Bunpuku could clearly feel Rasa's resolve.
Before this mission, Rasa had always referred to him as the One-Tail's jinchūriki.
Yes—in Sunagakure, most people had long forgotten Bunpuku's real name. Many simply called him by the name of the beast sealed inside him: One-Tail.
But in the final moment of his life, this man chose to respect him—chose to call him by his true name, and begged him to carry on the mission.
In that instant, Bunpuku and Rasa shared the same will: to protect Suna.
Understanding this, Bunpuku controlled his sand to wrap around the golden dust dragon Rasa had created, as if draping it in a suit of sand armor.
At the same time, he released a sealing jutsu—tadpole-like markings rapidly crawled across the surface of the golden dragon.
"This way, he won't be able to use that flame defense." Bunpuku thought.
The Sand Waterfall Flowing Dragon was no ordinary technique. The dense magnet release chakra within it meant that even if it were broken apart, it could reform endlessly, like an immortal cockroach, until the enemy was ground to death.
Beneath the sunlight, the armored golden dragon gleamed with metallic brilliance as it roared, charging fiercely at Mitsuki.
Though Mitsuki's frame was tiny compared to the massive dragon, strangely enough, the dragon itself seemed filled with tragic determination—like a hero challenging the demon lord.
This was their final, passionate combination attack.
"Didn't expect magnet release to pull off something like this. Visually, it even beats my Blazing Wind Annihilation. Not sure about the power though."
Mitsuki watched the golden dragon barreling down on him, not panicked at all—instead, he even had the mind to critique it.
And the reason was simple: as always, defense was never something Mitsuki had to worry about.
With a casual flick of Mistcutter, he flung away the blood that stained his blade from Rasa's earlier wound.
By now, the golden dragon was within five meters of him.
Rasa didn't understand why his enemy hadn't moved yet, but he had no energy left to think. The only thing driving his body was the obsession to complete the Sand Waterfall Flowing Dragon and defeat Mitsuki.
On the other side, Bunpuku frowned. Something about this felt too simple.
Mitsuki raised Mistcutter across his chest—and then gently swung the blade.
"Full Counter!"
In an instant, an invisible field erupted outward from Mitsuki's body.
The majestic golden dragon suddenly convulsed, folding inward from the head as if struck by some unseen force.
Crack… crack… crack…
Like a broken toy, the dragon shattered with a metallic wail, collapsing completely.
And not only that—the golden dust scattered by the Full Counter did not reform under the pull of magnet release.
Instead, like a hail of stray bullets, it shot back the way it had come.
Thud-thud-thud—!
The sound of metal piercing flesh rang out.
Rasa's entire body was drenched in the bullet rain of golden dust.
At the edge of death, his mind still turned to his wife and the unborn child he would never meet.
As for Sunagakure—let the living carry that burden. From beyond the divide of life and death, he could only wish them success.
Strangely, he found himself less detached than he thought he would be.
"Shimizu Mitsuki… if only you'd been born in Sunagakure…"
And so, the man who would have become the Fourth Kazekage fell in the Third Great Ninja War.
For Rasa, perhaps this was a better ending—better than being assassinated by Orochimaru in the future.
As the storm of golden bullets raged, Bunpuku struggled to shield himself with layers of sand.
Mitsuki seized the opportunity, sending out his last two chakra spheres.
Only a fool would waste such a chance.
Through his Six Eyes, the rising smoke and dust did nothing to obscure his vision. The spheres locked onto Bunpuku as if guided by satellites.
Mid-flight, they transformed: one split into countless miniature Rasengan, the other crackled with the sound of a thousand birds crying.
"Finger Gun Rasengan: Bullet Rain!"
"Chidori Spear!"
War was no child's play. Even against a jinchūriki, Mitsuki showed no mercy—his attacks were killing blows.
A dead jinchūriki meant Sunagakure lost its war potential all the same. The only difference was, if captured alive, the village could be milked for concessions.
On the battlefield, under Bunpuku's heavy defenses, he had avoided major damage.
But suddenly—
A streak of lightning pierced through his sand shield in a blink, spearing clean through his abdomen and pinning him in place.
The Tailed Beast Cloak couldn't resist the piercing edge of the Chidori Spear.
Bunpuku frantically tried to repeat his trick, to seal the Lightning Release chakra and break free.
But it was already too late.
The Finger Gun Rasengan Rain landed an instant after the lightning, while he was still paralyzed.
He could only watch helplessly as the devastating storm, stronger than Rasa's golden bullet rain, slammed into him.
And it wasn't over.
Even as his last two chakra spheres were expended, Mitsuki wasn't idle. He molded another Rasengan, layered it with flames—
"Great Flame Rasengan!"
The earlier attacks had just been preludes. This was the true climax.
With no sealing interference this time, the rasengan displayed its full, terrifying S-rank destructive power.
The moment it struck Bunpuku, the Tailed Beast Cloak ignited and crumbled away.
Seeing his target hit, Mitsuki formed a one-handed seal and growled:
"Explode!"
The dark-purple fire detonated violently, engulfing Bunpuku completely.
The heat was so overwhelming it felt like it could ignite thought itself.
Bunpuku no longer had the strength to form seals. His body felt nonexistent, even his fingers numb beyond sensation.
He was dying.
Drip…
In the depths of darkness, a droplet of water fell into a still pool. Bunpuku sat cross-legged on its surface—just like the countless hours he had once spent imprisoned as Suna's jinchūriki.
This was his inner sealing space.
"Oi, damn monk. You know you're about to die, right?"
From the shadows, a colossal figure emerged—a monstrous creature with a single tail.
"Yes… I know I'm about to die." Bunpuku's voice was calm, resigned.
"Hmph. I told you, didn't I? Humans only use you to die for them. Konoha—that village was founded by that man." Shukaku's tone was cold.
"Thank you for worrying about me." Bunpuku replied softly. He didn't know who that man Shukaku spoke of was, but he could sense… there was kindness hidden in the beast's words.