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Sharpened poison needles gleamed under the scorching sun, their tips radiating a piercing, cold light.
Simultaneously, a shimmering silver-white glow enveloped Tsukimi Heshu's entire form.
His long hair streamed in the wind.
"Moon God's Protection!"
Flickers of electric light danced at his fingertips.
Hidden beneath the Hiruko puppet, Sasori watched the technique. It looked like a Lightning Release jutsu, yet⊠different.
Zzzzt⊠ZzzztâŠ
A harsh, electric buzzing filled Sasori's ears.
Countless poisoned needles and spikes, caught in the converging beams, began to attract one another. Tiny arcs of current snapped between them.
A sense of foreboding struck Sasori.
The interwoven beams coalesced into a powerful, serpentine current. It shot toward himâblindingly fast.
Sasori was no slouch. He leaped aside. The spot he vacated exploded into a deep, smoking crater.
His evasion had inadvertently brought him closer to Heshu.
A barrage of poison needles erupted from the puppet's mechanical maw. At the same time, the massive iron scorpion tail suspended behind him tore through the air with a violent whoosh, aiming to impale Heshu.
Then.
Something strange happened.
A peculiar light emanated from Heshu's hands.
Under this radiance, the poison needles froze in mid-air, inches from his face. They hung there for a moment before clattering harmlessly to the ground.
Not just the needles. Even the scorpion tail, controlled by Sasori, went limp and drooped.
In the distance, the Deva Path relayed the entire scene to Nagato's eyes.
Konan watched, slightly surprised.
She hadn't expected Hanataki to have so many endless, unconventional methods. This ability didn't feel like ordinary ninjutsu either. Remembering Hanataki's descriptions of his family, Konan's curiosity about his true origins grew stronger.
Heshu was utterly, completely satisfied with the Corona Mode Clone skill.
The ability he'd just used was Gauss Stop, a power of the Moon God Mode. It released a light that nullified incoming attacks.
Sasori had no time to react. In the next instant, his body moved against his will.
A tidal wave of shock surged within him.
By the time his mind caught up, he found himself inexplicably transportedâright in front of Heshu.
Staring at Hiruko's⊠distinctive face, Heshu grinned.
His fist, wrapped in brilliant silver light and roughly the size of a sandbag, slammed into the puppet.
CRACK!
The sound of splintering wood echoed in the air.
Sasori smashed into the ground.
Dust plumed.
Heshu couldn't help but imagine the awkward pose Sasori was probably stuck in inside Hiruko.
"What⊠was that?"
Sasori's mood darkened.
The Deva Path observed the scene. "A special type of instantaneous transfer technique. Sasori of the Red Sand was moved directly in front of Hanataki. The follow-up attack was too fast to evade."
Konan nodded, agreeing with the analysis.
But what kind of jutsu could relocate an opponent instantly? That was terrifying. In battle, if you could shift someone directly into the path of a lethal strike⊠it was practically one-sided slaughter.
Heshu had used Moon God Transfer, a beam of light with teleportation properties.
"It seems I underestimated you."
Sasori rallied, leaping out of the crater. As he spoke, a long scroll unfurled in the air.
White smoke billowed.
A wave of heat dispersed the fumes, revealing a new figure fully exposed to Heshu's gaze.
A man clad in the Kazekage's ceremonial robeânow a puppet. The incredibly unlucky Third Kazekage!
"The Third Kazekage?"
Heshu hadn't expected Sasori to take him so seriously, bringing out this puppet right away.
"This is the first time I'm using it," Sasori stated.
"?"
What?
Did Sasori want a 'thank you'?
Heshu's expression turned odd.
"Thousand Hands Manipulation!"
A summoning tag on the Third Kazekage puppet's arm glowed.
The next second.
Thousands of segmented iron arms erupted, shooting toward Heshu like metallic tentacles.
A faint purple mistâpoisonâbegan to seep into the air around the swarm of limbs.
"Static Net Box!"
Silver-white light condensed in Heshu's palm. A densely woven net of light formed, expanded, and grew in his hand.
The iron arms crashed into the luminous net.
The light-weave dented inward but showed no sign of breaking.
In the moment of impact, Heshu's figure vanished, reappearing directly above Sasori.
The glow around him had shifted, unnoticed, into a dazzling, brilliant gold.
A deafening peal of thunder rolled across the sky.
Sasori looked up. Dark clouds had gathered, shrouding the battlefield. Within the heavy layers, lightning churned and clashed.
For the perpetually sun-scorched Land of Wind, this was a rare spectacle.
Under the deep gray sky, blue-purple lightning writhed within the clouds, roaring like a primordial beast.
"Thunderbolt Smash!"
An invisible gas radiated from Heshu's hands.
The next instant, the chaotic lightning coalesced into a single, thick, catastrophic bolt. It descended directly onto Sasori's position.
