Chapter 99
Explosive Art and the Dance of Bullets
"Ka!" Deidara shouted as a massive clay spider shot toward Hyuga Chinano, lunging like a facehugger.
However, before it could get within fifty meters of her, the spider suddenly detonated. Chinano, unfazed, smoothly drew her intricately designed firearms, her movements fluid like a dancer weaving through gunfire. Each pull of the trigger precisely eliminated a clay spider, her bullets meeting their targets with ruthless efficiency. As her gunfire continued, the sounds of explosions echoed throughout the battlefield.
"Tsk, interesting. So, your weapons explode too, huh? I guess you could call it art, but it doesn't quite have the impact of my bombs. Inferior, hmm~" Deidara mused, the mouths on his palms endlessly chewing and spitting out fresh clay bombs.
"Brother Sasori, this one's interesting. I'll handle her. You go capture the One-Tail Jinchūriki. Yeah, that's it," Deidara said, though his tone carried a hint of excitement. As much as he enjoyed the fight, he never lost sight of their mission.
With that, he dropped his playful attitude and summoned a massive clay bird, soaring into the sky. He preferred aerial combat—staying high above, out of reach of his enemies, raining destruction from above. Most ninja had short reach, unable to counter him with ninjutsu or shuriken. It was a battle of different dimensions. If things went south, he could simply retreat.
"Tsk..." Sasori sighed in mild irritation, dropping what was left of Gekko Hayate—now reduced to a mere head. He pulled a scroll from his back, releasing a puppet that quickly sealed away the remains.
"I'll study you later... The secret to immortality..." he murmured before retrieving the scroll. Then, without hesitation, Sasori's form flickered and disappeared into the darkness.
From a distance, Hyuga Chinano tracked Sasori's movements with her Byakugan (White Eye). She pulled out the sniper rifle slung across her back, locked onto her target without even needing to use the scope, and fired.