Making a shadow clone wasn't as complex as Gaara had anticipated, but there was no time to dwell on it. He didn't waste chakra making multiple copies—he created just one, and immediately, the clone sprang into action. It looked exactly like him, though Gaara knew it was probably a side effect of the transformation jutsu he had used earlier.
Without hesitation, the clone darted into the fray, swiftly taking down two guards from behind. It deliberately ran past Lady Chiyo and the Shinobi she was engaged with.
Lady Chiyo was momentarily stunned by the unexpected appearance of Gaara's clone, but she quickly regained her composure, understanding the plan. The masked man, seeing the clone's sudden movement, chose to pursue it, charging towards Gaara's copy. Gaara's clone, in turn, grabbed a blade from one of the knocked-out guards and deflected the man's strike with ease. Though the clone's skills in kenjutsu were not on par with the original, they were certainly enough to hold his ground.
As the clone engaged the masked man, Gaara used the distraction to his advantage. He infiltrated deeper into the building, knocking out any remaining resistance with precise force. Some of the personnel seemed obsessed with protecting documents and hidden properties, but Gaara wasn't about to let that slow him down.
This was an open assault, and they knew whoever attacked would likely want to leave no trace. The people inside were clearly under pressure—trying to salvage whatever they could, likely aware of the competition going on outside. Gaara noticed the building's vault-like safes and realized the stakes were higher than he had initially thought.
With swift precision, he applied more paper bombs to the safes—each one more carefully placed than the last. He then kicked the last person out of the building, sending them flying with a swift blow. After confirming through his senses that the building was finally empty, Gaara made his exit.
Once he was clear, he detonated the paper bombs—over 200 in total. A massive explosion rang out, shaking the entire area, and the resulting blast could be heard echoing for miles. The sheer force of it rattled the entire village, no doubt waking everyone within range.
Lady Chiyo, still at the entrance, flinched at the explosion, surprised by its intensity. However, she quickly regained her composure. She knew that the assault had already been completed, but the pressure wasn't over yet. The masked assailant was relentless, still pressing forward as if they hadn't achieved their goal.
Gaara, however, was not about to let up. He threw a shuriken with a precise flick of his wrist, but as expected, the assailant blocked it with ease, deflecting the spinning blade. Before Gaara could react, Lady Chiyo followed up with a gust of wind, her Wind Style—Wind Blade—slashing toward the attacker.
The masked man, unphased, cloaked his blade with chakra, deflecting the wind attack. But Gaara wasn't finished. He quickly weaved the signs for Fire Style and launched a Fireball jutsu toward the assailant. The fireball appeared slow, but it was enough to force the assailant to attempt a sidestep.
However, what awaited the masked man was Gaara's blade, now coated in lightning chakra. He slashed, cutting off the assailant's path to evade the fireball. At that precise moment, Lady Chiyo, already positioned in a triangular formation with Gaara, was preparing to launch another attack. The assailant, realizing he had no room to maneuver, swiftly began weaving his own hand signs, calling upon a water jutsu.
A massive water wall erupted around him, blocking the incoming fireball and shielding him from the lightning-infused blade. Steam poured from the water, clouding the area in a thick mist, reducing visibility to almost nothing.
The battle was far from over, but Gaara and Lady Chiyo knew they had the advantage. The assailant had no choice but to react to their relentless assault, and he could only hope his defenses would hold. The question now was how much longer he could keep up.