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Neji's clone fed him sensory data.
The taijutsu had been replicated well some ninjutsu, too. But Neji wasn't impressed. It was just an Earth Clone… of his clone. Meaningless. Let the clones fight it out.
His focus returned to the cave below.
The boulder had fallen. Kakashi's team stood alert, positioned on either side of the entrance. They didn't charge in right away caution first.
There were no immediate attacks, nor did the enemies try to flee.
Kakashi signaled with his fingers: Go.
Without hesitation, the squad moved.
Inside, two figures stood calmly.
Deidara was lounging on top of Gaara's motionless body. Beside him crouched a massive clay bird. No one has attacked yet. But all eyes quickly zeroed in on Gaara lying on the ground.
Deidara, still stewing over Itachi's cryptic description, muttered with annoyance, "So which one's the jinchūriki?"
That was it.
The sight of someone sitting on Gaara's lifeless body shattered Naruto's composure. His rage flared along with the Nine-Tails' chakra.
His pupils sharpened into slits. Red chakra began to bubble around him, and the whisker-like marks on his cheeks deepened.
"YOU BASTARDS!" he roared. "I'LL KILL YOU!"
That explosive rage... it matched Itachi's vague clue perfectly.
Deidara and Sasori exchanged glances. They remembered the line.
"He'll be the one shouting the loudest."
Deidara smirked. "Looks like we found him."
"Yeah. No doubt now."
Up above, Neji nearly laughed behind his mask. Itachi's clue had been brutally accurate. Clearly, he had a special interest in Naruto.
Neji chuckled to himself. Poor Sasuke. Even the emo prince didn't get that kind of personal attention.
Below, Naruto clenched his fists and yelled toward Gaara's body.
"Gaara! Hey! Wake up!"
His voice cracked with desperation. Deep down, Naruto knew what had happened. But he wasn't ready to accept it.
"C'mon… answer me! You can't just—!"
Sakura looked on, heart heavy. She couldn't bring herself to say anything. This level of pain… only jinchūriki understood.
Kakashi sighed. He'd seen this too many times before friends, comrades, students. He shook his head.
"That's enough, Naruto," he said gently. "You already know the answer."
Deidara sneered. "He's right. Your friend's dead."
Naruto's chakra surged. Fangs formed. Bloodshot eyes narrowed.
"GIVE HIM BACK!!"
He slammed a foot into the ground, sending cracks tearing through the stone as he lunged toward the pair.
But Kakashi appeared in front of him in a flash, palm out.
"Calm down. If you charge in blindly, we're all dead."
Naruto froze mid-step, fists shaking, rage clawing at his gut.
"Damn it…"
His jaw clenched. He hated it, but Kakashi was right. If he wanted to save Gaara, he couldn't lose control.
Sasori and Deidara, meanwhile, were unfazed.
"Looks like that one really cares about the One-Tail," Sasori noted.
Deidara's expression turned serious.
"Let me take him."
Sasori narrowed his eyes. "You're not getting greedy, are you?"
"I'm serious," Deidara replied. "This might piss you off, but I need this fight."
Sasori's voice turned cold. "You're pushing it."
But Deidara didn't flinch.
"As an artist, I live for the thrill. Without it, even beauty loses its meaning."
"I've heard Nine-Tails jinchūriki are something else."
Sasori scoffed. "You call your explosions art? True art is eternal. Timeless. A puppet, preserved for centuries that's beauty."
Deidara shot back, "That's your art, not mine. Art is fleeting. One moment. One blast. That's real beauty."
Their banter continued as if Naruto wasn't even there, which only stoked his fury further.
Sakura, meanwhile, was completely confused.
"Who are these people…?"
Neji glanced down from above. Seriously? You don't know? But he didn't blame her. She hadn't seen what they'd seen.
He did, however, note something interesting.
Deidara reminded him a lot of that other guy… the one built like a wardrobe and just as obsessed with adrenaline.
Back below, Naruto couldn't take it anymore.
"STOP MESSING AROUND!"
He pulled a scroll from his pouch, snapped it open, and summoned a massive Fūma Shuriken.
With practiced ease, he hurled it toward the enemy duo.
Clang!
A metallic blur intercepted it. The weapon spun away, embedding into the ground.
Sasori's mechanical tail lazily lifted behind him.
As if catching a giant shuriken midair was no big deal.
"Are you trying to piss me off, Deidara?"
Deidara blinked. "Didn't I say I might piss you off?"
Their nonchalant conversation grated on every Konoha ninja's nerves. But it also reinforced a cold truth:
These two were dangerous.
If they made a wrong move, they wouldn't walk out of this cave.
But Deidara had already made up his mind. Sasori wasn't punching him, so that was basically permission.
He stood, and his clay bird opened wide, swallowing Gaara's limp body whole.
"My art is explosive. Not like your freaky puppet shows."
Swish!
Sasori's tail shot out like a viper, but Deidara was ready. He dodged with a grin and leapt onto the bird's back.
"Catch you later, Sasori."
The bird lifted into the air. Deidara looked down, smirking.
"Take care of the others, yeah?"
Sasori just grunted, clearly annoyed but not stopping him.
He had other concerns now.
His grandmother… Chiyo.
She had come for him.
To end it.
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~Support with 200 PowerStones = 1 Bonus Chapter
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