Born in Sunagakure, dedicated to antagonizing Konoha for decades

Then look at this chubby little boy in front of me, who has a pretty face but a body that has turned into a ball.

The changes are just too damn drastic. If it weren't for that beautiful face still being there, they would never have been able to connect the figure who chased and beat them up half a year ago with the chubby little boy in front of them. What happened in the past six months to cause such a dramatic change in their super genius is truly terrifying!

"Humph!"

Scorpion, who was exhausted from being tricked into wearing a heavy weighted vest by his father and looked like a husky, wiped the sweat from his forehead, snorted at the three people's expressions, and turned away with a slightly arrogant look. The wrist guards and shackles on his hands and feet were okay. Although he hadn't specifically trained his body, he often did some hammering and punching, so his strength was much stronger than his peers. However, he was still a six-year-old child, and his core strength wasn't that strong. The weighted vest he was wearing really exhausted him, and he didn't even have the energy to spit on anyone. But judging from the expressions of these three people, he would definitely give them a good scolding.

"Ahem...Alright, enough nonsense. You've been back for several days now, and you've probably digested most of what you were doing during your trip. Mei Chuan, you and Ye Cang are up to yourselves. I don't know puppetry, and I don't have Fire Release or Scorch Release either. Kudo, you need to strengthen your physique and learn the Eight Gates. My nephew wants to lose weight, so it's perfect that you two start wearing these things from today onwards, except when you take them off to shower. You can wear them like this most of the time. Once you get used to the weight, we can gradually increase the amount. Now, you two run around here about ten times to warm up..."

After interrupting the three's shock, Masato gave them instructions.

To be honest, he couldn't make any significant changes to either Yecang or Meichuan Neiyi's strength. Meichuan Neiyi switched to puppetry, which is largely dependent on talent. Even if he found Chiyo's signature White Secret Technique for Meichuan Neiyi, without talent, Meichuan Neiyi could only watch helplessly. Although he didn't get along with that old guy Meichuan Baidi, if Meichuan Neiyi's family really wanted to learn it, they could just go to Chiyo, and Chiyo would still give it to him. So, Meichuan Neiyi's future strength really depends on himself.

Needless to say, Yekura is the only one in the entire Sunagakure village who knows the Scorching Release technique. Although Scorching Release is similar to Fire Release, she doesn't even know Fire Release, so what's the point of teaching her? Although the village doesn't have as many Fire Release techniques as Konoha, there are still quite a few. Sunagakure and Ebizo wouldn't be stingy enough not to give her any. So, if Yekura wants to improve her strength, she has to rely on herself. The only person she can help is Kudo Yusaku, who was born a commoner with no background but has outstanding physical talent.

Mei Chuan Neiyi and Ye Cang nodded without thinking too much and found a place to start training. This trip was not only a blow to Kudo Yusaku, but also to them. The 3V1 against the Konoha boy suspected to be their teacher's illegitimate son had a great impact on them. Mei Chuan Neiyi, for one, was sixteen or seventeen years old and was instantly defeated by someone younger than himself. If the other party had some famous super talent, it would be fine. Just like when they were chased and beaten by Handsome Sasori, he didn't have much of a mental shock after returning home. After all, Handsome Sasori had been known since childhood as a super puppeteer genius who surpassed Chiyo-sama. This reputation had long been known throughout the ninja world. Although he considered himself a genius, he was still not qualified compared to those super geniuses, not to mention that he was disabled.

But he had never even heard of that blond kid from Konoha he encountered back then. Being instantly defeated by an unknown brat was bound to make him feel terrible. Moreover, after being enlightened by his teacher on the way back and finding the meaning of his existence, he was even more eager to try. During the few days he returned to his clan, he went into the study opposite his father's room to review and learn something new. He had a flash of inspiration, so when he came to the side, instead of constantly breathing fire into the air like Yekura, he took out paper and pen and began to bury himself in writing and drawing.

