Sunagakure's detention center was remarkably crude, situated right next to the main prison.
Because Shang Qi had committed murder in broad daylight and was marked as a person of special interest, he was placed in an individual holding cell.
Shang Qi lay on the cold, hard stone bed, his mind racing as he recalled all the experiences he had gone through since arriving in this world.
Rack his brains as he might, he simply could not figure out whom he could possibly have offended, or why a shinobi would suddenly launch a surprise attack on him.
Shang Qi was not the only one in the detention center; in the cell directly opposite his, a group of drunkards hauled in for brawling while intoxicated were locked up.
Perhaps driven by the alcohol rushing to his head, one of the drunkards grew agitated and started cursing loudly, "Baka yaro! Why does that brat get a cell all to himself, while there's seven or eight of us crammed in here? *******"
The unbearable, foul-mouthed abuse ruthlessly shattered Shang Qi's train of thought.
Shang Qi slowly sat up, his eyes fixed on the drunkard's neck as his mind involuntarily recalled the warm blood spurting out when he had severed the strange shinobi's throat with steel wire just moments before.
Elder Chiyo was right: in this world, even if you do not actively attack others, people will still come to attack you.
This was not the peaceful, sheltered realm of his past life; it was a world fraught with endless slaughter and darkness.
Only by making oneself powerful enough, fully armed at all times, could one hope to achieve true safety.
"What is all that yelling for? He just killed a man—do you want to go over there and keep him company?" An older guard holding a long katana slammed the hilt hard against the drunkard's cell door, issuing a stern warning.
Drenched in cold sweat from sheer fright, the drunkard retreated into the corner of the cell and trembled violently.
He glanced over at Shang Qi. The moment their eyes met, the drunkard muttered, "Kid, is this your first time killing someone?"
Shang Qi looked blankly at the guard, his gaze filled with confusion and incomprehension.
A trace of a smug expression surfaced on the guard's face as he said, "I've seen that look in your eyes many times. Usually, after a first kill, people either vomit their guts out or, just like you, stare endlessly at the exact spot where they landed the final blow."
The guard paused for a moment before continuing, "People like you are usually prone to extremes. You get consumed by the desire for slaughter and end up becoming slaves to killing."
Hearing this, Shang Qi fell silent for a moment and said, "Thank you."
Then he slowly closed his eyes and began to meditate, attempting to calm his restless mind by refining his chakra.
Seeing Shang Qi close his eyes to cultivate, the guard nodded with a hint of approval, turned around, and went back to the break room.
Deep in the night, the entire detention center sank into a profound silence.
With subtle movements of Shang Qi's fingers, five spider puppets crawled silently through the window into his cell and swiftly burrowed inside his cloak.
Shielding his actions with the cloak, Shang Qi skillfully reassembled the five spider puppets into a single arm guard and slipped it onto his right arm.
The razor-sharp steel wire danced across his hand as if it possessed a life of its own.
The arm guard and the steel wire gave Shang Qi a sense of security, yet at the same time, they stirred up his impulses.
Countless times, he felt the urge to use the steel wire to pick the lock of his cell and charge across the aisle to go on a killing spree.
Yet every single time, he managed to suppress that mad impulse at the critical moment.
He knew full well that he could not become a slave to slaughter, nor could he transform into a maniac who only knew how to kill.
A night of endurance and meditation allowed Shang Qi's spiritual energy to make unprecedented progress.
The restless desire to kill gradually subsided, and Shang Qi's mind regained its calm and clarity.
At dawn, during the shift change, the older guard specifically came over to check on Shang Qi's condition.
When he saw the clear, lucid look in Shang Qi's eyes, he smiled with satisfaction and left for his shift change with a reassured mind.
Akasuna Uchao arrived at the detention center at noon and had Shang Qi released.
"We've verified that it was Naochido Suzuki who initiated the sneak attack on you," Uchao said. "Since you were acting in self-defense, you bear no guilt whatsoever."
