The sealed kunai

Chapter 44: Days of Strife

Naruto, decked out in his plain Root mask to protect his face, stared down Deidara who was apparently waiting for him to move from his position in the skies so that he could attack again, 'Okay first thing's first. Take that bird out of the sky and get him down to my level. I don't need him bombarding me from the sky again, I had enough of that the first time.'

In the air on his clay-construct bird, Deidara looked down at Naruto, still eager for an actual fight against the person that killed Sasori all on his own. All he got out of Naruto the last time around was a little scuffle that was more or less Naruto running away from his explosives while he attacked from a place that Naruto couldn't reach. While with that mask on his face he couldn't read Naruto's expression, the fact that he wasn't running and wasn't looking anywhere but up at him was evidence enough that Naruto was ready to gut this one out to the bitter end, and that just left Deidara in an all around good mood.

As far as he was concerned, giving someone who was already aware of his art's greatness a repeat performance was just fine with him. He would probably appreciate it more than any other would since he had seen its awesome power once and lived.

"I know that it hardly bears repeating after I know you remember this well..." Deidara said, reaching into his pouch for more clay, "But art is an explosion, un!" Naruto wordlessly began dashing along the ground towards Deidara, zig-zagging, but the man only laughed and flew higher into the air in case Naruto actually could jump high enough to reach him in one move, "What are you going to do from down there? I thought you had more moves to take me on with!"

Naruto didn't say a word, and the blonde, white-masked figure jumped off of the ground towards Deidara, only muttering one phrase, "Fuuton: Kaze Wakiokoru (Wind Release: Wind Burst)." Deidara's jaw almost dropped when Naruto jumped on the air and came towards him, full out running towards him.

'He can fly?' Deidara thought before realizing he was still in a fight. He jerked his bird hard to the side to dodge the incoming Naruto, but he didn't escape without some sort of loss. Naruto cut through the wing of the bird instead of Deidara, who he was aiming at. Still, Deidara's bird was no more good to him as it fell to the ground and lost its ability to fly.

After their first meeting a few years back, Naruto had honed his supplementary technique that initially allowed him to more or less get a second jump off of thin air to the point that he didn't even need hand-seals to pull it off. Since he knew that at least one member of Akatsuki could fly it was a technique that could be used to reach them on their level. It was a main project Naruto had been working on for years after being so outclassed by the long-range fighter Deidara in Uzushiogakure, and with the use of his clones to train he eventually became proficient enough to do so as if he were hopping from branch to branch in the trees, only he could select exactly when he needed to step on the branch, allowing him to avert his path in mid-air.

He was basically as close to flight as he could conceive, and it was something he was extremely proud of, especially when he tried to teach Temari how to do it during some time together and found that she couldn't do it even after working with her for an entire stay of hers in Konoha as Suna's liason. Mastering the jutsu that was the source of his brainchild technique was far too difficult to be done with just one short stay, and it was simply too tiring for someone that wasn't a walking battery of chakra.

However this took things a step further. Each step he took was now able to produce an air bubble underneath his feet, allowing him to literally run on the air instead of needing to jump, and even if the previously mentioned wind mistress had the energy, learning it would take years, just like it did to master with him, only it would take longer than 2 years since no one else could use clones like him.

A fighting style for use against those with flight capabilities... Hard work personified. Haretsu Seigan (Burst Limit).

An attempt to follow up came from Naruto who rushed towards a falling Deidara with his sword poised to take him out. Deidara quickly formed small clay spiders and threw them at the incoming Naruto who stopped in the air and allowed himself to fall to avoid the explosives that detonated in the air over his head.