The real Shinobi World...
Beneath the Heavenly Screen, the ninjas of Sunagakure gathered, their eyes fixed on the images playing in the sky. When the video showed Sasori releasing the Third Kazekage's Human Puppet, the whole village erupted in unprecedented anger and shock. For years, Sunagakure had believed the Third Kazekage's disappearance was a conspiracy by the other ninja villages, and it had even sparked the Third Shinobi World War. In that war, countless Sunagakure ninjas and ordinary villagers had lost their lives. The loss of family and friends had cast the entire village into grief and hatred.
Yet the images on the Heavenly Screen completely overturned what they believed—the Third Kazekage had not been assassinated by another village. He had been killed by their former comrade, Sunagakure's genius puppeteer, Sasori of the Red Sands. The truth was like a sharp blade driven deep into the heart of every Sunagakure ninja. Anger, shock, grief, regret... all these emotions tangled together, leaving the atmosphere throughout the village unusually heavy.
"How could it be him? He was one of us!" an elderly ninja said, clenching his fists, his voice trembling. His eyes were filled with disbelief and profound disappointment.
"Lord Third Kazekage... was killed by one of our own..." a young Sand ninja murmured, his voice thick with grief he could barely conceal. His father had died in the Third Shinobi World War, and the source of it all had been Sasori's betrayal.
Anger gradually spread through the crowd. Some cursed Sasori's name through gritted teeth, while others wept silently, grieving for the friends and family who had died innocent deaths in the war. The Third Kazekage's disappearance had not only cost Sunagakure its strongest leader, but had also plunged the entire village into a long period of turmoil and decline. And all of it had been caused by the selfish desires of a missing-nin.
"We paid such a terrible price because of a traitor..." a ninja said quietly, his voice full of helplessness and regret.
The images on the Heavenly Screen continued to play, Sasori's figure seeming especially jarring. His composure and indifference stood in stark contrast to the anger in the hearts of Sunagakure's ninjas. At that moment, they finally understood that the true enemy had not come from outside, but was a traitor hiding within.
Somewhere outside the village, Granny Chiyo, who had lived in seclusion for years, silently watched the images on the Heavenly Screen. When she saw her grandson Sasori appear and admit to killing the Third Kazekage with his own hands, indescribable grief welled up inside her. Granny Chiyo had long suspected that Sasori might have been involved in the Third Kazekage's disappearance, but she had never had the courage to investigate further. As Sasori's grandmother, she could not accept that her grandson would do something so cruel. She was filled with self-reproach and regret. If only she had shown Sasori more care back then, perhaps none of this would have happened.
"Sasori... why did you come to this...?" Granny Chiyo murmured, tears glistening in her eyes. She recalled Sasori as a child, that clever, quiet boy who loved the Puppet Technique, who had now become a traitor to the village and a criminal. Her heart was full of conflict and pain. She grieved over her grandson's fall and felt guilty for her own neglect.
At an Akatsuki base, Deidara looked up at Sasori's true form in the images, surprise and teasing amusement flashing in his eyes. He couldn't help grinning. "Big Brother Sasori, you look even younger than me, hmm! I never would've guessed you were hiding inside that ugly puppet the whole time, hmm!" Deidara's tone was playful, but his admiration for Sasori outweighed it. He had always known Sasori's strength was unfathomable, but he had never expected his true form to be a boy with delicate features. It only deepened his admiration.
Meanwhile, in Konoha, Orochimaru, disguised as the Fourth Kazekage, was also watching the images on the Heavenly Screen. When he saw Sasori's youthful face, the corners of his mouth rose in a subtle, meaningful smile. "That Sasori... just as I thought, he's pursuing immortality, same as me..." he murmured. Orochimaru's voice was hoarse and sinister, carrying an indescribable fervor. He extended his tongue and habitually licked the corner of his mouth, his eyes gleaming with longing for immortality and a sense of kinship with Sasori.
Orochimaru and Sasori had taken different paths, but their goals were remarkably alike—the pursuit of eternal life and power. By turning himself into a puppet, Sasori had cast aside his human flesh and gained a nearly eternal existence. Orochimaru, meanwhile, used forbidden techniques and reincarnation techniques to continually change bodies and prolong his life. Both were highly unusual figures in the Shinobi World, their pursuits beyond ordinary people's understanding.
"How interesting, Sasori..." Orochimaru said quietly, a flicker of excitement in his eyes. It was as though he had found a soul like his own, a madman who would also stop at nothing to pursue immortality. This sense of kinship pleased him, and he was even eager to fight Sasori again, to see whose path led to true eternity.
The images on the Heavenly Screen continued, the battle between Sasori's true form and Granny Chiyo and Sakura growing ever fiercer. On the ground, Deidara and Orochimaru watched the fight, each with different thoughts. Deidara remained full of admiration for Sasori, while Orochimaru had developed a keen interest in Sasori's path to immortality. The battle had not only revealed Sasori's past, but had also shown others in the Shinobi World his true pursuit and obsession.
