Kankuro

Kankuro (カンクロウ) is a jonin level shinobi of Sunagakure, and one of the three Sand Siblings. While initially terrified of his younger brother Gaara, Kankuro would come to believe in him, and his dream to become the Kazekage. Like their father before them, Kankuro would become one of Gaara's most loyal protectors, confidant and bodyguard.

Background
Kankuro was born on the day of May 15th as the second child to Karura, and the Fourth Kazekage: Rasa. However he was Rasa's very first son. While it was customary for close relations to a Kage to be a jinchuriki, neither he nor his older sister Temari were compatible with the One-Tail Shukaku.

As he and his two siblings play on a sandbox, Kankuro asks Gaara to make sand sculptures of different food. He was surprised when Gaara did different types of food that he recognized. Soon after he and Temari had to leave with their father because Kankuro wants to play with Gaara, but their father keeps them from doing so.

In the anime when Shukaku had rampaged in Sunagakure that night, a young Kankuro instructed the villagers to escape. When his father arrived, Kankuro who wasn't too injured noted his younger brother was a "monster". Later on he confronted Gaara at dinner, and asked whether or not he felt remorse for killing his fellow villagers, but was silenced when he threatened to kill him.

In the anime, Kankuro mentions having to once pleaded Chiyo to train him in puppetry, though she turned him down because she no longer cared about the future of the village.

Personality
In Part I, one noticeable personality trait Kankuro displayed was an apparent dislike for children. This was first seen when he attempted to beat up Sarutobi Konohamaru for running into him. This carried over to many of his interactions with other characters, as he was noticeably irritated when in the presence of someone younger than him. This was most evident when he was seen with Gaara, who Kankuro was forced to put up with due to the fear his younger brother imposed on him. After Gaara's defeat in the hands of Uzumaki Naruto, Kankuro's relationship with Gaara improved drastically over a very short period of time. In the short time between this and the Sasuke Retrivial Arc, Kankuro and Temari no longer expressed fear of being killed by Gaara when being sent on missions with him.

Kankurowas shown to be the type to avoid needless fighting. This was shown during the Forest of Death, where he stated if Shigure's team had the same scroll as them, fighting is pointless. He further stated he didn't want to be stuck in the forest with Gaara because he often got into unnecessary fighting for the sole purpose of satisfying his bloodlust.

During the mission to help retrieve Sasuke, Kankuro was shown to be very prideful of his village, saying they're not as soft as Konoha ninja.

Despite their apparent differences, Gaara and Kankuro become very close over the time skip as Gaara began to confide in Kankuro, and shared his dreams of wanting to risk his life to protect Sunagakure. Combining with having developed brotherly feelings, especially that of an older brother, Kankuro has become very protective of Gaara, getting angry at anyone who insults Gaara in his presence. When Gaara was captured by the Akatsuki, Kankuro rushed to his brother's aid alone in an attempt to save him, and risked his life for him, despite the dangers that he put himself in. When he was incapacitated as a result of the battle with Sasori, he pleaded with Naruto to bring his brother back, and as soon as he had recovered he then joined Temari in looking for Gaara. At one point when Kankuro had been poisoned by Sasori he was heard muttering Gaara's name though he was unconscious, which showed how much he cared for Gaara. Once Gaara was found and saved, Kankuro joined Temari in thanking Team Kakashi for saving their brother. It was also noted that he likes collecting puppets, and installing and upgrading the mechanisms in them.

During the Fourth Shinobi War, Kankuro indicated signs of being a caring leader when he pulled Zaji from the explosion, and protecting his group from any danger. He also shows determination during his battle against Deidara, Sasori, and Shin. Kankuro keeps Omoi from overreacting and getting anxious by telling him to win the war at all costs to protect his family and friends. When Sasori was captured inside of Kuroari, Kankurōo helps make Sasori realise his true faults during his lifetime as a puppeteer which makes Sasori entrust his "Father and Mother" puppets to him.

In the Japanese version, Kankuro speaks with a distinctive Yokohama dialect. He can often be heard ending his sentences with "jan" (じゃん). This makes him sound tough, as this accent is often used for biker gang members or punk kids (called "yankii" in Japanese, Yokohama supposedly has many) in manga. It is possible that he was given this accent to make him sound different from the Konoha characters' standard Tokyo Japanese.

As an adult, he doesn't like getting his foster nephew Shinki very angry. Probably because he reminds him of how Gaara use to be.

Appearance
In Part I, Kankuro wore a black, baggy, full body suit with a red and yellow circle on the front. He also wears a black hood which covered his head completely, and had cat-like ears and his forehead protector on his forehead. Both this and later outfits are derived from traditional bunraku puppeteer costumes; bunraku puppeteers usually wear black outfits and hoods so as not to distract from their puppets. When he first made an appearance, Kankurō sported a triangular face-paint design, which changed to a different cross-like design from the Sasuke Retrieval arc up until Part II. He also wears gloves and carries his puppets on his back.

In Part II, Kankuro once again changed his face paint. He also has a new puppet, as well as wearing a black outfit consisting of a long top and trousers with a red sash around his waist. He is revealed to have brown hair in Part II and when seen with no headgear or face-paint, he greatly resembles his father. His hood changes later on when seen again and wears a kimono type garment. He carries his puppets on his back still, only they are now in scrolls. He also sports a new face paint. It is now starting from one cheek to the lips and to the end of the other cheek, and another line starting from the top of the upper lip to the bottom of the chin. It looks like it forms the letter T.

Upon the beginning of the Fourth Shinobi War, Kankurō wears the standard attire of a Sunagakure ninja, along with his hood, which now has the symbol of the Allied Shinobi Forces stitched on to it. He has the same facial painting from the Sasuke Retrieval Arc but with broader lines and no line over his nose.

