Chapter 2: When the World Fires You, Go to the CEO
I was a dead man walking.
Literally. In the official records of the Hidden Sand Village, "Daimaru" was a name carved into a memorial stone, a tragic casualty of the brutal desert. To the village, I was a hero. To my former teammates, I was a ghost who hadn't realized he was haunting them.
"Yo, Tokishiri! Miss me?"
I threw an arm around his shoulder, flashing a grin that probably looked a bit too manic for eight in the morning. My body still ached from Temari's fan-assisted flight yesterday, but a ninja's life doesn't have a 'sick day' button.
"Did you find it hard doing missions without your star player? Well, the wait is over. I'm back."
Tokishiri froze. His shoulder felt like a block of ice under my arm. He didn't look happy. He looked like he'd just seen a zombie wearing his favorite shirt.
"Daimaru... you're actually back," he stammered, his eyes darting everywhere but my face. "I thought... well, everyone thought..."
"That I was swallowed by the quicksand? That the desert finally claimed the legendary 'Red Sand Dust'?" I laughed, though it tasted like copper. "It takes more than a Rank C mission gone sideways to kill me. I crawled out of that hell for a reason."
Mostly because I'm too stubborn to die before I've had a proper date, I thought.
"That's the thing," Tokishiri said, his voice dropping to an apologetic whisper. "The village awarded you that title because they were sure you were dead. It was a funeral honor, Daimaru."
A cold pit formed in my stomach. "And?"
"And... life goes on. The mission roster doesn't stop for the dead." He finally looked at me, and the pity in his eyes was worse than the punch from Temari's fan. "We already filled your spot. We have a new third member."
I let my arm slide off his shoulder. The desert heat suddenly felt very, very cold.
"Filled? You're kidding, right? We've been a team for four years."
"I'm sorry!" Tokishiri bowed so low his forehead almost hit the sand. "The missions were stacking up. Lord Satetsu-sensei didn't want to do it at first, but the higher-ups insisted. We needed a full squad to stay active."
"Who is he?" I asked, my voice flat.
"Komaza."
My teeth clenched. Komaza. A guy with the personality of a cactus and an ego the size of the Kazekage's office. He was talented, sure, but he treated teammates like disposable kunai.
"He's... he's already integrated into our formations," Tokishiri added, not daring to look up. "Actually, we're heading out for a mission in ten minutes. I have to go."
He didn't wait for a response. He turned and sprinted away as if the sand were catching fire behind him.
I stood in the middle of the street, a "hero" with a title and no job.
This is bad. This is catastrophically bad.
I paced the confines of my small apartment, the floorboards groaning under my feet.
If I don't have a team, I can't take missions. If I can't take missions, I don't get paid. If I don't get paid, I can't afford the gear I need to survive the upcoming Chunin Exams.
And more importantly?
If I'm not in the Exams, I can't stop the 'Nara-Temari' romance before it even begins!
My internal monologue was screaming. In the original timeline, that lazy genius Shikamaru Nara and Temari would start their long-distance flirting during the exams in Konoha. If I wasn't there to disrupt the bracket—to crush Team 10 in the Forest of Death or force a different matchup—I'd be watching from the sidelines as some Leaf ninja stole the girl I'd spent sixteen years annoying.
Think, Daimaru. Think!
A lone Genin was a nobody. I was a "returned hero," which was just a polite way of saying I was a bureaucratic nightmare. No team would want to kick out a settled member for a guy who had been missing for months.
There was only one way to fix this. I had to go to the source.
I had to see the Boss.
The Sand Village Administrative Building was a massive, circular fortress that seemed to radiate authority. I waited in the lobby for three hours, ignored by Chunin clerks and glared at by passing Jonin.
Finally, a door opened.
"The Kazekage will see you now."
I straightened my vest, swallowed my pride, and walked into the office.
The Fourth Kazekage, Rasa, sat behind a massive desk. He wore his full ceremonial robes, his face partially obscured by the traditional veil. The air in the room felt heavy—saturated with the oppressive weight of Magnet Release chakra.
