After confirming that it wasn't a mirage, Seisuke quickened his pace. In the desert, an oasis meant hope and the gathering of life.
As long as there were no Sunagakure ninjas around, everything would be fine.
He crossed the sand dunes and stepped into the oasis. Hiding under a populus euphratica tree, he felt the coolness. He plopped down on the ground, took a deep breath, and said, "I'm alive! I really don't know how those Sunagakure people survive here."
If he had to live in the desert for years, he would surely die.
He wasn't Bear Grylls or Ed Stafford, lacking their abnormal wilderness survival skills.
After resting for a while, he patted his butt and decided to look for water. Although he had brought enough water, it was better to be prepared.
He walked deeper into the oasis. As he walked, he sensed something was wrong. Besides the sounds of some animals, there were no other noises.
Logically, an oasis was an extremely precious resource in the desert, and the people of the Wind Country couldn't possibly not set up camps here. But there wasn't a single person in sight, nor any signs of Sunagakure's garrison.
A rusty smell wafted in the air.
"This is... the smell of blood!"
The smell of human blood came through the air. Alarm bells rang in his mind. He held his breath and hid behind a tree.
As he got closer, beside a water pond ahead, there was a mountain of corpses. The sand was dyed red with blood, and all these corpses were of Sunagakure ninjas.
And by the water pond, a handsome young man with red hair was sitting there, carefully processing a corpse, as if transforming it into what he wanted.
The scene was bloody and horrifying, yet the young man's expression remained unchanged. His eyes were indifferent but focused, as if he was earnestly doing his job.
Seeing this, Seisuke's breathing faltered for a moment. The red - haired young man's fingers twitched, and dozens of kunai suddenly floated up and shot towards Seisuke's direction.
Even though he was hiding behind a tree, these kunai seemed to have eyes, attacking him relentlessly.
The red - haired young man stood up, frowned, and with a flick of the chakra threads on his fingers, the kunai flew back. There was no blood on them, but they were extremely hot.
"What the... "
"Damn it, I actually ran into this troublesome guy!"
Seisuke felt a headache coming on. Without hesitation, he rushed out of the oasis.
This guy was definitely not someone he could handle, so he had to run.
"Seems like a ninja. I wonder what it would be like to turn you into a puppet," the red - haired young man said with a smile, uttering terrifying words with the most innocent expression.
He put away the unfinished puppet on the ground and then gave chase.
"You can't escape!"
The red - haired young man chased after him, running even faster than Seisuke. He took out a scroll, and with a bang, a puppet appeared in his hand.
Click! Click! Click!
The puppet's body flew forward, and its mouth spat out countless senbon, piercing through Seisuke's body. However, this didn't stop his steps. The red - haired young man was taken aback. Seeing the flames on Seisuke's body filling the wounds, he became even more interested.
"You're very interesting. Turning you into a puppet would surely be a great work. Become my eternal art piece."
"Are you crazy!"
Seisuke cursed. Realizing he couldn't escape, he turned around, raised his hand, and shouted, "Flame Wall!"
A wall of fire rose up, separating the two. The red - haired young man put away the puppet in his hand and took out another one.
If there were any Sunagakure ninjas present, they would surely recognize the true identity of this puppet. It was the long - missing Third Kazekage!
The disappearance of the Third Kazekage led to a large - scale search by Sunagakure, and the news leaked. Kumogakure took advantage of the situation, and the Third Shinobi World War broke out.
The red - haired young man was Sasori of the Red Sand, a senior elder of Sunagakure and the grandson of Chiyo - baasan. He assassinated the Third Kazekage and turned him into a puppet.
It could even be said that the Third Shinobi World War was triggered because of this guy.
Since White Fang of Konoha died in a mission, unable to take revenge, Sasori transferred his hatred to the Third Kazekage, believing that it was the Third Kazekage who sent his parents to the battlefield, resulting in their deaths. So he assassinated the Third Kazekage and turned him into a human puppet with the Magnet Release kekkei genkai.
Sasori murmured softly, "Hiruko isn't enough to deal with this kind of battle. However, this is my most satisfying work at the moment. Let me test its power."
Controlling the Third Kazekage's hands to form seals, he summoned a wave of iron sand out of thin air. In an instant, it submerged the flames. Seisuke, who was already fleeing, heard the commotion behind him and couldn't help but curse. "Summoning Technique!"
Bang!
A huge black snake appeared in the desert. Standing on the black snake's head, Seisuke said, "Black Snake, I'm counting on you! This time it's the Third Kazekage and the guy who killed him."
"What do you mean? The Third Kazekage and the one who killed him? Is the Third Kazekage dead or not?"
The black snake asked.
"He was made into a human puppet. So it's like facing two kage - level powerhouses. How about it? Isn't this level of battle exciting enough?"
He remembered that the black snake had said not to bother it with battles that weren't powerful enough. Well, now this was powerful enough, right?
"Just what I want."
A cold glint appeared in the black snake's eyes. Facing the overwhelming iron sand, it flicked its forked tongue, its body wriggling, and burst out with an astonishing speed that didn't match its huge body. It charged straight into the iron sand wave. Its thick snake tail swung down towards Sasori and the Third Kazekage puppet below.
"Iron Sand: Iron Sand Wall!"
The iron sand formed a wall much harder than an earth flow wall. The black snake's tail lashed against it, making a crisp sound. The iron sand wall exploded under the attack.
Black iron sand scattered everywhere.
"It's really tough," the black snake said, shaking its tail. "Seems like it wasn't a waste of time. After this is done, I want to eat this kid."
"Can you capture him alive? He still has some use."
"Forget it then. But this kid isn't easy to deal with."
The iron sand was very troublesome to deal with. Even for it, it wasn't convenient.
Sasori looked at the huge black snake and said, "A summoned beast? It doesn't matter. Iron Sand Rain!"
The iron sand turned into countless thin needles and shot towards the black snake at high speed, covering a wide range.
The black snake's body wriggled regularly, and its scales locked tightly. The iron sand needles hit its body, making a tinkling sound.
Its head swayed constantly to avoid its eyes being hit. And Seisuke on its head... had already been turned into a sieve.
"Damn it! If it weren't for my special constitution, I'd be dead. Are you really my summoned beast?"
The black snake snorted. "If you die, it means your strength isn't enough, and you're not worthy to be my contractor. Death is just death."
Is it too late to change the summoned beast now?