Naruto: Reshaping the Shinobi World with Sasori

"One more year..."

Same location, same conversation.

A few days later, Scorpion and Yubi returned to the sand dune where they had plotted their scheme.

Looking out, the scenery of Sunagakure remains unchanged, with the same endless sandstorms and old buildings, offering nothing new.

All of this is the blessing left behind by the second generation of Kazekage.

Scorpion stared into the distance and said calmly.

Beside him, Yubi still lay lazily.

"Joining the Anbu isn't difficult for someone with your qualifications... but to rise through the ranks quickly, or even have regular contact with the Kazekage, you'll need experience." Yubi smiled slightly. "Although... you could try to use connections, it would inevitably lead to gossip. It's better to let your abilities speak for themselves."

"So... if we have to carry out any more missions or if the village assigns us any tasks, we'll have to split up."

Yubi held up a finger and emphasized, "Right now, the people in the village have almost tied you and me together, which is not good for our plans. We need to deliberately weaken this impression... and also avoid the higher-ups paying too much attention to the two of us."

"In other words, from now on... we need to keep a lower profile."

"You have another year to accumulate enough merits. Once you join the Dark Division, you'll be qualified for at least one position, at the very least a squad leader. You'll be able to rise quickly and get in touch with the Wind Shadow. Becoming a Shadow Guard isn't even out of the question."

"Working in the shadows is different from working on the front lines... The evaluation of positions and candidates will be more rigorous. After all, we will begin to come into contact with some of the village's internal affairs and secrets."

"And what about you?"

Scorpion glanced down at him.

Yubi revealed a meaningful smile. "My Blood Release techniques have been fully developed over the past year... The only weakness now is its limitation by chakra. But... this isn't my true level. In this year, I've also researched some interesting abilities... Of course, even on the battlefield against Iwagakure, I never revealed them. The reason is simple: I don't want anyone to know, and I don't want the higher-ups to have a clear understanding of my strength..."

"In their eyes, I am still an outstanding junior with excellent medical ninjutsu skills and a bloodline limit... Regarding the level of my blood release, they probably only know a part of it through battle reports."

Yubi sighed. "That's human nature... If talent is displayed too much, it's meaningless for those in high positions to be able to completely control it."

"Whether it's the Third Kazekage or Granny Chiyo, they must have considered this... If they knew my true level, they would definitely make some plans and tests to target me and try to control me completely."

"Furthermore, excessive growth... while it's a good thing for the village right now, it will also be seen as a threat by some, including the Kazekage... The growth rate that exceeds their understanding will cause them panic on some level."

"And what they 'see' in me now... is just what I want them to see."

"That way... when our plan is implemented in the future, no one will suspect us... because in their naive minds, we don't pose that kind of threat."

Yubi chuckled at Scorpion.

"..."

Scorpion stared at Yubi's sunny face, remaining silent.

"What's wrong?"

Yubi raised an eyebrow.

"insidious."

The scorpion's lips twitched, and it uttered two words.

He knew Yubi was smart... but he didn't expect her to be so cunning.

They've already started messing with the village's higher-ups... It's incredibly underhanded.

"Tsk... That's going too far. Given our relationship, I've never hidden anything from you. Besides, I'm doing all this for the village, so that our plan can succeed..." Yubi said painfully.

"I've also found a way to create my 'puppet core,' but it will take some time."

Scorpion changed the subject.

Yubi's eyes lit up.

Besides seeking his knowledge about life and the physical body, Sasori also deepened his understanding of techniques through Chiyo's experience.

I also studied a lot of materials left by previous puppeteers in the village.

Previously on the battlefield, Sasori benefited from the environment and studied a large number of ninja corpses, conducting experiments in private.

As I've mentioned before... the key to the core is the heart.

Because the biggest "key" to the flow of energy through the body's meridians is the heart... which is related to various elements of chakra.

According to Scorpion's idea... by preserving a portion of the heart's flesh and blood, one could directly discard the physical body and replace it with a puppet body.

There are pros and cons to doing this... The advantage is that without the complex flow of meridians, the response and output speed of chakra is faster, which is equivalent to not having to "take a detour". However, the disadvantage is actually greater, because without meridians and flesh, chakra, as a "life energy", is simplified and becomes a direct "power source".

It is not possible to perform "complex" calculations.

The nature and some transformations of chakra can no longer be used. For example, if you want to use a variety of escaping techniques, you have to rely on some mechanisms or scrolls.

However, this is exactly what Sasori, as a puppeteer, doesn't need, because his ninjutsu is all about controlling puppets... mostly in terms of skill and control, and doesn't require as much from the Five Elements Release techniques or some jutsu seals, nor does he need to consider the nature of chakra as much.

This problem can be directly transferred to the puppet's mechanism or external aids.

Of course, these are all current research findings on scorpions, and they are not yet perfect.

We are still some distance from true success.

It will only get better over time.

Not to mention, there was also Yubi's help.

Scorpion's research speed is significantly faster than the progress in the original work.

Yubi also deserves much credit.

His knowledge helped Scorpion solve many problems and make improvements.

Furthermore, he also knew exactly what Scorpion's future "art" framework would be like... giving Scorpion a heads-up in advance.

"To create a puppet from flesh and blood, one thing is to maintain its basic life state, which... requires 'jutsu' to accomplish. Another thing is that if you want your puppet core to retain the abilities of the deceased, you need to stimulate and activate the 'core' as a chakra gateway to generate the target's chakra from their lifetime, maintaining the same properties, including the amount of chakra stored. Then, you need to use 'jutsu' to restore its original form, which may require some sealing techniques or talismans related to barriers..."

Yubi stroked his chin, thought for a moment, and then gave his advice.

Scorpion glanced at him.

"I know... you've had the idea of ​​giving up your physical body for a long time."

Looking at the scorpion's eyes, Yubi smiled slightly.

Scorpion only said that he was researching puppet cores, but he never said that he would use this "technology" on himself.

Yubi's words were clearly a reminder of what he should be careful about if he were to abandon his physical body.

"Don't worry, as your good friend, I support you 100%... and I'll find a way to make your 'art' even stronger." Yubi raised her hands and said earnestly.

"Oh."

Scorpion didn't pay much attention.

Although he was a doctor, Yubi had a deep understanding of the human body and life.

But as the saying goes, every profession is like a mountain, and all Yubi could offer him was some ideas and academic popular science; when it came to actually doing it, he would have to rely on himself.

Yubi also wanted to contribute to his art.

In Scorpion's view, this was perhaps overestimating himself.

They do not understand the profound and intricate nature of the art of puppetry.

Seeing his expression, Yubi didn't explain, but instead laughed and said, "Don't let Granny Chiyo find out that you're showing signs of this... otherwise, she'll be heartbroken."

The scorpion ignored them.

He turned and left, first descending the sand dune.

"Wait for me..."

Yubi got up, dusted the sand off his bottom, and followed.