"Kato, you can withdraw now. Theoretically, in this mode of mine, if Kazekage's Magnet Release could be neutralized, then the battle would still have a chance. But honestly, that seems impossible... even with my maximum output, it's still slightly insufficient."
After defeating the last Sunagakure ninja other than the Third Kazekage, Haseo ordered Dan Kato to retreat.
"Go inform the camp about the Third Kazekage's activity within this area. It should be pretty important."
Dan Kato watched as the Third Kazekage's iron sand web began retracting. Naturally, he understood how difficult this battle had been. After witnessing the Third Kazekage firsthand, he finally grasped why this person was called "The Strongest."
When facing the Third Kazekage, even Lord Haseo's repeated attacks failed to make any real impact. Their fight could certainly be described as evenly matched. Yet another way to put it would be that neither seemed capable of handling the other effectively.
So Dan Kato nodded and said, "I understand. What about you, Lord Haseo?"
"Me? I'll continue playing with Kazekage for a bit longer. However, I plan to relocate the battlefield next. If this Kazekage truly sees me as worth pursuing, he'll follow without hesitation," Haseo said.
Regardless of whether he liked it or not, even though his three subordinates had all been eliminated, if the Third Kazekage considered Haseo to be a potential threat needing elimination, he would definitely pursue.
From their recent engagement, the Third Kazekage appeared to have rather firm intent on killing Haseo... Just like how Haseo felt encountering the Third Kazekage was a "once-in-a-lifetime opportunity," the sentiment was mutual.
To the Kazekage, Haseo was a wild card who had appeared on the Land of Rain battlefield. Considering what this Konoha ninja had accomplished on the Eastern Front, he undoubtedly posed a significant threat to Suna. Therefore, as Kazekage, it was his responsibility to eradicate such threats and instability before they could manifest.
"In that case, please be careful, Lord Haseo."
Dan Kato accepted Haseo's orders without protest... After witnessing the battle between Haseo and Kazekage, he didn't perceive Haseo's decision to hold off the Kazekage and engage him in combat as a reckless act.
After all, the Third Kazekage was the leader of Sunagakure—he represented the greatest enemy, and there were only a few ninjas in Konoha who could match him. Haseo was one of them. If even someone like Haseo were to hesitate and avoid direct combat against the Kazekage, then who else in Konoha could possibly handle him?
Dan Kato's thinking was quite straightforward. He respected Haseo, acknowledged his strength, and believed certain responsibilities simply needed to be borne by ninja of Haseo's caliber.
As for himself, he believed he'd soon grow into an indispensable ninja for the village too. Therefore, although he felt admiration at this moment, he harbored no jealousy.
Indeed, for someone aspiring to become Hokage, the chance to go head-to-head with the enemy's leader was an opportunity few could dream of.
However, now wasn't Dan Kato's turn to take action.
"Hey, want me to help deal with this... shell of yours? I can kill him in one strike." After issuing the retreat order, Haseo suddenly asked Dan Kato.
That's definitely trying to steal a kill.
"No thanks, Lord Haseo. Please focus on fighting the Kazekage. I can handle this enemy myself," Dan Kato replied.
Haseo nodded. "Fine then. We'll split up and act separately from now on."
"Yes."
Dan Kato cast one last glance toward the Third Kazekage before maneuvering this borrowed body to withdraw from the opposite side. Later, he'd find a quiet place to 'die,' allowing his spirit to return to its original body.
At this point, Haseo had already figured it out. When fighting an enemy like the Third Kazekage, positional warfare was the last thing he should be focusing on. Opponents like the Kazekage grew stronger the longer they remained stationary.
Haseo made his decision — he had to stay on the move.
By now, the Third Kazekage had already reassembled his iron sand, standing silently in place as if waiting for Haseo's next attack.
But instead, Haseo took several steps back, then turned and sprinted into the dense forest without hesitation.
The Third Kazekage was momentarily stunned — how could this guy just suddenly run off like that? What happened to his sense of battle decorum?
After a brief hesitation, he decided to give chase.
