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OPI Chapter 439: The Gate Opens, the Desert Devours
🕑 Added 2025-06-21 19:18:37 +0000 UTCWithin the borders of the Land of Wind. Just outside the city of Rōran, near the western seas of the shinobi world. There were many newly co
Within the borders of the Land of Wind.
Just outside the city of Rōran, near the western seas of the shinobi world.
There were many newly constructed black watchtowers, along with fully armed soldiers dressed in black.
At this moment, General Sakazuki stood on a patch of scorching sand, with Shiryu beside him.
In front of them lay a vast, open stretch of desert. The city of Rōran was a mere black speck on the distant horizon.
“General Akainu, the Dimensional Gate beneath us has vanished!”
A Den-Den Mushi perched in Shiryu’s hand spoke up.
“Hm.”
Sakazuki said no more. His gaze, sharp and authoritative, was locked on the empty desert ahead.
“They’re here.”
The next instant, both Sakazuki and Shiryu narrowed their eyes.
[Vmmm————]
Roughly 50 meters ahead, the air above the desert suddenly shimmered.
Faint starlight rippled outward in concentric, translucent waves—clearly visible to the naked eye.
Like a still lake disturbed by a single stone.
But that wasn’t the focus.
The real spectacle was the rapidly expanding burst of starlight, surging outward in all directions.
As the light grew, its rectangular boundaries gradually came into view.
It was identical to the 'Medium Dimensional Gate' from the Titan World.
Height: 300 meters.
Width: 200 meters.
From where Sakazuki and Shiryu stood, the glowing gate loomed above like a celestial doorway straight out of myth.
Around them, officers, soldiers, and CIPHER POL agents on security detail instinctively turned their eyes toward this newly formed gate.
In each of their gazes burned a look of fanatic awe.
A miracle.
To these lower- and mid-tier personnel—who knew nothing of Imu—this was nothing short of a divine wonder held in the hands of the World Government.
To Sakazuki, however, it was yet another moment of being deeply shaken by Imu’s existence.
[Whoosh————]
The next moment, the brilliant starlight covering the enormous Dimensional Gate quickly faded.
And on the other side, the scenery of the Titan World was revealed before the eyes of Sakazuki and Shiryu.
Endless rows of troop transports, each one painted black and marked with the white emblem of the Five-Ringed Cross on either side, lined up in formation.
A procession stretching beyond sight, patiently waiting on the other side of the gate.
“Not bad.”
Even Sakazuki couldn’t help but curl the corner of his mouth at the sight.
[Rumble rumble rumble…]
Soon, the front line of armored troop transports began to move, slowly rolling through the Dimensional Gate from the Titan World into the ninja world’s desert, leaving deep tracks in the sand.
And a hundred meters above, battleship-like vessels—painted a strange navy blue, resembling sea-bound dreadnoughts yet inexplicably hovering in the sky—flew in one after another.
“Order the division commanders to advance directly to the border between the Land of Wind and the Land of Swamps. No need to stop.”
At some point, Sakazuki had lit a smoking cigar, now clenched between his teeth, arms crossed as he took in the grand spectacle of his main battle corps flooding in.
“Yes, sir!”
Shiryu received the order and immediately relayed General Akainu’s command through the Den-Den Mushi.
Before long—
All division commanders received Sakazuki’s orders without delay.
At the same time, the Den-Den Mushi in each of their hands projected a tactical map of this 'ninja world'.
Moments later—
The massive armored convoy that had emerged from the Medium Dimensional Gate began to split off in a synchronized maneuver, accelerating in different directions.
Rushing straight toward the Land of Swamps.
As Shiryu turned to leave, Sakazuki’s voice suddenly rang out behind him: “You should go as well. Those small nations need someone who can act decisively. But I want you to prove to me that you can keep your bloodlust under control.”
Shiryu’s eyes widened sharply, his pupils visibly trembling.
Sakazuki was... releasing him?
“I won’t let you down, General Akainu!”
No sooner had the words left his mouth than Shiryu vanished from the spot.
“Tch. So eager to get away… Is being around me that unbearable?”
Sakazuki let out a displeased grunt.
