Chương 327: 323
The Hidden Sand puppet master stood tall on the battlefield, his imposing figure a striking contrast to the intricate craft of puppetry he wielded. In his early thirties, he was a burly man with thick, muscular arms, each movement exuding power as he manipulated his strings with practiced precision. His sleeveless tan cloak hung loosely over his broad shoulders, revealing the faint scars etched into his tanned skin, remnants of countless battles. A neatly trimmed beard framed his square jaw, his sharp amber eyes scanning the battlefield with a predator's intensity. His black hair, cropped close to his scalp, was dusted with sand and sweat, blending into the harsh desert environment. A large, worn scroll was strapped to his back, the fraying edges a testament to years of use and countless deadly encounters.
Before him towered Glum, his grotesque masterpiece. The puppet stood nearly eight feet tall, its form an exaggerated, bloated humanoid figure. Its rounded, oversized head had hollow eyes and a permanently grinning mouth carved into the wooden face, giving it a mockingly jovial appearance. The puppet's massive stomach bulged unnaturally, segmented like the shell of an insect. At a flick of the puppet master's fingers, the stomach split open, revealing a gaping cavity lined with jagged chains that slithered like serpents. Each chain gleamed faintly with poison, their metallic surfaces slick with a substance meant to paralyze and incapacitate.
The battlefield was a chaotic expanse of torn earth and rising poison gas, the latter seeping across the ground in an ominous green haze. The six Leaf shinobi were spread out in a loose formation, their movements sluggish as the gas began to take hold. The puppet master's concoction wasn't lethal— He couldn't risk poisoning himself, it needed to be a toned down poison so he himself could be resistant to it. But the gas was enough to slow his enemies, weakening their reactions and clouding their senses.
At the center of the group was their leader, a young man with jet-black hair and crimson eyes that burned with the distinctive glow of a two-tomoe Sharingan. His gaze darted between the puppet and the battlefield, the intricate movements of his eyes betraying his struggle to predict Glum's erratic attacks. His voice rang out as he barked orders, trying to rally his team while dodging the relentless assault of chains snapping through the air.
The Hidden Sand puppet master flicked his fingers, and with a groaning creak, Glum's segmented stomach opened wide, revealing its grotesque interior. Chains erupted from the gaping maw, dozens of them, each tipped with razor-sharp points that gleamed like polished spears. The chains shot forward with terrifying speed, cutting through the poison-filled air like metallic serpents, aimed at the scattered Leaf shinobi.
The first chain whipped toward the Uchiha leading the group, its spear-like tip slicing through the haze. He leapt to the side, his Sharingan spinning furiously as he barely avoided the strike, the chain slamming into the ground where he had stood and sending up a spray of dirt and shattered rock.
The Uchiha's crimson eyes flared as he barked orders to his team. "Stay mobile! Don't let them corner you!"
Another chain snapped toward a kunoichi, its spear-like tip cutting through the poison-laden air with a sinister whistle. She dropped low at the last second, her hair whipping upward from the force of the chain's near miss. The tip buried itself in the ground behind her with a sharp thunk, kicking up dirt and shards of rock.
Without hesitation, she flipped backward, her body twisting through the haze. Her landing was shaky, her legs trembling from the poison sapping her strength, but she recovered just in time to see two more chains slicing toward her from opposite angles.
Her chakra flared as she leapt into the air, her movements sharp but slowing slightly under the effects of the gas. One chain passed harmlessly beneath her, but the second moved unpredictably, curving mid-flight. She twisted desperately, her chakra surging as she pushed her body to its limits. The chain's tip scraped along her arm, the jagged edge slicing through her sleeve and biting into her flesh. A thin line of blood appeared, the crimson stark against her pale skin, and she grimaced, landing unsteadily as she clutched her arm.
The puppet master grinned, his sharp amber eyes tracking her every move as his fingers danced in the air. Glum's chains moved like living creatures, their metallic lengths weaving through the battlefield with deadly intent. The poison fog curling around them added to their menace, distorting their movements and making them harder to anticipate.
Every strike was precise, calculated, as if the puppet master were orchestrating a deadly symphony. Each shinobi was forced to dodge, reposition, and scramble, their movements erratic under the combined pressure of the chains and the lingering effects of the gas. The poison slowed them just enough to make their reflexes unreliable, their evasion more desperate.
A young male shinobi, his face tense with concentration, made his move. His fingers flashed through seals before hurling a flurry of kunai, each one glowing faintly with chakra. The projectiles arced through the haze, their trajectories sharp and deliberate, aimed for Glum's exposed joints.
But the puppet master responded instantly, his fingers twitching with precision. Two chains shot out, their razor-tipped ends gleaming as they struck the kunai mid-flight. The sharp clang of metal on metal rang out as the kunai were deflected, spinning off harmlessly into the haze.
