Thanks to sync94 for being the first to review! Everybody else who read Chapter One, I hope you enjoyed it! If you want to see what Natsuki looks like, she's on DA if you search up 'weapons dealer Natsuki'. You should be able to find her.
So far, I've got 8/9 chapters written, but I'll only post once every fortnight or so because I'm really bad with writers block.
Thank-you again to sync94 and all who have read Weapons Dealer so far!
Chapter Two: 'Shopping' and the efficiency of a cane.
Natsuki stared out over her room from under her sleeve. Chikakon snuggled closer into her body. She shivered a little from the cold and sat up, pulling her clothes tighter against herself. Chikakon looked up at her expectantly. "Come on, let's go for a walk." The little red fox stood and followed her out of the room. They walked down through the corridors of the Akatsuki base silently. Natsuki's tabi and Chikakon's pitter-patter footsteps were the only things to be heard. She was glad that her leg was fine again. After a while of wandering around, they found themselves climbing up a set of spiraling steps. Natsuki paused by a little window, hardly the space of her own face. She looked through it and watched the sun rise from the east. Or maybe it was setting in the west? She couldn't tell. She continued up the steps, traveling yet again in darkness. She found nothing at the top, something which disappointed her greatly. She had hoped for either of two things: either an escape, or something that would make staying in the base of the Akatsuki more bearable. With a sigh, she turned around with Chikakon and they returned to the labyrinth of corridors. They wandered for what felt like hours, not knowing where they were. Then they ran into a familiar blue-skinned shark man. Natsuki ran up to him in delight and he blinked in surprise. "Natsuki, where's your-"
"I don't need it right now, my leg's fine." Kisame nodded a little.
"Why are you up so late?"
"Um..." Natsuki looked around. "I didn't really feel tired so... I went exploring and... yeah." She finished, shrugging her shoulders. "Do you know where my room is?" Kisame laughed and clapped her on the shoulder, leading her down the corridor. Chikakon bounded after them.
Kisame pushed open Natsuki's door and she smiled politely at him. Chikakon bounded between their legs into the room. "Thank-you Kisame-san." She said, dipping her head politely. Before she could disappear into her room, he grabbed her shoulder gently. She looked at him with mild shock. "Get some rest, you'll be doing a lot of work tomorrow." She smiled and cocked her head,
"Well I would, but a certain somebody is stopping me." Kisame chuckled and let go of her. He turned back down the corridor and waved lazily. "Don't be an idiot!"
"Whatever you say!"
Natsuki was rudely awakened later by someone rapping on her door. It was opened a moment later and the person was attacked by a flying Chikakon. Itachi grabbed the little red fox by his tail as he went pluming past. "Leader-sama requests to see you." He said in a tone that didn't reflect the flying-fox-being-hurled-by-it's-master situation. Natsuki glared at him from beneath her bed head. "Tell the bastard I'm still sleeping!" There was a dark chuckle from the corridor. "What did I say about being an idiot?" Natsuki froze, then her glare hardened. "Kisame, shut up." He looked into her room with a feral grin, then walked over to her and hauled her out of the duvet. Natsuki yelped and kicked him as hard as she could at such an unruly hour. "Kisame! I could've been naked for all you knew! Put me down!" She shook as he laughed. Her cheeks flushed red in anger and embarrassment when she saw a number of the other members looking out of their rooms to stare at her. "Mind your own business!" She snapped, still trying to squirm out of the shark man's grip. Chikakon trotted behind them, happily wagging his tail. "Traitor." Natsuki muttered, propping herself up via her elbow as well as she could whilst hanging over Kisame's shoulder. He set her down outside Leader-sama's office and Itachi knocked. "Enter." The three strode in. Natsuki eyed a tall man, nearly as tall as Kisame, in the dim lighting. "Natsuki." Natsuki stood to attention. "I am aware that you did not bring any clothes or possessions with you other than..." She caught the wave of a hand from Leader-sama. She tried to growl out an answer, but Kisame pulled on her hair. She bit back the yelp and glared at the blue man. He grinned back in a cocky fashion. "That is why you and Kakuzu here," He motioned towards the other man in the room, "You will be going... shopping." Natsuki tilted her head.
