When Ashveil first arrived in this New World, he had not been fully familiar with his surroundings, so he had refrained from unleashing his Conqueror's Haki on Deidara and Tobi.
His mind had been focused on the looming threat of the space-time pendulum.
Now, knowing that the pendulum would take some time to reappear, Ashveil shifted his attention entirely to the two standing before him.
A surge of Conqueror's Haki erupted from his body.
The invisible force compressed the surrounding air, filling the area with an oppressive intensity that pressed down on everything around him.
Tobi remained composed; his spatial abilities and mastery over his body were extraordinary, almost immortal in nature.
Beads of sweat appeared on his palms, his heart racing, but he maintained his cool.
Deidara, on the other hand, was visibly shaken.
Sweat poured from his forehead, and even his hands and feet trembled uncontrollably.
He had bitten his tongue to keep from kneeling, but the fear gnawed at him nonetheless.
Even when Akatsuki had recruited him, and he had met the formidable Uchiha Itachi, he had never felt such a paralyzing terror.
Someone stronger than Itachi stood before him.
Anger and humiliation flared within Deidara.
"Who do you think I am? You really think you can scare me?" he barked, voice trembling with a mix of pride and fear.
The clay dragon beneath Deidara's feet erupted, hurling flying bombs into the air.
Ashveil could feel the explosive potential in each one, yet he smiled faintly.
Such powers, comparable to those of Doflamingo's subordinates in the Pirate World, were trivial to him.
But Ashveil had no intention of relying solely on his Conqueror's Haki for defense; the resulting debris would be too messy.
Instead, he condensed his Haki into the shape of a massive, invisible dragon.
The Haki-dragon soared toward Deidara.
Every clay dragon in its path shattered midair, exploding harmlessly around it.
Deidara, shocked, looked up as Tobi activated his Sharingan.
Only then did Tobi realize the invisible Haki-dragon was the force destroying all of Deidara's attacks.
"This person… can't be from Konoha," Tobi muttered to himself.
Only a handful of true Konoha masters could reach this level, and none were unknown to him.
Deidara, seeing his bombs fail, reassessed the situation.
Perhaps this was a unique form of Ninjutsu.
He ascended several hundred meters, maneuvering his clay dragon to avoid Ashveil's attacks.
The Haki-dragon smashed into the ground, creating a massive crater and sending dust flying.
Tobi bounced across the terrain, shouting for Deidara to slow down, but Ashveil only smiled faintly.
They still underestimated him.
"Be careful, Tobi. He's strong," Deidara warned.
"Move ten thousand meters away. Next, I'll use C3!"
Tobi's face turned pale.
"You mean the puppet bomb? The one you said could destroy the Sand Country?" he stammered.
"Exactly. Stay clear!" Deidara barked.
Tobi burrowed into the ground, fleeing rapidly.
Deidara gave him enough time to escape.
Ashveil considered these two.
Tobi was a lovesick fool, manipulated by Madara.
Deidara had been ostracized for his obsession with art, joining Akatsuki for the sake of his craft.
Unlike indiscriminate killers like Kakuzu, Deidara had a code; he was loyal and maintained good relations with his partners.
Deidara began crafting the C3 puppet bomb.
"Prepare yourself, Tobi. He's fast, but this will end it!" he shouted.
Ashveil observed disdainfully.
There was no need to dodge such a slow, predictable attack.
The massive puppet bomb fell directly toward him, detonating in a colossal explosion.
The blast triggered Tobi's landmines in a chain reaction, sending shockwaves across the surrounding mountains.
"Explosion is art!" Deidara shouted triumphantly, believing Ashveil would be obliterated.
Tobi emerged briefly, praising Deidara, oblivious to the futility.
Deidara scowled.
"I remember you mocking me before, Tobi. I haven't forgotten."
"I always believed in you, Deidara-senpai!" Tobi flattered.
Ashveil, emerging unscathed from the ruins, spoke with a faint smile.
His clothes remained intact, not a scratch on him.
Even Tobi's masked face betrayed incredulity.
"I say, you two, can we talk?" Ashveil began.
"Your organization is called Akatsuki, yes? Experts like Uchiha Itachi, Kisame, and… Sasori, though he should be dead now. I come with no ill intentions. Otherwise, you would have died hundreds of times already."
Tobi and Deidara remained silent, stunned by his knowledge.
The truth was undeniable: Ashveil was powerful beyond comprehension.
Before he could continue, Deidara launched more miniature bombs at him, but Ashveil was ready.
Activating his Tremor-Tremor Fruit, he shattered the explosives midair with a subtle vibration.
"Hmph," Deidara muttered in confusion.
His bombs were useless.
Tobi trembled.
Perhaps he should intervene personally.
This newcomer posed a grave danger.
Deidara stared, astonished.
His most potent bombs, capable of leveling nations, had failed utterly.
Ashveil's power rivaled that of the greatest masters he had ever faced.
Ashveil's eyes gleamed.
"I can only injure you enough to talk properly," he said, preparing a strike imbued with his Tremor-Tremor vibrations.
A single blow from Ashveil's Haki-imbued fist tore through the sky, a sound like the fabric of the air itself ripping.
Tobi gasped.
"Deidara-senpai, he's serious now!"
The flying dragon collapsed under the force, and Deidara was thrown from the sky, his arm torn apart.
Tobi, now intangible via Kamui, chose to feign defeat.
Ashveil approached Deidara calmly.
"Tell me, Deidara, is your art really all that impressive?" he asked, amusement flickering across his face.