Chapter 279: Finding a Way
Hidden Sand Village.
Lady Chiyo watched in silence as Sakura extracted the metallic toxins from Kankuro's body within seconds.
Sakura then performed a hand seal sequence that appeared to be the start of a Genjutsu, quickly stabilizing Kankuro's condition. Her posture and efficiency made the Sand's own medical ninjutsu look amateurish. The poison they were helpless against had been removed with ease by Sakura.
"As expected of Sakura, that's amazing!" Naruto exclaimed, watching Kankuro's face as he slowly regained consciousness.
Kakashi thought to himself: She actually learned Tonbo's Genjutsu for body-deception. Sakura truly does have a talent for Genjutsu.
It seemed that leaving Sakura with Tonbo Tobitake for a period of training back then was the right call. That was Tonbo's secret technique; without a certain level of innate talent and a profound understanding of human anatomy, one could never master it.
"Is she Tsunade's apprentice? To think even that woman's student has reached such a level of medical ninjutsu..." Chiyo sank into thought. It was a massive shock. As a master of poisons herself, she had never seen detoxification handled so effortlessly.
"Quick, ask him what happened."
Hidden Sand Commercial Street.
A burly man with spiky hair appeared, wearing a cloak to shield himself from the desert wind.
"Based on Sasori's movements across various regions before joining the Akatsuki, it looks like I'll have to step in this time."
This man was a Shadow Clone of Tonbo Tobitake using the Transformation Jutsu. Through his intelligence network, he had uncovered parts of Sasori's history. Combined with the recent movements of his other clones, his understanding of powerful rogue ninjas had become much clearer.
After Sasori left the Sand, he had assassinated various unique ninjas across the world for his "puppet art." Most of these victims were known or unknown holders of Kekkei Genkai. Due to the nature of these bloodline limits, some ninjas were hated by their own communities; ignorant factions viewed Kekkei Genkai the same way the common villagers of Konoha viewed Naruto.
Sasori hunted these people. Based on this behavior, it was likely that every puppet in Sasori's Performance of a Hundred Puppets was a Human Puppet possessing different bloodlines or secret arts. Tonbo had even located the ruins of a nation Sasori had destroyed: the Land of Cinder, a small country with unique materials where organic and inorganic matter coexisted—perfect for puppet making.
Tonbo didn't know if Sasori would "throw the fight" and choose to die at his grandmother's hands out of a lingering spark of humanity, as some fans in his previous world had speculated.
"What if he hears my name, 'Captain Tonbo,' and decides he wants to collect me as his greatest masterpiece?" Tonbo thought shamelessly. Of course, that was unlikely; Sasori would probably prefer the bodies of people like Pain.
He had sent his clone here just in case, to ensure Sakura and Kakashi didn't die. Otherwise, the primary goal of his clones remained searching for the hidden Kara organization.
Whoosh! Whoosh!
Just then, several figures blurred past him on the street. It was Kakashi, Naruto, and the others.
Konoha Library.
"Misfortune has its uses; like the toad, ugly and venomous, it wears yet a precious jewel in its head..."
"Luck is hindered, activity is restricted..."
"Yin Release creates form out of nothing, manifesting things that do not exist in the physical world, such as imagination... shadows... the mind..."
"Cursed Technique: Death Blood Possession... linking two people's misfortune through a medium. This is a special nature transformation of Yin Release, manifesting misfortune and applying it to reality..."
"There are references, but developing nature transformations for 'Luck' and 'Misfortune' is a project with no definite timeline..."
Tonbo sat with his three-year-old son, flipping through the library's deep archives. Despite being so young, Keigo saw his father's obsession and set aside his own research to help find a way to resist that specific Shinjutsu.
Over the past few days, the father and son finally found a possibility: to counter a specific mechanism-based technique, one must develop a technique with a matching mechanism. After their discussions, Tonbo's high-level Yin Release talent became the only breakthrough point.
Keigo didn't know exactly how high his father's Yin talent was, but since Tonbo said he was a big deal, Keigo helped brainstorm in that direction. Father and son united, their sharpness could cut gold.
Risking Ayame's wrath, the two neglected sleep and food until they finally found the opening. It went back to Keigo's initial idea: if the reflection of damage is based on the strength of malice, one only needs a single person to commit to a "mutual destruction."
Tonbo used the Jashin Cult's Death Blood Possession as a reference for Keigo. Through their combined logic and Tonbo's practical application, they concluded that the technique was a Yin nature transformation that manifested "Misfortune" and used a medium to balance the "Misfortune Scale" between two people.
As long as one side has a way to bypass death, the enemy can be eliminated.
"But Dad, developing this kind of nature transformation won't be easy!" Keigo's mind was exceptionally sharp. Even at three, he provided the core logic.
"It's fine. I've already developed several Yin nature transformations. No matter how hard it is, I have to do it."
Normal nature transformation development—like the five elements—takes an average ninja two to three years. Yin Release is naturally harder, but Tonbo's talent was off the charts. He had confidence.
"You're really determined, Dad. It looks like when I research the ultimate secrets of chakra later on, I'll still need your help."
Keigo was already imagining his adult self with his father acting as his assistant. If his dad could pull off this kind of nature transformation, it proved he was a top-tier asset for research.
"Heh, you little brat. I ask for a little help and you're already trying to scout me? I'm a man who wants to retire early. Don't think about ordering your old man around; you'll have to rely on yourself." Tonbo patted his son's head.
"Don't pat my head, I'll get stupid."
"Well, we finally found a countermeasure. Dad will buy you whatever you want today. What do you want?"
"I want a laboratory of at least five hundred square meters, fully equipped with the latest technology from the Land of Lightning."
"Huh? Even selling Ichiraku Ramen wouldn't cover that."
"Sigh. Then just buy me two lollipops."
"Why two?"
"Because you'll definitely want one too, Dad."
"Haha! As expected of my son. The lollipops are on me today."
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