For ninja, kunai and shuriken were consumable throwing weapons, but after every battle they were always retrieved, because these tools were extremely expensive.
Otherwise, cheaper alternatives like senbon needles would not have become so common.
Even the most ordinary iron kunai required repeated forging and quenching, consuming a craftsman's time and effort. That was why ninja carefully counted and recovered usable kunai after missions. Even slightly chipped blades would be brought back for repair and reuse.
But someone like Tenten, who threw dozens—sometimes hundreds—at once, was probably unique in the entire shinobi world.
If Kakuzu were here, he would probably kill Tenten on the spot.
What a waste of money.
Neji walked over to the fallen Cloud ninja and searched their bodies.
By coincidence, they possessed a complete pair of Heaven and Earth Scrolls.
Neji tossed the scrolls to Kimimaro.
"We already have what we need. These are yours."
Kimimaro caught them and nodded.
"Thank you."
Neji scanned the battlefield, frowning slightly.
"This place isn't safe to stay. Cloud reinforcements could arrive at any moment."
"Let's move."
Central Tower — Monitoring Room
Raikage A's expression was extremely grim.
He had watched the battle unfold clearly.
Six of his Cloud ninja had been killed in such a short time.
"Well now, Lord Raikage, you look like you didn't sleep well," Wen Lan said from the side, arms folded, smiling.
"That expression of yours looks like you want to eat someone alive."
A snorted coldly, his gaze sharp as a blade as it cut toward Wen Lan.
But he said nothing.
Nearby, Mei Terumi stared at Kimimaro on the monitor, slightly stunned.
She instinctively glanced back at Yagura, because something about that young man felt strangely familiar.
Yagura had naturally recognized Kimimaro immediately.
After all, he had been the one who traded the boy away years ago.
Seeing how strong Kimimaro had become now, he couldn't help but feel a flicker of regret.
Such extraordinary talent—
if he had remained in Kirigakure, he could have become one of its pillars.
But the thought passed quickly.
Now that the Hidden Mist and Konoha were allies, harboring such selfish regrets was no longer appropriate.
Meanwhile, Team Eight and Team Ten were hiding beneath dense foliage in the treetops.
All six of them barely dared to breathe.
Because not far away stood three figures:
Gaara, Temari, and Kankurō.
Facing them were three ninja from the Hidden Rain Village.
Gaara stood motionless.
Sand slowly circulated around him, rising and falling like breathing.
His gaze was cold and indifferent—
as if the three enemies before him were already dead.
The Rain ninja spoke harshly:
"Hand over your scrolls."
Kankurō scoffed and reached for the puppet on his back.
But as if sensing something, he suddenly froze.
His expression turned fearful as he glanced at Gaara, silently lowering his hand.
Because the soil beneath the Rain ninja's feet had begun to shift.
Temari noticed as well.
Without a word, she and Kankurō both stepped back two paces.
"Hey, we'll give you— AHHHH!"
Before the Rain ninja could finish speaking, his legs were crushed by sudden pain, and he collapsed to the ground.
His feet had already been ground into pulp by sand.
The moment he realized what was happening, the sand surged upward and covered his head—
and his skull was instantly crushed.
His scream ended abruptly.
The other two Rain ninja had no time to react.
Countless grains of sand spread across their bodies.
"What is this?!"
"N-No, don't kill us! We'll give you our scrolls! Just spare us!"
Gaara's expression did not change.
He slowly raised his right hand.
The sand surged like a tidal wave, completely enveloping them.
The sand-wrapped bodies rose into the air as his arm lifted.
Then Gaara clenched his fist.
The sand tightened.
Two dull, muffled sounds echoed.
The sand masses dropped to the ground.
All that remained were two indistinct pools of blood.
Gaara turned away.
The sand flowed back into his gourd.
Kankurō stared at the three piles of crushed flesh, frowning slightly.
After hesitating for a long moment, he finally spoke:
"Gaara… if you keep doing this, we won't be able to get any scrolls…"
Before he could finish, he met Gaara's icy gaze.
He froze instantly and swallowed the rest of his words.
Temari also sensed the tension and quickly said softly:
"Let's go find scrolls first. Don't forget the mission."
"No need," Gaara replied coldly.
His head slowly turned toward a nearby patch of grass.
"There are more here."
Behind the bushes, Shikamaru's pupils shrank.
"Run! We're no match for them!" he shouted.
In the next instant, Hinata, Kiba, Shino, Shikamaru, Chōji, and Ino burst out of the bushes, attempting to escape.
But just as they were about to flee—
a wall of sand erupted from the ground, blocking their path.
All six skidded to a halt.
They turned quickly to look left and right—
only to realize:
Kankurō stood on one side.
Temari stood on the other.
"Damn it… we're surrounded," Shikamaru muttered through clenched teeth.
Kiba looked around and growled.
"Akamaru, get ready to fight!"
The small dog in his arms barked in response and leapt to the ground.
"If it comes to it, we'll fight to the death!" Kiba snarled.
"Don't be reckless," Shikamaru quickly stopped him.
"None of them are easy opponents."
His mind raced, calculating possible plans.
He could clearly sense the gap in strength.
Their side was far weaker.
Charging in blindly would be suicide.
After years as classmates, Shikamaru knew exactly how limited their combat power was.
Gaara walked forward slowly.
Sand drifted around him like a living organism.
His eyes locked onto Shikamaru.
"Do you have scrolls?"
Shikamaru clenched his fists.
Cold sweat slid down his forehead.
His heartbeat thundered in the silence.
He forced himself to remain calm and raised a hand to signal his teammates not to move.
"Yes," he said.
"Both our teams have Earth Scrolls."
He pulled out two scrolls.
"If you need them, you can take them. Just let us go."
Gaara's gaze remained indifferent.
Sand rotated slowly in his palm.
"If I kill you, the scrolls will still be mine."
Shikamaru's throat tightened.
But he forced himself to stay composed.
"If you attack, the Hidden Sand will face total destruction."
He continued:
"Kiba behind me is the brother-in-law of Konoha's Hokage Advisor.
Hinata is the fiancée of the Hokage Advisor."
Kankurō and Temari's faces changed instantly.
Gaara, however, remained expressionless—
but the sand around him had already begun to rise, ready to strike at any moment.
"Gaara, stop!" Temari shouted urgently.
Even though the Sand Village had come to Konoha with other intentions this time—
now was absolutely not the moment to provoke Konoha.
If conflict were to happen, it should not start with them.
Unfortunately—she spoke too late.
The sand around Gaara had already shot forward.
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