The three Iwa ninja were horrified, their breathing nearly stopping as they watched six headless corpses collapse backward, blood geysering from their necks.
Tsuchiki stared at Kamizuki Gen standing before them, too terrified to even speak.
Too terrifying.
There had been no warning.
They couldn't even tell what kind of jutsu he had used.
If he had wanted them dead just now, it would've taken nothing more than a thought.
Those six—Cloud Village jōnin—weren't fodder. Even Deidara had struggled against them.
And yet, in front of this young, handsome man in sunglasses—
They were cut down like vegetables.
"You… you… it's you!"
Deidara stared at Gen.
He finally recognized the voice—the one that had echoed in his mind earlier.
That magnetic, almost hypnotic voice—
It belonged to this man.
So he had mistaken the source before.
Tsuchiki hurriedly pulled Deidara behind him and whispered harshly, "Deidara, don't speak recklessly!"
Right now—
All three of their lives were in this man's hands.
But Deidara broke free.
He glanced at the corpses, then fixed his gaze on Gen.
"It's me," Gen replied calmly.
"If I had enough preparation," Deidara said in a low voice, "I could do that too."
Gen understood immediately—
To recruit this guy—
He'd need to break him first.
"Deidara, shut up!" Tsuchiki urged.
But Deidara gritted his teeth, resisting the overwhelming pressure, forming hand seals.
"Then let me show you—this is my art!!"
"Not good! He's lost it!" Tsuchiki panicked, wanting to stop him—but he couldn't move.
Deidara shoved his hand into his pouch, chewing explosive clay and scattering it.
"Even if they exist for only a moment—"
His face twisted with excitement.
"At the instant they explode, their existence is elevated!"
"You're strong—I can feel it!" Deidara continued. "If you really are a god, then placing you inside an explosion—letting me achieve god-slaying—wouldn't that be the ultimate art?!"
Gen chuckled softly.
"You really talk too much."
Deidara grinned wildly.
"Didn't you say you'd give me meaning? Then let me—"
He froze.
The clay he had just released—
The clay that had burrowed underground to form explosive centipedes—
Suddenly slipped out of his control.
"No… what's happening?!"
In disbelief, he watched as a thick white clay centipede burst from the ground—
And wrapped around his own body.
This wasn't genjutsu.
The man before him had used overwhelming chakra and technique—
To forcibly seize control of his explosive clay.
"You… you also have Explosion Release?!" Deidara's eyes widened in shock.
Boom—!
Massive amounts of clay surged from underground, reshaping under Gen's control—
Into a gigantic white demonic hand.
It grabbed Deidara—
And lifted him high into the air.
Tsuchiki and the other Iwa ninja were stunned.
The grotesque white hand kept growing—
Like a tree—
Until it held Deidara five to six meters above the ground.
"Deidara, don't move!!" Tsuchiki shouted.
—
Gen hadn't just been watching earlier.
The moment Deidara first used his clay—
Gen had already "copied" it.
He now possessed Explosion Release.
And unlike Deidara, he didn't need mouth-hands or special clay—
He could simply infuse chakra into the earth beneath him—
And create explosive clay at will.
If he wanted, he could even change its color.
With the chakra and abilities of the Deva Path—
Manipulating this clay was effortless.
—
Deidara struggled.
But the giant hand didn't budge.
He inhaled the familiar burnt scent of his own clay—
And felt his scalp go numb.
He had always been the one blowing others up.
Never—
Had someone used his own method against him.
This was true despair.
Powerlessness.
He looked up at the empty blue sky—
And stopped resisting.
—
"T-this lord…" Tsuchiki spoke respectfully, looking at the suspended Deidara. "Deidara… he's still just a child…"
No matter what—
Calling the other party "lord" was always the safest choice.
"Classic," Gen muttered dryly, then said calmly, "Call Ōnoki here."
"Yes!"
Tsuchiki immediately signaled his subordinate.
The ninja understood and sprinted toward the village.
—
The situation froze.
"Don't call that old man!" Deidara panicked. "Put me down! You said you'd take me with you—hurry! If he gets here, I'm done for!!"
Gen smiled.
"He's already here."
Just as he finished speaking—
A figure streaked across the sky in an arc.
Ōnoki.
Behind him, hundreds of Iwa ninja were rushing over. In less than two minutes, the area would be completely surrounded.
"Deidara!"
Ōnoki arrived, circling once around the giant clay hand.
Sensing the terrifying presence below—
He ignored Deidara and descended.
Landing, he positioned himself in front of Tsuchiki and Deidara.
His eyes flicked to the six corpses—
Then locked onto Gen.
The young man wore a rogue Leaf forehead protector—
And that black cloak with red clouds.
He radiated pressure like a mountain.
Ōnoki's gaze lingered on the Konoha rogue headband.
A chill ran through him.
Since when had Konoha produced such a monster?
Fortunately—
He was a missing-nin.
Ōnoki exhaled slightly, then asked Tsuchiki:
"What happened?"
◇ BONUS & SUPPORT ◇
◇ 1 bonus chapter for every 10 reviews — drop a comment!
◇ 1 bonus chapter for every 100 Power Stones.
◇ Read chapters ahead on Patreon → patreon.com/c/MythArcStudio