Not only Kankurō, but Temari and Gaara also looked furious.
These Leaf Genin seemed to view them with complete and utter disdain.
"They're telling the truth," Sakura muttered, crossing her arms and glancing up at the approaching Kankurō, her voice low with a hint of shared exasperation. "Their strength can no longer be measured by the standards of ordinary people."
"Have you all lost your minds?" Kankurō was so enraged he started laughing.
These were mere children who appeared younger than him, yet they carried themselves with the self-assurance of veteran shinobi.
Gaara, who normally avoided unnecessary conflict, remained silent, his tacit approval hanging heavy in the air, allowing Kankurō to proceed with teaching them a lesson.
"Don't you understand?"
Sasuke looked Kankurō dead in the eye, his hand gripping the hilt of the sword sheathed on his back.
He took one step forward.
Swish—
His figure vanished instantly.
"So fast—!" Temari couldn't help but gasp.
The speed was absolute, completely untraceable to the naked eye!
"Where?"
Kankurō's face hardened as he frantically scanned his surroundings.
"Behind you!" Gaara's low growl was barely a warning.
Kankurō tried to pivot, but his body abruptly seized up.
A long sword, still secured within its sheath, was pressed firmly against the back of his neck.
"I am not looking down on you," Sasuke's cold voice whispered from directly behind him. "I am merely stating a fact. Your strength is insufficient to warrant me drawing my sword."
"Sasuke is so cool!" Sakura covered her face, her eyes twinkling like stars.
She realized that ever since Sasuke acquired the Kenjutsu Jars, his demeanor had become dramatically cooler.
"Tch, damn that Sasuke," Naruto pouted. "He always has to steal my spotlight."
Neji, standing nearby, narrowed his eyes slightly.
Even without activating his Byakugan, his enhanced senses allowed him to track Sasuke's movements—it was a sophisticated series of deceptive steps, designed to confuse the visual perspective.
He made a mental note to investigate the nature and number of Jars Uchiha Sasuke had opened.
Kankurō's expression, with the sword hilt pressed against his throat, was incredibly ugly.
But then, he suddenly cracked a smile. "Don't talk big! You're only slightly faster."
Click, click.
Continuous clicking sounds echoed from Kankurō's body.
His body twisted in a bizarre, unnatural way, rotating 180 degrees. Four twisted bamboo poles shot out from his midsection, completely shackling Sasuke and tightening their grip.
"Whoa, what's going on?" Naruto's eyes were wide with confusion.
Neji raised an eyebrow, also taken by surprise.
"That Kankurō fellow," Temari put her hands on her hips and gave a low chuckle. "He already made the switch?"
"We are in another village, of course I must be careful," Kankurō's voice, however, came from the bundle of bandages lying nearby.
The bandages puffed outwards.
They unwound, layer by layer, revealing an identical Kankurō!
"So that's it," Neji finally understood. "The Puppet Technique of the Sand Village, isn't it? He swapped himself out for a puppet. The person mistaken for the genuine shinobi was actually the puppet. However, this technique is entirely ineffective against the Byakugan."
And not just the Byakugan. If Sasuke had activated his Sharingan, he would have instantly seen through the substitution.
"Hmph, enough big talk."
Kankurō manipulated his fingers, and the bamboo restraints constricting Sasuke tightened bit by bit, emitting a sickly creaking sound.
Triumph and satisfaction were clearly written on his face.
"Your speed is good, but did the Leaf not teach you that a ninja must use their brain? Now, your speed is completely useless!"
This Leaf brat had spoken so arrogantly, yet now he was thoroughly trapped. Life and death were in Kankurō's hands.
While he had only gained the advantage through trickery, a win was a win!
"Sasuke-kun..." Sakura anxiously tugged at Naruto. "Sasuke's injury hasn't fully healed yet! Naruto, hurry and save him!"
"Tch, that guy doesn't need my help at all," Naruto looked even more annoyed, his lip sticking out in a pout.
Sasuke's injuries were mostly healed, though not fully recovered.
After that intense battle, the atmosphere between the two rivals had become strange—a mix of intense proximity and profound opposition.
"Tsk tsk," Kankurō smacked his lips, a playful smirk on his face. "You're supposed to be teammates, right? So much for the 'bonds of comradeship' the Leaf always brags about. Hey, if you don't surrender quickly... this is going to get very painful."
The puppet's grip continued to intensify.
A hint of malice crossed Kankurō's eyes. This guy's speed was genuinely impressive. In that case—
He would severely injure him right here, right now! Ensure he couldn't participate in the Chūnin Exams!
At that moment, Sasuke looked up at Kankurō, his handsome face still carrying a cold, confident smile.
"You've been spouting nonsense for quite a while. I thought perhaps you had some actual ability. But in the end, it's just this tedious little trick... You have genuinely disappointed me."
Sasuke's disappointment was sincere. When he heard 'Puppet Technique,' he had momentarily hoped for a complex, powerful strategy.
But this was only a simple binding trap.
Truly, ordinary Genin were irrelevant before him now.
"At this stage, you're still running your mouth!" Kankurō's face darkened in fury. "Then accept the consequences!"
His puppet was armed with hidden blades!
Temari nervously turned her head away, unwilling to witness a handsome youth like Sasuke being brutally dismembered.
"A boring trick."
Sasuke scoffed, took a slow breath, and the hand still firmly gripping the hilt suddenly exerted immense force.
Swish—!
Several rapid flashes of cold light tore through the air. In Kankurō's disbelieving eyes, his puppet was instantly shredded into pieces, scattering across the alley floor.
It was completely carved up.
The Azure Edge Sword in Sasuke's hand—repaired using the rare minerals he acquired from the Jars—now possessed an terrifying sharpness.
Shen Mo, watching from above, felt a touch of satisfaction.
It wasn't easy.
This was the first time Sasuke had achieved a definitive victory after opening Jars, wasn't it?
"See?" Naruto turned to Sakura with an expression that said, 'I told you so.' "I knew there was nothing to worry about."
He then noticed that Sakura was too busy gazing with starry-eyed adoration at Sasuke to pay him any attention.
Naruto instantly felt miserable again.
But the most miserable person on the ground was Kankurō.
He fell to his knees with a thud, staring at the wreckage.
His puppet... shattered.
For a puppeteer, the puppet was his most reliable, powerful partner. How could it be destroyed with such shocking ease!