Sasori dove into the water alongside Deidara, his gaze falling upon the group of sea turtles before them. A strange heaviness settled in his chest. After all the effort spent searching, finding the elusive target among such a massive crowd made it feel...less special. The satisfaction of achieving his goal vanished almost instantly.
Since converting himself into a human puppet, Sasori had found the form to be largely convenient—like now, for example. He could freely move underwater without the need to breathe, while Deidara had to encase himself in a clay shell, relying on the limited air trapped within to maneuver below the surface.
"Let's get to work," Sasori ordered curtly.
Hiruko's right arm extended, snatching one of the turtles. Its shell was about the size of a small round table, making it a perfect match for Hiruko's scale.
"Roarrr!"
Surprisingly, instead of scattering in panic, the other turtles reacted with fury. Their eyes gleamed red as they flailed their stubby limbs, surging toward Hiruko with an unnatural speed.
"What the hell? These turtles are vicious!" Deidara exclaimed, steering his clay shell out of their way. The creatures weren't limited to physical attacks either; water projectiles shot from their mouths with startling force. His clay construct wasn't built to withstand such hits—it'd spring a leak for sure if struck.
"Pathetic," Sasori muttered.
Hiruko's arm branched into numerous tendrils, grabbing at the swarm of enraged turtles. Sasori expected a struggle—he wasn't naïve enough to think one move would settle things.
But then…
A pile of lifeless turtles floated before them, shells cracked and bodies limp. Sasori stared in silence.
Weren't these supposed to be resilient enough to withstand a Tailed Beast Bomb? Did I just casually unleash something on par with that?
The two surfaced, and Sasori pulled out the intel's sketch of the exotic turtle. Carefully comparing it, he frowned.
"It matches, doesn't it?" he said, showing Deidara. Both fell into a contemplative silence.
"Forget it. Let's go," Sasori said, his tone icier than usual. He turned, frustration evident in his voice.
"Where to now?" Deidara asked hesitantly.
"Kumogakure. I'm going to kill that idiot."
Clearly, Sasori was livid.
"Wait! Sasori-sama! Deidara-sama!" a voice called out. It was Waterman, breathless and clearly exhausted from chasing after them.
Oh right. I forgot about him. If we'd been just a bit quicker, he might've lost us entirely.
"I found the exotic turtle you're looking for in the west! Hurry and follow me!" Waterman exclaimed excitedly, panting.
"No need," Deidara waved him off. "The intel was wrong. These turtles are hardly defensible."
"Impossible! The one I saw was incredibly strong! I couldn't break its shell, and it overpowered my water techniques. If we delay, it might escape!" Waterman insisted urgently.
"Is it like this one?" Sasori raised the cracked shell.
"Yes, but this one's black," Waterman clarified.
Deidara and Sasori exchanged glances.
So that's the real target. The pencil-drawn intel sketch lacked color, almost leading them to the wrong conclusion.
"Let's go!"
Waterman led the way, merging with the seawater to navigate. Using the abnormal currents as a guide, he tracked the turtle's movements.
"There! It's diving into the deep sea! If it escapes into the depths, we won't be able to catch it," Waterman warned, his tone increasingly urgent.
Even without understanding the physics of pressure, experienced shinobi knew the deeper one went, the more crushing the environment became. It wasn't a place even elite shinobi or durable puppets could handle.
Crack! Crack!
Hiruko's arm creaked under the mounting pressure as it extended deeper. Just as Sasori's claws were about to snatch the black turtle, it launched a water projectile with surgical precision, severing Hiruko's arm.
"Tch. Its attacks are far more powerful than its kin," Sasori admitted, though his expression remained calm. As a puppet master, he was accustomed to setbacks—it was simply a matter of switching tactics.
"Your turn," Sasori called over to Deidara.
"With pleasure, yeah." Deidara grinned, spitting out a massive clay serpent that rivaled his C2 Dragon in size.
"Waterman, guide it below the turtle. I'll use the explosion's shockwave to blast it upward."
"Yes, Deidara-sama!" Waterman responded.
"Water Prison Jutsu!"
A spherical barrier of water enveloped the clay serpent as Waterman maneuvered it downward. Protecting it within his jutsu, Waterman advanced toward the elusive black turtle.
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Pls Drop some Power Stones
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