Hagoromo's words were… full of questionable points.
His tone made him sound like some kind of creepy old pervert with very specific tastes.
That said, in reality he was extremely cautious. After speaking, his shadow clone remained behind while his real body advanced toward Hiruko, step by step.
Hagoromo had a vague recollection of Hiruko's capabilities. Most of the time, Sasori of the Red Sand hid inside this puppet to compensate for a puppeteer's weakness in close combat. From that alone, it was clear that Hiruko was an all-rounder—offense and defense combined, capable of both long-range and close-quarters combat. A highly practical puppet.
What Hagoromo didn't know was that this puppet had been modified from a real ninja Sasori had killed.
No wonder Orochimaru and Sasori would later work so well together in Akatsuki—both were absolute fanatics when it came to modification and experimentation.
With an air of relaxed confidence—almost careless—Hagoromo's real body continued walking toward Sasori.
Ten meters wasn't far at all.
However, the shadow clone behind him moved first.
Its hands flashed through seals—not to attack, but to cancel the summoning technique.
The Split Hound was returned to the summoning realm, ending its suffering.
In truth, the hound's furious howls weren't just from being bound so tightly its bones were close to snapping—it was already poisoned.
A puppeteer's attacks almost always involved toxins. And considering who Sasori's grandmother was, his mastery of poisons went without saying.
Without even thinking about it, Hagoromo knew that Hiruko's tail was coated in poison.
If a ninja had been scratched by it, they would already be dead. But given the Split Hound's size, resilience, and vitality, the poison wouldn't kill it immediately. Once returned to a sacred place like Shikkotsu Forest, it would likely recover on its own.
But that wasn't all.
Puff.
As Hiruko's tail suddenly lost its grip and the Split Hound vanished in a cloud of white smoke, Hagoromo's next set of seals was already complete.
Another Summoning Technique.
After finishing the hand signs, the clone bit its thumb and slammed a bloodied palm onto the ground.
The Yatagarasu was summoned once more.
"Get on the bird!"
This time, there was no need for further explanation. The remaining three already knew what to do.
Ride the dog, then ride the bird—efficient multi-modal transportation.
They leapt onto the bird's back. With a long cry, the Yatagarasu shot skyward, flying straight toward the Land of Fire.
As for Sasori, he didn't bother stopping them.
Or rather, he simply didn't care.
This was related to what Hagoromo had said earlier.
Hagoromo's words hadn't been nonsense at all. The information he revealed genuinely caught Sasori's attention, focusing it entirely on Hagoromo himself.
For one thing, Hagoromo had directly identified him.
Sasori had never shown himself in Hiruko form before—this puppet had only just been completed.
Second, Hagoromo seemed to understand Hiruko quite well. At the very least, he knew that Sasori's real body was hidden inside it.
That was knowledge no one else should have possessed.
Yet this Konoha ninja not only knew it—he spoke with absolute certainty.
Why?
Given Sasori's cautious nature, there was no way he would allow Hagoromo to leave.
As for the other three ninja? They were irrelevant. Sasori had no real objective when attacking this Konoha squad to begin with—they had simply appeared behind him.
He'd thought he could kill them instantly.
Instead, he'd encountered something he couldn't understand.
While the Split Hound disappeared and the shadow clone performed its second summoning, Hagoromo's real body didn't remain idle.
Chidori Current—activated instantly.
Trajectory change, explosive acceleration—straight at Hiruko!
Handseal-less Lightning Release like this almost always caught first-time opponents off guard.
Of course, any ninja who couldn't react in time was simply too weak—and would usually die on the spot to the Chidori.
Conversely, anyone who could evade such an assault possessed genuine strength.
Sasori of the Red Sand was obviously not someone who would be killed in a single exchange.
Chidori Current startled him—briefly.
But that was all.
Hagoromo's sudden change in tempo failed to disrupt Sasori in the slightest.
Hiruko's tail, no longer restraining the Split Hound, didn't even bother retracting. Its tip flicked sharply and stabbed toward Hagoromo.
Here, the weakness of Hagoromo's perception became apparent.
His dynamic vision was excellent—but he didn't have the Sharingan.
Against ordinary ninja, he could go all out, pushing his speed to the limit without concern.
Against a Kage-level opponent like Sasori, however, he had to carefully balance speed and maneuverability.
If he rushed too fast and failed to dodge—even a scratch from Hiruko's tail would spell disaster.
Moreover, Lightning Release paralysis worked on flesh, not puppets.
Which raised an interesting question:
From a designer's standpoint… was Hiruko insulated?
That was something only Sasori knew.
Hagoromo didn't—but Hiruko's tail was clearly made of metal.
Boom!
Hagoromo twisted aside. The segmented silver tail grazed past him and plunged into the ground at his feet.
At such close range, he could clearly see purple poison seeping continuously from the rings of the tail.
He pushed off with his right leg, dodging again.
A series of harsh mechanical clicks echoed through the forest as Hiruko tracked Hagoromo's movements—and then opened its mouth.
Hiruko: Needle Barrage!
A dense storm of poisoned needles sprayed outward.
Wary of the toxin, Hagoromo darted left and right, never staying in one place for even half a second—looking more like an agile monkey than a ninja.
But his movements weren't random.
At this point, Hiruko was fully facing Hagoromo's real body.
And behind it… was Hagoromo's shadow clone.
Did Hiruko have eyes in the back of its head?
Probably not—despite that grotesque face on its back.
This was a simple feint.
Not because Sasori was careless, but because he simply didn't take a shadow clone seriously—especially one that had just been busy sending teammates away.
What he didn't know was how efficient Hagoromo truly was.
The instant Sasori turned—
The clone had not only evacuated the team, but had already completed its third set of hand seals.
Fire Release: Fire Dragon Flame Bullet!
Direct hit!
A surging wave of blazing fire instantly engulfed Hiruko.
Of course, Hagoromo never expected a single Fire Release to take out Sasori. Whether Hiruko was insulated was unknown—but it was certainly fire-resistant.
After releasing the jutsu, the clone didn't pursue.
It retreated immediately.
The flames hadn't even dissipated yet when Hiruko counterattacked. The silver chain-like tail lashed out toward the retreating clone.
Straight.
Fast.
But no matter how far it could extend, there was a limit.
It couldn't reach the clone that was already pulling back at full speed.
And because it was fully extended, the tail couldn't be retracted in time.
That moment—
Was exactly what Hagoromo had been waiting for.
Chidori Spear cleaved downward from above.
The tail snapped cleanly in two.
To be honest, Hagoromo found that poisoned tail extremely troublesome—so cutting it off took priority.
Why had he dared to stay behind to face Sasori alone?
In terms of absolute strength, the gap between them was obvious.
But thinking about it carefully…
Huh.
His fighting style actually countered Sasori's pretty well.
Five hundred years of gestation—
Born just to counter you.
What fate this was.
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