Sasori's face turned darker than the Iron Sand his puppet wielded.
A black, oppressive wave of magnetized sand shot upward, commanded by Sasori to form a shield.
Against an attack of this power and scale, evasion was impossible. He had to tank it.
Iron Sand met Lightning.
The collision birthed a massive shockwave.
The Iron Sand dispersed like dust in the ensuing gale. The Third Kazekage puppet's body was cleaved cleanly in two.
A whirlwind of sand and debris rose, obscuring the view of the distant observers, Konan and the Deva Path.
The dust settled.
A person Konan and the Deva Path had never seen stood in the ruins.
Short, wine-red hair fluttered. A delicate, youthful face held no expression.
Sasori's gaze lowered. Scattered around him were the shattered components of both the Hiruko and Third Kazekage puppets.
"It seems Hanataki is far more formidable than we imagined," Konan murmured, a faint smile touching her lips.
"You're strong. ButâŠ"
Sasori looked at Heshu and slowly raised his arm. The joints of a normal human body moved on his form with the precision of mechanical parts.
"Wait!"
The light around Heshu instantly dissipated.
"You turned⊠yourself into a puppet?"
Heshu's face was a mask of genuine shock.
"What? Are you going to criticize me nowâŠ" Sasori already guessed the other's next words. Madman. Lost his humanity. The usual drivel.
"That is a genius idea!"
The shock on Heshu's face melted away, replaced by profound admiration.
"?"
Now it was Sasori's turn to be bewildered. "You⊠what did you say?"
"Ahem!" Heshu felt not a shred of shame for potentially misleading a⊠creatively inclined individual. He spoke with fervent praise. "Transforming your own body into a puppet⊠that's the very essence of Eternal Art!"
"Art is that which endures. Art is eternal beauty! To make your body a puppet is to achieve eternal art!"
A fanatic's gleam shone in Heshu's eyes.
Ding! Affection for character Sasori of the Red Sand has reached 60!
"You⊠understand art."
Sasori was stunned. After all these years, he had finally met someone who resonated on the same frequency.
"What a shame you won't join our organization. Otherwise, I'd insist we delve into the philosophy of eternal art together!" Heshu's face showed clear disappointment. He gazed at Sasori's body with a complex mix of reluctance, appreciation, and awe.
"I'll join."
Sasori said it suddenly.
"Huh?"
"What did you say?" Heshu looked up, feigning surprise. "You'll join us? We can discuss art together?"
Unbridled delight flashed across his features.
Ding! Affection for character Sasori of the Red Sand has reached 65!
Watching Sasori accept the Akatsuki cloak, Konan felt a distinct sense of⊠peculiarity.
On the road back to the Rain Village.
Konan and the Deva Path walked ahead.
Heshu and Sasori followed behind.
"Humanity is imprisoned within the confines of temporal reality. Bound by limitations, oppressed by nature, swayed by primal impulses and desiresâŠ"
Ding! Affection for character Sasori of the Red Sand has reached 70!
"But when one elevates oneself to the concept of eternity, when universal laws become self-aware consciousness, when the reality of the world is stripped away⊠I become eternity. Eternity becomes me. Thus, art achieves immortality."
Ding! Affection for character Sasori of the Red Sand has reached 75!
By the time they reached the Rain Village, after a journey filled with such exchanges, the affection score had soared to 80!
Heshu nodded, satisfied.
He loved talking with artistic types! A conversation like that purified the soul with knowledge and philosophy!
He glanced at Sasori, whose eyes practically glowed beside him. Sasori's purification level was undoubtedly even higher.
"Your reasoning is sound. It has inspired a new idea within me!" Sasori looked at Heshu with the deep camaraderie of a kindred spirit. Intelligent individuals like them were a rarity in this world.
âŠ
Konohagakure.
Morning light streamed in.
Heshu stood by the window, adjusting his belt. In the mirror's reflection, he could see the scene of domestic tranquility in the living room.
Inside.
HanzĆ cradled little Naruto, feeding him a bottle.
Hiruzen Sarutobi watched with grandfatherly affection.
Wait.
No.
He was staring at HanzĆ's chest.
"Heshu! No need to rush! The graduation ceremony doesn't start for another hour!" Hiruzen called out, his gaze snapping back to HanzĆ the instant the words left his mouth.
His wife had passed not long ago, but⊠out with the old, in with the new. Perhaps Miss Rishihui was heaven-sent to comfort him!
Hiruzen's gaze toward HanzĆ grew even more tender.
Heshu stood in the doorway, watching the utterly smitten Hokage for a long moment. He finally spoke, his voice slow.
"Hokage-sama, there are thirty minutes left. But you need to be there thirty minutes early to give your speech. Which means⊠you're already late."
Hiruzen jolted, remembering the schedule.
His face paled.
He shot out the door.
Appreciating beauty was important, but preaching the Will of Fire was paramount!
