Because of the elemental advantage, Raijin's strike nearly destroyed Deidara's clay bird outright.
Of course, Deidara himself had slipped away ahead of time when he realized things were going wrong.
"Thud!"
Dust billowed across the ground. With nothing left to hold on to, Kakashi Hatake fell from midair.
Fortunately, Raijin had already planned for this. Through his mental connection with his summoned beast, Azure Bird: Thunderclap, he caught the falling Kakashi Hatake in a single breath.
The summoned beast Azure Bird: Thunderclap slammed his claws into the ground, sending dust billowing into the sky.
Not far from his talons stood Deidara, who had quietly landed.
Deidara looked up at the imposing giant bird before him, his eyes sparkling with excitement.
"Wow! What a beautiful big bird, yeah!"
As though utterly unconcerned about his situation, he simply stared eagerly at Azure Bird: Thunderclap.
Bound by his contract, the summoned beast Azure Bird: Thunderclap could not harm his summoning partner.
But if anyone dared challenge his majesty, he would unleash towering fury upon them.
Deidara's brazen scrutiny infuriated Azure Bird: Thunderclap.
Without communicating with Raijin, he attacked.
His head dipped, and his enormous beak smashed toward the ground.
"Rumble!"
Once again, the earth shook, and mud and stones flew.
Azure Bird: Thunderclap's vicious peck blasted a huge crater straight into the ground.
Deidara had no ability to withstand a summoned beast's attack head-on.
Thus, by the time the attack landed, he had already quietly changed positions.
Ten meters away, Deidara poked his head out of the ground, looking up as he said excitedly:
"Little bird, you've got quite a temper. Just my kind of thing. How about becoming my summoned beast?"
Probably only a "lunatic" like Deidara would do something as bizarre as poaching someone's partner right in front of them.
Although