[Now playing the highlights of Deidara, ranked nineteenth in Kage Level combat power]
Ōnoki could not help getting serious when he saw this. He wanted to see just what made this Deidara worth taking on as his disciple.
Sunagakure took it even more seriously than Ōnoki. They wanted to know how anyone could have their Tailed Beast stolen and their Kazekage killed. Wasn't that just being beaten black and blue on their own doorstep?
Thinking of the Fifth Kazekage, who had been killed, and looking at the Third Kazekage now, they had to admit he was worthy of being called the "strongest Kazekage." How could a mere Deidara compare to the strongest Kazekage? If the Third Kazekage had been there at the time, they thought he could have taught that young man, who didn't know his own limits, a lesson.
They couldn't really be blamed for being so confident. After all, they hadn't seen Hashirama and Madara's "Susanoo-Clad Kurama, two men destroying four nations." They thought all Kage were roughly the same, but in reality, there were gaps between Kage too.
Back then, the Third Hokage had also boasted that he was the strongest Hokage, but wasn't the best thing he could show off his five-element Ninjutsu? Hashirama only had to clap his hands together and call for the slaughter to begin. Wasn't that far more impressive?
[The screen showed the Akatsuki's comedic duo, Deidara and Tobi, capturing the Three-Tails.
"Senpai, what was it we were supposed to capture this time?" Tobi muttered to himself.
"The Three-Tails, the Three-Tails," Deidara said. Looking at how unreliable Tobi was, he suddenly missed Big Brother Sasori a little.
"Ahaha, One-Tail, Two-Tails, Three-Tails, then I'm the Ten-Tails," Tobi joked.
The people outside the screen were somewhat stunned. Were they really going to capture a Tailed Beast? Judging by their clothes, the two clearly belonged to the same organization.
Fourth Raikage: Capturing a Tailed Beast? They don't know their own limits. If they dare come to Kumogakure, I'll make sure they know not every Kage is like the Kazekage.
Third Kazekage: He only said they were capturing the Three-Tails. As far as I know, Kirigakure's Three-Tails Jinchūriki is very unstable right now. Also, could you stop bringing up our Sunagakure for no reason?
Fourth Mizukage: The Three-Tails isn't something ordinary people can control. The last time we deployed a team to capture it, it took several Jonin to bring it in. Those two alone might not succeed.
Ōnoki: Capturing one Three-Tails costs you that much? Why don't you ask me to do it? My disciple can capture the Three-Tails, so as his master, I certainly won't have a problem. How about we split the Three-Tails evenly afterward?
Fourth Mizukage: Ōnoki, you old geezer, you've certainly got it all worked out. Do you really think the Three-Tails is that easy to catch? Every time it is reborn, it's in a deep river or lake. Under normal circumstances, just finding it takes a great deal of effort, let alone forcing it to the surface.
That was indeed the case. If not for White Zetsu's intelligence network, which reached into every corner, finding the Three-Tails' rebirth site would have been no easy task.
[But on the screen, the two wasted no more time on the way. Deidara molded a bird, then with a "Hah," turned it into a giant bird several meters tall. Tobi and Deidara climbed onto it and scouted from above their destination.
The Three-Tails had been reborn this time in a lake at the southernmost edge of Kirigakure. It wasn't far from the village, so they had to finish the job quickly.
"Senpai, this is a huge expanse of water. How are we supposed to find the Three-Tails?" Tobi pestered Deidara, wanting to know exactly how he would find it.
"Watch closely, Tobi." Deidara took countless little bugs from his hand and threw them into the water. Once they touched the water, the bugs seemed to come alive, swimming downward as if searching for something.
A gigantic turtle was resting at the bottom of the lake. Even from a distance, one could see that the turtle was nearly a hundred meters in size. A Tailed Beast like this appearing on a battlefield would be like an attack from a higher dimension.
Whatever Ninjutsu struck that hard shell would seem like nothing more than a tickle.
Suddenly, the clay bugs found the Three-Tails and swam toward him. A tremendous bang rang out, sending water splashing more than ten meters into the air.
After the splash, Isobu, the Three-Tails, emerged from the water, nearly a hundred meters in size. The explosion had clearly enraged the gray, mud-turtle-like monster with three tails.
"Oh my, now that I take a closer look, he really does look like a giant turtle. He looks pretty strong," Tobi remarked as he gazed into the distance.
"Sure enough, I should leave this sort of thing to you, Senpai." Tobi took it for granted that Deidara would capture the Tailed Beast.
But Deidara jokingly said, "Come to think of it, Tobi, you're a member of the Akatsuki too, aren't you? I'll leave the rest of the mission to you." With that, he sent the giant bird flying upward, leaving Tobi alone to face the Three-Tails.
"What? Nani?" Before Tobi could finish speaking, the Three-Tails swung his tail at him, scaring Tobi into hastily using Ninjutsu to escape.
Since the chase was over the water, every one of the Three-Tails' attacks sent up an enormous splash. The Three-Tails pursued while Tobi fled.
"If it's water, we should leave it to Kisame. Wouldn't that solve it? This is a serious mistake in choosing the right person for the job!" Before Tobi could finish, the Three-Tails slammed into him and knocked him into the water.
Tobi didn't dare let go at all now. He could only cling to the Three-Tails' shell and swim along with him underwater. The Three-Tails was moving so fast that the moment Tobi let go, he would be flung far away.
"Can't be helped." Seeing Tobi being carried away, Deidara had no choice but to take out his Explosive Clay and mold it into the shape of a little fish.
"Hah." The little fish then dove into the water.
The Three-Tails thought he had evaded his pursuers. As he swam, a little fish came up beside him. The Three-Tails glanced at it and paid it no mind, but in the next second, the fish exploded.
With a bang, the Three-Tails was knocked unconscious and blown onto his back, while Tobi was blasted out along with him.
Tobi lay on the Three-Tails and suddenly realized that he had been knocked unconscious.
"Great! Hooray, hooray! Deidara, did you see that Ninjutsu just now? I finished this guy off." Tobi still thought he had defeated the Three-Tails himself.
"I became a member of the Akatsuki and was suddenly entrusted with an important task. That deserves recognition, doesn't it, Deidara-senpai?" Tobi asked excitedly.
"No, that was clearly my art, Tobi," Deidara said loudly.