Naruto: I, the villain template, was hailed as a savior.

Chapter 145 The Destroyed Luo Sha, the Puppet Army (Seeking Monthly Tickets!!)

"call……"

Luo Sha's eyelids twitched slightly, and his consciousness gradually awoke from the long nightmare.

He didn't know where he was, and in the moment before he lost consciousness, only one thought remained in his mind.

—To live on, I don't want to die.

Since he is still conscious, does that mean he survived?

Luo Sha felt that he was in a closed space, lying on the bed with his eyes closed and facing the ceiling, receiving even light.

"Huff... puff..."

He subconsciously took a breath through his nose, but felt the air was extremely hot.

It was inhaled into the nasal cavity, traveled down the respiratory tract, and burned the lungs.

Luo Sha suddenly opened his eyes, which were filled with pain. The light that came into view almost stung his eyes, and he even felt dizzy and nauseous. He subconsciously raised his hand to shield his eyes from the intense light.

"Cough! Ouch! Cough cough!!"

He coughed violently, his face contorted, but his lungs hissed as if he would die at any moment.

But it was only when she raised her hand to her eyes that Luo Sha, who was originally confused and bewildered, saw the several transparent thin tubes in front of her and felt the foreign object in her body.

"I advise you not to breathe forcefully or cough violently," someone said.

Rasa heard a hoarse voice beside him, his eyes, filled with pain, widened, and he turned his head to see Chiyo sitting next to him.

Chiyo's neck had been stitched up and covered with medicine and gauze for protection.

Although the initial treatment was extremely crude, thanks to his superb medical ninjutsu skills and the support of the Sunagakure medical system, he now appears to be doing well.

In contrast, Luo Sha's situation is not so optimistic.

"..."

Upon hearing Chiyo's words, Rasa opened his mouth and struggled to pronounce them.

However, in that pervasive poisonous gas, not only his vocal cords but also his entire lungs were severely damaged.

So his words, spoken with great effort, were slurred and breathy. Chiyo struggled to decipher what he was saying, finally managing to make out a few barely audible words: "I...how...cough cough! Hah!"

His breathing became extremely difficult, and he felt a sharp pain in his throat and lungs.

It felt like something was stuck in his trachea, causing oxygen deprivation in his brain. Just a few words were enough to evoke a deep sense of suffocation.

The heartbeat became clearer and clearer, as if it were pounding on my eardrums and brain.

"So it was still a stretch after all?"

Seeing that he could only manage to utter a few words with great effort before starting to cough painfully, Chiyo couldn't help but shake her head and sigh deeply, confirming the answer she didn't want to admit.

"Don't speak yet." She stopped Rasa, who was struggling to say something, and said calmly, "It's been three days since Hanzo's attack, which means you've been unconscious for more than two days."

"Progressive pulmonary interstitial fibrosis, severely impaired gas exchange, and multiple organ failure, including the lungs, are arguably fatal injuries. You should have died on your way back to the village, but your will to live and luck saved you."

Chiyo briefly described Rasa's most critical injuries, then looked at the several messy but orderly transparent tracheas on his body, as well as the puppet mechanical device inside his body that was making clicking sounds.

"I used all the puppet-making techniques and medical ninjutsu I've ever learned in my life on you to barely create this artificial respiration device that can assist or even replace lung breathing."

"As for this place, it's the intensive care unit at Sunagakure Hospital. Just ten hours ago, you barely escaped the danger zone, but..."

slap... slap...

Hearing footsteps approaching from outside the ward, Chiyo stopped herself from saying what she was about to say.

A figure in a white robe appeared at the door of the ward, his expressionless, travel-worn face filled with solemnity.

He stood at the door and looked into the ward, where he saw Chiyo silently gazing at him, and also saw Rasa with no light in her eyes.

After a brief silence, Chiyo shook her head at him.

"It's good that you're awake, it's good that you're awake."

The Third Kazekage sighed inwardly, walked to Rasa's bedside, patted his head, and said calmly, "Say less, remember to drink more water. You've lost a lot of blood, you need to drink something to make up for what you've lost."

"Only by healing my injuries can I hope to vent my hatred and take revenge on those guys in the future."

There was no response from Luo Sha, because he was unable to answer at that moment.

Forget about responding, even breathing requires an immense effort; simply surviving is no easy feat.

