In the Third Kazekage's peripheral vision, Minato's right leg suddenly erupted in a blinding light.
Then, with a movement that seemed slow yet far exceeded his reaction speed, Minato lifted his leg and kicked toward him.
"Lord Kazekage—"
Minato's right leg landed with deliberate, unhurried force on the Third Kazekage's waist.
In the next instant, the Third Kazekage shot through the air like a cannonball, leaving a blur of afterimages as he crashed into the ground with tremendous force, creating a massive crater!
The subordinates he had carried with Iron Sand also plummeted to the earth.
"Have you ever been kicked at the speed of light?" Minato's voice, carrying a leisurely tone, carried to the Third Kazekage's ears from afar.
The Third Kazekage coughed up a mouthful of blood, a wave of regret washing over him.
If only I hadn't started this war, I wouldn't have provoked this monster!
High in the sky, Minato slowly raised his hand and pointed at the Third Kazekage from a distance. A dazzling light erupted from the tip of his finger.
Biu~
A laser beam, moving at lightning speed, shot toward the Third Kazekage.
The Third Kazekage hurriedly gathered Iron Sand into a shield, blocking the incoming attack.
The laser struck the Iron Sand shield with a thunderous explosion!
"Wait!"
As the smoke and dust cleared, the Third Kazekage called out urgently.
Minato paused, his movements momentarily faltering, and turned to look at the Kazekage with a questioning gaze.
"May I be allowed to give my final instructions?"
The Third Kazekage panted, his brow furrowing as a sharp pain shot through his waist.
Minato's absolute dominance in speed had made the vast gap in their strength undeniable.
He had no chance of winning this battle.
Better to use his life to buy his subordinates a chance to survive.
"Final instructions, you say—"
Minato looked down at the Third Kazekage from above, suddenly curious. "As Kazekage, are you responsible for Sunagakure's finances, the well-being of its people, and everything else?"
The Third Kazekage was slightly taken aback by this unexpected question.
He nodded. "Yes, I am. Do you want to become Hokage? With your strength, as long as Konoha's leadership isn't blind, they should immediately list you as the top candidate."
"No, I'm not particularly interested in becoming Hokage. I just have some things I don't understand."
Minato shook his head. "I know a fair bit about Sunagakure's situation—its harsh environment, backward economy, severe internal factional struggles, and the Daimyo's Office repeatedly cutting its funding."
"In such circumstances, external war might be a good way to divert internal conflicts, but it shouldn't be the only solution, right?"
"For Sunagakure, it truly is the only solution."
The Third Kazekage let out a barely perceptible sigh and said in a low voice, "Ever since the First Shinobi World War, the villages have been locked in an arms race, desperately developing their military capabilities."
"Since you know Sunagakure's circumstances so well, you should understand even better that our village will only fall further behind the others."
"Ninja are ultimately a profession of violence. I can't spend years, even decades, painstakingly improving Sunagakure's economy and living standards while the other villages are rapidly advancing their military power. We can't afford to squander our meager resources on such a likely futile endeavor."
"The gap between ideals and reality... I hadn't truly considered that factor."
Minato nodded thoughtfully. He understood better than anyone that falling behind meant being vulnerable.
Though his homeland in his past life had always espoused pacifism, its true teachings were:
To seek peace through struggle is to preserve it; to seek peace through compromise is to lose it!
Dignity lies on the edge of a sword; truth lies within the range of a cannon!
Given Sunagakure's circumstances, it was indeed difficult to simultaneously balance the people's welfare and military strength, especially when everyone else was desperately developing.
With this thought, Minato waved his hand, signaling that the Third Kazekage could make his final arrangements.
The Third Kazekage summoned his subordinates. "Tell Granny Chiyo that the outcome of this war was sealed from the very beginning."
"Lord Kazekage—"
Several Sunagakure ninja's eyes reddened with grief.
"Don't think of revenge. My death is my own fault. I started this war, and only through death can I atone for it."
As he spoke, the Third Kazekage rolled a strand of Iron Sand, sending his subordinates away. After straightening his robes, he turned to Minato.
"Thank you for showing mercy."
Minato nodded slightly and gestured, "Please."
He had no intention of capturing the Third Kazekage. Having chosen to attack him, the Kazekage should have been prepared for death.
The Third Kazekage sat down cross-legged, casually pulled out an Exploding Tag, and, under everyone's gaze, detonated it with a thunderous explosion.
"Self-destruction... how ruthless," Minato murmured, his tone tinged with admiration.
For a ninja, even a brain could yield valuable intelligence. As the Kage of Sunagakure, the Third Kazekage knew every secret of his village. He would never allow such information to fall into enemy hands.
"Though he was an enemy, he was a man worthy of respect. Gather his remains."
After ordering the Third Kazekage's body to be collected, Hatake Sakumo approached Minato, his voice carrying a hint of relief. "This was truly thanks to you, Minato-kun."
"You're too kind, Senior. The enemy was already targeting me."
Minato shook his head and sighed helplessly. "Still, this will likely bring more trouble. Should I consider retiring from the ninja corps?"
"Absolutely not!" Hatake Sakumo waved his hand urgently.
What is he thinking? he thought. I'd give him my coat if it were cold enough. Retiring from the ninja corps? What a pipe dream!
"If you're just worried about the trouble, simply speak to Lord Hokage about it."
Hatake Sakumo laughed it off, patting Minato on the shoulder. "Besides, the war should be over soon. You'll be able to settle down."
"The war's over?"
Minato shook his head. If killing a leader could end a war, there would be no more wars in the world.
"There will always be stubborn fools. Iwagakure might be manageable, but Sunagakure—from the moment this war began, they had no choice."
Hatake Sakumo looked puzzled. "What do you mean?"
"Sunagakure is plagued by internal factional struggles. With the front lines failing and the Third Kazekage dead, their already strained economy has been completely drained into the war effort."
Minato spread his hands. "It's a vicious cycle. The new Kazekage will likely claim to avenge the Third Kazekage and continue the war, or even escalate it, to avoid facing the internal mess."
Hatake Sakumo frowned deeply. "But what's the point of that?"
"I'm just speculating, of course. I'm not a high-level Sunagakure official."
Minato smiled and didn't say anything more.
For a pure-hearted man like Hatake Sakumo, the idea of using war to reduce population pressure and resource scarcity, while also reshuffling internal power, was too dark.
After all, he's the kind of man who could be driven to suicide by online harassment from Konoha's rabble.
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