Facing such a colossal creature, Sasori truly found it very interesting. After all, this was the first time he had ever encountered a being like this.
In Sunagakure of the Land of Wind, there existed the One-Tail. And during wartime, there were also figures like Konoha's Three Sannin who possessed gigantic summoned beasts.
However, Sasori had never personally fought them. He only knew that such massive creatures were terrifying.
Now that he had the opportunity to battle one at close range, how could he not find it fascinating?
"It seems I'll have to get a bit more serious," Sasori murmured to himself.
He wasn't sure about the exact strength of the enormous creature before him.
But what he did know was that, judging purely from its chakra and presence, this giant lizard was at least on his level—perhaps even more terrifying.
Still, Sasori wasn't overly worried.
Whether it was such a gigantic monster or even a Tailed Beast, they were powerful—undeniably so.
But they lacked one thing: the combat awareness of a human.
The reason Tailed Beasts were captured and even sealed wasn't because they were weak. On the contrary, any one of them could probably destroy a nation.
But their fighting style was almost entirely instinct-driven, with no real tactics to speak of.
In other words, they possessed immense power but didn't know how to use it efficiently.
The existence of Jinchūriki restrained the Tailed Beasts, yet some Jinchūriki were able to develop a decent relationship with them.
Through a Jinchūriki controlling a Tailed Beast's power, that power could be utilized far more perfectly.
"Unfortunately, a summoned beast isn't a Tailed Beast. It can't reach that level."
Thinking this to himself, Sasori looked at the massive lizard and suddenly raised a hand from within Hiruko. The next moment, endless smoke appeared around him.
The smoke dissipated quickly. But when it fully cleared, the ground and sky were filled with all kinds of puppets!
Sasori was getting serious—and he didn't say that lightly.
Even though he enjoyed playing cat-and-mouse games, when caution was required, he would never be careless.
"Let me see what you're really capable of," he muttered inwardly.
Then chakra surged violently from his body, and the puppets he had summoned sprang into action.
Lizardmaru looked at the densely packed tiny figures and felt no real threat.
For him, after so many years of war, he was long accustomed to scenes like this.
And he knew exactly how to deal with them.
Suddenly, he opened his mouth wide, and vast amounts of chakra roared outward.
In an instant, the earth began to tremble violently...
...
After jumping down from Lizardmaru's body, Natsuhiko immediately grabbed Kusunoki and headed toward the distance.
At the same time, he used his sensory abilities to monitor the situation on the battlefield—as well as the condition of the ANBU.
Natsuhiko had some estimation of Lizardmaru's strength.
However, he didn't believe that Lizardmaru alone would be enough to defeat Sasori.
After all, a summoned beast without his coordination and command—
Relying purely on instinct would find it very difficult to deliver any truly devastating blow to a battle-hardened expert.
It was very possible that Lizardmaru would be defeated. Natsuhiko wasn't surprised by that possibility at all.
That was precisely why the instruction he gave Lizardmaru was to stall for time.
He believed Lizardmaru could judge the timing properly—and wouldn't leave before Natsuhiko had managed to run far enough away.
As for the ANBU, they seemed to have been frightened by Lizardmaru's sudden appearance.
But they were still elite ninja after all. Once they realized that Lizardmaru was fighting Sasori head-on, they quickly took a detour and headed toward Natsuhiko's location.
Among them seemed to be a member of the Aburame clan, because Natsuhiko had long since noticed insects around them.
Those insects were probably how they had been tracking his movements.
Natsuhiko didn't pay much attention to it. Most of those insects had already died during his battle with Sasori.
And since they were taking a detour, it would take them quite some time to arrive.
Perfect. I can carry out my new plan.
Natsuhiko gauged the distance between both sides, then turned his gaze toward Kusunoki beside him.
To be honest, he and Kusunoki had no real grudge between them.
But what Natsuhiko hated most was being used.
From a standpoint of position, Kusunoki hadn't technically done anything wrong.
He was willing to pay any price to complete the mission—even the lives of others.
But Natsuhiko, in truth, had nothing to do with this mission. He hadn't been part of it from the start; he had only come as reinforcements.
Yet Kusunoki had shown no gratitude whatsoever. He had directly classified Natsuhiko as part of the mission and even quietly dragged him into a desperate situation.
If Natsuhiko hadn't had a hidden trump card, he would truly have been in serious trouble this time.
At the end of the day, Natsuhiko wasn't someone who genuinely possessed the "Will of Fire." His loyalties could shift if necessary.
Kusunoki had used him—so naturally, Natsuhiko had no intention of letting him off.
Having already formed this thought, he began calculating what kind of value Kusunoki's situation could create for him.
As he pondered, he suddenly realized that if Kusunoki were to die, it would bring him nothing but advantages.
I have my mission records. Rescuing them can raise my prestige—that was my original intention.
And if Kusunoki dies, it would count as mission failure. But if I bring Kakashi back and make the mission succeed, the boost to my standing would be even greater!
Natsuhiko thought silently as he continued sprinting toward Konoha in Sage Mode.
Besides, Kusunoki is the Division Commander. His death would leave a vacancy.
There aren't many who can compete for the division ommanderposition—and coincidentally, I'm one of them.
Natsuhiko truly was qualified to compete for the Divison Commander position. In terms of service record and mission experience, he fully met the standards.
Even before this mission, his strength had barely reached the required level.
Jōnin was the minimum requirement to become Divison Commander, and Natsuhiko's combat ability had indeed reached Jōnin level—except for one thing: total chakra reserves.
Chakra volume was his weakness. Another weakness was his age.
He was simply too young—only thirteen or fourteen years old. Even with five years of ANBU service, he was still very young.
But with this mission, once I've revealed Lizardmaru, my disadvantages will turn into advantages!
Feeling the earth tremble continuously in the distance, a faint smile curled at Natsuhiko's lips.
He suddenly felt grateful to his Division Commander. If he hadn't gone to investigate Kubisaki Castle, he would never have obtained Lizardmaru!
In terms of strength, Lizardmaru shouldn't be weaker than the summoned beasts of the Three Sannin. I just don't know what would happen in a real fight.
But as a summoned beast created by 'Kishimoto Masashi,' he shouldn't be bad.
And I have a certain connection with Minato Namikaze. My promotion would also benefit him greatly. It seems my chances are quite high.
That connection with Minato Namikaze significantly strengthened Natsuhiko's competitiveness.
And there was another point: his disadvantages could also be reframed as advantages.
He was young and lacked large chakra reserves—but that could simply be attributed to his age.
As he grew older, that weakness would naturally disappear.
Especially now that he possessed Jōnin-level strength and had Lizardmaru, this could easily be viewed as someone worthy of focused cultivation.
And if I really become Division Commander… then Hiruzen Sarutobi probably won't be able to sit still anymore.
...
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