Deidara and Tobi crouched behind the remnants of a crumbling ruin.
"Damn it, that Summoning beast is still up there!"
Deidara scowled, glancing skyward at the massive silhouette of Raiko looming ominously within the storm clouds.
"Deidara-senpai, what should we do now? That Summoning beast is insanely strong!"
"And it can use Lightning Style jutsu... it completely counters your style, senpai," Tobi added nervously.
"Shut up, Tobi!" Deidara barked, feeling irritated and a little embarrassed.
"Start burying the clay mines. I'm going to blow them to pieces."
With a flick of his wrist, Deidara scattered a large number of clay explosives across the battlefield.
"Ah, Deidara-senpai, are you going to use the C2 Dragon? But what about that Summoning beast—"
"Tobi, quit whining and just lay the mines!"
"Yes, sir!"
Tobi quickly phased underground, carrying the mines with him.
Deidara's sharp gaze settled on Sasuke in the distance.
"Those eyes… just like Itachi's. Damned Sharingan. But today, you're finished. And soon, Uchiha Itachi will join you in hell."
Just then, Sasuke glanced subtly in their direction.
"Tobi's gone underground. Is Deidara setting up for C2?"
High above, a two-winged clay bird suddenly soared into the air, Deidara—or so it seemed—riding on its back.
"Hm?"
Kakashi's eyes narrowed.
"Is he trying to launch a surprise attack?"
"I don't think that's the real one," Sasuke said calmly, stepping forward. "It's a clay clone."
His Sharingan and honed mental focus easily picked up the lack of chakra signatures.
Sure enough, the clay clone swooped down toward them, its body beginning to swell.
"Be careful, it's going to explode!" Kakashi warned, his Sharingan sensing the build-up of chakra.
But Sasuke darted forward.
"Die, you damn Uchiha brat!" the clay clone screeched as its body bloated.
Zzzzz!
Chidori crackled to life in Sasuke's hand as he flashed forward.
Shunk!
With one clean strike, Chidori pierced the clay clone, flooding it with lightning chakra—disrupting the Earth Style matrix and rendering the clone inert.
Kakashi's eyes widened in realization.
"So that's it. The explosions are Earth Style-based... which means Chidori can neutralize them."
But just then—
"It's too late for that!"
Deidara emerged above them on his C2 Dragon, grinning.
"The clone was just a distraction!" Yamato shouted.
Deidara looked up at the sky.
"That Summoning beast... it won't attack me while I'm this low to the ground."
From the C2 Dragon, a smaller winged clay creature launched toward the group like a missile.
"Wood Style: Wood Spindle Wall!"
Yamato's hands flew into a seal, causing thick wooden columns to shoot from the ground and curve overhead, forming a protective arch.
BOOM!
The clay missile exploded, leaving a massive crater—but the group remained unharmed thanks to Yamato's defense.
"You won't get away this time!"
"Wood Style: Great Forest Technique!"
Massive tendrils of wood erupted from Yamato's hands, quickly wrapping around the C2 Dragon.
"Damn it!"
Deidara cursed as the dragon was dragged down—only to smirk.
"Wait—Yamato, stop!" Kakashi warned, but it was too late.
The C2 Dragon surged toward them as it fell, like a kamikaze bomber.
"It's rigged to explode on impact!"
Deidara's grin widened. His chakra surged as he triggered the explosion.
BOOOOM!
Kakashi, Yamato, and Sasuke scrambled back as Yamato quickly formed another seal.
"Wood Style: Tree Boundary Wall!"
A thick wooden dome surged up around them just as the explosion tore through the ground, reducing nearby ruins to ash.
When the smoke cleared, Deidara and Tobi stood from their hiding place, watching the aftermath.
"Hah, the C2 Dragon decoy worked perfectly!"
The minefield now surrounded the trio.
"Deidara-senpai, you're a genius!" Tobi cheered. "They're done for now!"
