Puppet Master? I'll Slaughter Them All!

I may be gone from the scene, but legends of me still abound.

Over the next few days, Rasa continued to keep a low profile and work on mastering his abilities. But his battle with Pakura had become the talk of Sunagakure.

The number one Rasa fan, Yashamaru, turned into a walking megaphone, telling everyone how Rasa had beaten Pakura single-handedly. You'd think it wasn't Rasa who had defeated her, but Yashamaru himself.

Though Rasa never showed his face, the shinobi of Sunagakure kept trying to get information about Pakura's fight with him.

From Pakura's complete lack of rebuttal, they learned a shocking truth: Rasa's strength had improved by leaps and bounds. Even elite jonin couldn't last more than a few moves against him.

There were many names for someone at that level: a powerhouse beyond jonin, a strategic-level combatant, someone capable of influencing the course of a localized battle...

But the best-known title of all was—Kage-level powerhouse!

The Sunagakure shinobi were thrilled. This meant the village had gained another top-tier fighter. After Chiyo, Lord Kazekage, and the Jinchūriki Bunpuku, Sunagakure now had one more.

It wasn't long before the news reached the Kazekage Office.

Chiyo and Ebizo were astonished by Rasa's sudden leap in strength, so they summoned him to the Kazekage Office for a conversation.

When Rasa pushed open the door, they took one look at him and knew the rumors were true!

His face was a little haggard, but he exuded a confidence that seemed to come from within—a confidence that inspired everyone around him to believe he could do it.

He looked every bit the rising star!

Rasa had done it on purpose. Emotions were contagious, and so was confidence. Becoming Kazekage served his interests, making it easier for him to change the Shinobi World and earn points.

So he had to project confidence and strength, to show off his charisma—like the founding emperors in the history books, or a certain failed art-school student.

He glanced around the office. The Kazekage, who was actually Ebizo in disguise, sat in the middle, while Chiyo sat to one side.

"What did you want to see me about, Elder Chiyo?" Rasa asked.

No internal spies here.

Chiyo nodded with satisfaction, looking him over with a kindly expression. "There are a few things we'd like to ask you to take care of.

"But before that, we want to know just how strong you've become."

"It's hard to put into words. I'm stronger than I used to be," Rasa replied after a moment's thought.

Chiyo asked again, "How much stronger?"

"About as tall as a three- or four-story building."

Chiyo nodded, as if she understood. If she were Lu Yu, she'd probably have said, "Really? I don't believe you."

"Would you mind sparring with me? It'd give you some experience fighting Kage-level opponents, so you won't make any unnecessary mistakes due to overconfidence someday."

Chiyo made the suggestion with the clear intention of helping him grow.

War was inevitable, and it would begin in the not-too-distant future. Sunagakure's secretive maneuvers couldn't escape notice for much longer.

But they had to prepare for war. They couldn't do nothing, pretend everything was fine, and then wait for the enemy to attack when the truth came out.

The elders guarding the village gate while the Kazekage died for his country?

That wouldn't work. It was like all those soccer strategies: in the original story, Sunagakure flailed around aimlessly, then got pinned in its own penalty area and bombarded before finally settling for a desperate defense.

Now that they knew the Kazekage would die, doing nothing would be like setting up their defense entirely in their own penalty area and just waiting for the enemy to bombard them. They'd still be at the mercy of the enemy's assault.

Sunagakure needed to prepare as best it could, and build a counterattack into its defense so the enemy couldn't commit all its forces to the assault.

Rasa was a vital part of the plan. Soldiers fought soldiers, generals fought generals. Kage-level fighters were so overwhelming against ordinary shinobi that trying to bog one down with sheer numbers would come at a terrible cost.

Sunagakure didn't have many shinobi to begin with. Even if they used puppeteers to bolster their numbers, they couldn't put together that many fighters. If the enemy deployed a Kage-level fighter, Sunagakure would suffer heavy losses and be forced entirely onto the back foot.

Chiyo didn't want to pay such a high price. So once war broke out, she wanted to send Rasa to the front lines. On the one hand, he could neutralize one of the enemy's top fighters.

On the other, she wanted him to earn merit and be in a position to succeed the Kazekage.

"Elder Chiyo, you're a puppeteer, aren't you?"

Rasa asked meaningfully, "I wanted to ask if your puppets have any metal parts."

"Of course they do."

Chiyo didn't understand why he was asking, but answered anyway. "No puppet can be made without using metal.

"The joints, connections, core, and frame all require high-strength, high-toughness metal.

"Even the strings used to control puppets are usually made of special metal wire.

"Without it, the puppets wouldn't be capable of dealing damage. They'd also be hard to control, easy to destroy, and prone to severe wear and tear."

"Even human puppets?" Rasa asked.

Chiyo frowned slightly. Human puppets were a special kind of puppet invented by her grandson, Sasori of the Red Sands, and she had always preferred not to bring them up.

But since Rasa had asked, she had no choice but to answer. "Human puppets included. No puppet can be made without metal.

"In fact, if it's a puppet, it's bound to have precision parts made of metal."

Rasa nodded in understanding. "Then there's no point in sparring with you, Elder. I wouldn't get any practice out of it."

A true specialist at fighting his own side.

If the opponent was a puppeteer, I didn't need to know who they were or how many there were.

I'd slaughter them all. I was unbeatable, peerless. Wouldn't it be great if puppeteers were the dominant force in the Shinobi World?

Chiyo's expression darkened. She exchanged a glance with Ebizo, beginning to resent Rasa a little. He was too arrogant—he clearly didn't take her, a Kage-level puppeteer, seriously.

The Kazekage, still disguised as Ebizo, coughed twice to ease the tension, then advised Rasa, "Rasa, we know you've grown a lot stronger.

"But don't underestimate the great shinobi of the world. Elder Chiyo is a Kage-level fighter. She's not much weaker than your teacher.

"Confidence is a good thing, but arrogance will make you stumble."

What a good man. Now that was a real elder.

Rasa smiled slightly and apologized. "Sorry, I may not have made myself clear. I'm not targeting Elder Chiyo, and I don't have anything against her."

Chiyo's expression softened. It was never too late to correct your mistakes. Rasa had potential; he was Sunagakure's hope for the next few decades. She didn't want his arrogance to make him stumble.

Rasa added, "What I mean is that no puppeteer could ever be my opponent.

"Even if every puppeteer in Sunagakure came at me together, I wouldn't be afraid."

Whoosh!

Chiyo sprang to her feet, a hint of anger in her eyes. She glared at Rasa, as if she wanted to leap up and punch him in the knee on the spot.

"Puppeteers are a pillar of Sunagakure's strength. I won't let you insult them like that."

His points went up by another twenty.

Rasa was quite pleased. It seemed that influencing shinobi who had prominent roles in the story, like Chiyo, earned him quite a lot of points.

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