Right now, Sasori was completely baffled.
The stronger a jutsu was, the greater its limitations. Take Seiki's Comprehensive Body Enhancement for example—it had no post-use weakness and even allowed continuous entry into Sage Mode after use! That just didn't make any sense!
Wasn't this obviously cheating?
What? His Hundred Puppet Army was also cheating?
Using chakra created from a small piece of flesh to control over a hundred puppets, along with the black-tech-enhanced Third Kazekage puppet—was that cheating too?
Oh, then never mind.
Sasori's expression calmed once more. "No wonder you're Konoha's hero. This battle against you is even tougher than my assassination of the Third Kazekage two years ago!"
Chuura and others felt awkward inside—they certainly wouldn't mind seeing Sasori struggle, but every time he did, it came at the expense of the Third Kazekage's dignity.
This was quite an uncomfortable situation.
Seiki naturally wouldn't let him undermine the "friendly" relationship between himself and his Sunagakure comrades. "You mentioned it yourself—it was an assassination. Under normal circumstances, I'd definitely stand no chance against the Third Kazekage!"
A twitch appeared at the corner of Sasori's mouth. Maybe say something like that only after returning the Third Kazekage's left arm?
"Although I hate to admit it, I really can't defeat you right now!" Sasori said, shifting his gaze toward Chuura and the others. "If that's the case, then I'll just have to change strategies!"
Facing Sasori's cold stare, the Sand ninja all felt ice crawl up their spines.
Even though Sasori looked powerless against Seiki, to them, he was still an unbeatable powerhouse.
Seiki barked sharply, "Run quickly—I'll hold him off!"
Hearing Seiki's voice, they finally snapped out of their daze.
Fleeing might look shameful, but staying here would just make things harder for Seiki.
"Not so fast! Iron Sand Chakra Barrier!"
The Third Kazekage soared into the sky with his Iron Sand: Black Iron Wings, firing countless metal spikes downward.
[Rashōmon — Threefold Gate of Death!]
At Seiki's summoning, three hellish gates abruptly rose up, blocking all incoming spike attacks.
Seeing the heavily pockmarked Rashōmon ahead, Chuura and the others relaxed slightly.
"We're… we're saved!"
"Incredible! That's the power of the Third Kazekage's technique!"
Seeing them trying to salvage pride at a moment like this, Pakura angrily shouted, "Run already! Don't hang around here and get in the way!"
The Rashōmon couldn't move—the Third Kazekage could simply fly above these doors and continue his assault. Worse yet, it was extremely difficult for them to attack the airborne Kazekage.
"What are you going to do now?" Sasori softly chuckled.
Previously, out of grief for those puppets destroyed by Seiki's brute force, he had ordered the Third Kazekage to abandon its aerial advantage and protect him up close.
Now, however, he no longer cared about those ordinary puppets.
Even if Seiki could destroy one puppet per second, it would still take over a minute just to clear the path and reach him. During that time, the Third Kazekage could kill those weak ninja a hundred times over.
Actually, it would be even better if Seiki tried to protect those other ninja. Once his chakra ran dry, Sasori could effortlessly obtain the perfect material.
But just then, Pakura's voice rang out.
"Lord Seiki, leave this to me!"
"Lady Pakura... you..."
"The extreme heat can instantly melt these iron sands. Although I'm no match for the former Lord Kazekage, I should be able to hold him off for a while!"
Pakura gazed firmly at the Third Kazekage above. "I swear by my name as Pakura of Sunagakure—never shall the betrayer desecrate Lord Kazekage's honor!"
"I understand." Seiki refocused his mind and turned toward Sasori, protected behind layers of puppets. "Ready yourself to be shattered into pieces."
Seiki reached into his tool pouch, pulled out a cluster of shuriken, and hurled them forward.
Previously, his opponent had been the Third Kazekage, who controlled Magnet Release, a kekkei genkai, so he had refrained from using the shuriken for marking coordinates.
Now, however, he could begin his massacre without restraint.
[Flying Thunder God Technique!] Naturally, Sasori quickly recognized his famous ability and immediately directed his puppets to destroy the incoming shuriken.
Unfortunately, he was just a second too late.
Seiki instantly teleported to the nearest shuriken close to Sasori, effectively crossing half the distance in an instant.
A hail of fierce ninjutsu barraged Seiki from the surrounding puppets.
Clearly, Sasori knew physical and poison-based attacks were ineffective against Seiki, so even though it wasn't his specialty, he now had no choice but to rely on elemental techniques.
However, Seiki's mastery of elemental techniques far surpassed his.
As soon as he spotted the puppets forming hand seals, he understood Sasori's plan and preemptively used [Earth Path: Underground Projection Technique] to vanish beneath the ground.
Timing his movements precisely, Seiki burst from underground the moment the water, fire, and wind techniques dissipated, charging forward like a tiger among sheep.
Watching Seiki smash one puppet after another with his bare fists, Sasori's eyebrows twitched violently.
This battle could set his collection back by at least five years… Nope, if this kept up, he might not survive it.
"Looks like I'll have to handle this myself!"
[Double Blade Style – Spiral Blades!]
Taking advantage of the moment Seiki was engaged by other puppets, Sasori seized the two spiral blades on his back and slashed toward Seiki.
Unlike those fragile puppet masters' original bodies, he had trained in taijutsu and transformed his own body into the ultimate weapon—he could handle close-range combat...
Seiki caught the Spiral Blades mid-strike, pulled hard, and yanked Sasori flying forward using the steel cables, swinging him like a meteor hammer before slamming him heavily into the ground.
Boom!
The earth trembled intensely, and Sasori felt as if his body was about to fall apart.
"I acted recklessly!"
Despite sustaining serious injuries, Sasori didn't panic; instead, he thought inwardly, "Though my body is stronger, I seem to be completely outmatched in terms of control. Perhaps I should abandon offense entirely and focus on defense!"
Without hesitation, he made his decision and recalled the Third Kazekage immediately.
"Trying to run away?" Seiki called coldly.
"Do you really intend to ignore the rescue? Lady Pakura isn't some toxin-resistant monster like you!" Sasori countered calmly.
Seiki turned his head and saw Pakura already collapsed on the ground, her life status unknown.
Looking back, Sasori had already leapt onto the Third Kazekage's back, [Chakra Threads] retrieving the shattered puppet.
However, due to the magnetic interference from the Third Kazekage, his otherwise smooth control showed slight hesitation.
"Earlier, I underestimated you. Even without a Kekkei Genkai, you're still a more perfect existence than the Third Kazekage!"
Sasori manipulated the Third Kazekage to soar high up into the sky. "Next time we meet, I will definitely capture you!"
Seiki wasn't bothered by Sasori's words at all; the information disparity between them was overwhelming.
If he truly wanted to kill Sasori, it wouldn't require much effort.
He only needed to drag Sasori into an Illusion Realm where his parents appeared, and when Sasori was momentarily distracted, destroy that regeneration core that carried all his memories.
"I'd love to have a chat about your regeneration core tech next time we meet!" Seiki shook his head with a smile, then turned toward Pakura.
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