Chapter 84: This is Art

Kakashi pondered for a moment, then shook his head and said, "Hard to say, but at that time, I was mostly dealing with enemies. We didn't inquire about the intelligence team's affairs." Takemi couldn't help but remind them quietly, "Kakashi-sensei, Jiraiya-sama, instead of discussing that, let's think about who lives in that godforsaken place." "That mysterious organization ran to such a place, so they must have some purpose or target, therefore..." "I think I know about this." Jiraiya chuckled, pulling out a scroll and raising his eyebrows at the two. "Did you really think I went out to play? I specifically disguised myself as a merchant to gather intelligence around the Land of Earth and learned something very interesting." "Speaking of which, I also looked into it." Kakashi shrugged, looking at Takemi's eyes, he smiled and said, "Don't look at me like that, isn't this basic Ninja operation?" "I heard from nearby merchants that recently, explosion sounds can often be heard in this vicinity." "They originally thought something had happened, but in the end, nothing came of it..." "Inside Iwagakure, there's a guy who often conducts terrifying experiments and has angered everyone." Jiraiya glanced at Kakashi, smiling as he continued the conversation. "And he also participated in many terrifying missions, so he was finally sent to live alone outside the village." "This guy's characteristic is that he loves to create explosions, and he also seems to have a special identity." Kakashi nodded gravely, evidently puzzled by the mysterious organization's actions. "Hmm, it's said that guy seems to be the Third Tsuchikage's disciple, Deidara." Not just him, Jiraiya was also puzzled. Didn't Danzo's information say that Iwagakure was their client? Could it be that the Akatsuki came here, and their target is him? Only Takemi rolled his eyes, turns out he wasn't the only one who snuck off. "Alright, since we have a general idea, let's speed things up." Jiraiya clapped his hands, then looked at Takemi and whispered, "Takemi, are the Flying Thunder God Marks you left alright?" "Don't worry, I checked them thoroughly at noon, and they're all fine." Takemi nodded, but this sentence made Kakashi's eyes widen. "Noon? Weren't you reading... Wait, you ran off when I went to the restroom too?" "Kakashi-sensei, you already said 'too,' why are you still asking?" "But you..." "Isn't this basic Ninja operation? Right, Kakashi-sensei?" "..." Kakashi truly hadn't expected the boomerang to hit so fast. He could only lament the deficiencies in Konoha's education. Perhaps, he really should go back and suggest a 'heavy-handed' approach to the current Konoha education. As Takemi and the two accelerated their advance, inside that temple. "Feel the art, hah!" Deidara threw a series of clay spiders, and seeing Itachi leap back, he shouted loudly. Boom— Accompanied by the roar and the explosion of the clay bombs, the temple wall was blown open. But Itachi seemed to have moved very fast and was not hit by the explosion. However, as soon as he landed, a clay centipede instantly burst out of the ground, entangling Itachi. "Tch." Seeing this, Deidara couldn't help but laugh. "You talk so big, but is this all you've got?" As he spoke, he held up one hand, ready to channel Chakra. "Then let's end this!" Itachi's crimson Sharingan stared at Deidara, and he couldn't help but whisper a reminder. "You should take a good look at yourself right now." "Hm?" Deidara was somewhat puzzled, but he instantly felt something was wrong. After his mind became hazy, he immediately cleared up. "What... what?" At that moment, he noticed that the clay centipede, which should have been wrapped around Itachi, was actually bound to himself. If he had detonated the bomb just now, then... "How dangerous, almost self-destructing." Kisame, who had been watching from the side, couldn't help but mock him, and even Sasori, who usually didn't talk much, shook his head. "Indeed, this guy looks like he's going to die young." "Genjutsu? When..." Deidara was still in shock. He couldn't believe he hadn't reacted at all, while Kakuzu still had a teasing look. "From the very beginning, when you saw Itachi's Sharingan, you were already in a Genjutsu." "Genjutsu..." Deidara turned his head, and at that moment, a ray of sunlight poured in through the hole he had blown open, falling directly onto Itachi. The golden light, combined with the crimson Sharingan, made Deidara lose himself for a moment. He felt as if he had seen the very thing he had been yearning for! "So beautiful..." He couldn't help but murmur in his heart. "This, is this art..." Whoosh— But before he could fully grasp it, a kunai made a whistling sound as it cut through the air, heading precisely towards Itachi. "Hm?" Itachi had thought the battle was over, but at that instant, he slightly raised an eyebrow. He immediately turned his head, just about to dodge, but under the sunlight, he suddenly saw a mark on the kunai. "That is..." At that moment, he immediately understood what was happening. Almost instantly, his eyes transformed into Mangekyo Sharingan, and a red Chakra surged. And at this very moment, a figure had quietly appeared, and the short blade, imbued with purple electricity, had already been swung. Boom— A violent roar suddenly erupted, purple electricity flashed wildly, and a crack appeared on the temple floor. Accompanied by the roar of Chakra, the Buddha statue next to the wall was cut in half by a single strike. "What's going on?" Deidara's mind was full of questions. The golden sunlight was replaced by smoke and dust, and Itachi, who had been looking down at him from above, was now awkwardly rolling to the side. That scene, which was like 'art' and was about to be deeply ingrained in his mind, seemed to be shattered at this moment. He held his hands in front of him to prevent fragments from the explosion from hitting him, and at the same time, he tried to widen his eyes to find the figure from earlier. "This is art!" Recalling that fleeting glimpse, the instant burst of the attack, and the subsequent explosion, this seemed to be what he was pursuing, right? "But where did the person go?" Deidara was somewhat confused, he looked around but saw no one. However, Kisame, who had been happily watching the battle, suddenly looked grim. "Trouble..." He had seen this move before, it was used to cut Obito. If that blade had struck him, how could he be speaking now? "What was that just now?" Sasori's voice was still low, showing no change in emotion, but Kakuzu's earlier words resurfaced in his mind. Itachi, panting, came to their side. All three maintained a combat stance, staring outside the temple. As the smoke slowly dissipated, three white-haired figures slowly walked in. "Kakashi , Jiraiya, and that..." Seeing these three white-haired figures, Itachi and Kisame's expressions grew even more solemn. "It really is you, Konoha White Fang!" But at this moment, Sasori, who had been quiet, suddenly erupted. Hiruko, under his control, instantly transformed into an offensive state. "Hm?" Takemi had just returned to Jiraiya and Kakashi through Flying Thunder God, following the two who lamented Obito's absence and regretfully missed Orochimaru. He was stunned by the sound. Just as he was about to turn to say something to Kakashi, he suddenly saw countless senbon, shimmering with an eerie green glow, rushing towards them. These senbon emitted a dazzling, eerie green light in the twilight sun, clearly indicating they were poisoned. Earth Release: Earth Style Wall! Jiraiya and Kakashi instantly formed hand signs, and two earth walls immediately rose from the ground, blocking their path. In a blink of an eye, the two earth walls had become like porcupines. But the next instant, a sharp, bladed tail suddenly pierced the earth wall. It easily shattered the hard earth wall, and then headed straight for Takemi behind the wall. At this moment, Takemi suddenly realized something. He glanced at the short blade in his hand, then at his white hair. "Is he mistaking me for Konoha's White Fang?!"