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Sasori stared at Midorima, who had his arms spread wide, feeling a headache coming on.
Hiruko was one of his favorite puppets—not because it was aesthetically pleasing (there were far uglier puppets in his collection)—but because it allowed him to hide inside, compensating for his weakness in close combat.
It was truly a perfect balance of offense and defense.
Now that Hiruko had been swallowed by the swamp, even if he could craft a new puppet, finding a suitable shinobi to turn into one would take considerable effort.
"Hey, can you give Hiruko back to me?" Sasori said coldly.
"Huh?" Midorima broke out in a cold sweat. "We're in the middle of a fight."
"I know. I've thought it over, and I've decided to let you go," Sasori replied, his gaze icy.
Midorima blinked, not quite understanding Sasori's reasoning.
"There's no real conflict of interest between us, right? The only reason I wanted to kill you was to make a new puppet. But now that Hiruko's stuck in the swamp, even if I kill you and make another one, the total number of puppets I have won't change, will it? Besides, if I really tried to kill you now, I'd probably have to use other puppets. And given how unpredictable your jutsu are, if you ended up destroying a few more, wouldn't I just be at a loss?"
Midorima stared at Sasori, his expression darkening.
This guy was casually discussing a "transaction" with him as the bargaining chip.
Is he out of his mind?
"I was already planning to run away, but you were the one who stopped me…" Midorima grumbled.
"At the time, I thought you'd be easy to kill," Sasori said dismissively, as if his logic were unassailable. "Now that I realize you're more troublesome than expected, I've decided to spare you."
With that, Sasori straightened up, looking almost magnanimous.
Midorima had a four-word evaluation for Sasori's explanation: Yeah, right. Like I'd believe that.
You killed the Third Kazekage and turned him into a "specimen"—no, a "puppet." That was your doing, wasn't it?
If that's how he treated his own village leader, Midorima didn't even want to imagine what he'd do to others.
Definitely the type to say one thing and do another.
Midorima had a habit of labeling people.
For example, Zabuza—though he'd done plenty of terrible things—was actually a decent guy at heart, the kind worth befriending. Sasori, on the other hand, was a different story.
"You make a fair point," Midorima said, clapping his hands together, deciding not to ruin Sasori's mood. "Since neither of us wants to keep fighting, why don't we just call it here? I'll go find somewhere to make money, and you can stay here and dig out your puppet."
"Eh?" Sasori's eyes widened. "You expect me to dig it out?"
"Come on, we just met. You wouldn't seriously ask me for help, would you? A badass like you would never rely on others for something as simple as digging out a puppet. It'd be beneath you. Besides, I didn't even use a full-scale 'Swamp of the Underworld.' At most…" Midorima glanced up at the sky—the sun was already dipping westward. "You'll have it out by midnight at the latest. Hang in there! You got this!"
He pumped his fist in an exaggerated cheer.
"..."
Midorima watched Sasori's expression closely. Though the puppeteer didn't show outright anger, fury burned in his eyes. If Sasori suddenly shouted "How dare you?" at this point, Midorima wouldn't even be surprised.
Before Sasori could speak, Midorima turned and bolted.
"You—get back here!" Sasori roared at the now-empty space in front of him.
Go back? If he went back now, someone was definitely going to die.
And as for who that'd be…
Definitely not him.
But Midorima had already made up his mind.
With his Mangekyō Sharingan, killing Sasori wasn't impossible. The real question was—what then?
Would Akatsuki come after him for revenge?
He wasn't ready to face Pain yet.
There was a saying that fit perfectly here: "Play it safe, don't get cocky."
As a shinobi, ambushes were way more satisfying anyway.
That was the lesson he'd learned from his surprise attack on Danzō's estate.
Still, things never went the way Midorima expected.
That very night, just as he was about to put out the campfire and rest, Sasori emerged from the darkness—Hiruko in tow. The only difference from earlier was that the puppet now carried a damp, musty aura.
Of course, after being buried in a swamp, he'd have to wash it off. Otherwise, Sasori would reek inside.
But the weather…
During the day, it was fine. At night, though, it was cold.
"You freezing? Want to get closer to the fire?"
"..." Sasori's voice was icy. "I'm tempted to kill you right now."
"Come on, we're complete strangers who just happened to cross paths. Why make it a life-or-death thing?" Midorima tossed the remaining wild boar meat toward Sasori. "Hungry?"
"Since when are you so generous?"
"I've never claimed to be a bad person." That was Midorima's self-assessment.
Not exactly a saint, but not outright evil either.
"All villains say that."
"Do you say that about yourself too?" Midorima asked with feigned concern.
"..." Sasori looked like he wanted to shut Midorima up permanently.
"By the way, puppet mechanisms are pretty complex, right?" Midorima continued.
"None of your business!"
"No, I'm just wondering—you went through all that trouble to dig it out, wash it, and rush over here before it could even dry. I was thinking, if water got inside, wouldn't the mechanisms malfunction? Like, 'What if the poison needles don't shoot out?' If it fails mid-fight and your target escapes, wouldn't that be a problem?"
"I don't need your concern."
"I'm only saying this because fate brought us together. Anyone else, and I wouldn't bother."
"I've fought water-style users with this puppet before. Whether it malfunctions or not, I know better than you." Sasori remained unmoved.
"Water-style?" Midorima casually formed a hand seal. "You mean like this?"
"What?" Sasori's eyes widened as he watched Midorima complete the seal.
For most shinobi—even jonin—mastering two chakra natures was already impressive.
Earlier, Midorima had used wind and earth releases, and his earth-style technique had been particularly advanced. Sasori had mentally labeled him as "proficient in earth and wind."
Now, with barely two meters between them, Midorima theatrically formed another seal. Then, with a sharp exhale, water-style chakra condensed in his throat before erupting outward in a massive surge, instantly engulfing Sasori.
From within the water, Midorima waved goodbye.
Given the darkness and the sheer volume of water, he had no idea where Sasori would end up—but courtesy demanded a proper farewell.
"Exploding Water Shockwave" was one of Midorima's more polished techniques. Riding the current, he swiftly left the campsite behind.
Sasori struggled free from Hiruko's interior, peeling off his soaked cloak and wringing it out.
The night breeze hit him, sending an uncomfortable chill down his spine.
"That bastard! Next time we meet, I'm killing you for sure!" His enraged scream echoed into the darkness.
*****
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