Chapter 51: He's The One Who Massacred Our Village
"Hey!"
Deidara's roar cut through the howling desert wind, his eyes blazing as he gripped Hasumi Maki's wrist with a vice-like hold. "Hasumi Maki! I said no interfering! The Ichibi is mine, un!"
In Maki's hand gleamed several shuriken, each etched with a Flying Thunder God Seal, glinting ominously under the moonlight.
Despite Deidara's outburst and the iron grip on his wrist, Maki's face remained serene, like a still pond untouched by the storm. He met Deidara's glare with a faint, unbothered smile. "Oh."
So what?
Deidara's face darkened, his teeth grinding audibly. "I told you, the Ichibi is my prey, un! Nobody's taking it!" With a snarl, he flung Maki's hand away.
Maki's hand hovered briefly before lowering, his head tilting slightly. That faint smile lingered, but his eyes gleamed with a chilling, predatory coldness, sharp as a blade slicing through Deidara's bravado. A shiver ran down Deidara's spine, his instincts screaming danger.
Slap!
Maki's hand lashed out, swift as a viper, striking Deidara's cheek with a deceptively light touch. The force behind it was monstrous, snapping Deidara's head to the side. His cheek swelled instantly, a trickle of blood oozing from his mouth.
Deidara's eyes widened, stunned. He hadn't seen it coming. Clutching his face, he stared at Maki, humiliation burning hotter than his bombs. This lunatic… he actually hit me!
Maki stood motionless, his expression blank, as if he'd done nothing more than swat a fly.
Deidara wiped the blood from his lips, his gaze igniting with fury. "You—"
"I don't like disobedient children," Maki interrupted, his voice soft but dripping with menace, like a blade hidden in silk. His hand grazed Deidara's swollen cheek, the gesture almost tender, mocking in its gentleness.
Then—
Boom!
Deidara's right arm exploded in a gory spray of flesh and blood, the blast echoing across the desert. Yet, in less than a minute, the mangled limb knitted itself back together, whole and unscarred.
[Ding!]
[Human Malice Value detected: +10,000!]
[Cursed Energy converted to Chakra: +10,000!]
[Chakra (28,567,700 / 100,000,000)]
Maki's smile widened, a twisted, gleeful curve that sent a chill through the air. He patted Deidara's cheek again, the touch deceptively light. "Good boy."
Deidara's pupils shrank to pinpricks, his body rigid, paralyzed by the sheer audacity of Maki's cruelty. Lunatic!
[Ding!]
[Human Malice Value detected: +10,000!]
[Cursed Energy converted to Chakra: +10,000!]
[Chakra (28,577,700 / 100,000,000)]
With a flick of his wrist, Maki sent a rain of Flying Thunder God-marked shuriken scattering across Sunagakure. In a blink, his figure vanished, as if the desert itself had swallowed him whole, his speed outpacing perception.
Slap! Slap! Slap!
The crisp sound of his palms meeting flesh rang out, each touch light, almost playful. But the Sunagakure shinobi he grazed didn't have time to register the lack of pain. Within three seconds, horror unfolded.
Their bodies twisted, contorting into grotesque, unrecognizable shapes. Faces warped into nightmarish masks, eyes bulging, mouths stretching into unnatural grins. Sanity drained from them, replaced by primal, bloodthirsty rage. These once-human shinobi turned on their comrades, low growls rumbling as they tore through the village like rabid beasts.
Sunagakure erupted into pandemonium. Villagers screamed, fleeing in all directions as their former protectors became monsters, clawing and biting without mercy. Blood stained the sand, the air thick with the stench of death and despair.
[Ding!]
[Human Malice Value detected: +10,000!]
[Cursed Energy converted to Chakra: +10,000!]
[Chakra (28,587,700 / 100,000,000)]
[Ding!]
[Human Malice Value detected: +5,000!]
[Cursed Energy converted to Chakra: +5,000!]
[Chakra (28,592,700 / 100,000,000)]
[Ding!]
[Human Malice Value detected: +3,000!]
[Cursed Energy converted to Chakra: +3,000!]
[Chakra (28,595,700 / 100,000,000)]
.
.
.
The system's notifications pinged relentlessly in Maki's mind, each one fueling his twisted satisfaction.
Sand surged, wrapping tightly around Maki's ankles. In the distance, Gaara's bloodshot eyes locked onto him, his face a mask of grim determination.
"Sand Waterfall Imperial Funeral!"
Whoosh!
Maki vanished, leaving Gaara's attack to crush empty sand. He reappeared atop the clay bird, his smile unfaltering.
"Fight well, now," Maki said, his voice soft but laced with sadistic glee. In his hand, a writhing shadow pulsed, spawning a horde of transfigured humans. They poured from his grasp like a plague, a writhing mass of grotesque forms lunging toward Sunagakure's crowds.
[Ding!]
[Human Malice Value detected: +1,000,000!]
[Cursed Energy converted to Chakra: +1,000,000!]
[Chakra (30,017,000 / 100,000,000)]
The thirty-million mark broke, a milestone Maki savored. But Sunagakure's despair wasn't enough. If this were Konoha, his Cursed Energy would've skyrocketed past fifty million.
"Ahhh!"
"Yuki! Stop—it's me!"
"Why are you attacking us?!"
Screams filled the air as the transfigured monsters pounced, tearing into their former comrades with feral savagery. Blood pooled, staining the sand crimson.
"No! Don't kill me!" a young shinobi wailed, his plea drowned by the chaos.
"What's happening?! We're all Sunagakure shinobi!" an older ninja shouted, his voice cracking with disbelief.
