Sasori

• Membership status: Deceased, replaced (by Tobi)
• Ring: 玉 (“jewel”, “ball”, also the king in shogi)
• Ring position: Left thumb
• Partner: Formerly Deidara, Orochimaru before that
• Defining characteristics: Puppet master, puppet body, human puppets, poison specialist

Sasori was Deidara‘s first partner in Akatsuki. A powerful ninja puppeteer, he was a missing-nin from Sunagakure. In the Rescue Gaara arc, he assisted Deidara in his mission to capture Gaara from Sunagakure. While there, he fought against Kankuro, nearly killing him and easily destroying Kankuro’s puppets in the process. After Gaara was delivered to the Akatsuki lair, he acted as a rear-guard for the rest of Akatsuki, fighting Sakura and his grandmother Chiyo. This battle turned out to be his last, as he was eliminated by two puppets he designed himself, “Mother” and “Father” (his actual mother and father converted into puppets), which Chiyo had taken possession of after Sasori left the village.

Sasori possessed double agents for Akatsuki in at least two other organizations. He had planted Yura as a spy in the Sunagakure council and Kabuto Yakushi in Orochimaru’s retinue, both of which had memory-control jutsu placed on them. Orochimaru undid Sasori’s control over Kabuto’s memories. At the time of his death, Sasori had not yet captured his demon, and may have not yet known which one he was assigned to. His position was assumed by Tobi.