Boom!
The Tailed Beast Ball slammed into the Iron Sand Wall, creating a massive dent before erupting into a thunderous explosion. Unlike Deidara's clay bombs, the Tailed Beast Ball's explosion was infused with immense chakra, delivering both physical and magical damage.
A powerful shockwave mixed with chakra swept past the three figures behind the Iron Sand Wall. Deidara's golden hair and Akatsuki robe billowed wildly in the air as he reached into his clay pouch, preparing for a big move.
"Deidara! Stay out of this fight! The Eight-Tails is mine," Sasori's raspy voice carried decisively through the wind, distorted but unmistakable in its resolve.
"Tch!" Deidara reluctantly withdrew his hands, not just because of the awakened battle instinct coursing through him but also because fighting the Eight-Tails would undoubtedly generate a significant amount of Shock Value.
Still, since Sasori insisted, there was no choice but to step back. After all, there would be plenty of battles in the future—especially once the Akatsuki officially began its operations. At that point, they'd be fighting against the entire ninja world, leaving no shortage of opportunities to level up.
"Two weirdly dressed fools! Killer B will play with you! Yeah! Uh-huh!"
Following the peculiar rhythm was a semi-tailed beastified Jinchūriki sprinting across the ocean surface. Eight crimson chakra tails whipped wildly behind him, radiating an overwhelming sense of pressure.
"He's much stronger than the Seven-Tails from last time," Deidara remarked from the rear. Among the Tailed Beasts, the Eight-Tails was far more powerful than the Seven-Tails. Moreover, Killer B was already in an eight-tail state, whereas the Seven-Tails' Jinchūriki had only managed four tails during their previous encounter.
Sasori was likely in for a tough fight. Even with the Third Kazekage Puppet, handling this situation would be challenging.
"Magnet Release: Iron Sand Drizzle!"
In midair, the black iron sand transformed into countless slender needles, densely packed like a storm and moving at bullet-like speed. A dark cloud of needles surged toward the charging Killer B.
"That stings! But it's like a woman's fingers—completely useless! Fool! Ya fool!"
The Iron Sand Drizzle struck Killer B's body but failed to penetrate his tailed beast cloak. It merely caused him some discomfort.
"Die! Take this! Woohoo!"
With a wild cry, Killer B lunged at Sasori, his right hand—transformed into claws under the tailed beast cloak—striking Hiruko with overwhelming force. The impact sent Hiruko flying.
"And there's a small fry left! Let Lord B send you to the afterlife!" Killer B shouted as he charged toward Deidara.
"Magnet Release: Iron Sand World Method!"
But Sasori wasn't about to let Killer B touch Deidara—not when that would imply the failure of Sasori of the Red Sand himself.
Controlling Hiruko as it returned to the water's surface, Sasori immediately deployed one of the Third Kazekage Puppet's most renowned techniques. The iron sand formed massive spikes that continuously stabbed downward, creating an irregular iron sand sealing network—the most restrictive formation among all Iron Sand techniques.
Slash! Slash!
The spikes relentlessly struck Killer B's body. Even with the tailed beast cloak shielding him, he couldn't entirely ignore the attacks. In mere moments, his body bore numerous wounds, though they were quickly healed by the Eight-Tails' chakra. Still, this wasn't a sustainable approach.
Roar! Killer B let out a beast-like roar, his semi-rampaging state evident.
"Watch me smash it! Fool! Ya fool!"
His clawed hands struck repeatedly, smashing the iron sand pillars in front of him. As his claws hit the water's surface, they sent violent sprays of water soaring several meters—sometimes even ten meters—into the air.
But it was futile. The iron sand pillars were composed of countless tiny particles of iron sand. No matter how many times they were smashed, they would always reform, returning to their original state.
Roar!
"Lord Killer B is angry!" Seeing his attacks fail, Killer B unleashed another Tailed Beast Ball, blasting through the entire Iron Sand World Method and leaping out of the formation, heading straight for Hiruko.
Sasori remained unfazed. As Hiruko held a black turtle shell, the Iron Sand World Method behind them disassembled into massive iron sand columns that began striking Killer B in a primitive yet effective manner.
"Ouch! Ouch! Ouch! Ouch! Ouch!"
"You fool! Ya fool!" Killer B, still unharmed, climbed back up from the distant ocean surface and charged again in a frenzy.
Sasori grew impatient. He hadn't expected the Eight-Tails Jinchūriki's defenses to be this formidable. His Magnet Release attacks couldn't inflict fatal damage on Killer B.
He'd have to use his ultimate move.
The Third Kazekage Puppet, hovering in midair, clapped its hands together as if preparing for a devastating technique. The black iron sand floating above transformed into a massive, sharp triangular prism, hurtling toward the rampaging Killer B with incredible force.
Roar! Ahh!
The triangular prism struck Killer B square in the chest, causing him to let out a pained roar. His wild charge came to an abrupt halt as the sharp prism pushed him backward at an even greater speed.
Still not enough to break through his defenses? Then let's add rotation!
"Lord B!" On Giant Turtle Island, the sensory ninjas monitoring the battle couldn't help but shout, their faces filled with disbelief.
"What happened to B?" Motoi's heart sank with a sense of foreboding.
"Lord B… Lord B seems to have been defeated by the enemy!" one sensory ninja stammered, trembling.
"Impossible! B is already semi-tailed beastified! Even if Lord Raikage himself came, it would take a monumental effort to defeat him. How could he lose so easily?" Motoi's voice carried both doubt and an attempt to reassure himself.
"It's true. Lord B…" another sensory ninja, Damoi, confirmed.
"Wait! Look over there!" Suddenly, a Kumogakure ninja pointed toward the distant ocean. A massive bull-like creature with octopus tentacles loomed there, laughing maniacally and releasing an overwhelming amount of chakra.
"It's bad—Eight-Tails has completely lost control!" one Kumogakure ninja exclaimed.
Motoi's expression turned complex. The good news was that Killer B had temporarily regained his combat strength, now even stronger than before. The bad news was that the Eight-Tails had completely lost control. With the Fourth Raikage absent, there was no one capable of suppressing the Eight-Tails. It wouldn't be long before the seal was completely broken, and Killer B would perish as well.
"Success. The Eight-Tails Jinchūriki is mine," Sasori declared calmly, watching Killer B fall, defeated by the Third Kazekage Puppet.
No! Don't say that!
Deidara covered his face in frustration. This was one of the fundamental rules of the Naruto world—like the laws of plot armor, Fire Release's inability to kill, or the master-killing trope. Such declarations were absolute taboos!
Sure enough, moments later, an even more violent chakra erupted in the distance. The suffocating pressure made the air feel heavy, as if breathing itself had become impossible. After all, this was the second strongest Tailed Beast after the Nine-Tails—the Eight-Tails Gyūki!