Sunagakure.
The harsh environment, with its swirling sandstorms, was said to be ideal for raising shinobi. Every Sunagakure shinobi was an elite among elites.
That was the flattering version.
The reality was that the village was poorly located and short on resources, and the Daimyo of the Land of Wind was reluctant to provide funding.
Sunagakure had no choice but to reduce the number of shinobi it trained, nurturing those with talent and abandoning those without.
The only way in or out of Sunagakure was through a narrow gap between two cliffs. It was easy to defend and difficult to attack.
Night fell, and the full moon hung high in the sky.
The Sunagakure shinobi patrolling the village entrance spotted several broken puppets and a large amount of blood.
"These puppets... I've never seen anyone use them before..."
"Who fought here? And who was the enemy?"
Puppeteers were rare, and each puppet bore its puppeteer's strong personal touch.
The Sunagakure shinobi was certain that none of the puppeteers in the village had puppets like these.
Besides...
These puppets gave him an unsettling feeling... If he had known the term, he would have called it the uncanny valley effect.
These puppets looked too much like humans.
"We should report this to the captain."
"Yeah. You go. I'll guard the area."
On a distant dune, Uchiha Sora and Shisui stood side by side.
A crow perched on Shisui's shoulder, cawing incessantly in his ear.
After listening to the crow, Shisui turned to Uchiha Sora. "They said they can carry you in with them, but don't use Fire Style Chakra Mode while we're flying. They can't handle it."
"You can understand crows?"
Was it an ability to communicate with nature, like Jugo's?
"Isn't it common knowledge that you can communicate with your contracted summon? You can't understand the Ninja Cats?"
Uchiha Sora's face darkened. "Ninja Cats can speak human language. You pampered second-generation shinobi don't know how hard life is."
Shisui gave an awkward laugh. Most Uchiha chose Ninja Cats as their summons, except for those like him who had inherited a family summon.
"By the way, the flock has some new hatchlings. Interested in becoming their summoner?"
Uchiha Sora thought it over carefully, then shook his head.
He didn't have Shisui's talent for genjutsu. If he wanted to fly, the giant hawk Sasuke got later on would be a better choice.
No...
The best choice, of course, was Rayquaza!
In six years, I should be strong enough to tame Rayquaza. I just hope it doesn't sell my IOU to someone else.
As he thought this, he saw a familiar face drawn in by their bait in the distance.
Baki.
In the original timeline, he was the Sunagakure jonin who killed Gekko Hayate with a single Wind Blade.
A white bandage was wrapped around his head, and a white cloth covered half his face. He looked much the same as he would more than a decade later.
Crack...
Baki picked up a puppet's head and brought it closer for a look. The longer he stared, the more deeply his brows furrowed.
Like the squad member before him, he was certain that none of the village's puppeteers had made this. But unlike his teammate...
He realized it was a puppet made from a human being!
This technique...
He pried open the head. The way the mechanisms had been installed felt familiar.
It was the Crow!
He and Sasori of the Red Sands had been the same age, but when he was eight, Sasori had defeated him in an instant during the Chunin Ninja Exams.
The puppet Sasori had used back then was the Crow.
The mechanisms were installed just like the ones in this puppet!
Baki's expression changed. He said gravely, "Call for backup. I'll go report to Lord Kazekage!"
They still hadn't figured out the truth behind the Third Kazekage's disappearance, but Sasori of the Red Sands had slaughtered many villages in the Land of Wind over the years. He had long been an S-rank missing-nin of Sunagakure.
This was too important. He had to report it to the Kazekage immediately!
By the time Baki hurried back, only four Sunagakure shinobi remained, standing tensely over the pile of wreckage.
One of the squad members had just fired a signal flare.
Whoosh!!
A Kunai struck him squarely between the brows!
"Enemy attack!!"
No sooner had the words left his mouth—
Whoosh!!
Another Kunai pierced his throat.
The other two had just taken their stances...
When they realized their vision was beginning to tilt.
