The battlefield had descended into utter turmoil.
Ren and Shisui were locked in constant engagement with Sasori, circling and clashing without pause.
Once he began fighting in tandem with the Third Kazekage puppet, Sasori truly lived up to his reputation—offense and defense woven together into a seamless whole.
High-density Iron Sand, shaped with frightening precision, combined with puppet control refined to an almost inhuman level. Against such pressure, most shinobi wouldn't even find an opening—let alone survive.
And yet—
Ren and Shisui both sensed it.
Sasori wasn't serious yet.
"He's… playing with us?" Ren raised an eyebrow beneath his mask.
If anything, that suited him just fine.
Ren had yet to activate his cursed seal or fully engage Yin Release.
Shisui, likewise, hadn't opened his Mangekyō.
This wasn't a battle yet—it was probing.
But Ren had already made up his mind.
The moment he laid eyes on Sasori, a new plan had taken shape.
Originally, he'd intended to "make things difficult" for Shisui.
Now?
He'd found a far better target.
Let's stop wasting time… before he decides to leave.
Ren inhaled once—and activated the cursed seal.
Natural chakra surged through his body, drawn and refined automatically, much like Orochimaru's seals.
Sustained use was still a weakness—the seal was only at Level 3—but the amplification it granted made it indispensable against monsters like this.
"Earth Release: Rock Lodging Collapse!"
His hands slammed into the sand.
The desert screamed.
The ground convulsed violently as the sand beneath Sasori liquefied and gave way, collapsing inward. In the blink of an eye, a massive sinkhole opened—swallowing Sasori whole.
"Hm?"
For the first time, Sasori's expression shifted.
But Ren didn't give him even a second to react.
He drew the signal flare seized from Pakura, ignited it, and fired it skyward.
A brilliant burst of light exploded across the heavens.
From within the collapsing pit, Sasori looked up—his face darkening.
"You—"
"Young brat," he said coldly. "Are you trying to die?"
Shisui rushed to Ren's side, alarm flashing in his eyes.
"Ren—this is dangerous. Are you sure about this?"
Ren didn't answer immediately. Instead, he smiled and asked calmly,
"Senpai… do you remember what I said earlier?"
Shisui froze.
Ren placed a hand on his shoulder.
"Leave it to me."
At that moment, Sasori ascended from the pit, supported by the Third Kazekage puppet, Iron Sand swirling around him like a storm.
Ren turned toward him, voice steady.
"You possess mastery over puppetry at a level few can match.
To create a puppet that preserves a man's kekkei genkai after death…"
His gaze sharpened.
"Only Elder Ebizō of Sunagakure ever reached such heights.
I imagine she'd be very interested in meeting you."
Sasori's killing intent spiked.
He understood immediately.
This boy had done it on purpose.
Once Sunagakure's shinobi arrived, the situation would spiral beyond control.
"Do you really think you can stop me?" Sasori sneered.
"You'd better worry about surviving what's coming."
Ren didn't look back at him.
Instead, he turned to Shisui.
"Captain, we're escalating."
He spoke plainly.
"We can't let him leave."
Shisui exhaled slowly… then nodded.
There was no retreat now.
Ren had already fired the signal flare—escape was no longer an option.
If they fled, they'd be hunted down.
If they stayed, they'd be surrounded.
The only path left—
Let Sasori and Sunagakure tear into each other.
Shisui's Sharingan spun faster.
At the same time, Yin-aspected chakra quietly bloomed within Ren.
Across the Wind Country, Sunagakure erupted into motion.
Shinobi squads converged from every direction.
The village was already on edge—
Iwagakure pressing from the north, Kirigakure launching relentless raids, and now—
Pakura was missing.
Their hero.
The woman who had scorched Kirigakure's forces into retreat.
Days of silence had driven the village to the brink.
And now—
A signal flare.
They raced toward it.
But the closer they came, the more wrong the desert felt.
Thunderous explosions echoed.
Unnatural roars shook the dunes.
Sand hills trembled as though something colossal stirred beneath them.
When the first squads finally reached visual range—
They froze.
"…What… is that?"
The sky was filled with puppets.
Hundreds—no, thousands—dark silhouettes moving in formation.
At their center hovered a single puppet, surrounded by swirling black Iron Sand, forming spear-like constructs that pierced the desert below, shaping a massive, cage-like killing field.
Beneath the storm of puppets, a colossal green silhouette moved amid shattered remains.
And further still—
A stone dragon, over fifty meters long, roared as it tore through the battlefield.
The ground buckled.
The desert howled.
The arriving Sunagakure shinobi stood stunned.
"Send a distress signal—NOW!"
A shinobi screamed, snapping them back to reality.
"Report to the village immediately! We've—
We've likely found the Third Kazekage!"
Signals flared.
Messenger hawks took flight.
Across the desert sky, light after light erupted—
painting the heavens in burning color.
Sunagakure had entered total chaos.
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