"Tsk tsk tsk, this is why I said we should've let Kisame handle it!"

Natsuki was thoroughly enjoying the show, only regretting he didn't have sunflower seeds and a drink on hand. He made a mental note to prepare snacks next time.

Deidara and Sasori had already landed after being blown out of the sky. But looking at the remains of his detonated clay bird, Deidara was in a foul mood.

Getting his clay exploded by lava? That kind of art? He refused to acknowledge it!

But for the sake of his own life, he quickly crafted another clay bird and flew off with Sasori.

However, Roshi came flying after them, clearly using Iwagakure's Doton: Chō Keijūgan no Jutsu (Earth Style: Ultra Light-Weight Rock Technique) to fly through the air on his own. Against someone like Deidara who had to rely on clay constructs, aerial combat was no problem for him.

"Damn it! This old man is totally countering my clay art!" Deidara cursed.

"Regretting it now, hmm?" Sasori said flatly. "We shouldn't have gone after the Four-Tails jinchūriki in the first place. This wouldn't have happened."

"Oh, c'mon, Sasori-dono, you agreed too!"

Deidara snapped back, "If Kakuzu hadn't died, we wouldn't have been forced by the boss to take on bounty missions! When we bumped into the jinchūriki, I just suggested capturing him instead to save us the trouble of more work! You're the one who said making money was a waste of time!"

Sasori didn't argue. Instead, he said, "That's why your clay art is inferior. Let me show you."

As he spoke, a puppet's mouth opened to reveal a nozzle. In the next second, a high-pressure water jet shot out, blasting Roshi. The moment the water hit the lava, it turned to steam with an ear-piercing hiss. In no time, Roshi was engulfed in a thick cloud of vapor.

Deidara was fuming when Sasori insulted his art, but seeing how effective the water was, he fell silent.

He consoled himself—it wasn't that his bombs were useless, it's just that explosives and lava didn't pair well. Water naturally countered lava. After all, who tries to bomb lava, right?

"Cough cough! Not bad at all!"

Roshi's voice echoed from within the steam. But before the mist could clear, a massive ape-like figure burst forth—

The full manifestation of the Four-Tails, Son Gokū!

Deidara nearly collapsed. "Oi oi oi! Sasori-dono! You sprayed him once and now he's gone full bijū form!"

Sasori immediately responded, "We're not suited to deal with this. Yōton (Lava Style) is too troublesome. Kisame would be better. We don't have much of a chance now—let's retreat."

Deidara had no complaints. He quickly directed the clay bird to flee.

But Roshi wouldn't let them go so easily. "None of you are leaving alive!"

As he spoke, he opened his mouth and began forming a Bijūdama (Tailed Beast Bomb). The massive, oppressive chakra condensed rapidly, and Deidara's face visibly stiffened.

No matter how artistic his explosions were, there was no way they could outmatch a Bijūdama.

Boom!

The Bijūdama fired, instantly engulfing the clay bird.

It kept flying for several seconds before exploding in a distant mountain range, instantly vaporizing an entire forest and sending birds and beasts fleeing in terror for dozens of miles.

"Damn! One wrong word and this old guy fires a Bijūdama. He's got a serious temper!"

Natsuki continued watching, regretting even more that he didn't bring snacks.

But as the smoke cleared, the two were nowhere to be seen. It seemed they'd been blown to pieces—

Only, Natsuki clearly saw them using Kawarimi no Jutsu (Substitution Technique) in advance. They hadn't been hit at all.

With the show over, Natsuki was ready to leave.

Just then, however, he heard some noise. Kurotsuchi and Akatsuchi had arrived, having recognized the Four-Tails.

"Wait, that's Roshi? What's he doing here? And who was he fighting?" Kurotsuchi and Akatsuchi both gasped.

"Huh? You two... Ōnoki's granddaughter and student?!"

Roshi hadn't seen them since leaving Iwagakure, back when they were still kids. The reminder of Ōnoki left him in a sour mood.

He barked, "Little girl, is your geezer grandpa Ōnoki still alive? What kind of student did he raise? That brat Deidara dared to attack me! What nerve!"

Kurotsuchi was furious at first, but then startled. "Wait—you saw Deidara-nii?!"

That made Roshi even more annoyed. "What Deidara-nii? That little punk's a missing-nin now and dared mess with me. I hit him with a Bijūdama just now—dunno if he's dead or not."

Kurotsuchi's eyes turned red. "How could you... Deidara-nii, he... he..."

But what could she say? That he was her childhood friend? Her beloved senior? That wasn't a reason to spare someone.

Deidara was a missing-nin and had attacked a jinchūriki. Roshi was just defending himself.

All she could do now was silently pray that her Deidara-nii had survived.

Natsuki didn't stick around to watch the drama.

He used Hiraishin no Jutsu (Flying Thunder God Technique) to teleport away, landing in a quiet location where he quickly wrote a report and sent it to Tsunade via Hiraishin. Then he resumed tracking Deidara and Sasori.

His current mission was to confirm the location of Akatsuki's main base, so he couldn't return yet.

That said, the fact that Akatsuki members were attacking Iwagakure's jinchūriki was no small matter—he had to report it.

What Natsuki didn't know was that as soon as Tsunade received the intel, she called for an emergency high-level meeting, where the threat of Akatsuki was formally addressed.

Mitokado Homura and Utatane Koharu were quick to call for a proactive strike.

They argued that since Akatsuki was targeting jinchūriki, it made no sense to stay on defense. Better to gather the full might of Konoha and destroy them before something terrible happened.

The problem was—they didn't even know the enemy's full strength.

So far, the three Akatsuki teams encountered had all been incredibly powerful. They had no idea how many more were out there, nor how strong the leader was.

In that kind of intelligence vacuum, launching an offensive would be reckless—no, downright stupid.

But those two old geezers didn't have to go into battle themselves, so it was easy for them to talk tough.

After much debate, no clear decision was made. Tsunade, being the Hokage, couldn't just act unilaterally either. The matter was too serious, and she didn't have a better plan yet.

She could only hope that more minds would yield better ideas.

After the meeting ended, she summoned Tenten and handed her a note to deliver to Natsuki.

By now it was already night, and when the paper suddenly appeared, Natsuki was deadpan.

"Took them this long to reply? What the hell is Tsunade doing?" he muttered.

And the contents of the note made him even more speechless:

"Continue surveillance. Find Akatsuki's main base."

Seriously? After all that, this was the result of their big strategy meeting?

Might as well not have held it at all...

(End of Chapter)

[Check Out My Patreon For +20 Extra Chapters On All My Fanfics!!][[email protected]/zaelum]

[+500 Power Stones = +1 Extra Chapter]

[Thank You For Your Support!]