Cherreads

Chapter 9 - 《Naruto: Deidara's Struggle》Chapter 9: The Grass Ninjas' Retreat

On the battlefield, Deidara stood facing off against the Grass Village ninjas, while Raiga Kurosuki watched from the sidelines, showing no intention of intervening. For Raiga, the best outcome would be for both sides to suffer heavy losses. If that didn't happen, he could at least observe their abilities—there was no need to rush into the fight.

"Everyone, be careful! Those white objects he creates can explode!" shouted Kawamura To, a jōnin from the Grass Village. Earlier, they had suffered minor injuries from the close-range explosion of a Clay Centipede, but fortunately, it wasn't too serious. Besides, they had a "healing kit" in the form of Karin, who could heal wounds with a single bite. There was nothing to fear.

"But as long as we don't let those white toys get close, they're not a threat, right?" said another jōnin, who was more hot-headed. Confident he had figured out Deidara's abilities, he leapt forward, thinking it would be no problem to teach this kid a lesson.

"Earth Release: Stone Pillar Spear!" Another Grass ninja formed hand seals, and the ground beneath Deidara's feet suddenly erupted with sharp stone spikes, forcing him to relocate.

"Good! Naoto, keep it up! I've driven him to another spot, so you don't have to worry about those underground centipedes anymore!" shouted the ninja who had cast the Earth Release technique.

"Not bad teamwork," Deidara remarked with a smirk.

"C1 Standard Type: Giant Pythons!" From the mouths on his palms, two massive clay pythons slithered out, coiling toward the charging Grass jōnin named Naoto.

"Not so fast! Earth Release: Stone Pillar Prison!" "Water Release: Water Stream Whip!"

Two more jutsu were unleashed. The python on the left was restrained by stone pillars rising from the ground, while the one on the right was ensnared by a water whip wielded by another Grass ninja. Both clay pythons were immobilized.

"Die!" Naoto had already closed in on Deidara, kunai in hand, forcing Deidara to leap backward to avoid the attack.

"I've been waiting for this! Got you now!"

The ninja who had earlier used an Earth Clone to ambush Deidara suddenly appeared from the shadows. It turned out that Naoto's attack had been a feint, and the real strike was coming from behind.

The ninja quickly formed hand seals, his cheeks puffing out as he tilted his head back, preparing for the next jutsu.

"Wind Release: Vacuum Wave!" A transparent, blade-like gust of wind shot toward Deidara, slicing him cleanly in half at the waist.

"Did we get him?" The Grass ninjas erupted in cheers.

"In the world of Naruto, if you ask that question, the answer is always no," Deidara quipped as he and Sasori emerged from a distance. The "Deidara" they had just killed was merely a Clay Clone. Ninja battles were always full of twists and turns.

"Deidara, you're too slow. Let me handle this," Sasori said in his raspy, low voice. The tail of Hiruko, the puppet he was using as armor, shot out, its tip coated in a dark purple poison.

"That won't do, Brother Sasori. These are my prey!" Deidara stepped forward resolutely. He wasn't about to let anyone else take his experience points—he needed to grow stronger as quickly as possible!

"Hurry up! I hate waiting!" Sasori retracted Hiruko's tail and crouched silently, showing no further intention of intervening.

"Alright, time to get serious!"

"C2 Standard Type: Combat Hatchling Dragon!" "C2 Standard Type: Raiding Pterodactyl!" "C2 Standard Type: Velociraptor!"

This time, Deidara even used his real mouth to chew the clay, creating a swarm of clay creatures in an instant. The first two types were derived from the C2 Enhanced Great Dragon, while the last one, the Velociraptor, was a new creation he had developed based on the others' construction techniques.

"Raiga Kurosuki Shock Value +300." "Kawamura To Shock Value +200." "Bomura Mitsutani Shock Value +200." "Higashi Naoto Shock Value..."

"You've got to be kidding me!" The Grass ninjas broke out in cold sweat. Earlier, they had been confident in their numerical advantage, but now all hope of victory had evaporated.

A dark swarm of clay dragons filled the sky, while the ground was overrun with clay velociraptors. Each of these creatures was capable of unleashing devastating explosions—there was no way to stop them!

"Run for your lives!" Some of the Grass ninjas, overcome with fear, abandoned the fight and fled.

"Damn it! Earth Release: Earth-Style Wall!" "Water Release: Water Formation Wall!"

Some Grass ninjas tried to resist, but against the overwhelming number of clay creatures, their efforts were futile.

"Boom!" With Deidara's command, the clay creatures exploded, turning the battlefield into a sea of destruction.

"Ah! Someone bring that girl over here to heal me! I'm hurt!" cried a Grass ninja whose leg had been blown off. But the others were too busy saving themselves to care about him.

"Two of them managed to escape, huh? Oh well, it doesn't matter," Deidara muttered. The Grass ninjas had been relatively strong, and he had held back to avoid harming Karin, refraining from using large-scale explosions. Otherwise, one big clay bomb would have ended the fight instantly.

Perhaps traumatized by the brutal battle, the young Karin, only seven or eight years old, looked terrified. Her face was smeared with dirt and wood splinters, and her body bore two new bite marks from the Grass ninjas who had tried to heal themselves.

"Don't kill me! I'm useful! I can heal people! Just bite me, and I can heal you! Really!" Karin stammered, holding up her thin, bite-marked arm in a desperate plea. Her fearful expression was almost pitiful.

Deidara scratched his head, looking somewhat troubled.

"Am I really that scary? I just saved you, didn't I?" he said, pulling Karin to her feet.

"Hey, Brother Sasori, could you watch over this kid for me? I'm afraid I might accidentally blow her up," Deidara said, bringing Karin over to Sasori.

"Deidara, I'm not a babysitter!" Sasori replied irritably.

"Come on, Brother Sasori, she's just a poor little girl. Take care of her, okay? You're a kind person, after all!"

"Me? Kind? Hahaha!" Sasori let out a low, chilling laugh. But Deidara was certain Sasori wouldn't harm Karin. After all, Sasori was just a man who had lost his parents at a young age, leading him to pursue eternal life in a misguided attempt to fill that void. In the end, he had willingly died at the hands of his grandmother, Chiyo—a tragic and pitiful figure.

"Hey, green-haired guy with the dark circles and big mouth—Raiga Kurosuki, right? Surrender now and hand over your swords, and I might let you live," Deidara called out to Raiga, who had been watching from a distance.

"Hahaha!" Raiga threw his head back in laughter, covering his face with one hand as if he had just heard the funniest joke in the world.

"I think you're the one who should surrender! I've already figured out your abilities!" Wiping a tear from his eye, Raiga crossed his twin Thunder Swords, a confident grin on his face.

"My Thunder Swords are the perfect counter to you!"

More Chapters