try instrumentisto/rsync-ssh image

.drone.yml

@@ -22,21 +22,29 @@ name: deploy
 steps:
 - name: hugo-rsync-deploy
   pull: always
-  image: drillster/drone-rsync
-    hosts: [ "$HUGO_HOST" ]
-      from_secret: hugo_host
-    user: HUGO_USER
-      from_secret: hugo_user
-    key: "$HUGO_KEY"
+  image: instrumentisto/rsync-ssh
+  commands:
+    - git submodule init
+    - git submodule update
+    - rm -rfv ./public
+    - hugo --gc=true --minify
+    - echo "$HUGO_KEY" > ~/hugo_deploy
+    - chmod -v 600 ~/hugo_deploy #hellyeah
+    - rsync -ave 'ssh -vvvv -i ~/hugo_deploy -o KexAlgorithms=curve25519-sha256@libssh.org,ecdh-sha2-nistp521,ecdh-sha2-nistp384,ecdh-sha2-nistp256,diffie-hellman-group-exchange-sha256 -o PreferredAuthentications=publickey -o PasswordAuthentication=no -c aes256-ctr,aes256-cbc -o StrictHostKeyChecking=no' --delete public/ $HUGO_USER@$HUGO_HOST:$HUGO_DIR || true
+    - shred -zuv 7 ~/hugo_deploy || true
+  environment:
+    HUGO_KEY:
       from_secret: hugo_key
-    source: ./public
-    target: $HUGO_DIR
+    HUGO_USER:
+      from_secret: hugo_user
+    HUGO_HOST:
+      from_secret: hugo_host
+    HUGO_DIR:
       from_secret: hugo_dir
   when:
     status:
     - success
 
-
 ---
 kind: pipeline
 name: notifications