"Why? I can just collect some of my things from my house. No need for anyone to come along with me." She felt Leader-sama's calculating gaze on her. "Kakuzu, I have another mission for you and Hidan. I will inform you of it later, you may leave now." The tall man didn't bother with an answer, he simply turned and stalked out of the room as if he hadn't had his morning coffee. "Itachi. You and Kisame will escort Natsuki to her old home. I will be expecting you back within three days. That is all." The three of them left and Natsuki was led back to her room because she still couldn't find it. Half an hour passed in which Natsuki slipped her katana into the back of her navy blue obi, picked up her cane and went to wait outside her room with Chikakon. After that initial half hour, Kisame and Itachi arrived and they went on their way. Natsuki tried her best to memorise the maze of corridors and hallways and the numerous doors in their walls, but after the second turn, she was utterly lost. The cool freedom of outside was a great relief therefore and Natsuki couldn't help but take her cane by it's middle and run off into the forest with Chikakon. Kisame called after her, being the louder of him and Itachi, before they leapt after the troublesome girl.
Natsuki laughed, feeling the wind streaming through her hair. It felt good to be running. She couldn't remember the last time she went so fast. Chikakon flew by next to her. She looked down and let out another shrill laugh and dropped her cane. Faster. Faster! The surroundings turned to blurs and her feet pounded against the ground even harder. An outcrop of rock appeared before her an she ran for it. As much as she wanted to keep running at that incredible pace, she knew she had to stop. Digging her heels into the ground, she skidded to a halt. Her chest heaved and her eyes glittered in a strange sense of exhilaration. Chikakon clawed up her side and she held him close to her chest. They looked out above the forest splashing out below them. The last dregs of an early sunrise warmed her cheeks and she let out another heart-warming laugh, lifting her little red fox up high. A sharp tap between her shoulder blades silenced her and she turned around with a gasp. Kisame bonked her on the head with her cane, a look of amusement half-hidden behind his scowl. "Ow! Kisame-san, what'd you do that for?"
"For being an idiot and running off. You don't even know where you're going, do you?" Natsuki looked down and shook her head in a childish way. Kisame huffed and held out her cane for her. "Geez, you sure gave us a run for our money though." Natsuki's head whipped up in a grin and she took her cane back,
"Glad to hear it!" Something twitched under the cloth of her hakamashite and she froze. "Um, let's get going then!" Kisame eyed her skeptically, but they did need to get going soon or they would never get back to the base in time. "Since you wasted time running off like that, I'll have to carry you again." He grinned, scooping her up onto his shoulder before she could bolt. "Hey! Hey! What do you mean again? And put me down! You said I gave you a run for your money, so why do I have to get carried?" Kisame chuckled and leapt back into the trees where Itachi was waiting patiently. "Leader-sama made it very clear to us that you were to rest as much as possible before tomorrow."
"Why?" Natsuki yelled, trying to cling on to Chikakon. All she got was a chuckle and a branch in the face. She hauled Chikakon up by one hand and let him sit on her back, then she held onto her cane for dear life and tried to scramble into a less uncomfortable position. "Stop squirming, girl." Kisame said, rolling his shoulder in such a way that it forced her back into her original hanging-over-shoulder-by-the-waist-in-a-very-uncomfortable-fashion position. Natsuki then spent the rest of the travelling day in silence, slung over a blue-skinned shark man's shoulder.
Darkness fell and Itachi decided it was time to set up camp for the night. Kisame set Natsuki down on a rock and she curled up into a little ball, groaning and holding her abdomen. He chuckled at what he thought to be an overreaction and walked off to collect firewood. Itachi looked over at her from clearing the ground a little. He thought to ask if she was okay, but decided not to. She wasn't dead or dying and it was probably just a muscle cramp from being in the same position all day. Kisame came back with a pile of branches and twigs a while later and Itachi lit them with a quick jutsu. The four of them, including Chikakon, sat for a while, Kisame attempting to cook a few rabbits Chikakon had caught. Natsuki refused the food and instead remained curled up by her rock. Chikakon joined her later with a full stomach. Kisame stayed on guard that night whilst Itachi slept.
The wind rushed by her hair, her feet pounded against the dirt. Rocks and pebbles stabbed into her bare soles, but she did not stop. They did not hurt her. She leapt over a log, feeling the wind press against her skin. An outcrop of rock faced her, a waterfall gushing out from beneath it. Her feet did not slow. They did not stop. She screamed. The wind buffeted her and the spray stung her bare skin like needles. Her eyes slid closed and she pierced the pooling water like a fallen rag doll. A white fox tail swished around her naked body and slowly, she drowned in a tranquil slumber.