Abilities
Kankuro is a highly talented puppeteer, indicated when Sasori, a renowned master of the Puppet Technique, complimented Kankurō's abilities. He has great skill in both modifying and controlling puppets, and was physically strong enough to carry around two puppets on his back in Part I, though in Part II he instead uses scrolls to store them in. The fact that he was chosen to lead the Surprise Attack Division and become a jonin stands as a testament to his skills. He has shown himself a capable leader while commanding his division, having his team set up a miniature headquarters before assigning individuals to various roles as well as having the tactical sense to call a retreat when outmatched.

As puppeteers are long range fighters who rely on their puppets in combat, Kankuro is weak against close range combat. However, he has come up with many ways of escaping it: he's shown to act quite deceptively, switching places with his puppets using the Body Replacement Technique, also altering their appearances to resemble his, to escape close combat when an opponent gets too close, while at the same time putting his puppets in range of the enemy, allowing Kankurō to catch his foes off guard and kill them. In the anime, during the Fourth Shinobi War, his taijutsu was at least good enough to keep up with other skilled puppet user.

When initially introduced, Kankuro could only use a single puppet per time. However, he would in subsequent years hone his puppeteer skills and become a puppet master himself, capable of manoeuvring more puppets at the same time. He also displayed the ability to attach his own chakra threads to another puppeteer's, a feat that earned him Sasori's praise. Kankurō utilises what he calls the Black Secret Technique (黒秘技, Kurohigi) — a name not unlike Chiyo's White Secret Technique (白秘技, Shirohigi) and Sasori's Red Secret Technique (赤秘技, Akahigi) — the latter of which he claims has been surpassed by his own style.

In the anime, Kankuro also claimed to have a resistance to poison, though not enough to withstand the effects of Ibuse's Poison Mist.

Puppet Master
With each of his appearances in the major arcs, Kankuro is seen with a new puppet in his arsenal. The four puppets that have been introduced were all originally created by Sasori (the fourth actually being Sasori himself), and came into Kankuro's possession some time after Sasori left Sunagakure. His first three puppets are destroyed by Sasori at the start of Part II. After having his puppets destroyed, he took Sasori's body and used it as a puppet after his death. During the Fourth Shinobi War, he is seen with the previously destroyed puppets, that have been repaired, plus a duplicate of the Black Ant.

Kankuro's puppets seem to be designed to work together to some degree, as seen when they use the Black Secret Technique Machine One Shot, where Crow navigates an opponent into Black Ant's torso. Once trapped, Crow separates its limbs to reveal a number of concealed weapons, which enter the slots on Black Ant's body to impale the opponent.

Black Secret Technique: Machine Triple Shot is used by Kankurō to trap more people and kill them at the same time. In the anime, Kankuro was also shown combining his puppets' attacks to make them more dangerous, as seen when they use the Poison Mist Hell: Hundred Continuous Firing technique, where Crow blankets the area in a smokescreen while Black Ant fires poisoned needles at the blinded opponent.

Kankuro's puppetry skills are also highly adaptable as shown through his latest puppet, Scorpion — which he obtained after Sasori's death and made several modifications to in order to apply his own Black Secret Technique style. It retains the coil in its stomach cavity, flamethrower and the blades on its back, plus he installed the mechanism to use Mechanical Light Shield Block on its right arm and modified its left arm to extend. Kankuro can use the Red Secret Technique Machinery Triangles with this puppet. After he defeated Sasori in the Fourth Shinobi War, the puppet master passed his Mother and Father puppets on to Kankuro. Somehow Kankuro managed to distinguish Chiyo's feelings through her chakra threads.

Chunin Exam arc
Soon after their arrival in Konoha for the Chūnin Exams, Kankuro and his sister, Temari were first seen with Team Kakashi, Sarutobi Konohamaru, Kazamatsuri Moegi and Ise Udon. Annoyed at Konohamaru who had bumped into him, Kankuro grabbed him by his scarf and picked him up into the air. A few moments after, Naruto tried to help Konohamaru but he seemingly tripped over himself but in actuality, it was Kankuro's doing. Kankuro finally dropped the terrified Konohamaru onto the ground after Uchiha Sasuke threw a rock at his hand. Enraged even further Kankuro prepared to fight but was threatened by Gaara to stop. During the written portion of the exam, meant to test the examinees' ability to gather information covertly, Kankuro who excuses himself to go to the bathroom reveals that one of the proctors was actually his puppet Crow in disguise.

After retrieving the answers Kankuro came back to class just in time before the the last part of the exam started. When he walked back to his seat, he passed the answers on to Temari. As the examiner Morino Ibiki told Kankuro that he hoped his "doll-playing" was beneficial, Kankuro is shocked to realise that the examiner had uncovered his plan.

During the survival portion of the exam, Kankuro along with his siblings waited by the gate entrance of the Forest of Death ready to take on the exam. As soon as the exam started, Kankuro thought to himself that not only did he have to worry about his enemies, but also about his younger brother who may attack or even kill him. He was later seen with Gaara who brutally murdered a team of Amegakure genin easily. Gaara wanted more blood, he noticed Team Kurenai behind the bushes. Kankuro and Temari knew that Gaara was planning the kill them. They tried to stop him but Gaara threatened to kill them if they were in the way.

Kankuro was fed up from all the trouble they have to go through with him, therefore he approached and grabbed Gaara towards him. Kankuro stated that he is sick of all of these problems and told him to listen to his older brother for once. Gaara looked back at Kankuro telling him that he doesn't consider him as a brother. They soon reached the tower being the first ones there surprising Anko because of how quickly they arrived. None of the siblings were hurt or even scratched because of the great strength Gaara possesses.

