Closing act

Sasori struck Sakura with his puppet's sword. But she heals herself while stabbed and tries to pull it out to heal properly. Sasori realizing he can't win in a contest of raw strength detaches his mechanical arm from the elbow to reveal another sword under it and lunges back into sakura. Chiyo, who was laying still, was waiting for that moment to deliver a surprise attack from both his flanks with his parent's puppets. Sasori sees it coming but surprisingly hesitates as a choice rose in his head :

"I could easily dodge this... or die in my parents' embrace ..."

In that instant, facing imminent death if he wishes to die by his parents' puppets, his life flashed before his eyes. He never thought he would have a moment like this in his mostly mechanical body, but his undying soul is still dwelling inside that shell.

"Deidara's influence is getting to my head. I can't believe I could consider a flashy death like that."

Sasori stops in his tracks and easily dodges the two puppets charging at him.

"I win, Granny. The girl is hit in a vital spot, and you have no antidote for my poison anymore."

Sasori watches and Sakura and Chiyo writhe on the ground and carefully approaches and stabs them.

Meanwhile, team Guy is still facing their clones individually.

"Neji! What's the situation in the cave ?" Guy asks.

[Byakugan]

"...I'm afraid Sakura and Lady Chiyo have been defeated ... Sasori is taking their bodies away"

" Shit ... What about Naruto and Kakashi ?"

"They're still chasing Deidara to get back Gaara."

"What a terrible situation. Let's hurry up and find a solution. We're getting worn out and time is not in our favor." Guy frowns, hands full with his own clone.

"Guy sensei. These clones copied the version of us from when we took out the seal. We have to evolve and be stronger than that version to beat them" Lee finds a plausible solution, and there is no time to think of something else. Fortunately, it does work out. Unfortunately, they did not make it in time and the Byakugan reveals that sasori is long gone, with only a dozen broken puppets left. And just as they thought they caught up to Deidara he seemingly explodes on the spot and disappears.

[Kamui]

Kakashi squeezes his last bits of chakra to fend off that attack. But the situation is still nothing short of a disaster.

A little further and a bit later

"Never thought my self exploding clone would be eaten too... I could flee with that as a diversion, but that jutsu is problematic... Anyway, all I lost was an elbow. I must look for my arm and ring."

After securing his limb and Akatsuki ring, Deidara uses the Astral Projection Jutsu to contact Pain and Sasori and rejoin the latter.

"Yo. Rough day, wasn't it ? Sasori master."

"I guess so. But it was worth the hassle."

"Lucky you. I barely got out alive and had to endure a troublesome jutsu. Hm."

"That's a win for my art, then."

"If it weren't for me, you wouldn't pull it off. Hm."

"That's true too."

"What's inside those 2 puppets, though ?"

"Those two's corpses. I'll make the girl into a puppet, that ridiculous strength is gonna be useful. As for Granny, It's less about combat but more about figuring out how to control her White Secret Technique."

"Gross. Scary. And at the same time beautiful. Hm."

"Indeed. What could've been the closing act has become the start of an even better play."

-----------{Outcome}-------------------------------

Sasori : Aquired Chikamatsu's 10 Puppets.

Gaara : Deceased.

Sakura : Deceased. Body made into Sasori's puppet.

Chiyo : Deceased. Body made into Sasori's puppet.

Deidara : Lost both limbs .

---------- Chapter 1 : End --------------------------