This wasn't like the Hokage's office in the Leaf. There were no bowls of candy or grandfatherly smiles here. This was a man who turned sand into gold and children into weapons.
"Daimaru," the Kazekage's voice was like grinding stones. "The boy who refused to stay buried. Why are you wasting my time?"
I dropped to one knee, my heart hammering against my ribs like a trapped bird.
"Lord Fourth, I apologize for the intrusion. I have encountered a problem that only your authority can resolve."
"Speak."
"I died for this village—or at least, I tried to," I said, my voice gaining strength. "I was awarded the title of 'Red Sand Dust' for my sacrifice. But now that I have returned, I find myself a ghost. My team has replaced me. I am a ninja without a squad, a soldier without a front."
I looked up, trying to pierce the veil with my gaze.
"I want to serve. I want to prove that my survival wasn't a fluke. But the system has moved on without me. I humbly request that you grant me an opportunity—any opportunity—to prove my worth and qualify for the upcoming Chunin Exams."
Silence stretched. It felt like minutes. I could feel the Kazekage's cold, analytical gaze dissecting me. To him, I wasn't a person; I was a resource. A tool that had been broken and somehow glued itself back together.
"You want to participate in the Exams?" Rasa asked. "The exams in Konoha are not a playground, boy. They are the opening move of a war. Why should I waste a slot on a Genin who couldn't even survive a Rank C mission without getting buried?"
Because I know what's coming, I thought. Because I know the 'Konoha Crush' is a trap.
But I couldn't say that.
"Because I've seen the other side, Lord Fourth," I said instead, my voice low and dangerous. "I've been under the sand. I've looked death in the eye and crawled back out. The other Genin have talent, but I have something they don't: I know exactly what it takes to survive when everything goes wrong."
Rasa leaned forward. The pressure in the room spiked.
"Survival is not enough. We need strength. We need weapons."
He tapped his fingers on the desk.
"Fine. You want a team? I will give you one. But you won't like it. There is a reason these two have been left without a third."
My pulse quickened. "I'll take anyone."
"Be careful what you wish for, 'Red Sand Dust,'" the Kazekage said, a hint of something dark in his tone. "Go to Training Ground 7. Your new 'teammates' are waiting. If you can survive an hour with them, I will consider your entry into the Exams."
"Thank you, Lord Fourth!"
I bowed and hurried out, my mind racing. Training Ground 7? That was the most remote area in the village, usually reserved for dangerous experiments or...
I stopped at the edge of the training grounds.
Standing in the center of the dust-blown field were two figures.
One was a girl with a blank expression, her fingers twitching as if she were playing an invisible piano. The air around her hummed with a disturbing, high-pitched frequency.
The other was a boy who looked like he'd been stitched together from nightmares, covered in scars and radiating a killing intent so foul it made the nearby desert shrubs wither.
These weren't just "leftover" ninjas.
These were the rejects. The ones even the brutal Sand Village considered too unstable to use.
The girl turned her head, her eyes vacant. "Is this the new one?"
The boy laughed, a sound like glass breaking. "He looks fragile. Do you think he'll scream when I peel the skin off his face?"
I took a step back, my hand reaching for my kunai pouch.
Lord Fourth... you didn't give me a team.
You gave me a death sentence.
Suddenly, the ground beneath my feet erupted. A massive puppet, unlike any I'd ever seen, burst from the sand, its poisoned blades inches from my throat.
"Time starts now," the girl whispered. "Try not to die too quickly, 'Hero.'"
[New Mission: Survive your Teammates]
[Difficulty: S-Rank (Mortal)]
[Reward: Hidden Puppet Master's Legacy]
My eyes widened as the system interface flashed red, pulsing in sync with my frantic heartbeat.
I wanted a team... but I might have just volunteered for my own execution.
The boy lunged, his fingers turning into sharpened claws.
"Let's see what 'Red Sand Dust' tastes like!"
I didn't think. I couldn't. I dove to the side, the blade whistling past my ear, and prepared for the longest hour of my life.
The battle for the Chunin Exams hadn't even started, and I was already fighting for my soul.
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[End of Chapter 2]
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