Sasori's Repeated Failures

"What amazing Puppet Technique!"

Hatake Sakumo saw that each of the seven ninjas summoned by Sasori possessed a different Chakra attribute.

The seven ninjas swiftly launched their attack, targeting extremely tricky positions that were difficult to defend against.

Hatake Sakumo wielded his slender sword with incredible speed, striking with lightning speed and perfectly deflecting each of the puppets' attacks. To outsiders, it appeared as if Hatake Sakumo was dancing on a knife's edge, but only the puppets' master, Sasori, understood. He could sense the force exerted on each puppet; Hatake Sakumo's attacks were consistently powerful, as if he were operating a precision instrument. This was what made Hatake Sakumo truly terrifying—calm and incredibly strong.

"As expected of Konoha's White Fang!"

Even Sasori couldn't help but marvel at Hatake Sakumo's strength at this moment.

"Only someone like you has the ability to do this!"

Scorpion looked at the puppets of his parents on the field and thought to himself.

"It's been so long since anyone called me that, I miss it a little."

Since retiring, Hatake Sakumo has never participated in ninja activities again, living a life of leisure in his old age. Now, even hearing this nickname makes him blush with embarrassment.

"Only someone like you is worthy of dying by my hand."

Scorpion roared his last words, his hatred for the murder of his family reaching its peak at that moment.

Seeing Sasori's agitated state, Hatake Sakumo became even more wary of him. Some people remain calm and stronger the more their emotions fluctuate, and Sasori was such a person.

"Earth Release."

"Wind Style."

Sasori used Earth Release to raise dust and Wind Style to create a sandstorm, all to disrupt Hatake Sakumo's vision.

In the sandstorm, all that could be heard were the sounds of clashing weapons and sparks.

"Hatake Sword Style, Third Form"

Hatake Sakumo's speed increased dramatically in an instant. Although Sasori could sense it, his body couldn't keep up with Hatake Sakumo's speed after receiving the signal.

"Click, click, click."

All that could be heard was the sound of something hard being cut; Scorpion could no longer sense his puppet through the puppet strings in his hand.

"Disperse."

With a single slash of his Hatake Sakumo the sandstorm in two. He emerged from the gap, completely untouched by dust.

But then, Hatake Sakumo took a step forward, appearing before Sasori as if by teleportation, and plunged his knife into Sasori's body.

"It's over."

Hatake Sakumo said to Sasori in front of him.

Is that really the case?

Scorpion smiled and replied.

"Click, click."

All that could be seen were several ropes flying out from under Sasori's coat, binding Hatake Sakumo perfectly.

"It's your turn to end this."

The scorpion's tail pierced through Hatake Sakumo's body in a single, swift motion.

"Bang!"

With a puff of white smoke Hatake Sakumo turned into a log.

Hatake Sakumo looked at Sasori in bewilderment. Someone could actually take a knife from him and not be injured at all. This was truly absurd. He also sensed the enemy's extraordinary nature.

Sasori was also somewhat annoyed at this moment. He only had one chance, but Hatake Sakumo managed to dodge it. He could only say that Hatake Sakumo was truly exceptional, with reflexes that were rare in the Ninja World.

Scorpion took off his outer coat, revealing his body.

Hatake Sakumo's eyes narrowed. He had never seen anyone so ruthless before, someone who had transformed his body into a puppet.

Scorpion wasn't finished taking off his clothes when he heard a "click." The puppet on the ground seemed to have a zipper pulled up, and another puppet emerged from it. This one was humanoid with a baby face.

Scorpion appeared in his original form at this moment. His power was depleted through fighting other puppets, which directly resulted in him not being able to fully exert his power.

"Let me greet your death in this state! The White Fang of Konoha."

Scorpion pulled a scroll from inside his body. He put the scroll in his mouth, quickly formed hand Hand Seals, and finally clasped his hands together.

Hundreds of thin silver threads flew out from the scroll.

As the thin line hurtled towards him, Hatake Sakumo constantly shifted his position, brandishing his slender sword incessantly.

"Um?"

Hatake Sakumo noticed that his weapon had become lighter and his Chakra consumption had increased. At first, he didn't pay much attention to it, but as the situation became more and more serious, he became concerned.

Hatake Sakumo quickly discovered the cause: it was Sasori's weapon. Furthermore, the flow of Chakra within Hatake Sakumo's own body had slowed down. This was the most fatal factor. It's important to know that the amount of Chakra a ninja possesses directly correlates with their strength (except for Might Guy, of course).

Hatake Sakumo is currently calmly trying to find a solution. He knows that the more serious the situation, the clearer his mind needs to be. What Hatake Sakumo didn't expect was that Sasori had thoroughly studied his intelligence. One knows himself and his enemy, while the other can only cram for information about his opponent at the last minute. You must know that if there isn't an insurmountable gap in strength, then intelligence is the key to victory.

"Fire Release: Blazing Fire."

Sasori saw that Hatake Sakumo was being held back by his silver threads, and immediately launched a new Ninjutsu.

Flames engulfed Hatake Sakumo, and the surrounding temperature rose rapidly. Hatake Sakumo felt extremely hot and began to sweat profusely.

"Water Release, big..."

The Konoha ninjas wanted to Water Release to extinguish the fire so they could help Hatake Sakumo, but Deidara, the sixth brother, stopped them.

"Bang!"

Deidara flicked the clay in his hand, and it landed precisely in front of the Konoha ninja, the violent explosion sending him flying. His fate was unknown.

Faced with Deidara, this humanoid "bomber," the Konoha ninjas were never able to organize an attack, as Deidara interrupted them every time.

"Not good."

Hatake Saku was panting heavily; he knew this was a sign of poisoning—the flames were poisonous.

As Chiyo's grandson Chiyo the Sand Village, Sasori is quite adept at using poison. Don't talk about lacking martial ethics; this is a life-or-death battle where only the enemy survives.

Hatake Sakumo held a sword in one hand and Hand Seals with the other, the two actions not interfering with each other.

"Open."

After completing the last Hatake Sakumo, a powerful aura suddenly emanated from Hatake Sakumo's body, directly repelling the flames and silver threads. This move was something Hatake Sakumo had developed by imitating Karot's burst-energy technique. He hadn't expected it to come in handy here.

"Um?"

Sasori hadn't expected that his deadly plan would be broken in such a way by Hatake Sakumo, and he almost broke through his defenses.

"This tactic wasn't mentioned in Hatake Sakumo's intelligence."

Sasori realized at that moment that the information he had gathered about Hatake Sakumo was no longer accurate.