The Magnet Release Kekkei Genkai existed only within the Suna and, in the Kumo, in the hands of Toroi alone!
How could Konoha possibly have it as well?
And on top of that, how could it belong to such a young shinobi?
Pakura's expression turned extremely grim.
If Konoha truly gained a shinobi with the Magnet Release Bloodline Limit, and if that person were allowed to grow and mature without obstruction, then for the Suna, it would absolutely represent a tremendous threat.
This would mean that in any future conflicts, Konoha might possess a power capable of restraining or even countering—many of Sunagakure's established combat tactics.
After all, Sunagakure's shinobi, aside from excelling in Wind Release, also had another mainstream specialty—puppeteering.
Sunagakure's puppet techniques could be said to be the strongest and most refined in the entire shinobi world.
Toroi of the Kumo alone was already troublesome enough. If Konoha were to produce another Magnet Release user, then in any subsequent clashes, Sunagakure would find itself at a significant disadvantage.
Thinking of this, Pakura immediately ordered a Sunagakure shinobi skilled in information transmission to use ninjutsu to relay the message back.
In particular, intelligence concerning Kiyohara and his suspected Magnet Release abilities was sent back to the Suna and delivered directly to the Fourth Kazekage, Rasa.
Sunagakure, Kazekage's Office.
Rasa stared at the intelligence scroll sent back by Pakura. On his weathered face, one shaped by years of toil and responsibility—an unmistakable look of surprise appeared for the first time.
"Konoha… Magnet Release?"
His low voice echoed through the spacious office.
He reread the descriptions on the scroll again and again, especially the section detailing Kiyohara's long-range attacks.
"Black metallic objects," "supersonic speed," "suspected magnetic control," and, most crucially of all—"iron sand."
Pakura had discovered iron sand along the edges of her wound.
As a Magnet Release user himself, Rasa understood the implications far better than Pakura ever could.
Although he typically preferred to fight using gold dust, he was equally capable of manipulating iron sand.
"A completely new Magnet Release user… appearing in Konoha…"
Rasa's fingers tapped rhythmically against the desk, producing a dull sound.
"How have we never heard any intelligence about this brat before? Could he be some newly emerged genius?"
Rasa could not make sense of it.
He still remembered how Namikaze Minato had once appeared just like this—out of nowhere.
Now, Minato was universally known as the "Yellow Flash," a man whom even abandoning a mission to flee from would not earn punishment.
"We cannot allow more people like Namikaze Minato to appear."
After learning that lesson once, Rasa firmly believed in eliminating all potential dangers while they were still in their infancy.
He had not been the Fourth Kazekage for very long—one could even say he had only just taken office.
Yet his mindset had already begun to shift into that of a true Kazekage: placing the village's interests above all else.
He immediately ordered his subordinates to begin gathering all available intelligence on Kiyohara.
Over the next half month, the front lines fell into an eerie calm, like the stillness before a storm.
This granted Kiyohara a precious period of time to digest his gains and focus on training.
Kiyohara knew very well that this peace would not last long.
Because every single day, Obito was undergoing rehabilitation training within the Mountains' Graveyard.
Once Madara deemed Obito's recovery sufficient, he would have the White Zetsu begin luring him out.
And that would mark the beginning of drawing out the darkness buried deep within Obito's heart!
Kiyohara had no idea whether White Zetsu had already infiltrated Konoha at this point in time.
Both the manga and the official databook stated clearly that White Zetsu's Transformation Technique was the strongest among all shinobis.
And moreover—White Zetsu was mass-produced.
Once it absorbed someone else's chakra, White Zetsu could perfectly replicate that chakra signature. Even the most familiar companions or sensory-type shinobis would be unable to detect the disguise.
Only Naruto, while in Nine-Tails Chakra Mode, could distinguish White Zetsu through his ability to sense malicious intent.
In other words, during this period, White Zetsu was exceedingly difficult to detect.
