Naruto: Deidara’s Struggle

"My lords... Lord Deidara, Lord Sasori!" The moment Shimura Kiyoto saw Deidara and Sasori, his tongue seemed to tie itself in knots.

"I remember your name is Shimura Kiyoto, correct?" Deidara asked.

"Yes! Yes, I am Shimura Kiyoto," he replied hastily, nodding like an obedient student, not daring to even breathe loudly.

"Shimura Kiyoto, I thought we were friends. And yet, you didn't even inform me about Konoha's plans to ambush us. It seems you're not afraid of death, are you?"

Deidara's tone suddenly turned harsh, his voice filled with accusation.

"Injustice! My lords, this is a misunderstanding!" Shimura Kiyoto's face was full of terror as he hurriedly explained, "This operation was top secret. No one knew what the mission was before departure!"

"And during the march, I was surrounded by people from the village. I had no way to send you any information, my lords!" He spoke quickly, afraid that Sasori might activate Memory-Concealing Manipulating Sand and kill him on the spot.

Deidara found Shimura Kiyoto's words to be half-true. It was likely true that he had no way to send information, but it was also probable that Kiyoto secretly hoped for their deaths, so that the threat they posed to him would vanish.

No wonder there had been no news from Hyūga Kanade and Moonlight Rin. Konoha was indeed cautious.

In truth, Deidara didn't intend to pursue the matter further. Shimura Kiyoto was still useful, and Deidara already had plans for him. His earlier harshness was merely to intimidate him.

"Then it seems I've wronged you, my Konoha friend," Deidara said with a sly smile, a tone that sent chills down Shimura Kiyoto's spine.

"No... it's nothing."

"I've always been generous to my friends, so this time, I have a great opportunity for you!"

"A great opportunity?" Shimura Kiyoto asked, puzzled.

"Yes, all you have to do is this and that," Deidara whispered softly into his ear.

"This is unacceptable!" Shimura Kiyoto instinctively resisted. Even for him, actions that would harm the village were difficult to stomach.

"What's so unacceptable about it? My friend, this is all for the sake of Konoha!"

"As long as you agree to this condition, all those captured Konoha ninja over there can return alive. You could even become a hero who saved everyone. Isn't that a good thing?" Deidara said, half-coaxing and half-threatening.

A hero?

The word struck a chord in Shimura Kiyoto's heart. He imagined himself being praised and respected by everyone, entrusted with important responsibilities due to his achievements. His blood began to boil at the thought.

The small voice of resistance in his heart vanished without a trace.

"Yes! This is all for Konoha!"

...

In an open clearing, over a hundred Konoha captives were bound with ropes. Most of them were elite ninja from the Root and ANBU divisions. If all of them were to die here, the scale of Konoha's defeat would increase significantly.

Deidara pressed Shimura Kiyoto forward.

"Your comrade has already surrendered. I advise you all to be sensible and do the same."

"Surrender obediently. While I can't set you free, I can at least spare your lives!" Deidara said, pointing to Shimura Kiyoto, which immediately drew angry glares from the captives.

"Bah!"

"Shimura Kiyoto! I never thought you'd be such a coward! You're unworthy of being a Konoha ninja!" one Jonin spat angrily.

"Hmph!"

"Still so defiant at a time like this?" Deidara feigned anger and handed a kunai to Shimura Kiyoto. "Go, kill him!"

Shimura Kiyoto trembled as he took the kunai, seemingly struggling internally, unable to take a single step forward.

"Come! Kill me, you traitor! I, Kamino Haruto, would rather die than surrender!" the Jonin shouted.

Not just Kamino Haruto, but many other Konoha ninja also began to hurl insults at Shimura Kiyoto.

"Ah! Die!" Suddenly, Shimura Kiyoto turned and thrust the kunai toward Deidara. Of course, Deidara easily dodged it.

With a swift kick, Deidara sent Shimura Kiyoto flying. He sneered, "What's this? Weren't you afraid of dying just a moment ago? Why aren't you now?"

"Hmph!"

Shimura Kiyoto stood up with a look of righteous determination. "The things I said earlier were merely to deceive you!"

"First, I needed an opportunity to assassinate you. Unfortunately, I failed."

As he spoke, his expression was filled with regret, yet he showed no fear of his impending death. The stark contrast to his earlier behavior was striking.

"Oh? So there's a second reason, is there?" Deidara asked, feigning ignorance.

"Of course!"

"The second reason was that I had to see my comrades!"

Raising his hands high, Shimura Kiyoto shouted passionately, "My comrades of Konoha! Never submit to the demon before us! Never betray the village we love! Never tarnish the Will of Fire!"

"But you'll lose your lives!" Deidara threatened.

"Hmph! Death is nothing! Konoha has no cowardly ninja who cling to life!" Shimura Kiyoto retorted passionately.

His fervent display left even those who had just been cursing him momentarily stunned.

What's going on?

Could it be that Shimura Kiyoto's Will of Fire burns so brightly? We've misjudged him!

"Yes! Death is nothing! Konoha has no cowardly ninja!"

"Well said!"

"Well said!"

"I'll kill you all now!"

Deidara pretended to be so enraged that he was about to have a stroke. To the Konoha ninja, he appeared to be a typical evil and barbaric villain—while victorious in strength, he was utterly defeated in spirit.

"Come! Kill us!"

"Strike at my heart!" Shimura Kiyoto suddenly tore open his shirt, baring his chest.

"Kill us today, but one day, the village will avenge us!"

"Ridiculous!"

"You Konoha ninja were utterly routed today, and yet you dare to spout such nonsense?" Deidara mocked.

"That was merely a moment of carelessness!"

"You don't understand the strength of our Konoha!"

"We have countless ninja! Powerful clans! Innumerable battle-hardened elites!"

"And we have our Third Hokage and Lord Shimura Danzō!"

"One is the pillar of Konoha, the other its roots, silently guarding the village from the shadows!"

"With the two of them, Konoha is invincible!"

"Yes! Konoha is invincible!" Inspired by Shimura Kiyoto, even the usually emotionless Root ninja began to shout.

In that moment, everyone felt as if they had become heroic figures, playing their part in an epic tale of defiance.

Deidara staggered back several steps, his face pale with "fear."

"This is all a misunderstanding, honorable Konoha ninja!"

"You may leave. I hope you'll explain this misunderstanding to the Third Hokage and Lord Danzō when you return. Our Rain Village has no intention of opposing Konoha!" Deidara "fearfully" grabbed Shimura Kiyoto's hand, as if utterly terrified.

"Hmph!"

"The punishment for your disrespect is for the Third Hokage and Lord Danzō to decide! We have no say in the matter!" Shimura Kiyoto pushed Deidara away with a composed, even slightly arrogant, expression.

"Yes! Your Rain Village should await the Third Hokage's judgment!" The other Konoha ninja also puffed up their chests, as if they were the victors.

After the Konoha ninja left with heads held high, Suigetsu walked over, pouting. "Deidara-nii, your acting was way too convincing."

"I feel like you could star in a movie."

Sasori, Konan, Hōzuki Ritsuki, and the members of the Xuanyuan Group all looked at Deidara with a mix of amusement and disbelief. This guy really knew how to put on a show.

"Deidara, is letting them go really better than killing them?" Konan asked. Her hatred for Konoha ninja ran deep.

"Just wait and see."

"To destroy a power, internal turmoil is often more dangerous than external enemies."

~~~❃❃~~~~~~~~❃❃~~~

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