Werewolf in the Desert

If Rasa wasn't the true culprit behind the scenes, then who else could it be?

This book was first published on Taiwan Novel Network to relieve boredom. ƚɯƙαɳ.ƈσɱ was extremely practical, providing an error-free, properly ordered reading experience.

Rasa already had a suspicion.

He had already suspected another case—another case that could not be made public lightly and had to be handled with care.

It was precisely to investigate that case that he, Daishi, and more than a hundred trustworthy Sunagakure elites had rushed through the vast desert like headless flies on this cold night.

Now, the assassination attempt on Pakura and Jiang Feng confirmed his suspicions about that other case.

The true culprit behind both cases was very likely the same person: Sasori of the Red Sands!

Sasori of the Red Sands had a motive to kill Pakura. The Puppet Secret Technique he had pioneered could preserve the Chakra nature a deceased person possessed in life. If he killed Pakura and turned her into a human puppet, it would greatly increase his strength.

Sasori of the Red Sands also had the ability to order Daishi to assassinate Pakura.

First, Sasori of the Red Sands was highly skilled in poison-making. The poisons he created were exceptionally lethal; even Chiyo had no way to cure them. Rasa suspected that Lord Kazekage might have been...

Second, Rasa knew that Sasori of the Red Sands had developed a secret technique called the "Brainwashing Sand Technique." Rasa did not know its exact principles, only that it seemed capable of altering others' memories and even making those under its control absolutely loyal to Sasori of the Red Sands.

Given Sasori of the Red Sands' status, there was a strong possibility that he had secretly used this technique on Daishi during a private meeting.

Thinking of the worst-case scenario, there was likely more than one Sunagakure Ninja whom Sasori of the Red Sands had secretly controlled and turned into his "puppet." After all, even Lord Kazekage was suspected to have fallen victim to his poison.

That damned beast actually harmed ninjas from his own village!

Rasa cursed Sasori of the Red Sands inwardly and sighed helplessly. "I suppose that even if I cut open my chest and dug out my heart right now, you still wouldn't believe that I'm innocent."

"That's right."

Jiang Feng nodded. "A person's reputation often conceals their true face. Likewise, one person's prejudice against another can distort the image they see. Clearly, even you Sunagakure people believe that this is what your true nature should be. So how are you supposed to make me believe you're innocent?"

It wasn't that he refused to believe Rasa. Even the Sunagakure people themselves did not believe him.

"Seven days. Give me seven days, and I'll definitely prove my innocence."

Rasa's gaze was resolute. "I won't make some grand claim that one day or three days would be enough. This matter is complicated—far too complicated to settle in just two or three days. Within seven days, I will prove my innocence."

"How will you prove your innocence?" Jiang Feng asked coldly.

"Very simple. Find the real culprit."

"And if you can't?" Jiang Feng asked again.

"Then please use your sword to cut open my chest and dig out my heart!"

Rasa spoke with stirring fervor. By playing along with Jiang Feng, he temporarily suppressed the matter of Daishi's suicide and the deaths of Pakura and the Konoha representatives.

But it was only temporarily suppressed.

Everyone still suspected that this might be Rasa's delaying tactic. Even if Rasa found a culprit seven days later, would that person truly be the real culprit?

Ignoring the prejudice of others, Rasa—determined to expose Sasori of the Red Sands and prove his innocence—took a signal flare from a Sealing Scroll and fired it into the sky.

Unique and dazzling fireworks blossomed in the night sky.

Over the next two hours, Sunagakure Ninjas who had seen the flare and were searching for Lord Kazekage gradually arrived.

After Rasa counted their numbers, his face darkened. The count did not match; some people who should have come had not.

More than a hundred people had poured out of Sunagakure, but they certainly had not been blindly searching for the Kazekage. Rasa had assigned each person a specific area in advance. After searching one area, they would exchange zones and conduct cross-searches. Only after completing the entire process would they move on to the next major area.

Yet some ninjas responsible for areas far from here had arrived, while some assigned to nearby areas had not.

Clearly, they had already been killed. To Sasori of the Red Sands, who could make human puppets, they were all high-quality raw materials.

They had either been killed by Sasori of the Red Sands or by "werewolves" whom he had secretly controlled beforehand with the Brainwashing Sand Technique.

"Why hasn't everyone arrived?"

"Daigo—where did Daigo go?"

"Wasn't Ryosuke's assigned area close to here? Why hasn't he come yet?"

The nearly hundred ninjas summoned by Rasa whispered among themselves. Every one of them looked innocent, every one of them seemed trustworthy.

That was only natural. If they had not been trustworthy, why would Sunagakure's higher-ups have revealed something as significant as the Kazekage's disappearance to them and had them search for his whereabouts?

Jiang Feng, the Konoha delegation, the Konoha examinees, the Sunagakure delegation, and over a hundred others stood to the side, watching the show.

How exciting. Who would have thought that a trip to Sunagakure would let them watch a game of Werewolf?

Jiang Feng had long guessed that Sasori of the Red Sands might be the true culprit. He knew that among the people Rasa had summoned, there were definitely "werewolves" secretly controlled by Sasori of the Red Sands.

Watching them put on this performance was quite entertaining.

"What's going on? Rasa looks like he's a little unhappy."

Konan, Kurenai Yuhi, and several other girls quietly moved closer to Jiang Feng to ask. Even Pakura, who had always been at odds with Jiang Feng, came over.

By now, Pakura had also realized that her brain really did not seem to work as well as Jiang Feng's.

"It seems Sunagakure is about to fall into internal strife," Jiang Feng said calmly.

Why was Sunagakure about to descend into civil war?

Pakura was still completely bewildered. Konan looked thoughtful, while Kurenai Yuhi only felt that the way Jiang Feng spoke was incredibly cool, carrying a faint vibe of, "Winter is coming. Time to make Sunagakure go bankrupt."

"Does this have anything to do with us?" Kurenai Yuhi asked again.

"It will soon." Jiang Feng looked toward Rasa.

Sure enough, after Rasa finished counting the people, he said nothing and walked straight up to Jiang Feng, bowing deeply. "Desperate times call for desperate measures. I ask that you lead the Konoha team and accompany me back to Sunagakure at once.

"Sunagakure will arrange the most private and finest accommodations for all of you, and do everything possible to ensure your safety. For the next seven days, you may make any request of me. If any one of you is harmed, you may hold me accountable."

Rasa had lowered his stance considerably.

He claimed he would arrange accommodations for the Konoha group, but in truth, he intended to place them under house arrest.

It was not that he intended to harm them, but that he needed to prevent them from spreading news of the Kazekage's disappearance before Sunagakure settled its internal problems.

He was a smart man. Though he sometimes tried to be too clever, he truly was smart, and a smart man would never treat others as fools.

The very first thing he said upon seeing Pakura had exposed a flaw. With Sunagakure's survival at stake, he did not dare gamble that there were no smart people among the Konoha group.

And precisely because he was smart, he had lowered himself so much. If the Kazekage truly was dead, then Sunagakure needed to cling even more tightly to Konoha.

Jiang Feng lazily stretched. "Looks like we'll have to travel through the night. Before that, there's one more thing we need to do."

"What is it?" Rasa froze.

Jiang Feng said nothing. With great solemnity, he gathered up Daishi's long-neglected corpse. No matter what, they had been friends for five minutes.

Perhaps he really had been a very forthright man.