Natsuki's eyes snapped open and she shot up like a bolt. Her chest was heaving and she couldn't breathe properly. Itachi looked over at her. He had switched guard duty with Kisame. She patted herself down frantically, then sighed and flopped onto her back. She didn't seem to notice the look she was receiving from Itachi. She had been thrashing about a lot and at one point had let out a little sob, or perhaps it had been a scream? It had been hard to tell at such low volume. Her fox watched over her for a while after that. He seemed to act stupid and downright brainless when the girl was with him, but when she was unaware of him, he was extremely mature and his actions told that he cared very much for the young woman. Itachi let out a long sigh and rubbed the bridge of his nose. To him, she was more trouble than she was worth.
Morning came around and Natsuki was again tossed over Kisame's shoulder. However, this time she only hung there for about and hour or two. Albeit, a very uncomfortable one or two hours, but still far better than the previous day. When she was set down, the three of them were only a short distance from the gates of Konohana. Kisame stooped a little to look her in the eye. "Don't so much as try to bring attention to yourself, or try and turn us in. We all belong to the same organisation now, so you'd only be getting yourself and your dealing business in trouble." Natsuki stood frozen for a second before she nodded a little. A confident smirk crept onto her face and she gathered up her usual demeanor. "Of course, don't be an idiot, right?" Kisame grinned and straightened. He and Itachi both pulled on straw hats to hide their faces and Itachi pulled out a bundled cloak from his black robe. He handed it silently to Natsuki and she looked at it, then at Chikakon. With a shrug, she swung it over her shoulders and pulled up the hood. The three of them walked along the path in silence, Natsuki hiding a little red fox in the folds of her cloak and gripping her cane. She refused to play the crippled old woman, but it was becoming increasingly difficult. It would be suspicious if she didn't use it, right? With a shake of her head, she sped up a little. She had lagged behind. She should look on the bright side, she was returning home, even if just for a little bit. She would get to say a proper goodbye to her home and business, clear up a little bit and lock everything up. As well as contact her 'customers' and tell them that she was out of business. Pah! Like they'd ever believe that kind of story. Maybe if I just say that the interrogation and ANBU are onto me? It's not too rare in this kind of business and- A hand on her shoulder stopped her thoughts immediately and she looked to her right. Itachi wasn't even looking at her. He was staring straight ahead. The two men seemed a little on edge. Natsuki looked about, but all she could see were the huge gates of Konohagakure. "What is it? Why are we stopping?" Her head flicked around to look at Kisame when Itachi again deigned not to answer her. The shark man stayed silent too. "Transformation jutsu." A poof and the two criminals had suddenly taken on the forms of worn travelers. Natsuki blinked and sighed. She was useless at jutsu. The Kisame-that-didn't-look-like-Kisame pushed Natsuki forwards a little and she glared at him, but moved on anyway. Kotetsu and Izumo at the gates watched them walking towards the gates and stopped the three of them at the entrance. "Who are you? Please state your business in Konohagakure." The brown-haired one asked. To Natsuki, he seemed a little suspicious of them.
Ch. I would be too. The disguised Itachi cocked his head innocently,
"We are simply travellers heading out to see the wonders of the Land of Fire." A polite, if not a little suspicious, smirk. "You seem a little on edge, I've heard tales of how welcoming the Leaf Village is, but this seems a little hostile to me."
That sly bugger, he's getting intelligence! The two Leaf ninja eyed the disguised Itachi, but they were trapped in a corner. Telling him could spell trouble, but not telling him would only cause suspicion and with their luck, they best that could happen would be terrible rumors of how something bad must be going on in Konoha. That would lead to the worst possible situation: nobody requesting ninja for missions and other villages thinking that the Leaf was weakening. Kotetsu's lips twitched downwards a little, "The owner of the village's main repairs shop disappeared without a trace a few days ago." Natsuki jolted a little. This didn't go unnoticed by the two Leaf shinobi. They eyed her closely, "And who are you? Another traveller? You don't look it." They eyed the bulge of her stomach under the cloak. Natsuki laughed a little and rubbed the lump which was actually Chikakon. "Oh, but I am! You see, my husband just loved the idea of seeing the whole of the Land of Fire and I just couldn't refuse, after all, it was a dream of mine since I was a little kid! Of course, I had absolutely no idea we had a little one on the way at the time, but we decided to carry on with our travels anyway..." Natsuki trailed off. The two shinobi were smiling politely though.
"So when's it due?" The brunette one asked.
Playing the polite game, huh? "Oh, a little while now! A few weeks and we'll be stopping off in a village for a while and so on, you get the idea!" Bastards!
