Sasori of the Red Sand, controlling the Third Kazekage puppet, no longer wore the expression of absolute confidence he had moments ago.
Shock was written plainly across his face.
He watched with his own eyes as the immensely powerful Magnet Release sand-iron cylinder and triangular spike he controlled were effortlessly knocked away by the suddenly appearing Uchiha Yujin.
That originally cold and unwavering gaze instantly flashed with disbelief.
Rain slid down from beneath his hood, dripping into the muddy ground at his feet and splashing into tiny droplets.
Yet he seemed completely unaware of it, staring fixedly at Uchiha Yujin as if trying to see straight through him.
After a long while, he finally squeezed out a few words through clenched teeth.
"This is impossible…"
In his understanding, sand iron controlled through Magnet Release possessed hardness and impact force sufficient to crush nearly any defense.
Let alone being knocked away so directly.
His gaze slowly shifted upward, sweeping over Uchiha Yujin's fist and left leg, both coated in Armament Haki and gleaming with a black luster.
Confusion and probing filled his eyes.
"How can a human body reach this level of strength…"
Sasori muttered to himself, his voice carrying a faint, uncontrollable tremor.
It was clear that his inner world had been violently shaken.
"Such monstrous power!"
He suddenly raised his voice, almost hysterical, as the shock in his eyes was gradually replaced by fervent excitement.
It was the look he only ever revealed as an artist when beholding a peerless masterpiece.
Moments later, Sasori threw his head back and burst into laughter.
The laughter echoed through the curtain of rain, tinged with darkness and madness.
After laughing, he raised a hand and pointed at Uchiha Yujin.
In that distinctive, bewitching voice of his, he spoke.
"Your body is the most perfect creation God has ever gifted me."
"I have never seen a body more suitable to be turned into art!"
As he spoke, he manipulated the Third Kazekage puppet to step forward.
Its mechanical joints let out creaking sounds, as if declaring ownership over Uchiha Yujin.
Or as if it could no longer wait to claim this "perfect body" for itself.
At this moment, Uchiha Yujin, who had opened the second stage of the Gene Lock and possessed absurdly high combat intelligence, calmly evaluated his current fighting strength.
If Shippuden-era Sakura were used as a reference, her so-called monstrous strength was only around the level of an ordinary second-stage Gene Lock.
But Uchiha Yujin possessed the second stage of the Curse Mark of Heaven.
On top of that, even without using a kagune, he still had the enhancement of Ghoul bloodline power.
Add Armament Haki on top of it all, and his fists were far sturdier than Sakura's.
Back then, Chiyo used chakra threads to control Sakura and help her evade attacks.
With Observation Haki and the Three-Tomoe Sharingan, Uchiha Yujin was actually even stronger than Chiyo in this regard.
Taking everything into account, he alone could match Shippuden Sakura who had Chiyo's support.
But the problem was this.
He was not Sasori's grandmother.
This guy would absolutely not hold back.
In the original Chiyo and Sakura versus Sasori battle.
Even at the very end, Sasori had only used three scrolls from his back.
As for the remaining one, Uchiha Yujin did not believe for a second that it was some joke "art photo of Deidara" or a puppet maintenance manual.
This guy probably still has something even bigger hidden up his sleeve.
Thinking that way, Uchiha Yujin's desire to retreat far outweighed his desire to keep fighting.
After all, steady growth was the real foundation.
Risking everything in a life-or-death battle brought no real benefit.
He glanced at Kakashi.
"Can you still run?"
Kakashi frowned deeply.
"I can feel my upper body already going numb."
"It might spread to my entire body soon."
"This is bad," Uchiha Yujin muttered.
"You know I can't fly anymore."
Earlier, for the sake of long-term development, Uchiha Yujin had torn off his wing and given it to Orochimaru.
Now, even regret was pointless.
Kakashi clenched his teeth and nodded.
"You go first."
"I can hold them off a little longer."
"If we wait, neither of us will get away."
"We've already survived life and death together more than once," Uchiha Yujin shouted back.
"Why are you saying this useless crap now?"
"Get lost."
"Stop hesitating."
"Run as far as you can."
"Don't become my burden."
Kakashi's brows tightened, unwillingness flickering in his eyes.
He tried to force his injured arm into a fist.
But the moment his fingers barely curled, searing pain spread like an electric current through his entire body.
His arm trembled uncontrollably.
What should have been a simple motion had become an impossible luxury.
He sighed inwardly.
In his current condition, continuing to fight would only drag Uchiha Yujin down.
