"Seeing me scares you that much?"
"Shouldn't."
"You're supposed to be Sunagakure's genius, after all."
"If the Third had lived long enough, there's a very good chance the Fourth Kazekage seat would've gone to you."
Sasori's voice came out cold.
"I have zero interest in the Kazekage position."
"So you killed the Third just because you didn't want to become Kazekage?"
Sasori's eyes widened.
"You know I killed the Third? How the hell do you know that?"
Rasa shrugged.
"How I know isn't something you need to worry about."
"Then what the fuck do you want right now? Kill me to avenge the Third? You're going to use that old hag while murdering her only grandson?"
Rasa raised an eyebrow. He hadn't expected Sasori to say something like that.
"You afraid of dying?"
"And why do you think you're not my match?"
"You killed the Third. Why would you be scared of another Magnet Release user like me?"
Sasori went quiet for a long moment.
Finally he spoke again.
"What exactly do you want, Rasa?"
"To kill me?"
"Or drag me back to the village for judgment?"
Rasa shook his head.
"No. I'm just buying time."
"For what?"
"To build a cage you can't escape from."
The second the words left his mouth, the sand around them surged.
Under Magnet Release the grains fused tighter and tighter until they became as solid as metal blocks.
Front, back, left, right, and below—every direction except straight up was sealed.
Golden chains formed from magnetized sand slithered toward Sasori.
The moment they touched him—
"Lightning Blade!"
Lightning exploded.
Even with his modified body, Sasori still had flesh and blood parts.
The gold sand crushed in from all sides. His limbs were bound by the chains.
He had nowhere to dodge.
The massive electric current slammed into him and locked every muscle.
"Pfft!"
Sasori felt something force its way into his flesh core.
A metal sphere entered his body and immediately sprouted barbs.
If he tried to rip it out, it would tear his flesh apart.
Rasa's voice echoed again.
"I put a powerful poison inside it. If you try to remove it, it will explode and contaminate all your flesh until you die. I can also detonate it with a single thought."
Sasori's heart sank.
"What the hell do you actually want, Rasa?"
"Is this fun for you?"
Rasa's tone stayed calm.
"I learned Magnet Release from the Third. You killed him and dragged Sunagakure into that mess. If I did nothing to you, I'd be letting both the Third and the village down."
"But you're still Elder Chiyo's only grandson. Killing you outright wouldn't sit right with her."
"You're a puppeteer. You love controlling puppets."
"So I'm going to control you. Turn you into my puppet. That way you can't hurt the village again, and you can actually do something useful to atone for what you did."
"Chiyo will be able to accept that."
"If you can't accept it, then just kill yourself. That's your choice. But then you'll never get to create the eternal art you've been chasing all this time. Are you really willing to give that up, genius puppeteer?"
Rasa hadn't expected to get this lucky just by checking on the Sun Disk's progress.
Capturing Sasori was a massive bonus.
He had no intention of dragging Sasori back to the village, though. That was mostly just talk to keep him compliant.
The real reason was simple.
He wanted Sasori as a spy inside the Akatsuki.
An organization that wasn't a hidden village, yet might already be stronger than most of them. It was gathering some of the strongest shinobi alive.
Right now it didn't have many members yet. But with Obito Uchiha, the Rinnegan, Black Zetsu, and White Zetsu involved, the Akatsuki's core strength was already terrifying.
The rest—Kakuzu, Hidan, Kisame, Itachi, Deidara—could all be replaced.
Rasa needed someone on the inside to keep an eye on their movements and make sure they never became a threat to Sunagakure.
And maybe even use the organization for his own goals.
Sasori was the perfect choice.
The Akatsuki wouldn't pass up a talent like him.
"Oh, right. You came here because you were curious about the Sun Disk, didn't you?"
"If you ever do a good enough job to satisfy me, I might just show you the blueprints. I'll even tell you where they came from."
That got Sasori's attention immediately.
The fact that he was now controlled and had a bomb planted in his core suddenly felt less important.
Because to Sasori, the Sun Disk was also art.
He had seen it absorb that massive amount of solar energy. He wanted it badly.
"You're serious?"
Rasa felt the shift in Sasori's emotions and smiled inwardly.
"I, Rasa, Fourth Kazekage, never lie."
"Fine. I'll work for you. But I don't want the old hag to know I'm alive. I won't show myself to anyone in the village except you."
"Whatever you want."
Rasa shrugged.
"Then here's your first mission. Guard the area around the Sun Disk. Don't let any outside forces get close. Keep Elder Chiyo and the project safe."
"Also, give me a way to contact you. I'm sure you don't want me to keep dragging you out with violence every time I need something."
Sasori's expression darkened.
A moment later he pulled out a small puppet.
"Use this to find me. Once I get the message, I'll show up as fast as I can."
Rasa nodded.
A wave of gold sand wrapped around the small puppet.
"Flowing Sand Shift!"
Rasa's figure vanished instantly, as if he had never been there.
Sasori crawled out of the sand and stared deeply in the direction of the Sun Disk.