BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
With the battlefield of the two colossal entities—Sasuke's Susanoo and the Gedo Mazo—at its center, the Kumo Jonin and the Shinobi Squad members clashed with the Akatsuki, splitting into several smaller skirmishes. The roar of countless ninjutsu thundered across the land. The terrain of the alternate dimension was forcibly reshaped by the sheer power of the two giants' collision.
With a thought from Uchiha Sasuke, the Great Tengu Susanoo suddenly drew the long sword from its waist, swinging it in a crescent arc through the air.
ROAR!
Pain only seemed to make the Gedo Mazo's aura even more savage.
"Not running anymore?" the Kumo Jonin taunted, observing Hidan, who had stopped in the distance. He subtly gestured, and his two comrades fanned out, surrounding their enemy from different directions.
"Run? I never had any intention of running." Hidan dragged his right foot across the ground, a crimson ritual circle slowly forming beneath it. Simultaneously, his appearance began to change. The yellow of his skin was gradually replaced by an eerie black, and grayish-white markings emerged all over his body. At a glance, he looked as if he had transformed into a living skeleton.
"Interrupt him!" the Kumo Jonin barked. Though he didn't know the specifics of Hidan's ability, preventing an enemy from completing their jutsu was always the right move.
"Lightning Release: Scattershot Current!"
The three Kumo nin formed the same hand seals, concentrating orbs of lightning in their hands. Their triangular formation allowed a wide net of lightning to completely envelop Hidan.
"Aaargh!"
Two screams rang out.
Ko and Jū's expressions changed drastically. One of the voices was chillingly familiar—it belonged to their squad leader.
"What's going on?!"
Looking at their leader, whose body was now covered in wounds as if struck by their own Lightning Release jutsu, his flesh torn and blasted, Ko and Ju stared in horror. They were certain their combined attack had hit the enemy. But... why did their comrade bear the wounds of a lightning attack?
"Aaargh! It hurts so much!"
The smoke cleared, revealing Hidan, covered in wounds. But the two remaining Kumo nin felt a strange, unsettling pleasure in his screams.
"It hurts like hell!" Hidan continued to shriek.
Thud!
The Kumo Jonin squad leader, life extinguished, knelt and then collapsed to the ground, his wide eyes filled with incomprehension and disbelief.
"Huh? I wasn't done enjoying myself yet. How'd you die already?" Hidan's screams abruptly stopped as he looked at the corpse with considerable dissatisfaction.
Gulp!
Ko and Ju exchanged a look, swallowing hard. They nodded almost imperceptibly to each other and attacked Hidan from opposite sides. Their previous attack hadn't harmed them, which meant the enemy's bizarre jutsu didn't affect them directly.
"Dust Release: Atomic Dismantling Jutsu!"
Standing atop his giant clay bird, Deidara brought his hands together, aiming at Sasori below. A blinding light erupted.
Having just dealt with several of Deidara's explosive clay creations, Sasori suddenly felt a life-threatening danger from above. Seeing the light gathering in Deidara's palms, his pupils contracted violently. The Hiruko puppet cracked open, and Sasori's true body leaped out at high speed.
Vwom!
A soft hum. No violent explosion, no blinding white light. It was as if, apart from the faint sound, nothing had happened. But looking at the vanished Hiruko puppet and the deep crater left in its place, Sasori's expression turned grave. His opponent's Dust Release was, without a doubt, the most terrifying offensive ninjutsu he had ever witnessed.
"Sasori, my man, so you really did turn yourself into a human puppet, un." Looking at Sasori's youthful face, identical to his memories, Deidara finally confirmed his long-held suspicion.
"You believe that the ultimate beauty of a fleeting moment is art. I, on the other hand, believe that eternal, incorruptible beauty is true art." Sasori unrolled a scroll, taking out the Third Kazekage human puppet sealed within. "Would you sacrifice your life in pursuit of your ideal art?"
Without the slightest hesitation, Deidara nodded firmly. "I would, yeah!"
"Then do you think I would?" Sasori countered.
"You would!"
"If even life can be sacrificed, what is a mere insignificant body of flesh and blood?" A chakra thread connected Sasori to the human puppet.
Shu! Shu! Shu!
Countless iron sand needles shot towards Deidara in mid-air.
Hokage Tower, Konoha.
"Ahhh!" Tsunade gazed at her now empty desk, the tension in her expression easing. She stood up and stretched languidly, her already curvaceous figure accentuated by the movement, creating a visually stunning impact.
Gulp...
Jiraiya, standing nearby, nearly popped his eyes out, swallowing involuntarily.
"It's been a long time since I've had this much free time. Fancy a drink tonight?" Tsunade asked.
"Yes, yes, absolutely!" Jiraiya nodded enthusiastically.
"Lady Tsunade, will there be any problems?" Shizune asked, hesitating slightly. "Even if Namikaze Naruto is powerful, taking on so many missions at once, including several A-rank ones..."
"He can run, but he can't hide. If something really goes wrong, that guy can handle it himself," Tsunade waved her hand dismissively, reassuring Shizune. "Besides his identity as a Konoha ninja, he's also the leader of the Dragon Heritage organization. According to the Shinobi Squad's intelligence, that guy hasn't been idle this past year. Who knows how many rogue ninja he's secretly recruited. I'm actually hoping for a little mishap, just to see what resources he truly has."
Shizune was stunned, her mouth slightly agape. "Didn't they say the Dragon Heritage organization only consisted of him and the Three-Tails?"
"That was just the information released publicly to avoid causing panic," Jiraiya explained. "Neither of these two organizations is simple. Dragon Heritage is one thing, but Akatsuki might even have Amegakure backing them."
"And most importantly!" Tsunade slammed her hand on the desk. "If it weren't for him working so hard, I'd almost have forgotten what it feels like to leave work early!"
Shizune and Jiraiya: "..." With what kind of mindset are you, who frequently skips work, saying these words?
"Alright then—" Naruto Uzumaki declared, looking at the throng of shadow clones before him. "I'm counting on all of you!"
"It's been a while since I've been to the Land of Wind!" one clone mused.
"I've never met such a shameless person, exploiting his own shadow clones like this!" another complained.
"Say, do we have any Flying Thunder God markers in the direction of the Land of Whirlpools?" a third wondered.
"I want to eat tricolor dango!" yet another shouted.
"..."
The shadow clones completely ignored him, chattering amongst themselves about their upcoming itineraries.
"Sigh..." Naruto covered his face, exasperated. His shadow clones were completely out of control.
"Alright, stop fooling around. Let's go," he said wearily.
Shwoop!
The training ground, which had been as noisy as a marketplace, suddenly fell silent. All the shadow clones vanished instantly.
"That's... interesting." Nara Shikamaru pondered for a long moment before finally summarizing his thoughts in three words.
"Hey, hey, hey! This is supposed to be terrifying, okay?!" Inuzuka Kiba exclaimed, scratching his head in agitation.
The other members of the Konoha 11 nodded numbly. Having been traumatized by Uchiha Sasuke countless times, they found this kind of scene... a mere drizzle.
Yeah, right! A hundred shadow clones simultaneously using the Flying Thunder God Technique? Was this guy an alien or something? What human could possess such terrifying chakra reserves?
"Where's Neji?" Yamanaka Ino asked, looking around.
"Dunno. Haven't seen him for a few days now," Rock Lee and Tenten replied, shaking their heads.
"Hinata's been missing for a few days too," Kiba added, scratching his head.
"Perhaps the Hyuga clan has some internal matters to attend to," Aburame Shino said, adjusting his dark glasses.