Naruto: Did i Just Get Reincarnated as Gojo?

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Another battlefield in the desert.

"Baki, you're insane!" Rasa gasped, clutching his wounds.

Before him stood Baki and his men. Behind, Sasori of the Red Sand. And around him the bodies of his guards.

This was a carefully orchestrated ambush. And the reason

Rasa's unique Kekkei Genkai transformed chakra into magnetic force, manipulating Gold Dust for offense and defense. It was Sunagakure's most powerful weapon.

If the Gold Dust entered a person's body, or a puppet's, it could paralyze them. And because Rasa's chakra was magnetic, magnetic weapons were useless against him.

This meant his abilities countered most conventional ninja tools, and he was a natural enemy of puppeteers.

That was why he'd become Kazekage. While his sand control wasn't as refined as Baki's, his overall strength was superior.

He was Sunagakure's protector. He could defend the village, cripple puppeteers, even generate income by extracting gold from the desert.

A well-rounded leader.

But now, against Sasori, his abilities were useless.

Sasori's fourth scroll emitted a strange chakra that coated his puppets and weapons, negating Rasa's magnetic control.

It was as if Rasa, had been trapped in a plastic prison.

No metal, no sand. His strength was crippled.

Sasori truly was Suna's greatest puppeteer. Having received intel from Baki, he'd modified his puppets and scrolls, creating Anti-Rasa weapons.

He'd even developed special poison senbon, designed to disrupt Rasa's chakra control.

Facing a swarm of puppets, Rasa had tried to seal Sasori with his Gold Dust Imperial Funeral, but Sasori, transferring his consciousness to another puppet, had easily evaded the attack.

He'd only managed to destroy a few empty puppets.

And then, Baki had arrived, his men cutting off Rasa's escape.

There was no respect in their eyes, only ambition, a desire to claim the Kazekage title.

Konoha had its Will of Fire, Iwagakure its Will of Stone. These villages, united by a common cause, were strong.

But a village without a unifying ideology

Its ninja were like wild beasts, driven by greed. They cared nothing for the village, for the Kage.

Rasa slammed his hands onto the ground, creating a Gold Dust Wall to block Baki's Scorching Sand.

But Baki's sand control was superior. A few grains of burning sand pierced through, searing his skin.

Rasa gasped, his body swaying.

"Baki! What are you doing?!"

"I know exactly what I'm doing, Kazekage-sama. This is treason. But if you die here, no one will ever know, will they?"

"You you'd kill to become Kazekage? Do you even care about Sunagakure? What if what if future Kazekage follows your example? What if every successor climbs to power over their comrades' corpses? The village you'll destroy it!"

It wasn't just about his own life anymore. Rasa saw Sunagakure's future, a future of endless bloodshed and internal strife.

Even if there were no witnesses, this act would be recorded in history. Baki, having seized power through assassination, would likely meet the same fate.

The Kazekage title would become a curse, each successor killing their predecessor.

And to maintain their power, they'd purge any dissent.

Sunagakure would become a lawless wasteland.

And that was the best-case scenario.

If even Baki could be assassinated, his supporters, the War Hawks, would seize control. And then his carefully crafted peace with Konoha would crumble.

A warmongering village was doomed.

And his daughter, Temari. What would become of her if Sunagakure and Konoha went to war?

He was powerless to stop this.

Baki's scorching sand continued to burn through his defenses.

He watched helplessly as Baki and Sasori approached.

"Any last words, Kazekage-sama?"

"Answer me, Baki!" Rasa roared.

"All I know is if I don't kill you, I'll die. And those loyal Suna ninja they will die! The village will be controlled by merchants. Sunagakure will be ruined! You forced my hand, Rasa. This is your fault!"

Rasa's Gold Dust Wall shattered. A crimson senbon, tipped with Sasori's poison, pierced his heart.

He coughed up blood, his body collapsing.

The sky darkened, wind and sand stinging his eyes.

Sasori approached. Hiruko's tail pierced Rasa's heart. He lifted the lifeless body into the air.

Rasa's eyes, once filled with life, now stared blankly at the darkening sky.

The Fourth Kazekage was dead.