"Huh? (⊙_⊙)? What are you doing? Drawing a sketch?"

Mei Chuan's actions piqued Shinto's curiosity. Handsome Sasori was very well-behaved, following Kudo Yusaku while burning calories without complaining, which pleased him. Yekura's proficiency with Fire Release and Scorch Release, which she couldn't easily distinguish, was also gradually improving. At least he could clearly see the difference between Fire Release and Scorch Release.

When the camera focused on Mei Chuan Neiyi, Masato looked completely bewildered. This guy was acting like an old scholar, trying to learn to draw, and he seemed quite serious about it. He walked over and looked at what the guy was writing on the paper. He recognized the individual characters, but when they were put together and combined with some scribbles, he couldn't understand them.

"I'm trying to develop a new ninjutsu. Ever since my teacher enlightened me last time, it's been a revelation. The Second Hokage of Konoha was able to leave behind so many ninjutsu for the village. I've also been well-read since childhood, and my knowledge and education are certainly no less than that of Tobirama Senju from that era. If Tobirama Senju could do it, why can't I? So these past few days, I've been browsing through the ninjutsu of my clan, trying to learn from their strengths and develop a completely new ninjutsu..."

As he spoke of his plans, his eyes gleamed, and he rattled off a string of words, as if he could already envision himself being remembered by posterity after his death...

"...Your idea is excellent...I support you, go for it! -_-||"

Masato remained silent for a long time. He never expected that telling this guy the story of Tobirama Senju was just to distract him from his life-threatening career. As a result, this guy went down the wrong path and decided to become a scientist!

Are you kidding me?

In the Naruto world, who doesn't get killed off by plot? You're just a background actor who wouldn't even get a single shot without me, yet you expect to get screen time?

I wanted to stop him from this outlandish idea, but seeing how serious he was, the words stuck in my throat and I just couldn't say them...

What a terrible tragedy!

479. Developing creative ideas for ninjutsu is key.

Developing new ninjutsu isn't necessarily difficult, but it's not easy either. Theoretical knowledge is important, but the key to developing ninjutsu is having a creative mind!

The most typical example is a savior who is ignorant and incompetent, doesn't even know what chakra is, and is not good at the Three Body Technique. He is a chuunibyou teenager who relies on his talk-no-jutsu to dominate the ninja world. He actually managed to use the seduction technique and harem technique to instantly kill Hiruzen Sarutobi and Jiraiya.

Hiruzen Sarutobi's title of "Strongest Hokage in History" might be a bit of an exaggeration, but the title "Professor Ninja" is perfectly justified. Given his theoretical knowledge and his lecherous nature, if he could conceive of such an awesome ninjutsu, developing it would be quite easy. The key is that even after serving as the chairman of the Council for the Mental and Physical Health of Konoha's Ladies for so many years, and Jiraiya having studied human body art for so many years, they still haven't developed such an eye-opening ninjutsu. It's not that their theoretical knowledge is insufficient; after all, this simple fusion of Transformation Technique and Shadow Clone Technique is too easy for them. The reason they haven't developed it and applied for a patent for so many years is simply because their imagination is lacking, and they don't have that kind of wildly imaginative thinking.

If Snake were limited to the distinction between male and female, and if his imagination weren't wild enough in his pursuit of immortality, he wouldn't have become the great scientist who transformed action anime into fantasy anime.

So while Mei Chuan Neiyi's words are correct, Senju Er Ye was already on the battlefield fighting at the age of three in his time. Where would he have had the time to read and study? Moreover, the amount of knowledge in that era was far less than that in this era. Even if Senju Er Ye was a master of time management and managed to squeeze out time to read and study, how much could he have learned? The variety would certainly not be as comprehensive as it is now. Therefore, it's not wrong for Mei Chuan Neiyi to believe that his knowledge is more extensive than that of Senju Er Ye.

