Shiro opened his eyes once more, quickly scanning his surroundings.
A familiar workbench.
A familiar workshop layout.
A familiar smile on Sasori's face.
Sasori looked at Shiro and spoke.
"Brother, you're awake. Try out your new body. I not only strengthened it, but I also added many powerful weapons."
Shiro stepped down from the workbench without a word, familiarizing himself with his new body. Sasori, satisfied, turned around to tidy up his tools.
Seizing the moment when Sasori's gaze was elsewhere, Shiro threw a punch at the back of his head.
His fist stopped mere inches away.
Sasori turned his head to face him, the same smile still on his lips, but the cold glint in his eyes was chilling.
"Are you trying to kill me, dear brother?"
"I know that as you continue to fight, you will gradually lose your sanity and emotions."
"I hope you don't force me to suppress your consciousness through other means."
"I don't want the version of you that stays with me to be nothing more than a mindless puppet, like the others…"
Restrictions lifted. Shiro kicked at Sasori.
Again, Sasori suppressed him.
Then released him.
Again, he fought.
Again, he was stopped.
This cycle repeated dozens of times.
At last, Shiro was forced to compromise.
He didn't understand Sasori's true intentions, but he made two demands in exchange for staying by his side:
No harm would come to the people of Sunagakure, his last remaining bond with the village.
All weapons would be removed from his body, as they tarnished his pride as a taijutsu master.
Sasori agreed. And so, Shiro remained.
Over time, Shiro learned that they were in Amegakure, and that Sasori had joined the Akatsuki, the organization that now ruled the village.
The former leader, Hanzo of the Salamander, once regarded as a demi-god of the shinobi world, had been secretly assassinated by the Akatsuki's leader, Pain.
According to Sasori, the Akatsuki's goal was world peace.
Yet, as Shiro observed the core members—rogue nin clad in black robes adorned with red clouds, each wearing a different color of nail polish—he found them suspicious at best.
Especially their leader, Pain. His cryptic speeches about "carrying burdens" made Shiro think he was running a brainwashing cult.
He grew increasingly convinced that the Akatsuki was a criminal organization deceiving his younger brother.
Despite his attempts to persuade Sasori to leave, his words fell on deaf ears.
Shiro began undertaking missions alongside Sasori. Most of their work involved assassinating bounty targets and bringing their corpses to exchange for money. The rest included raiding small villages for supplies.
Killing. Looting.
And this was supposed to be for world peace?
Shiro's doubts only deepened.
The one small comfort was that Sasori upheld his promise, never taking on missions that harmed Sunagakure.
Until one fateful day.
During a mission to eliminate a high-ranking Iwagakure shinobi, Shiro stumbled upon a small Suna unit being pursued by a larger Iwa force.
Among them, he saw her—Temari.
His long-buried emotions surged. Without hesitation, he abandoned his mission, tore off a piece of cloth to cover his face, and rushed to save them.
With swift, decisive strikes, he drove away the Iwa shinobi, securing Temari's safety.
But he didn't linger.
Just as he turned to leave, a voice called out behind him.
"Shiro-sensei!"
Temari had recognized him.
He quickened his pace and disappeared.
But his actions had consequences.
The mission was a failure.
The Akatsuki was exposed to the Five Great Nations earlier than planned.
Pain was furious.
He wanted Shiro dead.
But Sasori stopped him.
"Brother, I'm sorry."
Those were Sasori's last words before everything faded to black.
Shiro lost control of his body.
For a year, Sasori manipulated him like a puppet, forcing him into one massacre after another.
He destroyed over a dozen small shinobi villages.
Not a single survivor was left in his wake.
Endless battles. Endless killing.
Until all that remained in his mind was the insatiable hunger for combat.
His self-awareness was gone.
He had become nothing more than Sasori's tool.
Year 34.
Pain issued an order—capture the Fifth Kazekage, Gaara, and extract Shukaku.
Sasori accepted.
Without hesitation.
Sasori and Deidara traveled to Sunagakure. Along the way, Deidara asked why Sasori insisted on going alone.
"I need to sever my brother's last bond with the village."
Sasori released Shiro, sending him into the village.
The moment the guards spotted him, they shouted in excitement:
"Lord Shiro has returned!"
Soon, Gaara, Temari, Kankuro, and the village elders arrived to welcome him.
"Shiro-sensei!"
Gaara bowed deeply in respect.
Shiro did not respond.
BOOM!
Shiro's fist smashed through Gaara's Absolute Defense, shattering his Sand Armor.
Gaara coughed up blood and was sent flying into the village wall.
The entire village froze in shock.
Then, the battle erupted.
Ninjas rushed at him.
But they were nothing in his hands.
Even under Sasori's control, he never once struck Temari.
She alone managed to fight him the longest.
Reinforcements arrived—Chiyo and Ebizo.
Two elders who cared for him, now forced to face him in battle.
They gave it their all.
And still, within twenty minutes, they lay unconscious in the dirt.
Only Temari remained standing before him.
Under Sasori's command, he finally attacked her directly.
CRACK!
Temari's fan, a gift from Shiro long ago, shattered under his fist.
She stumbled, blood dripping from her lips.
As he raised his hand for the final blow, her trembling voice reached him.
"Shiro-sensei, you never answered me… Do you love me?"
The words pierced through the fog in his mind.
He remembered.
With the last of his willpower, he crushed the core inside his body.
His strength drained away, and he collapsed to his knees.
"…Yes."
For the first time, he gave her an answer.
Temari smiled through her tears.
"I love you too, sensei… I have for a long time."
Sasori arrived with Deidara, furious.
"Why?! You ruined my eternal art! Because of this woman?! I'll kill her—I'll make her a puppet like you!"
He reached for Temari.
With the last of his strength, Shiro moved.
He exploded forward, punching through Deidara's chest.
Then he held onto Sasori with all his might.
Sasori struggled, but Shiro didn't let go.
"Sasori… my little brother… It's time to see our parents again."
"NOW, TEMARI!"
Through her tears, she formed the final hand seals.
"Wind Release—Great Breakthrough!"
The raging wind consumed them both.
As his vision faded, Shiro saw Temari kneeling, touching her forehead to the ground—just like a bride honoring her groom in a wedding ceremony.
He smiled.
And with his last breath, he whispered:
"…Okay."
Shiro died.