Yuji, carrying the transformed Uchiha members and racing back toward the Sand Village to contain the situation, opened the system as he moved.
He had painstakingly accumulated experience points over the past months of fighting, but the Third Raikage's sudden move had forced him to spend the primary experience on resupplying the frontline troops instead.
Fortunately, the auxiliary experience points were still intact. He had not yet used the character rewards from killing Yamanaka Inoichi and the others, and throughout the first battle against the Konoha army, his constant observation and engagement with special characters in the enemy formation had generated a considerable accumulation.
By this point his auxiliary experience had reached over five thousand. The highest amount he had ever held.
But his mood was heavy.
He understood exactly how terrifying the Third Raikage was. If he were forced to choose between facing Hiruzen and facing the Raikage, he would choose Hiruzen without hesitation.
Because the Raikage's fighting style was simply too extreme. It was designed to maximize damage to a single target and press that advantage relentlessly.
Unlike Minato, where his own defensive approach and mobility could create a sustained stalemate, the Raikage's accuracy in both offense and defense was something his Blood Release could not completely evade.
And this time he was not only facing the Third Raikage. The rapidly maturing future Fourth Raikage was present as well.
One large and one small. Both of them.
The pressure this created was considerable.
His current fighting style had actually developed some surface-level similarities to Lightning Release Taijutsu, using Red Scale Leap and Winged King to increase mobility and explosive power while enhancing physical strength.
But due to limitations in proficiency, chakra volume, physical development, and the compounding constraints of his current stage, the advantages he was proud of would simply not be advantages when facing the Raikage.
He could use defense to create a stalemate against Minato, but he could not threaten the Third Raikage in the same way.
"My only real advantages are my doujutsu and my healing ninjutsu," he thought, working through the analysis carefully.
The Raikage's Lightning Release Taijutsu was the problem. Even a chakra scalpel might not be able to inflict meaningful damage on a body fortified by the Lightning Release Armor at full output.
He could observe and predict his opponent through his doujutsu, but in pure taijutsu he was absolutely no match. When Blood Release faced a target with the Raikage's physical constitution, inflicting effective damage was extremely difficult. The Lightning Release Armor further enhanced an already extraordinary physical baseline.
Without exaggeration, a combined attack from both Raikage simultaneously could overwhelm him in a single moment. One lapse in attention could be fatal. If they severed a vital point or decapitated him before he could react, the Reverse Cursed Technique would not have time to activate.
Having worked through all of this, he scrolled through the system interface.
"Speed, stamina, burst damage, destructive power. These are all the enemy's strengths. To deal with them, I need special ninjutsu or abilities that can neutralize their invulnerability rather than trying to match them directly."
He continued thinking.
Despite his current reputation in the ninja world for the Military Music Dream, Blood Release, and medical capabilities, his overall arsenal was genuinely extensive.
However, against a category of opponent like the Third Raikage, who could single-handedly overwhelm multiple strong opponents, he still felt outmatched in a direct confrontation. What he needed was not more tools below the Kage level.
He needed his combat power to undergo a qualitative transformation that firmly established him among genuine Kage-level powerhouses. Not as someone who could fight at that level under favorable conditions, but as someone who could guarantee a meaningful probability of victory regardless of the opponent or fighting style.
A Kage-level combatant should not have a fighting style that simply had no answer against certain specific opponents.
After half a day of examining the auxiliary experience system's catalog, he confirmed what he had suspected. Items that could absolutely suppress the Raikage's specific advantages existed, but they were extraordinarily expensive.
The cheaper options offered limited improvement and carried high failure rates. What he needed was something that produced a genuine qualitative leap.
He found one item that genuinely interested him. The price was nearly seven thousand auxiliary experience points.
This ability had actually been in his development plan for some time. He had originally intended to acquire it after accumulating more experience from the Leaf Village campaign. The Raikage's move had completely disrupted that timeline.
Then a system prompt surfaced.
Would you like to sell back this item? It can be returned for 1500 auxiliary experience points.
He looked at the Military Music Dream in his hand.
