Chapter 68: The Final Duel
"Not good!"
Deidara was shocked when he saw this. He finally felt the fear Uchiha Naoki inspired. Originally, he had planned to use his flight advantage to delay Uchiha Naoki and drain his stamina. Unexpectedly, Uchiha Naoki's perception ability was so terrifying that he reversed the situation in the blink of an eye.
Although he had long heard that Uchiha Naoki's perception ability was extremely fearsome, even capable of predicting enemy movements, only when facing it firsthand did one understand what a heaven-defying ability it was. Facing the slapping lava arms that twisted and heated the very air, Deidara naturally didn't dare to confront them head-on. He felt as if his body would melt and immediately formed hand seals. "Clay Clone—!"
But!
Before he could finish the seals, Uchiha Naoki suddenly opened his eyes and stared. "Illusion: Golden Bind Technique!"
Deidara already sensed something was wrong the moment he saw Uchiha Naoki's three tomoe. He had actually overlooked such an important fact—Uchiha Naoki was also a Sharingan user, and a high-level three-tomoe one at that. His body froze for a moment, his limbs immobile. Even if he wanted to create a bomb and use the blast to force himself back, putting distance between them, he couldn't execute it.
And Uchiha Naoki had closed in. His palm was instantly sheathed in a layer of pitch-black material, his power condensed to a horrifying degree. "Sorry, Deidara. Don't blame me for being too ruthless!"
BOOM!
Deidara only felt darkness sweep over his vision, his consciousness blurring after the severe pain in his neck.
The Scarlet Sand Scorpion on the ground witnessed this scene, his expression turning exceptionally grave. In the blink of an eye, Uchiha Itachi and Deidara had lost their combat abilities. He was the only one left. What terrifying strength.
Whoosh!
Using iron sand to form a net, he caught Deidara, who had been thrown by Uchiha Naoki. Sasori looked at Uchiha Naoki, who had also landed, and said with utmost seriousness, "It seems I'll die if I don't give it my all!"
Uchiha Naoki smiled upon hearing this. "I'm also quite curious about Brother Sasori's current strength!" After speaking, his eyes suddenly sharpened. "Magma Style: Crimson Canine Lotus!"
Two slender lava heads suddenly surged from the ground beneath his feet, carrying scorching waves capable of destroying everything, already reaching before the Scarlet Sand Scorpion.
"Has it... already reached this level?!" The Scarlet Sand Scorpion's pupils contracted, a chill shooting straight to his soul. This was completely different from Uchiha Naoki's strength when they first met. To make someone of his level feel troubled was truly terrifying.
"But the me now is not the me of the past!" The Third Kazekage puppet erupted with an astonishing aura. A torrent of iron sand suddenly burst from the Scarlet Sand Scorpion's feet, pushing him high into the air to evade the blow. Then, the iron sand wave immediately transformed into several large hands grabbing at Uchiha Naoki. "Iron Sand Chaotic Hand Burial!"
This was a move he could only use after observing Uchiha Naoki's fighting style and combining it with the modified Third Kazekage puppet. Without the high-quality chakra metal conduction system donated by Uchiha Naoki, the Third Kazekage puppet wouldn't have been able to manipulate such vast amounts of iron sand or execute such concise, flexible maneuvers.
"It's definitely different from before!" This iron sand long hand was extremely fast; even a Kage-level ninja might not fully react and dodge perfectly. And it was highly condensed, its aura heavy and containing terrifying power.
"Out!" Uchiha Naoki willed it, and several lava hands immediately surged from the lava ground beneath him to counter.
BOOM!
The entire forest echoed with loud noises; an astonishingly hot wind roared forth, splitting the surrounding trees. As the two continued their violent collisions, they repeatedly shattered the earth. In terms of pure strength, this wouldn't lose to a Tailed Beast. The Scarlet Sand Scorpion's strength had indeed improved significantly since his battle with the Fourth Mizukage.
But suddenly, the Scarlet Sand Scorpion's expression changed uncontrollably. The simultaneous sounds of crack and sizzle reached his ears. His condensed iron sand hands quickly glowed red during the collision, then cracked, and finally even showed signs of melting.
Witnessing this, the Scarlet Sand Scorpion was utterly astonished. "Has the power been condensed to such a terrifying level?" The large hand condensed by the Third Kazekage was harder than steel, capable of splitting mountains without much damage, yet it cracked in this collision? Uchiha Naoki's destructive power had truly reached an extremely fearsome level. It felt as if even a Tailed Beast couldn't withstand such a terrifying attack.
"Brother Sasori, don't get distracted!" Uchiha Naoki's voice sounded, full of leisure.
Whoosh!
The 'Crimson Canine Lotus' attack the Scarlet Sand Scorpion had just dodged turned in mid-air and charged toward him high above once more.
"What? It can turn around?!" The Scarlet Sand Scorpion was shocked again. Such violent power could be manipulated so flexibly? What level of exquisite chakra control did that require? "Naoki, has your ability control reached this level now?"
But in the blink of an eye, the scorching canine head was upon him, its suppressed power bringing despair. "But I won't admit defeat so easily! Iron Sand Wings!"
The Scarlet Sand Scorpion's mind raced. The Third Kazekage condensed iron sand into a pair of massive flying wings to shield his front.
BOOM!
Even though the Scarlet Sand Scorpion was merely a manipulator, with considerable distance from the Third Kazekage, under this terrifying collision, he actually felt his qi and blood tremble.
Crack!
Unsurprisingly, the Iron Sand Wings couldn't withstand Uchiha Naoki's attack and cracked again.
"This kind of power... Is this guy Naoki the reincarnation of a Tailed Beast?" This overwhelming, terrifying power was truly despair-inducing.
"Hah!!" The Scarlet Sand Scorpion roared violently, erupting with even more terrifying chakra. Immediately, a monstrous wave of iron sand erupted. "Iron Sand Frenzied Assault!"
The iron sand, like monstrous waves, blotted out the sky and sun, emitting a unique odor. But Uchiha Naoki knew it was the scent of poison.
"Too Slow!" But Uchiha Naoki didn't need to retreat at all. The giant fist, large enough to cover the sky and sun, blasted through the air, whistling out with hurricane-level scorching winds and waves.
"Twist!" The Scarlet Sand Scorpion controlled the Third Kazekage to resist the scorching canine head while simultaneously dealing with this terrifying giant punch. Naturally, he found it unimaginably difficult. But the monstrous iron sand still obeyed his control, tightly wrapping around the entire giant lava fist like bandages.
Sizzle! Sizzle! Sizzle!
Immediately, a purple poisonous mist visible to the naked eye evaporated. Driven by the hot wind, it enveloped Uchiha Naoki.
"Using the poisonous iron sand under the intense roasting of the lava to erupt into the most active poisonous mist for attack? It's really hard to guard against!" Uchiha Naoki couldn't help but marvel inwardly. Hot steam immediately spewed from his body, blowing away the poisonous mist. But before he could counterattack, the Scarlet Sand Scorpion's assault came again. "Iron Sand Gathering: Storm!"