Sasori!

The massive Hiruko puppet blocked the way ahead. Inside it was the legendary genius puppet designer, the S-rank rogue ninja Sasori of the Red Sands.

"Sakura, you're responsible for interference and support. Watch out for his poison."

Granny Chiyo was experienced and immediately instructed Sakura.

"Sasori... so you really have come to this."

"Granny Chiyo..." Sasori's emotionless voice came from inside Hiruko.

"It's been a long time. I didn't expect even you to come. Perfect. I'll turn an interfering old hag like you into part of my collection too!"

"Ye Chuan, be careful! All of Sasori's puppets are coated in deadly poison!" Sakura also warned him nervously.

"Poison?"

Ye Chuan tightened his grip on Wado Ichimonji, his gaze calm.

"Then I just have to avoid getting touched."

He stepped forward, deliberately drawing Sasori's attention to himself.

"Sasori of the Red Sands, your opponent is me."

"Oh? Another brat with a death wish?"

Hiruko's massive body turned toward Ye Chuan with a grating scrape.

"You're the one who broke through the barrier just now, aren't you? You do have some brute strength."

Before he finished speaking, the metal tail on Hiruko's back lashed out like a venomous scorpion, stabbing straight at Ye Chuan's face!

Ye Chuan's figure flickered. He activated Soru and instantly appeared beside Hiruko.

As he easily avoided the poisoned tail, Wado Ichimonji, coated in Armament Haki, was already slashing down with overwhelming force!

"Too slow!"

Clang!!!

The blade struck Hiruko's hard shell. The tremendous destructive power of Armament Haki left a deep slash in its thick armor!

"What?!"

Inside Hiruko, Sasori was slightly startled. This brat's strength exceeded his expectations!

He immediately controlled Hiruko to counterattack. A dense barrage of poisoned needles sprayed from its mechanical arm, shooting toward Ye Chuan like a torrential downpour!

At the sight, Ye Chuan advanced instead of retreating!

His Observation Haki had already caught every needle's trajectory. He moved freely through the rain of needles, all of them brushing past his clothes without causing him the slightest injury.

"That's impossible!" Sasori was shocked again!

That ability to dodge...

In the instant Sasori was stunned, Ye Chuan had already closed in again!

This time, he not only used Armament Haki but even gathered the Chakra Enhanced Strength he had learned from Tsunade into his arm.

"Just... break!"

Boom!!!

His fist, infused with Armament Haki and Chakra Enhanced Strength, slammed into the spot on Hiruko where his earlier slash had left a crack!

Crack!!!

Hiruko's hard shell finally failed to withstand the terrifying force assailing it from within and without. It burst apart like a shattered eggshell, countless broken components flying in every direction!

A small figure emerged from the shattered Hiruko.

It was a boy who looked only fifteen or sixteen, with delicate features and short red hair.

This was Sasori of the Red Sands' true body...

Or rather, the Human Puppet he had made himself into.

"You... you actually destroyed my Hiruko that quickly?!"

Sasori stared at the black-haired boy before him, his eyes filled with disbelief.

"Brat, just who are you?!"

He could sense that the threat posed by this boy exceeded even that of Kakashi Hatake, whom he had encountered earlier!

"The one who'll kill you." Ye Chuan's reply was brief and cold.

"Arrogant fool!" Killing intent surged in Sasori's eyes.

"In that case, let me show you the strongest piece in my collection! Come out!"

With a movement of Sasori's fingers, a scroll appeared out of thin air and unfurled. Amid the spreading smoke, a Human Puppet wearing a Kazekage's cloak appeared on the battlefield!

It was none other than the Third, hailed as the strongest Kazekage in history!

A red light flashed in the Third Kazekage puppet's eyes. It opened its mouth, and iron sand instantly gushed out like a black tide, sweeping toward Ye Chuan and blotting out the sky.

The iron sand's attacks were fast and wide-ranging. The sand itself was extremely heavy and hard, and it also caused magnetic interference.

Faced with this nearly unanswerable attack, both Granny Chiyo and Sakura paled!

Yet Ye Chuan remained calm.

"Magnet Release? It really is powerful..."

He closed his eyes and unleashed his Observation Haki at full strength!

The trajectories of countless iron sand attacks, even the faint fluctuations of the Chakra Threads as Sasori controlled his puppet...

Nothing at all could escape his perception.

The next moment, he moved!

Geppo!

His feet kicked repeatedly against the air, and he rose from the ground like a phantom, ascending rapidly through the gaps in the sky-filling iron sand!

Soru!

Using Soru's explosive speed, he continually changed direction in midair, dodging the pursuing iron sand spikes like a bolt of lightning!

For a time, all that could be seen on the battlefield was a black figure darting up and down through the raging iron sand storm.

Not only did he remain completely unharmed, but he was also steadily closing in on the Third Kazekage puppet itself!

"How... how is this possible?!" Sasori was utterly stunned!

His Iron Sand Technique had actually been completely overwhelmed by a boy using Taijutsu?!

That phantomlike speed... it was simply in the realm of monsters!

"Now!"

A sharp gleam flashed in Ye Chuan's eyes as he seized the brief pause following a large-scale attack.

He pushed Soru to its limit, instantly breaking through the final iron sand defenses and appearing before the puppet!

"No!" Sasori was terrified and tried to make the puppet retreat!

But Ye Chuan's blade was faster!

Riiip!!!

Coated in Lightning Release chakra, Wado Ichimonji pierced the Third Kazekage puppet's chest in an instant like lightning cleaving through darkness, completely destroying its internal core mechanism!

The puppet abruptly stiffened. The red light in its eyes went out completely, and it fell to the ground like a marionette with its strings cut.

Sasori watched his strongest collectible being destroyed, his eyes filled with madness.

But before he could make his next move, Ye Chuan appeared in front of him as though he had teleported!

Sasori instinctively tried to activate the mechanisms in his body to counterattack, but Ye Chuan's blade was faster!

This time, the blade pointed straight at the only part of Sasori's chest that was still human.

"It's over."

Shhk!

Wado Ichimonji precisely pierced the regenerative core, and Armament Haki instantly destroyed every trace of life within it.

Sasori's body jolted violently. The last light in his eyes went out completely, and he toppled stiffly to the ground like an ordinary doll.

[Detected that the host has killed Akatsuki member Sasori of the Red Sands...]

[Overall assessment... Inheritance Experience gained: +2,000 points!]

[Current Inheritance Progress: 90.6%]

"Whew..."

Ye Chuan sheathed his sword, breathing a little heavily.

Only then did Granny Chiyo and Sakura recover from their shock.

Granny Chiyo looked at Sasori, who lay on the ground completely lifeless, her eyes filled with endless sorrow.

She walked unsteadily forward, crouched down, and gently stroked Sasori's cold cheek.

All that remained in the cave were Granny Chiyo's low, sorrowful sighs and Sakura's gaze as she looked at Ye Chuan as though he were a monster.

Ye Chuan did not disturb the old woman as she mourned her grandson. He simply stood quietly to one side.