Chapter 578 - 579: Talent of the Sage Clan

Chapter 578: Chapter 579: Talent of the Sage Clan

"Huh? I’m sure I heard something just now."

Holding a lantern, a monk from the Fire Temple muttered to himself.

His companion carefully surveyed the quiet Buddha Hall before whispering, "It was probably some small animal. Didn’t a squirrel sneak in here before?"

"Really? Then let’s head back."

As they spoke, the two monks respectfully bowed toward the Buddha statue seated in the place of honor at the front of the hall. They then quietly withdrew.

Once the monks had gone far enough away and the light from their lantern gradually faded, only the flickering candlelight on the candlesticks remained in the Buddha Hall.

At that moment, a dark figure dropped steadily from the rafters onto the floor.

Wandering among the statues, the figure couldn’t help exclaiming in admiration, "What a feast for the eyes! Such beautiful art, hmm!"

The shadowy figure who had infiltrated the Fire Temple was none other than Deidara.

As he wandered through the shinobi world, if there was anything he truly sought, it was art capable of moving his heart. That was precisely why he had infiltrated the Fire Temple.

Running his hands over the bronze statues, Deidara gazed at the fierce and terrifying Wisdom Kings and the benevolent, serene Buddhas.

His interest was immediately piqued.

He hurriedly reached into the ninja tool pouch at his waist, took out a lump of pure-white explosive clay, and molded it into lifelike clay figurines of Wisdom Kings and Buddhas.

Holding a handful of explosive clay figurines in his palms, Deidara looked at the statues throughout the hall and declared, "Art that cannot explode is imperfect art! Allow me to elevate you to a higher form, hmm!"

With that, Deidara tossed the handful of explosive figurines in every direction.

The pure-white clay figurines traced arcs through the air. Illuminated by the flickering candlelight, their shadows danced across the walls like a horde of demons running wild!

Amid the flickering light and shadows, the corners of Deidara’s mouth curled upward as he formed a hand seal.

"Katsu!"

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

In an instant, thunderous explosions resounded through the night sky. The violent blasts engulfed the entire hall almost immediately, and as crimson flames shot into the sky, the whole Fire Temple was bathed in a fiery red glow.

"What’s going on?!"

"Are we under attack?!"

"Put out the fire! Hurry, put out the fire!"

For a moment, terrified cries and urgent shouts rang out one after another.

The originally peaceful and tranquil Fire Temple was instantly plunged into chaos. Monks poured out of their quarters in groups, some grabbing their staffs to patrol and stand guard, while others carried wooden buckets to help extinguish the flames.

Amid the crowds rushing back and forth, Chiriku, the strongest monk of the Fire Temple, furrowed his brows as his sharp gaze swept over the surroundings.

Before long, Chiriku discovered a footprint in an inconspicuous corner of the temple, one clearly different from those left by the resident monks.

"This is...? Hmph! So an intruder really did sneak into the temple!"

Chiriku’s expression darkened. Following the trail of footprints, his figure flickered and disappeared from the temple.

...

In the forest outside the Fire Temple.

Deidara, who had already left the temple, glanced back once more at the towering flames behind him, still immersed in the exhilaration brought by his earlier explosions.

Whoosh!

Accompanied by the sound of rushing wind, a monk from the Fire Temple suddenly appeared and blocked Deidara’s path.

It was none other than Chiriku, who had tracked him down by following his footprints.

Before Deidara could even ask a question, Chiriku demanded, "Who exactly are you, and why did you attack the Fire Temple?"

Deidara shrugged. "I was merely appreciating art, hmm!"

"Appreciating art!?" Chiriku was stunned for a moment before angrily shouting, "You call blowing up the Buddha Hall appreciating art?! Stop making excuses and surrender!"

Deidara replied as though it were the most natural thing in the world, "Of course! Art is an explosion!"

Looking at Deidara’s expression, which showed utter disregard for order and human life, Chiriku, who had once served as a bodyguard to the Fire Daimyo, felt a genuine sense of unease.

