Starting with rogue ninjas, building the insect kingdom.

Chapter 406 Orochimaru Picks Up Another Kid

The Sand Village ninjas looked at each other, their eyes filled with confusion and resentment.

Some gripped their weapons tightly, still contemplating a counterattack, but faced with the menacing enemy, they ultimately let go. It wasn't that they didn't want to fight back, but rather that resistance was pointless.

With most of the Jonin dead or wounded, these ordinary ninjas probably couldn't even withstand a single blow, so why bother risking their lives?

"I...I surrender."

As one boy threw down his weapon and raised his hands, a second, a third, a fourth... followed.

A sense of despair is like a domino effect; once the first one falls, the rest become incredibly fragile.

"Stop it, all of you!" a Chunin roared. "Have you forgotten the kindness the village showed us? Have you forgotten—"

Before he could finish speaking, a foot had already kicked him in the knee.

He knelt down, and before he could get up, his hands were tied behind his back with rough rope.

"Save your breath," the Takigakure ninja who was binding him said expressionlessly. "Your village is finished. If you know what's good for you, cooperate obediently and you might save your life."

The chunin gritted her teeth, her eyes red-rimmed, but in the end she didn't struggle anymore.

One by one, the ninjas were bound hand to hand, tied together with ropes, and driven out of the village like lambs to the slaughter.

Temari and Kankuro, wrapped in blankets, huddled behind a broken pillar in a corner of the plaza. Their eyes were wide open, staring in horror at what was happening.

"Sister..." Kankuro asked in a very soft voice, "Are we...are we going to die?"

"No, she won't." Temari's voice trembled. "Granny Chiyo said she'll bring Gaara back. She will definitely come back."

In the square, the surrendered Sand Ninja were taken away in batches. Some Sand Ninja remained scattered throughout the village, and seeing that things were going badly, they scattered and fled.

These people will only be able to become rogue ninjas, wandering the ninja world, or living in anonymity, never mentioning that they were once Sand Village ninjas. And almost none of them will still think about revenge.

The Sand Village, once a behemoth among the Five Great Ninja Villages, was completely destroyed in less than a day.

It was not only destroyed by war, but also by the hearts and minds of the people.

The old village chief stood before the ruins of the Kazekage Building, his gaze sweeping across the plaza before finally settling on Temari and Kankuro.

The offspring of the Fourth Kazekage, Rasa? He frowned slightly, unsure of what to do.

Before long, Temari and Kankuro were brought before the old village chief.

"The offspring of the Fourth Kazekage are a bit tricky to deal with, but they're still just children!"

Although they were invaders, they were not truly evil.

Kankuro shrank back in fright, but Temari straightened her back and said in a voice still trembling with tears, "You... if you want to kill someone, kill me, but spare my brother!"

The old village chief didn't answer, but instead pulled out an insect: "My lord, I have captured two offspring of the Fourth Kazekage, a boy and a girl, both still very young. What should we do with them?"

At this moment, Shisei Aburame was watching the show from mid-air. On the sand dune, the Ten-Tails had been summoned, and everyone was busy sealing the tailed beast.

"You decide what to do!" he said, and then hung up the phone.

The old village chief looked bewildered. "Me? How am I supposed to do that?"

Just then, Orochimaru's voice came from behind: "Why don't you leave it to me?"

"Lord Orochimaru." The old village chief bowed slightly. He was quite respectful to Orochimaru, after all, this lord had contributed a lot to the village's survival.

Orochimaru didn't seem to care about his attitude, and walked straight to the two children, squatting down.

Temari and Kankuro instinctively stepped back, but Orochimaru reached out a hand, gently pinched Kankuro's chin, and lifted his face.

"You little guys have good potential," Orochimaru licked his lips. "You're barely worth training. Want to come with me?"

"Let me go! Sister! Sister!" Kankuro struggled, his voice trembling with tears.

"My lord, my lord, we agree!" The older Temari knelt down sensibly. At that moment, Anko came from behind and picked them both up.

She didn't mean anything by it; she just felt that the two children were connected to her by a tragic fate, both of them being coerced and unable to compromise by joining the evil camp.

Sometimes, Anko wonders why her teacher is Orochimaru, but upon reflection, it's not so bad; at least she's still alive.

Yes, they're still alive!

"Stop worrying. Sometimes being alive is a blessing." Hongdou advised the two siblings, but it seemed as if she was also advising herself.

On the other side, the surrounding people were also dug out by the Daodao gang; those who were alive remained alive, and those who were dead remained dead.

This may seem like a pointless statement, but upon closer examination, it makes sense. There is sadness and weeping, and a sense of oppression pervades the air.

Orochimaru couldn't stand such a scene, and he didn't like it either. Moreover, the scenic village full of desert landscapes didn't hold much value for him.

"It seems there's nothing more for me to do here. Tell Zhicheng-kun we're leaving now."

After Orochimaru finished speaking, he turned and left with several of his men.

Overall, this trip wasn't a waste; we managed to pick up two geniuses, so we got a pretty good deal.

On the way back, Kankuro kept sobbing quietly, while Temari comforted him, "Don't cry, we'll become stronger. When we become stronger, we can save Gaara, we can... we can get revenge."

Kankuro nodded vigorously, wiping away his tears with his sleeve. Orochimaru turned his head, looking down at them as if stating a fact:

"Actually, there is no enmity between us. There is also no enmity between you and Zhicheng-kun."

Temari looked up, staring blankly at Orochimaru.

She had expected Orochimaru to say something like, "You are prisoners now, so you must obey," but she didn't expect him to say this.

"You should know that your father died at the hands of Changxin. As for the destruction of your village, that was inevitable. Some of the remaining outdated systems should have been buried in history long ago. Of course, if you still harbor thoughts of revenge, I won't stop you. After all, that's your freedom."

"However, the prerequisite is that you all have to survive. Keep your little schemes to yourself and focus on training your ninjutsu from now on."

Kankuro looked up at Orochimaru, his eyes revealing something he hadn't seen before.

He said, "So...we can get our revenge now?"

Orochimaru looked at him, smiled and shook his head, saying, "No, only after you have completed your training will you be able to see clearly the difference between yourselves and Zhicheng-kun, and the difference between yourselves and everyone else."