The key point is that Senju Nissou has a brilliant mind and likes to think outside the box. In this respect, Mei Chuan Neiyi is quite mediocre. Developing some random little ninjutsu may not be a problem, but to become a genius like Senju Nissou who can casually create a forbidden technique is a different story.

Unless Mei Chuannei directs it himself...

However, having this intention is a good thing, at least he won't think about risking his life to learn some kind of Eight Gates to become a Super Saiyan without legs.

......

"Lord Jie, this is the list of wounded soldiers who left the village recently. The number has doubled compared to before. This really can't go on. Maybe we should tell them the truth... ╥﹏╥"

While Handsome Scorpion was burning calories, on the other side, Handsome Scorpion's father, who had just finished coaxing his son and uncle to go on a diet and then came to work, had just clocked in when Puppet Master Squad Leader Aying, who had been waiting for him in his office with a tearful face, almost wanted to hug his leg when she saw him come in.

Ever since Lord Shinto and he jointly sparked a wave of iron golems in the village, over the past six months, most of the village's puppeteers have gradually transformed their traditional puppets into iron golems. Initially, the results were quite good. Although these iron golems were still heavier than traditional puppets, they were made from the metal carefully selected by Sasori to fight the Seven-Tails, making them much lighter than ordinary metals. This was within the puppeteers' acceptable range. Moreover, since the war had just ended, the ninjas from each village were very restrained. Although they would sometimes fight when they met, they were quite disciplined and no large-scale brawls occurred. Therefore, it didn't have a significant impact on the puppeteers who occasionally went on missions with their companions. Furthermore, the metal was indeed hard enough, with extremely strong defensive capabilities, which made them see the advantages of iron golems.

However, as time went on, the ninjas from various villages began to lose their restraint and started to fight with deadly moves. At first, the iron golems did catch the enemy village ninjas off guard, but after several battles, the enemy discovered the weaknesses of the iron golems. Although the iron golems were harder and less prone to damage than traditional puppets, their weaknesses were also obvious. They were not as agile as traditional puppets, and they did not have various mechanisms and hidden weapons. As long as the speed was fast enough, it was easy to get close and sever the connection between the puppeteer and the iron golem. In fact, they were much easier to deal with than those puppeteers who controlled traditional puppets.

So after the enemy found the weakness of the iron golems, the puppeteer troops suffered losses almost every time they went out, and the situation was getting worse every day. However, many of the puppeteers who spent a lot of money to make the iron golems had gone crazy. He had tried to dissuade them, but he couldn't even persuade the underlings in his own squad.

He no longer dared to think about climbing the ranks. If this matter continued, he was truly worried that he would be branded with shame and infamous for eternity. Although the mastermind was Lord Shinto, it didn't seem to matter if Lord Shinto was exposed. Based on how many years Lord Shinto had risked his life for the village, the Kazekage would never allow Lord Shinto to be exposed. So, the blame would have to be placed on his head.

So now he's genuinely scared. When he initially guessed Shinto's plans and actively cooperated with him, he never imagined the impact of this matter would be so widespread and significant. So far, their puppeteer unit has already lost many men because of this iron golem issue; the waiting list for the injured to get to the hospital is already next week. If this blame really gets pinned on him, he'll have to have a statue erected in his honor, a kneeling one at that...

Unable to persuade him himself, and not daring to go to the eccentric Master Zhendou, he could only turn to the reasonable Master Jie. After all, it was Master Jie who had been auctioning off these metals for the past six months, so in his mind, Master Jie was his teammate.

"Cough cough... Ouch...! It's that serious! Σ(⊙▽⊙a)"

Handsome Scorpion's father stared blankly at A-Ying's crying face for a moment, then looked at the data A-Ying handed him and couldn't help but gasp. Good heavens, just the casualty data from A-Ying's squad alone shocked him. Not many people died, after all, those who could enter the puppeteer's unit were the elite of the elite, and they still had some means of survival.