"Troublesome" Baki murmured, a wave of relief washing over him.

He felt no fear, no guilt, only ambition.

Sunagakure was his.

Except

"Sasori of the Red Sand!" He turned to the rogue ninja, his voice laced with authority. "Return to Suna. I'll pardon your crimes. You can be a Suna ninja again. Anbu Commander or Police Chief, a seat on the Elder Council choose your reward."

He offered what he believed were generous terms.

A missing-nin, regardless of their strength or affiliations, was still a missing-nin.

Hunted, ostracized. Their skills, and their power meaningless without a village.

And he, Baki, the future Fifth Kazekage, was offering a full pardon, a chance to reclaim his place in Sunagakure.

Sasori, however, stared at him with his empty puppet eyes. "Perhaps after you become Kazekage, we can discuss this further. But for now, I have no intention of returning. I've never enjoyed being a Sunagakure ninja. The village's fate is irrelevant to me."

He refused Baki's offer. "We have a business arrangement. Nothing more. I'll be taking the Kazekage's body."

Baki's eyes narrowed. He'd expected the refusal, but this ingratitude it angered him.

This traitor, who'd been given everything and thrown it all away!

He wanted to eliminate Sasori right here and now. But that organization...

"You can have the body."

"But we had a deal. You were to claim responsibility for Rasa's death. I'd then hunt you down, Enhancing my position as a hero. It's the only way I can become Kazekage."

"As you wish." Sasori sealed Rasa's body in a scroll, retrieving his puppets and retreating into Hiruko.

The hunt would begin soon. Baki watched as Sasori disappeared, the effects of his jutsu fading.

News of Rasa's death would spread, and he, Baki, would give chase, a hero avenging his village's leader.

And even if he failed to capture Sasori, his efforts would be recognized. He'd become the Fifth Kazekage.

"Time to begin." He and his men waited.

But Sasori, heading towards his rendezvous with Kakuzu, encountered an obstacle.

He stopped, his gaze fixed on a shirtless, strangely scarred man.

Sasori considered himself and Kakuzu unconventional. But compared to this creature, they were practically normal.

The man's mouth was stitched shut, his eyelids seemingly sewn open. His body was covered in stitches. He resembled Kakuzu, in a way. But here, now he was an enemy.

Without a word, Sasori unleashed Hiruko's Needle Jizo, a barrage of poison needles.

The needles, coated with Sasori's potent poison, shot toward the man at blinding speed. A single graze meant paralysis, followed by a slow, agonizing death.

But the man didn't even try to dodge.

The needles struck, their force pushing him back.

'Is he that weak?' Sasori wondered.

In the ninja world, the more bizarre a ninja's appearance, the stronger they usually were.

His leader, Nagato, was riddled with black rods. Konan is practically made of paper. He himself, is a human puppet. Kakuzu, with his black tendrils. And that green-clad enthusiast. They were all powerful ninjas.

This stitches-covered man, he couldn't be ordinary.

Sasori's instincts were correct. Hidan, now resembling a human pincushion, didn't fall.

He paused for a moment, then casually brushed the needles aside.

Six bone spurs erupted from his hands, aimed at Sasori.

"Immune to poison?"

"Then try this."

"Red Secret Technique: Performance of a Hundred Puppets!"

"Magnet Release: Iron Sand Drizzle!"

Sasori, no longer holding back, unleashed his full power.

He unsealed two scrolls, summoning his most prized puppets.

Hundreds of puppets, clad in red robes, each wielding a unique weapon crafted by Sasori himself, their movements controlled by chakra strings connected to his "Performance Core."

Thanks to the core, he could control them effortlessly, their movements mirroring his will with perfect precision.

And thanks to the Akatsuki's generosity, he'd upgraded his puppets, many of them crafted from the bodies of fallen ninjas.

Some could even use their former jutsus.

A Konoha ninja might recognize them: Aburame Torune, Yamanaka Fū Root operatives, now Sasori's puppets.

In life, they'd served Danzo. In death, they protected Sasori.

If not for his limited chakra reserves, Sasori alone was an army.

And his greatest weapon is the Third Kazekage puppet.