During the preliminary matches, Kankuro was paired with Tsurugi Misumi. Misumi quickly wrapped himself around Kankuro's body, threatening to break Kankuro's neck if he did not forfeit. Kankuro refused, so Misumi made good on his threat by appearing to kill Kankurō. Before the match could be called in Misumi's favour, the Kankuro that Misumi attacked was revealed to have been Crow in disguise, while Kankuro was hiding where Crow was supposed to be. Kankuro quickly made Crow grab hold of Misumi and brutally constrict him, breaking his bones before he could surrender. Misumi survived, but was in no condition to fight, and Kankuro was declared the winner.

Later, Kankuro told his siblings that he is going to watch the fight from the other side of the stage to get intel from Hyuga Neji. He was standing next to Uzumaki Naruto watching the other battles. When Rock Lee was facing against Gaara, Kankuro and Temari had confidence in their faces knowing that it would be near impossible to beat Gaara since he was never even scratched before.

Rock Lee proved them wrong when he used his five of his Eight Gates to damage Gaara greatly. Kankuro and the eight others passed the preliminary exam and were set off to the final exam. Kankuro saw that he had to face off against Aburame Shino. In the anime, during their one month break from the final exam, Kankuro was seen with Temari telling her to practice for her match. She stated that she did not need to since she was paired with Nara Shikamaru who was viewed weak by her. Baki showed up and told the Sand Siblings that they have a new A+ ranked mission involving the destruction of Konoha. Kankuro and Temari wanted to deny the mission since they had close ties with the Konoha, but they were left with no choice but to do it. Baki also told Kankuro and Temari to keep an eye on Gaara so he won't ruin their new mission.

Kankuro was next seen with Temari, when Baki asked them in a angry tone where Gaara had gone. Kankuro and Temari were shock, and wonder where Gaara went. Unknown to all three of them that Gaara went to Konoha Hospital to kill Rock Lee.

In the final round matches set to take place a month later, Kankuro was scheduled to fight Shino. Because he was to take part in Sunagakure's invasion of Konoha, planned to begin before his match with Shino, Kankuro outfitted Crow especially for the invasion. When the invasion was delayed and Kankuro's fight with Shino was to begin, Kankuro forfeited, not wanting to reveal Crow's new features.

Invasion of Konoha arc
When the invasion began, Kankuro and Temari escorted an injured Gaara out of the village. When they discovered they were being followed, Kankuro stayed behind to buy time. Before he could engage their pursuer, Uchiha Sasuke, Aburame Shino arrived to fight him instead, wanting to have the battle he desired that was denied in the finals. Sasuke continued following Gaara, while Shino and Kankuro began to fight. Kankuro had Crow begin an immediate assault, but Shino avoided the attacks and, unbeknownst to Kankuro, planted a bug on him. Kankuro then launched a poison smoke bomb at Shino. Shino inhaled some of the gas, but was able to escape and use his bugs to trap and restrain Crow. Before he lost complete use of Crow, he tried to launch a final attack, only to discover that Shino's bugs, guided by the bug placed on him earlier, had found his location and consumed all his chakra.

Kankuro is left unable to move, but Shino, because of the poison gas he inhaled, passed out and couldn't finish him off. He was later found by Temari, and together they helped Gaara get back to Sunagakure. Gaara, having been defeated by Uzumaki Naruto, wearily apologised to both of his siblings. Kankuro, utterly shocked, stammered out words of forgiveness.

Sasuke Retrieval arc
Kankuro and his siblings were sent by Sunagakure to help Konoha retrieve Uchiha Sasuke. Kankuro came to the aid of Inuzuka Kiba and his dog Akamaru, saving them from Sakon and Ukon. Ukon tried to kill them, but was stopped by Kankuro who used his puppet Crow to defend Kiba and Akamaru from Ukon's kunai attack. Kiba asks Kankuro where the others that he scented are and Kankurō tells him that they went on to help his other friends because they are were also in trouble. Kankuro then engages Ukon, but is caught by Sakon, who came back when Ukon didn't return. Sakon tries to use his Parasite Demon Demolition Technique to fuse with Kankuro's body, but Kankurō revealed that Sakon had grabbed his new puppet, Black Ant.

Kankuro emerged from a pack on its back and impaled Sakon with several blades on the puppets arms. Ukon absorbs his brother and Sakon goes to sleep. After Ukon insults the puppet, Kankuro uses Crow to lure them into the Black Ant trapping Sakon and Ukon in Black Ant's belly. Kankuro then used his new Black Secret Technique Machine One Shot to plunge several blades from Crow's arms and legs into specific places in the Black Ant's body, impaling Ukon and Sakon, killing them.

After the battle ended, with Sasuke gone. Almost all of the Konoha ninja hospitalised, but alive. After the Sasuke retrieval squad are healed, and release from the hopstial a few weeks later. Kankuro and his siblings were seen off by Nara Shikamaru.

Pre-Shippuuden Filler arc
Sakura, Shikamaru and Naruto discussed the status report from Temari saying that she and her brothers are going to become involved in their village's new shinobi training program.

In Sunagakure, the three siblings were shown leading a combat training class. One of the students, a shy, quiet girl named Matsuri, was reluctant to use something that could hurt someone else, so Gaara taught her to use a defensive weapon, the Rope Javelin. They became friends. Matsuri was then kidnapped by the Four Celestial Symbols Men, Temari and Kankuro joined him in rescuing her. Temari was first separated to fight an opponent. Kankuro was later separated from Gaara and was seen battling Ryugan with his two puppets Crow and Black Ant, but to no avail. However, just when all hope seem to be lost, Kiba, Akamaru and Akimichi Choji appeared to provide Kankuro aid. At first, they had trouble coordinating — attacking all at once, but eventually they were able to finally defeat Ryugan by trapping him in Kankuro's Black Ant puppet. Everyone arrived to where Uzumaki Naruto, Matsuri and Gaara wore. They see that Gaara is turned into half of the Shukaku.

