"What the hell is this place? Why is it all sand? I'm starting to think we've ended up in the Land of Wind. I'm so thirsty. Hey, got any water?" Hidan complained.
"No. Stop wasting your breath, or you'll only get thirstier," Kakuzu said flatly.
Zetsu tossed Hidan a canteen. "All right, stop arguing, you two. We're almost there."
Hidan took a long swig and sighed in relief. "Ah, I'm alive again! That's better. Anyway, Zetsu, what exactly are we looking for out here? There's nothing but sand. What could there possibly be to find?"
Zetsu did not answer his question. He merely said, "You'll know when we get there."
The three continued onward. It was not until noon that Zetsu called out, "We're here. This is the place."
Hidan looked around curiously. "There's nothing but sand here. What are we looking for? And why does this place look just like the Land of Wind? I remember there being a forest here. Am I remembering wrong?"
Kakuzu also gave Zetsu a curious look. He remembered this place being a forest, too. When had it turned into a desert?
Seeing their curious looks, Zetsu said with lingering fear, "This did used to be a forest. It only became a desert later."
Hidan said cheerfully, "See? I knew I remembered right. There really was a forest here."
"When did it turn into a desert, then?" Kakuzu asked. He was far more levelheaded than Hidan and immediately spotted the key issue. If this had once been a forest, what had turned it into a desert? He also noticed that the change was not limited to the sand. Even the surrounding mountains had vanished.
"It was caught in the aftermath. I was hiding over there at the time," Zetsu replied, pointing at a distant