I raised two fingers to my lips and whispered to the squad:
"Anbu—ready."
"Raikage-sama," they answered out of habit, then corrected with a crisp:
"Master Amamiya!"
Close enough. HR can fix job titles later.
I pointed at the raging sandstorm.
"Hit it with everything you've got. Blow the whole thing open. We flush One Tail out, or we die coughing up sand."
"Yes!"
Ninjutsu detonated across the desert—wind bursts, fire arcs, a few earth-style spikes. The dunes shook under the bombardment.
And then a voice boomed under our feet.
"Hahaha! Tiny humans dare disturb me?!"
The entire sandstorm twisted upward like a living serpent, then collapsed inward as chakra surged. Sand streamed together, spiraling into a vortex. Lines of violet markings crackled through the mass.
The air hummed.
Then—
with a thundering stomp—
a monstrous sand tanuki stood before us, laughing with its jaw unhinged like a drunk festival mascot.
"One Tail Shukaku," I muttered. "Finally."
I motioned for Anbu to spread out. They moved like silent blades, drawing a ring around the beast.
Far across the dunes, another group of shinobi stared in horror at the spectacle. Their leader—stern, thirty-ish, sand-proof cloak whipping behind him—read the message bird's note and immediately sprinted toward us with his men.
I didn't notice.
Too busy dealing with a tailed beast throwing a tantrum.
"Hahahaha!! What are you ants doing at my altar? Kneel and introduce yourselves properly before this uncle gets angry!"
I stared at him.
He stared at me.
Silence.
His ears twitched.
"HEY! Are you ignoring me?!"
Embarrassment flickered across its beady little eyes.
Then came the inevitable roar.
"DAMN HUMANS, YOU COURT DEATH!"
Shukaku inhaled, sand swirling—
and that's when something whistled overhead.
A kunai?
No.
Dozens of chakra seals slapped against Shukaku's body.
More shinobi arrived.
I turned sharply.
A unit in desert cloaks, masks down, hands already flashing through seals.
And at the front—
A man with an iron posture and eyes like he'd wrestled the sun.
He locked gazes with me. Recognition hit him like a kunai to the chest.
The next moment, his squad unleashed a sealing formation that crawled up Shukaku's legs like glowing vines.
"ROOOAR!"
The tanuki thrashed violently, chakra rippling as the seals tightened.
The sealing team's faces twisted; the beast's strength was insane. They stopped advancing and focused only on maintaining the pattern.
But it was working.
Slowly—painfully—Shukaku's movements began to dull.
"You plan to steal One Tail from under my nose?"
My Rinnegan flared to life, ripples glowing.
I aimed the glare straight at the newcomer.
He flinched—but only for a heartbeat.
"These eyes…" he murmured, expression tight.
He'd received intel.
He knew exactly who I was.
The fear faded from his face, replaced by the calm confidence of someone who had already chosen the battlefield.
He stepped forward and bowed slightly.
"I am Liedou, leader of Sand Shinobi Village."
He straightened.
"I do not know who you are, or why you trespass in the Land of Wind. This beast escaped from our custody. If it inconvenienced you, we will make recompense."
So this was Liedou, the man destined to become First Kazekage.
He was more intimidating in person—charisma like a sharpened blade.
I forced a polite smile.
"Amamiya Raizen. Hokage of Konoha, Land of Fire. I'm here for the tailed beast too."
Liedou's expression twitched.
We shared the same target.
And neither of us was stepping back.
"You ants DARE ignore this uncle AGAIN?!"
Shukaku lost its patience.
Its chakra boiled like a kettle thrown into a furnace.
The desert buckled—then erupted.
A sand tsunami rose behind the tanuki, towering higher than a castle wall.
"Sand Waterfall Funeral!!!"
The entire world turned beige.
"Everyone—move!" Liedou shouted.
Anbu drew their weapons.
I didn't waste breath.
"Wood Style: Wood Ingot Wall!"
My hands slammed together.
Massive wooden plates erupted from the ground, merging into a dome around my squad.
Not exactly polite to ignore Liedou's men but—hey—priorities.
The sand hit us like a meteor.
BOOOOOM.
The ground convulsed.
Sand battered the walls in waves.
The noise was deafening, like thunder trapped inside a drum.
Ten minutes of chaos later, silence settled.
I lowered the wooden fortress.
Liedou and his squad were standing inside a gigantic metal puppet, perfectly unharmed.
Show-offs.