"Boom!"
The numerous exploding kunai shattered Gaara's sand shield, which he had formed to protect his siblings. The powerful shockwave flung Temari and Kankurō over ten meters away, breaking two trees before they finally stopped.
[Only when facing him directly does one realize how strong Sasori's puppet body is—its power, speed, and attacks are all off the charts.]
Link's mind was racing. [In the manga, it seemed like Sakura easily took down this puppet body, but now it feels ridiculously overpowered. No, to be fair, Sakura had been trained by Tsunade for three years, and with Chiyo's assistance, their victory was well-earned.]
"Cough, cough!"
Temari struggled to her feet, covered in dirt and blood trickling from her mouth as she coughed violently. Beside her, Kankurō lay unconscious.
"Take Kankurō and hide. Wait for an opportunity," Link commanded decisively. The enemy was too powerful, and weak teammates would only become liabilities in this battle.
With their Chūnin-level skills, Temari and Kankurō were simply outmatched against someone like Sasori. Neither Link nor Gaara could afford to protect them constantly. It was better for them to retreat.
"Understood," Temari replied without hesitation. She grabbed her brother and retreated into the distance.
"Aren't you going to transform?"
Sasori, observing from a distance, refrained from attacking further. His scrutinizing gaze was fixed on the Konoha boy. [That ability to rebound attacks is still unclear. Getting close could be dangerous. That sealing jutsu he used may not work on puppets or puppet masters, but there's no telling what other tricks he has.]
Link didn't respond. Maintaining his clones and transformation, he charged straight at Sasori.
Time was running out. His Stand, Spice Girl, only had a few seconds left before its duration expired. If he didn't act quickly, he'd have to summon the Stand again and rework his strategy. There was no time to waste.
Meanwhile, Gaara stayed on guard, watching Deidara closely. He chose not to assist Link, preserving his chakra for whatever backup plan Deidara might have.
"Tch!"
Sasori, uncharacteristically, dodged instead of engaging directly. Using his finely crafted puppet body, he evaded Link's charge while slicing through several shadows attempting to block his path.
[That tree wasn't thrown by him physically—was it chakra? A tree-manipulating ability? Or maybe his shadow can alter objects? Those rubbery clothes...]
Sasori's mind raced as he pieced together the details of Link's abilities. [According to the intel, when he goes all out, his chakra reaction and techniques grow exponentially. He hasn't transformed yet, which means he's still holding back.]
[This kid is truly troublesome. Is it time to use my ultimate technique?]
Sasori's initial excitement about facing such an opponent began to fade. His cautious nature took over, especially given the danger of battling in the Land of Rivers, a hotspot teeming with ninja factions. With Orochimaru and Danzō reportedly in the area, he couldn't afford to take unnecessary risks.
[Let's test him one last time.]
Glancing at Deidara for a moment, Sasori made his decision.
"Whoosh!"
Flames spewed from Sasori's hand, forcing back the annoying shadows. With his other hand, he opened a compartment on his chest, extending a bundle of chakra strings. Tossing a scroll into the air, he unfurled it.
"Poof!"
A hundred distinct human puppets floated into the air, each manipulated by chakra strings invisible to the naked eye.
[Red Secret Technique: Performance of a Hundred Puppets.]
Link wasn't surprised. Instead, he sped up his charge, ignoring the incoming attacks. Behind him, Spice Girl clenched its fists and let out a battle cry.
"WAAAAAANNNNNABEEEEEE!!!"
Countless punches shot out faster than the eye could follow. With Spice Girl's Speed A, its blows were nearly impossible to intercept. Even the swarm of puppets, which had sacrificed some precision for quantity, couldn't keep up.
"Smack! Smack! Smack!"
Within a two-meter radius, every attack was repelled. Most puppets shattered instantly upon contact, while the more durable ones became tools for blocking other attacks.
[A fully invisible summon? It must be the source of that ability to soften and reinforce objects!]
Sasori quickly deduced the truth. [If this is a summon, then my assumptions about his abilities are completely wrong. He could be a summoner-type ninja, similar to Jiraiya.]
Even with this realization, the sheer force of Spice Girl's assault left him no time to regroup. Few had ever made it through his Performance of a Hundred Puppets so effortlessly.
The Stand's overwhelming speed and strength obliterated the puppets like fragile toys. To make matters worse, its invisibility left Sasori vulnerable. By the time he adjusted, Link was already in striking range.
[I need to create distance immediately!]
Sasori leapt backward, determined to avoid close combat. His combat philosophy was clear: never give the enemy what they want. If his opponent was trying to close the distance, then staying far away was his best move.
But it was too late.
[Finally got you!]
Using a burst of chakra to propel himself, Link covered the remaining distance in a flash. Pulling out a pre-prepared wallet, he threw it at Sasori and formed a hand seal.
Transparent, cash-colored runes poured out of the stuffed wallet, binding Sasori tightly.
The force was so overwhelming that Sasori was slammed into the ground, raising a cloud of dust.
Neither his steel cables nor his spinning blades could cut through the seals. Sasori's eyes widened as his thoughts raced. [This is bad...]
From above, Deidara's expression turned serious. [Brother Sasori is in trouble.]
"Your opponent..."
Gaara raised his hands, commanding a torrent of sand toward Deidara's clay dragon.
"...is me!"
"Thud!"
Meanwhile, Link leapt high into the air. Chakra surged around him, forming an enormous scalpel nearly two meters long.
"Even if I can't see it," Link thought as he descended, "you're still a puppet operated by chakra!"
"Slash!"
~~~
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