Naruto: From Extra to Savior

Since there was no immediate danger, delaying further wasn't an option.

"Just keep moving. I'll pick up the pace—look after yourself…" Mizuki told Ko Hyuga. Any clever maneuver would have flaws, and Deidara, with his exceptional combat instincts, wouldn't give Mizuki much opportunity.

Before Ko Hyuga could react, Mizuki immediately pushed his chakra output to the maximum, his speed surging once again. The ones tailing him couldn't match his speed anymore. At the same time, he maximized his Chakra Shield's defensive power, completely abandoning defense on both flanks and from behind, focusing solely on protecting his front vital areas.

A blur shot out of the smoke like a ghost, leaving even the fastest explosive clay creations—Twin-Winged Birds—struggling to match his speed. Enduring the pressure of continuous blasts in front, Mizuki suffered several minor injuries but finally broke through the barrier and reached an astonished Deidara in the blink of an eye. It was unbelievable—Mizuki hadn't even tested his defenses and came straight at him full-speed.

Mizuki didn't care about Deidara's shock. Leveraging the impact of high-speed momentum, the Fuma Shuriken in his left hand pierced right through Deidara's chest. The remaining force sent Deidara flying backward, slamming against the trunk of a giant tree. The Fuma Shuriken, having pierced through Deidara, embedded deeply into the tree trunk, pinning the impaled Deidara onto the tree, trapping him helplessly.

"Did it really end so easily? No good... This feels wrong..."

Though severely wounded, Deidara made no attempt to retreat. Instead, he stretched out his arms toward Mizuki as if trying to grab and embrace him, attempting mutual destruction.

Mizuki realized too late—no time to react. He abandoned the Fuma Shuriken in his left hand and swiftly retreated backward.

In an instant, Deidara's body suddenly exploded with tremendous force. A powerful shockwave instantly engulfed Mizuki, who couldn't dodge in time. In seconds, everything within a few meters was blasted apart in all directions.

"Temari, clear the forest ahead—now!" With thick smoke obscuring the battlefield, it was impossible to tell how badly Mizuki was injured. However, his voice did echo out, still capable of commanding the battle, indicating that he wasn't in critical condition at least.

Although Temari didn't understand how Mizuki knew about her abilities, she didn't have time to think about it now. Fully unfurling her war fan, chakra surged outward in waves.

[Cutting Dance!] A summoned beast appeared amidst violent gusts of air—a monstrous creature wielding a huge sickle, rampaging through the forest ahead. Countless towering trees were sliced into segments before crashing down.

Moreover, the wind release intertwined with the attack blew away all the smokescreen across the battlefield. First revealed was Ko Hyuga, panting heavily and clearly exhausted. Soon after, in Mizuki's area, the smoke cleared away to show Mizuki protected by large Sand Shields. Under the explosion of Deidara's clone, the Sand Shields were riddled with holes. Hidden within them, Mizuki had only managed to protect his vital areas with the Chakra Shield while the rest of his body—arms, legs, shoulders—were struck by scattered debris from the blasts, leaving his flesh bloodied and torn. Catching his breath, Mizuki hurriedly started treating himself.

["Both legs are good, no vitals hit, battle power's fine, chakra's enough. One more shot…"]

Facing an Akatsuki expert head-on for the first time almost got me killed—even with some elite ninjas each with their own signature skills at my side. If Gaara hadn't reacted quickly this time, I'd have been dead or at least maimed.

Still reeling from his heavy losses, Mizuki wiped bloodied sweat from his eyes with a hand smeared in his own blood. He licked his dry lips, grabbed his ninja tools, timed it perfectly, then shoved off with both legs—chakra surging—as he launched upward.

["Watch out!"]

["Over there..."]

High in the air, Mizuki finally caught sight of his target—just beyond the giant bird made of Explosive Clay—using it as cover from the wild Wind Release attacks and Kamatari's massive scythe.

["This time, it'll land. No escaping this time..."]

