"How much chakra does this guy even have…?"
Rasa — the Fourth Kazekage — stood frozen, his eyes wide as he took in the sight before him. The deep rumble of the earth shaking violently filled his ears.
He immediately poured all his focus into manipulating the gold dust beneath his feet, lifting himself high into the air for a better vantage point. From above, he could see exactly what was happening to Sunagakure.
The center of the village had broken away from the rest, and almost a quarter of Sunagakure's total area was rising upward at a speed visible to the naked eye.
And it wasn't just Rasa who was struck speechless.
Every shinobi of the Hidden Sand could feel the same creeping dread — a despair unlike anything they had known before.
"Kakashi! Hold on—!"
Yamato reacted instantly, weaving Wood Release to form a massive wooden cage around himself and Kakashi, locking them inside for protection.
"…Is this really the same Haruto we knew before?"
Kakashi pulled up his forehead protector, revealing his Sharingan as he looked toward the sky — toward Senju Haruto.
Only now did he truly notice it. Haruto's chakra wasn't just refined to an absurd degree… it was vast, endless.
The difference between the man before him and the Haruto they had known before was night and day.
Even Rasa's killing blow, unleashed with murderous intent, had been brushed aside like nothing.
"Stop this immediately!"
Rasa bellowed up at Haruto, straining every muscle to control the desert beneath them and force the rising village back down.
But all he felt was his own chakra burning away at a frightening pace, while Sunagakure continued to ascend steadily.
In moments, the village had become a floating fortress in the sky, more than a hundred meters above the ground.
If Haruto were to lose control now, the entire mass would plummet, and the impact would devastate the land for kilometers around.
It was no exaggeration — at least half the village's population would be wiped out instantly.
The realization sent another jolt of fear through Rasa.
Such large-scale manipulation of gold dust — lifting an entire village — was beyond even his own abilities as the Fourth Kazekage.
And the most terrifying part?
From this height, he could see Haruto clearly.
There was no sign of strain on him — not the tight grit of teeth, not the tension of overexertion. Not even a bead of sweat on his forehead.
He stood there with arms folded across his chest, relaxed, as if he were merely watching a scenic view.
"What is it you're after?!"
Rasa's voice grew more urgent with every unanswered question, his unease mounting with Haruto's continued silence.
And it was only now, staring at this calm yet overwhelming force, that Rasa truly understood why Sarutobi Hiruzen had sent this man to the Sand.
He wasn't here to negotiate.
He was here to intimidate.
"Answer me, Kazekage."
Haruto's voice was deep but casual, his glance toward Rasa sharp enough to slice through the air.
In truth, pulling off a feat like this wasn't only a matter of chakra reserves — the terrain played a huge part.
Unlike other shinobi villages, Sunagakure lay in the heart of the desert, its foundations built on sand.
By merging his gold dust into the ground, Haruto could use the earth itself as a platform to lift the village.
On solid rock or mixed terrain, he could still do it — but never on this scale.
Not that any of this mattered to Rasa right now.
Because this was no longer a battle.
Senju Haruto had turned the entire village — its people, its homes — into hostages. Bargaining chips.
"I…"
Rasa's jaw clenched, his face darkening as he hesitated.
Haruto didn't bother repeating himself.
When Rasa failed to answer, Haruto simply released his control.
BOOM—!
The earth seemed to scream as the village dropped like a stone.
On the ground, shinobi and civilians alike were thrown off their feet, tumbling and skidding across the streets.
Fear and hopelessness were etched into every face.
To them, their lives now hung entirely on Haruto's whim.
Even Kakashi and Yamato were frozen in place.
They had known Haruto was strong — but this? This was beyond anything they had imagined.
This wasn't just strength. This was a different dimension of power altogether.
"Damn it…"
Rasa silently cursed every ancestor Haruto might have had, forcing his Magnet Release to its absolute limit in a desperate bid to slow the fall.
But with his chakra reserves and control alone, there was no stopping this.
The veins on his forehead bulged as he strained, managing only to reduce the speed of descent.
Even so, at this rate… at least a quarter of the population would die.
And then—
Just as despair took hold, the falling village jerked to a stop, once again hanging in the air.
Now only seventy meters from the ground.
Rasa's eyes went wide.
He knew without a shred of doubt — it wasn't him.
It was Haruto.
Whipping around, Rasa fixed his gaze back on the man in the sky, his mind racing.
He knew what this meant.
Admitting it would shatter his dignity as Kazekage, strip him of all leverage in the coming talks…
But he had no choice.
Haruto's strength was simply overwhelming.
If this man wanted to, he could erase Sunagakure from the map in an instant.
"…We don't want war. We want peace."
Rasa deliberately avoided Haruto's eyes as he spoke, his voice heavy.
"You're right — in our current state, the Hidden Sand can't afford a conflict on the scale of another Great Ninja War. We only hoped to use this opportunity to secure some resources."
It was the truth… and a surrender.
"I see…"
Haruto finally spoke again, his voice level and deliberate.
Rasa's heart hammered in his chest.
To him, it sounded like a verdict — a final judgment over the fate of his village.
"Then… let us live in peace."
With those words, Haruto guided the floating section of Sunagakure back down, fitting it perfectly into the massive crater below.
The village was whole again.
Around them, the people stared at the restored streets and homes with tears of relief, their faces pale from the ordeal.
Peace?
After doing something so terrifying?
Rasa's emotions were a tangled storm.
"…Who exactly are you?"
His throat was dry, the question forced out only after a long pause.
At this point, Rasa feared that the wrong answer — or even a flicker of displeasure — might be enough for Haruto to wipe the Sand from existence.
It wasn't even an exaggeration.
In Rasa's mind, Haruto's power rivaled that of the legendary Sage of Six Paths.
"Me? I'm a shinobi of the Hidden Leaf, of course."
Haruto thought for a moment, then added with a faint smile:
"Although I never took the Chūnin Exams… so technically, I'm still just a Genin?"