"That's wonderful!" They smiled, "We won't hold you up any longer." With a smile and a dip of her hooded head, Natsuki 'waddled' off with her cane to support her 'pregnant' self. Her 'husband' the disguised Itachi (Only because he was on her cane-free side), kept an awkward hand on her back between her shoulder blades until they were far out of sight. With a quick flick of his hand, he had effectively gave her a sharp whack for making up such an embarrassing story and simultaneously brought his hand back down to his side. Natsuki laughed nervously at his unimpressed and slightly murderous aura. Kisame chuckled beside her. She glared up at him, "What? It got us out of there didn't it? What else was I supposed to say, 'Oh no, I'm actually on my way to obesity'?" With a huff, she pulled Chikakon out of her cloak by the tail and he scuttled off. Natsuki gave the two men a quick, mocking bow, before dashing off after the little red fox. Kisame huffed and Itachi sighed. "Let's get this over with then..."
"Hn."
The shop door was open when the two Akatsuki finally got there. A furious and stressed voice was coming from the kitchen. When they popped their heads around the door, Natsuki was in the process of slamming her fist on the table and yelling down the phone at somebody. "No! I'm not fixing in one more order! I told you, the ANBU are getting on my case and I'm not risking my butt for you! You're not even a dedicated customer and I haven't known you long enough to trust you! For all I know, you could be working for them! Oh shut your loudmouthed trap already, I'm shutting down for a while and that's final!" The phone slammed back into it's holder and Natsuki huffed. Chikakon looked down at her from in an overhead cupboard. The phone flew to her ear and she dialed in another number. "Hey, Natsuki here... Yeah, hey Shoji! No, no free time right now. Sorry dude. Anyway, look, I'm shutting down for a while, yeah the ANBU are on my case. So, I'll call you when everything clears up. Sorry for the short notice. Look, come by tonight at eight and I'll have that final order ready for you by then. Haha! Yeah, just for you. Alright, seeya at eight." She looked up at Kisame and Itachi with a defiant spark in her eyes. "I'm sure you heard me, so unless you've got any problems, we'll be staying until around eight." The two men didn't look very impressed with her, but there wasn't much they could do about the situation without raising any more suspicion. The two seemed close and if he was a customer of Natsuki's, then there was a high possibility that he was experienced with weapons. He would be an unnecessary and annoying hold-up. "Just gather your things, girl." Itachi said, cold as ever. Natsuki did a 'roger' sign and toddled away to her room happy as could be. "She seems to enjoy being home..." Kisame noted blandly. Itachi didn't bother to answer. However, he did start rather boldly making tea. "We will be waiting here for a while." Was his only explanation.
Natsuki scurried about her room, piling clothes on her messy bed. Most of them were the same as the clothes she was currently wearing, but she also piled on necessities like underwear, ladies things... and nightwear. Chikakon bounded about with her aswell. He pulled out her old white dress camisole that she used to sleep in. Natsuki frowned at him, but huffed all the same and dumped it on the pile. She stopped and stared at her acquired clothing. A wave of longing washed over her and she fell to her knees, frozen in shock. She was never going to see this room again, she was sure of it. Locked up in that base, that dark, dark base, not knowing if it was day or night, not knowing whether an hour had passed, or a day. A choked sob escaped her and a tear unintentionally rolled down her cheek. Everybody would think of her as dead, after a while, no-one would even remember her. She would just be that faded girl who worked in the repairs shop. The only people who would even think of her would be those people who couldn't understand how she wasn't working anymore, how she never finished the job on their plug socket or their computer, how she was never open. How her dear old shop was gathering dust and slowly becoming as rickety and rusty and run-down as the other shops on the hill. How finally, she had succumbed to the dinginess of the old 'ghost-lane', where nothing strove for light. She would be but a faded memory to but a few, nothing but the faded image of 'missing girl' on a poster somewhere to everybody else. The thought crushed her. The thought that nobody would care or remember enough to look for her and she would wile away to nothing in the dark base of some criminal organisation- A hand landed on her shoulder.
Natsuki jerked and her head shot up. "K- Kisame-san!"
"That's far too much stuff for you to bring along." He said, looking at the pile of clothes on the bed. Natsuki rubbed at her wet cheeks in an attempt to gather up her dignity. Kisame looked at her. "It isn't so bad after you get used to it." He tried to comfort. Natsuki barked out a sharp little laugh.
"Of course. I mean, I'm totally a big badass ninja like you guys so I'm totally gonna get sent on loads of missions outside the base!" Kisame sighed and hauled the girl up by the arm.