"Big Brother Sasori, don't you go losing to those two women, hmm!" Deidara said excitedly, clenching his fists. Orochimaru, meanwhile, smiled coldly and murmured to himself, "The path to immortality has never been smooth... Sasori, let me see your limits."
The Heavenly Screen video...
Sakura turned to Granny Chiyo with a smile. "We did it, Granny Chiyo. We did it!" Her face shone with the joy of victory, and her fist still trembled slightly from the full-force blow she had just delivered. Granny Chiyo smiled with relief and nodded, seeming to breathe easier. They thought the battle could finally be brought to an end.
But just as they thought they had won, an eerie sound suddenly came from behind them. Sakura and Granny Chiyo whirled around to see Sasori's shattered body beginning to reassemble itself. As though drawn by an invisible force, the broken puppet parts fitted back together piece by piece with a mechanical clatter. Sasori's body gradually returned to its original form, without so much as a crack left behind.
Granny Chiyo and Sakura stared in shock, their pupils contracting as an indescribable chill rose in their hearts. They had thought they had defeated Sasori for good, never imagining he had another trick like this. Sasori slowly rose to his feet and looked at them expressionlessly. "What did you say you'd done?" he asked coldly. His voice was calm and icy, as though the battle had been nothing more than a warm-up for him.
Granny Chiyo took a deep breath. The smile gradually vanished from her face, replaced by gravity and vigilance. "That's right. The real show has only just begun," she said quietly. She quickly pulled a scroll from her robes, made Hand Seals, and snapped it open. A cloud of white smoke rose, and ten puppets of different designs appeared beside her. Each one radiated powerful Chakra fluctuations; clearly, they were no ordinary puppets.
Sasori looked at the puppets Granny Chiyo had summoned, the corners of his mouth rising in a contemptuous smile. "So this is Granny Chiyo's ultimate technique—puppet mechanisms equal in number to her fingers, capable of destroying a castle with one person's power alone. The White Secret Technique: Chikamatsu Ten Puppets." His tone was faintly mocking, as though Granny Chiyo's trump card came as no surprise to him.
Sasori did not stop there, however. He slowly took a scroll from behind his back and gave it a gentle flick. The moment it opened, countless puppets poured out like a tide, filling the entire battlefield in dense ranks. Sasori's voice remained calm, yet carried a chilling sense of pressure. "But mine can destroy a country—the Red Secret Technique: Performance of a Hundred Puppets."
Granny Chiyo and Sakura's hearts sank as they looked at the hundreds of puppets before them. They had not expected Sasori to be hiding such terrifying power. A faint smile still lingered on his face, but a hint of impatience showed in his eyes. "I'm sick of this. Just an old woman and a little girl, and you've made me use my trump card," he said quietly.
The atmosphere grew even tenser in an instant. Granny Chiyo's Chikamatsu Ten Puppets faced off against Sasori's Performance of a Hundred Puppets, their imposing auras like two enormous storms ready to erupt at any moment. Sakura clenched her fists. Though uneasy, she stood firm beside Granny Chiyo, ready for the battle ahead.
Controlling the Chikamatsu Ten Puppets, Granny Chiyo engaged Sasori's army of a hundred puppets in a fierce battle. Under her precise control, the ten puppets moved nimbly across the battlefield like ten battle-hardened ninjas. Each displayed astonishing fighting power, wielding sharp blades or unleashing mechanisms to smash Sasori's puppets one by one. Early in the battle, Granny Chiyo's ten puppets held the upper hand. Sasori's numbers rapidly dwindled, and shattered puppet remains littered the battlefield.
However, as their numbers fell, Sasori's control over the remaining puppets became more focused and precise. His gaze was cold and intent. With a slight movement of his fingers, the remaining puppets seemed to be infused with new life, their movements growing swifter and deadlier. Every puppet's attacks became fiercer, as though Sasori's will had been poured directly into them. The pressure on Granny Chiyo suddenly increased. Her ten puppets began to sustain damage, and their numbers gradually decreased.
Sakura stood to one side, fists clenched and eyes fixed on the battlefield. She realized that if things continued this way, Granny Chiyo's puppets would sooner or later be completely crushed by Sasori's Performance of a Hundred Puppets. She quickly made a decision and called out, "Granny Chiyo, cover me! I'll look for an opening!" Granny Chiyo nodded. Though worried, she trusted Sakura's judgment. She controlled her remaining puppets, doing everything she could to hold back Sasori's offensive and create an opportunity for Sakura.
Sakura took a deep breath and dashed onto the battlefield. Like a bolt of lightning, she nimbly dodged the puppets' attacks while searching for an opening in Sasori's defenses. Her objective was clear—to attack Sasori himself. Sasori's attention was entirely focused on controlling his puppets. Though fewer remained, each one's fighting power had greatly increased. However, that also meant his own body was relatively vulnerable. Given an opening, she could win with a single blow.
