The intruder hadn't triggered any of the traps she had set up. It wasn't until they entered her line of sight that she finally noticed.
A powerful enemy!
Terumi Mei's vigilance immediately shot to its highest level.
The rustling of leaves echoed in the night. A red-haired figure brushed aside the foliage, stepping slowly out of the darkness of the bamboo forest.
Upon seeing the person's face, Yagura finally let go of the breath he had been holding.
He had been scared to death.
For a moment, he thought it was Uchiha Madara.
Instead, he shouted out in surprise and joy.
"Sasori!"
The red-haired puppet master had grown a little taller over the past year. As he emerged from the bamboo forest, he wasted no time before launching into his usual sharp-tongued remarks toward his old acquaintance:
"An idiot like you becoming Mizukage... No wonder no one takes Kirigakure seriously anymore."
"Stop right there!"
Terumi Mei had heard this name before, which only made her more alarmed. She stepped in front of Yagura, refusing to let him go any closer.
"Sasori of the Red Sand, an S-rank rogue ninja from Sunagakure?! What are you doing here?"
She raised her hands to form a seal, warning Sasori not to take another step forward.
The ANBU lurking in the shadows were also ready to spring into action at any moment.
An S-rank rogue ninja from Sunagakure.
Anyone who earned the S-rank classification was unquestionably at least as strong as a Jōnin.
More than that, before his defection, this man had already made a name for himself as a genius puppet master among Sunagakure's elite forces.
If Sasori made any suspicious moves, Mei would complete her final Lava Release seal.
But there was no way around Mei.
Yagura sighed in frustration and called out loudly, "Sasori! I think you just scared my people."
His voice carried genuine excitement and joy.
Mei was momentarily caught off guard, unsure which side to focus on. "Yagura, he's—"
"Relax, just an old acquaintance."
Realizing Sasori's presence carried some level of danger, Yagura hesitated for a second before adding,
"Ah... Maybe not entirely reassuring."
Sasori let out a low scoff.
That derisive laugh confirmed to Yagura that he hadn't changed. He probed further, "Sasori, why are you in Kirigakure?"
A pointless question.
After all, Yagura himself had extended an invitation for Sasori to come to Kirigakure before.
But what he really wanted to know was why Sasori had shown up at this particular moment—when he needed help the most.
"Nothing special. Just collecting materials."
"Is that so? I thought you came because you knew I was in trouble and wanted to help."
Whether Sasori intended to or not, Yagura had no plans to let him leave so easily.
He had just been worrying about the lack of available fighters in Kirigakure.
And now, as if fate had delivered it on a silver platter—an elite warrior had walked right into his hands!
Yagura quickly did the calculations in his head. "If I recall correctly, you owe me two favors."
One for helping him acquire the Third Kazekage's remains.
And another for saving his life from the Third Kazekage's final retaliatory strike.
Two separate favors.
Sasori frowned and cut him off. "That was mutual benefit."
So he still owed him one favor.
Yagura latched onto it like a leech. "So, are you in Kirigakure now to repay that debt?"
Sasori scoffed. "Coincidence. The materials I was tracking happened to escape to the Land of Water."
Yagura heard that scoff and immediately knew there was more to it.
"You're still as bad at being honest as ever."
The atmosphere was so oddly harmonious that it felt... off.
Slowly lowering her hands, Mei discreetly stepped aside.
Am I intruding on something?
When did Yagura get acquainted with an S-rank rogue ninja from Sunagakure?
Sasori could sense the hostile gazes lurking nearby.
Though he only saw two people before him, he wasn't naive. If the Mizukage himself was personally involved, there was no way his guards and ANBU wouldn't be close by.
But the fact that Yagura had approached an S-rank rogue ninja so openly was enough to make them deeply uneasy.
Yagura extended an invitation once more: "Interested in working together again, Sasori?"
Sasori was different from Orochimaru.
Orochimaru was cunning and had long been consumed by his obsessions. After just one meeting, Yagura had decided against allowing that dangerous man into Kirigakure.
Orochimaru needed human test subjects, and Yagura's authority wasn't strong enough yet to keep him in check within the village.
Sasori, on the other hand, had collaborated with him before on the assassination of the Third Kazekage. Compared to Orochimaru, he was younger and, in many ways, safer.
Yagura was confident he could handle Sasori.
"...Sigh."
Sasori exhaled, placing one hand on his hip and extending the other.
"At least take a look at how your subordinates are reacting to this. Seriously, how is your village not destroyed yet with you in charge?"
Sasori had no patience for people like Yagura. He lowered his gaze slightly and warned,
"Just so you know, you're still one of my potential materials."
"If I die."
Yagura placed a hand on his chest and smiled. "How about I hire you with my corpse?"
His words sent shockwaves through the group. Mei's face paled, and she could no longer maintain her composure.
"Mizukage-sama!!!"
"Even if you gave it to me, I wouldn't want it."
Even Sasori was briefly taken aback. He actually said that?
He scowled in distaste. "Who wants a kid's remains?"
Yagura wasn't even at his prime yet.
And at his current height, he wouldn't even fit properly in Sasori's puppet collection—it would mess up the dimensions and make him harder to operate.
"Maybe if you grow past 160cm, I'll reconsider."
"..."
Yagura's emotions were complicated.
He wanted to laugh at Sasori's ridiculous criteria, but at the same time, that was a direct shot at his height.
Especially since it seemed like Sasori had grown taller over the past year.
...That stung.
But putting his grievances aside, Yagura returned to the real issue.
"So, if you're not after my body, I can pay you a proper fee?"
Sasori ignored the first half of the sentence. "If the price is right, sure."
He did need money.
"Good. Then you're hired. I need a bodyguard. Stick with me for this trip, and we'll negotiate payment later."
Mei finally spoke up, alarmed at how recklessly her young Mizukage was treating a dangerous rogue ninja. "Mizukage-sama, this is—"
"Relax~"
Hiring an S-rank rogue ninja as a personal bodyguard was definitely an outrageous move.
Yagura patted his chest reassuringly. "I once saved his life. Sasori isn't the type to betray a debt. You can ask him yourself."
Mei: "?"
Sasori: "Oi."
...Forget it.
With a deep sigh, Sasori turned away.
Yagura waved cheerfully. "See you tomorrow, Sasori~"
Sasori raised a hand, hesitated, then dropped it.
What kind of fool's errand had brought him to Kirigakure at this moment?
----------------
Pls Drop some Power Stones
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