.
I
drew the poison from the summer's sting,
And eased the fire out of
your fevered skin.
.
He had all the time in the world to waste according to what he wanted. He could spend an entire day lazing around, painting, or blowing things to smithereens. Anything. It was finally his turn to call the shots in his life for the first time since he had joined the Akatsuki. The organization just wouldn't leave the budding artist alone unless he was dead. He ultimately realized that the key to his freedom lied in his destruction. The bomb-expert had come to attention to that fact mere days before his untimely death.
He walked through the forest at his own leisurely pace, dressed as a common wandering artist starving for inspiration. Every step he took made his art supplies gently clink together in his green knapsack. The blonde stared down at his gloved hands; they were black with a blue symbol stitched on them, a faux symbol that looked like it was meant for sealing kekkei genkai away unless absolutely necessary. This was done to deter anyone curious about his other mouths. He unconsciously placed one of his hands on the left side of his chest, where the fourth mouth used to be. Ever since he had 'killed himself' in the battle with the youngest Uchiha, he realized that the mouth on his chest was a 'one use only' kind of thing; useless really.
Deidara adjusted the strap on his knapsack to ease the pressure on his shoulders. The pack wasn't heavy, but the braided straps were thin, prone to digging themselves into the carriers' skin. Ever since he went into 'hiding', he had taken, or rather, forced himself to paint in place of his other hobby. Overtime, he did eventually start liking the smell of the raw, mineral pigments, egg whites, and clean, soapy smelling brushes. It was a subtle pastime, good for knocking off minutes of the hours he wasted every day.
Setting off bombs was fun and all, but he couldn't risk being showy or worse; found alive. He had a bounty on his blonde head the size of the Fire Country a few years back. His killer would have received 50 million yen; a fair price considering that he had kidnapped the Kazekage. That he had killed said Kazekage. That he had murdered a countless number of ninja from various countries. That he was associated with the Akatsuki. And to top it all off like a cherry on a sundae; he had gotten away with it.
Since that time, he had kept a low profile and edited his appearance a bit; his once long mid-length hair was now cut short, even his bangs. The blonde now kept all of his hair up in a ponytail with the exception of a few of his short bangs. The artist had seen from the villages he had visited recently that his head had finally been taken off the list for collection; it had already been a long time since the day he killed himself. Maybe he had a shot at a normal life.
Pshh, He scoffed at the idea and dejectedly kicked a stone out of his path. You've never been normal, un. You faked your own suicide...!
He sighed as he ducked slightly to avoid hitting his head on the bark of a fallen tree. It had been a whole 7 years since his suicide. He successfully deceived that Uchiha brat, Sasuke, his organization, and the damn bastard who masqueraded as a clumsy idiot by the name of Tobi. The world now knew him as Madara Uchiha.
The artist couldn't believe what he had heard about his former partner at the beginning of the 4th ninja war 6 years previously. The blonde was beside himself in rage for the next 3 months after receiving the information about Tob—Madara. He had been played like a sap right into his hands. He couldn't believe that he had one pulled over on him by the man who annoyed him the most.
The Gods have got a sick fucking sense of humor, un.
But alas, as his thoughts digressed while taking his stroll through the forest, he came across the putrid smell of burning flesh, burning wood, and blood. Deidara knit his brows. He shouldn't have been anywhere near a controlled country. The artist had only been walking for 20 minutes; there was no way he could've gotten into the Fire Country from Taigakure already. He let his curiosity get the best of him and went to go check out the scene.
However, actually getting there proved to be a challenge itself; the entire area was riddled with fallen, charred trees and rubble. There was a bunch metal stuck in the bark and in the earth; a sign that someone had been fighting with kunai or shuriken. Upon closer inspection, however, the pieces were all jagged as if they had been torn apart in an explosion.
Explosive tags. He told himself as he saw even more metal protruding in even more areas around him, telling him that someone had been using a lot of kunai with explosive tags. Looks like someone had a field day with the bombs.
