Kankuro's eyes snapped open. His vision swam for a moment before slowly sharpening, his breath ragged and uneven. The moment he realized where he was, he tried to push himself upright.
"Gaara!" he blurted, panic tightening every muscle in his body.
A medical ninja immediately moved to stop him.
"Easy. Don't strain yourself."
Before Kankuro could argue, Kakashi stepped forward, calm as always, yet carrying a quiet authority that settled the air around him.
"Take a breath, Kankuro." His voice was steady, grounded. "We're here as backup from the Leaf. Our mission is to rescue Gaara. We need everything you remember. Who attacked you, and where did they go?"
Kankuro forced himself to focus. His body still ached from the poison, and the memories of the ambush throbbed behind his eyes. But he pushed through it, gripping the edges of the bed as he fought to recall every detail.
"There were two members of the Akatsuki," he rasped. "One guy with blond hair riding on some huge white clay bird. His jutsu exploded. Every single one. He was the one who ambushed Gaara."
Kakashi's eye narrowed. "And the second attacker?"
"The other one was Sasori of the Red Sand. He was covered from head to toe. I couldn't see his real face." Kankuro swallowed, thinking back to the cold precision of the battle. "They took Gaara and headed toward the border of the Land of Rivers."
"Anything else?" Kakashi pressed. "Even the smallest detail could help."
Kankuro shut his eyes, replaying the fight in his mind. Instinctively, his fingers brushed against his puppet crow resting beside the bed. Something sparked. His eyes flew open.
"Yes. In Crow's grip. When I attacked Sasori, Crow's blades didn't land a full hit, but they tore off a piece of his left sleeve. That fabric should still be inside Crow's mechanism."
With trembling hands, he summoned the last of his chakra threads, directing them into the puppet. Crow's fingers slowly unfolded, revealing a small piece of dark cloth, finely woven and unmistakably part of Akatsuki attire.
"Perfect." Kakashi carefully picked up the scrap, studying it with precision. "This is exactly what we need."
He brought his hands together.
"Summoning Jutsu!"
A burst of smoke erupted, swirling until eight ninken of various shapes and sizes appeared at Kakashi's feet.
"The Eight Ninja Hounds, reporting in."
Kakashi crouched, holding the fabric out to them. "Track the scent. Find the owner's location. When you return, I'll make sure all of you get the best dog food I can find."
The ninken sniffed the cloth in unison, committing the scent to memory before sprinting off in different directions.
"Good," Kakashi said, rising. "With Pakkun and the others tracking, it won't take long to find where the Akatsuki took Gaara. Now we wait for their signal."
At that moment, Chiyo and Ebizo stepped up beside Kankuro.
"Grandma Chiyo? Elder Ebizo?" Kankuro blinked at them, still confused.
Chiyo's expression was grave. "I want you to confirm something. The one who attacked you... you are certain it was Sasori?"
Kankuro followed her gaze to the shattered remains of his puppet. The mark Sasori once used as a signature was clearly etched into one of the fragments.
"He said it himself. And he knew my puppets inside and out. I'm certain it was him."
Chiyo's face darkened, a shadow of sorrow passing through her eyes. Ebizo placed a gentle hand on her shoulder.
Kankuro finally took in the Leaf shinobi standing behind Kakashi. When he saw Naruto, Sasuke, and Hinata, his expression froze.
Fear flickered in his eyes.
They were the three who had once beaten Shukaku into submission. Anyone who could overpower the One-Tail like that was not someone to take lightly.
Naruto noticed his reaction and gave him a reassuring nod.
"We're not your enemies anymore. We're here to help."
That simple gesture eased the tension in Kankuro's body.
While waiting for the hounds, Kakashi continued gathering details about Deidara and Sasori, compiling every scrap of information that could help predict their movements.
Far away, Deidara and Sasori had already reached a hidden Akatsuki hideout in the Land of Rivers. Pain's projection was waiting inside.
"You're late," Pain said without emotion.
"Hard to be fast when you're fighting someone with a home-field advantage in a desert," Deidara shot back, tossing Gaara's unconscious body onto the floor.
Pain didn't bother replying. He pressed his hand to the ground, summoning the Gedo Statue. The enormous puppet-like creature rose from the earth, its massive presence filling the chamber. Five of its nine eyes were now open.
Five Tailed Beasts had already been extracted.
"Why was the One-Tail captured last?" Deidara asked casually. "He's not that strong compared to the others."
"Because the Third Hokage exposed our plans to the world," Pain said, his tone ice-cold. "If the major nations realize our objective before we are ready, they will move against us. We needed a fast capture to avoid drawing too much attention."
In other words, the Sand was simply the easiest target.
"Prepare for the extraction."
Pain took his place on the statue's finger. With a pulse of chakra, the spectral forms of the other Akatsuki appeared. Then nine chakra dragons erupted from the statue's mouth, plunging into Gaara. His scream echoed through the cavern as the One-Tail was ripped from his body.
Meanwhile, Pakkun returned early the next morning with good news. They had located Sasori's and Gaara's trail with certainty.
Temari, exhausted and pale with dark circles under her eyes, rushed toward Naruto's group. She had crossed the desert in two days instead of the usual three, pushing herself to her limit.
"The Sand will join the rescue," she declared.
Behind her stood several Sand shinobi, their expressions solemn but resolute. Even if Naruto's team was far stronger than them, Gaara was their Kazekage.
They would fight for him.
"We'll move ahead first," Naruto said. "Follow as fast as you can."
Temari nodded, ready to depart, when someone stopped her.
"Temari, wait," Baki called out.
Temari turned, annoyed. "What now?"
"Orders from the Council. The Sand must remain on defense. If word spreads that the Kazekage was captured, we may be invaded."
Temari's anger flared.
"So we're just abandoning our own Kazekage?"
The nin behind her looked equally disheartened.
"Those are the Council's orders," Baki said heavily. "Without the Kazekage, their decisions are absolute."
Sasuke let out a low scoff, unable to hide his disdain. A great nation refusing to rescue its own leader out of fear showed nothing but weakness.
Naruto clenched his fists.
No matter what, they would save Gaara.
And they would do it fast.
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