My Journey as Fourth Kazekage

Minato swiftly leapt off Gamabunta's head, separating from the toad to attack Rasa from two different angles. Rasa knew there was no way he could allow both of them to get close—especially Minato. Allowing Minato to approach would be equivalent to signing his own death sentence.

Without hesitation, Rasa began forming hand seals.

"Magnet Release: Gold Dust Shower!"

As his words echoed, a dense barrage of golden senbon erupted from behind him, filling the sky like a torrential rainstorm. The barrage covered an immense area, its speed making it nearly impossible to evade.

"Leave it to me!" Minato declared, his hands moving in a blur as he formed the necessary hand seals.

"Wind Release: Pressing Black!"

A violent hurricane spiraled from Minato's mouth, devouring the incoming golden sand senbon. But it didn't end there. The storm surged forward, speeding toward Shukaku's manifestation.

Rasa's expression remained impassive. When it came to Wind Release, he was a master himself.

"Wind Release: Pressing Black!"

He launched the same technique in response, and the two hurricanes collided midair, forming an impenetrable barrier of wind between Shukaku's Avatar and Minato and Gamabunta. The force was so powerful that Gamabunta was pushed back.

"Impressive, Kazekage," Gamabunta rumbled. "What a formidable Wind Release!"

After a moment of thought, he offered his advice.

"Minato, I'm afraid I'm not much help against something like this. Ken would be a better choice for the job."

Minato immediately understood and nodded in agreement.

"Understood. Thanks for your help, Lord Bunta!"

"No problem. I'll be heading back then!" Gamabunta said, before vanishing into the distance.

Minato wished Gamabunta could stay to assist with the other Sand ninja, but summoning beasts for battles between shinobi was against Mount Myoboku's code. Gamabunta had only participated out of respect for Minato, but calling upon him to deal with regular Sand ninja was outside of their agreement. True, the Sage Toads would step in for battles of life and death, but Rasa was not an opponent Minato couldn't handle on his own.

As Gamabunta returned to the summoning realm, Minato quickly formed the necessary hand seals.

"Summoning Jutsu!"

The mist that formed around him cleared, revealing a large red toad, armed with a black iron trident and an immense iron shield strapped to its back.

"Lord Ken! I'll be counting on you. Just keep that monster occupied for me!" Minato called out.

Gamaken, the summoned toad, surveyed the colossal creature before him and immediately understood his role.

"Understood. I may not be as graceful as Bunta, but I'll give it my all!"

Rasa, watching the interaction, couldn't help but feel a pang of envy.

"So this is Konoha's foundation... they can summon beasts of such power at will, while all I have is myself."

The battle between the new summon and Rasa's Shukaku began in earnest.

Gamaken spun his trident with ease, leaping high into the air before bringing the weapon crashing down onto Shukaku's Avatar. Rasa attempted to block with Shukaku's massive arm, but it didn't take long for him to realize the vast difference in strength between Gamaken and Gamabunta—Gamaken's raw power was on an entirely different level. He could feel the tremors running through Shukaku's massive form.

"What terrifying strength!" Rasa muttered to himself.

If this kept up, Shukaku's Avatar would soon be in danger of falling. Meanwhile, Minato had already seized the opportunity to close in at an incredible speed.

Rasa spotted him and quickly formed hand seals.

"Magnet Release: Gold Dust Shower!"

"Leave it to me!" Minato shouted, as the golden sand rained down from above. Gamaken raised his shield and braced himself for impact, while Minato pushed forward, closing in.

"What a troublesome opponent..." Rasa muttered, clapping his hands together.

In an instant, two colossal sand arms shot up from the ground, reaching for Gamaken's legs as he leaped through the air.

"Leave it to me!" Minato shouted, clapping his hands together.

"Wind Release: Severing Cut!"

Sharp blades of wind shot forth, cutting through the sand arms with ease. They crumbled instantly into fine golden grains, cascading down from the sky like rain.

At that moment, Gamaken had already reached Shukaku's manifestation. Using his experience, he wisely chose not to engage in direct combat. Instead, he raised his shield and, with all his weight and momentum, brought it crashing down onto Shukaku's head.