With no other choice, he accepted his student's clear-headed judgment.
Kakashi took a deep breath and quickly formed hand seals.
White smoke burst forth.
The familiar figure of the ninja dog Pakkun appeared first.
Immediately after, two imposing golden retrievers emerged as well.
However, at the very moment Kakashi was about to move, the Magnet Release sand-iron cylinder and triangular spike that Uchiha Yujin had knocked away earlier shot back like ravenous wolves.
A loud crash followed.
The cylinder flew to Sasori's feet, nearly knocking him over.
With another heavy impact, the triangular spike was punched off course and flew diagonally away.
It slammed into the mud with a metallic clang.
Uchiha Yujin straightened his posture.
His gaze locked onto Sasori, who was controlling the Third Kazekage puppet.
"Your opponent is me."
Sasori's eyes, which had dimmed slightly from shock, instantly ignited with manic excitement.
The light burned like a freshly lit bonfire.
Through the hollow eye sockets of the Third Kazekage puppet, he stared straight at Uchiha Yujin.
Joy surged wildly in his heart.
This body was practically a masterpiece tailor-made by the heavens for him.
He desperately needed a puppet with such overwhelming physical strength.
It would serve as the main shield for his most exquisite Performance of a Hundred Puppets.
Wasn't this like being handed a pillow right when he was falling asleep?
Under Uchiha Yujin's cover, Kakashi seized the brief opening.
He collapsed sideways onto the broad, warm backs of the two golden retrievers.
"Go," Kakashi ordered in a low voice, using every ounce of strength he had left.
The dogs immediately responded.
They kicked off the ground and sprinted away from the battlefield with powerful strides.
In the blink of an eye, Kakashi vanished into the curtain of rain.
Sasori no longer rushed to attack.
Speaking in the voice of a fifteen-year-old, he coldly commented, "False ninja bonds."
"As a shinobi, emotions are the least necessary thing."
"You defy this truth."
"In the end, you will die for your so-called righteousness."
Uchiha Yujin had never lost a verbal exchange in his life.
His eyes remained fixed on Sasori of the Red Sand, as if he had already seen through everything.
"You really don't have emotions," he said calmly.
"You turned yourself into a puppet, locking away your heart and feelings."
"But in doing so, you also proved one thing."
"What?" Sasori asked, confused.
Uchiha Yujin's tone abruptly shifted.
"You proved that kids without parents really are more likely to end up mentally twisted."
Only then did Sasori realize he had been played.
His voice exploded with fury.
"You're courting death!"
Sasori of the Red Sand's eyes gleamed with madness as his hands moved at extreme speed, forming seals one after another.
In an instant, the sand and soil around them were pulled by an invisible, overwhelming force.
A massive Magnet Release sand–iron rectangular block appeared in midair under his control.
At the same time, the Magnet Release sand–iron triangular pyramid and cylindrical pillar that had been knocked away earlier by Uchiha Yujin suddenly curved through the air along strange trajectories.
As if guided by invisible hands, they precisely adjusted their attack angles and surged toward Uchiha Yujin together with the newly formed rectangular block.
Front.
Back.
Above.
The three shapes attacked from completely different yet perfectly coordinated directions, forming an airtight net of death that sealed off all of Uchiha Yujin's paths of escape.
At the very instant the fatal combined attack was about to touch his body, Uchiha Yujin's figure flickered like a ghost.
He twisted his body and narrowly avoided the crushing descent of the rectangular block by mere millimeters.
At the same time, he raised his right fist high, filled with rage and unyielding will, and slammed it viciously toward the incoming cylindrical pillar.
The moment his fist landed, the air seemed to explode.
A dull, thunderous boom echoed as the cylinder was once again blasted away by pure brute force.
However, danger followed closely behind.
Seizing the opening created when Uchiha Yujin threw his punch, the triangular pyramid shot forward like lightning.
Uchiha Yujin's eyes sharpened, and with the same motion, he smashed the pyramid away as well.
Before he could even catch his breath, the two sand–iron shapes that had been sent flying suddenly changed their trajectories under Magnet Release control.
They turned back and charged at him once more.
For a moment, Uchiha Yujin was forced into an extremely passive position, with no chance to form extra hand seals to cast ninjutsu.
Clenching his teeth, he could only rely on his terrifying physical strength and his domineering Armament Haki.
Again and again, he swung his fists, using the most direct and blood-pumping method of close combat to resist the endlessly repeating Magnet Release assaults.
And this was only Sasori's second stage.
****
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