Metropolis burned with chaos.
Shattered glass covered the streets while pieces of destroyed buildings littered the battlefield. Cars had been thrown aside like toys, and the air still hummed with the aftermath of superhuman power.
Floating above the destruction was Superman.
His red cape moved slowly in the wind as his sharp eyes scanned the area.
Somewhere nearby, hidden among the debris, Sasori of the Red Sand watched carefully.
Inside his puppet shell—the familiar scorpion-like body that hid his true form—Sasori remained completely still.
Thin chakra threads extended from his fingers like invisible strings.
At the ends of those threads…
Puppets.
Ten of them.
Each one built with incredible craftsmanship and reinforced with rare materials Sasori had obtained in this world. Some were forged using strange alloys and mystical metals Orochimaru had helped identify.
And embedded into several of them…
Kryptonite.
A small gift from their employer.
Far away, Lex Luthor watched the battlefield from a safe distance, satisfied that his hired weapon was finally engaging the alien.
Sasori had accepted the contract easily.
A powerful enemy.
A powerful reward.
And more importantly…
A chance to study a living god.
Superman moved.
In an instant he shot forward, his fist smashing straight through one of Sasori's puppets.
The wooden body exploded into splinters.
Sasori didn't react.
The puppet had served its purpose.
Another puppet lunged forward from the side, launching hidden blades.
Superman dodged them effortlessly and blasted the puppet apart with heat vision.
Two gone.
Sasori narrowed his eyes.
"Faster than expected."
His fingers twitched.
Three more puppets attacked simultaneously.
One from above.
Two from the sides.
Their weapons glowed faintly green.
The moment Superman noticed the glow, his expression changed slightly.
"Kryptonite."
He dodged backward immediately.
The puppets pursued him relentlessly, their blades slicing through the air.
Superman destroyed another with a punch that shattered the puppet like glass.
But even he slowed slightly when the kryptonite blades got too close.
Sasori felt a bead of sweat form on his forehead inside the puppet shell.
This opponent is dangerous.
If Superman reached his real body…
One punch would end the fight instantly.
But Sasori wasn't a front-line fighter.
He was a puppet master.
Sacrificing puppets meant nothing to him.
More puppets lunged forward, surrounding the Kryptonian from every direction.
Superman punched one apart.
Another exploded from heat vision.
But the puppets kept coming.
Their blades flashing green.
Their movements precise.
Superman suddenly broke through the formation and flew directly toward Sasori's outer shell.
Fast.
Too fast.
Sasori barely reacted in time.
Two puppets threw themselves in front of the incoming punch.
Superman's strike shattered both of them instantly.
But it slowed him just enough.
Sasori's scorpion tail shot forward.
The tail ended in a blade.
And embedded into that blade…
A jagged shard of kryptonite.
The blade stabbed forward.
Superman tried to twist away.
But he was just a fraction too slow.
The scorpion tail plunged into his chest.
The kryptonite pierced his skin.
Superman's eyes widened.
Then his body collapsed to one knee.
His breathing immediately became ragged.
The green radiation drained his strength rapidly.
Sasori stared at him calmly from inside the puppet shell.
"Even gods bleed."
The scorpion tail retracted slowly.
Superman tried to stand but staggered.
The kryptonite had weakened him far more than expected.
Sasori stepped forward.
His fingers moved again.
The remaining puppets formed a circle around the fallen hero.
Blades ready.
One final strike would end the fight.
Sasori prepared to deliver the killing blow.
But suddenly—
A golden blur crashed into one of his puppets, destroying it instantly.
Wonder Woman landed between Sasori and Superman.
Her sword was already drawn.
Behind her, Batman dropped from the sky using his grappling line.
Both heroes stood protectively in front of the weakened Kryptonian.
Sasori immediately jumped backward.
His puppets repositioned themselves defensively.
Three opponents now.
And two of them were extremely dangerous.
Batman's eyes locked onto the red cloud cloak.
"Akatsuki."
Sasori didn't respond.
Wonder Woman glanced at the collapsed Superman.
"Kryptonite."
Her voice hardened.
"You're working with Luthor."
Sasori tilted his head slightly.
"My client is irrelevant."
Batman stepped forward slowly.
"What is the Akatsuki?"
Sasori remained silent.
Batman continued speaking.
"How many of you are there?"
Still silence.
Then Sasori sighed slightly.
"You ask too many questions."
His fingers moved.
All ten puppets activated simultaneously.
Blades extended.
Hidden weapons emerged.
"Perhaps you'd prefer to ask them after you're dead."
The puppets lunged forward.
The battle exploded instantly.
Wonder Woman shattered one puppet with a single strike of her sword.
Batman dodged between two others, disabling their joints with precise attacks.
Superman struggled to stand behind them, the kryptonite still weakening him.
But Sasori's puppets were far stronger than before.
The mystical metals he had integrated into their construction made them far more durable.
Batman smashed one into the ground with a grappling maneuver.
It stood back up seconds later.
Wonder Woman cut another in half.
Two more replaced it immediately.
The battlefield turned into a storm of moving blades and flying debris.
Then suddenly—
The ground behind Sasori split open.
A pale figure rose silently from the earth.
A White Zetsu clone.
"Sasori."
Sasori didn't turn his head.
"What is it?"
"The leader orders your retreat."
Sasori paused.
Retreat?
That was unexpected.
The fight was still manageable.
But orders from the leader were absolute.
He jumped backward, preparing to disengage.
But before leaving, Sasori made one final move.
One of his puppets suddenly lunged toward Superman from behind.
A hidden blade shot forward—
Another shard of kryptonite.
Superman noticed too late.
The shard stabbed into his chest beside the previous wound.
Superman collapsed again, breathing heavily.
Wonder Woman immediately turned to defend him.
But by the time she looked back—
Sasori was gone.
His puppet shell vanished in a cloud of smoke.
Reverse summoning.
The remaining puppets fell lifelessly to the ground.
Batman stared at the battlefield silently.
Superman struggled to breathe as the kryptonite radiation weakened him further.
Wonder Woman quickly removed the glowing shards from his chest.
Far away, inside the hidden Akatsuki base—
Sasori reappeared in a swirl of smoke.
Alive.
But very aware of one thing.
This world's heroes…
Were far stronger than most shinobi he had ever fought.