He didn't make a mistake; it was that Hidden Sand Ninja who was suddenly dragged back by the golden sand that appeared beneath his feet, causing his kunai to only slice a wound on the opponent's shoulder.
"Golden Flash, too arrogant!"
Rasa arrived and seeing that so many of his village comrades had been lost in such a short time, couldn't help but feel fury in his heart.
Moreover, he had keenly noticed earlier that Namikaze Minato used the Instant Body Jutsu, which was so fast it was invisible, by teleporting via the kunai, and he happened to know Magnet Release!
"Magnet Release: Golden Sand Burial!"
Rasa clapped his hands together, and intense chakra surged from his body. Then, golden sand emerged from the ground within a radius of over a hundred meters, covering all of Namikaze Minato's Flying Thunder God Kunai.
"Is this the Third Kazekage's Magnet Release?"
Seeing this situation unfold, Namikaze Minato appeared shocked. The only thing his Flying Thunder God Jutsu might fear is the metal-controlling Magnet Release.
The Flying Thunder God Kunai he had just thrown had already been gathered by the golden sand, losing its significance for teleportation.
Swoosh!
Namikaze Minato threw three Flying Thunder God Kunai toward Rasa, but seeing this, Rasa waved his hand, directly using Magnet Release to fix the Flying Thunder God Kunai in midair.
"Just as I thought...."
Namikaze Minato thought to himself that things weren't good. Although he could plant Flying Thunder God Marks anywhere, he at least needed to use the Flying Thunder God Kunai to get close. Now this place had become the opponent's home ground.
"Sand Gold Palm!"
The ocean of sand gold on the ground suddenly extended large sand palms continuously. Namikaze Minato jumped thrice, but on the last jump, he was caught by a giant sand gold palm.
However, fortunately, he instantly used a Rasengan to shatter the giant sand gold palm.
"Magnet Release, sand gold, you're probably the disciple of the Third Kazekage, Rasa!"
Namikaze Minato looked at Rasa with a serious expression. This person brought him considerable pressure; the cohesion of the sand gold was strong, and the Rasengan struggled to break it. Furthermore, his Flying Thunder God Kunai was seen through, and he had no immediate way to plant marks within close range.
"Your presence here suggests the Hidden Sand Ninja have significant plots? Do you plan to ignite a war!"
"Go ask in the Netherworld!"
"Golden Sand Burial!"
Rasa looked at Namikaze Minato with eyes as if he were staring at a dead man. With his hands clapped together, he summoned from the ground a nearly hundred-meter-tall wave of sand gold, like a true tsunami, rushing towards Namikaze Minato.
Meanwhile, Rasa also erected sand walls around them. He could control the Flying Thunder God Kunai immediately, determined to kill Konoha's Golden Flash today.
"Indeed powerful...."
Namikaze Minato appeared serious. If he didn't escape, he would have to summon Bunta to counter-operate; however, that wasn't necessary. He had already probed some intelligence on Rasa's strength, so there was no need for a deadly battle.
Shwoosh!
Namikaze Minato suddenly vanished, a situation that made Rasa's brow tighten.
He had gathered all those teleportative kunai together, and there hadn't appeared to be any overlooked ones just now.
"Toms, where is his location?"
"Kazekage-sama, I can no longer perceive him. The Golden Flash just left my sensory lock in an instant."
The perception ninja named Toms quickly said, reasoning that a sensory lock should allow catching up with an enemy within two kilometers, but he suddenly lost perception of Namikaze Minato altogether.
This left only one possibility, that the opponent had already used that particular jutsu to teleport away, the distance exceeding two kilometers.
Rasa, with a grim expression, said, "Left behind an escape kunai in advance, huh, humph!"
"Take the comrades' bodies back, and let's proceed on."
The large corps had been discovered by the opponent, and matters here would soon reach Konoha. Hence, he couldn't afford any delay.
Upon returning to the squad, Rasa immediately summoned a communication ninja and had him promptly convey the message to the village: "Deploy Bunboku to the front lines!"
Originally, according to the plan, Bunboku in the form of the One-tailed was supposed to appear on the battlefield during the war's mid to later stages, but now an unanticipated event made Konoha Ninja aware of their marching.