He simply thought that if Shiryu could truly control his bloodlust,
Then keeping him as a mere adjutant would be a waste.
Better to unleash this bloodthirsty wolf—let him clean out the petty kings and foolish shinobi who didn’t know their place. Consider it a convenient way to rid the World Government of a cluster of minor pests.
...
Blistering yellow sand swept across the skies of the Land of Swamps under the howling wind.
From time to time, deafening thunderous booms erupted—
Suppressing the roars of countless demons and the overwhelming noise born from the large-scale joint ninjutsu erupting across the battlefield.
This was the site of the battle between Crocodile and Shinnō.
The two clashed at an astonishing speed and with immense power, colliding and separating in a blur—only to collide again.
Each impact unleashed a terrifying force that blasted through the surrounding wind and sand, sending visible shockwaves rippling outward through the air and space.
“What a troublesome bastard… Not only is his regeneration almost on par with Muzan, but that black energy of his can also neutralize the ‘Desiccation’ power rule…”
Amid the fierce battle, Crocodile began to feel the pressure.
Shinnō’s raw power and speed were manageable—
That’s why, in a direct clash, Crocodile had been dominating Shinnō almost the entire time.
Yet even if Shinnō was pathetic in close combat—
He was still a medical ninja whose expertise, in some respects, even surpassed Tsunade’s.
And with 'Void' inside his body providing an endless stream of dark chakra—
Crocodile could injure Shinnō at most, but actually killing him was close to impossible.
Naturally, this situation put Crocodile in an increasingly foul mood.
Especially after realizing that the partner he had just acknowledged had been taken by the enemy, a surge of intense killing intent and fury erupted within him.
However, at the moment, he truly had no effective way to quickly defeat Shinnō.
But Crocodile was still Crocodile.
“Hmph.”
Suddenly, Crocodile came to a halt.
Under Shinnō’s surprised gaze, a cold smile slowly crept across his face.
“I’ve picked up a few tricks in this world… Let’s see how you handle this one.”
As soon as the words left his mouth—
Crocodile spread both arms wide, then clapped his palms together forcefully in front of his chest.
“Desert: Burial Shrine!!”
With a sharp smack, the clap echoed crisply through the air—
An ominous tension gripped Shinnō’s heart.
Just as he instinctively prepared to flare his dark wings and widen the distance—
He suddenly noticed that the drifting yellow sand around him had frozen still, halted by some invisible force.
In the next instant—
The golden sand from all directions began to converge, compressing inward toward his position.
“This is… a sealing technique!”
Shinnō immediately recognized it for what it was.
As waves of golden sand, like a tsunami, surged toward a single point—
No matter how violently Shinnō unleashed the dark chakra within his body,
No matter how fiercely he punched or kicked, sending shockwaves slicing through the air—
In the end, his furious roars were drowned beneath the tide.
Crushed. Compressed. Then compressed again—
Until the pain became unbearable.
[BOOM!]
In a flash, a golden pyramid nearly 100 meters tall—its surface etched with swirling black spiral patterns—rose into the sky above the Land of Swamps.
Another deafening explosion rang out.
The pyramid came crashing down onto the land, which had transformed from swamp into desert. It crushed hundreds of large and small demons beneath its immense weight. At the same time, a towering curtain of golden sand was blasted into the sky, while the violent shockwave hurled even more demons outward in every direction.
Such a massive display naturally drew the attention of both the demons and the shinobi.
Crocodile’s towering figure slowly descended, surrounded by swirls of golden sand, coming to hover above the apex of the 'Burial Shrine'.
Through his Observation Haki, he could clearly sense Shinnō struggling desperately within.
But Crocodile didn’t care in the slightest.
With the power and techniques Shinnō had displayed so far, there was simply no way he could break the seal.
Once this 'Desert: Burial Shrine' hits the ground—especially on desert terrain—
Breaking out from the inside becomes dozens of times harder than breaking in from the outside.
Thanks to the awakening power of the Suna-Suna no Mi, the pyramid had formed a closed-loop system with the surrounding environment. At the same time, the 'Desiccation' power rule was embedded into it, constantly wearing down Shinnō’s dark chakra.