"Look, you don't have a choice either way, so just enjoy the time you have outside the base, okay?" Natsuki looked away. "Natsuki. Natsuki, come on, there isn't anything you can do, so-" Her thin hand slapped his broad one from her shoulder. "My name isn't Natsuki! It's Chikako Suzuhara!" Kisame bit back a flare of anger and stood up straight. "You have been given the name Natsuki by Leader-sama himself, his word is final. Get ready to leave."
"We're leaving sooner than expected." Kisame stated a bit too loudly as he barged into the kitchen. Itachi looked up from the table with a raised brow. "Pissed you off that much huh?" A growl was his only response. Natsuki plodded into the room twenty minutes later with a bulging bag. She dumped it on the table and stalked past Kisame in her most disrespectful manner back into the shop. Itachi raised a brow again, eyeing his blue partner. "She's being a stubborn brat." He huffed, folding his arms and looking away. "She refuses to accept the fact that she had no other choice to join the Akatsuki." Itachi looked up at the off-white ceiling with a ponderous look. "Make sure she doesn't attempt an escape."
"What, that's it? That's all you're going to say?"
"Hn."
"What the hell do you want?" Natsuki snapped, not bothering to look up from her work. Kisame didn't suppress the growl that showed his distaste for her. "I have to make sure you don't try and escape."
"I'm 'part of the Akatsuki' now, right?"
"I wouldn't put it past you." He muttered in an undertone. Natsuki flipped down a welding mask and sparks flew up around her face and leather-clad hands. She flipped the mask back up and looked at her work. It was a complicated-looking spherical piece of machinery was all that Kisame could tell. "What is it?"
"It's Shoji's business and my income." And that was the extent of their conversation for a good couple of hours. Darkness fell and Kisame still stood, arms crossed, back leant against the wall. Tension seemed to fill the air as Natsuki prepared herself to speak. "I suppose you were right." She said a bit stiffly.
"Oh yeah?"
"No, I'm just saying that for no reason." She bit sarcastically. "You were right. I had no other logical choice. I... I was also wrong for snapping about my name." She huffed in a defeated manner. She was sure she could feel his smirk. "Whatever, we're leaving soon."
"Ha! No way, Shoji's coming at eight. I've still gotta finish this baby." Natsuki patted the big hunk of metal. Her eyes were alight with a happy spark at the sight of her work. "You can drop it off can't you?" Natsuki gave him an incredulous look and slammed her head down on the workbench. "Ugh! For an S-ranked criminal, you sure are stupid." A thick growl. "Sure, let's just go drop off a huge illegal weapon, it's just like giving back a DVD your friend leant you only on a much larger, more dangerous, scale." Kisame barked a laugh and pushed off the wall. "I'll forgive the stupid part if you finish up quick and call your boyfriend to pick it up earlier."
"He's not my boyfriend. He's a customer."
"Ch. Whatever you say."
"What, you jealous?"
"Ha! No way. Besides, I only met you a few days ago." Natsuki eyed him cheekily.
"Whatever you say~" She pulled out a spanner from her apron and clasped it onto a bolt, wrenching it down with all her strength. The metal creaked and groaned in protest. Natsuki growled back at it and gave one final wrench. The spanner was tucked neatly back into her apron and she smiled at the finished product. It looked vaguely bomb-like. Like Kisame had 'requested', Natsuki called Shoji back for him to pick it up at six.
Half an hour passed in which Natsuki spent her time packing all her work gear, like her welding mask, apron, blueprints, tools and circuit maps. There was a rapping on the door window not too long later. Natsuki kicked the door to the kitchen shut with Itachi and Kisame shut inside and rushed to let Shoji in.
He was a tall man, around twenty-five and only two years older than Natsuki. He had choppy brown hair, long on one side and short on the other with a fringe that covered one side of his face. On the visible side was a black tribal tattoo under his eye. Natsuki smirked up at him and let him inside. "It's a bit of a rush-job, sorry, but it was that or nothing. You can probably find someone else to do a patch-up on it if it needs any more extravagant work, but otherwise, she's good to go!" Shoji rubbed his chin at the large hunk of metal. A smirk appeared on his face and he nodded. "Looks good, thanks Natsuki." He paused, then looked at her. "You take care of yourself. Don't let those nasty ANBU get a hold of you."
"What, or you'll come after me with masses of weapons and the mafia just to get your iddy-biddy sister back?" The man laughed, throwing his head back.
"The mafia? Nah, ten mafias is more like it."
