Hey guys, here is the new chapter hope you will liked and read thru everything.
I feel like I'm writing absolute fire lately! These last few chapters have been getting an insane amount of support from you guys, and I read every single comment and try to reply to them all. Enjoy your weekend!
If we hit 300, I'll post another one tomorrow.
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The sun of a new day filtered faintly through the ventilation ducts of Sasori's underground workshop, illuminating the dust motes dancing in the air, air thick with mineral oil, carved wood, and the lingering metallic scent of medicine.
After a necessary rest that allowed the three shinobi to recover their energy reserves and clear the mental fatigue of the previous night, the atmosphere felt renewed.
The suffocating pressure of uncertainty was gone, replaced by an electric sense of anticipation. It was the moment of truth: to see if the crystal bridge and the biological catalyst were capable of sustaining a genius's consciousness without shattering it.
Daigo, Pakura, and Sasori stood once more before their creation. Daigo positioned himself beside Sasori, who was already seated in his immersion chair a metallic structure surrounded by protective seals he had designed himself during the night.
Daigo's hands began to glow with the soft emerald hue of his medical chakra, interlaced with the pink sparks of his crystal nature.
"I'm ready, Sasori. I've stabilized the Yamanaka's energy levels and reinforced the crystal filaments with a protective layer of medical chakra. I'll keep your nervous system in a constant safety net; if I detect that the mental load is too heavy for your original brain or if the catalyst shows signs of violent rejection, I'll cut the connection immediately. You can begin whenever you're ready."
Sasori nodded with imperturbable calm, closing his eyes to enter a state of deep meditation. His fingers relaxed on the armrests, and his breathing became slow and rhythmic.
"Initiating synchronization sequence. Don't force the connection; let the Shōton of the filaments guide the flow of my mind naturally. My consciousness shouldn't enter as an intruder, but as a current flowing through a pre-built channel. If this works, we will have redefined what it means to be a puppeteer and surpassed the limitations of the human body."
The process began in deathly silence.
Pakura watched with her arms crossed, holding her breath as she saw Sasori's blue chakra begin to flow through the crystal cables connecting him to the central system.
Daigo start sweated slightly, focused on the delicate task of balancing the energies so the Konoha ninja wouldn't suffer a collapse.
Suddenly, Sasori's original body tensed for a second, his pupils dilated, and then he slumped forward into a total trance.
Simultaneously, the Yamanaka catalyst in the tank emitted an intense pink glow that briefly lit up the workshop. The biological "antenna" was functioning at maximum capacity, translating Sasori's impulses to the Sarutobi.
Then, the miracle occurred that would change the course of shinobi history.
On the operating table, the lifeless body of Hiruzen Sarutobi gave a violent spasm. The fingers a perfect blend of reinforced wood and preserved skin clenched with a force that made the metal table creak.
Slowly, under the stunned gaze of Pakura and Daigo, the Third Hokage sat up. The movement was fluid and elegant, devoid of the mechanical rigidity that characterizes conventional thread puppets.
Hiruzen sat on the edge of the table and opened his eyes, revealing a gaze that did not belong to a deceased old man, but to the cold, analytical mind of Sasori.
The Avatar looked at its own hands, opening and closing them with fascination. It wasn't just the movement; Sasori could feel the texture of the air on the Hokage's skin, the cold of the metal table, and the weight of the muscles.
"It feels... strange. It's as if the world has become much sharper. I can feel the chakra circulating through these channels like rivers of fire. My center of gravity is different higher and more potent. It is perfect and disturbing at the same time. It's like being born again in the body of an enemy and inheriting his strength."
The voice that came out of Hiruzen's mouth was deep the original voice of the Third Hokage but the cadence, the pauses, and the tone were unmistakably Sasori's. It was a cognitive dissonance that made Pakura take a step back.
"It's incredible... if I didn't know you were sitting in that chair across the room, I'd swear the Third Hokage had come back to life. Even your way of speaking, that calm of yours, feels natural in this body. It's scary, Sasori."
Daigo, without removing his hands from the medical chakra monitor and maintaining a constant flow to the Yamanaka to prevent its death, let out a long sigh of relief. His eyes shone with pride.
