Hiruko

"Magnet Release countered puppet techniques? It seemed Lord Kazekage had not learned from his last defeat and had forgotten how he was captured alive," Sasori said as he turned around.

"You..." Sasori's mockery struck a nerve with the Third Kazekage. His eyes flashed viciously as he was about to snap back, but upon seeing Sasori's true face, his shock made him forget his anger.

Sasori's face was pale and his expression stiff. Though his eyes gleamed, they lacked any liveliness, looking like two glowing gemstones. Most striking of all were the two cracks on his chin. He did not look like a living person, but rather a puppet capable of moving freely.

"This is the secret technique of Human Puppets! You actually violated the puppeteers' taboo and completely turned yourself into a Human Puppet." The Third Kazekage's eyes widened. Sasori's mad actions had truly shocked him. As someone thoroughly familiar with Sunagakure's puppet techniques, he recognized Sasori's condition at once.

Sasori stared blankly at the Third Kazekage. "This is no taboo. It is a puppeteer's highest achievement. I will transform your body into something like mine, and together we will bear witness to eternal art."

The Third Kazekage's eye twitched as he looked at the eerie Sasori. "Madman! You are no longer human! This way of existing has no meaning whatsoever! I will erase a taboo like you from this world once and for all!"

A vast amount of iron sand appeared before the Third Kazekage. The overwhelming iron sand surged toward Sasori like a giant wave.

The iron-sand wave covered too large an area for Sasori to evade. In an instant, he was swallowed by it.

Boom! The heavy iron sand struck with a deafening crash inside the cave.

After the Third Kazekage drew the iron sand back to