"Boom!"
An explosion rang out midair as the white dragon momentarily lowered in the smoke. A human puppet, seemingly acting on its own, leapt onto the dragon's back.
"Whoosh!"
A gale tore through the air as Temari, gripping her three-star fan, unleashed her Kamatari Technique with all her might.
"Pop! Pop! Pop!"
A rapid succession of crackling explosions disrupted the wind currents. The dragon remained unbothered, flying off into the distance without pause.
"Thud!"
Gaara, his body covered in cracks, fell unconscious. The sand, acting on its own, caught him midair before his body hit the ground. Despite his defensive measures and meticulous use of both sand and clay for infiltration and ambush, he failed to detect the hidden explosive clay. The sand armor, which should have protected him, couldn't withstand the shockwave.
Fortunately, the softened clothes he wore absorbed most of the direct damage and fire, leaving him merely stunned rather than fatally injured.
[They escaped...]
Link dispelled his chakra scalpel, watching the white dragon vanish into the horizon. Looking down, he saw a newly acquired human puppet. The strange puppet marked with "Hirukp" had disappeared from the battlefield, leaving behind only its remains.
[This matches exactly what happened in the manga.]
Whenever faced with an unavoidable attack, Sasori seemed able to transfer his core to another puppet. Judging from how often he relied on summoning techniques for tools and mechanisms, it was highly likely he used the same method to rotate his core among his puppets.
[This means that in his battle against Chiyo and the "Mother and Father" puppets, Sasori must have been holding back. Otherwise, with this core-transferring ability, he'd be incredibly difficult to kill.]
Link processed these thoughts as he saw Gaara beginning to stir. Temari and Kankurō, both battered, limped over to regroup.
Bending down to pick up his discarded wallet, Link stared at its now empty contents, his heart aching. [Months of missions down the drain... And half the money from selling my apartment... All gone.]
Pressing a hand to his chest, Link signaled his shadow clones to gather the scattered puppets and Sasori's personal puppet. At least the battle had yielded something valuable.
Sasori, knowing he couldn't win against Link in his true form, had fled in a weaker puppet body. In his retreat, he abandoned all his collected treasures, including numerous high-value puppets.
The human puppets scattered across the battlefield were priceless treasures for puppet masters. Even Sasori's personal puppet, marked "Hiruko," held immense value due to its advanced craftsmanship and combat capabilities.
[But who could I even sell these to?]
Link glanced at Kankurō, who stood nearby, clearly torn between guilt and awe at the sight of the Sasori puppet.
"Sensei," Temari called out as she approached, visibly drained. Her large-scale jutsu had sapped her energy, leaving her unsteady on her feet.
Gaara, on the other hand, stared blankly at the sand on the ground. Though his softened clothes had protected him from the brunt of the explosion, he couldn't shake the strange sensations he had felt during the attack.
"Pack up and get ready to leave," Link instructed, tossing a food pill to Temari. He directed Kankurō to seal the puppets into scrolls for transport.
Walking over to Gaara, Link asked, "What's wrong?"
"I..." Gaara hesitated, unable to articulate the emotions and sensations swirling within him.
Link patted Gaara's shoulder and said, "If you're unsure, just talk to us—me, Temari, or Kankurō. We'll listen."
"Hey! Stop touching that and get to work!"
Link's voice snapped toward Kankurō, who was mesmerized by the Sasori puppet, running his hands over it with an unsettling grin. The scene felt far too bizarre—Kankurō, dressed in his usual odd attire, smiling creepily while caressing the puppet.
"If you keep touching it, I'll sell it to you," Link quipped.
"Really?!" Kankurō's face lit up.
"Three billion, five hundred million ryō. Payment up front," Link replied flatly.
Kankurō froze, his expression shattering like glass. His excitement drained instantly, leaving him pale and defeated.
Just as Link was about to tease him further, he sensed incoming chakra signatures. His expression turned serious.
"Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!"
Seven or eight Anbu operatives landed, led by Danzō Shimura himself. The elder scanned the battlefield with a stern expression.
"Lord Danzō, what brings you here?" Link asked with a polite smile, masking his unease.
Danzō, standing tall, debated silently in his mind. Should he use Kotoamatsukami to control this boy? Link was far too valuable yet dangerously close to Hiruzen Sarutobi. Controlling him could drastically increase Danzō's chances of becoming Hokage.
Meanwhile, high above on the fleeing dragon, Deidara glanced over at Sasori.
"I can't believe we had to retreat like this, huh, Sasori?"
Deidara's voice carried a teasing tone. "You left all your precious treasures behind. Even—"
"Shut up, Deidara."
Sasori's curt response silenced his partner.
For a puppet body with a single human core, Sasori thought himself immune to the emotional turmoil of his living days. But tonight proved otherwise. The loss of decades' worth of work and his entire collection left him with an indescribable sense of emptiness.
The thought of his treasures being destroyed—or worse, used by that painted brat—filled him with a rare surge of anger.
"Link," Sasori muttered under his breath, committing the name to memory.
From the side, Kabuto adjusted his glasses with a smile.
"Lord Sasori, have you considered working with Lord Orochimaru?"
"Oh ho!" Deidara chuckled. "Sounds like your people is planning to betray you, huh?"
Sasori remained silent, his expression unreadable, as he stared at Kabuto.
~~~
Patreon(.)com/Bleam
— Currently You can Read 100 Chapters Ahead of Others!