The shockwave from Shin-chan's monstrous strength exploded across the surface of the Iron Sand shield, sending a circular wave of sand surging outward with the two of them at its center.
Using the recoil, Shin-chan flipped backward and landed on a sand dune three meters away.
The deep fist mark left in the Iron Sand shield slowly repaired itself under the influence of magnetic force. Within seconds, its surface was smooth again.
"It's useless," Sasori's voice came from behind the puppet. "The Iron Sand's defenses repair themselves automatically. No matter how strong you are, you can't break through them."
Shin-chan took six kunai from his ninja tool pouch and threw them into the sand around Sasori from different angles.
Sasori's chakra threads suddenly tightened. The Iron Sand pouring from the Third Kazekage puppet's mouth began spinning rapidly before splitting into six spears, each chasing after one of the six kunai.
Shin-chan's figure flashed into existence beside one of the kunai, and he punched the puppet on his left.
The puppet had no time to evade. The mechanism in its chest had only opened halfway when Shin-chan's monstrous strength smashed it apart.
Shin-chan disappeared again amid the flying fragments and appeared beside another kunai.
This time, his target was Sasori himself.
Sasori's frown deepened.
He had to admit that this tactic was extremely troublesome.
There were too many possible destinations marked by the Flying Thunder God Technique, forcing him to defend against multiple directions simultaneously.
And the boy's chakra reserves seemed limitless. After every teleportation, he could immediately follow up with another full-powered punch without showing the slightest trace of exhaustion.
Kakashi seized the opportunity created by Sasori's distraction. Lowering his body until he was almost brushing against the sand, he charged forward.
His target was the Third Kazekage puppet.
Sasori noticed his intention and pulled on his fingers, rapidly withdrawing the Third Kazekage puppet while gathering another wave of Iron Sand spears in its mouth.
But Kakashi was faster.
He had predicted the puppet's retreat path in advance. His short blade spun halfway around in his hand before shifting into a reverse grip, its edge precisely cutting through a control point in the chakra threads.
The Third Kazekage puppet's movements briefly froze.
"Nice one, Kakashi!" Shin-chan landed beside him and pressed his palm against the Third Kazekage puppet.
The patterns of a sealing formula crawled over the puppet's surface, rapidly covering its entire body.
"Seal!"
The Third Kazekage puppet instantly stiffened. The chakra threads connected to its joints were forcibly severed by the sealing technique.
"Flying Thunder God combined with sealing techniques." Sasori's expression darkened. "This method of fighting was specifically designed to counter puppet masters."
Shin-chan shook his head. "It wasn't specifically designed for you. I fight everything this way."
Sasori fell silent for a moment.
That statement somehow felt more unpleasant than any tactical analysis.
It was as if Shin-chan were saying that dealing with him required no special preparation.
Sasori took out a new scroll and unfurled it before him.
"The same tactic will not work twice."
After the white smoke dispersed, twenty puppets of various shapes appeared across the sand at the same time.
As Sasori's fingers danced, all the puppets moved simultaneously.
Shin-chan flashed into existence beside one of his kunai, but the instant he landed, two puppets were already waiting for him.
"The same tactic won't work twice," Sasori's voice came from behind them. "The destinations of your Flying Thunder God Technique are too obvious. All I need to do is watch those kunai to predict your movements."
Shin-chan leaned aside to avoid the sweeping arm blade of one puppet, then punched toward the puppet on his left.
But before his fist arrived, the puppet suddenly disassembled itself.
Its components rearranged themselves in midair, automatically avoiding the path of Shin-chan's fist before reassembling without a scratch.
Shin-chan's fist struck empty air.
"They can do that too?"
"Puppets aren't human. They can be assembled with one another." Sasori moved his fingers slightly, and the reconstructed puppet lunged at Shin-chan again.
Shin-chan threw out more kunai.
Sasori's fingers rapidly moved, sending several puppets to guard the kunai's landing points.
Shin-chan's figure appeared beside the farthest kunai. Before he could throw a punch, two puppets attacked him from both sides.
"I already told you, your Flying Thunder God—"
Sasori's words abruptly stopped.
The Shin-chan who had appeared beside the kunai was struck by an arm blade and instantly vanished in a puff of white smoke.
It was a shadow clone.
Sasori's pupils suddenly contracted. He immediately pulled his chakra threads, bringing two reserve puppets back at high speed to defend him.
But it was already too late.
The real Shin-chan appeared behind him.
There was no kunai and no formula mark.
It was pure taijutsu speed.
"Flying Thunder God isn't the only way to move instantly."
Shin-chan's fist was already swinging forward.
The punch struck Sasori squarely in the abdomen.
Sasori's entire body was blasted away. He tumbled several times through the air before crashing heavily into a sand dune ten meters away.
Shin-chan withdrew his fist. "I can use the Body Flicker Technique too. You were so focused on defending against Flying Thunder God that you forgot about it, right?"
"Interesting."
Sasori threw a smoke bomb hidden inside his sleeve. Poison gas exploded outward together with the smoke.
The thick cloud instantly swallowed the entire sand dune.
Shin-chan instinctively took half a step back. By the time the smoke dispersed, Sasori had vanished into the depths of the desert along with the Third Kazekage puppet.
A message had been assembled on the sand using puppet parts.
The next time we meet, I'll welcome you with an even better masterpiece.
"He got away." Shin-chan sounded a little disappointed. "I wanted to knock him down and then seal him."
"A sealing technique takes time to complete. There wasn't enough time under those circumstances." Kakashi walked over to him.
Shin-chan crouched down and picked up a severed puppet arm.
Its craftsmanship was unbelievably precise. Every finger had its own individual joints.
...
Deep in the desert, Sasori leaned against the foot of a weathered rocky mountain and laid the Third Kazekage puppet flat in front of him.
The remnants of the sealing formula still covered its surface, preventing the chakra threads from transmitting properly.
His abdomen still throbbed faintly.
The force behind that punch had been absurd, and that was after the boy had held back. If Shin-chan had used his full strength, Sasori would probably already be dead.
Nohara Shinnosuke.
He had memorized that name.
Not only because of his strength, but also because of those words.
Will your puppets steal your chashu?
Isn't eating ramen alone lonely?
"..."
It was all nonsense.
Sasori touched the bruised area on his abdomen.
Then why were those words still circling through his mind?
He closed his eyes and reorganized his thoughts.
A puppet master's weakness was far too obvious.
The main body was too fragile.
No matter how powerful the puppets were, once an enemy reached the puppet master himself, he had no way to fight back.
Sasori opened his eyes and looked down at his own hands.
A body of flesh and blood was the most unreliable thing in the world.
Puppets did not bleed.
They did not grow old.
They would not nearly lose the ability to stand simply because they had been punched in the stomach.
If the puppet master's body was the weakness...
Then what if the puppet master turned his own body into a puppet as well?
When that thought appeared in Sasori's mind, he felt no fear.
He even felt as though the idea had existed inside him for a very long time, waiting until today to finally rise from the deepest part of his mind.
"A puppet master has no need for a body of flesh."
Sasori leaned against the rock wall. The puppet's hollow face was reflected in his eyes, as though he could already see what he would become in the future.
No flesh.
No heartbeat.
No aging.
No pain.
Eternity.
"Nohara Shinnosuke." He spoke the name into the empty desert. "The next time we meet, you will see a true work of art."