The capture of Kisame Hoshigaki affected the remaining three in different ways.
Itachi Uchiha and Sasuke Uchiha were locked in battle, ignoring everything else.
Sasori naturally showed no expression—being a human puppet, there was no noticeable change in him. But he had already begun considering a retreat. In the original story, he had been killed by Grandma Chiyo and Sakura Haruno—partly due to his own carelessness. Now, however, Grandma Chiyo was not here.
Deidara reacted in an entirely different way.
He had always been naturally reckless.
With his teammate captured and facing Gaara and Mei Terumi at a clear disadvantage, he hesitated for several seconds before twisting his face into a feral expression.
[C0: Self-Destruction]!
Deidara used the mouth on his left chest to consume Explosive Clay. All the chakra in his body rapidly condensed into a spherical form. An intense wave of energy surged outward.
"Stop him!"
Mei Terumī's heart pounded as she cried out urgently. Though unsure of its exact nature, she could tell at a glance that it was immensely powerful.
Gaara immediately raised his hand the moment he saw it. Under his command, a massive arm made of sand shot toward Deidara.
At the same time, Natsume controlled a wooden dragon flying over.
Though uncertain whether [C0: Self-Destruction] could be interrupted, one thing was certain—Ninjutsu required chakra. If the chakra could be absorbed, the technique would either vanish or lose most of its power.
The wooden dragon moved swiftly, encircling Deidara in an instant.
Gaara waved his hand, halting the sand arm mid-advance.
Deidara's body darkened and vanished, then a blinding light erupted from where he stood—an earth-shattering explosion followed.
In the end, the wooden dragon was just a hair too slow.
Still, it wasn't for nothing—the explosion's range was significantly reduced.
The shockwave rippled outward in all directions.
Seeing this, many leapt back to avoid the aftershock.
Sasori did not move.
To counter the trio's combined assault, he unleashed his Red Secret Technique: Performance of a Hundred Puppets, summoning hundreds of puppets into battle.
Though puppets continued falling one after another, the battle remained barely even.
As soon as Deidara self-destructed, Sasori acted instantly. The previously concealed Third Kazekage, lurking nearby, clamped onto him tightly.
Back then, he had killed the Third Kazekage and defected from Sunagakure Village.
The Third Kazekage was his masterpiece—a human puppet capable of using Magnet Release.
After arriving at Kirigakure Village, Sasori sensed something unusual, so he disguised the Third Kazekage among ordinary puppets temporarily.
Now, with everyone's attention focused on Deidara, he seized the opportunity.
Iron Sand gathered rapidly.
The two swiftly rose into the sky.
[Magnet Release]?
Gaara, who had always been airborne, noticed them first.
He recognized the Magnet Release, confirming that one of them was none other than the Third Kazekage.
After all, Magnet Release was the signature ability of the former Kage.
Previously, during Sasori's fight when he revealed his true identity and demonstrated such superb Puppet Techniques, Gaara had grown suspicious.
But being preoccupied with Deidara, he hadn't thought much of it.
Now seeing the Third Kazekage with his own eyes, he finally confirmed Sasori's true identity—the grandson of Grandma Chiyo.
Without hesitation, Gaara entered the fray himself.
[Gaara, watch out!]
A massive spiraling iron-sand lance suddenly appeared in the air.
Sasori didn't move at all.
The Third Kazekage waved his hand expressionlessly.
[Magnet Release: Iron Sand Giant Needle!]
Before him, a black, gigantic iron needle formed.
Or rather, it was more like a spear.
In an instant, it shot forward and collided with the sand spear.
Immediately, countless sands scattered.
Gaara realized there was no way he could stop these two in time.
And right now, they were high up in the sky. Others wanted to assist but were a step too late.
After defeating Deidara, Natsume clapped his hands together.
Since he had already stepped in personally, so why not finish this fight decisively?
[Sage Art: Wood Release: Nativity of a Sea of Trees!]
In a moment, the ground cracked open. Countless trees burst from the earth, forming a forest right before him.
The next instant, the trees grew wildly, and vines and branches rapidly stretched toward the sky.
Meanwhile, the wooden dragon that had blocked Deidara's self-destruction still remained.
Under Natsume's control, it swiftly rose into the air once again.
Great danger loomed.
Sasori grabbed the Third Kazekage with one hand.
This allowed the latter to free his hands for making seals.
[Magnet Release: Iron Sand World Method!]
The iron sand formed a large spiked barrier in midair.
In almost the blink of an eye, countless long spikes densely filled the sky, creating an unusual defense.
The giant wooden dragon rushed forward.
It slammed heavily into the barrier.
Piercing, sharp noises rang out.
The wooden dragon temporarily became trapped.
Taking this chance, Sasori and the Third Kazekage flew forward several more meters.
But the crisis had only just begun.
[Scroll Technique: Flame Prison Wrath Formation!]
Sasori flipped over, standing on the back of the Third Kazekage while extending both hands outward.
He turned his body into a living puppet and equipped four explosive scrolls as his ultimate weapons.
At this moment, he activated the Fire Scroll.
An intense heat manifested.
Flames spewed from the pipelines in his palms.
Infused with chakra, the flames reached their peak, nearly covering the entire area beneath his feet.
Once the vines made contact, they immediately caught fire.
Its temperature was extremely high—hot enough to melt steel and stone into molten slag within seconds.
But the Sage-enhanced Tree Realm Descension wasn't so easily overcome.
The burning process was slow.
In what felt like barely a moment, flaming vines quickly wrapped around both Sasori and the Third Kazekage.
But this chapter isn't over yet — brace yourself for what comes next!
Their movements restricted, the two immediately slowed down drastically.
And with this pause, even more vines and branches piled on top. In the blink of an eye, they were completely wrapped up and immobilized.
High in the sky, the pair plummeted downward together.
Mei Terumī sighed in both relief and concern.
The first was for surviving the crisis. The second was due to how overwhelmingly strong Konoha had proven to be.
Without aid from someone like Natsume, Kiri would have certainly lost its two tailed beasts.
Akatsuki was already strong—but Konoha was even stronger.
Especially Natsume.
Once he got involved, fights never lasted more than a few minutes.
Even Mei Terumī, who was close to him, now believed that Kiri's future was destined to be shaped by Konoha.
She considered for a moment — there was no other choice but to go along with it.
All strategies were futile before absolute power.
Instinctively, Mei Terumī glanced toward Natsume.
Hmm, there was still one option left.
The Beauty Stratagem.
At the very least, while she remained alive, the Hidden Mist would not be threatened.
She mused silently — perhaps it was time to start learning.
Though she was the Mizukage and held her own pride, arrogance could not be indulged. She'd need to offer a few minor concessions.
Zabuza Momochi and Ephemeral approached her.
They were the only two Mist ninja to have taken part in the battle.
Like Mei Terumī, they had both witnessed the might of Konoha.
But unlike her, they did not know the relationship between Natsume and Mei Terumī, thus stirring quiet concern within them.
If Natsume and his allies moved now, seizing control of the Hidden Mist would be effortless.
In fact, even the weakened Iwagakure and Kumogakure — deprived of their tailed beasts — would be as good as conquered.
The more they considered, the more alarmed they became. Instinctively, they drew closer.
One stood protectively, the other awaiting her command.
"There's nothing to worry about."
Mei Terumī shook her head, offering no further explanation.
She glanced toward the remaining battlefield.
Itachi Uchiha versus Sasuke Uchiha.
Though she didn't understand why Natsume forbade any interference, even if she couldn't comprehend, she had no choice but to comply.
(End of Chapter)
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