Hundreds of puppets and a rain of iron sand. Any ordinary ninja would have surrendered or fled.

"Attack! Tear him apart!"

The puppets surged forward, their weapons—kunai, shuriken, swords, axes—aimed at Hidan.

Hidan, however, didn't even flinch. His pain receptors, disabled by Orochimaru, made him fearless. He simply walked forward, shrugging off the attacks, his bone claws tearing through the puppets.

What should have been a clash of jutsu became a brutal brawl.

Sasori stared, bewildered. What kind of monster was this?

The wounds inflicted by the chakra-infused weapons healed instantly.

With such vitality and regenerative abilities, Sasori's eyes gleamed with greed. He had to acquire this body.

This puppet would be his greatest masterpiece.

No not a puppet. A new vessel.

"Fight! Destroy him!"

"You'll eventually tire. And these are just my weakest puppets. I can do this all day."

"Once your strength fades, your chakra runs out you're mine."

Sasori's eyes burned with a manic intensity. He gestured, and the puppets' attacks intensified.

This wasn't a battle of skill but of attrition.

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"You think your Five Nature Transformations impress me? You're a clown!"

Professor Paradox, using an Earth Release variant of the Wood Human Technique, created a ten-meter-tall earthen giant that held Kakuzu in its grasp, slamming him repeatedly against the ground.

He continued until Kakuzu's last mask shattered.

The display of brute force was visually impressive.

This was the power of a Hokage. He'd unleashed his full strength, using jutsu Gojo Kaigetsu had never seen before.

Earth Giant, Drought Jutsu

Never anger a Hokage.

Kakuzu coughed up blood, his body bruised and broken, twitching uncontrollably.

Four of his five hearts were gone.

One hit, and he'd be dead.

'What is this monster? Where did he come from?'

Men don't cry easily. But Kakuzu felt the urge.

It was a fair fight. The others, including Tsunade, hadn't intervened. And yet, this seemingly ordinary middle-aged man had toyed with him.

The earth giant lifted Kakuzu and dangled him before Professor Paradox.

"Tell me how did Danzo Shimura die?"

"It was the underground exchange. The bounty was for any Konoha elder. We had intel on Danzo and ambushed him He used the Four Symbols Seal. We didn't even collect the bounty." Kakuzu's voice was weak.

He'd been so arrogant before Now, he was barely clinging to life.

To minimize his suffering, he'd answer any question.

"How did he die?"

"He used the Four Symbols Seal a suicide jutsu. He took himself out to protect Konoha's secrets. We didn't get the bounty," Kakuzu repeated.

"So you're saying you're willing to kill for money?"

"Of course. That's how it is." Kakuzu was resigned. To justify his actions at this point was pointless.

"Where is your organization's HQ?"

"Heh in the sky." Kakuzu's voice was laced with mockery. A ninja could betray a village, but not an organization.

He'd already betrayed Takigakure. He wouldn't betray the Akatsuki.

"The sky?" Professor Paradox looked up. White clouds drifted lazily, obscuring the sun.

"The sky. It's in the sky. You killed Danzo I'll tear the sky down!"

The Adamantine Staff, theoretically, could extend infinitely. Though it couldn't fly, it could reach the heavens. And with his Earth Release, he could create platforms to stand on. He'd crush this organization, wherever it hid.

"Who are you?"

Kakuzu stared at him, bewildered. This obsession with Danzo it was as if Danzo's death had shattered his ninja way. Such devotion could only mean

"You're the Third Hokage! Hiruzen Sarutobi?!" He blurted out.

"Are you insane?! A Kage operating in another village's territory! If Sunagakure finds out it'll be war!"

It all made sense now.

There were no unknown, super-powered ninjas in the world. Someone this strong, with such mastery of the five nature transformations, had to be famous.

And this obsession with avenging Danzo could only be Hiruzen Sarutobi.

'Damn that Zetsu! His intel was worthless.'

If even Hiruzen Sarutobi was one of Gojo Kaigetsu's guards, he wouldn't have come here. He'd have stayed in the east or the north, collecting bounties.

He, Kakuzu, seemed destined to be Konoha's enemy.

