The Kumogakure ninja skillfully threw out a huge casting net.
The net spread open rapidly in midair, like a ferocious beast pouncing toward Deidara.
In the blink of an eye, Deidara was tightly trapped inside it.
Even though Deidara struggled with all his might inside the net, the net was extremely tough.
No matter how he twisted his body or tore at the netting, it was completely useless.
In the end, he could only watch helplessly as he was dragged bit by bit down from the sky by the net.
At the same time, the clay bird that Deidara had been controlling lost its master.
It began to wobble unsteadily and finally fell weakly to the ground, but at this moment, no one paid it any attention.
"Haha! Boss! We caught him!"
The Kumogakure ninja were extremely excited, their faces filled with the joy of victory.
After all, they had been bombed into a miserable state by the Mizukage back in their own village, and they had been holding in their anger for a long time.
Now they had finally caught someone who dared to launch a night raid on their camp. And he even looked like a kid who was not very old. How could that not make them feel proud and vindicated?
Amid the cheers, the Raikage, wearing a cloak, walked toward the captured Deidara with steady steps.
When he reached him, the Raikage looked Deidara up and down as he was trapped in the net, and a thought suddenly flashed through his mind.
"This kid looks a bit familiar… Right, he seems to be the disciple of the Third Tsuchikage, Onoki. Strange, how did he end up mixed in with the Akatsuki?"
Thinking of this, the Raikage frowned and stared at Deidara as he asked,
"You're Deidara?"
Deidara raised his head and swept a cold gaze over the guards surrounding him.
He only snorted coldly as his reply.
"So what if I am?"
Seeing Deidara's attitude, a flash of anger passed through the Raikage's eyes, but he quickly calmed down and continued questioning,
"How many people did the Akatsuki send this time?"
At that moment, Cee, who had rushed over from behind the Raikage, shouted a warning at the top of his lungs, "Boss, he's not the real one!"
Hearing this, an extremely eerie smile suddenly appeared on Deidara's previously ordinary face. He let out a strange laugh and said, "Hehehe! Come on and properly experience my perfect art!"
Before the words had even finished, his body began to twist and deform at an astonishing speed, rapidly swelling up.
At the same time, an incomparably intense and violent chakra fluctuation suddenly erupted.
A cold snort sounded, the next moment, a sharp hand blade wrapped in dense Lightning Release chakra energy slammed viciously into Deidara's body.
Pff!
Along with a dull sound, Deidara was like a balloon that had been punctured.
In an instant, he lost all strength and vitality, collapsing limply to the ground.
Immediately after, his body rotted away in the blink of an eye, turning into a pile of lifeless clay.
"What? It was just a clay clone?"
Seeing this scene, the Kumogakure ninja were all shocked, crying out in disbelief.
"Then where is this guy's real body?"
After a brief moment of shock, the Kumogakure ninja quickly came back to their senses and began looking around and searching carefully.
Very soon, they fixed their eyes on the first possible hiding place.
The clay bird that had fallen earlier.
The crowd rushed over in a frenzy, but when they opened up the clay bird, they were shocked to discover, there was actually a hole hidden inside.
"Damn it, that bastard actually got away just like that!"
A Kumogakure ninja cursed angrily, then turned to look at the Raikage who had just arrived and asked anxiously,
"Boss, should we chase after him?"
For a moment, the other Kumogakure ninja also clamored noisily, all turning their gazes toward the Raikage and waiting for his decision.
The Raikage did not answer his subordinates right away. Instead, he turned his head to look at Cee standing to the side.
Cee slowly shook his head, indicating that he did not agree with pursuing.
"He should have burrowed underground the moment he hit the ground. There's no way to track his position now."
The Raikage waved his hand and said in a deep voice, "Forget it. Don't continue the pursuit. Everyone rest and regroup here for now."
If conditions allowed, he naturally did not want to let Deidara, that hateful bastard, escape so easily.
But after being repeatedly ambushed by the enemy earlier, he was truly on edge.
Moreover, Killer B was still injured, and it was already deep into the night, pitch-black all around.
If they acted rashly and fell into another carefully laid enemy trap, the losses would outweigh the gains.
On the ground not far from the Kumogakure camp, a faint sound suddenly rang out.
Immediately after, the ground burst open, and a yellow-haired figure broke out from beneath the earth.
This person was none other than Deidara, who had just used the Earth Dragon Concealment Technique to escape right under the Kumogakure ninja's noses.
After emerging from the ground, Deidara first took several deep breaths before slowly standing up.
He reached out and lightly brushed off the dirt and grit that stuck to his body.
The expression on his face was rather complicated.
It turned out that the final clay clone he had left behind during his escape had not exploded as planned.
Clearly, this was once again due to the opponent's Lightning Release ninjutsu strongly countering it.
He had wanted to make a big bang, but instead ended up making a big mess.
A trace of frustration rose in Deidara's heart.
After this experience, Deidara clearly realized that he could no longer rely solely on his usual tactics.
It seemed it was time to use his brain more and try some new variations and strategies.
Especially when it came to Dust Release, he needed to start improving it as soon as possible.
Of course, as for the explosive clay that marked the starting point of his art, there was no way he would ever give that up lightly.
Deidara skillfully kneaded his hands, and a lump of clay quickly took shape in his palms. In the blink of an eye, a clay bird was born.
He lightly waved his arm, and the clay bird carried him into the air, speeding back along the way he had come.
While the clay bird was on its return path, Deidara suddenly caught sight of a black silhouette rapidly approaching in the distance.
Looking more closely, it turned out to be the Third Kazekage puppet carrying Sasori, rushing toward him.
Sasori's face was expressionless, but when he saw Deidara's slightly disheveled, dust-covered appearance, he did not say a single word.
He simply controlled the Third Kazekage puppet to make a nimble turn in midair and, without hesitation, headed back the way he came.
Yet the gloom that had just welled up in Deidara's heart instantly vanished without a trace.
═❀═❀═❀═❀═❀═❀═
[email protected]/AmbitiousTranslator
🥳Joining P@treon keeps me motivated and eager to work diligently, so please consider joining.🥰 You can access upto 20 advance chapter through P@treon.