Chapter 228: Karura, Is That It?
"Water Release: Great Waterfall Jutsu!"
Suigetsu Hozuki shouted as he swung his Zanpakutō.
In an instant, an endless torrent of water surged from the blade, completely engulfing the incoming clay centipede. Even the clay spiders sneaking along the ground were swept away.
Deidara froze for a moment at the sight, then quickly leaped into the air, molding a giant clay bird. The massive bird spread its wings and soared upward, carrying Deidara into the sky.
Looking down at Suigetsu below, Deidara felt things were getting slightly tricky.
But it wasn't a big deal. He was in the air, and Suigetsu was stuck on the ground. If Suigetsu had no means of attacking upward, then he'd stay on the defensive, endlessly chased and bombarded.
Or so Deidara thought—until Suigetsu made his move.
With a sharp swing of his Zanpakutō, crescent-shaped slashes shot through the air, heading straight for Deidara.
Deidara's pupils shrank in shock. What the—? He can do that too?
Frantically, he maneuvered his clay bird to dodge the slashes.
This guy's got way too many tricks up his sleeve!
As Deidara cursed his luck, a cold blade suddenly pressed against his neck.
It was Suigetsu!
At some point, he had appeared right behind Deidara—dozens of meters up in the air!
"You... how did you get up here?!" Deidara asked in disbelief.
Suigetsu chuckled. "Obviously, it's our unique jutsu—Shunpo. It lets us momentarily walk on air. Getting onto your bird? Piece of cake."
Deidara's eyes widened as he glanced downward. Sure enough, the Suigetsu on the ground was no longer attacking.
A clone!
The one threatening him now was the real Suigetsu.
"Heh... You shouldn't have come this close."
Deidara broke into a maniacal grin. He pulled out some clay and stuffed it into his mouth, chewing vigorously.
His body began to swell, expanding rapidly.
Time to use my ultimate trump card.
This was a move Deidara had perfected as his ace in the hole—originally meant for his showdown with Itachi Uchiha. But desperate times called for desperate measures.
"Behold my masterpiece! A jutsu I designed specifically to kill Itachi!"
"C4: Karura!"
From below the clay bird, another Deidara suddenly plummeted toward the ground.
He glanced up at the massive clay bird and the gigantic version of himself still floating in the air, then smiled as he formed hand seals mid-fall.
The Suigetsu he threatened was never the real one—just a clay clone.
I had the clone swallow the clay and transform into Karura. Perfect execution!
As Deidara completed the hand seals, the Karura exploded—yet, oddly, nothing seemed to happen.
For a moment.
Then, in an instant, the clay bird and Suigetsu—along with everything nearby—disintegrated into nothingness.
"HAHAHAHA! Gotcha!"
Deidara howled with glee.
C4: Karura was his deadliest technique—releasing countless microscopic bombs that invaded the opponent's body before detonating from within.
Even Uchiha Madara wouldn't survive this.
Deidara laughed triumphantly.
But then—
Suigetsu reappeared.
Completely unharmed.
"You... How?!"
"The one who used Shunpo to reach you? Another clone. I was down below the whole time," Suigetsu replied with a smirk.
"Impossible! Even if you were below, Karura should've obliterated you! Why are you still standing?!"
Deidara was losing it.
Was this guy never in range? Or is there something else?
"Oh, you mean that Karura thing?" Suigetsu chuckled. "That attack's useless against me. You forgot about my body, didn't you?"
"My... body?"
Then it hit Deidara—This guy can liquefy himself... Did he turn into water to avoid the blast?
His instincts are insane!
"Exactly. My Shihakushō blocks all negative effects. That naturally includes your Karura."
Suigetsu wasn't lying—but it wasn't about liquefying himself.
His Shihakushō had completely repelled the microscopic bombs, preventing even a single one from entering his body.
No need to dodge what can't touch me.
---
Meanwhile, on another battlefield—
Haku had already destroyed Sasori's Third Kazekage puppet.
Despite Sasori's best efforts to keep the puppet at a distance, the moment Haku closed in using Shunpo, the battle tipped in his favor.
His taijutsu was brutal—within two minutes, the prized puppet was reduced to shattered wood and metal.
"Tch... Looks like I'll need to fix that later," Sasori muttered, retrieving a scroll.
"Now, let's see how you handle this."
He unfurled the scroll, releasing yet another of his deadly creations...