Eventually, Gaara's transformation process proved too great for the prison to handle. While Seimei was looking forward to facing Shukaku, Gaara was able to suppress Shukaku and revert to normal, amazing Naruto and everyone else who appeared. While everyone else didn't understand why Gaara wouldn't take advantage of Shukaku's power, Kankuro explained that Gaara was determined to rely on his own power from now on. Gaara then used his remaining chakra to turn some of the canyon around them into sand and crushed Seimei, finally ending the battle and saving Matsuri. As everyone rushed to help Gaara who fainted shortly afterwards, Kankuro noted to Naruto how he finally found someone who he can relate to.

Later while Naruto was recovering at the village, Jiraiya showed up. After explaining how he had spent the past few months gathering information about the Akatsuki, he told Naruto he was finally ready to train him for the next two years. After finding out from Shikamaru, that Naruto is leaving Konoha to train with Jiraiya for two and a half years. Gaara's siblings and his student left for Sunagakure.

Two years after Naruto left Konoha to train with Jiraiya, Kankuro joined his siblings, along with Gaara as the newly appointed Kazekage to Konoha to discuss a proposal with Tsunade. Upon meeting with her and the Konoha Council, Tsunade discussed the idea of hosting an early Chunin Exam to help restore Konoha's reputation following the last exams being ruined by Orochimaru's attack on the village. Tsunade hoped the Suna would help support this idea and co-sponsor it. While it was acknowledged that much of Suna's improvements since Rasa's passing were thanks in part to Konoha, Kankuro quickly realized Tsunade had an additional goal. The Hokage explained that with their intel on the Akatsuki suggested that they would be making a move soon, she hoped this improvised exams would lure the enemy out. Gaara agreed to Tsunade's idea for an early Chunin Exams, but insisted that exams be hosted in Suna. Ultimately, it was agreed to host the first exam in Konoha and the second exam in Suna. Later, while Kankuro voiced his displeasure at Gaara putting himself out in the open in such a way to promote himself as the new Kazekage, Gaara insisted he needed to deal not only with the Akatsuki, but also the violent naysayers in Suna.

Later, Kankuro reported to Tsunade that the Suna would personally like to take it upon themselves to survey the second part of the Chunin Exams as they are more familiar with their village's area. Tsunade gives her consent by allowing this, but she also points out that the jonin of the genin teams will still follow up with them to Sunagakure. He then reports the news to Gaara.

Two nights before the second exams began in Sunagakure, Kankuro found an assassin sneaking into the Kazekage residence. He drove the assassin outside. As he soon realized he was corned, the assassin attempted a kamikaze assault on puppet user. Temari however intervened and blew the assassin away far enough to leave her and her brother unharmed by the explosion. The following day, Kankuro told his younger brother of the recent events and again tried to make Gaara back down from this path. Gaara however insisted that not only can he not look weak as the Kazekage, but the Chunin Exams were too important to him because that was where his life truly changed for the better. The night before the second exams, Team Asuma recklessly ran outside into a sandstorm where they were attacked by a giant scorpion. Before Kankuro and his siblings even arrived, Fu of the Taki-nin team miraculously defeated the scorpion and saved Team Asuma, amazing Kankuro and his siblings. The following day, Kakuro and the other jonin oversaw the second exam begin.

Later, a massive sandstorm approached the Demon Desert, surprising everyone from the sensory team's inability to detect it, determining that someone had blocked them until now. Knowing that this storm was far too dangerous for genin to possibly handle, Kankuro joined multiple teams to postpone the exams and save the participants. Using his Sanshouo, Kankuro was able to safely transport multiple genin to shelter. After the storm passed, the Chunin Exams were ended early before starting the finals due to controversy happening in the second exam, surprising Kankuro by Gaara's move. Instead, it was decided by Gaara that a report on each participant would be sent to their respective village leader for them to decide if they would be promoted.

Kazekage Rescue arc
Two and a half years later, Kankuro was first seen when his younger brother Gaara, was fighting the Akatsuki member Deidara in an aerial battle. Kankuro was with other sand shinobi including Baki, watching the battle. Each time the Suna-nin lost faith, Kankurō would replay back with a positive statement defending Gaara and his strength. At one point, Baki told Kankuro that their village could be in danger if Gaara lost control of his tailed beast, but Kankuro, remembering a previous conversation with him responded stating that Gaara would never harm the village no matter what. That statement was proven true when Gaara protected his whole village from Deidara's deadly attack.

After Gaara was defeated and captured by Deidara and Sasori, Kankurō followed in hot pursuit, determined to stop them from taking his brother. In the anime, Kankuro was with other Suna shinobi at first, but one of Sasori's traps killed most of them. Kankuro managed to save only two Suna-nin by using his new puppet Salamander as protection from the blast. He ordered Baki to get the medical unit and heal the injured leaving Kankuro alone from now on. He faced another of Sasori's trap but was easily able to figure it out using his brothers sand as a track to follow.

To defeat the Akatsuki pair, Kankuro released his puppets from their carrying scrolls (Crow, Black Ant, and his new puppet Salamander) to challenge the Akatsuki members. Sasori agreed to fight, but immediately repelled an attack from Crow, revealing himself to be the puppets' creator, thus knowing all of their secrets.

