BOOM!
Before anyone could even process what was happening, "Matsudo" had already slammed straight into Roshan.
The instant his body collided with the monster's hide, a blinding surge of light erupted — followed by a chain of thunderous explosions that tore through the valley.
"Fall back! Everyone fall back!!"
The Third Kazekage's voice cracked through the chaos. His sharp instincts saved him — the flames rising from Matsudo's body weren't ordinary chakra combustion. They were detonating tags — hundreds of them.
Lock had triggered all two hundred tags at once, pouring his chakra into the chain reaction. The result was apocalyptic.
The ground heaved. Rock walls shattered like paper. The entire valley became a roaring inferno of flame and shockwaves.
Even the Kazekage's iron sand shield barely held. Those closest to Roshan didn't even have time to scream — they were consumed in a wall of fire and debris.
For several long seconds, the only sound in the world was the endless, rolling boom of explosions. Then — silence.
Thick black smoke swallowed the valley. When it finally cleared, what remained was devastation.
Massive craters pockmarked the Earth. Chunks of stone glowed faintly red from heat. The air reeked of burning chakra.
Someone whispered, voice trembling, "Wh-Where's the monster…?"
The Third Kazekage's eyes widened. The colossal creature — gone. Completely.
He scanned the valley, teeth gritted. Dozens of Sand shinobi lay lifeless among the wreckage. Many more groaned in pain, burned or half-buried in rubble.
A jonin ran up, face pale. "Lord Kazekage! The monster— it's disappeared! So many comrades are dead!"
The Kazekage didn't answer immediately. His gaze lingered on the vast space where Roshan once stood.
"...Could it really be dead?" he muttered. Then, louder, "Who was that boy who rushed in just now?"
The surviving shinobi looked at one another. The battlefield had been chaos — smoke, screams, blinding light. Few had seen clearly.
Finally, one jonin stepped forward. "Lord Kazekage… that reckless fool was Matsudo. He was under my squad before. Never thought he'd be that crazy — rushing in to die with the monster."
The Kazekage's jaw tightened. His iron sand slowly lowered to the ground.
That boy's act had destroyed the beast… but it had also taken dozens of their own.
He wanted to curse, to rage, to demand why. But what could he say? The man was dead. A hero to some, a fool to others — yet undeniably brave.
If he condemned him, it would crush morale. If he praised him, he'd have to live with the losses.
Finally, he exhaled, face hard.
"Search the area. That monster couldn't have vanished completely. Even if it's dead, its remains should be here. Don't leave a single stone unturned."
The search went on for hours. Nothing. No trace of Roshan. Nobody, no fragments — just scorched earth and silence.
In the end, the Sand Village had no choice but to withdraw, bitter and exhausted.
Far away — several kilometers beyond the mountain — Lock crouched on a cliff, chest heaving, a wild grin tugging at his lips.
He had done it.
His last-second gamble — the suicidal rush, the explosion, the fake "heroic sacrifice" — had fooled everyone.
When the tags detonated, he'd triggered his ultimate technique at the same instant — timing it so the overlapping damage from his tags and his strike would hit together.
Roshan's last sliver of health vanished. And in that instant, he saw it — a brilliant golden flash, the familiar drop animation from the system overlay.
[Roshan slain!]
Item dropped: Immortal Shield
Lock hadn't hesitated. As the world burned around him, he snatched the shield, activated his Blink Dagger, and teleported a full kilometer away. Then another. Then another.
Now, crouched in the safety of a distant ridge, he opened his inventory.
There it was — floating in his digital pack, glimmering faintly with divine energy.
The Immortal Shield.
Exactly as it looked in the old world — a translucent golden plate engraved with runes that pulsed softly.
In his pack now sat three treasures:
Hand of Midas
Blink Dagger
Immortal Shield
Lock laughed quietly. "Not bad, Sand Village. You guys make great farming partners."
He wasn't mocking — not entirely. Without their siege, even a hundred Locks couldn't have brought down that version of Roshan. The creature's power here was leagues beyond the game's.
He'd seen tailed beasts from afar — distant roars during border conflicts — but Roshan had been something else. Its raw vitality, that endless regeneration… it was closer to a force of nature than a summon.
Even hundreds of Sand shinobi, including the Kazekage himself, had needed nearly two hours just to wear it down.
And he — one hidden player — had landed the killing blow.
The system rewarded him accordingly:
Level Up: 13 → 14
Gold earned: +750
It was the single greatest gain of his life so far.
As he studied the shield's stats, more details unfolded from the system's template:
Roshan Respawn Timer: 5–8 years (location random)
Next Spawn: Unknown
That meant the next Roshan could appear anywhere — the Land of Lightning, the Land of Water, even deep within the Land of Fire.
The rules of the "game" had evolved, adapting to this world's reality.
And one more thing hadn't changed:
Each Roshan grows stronger every time it respawns.
Lock's expression hardened.
Roshan was dead — for now. But when it returned, it would be more powerful. And so would he.
He turned the Immortal Shield over in his hand. Its faint glow reflected in his eyes.
[Immortal Shield – Duration: 3 Years]
If unused within this period, it will fade.
Lock smirked. "Guess I've got three years to put this baby to use."
He stood, brushing dust from his cloak, the last light of sunset glinting off the golden shield strapped to his back.
"First order complete," he murmured. "Roshan down. Shield secured."
He looked toward the horizon — toward the next hunt.
"Now… let's see what other bosses this world wants to throw at me."
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A/N: Advanced Chapters Have Been Uploaded On My Patreon
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