Sunagakure

Jimo walked slowly out of the transport company with a grave expression, his solemn face seeming to bear a heavy burden, making one curious about what important matters he and Zabuza had discussed inside.

Nevertheless, Jimo had his own clear judgment in his heart.

After deep deliberation, he was convinced that although his unexpected transmigration had affected the original story's development to some extent, the identities of those pulling the strings behind the scenes did not seem to have changed as a result.

This discovery left him both relieved and anxious—after all, facing these mysterious and powerful enemies, one misstep could lead to utter ruin.

Standing on the bustling street, Jimo frowned and muttered to himself, "Where should I go next?" His gaze swept around, landing in turn on the Land of Earth, the Land of Water, and the Land of Lightning, all still tense in their relations with Konoha. After brief consideration, he decided to retrace his steps and head toward Sunagakure.

Just as he was about to set off, he suddenly remembered something, turned back, and returned to where Zabuza and Haku were.

When the two saw Jimo coming back, surprise flickered across their faces. Jimo smiled, pulled out a few souvenir items from Konoha from his pocket, and gently handed them to Zabuza and Haku, saying, "These are gifts I brought back especially for you. I hope you like them."

Haku was visibly delighted as she took the gifts, especially when she opened the box containing pastries—her eyes sparkled with pleasant surprise. Clearly, she genuinely loved the Konoha sweets.

Afterward, Jimo bid farewell to Zabuza and Haku and hurried straight to Tazuna's house.

The Tazuna family was gathered around the table eating when they saw Jimo arrive and rose to welcome him. Jimo smiled and handed them the prepared gifts, then patted Inari on the shoulder and encouraged him, "Little guy, remember to train hard, study well, and make sure you get plenty of rest! You look like you've grown quite a bit since a few months ago!"

With that, Jimo waved to everyone and turned to embark on his own journey.

Half a month passed. Jimo traveled at a leisurely pace, stopping now and then, until he finally reached the desert of the Land of Wind.

"So this is the endless yellow sands, stretching beyond sight..."

Here, he truly understood the meaning of "a thousand leagues of frozen desert, a million miles of somber clouds"... The desert at night was freezing cold!

"You came all the way here just to visit a friend? That's it?"

Kankuro stared incredulously at Jimo, who was wolfing down food, his face full of disbelief.

"Yeah! Losing to Orochimaru messed with my mindset a bit. I came out to relax! Oh, and—one more bowl!"

"Don't treat this place like a cafeteria, man!"

Despite his words, Kankuro still ladled Jimo another bowl of rice.

"Naruto... is he doing well?"

Gaara, who had been silent all along, suddenly spoke.

"Doing fine! He's training right now!"

Hearing this, Gaara, who usually wore a poker face, actually cracked a smile for the first time.

"Hey, your brother's orientation isn't weird, is it... Why does he get that lovesick look every time Naruto's mentioned?"

Jimo whispered to Temari.

"Who knows... Maybe it's because they both have monsters inside them..."

"I can hear you! Don't gossip about people behind their backs like that!" Gaara said helplessly.

Ever since Naruto and Jimo had teamed up to beat him up, his personality had done a complete one-eighty... But the most likely reason was that he'd spent too much time with Jimo in the hospital and gotten his style warped.

"Speaking of which, after you came back, did you try meeting the one inside you?"

Jimo leaned back on the sofa, acting like he was at home.

"Are you crazy? We barely managed to reinforce Shukaku's seal after we got back..." Kankuro said.

"No, I'm not crazy! You've all seen Shukaku's power. If used well, it can only become a strength to help Gaara grow!"

Jimo said seriously.

"Before I came, I did some research. On the matter of tailed beasts, it was actually Sunagakure's oppressive policies that caused the previous jinchuriki to go berserk!"

"Your past jinchuriki were all treated like monsters under tight surveillance. Shukaku was originally meant to protect your village, yet you regarded it as a calamity. Under those conditions, Shukaku's mentality changed! So, Gaara, you need to try communicating with Shukaku inside you, and learn to use its power!"

Jimo looked at Gaara with a grave expression.

"And there's one more thing I need to tell you. Not long ago, an organization made up of rogue ninja from various hidden villages came looking for Naruto. Their ultimate goal is to capture the tailed beasts! If Naruto is a target, then Gaara is almost certainly one too!"

"A mysterious organization is collecting tailed beasts?"

Kankuro and Temari immediately sensed trouble.

"This is too big. We need to report it to the higher-ups!"

Before long, a wrinkled old woman and an old man walked in.

"Where's that Konoha brat?"

The old woman hurried over.

"You're saying there's an organization collecting tailed beasts?"

"Yes!"

The old woman stood aside, silent for a long time.

"Sister?" the old man called out beside her.

"What's the name of this organization?"

"Akatsuki!"

Jimo said solemnly.

"Inside, there's likely one of your Sunagakure ninjas... a genius puppeteer!"

Hearing this, the old woman suddenly grew agitated. "Is it Sasori? Are you talking about Sasori?"

Jimo shook his head. "I haven't seen him in person. I've only heard rumors."

"This is Chiyo from our village. The one you mentioned is probably Sasori, who went missing a few years ago. He's her grandson."

Temari explained.

"So you're Chiyo, the legendary kunoichi who once took down an entire city alone with her puppet secret arts!"

Jimo quickly rose to his feet.

"I've long admired you! My master has told me plenty about her battles with you!"

"Your master?" Chiyo asked with keen interest.

"Tsunade!"

The moment those words left his mouth, the air turned ice-cold.

"Oh no!" The old man named Ebizo hurriedly pulled the three Sunagakure siblings out of the room with practiced ease.

"Boom!"

The instant they withdrew, a figure smashed through the wall and flew straight out.

"The lady's arm strength hasn't lost a step from the old days..." Ebizo remarked, watching Jimo fly through the air.

"He flew so far!" Temari added in admiration.

"Are we really not going to do something? He's a guest, after all..." Kankuro chimed in.

"Don't worry. His body's so tough even Shukaku couldn't do much to him... He can take a beating," Gaara, usually taciturn, delivered the finishing blow.