Since their fight went unseen in the manga, the anime adaptation explained the circumstances of Kankuro's defeat. While able to combine the use of his puppets with great effectiveness, Kankuro was unable to bypass Sasori's defences. Sasori captured each of the puppets in turn, disassembling them, before attacking Kankuro with his poison-coated tail. Kankuro collapsed, but with the last of his strength, was able to have a piece of Crow tear off part of Sasori's cloak. Sasori left, giving Kankuro three days before the poison would kill him.

Soon after, Team Kakashi arrived at Sunagakure to help in rescuing Gaara, and while they were there, Sakura Haruno cured Kankuro, and created an antidote from the poison still in his system. Kankuro then provided Team Kakashi with the part of Sasori's cloak that he had taken, which they used to track down Gaara. He was shown to be very irritated that he could not be the one to rescue Gaara. After a few episodes he was seen attempting to walk, though would have fallen over if Baki had not been passing by his room and caught him. He then attended the meeting with the council and tried to punch a council member for stating the village would be better off without Gaara, though was stopped by Baki.

He was seen again when he was in his bedroom and a photo of him and his siblings fell and cracked, an omen signifying Gaara's death. Kankurō later set out with Temari to catch up with Team Kakashi which was shown to be his idea when Temari stated his plan had fallen apart. When Gaara was found and revived, he was the one who explained to Uzumaki Naruto about the puppet core and the technique used by Chiyo to revive Gaara. Kankuro joined Temari in thanking Team Kakashi for saving their brother, and personally thanked Naruto.

The sand siblings then Returned to Suna with the others,and gave Chiyo a funeral. The Sand Siblings then saw Team Kakashi,and Team Guy leave for Konohagakure.

Konoha History arc
At Sunagakure, Gaara, Kankuro and Temari learn of Akatsuki's invasion of Konoha. Kankuro wonders if they'll be able to rebuild though Gaara knows they will since they have Uzumaki Naruto and has a flashback. Team 7 are sent on a mission to stop a group of bandits located between Konoha and Suna, resulting in the two villages working together for the first time since Suna's invasion though Naruto is reluctant about it. They meet with a team from Suna who are lead by Gaara, shocking Team 7. Gaara introduces his subordinates, Yaoki and Korobi who are scared of Gaara's sand abilities. Kakashi notices a change in Gaara, noticing he is mellower than he was before and no longer has his bloodthirsty lust.

Both Gaara and Kakashi decide to split up so they can simultaneously attack the bandit base from different sides located on mountain. But before they do, Gaara secretly informs Kakashi that he is being followed by another group from Suna and hopes he won't be a burden though Kakashi is completely fine with it as the more they overcome, the stronger both their village's bond will be. Hiding in the trees are a group of Suna ninja who plan on killing Gaara. When Gaara's team are heading to their direction, Gaara is ambushed by the group of ninja who uses techniques that prevents Gaara from using his sand. Gaara tells Yaoki and Korobi to flee as the ninja are only after him. Team 7 notice another group of Suna ninja who are watching them. When realising they aim to kill Gaara, Naruto runs off to find Gaara while the rest of Team 7 fight the assassination squad.

Naruto finds Yaoki and Korobi and learns Gaara is danger. He asks them why they abandoned their friend which leaves Yaoki and Korobi wondering if Gaara is their friend. Naruto rescues Gaara from the assassination squad with multiple shadow clones who fight them off with the help of Yaoki and Korobi who tell Gaara they're his friends. Gaara then easily takes out the rest of the ninja. Team 7 and Gaara's team continue and finish their mission and they bid each other farewell. After Team 7 leaves, Gaara asks Yaoki and Korobi what they said to him and they happily say they're his friends which brings a smile to Gaara. The flashback ends and Gaara thanks Naruto for helping him form his first bond with Konoha.

Five Kage Summitt arc
Kankuro and Temari were chosen to escort Gaara to the Kage Summit. When Kankuro arrived late, he explained that it had taken him a "while to figure out a new trick" and defended himself by adding that Gaara doesn't even need bodyguards. Once they arrived in the Land of Iron and the meeting began, Kankuro and Temari became annoyed by the little respect the other Kage showed to Gaara because of his young age especially the Third Tsuchikage. They later came to Gaara's defence during the Fourth Raikage's outburst and again when White Zetsu appeared. White Zetsu revealed that Uchiha Sasuke was nearby and soon after the Raikage left to fight Sasuke, the siblings left to join him.

When they arrived, Gaara interrupted the fight between the Raikage and Sasuke so that he could speak with Sasuke. While he did so, Kankuro and Temari helped some samurai that had been hit by Sasuke's Amaterasu, and removed their burning armour. As Gaara was talking to Sasuke about the hatred in his heart, Kankuro mentions to Gaara that he should not let his personalities interfere because he is not like him anymore and that Sasuke is now a criminal around the whole world. After Gaara failed to convince Sasuke to change his ways, the Sand Siblings and Darui attacked him with Kankuro using Scorpion and his Red Secret Technique Machinery Triangles technique. Sasuke however, survived their assault and fled, so the siblings and the Raikage's group followed him back to the Summit hall.

There he freed Chōjūrō, Mifune, Okisuke and Urakaku from White Zetsu's Spore Technique before Tobi appeared. After explaining his Eye of the Moon Plan, Tobi declared the Fourth Shinobi War. The Kage agreed to the formation of a Shinobi Alliance in response. Gaara is given the additional task of informing ]]Hatake Kakashi]] whom they had chosen as a suitable representative of Konoha with Danzō fleeing the Summit, of their decision.

After the siblings find Kakashi and tell them what had happened, they returned to Sunagakure to prepare for war.

