Chapter 98: The Proper Way to Awaken Sasuke’s Two-Tomoe Sharingan

"Can you hand over the intel on Itachi now?" Sasuke's cold voice cut through the air, his stoic expression barely concealing his urgency.

"Eh?" Deidara tilted his head, feigning surprise.

"Did the deal say anything about exchanging intel? I must've missed that part!" Deidara exaggeratedly flipped through two imaginary contracts, his expression painted with mock astonishment.

"You bastard…!" Sasuke growled through clenched teeth.

"Hey! Don't tell me you're planning to back out of the deal!" Naruto exploded, stepping forward. If it weren't for the fact that he couldn't win, he'd have charged in by now.

"No way! No way!"

"You don't actually believe a rogue ninja's promises, do you?" Deidara looked at them as if they were the dumbest creatures alive, his face the picture of exaggerated disbelief.

Sasuke's fists clenched tightly. His voice dropped into a low, dangerous tone.

"Mark my words… I will kill you someday."

Seeing that his joke had gone far enough, Deidara waved his hands dismissively.

"Alright, alright. Calm down, will ya?"

"That was just a little joke. I'll give you the intel now."

"After all, I'm a very honest person," he said with an insincere grin.

Sasuke's fiery glare didn't waver as he suppressed his rage. "Where is Itachi?"

"Itachi? Oh, he's with us in Amegakure," Deidara said casually, pointing at the Rain insignia on his headband. "He's even married now, with a lovely daughter."

He clapped Sasuke on the shoulder.

"Congrats! You're an uncle now. How's that feel?"

The air around Sasuke turned icy.

"That man… That man…!" His voice trembled with fury.

"The traitor who slaughtered our entire clan dares to live happily?" A dark, suffocating aura began to radiate from him, so oppressive that Sakura froze mid-step as she tried to approach.

"Sasuke-kun!" she called out hesitantly, afraid to move closer.

Sasuke's Sharingan spun, and the single tomoe began to evolve, forming a second tomoe.

Deidara's eyes widened.

What the hell?

I was joking! How did I manage to provoke him into unlocking his next Sharingan stage?

Well, I guess Itachi can't complain… this is technically progress… right?

Wait, no! He's going to kill me if I make his little brother a psychological mess!

Deidara cleared his throat, raising a fist to his lips.

"Ahem. About that... I was kidding. Itachi's not married. There's no kid either. You seriously believed that? Ha!"

Sasuke froze, Sharingan still glowing. Sakura blinked, equally stunned. Even the ANBU lurking nearby couldn't help but pause.

So it was a lie?

Sasuke's Sharingan seemed to ask silently: Do you want me to leave now?

Under Sasuke's intense stare, Deidara awkwardly scratched his head.

"Don't sweat the details, alright?"

"Look, thanks to me, your Sharingan evolved! Your strength just took a huge leap forward. You should be thanking me!"

But Sasuke wasn't having it. His trust in Deidara had completely evaporated. Even if Deidara did provide intel, he wouldn't believe a word of it.

"Hey! This is on you!" Deidara shouted after the retreating Uchiha. "Don't say I didn't keep my end of the deal!"

As the last of the bothersome group disappeared, Kurotsuchi gleefully latched onto Deidara's arm.

"Deidara, let's go!"

"Yeah, yeah," he muttered, letting her pull him along toward Ichiraku Ramen.

But, as we all know, protagonists are magnets for trouble.

Sure enough, it found them again.

Passing a dango shop, Kurotsuchi stopped abruptly, her eyes lighting up.

"I want to try Konoha's dango!"

Before Deidara could respond, a nearby child leapt in fright.

"Ahhh! This woman's terrifying! She's going to eat me!" cried the boy.

Kurotsuchi blinked at the boy, then at his two friends.

"Kid, chill. Me eating dango has nothing to do with you."

The situation might have ended there, but another diner at the shop took notice. Misunderstanding the scene, she stood up with a dramatic flourish.

"Stop right there! What are you doing to these kids?" Mitarashi Anko—her trench coat billowing, her fishnet armor on display—stormed over.

Before Deidara could explain, Anko froze.

"You?!" she exclaimed, her voice laden with emotion.

Kurotsuchi narrowed her eyes and tugged on Deidara's arm.

"Deidara, you know this woman?"

Deidara groaned inwardly, feeling his arm being squeezed to death.

"We've met a few times. She tried to stop me during a mission. Didn't end well for her."

Anko's eye twitched, catching on immediately.

Ohhh, I see. Girlfriend's jealous? Perfect.

A sly grin crept across her face.

It's payback time, Deidara.

"Kids, why don't you leave this to me?" Anko crouched down, ruffling their hair.

The boy, Udon, sniffled dramatically.

"Auntie, are you sure you'll be okay?"

Anko's smile cracked, but she held it together.

"I'm strong, okay? You don't need to worry about me."

With a nod, the trio scurried away.

Anko straightened up, deliberately tossing her hair over her shoulder.

"Well, well. Don't recognize me anymore, huh?" she purred, her voice dripping with mock sweetness.

Deidara winced as Kurotsuchi's nails dug into his arm.

"Come by tonight, will you? You did leave me 700,000 ryo last time, after all," Anko said, her tone suggestive and full of playful malice.

"Seven… Seven hundred thousand ryo?!" Kurotsuchi gasped, her voice echoing louder than intended.

Deidara felt like crawling into a hole. "Anko, stop it."

But before the situation could escalate further, three little heads popped back into view.

Anko stiffened. "Didn't I tell you to leave?"

Konohamaru grinned sheepishly. "I forgot my wallet!"

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Pls Drop some Power Stones

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