Chapter 3: Deidara

The first gentle thing Deidara ever remembered was a cool hand bathed in mint green that soothed his pain. He remembered a gruff but kind voice that watched over him protectively. He remembered a hand brushing his hair out of his face to cup his cheek and he couldn't help but cling to it. This cool hand, this loving touch. He ached for it. He needed something cooling to settle the flames of anger and fear in his heart.

The hand and the woman it was attached to stayed with him all throughout his illness. But once he began feeling better, she was packing up to go.

He remembered pale, pink hair and eyes that were just far too green.

When he came back to a few hours after that first caress, he blearily looked around the small room where they'd tucked him. Deidara stared up at Haruno Sakuya, unsure if she was real. She smiled down at him, gentle and kind. But apologetic and angry.

"Do you honestly think we'd let you pull the same trick with our greatest weapon?" He flinched at the anger in the Tsuchikage's voice. Sakuya didn't look at the man, but her eyes darkened all the same.

"I know not of what you speak, honorable lord Tsuchikage. I merely stated that if the boy was prone to illness, perhaps you could reconsider-"

"Out of the question. Now, if he's healed, we will escort you out of our village, Haruno-sensei. Be grateful it is not in chains for this insult."

She gathered up the last of her things and stroked his hair one more time. She flashed him a weak smile. "I am sorry."

Deidara knew she wasn't apologizing to the Tsuchikage. Still, she stood and left. He sat up a bit as she went, his fever cured and his body no longer in pain.

"Feh, good riddance to Leaf scum. Once the brat is ready, we will resume training."

Deidara's brows knit. Leaf? She was from Leaf and yet...yet she'd helped him? He wondered if he'd ever see her again...if he'd get to thank her.

As it turns out, he did. Deidara awoke to an odd sense of Deja-vu. Pink hair, eyes that were too-green, and a cool hand bathed in mint green. But this face was so much younger. He vaguely suspected he should have been dead, but he was in pain and alive and oh she was talking.

"Just...stay with me, okay? I'm going to get in so much trouble but you can't die yet, alright? Please, please don't die on me. Naruto won't forgive me for this...Gaara will never forgive me for this! But...hell, I can't just leave you like this. Grandmother told me you were so young and you were so unhappy and I can't fully blame you but..."

"If not for the pain," he rasped, "I'd ask if I were in heaven. What with such an angel in front of me, yeah." She startled but smiled at him and he felt his heart stop. She looked almost as pleased as she was frightened. He tried to flash her a charming smile but a sudden cough ruined it. She went back to healing him,

"Okay so, I'm going to finish stabilizing you, then I'm going to have to take you back with me. I mean, I need to finish healing you and I can do that so much better there, but also because we might need to interrogate you."

She looked up at him and couldn't hide her concern. "Please...Cooperate. For your own sake. I'll do what I can but..."

He narrowed his eyes. He knew this girl. She was the one that had killed Sasori. He was still pissed about that.

"...Why are you helping me?" She looked back down.

"Before he died...He asked me to look out for you. I thought it was a warning, but...Grandmother Sakuya told me about what happened in Iwa. She kept tabs on you as best as she could." He stared at her.

"Sakuya?"

"Yes. She said she looked after you when you were badly sick once."

He remembered. The old woman with the kind eyes. She had tried to fight for him. To get him out so he could live life like he wanted. All fight went out of him.

"Sasori-danna did, yeah?"

She nodded.

He hummed, then sat back.

"Well then, guess I can forgive you for killing him in the first place." He looked away from her down to his damaged and bleeding body. His eyes widened. On his hip was a small tattoo of a scorpion. It still resonated with his energy. He was still alive somewhere. Once he escaped from Konoha, he'd find him.

After all, escaping wouldn't be that difficult.

Escaping became very difficult. Not because of the guards or the restraints. No, he'd figured out thirty ways of getting out of Konoha in less than hour within the first month of his captivity. Despite what others might think about him due to his short temper or his love of explosives, he was a long-term thinker. A planner. Meeting Sasori had only made him better at it.

No, the issue wasn't with any of that. It was with Sakura. She was an obnoxious, addictive constant. She was in his thoughts, in his space, her pink hair and smooth skin and soft lips just barely out of reach. She was infuriatingly patient, wickedly funny, and he found himself falling for her. He ached for her. He wanted to hold her, to tease her until she was flushed with anger, to kiss her until the only thing she could say was his name...

