The Ninja's Way of Combat

Crack, crackle...

The fragments of the puppet burned away into nothingness within the flames.

Suspended in mid-air above the sea of fire, Sasori of the Red Sands, now in his true form, piloted the Third Kazekage human puppet.

Orochimaru, standing within another sea of flames, caught sight of the human puppet and sneered through gritted teeth.

So that's it...

You brat are the culprit behind the Third Shinobi World War!

Because the Third Kazekage had gone missing, Sunagakure had invaded Konoha in search of his trail, thereby igniting the Third Shinobi World War.

To call him the primary culprit might be a bit heavy, as the Third Shinobi World War could be considered an extension of the second, but calling him the fuse was certainly accurate.

"Where are you looking?"

Wielding his massive blade, Akainu looked like an inquisitor of hellfire.

Orochimaru's expression turned cold as he spat the Kusanagi Sword from his mouth.

"Big guy, don't think I'm afraid of you."

"I am certain you aren't some reclusive powerhouse; you were summoned by that brat from an alternate dimension..."

"Let me show you the way a ninja fights!"

The Sora's Tachi extended dozens of meters, and with a flick of Orochimaru's head, it slashed out with ferocious speed!

Blade met blade, and the explosive edge sent molten lava scattering!

Watching Orochimaru, whose neck had stretched dozens of meters long, Akainu frowned slightly.

His Observation Haki could hear the wailing of endless vengeful spirits within that bizarre body...

What profound evil this is!!

--

Atop the Third Kazekage human puppet stood a handsome, red-haired youth.

Distinctly different from a human, his abdomen was modified with highly toxic steel cables, and his lower back was equipped with a Spiral Slash.

Where his heart should have been, there was a black cylinder.

"The one with the 'Scorpion' character written on it is his Core; just destroy that."

Shisui noticed the core, and having spent so much time with Uchiha Sora, he had picked up a bit of his habit for snark.

"Is he afraid the enemy won't know his weakness? Why make it so obvious?"

Uchiha Sora chuckled, defending Sasori: "It's not exactly exposed; he usually stays inside his turtle shell, after all."

Upon deeper reflection, Sasori realized something was wrong.

He had indeed used the Third Kazekage human puppet when he fought Konan, who had come to recruit him.

But at that time, Sasori had not yet completed his own transformation into a human puppet, and even Konan did not know about the Core.

Yet this Uchiha brat in front of him had discovered it before the Hiruko was even destroyed...

Narrowing his eyes, Sasori scrutinized Uchiha Sora's gaze.

Could it be...

If it were true, he absolutely could not damage those eyes; this guy would be a masterpiece not inferior to the Third Kazekage!

Sasori raised his hand and spoke indifferently: "You do indeed have a pair of fine eyes. Then... can you see through my attack?"

Countless tiny black iron sand particles dispersed from the sleeves of the Third Kazekage, resembling black clouds pressing down upon a city.

Magnet Release Secret Technique - Iron Sand Drizzle!

The falling black rain was like the prelude to a gate of life and death!

These iron sand particles not only possessed the Magnet Release chakra of the Third Kazekage but were also coated with the deadly poison Sasori had applied.

He was the only puppeteer capable of creating human puppets, able to fully retain all the ninjutsu and Kekkei Genkai the subject possessed while alive.

Graduating as a Chunin at eight and completing ten S-rank missions in his teens, he should have been the strongest of the new generation to lead Sunagakure to prosperity.

Unfortunately...

The Third, who paid no heed to the psychological issues of "left-behind children," paid a painful price for it.

"Shisui."

With a soft call, the two completed their hand seals simultaneously, as if sharing a single mind.

Fire Style: Great Dragon Fire Technique!

Two fire dragons roared as they intertwined, their identical origins creating an effect greater than the sum of their parts, instantly turning a vast area into a sea of flames.

The iron sand emitted wisps of green smoke as the poison evaporated, glowing a scorching crimson under the heat of the fire.

Facing the roaring dragons, Sasori of the Red Sands—his face now that of a human puppet—remained expressionless, merely extending both hands as two nozzles protruded from his palms.

Flame Prison Soothing Formation!

Whoosh!!

Orange-red streams of flame erupted from the conduits in his palms, the direct jets of fire piercing through the dragons and surging toward the two below, carrying the crimson iron sand with them.