Fourth Shinobi War arc
Kankuro is placed in charge of the Surprise Attack Division of the Allied Shinobi Forces. When Kankuro announced his position to his team, Sai approached him and started to wonder what nickname he should give his captain leaving Kankuro confused. While on route to their location, Omoi who was contemplating the worst possible outcomes enquired about Kankurō's age. In response Kankuro told Omoi to focus on succeeding in order to protect his friends and family. They travelled behind enemy lines to set up an ambush; while the rest of the division carried out Kankuro's instructions on how to fortify their position, Kankuro and Kiri reviewed the division's strategy.

Muta Aburame soon stumbled into their base. Zaji recklessly approached him to provide assistance to his comrade before Hoheto Hyuga revealed that Muta was booby-trapped by a reincarnated Deidara. Acting quickly, Kankuro immediately pulled Zaji to safety before Muta exploded. Without time to recuperate, they are then attacked by more allies-turned-enemies, Ranka and Tokuma Hyuga, which Kankuro recognized to be the work of a reincarnated Sasori. Kankuro stated to Deidara. Leaping into battle, after Omoi severed Sasori's puppet strings attached to Ranka and Tokuma, Kankuro attached his own threads to Sasori's dangling ones to pull Sasori down ordering Ittan to raise the ground at the same time, sending Deidara and Sasori crashing into one another.

As Sasori praised Kankuro's improved abilities, Kankurō responded saying his Black Secret Technique had long since surpassed Sasori's Red Secret Technique. Kankuro stated that it was fated that they would fight once again and that he owed him from their last encounter where Sasori poisoned him and left him for dead. Kankuro then brought out his new Scorpion puppet from a scroll which surprises Sasori to see his former body. He began trading blows with Sasori, who was controlling a reincarnated Shin. During the battle, Hoheto informed his team that Shin also had explosive clay in his stomach to everyone's shock.

As Deidara commanded Shin to explode, Kankuro captured Shin in his Salamander puppet which effectively stifled the explosion and shielded Omoi from the blast with Scorpion's Mechanical Light Shield Block. When an enraged Sai then knocked Deidara and Sasori out of the air, Kankuro summoned two Black Ant puppets and captured the two then used his Black Secret Technique: Machine Triple Shot and impaled Sasori with Crow and bound Deidara with Scorpion's cable. Kankuro informed Sasori that his defeat was a result of his efforts to gain immortality when in fact he was immortalised through the puppets he created.

Moved by his words, Sasori's soul began to depart. As he disintegrated he entrusted his Mother and Father puppets to Kankuro who promised that he in turn would pass it onto the next generation of puppeteers when he died.

The Surprise Attack Division with a restrained Deidara in tow, is later confronted by Hanzō, Kimimaro, and Chiyo, the latter of whom congratulated Kankuro on his victory over Sasori. Knowing they were outmatched, Kankuro ordered a retreat but they are pursued and paralysed by Ibuse's Poison Mist, but before Hanzō can kill them, Mifune arrived and intercepted his attack. With this, Kankurō and the others are taken to the medical unit for treatment.

In the anime, Kankuro and the samurai were resting during the night of the first day. Soon after, Deidara escaped from Black Ant and fled with Zetsu. Kankuro, with the assistance of Mifune, his samurai and Kurotsuchi, pursue an escaped Deidara and cornering him in a trap. Mifune thrusts his sword through Deidara using the electricity of a battery to cancel his explosion, allowing Kankuro to recapture Deidara in the Black Ant once again. He later comes to Mifune's aid, and takes over his fight against a reincarnated Chiyo, using the Scorpion, Mother, and Father puppets against her. By that time, Chiyo learns that Kankuro has the Mother and Father puppets alongside the Scorpion puppet, her guilt for her inability to save Sasori is brought into light. Kankuro tells her that Sasori entrusted his puppets to him and that it should continue on for the future generation of puppet users. Chiyo finally finds good memories of her grandson, and then admits that the puppets are in good hands yet continues investing over him. In the anime, Kankurō was present when one of Naruto's clones arrive in the nick of time to assist him and the Fifth Division.

Mocking Deidara as he and Hoheto kept watch over him and the other sealed reincarnated shinobi, Kankuro called Deidara a dud due to him threatening to explode for some time though he was unable to do so. He later stared in shock as the Impure World Reincarnation is released thinking at first that Deidara was going to explode. After realising that the Impure World Reincarnation is released, he quickly left to find Chiyo and say his farewells. Kankuro arrives in time to see the process. While he is sad to see the elderly puppet master leave once again, Chiyo acknowledges the younger Suna-nin's skill in the same art, proudly entrusting Kankuro to carry on puppetry ninjutsu.

When Madara's Infinite Tsukuyomi was activated, Kankuro fell victim to it. In the anime, Kankuro creates his ultimate puppet, which is a giant transforming robot. Kankuro is then free from the technique after Naruto and Sasuke ended the war. He is seen smiling afterwards. He then visits Naruto and learns that he will get a new arm.

Blank Period
Several years later after the war ended, Kankuro led an A-rank mission to capture Kajura, a missing-nin from Ishigakure. Despite the brief incapacitation of one of Kankuro's subordinates, Amagi, Kajura's Magnet Release: Lightning God Self was defeated and he was taken into custody. Gaara reports the mission's details, the date for Temari's wedding, and other recent developments to the Suna Council, a group of village elders who must approve all of the Kazekage's actions. They find no issues with anything and, Gaara believes, they were likely already aware of everything he's told them.

Ebizo, the current head of the Council, asks to discuss something with Gaara. As he slowly builds towards the topic he has in mind, Gaara tries to guess what minor personal issue it is. He is caught off guard when Ebizo reveals that he and the rest of the Council would like for Gaara to get married. Because Temari is going to be married into a Konoha clan, any children she has will be Konoha ninja. If Gaara and Kankuro should die before producing heirs, that would mean that a Konoha ninja will have a claim to the Kazekage position, something that the Council wants to avoid. Therefore, they would like Gaara to find a wife so that he can, in turn, have children.

