bottom of this massive aquatic domain.
"This is insane! Such a high-level Water Release!" The Sand ninjas were in shock. To produce such a technique in a desert, even the Three-Tails couldn't pull this off.
"Let's start with a small gift," Kisame said.
"Water Release: Thousand Feeding Sharks!"
Countless chakra-infused sharks appeared, swimming around the Sand ninjas and launching relentless attacks, devouring their lives one by one.
"Help! These monsters are unbeatable!" Some Sand ninjas broke down in fear, while others, more experienced, remained calm.
"Don't panic! This is the desert. His Water Release is being absorbed by the sand. We just need to hold out, and his technique will dissipate on its own!"
While their reasoning was sound, this wasn't a simple endurance test. The sharks' relentless attacks made survival a daunting challenge.
As casualties mounted, Rasa grew desperate while locked in combat with Itachi.
"Magnet Release: Gold Dust Imperial Funeral!"
Similar to the Iron Sand Imperial Funeral, this was the golden version. Countless sharp rods of Gold Dust spread outward from Rasa, piercing the sharks and returning them to the water.
"Even in water, his Magnet Release is this powerful. Rasa's strength is greater than I anticipated," Kisame remarked, scrutinizing Rasa with a slight frown.
"Probably because of that potion he drank earlier," Deidara speculated.
"No matter. While my Water Release is still active, the three of us can take him down together," Kisame said, unwrapping Samehada's bandages, signaling that he was getting serious.
But Rasa, confident as ever, smirked. "Did you think I wouldn't have a backup plan?"
"Ha! I'm finally free!"
"Humans! Wretched humans! I'll kill you all!"
A loud, arrogant voice echoed from afar as an enormous amount of sand began to converge. In the blink of an eye, it formed a massive beast—bulky, tanuki-like, with a thick tail behind it.
It was the One-Tail, Shukaku!
~~~❃❃~~~~~~~~❃❃~~~
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