This time, Rasa found himself with no escape. He had no choice but to abandon Shukaku's Avatar and retreat.

"Now's my chance!" Minato thought out loud, his opportunity finally presenting itself.

First, Minato was already dangerously close to Rasa. Even if Rasa managed to knock away Minato's Flying Thunder God kunai, the technique would allow him to close the gap almost instantly. Once he was in range, with the Flying Thunder God technique and Rasengan in his arsenal, Minato could easily overwhelm him.

Second, Rasa was now airborne, with no solid ground to adjust his movements. While this wouldn't be a significant problem for a Kage-level shinobi, even the slightest opening at this level could be lethal.

Without hesitation, Minato hurled the Flying Thunder God Kunai.

Rasa, sensing the incoming threat, controlled his gold dust, forming a whip of iron to strike down the kunai. But before the kunai reached its target, Minato had already teleported.

In an instant, Minato appeared, seized the kunai, and, with a single motion, slashed at the golden whip before hurling the kunai toward Rasa again—before vanishing once more.

The kunai hurtled straight for Rasa's face, and Minato reappeared just behind it.

With a Rasengan pulsing brightly in his hand, Minato tore through the air, closing the distance between them.

Rasa's eyes widened. He quickly clasped his hands together.

"Gold Dust Barrier!"

Golden thorns erupted from the ground around him, forming an intricate and dense defense to block Minato's assault.

But just as the barrier formed, Minato disappeared once again.

Whoosh!

"Got you!" Minato's voice rang coldly, devoid of emotion.

In an instant, the brilliant light of the Rasengan engulfed Rasa completely.

For a moment, it seemed as though Minato was just seconds away from victory. But Rasa was the Kazekage for a reason.

Instead of a triumphant expression, Minato's face shifted into one of confusion and alarm.

"Something's wrong!"

The sensation transmitted through the Rasengan didn't feel like striking a real body. It felt... like sand.

A chill ran down Minato's spine, and he instinctively leaped backward.

Yet, no counterattack came.

Instead, Gamaken's voice rang out, tinged with panic.

"What is this?!"

Minato's eyes snapped toward Gamaken. To his shock, the scattered sand from Shukaku's shattered form had suddenly come to life. It surged around Gamaken, enveloping him entirely.

Gamaken swung his trident and kicked off the ground, trying to break free, but then he froze. His body wasn't responding.

Even worse, his connection to Mount Myoboku had been severed.

"What…?"

Purple-violet sealing scripts materialized out of thin air, traveling from the remains of Shukaku's Avatar and transferring onto Gamaken's body.

Minato's eyes widened in realization.

As Kushina's husband, he was well-versed in sealing jutsu. His face darkened.

"This is a sealing technique! Damn it!"

Before Minato could fully process the situation, it was already too late.

In the blink of an eye, Gamaken was sealed within a massive, pyramid-like structure made entirely of compressed sand. His final words echoed before he vanished completely.

"Sorry, Minato!!!"

Those were Gamaken's last words.

Atop the pyramid, Rasa emerged slowly, his figure casting a shadow over the sand.

Minato turned to face him, a sense of foreboding sinking in.

As the dust settled, the "Rasa" that had been struck by the Rasengan crumbled completely into sand.

"A Sand Clone? He prepared this in advance?" Minato frowned, piecing the situation together.

Though he had expected Rasa to be difficult, especially given his status as the Kazekage, the sealing of Gamaken had completely caught him off guard.

This meant—

Rasa's true target wasn't Minato at all.

It had been Gamaken.

But why?

Minato quickly realized this couldn't have been planned from the very beginning. After all, neither Gamabunta nor Gamaken had been part of the battle from the start. Minato had only summoned them as the fight unfolded. There was no way Rasa could have foreseen their appearance.

A thought flashed through Minato's mind, recalling the earlier exchange. "Could it be that Sunagakure doesn't actually intend to go to war with Konoha?"

Rasa's voice, low and deliberate, echoed from atop the golden pyramid, confirming Minato's suspicion.

"Right now, Konoha's Yellow Flash... with just a flick of my fingers, I can crush your summon into dust."