He just lay there motionless, staring blankly at the white ceiling of the ward, his eyes gradually losing their light and becoming dull, like an empty shell without a soul, unmoved by the Third Kazekage's attempts to comfort him.

However, it is clear that the Third Kazekage was not there to hold anyone accountable. In any case, Rasa's silence was reasonable, leaving him unable to question or inquire about the matter, and only able to feel sympathy and regret for it.

The Third Kazekage gave Chiyo a look, and Chiyo understood and followed him out of the ward.

Click.

The Third Kazekage glanced back at Rasa one last time, saw the bewildered and helpless look in his eyes, sighed, closed the door, and turned to Chiyo, tentatively asking, "Elder Chiyo, Rasa is now...?"

"Hanzo's poison is very troublesome. I can't make an antidote in a short time. I can only remove it through surgery as much as possible, but there are still some residues in Rasa's body."

Qian shook his head heavily, his voice hoarse, "If it were an ordinary person, they would have died long ago from those injuries... I have to admit, this kid's will to live is really strong."

But she didn't know whether it was a blessing or a curse.

He survived as a promising genius, but ended up as a useless cripple.

It's like falling from the sky into an abyss; just thinking about it makes me feel sorry for them.

"No, it's all thanks to you, Elder Chiyo." The Third Kazekage sighed, then paused, his gaze turning deep as he looked at her. "That puppet mechanical device, if I'm not mistaken..."

"Yes, it's the one you're thinking of." Chiyo glanced at the Third Kazekage indifferently, her tone tinged with a hint of helplessness, and said, "The forbidden technique that the Second Kazekage developed and then sealed away."

The Second Kazekage, Shamon, was an exceptionally talented individual, considered by many in Sunagakure to be no less capable than Tobirama Senju, the Second Hokage of Konoha.

He dedicated himself to researching the One-Tailed Shukaku and sealing techniques, and further developed many ninjutsu based on it, such as a somewhat comical "Cloth Release". He is also the originator of puppetry and sand manipulation techniques.

In the process of developing puppetry, Shamon, like Tobirama Senju, touched upon the "taboo" of ninjutsu.

—The creation and manipulation of human puppets.

One method is to turn a puppet into a human.

Another method is to turn people into puppets.

However, the technique of turning puppets into humans has been lost, and Chiyo only inherited the technique of turning humans into puppets.

Human puppets can retain their appearance from when they were alive and can use all the ninjutsu they used in life; the concept even includes bloodline limits.

This technique is indeed very powerful, but it is far too evil.

If it falls into the hands of someone with extreme greed and is exploited, it will have endless consequences. If it is spread widely, it will cause turmoil in Sunagakure and even the entire ninja world.

Therefore, Chiyo has always insisted on sealing away the methods of making and controlling human puppets, hoping to take them into her coffin.

But when she saw Luo Sha, who was on the verge of death on the operating table but was still desperately trying to stay alive, she ultimately couldn't bring herself to harden her heart.

Even so, the best she could do was keep Rasa alive.

It's almost impossible for him to continue being a ninja.

Even with the aid of a breathing apparatus, each breath is painful, and no strenuous activity can be performed, which is fatal for a ninja.

Thinking of this, Chiyo couldn't help but frown, glared at the Third Kazekage, and said coldly, "I've said it before, there are some things that puppets can't replace. The training of medical ninjas and the development of medical ninjutsu are equally important."

"If only you had listened to me sooner and stopped focusing on the militarization of puppetry, you could have increased your investment in the development of medical ninjutsu."

"It's not enough to make an old woman like me, who doesn't even know how much longer she can live, cross my own moral line!"

The Third Kazekage choked for a moment, a slight smirk appearing on his expressionless face. He changed the subject, saying, "Elder Chiyo, you will surely live to be a hundred years old."

"Hmph." Chiyo just snorted coldly, not intending to be grateful at all. "I'm already an old woman with one foot in the grave. Don't even think about making me cross the line to do this kind of thing for you again."

For her, living a long life was not a good thing; she didn't want to lose her reputation before she died.

Despite being a medical ninja, she is more robust than many young people.

"Very well, once we win the war, we will definitely follow your advice and increase our investment in medical technology and personnel."

The Third Kazekage made a solemn promise on the surface, but in his heart he didn't take Chiyo's words to heart.

If this happens once, it will happen again.