Gaara tries to deflect their suggestion by pointing out that Kankuro, being older than him, should get married before him. He is informed that Kankurō has already been approached about it and that he successfully argued that Gaara, as the Kazekage, should marry first. Gaara is to meet his future wife at a formal gathering of the Land of Wind's various dignitaries. Temari helps him dress for the occasion and Kankuro advises him on being sociable, which predominately involves drinking alcohol. Gaara has little fondness for the alcohol, but he is nevertheless glad for the brief time he gets to spend with his brother and sister. Kankuro is meant to provide security for the gathering, but he is abruptly called away at the last minute, replaced by Baki.

Later in Suna, Kankuro is approached by many of the shinobi he's trained, all of them too young to have participated in the Fourth Shinobi War. They share their plans to make him Kazekage; though they take credit for the scheme, much of the idea actually comes from Tojuro, a member of the Council. Kankuro asks what they intend to do with Gaara. They have no desire to kill him, partly because they know they couldn't defeat him and partly because they don't want to risk intervention by other villages. Rather, they want Gaara to withdraw from politics, acting only as an adviser to Kankuro. After making them promise that it will be a bloodless removal of the current power structure, Kankuro agrees.

Then in Suna, Tojuro watches footage of Kankuro and his men taking control of the village. When his underling, Maijuru, reports that the coup is complete, Tojuro orders that Kankuro be arrested and his entire family be banished from Suna. Once they're gone, Maijuru will be made the new Kazekage, who Tojuro will manipulate to his purposes. With this confession made, Maijuru removes his disguise, revealing that he's actually Kankuro; there never was anyone named Maijuru and, very often in his interactions Tojuro, was only a puppet controlled remotely by Kankurō. Kankuro also reveals that the footage is fake and that the men Tojuro hired to kill Gaara have themselves been killed by Baki. Tojuro surrenders without protest and members of the council sympathetic to him are likewise arrested.

Epilogue
13 years later after the conclusion of the Fourth Shinobi War, Kankuro visited his sister, Temari, and his nephew. Later, he accompanied Gaara to the Kage Summit in Konohagakure.

During the Exams, Kankuro goes to Konohamaru with Team Shinki. However before leaving he tells Gaara that he will pay Temari a visit.

Naruto movie 2
The movie startes off with Kankurō and a battle which was taking place at night on a desolate seaside beach between Sunagakure ninja and soldiers wearing bulky suits of armour. Despite their best efforts, the Suna ninja are slowly overwhelmed by the sheer strength of their mysterious opponents. The timely arrival of reinforcements, led by Kankurō and Gaara, turn the tide, with Kankurō slicing apart a suit of armour with his puppet, and Gaara dispatching a large number of enemies with his signature Sand Waterfall Imperial Funeral. Making the opponents flee, the Suna ninja followed them immediately. Kankurō told them to stop since it will cause another war but they ignored him. Kankurō told Gaara to shine a flare since it was too dark to see, however when Gaara orders the Suna-nin to shine a flare at the retreating enemies, a large warship, is revealed with its own arsenal of weapons, making kankurō and the other Suna ninja surprised.

Later on, Naruto discovers Kankuro among a room filled with unconscious children amongst all of the rubble. Kankurō immediately attacks Temujin, explaining how the ship had been wiping out Land of Wind villages. Naruto demands an explanation, but all Temujin can reply is 'Noble sacrifices for the greater good'. Before they battle, they are interrupted by the Kamira and Ranke, whom Kankurō and Gaara take on. Kamira uses a kind of mind control that seems to be genjutsu.

Meanwhile, Kamira toys with Shikamaru as she flies around, he is unable to get a lock on her shadow. But then he suddenly spots Kankurō on the far side of the ruins. Shikamaru fills the whole area with lines with explosives (most of them are fake) so Kamira cannot fly about. Just as Kamira thinks she knows what he has in store, Kankurō suddenly launches one of his puppets to automatically trap and kill her.

Shikamaru, Sakura and Kankurō all manage to retrieve the children from the machines, only for the ruins to start collapsing. All is quiet as Shikamaru, Sakura, Kankurō and Gaara can only watch as everything in the void's way begins to be devoured.

Naruto Shippuuden movie 3
Kankuro is seen is lining up troops and weapons at the borders of the Land of Fire, thinking that Konoha attacked Gaara, their Kazekage. As the war between Konoha and Suna is about to begin with ground combat troops and heavy artillery from both sides facing each other, Jiraiya appears above Gamabunta and gives to Suna the proof that Gaara is still alive. Kankuro is happy that his brother is alive, and well. Kankuro is happy to see Gaara with his army, and he tells them everything has been solved, and to withdraw. He and the others then return home.

Naruto Shippuuden movie 7
He was seen protecting the village from the falling meteors. He was lastly seen at Naruto and Hinata's wedding.

Boruto movie
When Kinshiki and Momoshiki began their attack on the arena, Kankuro was seen saving civilians from the falling debris of the stadium, before being evacuated. He is lastly seen during the end credits.