Before the shinobi could react, another chain lunged for him. It came fast, the spear-like tip aimed directly for his chest. The shinobi's eyes widened as he dove to the side, barely escaping the deadly strike. The chain's tip grazed his flank, tearing through his flak jacket and leaving a shallow cut along his ribs. He landed hard, his body rolling across the dirt as the chain slammed into a nearby tree with a resounding crack.
The tree shuddered under the impact, its thick trunk splitting down the middle as chunks of wood rained to the ground. The shinobi scrambled to his feet, his breathing ragged as he clutched his side.
The puppet master's grin widened, his confidence growing as he continued to orchestrate Glum's relentless assault. His fingers moved rapidly, the chains responding like extensions of his own body, their deadly tips slicing through the battlefield with mechanical precision. The Leaf shinobi were on the defensive, their every move dictated by the unpredictable and overwhelming force of Glum's chains.
But Glum's chains weren't giving them a moment's respite. They lashed out in relentless waves, slicing through the poison-thick air with a metallic shriek. The spear-tipped points struck with precision, embedding themselves into trees and the ground before retracting for another strike. One chain slammed into a nearby boulder, shattering it with a deafening crack. The fragments exploded outward like jagged shrapnel, catching one shinobi in the leg. He stumbled with a grunt of pain, blood streaming from the wound as he struggled to regain his footing.
The puppet master's grin widened, his amber eyes gleaming with malicious satisfaction. His fingers twitched sharply, and Glum's chains moved in perfect sync, their segmented lengths undulating like serpents through the haze. One chain swept low across the battlefield, its spear-like tip gleaming as it targeted an unsuspecting shinobi mid-step.
"Watch out!" the kunoichi screamed, her voice cutting through the chaos, but it was too late.
The chain struck true, piercing through the shinobi's thigh with a sickening crunch of metal meeting flesh. His scream tore through the battlefield as he fell to the ground, clutching at his leg. The chain retracted slightly before the spear tip split apart with a mechanical click, transforming into a vicious grappling hook. The jagged edges burrowed deeper into his muscle, locking into place with a grisly squelch.
The shinobi's screams pierced the chaos as he fought desperately against the chain dragging him toward that horrifying maw. His fingers clawed at the dirt, his nails splitting and tearing as he dug deep trenches in the ground in a futile effort to stop his momentum. "No! No! Please!" he wailed, his voice raw with terror, breaking into high-pitched sobs as panic consumed him.
He tried to twist his body, his chakra flaring weakly in a last-ditch effort to break the chain's hold, but the jagged grappling hook embedded in his thigh only tore deeper. Blood gushed from the wound, pooling beneath him in dark, spreading stains. His leg kicked wildly, the pain radiating up his body in unbearable waves, yet the chain didn't relent.
"Help me!" he screamed, his head jerking to look at his teammates, his tear-streaked face a mask of desperation. "Don't let it take me!"
The monstrous puppet's segmented belly creaked open, revealing the jagged, hollow interior lined with metallic teeth. The shinobi struggled desperately, digging his fingers into the dirt to stop his momentum, but the chain's pull was relentless.
With a final, vicious tug, the shinobi was lifted off the ground entirely. Then another chain speared through his chest, bursting out the other side with a spray of blood that spattered across the battlefield. His eyes widened in shock, his body convulsing as the chain reeled him in.
The kunoichi tried to act, her chakra surging as she hurled a blade toward the chain, but another lash snapped through the air, deflecting her attack with ease. The shinobi's blood-soaked body dangled lifelessly as the chain dragged him the rest of the way, pulling him into Glum's grotesque stomach.
The metallic jaws slammed shut with a reverberating clang, muffling the final, wet gasp from inside. The puppet master exhaled slowly, a wicked smirk curling across his face as he felt the stolen chakra flood into his veins. It surged like fire through his body, energizing him, amplifying his every movement.
The puppet master stood tall, his chest heaving as the chakra stolen from his latest victim surged through his body. His veins pulsed with vibrant energy, the power filling him to the brim and spilling over. The grin on his face widened as he raised his hands, ready to unleash the full extent of his overwhelming strength.
"Let's see how you handle this," he muttered, his voice carrying an edge of sadistic glee as he formed a rapid series of seals.
"Boulder Comet Jutsu!"
The ground beneath him trembled violently, cracks spiderwebbing outward as his chakra poured into the earth. With a deafening roar, massive boulders erupted from the ground, jagged and irregular, each one easily the size of a fully-grown man. The earth quaked with each stone's emergence, dust and debris billowing into the air, obscuring the already poisoned battlefield.
The puppet master's fingers twitched, and the first ten boulders lifted into the air as though weightless, floating above him in a perfect arc. Their jagged edges glinted ominously in the muted light, their surfaces coated with the dirt and rock torn from the earth.
With a sharp motion of his hands, he sent the boulders hurtling forward.
The sheer force of the jutsu was overwhelming. Each boulder streaked through the air like a meteor, trailing debris and leaving ripples of displaced air in their wake. The first crashed into the ground where a Leaf shinobi had stood moments before, creating an explosion of rock and dust that sent shockwaves rippling outward. The impact shattered the earth, sending jagged fragments flying like shrapnel, forcing the shinobi to scatter.