She looked so sad, especially as more and more news came back about the Uchiha. A piece of her heart was still in that bastard's possession. Deidara scowled at the fake smile she planted on her face. They'd become more and more bitter since the boy had apparently joined Akatsuki after killing the elder Uchiha in their ranks.

Still, his behavior had hurt his Saku-chan and that was unforgivable. Still, something drastic would have to be done to snap her out of this haze.

As she approached him to look him over, a plan came to mind. He grinned and snatched her hand in his before she could examine him. "Hey, Saku-chan, why do you look so glum?" She sighed in irritation but didn't pull away immediately, which he took to be approval, He carefully inspected her hand in both of his. She tolerated his odd behavior, he surmised, because she was curious about what he was plotting.

"I'm fine. Just tired." She wasn't a bad liar, not really, but when one learned her tells, they became obvious. "What are you doing?"

He grinned up at her. One of the tongues from the mouths on his hands licked up her wrist. She gasped and tried to pull her hand away but he held it firm. She bit back a whimper as his tongue continued to lavish her sensitive wrist and palm with gentle licks and kisses.

"Deidara..."

His eyes met hers. He smirked slightly. "You've been too stressed, Saku-chan. Let me take care of you...please?" He released her so she could decide. She took a step back and her face burned.

"I...I've never..." She turned even more red and he stared.

"Really? Never been with anyone?" There was no judgment in his tone, just confusion. "But...you're gorgeous, yeah. Is your dedication to that brat so strong?"

She glared at him slightly but there was no heat in it. He smiled, soft and adoring. He offered her his hand. She eyed it warily.

"Okay...well...Sakura, I want to look after you. Repay you for everything you've done. Can't you let me be a little good to you, yeah? We don't have to go any further than you're ready for."

She looked him in the eye. He tried to convey all the sincerity he felt. To his utter surprise and elation, she agreed. There was a determined, desperate look on her face. Like she'd made some sort of important decision.

"Just...we have to make this quick. The guards will come in soon." She placed her hand in his. He grinned and yanked her forward so she was on the bed, straddling him. He tugged her jacket off of her and tossed it aside.

"Then I guess we can't waste time, yeah." He pulled her shirt and bra up over her chest to reveal small, perky breasts. He did the same with her skirt and yanked her panties aside. "Try not to scream."

She was a bit too stunned to say anything until she felt it. One of the mouths had wrapped around her nipple. She tangled one hand in his hair while the other gripped the headboard on the back of the hospital bed where he sat. He chuckled and pressed a light kiss to her shoulder before he leaned down more. He licked and suckled at her other breast while his other hand slipped down between her legs.

His fingers trailed along her entrance and the tongue on his palm slipped out to flick her clit gently. she let go of his hair to cover her mouth. Despite her attempts to muffle herself, he could still hear all the delicious little whimpers she made. He slipped one finger into her and pumped it in and out, slow and easy.

"Just relax, Sakura..." He kissed and gently nibbled her breasts. "This is all about you...all for you, yeah."

She whined quietly. "Deidara...we... should stop." She was so sensitive and he watched her struggle to pull herself away from him. He stopped what he was doing to look up at her.

"Do you really want to? Or is it that you think you should want to stop?" He asked. She looked away from him, then sighed.

"I...I think it's the latter. But...Sasuke-kun-"

"Isn't here, Sakura. He chose not to be here. He chose not to come back." He said as he pulled his hand away from her breast to cup her face. "He chose to leave you behind."

She stared at him and her eyes filled with tears. He pulled her into a hug and closed the mouth on one hand to cup the back of her head.

"If...If I'd had you...If I had a sweet girl like you waiting for me, I would be racing to come back. Hell, I'd never leave if I could help it." He said, his voice soft but earnest.

She stifled a sob. "Deidara? I don't want to think right now." He pulled away to look at her. "Please..."

He frowned. "Are you sure? I'd rather not have this be something you regret, yeah."

She shook her head. "I've wanted this for the last few weeks but I never...let myself consider it. Because of our pasts and because of Sasuke." She reached into the pocket of her skirt to pull out a condom. "But...I grabbed this from the stock room the other day...just in case this ever happened."

His eyes went wide. He stared up at her face, bright red with embarrassment and her eyes wet with tears.