However, the number of wounded was terrifying. The puppeteer unit consisted of ten squads, each with a hundred members. Aying's squad was the most complete, with a full hundred members. But now, the list showed that, apart from a few marked as relatively uninjured and still able to move, the rest of the squad was filled with "wounded." In other words, Aying's squad, apart from a few scattered birds, was practically devoid of any fighting power. Handsome Scorpion's father instantly felt a toothache; if his mother saw this data, she'd be furious...

480. The Iron Golem Incident Erupts

"My squad fared relatively well, but Ishizuka's squad was completely wiped out, and even Ishizuka himself is now in the hospital. Lord Jie, we must stop this evil trend! ╥﹏╥"

Aying was almost in tears. If things continued to develop like this, their Sunagakure puppetry would be set back by decades!

"Cough cough... Hiss...! You go back first, I'll go find Lord Kazekage."

When Handsome Scorpion's father heard that a whole squad had been wiped out, and even their leader was in the hospital, his heart clenched and he almost couldn't catch his breath. This loss was even more insane than during World War II. The losses during World War II weren't even that great.

After sending the sobbing Ah Ying away, he immediately ran towards Fengying Tower. If his mother knew about this, she'd probably kill him and his brother with a knife. So, the first person he thought of was his maternal uncle, Hai Laozang. As the saying goes, nephews often resemble their uncles, and besides his mother, his uncle was the person who loved him most. Even if he couldn't think of a solution, his uncle could take the blow for him if his mother attacked him...

.....

In the office of Sunakawa at the Kazekage Tower, Sunakawa was thinking that it had been a long time since he had given back to his fans. During World War II, he was so busy that he didn't have time. After the war ended, he took on a disciple, but he didn't have time to teach him either. Now that the war was over, his disciple was almost fully trained, the ninja world was relatively peaceful, and there was nothing much going on in the village. It was time to prepare a solo performance to give back to his fans who had supported him for so many years.

Ebizo had long been accustomed to this kind of life. He would hold a cup of tea to his lips, sipping it while dealing with the never-ending pile of documents. Sometimes he really wanted to retire, but then he would think about how he was all alone, and that his health wasn't good enough to just lie in bed and wait to die. He wasn't interested in his sister's flowers and plants either. After retiring, he felt like he would be just as bored as that bastard Shinto, which wasn't a good thing. The key was that Shinto was now a team leader, so he had something to do. So, he thought, since he hadn't found a capable successor yet, he might as well just endure a few more years.

Speaking of which, the requirements for talent in his position are even more demanding than those for the Wind Shadow. There are indeed not many people like him who are both literate and martial, can endure hardship and loneliness!

"Cough cough... Lord Kazekage, Uncle, something terrible has happened!"

"boom!"

However, at that moment, before the person arrived, the voice preceded them. Handsome Scorpion's father's voice came from the doorway. Before the two could react, a crisp, clean sound of the door being smashed open followed, and the newly installed door met its short end...

"...Have a cup of tea and calm down. Let's talk things over slowly. The sky isn't falling yet."

Seeing his nephew's hurried manner, Hai Laozang ignored the door that had forcefully closed, poured a cup of tea and handed it to his nephew, saying calmly.

The weather has been quite hot and humid lately, even my good-natured nephew is getting so irritable. The weather has been fine and peaceful lately, and he really can't imagine what big thing might happen. Could it be that Shimura Danzo is leading his troops to invade their Land of Wind again?

Putting everything else aside, given Shimura Danzo's inability to even survive in the Land of Water, he wouldn't dare come to Sunagakure even if he had ten times the courage. Besides, Shimura Danzo is currently lying in the Konoha ICU.

"Ahem... Lord Kazekage, Uncle, look at this data, what should we do now?"

Handsome Scorpion's father was in no mood to drink tea anymore. He hurriedly spread out the data in his hand in front of them and said...

"puff!"

