Though Heishi trusted Diego, he still sent a support squad to trail behind him.
When the explosions erupted, that squad immediately focused on the battlefield. But the massive pterosaur's failure to extract Diego forced them to act—they ignored the risk of seeing the Rainbow and being transformed into snails, and moved in to assist.
What greeted them instead was a tailed beast's wrath.
The three shinobi Diego had brought weren't just elite jōnin—they had already prepared themselves for death.
Their bodies had long been modified.
By injecting chakra into their hearts, they would instantly expand and explode—a forbidden jutsu used by Iwagakure's special Explosion Release operatives.
The one who had taught them this technique was none other than Karui, a jōnin deeply respected by Deidara. Karui led Iwa's demolition squad on the frontlines of the war against Konoha.
Many Iwa shinobi had equipped themselves with Explosive Release Bombs, and these suicide warriors were considered Iwagakure's most valuable "death knights."
The plan had always been clear: if Diego failed, the trio would launch a kamikaze attack on Kujo Ishiki.
But once Diego signaled them, two chose immediate self-detonation to create an escape opportunity for him.
Compared to them, Diego's value to Iwa was far greater.
As for actually killing Ishiki through their explosions—they no longer believed that was possible.
Kujo Ishiki's power had far exceeded their expectations.
With his mysterious snail-transformation ability added in, he was clearly a Konoha shinobi capable of rivaling the Tsuchikage himself.
But what they hadn't foreseen was that their suicidal blast would only bring out the hidden Tailed Beast's assault.
Kujo Ishiki… was even more terrifying than they had imagined.
Their final thoughts before death? Hoping the support team would survive long enough to pass on the truth—instead of charging into the Rainbow and throwing their lives away.
But it was too late for that.
With Diego's death, the Saint's Left Eye was lifted from the sand pit, and Ishiki's dinosaurization halted.
Without wasting a moment examining the eye's abilities, he and Matatabi launched a total purge on every ninja that had entered his sensory range.
He wouldn't allow knowledge of Matatabi's presence to spread.
. . .
Half a day later, in Iwagakure, Heishi received the report from the support squad.
All shinobi who had entered the Rainbow Zone were missing. Diego's dinosaurized life signature had returned to normal.
This meant only two possibilities:
One—Diego was dead.
Two—Diego was unconscious.
Neither brought Heishi any comfort. He couldn't imagine Kujo Ishiki sparing someone who had threatened him.
To Heishi, it meant one thing only: Diego was dead.
Things had spun beyond his control. The Rainbow, Deidara, Diego—it was all now in the hands of the Third Tsuchikage, Ōnoki, to whom he had already relayed the situation.
All that remained was waiting for Ōnoki's response.
But Heishi already suspected that defeat was now the only outcome of this war.
What he feared most was that Diego's actions might provoke Kujo Ishiki into doing something unthinkable—like invading the Land of Earth.
That cursed Rainbow—capable of transforming any who looked upon it into snails—if Ishiki crossed the border, the entire country would fall into a grotesque plague.
You couldn't blind an entire population.
Rainbows, visible anytime, anywhere—this ability was unsolvable.
Heishi was wracked with worry. He considered assassinating Ishiki… but if even Diego had failed, who could he possibly send?
He needed more intelligence on Kujo Ishiki.
But to enter the Rainbow Zone was suicide, not reconnaissance.
With every hour, Heishi's dread grew more certain—do not provoke Kujo Ishiki. That man was no shinobi—he was a walking natural disaster, a devil in human form.
Ōnoki returned faster than expected. On the third day after Heishi sent his message, the Tsuchikage and his team arrived back in Iwagakure.
"There's a Rainbow on the Land of Earth's border," Ōnoki said grimly in his office.
He had been en route to Turtle Island when Heishi's urgent report diverted him. There was no time to consider the Perfect Jinchūriki plans—he immediately changed course, returning with Han and his squad at top speed.
Even so, by the time they reached the border, intel confirmed the Rainbow had appeared and was moving inward.
Every living creature that saw it transformed within minutes… into a snail.
This indiscriminate threat was beyond what the Land of Earth could withstand.
If it continued, the country would become a snail-infested hellscape.
Ōnoki saw what had to be done.
The first action he took upon returning to Iwa: immediate surrender to Konoha.
He demanded they retrieve Kujo Ishiki.
The Land of Earth… was afraid.
At this juncture, Ōnoki refused to entertain any option that might antagonize Ishiki further.
A diplomatic delegation of blind shinobi was hastily assembled and marched into the Rainbow Zone with white flags raised—pleading for Ishiki to stop its spread.
At the same time, another country surrendered to the Land of Fire:
The Land of Grass—where Ishiki was currently based. A nation caught in the crossfire.
Their Grass shinobi had tried to gather intelligence across the border. But nothing worked.
No matter how many shinobi entered the Rainbow, no useful intel came back.
Any who saw the Rainbow became snails.
No one had yet been found who could resist it.
As for sending blind operatives? The Land of Grass lacked the advanced tech of Iwagakure. It wasn't even an option.
Even the Land of Fire began to show signs—some shinobi had started transforming into snails. Thankfully, Orochimaru's preparations had borne fruit: any infected ninja who made it back to the camp could be treated and restored by Uchiha Shisui.
Rumors began to swirl within the base—about Kujo Ishiki and Uchiha Shisui.
But they weren't negative.
On the contrary—momentum was building behind them.
War heroes.
And when the Tsuchikage's envoys finally arrived at the camp…
The rumors became reality.