Two more boulders followed immediately, their paths crisscrossing in mid-air before slamming into the battlefield. One struck a tree, the massive trunk splintering into pieces before collapsing with a thunderous crash. The other embedded itself into the ground, leaving a crater large enough to swallow several shinobi whole.
The puppet master barely paused before summoning more. Another ten boulders tore free from the earth, rising effortlessly under his control. His fingers moved with precise, practiced ease, directing the stones like extensions of his own body. The stolen chakra in his reserves made the effort trivial—he could keep this up all day as long as their was prey for glum to devour.
The Leaf shinobi struggled to counter. The Uchiha leader's crimson Sharingan spun furiously as he tracked the incoming projectiles, his voice cutting through the chaos as he shouted orders to his team.
"Move! Don't stay in one place!"
But the puppet master wasn't giving them a moment's respite. He hurled the next set of boulders with even greater force, his control so precise that they came in staggered waves, giving his opponents no chance to recover. One boulder streaked toward the kunoichi, forcing her to dive into a roll just as it slammed into the ground behind her, sending a plume of dirt and stone flying. Another boulder arced toward a shinobi scrambling for cover, the sheer speed of its descent too fast to evade entirely. It struck near his feet, the shockwave knocking him off balance and sending him sprawling.
"Is that all you've got?" the puppet master taunted, his voice booming as he raised his hands again.
This time, he lifted the boulders with a dramatic flourish, not ten but twelve of them rising simultaneously, their jagged surfaces glowing faintly from the residual chakra imbued in them. With a sharp motion, he sent them scattering in all directions, their trajectories overlapping in a deadly rain of destruction.
The ground shook violently as the boulders struck, craters forming one after another in quick succession. Trees were uprooted, and the battlefield became an unrecognizable wasteland of debris and shattered rock. The Leaf shinobi dodged desperately, their movements frantic as they avoided the deadly projectiles by inches.
But the puppet master wasn't finished. He didn't need time to recover; the chakra flowing through him made the technique effortless. With a satisfied smirk, he summoned another wave of boulders, the earth trembling again as ten more tore free from the ground, their jagged edges sharper and more imposing than before.
He twirled his fingers, and the boulders hovered in mid-air, rotating slowly as if waiting for his command. With a flick of his wrists, he sent them flying forward in unison, their combined force creating a deafening roar as they hurtled toward the Leaf shinobi.
The puppet master's precision was unmatched. Each boulder moved as though guided by an invisible string, curving mid-flight to track his targets with terrifying accuracy. He grinned as one slammed into the ground beside a shinobi, the impact sending the man flying like a ragdoll. Another struck a defensive wall the Uchiha had conjured, shattering it instantly and forcing him to retreat.
The puppet master stood at the center of his chaos, his burly frame silhouetted against the devastation he had wrought. The ground around him was a shattered wasteland of craters, uprooted trees, and jagged debris. The Leaf shinobi were scattered, their breaths labored as they struggled to keep up with the relentless onslaught.
With another dramatic motion of his hands, he summoned yet another wave of boulders, the ground groaning as massive stones tore free from the earth. They hovered above him, their jagged edges gleaming faintly with residual chakra.
The puppet master chuckled darkly, his fingers twitching with precision as he directed the boulders into the air. "Let's see how long you can dance!" he bellowed, his voice echoing across the battlefield.
He hurled the boulders forward, their sheer force splitting the air with deafening roars. As they crashed down, shaking the earth and sending debris flying, the puppet master threw his head back and laughed deeply, heartily, reveling in the destruction.
But his laughter was abruptly cut off.
"Mind if I cut in?"
The voice was calm, almost conversational, but it carried a weight that made the puppet master's blood run cold. He froze, his eyes narrowing as he scanned the battlefield.
From the swirling haze of dust and poison, a figure stepped forward, his appearance stark against the chaotic backdrop. He wore simple black pants and a matching shirt, both crisp and unblemished, as if untouched by the battlefield's violence. A gray ninja vest was strapped tightly over his torso, its clean lines and pristine condition suggesting it was newly issued.
But it was the mask that captured all attention—a smooth red surface, freshly polished, with no eye slots to hint at how he could see. Its blank, featureless design carried an unsettling presence, standing out as an enigma against the war-torn landscape. Each step he took was deliberate, his movements precise, as though nothing in the surrounding carnage could disturb his focus. The absence of visible eyes made him all the more unnerving, leaving an impression of someone who saw far more than he should.
The puppet master's fingers twitched slightly, and his lips curled into a wary snarl. The unsettling figure continued to advance slowly, his posture unnervingly relaxed despite the devastation around him.
The battlefield fell silent as the red-masked shinobi stopped, tilting his head slightly as if assessing the puppet master.
The puppet master's grin faltered for the first time.
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