HanzĆ, who had endured Hiruzen's stares, spoke up once he was gone. "Before coming to Konoha, you didn't tell me the Third Hokage was⊠like that."
"Like what?" Heshu suppressed a laugh.
HanzĆ remembered those eyeballs practically glued to her and felt a wave of disgust.
"âŠ"
Heshu's figure vanished.
Konoha Ninja Academy.
The tardy Hiruzen found a secluded corner, straightened his robes and hat, then strode forthrightly onto the school's podium.
The sight of the Hokage hushed the restless crowd on the playground into a respectful silence.
Heshu's figure appeared beside the podium. He was here in his capacity as the Hokage's personal guard.
Below were the lucky children who had missed the worst of the Great War.
Among them, Heshu spotted Uchiha Itachi.
Right.
The early-graduate Uchiha Itachi.
Among the twelve- and thirteen-year-olds, Itachi looked especially small. His mother, Uchiha Mikoto, stood beside him. She caught Heshu's eye and offered him a gentle, knowing smile.
After a lengthy, impassioned speech, Hiruzen descended and returned to his office.
The crowd dispersed.
Heshu, naturally, followed.
"Heshu."
Hiruzen stood by the window in the Hokage's office. Warm sunlight streamed through the glass.
"How would you like to become a Jonin-sensei?"
Heshu had anticipated this. He showed no surprise.
"Guiding the next generation of the village is a sign of your trust in me, Hokage-sama. I will not fail your expectations." Heshu's eyes held a determined glint.
Hiruzen smiled, satisfied.
Soon.
A knock sounded.
Three young figures entered the office.
"Hokage-sama," the three children greeted respectfully.
These must be his genin team.
Heshu's gaze swept over them. An UchihaâItachi. A girl from the HyĆ«ga clan. The remaining boy was likely a civilian-born shinobi.
The composition's purpose was transparent. The Uchiha clan head's son. A Hyƫga main family daughter. A civilian. All laid out to help Heshu build connections with three key demographics.
While Heshu had a teacher-student bond with Hizashi, in Hiruzen's mind, Hizashi was merely a branch family member. Ties to the main family were more valuable.
"From today onward, Jonin Tsukimi Heshu will be the supervising sensei of your Third Team!" Hiruzen announced solemnly.
Three pairs of young eyes instantly shifted to Heshu.
Two of themânot Itachi'sâshone with a bright, naive admiration. The unblemished beauty of childish ignorance.
"Ahem." Heshu gave them a nod. "I'm Tsukimi Heshu. Let's do our best together."
"Yes, sensei!"
Heshu led the trio out of the office.
Watching their retreating backs, Hiruzen wore a benevolent smile.
By a small river in Konoha.
Heshu leaned against the railing. "Let's do introductions. Helps us get to know each other."
Uchiha Itachi glanced at his two teammates, then at Heshu. He spoke first. "I am Uchiha Itachi. I like my little brother. I dislike spicy food." He finished and looked at the girl beside him.
"That's it?" The Hyƫga girl looked stunned. Seeing Itachi nod, her lips twitched. She spoke frankly. "I'm Hyƫga Tenri. I'm eleven. I like sweets and barbecue. The person I hate most is my little brother."
Well.
Their introductions were⊠oppositional. One loved his brother. The other hated hers.
The last boy fidgeted, twisting his hands. Being teamed with heirs from the Uchiha and Hyƫga clans was clearly intimidating him.
"I⊠I'm Akiaoi Shinya. Twelve. I like⊠um⊠I likeâŠ" He stole a glance at Heshu. Truth was, Tsukimi-sensei was his idol. But someone as weak and insecure as him didn't deserve to say that aloud. "âŠI hate being bullied."
"What kind of weird intro is that?" Hyƫga Tenri frowned at Akiaoi Shinya.
Shinya's hands clenched tighter.
"Nice weather. Let's go get barbecue."
Heshu cut off Tenri. He stepped behind the three, placing one hand on Shinya's shoulder, the other on Itachi's.
"Barbecue! Yes! Awesome!" Tenri immediately hopped with excitement. She loved barbecue! Hadn't she just said that in her intro? Maybe Tsukimi-sensei suggested it just for her! She looked at Heshu with sparkling eyes.
"But⊠HeâTsukimi-sensei," Itachi looked up, confused. "Aren't we supposed to do the bell test first? Shisui told me about the rules."
"Ha ha haâŠ" Heshu gave a friendly laugh, looking at Itachi with something akin to pity. "We don't need a bell test."
"Why?" Itachi asked, eyes wide with curiosity.
"Because you'd have zero chance of getting them."
Besides, teamwork could be cultivated slowly through actual missions.
Heshu smiled.
"âŠ"
Itachi blinked.
"âŠ"
Tenri felt a little wounded.
"âŠ"
Shinya thought his new sensei was incredibly cool.
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