"Is this all you've got?" Sasori tilted his head slightly as he asked softly.
"You bastard! This arrogant bastard!"
"What's with that expression?! Don't look down on us!"
"I come from the Shimura Clan, a genius among my peers since childhood. In the Ninja Academy, I was always the top of my class and graduated with the highest honors among my cohort. The same year I graduated, I passed the Chūnin Exams, and just two years later, I became a Jōnin."
"Five years after becoming a Jōnin, I was promoted to an elite Jōnin. I've completed eleven S-rank missions, with my only failure being due to the employer's own mishap, which caused the mission to be canceled midway."
"Both the Third Hokage in the past and the Fifth Hokage now greet me warmly whenever they see me, and the heads of every clan in Konoha treat me with respect!"
"And yet, you dare to look at me with that condescending expression!"
"You dare to look down on me!" The Shimura clan ninja screamed hysterically. His pride, deeply ingrained since childhood, couldn't endure the humiliation of being both beaten and dismissed so utterly.
"Are you done talking? If so, you can die now," Sasori murmured, tilting his head to the other side, his innocent expression unchanged.
It was as if he were saying, "Don't blame me. Blame yourself for being too weak."
"With just these pathetic puppets?!"
"Watch this! Wind Release: Vacuum Serial Waves!"
A series of air blades appeared, slicing one of Sasori's human puppets into pieces.
"How about that? Don't think I'm like the others—I'm strong!" The elite Jōnin from the Shimura Clan shouted arrogantly, using his bluster to suppress his growing fear.
Hiss!
From the shattered remains of the puppet, a cloud of poisonous smoke emerged. A severed arm suddenly sprang forward, revealing a gleaming blade that shot toward the Shimura ninja's heart with incredible speed.
This was the terror of Sasori's puppets: even when broken into pieces, they could still deliver deadly attacks.
"Not a chance!" With a poof, the Shimura ninja transformed into a wooden log, having used the Body Replacement Technique to dodge the attack and reappear nearby.
On the other side, Sasori's gaze flickered slightly. This man had the strength of an elite Jōnin. To kill him, Sasori would need to focus more attention on the surrounding puppets, which might lead to greater losses among his forces.
But it didn't matter. He could make as many puppets as he wanted—weren't these Konoha ninjas the perfect materials?
Crackle!
Several lightning spheres shot out from the mouths of puppets behind the Shimura ninja, coordinated with attacks from other puppets on his flanks.
The Shimura ninja quickly dropped to the ground, dodging forward before using the Body Flicker Technique to escape the danger zone. He then lunged at a puppet, aiming a kunai at its neck.
Clang!
A sword extended from the puppet's mouth, charging at him in a suicidal attack. The Shimura ninja, unwilling to risk a direct confrontation, stepped back and tried to strike again.
"See that? I'm strong!" he shouted again, laughing arrogantly. But halfway through his laugh, his movements suddenly froze.
"Ugh!" He looked down at his chest, disbelief written all over his face.
He had been careful, meticulously observing his surroundings—so how had he been attacked?
"You don't seem any stronger than the others," Sasori said indifferently.
A transparent figure gradually appeared behind the Shimura ninja, holding a long sword that had pierced his heart.
"It's the Moonlight Clan's Transparent Escape Technique!" someone exclaimed.
Over a hundred human puppets, each with unique abilities—this was a nightmare. It perfectly demonstrated the meaning of "inescapable."
"We should retreat! These monsters are impossible to defeat!" The morale on Konoha's side was crumbling. Even seasoned ninjas with years of experience in dangerous missions couldn't withstand such a one-sided massacre.
"Don't panic! Reinforcements have arrived!" The Nara clan ninja in charge of command shouted. From the distance, a large group of Konoha ninjas rushed to the battlefield, stabilizing the shaken forces.
"It's the Hokage's Nine-Tails Unit! We're saved!" The Konoha ninjas almost cried tears of joy. Their attitude toward the unit, which they had despised just yesterday, had now completely reversed.
After all, in order to endure the Nine-Tails' chakra, at least eight out of ten chosen ninjas had died during the process. The remaining two survivors, though successful, were deeply affected by the Nine-Tails' chakra, becoming violent and bloodthirsty.
But now, these individuals were their only hope.
"Nine-Tails Unit, attack! Kill the enemy!"
The Nine-Tails Unit consisted of about twenty ninjas, each cloaked in the unique Tailed Beast Chakra Coat of a Jinchūriki. The stronger members had three tails behind them, while the weaker ones had only one.
Their faces bore whisker-like marks, and they moved on all fours. Their expressions were feral and twisted, with sharp teeth and drooling mouths, appearing completely devoid of reason.
After all, this was the chakra of the strongest Tailed Beast, the Nine-Tails. The price of wielding such power was immense.
Crash!
With the Nine-Tails Unit joining the battle, Sasori's puppets began to suffer heavy casualties. Beyond the sheer offensive power of the unit, the protection provided by the Tailed Beast Chakra Coat made them immune to most conventional attacks, giving them a significant advantage over ordinary ninjas.
"Great! The enemy's puppets are falling apart!" The Konoha forces grew more spirited, though the Nara clan commander still frowned.
The true threats—Sasori's Third Kazekage puppet and Hiruko, capable of using Wood Release—had yet to be deployed. They were far from achieving real victory.
From a rooftop in the distance, Kisame watched the battle and turned to Itachi.
"Itachi-san, it looks like Sasori's in trouble. Should we go help him?"
Itachi glanced at Kisame with his usual calm demeanor.
"Kisame, if you're itching for a fight, go ahead. I'll watch over things here."
Seeing his intentions exposed, Kisame chuckled.
"As expected of Itachi-san, you saw right through me."
"But never mind. If I go now, Sasori will probably complain about me interfering."
Back on the battlefield, in just a few minutes, the number of Sasori's puppets had dwindled to around ten. As the Konoha ninjas closed in on his real body, Sasori's innocent expression remained unchanged.
"It's useless," he said.
Clapping his hands together, he added, "I don't need hand signs, but let's do this for effect—it makes it look more convincing."
"Wood Release: Deep Forest Emergence!"
In an instant, an entire district was engulfed by rapidly growing plants, forming a dense, dark forest.
Within the forest, countless tree branches twisted, coiled, and pierced like deadly tendrils. Combined with the Magnet Release of the Third Kazekage puppet, the battlefield transformed into a hellish slaughterhouse.
"So, how do you like my eternal art?" Sasori asked, his voice calm and detached amidst the chaos.
~~~~❃❃~~~~~~~~❃❃~~~~
The story isn't over...
🤔 Want to know what happens next to the characters?
🤫 Eager to explore the untold secrets of this world?
✍ Ready to read more of my wildest stories?
✨patreon.com/GoldenLong