The sand was fast -- it should have been impossible to control something so fluid and heavy with nearly instantaneous reaction times, but Sasuke could see the chakra move even as the sand blurred regular vision. And more than just the defenses around Gaara were networked through with chakra: nearly the entire desert floor was criss-crossed with it, a monstrous amount of power.

Monstrous became literal in the next moment as claws rose out of the glittering dust and swept toward him, but their movement was obviously a blind strike. They unfortunately also answered the question of how much sand his opponent could manipulate with: pretty much all of it.

Sasuke considered his options for just a moment before swiping his hands through seals and splitting into three, the two bunshin precisely created to provide as close to his real weight as possible without utilising too much chakra. Both dropped to the desert floor as Sasuke himself rushed upwards, calf muscles already protesting, and latched himself to the very rim of the arena walls to avoid the destruction below.

The bunshin split up as soon as they hit the sand, both moving at full speed -- how much could movement on the surface be managed?