Naruto:Suna Shinobi

"You're right," Hiriito admitted, "but this was already his limit. Of course, he also wants to defeat Konoha and keep the village from being swallowed by the desert."

Sasori didn't look convinced.

"Then who is to blame for the deaths in the village?"

He didn't say it outright, but Hiriito knew what he meant.

Who was to blame for his parents' deaths?

Officially, Elder Chiyo had hidden the truth from Sasori, telling him only that his parents had gone on a long mission and wouldn't be back for a long time.

But Sasori was too smart—he had figured it out on his own.

Hiriito hesitated. He had to choose his words carefully.

Finally, he settled on something vague but true:

"Whoever killed someone is to blame. Whoever Konoha killed, Konoha is to blame."

"But the one who started the war was the Third Kazekage," Sasori countered.

"If he hadn't started the war, no one would have died."

Hiriito sighed internally.

Why is this kid so stubborn?

"No," Hiriito said firmly.

"It would've happened anyway. And even more people would've died."

Sasori tilted his head, waiting for an explanation.

"We are poor," Hiriito continued. "The Land of Wind is covered in deserts and wastelands. More than 70% of the country is sand, and 85% of the land can't be farmed.

But the Daimyō and the nobles take most of the resources and wealth for their luxurious lives. They even cut funding to the village.

Sunagakure gets the smallest budget of the Five Great Nations. Without funding, our village stagnates and weakens while the others advance.

And when we fall behind too much, we won't just be weak—we'll be destroyed.

Without Sunagakure, the Land of Wind itself would collapse."

Sasori's expression darkened.

Hiriito pressed on:

"If we do nothing, Sunagakure will shrink into a minor village, forced to submit to stronger nations.

When that happens, ten times more people will die than what you've seen.

That's why the Third Kazekage had to lead us into battle.

To take more resources. More land. More power.

To ensure our survival."

Sasori was silent for a moment. Then he asked:

"Then why not just take back the resources from the Daimyō and nobles?"

Hiriito's lips curled into a small smirk.

"Because the Daimyō and nobles of every country protect each other," he explained.

"If one village overthrows its Daimyō, the others will panic.

They'll order their own ninja villages to crush us before the revolution spreads.

That means we'd be fighting not just Konoha, but the entire world.

But if we steal from the Land of Fire, we only have to fight Konoha."

Sasori was silent again.

This was a completely new perspective—one he had never considered before.

After a few moments, Sasori pushed his thoughts aside.

"Fine," he said flatly. "We'll talk about this later.

Right now, I want to fight you."

Hiriito raised an eyebrow.

"The puppet you made with a person inside is different from our village's usual style. I want to test its strength."

Hiriito met his gaze—serious, unwavering.

"Fine," he said.

"But after the fight, think about what I told you. If you have questions, ask me."

Hiriito wasn't just humoring him.

He needed to steer Sasori's thoughts in the right direction—to stop him from going down that dark path.

After all…

He didn't want to end up as one of Sasori's puppets.

The two stepped onto the Puppet Corps training ground and released their puppets.

Hiriito sent out chakra threads, attaching them to Fatty—his armored puppet, built for direct combat.

With one hand, he controlled Fatty.

With the other, he connected chakra threads through the armor's gloves and manipulated Little Boy—his agile, offensive puppet.

The trick was splitting his focus.

Most puppeteers could only control one or two at a time.

But Sasori, years later, would control hundreds.

For now, Hiriito focused on refining his technique—using one hand to move Fatty, while his fingers secretly controlled Little Boy.

Sasori connected his own chakra threads, summoning two puppets:

Black Ant – His new six-armed battle puppet, a major upgrade from his old termite model.

Salamander – His defensive puppet, meant to block attacks.

Sasori controlled Salamander with one hand and Black Ant with the other, just like Hiriito.

"Black Secret Technique: Hand Dance."

Sasori activated Black Ant, sending its six arms shooting forward, each tipped with metal spear-like blades.

"Black Secret Technique: Rapid Performance."

Hiriito countered with Little Boy, whose clawed hands and spinning saw blades slashed against Black Ant's six arms.

Little Boy was faster.

But Black Ant had more arms and hidden mechanisms.

The two clashed repeatedly, neither gaining an advantage.

Then Sasori changed tactics.

He focused on cutting Hiriito's chakra threads—targeting the puppet's control points instead of just attacking directly.

Hiriito's eyebrows lifted slightly.

Sasori had figured it out fast.

This wasn't just a fight—it was a test of puppeteering skill.

As Hiriito defended, his mind flashed forward.

"Black Ant. Salamander."

In the future, Sasori would expand his arsenal.

He would create Crow, a third battle puppet, and further modify them.

Years later, Kankuro would inherit Black Ant and Salamander, proving how effective Sasori's designs were.

Even now, Hiriito could see it—Black Ant had the potential to become a high-level B-rank puppet.

Still, Sasori's puppetry was better.

Even though Hiriito had improved drastically, Sasori's natural talent and focus gave him the edge.

End of the Chapter.

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