"Then I'm yours, Saku-chan. Always. How about you put that on me and we'll get started properly, yeah."

She nodded and swallowed hard. She helped him shed the light kimono they made him wear while he was in hospital custody. Sakura gently stroked his cock and smiled as she rolled the condom onto him. He resisted the urge to shudder.

He wrapped his arms around her middle to pull her flush against his chest. She smiled wider and brushed the hair out of his face. "You have gorgeous eyes..." she mumbled.

He kissed her, slow and gentle, though she surged against his lips, all passion and desperation. He lowered her down by her hips onto him and he hissed as he pushed into her. She gasped quietly and tangled a hand back into his mussed hair. He rocked his hips up into hers, nice and easy, though it wasn't as hard as he feared it would be. She dragged her free hand up his back, leaving deep scratches in his skin with her nails. He huffed and pulled her down harder in retaliation. She screamed against his lips.

Before long, she had sat back to get more control. She rode him with surprising ease for someone with so little experience, not that he would complain. He let her set the pace and fucked her back as best as he could, his hands were tight enough on her waist to leave bruises. Soon, he saw her hips stutter. She leaned forward onto him and he planted his feet on the bed to put his all into fucking her fully.

She muffled her scream in his shoulder as she came around him in a beautiful, glorious explosion. He growled her name into her ear and came as well, filling the rubber with it. They stayed close and connected as they caught their breath. She stared at him. He smiled down at her, languid and smug.

She laughed and punched his arm, then slowly pulled away. He took the condom off and tossed it into the nearby trash. They hurriedly tried to fix their clothes and hair, so that when her Anbu escort finally came into the room, she looked perfectly presentable.

Deidara looked exhausted but content. As she left for the day, they shared a secret, giddy smile.

He settled back into the bed. Maybe Konoha wasn't so bad.

Deidara held Sakura close as they rode above the enemy forces. The White Zetsu tried to reach for them in vain. They were still too high up for the Zetsu to reach.

"You know," remarked Sasori, "Even if this plan works, you will be alone and vulnerable until the rest of us land. And chances are you will be injured. It will cost time for you to heal."

She smirked at him from her place under Deidara's arm. "I managed to beat you despite the fact that you impaled me through the kidney. I think I can handle this."

He seemed to pout at her. Itachi rolled his eyes and adjusted his grip on his sword. "Well be coming right after you. Be careful."

She nodded and pulled away from Deidara. He frowned and pulled her back to steal one more kiss. "Don't die on me, yeah. You haven't agreed to marry me yet."

Itachi tensed. Sasori huffed. "Us. Us, idiot. Don't make me kill you."

She smiled and patted his cheek. "When this is all over, I'll give it some serious thought." He supposed he'd allow that to be enough of an answer for now. He readied a few larger bombs and filled them with chakra. She fixed her gloves and evened her breathing. Now or never.

She nodded. Deidara dropped the bombs which, upon reaching the topmost Zetsu, burst into flames and explosions. Sakura jumped off the bird the instant the bombs detonated. She flew down past the flames and with a fierce battle cry, she slammed fist-first into the ground.

"Shannaro!"

The ground seemed to pull inward toward her for only a moment before erupting outward, knocking more than half the Zetsu off of their feet. She winced as she knew she had broken every bone in her arm up to and past her shoulder, even if the ground had taken most of the force from the impact.

She focused on healing as fast as she could before the Zetsu could recover and retaliate. It turns out, they didn't have a chance.

A huge, skeletal figure surrounded her as Itachi looped an arm around her middle to keep her sheltered.

"Heal. Let them handle this. Kisame and Kimimaro's forces are nearly here."

Sasori and his hundred-puppet army were around them in an instant. He seemed almost bored as his puppets, led by reproductions of Chiyo's Chikamatsu Collection of Ten Puppets, cut the enemy force to ribbons. Deidara picked off as many as he could with his bombs. He made sure no stragglers could escape.

In the distance, Sakura could see a volley of razor-sharp bone shards rain down on the front of the Zetsu army. She swore she saw a Shark Bullet rip through a piece of the crowd. She grinned and focused on fixing her arm until the bones had all stitched themselves back together. She flexed her hand and nodded to Itachi who let her out of Susanoo's protection.

She had a battle to fight...and a war to win.