Help a Bro Out

When faced with unexpected circumstances, hot-headed fools might recklessly charge in again, but Chiyo was clearly not one of them.

She pulled a puppet to her side, confirmed that the severed Ox-Horn Puppet did not have any Explosive Tags or similar traps attached, and then retracted it.

Puppets could be repaired; as long as they weren't pulverized, fixing them wasn't difficult, but...

Chiyo narrowed her eyes, staring deeply at Kaminazuki.

"If my eyes do not deceive me... since when can the Uchiha learn the Strength Enhancement Jutsu of the Senju clan?"

Kaminazuki flexed his fingers and said indifferently: "To put it in terms you might better understand..."

"Take a puppet forged from refined steel and multiply its durability by ten; that is roughly what my body is like right now."

Chiyo had already suspected as much through the feedback from her puppets, but now that she had Kaminazuki's confirmation...

"A purely powerful physical body, then..."

The corners of Chiyo's mouth curled up: "It really makes me think of a certain puppeteer's taboo... oh my, I shouldn't dwell on that, it would corrupt the next generation of puppeteers."

Swish—

A scroll unfurled from Chiyo's sleeve. As deep blue Chakra surged, a total of nine puppets stood in formation, including the White-Robed Puppet from before.

A terrifying aura spread through the air.

"The Chikamatsu Ten Puppets... ha, only nine for now. Well done, brat."

"Is it necessary to go this far, Lady Chiyo?"

The previous turn of events had caused Rasa to stop obsessing over defeating Shikaku, and he moved to Chiyo's side.

As a disciple of the Third Kazekage, he understood Chiyo's importance to Sunagakure; even if he were to die, he could not allow this woman to suffer the slightest harm.

Chiyo nodded slightly: "It is necessary. It seems the rumors I heard were true; this boy truly has the strength to kill those people."

"A genius youth of the Uchiha..."

"Rasa, you did not live through that era; you do not know how terrifying this is. For the sake of the village's future, we must eliminate him as soon as possible!"

"The Chikamatsu Ten Puppets. During the First Shinobi World War, Chiyo used this technique to conquer a city, establishing her name as the strongest puppeteer."

Shikaku panted slightly, standing beside Kaminazuki as he spoke: "Our opponent is the strongest puppeteer, known for having 'ten fingers of control,' and a recognized master of medical ninjutsu. When she gets serious, she is practically flawless."

"Are you sure about this? If we retreat, I have a better plan with a very high success rate."

"Enough talk."

Shikaku sighed helplessly and held out his hand: "Give me the Earth Grudge Fear to use, otherwise I have no way to join the fight."

"There is one thing I need to confirm..."

His gaze was serious.

"Kaminazuki, if you choose to fight, there is a risk of death. Can you accept that?"

Kaminazuki tossed the Cursed Tool Earth Grudge Fear to Shikaku and gripped his sword hilt with both hands, unable to suppress the excitement in his eyes.

"A fight without risk isn't a fight at all."

"Understood..."

The black tentacles of the Earth Grudge Fear spread out, covering Shikaku's body and establishing a connection.

After Orochimaru's modifications, this creation known as a Cursed Tool could be used temporarily by others.

However, aside from Kaminazuki, others could only utilize the Fire Style: Searing Migraine technique originally inscribed within the Earth Grudge Fear.

"Then... let's go!!"

--

--

--

Land of Rain.

Atop a cliff, the leader of Amegakure, Hanzo of the Salamander, who wore a specialized respirator, watched the figures chasing each other through the rain in the distance with a somber gaze.

An Amegakure ninja behind him spoke up.

"Lord Hanzo, it is the people from Konoha and Sunagakure. They are becoming increasingly brazen; they dare to fight openly within the territory of Amegakure!"

Hanzo remained silent for a moment, his voice sounding slightly distorted through the respirator: "Do you know the identities of both parties?"

The ninja took out several portraits and whispered: "It is Mamoru, the son of Sunagakure's Chiyo, and his wife Ruri. They are hunting down Hatake Sakumo of Konoha."

"The puppet hag's son..."

Hanzo had crossed paths with Chiyo several times and knew how troublesome she was.

"Hatake... never heard of them. Not a major clan."

Hatake Sakumo had been executing missions in the east; aside from the Land of Fire, only a few people in the Land of Hot Water and the Land of Lightning knew his name.

Furthermore, the stories about him were centered on "some shameless white-haired guy who likes to attack the weakest points of humans," which was hardly a good reputation.

After a moment of contemplation, Hanzo shook his head and said indifferently, "As long as they leave Amegakure, that is fine. I have already issued a notice to the high-ranking officials of the three great nations; this chaos should be ending soon."

The Amegakure ninja hesitated for a moment.

"Lord Hanzo... what if they refuse to withdraw from the Land of Rain?"

"Then... declare war!"

--

Within the alleyway, Hatake Sakumo leaped and shifted, dodging the poisonous needles firing at him from behind.

The rain soaked his white hair, plastering it against his forehead.

While gathering intelligence, he had noticed that the captains of the Sunagakure puppet corps, Chiyo Mamoru and Chiyo Ri, had left the main force, their destination unknown.

His initial guess was that they intended to infiltrate the Land of Fire to cause destruction, but after tracking them down...

He discovered an even greater secret!

He had to bring this intelligence back to the village!!

Sakumo kept his eyes fixed ahead; pursued by those behind him, he was not fleeing toward Konoha, but toward the Land of Wind.

He looked down at the wound on his chest that was still bleeding, his brows furrowed tightly.

When he witnessed that secret negotiation, he had been discovered by the enemy ninjas. Although he successfully killed two jonin, he had been struck by Chiyo Ri's puppet poison needles.

The antidote could not fully suppress it; he had to find a way to escape quickly...

Once he left the alleyway, the open terrain would be an absolute advantage for the puppeteers, and then he would be in real trouble.

With the Chakra I have left, I could probably take one of them down with me if I turned back, but then the intelligence wouldn't get out...

As he pondered, Sakumo remembered something; his gaze sharpened, and the corners of his mouth curled up slightly.

Kaminazuki was in the Rain-Drenched Sand Realm; if he could rendezvous with him, he would definitely be able to repel the people behind him!

Ha, sorry about this.

Help your brother out, and I won't charge you for the wedding gift later!

Sakumo accelerated sharply, quickly exiting the Amegakure alleyway and sprinting across the surface of the lake.

"He's an assassin-type ninja, yet he's actively fleeing toward an open area... has he lost his mind from panic?"

The red-haired male Sunagakure ninja muttered.

"No, this guy isn't the type to lose his cool."

The beautiful woman with long black hair tied back said, "He's been hit by my poison; he's willing to accelerate the toxin's spread just to get there..."

"Are there reinforcements?"

"Reinforcements..."

Mamoru smiled faintly. "Then he is truly unlucky, because our reinforcements... are there too!"

"Let's finish this early and go back; I miss Sasori."

Ruri revealed a gentle smile, her eyes soft.

When they left for this mission, Sasori had just learned to call her mother, and she thought of her son every single moment.

Mamoru nodded and laughed, "Mm, we have to go back and teach Sasori to call me father!"

--

--

At this moment.

In the Barren Red Sand Realm, a fierce battle had just reached its climax.