Chapter 58 — An Artificial Susanoo Stands Upon the Earth
That Oda Nobunaga could suddenly appear beside him using a broken kunai was completely beyond Sasori's expectations.
By instinct, Sasori had assumed that once a kunai was snapped in half, it could no longer function as a spatial marker.
But he had forgotten something crucial—
The true anchor of the Flying Thunder God was not the kunai itself,
but the jutsu formula engraved upon it.
And so, when Nobunaga moved with practiced ease, plastering explosive tags across Hiruko's body—
Sasori instinctively leaned back, trying to escape—
And failed.
Just as the Flying Thunder God had been developed by the Second Hokage,
the Mutually Multiplying Explosive Tags were also one of that man's infamous creations—
A jutsu born of pure malice.
By attaching explosive tags to the enemy's body and using them to continuously summon more tags, detonating them in an endless chain—
The technique did not stop until the target was reduced to fragments.
That was the terror of Mutually Multiplying Explosive Tags.
Boom—boom—boom!
An unbroken cascade of explosions engulfed Hiruko, the thunderous blasts forcing both Kakuzu and Deidara to halt mid-fight and turn their heads.
Kakuzu's reaction aside—
For Deidara, a man who had devoted his entire life to the sacred pursuit of explosions, the sight was nothing short of revelation.
His eyes shone brilliantly as he stared at the explosion-wreathed Hiruko—
To the point that he completely forgot this was his Sasori-danna.
"I want to learn that!"
Before Kakuzu could stop him, Deidara took a single stride forward.
He rushed straight up to the calmly smiling Nobunaga, grabbing his hand with the full enthusiasm of an unleashed husky.
"Uh—?"
Staring at Deidara shaking Nobunaga's hand so hard it nearly blurred, Kakuzu—who had been preparing to continue the fight—was struck speechless, black lines forming across his forehead.
Somehow…
Maybe…
Possibly…
As Kakuzu stepped closer to Nobunaga, even he couldn't help but think—
Sasori really had it rough this time.
He'd been completely forgotten.
"How do you know those two jutsu?"
With the ceaseless explosions as background noise, Orochimaru dismissed the reanimated Third Kazekage—the poor soul who had been used by two enemies at once—and walked over.
His expression was… complicated.
With a pleasant smile, Nobunaga answered,
"Probably part of Senju Tobirama's dowry."
As he spoke, Nobunaga cut off the Mutually Multiplying Explosive Tags' activation.
If the explosions continued, Hiruko would certainly be annihilated—
But turning the Sasori inside into dust as well would be a waste.
Only then did Deidara finally realize that the one being blown apart was, in fact, his Sasori-danna.
When the explosions stopped, he cried out, flung Oda Nobunaga's hand away, and sprinted straight toward the blast zone.
"Senju Tobirama's dowry…?"
Orochimaru's eyes spun thoughtfully at those words.
Historically, after Senju Tobirama inherited his brother's will and formally dissolved the Senju clan, many ordinary Senju civilians had left Konoha.
Was it possible that one such Senju had migrated to the Land of Fields—and even entered the daimyo's household?
And beyond the Senju… were there other bloodline ninja who had once entered the daimyo's residence?
After all, there had been a time when nobles and daimyo eagerly married bloodline users into their families.
While Orochimaru was weighing how credible Nobunaga's explanation truly was, a violent gust of wind suddenly erupted from the center of the blast zone.
"Bastard!"
The furious voice cut like an icy gale sweeping across the Snow Country tundra.
A red-haired boy with a youthful face emerged—the true form of Sasori.
Clutching two scrolls in his hands, Sasori's expression was livid.
After all, even when he'd been beaten half to death by Konan and Pain, he hadn't suffered humiliation like this.
He was not going to let this go.
He was going to fight again—and reclaim his dignity.
But at that moment, Samonosuke arrived with Mukade and Kazahana Doto in tow.
Kazahana Doto needed little explanation. After barely surviving Snow Country, he had been brought back to the Land of Fields. Realizing resistance was futile, he had obediently become a salaried worker.
As for Mukade—
In the original timeline, he'd nearly used the Dragon Vein of Rōran to carry out a grand plan.
Here, he'd been captured by members of the Fūma clan and had likewise joined the "working-for-Nobunaga" industry.
Both men were sharp-minded. Compared to being front-line ninja, they were far better suited to research.
And under Nobunaga's relentless prodding—
They arrived carrying their latest creation, standing directly in Sasori's path.
"This is…?"
Sasori froze.
The black mass of earthen puppet constructs before him looked terrifyingly familiar.
"Hundred Puppet Performance?"
Controlling over a hundred puppets alone was his signature technique.
Sasori was certain—there should not be a second person in the world capable of this.
Yet what stood before him was far more than a hundred earthen puppets.
And then—
His gaze shifted.
Standing upright on two legs was a massive, heavily armored humanoid puppet.
"…Susanoo?"
Sasori wasn't the only one stunned.
Today alone, Oda Nobunaga had delivered shock after shock—even to Orochimaru.
Having researched puppet techniques himself, Orochimaru understood well enough. Sasori's conversion into a puppet body was, after all, a form of twisted immortality.
Many puppet masters had once dreamed of creating something akin to the ultimate Mangekyō Sharingan power—Susanoo.
Every single one of them had failed.
The reasons were simple:
Materials.
Control.
Engineering limits.
And above all—
Chakra supply.
A Susanoo-sized construct required a mountain of chakra. It was utterly unrealistic for a puppet master to sustain.
Even Sasori himself would struggle.
"Can we talk now?"
Patting the mountain-like humanoid puppet beside him, Oda Nobunaga extended an invitation amid the sea of earthen constructs.
Sasori stared at him.
After witnessing Nobunaga's personal combat prowess…
After seeing artistry that even he found impressive…
"…What are these things?"
He stowed the scrolls in his hands and shoved Deidara aside, ignoring Orochimaru's amused gaze as he addressed Nobunaga directly.
"Would you like to visit the workshop where they're made?"
With a gentle smile, Nobunaga seized the opening and extended another invitation.
"The workshop?"
Confident in his abilities and unafraid of traps, Sasori considered it briefly—then recalled Pain's standing orders.
He nodded.
"Lead the way."
Gesturing ahead like a seasoned guide, Nobunaga walked first.
"The earthen puppets you saw earlier are the work of Director Mukade from the Land of Fields Development Department.
They are not your Hundred Puppet Performance."
"Though a single operator can still control hundreds—even more—there is a fundamental difference."
In truth, Nobunaga greatly admired Mukade's ingenuity. After all, this was the man who once attempted to build a puppet army powered by the Dragon Vein to conquer the world.
Unlike Sasori's method of direct manual control, Mukade had pioneered something entirely new.
If one person couldn't micro-manage hundreds of puppets—
Why not create a sub-brain to handle it?
Program the puppets instead.
"A sub-brain…? Programming?"
Sasori fell silent, deeply shaken.
He cast a long look at Mukade—plain-looking, even ugly—yet undeniably brilliant.
Even Orochimaru, who prided himself as the greatest researcher alive and barely respected Senju Tobirama—
Found his interest in Mukade sharply piqued.
With just Nobunaga's brief explanation, Orochimaru instantly envisioned countless weapons:
Remote-controlled suicide spiders.
Unmanned flying bombs launched from airships.
"…And the giant humanoid puppet?"
Sasori's gaze returned to the towering construct.
After all—
A bipedal humanoid war machine was every man's dream.