In Front of the Hokage Building

After staying in Snow Ninja Village for a few days, Deidara could no longer stand the place's bleak chill and clamored to leave.

Houka readily agreed and took him out of the Land of Snow.

Obito and Haku both stayed behind.

After Orochimaru's earlier attack on Takigakure, they had both realized their own shortcomings and decided to settle down and train properly.

"Hey, your state is really strange. What exactly happened?"

Deidara walked beside Houka, occasionally glancing over at him. "Just so we're clear, I'm not worried about you, hmm."

Houka snorted. "Shut up, or I'll punch you into the sky."

Houka truly had no mood to talk right now.

"Tch!" Deidara grunted, irritably flicking his ponytail as he strode ahead.

Burdened with worries, Houka silently followed behind him, his mind filled with incessant stray thoughts.

He thought of Minato Namikaze, Kushina, the Third Hokage, Kurenai Yuhi, Kakashi, Guy, Might Duy... and many things he had thought forgotten but still could not let go of.

At last, he thought of Nara Shikaku.

Huh?

Why had he thought of that guy last?

Nara Shikaku was a greasy middle-aged man pushing forty.

Houka quietly reflected on himself.

Before long, a smile appeared on his gloomy face.

Isn't it just becoming a Missing-nin? What's the big deal? Once Big Brother Minato comes back to life, I'll be one of Konoha's finest again!

Houka quickly formed Hand Seals and summoned Super Whirlwind Style Two, then flipped onto its back. He then called out to Deidara ahead of him, "Deidara, go wait for me in Takigakure. I have something big to do!"

"Something big?" Deidara did not quite react in time.

"That's right, something huge enough to shake the entire Ninja World!" Houka declared proudly.

Deidara's eyes lit up. "Hey, hey, take me with you!