At this moment, in a forest clearing outside the camp that had been designated as a temporary training ground, Kiyohara was fully immersed in practicing Magnet Release ninjutsu.
"Magnet Release: Iron Sand Wave!"
He formed hand seals and let out a low shout.
Instantly, massive quantities of pitch-black iron sand burst out from the thermos he carried on his person, smashing through the lid and surging forth like a black tide. It rolled and condensed before him, eventually forming an iron sand wall nearly two meters tall!
With a thought, Kiyohara sent the iron sand wave surging violently toward a group of trees set up as test targets in the distance!
Rumble—!
Under the heavy and relentless impact of the iron sand, the tree trunks shattered as easily as brittle matchsticks, snapping cleanly in half.
"The power is decent."
Kiyohara nodded in satisfaction.
The range was also sufficiently large, making it an excellent technique for clearing the field and suppressing enemies.
With a wave of his hand, magnetic force spread outward, and the iron sand obediently returned to the thermos hanging at his waist.
This container had originally been meant for holding water, but was now repurposed as storage for iron sand.
Kiyohara had discovered that temporarily extracting iron sand directly from the ground consumed an enormous amount of chakra, and not every location contained iron sand to begin with.
Thus, it was necessary to prepare and store some in advance, allowing it to be used instantly when needed for emergency offense or defense.
Gaara operated in much the same way, carrying a massive gourd on his back at all times, filled entirely with sand.
"Next—Magnet Release: Iron Sand Wall."
He moved on to defensive techniques.
Iron sand flowed out from the container once more, forming a thick, heavy black wall before him that gleamed with a metallic sheen. Its sturdiness far surpassed that of an ordinary Earth Release wall.
Kiyohara tested it by slashing with a shinobi blade coated in lightning chakra, but only managed to leave a faint white mark. Its defensive capability was truly impressive.
"Magnet Release: Iron Sand Drizzle!"
Finally, he tested a wide-area attack.
Countless grains of iron sand split apart under his control, transforming into innumerable pebble-sized projectiles that shot toward the distant trees like a torrential storm!
Chi-chi-chi-chi!
Dense piercing sounds rang out as the tree trunks were instantly riddled with holes, becoming like honeycombs.
This jutsu was extremely effective against clustered enemies or highly mobile targets.
After becoming proficient with these three new techniques, Kiyohara's thoughts began to stir once more.
He looked at the chakra-metal shinobi blade in his hand, then recalled his earlier experience manipulating iron sand coins with magnetic force. A bold idea surfaced in his mind.
Since magnetic force could remotely control metal—could he achieve true object manipulation, like Orochimaru's "Sword of Kusanagi: Longsword of the Sky," and control a shinobi blade in midair for combat?
Once the idea formed, he immediately put it into action.
He attempted to evenly wrap Magnet Release chakra around the shinobi blade—not simply to attract or throw it, but to construct an adjustable force field that would allow the blade to be held as if by an invisible hand, freely flying through the air to slash and stab.
This technique drew inspiration from the Magnet Release ninjutsu "Magnet Release: Magnetic Field Rotation," and was one of the developmental results left behind by Magnet Release Kiyohara.
At first, it was extremely difficult. The shinobi blade wobbled in midair like a drunken bird, its trajectory completely erratic, nearly going out of control several times and almost injuring him.
This demanded an extraordinarily high level of precise chakra control and mental focus—far beyond the simple one-time acceleration used when controlling iron sand coins.
But patience and powerful mental energy were exactly what Kiyohara lacked the least.
Failure after failure, adjustment after adjustment—relying on his inherited talent for magnetic control and his far-above-average spiritual strength, he gradually began to grasp the trick.
Hummmm—
The shinobi blade emitted a faint hum and finally rose into the air, trembling slightly. Though still unstable, it was already capable of slowly moving according to Kiyohara's will and executing simple straight thrusts.
"It worked!"
A flash of joy crossed Kiyohara's eyes.
(End of Chapter)