"We did it. What we've just created is something no one in shinobi history has ever attempted. You're a genius, Sasori, and the sacrifice of this catalyst has been worth it. The signal is pure; there's no lag in movement or spiritual interference."
Sasori, inhabiting Hiruzen's body, stood up. It was a swift, almost predatory movement.
He began to walk around the workshop, testing his balance. He leaped toward one of the ceiling beams and landed soundlessly, demonstrating perfect body coordination.
He threw a series of punches into the air, each with refined technique, and then grabbed a small scalpel from the table, spinning it between his fingers with millimetric precision.
He didn't test ninjutsu yet, as the risk of overload in the first trial was real, but the physical success was absolute.
It was, without a doubt, his greatest work of art.
After a few minutes of intense body testing, Sasori decided to return.
The connection was voluntarily severed.
Sasori woke in his original body, breathing heavily but with a satisfied smile he rarely showed. The Hiruzen Avatar, for its part, went limp on the table once more.
"The test has been a resounding success. Tomorrow I can begin practicing the hand signs. Konoha has no idea that their greatest hero is now my most powerful tool."
While the triumph was being celebrated in the secret workshop, hundreds of kilometers away, the political heart of Sunagakure beat with an unusual fury.
The Council of Elders' chamber was more crowded than ever. Oil torches hissed on the stone walls, casting giant shadows over the twelve members who made up the village's inner circle of power.
Chiyo presided over the table, her face lined with wrinkles that looked like cracks in the desert. To her right, Ebizu maintained a gelid expression.
But this time, the silence was broken by Ony the Elder, a counselor in charge of military logistics, who struck the table with his cane.
"This is unheard of! The Third Kazekage cannot simply resign through a scroll and leave us in this chaos!"
"The Kazekage has not resigned on a whim, Ony," Chiyo replied sharply. "His chakra has been sealed. A leader who cannot mold chakra is a leader who cannot protect these walls. Read the battle report once more if your memory fails you."
Sajin, a robust man representing the merchants and the village economy, stood up, adjusting his silk tunic.
"Let's talk about the candidates. Rasa is the logical choice. His mastery of Gold Dust ensures that our mining-based economy stays stable. He is a man of order, of laws. He knows how Suna's bureaucracy works."
"Order?" intervened Kankō, a veteran jōnin with scars from the previous war. "We are in the middle of the Third Great Ninja War. We don't need an administrator; we need a warrior who makes other villages tremble at the sound of his name. Rasa is strong, yes, but Daigo... Daigo has done what no one thought possible. He eliminated the Third Hokage. The young ninja see him as the future of the village, and his nickname, 'The Rose Crystal Demon,' is enough to make the other villages take us seriously."
"He's a child!" shouted Reiko, a conservative counselor in charge of clan traditions.
"Giving the Kazekage hat to a youth his age is an insult to the memory of Reto and Shamon. What does he know of diplomacy? What does he know of treaties with the Wind Daimyō?"
"He knows how to win a war we were losing, and besides, Daigo and the Daimyō have a deal made with the Third Kazekage's authorization," Ebizu countered, intervening for the first time.
"I've known s Daigo since he start his ninja career. His maturity isn't measured in years, but in the coldness of his decisions. Rasa is an excellent candidate, but Daigo is a miracle that arrived in Suna to lead."
The discussion dragged on for hours. Sajin argued that Rasa would bring financial stability, while Kankō insisted that Daigo's "Crystal Era" would lead Suna to absolute supremacy over the Leaf and the rest.
Reiko, meanwhile, feared that Daigo would be too difficult for the Council to control.
"Let's take a vote," Chiyo decreed, tired of the noise. "Let everyone write the name on the scroll. No more words."
One by one, the counselors deposited their votes. Chiyo opened them slowly. The silence was so dense you could hear the sand hitting the exterior windows.
"Six votes for Rasa. Six votes for Daigo."
The room erupted in murmurs. A technical tie. The village was fractured at its core. It was then that Ebizu, looking at Chiyo, threw out the final proposal.