Deidara ducked underneath another fallen tree as observed from behind the bushes with caution; he had a bit of backup clay in his pocket to fling at some one if the dumb ass decided it was a good idea to attack him. There were several people fighting; an ANBU from Konoha and several Taigakure nin. He watched in delight from his hiding place; the battle was thrilling, exciting even. One of the ANBU threw their kunai around wildly. Deidara was in rapture from the sight of the explosions from that point on; it was feeding his suppressed need for blowing shit up.
As the fight escalated, and two of the 3 the ninja from Taigakure were blown to bits, Deidara eventually got caught in the middle. The Konoha Shinobi had thrown a kunai at their opposite enemy nin. The waterfall Shinobi deflected the weapon, and it tore through the air towards Deidara. His lightning reflexes kicked in as he dove out of his hiding spot into the clearing to avoid getting blown to bits. The fighters froze, taken aback by their surprise visitor.
"Ignore the commoner, I'm your opponent!" The Taigakure Nin boomed as he lunged at the ANBU ninja. Deidara quickly got to his feet and managed a few seconds to contemplate his next move; would he join the fight? Or would he flee? Before he got to initiate his plan, the ANBU quickly shot towards him. The Konoha ninja grabbed him by the scruff of his shirt and threw him across the clearing, away from the battle while dodging shuriken from the enemy Shinobi.
Deidara landed roughly sideways in the dirt. He growled as he dusted himself off—His ninja skills were lacking somewhat. He couldn't even dodge the Leaf Ninja coming after him. The Taigakure ninja targeted Deidara as bait for the ANBU ninja. In a flash, the assailant disappeared before the ANBU's eyes and reappeared behind Deidara.
"Shit—"Deidara growled as the man from the Waterfall Country hauled him to his feet and pressed a cold kunai against his neck and his hands behind his back. The ANBU dropped their attack stance at the sight of the smirking Taigakure ninja. Deidara cursed himself for not bothering to keep him his skills as a Shinobi as sharp as the blade against his neck.
"Leave the civilian alone," The ANBU said dangerously while lowering their sword. Deidara unconsciously noted how...Feminine the voice was.
"You give me the scroll you carry on your person, and I will let this man go." The Taigakure ninja demanded. The ANBU kunoichi was silent for a few moments before she unbuttoned a pocket and let a scroll fall into her hand.
"Open it! Let me see the writing!" The waterfall ninja commanded as the ANBU ninja opened the scroll slowly. Deidara noticed at how the man who was holding him as hostage eyes bugged a little when the Konoha kunoichi flipped the scroll to show him. The ANBU suddenly disappeared in a cloud of smoke.
"What the—" The man gawked and looked around. Deidara took his as his chance to escape. He quickly pried his captor's hands away from his throat before he sent his own fist into the ninja's jaw. Deidara smirked when he heard the satisfying sound of bone crunching followed by a howl of pain
"Oh no, you're not getting away!" The waterfall ninja roared as he quickly caught Deidara by the arm. The blonde growled in annoyance as he tried throwing another fist at the man. The Shinobi caught his fist and twisted his arm. Deidara cursed as he quickly tried to knee the other man in the gut but was unsuccessful. The ex-Akatsuki damned himself for his loose life at that moment because he saw a flash of metal in the corner of his eye.
Poof—
The kunoichi from Leaf reappeared in a cloud of smoke behind the waterfall ninja. Deidara felt the man tense up. The blonde thought that he was out of the fire until the dying Taigakure ninja slashed his throat. Deidara went ridged as he felt a warm liquid pour down his chest.
Shit. He thought as both he and the dead waterfall ninja fell to the floor. Deidara's hands flew to his throat as he heard the ANBU gasp. The blonde's eyes widened at the puddle of blood that came from his neck and realized the Taigakure hadn't cut a major artery. The ANBU quickly rolled Deidara onto his back and tore off her gloves. The ex-Iwa ninja felt a calm energy sweep over the wound before blacking out from means by which he would not remember.
-
-
-
His eyes cracked open to a white room and the faint smell of fabric softener. His left arm was cold for he was hooked up to an IV to replenish fluids that he probably didn't have in his body anymore. Deidara donned a usual green hospital gown and he could tell that his hair wasn't in its regular up do anymore. He tried sitting up, but his attempts were in vain. Three very wide glowing black straps held him fast to the bed he was laying on. Deidara went into a slight panic at the restraints. He closed his eyes and tried to remember what had happened prior to him blacking out. His throat was cut and the ANBU tried to save him.
