"'Listen, my child,' you say to me, 'I am the voice of your history. Be not afraid, come follow me. Answer my call and I'll set you free.'" –The Voice

Deidara's P.O.V.

As much as I wanted to believe that I was finally free, it was one of the hardest things I've ever done in my life. When all you've ever known is a life of pain, how do you ever recover? How can you dare to trust again, knowing that there are people in the world who take pleasure in inflicting pain on others? I wanted to. I wanted to trust, to love, and to live…and Tobi had given me the chance to do so freely…so why was it so hard to trust someone who obviously had no intentions to harm me?

And there lies the problem. It wasn't that I feared Tobi. I wasn't afraid of him—I was afraid for him. My mother had died trying to save me from my own father. What if the same thing happened to Tobi? This was where I gained my inner strength, and it caught me by surprise. I listed my fears over and over in my mind as I clung to him, images of promises and lies clashing in my head. As of now, I was holding on to the only person I could trust in this world, and I never wanted to lose him. After a few years, I had come to terms with the loss of my mother, but I still blamed myself, for if I had been stronger, I might have had the ability to change things—my mother might still be alive. So then it hit me: to protect the people I loved, I would have to get stronger. I knew Tobi would not object to teaching me a few fighting skills, and I was ready to take on the challenge. With that knowledge at hand, I had a new burden to bear.

I was free from my father, but that could only last for so long. With that freedom, I would do everything in my power to obtain the strength to bring him down for good. I now knew why so many people had fought to rid themselves of emotion. They did not want to care, because it hurt to do so. When you lose someone, it never stops hurting. No amount of time or therapy can heal a deep wound like that. So many of the people I knew had cut themselves off from the rest of the world. They tried to remain apathetic to protect themselves as well as the well-being of those around them, but in the end, their lack of emotion destroys them. Even though caring hurts, it's healthy, and it was the only thing that kept you human in such a world as this. I was afraid, but aren't we all? Even when there's nothing to fear. It's natural, it's human…but it hurts, worse than some people can stand to bear. But fear and bravery are closely intertwined, just as love and hate are. They're interchangeable, and one cannot exist without the other—so the fear I felt was the fear I vowed to turn to strength.

Tobi's P.O.V.

In all my life, I've never known a child with Dei's sense of perception. He sees things the way a mastermind would, and he knows things that any normal shinobi would overlook. His chakra level spiked prominently as soon as we were out of range of his old life. I could sense the adrenaline that flashed through his bloodstream. He was free now, and well aware of it. And he was already preparing himself for the life ahead of him, and for the demise of his father. I bit back a smile. As morbid as it may seem, the very thought of vengeance has always intrigued the minds of humans. Deidara, having endured years worth of pain, eagerly awaited the moment he would be able to settle the score. He'd be beyond ready by then. I would make sure of it.

It was around noontime now, and it was a particularly breezy day. We stopped by a stream for a well-needed break. It had been about three hours since we'd escaped, and Deidara was getting restless. Needless to say, so was I. I mentally listed everything that needed to be done in my mind, while keeping an eye on Deidara. He wasn't as active as most children were, I observed. He did not head straight for the water, but kept his distance from it instead. He was tracing lines in the dirt, creating jagged spikes and contrasting them with curving swirls.

My gaze kept traveling back to his left eye, which urgently needed care. From the looks of it, it needed replacing. There was no way to fix it and make it completely functional without replacing it. I knew a few shops in the nearby village that might have something for the job. Plus, I could only imagine how hungry he must be. And his clothes needed replacing as well. Our current base was near Amekagure, and it got cold there pretty often…

I glanced up at the sky, using the sun as a way to guess how much time we had until nightfall. For me, traveling at night was always the wisest thing to do. Any thugs or assassins would be out on missions, not looking for trouble by crossing paths with other shinobi. Plus, the night provided a suitable, natural cloak to hide us from potential dangers. We would set off for Head Quarters at dusk, but in the meantime, I might as well get a few things done.
I stood up, stretching and yawning. Dei's attention immediately locked on me. He tilted his head questioningly, almost expectantly in anticipation. I grinned warmly.

"Here's the thing: we need to get to the Sunagakure market, but they'll recognize me if I go in my human form…" I began hesitantly, still planning and marking the details, "So I was thinking that I could go with you…as a sort of pet." Deidara's eyes widened, and he sort of smirked a little. "Another fox infiltration?" he asked, "I guess you could say that." I chuckled.

Deidara's P.O.V.

I clung to the entrance gate of the Suna village warily, ignoring the awkward sensation of cloth over my left eye. It was only there temporarily, until I bought the scope to replace my eye with. Tobi crouched on my shoulders as a silver fox, his tail flicking against my nose playfully every so often. He had given me 250 ryo to spend here, and promised to help me out with decision-making on items and such. He had said that once we crossed Suna village and reached the merchants on the outskirts of town, he could turn back into his human self.
Hesitantly, I approached the first stall, perusing the various merchandise on the shelves. I jumped as a booming voice welcomed me. " 'Ey, you look like a newcomer here. Anything y'like?" a tall man with grey and white hair asked, gesturing to the shelf in front of me. I glanced back down at the selection. Various bags and backpacks were assembled here, some of which were obviously well-suited for hiking and hunting trips. "Eh? Careful with the merchandise, pup!"

I started, then realized he was talking to Tobi, whose front paw was extended towards one of the bags. A messenger bag that you slung over your shoulder. Tobi was giving the merchant such a look that I had to bite back a laugh. If looks could kill….

He glanced back up at me encouragingly. The bag…Oh! The bag!

I shuffled through my pockets and grabbed a few coins. The tag read 20 ryo. I handed over the money, and the merchant gave me the backpack, thanking me as I went. Tobi crawled into one of the front pockets as I slung it across my shoulder, smiling his foxy fox smile.

It wasn't a very long shopping trip. By the time we were done, we had bought several kunai knives, C-4 clay of the highest quality, a few good books and scrolls, the eye scope (now securely and comfortably fitted in my eye), and new clothes for both me and Tobi. I was wearing one of my net shirts and sweatpants right now, along with combat boots. It had totaled 145 ryo in total, leaving 85 ryo left over.

"Alrighty then!" Tobi grinned, clapping his hands together. He had reverted to his human self moments before. "Let's eat! Where to, Deidara?" he asked brightly. My eyes widened. I hadn't really thought of food at all. "Anywhere you want." I replied.