He declared loudly, "I cannot allow someone as dangerous as you to run rampant throughout the Land of Fire!"

With that, Chiriku pressed his palms together, and an indescribable aura began emanating from his body.

"You want to experience my art too, hmm?"

Deidara grinned as he slipped both hands into the ninja tool pouches at his waist.

Chiriku said with a hint of regret, "I’m sorry, but I still cannot control the power of this technique. If you die by my hand, I will pray before the Buddha for your soul’s salvation!"

As Chiriku’s chakra erupted, a phantom resembling a Bodhisattva instantly manifested around him.

Sensing the tranquil chakra radiating from Chiriku’s body, Deidara stopped what he was doing and became momentarily entranced.

He murmured, "How beautiful... What kind of ninjutsu is this?"

Seeing that Deidara had stopped moving his hands, Chiriku did not immediately launch an attack. Instead, he slowly explained, "This is the ’Gift of the Hermit Group,’ a technique that only we monks of the Fire Temple can cultivate!"

The ’Gift of the Hermit Group’ was a cultivation method unique to the Fire Temple.

Its essence was actually the combination of a shinobi’s internal chakra with the natural energy dispersed throughout the surrounding atmosphere.

Therefore, the Fire Temple’s ’Gift of the Hermit Group’ could, to a certain extent, be considered a branch of senjutsu.

Or rather, it was a relatively rudimentary method of utilizing natural energy.

Although the Fire Temple’s ’Gift of the Hermit Group’ was far inferior to the senjutsu of the three great sacred places—Mount Myoboku, Ryuchi Cave, and Shikkotsu Forest—in terms of its efficiency in utilizing natural energy, and could not allow the monks of the Fire Temple to enter the true ’Sage Mode’ that transcended the boundary between mortals and sages, it nevertheless made genuine use of natural energy.

It was precisely because Chiriku had mastered the ’Gift of the Hermit Group’ that the Fire Daimyo held him in such high regard and selected him as one of the Twelve Guardian Ninja, renowned throughout the shinobi world.

After studying Chiriku for quite some time, Deidara slowly remarked, "So this is the true art hidden within the Fire Temple! But... something is still missing, hmm!"

"Something is missing?"

Chiriku’s brows furrowed even more deeply. He felt as though he and Deidara were speaking entirely different languages, making communication utterly impossible.

At that moment, Deidara pulled two lumps of explosive clay from the ninja tool pouches at his waist.

"Thank you for showing me your art. Now, allow me to show you mine! Hmm!"

Looking at Deidara, who was completely immersed in his own self-indulgence, Chiriku suddenly recalled something and exclaimed in shock, "Could you be Deidara, the rogue shinobi from Iwagakure who’s been causing incidents all across the shinobi world?!"

Deidara muttered, "You’ve heard of me too?"

Chiriku’s expression grew more solemn. "Give up your resistance. I will ensure that you receive a fair trial."

Deidara tossed the explosive clay in his hands.

In an instant, the lumps of clay on the ground began swelling, transforming into all manner of bizarre explosive clay figurines that staggered toward Chiriku.

Seeing this, Chiriku hesitated no longer and shouted in a low voice:

"Welcoming Approach: Thousand-Armed Murder!"

In an instant, the phantom Bodhisattva behind Chiriku transformed into a wrathful Wisdom King.

At the same time, countless phantom fists shot forward, sending every explosive clay figurine charging toward him flying.

Chiriku said calmly, "These are useless against me. Surrender!"

Crack...

Just as Chiriku finished speaking, a crack appeared in the soil beneath his feet.

Immediately afterward, an explosive centipede burst out of the ground and swiftly coiled around his body.

A triumphant smile appeared on Deidara’s face as he began forming a hand seal.

However, just as he was about to detonate the explosive centipede wrapped around Chiriku, a pair of scarlet eyes suddenly entered his field of vision...