He thought about it for a moment.
The exchange rate was not generous, and it was worth noting that the experience points now were not equivalent to what they had been at the time of purchase.
With his current strength, accumulating experience had become significantly harder. What had taken a certain effort to save then would take considerably more time to rebuild now.
"Enough," he said quietly, narrowing his eyes.
But losing the Military Music Dream meant losing one of his most decisive tools in large-scale battlefield engagements. The impact he could have on the enemy on the front line battlefield would decrease noticeably.
He had originally planned to use it to further pressure Konoha in the coming offensive. Under any other circumstances, he would not have sold it now.
But the situation was exceptional. Preventing the Hidden Cloud Village from advancing on the Sand Village took absolute priority over everything else.
For the time being, he had no other options.
"Just awakening this ability alone costs seven thousand, and that does not even account for future development costs. If I need to purchase additional items later, I will have to spend even more. It is simply too expensive."
"Why do I feel like I am constantly working for the system and cannot accumulate anything at all?"
He narrowed his eyes and cursed internally. Then he closed the system interface.
The Military Music Dream had not been sold back yet. He planned to make use of the ninja tool one more time before returning it to the system, to increase his chances in what was coming.
The next day. The Sand Village.
Boom.
Thick smoke billowed from the Sand Village's main gate. A terrifying force had shattered it directly. Tiny flashes of lightning filled the black smoke.
At this moment, throughout the Sand Village, large numbers of Sand Village ninja were rapidly gathering on the rooftops of buildings and moving to intercept the sudden attack.
However, just as one Sand Village ninja landed on the battlefield and before he could even register what he was facing, a figure moving at the speed of light crushed him instantly.
With a ferocious and overwhelming display, the Third Raikage swept away every Sand Village ninja who came within range. He swung his arm, and that muscular arm carried the force of an entire army behind it.
Not a single Sand Village ninja could withstand a single blow. Wherever his arm swung, anything that came near his body was either sent flying like a sack of grain or instantly torn apart. The scene was extraordinarily bloody.
In the center of the battlefield, black lightning erupted at astonishing speed, paralyzing every Sand Village ninja struck by the current, rendering them unable to move.
Some collapsed to the ground in agony, losing all fighting capacity before they could mount any resistance.
The Third Raikage came to a stop, a wisp of smoke and fire rising from his feet as he stepped forward with crushing deliberateness.
One hand pressed on his own shoulder, the other supported his neck, performing simple stretching movements of his limbs.
Under his leadership, the Hidden Cloud squad had stormed directly into the Sand Village using an approach of pure overwhelming brutality. His demeanor was completely indifferent and relaxed. He showed no sign of pressure whatsoever.
Not far away, Chiyo had gathered several hundred Sand Village soldiers and surrounded the battlefield, blocking the enemy's path forward.
Chiyo's expression had turned ugly as she stared at the Third Raikage.
She had not expected the Raikage to personally come to the Sand Village. And to arrive in this manner, breaking through the main gate and sweeping everything aside, was something she had not fully anticipated even knowing it was a possibility.
The Raikage's eyes swept over the Sand Village soldiers assembled behind Chiyo, ready to engage, and he said a single sentence.
"Just these few people."
His tone suggested he did not even consider them a genuine threat. He folded his arms, his gaze finally settling on Chiyo directly.
"Hand over all your medicinal resources and your research materials."
It was not phrased as a negotiation. It was an order.
"Outrageous," Chiyo said through gritted teeth, her anger visible.
"I am giving you a chance to live," the Raikage continued. "If you and these people do not want to die, then accept this quietly. You should understand that with your village's current strength, no one here can stop me."
The Raikage's gaze was intense and steady as he looked at Chiyo and spoke slowly.
"Hmph. You should first consider whether you yourself can survive long enough to leave."
Chiyo was someone who had weathered many storms across a long life. She was not going to be defeated by the Raikage's intimidation alone. She let out a cold laugh in response.
The ninja standing behind her immediately moved, transforming into a large number of dark shadows that launched themselves toward the enemy from every direction simultaneously.