But seconds passed, and the mines didn't detonate.
Deidara's smile faded. "Huh? Why didn't it explode? Tobi, did you mess up?!"
"No way, senpai! We've practiced this a dozen times!"
"Tch... It must've been Lightning Style again," Deidara muttered. "Those damn techniques completely counter me!"
"Let's get out of here, senpai! Lightning Style is your worst matchup!"
Deidara grit his teeth in frustration.
Nearby, Kakashi chuckled.
"That was close. Good thing your Chidori Stream shorted the mines, Sasuke."
Sasuke nodded, Sharingan still active.
Thanks to their dōjutsu, the clay mines were easily detected. When the explosion forced them back, Sasuke had preemptively released Chidori Stream across the ground, disabling them all.
"Clever bastard," Yamato muttered.
He'd been caught off guard—had Kakashi and Sasuke not acted in time, that explosion could have seriously injured him.
"Sasuke, can you sense where he is now?" Kakashi asked.
Sasuke closed his eyes briefly, then pointed. "Behind that collapsed building."
"Senpai, we've been found!" Tobi yelped.
"Run!" Tobi disappeared into the ground.
But Deidara stayed behind, rubbing his palms together with a manic look in his eyes.
"It's ready... heh!"
From his hands, a monstrous clay doll with a gaping mouth took shape.
"Tobi, get out of here! I'm using C3. I'll turn this entire village into rubble!"
"You got it, senpai! Be careful!"
Tobi disappeared underground while Obito, hidden nearby, watched with narrowed eyes.
"This guy… he's actually crazy enough to use that technique."
C1 and C2 were dangerous, sure—but this? C3 was on a whole different level.
"An explosion laced with peak chakra control… it could destroy a village in one blast."
As Sasuke, Kakashi, and Yamato closed in, they surrounded Deidara.
"Give it up. Your explosive style is weak against Lightning Release," Kakashi warned.
"Oh really?"
Deidara grinned and pointed to the sky.
"Then enjoy my masterpiece—C3!"
A massive clay doll plummeted from the clouds above.
"And don't forget—when it detonates, this whole village and the Land of Rivers' Daimyo vanish along with it. Now that's true art!"
"What?!" Kakashi and Yamato paled.
"Stop it! If you destroy this village, every nation will hunt you down!" Yamato shouted.
"You really think they'd go to war for this backwater country?" Deidara sneered.
But before he could detonate—
CAW!
Raiko screeched as it swooped down, snatching the C3 doll in its massive talons and flying off.
"Perfect! I'll blow you up too!"
Deidara's eyes glinted. Raiko had interfered too many times. Now it carried C3 right into the sky…
BOOOOOOOOOM!
An enormous fireball engulfed the heavens. The earth quaked violently from the distant explosion.
"What… what is that?!"
"An explosion?! That massive fireball—was that from the battle?"
The villagers and shinobi of Yugakure stared in horror at the distant inferno.
Had that happened inside the village… it would've been annihilation.
As the smoke cleared, a massive crater remained. Raiko was nowhere to be seen—disintegrated in the blast.
"Hah! Yes! Burn in hell!" Deidara shouted with wild glee.
"Try to stop C3, and that's what you get! My art… is absolute!"
"...Are you done yet?"
Sasuke's cold voice cut through the moment.
"You bastard Uchiha! You lost your Summoning beast! What're you gonna do now?"
Sasuke's lips curled.
"No wonder Itachi played you like a fool. You can't even tell when you're being outmaneuvered."
He formed a seal.
Poof!
Raiko reappeared in the air, crying out as it soared above them.
"What?!" Deidara froze.
"I released the Summoning right before C3 exploded. Raiko returned to the Wind and Thunder Canyon and evaded the blast."
Deidara's fists trembled in disbelief.
His ultimate technique—his precious art—had been completely outplayed.
And in front of Sasuke Uchiha… it had become a joke.