"Of course, your extravagance is one to be rivalled with; why bring one that can do the job just fine when ten will get it done with that much more chaos?" A chuckle from Shoji. "Anyway, I'm off to disappear and lay low for a while, so you'd better take this away soon."
"Sure thing, sis." He performed a jutsu, grabbed the metal sphere by the handles attached on either side and staggered off towards the door. Natsuki opened it for him and he walked off down the street with the huge explosive ball that now looked like an extremely heavy box of oranges. Natsuki let the door fall shut and opened up the kitchen. She smiled politely at the two criminals and hoisted her two bags up onto her shoulders. "Are we going then?"
"Took you long enough."
"Kisame, carry her."
"Wait, what? Not again!"
Natsuki spent the next day and a half over Kisame's shoulder.
When they arrived back at the base, Natsuki was told to unpack and then rest up until she was called for. She couldn't understand why she was being told to 'rest up'. She hadn't even walked one step on the way back! With a heavy sigh, she pulled her duvet over her head and settled down for sleep. Again, her dreams were filled with the wind and water and then that suffocating feeling as her lungs gradually crumpled and she drowned. Her eyes snapped open and she let out a little scream. Chikakon leapt away from her face in shock. "Bad fox! You scared me." Natsuki pushed herself up and straightened out her blue nightdress. She pulled her fingers through her hair roughly to straighten the bed head and promptly left the room with Chikakon. She was sure no-one would be up so late at night. She had remembered to bring her wall clock and batteries and from that she could keep a track of day and night. That gave her some comfort. She wandered around the base with Chikakon again. Her bare feet on the cold ground made quiet pitter-patter sounds, cute next to the padding of Chikakon's soft paws. Luckily, she found where she wanted to be: the kitchen. After checking twice that no-one was lurking in corners or on the ceiling, she made her way to the fridge and proceeded to raid it for something edible. Chikakon dove in and hauled out a chunk of meat. Natsuki pulled out something that looked like cheese and bravely started to eat it. She promptly choked. However, the cheese was not the reason for her sudden loss of air. "Chikakon!" Hidan had the little red fox pinned to the wall in a ferocious grip. "You little fucker, that fucking meat belongs to me." He seethed out. Chikakon gulped. A wicked looking black retractable spear flew out of his cloak and he held it under the little fox's chin. A thin dribble of scarlet blood slipped down the smooth point. A smirk grew on the man's face. "Don't you dare hurt Chikakon!" Natsuki yelled furiously, bowling into Hidan. He stumbled back from the blow only to receive an uppercut to the jaw and a front kick to the stomach. He left a remarkable set of cracks in the wall. "Little bitch." He growled, swiping blood from the corner of his mouth. Somehow he made the maneuver extremely menacing. He stood to his full height, a little bit taller than herself. The spear flew at her and she barely dodged it, bending back. That left her open. Oh what a mistake. The air flew out of her when his foot slammed into her stomach and she went flying back. The small of her spine cracked against the worktops. She barely managed to evade the follow-up attack. The punch left cracks in the wall. In her position though... Her knee came up lightning fast and collided with his ribs. Blood splattered the worktop. With an infuriated growl and a curt comment on how short her life was and what a pitiful existence she had had, Hidan flew at her like a caged beast. He had her on the ground, one knee digging painfully into her abdomen and a fist of her hair in his fingers. He yanked on the hair and in an instant her neck was exposed. She glared at him as if it could take his life. He took out his spear slowly, teasingly. His knee sank further into her as he put more weight on it and Natsuki couldn't help but let out a whimper of pain. She refused to yell and cry like she wanted to as the cold tip pressed against her neck.
"Hidan!" Natsuki's attacker growled and slammed the weapon down.
"What Fish-face?" Kisame sneered and dislodged Samehada.
"That's Mr. Fish-face to you, let Natsuki up." The girl scrambled to her feet the second Hidan had rather painfully gotten off her. She pulled at her nightdress, painfully aware of how most of her legs showed. She hadn't noticed before thanks to the adrenaline coursing through her. Kisame glared Hidan out of the kitchen, then turned to her. "What the hell did you do?"
"Well, Mr. Fish-face, he threatened my stupid fox. If I hadn't have stepped in when I had, I believe he would have a spear through his skull right now."
"No need for sarcasm, you're gonna need all the energy you can get, come on." Kisame took hold of her shoulder and marched her back to her room. They ran into Chikakon on the way and Natsuki muttered traitor to him, but nothing else was said otherwise.
"Thanks Kisame-san." Natsuki said. He cocked his head.