Spotting his chance, Mizuki didn't intend to let it slip away. He extended his right Fuma Shuriken and hurled it straight at Deidara.

Deidara had been forced to hide under Temari's relentless jutsu, even though he'd been about to take off on his giant bird, when Mizuki suddenly struck again.

"You really think this'll work on me?" Deidara scoffed. "Idiot. Can't even tell the gap between our strengths—watch the true art of explosion, courtesy of Deidara-sama!"

Unfazed, Deidara flipped midair and landed smoothly atop the bird's back. Its wings flapped hard, lifting him slowly skyward. Facing the incoming Fuma Shuriken, he simply dipped his head slightly to dodge.

"Such a clueless punk... practically begging for it..." Deidara muttered, throwing a contemptuous glance at Mizuki before turning away. He had plenty of ways—and time—to deal with this kind of opponent. He'd slaughtered countless arrogant fools like this before, and Mizuki looked no different.

"That idiot... Looks like all bad guys die the same way—first from big mouths, second from big egos..."

Though none of them could match Deidara individually, they did have a five-to-one advantage. Besides Mizuki, each was a uniquely skilled ninja. If they worked together, their combined strength could be devastating. But Deidara still seemed fixated on aerial scouting and ambush tactics, completely dismissing their numerical superiority.

Mid-air Mizuki helplessly watched as Deidara dodged effortlessly and rose higher. Suddenly, he yanked his right hand. Power flowed through a chakra thread thinner than a single hair—transparent and nearly invisible—transmitting force to the spinning Fuma Shuriken. Guided by that invisible line, the weapon sharply changed course, plunging downward.

Before Deidara could react, the chakra thread pulled down hard on the ascending bird.

The Fuma Shuriken's path changed from a straight line into a whirlwind spin that wrapped tightly around the giant bird's neck. In an instant, the explosive clay bird was completely ensnared by several loops of the spinning weapon.

"This time you won't escape," Mizuki smirked, pulling hard once more as his plan succeeded. The ascending bird hesitated abruptly, and using the counterforce, Mizuki shot rapidly toward Deidara. In no time at all, he closed the short distance between them, forcing Deidara to face yet another deadly assault head-on.

Caught off guard, Deidara momentarily faltered. He'd been outmaneuvered before, but never by someone like Mizuki—who threw logic out the window and just charged straight in for close combat like it was nothing. A momentary lapse on Deidara's part had left him unprepared for battle, something that hadn't happened in years.

"Last time was Itachi Uchiha… But you're nowhere near his level."

Though slightly surprised, Deidara's inner destructive instincts and cruel desires surged—he wouldn't be intimidated by something this trivial.

As Mizuki's left hand stabbed a kunai directly at him, Deidara didn't dodge. Instead, he blocked with his arm and immediately began crafting Explosive Clay with his left hand.

"Huh?" Seeing Deidara adopt an almost suicidal fighting method, Mizuki naturally refused to back down. "Perfect! This kind of fiery battle? I've got plenty of experience. Let's see who cracks first…"

Releasing the Chakra Thread held in his right hand, Mizuki grabbed Deidara's shoulder and rammed his head into Deidara's forehead—like some thug in a street brawl.

Caught off guard, Deidara took the hit—a brutal street brawl move. He staggered, dizzy, then tumbled headfirst off the bird. Unrelenting, Mizuki was dragged down too and fell uncontrollably after him.

"Arrogant punk—I'll show you how real men fight!"

Mizuki was on top while Deidara plummeted below, both helpless in midair—but Mizuki threw a punch without hesitation, striking Deidara full in the nose and left eye. Blood burst from Deidara's nose uncontrollably, and the tiny camera over his left eye shattered and fell away. Whether his actual eye was injured was unknown. The force of the blow accelerated Deidara's fall even further.

"Not done yet—it's just getting started!"

Mizuki extended his left hand, shooting out a Chakra Thread that wrapped tightly around Deidara's right wrist. With a sharp upward yank, Mizuki hoisted Deidara back up—and sent his face straight into another powerful punch. A crisp crack rang out from Deidara's jaw—a fracture.

