(T/N: There is now a p.atreon for this work, and any new work I add will be dropped there first. check it out for an early release of up to 30 chapters edited smoothly. https://www.p.atreon.com/INeedRest)
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As Colt exited the [Sage Mode], Sasori's consciousness drifted into his own memories.
"You people are truly enviable. Itachi Uchiha too, these Mangekyō Sharingan users always surpass countless people's lifetime efforts with just a pair of eyes."
His words were full of bitterness and envy.
"Tell me where Orochimaru is," Colt demanded, his strikes were measured to give Sasori some breathing room. Enough to answer at least.
He recalled that Kabuto was likely Sasori's spy, and it was time to check on Sasuke's situation.
"Orochimaru? How do you even know about that?" Sasori was somewhat shocked.
"Never mind that…"
A smile crept across Sasori's face as he decided to not think about it. He was dying anyway.
"Eight days from now, at Tenchi Bridge, my spy will be there for a meeting. You can do what you want with that info"
With those words, the puppet's limbs went slack, and Sasori was no more.
Having obtained the information he sought, Colt wasted no time and dashed towards Naruto and the others.
Suddenly, his [Shadow Clone] dispersed, relaying new information to him.
Naruto had unleashed the Nine-Tails' power, exposing two tails and severing Deidara's other arm. In desperation, Deidara chose to self-destruct.
Colt knew that Deidara would likely escape nine times out of ten.
Before completing his ultimate art, he wouldn't choose to die so easily.
However, a doubt remained: why had Deidara still attempted to blow himself up, even though the battle on Colt's side had ended much faster than in the original timeline?
When Colt arrived, he found several people surrounding Gaara in a circle.
Temari hung her head, large tears falling to the ground as her body shook slightly.
Naruto knelt before Gaara, clutching the ground with both hands, ignoring his own wounds.
In an instant, Colt landed in front of Gaara, placing both hands on him and performing his healing technique with all his strength.
"Don't give up so easily. Gaara is still alive," Colt assured them.
His words brought a glimmer of hope to Temari.
"Colt… Please save him"
She whispered and he nodded with a smile.
"The reason a Jinchūriki dies when their tailed beast is extracted is due to massive loss of vitality. And that is not a problem for me…"
Colt's healing technique, having been upgraded twice, now contained an extraordinary level of vitality.
Hope rekindled in Temari's eyes at his explanation and even Naruto stared nervously at Colt.
The Nine-Tails in Naruto's stomach slowly opened its eyes.
"What a powerful vitality, just like the old Six Paths sage… Kamiyo Colt, who are you?"
At that moment, the Nine-Tails genuinely considered Colt's previous words and decided to try and get along with Naruto.
Colt continued using his healing technique.
In the outside world, Gaara's face visibly turned ruddy, replacing its previous pallor.
Ba-dum, Ba-dum!
Though weak, Gaara's heartbeat could be heard clearly in the silent environment.
"He's alive! Gara is still alive!" Naruto almost jumped for joy but restrained himself, fearing he might disturb Colt's treatment.
A few more minutes passed.
Gaara slowly opened his eyes, and Naruto's surprised face came into view.
"Gaara!"
"I am... Alive?"
"Don't talk. You're still weak. Wait a bit more," Colt instructed, not stopping the movements of his hands.
Gaara was like a dying old man, needing a certain amount of vitality to recover.
"Thank you, brother-in-law," Gaara said, looking at the green glowing palm of Colt and naturally understanding the situation.
Hearing "brother-in-law," Temari blushed slightly, while Colt smiled.
With Gaara rescued, Colt and the others successfully completed their mission.
Naruto supported Gaara to walk, while a [Shadow Clone] carried the exhausted Kakashi as they walked towards Sunagakure.
Watching his students grow one by one, Kakashi was no longer the lazy shinobi he once was.
Over the past two years, in addition to completing missions, he had been secretly training.
However, his chakra reserves issue with the Sharingan couldn't be changed.
Using [Kamui] twice in a row had put his body into a state of overload, and it would take a few days for it to return to normal.
"Colt, thank you," Temari said as she and Colt walked side by side, holding hands like a couple on an outing.
With Gaara rescued, a great weight had been lifted from her heart.
The One-Tail was gone, allowing her younger brother to sleep peacefully every night.
"If you really want to thank me, practice the Rasengan and big ball Rasengan at night with me," Colt whispered in her ear. Temari's face turned crimson as she understood what Colt was referencing, but she didn't refuse.
As they approached the village entrance, they encountered Kankuro, who was about to rush out in support, followed by a large number of Sand shinobis.
"Gaara!" Seeing that Gaara was safe and sound, Kankuro was ecstatic, and even the Sand shinobis behind him were excited.
"Everyone..." Gaara tried to stand upright but he was still weak, however, he was unable to believe that all these people had come to save him.
"Good deeds always pay off. Even though you were seriously injured that night, you still protected the village, and your people saw it," Colt said, standing beside him with a smile.
After today, Gaara's path as the Kazekage would be much smoother.
Behind the crowd, Chiyo and Ebizō watched in silence.
Chiyo In particular, had quite the sad expression, but after a while, a single drop fell, and a smile adorned her face.
'Sasori… It's better this way…'
"Let's go," Chiyo said as she started walking.
"Where?" Ebizō asked.
"To help Gaara get rid of those annoying snakes. He will be a qualified Kazekage." There was a hint of determination in Chiyo's voice.
Konoha was thriving because Tsunade had completely removed the excess branches and rotten roots.
Now Chiyo had to do the same.
It would be fine if the troublemakers agreed to retire with her. If not, she wouldn't hesitate to eliminate them.
"Sister, wait for me," Ebizō sighed, understanding Chiyo's thoughts and following her.
The group was welcomed into the village like heroes.
Colt and the others were finally able to conclude their day and rest.
On the way, Colt had already shared the information given by Sasori, and Naruto was very excited.
Finding Orochimaru meant finding Sasuke, right?
There were only eight days left, so Naruto wasn't too impatient.
Otherwise, given his temperament, he would have been clamoring to leave immediately.
Late that night, two dark shadows appeared in the cave where Colt and Sasori had fought.
It was none other than Obito and Zetsu.
Looking at the puppets strewn across the floor, Obito, wearing his spiral mask, searched around and finally found the ring on Sasori's hand.
"Oh, I didn't expect that Sasori of the Red Sand, who once destroyed a country single-handedly, would die like this."
"Kamiyo Colt truly is a big problem," Zetsu said in reply and then added.
"Obito, there's no one else here, so just act normally." He was annoyed at the brat for using his deep voice as if he was the real Madara.
As he spoke, he picked up the remaining puppets on the ground.
Obito finally regained his usual indifference.
"Why are you collecting this garbage? Do you want to try being a puppet master?"
Zetsu smiled mysteriously.
"Actually..."