"Any last words?" Hiruzen Sarutobi, his identity exposed, raised his Adamantine Staff.

Tsunade moved to intervene. Gojo Kaigetsu's orders were to capture Kakuzu alive, for interrogation.

But Gojo Kaigetsu stopped her. "Let him vent. Otherwise, he might do something rash."

He feared that Hiruzen, consumed by grief, might abandon his post and go on a revenge quest, hunting the Akatsuki.

That would attract Zetsu's attention, and Nagato would likely be sent to eliminate him.

Like a monkey trying to storm heaven with a stick.

Pain would simply use Almighty Push, and Hiruzen Sarutobi would be gone.

And then Jiraiya, learning of his sensei's death, would likely follow in his footsteps.

Gojo Kaigetsu had to prevent such a chain reaction.

And Kakuzu's Earth Grudge Fear? Orochimaru's Edo Tensei could replicate it.

And besides Gojo Kaigetsu was interested in that jutsu.

It was, in his opinion, the ninja world's most efficient path to immortality.

Ninjas were prone to rejection issues when it came to foreign cells. Transplantation was risky.

In the Wood Release experiments, dozens died, only Yamato surviving. Orochimaru's Living Corpse Reincarnation, though theoretically granting immortality, required a new vessel every three years. Kabuto, having absorbed Orochimaru's cells, had nearly been consumed.

But Kakuzu? Five hearts, no complications. He just needed to replace them occasionally.

Aside from his unconventional appearance, it was practically side-effect-free immortality. And as for his appearance, Orochimaru could surely improve it.

Replacing a heart, and rejuvenating the body was practically magic.

And what if they used White Zetsu cells, or perhaps artificial hearts? No one would care about the ethics of experimenting on artificial humans.

Tsunade's Yin Seal, combined with Kakuzu's Earth Grudge Fear who knew how long he could live?

"Any last words?" Hiruzen asked again.

Kakuzu closed his eyes, his head bowed. He'd lived for money, and now he'd die for it.

His long life had been empty.

Hiruzen Sarutobi, seeing his silence, raised his Adamantine Staff.

Boom—

Kakuzu's body crumpled to the ground.

A gust of wind blew sand across his lifeless eyes.

Hiruzen Sarutobi, his staff still raised, his eyes filled with tears, murmured, "Danzo I've avenged you. They'll all pay."

Gojo Kaigetsu approached, sealing Kakuzu's body in a scroll.

"Feeling better now, Professor?"

"I lost control. I should have kept him alive." Hiruzen smiled wryly. He knew Kakuzu's intel, his Earth Grudge Fear, was valuable. But his desire for revenge

"It's alright. Avengers they're meant to avenge. But next time try to control your emotions."

"I will," Hiruzen said solemnly.

Gojo Kaigetsu's Six Eyes scanned the area. The wind and sand, the chakra infused within it was dissipating.

"The barrier's collapsing. Let's go find Deadpool."

Baki's Desert Layered Imperial Funeral Seal had reached its limit.

The unnatural sandstorm subsided. People emerged from the service stations and stared at the scene.

Puppets, scattered and destroyed, littered the landscape. Kunai, shuriken, senbon

"What happened?" a merchant whispered, his voice trembling.

"Did Konoha and Suna fight?"

"Look!"

Baki, leading a group of Suna ninja, roared, "Sasori of the Red Sand! He killed the Kazekage! After him!"

His voice carried. The news spread quickly.

"Sasori?! Here? Why?"

"Let's get out of here. This trade route isn't safe." Those familiar with Sasori's reputation—Sunagakure's rogue puppeteer—were understandably concerned.

If he was operating here, could Konoha and Suna truly protect them?

Merchants who'd planned to invest reconsidered.

"What is that?"

Even Baki and his men froze, staring at the scene before them.

A figure, his back bearing the words "Loyal to Konoha," his body covered in stitches and blood, stood amidst a mountain of destroyed puppets. He looked like a war god.

And Sasori?

Carried away by a paper bird, his body broken and battered.

Baki: I haven't even made my grand entrance yet. Why is Sasori retreating? How can I become a hero now?

Merchants: A drizzle's protection can't compare to "Loyal to Konoha."

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