"Chōmei, do you think that kid will fall for the trap?"
Hiding quietly in the trees, Gekko Chizan still felt uneasy.
Even though he had rewritten all the psychological analyses of Sasori of the Red Sand from his past life into a new approach...
Whether it could successfully provoke Sasori's emotions was still unknown.
"How would I know? You humans are always such a pain."
"If you ask me, we should just go straight to Sunagakure. I'll drop some scale powder—who cares if he's the Kazekage or not, everyone would pass out, and you'd just finish him off while they're out."
"So much simpler."
Chōmei had been completely corrupted by now. His go-to solution was always sneak attacks with powder.
Gekko Chizan's brow twitched nonstop at the suggestion.
Come on, that's the Kazekage we're talking about—the strongest person in the entire village, and more importantly, the Third Kazekage.
Back in the day, even just a trace of his Iron Sand had nearly buried their entire group in the desert.
Scale powder might be effective, but if the target was vigilant and used the Iron Sand's unique properties, it would definitely block the powder.
At that point, he wouldn't just be on the defensive—no, "defensive" wouldn't even begin to describe it.
He'd probably get sent straight to the grave by that Iron Sand.
Of course, Gekko Chizan wasn't afraid. After all, he had Chōmei as his trump card. Even if the Third Kazekage was ridiculously strong, worst case, he could just enter Tailed Beast Mode and bail.
But the aftermath would be a disaster. He'd probably have to leave the village altogether.
As he was worrying about all that...
The tent suddenly opened.
The red-haired teenager, carrying a backpack, ran straight toward the desert.
"Yes! Looks like the letter worked."
"Chōmei, let's go! Time to enjoy the show in Sunagakure!"
Gekko Chizan perked up instantly, kept his Transparent Release active, and ran in the same direction as Sasori.
"Chizan, are you saying that kid's going back to the village to make a move on the Third Kazekage?"
"That's what I'm guessing. But we have to beat him there! Chōmei, wings!"
Chōmei quickly channeled chakra into Gekko Chizan's body.
Wings appeared instantly on Chizan's back.
With their help, he shot into the air.
And flew full speed toward Sunagakure.
On a dark, windy night, two figures rushed toward the same direction.
One ran.
The other flew.
And the flying one... flew really fast.
Soon, he'd left the running figure far behind.
...
Sunagakure remained shrouded in endless yellow sand.
Haneda Zaimon, the Third Kazekage, was reviewing battle reports brought by his subordinates.
Sunagakure's string of failed offensives had given him a massive headache.
"Just a single Orochimaru and barely over a thousand Konoha ninja held back my thousands of shinobi..."
"Damn it... what the hell are Chiyo and Sasori doing?"
As Haneda Zaimon's frustration built, black Iron Sand around him began to stir.
At this moment, Gekko Chizan was already hovering above Sunagakure. Through his Insect Eyes, he had locked onto Haneda Zaimon's every move.
"This old guy's got some serious self-control."
"If it were me, I'd have blown a fuse already."
"Tch, I have to admit, this Third Kazekage is impressive."
His words made Chōmei ask aloud:
"Chizan, can that Sasori beat the Third Kazekage?"
"No chance. Iron Sand completely counters puppets. If Sasori tries to fight him head-on, he's got zero chance of winning."
In the original timeline, Sasori had relied on the Third Kazekage puppet and mastered the Iron Sand to such a degree that he completely suppressed Chiyo, who was also a master puppeteer.
The moment Iron Sand touches a puppet, it locks up the joints. A puppet that can't move is just a sitting duck.
"Then why are you sending him to fight the Third Kazekage?"
"Or... are you planning to make a move yourself?"
Gekko Chizan nodded. Since events had already veered off from canon...
Then it was up to him to set things right. With Sasori acting as a distraction, he could move in from the shadows. As long as they took out the Third Kazekage...
Everything would fall into place.
A village without its Kazekage, even if it went to war, would be like a headless fly—chaotic and ineffective.
Gekko Chizan looked down. Sasori had already entered the village.
"I embedded a jutsu formula on the back of the letter. I can sense that Sasori's carrying it with him."
"With that letter in place, it'll be much easier to launch a surprise attack on the Third Kazekage."
"And just in case Sasori doesn't meet expectations..."
"I've set up jutsu kunai all around Sunagakure. If he fails, I'll knock him out and handle it myself."
"Chōmei, I'll need your help when the time comes."
Chōmei nodded. At this point, Gekko Chizan could already enter partial Tailed Beast Mode without losing control.
Since Chizan had made up his mind, Chōmei would give it his all.
They were a team, after all.
"Chōmei, let me ask you something."
"Hm? What?"
"If I get poisoned, can you detox me?"
"Poison? Don't joke around. With me around, the moment poison enters your system, I'll push you into partial Tailed Beast Mode and evaporate it with my chakra—just like last time."
With Chōmei's reassurance, Gekko Chizan took out the poison he'd recently obtained from Sasori and coated it onto his ninja tools.
The purple liquid looked stunningly beautiful—but often, the most beautiful things were the deadliest.
Everything was ready. Gekko Chizan began watching the show.
Because Sasori had already entered the Kazekage's office.
Haneda Zaimon, who was in the middle of a headache, had just decided to rest when he heard a knock on the door.
"Come in."
The door opened. The red-haired teenager walked in without hesitation.
"Hm? Sasori? Why aren't you on the frontlines? Why are you back?"
Haneda Zaimon looked at Sasori with some confusion.
The red-haired teen, however, stared unblinkingly at the Third Kazekage and slowly asked:
"Kazekage-sama, our attacks on the frontlines have been going poorly."
"So why haven't I seen Sunagakure's Special Operations Unit?"
"If they joined the fight, we would've broken through Konoha's defenses already."
The Special Operations Unit—basically the ANBU.
The first ANBU was created by the Second Hokage. After seeing its success, the other villages created their own equivalents.
"The ANBU stays here. They're our final line of defense."
"The frontline struggles—I'm working on a solution."
"You don't need to worry. Just return to the front."
"Or... did Chiyo ask you to deliver a message to me?"
Haneda Zaimon didn't notice Sasori's tone or expression at all. He simply assumed Chiyo had sent her grandson to request reinforcements.
Little did he know, his words had completely enraged Sasori.
Just as the letter said—the strongest squad under the Kazekage hadn't been deployed at all.
And he was even guarding against his own grandmother...
Damn it! He had the power, but refused to use it in battle!
People like that! A village like this!
Deserves to be destroyed...
Sasori lowered his head. His eyes were now blood red.
"Kazekage-sama, this is a letter from my grandmother."
He reached into his cloak and pulled out the letter—the one that exposed all of Haneda Zaimon's crimes.
Haneda Zaimon saw it and thought: So Chiyo really did send him...
Just as Sasori was about to hand the letter over—
He moved!
He flung the letter at Haneda Zaimon, the chakra-wrapped paper instantly transforming into a deadly projectile.
At the same time, three puppets appeared.
Three brand new creations—Sasori's pride and joy.
Human puppets created through body modification!
The leading one was huge, black-haired, and masked.
The other two were smaller but radiated an equally terrifying aura.
"Die, Haneda!"
"I'm going to kill you!"
----------------
Pls Drop some Power Stones
+100 chapters and support me on Patreon(.)com/Jixo