Meanwhile, on another battlefield.
Deidara rode a battered, dilapidated bird, swaying as he arrived over an open stretch of land.
After confirming there was no one else nearby, he decisively turned and charged toward Mu.
Mu, who had been following close behind Deidara, saw him suddenly steer the bird toward him. He came to an abrupt halt in midair and spread his hands.
"Dust Release: Particle Style: Atomic Dismantling Jutsu."
A milky-white spherical cube instantly enveloped the clay bird and Deidara. With a dazzling flash of white light, they were reduced to dust and vanished.
Mu's hollow pupils abruptly contracted as regret and self-reproach surged through him.
Had he just killed his grand-student?
But he quickly shook his head and dismissed the thought.
He was Ōnoki's disciple. He should not have died so easily.
Sure enough, the real Deidara was hiding behind the clouds, his hands held in a seal as he continuously spewed milky-white clay toward the ground, pouring down like a waterfall.
When Mu sensed the sky suddenly darken, he sharply looked up and saw Deidara's waterfall of clay streaming toward the ground.
Though Mu had no idea what Deidara was doing, his battle instincts told him that this technique had to be interrupted.
He raised both hands, and milky-white cylindrical masses of energy gathered in his palms once more.
"Dust Release: Particle Style: Atomic Dismantling Jutsu!"
As his words fell, the milky-white energy mass shot directly at Deidara, who was casting his technique, like a beam of light.
Yet when Deidara saw the approaching beam, there was not the slightest panic in his eyes.
He even smiled.
He knew Dust Release's attack range was ultimately limited, and he had counted on that.
He had deliberately kept the bird hovering at that height earlier to confirm Mu's attack