Screech!
The threads drew tight, but what Yubi's Death Waltz strangled... was only an afterimage.
Although Yubi could not see his enemy's movements or trajectory, he instinctively used his technique the instant the man vanished.
If it wasn't long-range Ninjutsu... then it had to be a close-range Taijutsu killing move.
The threads conveyed no sensation of touching anything solid... and a sharp bang rang beside Yubi's ear.
Then came the scattered fragments of a puppet.
"Watch out!"
Yubi immediately realized that, while dodging the threads, his opponent had seized the chance to attack Sasori beside him.
He shouted a warning.
He controlled his flying blades, shooting them toward the source of the sound.
With such an enormous gap in strength, counterattacking in that fleeting instant might have to depend more... on instinct.
Because in terms of attention to detail and actual combat experience, he and Sasori were undoubtedly on an entirely different level from this Konoha Jonin.
"Yubi..."
His eyes could not keep up.
He had only just struck, his words not yet finished, when he instead heard Sasori call out in a somewhat trembling voice.
One of his fingers suddenly slackened.
A thread snapped...
The enemy's weapon... can channel Chakra. It's a special ninja tool, just like Asuma's Chakra Blades... Yubi arched his back like a startled feline, preparing to leap away.
He sensed a flicker of emotion and mortal danger in Sasori's voice...
As his body turned, he caught sight of Chakra Threads shooting from Sasori's fingertips toward him, as though to pull him away from his current position.
But he was still a beat too late.
"Good combat instincts and reflexes... unfortunately, you're still just a brat."
The Konoha Jonin's sneer sounded behind him once again.
Before Sasori's eyes, Yubi had barely lifted his feet from the ground and leaped into the air when the enemy pressed in against his back...
In midair, Yubi's body abruptly shuddered at the Konoha Jonin's thrust, then he was sent flying like a punching bag.
He traced a straight arc through the air and crashed down in the distance.
A great spray of glaring blood fell with him...
Yubi's mind went blank. His body felt weightless as he lay on the ground, eyes wide.
His consciousness drifted somewhat.
There was a horrifying wound in his back, where a sharp weapon had stabbed deep...
Judging by the injury, it was fatal!
Too fast. So fast I couldn't even use my Ninjutsu... or react in time. His changes in combat are difficult to read, and his assessments of Sasori's and my movements and thinking are all accurate. First he dodged my threads, then attacked Sasori's puppet, pretending to change targets... but in reality, I was always the one he intended to kill first. He was only distracting me...
A sweet, bloody taste rose in Yubi's throat, and after being stabbed, his body seemed to have lost its strength.
He could sense his vitality draining away, little by little...
From where he had fallen, in the direction his head faced... his unfocused eyes happened to catch the Konoha Jonin closing in on Sasori.
After dealing with him in a single move, the enemy turned toward Sasori without the slightest hesitation.
His movements were clean and decisive.
He practically killed me instantly... so strong...
It seems simply learning some Medical Ninjutsu and broadening my combat options isn't the key... no matter how many cards I hold, they're meaningless if I don't know how to use them.
The enemy's speed didn't even leave me time to use the Medical Ninjutsu, Yin Healing Wound Destruction, and mobilize my Chakra beforehand. I couldn't predict where his attack would land either... even with a skill that can heal my body, I'm helpless against an opponent like this.
In the end... I'm still too weak...
Scattered thoughts flickered through Yubi's mind.
His senses were fading. He could no longer see or hear anything of Sasori's battle with the Konoha Jonin.
I must look pretty pathetic right now...
Sasori... you have to survive.
Yubi thought those words before his consciousness sank into darkness.
Bang!
Another puppet burst apart.
Elsewhere, Sasori was controlling several puppets, surrounding and attacking the Konoha Jonin charging toward him.
It was clear that this Jonin specialized in Taijutsu.
Against his overwhelming physical strength, the puppets Sasori had made were as fragile as paper figures.
The mechanisms and hidden weapons built into the puppets... were easily evaded as well.
Most importantly, this man seemed to have extensive experience fighting puppeteers and knew their weaknesses... he kept trying to close the distance.
Even his "core puppet," Crow... had been destroyed.
He had only lasted this long because of the number of puppets stockpiled in his scrolls.
And... by avoiding direct clashes, constantly moving at high speed to keep his opponent from closing in with the Body Flicker Technique again, while always maintaining enough distance and using the variety of his puppet mechanisms to interfere.
As Sasori constantly dodged, he left behind one "emptied," discarded scroll after another.
