I founded the "Bragging Cult" in Naruto.

Chapter 691 As long as the other side is still willing to talk, the situation isn't too bad.

Shikaku looked at Sasori with slight doubt, recalling whether he had any information about this handsome young man in his memory. After a while, he finally thought of someone.

Chiyo's grandson from Sunagakure, the boy who disappeared at the beginning of the war, but judging from his age, several years have passed and the boy doesn't seem to have grown up at all.

Moreover, isn't Tatsuma's attitude a bit too cautious? His chakra is already surging when dealing with such a young man.

Shikaku, who shared chakra with Tatsuma, clearly sensed just how terrifying the chakra Tatsuma was currently using.

Ai and Tsuchida frowned, pondering what Tatsuma had just said. Puppet, Mifune. But no matter how you look at it, Mifune doesn't seem like a puppet. On the contrary, the samurai called Tateki, who is possessed by Sasori, is the puppet.

Mifune, equally enraged, pointed at Sasori and exclaimed, "The puppeteers of Sunagakure?! They actually turned my samurai into puppets?!"

"Puppet. This can hardly be called a puppet work."

Scorpion shook his head, looking at Mifune with a morbid, art-appreciating gaze, and said, "My puppet creations are at least at your level."

"Nonsense! How could I possibly be a puppet?!"

Mifune denied it, but at the same time he became increasingly angry. His old face turned red and puffed up with anger, and the snowflakes that fell on him were directly melted and evaporated.

Why be in such a hurry?

Scorpion grinned and said, "Indeed, there's nothing to be impatient about." In an instant, Mifune's violently heaving chest calmed down, and the anger on his face subsided. Like a meditating old monk, he said, "Indeed, there's nothing to be anxious about."

This scene made Shikaku, Ai, Tsuchida, and the others frown deeply. Anyone could see how strange this was; it was just too bizarre.

Just one sentence had such an effect; they were even a little scared. What if this method of turning emotions around with a single word were used on them?

For example, if such a statement were made on the battlefield, thousands of ninjas would lose morale, and the impact on the battle would be fatal.

"Tatsuma, what's the background of this Sasori?"

Ai couldn't help but move closer to Tatsuma. He had to admit that when facing a common enemy, the Fourth Hokage gave people an overwhelming sense of security, much more effective than a muscular physique.

"The most talented puppeteer in the history of Sunagakure—Scorpion, you shouldn't think that's an exaggeration now, right?"

Tatsuma looked at Sasori and said, Sasori turned around, nodded, and said, "Well, that's true, but what I'm more interested in is whether you still have any strategies to deal with my puppet creations."

Upon hearing this, Tatsuma's chakra calmed down. He knew that the method he used a few years ago, which involved using massive amounts of chakra to simulate waves of different frequencies to impact the connection between Sasori and the puppet, was useless.

There's no need to try. Tatsuma believes Sasori wouldn't lie about this. If he insists on trying, not only will it be a waste of time, but he'll also lose face.

However, Tatsuma became increasingly curious about what kind of puppetry technique Sasori was using, which allowed him to control the puppet with higher authority without erasing its self-awareness.

Unfortunately, Shikaku and the others were there.

So Tatsuma simply asked, "Can you tell me about your current puppetry skills?"

"Didn't you teach me? Yin-Yang Release."

Scorpion wore a fervent smile, as if he had encountered another research team at an academic conference with a similar topic but a different direction, and he wished he could chat with them for a long time.

Seeing Tatsuma frown in confusion, Sasori continued, "Thanks to you Konoha ninjas, I learned the Shadow Clone Technique and also unexpectedly found some strange things. These are probably the Yin-Yang Release products you mentioned."

Scorpion reached into his robes and pulled out a handful of broken black fragments. Tatsuma narrowed his eyes; this material was a black rod made by either Madara Uchiha or Nagato.

Sasori, engrossed in his academic sharing, said, "Shadow Clone Technique is truly a perfect ninjutsu. The chakra after being divided actually possesses an independent consciousness consistent with the original body, and it does not violate the original body's will."

If the portion of chakra that was separated is injected into these Yin-Yang Release products, instead of being used for chakra mimicry, then the best control can be obtained.

Whatever my main body desires, my shadow clone will carry out. Then, by implanting this "remote control" into the brain of a living being, I can bypass the living being's own consciousness and issue commands to them—like suicide.

As Sasori spoke, he pointed at a samurai. Suddenly, the samurai's strength exploded, his muscles and tendons were torn apart, but he managed to break free from Shikaku's control. The sword in his hand was reversed and plunged into his own heart.

"Pfft~"

The samurai coughed up blood and his body suddenly went limp, but he was supported by Shikaku's secret technique, Shadow, and did not fall.

However, the terrifying nature of this method has been fully revealed. Seeing this scene, even Tatsuma felt a chill run down his spine.

Because he clearly saw that the samurai's expression and eyes before he died showed that it was a matter of course, as if suicide was his firmest idea, rather than just an attack launched by someone who was being controlled.

