"Ha...Hattori-sensei?"
Before she could even process the shift from nearly defeating an Akatsuki member to utter defeat, Sakura was plunged into an even greater disbelief. She thought she was seeing things, so she rubbed her eyes with the back of her less-dirty hand, but the image remained the same.
Sakura's emerald eyes looked at the face of the teacher from her memories without blinking, "You... why are you here?"
Suddenly, she realized the current situation.
The other party was also an Akatsuki's member. He had defected from the village. Ever since that Chunin Exam, their relationship was no longer that of a friendly teacher and student, they were enemies now.
A flicker of realization passed through her emotions, and Sakura's eyes cooled down. She wasn't like Naruto, blindly charging forward without thought.
The cold, objective reality would mercilessly remind people of the truth, no matter how cruel it was.
"That makes sense... Of course, Hattori-sensei is part of Akatsuki..." Sakura slumped to the ground, her emotions fluctuating wildly in just a few moments, "Saving a teammate from the same organization... What comes next…"
'Will I die here?'
It was hard to imagine such a scene. A shadow of despair flickered across the girl's determined, striking face. Logan looked at Sakura, a complicated feeling flashing through his heart.
The joy of seeing each other again is extremely fragile, like sand in a river that was swept away in an instant.
But he still had to acknowledge her, "Sakura."
Logan maintained a cold, indifferent tone, neither too harsh nor too soft.
"Sakura, who is this person?" Chiyo asked in surprise when she saw Sakura's reaction.
"His name is Hattori..."
Chiyo noticed the scratched forehead protector on Logan's forehead, and vague information flashed up, followed by resignation, "I've heard that name before. He was your... sigh. I never imagined it would be like this."
Sakura looked utterly lost, and Chiyo also seemed deflated. It turns out that the other party is Konoha's S-Rank Missing-nin. Even for her, there was no way out of this hopeless situation.
"Thank you for saving me, Hattori." Behind him, the youthful-looking Sasori spoke with an expressionless face, his voice much lighter and less mechanical than when hidden inside Hiruko, "I won't forget this."
Logan was preoccupied with his own thoughts and waved a hand casually, "Yeah, yeah, make sure you remember. Definitely remember."
The corners of Sasori's mouth formed a slight curve, 'This guy was always so unserious.'
"As for these two troublesome Kunoichi Sasori turned his gaze toward Sakura and Chiyo, then said ruthlessly, "Wait a moment. Let me finish them off first."
Killing intent radiated from him. Sasori had always been cruel and indifferent to people, and these two, who had nearly killed him, would receive no mercy.
Logan frowned slightly after hearing this, "Wait a minute..."
Before he could finish, Sasori, who had just taken two steps, suddenly staggered. His body swayed uncontrollably, and Logan quickly reached out to steady him.
"Cough." Sasori's face twisted in pain as he clutched his chest.
'It seemed the damage to his core was affecting him far more severely than his calm demeanor suggested.'
"You're in bad shape." Logan remarked.
Sasori didn't respond and forced himself to stand straight again. He twitched his fingers, trying to manipulate Chakra Threads to lift a blade, but it only floated halfway before clattering to the ground.
Logan gave him a deadpan look, "Yeah, maybe you should just stay still."
"Shut up." Sasori muttered darkly. "It's just a minor issue."
Taking a deep breath, he tried to summon his strength, but only a feeble trickle responded.
After a careful self-assessment, Sasori fell silent. The damage had left him temporarily unable to fight. He glanced at Logan, hesitated for a moment, then reluctantly said, "It seems... I'll have to trouble you."
Not sure if it was his imagination, but Logan felt that Sasori's tone when talking to him was no longer as cold as before.
"Don't worry, I'll help you walk."
"...No. I mean, do me another favor. Kill those two Kunoichi."
"Alright, alright, I'll carry you on my back instead, how about that?"
"What?"
"No need to be moved. You didn't kick me out earlier, so it's only right that I lend a hand when you're in trouble..."
'What the hell?' Sasori was convinced Logan was deliberately ignoring his words, completely sidestepping his request.
Sasori stared at the other party and said in a solemn tone, "Hey, Raiden Hattori, I said..."
"Oh, no way. You want a princess carry?"
"No."
…
In the end, the shameless Logan won with his self-directed, self-acted and self-scripted dialogue.
Sasori, who was injured and unable to move, had no choice but to relent. He tried his best to calm down, and gradually, he realized that Logan didn't want to kill the two women opposite them.
As for why, Sasori didn't know what to think, nor could he bring himself to ask.
Sakura slowly crawled over to Chiyo's side. Due to the distance, they couldn't quite make out the conversation between the two.
They had fully expected to lose their lives, as battles between Ninja were always a matter of life and death. But just as they had steeled themselves for the end, an unexpected turn of events unfolded.
Logan kicked away the blade Sasori had intended to use to finish them off.
Ignoring the two, he half-bent to support Sasori. In his true form, Sasori was just a teenager in appearance, standing a head shorter than Logan at around 160 cm.
If he had still been inside the bulky, ugly Hiruko, Logan would've had a much harder time carrying him.
'Honestly, carrying him on my back would've been easier.'
But Sasori had vehemently refused, so Logan had no choice but to drop the idea.
The weak and exhausted Sakura and Chiyo could only watch as the two turned to leave. The tension on the battlefield had completely dissipated… whether due to injuries, exhaustion, or simply a lack of desire to fight.
'These two Akatsuki's members… are just letting us go?'
'Hattori-sensei... couldn't bring himself to do it?'
Different thoughts flashed through Chiyo and Sakura's minds, each carrying their own indescribable emotions.
The sunlight slanted across the battlefield. From the moment Logan had arrived, his calm yet overwhelming presence hadn't lasted long.
Before leaving, Sasori glared at Sakura and Chiyo fiercely, with a look that said, 'You got lucky this time.'.
In silence, Logan sighed inwardly, 'It's time to leave.'
He glanced around… scattered rocks, kunai, shuriken, the wreckage of dismantled puppets, broken parts… the chaotic remnants of a brutal battle.
'Both sides had fought desperately, laying all their cards on the table.'
'Chiyo, the advisor of Sunagakure, the flower of Sunagakure's previous era.'
'And her prodigy pupil, the genius Puppet Master, Akatsuki's Sasori of the Red Sand.'
'Both were legendary figures. For Sakura to have fought her way to this point, standing among them… she had truly done something incredible.'
"Sakura." Logan suddenly spoke.
When The girl, who was lost in her thoughts, heard the voice, she reflexively replied: "Huh? What?"
He had maintained a detached expression in front of her the entire time. But now, with one arm supporting Sasori, he couldn't help tilting his head slightly to the side, his voice still controlled and measured.
"Well done."
Then, with a subtle gesture, he pointed at the now-exposed, exhausted-looking young boy beside.
After that, he flickered, taking Sasori with him and disappearing from sight.