A violent gust of wind tore through the skies, slamming the giant clay bird downward.
Caught in the blast, both the Red Sand Scorpion and Deidara plummeted helplessly, tumbling through the air with their ride.
"Aaaaahhh!" Deidara screamed.
By the time he realized what was happening, the only thing below him was endless golden sand—and he was in freefall.
Not good!
While sand might cushion the impact somewhat, faceplanting into the desert still wasn't the kind of dramatic performance he had in mind.
Suddenly, Deidara felt a tug on his back—his fall came to a jarring halt.
He turned his head midair and caught sight of the Red Sand Scorpion's Scarlet Amber Puppet. Its tail had lashed out, wrapping around the clay bird, and a Chakra thread was extended to snag him as well.
"That was close!" Deidara wiped the sweat from his forehead. "Thanks, Brother Scorpion! I owe you for that one."
Embarrassing deaths weren't his style. Face-first into the sand? Not artistic at all.
But Scorpion wasn't paying attention. The mechanical tail of his puppet writhed behind him, and his cold voice echoed through the desert winds.
"Deidara, enough chatter. The enemy is here."
In the distance, right at their altitude, a figure hovered midair—calm, motionless, and fully armored.
Deidara blinked.
"What... what is that?! A flying suit of armor?! There's someone inside, right? That thing's flying?!"
It was a rare sight. In the ninja world, true flight was exceedingly uncommon. The Second Tsuchikage, Mu, had mastered the Light-Weight Rock Technique, and later passed it down to Onoki, the Third Tsuchikage. But beyond them, flight remained a near-extinct ability.
Even Deidara had to invent his own method—using explosive clay to create birds he could ride.
But this... this was new.
"This armor," Scorpion observed, narrowing his eyes, "flies using jet propulsion—flame-based thrust from the feet. Its speed is remarkable. It closed the distance before we could react."
Deidara, eyes sparkling with curiosity, glanced sideways. "Hey... Brother Scorpion, don't tell me you're interested in that armor?"
"...Very much so," Scorpion admitted without hesitation. "Deidara, descend. Don't engage. I want that armor intact."
"Hah, I knew it!" Deidara chuckled. "Looks like you've already claimed it as yours."
On the other side, Hyuga Neji spoke through the helmet's speaker.
"You already know I'm from another world?"
The presence of the Otherworld Empire... had it been discovered?
Neji was confident that Obito and the First Hokage wouldn't reveal themselves so easily.
Scorpion and Deidara exchanged glances. So Orochimaru's theory had been right.
"There
really are people from another time and space," Deidara said
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