Thud—
Two Kunai, joined by a wire, had severed their heads.
A man in a black cloak patterned with red clouds stepped out of the darkness, his face deathly pale.
It was Orochimaru.
He stepped forward and retrieved the wire, then shook several dead snakes from his sleeve.
He waited where he was for a while before a squad of Sunagakure shinobi hurried over.
"You're... Orochimaru!!"
The Sunagakure squad leader hurriedly skidded to a stop, his face stricken with fear.
There wasn't a Sunagakure shinobi who didn't recognize the legendary Sannin. A good part of their fame had been built on the corpses of Sunagakure shinobi!
With Orochimaru's signature, wicked smile, he raised the head of a red-haired boy.
Someone recognized the boy. He was Sasori of the Red Sands, the former genius puppeteer of Sunagakure!!
"Heh heh, I've been looking for him for ages. I finally found him. You should thank me for taking care of your traitor."
"Tell Chiyo I'll be waiting for her at Heaven and Earth Bridge in ten days."
"I have a deal I want to make with her."
"You bastard!!" The Sunagakure shinobi roared, forcing down his fear. "How dare you kill someone in Sunagakure! This is outrageous!!"
Swish—
Orochimaru ignored him and used the Body Flicker Technique to leave. By the time they looked again, he was hundreds of meters away.
"Leave two people behind. We... never mind. Let's wait for Captain Baki and the Kazekage."
In the end, he didn't have the courage to pursue Orochimaru.
Behind a dune, "Orochimaru" vanished with a puff of smoke, revealing Uchiha Sora's appearance.
Sasori's head was crushed underfoot, the fragments sinking into the shifting sand.
"Come on. We'll go to the other side and move out when the Kazekage and the others come out."
--
Before long, Kazekage Rasa and Elder Chiyo arrived at the scene.
Chiyo crouched to examine the puppet wreckage, a trace of sorrow crossing her aged face.
Human Puppet...
Sasori, so you really did go this far...
The Sunagakure shinobi relayed what "Orochimaru" had said before leaving. Chiyo's brow furrowed even deeper as she listened.
Heaven and Earth Bridge in ten days...
What could Orochimaru and I possibly have to discuss?
Could it be...
Chiyo thought of the head of Sasori that Orochimaru had raised before leaving...
She didn't believe Orochimaru had really killed Sasori of the Red Sands. All the signs suggested he had deliberately waited for the Sunagakure shinobi to pass along the message.
His target was this old woman... But...
As for a formidable opponent, Chiyo knew the Sannin well. If she had something Orochimaru coveted...
One's Own Life Reincarnation!
He had someone he wanted to bring back to life!
How had he learned about this technique...
There were too many things she couldn't understand. Even someone as experienced as Chiyo couldn't piece together the truth from such scattered clues.
"Elder Chiyo, what do you think?" Kazekage Rasa asked solemnly.
Chiyo shook her head, then nodded. "There's no doubt that these are the work of my disobedient grandson. But I can't understand why Orochimaru would show up."
"I suspect he's allied with Sasori and wants to lure me into a trap."
Rasa furrowed his brow, his thoughts in turmoil.
The village had suffered heavy losses in the Third Shinobi World War. With so much rebuilding to do, Chiyo still had to oversee many important matters in the village.
He wanted to warn her not to fall for the trap, but with Sasori of the Red Sands involved, he didn't know what to say.
Chiyo smiled faintly. "Don't worry. I won't fall for such a simple trap."
Just then...
A piercing alarm rang out across the night sky!
This was...
Chiyo sprang to her feet and cried out, "Oh no! Shukaku!"
Sunagakure.
In a house, Yashamaru held the swaddled Gaara in one arm and gripped a Kunai in the other, staring fixedly at the window.
The shrill alarm that had sounded after the barrier shattered was mixed with the cawing of a crow.
The window faced the full moon.
The boy stood with his back to the moon, his crimson eyes shining in its light.
"Yashamaru."
"Hand him over to me."
Before you continue