"Yamaguchi Kiyosuke Shock Value +300."
"This brat's got some skills, huh." Yamaguchi Kiyosuke emerged from the shadows, completely unharmed. As an experienced ninja, it was impossible for him to recklessly charge in with his real body during the first exchange without fully understanding his opponent's abilities.
So, just like Deidara, when the Clay Spiders exploded and the dust obscured the battlefield, he had made the same choice—creating a Clone.
However, while the exchange just now had been impressive, to the other four individuals present, it was nothing more than child's play. None of them were remotely shocked.
"Since the fight is over, let's move on to business," Pain's colorful projection spoke.
"There's a rogue ninja group in Takigakure that's one of our organization's targets. Sasori, Deidara, I'm assigning this mission to you."
"Another one of these trivial tasks?" Sasori grumbled, clearly displeased.
"Leave it to us. This is the perfect chance for them to witness my art. Hm!" Deidara, on the other hand, was eager. It was an excellent opportunity to gain experience and level up his abilities.
"Deidara, true art is eternal!" Sasori emphasized.
"Brother Sasori, fleeting beauty is the real essence of art!"
As the two bickered, Kisame Hoshigaki chuckled with amusement in the background. "What an energetic rookie!"
"Let's get going too, Itachi-san," Kisame said, turning to his partner.
The target of Deidara and Sasori's mission was a rogue ninja group led by a former Kumogakure ninja named Gokuda Taichi. He had gathered a group of underlings and was beginning to establish his influence in the Land of Waterfalls. Since Takigakure itself was relatively weak, it couldn't do much to stop this group of outsiders who were acting like kings on their land. They had no choice but to let these rogue ninjas run rampant.
When Deidara and Sasori arrived at the rogue ninjas' camp as marked in the intelligence report, neither of them showed any interest in reconnaissance. Deidara wasn't skilled in scouting, and Sasori simply couldn't be bothered. At his level, there were very few places outside the Five Great Shinobi Nations that he couldn't walk into freely.
"Brother Sasori, leave this mission to me," Deidara suggested.
"Deidara, you know I hate waiting for others, right?" Sasori replied, showing no interest in dealing with such weak opponents. Naturally, he was happy to let Deidara handle it.
"Of course, Brother Sasori. Just sit back and watch!"
Deidara reached into his clay pouch with his right hand and crafted a batch of Clay Locusts. Using the cover of the forest, the small white insects quietly hopped forward.
"What's that?" A rogue ninja on patrol noticed a white Clay Locust that had landed on his shoulder and was startled.
"Idiot! Get it off you, quick!" his companion shouted in alarm. Regardless of what it was, keeping a safe distance from unknown objects was always the best course of action.
"There are too many of them! Wait, you've got one on you too!"
Too late!
"Art is an explosion! Hah!"
"Boom!" The two rogue ninjas were instantly reduced to ashes.
"Furuya Mitsu Shock Value +100." "Hikari Shō Shock Value +100."
"Only this much Shock Value for killing them? It seems the strength of the target heavily influences the amount of Shock Value gained," Deidara muttered.
"What's going on?!" The rogue ninja camp erupted into chaos, clearly alerted by the commotion.
"Be careful! There might be more traps!" Six rogue ninjas of varying appearances rushed out. Leading them was a middle-aged man with dark yellow skin and a slashed Kumogakure headband. He was undoubtedly the leader of the group, Gokuda Taichi.
"Lord Taichi, Furuya Mitsu and Hikari Shō are probably dead," one of the rogue ninjas reported gravely, holding up a tattered headband he had picked up from the ground.
"There! The enemy is over there!" One of the rogue ninjas spotted Sasori in the distance.
"Is it just one person?" Gokuda Taichi frowned, his expression dark as he pondered the situation.
"Doesn't matter. Let's take care of this one first!" Two young rogue ninjas, not cautious enough, charged at the motionless Sasori with kunai in hand.
"Idiots! Don't be reckless! We haven't even checked for traps!" Gokuda Taichi shouted angrily from behind.
But it was too late. Just as the two young rogue ninjas stepped onto the branch of a large tree, a swarm of white Clay Spiders suddenly leapt out from the underside of the branch and latched onto their legs.
"Hah!" With a soft exclamation, the white Clay Spiders transformed into deadly bombs, sending the two ninjas straight to the afterlife.
"Mizubayashi Ningen Shock Value +100." "Sugi Jirō Shock Value +100." "Gokuda Taichi Shock Value +100."
A string of Shock Value notifications rang in Deidara's mind, netting him over 300 points. Combined with the previous 500 points, he was now on the verge of leveling up.
"So there's still another enemy? That person over there is just a decoy!" Gokuda Taichi's face darkened, though not because of the loss of his subordinates. As a ruthless rogue ninja, his underlings were nothing more than expendable pawns to him. If they died, he could always recruit more. There was nothing to mourn.
What worried him was the current situation. His side had already lost four people, yet the enemy's true position remained unknown. In this battle of ninjas, he was now at an absolute disadvantage.
Where are they? Where are they? Gokuda Taichi stood at the center of his remaining three subordinates, forming a simple but effective defensive formation. He scanned the surroundings constantly, trying to locate the hidden enemy.
"Watch out!" A warning came from behind Gokuda Taichi. He quickly turned around to see several white Clay Birds, each the size of a human head, speeding toward him with incredible velocity.
More of those white explosives? Gokuda Taichi was alarmed. The small spiders from earlier had already demonstrated a power comparable to explosive tags. If these much larger Clay Birds were to detonate, the results would be catastrophic. He couldn't allow them to get close.
"Lightning Release: Lightning Flash Shuriken!" Gokuda Taichi infused his shuriken with Lightning Release chakra and hurled them, pinning the Clay Birds to a large tree behind them.
"Tch! Damn Lightning Release!" Deidara grumbled in frustration. The fact that his clay bombs were completely countered by Lightning Release was a constant annoyance.
"Found you!" Gokuda Taichi leapt to the treetops, finally spotting Deidara, who was flying on a Large Clay Bird.
An enemy with flight capabilities? This is troublesome. Even so, Gokuda Taichi had no intention of surrendering. In the ninja world, surrender wasn't an option. A captured ninja was as good as dead.
"Lightning Release: Lightning Spear!" Gokuda Taichi quickly formed a series of hand seals, summoning five or six long spears made entirely of lightning that shot toward Deidara in the air.
"Too slow! You should worry about your subordinates first! Hah!" Deidara taunted. Against ordinary ninjas, having an aerial advantage was practically cheating—it placed him in an unassailable position.
Damn it! Gokuda Taichi was alarmed, but before he could react, explosions and screams erupted from below. Without their leader to hold the line, the remaining subordinates—mere chūnin-level ninjas—stood no chance against Deidara's Clay Bombs.
Another 300 Shock Value points gained—Deidara leveled up! However, he decided to deal with the enemy in front of him first.
"It's just you now. What's your plan? Hm!"