Video Games
Kankuro is a playable character in the following video games:
 * Naruto Clash of Ninja 2
 * Naruto Clash of Ninja Revolution
 * Naruto Clash of Ninja Revolution 2
 * Naruto Gekito Ninja Taisen! 3
 * Naruto Gekito Ninja Taisen! 4
 * Naruto Konoha Senki
 * Naruto Ninja Council 3
 * Naruto Path of the Ninja 2
 * Naruto RPG 2 Chidori vs Rasengan
 * Naruto Shinobi Collection
 * Naruto Shinobi Collection Shippu Ranbu
 * Naruto Shippuuuden Clash of Ninja Revolution 3
 * Naruto Shippuuden Gekito Ninja Taisen! EX
 * Naruto Shippuuden Gekito Ninja Taisen! EX 2
 * Naruto Shippuuden Gekito Ninja Taisen! EX 3
 * Naruto Shippuuden Gekito Ninja Taisen! Special
 * Naruto Shippuuden Legends: Akatsuki Rising
 * Naruto Shippuuden Ninja Council 4
 * Naruto Shippuuden Ultimate Ninja 4
 * Naruto Shippuuden Ultimate Ninja 5
 * Naruto Shippuuden Ultimate Ninja Blazing
 * Naruto Shippuuden Ultimate Ninja Heroes 3
 * Naruto Shippuuden Ultimate Ninja Storm 2
 * Naruto Shippuuden Ultimate Ninja Storm 3
 * Naruto Shippuuden Ultimate Ninja Storm 4
 * Naruto Shippuuden Ultimate Ninja Storm Generations
 * Naruto Shippuuden Ultimate Ninja Storm Revolution
 * Naruto Ultimate Ninja 2
 * Naruto Ultimate Ninja 3
 * Naruto Ultimate Ninja Online
 * Naruto Ultimate Ninja Storm
 * Naruto Uzumaki Chronicles 2
 * Naruto X Boruto Ninja Voltage

Uzumaki Naruto
Kankuro first met Uzumaki Naruto before the Chunin Exams started. Naruto was angry that everyone around him was interested into Sasuke. Naruto would later watch Kankuro's match against Misumi Tsurugi, and was amaze that Kankuro won so easily. Naruto was surprise that Kankuro forfit the match against Shino. Naruto didn't encounter Kankuro during the Invasion of Konoha. After Naruto defeated Gaara, Gaara say he was sorry to Temari and Kankuro. Kankuro wonder what Naruto did to his little brother, which surprised him. Naruto would later reunite with Kankuro, when he and the others helped Gaara, Kankuro and Temari saved Gaara's student Matsuri from some enemy ninja.

In Part II, When Gaara is kidnapped by the Akatsuki, Kankuro awakens from being healed by Sakura from Sasori's posion. Naruto is happy that Kankuro is alright, and trys to say Hi to him. Kankuro saw how much Naruto cares about Gaara, and how Gaara does for him. Kankuro pleas to Naruto to save Gaara. Naruto tells Kankuro that he will, and that he's dream is to be Hokage. Naruto, and Team Kakashi success into taking Gaara's extracted body from the Akatsuki. But Chiyo revives Gaara for Team Kakashi, and Sunagakure. Naruto and Kankuro are happy that Gaara is ok. After everyone returns to Sunagakure, with Gaara. Baki thanks Naruto overall. Later the others have a funeral for Chiyo. Then with the mission a success, Team Kakashi departs to Konoha.

Naruto will later help Kankuro (as a Shadow Clone) during the Fourth Shinobi War. When he uses his wind techniques against the White Zetsu Army clones. Naruto will later see Kankuro in person when he battles against Obito, Madara and the Ten Tails.

Kankuro then fell prey to the infinite Tsukuyomi. But he was free from the technique after Naruto and Sasuke ended the war. Years later, he was seen at Naruto and Hinata's wedding.

Knownable Relatives

 * Karura (Mother/dead)
 * Rasa (Father/dead)
 * Yashamaru (Uncle/dead)
 * Nara Temari (Older Sister)
 * Gaara (Little Brother)
 * Nara Shikamaru (Brother in law)
 * Nara Shikadai (Nephew)
 * Shinki (Foster Nephew)

Trivia
According to the databook(s):
 * Kankuro's name comes from Nakamura Kankuro (中村勘九郎), which is a stage name used in a long line of kabuki actors dating back to the early seventeenth century. The latest person to carry this name was Nakamura Kankuro V (五代目中村勘九郎), who changed his stage name to the even more prestigious Nakamura Kanzaburō XVIII (十八代目中村勘三郎) in 2005.
 * In more technical terms, Kankurō's name can be translated to something like 'intuitive ninth son'.
 * In addition to Kankuro's Kabuki-like make-up, the fact that he uses puppets as well, as the black outfit and cap he wears, are possibly an allusion to Bunraku, Japanese puppet theatre. His entire character seems to be an allusion to stage arts. One of Bunraku's most prominent artists is Kanjuro Kiritake III.
 * Whenever Kankuro appears in a new arc of the manga, he sports a new design of purple face paint. This could be a nod to Kabuki theatre, where face paint is often used. In the art of putting on make-up, each of the colours mean something, purple representing nobility and loftiness.
 * In the omake, Temari said if Kankuro keeps talking to his puppets like they are alive, friends won't hang out with him anymore.
 * Kankuro was ranked as the 27th most popular character in the seventh and most recent Naruto character popularity poll. He placed 19th in the sixth poll.
 * His birthday is May 15, & his bloodtype is B.
 * Kankuro's hobby is collecting puppets, & installing and upgrading the mechanisms in them.
 * Kankuro wishes to fight with anyone but Gaara.
 * Kankuro's favorite food is hamburger steak. While his least favorite food is spinach.
 * Kankuro has completed 43 official missions in total: 0 D-rank, 9 C-rank, 10 B-rank, 23 A-rank, 1 S-rank.
 * Kankuro's favorite phrase is "One must never miss a good opportunity" (好機、逸すべからず).

Voice Actors

 * Japaanese : Yasuyuki Kase
 * English : Michael Lindsay (Part I – Mid Part II), Doug Erholtz (Naruto Shippuuden movie 3 – Present)

all information on Kankuro is from http://naruto.wikia.com/wiki/Kankur%C5%8D