"Nah, you're gonna hate me later." She stared for a minute, confused. He stared back, then his usual cocky grin spread over his face and he turned and walked away. What... was that about? She turned slowly, then started to get dressed into her usual clothes. Why would I hate you Kisame-san? I know we've argued quite a lot, but you're the only person to ever stick up for me here. There aren't many people like you out there.
"What?" Natsuki cried, completely forgetting her place. Leader-sama frowned and pinched the bridge of his nose. "Again, we will be testing you in most all areas of combat over the next few days. Now please stop gawping and glowering at me and let Kisame and Itachi take you down to the arena." Natsuki bit her tongue and swirled around. Itachi led the way out of the gloomy office with Kisame taking up the rear. Natsuki held her head defiantly between the two of them. The three of them walked silently through the halls until they reached what looked like another ordinary wooden door. Except of course for the numerous curved scratches and claw-marks on the walls. And the dried blood splatters leaking out from under the door. Lest she forget her 'impending doom'. Through the door was a dark tunnel with steps leading down in a half-spiral. Natsuki didn't like walking blind. Light suddenly spilled into the tunnel and the stairs stopped. Natsuki poked her head around Itachi's arm and what she saw made her nauseous. Hidan hefted his triple-bladed scythe up onto his shoulder and grinned over at the three of them. Emerging from the tunnel made her feel like she was entering a death pit. The arena really was an arena. It was humongous in every way, shape and form like a roman colosseum where gladiators were pitched against each other. She remembered reading about it in a book once. Not once had she thought she'd be participating in such a death match. She looked about as the two missing-nin left her side. Eight figures in black cloaks with scarlet adornments watched from the crumbling stone steps that were the seating. She recognised the redhead boy and Kisame and Itachi of course. She could also pick out Leader-sama and a few others, but she knew none of them by name. Natsuki shifted on her cane and turned to look at the silver-haired Hidan. He gave her a feral grin, one that simply screamed malevolent intent. "I'm gonna make you pay up for that fucking rat of yours, bitch."
"He's a fox actually, just in case your brain couldn't comprehend the species leap." She could see he was well and truly pissed off now. All the better for her. With a roar, he plunged towards her.
Natsuki managed to dodge the first attack by leaping back. That didn't take him long to recover from though, not even a few seconds. The second attack was a slice to the gut. It almost caught her. As fast as she could with the back of the weapon swooping past her, she rapped at Hidan's wrists as if she were playing a harmless game. She wasn't being cocky, oh no, she was being 'shy'. Truth be told, she was taking caution. Something about him right now made her think twice about her every move, time she knew would cost her eventually.
Her breathing was ragged. She didn't get how he could be so strong, sure he was in the Akatsuki, but seriously? She could hardly touch the guy, let alone inflict any reasonable amount of damage! She was so weak it was humiliating. The scythe flew at her again and she skirted by it, dashing forwards. Her cane abandoned in a previous skirmish, she whipped out her katana and aimed to run it through his heart. Something pierced her abdomen and she gasped, droplets of crimson blood dying the ground. She looked down to see a black spear partway through her stomach. Resolution formed inside her the second her eyes connected with his violet orbs, mocking her in every possible way. One word formed on his lips: "Bitch."
The resolution to beat him even if it destroyed her in the process took over her and she lifted the katana. It plunged deep into his flesh. "Bitch yourself." She sneered back. Hidan smirked, then cackled. The spear flew out of her. Without the support, painful as it was, she dropped to a crouch, wrapping an arm defensively around the bleed and glaring up at the maniac. He went out to lick the spear, but before he could do anything, a flying katana had taken the weapon from his hand. A fearsome glare fell upon her as she forced herself to her feet. "Man that stings." She joked, stumbling forwards. Her fist raised and swung across his jaw. She heard a prominent crack, but he didn't fall like she'd hoped. He sneered and yanked on the cord for his scythe. Nothing came to his hand. "What-"
"I cut the cord," Natsuki smiled weakly. "When I threw my katana." A fist suddenly embedded itself in her gut and she let out a choked gasp, landing on her back. "Damn that hurt." Hidan's foot rammed into the hole in her abdomen and she cried out in pain. And in that pain she raised her arms and thrust them into his chest. Fire scorched his bare skin and he shot back. Natsuki rolled onto her side and panted at him, barely able to catch her breathe from the blood loss. She refused to lose though. Again she struggled to her feet.
"That is enough." Leader-sama's voice rose through the tension. Natsuki's head whipped around.
"Fuck off." Mild shock ran across a few of the member's faces. "No way am I losing to a dumb brainless idiot like this."
