"I haven't been on the battlefield for a long time. I should stretch my muscles a little."
On the other side, Elder Chiyo, facing the AB combo and their allies, also unfurled a purple sealing scroll.
Could this be Elder Chiyo's legendary puppet technique—the Chikamatsu Collection of Ten Puppets?
Bunpuku, the bearded monk with sharp black eyebrows, stirred slightly at the sight.
As is well known, the Sand shinobi's signature strength—besides poison techniques—is puppetry.But unlike poisons, puppets are material-heavy. The more powerful the puppet, the steeper the price.
Such costs are simply unaffordable for most of the chronically underfunded Sunagakure shinobi.
That's why most puppet users are either wealthy heirs of puppet traditions, or have made impressive battlefield contributions to earn the resources.
And among them, the best of the best is Elder Chiyo herself—wielder of ten legendary puppets crafted by Monzaemon, the First Puppet Master, and once used to raze an entire city!
Bang!
As the seal lifted, ten puppets in white high-collared robes and ghostly masks appeared, circling around Granny Chiyo.
Bunpuku looked at the ominous Chikamatsu Ten and felt the air grow colder.
"Bunpuku, according to Rasa, the man with all those swords strapped to him is the Eight-Tails' jinchūriki. I'll leave him to you later."
With that, Chiyo commanded her puppets toward A!
Her ten fingers danced—chakra threads spun through the air—and the puppets surrounded A in formation.
"You little puppets think you can threaten my big bro? That's hilarious. Don't go breaking a hip trying, Granny~ Yo~ Hey~"
At that moment, a giant octopus tentacle surged forward like a battering ram, aiming to crush the puppet squad.
"Haha! The youth these days… No respect for elders! Allow me, an old monk, to play with you a little."
Bunpuku smiled like a kindly teacher—but his chakra said otherwise.
With a rumble, golden chakra surged into his arm and condensed into a massive yellow sand fist, gripping the tentacle in midair and halting its path!
"Yo~ Yo~ Turns out the old man's got some moves! One-Tail Jinchūriki wants to play top lane~"
Though Killer B kept singing, his gaze sharpened. He hadn't expected his opponent to also be a jinchūriki!
"Puppetry: Three Treasures Manipulation!"
Seeing Killer B's attack stopped cold, Elder Chiyo didn't hesitate. Three puppets—"Buddha," "Dharma," and "Monk"—snapped into a triangle.
A raging whirlwind burst forth, sucking toward A with terrifying force.
This was one of Chiyo's most feared techniques.
Once caught inside, the victim would be crushed by pressure and shredded into blood mist before being hurled out like debris.
"Tch. A little breeze won't stop me."
"Lightning Style: Lightning Armor!"
A's body lit up with crackling electricity, chakra surging through every muscle fiber. His speed and power peaked.
"Liger Bomb—Heavy Flow!"
With a roar, A slammed his elbow—charged with Lightning Style—into the "Monk" puppet, shattering its torso in one clean blow.
The Three Treasures Formation crumbled on the spot.
Without pause, A used his Lightning Body Flicker to strike the next puppet. Judging by his relentless form, he intended to destroy all ten!
The destruction was terrifying.
Granny Chiyo's pupils contracted. Her ten fingers blurred into afterimages as chakra threads frantically weaved.
"Puppetry: Mechanical Light Shield Seal!"
Under her direction, the ten puppets gathered chakra into a radiant barrier and met A's attack head-on, halting his advance.
"Huh. Not bad, grandma."
Seeing his assault blocked, A narrowed his eyes and changed strategy—targeting Chiyo directly.
He couldn't break through the shield? Fine. He'd go for the puppeteer herself.
Chiyo's heart raced. She called the puppets back into a tight circle around her, intercepting the Raikage's advance.
At the same time, the blue-masked puppet's head clicked open, and chains shot from five holes—snaking toward A to bind him!
"Didn't anyone tell you I'm not into bondage?"
A scoffed and chopped through the chains with his hand like an axe.
Phew!
The blue puppet exhaled a noxious cloud of poison, engulfing A.
But the Raikage instantly held his breath, flickering away from the gas with lightning speed.
Still, Chiyo's poison was no joke.
A faint touch against his skin was enough—A's right arm began to go numb.
Chiyo exhaled. She knew she couldn't match A in strength or stamina—her years had long caught up with her.
But with cunning and experience, she could still seize an edge.
"Haha, looks like Elder Chiyo's turning this into a stamina match."
"Well then," Bunpuku said, watching calmly from the side, "let's keep the momentum going."
Fearing Killer B might jump in and tip the scales, Bunpuku took the initiative to challenge him.
"Yo~ Yo~ Cannibal jinchūriki conflict! One-Tail, Eight-Tails—ready to inflict!"
"Hold up! That's a solid bar! Lemme write that down before I forget."
Killer B, mid-rap, pulled out his little notebook.
Bang!
In his mental realm, the massive octopus-beast Gyūki smacked him across the head.
"Bi, are you stupid? This is a battlefield! You're facing a fellow jinchūriki!"
"Ow! Ow! Hey, that actually hurt!"
Bi winced. Pain in the mindscape hit like a freight train—amplified a hundredfold.
"Alright, alright! Sheesh, Gyūki."
Despite the pain, he smiled and tucked the notebook safely away.
As a perfect jinchūriki, he and Gyūki were in complete sync.
His wild, rhythmic personality was the perfect complement to Gyūki's calm and steady nature—a duo that thrived on chaos and harmony alike.
"In that case… let's go all out!"
Bubble. Bubble.
The tailed beast's red chakra bubbled up around B—eight distinct tentacles forming along his back.
"Time for my Seven Swords Style!"
He struck a bizarre pose, planting one leg and flaring out his limbs.
In his hands, elbows, knees, and even his mouth—seven swords gleamed.
It was the original style: Hebi no Mai—Snake Dance Blade!
Swish!
B disappeared in a flicker.
He reappeared right in front of Bunpuku, blades spinning.
He wielded them with dazzling unpredictability—every movement flowing like water, every strike bending natural logic.
Bunpuku didn't flinch.
"Shukaku's Shield."
Golden sand surged and swirled around him, layering into a massive armored shell shaped like a tanuki.
It was Shukaku's Absolute Defense—no mere sword could pierce it.
He couldn't match Bi's speed, but he didn't have to.
As the old saying goes:
"You can't cut what you can't reach."