The alliance talks were still unresolved, and the road ahead remained long. As a result, Kakuzu and Sasori stayed temporarily in the Hidden Stone Village.
For Akio, life didn't change much, though his once-relaxed routine of training the kids gained a few new twists.
After the incident where he'd been thoroughly humiliated, Deidara became obsessively focused on refining his art. He trained day and night and finally succeeded in producing C2-level explosives.
Learning Akio's true identity didn't make him timid. On the contrary, his first C2 test target was Akio himself.
The result was devastating.
The C2 dragon bomb never even detonated. Akio casually weighed it in his palm twice, compressed it into a compact high-yield grenade, and tossed it straight back.
Worse still, Akio quickly grasped the core principle behind Explosion Release, refining chakra density and stability inside the clay itself.
With his level of chakra control, he effortlessly produced a C3 super grenade, flattening an entire mountainside in an instant.
Then came C4 micro-explosives, dispersing as invisible dust that could detonate inside the human body on command.
Out of curiosity, he even tested a C5 cloud-burst explosive inside his personal space. Despite going all-out defensively, he still suffered noticeable injuries.
Judging by that result, Deidara's self-detonation probably wasn't much stronger.
Unfortunately, clay explosives had a hard ceiling, they simply couldn't contain higher-tier chakra. That limitation left Akio genuinely disappointed. One more breakthrough and it could've rivaled his Eighty Gods Vacuum Strike as his strongest technique.
Still, Deidara's growth was undeniable.
The power balance among the six kids collapsed completely. Evenly matched three-on-three sparring was no longer possible, forcing them into individual training.
Akio, relieved of supervision duty, enjoyed the free time and chose to spend it doing something far more entertaining:
Messing with Sasori.
"Hey, Sasori. I'm back. Click-clack-click-clack—how about transforming for me again?"
"Click-clack—whirr—snap!"
Akio flicked his sleeve, catching a storm of poison-coated senbon midair. He grinned and stuffed them into his pocket.
"Another productive day."
Sasori said nothing.
He worked constantly to suppress what remained of his human emotions, but every time Akio showed up with that infuriating smile… and that mocking click-clack sound… his composure cracked.
And worse, his senbon supply was running dangerously low.
Walking down the Stone Village streets, Akio muttered to himself:
"Sasori's loaded. That's at least seven or eight volleys so far."
He weighed the added senbon in his pocket and smiled.
"You don't shed human emotions that easily. Turning yourself into a puppet doesn't magically erase them, it just buries them."
"This world doesn't offer enlightenment manuals for emotional detachment."
At the village gates, Akio's steps slowed.
An elderly woman stood there, dust-worn from travel.
"…Chiyo," he said softly. "It's been a long time."
She studied him for a moment before answering.
"If I couldn't feel myself growing old, I might believe I'd seen you just yesterday."
Akio paused, then sighed.
"You could've just said I still look young."
Chiyo managed a strained smile, hope flickering in her eyes.
"…How is Sasori?"
Akio nodded slowly.
"Not great. But not beyond saving."
Several Stone shinobi hurried over, but Akio waved them off.
"Tell Ōnoki to wait. He's got a clever granddaughter keeping him company. He should remember not everyone's had that luxury."
(Ōnoki would strongly disagree with that description.)
Akio turned back to Chiyo.
"Come with me. I'll take you to him."
Outside Sasori's temporary quarters, Akio called loudly:
"Sasori! Your guest is here!"
Sasori stepped out irritably.
"You're pushing it, coming twice in one day..."
He froze.
"…Hmph. So it's Granny Chiyo."
Chiyo stared at his youthful face, stunned.
"So it's true… you turned yourself into a puppet."
Akio, sensing the tension, added helpfully:
"Yep. Fully modular, too. Makes great click-clack sounds."
Sasori and Chiyo both shot him identical looks.
Akio scratched his head.
"…Right. Let's talk inside."
"Pointless," Sasori said flatly, turning away.
Akio leaned toward Chiyo and whispered theatrically:
"That 'pointless' actually means: I'm overwhelmed, but puppets aren't supposed to show emotion, so I'm pretending not to care."
Chiyo visibly relaxed and followed Sasori inside.
"Why did you leave the village?" she asked quietly.
"And why did you do this to yourself?"
Sasori hesitated
Akio cut in.
"This is where he says 'Only eternal beauty is true art,' but what he really means is this:
Losing his parents taught him how fragile people are.
Your silence hurt more than the truth ever could.
Turning himself into something that doesn't decay, doesn't feel
that was how he tried to move on."
Sasori raised his hand… then lowered it.
Senbon were precious.
Chiyo's voice trembled.
"…Is that really how you felt?"
Sasori answered only:
"Pointless."
Akio nodded.
"That one means: What's done can't be undone. Regret won't change the past."
Chiyo straightened.
"It's not too late. Sasori, come home. I'll find a way to restore your body."
Akio froze.
She meant that technique.
Whether it could truly work didn't matter, she was ready to give everything for him.
When Akio looked up, both Chiyo and Sasori were staring at him.
He raised his hands defensively.
"Hey, don't look at me. This is his choice."
"I'm just the narrator."
---
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