"I'll go first."

Body Flicker Shisui leaped into the air, and as he jumped, phantom after phantom peeled away from his main body, pushing forward against the torrent of flame to close in on Sasori of the Red Sands.

Body Flicker Shisui, is it...

The battlefield is the easiest place to make a name for oneself, and even Sasori, far away in the Land of Wind, had heard of Shisui's reputation.

The reason he felt it was nothing special was that he had earned his own moniker at a similar age, and he was now nearly twenty.

We are all geniuses, but I am a cycle older than you; what do you have to fight me with?

Most importantly...

The Sharingan genjutsu that the Uchiha clan relies on for their fame is useless against me, as I am a human puppet!

Choosing me as your opponent is the most foolish decision you could have made!

Shisui's Phantom Body Flicker Technique is, at its core, a visual genjutsu; it does not truly turn the main body intangible.

The reason enemies feel every phantom is real is that when launching an attack, Shisui uses his extreme speed to swap places with a phantom to strike.

Sasori does not rely on his vision to distinguish truth from falsehood, but rather on the perception of his chakra threads.

Unless it is the Multiple Shadow Clone Technique, such tricks cannot deceive Sasori.

He had already identified which one was Shisui's true body, and like a spider waiting for its prey to approach, he intentionally let Shisui draw near.

The moment he gets within range, I can kill him!

Below, Uchiha Sora fired dozens of kunai wrapped in Fire Style chakra to provide cover for Shisui's approach.

As Shisui vaulted over the Third Kazekage, a hint of a smile seemed to flicker across Sasori's cold, puppet face.

You've fallen for it, brat!

Swish!!!

Ignoring the other phantoms, the steel cable in Sasori's abdomen shot out like a venomous snake, piercing through Shisui's chest!

The sensation of impact—it's the real body!!

Immediately following...

Poof! Poof!

Two dull thuds sounded almost simultaneously.

The "Shisui" that had been struck transformed into a puff of smoke, while one of the kunai fired by Uchiha Sora transformed into Shisui amidst the mist.

Shisui's short blade was coated in a layer of flame, his eyes burning crimson.

He could not master the Fire Style Chakra Mode, but in these past few days, he had learned how to coat his weapons in chakra.

Not good!

Sasori retracted the steel cable, turning his body to protect his core.

Swish!!

The head of a human puppet flew high into the air, but it was not Sasori's—it was the Third Kazekage beneath him.

The Uchiha possess a unique way of communicating.

Through the connection of ocular power, they can transmit vast amounts of information.

In the original timeline, Itachi often played back memories for his little brother Sasuke, and Fugaku had once shown them to Itachi as well.

Uchiha Sora did not need to speak to exchange intelligence with Shisui; a single glance was enough.

The reason they spoke aloud...

Was to let Sasori hear it.

Everything was done to give him the illusion that the two would target his core, forcing him to shift his focus toward protecting it.

Attacking the core would indeed create a fatal wound, but Uchiha Sora did not underestimate Sasori; there was no way a guy like this would be defeated so easily.

Since he had decided to strike, Uchiha Sora intended to cut the weeds and pull up the roots.

Killing the slippery snake would likely be a tall order, so he had to see if he could keep Sasori of the Red Sands here.

In that case...

He could not give him a chance to escape.

Only a very small number of ninja in the ninja world possessed the ability to fly, and the Third Kazekage was one of them.

Sasori's core could be transferred; even if he gained the upper hand, the puppet master could shift his core into the Third Kazekage and use the ability of flight to flee.

The first step of the battle plan was to destroy the Third Kazekage!

As the head went flying.

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!!

Countless wild, dancing fire pythons rose from the earth, roaring and hissing.

The myriad giant flame pythons formed an airtight grid, launching attacks from every direction. Wherever they passed, the atmosphere seemed to be scorched into charred ravines, permeated with a pungent, burnt stench.

Kanzaki Kaori!!

Sasori only had time to slice off a fragment with his steel cables before he was forced to leap away to dodge the attack, watching his masterpiece be buried in a sea of fire...

"Uchiha... Sora!"

Even though he had become a human puppet, one could still feel the gnashing of his teeth.

"Finally, you're saying my name instead of calling me a brat."

Uchiha Sora's lips curled upward as he gripped his blade in a reverse hold.

"Now you won't be able to run, Sasori."