Almost in the blink of an eye, the clay in Deidara's hands had already taken the form of small birds.
"Exploding Clay—Winged Bird!"
Deidara formed hand seals with his hands and let out a light shout.
Whoosh! Whoosh!
This bird, sculpted from exploding clay, flew towards Iwagakure at an incredible speed.
In no time, the bird appeared above a building. After hovering slightly in the air for a moment, it seemed to be searching for something.
After a short time, the bird determined its location and rushed directly in a certain direction.
In a building similar to a traditional courtyard house, Onoki, who had been resting on a wooden floor, suddenly opened his eyes.
"To get this close... and this chakra is..."
Onoki mobilized the chakra within his body, floating directly from the ground into mid-air as he looked toward the direction outside the window.
In the night, a small white bird was perched on a tree outside the window, quietly watching in Onoki's direction. The chakra from this white bird was extremely weak; if not for Onoki's extreme familiarity with this chakra, he might not have noticed it so easily.
However, just as the white bird was about to approach the window, a stone arm, about the height of a person, suddenly rose rapidly from the ground, easily grabbing the incoming bird in its grasp.
At this moment, Onoki had already appeared behind this stone arm.
"After all this time, this is how you greet me? My good disciple."
Onoki's expression remained calm. As Onoki's words fell, the white bird exploded directly. Unfortunately, due to the obstruction of the stone arm, the power of the explosion did not splash onto Onoki at all.
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
The sound of piercing the air came rapidly from all directions. Apparently, the chakra fluctuations from the explosion had alarmed numerous Iwagakure ninja in the vicinity.
"Tsuchikage-sama!"
Seeing the flames from the explosion in front of Onoki, the faces of the Iwagakure ninja all turned extremely grim. Especially the ANBU ninja, their eyes flashed with anger.
The enemy had directly attacked the Tsuchikage, which was simply a slap in the face for the many ANBU ninja.
"Quite bold, Deidara. Is this a provocation against Iwagakure, or just against this old man?"
A flash of sharp light appeared in Onoki's eyes as he turned to look at the surrounding Iwagakure ninja: "All ANBU ninja, spread out and check if any ninja from other villages have entered the village."
After speaking, Onoki slightly adjusted the chakra within his body. Just as he was about to fly into the air, a figure appeared beside Onoki.
"Tsuchikage-sama, I'll go with you."
Akatsuchi walked to the Tsuchikage's side and spoke with a serious expression.
"This old man hasn't gotten old enough to need protection, besides, I'm very curious to know what this brat, who disappeared for so long, suddenly wants to do?"
Onoki waved his hand at Akatsuchi, his voice carrying a hint of cold laughter.
"Kurotsuchi's injuries haven't healed yet, protect Kurotsuchi."
As if remembering something, a flash of anger appeared in Onoki's eyes. Uchiha Madara not only took the five-tailed jinchuriki from Iwagakure but also killed one of their top ANBU.
Whenever he thought of this, Onoki felt a sense of frustration.
Hearing Onoki's words, Akatsuchi nodded heavily. The next moment, Onoki shot straight up into the sky, quickly disappearing into the night sky.
Seeing Onoki completely disappear from view, a helpless expression flashed across Akatsuchi's face. He knew the old man's temper better than anyone.
What Akatsuchi was worried about now was that the old man wouldn't encounter any problems, after all, only the Tsuchikage could fly freely in the sky of Iwagakure. Even if Akatsuchi wanted to help, he was powerless.
In the night sky, Deidara, riding on a giant bird, stared expressionlessly ahead, as if waiting for something.
"He's here, so fast!"
At this moment, White Zetsu, who was behind Deidara, suddenly spoke, pointing in a certain direction ahead, his voice carrying a hint of surprise.
Deidara's spirits lifted as he quickly looked up in the direction White Zetsu was pointing. A blurry figure was flying towards their direction at an incredible speed.
Without guessing, Deidara knew who this person who could fly freely in the sky was.
Glancing in Onoki's direction, Deidara's eyes carried a strange expression. Towards Onoki, who had once taught him, Deidara felt not only a bit of fear but also a unique emotion.
However, Deidara quickly adjusted his emotions and returned to his original expression. He raised his hand and pressed it on the giant bird.
The giant bird under Deidara's control didn't hesitate at all, turned around and flew towards the direction outside Iwagakure.
"Thinking of leaving now, isn't it a bit late, Deidara!"
Looking at Deidara who turned and ran, Onoki quickly formed several hand seals and then patted his own body.
Earth Release—Light-Weight Rock Technique!
Onoki, who was originally flying at an incredible speed, had his speed greatly enhanced by this technique. The two rapidly closed the distance at a visible speed.
After not much time, Onoki had easily caught up with Deidara.
"Attacking me, the Tsuchikage, is quite a crime, Deidara!"
Onoki quickly rushed to Deidara's side, suddenly raised his arm, and punched towards Deidara.
Earth Release—Rock Fist Technique!
As Onoki swung his fist, his entire arm rapidly turned into a hard rock fist at a visible speed.
Deidara, sitting on the giant bird, had no time to dodge and was directly hit by Onoki's punch.
Seeing that he had hit Deidara so easily, Onoki's expression didn't show joy; instead, it slightly changed.
Just as expected.
At this moment, the hit Deidara suddenly smiled. Accompanied by a loud "BOOM," Deidara, along with the white giant bird, exploded. The flames from the explosion instantly engulfed Onoki.
"Oh my, almost got caught up to, luckily you prepared in advance, Deidara."
At another location in the night sky, the figures of Deidara and White Zetsu appeared. White Zetsu patted his chest, showing a frightened expression.
"Shut up, that old man won't die that easily."
Deidara maintained the hand seal gestures with both hands, his expression serious as he constantly surveyed his surroundings while manipulating the giant bird beneath his feet, rapidly flying towards the direction outside Iwagakure.
"Quite a surprise for me, Deidara."
Onoki's ethereal voice entered Deidara and White Zetsu's ears, causing their expressions to change.
"Above you, Deidara!"
White Zetsu said with a tense expression, quickly reminding Deidara.
Deidara suddenly looked up, looking at the position above in the air. He saw Onoki staring at him with a calm expression.
[
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