"Why did he attack me?" Shang Qi asked with a frown.
"It's not convenient to talk here. Once we get to Elder Chiyo's place, I'll explain everything in detail," Akasuna Uchao said, lowering his voice.
"Alright." Shang Qi strapped the arm guard back onto his arm and followed Akasuna Uchao out of the detention center.
Upon arriving at Elder Chiyo's residence, Akasuna Uchao spoke first: "Naochido Suzuki was a die-hard loyalist of the Third Kazekage. I suspect that Retsuji wanted to suppress the puppet master faction and secretly had him make a move."
Chiyo chimed in, "The taste of power has turned Retsuji into a man who will stop at nothing. Shang Qi, you suffered this ordeal in Uchao's place this time, so I can grant you one request."
Knowing the truth, Shang Qi could not help but think of the fate that awaited the Red Sand Couple.
During the Second Great Ninja War, due to the Third Kazekage's erroneous decisions, they ultimately perished beneath the blade of Konoha's White Fang, Hatake Sakumo.
Viewed in that light, that tragedy was likely a meticulously plotted conspiracy by the Third Kazekage Retsuji to get rid of the Red Sand Couple.
"I want to study medical ninjutsu and poison arts," Shang Qi said resolutely.
Aside from her formidable mastery of Puppet Technique, Elder Chiyo's medical skills were second to none in Sunagakure.
Shang Qi intended to use medical ninjutsu to build a solid foundation for his physical body.
Moreover, medicine and poison had been intertwined since ancient times; the future Sasori of the Red Sand had become a master of poisons under Chiyo's tutelage, making this undoubtedly an extremely effective means of combat.
"Very well, it seems you intend to inherit all of my legacy," Chiyo joked.
"I think little Sasori is quite suited for it. Even at such a young age, his talent for Puppet Technique is already this high," Shang Qi said.
"Of course, my grandson will naturally surpass his predecessor," pride and anticipation brimming on Chiyo's face.
After learning medical ninjutsu and poison arts from Chiyo, Shang Qi began a regimen of restorative diet and medicinal baths.
Under this meticulous conditioning, his previously somewhat chubby physique gradually grew robust and muscular.
Shang Qi even exhausted the materials in the puppet workshop to construct a tiger puppet.
Unlike conventional puppets, this tiger puppet was an all-around auxiliary combat unit.
Normally, it looked just like an imposing tiger and served as Shang Qi's riding mount.
When he needed to scout for danger, it could release ten spider-shaped miniature puppets from its belly.
These mini-puppets disguised as spiders were the ultimate reconnaissance tools.
Crucially, this tiger puppet could transform into an external exoskeleton armor for Shang Qi.
In ranged combat, it could suppress enemies by firing hidden projectiles;
in close combat, the tremendous physical strength provided by its mechanical transmission enhanced his hand-to-hand fighting capabilities, truly achieving a combination of offense and defense.
A boy's true romance was mecha, and Shang Qi even harbored ambitions of building a Gundam in the future to rival the Uchiha clan's Susanoo.
Many puppet masters were inspired by Shang Qi and began researching animal-type puppets.
However, having exhausted the workshop's supplies, Chiyo could not provide Shang Qi with an unlimited amount of materials.
Shang Qi had no choice but to join Akasuna Uchao's transport team to earn money so he could purchase puppet materials and medicinal herbs for his dietary therapy and baths.
Although transporting fresh water had brought great fame to the Red Sand Couple, the puppet faction remained subjugated by the sand-control faction.
Because the sand-control faction firmly monopolized the mining of mineral resources in the Wind Country, they intentionally inflated mineral prices, making it impossible for many puppet masters to afford the materials needed to build puppets.
Factional struggles within Sunagakure thus grew increasingly fierce. Using the diversion of internal conflicts as an excuse, the Third Kazekage Retsuji decided to redirect those tensions outward, setting his sights on the Land of Fire and plotting an invasion.