Chiyo's gaze grew sharper and sharper, and the aura radiating from her body became increasingly terrifying.
Shabei stepped back, not daring to approach Chiyo, whose presence was becoming more and more oppressive.
Chiyo suddenly chuckled.
"So what? Shinobi are the very epitome of the world's tragedies! The partings and deaths of loved ones—I've long since grown numb to them. All that awaits me is the day the coffin closes, when I enter the Pure Land."
Kairen's bloodshot eyes glared at her with intensity.
"Have you really let go? Can you let go of your grandson wandering all alone out there? Can you let go of that endless desert village? Can you let go of it all?"
"To die of old age is the most pathetic death for a shinobi. You're not going to die such a worthless death, are you?"
Chiyo clenched her fists. Her usually calm eyes surged with turbulent waves—her emotions stirred up by Kairen's words.
Shabei looked at Kairen in disbelief. This mouth of his had actually provoked the ever-composed Elder Chiyo into anger!
Seeing that she had yet to strike, Kairen pressed on, further provoking Chiyo.
"And besides, do you know how the Third Kazekage died?"
"How did he die?" Even though she knew he was spewing nonsense, Chiyo couldn't help but feel a twinge of curiosity.
"It was your beloved grandson!"
"Sasori?! Impossible! The Third Kazekage was the strongest Kazekage! Sasori could never have been his match."
Kairen's words stabbed at her convictions like a blade.
"Do you really think Sunagakure found no trace of what happened? True, Sasori wasn't a match for the Third Kazekage. But if he used poison… and if…"
"The Third Kazekage's incompetence allowed Konoha to invade Sunagakure, causing the deaths of your son and daughter-in-law. Tell me—wouldn't Sasori have come to hate the Third Kazekage for that?"
"That would be his motive for killing a Kage. He could have turned the Third Kazekage into a human puppet and taken him away. That also explains why the Third Kazekage disappeared without a body ever being found."
Kairen had no proof for his claims, but the logic was enough to stir anyone listening.
Indeed, how could such a powerful Kage be attacked inside the village without a sound? Surely, it must have been someone intimately familiar with him.
Poison was a method—and Sasori was a genius with poison.
Even his personality hinted at a deep-seated disgust for the village, and a simmering hatred for the Third Kazekage.
The more Chiyo thought about it, the more plausible it seemed. Her clenched fists trembled, and her face shifted between shadow and light as inner conflict roiled within her.
"If it really was Sasori, then—"
Kairen fanned the flames with ruthless words.
"Sasori killed the Third Kazekage and betrayed Sunagakure. He is both your grandson and an enemy of your village."
"Old woman, what will you choose? Protect your ill-fated grandson, or side with the village where you've lived your whole life?"
"Old woman, give me your answer!"
The final words struck her heart like a hammer.
Family—or the village?
Chiyo's heart wavered violently. Should she abandon her grandson, or betray her village?
"Damn it… to think that a mere Genin like you could shake my resolve."
If the problem couldn't be solved, then the one causing it would be eliminated.
Chiyo suddenly flicked a silver needle. The needle was laced with poison and swiftly pierced Kairen's neck.
'So much wasted breath!'
Kairen's eyes rolled white, foam spilled from his mouth, and after a few convulsions, he fell still.
"Ding!"
"You were killed by Chiyo, a Kage-level shinobi, with a poisoned needle. EXP +300!"
Because no ninjutsu had been used, the EXP gain was less than what he had gotten from Rasa's Magnet Release.
White smoke spread, and Kairen reappeared unscathed, bare-chested, standing in the same spot.
He wasted no words, quickly forming hand seals, and spewed out a massive fireball that roared toward Chiyo.
Chiyo calmed her turbulent heart and carefully observed the characteristics of Kairen's body.
"Such an incredible Kekkei… Death followed by rebirth. This may not be a mere Kekkei Genkai, but something beyond—a Kekkei Tōta!"
"Wind Release: Great Breakthrough!"
Shabei's Wind Release blew the fireball aside. Kairen dodged, formed seals, and lunged toward Chiyo with a Body Flicker.
Chiyo smirked. A mere Genin daring to face her head-on—did he really think she was just a feeble old woman?
Her fingers spread wide, and threads of blue chakra wrapped around five blades hidden in the corner. With a tug, she drew them forth and hurled them toward Kairen.
He quickly retreated, then clasped four fingers in succession.
"Multi Shadow Clone Jutsu!"
"Bang! Bang!" The sound echoed around him. Smoke cleared, revealing over thirty shadow clones surrounding Kairen.
With the boost from his physical and mental attributes, his chakra reserves had reached the peak of a Genin, nearing that of a Chūnin.
"Hm?"
Chiyo was slightly surprised.
"Shadow Clones—and even the forbidden Multi Shadow Clone Jutsu. How interesting. You Konoha shinobi are truly intriguing."
"If only you were a Suna shinobi. An immortal Kekkei, coupled with such talent in ninjutsu—you might already have the qualifications to become a Kage!"
Kairen's killing intent flared, raw and undisguised.
Chiyo shook her head.
With how cruelly Shabei had treated him, Kairen would never belong to Sunagakure.
"You're destined to spend your life as nothing more than an experiment!"
Chiyo spread all ten fingers, her chakra threads making the blades dance wildly. In an instant, her barrage pierced through all of Kairen's clones.
At last, dozens of blades howled toward him, piercing his body in an instant.
Blood sprayed. Kairen collapsed slowly to the ground.
"Ding!"
"You were killed by Chiyo, a Kage-level shinobi, with blades. EXP +300."
White smoke enveloped him. Kairen once again leapt out, whole and unharmed.
He prepared to charge again, ready to throw his life away, when suddenly several chakra threads bound his body.
Chiyo smiled.
"Your Kekkei may be useful, but you're still too green."
Kairen gritted his teeth, ready to redeem an Explosive Tag to self-destruct and revive, but quickly restrained the reckless impulse.
That hidden card—his explosive tag trick—was his trump card. He absolutely couldn't expose it now.
Chiyo ordered Shabei.
"Take him back. Deliver him here once a day. I'll use him for drug testing—his immortal Kekkei will be perfect for biological experiments."
Shabei nodded.
"Understood, Advisor-sama."
Kairen's heart leapt with joy. Being delivered here to die every day—wasn't that exactly what he wanted?
Shabei's blade slashed, severing both of Kairen's hands to prevent resistance. Then he grabbed Kairen by the collar and vanished with a Body Flicker.
After they left, Chiyo sat hunched alone in her poison workshop.
"My little Sasori… where are you now? Was it really you who killed the Third Kazekage?"
Silence filled the air. Only the lonely wind answered Chiyo's question.
...
The next day, Shabei delivered Kairen just as Chiyo had ordered.
Chiyo prepared her poison and forced it down Kairen's throat.
Kairen let out a muffled groan, then immediately collapsed, dead.
Chiyo carefully observed his body's reactions, occasionally taking notes. These were precious experimental records.
"Ding!"
"You were killed by Chiyo, a Kage-level shinobi, with poison. EXP +300."
Kairen revived. This time, he quickly respawned, dodged Chiyo's chakra threads, and charged at her recklessly.
Several blades pierced him, driving straight through his chest.