"Very well," Leader-sama smirked. "You may die."
"Thanks, I'm glad I got permission 'cos I so needed it." She approached Hidan at her sluggish pace, lurching now and then on her shaky legs. Blood stained her kimono, but she couldn't care less. It was red anyway. Hidan lunged and they engaged in combat yet again.
Natsuki's back hit the ground and Hidan aimed another punch at her face. She dodged this time. Her eyes snagged on the wooden form of her cane and, taking a punch from the other side, she grabbed it and rammed it under his chin. His head snapped back and she whacked his left side as hard as she could, then the right. With grunts of pain, he managed to keep his knee on the gash in her gut. She quickly shot one hand to where the scabbard for her katana was and she came out with a little piece of glinting silver. A small dagger slashed the man's neck and he yelled. With another deft cut, his swearing, cursing head rolled across the ground. Natsuki sighed. Her limbs grew heavy and her arms dropped to her side. Slowly, the world drifted into darkness.
Everything was quiet when Natsuki came to. She cracked her eyes open only to find that she wasn't in her room. She was in some light place, with light grey stone walls and a bed with white sheets. Pain shot through her entire body when she tried to sit up a little. Ow... Very carefully, she looked down her body. Her entire abdomen and chest was encased in bandages. The door clicked open. "Natsuki, you're awake..." She stared as Kisame stood in the doorway. "No, I'm an apparition of your active imagination. Of course I'm awake you dolt!" He chuckled and brought in a tray of food. "Still sarcastic as ever I see?"
"Meh. Who cares. Where am I?" Natsuki asked, surveying her surroundings carefully.
"The infirmary. Kakuzu stitched you up."
"...Where is my top?"
"Uh..." Kisame went a funny purple colour. "In the wash, it had to be taken off so Kakuzu could sew up the wound and-"
"How many people saw...?" Natsuki's voice had turned a little meek and she didn't look at Kisame when she asked. "J- just Konan, Kakuzu and... uh, well, I wanted to make sure you were okay, s- so..." Natsuki's blush increased. "Please tell me that at least one of them is a girl."
"Konan. You're... not going to kill me?"
"No. Not yet anyway. When I have recovered, I will mangle you for sure. Don't worry." Kisame nodded and sat down beside her sickbed. She refused to face the shark man when he talked to her. How embarrassing to have two guys see your chest... And when you don't even know one of them...
"Natsuki? Will you promise me?"
"Huh, what?"
"Will you promise you won't go trying to kill yourself over some stupid pride next time?"
"Why? I won didn't I?"
"You almost died and worried Itachi and me to death!"
"You're still alive, stop overreacting. And seriously? I don't think Itachi is the type to get worried over people like me." Kisame sighed,
You'd be surprised...
Natsuki was back to full health later that week and with another four days of rest, she was able to move freely again. She had a small scar from where the spear had pierced her, but she was alright with it. It simply reminded her of her victory. During the time she stayed in the infirmary, very few people came to visit. Kisame dropped by every day or so to keep her occupied and Itachi came by with him sometimes, though he just read in the corner. The man named Kakuzu was the most frequent 'visitor'. He grumbled a lot about expenses and had a pretty short temper, but otherwise he'd check her stitches and do all the medical stuff.
"Natsuki, it's time to go." Kisame called, entering the small white room. "Natsuki? Nat-" His face slammed into the ground. Two tabi entered his vision and he looked up at the towering figure of Natsuki. "I'm all better!" She smiled, "This is my revenge."
"Yeah, you got me." He smiled. A hint of something odd played in his eyes and Natsuki tilted her head. He hauled himself up and stood back out in the hall. "Come on, you've got another test today."
"Oh yeah!"
"I'll take you to your room and you can get ready."
A knock came on the door and Natsuki finished strapping her katana to the small of her spine. She yanked her hair into a ponytail and answered the door. Itachi looked at her, devoid of emotion. Natsuki wondered why Kisame wasn't there instead. "Leader-sama wished to speak with Kisame." Itachi informed at her questioning look. "Alright." She stepped out of the room and they walked through the halls silently. No-one else was about, so Natsuki presumed they were already at the arena. Anticipation swelled in her stomach and she felt like jelly just at the thought of another battle. It was an excited feeling, but there was also apprehension caught up in the rush of that. They went down the dark stairs again and again the light spilled out to blind her. She froze the second she saw her opponent. His tall, muscular form, blue skin. The massive sword extending down his back. She quivered and the world crumbled beneath her feet. No... Not Kisame-san, please not Kisame!