If my memory serves, during this war Rasa should be on the frontlines against the shinobi from Kumogakure, using Magnet Release: Gold Dust to repel their invasion and defend the village—thereby cementing his position as the Fourth Kazekage.
But looking at the situation now… he hadn't been able to leave the desert even for a moment, let alone showcase his strength on the Cloud Village battlefield.
Rasa remained hidden behind the dunes, stroking his chin in quiet reflection. These past two months had, unexpectedly, been pretty fruitful. From sunrise onward, he mined gold dust each day, generating enough refined material to make a ten-pull ten times overnight. Over sixty days, he'd pulled the gacha roughly 500–600 times. Yet…
Despite all those pulls, his haul remained disappointingly low. Most rewards were useless junk—attribute-boost fragments, scraps, and higher-rarity items were almost nonexistent. He'd only collected three 2-star items, plus the rare 2-star card from Day One. In essence, it took over a hundred 1-star pulls to get a single 2-star reward. It was a brutal drop rate.
Still, those attribute fragments did stack up. Over time, Rasa felt himself growing stronger—and the repetitive act of mining and refining enhanced his control over the Magnet Release: Gold Dust. After this war, he might actually be capable of sealing the One-Tail one-on-one in the desert.
Of course, becoming even half as OP as the God of Shinobi was still a distant dream. The Nine-Tails could go toe-to-toe with eight other Tailed Beasts. Hashirama was the only one who'd managed to grab the Nine-Tails' throat with nine thousand nine hundred and ninety-nine hands. A hundred levels of power difference, easy.
Meanwhile, his inventory overflowed with worthless organic scraps—apple cores, pear pits, food waste. Most were useless, but some had rare "special description" tags: "Potential yield when used correctly." He'd neatly sorted all of them.
So far, though, none of them had done anything remotely special. They seemed no different from the kitchen scraps he used to toss out without a second thought.
Looking out across the desert toward the Grass Village's direction, Rasa frowned.
It was already spring over there, but in the Land of Wind, the drought hadn't let up. No spring rain, no signs of change.
Rain in Land of Wind was practically a myth, no matter the season. The climate barely shifted—and for shinobi who'd long since prepared for war, a little dry air was no obstacle.
Besides, reinforcements weren't coming. Nearly every available soldier had been redirected to the fight against Kumogakure.
So naturally…
Losing here was almost expected.
Sure, Sunagakure's puppet jutsu narrowed the gap in numbers, but not everyone was a master puppeteer. And without a Kage to lead them, morale alone had already taken a hit.
Add in the fact that they were fending off multiple villages at once, and honestly?
The fact they were still holding on at all was impressive.
Rasa had observed Suna's situation a few days ago. Things were clearly worse than when he'd left two months ago—fewer familiar faces, more untrained ones.
He knew what that meant.
Sunagakure had started sending children—kids still in the Academy—out to the battlefield. It wasn't unique to Suna; many villages had done the same during wartime. These fresh genin had no real combat experience, often panicked under pressure, and could endanger their comrades.
But they filled out the ranks.
And sometimes, just looking like you had numbers was enough to keep morale from breaking.
It was the same reason that certain Leaf Kage had pushed early graduation—getting more bodies to the front line, regardless of readiness.
Some leaders shouted slogans. Others simply gave orders and let others implement them
Suna, for all its sacrifice, still had one of the lowest birth rates among the Great Nations—only the future "Blood Mist" village would be worse off demographically.
Everyone knew this.
And no one could do anything about it.
Rasa, watching the new recruits struggle to fit into the ranks, felt a twinge of guilt. They were just kids…
But they were also the future.
The future economy.
The future source of his ten-pull funding.
Who else was going to bankroll his gacha addiction?
These kids…
"They're all money."
With that thought solidified, he made his decision.
"Time to hit them with something big!"
His eyes narrowed as he observed his comrades' camp across the desert.
Though Iwagakure and Kusagakure had formed a temporary alliance to advance through their territory, shinobi never got too cozy — especially in times like these.
They kept a reasonable distance from Kusagakure, and Iwagakure likewise. Occasional joint strategy meetings occurred—but both sides remained wary, always scanning for Leaf Village interference.
"Have we received any word from the vanguard led by Hato?" asked a portly Iwagakure chūnin inside the temporary tent command center, his forehead creased with concern.
"Not yet, Lord Kitsuchi," replied an Iwagakure shinobi. "We've found no trace of him—or even Rasa's unit. The Third Kazekage's disciple… vanished as well."
"The Third Kazekage's disciple? The one rumored to have suffered severe trauma and lost clarity?" The chūnin's eyebrows deepened. "Both disappeared together?"
Could Rasa really have been that powerful? Did he sacrifice himself alongside Hato?
As the son of the Third Tsuchikage, he'd lived through countless skirmishes. He couldn't fathom why both his top units vanished so completely.
As for the Third Kazekage...
No question—this was Leaf Village.
His own village could never have erased a Kage without a trace like this. Even his own clan wouldn't have that capability—only Konoha had the means.
Though he knew it painted Iwagakure in a weak light, he still needed to be blunt. Iwagakure often proclaimed itself the strongest. If they were this clueless, they were in deep trouble.
"Continue searching. If Rasa really was that formidable… then Hato's unit may not have perished in vain. At least for now, Sunagakure has no candidate strong enough to replace a Kage."
Before he finished, another Iwa shinobi burst in, panicked.
"Field Commander! We just received word—Kusagakure is under attack by an unknown enemy!"
"...???"