"Holy crap! Σ(⊙▽⊙a)"

A few dozen seconds later, Ebizo sprayed tea all over Sunagawa's face. Sunagawa, oblivious to the tea on his face, stared in disbelief, his mind blank, and all he could think of was a single "Holy crap!" to express his feelings at that moment.

They never expected that such a thing would happen while they were diligently maintaining the stability and development of the village. A small squad of puppeteers was reduced to only a few able-bodied underlings. What the hell happened? Did they encounter a giant monster on the way out?

Ah Ying's team, isn't that the veteran puppeteers who were rumored to have been defeated by Mei Chuan's iron puppets more than half a year ago?

There was a wave of iron golems at the time, but when they saw that Jie was the one presiding over the auctions, and that the metal was indeed the material that Sasori used to make the steel giant that could withstand the Seven-Tails, they stopped asking questions. Jie's personality was relatively stable and nothing serious would happen. Besides, it didn't seem like a bad thing to do some research and innovation during peacetime. Wasn't it during the time when Sasori was being beaten by the Seven-Tails that he discovered that this metal, which could withstand the Seven-Tails, could be used to make golems by cutting it flat?

If the Second Hokage had discovered this metal earlier, he wouldn't have died in the One-Tailed Beast's rampage...

But why did this puppeteer unit suddenly run into trouble?

The two were shocked and confused.

"Cough cough... That's not all. Ishizuka's entire squad was wiped out, and Ishizuka himself is now in the hospital. Apparently, the hospital is overflowing with people, almost all from our puppeteer unit... -_-||"

Before Ebizo and Sunagawa could finish their shock, Sasori's father coughed twice and then spoke.

"Hiss... What on earth happened? When did our puppeteer unit's combat effectiveness drop so much? Σ(⊙▽⊙a)"

Ebizo and Sunagawa both gasped in pain. It's no wonder they didn't know; ever since the First Hokage established the village, this elite puppeteer unit had always been under Chiyo's control. Even the First Hokage couldn't interfere, let alone the Second Hokage or the current Third Hokage, Sunagawa. However, over the years, the puppeteer unit had proven formidable in combat, and with Chiyo's effective management, nothing major had ever happened. Even under Jie's command, the puppeteer unit remained well-managed, becoming their most trusted department. Therefore, they hadn't paid much attention to this elite unit. After all, Jie was the crown prince; did he intend to rebel?

If he wanted to be the Kazekage, Sunagawa would have stepped down long ago. Does he really think the Kazekage job is something only humans do? Back then, the second Kazekage died too suddenly, and Jie was still young. The village didn't have a single decent person, so he was forced to compete for the position. Now that Jie has grown up, he'd love for Jie to come and tell him he wants to inherit his father's job!

The position of Fengying is certainly glamorous, but it's incredibly exhausting. Wouldn't it be better for him to use that time to hold concerts?

481. Show me the ruthlessness you're going to use to kill me!

"Ahem... It's a bit complicated. To make a long story short, it all started with my brother and me auctioning off some metal a while ago. Sasori originally used that metal to make iron golems to fight the Seven-Tails inside Shuri's belly. But since Sasori stopped sparring with the Seven-Tails, the golems were useless. My brother and I thought, well, those golems are just taking up space anyway, and the metal isn't cheap. Since they're just sitting there taking up space, we might as well sell them to supplement our income. Before, because Sasori was fighting the Seven-Tails, my brother and I had almost all our funds depleted, so we thought we might as well make use of them. These metals do have a lot of research value, so we wanted the village's puppeteers to discuss and research them. But we didn't expect these guys to all get so carried away and start using the iron golems in battle, so this is what happened..."

Handsome Scorpion's dad is very loyal. His older brother caused the whole thing, but since he was the beneficiary, he didn't let his brother take the blame. Instead, he dragged himself into the mess. This is a serious matter; if his older brother took the blame alone, his mother might kill him. But if the two of them took the blame together, at least there's a way out...

