Hinata pulled the latest volume of Fox's Whispered Tales from her ninja tool pouch, smiling as she pointed to the character on the cover—a languidly smiling Lady Higan in a field of black spider lilies. Her tone was direct and clear.
"Can you make a model of this character using some kind of sculptable material?"
"Hm~~ Scorpion-dono, did we miss an issue? I don't think we saw this one yet."
Unexpectedly, Deidara didn't answer right away. Instead, he crouched down to peer at the book in Hinata's hands and grumbled while looking back at Sasori.
"Tch. All thanks to that string of annoying jobs. Looks like we really did miss the latest issue. Hm!"
"Hmph. Don't talk nonsense."
Sasori shot Deidara a cold glare before turning to Hinata, speaking bluntly.
"Give me that book."
The rude demand made Sai instinctively reach for the hilt of his blade, but Hinata raised her hand to stop him. After all, even if she and Sai teamed up and multiplied their strength tenfold, they probably still weren't a match for either of these two.
"Are you saying… you two are fans of this series too?"
Hinata casually handed the book over without a trace of annoyance at Sasori's demanding attitude. In her mind, power naturally came with privilege.
"Hoooh~~ So you like it too? I knew it! Hey, who's your favorite character?"
Hinata's cooperation clearly pleased the artistic duo. Deidara was visibly excited, even more so as he asked, "By the way, where'd you get this new volume? We even went all the way to the Land of Fire but still missed its release! Hm!"
"Oh~ that's no big deal. If the two of you are interested, we can find a room to chat in more detail."
Hinata's smile deepened as she caught the shift in atmosphere. No matter how bizarre their personalities were, these two were at least open to conversation now. Sasori, flipping through the pages of the book, spoke again, curt and direct.
"Cut the crap. Say what you came to say."
"Alright~ as I said earlier, would the two of you be able to recreate characters from this book into small-scale models using easily sculpted materials? Like this one, for example—Lady Higan."
She held her fingers apart to suggest a size of around ten centimeters and asked gently.
"Just about this big. Could you do it?"
Sasori didn't even look up. "Deidara."
"Ahh~ Piece of cake."
With practiced ease, the golden-haired rogue reached into his clay pouch. After some squishing and chewing sounds, he clasped his hands and quickly molded the material. In less than ten seconds, a clay figurine identical to the cover image of Lady Higan appeared—complete with visible hair ornaments and a belt cord.
"That's… incredible."
Hinata genuinely admired the craftsmanship. The level of detail on the unpainted figure far surpassed the high-end figures from her previous life. As expected of an S-rank rogue ninja whose specialty was explosive clay—his sculpting speed and precision were unreal.
"Of course! My art is peerless! Hm!"
Despite being a notorious criminal, Deidara was still a young man who craved recognition. Hearing Hinata's praise, he grinned from ear to ear and handed her the figure.
"Here~ this one's a gift. Oh, right—don't infuse chakra into it. It'll explode. Hm~!"
Taking the figure without hesitation, Hinata sighed dramatically.
"Too bad… It's only Lady Higan. I want figures of every character from the series. And while this is beautifully sculpted, it's still unpainted, so I can't really call it a finished product."
Her words instantly shifted the mood.
Sasori raised his head slowly, while Deidara's grin faded, his lips tightening. Clearly, they understood the implication behind her words.
"You both seem to be true artists. So let me be direct: I want to establish a new form of art merchandise—'figure-based goods'—that presents beautiful things in tangible form, spreading this vision of art to more people and gaining wider recognition!"
Both Sasori and Deidara narrowed their eyes.
As obsessive artists, their passion for their respective crafts was unmatched.
Art to them was life.
And though they may not care for others' opinions, they could not abide anyone disrespecting their art.
In the original story, Deidara's self-destruction against Sasuke was triggered by Sasuke mocking his art. Similarly, Sasori showed mercy to Kankuro and even moved on peacefully during the war arc after hearing Kankuro's genuine appreciation for puppetry.
So, if someone were to not only respect but also promote their artistic vision? They'd be all in.
"And you're from Konoha, right, brat?"
Sasori's cold eyes locked onto Hinata, a hint of anticipation sneaking into his voice.
"Then be honest—do you know who the people behind Fox Tales are?"
"Of course. I'm quite close to the author."
Hinata was surprised, but overjoyed inside. She never expected these two maniacs to be fans of her work. Divine providence!
"Seriously?? Hey, hey, what does she look like? Tall? Short? What's her favorite thing?"
Deidara couldn't help blurting out questions, only for Sasori to glare him down with a sharp, "Shut up! What do you want to know?!"
Seeing their reactions, Hinata's heart soared. She had stumbled into a perfect alliance. Originally, she planned to work with Kakuzu—but this duo was far more suitable.
"To be honest, I came out here specifically to expand Fox's Tales into a broader product line. I want to turn all its characters, scenes, and stories into physical figures, and spread them across the ninja world so everyone can experience the beauty of this form of art!"
She clenched her fist for emphasis, her voice passionate.
"This is the art of figurines! Capturing fleeting, eternal, and ever-changing beauty in tangible form! What do you say? Will you help me spread this art across the shinobi world?!"
Hinata extended her hand, her tone sincere.
"Let's build a world for artists—a world where art thrives!"
"..."
"..."
Sasori and Deidara stared at her in silence. Hinata's heart skipped a beat. Had she pushed too far?
Then, without a word, Deidara reached for the clay figure he'd given her—rolled it back into a lump. A not-so-friendly gesture that made Hinata's heart sink. Had she gone too far?
Meanwhile, Sasori silently pulled out a toolkit and began carving a few blocks of wood on the spot. Just a few cuts, and a rough face was already visible.
Deidara also started pulling out various clays and pigments, carefully mixing in compounds both familiar and unfamiliar to Hinata. It was clear—both of them were preparing to sculpt something serious.
?!?!
Sai glanced at Hinata, equally confused. Hinata waved him off. Artists were often eccentric—especially two who were also S-rank shinobi. Interrupting them might lead to a very 'artistic' death.
Twenty minutes passed quickly. Sasori and Deidara finished at almost the same moment, pushing their finished pieces toward Hinata.
They had both sculpted Lady Higan.
Sasori's version was a puppet—expressive and beautifully crafted from ultra-thin wooden slats, with fully articulated joints.
Deidara's version was a clay figure of vibrant colors—lifelike down to the shimmer in the eyes and the texture of skin and fabric. However, it was static—its joints were fixed.
"My art is what you're looking for."
They said it simultaneously—then immediately glared at each other, sparks flying.
"Deidara, you brat. You dare challenge me?"
Sasori's voice was dark and threatening.
"Come on, Sasori-dono. You may be older, but this time my art clearly wins, don't you think?"
Deidara folded his arms defiantly.
As for Hinata?
She could barely contain her joy.
Moments ago, she had feared rejection. But now? The results were beyond her wildest dreams. The "Art Duo" had answered not with words—but with action.