The Scorpion Strikes

"Deidara, don't forget our important business."

Sasori of the Red Sands was lying on all fours beside Deidara, spoke without any emotion, having witnessed Deidara's rampage in his Sasori of the Red Sands village. This village had only brought him endless resentment and had cost him his most important family members.

"Okay, I understand."

Deidara was willing to listen to Sasori. After all, having spent so much time with Sasori, he knew firsthand the terrifying strength hidden beneath Sasori's outward appearance. Crucially, Sasori was ruthless not only to his enemies but even more so to himself. Someone willing to sacrifice his own body—shouldn't you take his advice? Besides, Sasori always devised the plans for this team; Deidara just had to charge in.

"Who are you people? How dare you attack my Sunagakure?"

The Sand Village's support ninja questioned Deidara and Sasori, who were dressed in outlandish clothes.

Deidara, being a delusional teenager, would never allow anyone to shout louder than him. He immediately unleashed a Clay Release Jutsu, instantly scattering the Sand Ninja who was speaking into pieces.

"Hmph, what a waste of my Chakra."

Deidara's disdain was palpable.

"Senior."

The Sand Village ninja cried out in deep sorrow; a person who was perfectly fine just moments before had vanished in an instant. A feeling of fear rose in their hearts.

"Kill them, avenge our predecessors."

However, their sense of responsibility as comrades outweighed their fear, and they decided to kill the two men who had committed atrocities in Sunagakure as a tribute to their comrades who had died that day.

"Brush."

Countless Shuriken and kunai hurtled towards Sasori and Deidara. Just as they were about to strike Deidara stood still as if he hadn't seen them, not even bothering to put up a fight.

Just as the Sand Ninja's face showed a joyful expression, Sasori moved. Ten thin threads flew out from his ten fingers, forming a net that separated Sasori and Deidara from the Sand Ninja. The Sand Ninja's Shuriken and kunai were caught in the net.

"Here you go."

His hoarse voice was like the sigh of death.

"Puff."

"Ah."

The sounds of kunai and Shuriken piercing flesh, and the cries of agony. Those who were killed instantly were at least painless, but the wounded had to endure the pain themselves.

As a ninja who came from Sunagakure, Sasori naturally wouldn't let them continue to suffer physical torture.

Fingers danced nimbly in mid-air, each thin line seemingly alive, extending the length of the fingers. Gently, the throats of the Sand Ninja were slit open, and the Sand Sunagakure.

"Puppet Technique! Who exactly are you?"

Kankuro, Jonin the Puppet Squad, led his ninjas to provide support and witnessed Sasori killing people. He couldn't help but ask, "What is Sasori?" Kankuro had heard of ninjas in the Ninja World who were famous for their Puppet Technique, let alone someone who used Puppet Technique so skillfully. It was precisely because he didn't recognize Sasori that Kankuro was so wary of him.

Not knowing the enemy means you are completely clueless about their attack methods and strategies, while your own information is known to the enemy. Such a battle puts you at a complete disadvantage.

Kankuro's worries were completely unnecessary, because in Sasori's eyes, Kankuro's Puppet Technique was nothing more than a small fry. In Sunagakure, only his grandmother Chiyo's Puppet Technique could possibly threaten him. Kankuro? What was that? Sasori admitted he had never heard of him.

"Let's go together and show them the power of our Sand Ninja puppets!"

Kankuro addressed his subordinates, then untied a scroll from his back. This scroll contained all his possessions and lifeblood; his puppets were all inside.

"Scorpion, should I make a move?"

After watching Kankuro and the others' actions, Deidara whispered something to Sasori, as if afraid that others would overhear their conversation after they finished fighting.

"No need. I'll just warm up too. After all, even I'm not entirely confident of defeating the opponents I face later."

As Scorpion spoke, Chiyo's face appeared in his mind.

"Alright then, consider it dessert before the main course."

Deidara also thought that defeating the puppet squad was a joke. With a few quick jumps, he ceded the battlefield to Sasori and Kankuro's puppet squad.

Seeing Deidara leave, Kankuro didn't feel relieved; instead, he became even more cautious.

"Does one person have the confidence to deal with us?"

Kankuro didn't think this was just the other side being arrogant; after all, they'd come to their doorstep. Openly provoking one of the Five Great Shinobi Villages meant either someone was a fool or had absolute confidence in their own strength. Clearly, these two were the latter. The Sand Shinobi lying on the ground was the final proof.

"Has the evacuation of civilians been completed?"

The Fourth Kazekage Rasa, looked at his subordinates and asked, "The enemy's sudden attack caught Sunagakure off guard. The loss of civilians is something a village cannot accept."

"Lord Kazekage, Elder Chiyo is in charge of this matter."

"That's good."

Hearing that Chiyo was in charge of Rasa put his mind at ease. After all, Chiyo's abilities had been proven.

"A storm is brewing!"

Rasa, with his hands behind his back, looked in the direction the enemy was coming from and said, "I need to keep the morale high at the Kazekage Building. We can't make any moves lightly."