As for Dan Kato's departure, the Kazekage didn't care much. First, his subordinates were doomed once invaded — there was no saving them. Second, even if he pursued, there was no way to eliminate Dan Kato since he had no idea where the man had hidden his real body.
When Dan Kato used the [Spirit Transformation Technique], if lucky, his real body would remain completely safe. But if unlucky, even a swarm of ants could reduce him to bones.
The reason the Third Kazekage immediately chased after Haseo was naturally due to his aggressive instincts — defeating Haseo was crucial. More importantly, the direction Haseo fled in wasn't toward Konoha or Sunagakure.
So the battlefield conditions seemed pretty fair — who wouldn't go after him then?
"He really is following!"
Before flipping over and leaping down a cliff dozens of meters high, Haseo glanced behind him — sure enough, the Third Kazekage was right there chasing.
Under normal circumstances, the Third Kazekage wouldn't have stood a chance keeping up in a straightforward chase like this. But Haseo wasn't running at full speed either — he intentionally controlled his pace, so the Kazekage was always able to follow.
After sliding to the bottom of the cliff, Haseo looked up — the Kazekage had already descended too, though...
"What the hell?! How can you fly?"
Well, technically speaking, it wasn't really flying — more like gliding, thanks to the pair of iron wings sprouting from his back.
Haseo envied those who could grow wings. Unfortunately for him, he had to rely on his own legs, making him look pretty low-end in comparison — not even close to the image of an expert martial artist.
The Third Kazekage trailed behind Haseo, quickly realizing the latter had no real intention of fleeing—he was deliberately leading him in circles.
What kind of game was this? Neither fighting nor running?
After some time passed, the Third Kazekage finally caught on to what Haseo was up to...
Haseo had bypassed the most heavily contested areas of the Land of Rain and advanced forward. Extremely lucky not to encounter other enemies along the way, he was now charging straight toward Iwagakure's camp with the Kazekage right behind him.
Uh…
Hm…
Noticing that the Third Kazekage seemed to have paused for a moment, Haseo instantly understood—the opponent had seen through his plan.
Was it lack of hate? Did he pull aggro off himself? Or was the enemy just too scared?
Haseo stopped as well, calmly waiting for the Third Kazekage's move—but his pause was clearly mocking.
Come on then, why don't you follow me already?
Then... the Kazekage actually started tailing him again.
He seemed to have made peace with it: chasing after Haseo into Iwagakure's camp wasn't so bad after all. When faced with swarms of Iwa ninjas, maybe they could even team up somehow.
After all, these two were absurdly powerful—they both had the confidence to escape successfully even when completely surrounded.
Thus, the two who had been trying to kill each other only moments ago suddenly agreed to point their weapons outward together, preparing to wreak havoc at Iwagakure's place...
In this battlefield, the relationship between enemies and allies was truly complex.
One ahead and one behind, they rushed at high speed, eventually arriving first at Iwagakure's front-line camp located within the Land of Rain.
While scheming against each other, Haseo and the Third Kazekage still managed to break through Iwa's outer reconnaissance network—truly a marvel.
However, once they got up close, naturally Haseo couldn't hide himself anymore; the Iwa ninja had already noticed his arrival.
The Iwagakure ninjas guarding the camp saw someone rushing over who looked like a dirty monkey covered in mud from head to toe.
Yet just as they were preparing to take action, they heard the figure shout loudly before them:
"Everyone, sound the alarm! The Third Kazekage is coming... the Third Kazekage is attacking!"
Perfectly playing the role of a trusted ally.
Therefore, the Third Kazekage behind muttered softly: "..."
Oh f***.
So the battlefield in the Land of Rain was a mess of shifting alliances and betrayals. You might be fighting for your life thinking someone is an enemy, only to find out he's actually planning to cooperate with you. Then, when you're ready to collaborate, he may have decided to abandon you already.
Truly a strange dynamic between foes and comrades.
P.S. Everyone, happy Lantern Festival—the traditional Chinese festival celebrating the first full moon of the new year!
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