"Thank you."
Gaara sincerely extended his hand toward Morkel.
Morkel looked at him, slightly surprised.
This guy… he's completely different from the one who used to scream, "I'm going to kill you!" three years ago.
Gaara noticed Morkel's hesitation and smirked slightly. A ball of sand floated up, gently lifting Morkel's palm. And just like that, three years later, they finally shook hands for the first time.
Just as Morkel was about to use the Flying Thunder God technique to take everyone back to Sunagakure, a large group of Sand Shinobi appeared in the distance, wearing their signature khaki uniforms.
At the front were Temari and Kankuro.
"Gaara!!" Temari shouted excitedly.
A wave of ninjas rushed toward them, talking all at once.
"Kazekage-sama, are you okay? We were so worried!"
"The elders didn't want us to act rashly, but we couldn't just sit around while you were in danger!"
"Kazekage-sama, you are our hero!"
"Who's the red-haired guy next to you? He's so handsome! I think I like him!"
"Yeah! And he's wearing a Konoha headband! He must be a Leaf ninja!"
"Konoha and the Sand are allies now. We could even form a marriage alliance! If he confesses to me, I might consider moving to Konoha!"
"It's broad daylight—stop dreaming!"
Temari's face darkened as she shouted, "That's enough!!"
The girls fell silent, but inside, they all had the same thought:
"Is Captain Temari jealous because she likes him too?"
Morkel sighed, rubbing his forehead.
"Flying Thunder God can teleport all of these people back? That's… a lot of people. This is going to be exhausting."
A Strange Discovery
Meanwhile, outside the crowd, Neji activated his Byakugan and noticed something near the cave where they had fought Sasori and Deidara.
Something was gleaming in the sand.
He walked over and dug it out, revealing a ring with the word "Jade" engraved on it.
"Akatsuki's ring?" Neji frowned.
"Neji! What are you doing?" Tenten called from behind.
"Hurry up! Morkel is going to teleport us all back!"
Neji hesitated for a moment, then pocketed the ring before heading back.
Chaos in the Kazekage's Office
Back in Sunagakure, the Sand elders sat in the Kazekage's office, deep in discussion.
"Temari and Kankuro have taken people out of the village," one elder reported.
"Let them go," another replied. "The young generation supports Gaara. Maybe we elders have been too prejudiced against him."
"But what if Akatsuki really takes his Tailed Beast?" a senior official asked worriedly.
"Let's not jump to conclusions," another said. "One of Konoha's top fighters went to help. They say he's strong enough to challenge an entire village alone."
"That's ridiculous," a younger elder scoffed.
The old man shook his head. "No… that might actually be an understatement."
Just then—
BOOM!
In an instant, thousands of people appeared inside the Kazekage's office!
The elders, now completely squished among the crowd, looked horrified.
"What's happening?! Is this some kind of new teleportation weapon?!"
"A full-scale invasion?! Sunagakure is doomed!!"
Kakashi, squeezed to the point of suffocation, adjusted his headband and muttered, "Morkel… why did you place a Flying Thunder God mark in the Kazekage's office?"
"Who's stepping on me?! I can't breathe!" someone shouted.
After the chaos settled and people were evacuated, the Sand elders turned their furious gazes toward Morkel.
"You set up a Flying Thunder God mark in the Kazekage's office?! Do you realize what this means?!"
Morkel blinked. "Uh… yeah, it means I can visit anytime?"
"THIS IS NOT A JOKE!"
"If you can teleport here whenever you want, that means Konoha can assassinate our leaders at any time!"
Morkel sighed, raising his hands. "Chill. I just left it here for convenience. If you don't like it, just move the table and throw it out."
"That's not the point!"
"You think Sunagakure is your personal backyard?!"
Just then, Granny Chiyo stood up.
"Enough!"
The room fell silent.
Chiyo's sharp eyes swept over the elders.
"Gaara was kidnapped, and you were too afraid to rescue him," she said coldly. "Konoha's ninja saved our Kazekage!"
"Did you know? That red-haired boy nearly lost his life to the Shinigami to revive Gaara!"
"You all talk about honor, but where were you when our leader was in danger?!"
The elders lowered their heads, ashamed.
Gaara walked up to the desk, placing his hand on the Flying Thunder God mark.
"Konoha is our ally," he said firmly.
"This mark is a symbol of our friendship. Morkel is welcome in Sunagakure anytime."
The elders had no response.
A Token of Friendship
Later, at the village gates, Gaara handed Morkel a scroll.
Morkel raised an eyebrow. "What's this?"
Gaara hesitated for a moment before saying awkwardly, "Temari… uh… my sister…"
Temari's eyes widened at Gaara calling her sister for the first time in years.
Gaara continued, "She told me you like Sand Village herbs. I had some collected for you."
"I even picked some myself. They're rare—only found here."
Morkel opened the scroll and was stunned.
"Dragon Cordyceps?! This stuff sells for 150,000 on the black market per ounce!"
Morkel grinned. "Gaara, you're my friend for life!"
With that, the Konoha shinobi vanished using the Flying Thunder God technique.
A warm breeze blew across Gaara's face as he turned back toward his village, a rare smile on his lips.
Back in Konoha
The first stop was the Hokage's office.
Tsunade eyed Morkel and sighed. "That technique you used… nearly got the Shinigami's attention. It's too dangerous. Don't use it again."
Morkel rubbed the back of his head.
"$308…" he muttered under his breath.
Neji then handed over the Akatsuki ring he had found.
Tsunade inspected it but couldn't determine its significance. She handed it to Morkel.
"Since you're part of the Konoha Research Institute, see if you can figure it out."
Morkel nodded.
Then, Tsunade's eyes narrowed. "And I haven't even started on you placing a teleportation mark in the Kazekage's office!"
Morkel sighed. "Master, even Gaara is fine with it. Why are you still mad?"
Akatsuki's Next Move
Meanwhile, in a hidden cave, Zetsu appeared alongside Deidara, Sasori, and a masked man.
"I can't believe you both lost," Zetsu muttered.
Deidara scowled. "That guy was insane. Even my Garuda explosion didn't faze him."
Nearby, Sasori was digging through the sand.
"My ring… where is it?" he muttered.
The masked man snickered. "Scorpion-senpai, if you lost your ring, won't the leader be mad?"
Sasori shot him a glare. "Shut up before I turn you into a puppet."
A New Mission
Back in the Hokage's office, after the debriefing, Kakashi spoke up.
"Hokage-sama, I have new information. During the fight, Sasori slipped up and mentioned meeting a spy at the Tenchi Bridge in the Land of Grass."
Tsunade's eyes narrowed. "Could be a trap…"
"It's worth checking out," Kakashi said.
Tsunade nodded. "You'll lead the team. Take Naruto and Morkel."
Later that night, Morkel smirked to himself.
"Why bother with a long mission? I placed a Flying Thunder God mark on Sasuke's letter three years ago. I can teleport straight to him."
With that, Morkel vanished into the night.
---