"This is called Finishing Touch—it's something only real men would get! Kid, you've still got a lot to learn. Guess youth clouds your understanding. Then let me demonstrate again…"

As the Chakra Threads pulled him upward a second time, Deidara, barely regaining his senses, quickly spat out the Explosive Clay—[Miniature Flying Bomb]—he had just crafted in his mouth straight at Mizuki.

"It seems you've figured out just a tiny bit, but not quite thoroughly..."

Deidara's naive plan to use Explosive Clay against Mizuki was utter madness. Explosive attacks have one major flaw—they harm allies and enemies indiscriminately. At such close range, both would suffer nearly identical damage.

"You're falling right into my trap! I was worried about not having enough offense, and boom—you show up on a silver platter! I've got Chakra Shield and Medical Ninjutsu. Even if it kills me, these life-saving pills have got this covered. Want to play chicken? Then let's go all-in—hurt each other real bad!"

Mizuki refused to even flinch at the Explosive Clay, which left Deidara stunned. Grabbing suddenly closer to him, Mizuki gave Deidara a twisted grin before thrusting forward his right hand. A bluish-white flame roared forth, engulfing Deidara entirely. Soon after, Deidara's pitiful scream echoed across the entire battlefield.

In this dire moment, Deidara was forced his hand and bellowed, [Explode]!

The Miniature Flying Bomb detonated squarely between them. With a deafening bang, the tremendous shockwave ripped Mizuki off Deidara and sent him flying violently through the air.

Just as Mizuki, severely injured, was about to crash onto the ground, a cushion made of sand appeared beneath him, catching the battered ninja safely. Deidara wasn't so lucky. First pierced by kunai, then beaten to a pulp by fists, followed by being set ablaze, and finally blown up by his own Explosive Clay right in his face—he crashed heavily from the sky. His injuries must've been brutal.

"This is already my limit. If it weren't for Deidara getting cocky, I wouldn't stand a chance. Now it's time to leave him to Yuhi Kurenai and others. The miniature camera's destroyed already; Deidara himself isn't particularly strong against Genjutsu. Kurenai should wrap him up easy."

Although Mizuki beat Deidara badly, he hadn't actually hit any vital areas. On paper, as long as Deidara can still use Explosive Clay, his destructive power doesn't drop one bit—it merely weakens his physical condition and tactical abilities significantly.

...

While Mizuki and Deidara were locked in their fierce battle, Hiashi Hyuga and Red Sand of the Desert also engaged in intense combat. Overall though, Red Sand of the Desert gained the upper hand. After all, Gentle Fist excels against human bodies and chakra flow, but struggles mightily against fully armed steel puppets, especially considering potential hidden lethal poisons embedded somewhere within those mechanical constructs.

A Gentle Fist user against a Puppet Master shouldn't logically be this difficult. While it may have limited effect against the puppet itself, the Gentle Fist technique is practically the ultimate countermeasure against the chakra threads used to manipulate such puppets. Moreover, what regular ninjas find extremely hard to detect—the chakra strings—appear completely visible under Byakugan scanning. Therefore, typically speaking, the Hyuga clan doesn't fear confrontations with Puppet Masters. Quite often they'd even follow the chakra threads or directly locate the actual master hiding behind using their Byakugan eyesight, delivering fatal strikes accordingly.

Now, Red Sand of the Desert wasn't just any Puppet Master. His original body was hidden within the powerful, all-in-one combat puppet Hiruko, and completely lacked the usual weakness — a fragile physical form — that plagued most puppet masters. And as for severing those Chakra Threads he uses for control — sorry, but there aren't any exposed ones to target. If he were using ordinary puppets — like the Third Kazekage or even the Hundred Puppet Army technique — Hiashi Hyuga might've had something to work with. But as it stood now, Hiashi had no real counterattack against Red Sand of the Desert and could only fend off the sudden onslaughts from hidden mechanisms and traps.

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