"If politics have failed us, let us resort to the Law of the Desert. A duel of honor. Let the strength of their chakra decide who has the right to wear the hat. Let Rasa and Daigo face each other before the eyes of the entire village."
The counselors looked at one another. Sajin nodded slowly, seeing this as a way for the winner to have total legitimacy. Reiko also accepted, convinced that Rasa's experience would prevail over Daigo's youth.
Two days later, at the Kanzaki central camp, the atmosphere was one of tense calm.
Daigo, Pakura, and Sasori had just left the workshop when a messenger squad intercepted them.
"Daigo-sama, Sasori-sama, Pakura-sama. The Third Kazekage has called an emergency meeting in his temporary office. It is mandatory for all jōnin-rank ninja and above present at the front."
The three nodded, wondering what this was all about, but they weren't about to deny such an order. They walked toward the Kazekage's office.
Entering the office, Daigo felt the weight of the gazes. Rasa was already there, standing with the other ninjas, arms crossed and an expression Daigo couldn't decipher.
In the center, sitting in a chair, the Third Kazekage looked pale. His aura, usually imposing, felt fragmented.
"Come closer," the Kazekage ordered.
"I have received the resolution from the Sunagakure Council. As you know, my capacity to lead as a shinobi has ended. The village needs a new guide, and the Council has decided that the succession will be contested between the two men who have carried this war on their shoulders."
The Kazekage looked first at Rasa and then at Daigo.
"Rasa, you represent the stability and strength of our roots. Daigo, you represent the evolution and indomable power of our future. The Council has tied in its votes; therefore, a combat for the title of Fourth Kazekage has been decreed."
Daigo felt a shiver run through his body at those words. He looked at Rasa, his friend and rival, and saw a cold resolution in his eyes.
Rasa didn't hate him, but he wanted that position with all his soul. And Rasa wasn't the only one. Daigo wanted it too; it had been his goal since he arrived in this world.
"You will return to Sunagakure immediately," the Third Kazekage continued.
"You have exactly one week from today. Seven days to rest, to meditate, and to train at one hundred percent of your capabilities. I want no excuses of fatigue or wounds. In one week, in the Great Desert in front of the village, you will fight for the right to lead this nation. The winner will be named Kazekage immediately."
"Understood, Kazekage-sama," Rasa replied with a firm voice.
Daigo remained silent for a second, processing everything, before looking at Sasori and Pakura, both of whom nodded at his gaze.
"Understood," Daigo finally said. "I'll be there."
"You may leave. Prepare yourselves well, because all of Sunagakure will be watching that fight," the wounded leader concluded.
Leaving the tent, Rasa passed by Daigo's side without a word, though his shoulder brushed his friend's in a gesture of silent defiance.
The camaraderie they had forged in missions seemed to have evaporated under the shadow of the throne.
Pakura approached Daigo with a look of genuine concern.
"Daigo... Rasa isn't going to hold back. He has studied Gold Dust for years specifically to surpass the Third Kazekage and to become the next Kazekage himself."
"I know, Pakura," Daigo replied, looking toward the sky. "But I'm not going to hold back either. This isn't just about a title. It's about the direction Suna will take. If I win, I will take Sunagakure to places no one ever imagined."
Sasori stepped forward with his usual analytical coldness.
"Then, who do you think would win? You or him?" Sasori asked.
"The fight would be a bit complicated because of the desert," Daigo said, starting to walk.
"But would you lose?" Pakura asked.
"Nah, I'd win," Daigo said with a smile of pure confidence.
Pakura and Sasori could only shake their heads and keep walking.
"You have one week," Sasori added.
"My Hiruzen Avatar has access to a Kage's muscle memory. You will train with me every night. I will attack you with everything Hiruzen had, so that when you face Rasa, his Gold Dust will seem like child's play.
Daigo, if you're going to be the Kazekage, you have to stop thinking like a ninja and start thinking like a force of that caliber."
Daigo nodded, his blood burning at the thought of the fight in a week and the chance to train against the new puppet of Hiruzen Sarutobi, the Third Hokage of the Leaf.
He had never imagined all this would be possible, but he had trained since he could think for a reason.
It felt good to see that his hard work and pain were finally bearing fruit.
End of Chapter