"Kill him!"

Ai roared, realizing just how terrifying it would be once Scorpion spread this technique across a large area. Not to mention just an army, even a country, a behemoth like the Five Great Nations, would be at Scorpion's mercy.

Therefore, the scorpion must die, and this forbidden technique must be destroyed!

Lightning erupted from his body, transforming into an arrow that shot towards Scorpion. Shikaku also manipulated the shadows, attempting to attack Scorpion, at least to control him for a moment, so that Ai's attack could take effect.

Scorpion made no move to dodge, tilting his head with a sickly smile, letting Ai's attacks come.

"Wood Release: Great Tree Technique!"

With a wave of his hand, Tatsuma's right hand transformed into countless wooden strips, rushing forward. However, his target was not Sasori, but A. He used Wood Release to firmly bind A, and then Tatsuma unleashed his monstrous strength, pulling A back to his original position.

Seeing this, Shikaku abruptly stopped his spell, and dozens of shadow tentacles or spears hovered beside Scorpion.

"Sakamoto Tatsuma! What do you mean by this?! Could it be that you're in cahoots with this guy?! That his so-called puppetry was really inspired by you?!"

Ai angrily questioned Tatsuma, whose face darkened as he replied, "Can't you see? The scorpion that appeared here is merely an avatar, or rather, a puppet."

"So what? Just kill this clone, then gather clues and find his real body!"

Ai couldn't accept Tatsuma's explanation, but Tatsuma didn't elaborate. Instead, he looked at Sasori and asked, "If you die, what will the price be?"

"It's nothing, just a command that uses the life or death of this puppet as a switch. Once this puppet dies, none of the people present will survive except for a few."

After Scorpion finished speaking, Ai snorted and said, "These are just samurai. Do you think their lives can threaten me?!"

"It doesn't threaten you, because you don't even understand what it means, but... Fourth Hokage, is it enough to threaten you?"

Sasori glanced at Ai with disdain, then his gaze fell on Tatsuma. Tatsuma nodded, as did Shikaku beside him and Tsuchida beside Ai; they had all been successfully threatened by Sasori.

"You... Hmph!"

Seeing the behavior of the group, Ai was furious and completely confused. Tu Tai quickly explained, "Lord Ai, no matter how these people died, we will be the ones who killed them."

You need to understand what killing the entire armed forces of an independent, peaceful third-party nation means—it means making an enemy of the entire ninja world!

Tatsuma looked at Scorpion and said, "Release them, what are the conditions?"

Tatsuma believed that Sasori definitely had a purpose. Since he had a purpose, there was room for negotiation. As long as they could talk, everything would be fine. The worst thing was someone who was completely unwilling to talk.

Scorpion brandished the black rod fragment in his hand and said, "Do you have a way to give me more of this?"

"No, and even if I did, I wouldn't give it to you."

Tatsuma shook his head. He had only used 20% of his Yin-Yang Release talent, which was not enough to create this black rod with various magical functions. According to Tatsuma's estimate, he would need to reach at least 50% to create such a creation.

"But someone will give me more, so..."

Scorpion shrugged, his meaning clear. Tatsuma raised an eyebrow and asked, "So... you're employed?"

"Well, I can't refuse this reward unless you give me more inspiration. After all, it's always the puppeteer who is controlled by the puppeteer, not the other way around. I'm also very dissatisfied with the feeling of having the raw materials controlled."

"What's their goal in hiring you? It couldn't be to kill us, could it?"

Chenma asked, and Sasori shook his head, saying, "I won't take on those kinds of job assignments. After all, you're practically my teacher, how could I treat you like that?"

My goal is to make you all stay here, stay for even a moment longer, do you understand?

"The village."

Shikaku blurted out the reminder, and Tatsuma immediately thought of a diversionary tactic. At this point in time, the appearance of black rod fragments, something that could very well be Madara Uchiha's backup plan, meant that his purpose was...

Nine-Tails?

Tatsuma pursed his lips, still somewhat puzzled. Was there really any chance that the Nine-Tails could still cause trouble now?

Given Minato's caution, and with his repeated reminders, he would definitely make preparations, such as using shadow clones to store a portion of the Nine-Tails' chakra. In this way, even if the Nine-Tails really goes berserk, it won't have much of an impact.

Not to mention that the village still has Tenka, whose kaleidoscopes make dealing with the Nine-Tails a piece of cake.

"How long is the deadline? We can't be made to wait here forever, can we?"

Tatsuma asked a question, and Sasori replied, "It won't be long, because with your talent, you'll soon be able to break my puppet technique, won't you?"

"The deadline is approaching, and you'll break my puppetry technique. Is that alright?"

"it is good."

Tatsuma nodded, then sat cross-legged on the spot, his Fire Release chakra surging within him, creating a dry and warm space for the group. Golden light occasionally flickered within the space, making it quite beautiful. He then spoke to Shikaku and the others:

"Let's take a break. We don't need to control those samurai anymore. Give me some time."

(End of this chapter)