"...ヽ(ー_ー)ノ"

Ebizo and Sunagawa exchanged a glance, then looked up at the sky speechlessly. It was all this bastard's fault...ヽ(ー_ー)ノ

Although Jie was trying to add more drama to his own story, based on their understanding of Jie and that bastard Zhendou, there was only one truth: the mastermind behind the whole thing was undoubtedly that bastard Zhendou. Jie's role in the whole thing wasn't very important; Jie's personality was more stable, and he wouldn't act recklessly like that bastard.

But now that it's happened, what can they do? Arrest that bastard and make him suffer? That might make them feel good, but it won't solve the problem. The most important thing now is to calm down the puppeteers and stop treating those iron golems as fighting partners. After all, the technology is still immature and has many flaws that could be easily exploited by the enemy.

After hearing Jie's explanation, they roughly understood the situation. The main problem was that current puppeteers had become obsessed with researching iron golems, only seeing their advantages and ignoring their disadvantages. Although this metal was relatively light, had strong defense, and its attack power was off the charts, it also had many drawbacks. Its dexterity was not as good as traditional wooden golems, and its operation was even worse. It was simply no match for traditional golems, making it easy for enemies to exploit its weaknesses. Although there hadn't been any large-scale gladiatorial battles in the ninja world recently, it wasn't as restrained as last year either. Everyone was fighting fairly and stopping short of a fight.

Now, it's basically a fight to the death. After all, the war has only just ended, and the hatred between family and friends hasn't been digested so quickly. A year of forbearance is already the limit, which is why the puppeteer troops have suffered such heavy losses. However, the only thing that makes them feel fortunate is that most of them are only injured. They can be hospitalized for two or three months to recover and be usable again. But this matter must be resolved. This time they were lucky that not many people died, but if this continues, they won't be so lucky.

So, after half an hour, Ebizo and Sunakawa Momoten fell silent, pondering how to resolve the matter. Forcibly stopping the puppeteers from using iron golems was not feasible, since everyone was in a state of high spirits, and forcibly stopping them would only make things worse. Therefore, the only way to resolve this matter and get the puppeteers to pick up traditional puppets again was to be gentle, but they had no idea how to do that.

"...You should go back first. We'll put this matter aside for now and try to find a solution."

Ebizo comforted his still agitated nephew, having roughly guessed why he had come seeking help. If his sister found out, these two unfortunate brothers would surely be kicked out of the village. The puppeteer unit was something his sister had built step by step; it was her precious treasure. The fact that Sunagakure became one of the Five Great Ninja Villages wasn't due to its large population, vast territory, or wealth, but rather largely due to this puppeteer unit.

.......

"No way! No way! Kid, where did all that fierceness you showed when you were arguing with me go? How come you've become a spineless coward after just a few laps? Come on! Show me the ferocity you had when you were trying to kill me! Kill me, kill me! ヾ(^?^)?"

On a sandy expanse of yellow sand, a cheeky voice echoed around. Looking at the handsome Scorpion, who was panting and exhausted like a husky, Shindou was overjoyed. He didn't know why, but the more uncomfortable the handsome Scorpion was, the happier he was.

"...The teacher is so mean...-_-||"

Yekura and Meikawa, who were busy drawing and writing to develop a new ninjutsu but hadn't made any progress yet, saw their teacher's smug face. If it weren't for their fine tradition of respecting their teachers, they would have already taken action and beaten him up!

Regardless of whether they can actually handle it, who would joke about their own family member like that?

Honestly, running on the sand carrying a load of equipment weighing over 100 pounds is already quite remarkable for a six-year-old child without any special bloodline. They were all quite surprised by Sasori's perseverance. No wonder he was called a super genius from a young age. Look at Yusaku next to Sasori. Although he is twice the age of Sasori, he is still exhausted like a dead dog. He is not much better than Sasori.

To be honest, this genius scorpion really should lose some weight. While being chubby is undeniably cute, the contrast with that unchanging pretty face is just too much of a mismatch...

"Damn it! (▼皿▼#)"