The Artist's Inspiration
"Want to fight? Okay, okay!"
Naruto readily agreed to Deidara's request to fight.
Because his strength has improved too quickly recently, he just graduated from the Ninja Academy not long ago, became Genin, and participated in the Chunin Ninja Exams.
And the result?
He reconciled with Nine-Tails and became Perfect Jinchuriki.
They developed a shortcut and mastered the Perfect Sage Mode.
His power surged by countless levels in an instant.
However, he hadn't played against opponents of his level many times, which meant he had never played in high-level matches.
Just like Kaguya in ancient times.
Kaguya has never played high-level matches; she only plays matches where she's completely outmatched.
After all, at that time, her Chakra hadn't even spread yet.
The only game I played that seemed to be a high-level match was the one where I was sealed by the Sage of Six Paths.
The problem is that Ninjutsu was developed by Indra, the son of the Sage of Six Paths.
That battle, though seemingly high-level and protracted, was actually just the two of them constantly throwing bricks at each other, bombarding each other relentlessly, using the prince's fighting style.
This is one of the reasons why Kaguya was defeated after her resurrection in the Fourth Shinobi World War Kaguya the original work.
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Deidara and Naruto arrived at the rocky cliff outside Iwagakure, ready to fight.
"That Deidara kid, I wonder if he's fallen behind in his training since leaving the village... Sigh, what am I thinking? No matter how strong Deidara is, can he really be a match for a perfect Nine-Tails Jinchuriki?"
Moreover, Naruto is not only Perfect Jinchuriki, but he has also mastered Senjutsu.
Ōnoki showed little interest in the battle.
He didn't think Deidara would be a match for Naruto.
Naruto may not be good at the game, but his stats are so high that they make up for all his other shortcomings.
Based on Ōnoki's experience, the only way to defeat Naruto is to strike quickly and swiftly when he is off guard.
Unfortunately, Deidara couldn't use this method.
Firstly, this is a competition, not a life-or-death struggle.
Secondly, both Deidara and Naruto came to prove their own Ninjutsu, not simply to defeat each other.
Thirdly, given Deidara's personality, it would be difficult for him to ruthlessly and swiftly defeat his opponent.
Therefore, in Ōnoki's eyes, no matter what, Deidara would inevitably be defeated in the end.
At most, they'll both stop halfway through, resulting in a pseudo-draw.
However, Ōnoki overlooked one thing.
For an "artist," inspiration is the most important thing.
Without inspiration, life might just stay like this forever.
Once an idea strikes, achievements can skyrocket.
That's how scorpions are.
Deidara is the same way now.
"Sorry, Naruto Uzumaki, I beat you to it!"
Deidara was the first to make a move.
Naruto, standing opposite him, narrowed his eyes and noticed that Deidara had some new facial markings.
"This is... Sage Mode?!"
Naruto was somewhat surprised.
When did the other party obtain this information?
However, Naruto didn't delve into it further. After all, his mission for this trip was to promote Sage Mode to the entire Shinobi World, and it was a good thing that the other side could learn it.
What intrigued Naruto was, exactly when did the opponent begin preparing for Sage Mode?
Why did it jump right in from the start?
Naruto glanced at Deidara's attire: a loose Akatsuki robe with one sleeve fluttering in the wind.
So that's how it is.
Deidara's hand was inside his clothes the whole time!
Furthermore, Deidara has mouths on his hands, which means Deidara doesn't even need to prepare ninja tools like others.
"Wow, that's really impressive."
Naruto raised his hand Hand Seals, starting with the classic Multiple Shadow Clone Technique.
Faced with Deidara's Sage Mode, Naruto prepared to activate Sage Mode in response.
However.
Just as Naruto created numerous Shadow Clone Jutsu, preparing to take off, Deidara revealed a triumphant smile, pressing one hand to the ground while forming a hand Hand Seals with the other. "Katsu!"
Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!
All of Naruto's Shadow Clone Jutsu were destroyed in a single explosion.
Even Naruto's physical body was attacked.
Fortunately, Naruto managed to don the Nine-Tails Chakra cloak in time, blocking the attack.
What's going on?
After Naruto enters Nine-Tails Chakra Mode, his sensory abilities are no less than those in Sage Mode.
Before entering Sage Mode, Naruto initially thought that Deidara had secretly planted a large number of bombs and ambushed him.
Upon closer inspection, it turns out there's nothing there at all.
Has it all been bombed?
No, that's not the case.
As he was thinking about this, several more explosions occurred.
Soon, Naruto realized the truth.
The other party actually detonated the Natural Energy that he had gathered before activating Sage Mode and hadn't yet absorbed!
"Well, Naruto Uzumaki, are you amazed by my art?"
Deidara was somewhat smug.
Frustrated, he resorted to a shady method to cultivate Sage Mode. When sensing Natural Energy, he discovered that when the Natural Energy of Sage Mode gathered, it would briefly gather along with some gas.
Once it accumulates to a certain concentration, that unclaimed Natural Energy will become flammable and explosive.
At this point, he can use his Chakra, either directly or indirectly, to detonate it.
However, Deidara almost ruined this hairstyle before.
Previously, when Kurotsuchi was demonstrating her exclusive "Sage Mode" to Ōnoki, Deidara was observing from the shadows. He discovered that when Kurotsuchi entered, only pure Natural Energy was present, without any accompanying gases.
Fortunately, Deidara has already experimented with Naruto, so it's still feasible.
The detonation conditions are: high concentration of Natural Energy + gas + contact with Deidara's Chakra.
None of them can be missing.
If Naruto enters Sage Mode quickly enough to convert Natural Energy into Senjutsu Chakra or into controllable Natural Energy, the explosion will fail.
Of course, Naruto isn't Minato Namikaze, so he can't draw these conclusions based on a brief exchange.
Naruto is currently completely baffled, except for discovering that Deidara can detonate Natural Energy.
Kakashi noticed that Naruto was not in a good state and began preparations in advance, just in case.
Deidara launched another attack, throwing out a large amount of white Explosive Clay, but Naruto remained in Nine-Tails Chakra Mode, standing still like a light bulb.
Who exactly is Kakashi (the scarecrow)?
Kakashi mentally scoffed, first using Kamui to tear open a gap in the Explosive Clay, then wielding Purple Lightning and rushing towards Naruto.
"That's enough, you can stop now!"
Kakashi wielded his Purple Lightning, the agile Purple Lightning covering the entire Explosive Clay.
Lightning Release is effective against Earth Release.
In the past, Purple Lightning was more effective than Chidori Stream in countering Deidara. The versatile Purple Lightning could easily turn any Explosive Clay into a dud.
But things are different now.
"Good timing! I've been waiting for Lightning Release! Hmm!"
Deidara became even more excited when he saw Kakashi use Purple Lightning.