When Sasori's puppets launched another fierce assault, Sakura seized that fleeting opening. She pulled a puppet head from her robes, a secret weapon Granny Chiyo had specially prepared and given her beforehand. Without hesitation, Sakura hurled it toward Sasori with all her strength. The puppet head flew extremely fast. Though Sasori sensed the danger, he was too late to dodge it completely.
Bang! The puppet head struck Sasori squarely in the chest, the tremendous impact pinning him to the wall behind him. His body was held fast, unable to move.
Just as Sakura thought they had finally won, she breathed a sigh of relief and turned to Granny Chiyo with a weary but relieved smile. At that very instant, however, Sasori suddenly appeared in front of her like a ghost. He moved too fast for anyone to react. The blade in his hand flashed coldly as he mercilessly drove it into Sakura's body.
Shlick— The sound of the blade piercing flesh was especially piercing in the still air. Sakura's eyes widened as she stared at Sasori in disbelief, the intense pain leaving her barely able to breathe. But she did not fall. Gritting her teeth and enduring the agony, she quickly began treating her wound with the Mystical Palm Technique. She pressed both hands over the wound, Chakra light flickering as she tried to stop the bleeding.
Granny Chiyo's pupils contracted sharply at the sight, and a surge of fierce anger and grief rose within her. Without hesitation, she rushed over, pulled out the last antidote from her robes, and quickly injected Sakura with it. She knew Sasori's blade must have been coated in deadly poison. If it was not neutralized in time, Sakura's life would be in grave danger.
"Sakura, hold on!" Granny Chiyo's voice trembled slightly, but was firmer still. As she treated Sakura's poisoning, she quickly controlled the puppets she had restored—"Father" and "Mother."
Sasori watched Granny Chiyo and Sakura coldly, seemingly indifferent to their struggle. The same detached expression remained on his face, as though his previous attack had been a casual gesture. But just as he prepared to attack again, Granny Chiyo's puppets, "Father" and "Mother," had silently circled behind him.
Granny Chiyo gave a low cry and pulled sharply with both hands. "Father" and "Mother" instantly delivered a lethal strike. Two sharp blades pierced Sasori's core at the same time with a crisp crack. His body went rigid, and he stopped moving.
Sasori looked from side to side at "Father" and "Mother," which had pierced his body, a complex emotion flashing in his eyes. He looked down at his punctured core, the source of his life as a puppeteer. Its destruction meant his life was about to end.
Sasori watched Granny Chiyo fall to her knees and anxiously treat Sakura. There was a hint of mockery in his eyes, as though he disdained her efforts. "It's no use. Even without the poison, I stabbed her in a vital spot. You can't save her," he said coolly. His voice was calm and cold, as though stating an indisputable fact.
Granny Chiyo ignored him. Her hands remained pressed firmly against Sakura's wound, Chakra light flickering at her fingertips, but this time she was not using an ordinary healing technique. A look of resolve appeared on her face.
Sasori frowned slightly as he watched Granny Chiyo. He noticed something unusual about her Chakra fluctuations; she did not seem to be merely treating the wound. As he wondered, Granny Chiyo slowly raised her head and looked him straight in the eye. "Do you think I'm only treating her?" she said, her voice low but firm. "No, Sasori. This is a secret technique I spent years researching—a forbidden technique that can transfer life force to another person."
Sasori's pupils contracted slightly, clearly surprised by the answer.
A bitter smile appeared on Granny Chiyo's face. "I originally created this secret technique to bring your parents back to life," she said quietly. "I always thought that if I could one day make up for the pain of losing them, perhaps you wouldn't have taken this path... But now I'm using it to save Sakura, because her life is just as precious."
Sasori's expression froze for a moment, a complex emotion flashing in his eyes. He had not expected Granny Chiyo to have developed such a secret technique for his sake, much less to tell him the truth at this moment. An indescribable feeling rose within him, a mixture of anger and an inexplicable pang of sorrow.
"Bring my parents back to life? Heh... how ridiculous." There was a trace of mockery in Sasori's voice, but his eyes were no longer as cold as before. He lowered his head, seemingly falling into a brief silence.
Granny Chiyo said no more and continued transferring her life force to Sakura. As Chakra flowed, color gradually returned to Sakura's face, and her wound began to heal. Her breathing steadied. Though still weak, she was no longer in danger of dying.
Sasori watched with mixed feelings. He had thought he had long since abandoned all emotion, but Granny Chiyo's words had gently stirred a chord deep within him. He slowly raised his head and looked at her with a complicated expression. "You really are a foolish old woman... You'd even give up your own life for someone else?" he said quietly.
Granny Chiyo smiled faintly, her voice tinged with weariness. "Perhaps... but that's my Ninja Way. Sasori, you once had that conviction too. You've just forgotten it."
"Heh... I never thought it would end like this..." Sasori's voice was low and calm, as though he had long since come to terms with his death. His body slowly fell, the light in his eyes gradually fading until all life finally left him.
Granny Chiyo looked at Sasori's corpse, her eyes filled with grief and complex emotions. "Rest in peace, Sasori... I hope that in the next world, you can find the answer you were always searching for," she said quietly.