Damn it, I'm in hell aren't I? He thought to himself as he sighed and looked around. After several minutes, he finally decided that the most logical place that he could possible be in was a hospital. Most likely a hospital in Konohagakure. He knit his brows and realized that the ANBU must have recognized him; that was why he was strapped down the way he was. Lost in his thoughts, Deidara didn't notice the door creak open and someone entering.
"You're awake." The person stated gently. Deidara looked up and could have sworn his eyes nearly popped out of his head.
She was clad in an outfit used universally by doctors; complete with a large red cross on her back and a stethoscope in her breast pocket. She was genuinely pretty; all of her features were soft with the exception of the long rose colored hair tied in a ponytail. What struck him the most were the thin limbed gorgeous green eyes that smiled.
He recognized those eyes from 8 years ago. Right after he defeated the host of the Shukaku, the 5th Kazekage.
It's the girl who had killed Sasori...!
"You were out for a two days." She said as she picked up a clip board that hung on the wall near the door and jot something down with the pen she produced from her pocket.
"How are you feeling?"
He realized that she did not recognize him. The blonde was silently thankful. She looked up at him from her clipboard and looked at him, waiting for an answer. Deidara opened his mouth to respond, but no sound came out. His eyes widened as he tried to speak again.
Nothing.
The lady-doctor looked at him strangely and walked over to his bedside. She undid the straps that held him down first.
"I'm sorry, we couldn't identify you from what you were carrying; it's standard procedure to subdue any unidentified people in our care." She apologized and handed him the clipboard. He sat up and looked at her in confusion. To this she said, "Write."
Deidara stared at her for a moment longer before looking down at the clip board. He could not risk his neck again. Deidara would not ask about Sasori, or anything pertaining to what happened before the 4th ninja war. He organized his thoughts before hastily writing a message down on the paper.
'My voice is gone'
She looked down at his writing and nodded. She reached for a mirror that was lying on his bedside and showed him his reflection. Deidara's face was fine overall, but, he had a cast around his neck.
"He must have severed your vocal cords." She said as he let him hold the mirror. "I'm sorry. I've...Never dealt with an injury such as that. But at least you're still alive, huh?"
She offered him a warm smile that made him forget that she had killed his partner all those years ago for a moment. He remembered how unpopular he had become with the ladies right after his grand finale with Sasuke. Dressing up so that no one recognized him had injured his status among women because they loved his long hair. It was so bad that he hadn't been given even as much as a glance from the women he stayed around because he had done that well in looking the part of a pauper.
"I suppose you're wondering what happened to the Shinobi that hurt you. He's dead, it's ok. I'm the ninja that um...Saved you." She said as she watched him give her a suspicious look.
"Don't worry, we're in the 2nd best hospital you could possibly be in; we're a few miles south of the Taigakure border in the Fire Country. I'm stationed here for the next year or so." She smiled again. Deidara sighed as he looked away to assess his situation. He was being treated at a hospital in the Fire Country by the girl who had killed his partner years ago. Her teammates would surely recognize him; he was most worried about the famous copy-cat ninja, Hatake Kakashi.
"Ne, I suppose you're hungry." She said as he looked up at her. She laughed gently as he responded by giving her a slow, careful nod. "Ok, umm...Can you write down what you're allergic to, just in case?"
Deidara shook his head as a reply to her question.
"You're not allergic to anything then?"
He nodded this time. She smiled again and held her hands together.
"Oh jeeze, I'm so rude. I forgot to introduce myself; I'm Haruno Sakura or just Sakura if you prefer." She said with an easy grin as Deidara managed a forced smile back to his warden. "I'll be back in 5."
With that, she left the room, leaving him alone to think over what had happened. After a minute, he summed the entirety of the situation all in a single, 3 worded sentence.
He.
Was.
Doomed.
.
And
after all of this I am amazed,
That I am cursed far more than I am
praised.
.
-Silver Wings by Thrice
