The Sky Screen hanging high overhead continued playing steadily, its camera fixed firmly on Sarada as she set out on her mission.
With the precise intelligence Konoha had provided, Sarada slipped into the Land of Wind without a hitch.
She wasted no time. Once she located her target, she struck swiftly and cleanly, silently killing the first Sunagakure ninja on the list.
As Konoha's mission instructions required, she carefully stored the corpse as proof, completing the official assignment to satisfy Konoha's inspection.
By all rights, her next step should have been to head to the Land of Earth and hunt down her second target.
Instead, Sarada changed course, put on ordinary clothes, completely altered her appearance, and quietly slipped into Sunagakure.
She wandered Sunagakure's streets, discreetly assessing the situation throughout the village.
She saw it all clearly. Over the years, Konoha had kept Sunagakure under its thumb, steadily cutting back its military strength. The Land of Fire had monopolized and appropriated most of its high-quality mineral deposits and desert oasis resources.
The villagers struggled to make ends meet, and resentment ran deep within the village. Yet the Kazekage, Gaara, continued to publicly maintain friendly relations with Konoha and support the Seventh Hokage.
Then night fell completely over the endless yellow sands.
Sarada darted forward, using the darkness and the shadows of the buildings to slip into the Kazekage's residence unimpeded.
The entire residence was deathly quiet, with only the sound of the evening wind sweeping fine sand through the courtyard.
She stepped lightly across the threshold of the main reception room. Just as she was about to inspect its layout, her next step froze in midair.
Every muscle in her body tensed instantly, and the hairs on her back stood on end.
Someone was already seated in the shadows of