His moral compass isn't as high as the Second Kazekage's or Chiyo's. As long as something can increase Sunagakure's strength, he doesn't care whether it's a forbidden technique or not. Or rather, he's already started plotting against human puppets.

The puppets of Sunagakure are still too weak...

Through this incident, he saw the weaknesses of the puppet army.

—That is, the puppeteer himself.

No matter how powerful the puppets they possess, the puppeteer themselves are extremely vulnerable. They are helpless against poison gas and have no ability to resist Hanzo.

The "human puppet" can perfectly solve this problem.

Besides, isn't the best candidate right in front of us?

The Third Kazekage looked through the glass wall at the decaying Rasa in the ward, a profound meaning flashing in his eyes.

How could a genius who receives so much attention and admiration be willing to become a useless person?

Any glimmer of hope is a lifeline for him right now, and he will cling to it desperately.

Moreover, we can't just stand by and watch a disciple who has been trained with so much effort and time go to waste, can we?

A ninja with the bloodline limit Magnet Release is extremely rare. Apart from him, the Third Kazekage, there is only Rasa.

"What are you planning to do next?" Chiyo suddenly asked.

The Third Kazekage snapped out of his daze, shook his head, and said, "Iwagakure sent me a message, hoping that we will not withdraw our troops and continue to maintain the status quo of containing Konoha and the Land of Rain. However, we need to hold a meeting to discuss it before we can make a decision."

On the River Country front, the ninjas from Sunagakure and Konoha continued to launch probing attacks with small combat units, resulting in a lukewarm stalemate.

Although both sides suffered losses, with Sunagakure suffering greater losses, these losses were still within Sunagakure's tolerance and did not cripple them.

After all, no matter how strong White Fang is, he is still just one person and is not good at cooperation; he can only fight alone.

If you are surrounded by an excessive amount of sand, you will be ground to death.

However, the situation in the Land of Rain was completely different. They had a slight advantage before, but after Hanzo intervened, they were completely on the defensive, even after the Tamaki couple were transferred there.

That guy is a living "poisonous weapon," and he's practically invincible on the battlefield, causing massive casualties in Sunagakure every time he strikes.

"We can't drag this out any longer." Chiyo shook her head and frowned. "That old man Onoki is planning to wait until we're exhausted before reaping the benefits."

As a peer of similar age, she was very familiar with Onoki, the Libra.

That old guy harbors deep hostility towards Konoha, but he won't act out of personal desires; he's a ruthless person who will stop at nothing.

He had enough patience to wait until the very end before making his move.

"I understand, but there's nothing we can do." The Third Kazekage sighed. "After several rounds of bargaining, Iwagakure agreed to pay for bounty hunters to help us face the Land of Rain. It's some kind of assistance, I suppose."

Under Onoki's leadership, Iwagakure focused on ninjutsu, land development and utilization, and was always dedicated to its own development.

Unlike the Cloud Village, which is known for its domineering and unreasonable behavior, the Iwagakure Village often hires bounty hunters to do dirty work in order to avoid internal losses as much as possible, so that they can make excuses even if they are discovered.

"As for the battlefield in the Land of Rivers..."

At this point, the Third Kazekage suddenly paused.

Chiyo subconsciously looked up, but her heart skipped a beat.

She saw a deep malice in those eyes, like a fire burning—not fierce, not grand, but just a silent, flickering flame.

The other party didn't care what the flames would ignite or destroy.

Because in the end, he will drag the entire ninja world into a brutal battlefield, where there will be nowhere to escape the raging fire, and nothing will be left untouched as fuel for the flames.

Without a doubt, the Third Kazekage planned to use the Tailed Beasts while the Jinchuriki of Konoha was unconscious.

Even if it meant dying as the Jinchūriki of the One-Tailed Bumuka, he would not hesitate.

"You bastard..." Chiyo doubted whether it was the right thing for Shamon to hand over the position of the Third Hokage to him, after all, even she was a little surprised by the other party's madness.

But just as she was about to say something, the Third Kazekage suddenly interrupted her.

"By the way, Elder Chiyo."

The Third Kazekage concealed the coldness in his eyes, narrowed his gaze slightly as he looked at Chiyo, and asked, "Why haven't we heard anything about the medicines and supplies you purchased?"

Upon hearing this, Chiyo was taken aback and blurted out, "How is that possible?"

They should be back by the agreed time!

(End of this chapter)