He will.
As long as Nobunaga is still alive.
The succession ceremony for the Fifth Generation Kazekage was very simple.
There were no red cloths, no cheers, only wind-blown sand and silence.
Nobunaga stood on the high platform, wearing the Kazekage robes.
The sunlight shone on his face.
His eyes were deep and quiet, just as they had been fourteen years ago.
Just as they were during the first simulation.
But something different was brewing within them.
Nobunaga looked at the unfamiliar faces below the platform, those who were alive.
Then his gaze fell upon his three disciples.
Temari stood there, looking at him, a light in her eyes. It wasn't tears, but something else.
Kankuro stood beside her and whispered, "Sis, can Teacher really do this?"
Temari did not speak.
Gaara stood at the very back, the sand at his feet flowing quietly.
Only Sasori stood in the corner, watching Nobunaga.
He had just returned from the Kumogakure front; Chiyo and Ebizo were still there, but he had returned first.
Hearing that Rasa had died in battle and that Nobunaga had succeeded him, he stood here, watching.
Nobunaga's gaze met his.
It was brief.
Then Nobunaga looked away, gazing into the distance.
There, in the direction of the border.
...
After the ceremony, Nobunaga returned to the Kazekage office.
He sat down and looked at the map on the desk.
Border. Troops. Supplies. Intelligence.
Konoha was still attacking, and Kumogakure, Iwagakure, and the Hidden Mist were still fighting.
The Third Ninja World War was not yet over.
Nobunaga lowered his head and began to read the intelligence reports that had just arrived.
The door was pushed open.
He looked up and saw Sasori standing at the door.
Sasori walked in and sat down across from him.
Silence fell for a moment.
"You've succeeded him," Sasori said.
Nobunaga nodded.
"Rasa is dead."
Nobunaga did not speak.
Sasori looked at him.
"Those three children, what do you plan to do with them?"
Nobunaga was silent for a while.
"Stand in front of them," he said.
Sasori nodded, stood up, and walked out.
At the door, he stopped.
"Nobunaga."
"Yeah."
"I've seen the puppets Kankuro makes; they're terrible."
Nobunaga looked at him.
Sasori didn't look back: "But my grandmother says he has talent. I'll go teach him."
Nobunaga was stunned for a moment, then he nodded.
"Alright."
Sasori pushed open the door and stepped into the hallway.
The door closed.
Nobunaga sat there, suddenly remembering what Chiyo had said.
"Let him see something else."
On the battlefield, there are the dead and the living. There are those who should be killed and those who should be protected.
Perhaps Sasori saw it, perhaps not, but he was trying to see.
That night, Sasori went to find Kankuro.
Kankuro was in the courtyard, staring blankly at a half-finished puppet. He froze when he saw Sasori walk in.
"I've seen the puppets you make," Sasori said. "They're terrible."
Kankuro's face flushed red.
"But my grandmother says you have talent." Sasori looked at him. "Do you want to learn?"
Kankuro was stunned; he looked toward the house.
Temari stood at the door and nodded.
Kankuro looked into the distance again. In the Kazekage office, the lights were still on. He had watched Nobunaga's silhouette for many years.
Finally, he turned back and looked at Sasori.
"I do."
From then on, Kankuro followed Sasori to learn the Puppet Technique.
Sasori was a strict teacher.
Every day, he had to wake up before dawn to practice basic skills. If a single part was substandard, it had to be remade. If he made a mistake in one step, he would be scolded for a long time.
"Are you trying to kill someone or make a puppet?"
Sasori scolded him: "Such crude work! It'll fall apart before it even touches the enemy!"
Kankuro kept his head down and didn't speak.
But his hands didn't stop. He made them over and over, revising them again and again.
One day, Sasori looked at his work and suddenly said, "You are better than me."
Kankuro was stunned.
"When I was your age, I only knew how to kill."
Sasori said, "You know how to protect people. In that regard, you are better than me."
Kankuro didn't know what to say.
That night, he went back and told Temari, "Sis, Teacher Sasori praised me today."
Temari smiled.
It was the first time she had smiled since the war began.
Outside the window, the wind and sand blew quietly.
In the distance, the lights in the Kazekage office were still on.
That man was still looking at the map.
Still carrying the burden.
...
The third year of the war.
Konoha's pursuit after their victories came faster than expected.
When the intelligence was delivered to the Kazekage office, Nobunaga was reviewing documents.
He looked up and saw the pale face of an Anbu member.
"Orochimaru and Minato Namikaze are leading an army across the border, heading straight for the Hidden Sand Village."
Nobunaga put down his brush.
"How many?"
"Visually estimated at eight thousand, but all are elites."
Nobunaga stood up and walked to the window.
Outside was the Hidden Sand Village at dusk. The setting sun dyed the dunes gold, but on the faces of the passersby, it looked like blood.
He turned around.
"Gather everyone."
In the meeting room, everyone quickly assembled.
Chiyo sat on one side, her expression grim. Ebizo stood behind her, hunched over and silent.
Pakura leaned against the wall with her arms crossed, the Chakra of her Scorch Style faintly flowing.
Sasori stood in the corner, with his Akasuna no Sasori puppet beside him.
Temari, Kankuro, and Gaara stood behind Nobunaga.
Nobunaga looked at them.
"Orochimaru is coming, and so is Minato Namikaze. Eight thousand elites will arrive within three days."
No one spoke.
"How many people do we have?" he asked.
The Head of the Anbu stepped forward: "Soldiers capable of fighting, less than five thousand."
Nobunaga nodded.
"It's enough."
His gaze swept across everyone's face.
There was exhaustion in Chiyo's eyes, but no retreat.
There was a fighting spirit in Pakura's eyes, burning like fire.
There was nothing in Sasori's eyes, but his hand was pressed against his puppet.
Temari stood very straight, her tea-gold hair tied into four pigtails, the scar on her hand having already faded.
Kankuro held his newly made Crow, his fingers gripping it until they were white.
Gaara stood at the very back, the sand at his feet flowing quietly.
"Are you afraid?" Nobunaga asked.
No one answered.
"It's right to be afraid."
He said, "Only those who are afraid know what they need to protect."
Nobunaga took a step forward.
"In this battle, there is no retreat. The Hidden Sand Village is right behind us. The elderly, the weak, the women, the children, and those who cannot walk are all behind us."
He looked at Temari: "You stand to my left."
Looking at Gaara: "You stand to my right."
Looking at Sasori: "You take Kankuro and provide support across the field."
Looking at Pakura: "You lead a team and be responsible for intercepting and killing."
Finally, Nobunaga looked at everyone.
"We will win this battle."
No one cheered, but everyone's eyes lit up.
Three days later.
Outside the Hidden Sand Village, in the desert.
The Konoha army was pressing in, black figures densely covering the sand like a moving shadow.
At the very front, Orochimaru wore a white kimono, his purple eye shadow particularly striking in the sunlight.
Beside him stood Minato Namikaze, his golden hair blowing in the wind, a Kunai gripped in his hand.
Behind them were the elite Jonin of Konoha, each radiating intense Chakra and a surging murderous intent that only comes from fighting a hundred battles.