Giving up the war was absolutely impossible. Rasa needed this victory to lay the foundation for his position as the Fourth Kazekage, to seize an advantageous position in the war against Konoha by sudden assault with overwhelming power.
Meanwhile, on the other side!
Namikaze Minato appeared in a place stacked with boulders; teleporting such a far distance consumed thirty to forty percent of his chakra, leaving his face slightly pale.
Quickly pulling out and swallowing a Soldier Pill, Namikaze Minato then quietly awaited the recovery of his chakra.
While recovering, Namikaze Minato also pulled out a map: "Shibi and the others should be traveling to this location, so I can meet them here and quickly return to the village...."
Then, Namikaze Minato closed his eyes and recalled that the marching of the Hidden Sand Ninja Corps had clearly been heading towards the Land of Rivers, and recently the Hidden Sand Village had been collecting military supplies.
"They're initiating a war!"
Upon confirming this, Namikaze Minato did not wait for his chakra to fully recover; he began journeying ahead to meet up with Aburame Shibi quickly, to report this information back to the village as soon as possible.
——————————————
"Not bad, the three of you have completed a total of twenty D-Class Tasks; your mastery over chakra is about right, and it's time for the next stage of trials."
Uchiha Yoichi spoke to the three students in front of him, saying that only with proficient chakra control would there be better progression; now each of them had a decent grasp of chakra, considered to be at the upper tier among Chunin.
"Teacher Yoichi, what kind of trials are you planning for us?"
Yuhi Kurenai asked with a playful smile. Over this period of interaction, the three of them had become familiar with Uchiha Yoichi's personality.
When it came to tasks and training, they perfectly obeyed the teacher's orders. Beyond that, Teacher Yoichi's temper was good; despite being just a few years older than them, he was generous in treating them to meals, not minding spending money.
"Killing!"
Uchiha Yoichi said plainly: "I will select C-Class tasks specifically for killing. You must adjust quickly to kill the enemy in the shortest time possible. If anyone dawdles and gives the enemy a chance to counterattack...I will of course keep you alive, but whether you remain unharmed, I can't guarantee!"
"Understood, Teacher Yoichi."
The three responded seriously, realizing that such matters had to be faced after becoming ninjas; having no resolve to eliminate enemies would only result in their own demise.
Though Yuhi Kurenai and her companions said as much, whether they could truly accomplish it remained to be seen.
Yuhi Kurenai suddenly raised her hand to ask: "Teacher Yoichi, since we're going to be performing C-Class tasks, could you teach us some ninjutsu?"
"Ninjutsu...."
Uchiha Yoichi glanced at the three, who seemed to have planned this in advance, all looking at him with expectant eyes.
"I'll guide you today then, but rather than those unsuitable ninjutsu, enhancing your strengths is what you most need presently."
Uchiha Yoichi then created two shadow clones, separating the three to guide them individually.
He taught Yuhi Kurenai genjutsu techniques; using more subtle methods to cast illusions could achieve unexpected effects.
He taught Hyuga Satomi methods to increase chakra flow, so she would be faster and her punches stronger in close combat.
He taught Chishima Ichihiko techniques to master ninja tools, providing thrown hidden weapons with secondary killing capabilities to make enemies more wary.
These weren't difficult, so Uchiha Yoichi only gave them a day to refine these skills, planning to leave the village for tasks the day after tomorrow.
Upon dispelling the shadow clones, memories and chakra returned to his body.
After the return, fatigue caused Uchiha Yoichi to feel a bit exhausted, especially since he had also been training with Gates in the courtyard for the morning.
"Roar~"
"I haven't admitted being tired yet, but you already started complaining. Look at all that fat on you!"
Uchiha Yoichi gave Gates a pat on his behind; without fur to cover, that strike would have made waves on the fat.
However, using Gates in Gravity Jutsu training was far more effective than wearing weights. Now, under Lightning Release Chakra Mode, Uchiha Yoichi was impervious to swords and knives.
Water Release and Earth Release Ninjutsu couldn't trouble him either.
Ding-dong!
Just as Uchiha Yoichi was about to have Gates continue training with him, the front gate's doorbell suddenly rang.
Upon hearing the doorbell, Uchiha Yoichi walked towards the front door: "Who could be visiting at this hour?"