Scorpion of the Red Sand

He steeled his heart. Since escape was already impossible, he decided to end it himself; that was better than falling into enemy hands and leaking the village's intelligence.

He pulled out a kunai once more and pressed it against his throat, ready to take his own life.

Seeing this, Yuhi Shinku felt a twinge of disappointment. If the man had put up a desperate fight, he could have attempted a capture, but if the man was hell-bent on dying, it made things difficult.

Forget it, he thought. If I can't take him alive, bringing back his head will have to suffice.

Although every village possessed the ability to extract intelligence from a corpse's brain, the Hidden Leaf Village, with its Yamanaka Clan, was undoubtedly the leader in this field; their ability to probe the minds of the dead was second to none in the entire ninja world.

Yuhi Shinku didn't want any more complications; he would simply wait for the man to die and then step forward to sever his head.

However, Kawaki Aoba, standing beside Yuhi Shinku, suddenly felt his pupils constrict. Within his Observation Haki, a dangerous individual had appeared—and it was an "acquaintance," no less.

Damn it, why is this guy here? It's not time for your entrance yet.

Wait, that human puppet couldn't be...

Did the Third Kazekage die this early? Doesn't that mean the Third Great Ninja War is about to break out?

Hell, I need to figure out how to survive this first. If I die here, there's no point in worrying about the Third Great Ninja War.

In Kawaki Aoba's Observation Haki, black iron sand, constrained by Magnet Release, transformed into a long spear and shot toward the target at high speed.

Pfft!

Flesh and blood were pierced through, and a large hole opened in the Sand Ninja's chest. His eyes widened, and the kunai in his hand slid to the ground.

It seemed he was destined not to die by his own hand today.

There's another enemy? Wait, this attack made of iron sand... is it Lord Kazekage's Magnet Release? Then who is the enemy behind us?

As his final breath began to fade and his strength left him, the Sand Ninja struggled to turn his head. Even in death, he had to see who was behind him.

He got his wish, but he died in a state of extreme shock and disbelief.

"A human puppet! The Third Kazekage!! Sasori of the Red Sand!!!" Yuhi Shinku spoke the name of the killer for the Sand Ninja, who had died with his eyes wide open.

At the same time, Yuhi Shinku was deeply shaken. The moment he saw Sasori of the Red Sand and the Third Kazekage puppet, he understood many things and grasped why Sunagakure had been acting so abnormally lately.

It was no wonder they were in chaos when their village's Kage had already kicked the bucket.

However, judging by Sasori's actions, had he already become a missing-nin? Why hadn't there been any bounty notices for Sasori from Sunagakure? Was it a deliberate cover-up, or was there some other motive?

Oh, right, I almost forgot about that guy.

"Hey, you. You've seen the situation, haven't you? If you don't want to die in vain, start talking and tell us everything you know."

The person Yuhi Shinku was addressing was, naturally, the poisoned and incapacitated spy.

The spy had been lying to the side, witnessing the entire battle.

Having seen all the Sand Ninja perish, he had hoped he might be lucky enough to survive, but upon seeing Sasori of the Red Sand and the Third Kazekage puppet beside him, he nearly burst into tears.

Life's ups and downs were truly too fast.

At this point, he knew his life was forfeit.

It had already been a surprise that this Hidden Leaf squad could handle those Sand Ninja, but against Sasori of the Red Sand, only a Jonin like Yuhi Shinku had a chance to survive and escape; even that strange kid had very little hope of getting away.

He took a deep breath, knowing he could no longer hesitate. If his earlier petty thoughts had been excusable, then failing to read the room now would be inviting his own demise.

"The Third Kazekage and Sasori of the Red Sand both went missing. The higher-ups in Sunagakure suspect the Hidden Leaf did it. The atmosphere among the upper echelons of Sunagakure has been very volatile lately; they are pointing fingers at us, and it's very likely they want to start a small-scale war with us at the border."

The spy rattled off everything he knew at high speed. Finally, he looked at Yuhi Shinku with a hopeful gaze: "Lord Jonin, if you can make it back to the village, please tell the Hokage that I have fulfilled my mission as a spy with the utmost dedication. Also, please tell Keiko and our children that their husband and father died for the village—that he is a hero of the Hidden Leaf."

"Understood. If I make it back, I will certainly deliver your message." Yuhi Shinku's tone was heavy.

Although he had realized the intelligence was no longer critical the moment he saw Sasori and his puppet, that didn't change the fact that this spy had been lurking in Sunagakure for years for the sake of the Hidden Leaf.

Despite his minor selfish thoughts, his contributions could not be erased. He trusted that the Hokage would treat his family well.

"Enough with the chatter. Now, are you two ready to meet your deaths?" Sasori of the Red Sand, who had remained motionless after using his puppet to kill the Sand Ninja, finally spoke.

He hadn't waited out of kindness; he had simply wanted to understand the intelligence they were discussing and see what moves Sunagakure had made since his departure.

Now that he had heard it, he felt it was nothing special.

He held no affection for Sunagakure, and he felt equally indifferent toward the Hidden Leaf, who had killed his parents.

It seemed his earlier feeling—that hearing bad news about the Hidden Leaf would stir something in him—must have been an illusion.

If Sunagakure wanted to go to war with the Hidden Leaf, let them. Even if the Third Great Ninja War broke out, it didn't matter to him as long as no one disturbed him.

For the current Sasori, the thing he cared about most was the pursuit of eternal art.

He glanced at the dead Sand Ninja and had the Third Kazekage puppet toss the body aside.

Although the man wasn't of much value as a puppet master, he was an elite Jonin, which barely qualified him to be part of his collection.

Sasori turned his gaze to Yuhi Shinku. A ninja whose primary means of attack was genjutsu would have his value greatly diminished once turned into a human puppet, but since he was a Jonin, he would suffice as an ordinary piece of art.

"Since you've interrupted my pursuit of eternal art, your corpses will serve as compensation." From start to finish, Sasori hadn't looked at Kawaki Aoba and the others with any real focus; perhaps, in his eyes, these three brats weren't even worth the effort of being turned into puppets.

"This is truly troublesome. Aoba, how many more times can you use that Body Flicker Technique from before?" Yuhi Shinku was referring to the Shave from the Six Powers.