Sunagakure

Yukio very much underestimated how far they were from Sunagakure when they raided the bandit camp. Initially, he assumed they would arrive by the end of the day, but, in reality, it took around a week to see Sunagakure.

Within a vast desert was a valley that hid the 'Village Hidden in the Sand' Sunagakure behind rocks and cliffs. The buildings were built out of clay or stucco, which helped keep the buildings cool.

Yukio stood at the top of the valley, overlooking the sand village. He observed the people wandering about through the streets of the village.

Despite being in the desert, the heat didn't bother Yukio that much. The moment he stepped foot in the desert, his [Basic Fire Resistance] skill advanced.

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[Intermediate Fire Resistance]

Description: Moderately boosts your resistance to fire and heat. Wounds resulting from fires can heal in a matter of hours, no matter how severe or large they are. Your body will feel refreshed and cool no matter how hot it is.

To advance the skill, come into contact with different sources of heat and take a bath in lava.

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Yukio placed his backpack on the ground and opened it.

"Squeak?" A small, furry mouse poked its head out and sniffed the air as if it was a dog. Thief turned its snout towards Sunagakure, their eyes filled with interest and greed.

"Thief, Hex, you are allowed to roam within the territory of this village. However, there are some things that you guys must abide by."

"Thief, you aren't allowed to steal extremely valuable items. You should only steal low-value stuff and slowly make your way towards the good stuff. Make sure to notify me once you reach that level. Don't want you to cause too much trouble."

"Hex, my lovely centipede, don't kill people." Yukio smiled warmingly at the centipede wrapped around his waist. It slowly nodded its head as it looked at his tamer.

"Ok, I don't think there's anything else to talk about. So, you can roam freely now! Every three days, come find me. That should be easy, right?" Thief immediately scurried off to the village. Hex lazily crawled off of Yukio and burrowed underground.

'Huh, did Wiggles teach it to do that? Or do centipedes do that naturally?'

Yukio also disappeared and began his mission; to look for the scarlet puppetmaster, Sasori! Or try to.

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"Achoo!" A loud sneeze could be heard inside a dimly lit room. Inside the room were rows of puppets. At the end of the room was a desk with a lit candle being its only light source. At the desk was Sasori. He was working on a puppet when all of the sudden, he sneezed.

"..." He was puzzled. He rarely sneezed, but when he does, it wasn't as dramatic as this one. Although he wondered what had happened and why it happened, he quickly reverted his focus to the puppet he was working on.

"Sasori!" A voice called out to him from behind. He ignored the person calling out to him, but that only made the voice pester him even more.

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It had been a few days since Yukio arrived at Sunagakure. It didn't take long for him to find Sasori's whereabouts and was pleased to know he hadn't become a rogue ninja yet.

However, Yukio decided to wait before making contact with him. He needed a plan before doing so. He didn't how he could persuade the puppetmaster to join the Akatsuki, especially since this was the first iteration, the peace-loving iteration of the group.

So, while he was figuring that out, he chose to sell wood carvings to get some quick cash so that he could advance the related skill.

When it became intermediate, asides from the previous effects being moderately enhanced, the wood carvings would emulate a sense of mystery, fear, or wonder. The advancement method required him to turn an entire tree into a wooden carving and auction it off for a high price.

He had made at least twenty unique small figurines of pokemon that he could vividly remember. He even engraved basic information about each sculpture underneath it such as typing and name.

So far, the most popular one was Pikachu.

Wrong. It was Trapinch that captured the heart of the Suna-folk. Asides from it, the other Ground and Wind-type pokemon were fairly loved.

"Hey, kid? How much for this wooden figurine?" A skinny man said as he pointed at a sandslash figurine.

"That one? It'll be fifty ryo, kind sir."

After Yukio received his payment, he began to pack up for the day.

'If I remember correctly, that friend of his left for the border the day after I arrived at Suna. I don't know how long it will take for him to return with a missing arm. It's best if I convince Sasori during that period. If I fail, that kid would come back and Sasori would commit a grave taboo; turning a human into a puppet. I doubt Yahiko would accept a criminal into the Akatsuki.'

He contemplated what he should do to convince Sasori to join the Akatsuki.

'Should I fight him like what Canon Konan did? Force him to join? Nah, I'm pretty sure he would kill me with his poisons. I would need to be incredibly careful and watch his every move. That reminds me, I still need to concoct a poison.'

"You're packing up, already? Just when I was about to get one too, how unfortunate. May I know if you will be back at the same spot tomorrow?" A voice interrupted his thoughts. He looked up and saw an old lady looking at him with her hands behind her back.

'Sasori's grandmother?' He recognized her identity as the leader of Sunagakure's puppet brigade, Chiyo. It is said that she was strong enough to be Hanzo's rival.

Yukio wasn't expecting someone of such high stature would greet him so soon, nor did he expect them to want to purchase one of his figurines.