"I don't know what's going on, but I'm not the type who needs help."
Deidara and Sasori turned their heads and saw that Gaara, who had vanished from his spot, was now next to Hatake Satoru.
Hatake Satoru was wearing sunglasses, the light behind him, holding Gaara by the back of his collar easily.
"A trick? How did he get over there so fast?"
Deidara flew in the air, a bit shocked. His bird wasn't the best in this space, but he thought he had the edge in distance and speed.
Hatake Satoru shouldn't have been able to snatch Gaara right under his nose!
The only thing Deidara could think of was that Hatake Satoru had used a trick to move Gaara.
It wasn't a trick.
Deidara had called out his bird and was about to fly down to the ground, ready to grab Gaara and leave, so he didn't notice Hatake Satoru's actions at all.
Hatake Satoru had shot out a light blue gas at an extremely fast rate, and then Gaara was in his hand.
Actually, this move was a bit like a puppet master connecting Chakra strings to an object and pulling it over.
But the speed at which Gaara flew was too fast for the eye to see.
"Not a trick, this guy is fast."
"Uh—is he still alive?"
Hatake Satoru didn't really care how Sasori and Deidara reacted. If they couldn't figure out his abilities, he could use that lack of information to his advantage.
He smirked slightly and shook Gaara in his hand.
It took a little time to find the place, but it hasn't been too long yet.
Even though Gaara seemed to have had his tailed beast Chakra taken out, in terms of time, it probably hadn't reached the limit.
But he wasn't moving at all, not even reacting. Was he dead?
Gaara was shaken in Hatake Satoru's hand like a kitten being held by the neck. His eyelids and fingers twitched slightly, but there was no major reaction.
Well, as long as he's still breathing.
Hatake Satoru moved slightly to the side of the cave. Then, with a "boom," a loud noise rang out.
The boulder blocking the entrance lost most of its weight and finally couldn't hold on any longer. With a crash, it collapsed, blocking almost the entire entrance.
The water that had gathered on the ground rippled as the rubble fell.
"This isn't a good place for you to fight. Go outside."
Sasori's eyes shifted, and he quickly realized that Hatake Satoru had no intention of leaving.
Deidara's wild explosions, if used in this cave, would probably choke everyone to death before they were killed.
It was better to get that kid out of here quickly.
"He doesn't look too good."
"Sasori, can you handle him by yourself? Hmm!"
Deidara sat on his bird, its white clay wings flapping.
He didn't think Hatake Satoru was an easy opponent. With all his different abilities, the guy seemed strange.
At least he wasn't the type he usually saw.
But Sasori's abilities were a bit stronger than his, and Deidara's clay supply and stamina were limited, meaning he could only provide support.
"Who do you think you're looking down on, kid?"
"You're injured, you'd just get in the way if you stayed."
"Go outside, and I'll bring the One-Tail Jinchuriki to catch up with you later."
Hatake Satoru was alone. Even though the One-Tail Jinchuriki was still alive, there was basically no chance of him getting up and working with Hatake Satoru.
At most, he would just be a burden.
Hatake Satoru had Itachi and the others blocking the way, and other than some unfamiliar abilities, it didn't seem like Hatake Satoru could use his full strength in this space.
In this situation, Sasori felt like he could take on this one person.
Sasori's scary eyes looked up, staring at Deidara with a hint of annoyance.
Sasori's whole face said he didn't like waiting and wanted Deidara to leave immediately.
"Okay, okay, there's no helping it."
Deidara knew that this terrain wasn't suitable for using his abilities anyway. He was injured and running out of clay.
It was better not to annoy Sasori and leave first.
The white bird flapped its wings and barely flew out of the rubble.
"Let's finish this quickly. I don't like waiting, and I don't like making people wait."
Sasori tore off the black cloth covering his mouth, revealing a scary mouth below.
"Alright, I just happen to have something very interesting I want to show you."
Hatake Satoru's eyes behind his sunglasses narrowed with amusement.
…
At the same time, Kakashi and Naruto, who were rushing to the location Hatake Satoru had given them, encountered a scene they had almost never considered.
When Naruto was training away from the village, he learned that Sasuke had joined Akatsuki and become an s-rank rogue ninja.
As a member of Akatsuki, Sasuke didn't come to find him; instead, he went to Konoha.
Although he didn't cause any large-scale damage, Konoha had no choice but to classify him as a rogue ninja.
Naruto saw the reports and Sasuke's wanted poster in the newspaper while he was training.
Sasuke hated Itachi so much. How could he team up with him and become a rogue ninja?
Naruto had grown up with Sasuke, and he thought he knew his friend well enough.
Jiraiya had hinted to Naruto that Sasuke had been taken to Akatsuki as a hostage to control his brother.
"I have to defeat Sasuke's brother to bring Sasuke back to the village."
Naruto gradually formed this idea in his mind.
Sasuke wanted power, but he definitely didn't want to follow Itachi.
It must be because of Akatsuki's tricks that Sasuke had to stay there and was branded as a rogue ninja.
But besides Naruto, most people in higher positions knew the reason for Sasuke joining Akatsuki.
After Itachi wiped out the clan, he kept Sasuke in the village as a way to control things. As long as Sasuke stayed in the village, Itachi wasn't truly free.
Although it wasn't known who Sasuke originally wanted to join, the most likely option now was Orochimaru.
After all, they had definitely encountered the Sound Four back then.
But the Sound Four were stopped by their people, and Akatsuki happened to pick up the pieces, taking Sasuke back as a hostage.
The Akatsuki organization would naturally control both sets of Sharingan carefully.
Following Orochimaru or following Itachi, neither of those options was good. Either way, Sasuke being a rogue ninja was a strong possibility.
Naruto saw the two people emerge from the trees and block their path, and he was speechless for a moment.
"Why is it you…"
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