His stockpile was shrinking at a frantic rate, yet the only pressure he could put on his opponent was to waste a little of his time.
This red-haired brat is different from the other one... the dead brat had great physical strength and clearly specialized in Taijutsu. When I tried to kill him with my first attack, his limbs had already begun moving the instant my Kunai touched his skin... and although my follow-up struck a vital spot, I felt clear resistance as the Kunai entered his body. He was consciously contracting his muscles to reduce the damage... that isn't something an ordinary ninja can do, much less a mere child.
This red-haired boy... has terrifying talent as a puppeteer. Even though I've fought Sunagakure many times, I've never seen a ninja on the battlefield who could control so many puppets at once, especially at this distance. His attacks and attempts to restrain me are not only precise, but extremely flexible... and his use of Chakra Threads differs from other puppeteers'. They seem to have other effects as well.
To think Sunagakure had youngsters like these... no wonder this Arai personally led the team.
If someone like this is allowed to mature fully... he'll become a tremendous threat to our Konoha!
Otani darted aside to evade a volley of Senbon, then formed hand seals and used the Clone Technique after landing.
Even a simple Clone Technique produced different results in his hands.
His clone had real "substance"... it would not be so easy to destroy.
Otani intended to have his clone block the puppets' attacks while his real body charged straight ahead at full speed to attack the red-haired brat himself.
Just like when he killed the previous brat, he would finish him with one blow.
And end this farce.
Crack!
A puppet swooping overhead was shattered by the clone's midair kick.
The powerful Taijutsu whipped up a fierce gust.
Otani spun the Chakra-infused Kunai in his hand. Looking at the discarded scrolls on the ground, then at the red-haired brat who was already growing exhausted, he said, "Give up... you and that brat are both destined to die here!"
He pointed toward where Yubi lay and spoke coldly.
Sasori ignored him, reaching behind his waist and taking his "trump card" from his pouch.
Apart from Crow, these were...
The "puppets" he was currently most satisfied with, and which held the most special meaning.
His... very first creation!
It was also the last scroll he had left now.
Bang!
As a puff of white smoke rose, two humanoid puppets draped in red robes floated behind Sasori, one on either side.
A man and a woman... shielding Sasori between them.
"Father and Mother."
A family of three.
"..."
Otani narrowed his eyes slightly.
Seasoned as he was, he could tell that the workmanship, quality, and danger emanating from these two puppets... were nothing like those broken toys from before.
These were true "human puppets."
That startled Otani somewhat.
He had never seen... puppets so humanlike, as though made from living people.
Sasori's gaze was cold... without the slightest wavering.
Even with Father and Mother, he knew his chances of winning one-on-one were slim.
After all, exhausting every scroll and puppet while remaining on full alert had only bought him two or three minutes.
"Hah!"
Looking at the red-haired brat's serious gaze, Otani snorted coldly.
Just as he was about to coordinate with his clone and launch his attack...
A sudden noise came from nearby, drawing his attention and changing Sasori's expression as well.
The boy who had been lying in a pool of blood on the grass, who should have died long ago, had eerily returned to life... and swayed as he stood up.
"Hm?"
The sight made the Konoha Jonin's pupils contract sharply, disbelief in his eyes.
"That refreshing blue sky... I really... can't bear to part with such a beautiful sight..."
"And... this fresh air..."
The boy spread his hands and closed his eyes in intoxication, as though embracing the world.
There was not a trace of lingering fear or shock from having just "died once." Instead, he was filled with an ill-timed ease, utterly out of place on the battlefield before him.
"It feels... so good to be alive."
The corners of Yubi's mouth lifted as he sighed.
"I'm so sorry... it seems I've disappointed you."
Yubi raised a hand and slicked back his hair, which had stiffened after being soaked in blood.
Beneath his raised arm, half his bloodstained face showed, wearing a faint smile.
One icy eye looked toward the Konoha Jonin's shocked face.
"That expression of yours... how interesting."
"Come on... let's continue our unfinished fight to the death... and enjoy... putting on a show together!"
Yubi spoke gently.
To Sasori, his voice sounded somewhat wrong.
Because the Yubi before him did not seem like "the person" he knew.
"Hurry up and start... what are you waiting for?!"
Yubi lowered his arm naturally and urged him on with a smile.
"..."
Otani quickly calmed down.
After steadying himself, he dashed toward Yubi, who had risen to his feet again.
An astonishing killing intent erupted from him as well.
"Ha ha ha!"
Sasori moved too.
But what reached his ears was Yubi's somewhat excited, frenzied laughter.