The desert was scorching. The sun loomed high in the sky, its scorching heat relentless as it baked the arid landscape.

Kankuro, the renowned right hand man of the Kazekage and his older brother, strolled towards the opening in the protective wall of the Sand Village. He barely acknowledged the shinobi stationed there, his gaze fixed unwaveringly on the parching desert before him.

Suddenly, a familiar figure emerged from the shimmering heat waves, slowly approaching the village gates.

"Took you long enough..." Kankuro smirked, his tone dripping with customary tease. "I was beginning to think you got lost or something."