Maki stood high above, his cold gaze sweeping the slaughter below, his expression devoid of pity, only a twisted curiosity.
"Alright, little Dei, take care of Gaara," he said, patting Deidara's head with mock affection.
[Ding!]
[Human Malice Value detected: +5,000!]
[Cursed Energy converted to Chakra: +5,000!]
[Chakra (30,022,000 / 100,000,000)]
Deidara's heart chilled, but the sight of the weakened Jinchuriki below ignited his fanatic excitement. He dove toward Gaara, his clay bombs raining down.
Gaara, battered and bleeding from earlier attacks, struggled to shield himself. His eyes dimmed, his body swaying under the relentless assault.
Sunagakure fell silent, the ground littered with mangled corpses. The transfigured humans reeked of blood and decay, their eerie growls sending shivers through the survivors.
Gaara closed his eyes, his voice resolute. "They're no longer our comrades. Eliminate them!"
Sunagakure's ANBU surged forward, clashing with the monsters without hesitation.
Boom!
The ground quaked as Gaara collapsed, unconscious. The clay bird's tail coiled around him, its wings beating as it soared into the distance.
Kankuro's voice echoed through the hellscape: "Request aid from Konoha—now!"
...
"Lady Hokage!" Shizune's frantic voice cut through the spar between Renji, Tsunade, Jiraiya, and Kakashi.
Tsunade froze, halting her attack. "What's wrong?"
Shizune panted, her face pale. "Sunagakure reports the Fifth Kazekage has been captured by Akatsuki."
Tsunade's expression darkened, but worse was coming.
"And… Sunagakure's suffered massive destruction. Ten percent of the village's population is dead."
Shizune's voice trembled, each word heavy with the blood-soaked plea for help she'd received.
"What?!" Tsunade's eyes widened, her chakra flaring.
Grasping the crisis, she turned to Shizune. "Call an emergency meeting of all Konoha Jōnin—now!"
She glanced at Renji, Naruto, and Sakura, whom Renji had freed from their ice prisons. "You're coming too."
"Yes!" they answered in unison.
...
Hokage Office.
Tsunade scanned the empty room, her brow furrowing. "Where is everyone?"
Shizune hesitated. "All other Jōnin are out on missions, Lady Hokage."
Tsunade sighed, her gaze settling on Kakashi, Renji, Naruto, and Sakura. Jiraiya, predictably, had vanished again.
"This can't wait," she said. "Kakashi, Renji, Naruto—you've all faced Akatsuki before. I'm sending you to Sunagakure for the rescue mission."
"Yes!" they replied, voices firm.
Team Kakashi set off, racing toward Sunagakure at breakneck speed, their figures a blur against the wind.
On the way, Kakashi's expression grew serious. "Renji, this mission might involve someone you know."
Jiraiya had pulled him aside before they left, revealing that Hasumi Maki—Renji's older brother—was likely among the attackers, orchestrating Sunagakure's massacre. Jiraiya's orders were clear: avoid direct confrontation with Maki at all costs and retreat if encountered. Years ago, Maki had nearly killed Renji, pushing Naruto into a berserk state.
Kakashi felt the weight of the mission pressing down. He feared failing to protect Renji, dreaded a repeat of that tragedy. But he'd give everything to prevent it.
Renji froze, instantly understanding. "Mm, I understand," he said, his eyes lowering, voice quiet.
Naruto's voice broke the tension. "Alright! If Hasumi Maki's there, I'm taking him down!"
The memory of that mission haunted Naruto—a nightmare of Maki's cruelty, his threats to Renji's life. The thought of someone targeting his friend fueled a burning rage. Protecting Renji was now his deepest resolve. "This time, I won't let him touch you!" he vowed silently, fists clenched, eyes blazing.
Kakashi shot him a stern look. "Naruto, no Tailed Beast power. That's an order."
Naruto's face twisted awkwardly.
Sakura's gaze flicked between them, confusion stirring. Hasumi Maki? Sounds like Renji's relative. But why does Naruto want to kill him? She buried her questions, trusting the answers would come in Sunagakure.
The three-day journey was cut to two by their relentless pace.
They arrived to a scene of devastation—Sunagakure in ruins, blood and debris staining the sand.
[Ding!]
[Human Malice Value detected: +5,000!]
[Cursed Energy converted to Chakra: +5,000!]
[Chakra (30,027,000 / 100,000,000)]
[Ding!]
[Human Malice Value detected: +10,000!]
[Cursed Energy converted to Chakra: +10,000!]
[Chakra (30,037,000 / 100,000,000)]
[Ding!]
[Human Malice Value detected: +3,000!]
[Cursed Energy converted to Chakra: +3,000!]
[Chakra (30,040,000 / 100,000,000)]
Renji stepped through the gate and was instantly surrounded by Sunagakure shinobi, their eyes blazing with hatred. Ninjutsu and weapons were primed, ready to strike at a moment's notice.
"Hey! What're you doing?!" Naruto darted in front of Renji, glaring at the shinobi. "Back off!"
Sakura stepped forward, pulling a scroll bearing the Hokage's seal from her pouch and tossing it to them. "We're Konoha shinobi! This is from Lady Hokage!"
The Sunagakure shinobi didn't waver. One pointed at Renji, voice shaking with rage. "Why is he here?!"
Another shouted, "Is Konoha behind this?!"
"Or are you with Akatsuki?!"
A grizzled shinobi, clearly a leader, stepped forward, teeth gritted. "He's the one who massacred our village!"
---
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