Chapter 111: Mutual Destruction
Since there was no serious injury yet, there was no time to hesitate.
"Keep moving. I'll speed up. Take care of yourself," Mizuki said to Hyūga Ke. Using a clever method always came with gaps, and Deidara's sharp combat instincts meant he wouldn't give Mizuki too many openings.
Before Hyūga Ke could respond, Mizuki unleashed his chakra at full force. The acceleration from his feet broke all limits—Hyūga Ke could no longer keep up. At the same time, Mizuki focused his chakra shield entirely forward, abandoning protection for his sides and rear, directing all defense toward vital points in front.
A streaking, afterimage-like figure burst from the smoke. Even Deidara's fastest clay birds couldn't catch up. Mizuki took light damage from close-range blasts but finally broke through, appearing in front of a wide-eyed Deidara who was clearly shocked to see Mizuki's all-or-nothing charge arrive so quickly.
Without hesitation, Mizuki used the momentum from his sprint to plunge his windmill shuriken into Deidara's right chest, pinning him against a thick tree trunk. The blade embedded deep, fixing Deidara in place.
"That was too easy. Wait—no, something's wrong…"
Deidara, heavily wounded, suddenly lunged toward Mizuki as if trying to grapple him in a death lock.
Realizing the danger, Mizuki dropped his weapon and leapt backward just in time.
Deidara's body exploded violently. The blast devastated the surrounding area, completely engulfing Mizuki, who couldn't fully escape.
"Temari, clear the forest!" Mizuki's voice still echoed despite the explosion, a sign that he had survived—barely.
Without a word, Temari opened her giant fan.
"Summoning Technique: Kirikiri Mai!"
The white weasel wielding a giant sickle shredded the forest, the shockwaves tearing down trees and scattering smoke. Dust and debris lifted like a hurricane.
As the field cleared, the gasping Hyūga Ke was revealed first. Then, in the center of the battlefield, Gaara's sand shield—now battered and full of holes—was seen protecting Mizuki. Inside, Mizuki was covered in blood, parts of his limbs torn and burned, but his core had survived. He was healing himself using his own medical ninjutsu.
"Legs still mobile. No critical hits. Chakra reserves holding. I can go again…"
Mizuki, barely holding it together, wiped sweat and blood from his brow, then rose. Spotting Deidara hiding behind a massive clay bird, he hurled another windmill shuriken at him.
Deidara, mid-preparation for takeoff, scoffed. "That all you've got? Stupid brute force—"
He barely dipped his head to dodge, dismissing Mizuki as a fool.
"Talkative and arrogant—typical of villains. Let's see how you handle this…"
Unseen, a thread of nearly invisible chakra wire connected Mizuki's hand to the spinning shuriken. A sharp pull twisted its trajectory mid-air, wrapping the wire around Deidara's clay bird's neck.
"Got you."
The flight halted. Using the reverse force, Mizuki launched himself toward Deidara again. A second close-range strike caught Deidara completely off guard.
This time, Mizuki didn't hold back. A left hook shattered Deidara's goggles and bloodied his nose. As Deidara recoiled, Mizuki used chakra threads to reel him back—again and again—pummeling him with "Friendship Breaker Fists" in rapid succession.
When Deidara finally counterattacked with a clay bird, Mizuki didn't even dodge. Both fighters were thrown apart by the ensuing explosion.
Mizuki was caught by Gaara's sand in midair and cushioned from a fatal impact. Deidara, on the other hand, crashed to the ground, seriously wounded.
"That's all I've got. Time to hand this off to Kurenai and the others… His defenses are down. Genjutsu should work now."
Indeed, Deidara's physical strength wasn't diminished enough to be neutralized completely, but his ability to control the field was weakened—just enough to turn the tide.
…
Meanwhile, Hiashi Hyūga's fight with Sasori wasn't going so well. Gentle Fist, though deadly against chakra networks, was largely ineffective against Sasori's puppet body. Sasori's hidden mechanisms and potent poisons made every encounter deadly.
Normally, the Hyūga clan's Byakugan could help locate and destroy a puppeteer's chakra threads—but not with Sasori, who was encased entirely within a mechanical shell.
Despite Hiashi's efforts, there was no way to land a clean hit on Sasori's real core—his chakra-generating nucleus. And every second that passed, more traps and hidden weapons were deployed from Sasori's puppet armor.
"This won't work. If we don't get help soon, we're in trouble…"
Hiashi gritted his teeth. His best chance was to hold on until the others arrived—hoping that Mizuki's group could finish Deidara and assist him before it was too late.
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