At any other time, the sight of a wooden coffin would not have been surprising.
But now—
Its sudden appearance froze not only Shigure, but also the Konoha shinobi still clashing with Orochimaru.
Especially the Anbu. They had witnessed firsthand how the First and Second Hokage had been summoned moments ago.
And now—
A third coffin rose slowly from the ground, its surface etched with a single character: "Four."
The moment Shigure saw it, his heart lurched.
Impossible.
The Fourth Hokage had been sealed away by the Dead Demon Consuming Seal. His soul was locked away in the Shinigami's belly. Even the Impure World Reincarnation should not have been able to call him back.
So how… how could Orochimaru be summoning the Fourth Hokage now?
"Another… Impure World Reincarnation?" Shigure muttered, his eyes narrowing.
Might Guy's expression grew grim as he fixed his gaze on the unopened coffin.
"This isn't good…"
Orochimaru's lips curled into a cruel smile.
"I'll leave the rest… to him."
With a hiss, his body sank into the ground and vanished. The Four Sound Ninja melted away with him, gone as suddenly as they'd appeared.
Shigure's hand twitched, ready to unleash Cloud Release and pursue—but he stopped.
Because what was about to emerge from that coffin demanded his full attention.
Compared to the First and Second Hokage, the Fourth was the most dangerous opponent.
The Flying Thunder God Technique alone was enough to make him nearly invincible. Even without Wood Release or an arsenal of ninjutsu, the combination of Flying Thunder God and Rasengan made the Fourth Hokage a nightmare.
"If it really is the Fourth Hokage…" Shigure's lips curved in a strange anticipation. "That wouldn't be so bad. The Great Sage could analyze the Flying Thunder God Technique directly. If I could master it and fuse it with my own jutsu… my strength would soar to another level."
Crack!
The coffin lid split open.
But the figure inside made Shigure's breath catch.
It was indeed a Fourth.
But not the Fourth Hokage.
It was the Fourth Kazekage—Rasa!
As his eyes snapped open, golden sand trickled from his form, glimmering in the battlefield's light.
All around, the Sand shinobi who had been battling against Konoha halted in shock.
Their Kazekage—summoned back before their very eyes.
"Kazekage-sama!"
"How can it be—Lord Kazekage?!"
The Sand ninja were dumbfounded, unable to make sense of what had just happened.
Shigure gave a helpless little smile. Everything suddenly fell into place.
In the original account, Orochimaru had summoned not the Fourth Hokage but the Fourth Kazekage — and then that summoning had failed for reasons left unexplained.
Perhaps Orochimaru had reached his limit with Hashirama and Tobirama. But now that the First and Second were sealed, he could attempt Edo Tensei again. That explained why Rasa had appeared.
Might Guy's jaw tightened.
"The Fourth Kazekage… resurrected by Edo Tensei?!"
Shigure glanced at Guy and replied calmly, "It means the Fourth Kazekage is dead."
"Dead?!" a Sand shinobi snapped.
"What are you saying, kid? Isn't our Kazekage fighting the Hokage of Konoha right now?"
They had no idea their own Kazekage had already been turned into Orochimaru's puppet.
Rasa looked over at the stunned Sand shinobi, then at the battlefield around him. A sigh escaped him, as if even this hollow return embarrassed him.
His movements were stiff at first — the body of a summoned warrior finding its bearings — then he addressed the Konoha forces with forced dignity. "Konoha shinobi, Might Guy… defeat me if you must, but do not harm the shinobi of Sunagakure."
Might Guy blinked, then inclined his head. It was obvious: the Sand villagers were not the real enemy here. Orochimaru had engineered this calamity; the villagers were victims. They would be spared if possible.
"Send word to our people," Kai ordered the Anbu.
"Capture, don't kill. Explain the situation — if they resist after knowing the truth, use the minimum necessary force."
The Anbu dispersed at once. Command fell to Konoha's Jonin; in a crisis like this, the Hokage's orders carried unquestioned authority. Even the Blue Beast of Konoha would follow them.
Rasa nodded once, grateful in some hollow way to be treated with restraint. But inwardly he bore a deeper humiliation: the proud Kazekage brought low by a traitor's scheme. Orochimaru had conspired with others to kill him — defeat was defeat.
"And one more thing," he added, voice tightening.
"What of our Jinchūriki, Gaara?"
Shigure stood up at once.
"Don't worry. Lord Kazekage, Gaara has been sealed by me. His life is not in danger."
The words hit Rasa and the Sand shinobi like a physical blow. Sealed by a child? How could the Jinchūriki be contained so quickly — and by someone the same age as Gaara?
They stared at Shigure. A faint swirl of smoke still clung to him, and the chakra signatures in that mist were unfamiliar, unlike anything they had seen. It hinted at a bloodline-like technique, strange and new.
It suddenly seemed not impossible that Gaara could be restrained. If Konoha harbored such a prodigy…
The thought crushed Rasa's pride and darkened his face. Sunagakure had just lost its leader, its future uncertain. Even if Orochimaru was the hand behind this, the cost to the Sand Village was already high.
Rasa's sand coalesced around him involuntarily, forming a shield as he glared at Shigure. A cold thought flared in his eyes. "Then kill him now. Eliminate this Konoha threat before it grows."
His chakra surged; the pressure of a Kazekage preparing to strike rose palpably.
Shigure felt the murderous intent aimed his way but didn't flinch. He raised his chin and called out, "Teacher Guy — leave Rasa to me."
Might Guy stopped mid-motion, incredulous.
"What did you say?"
"Leave him to me," Shigure repeated.
"Go secure the Sand Village ninjas. You don't know sealing jutsu — even if you defeat him, you won't be able to keep him sealed. I will handle the sealing."
It made sense. Sealing requires technique and preparation; if Konoha's priority was to prevent further casualties among Sunagakure, eliminating enemy shinobi indiscriminately would do more harm than good.
Given that Shigure had already sealed Hashirama and Tobirama, Guy trusted the boy's confidence more than his own blind strike.
Might Guy's face hardened with resolve. He trusted Shigure — and he hated to waste strength where it could do more good elsewhere.
"Very well. But don't hold back."
Shigure drew a breath. The field was tight with tension: a recreated Kazekage seething with sand, the sealed legends of Konoha imprisoned in ice, Orochimaru's hand retreating into the shadows.
In this instant, Shigure's strange, white smoke hummed with latent power — and a small boy stood between two nations on the brink.
If he could siphon the Great Sage's analysis and refine the techniques he'd already used… then perhaps he could push sealing to an even higher plane.
Shigure stepped forward, the smoke coiling at his feet like obedient serpents. Rasa's sand gathered into spears; the battle for Sunagakure's fate — and for the fate of the shinobi world — was far from over.
...
TN:
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