I do not own Naruto.

-- Author's Notes --

Yay! I love that I'm getting reviews, and I really appreciate it! Thank you very much! I'm updating rather quick for this story, because I really enjoy writing it! Plus, I'm updating based on my poll that's on my page. This was in second place! So, this is the story that I'm updating. Thank you for voting for this story!

I began writing this chapter on June 23, 2008.

--Chapter 4: In which night approaches--

I stared at the clock, eyes wide with fearful awe. No! The long hand was millimeters away from reaching the twelve at the top of the clock, and the smaller hand was already on the nine. Night was approaching. Night is the most dangerous time here at the prison.

This is the time where all the lower class prisoners strike. Mostly because the guards are always doing a half-ass job and sleeping. Also because most of the time, the prisoners are equally as strong (if not stronger) than their guards. So, it all adds up to the prisoner escaping and then telling all their criminal friends when and how they should escape if ever they happened to get captured by the Iwagakure ninja.

Don't get me wrong; it isn't the ANBU that are slouches. They're usually doing all the crazy stuff like guarding the Tsuchikage and doing what I'm doing right now. They're always getting all the cool, impossible jobs. They leave Chunin to guard all the rouge ninjas and all that. And the rouge ninjas are always underestimated. I don't know why other Chunins take jobs like this so lightly. I guess they think that they've got what it takes to take a rouge ninja down, even though they clearly don't.

Suddenly, something ridiculously scary happened. The lights began to flicker like mad, and the temperature of the room rose like mad until it was about thirty degrees. For many moments, I and Deidara were in total, utter darkness. It was blacker than black. It was dead. The once brightly lit, white room was completely and utterly dead. I couldn't see a thing. Nothing at all.

I gulped, suddenly feeling slightly queasy in the darkness. Somehow, I suddenly thought that maybe they were playing some sort of mean prank on me. Maybe there was some sort of hidden camera, waiting for me to crack so that they could jump out of their hiding places and laugh at me. Maybe this whole thing was a set up! From the book that I read and everything. Maybe my friend's a paid actress!

I stopped with my ridiculous thoughts. I'm over-thinking everything. I needed to be practical. They probably did this to conserve energy or something. Plus I probably could just turn the lights back on, right? However, how would I be able to find a light switch when it's so dark? I can't even see anything. I wouldn't really be able to tell the difference between having my eyes closed and opened. Either way, what I saw was the same. All I saw was black.

The once brightly lit, blindingly white room was now blacker than ever. The blackest, darkest place I've ever been in. It scared the shit out of me, but I had to suck it up for now. I was the guard, and I couldn't make an idiot out of myself with the prisoner there. It'd just lower my self-confidence and make guarding Deidara so much harder.

I decided that it was ridiculous to have to guard someone in the dark and then stood, remembering when I examined the room earlier. The phone was directly behind me. I quickly found the phone, and I mentally thanked myself for analyzing the room earlier. I found the zero and pressed it, and an ANBU immediately picked up, "ANBU Squad fourteen leader. How may I be of assistance?"

It was the exact same tone as before, "In case you haven't noticed, the lights have gone off. When will this be repaired?"

The ANBU answered, "We're working as fast as we can. Please bear with us."

"Alright. Thank you."

The ANBU hung up, and I did the same. I groped my way around in the darkness, trying to feel for my chair. When I thought I had found it, I sat down, but I fell on my ass. With a curse, I finally found my way back to my chair and sat down grouchily, blushing like mad. I slumped in my seat grumbling about how ANBU were slackers. Well, one thing's for sure –I wasn't going to be accepting a job like this again. If the ANBU aren't going to pick up their socks and fix this predicament right now, actually, I'm going to try and quit the mission. Who cares if my parents scold me? Not me.

"I hope you're not scared of the dark," I suddenly muttered.

I could practically hear Deidara's smirk in his words, "Nah. After spending so much time in the Akatsuki, you learn not to be afraid of anything, yeah…"

"And that's because you're the epitome of scary. You and your little posse. I'm sure that you have many followers, right? But I'm sure you have much more enemies than followers."

"Well, no shit. The Akatsuki is an evil organization, so of course there aren't going to be many people who have the balls to try and be our ally. Usually we kill our allies if we find their not going to be of any help to us, yeah," said Deidara, as though bragging.

I merely scoffed, "Is that supposed to intimidate me? Well, just so you know, I've never had plans to go evil. Evil people are… well, evil!"

"Gee, really? I never knew," muttered Deidara sarcastically. I could hear Deidara click his tongue in the dark. "Are you afraid of the dark Kaori?"

I raised my head once more only to see black. I just closed my eyes. "Well, sort of. Depending on what kind of darkness it is."

"What do ya mean, yeah?" asked Deidara, confusion evident in his tone.

I shrugged. I don't know why I shrugged, for I knew he couldn't see it. "Well, this darkness isn't that scary, mostly because I'm not by myself. Mostly when I'm by myself, my mind just goes haywire on me and starts thinking up all this scary crap. So, that's the kind of dark I'm scared of. This dark I'm not scared of because I have someone with me. For some reason, that makes me just feel safer. I guess it's because I'm not alone."

"That was incredibly corny," muttered Deidara. "But, I suppose that it makes sense, yeah…"

I rolled my eyes, "I'm sure that even a big, bad ninja like you has been scared before, right?"

"Are you kidding?" scoffed Deidara. "I haven't been scared since I was eight."

"No, I'm not kidding. I'm sure that you've been scared before, right? Don't worry; a little weakling like me won't spill any of your secrets," I promised sarcastically. Deidara remained silent, as though thinking it over.

"Uh, sorry. I really can't think of a time where I've been scared," said Deidara sheepishly.

I rolled my eyes. I knew he was telling the truth, so I just asked a new question, "Well, when was the last time you cried?"

"What's with all the personal questions, yeah?" asked Deidara, bewildered. "Well, last time I cried? Probably about eight again," Deidara paused, "Well, what about you Kaori? When was the last time you cried and the last time you were scared?"

I thought it over. When was the last time I was scared? When did I last cry? I racked my brain, really thinking about it. Suddenly, in mid-thought, I realized that I shouldn't be sharing this type of information with him. He's an s-ranked criminal, for God's sake! He's evil. He wouldn't understand this sort of stuff. However, my words betrayed me, since I ended up telling him, "Last time I was scared was when you blew up half the village. That was also the last time I cried because you blew up my Academy classmate. She wasn't my best friend or anything, but she was someone I knew."

"… Sorry," Deidara muttered.

My head whipped upward, hurting my neck. Was he sincerely apologizing to me? I blinked. Still flabbergasted, I answered, "Um, I suppose it's alright. She's in a better place now, and it isn't like I knew her all that well…"

Deidara stayed silent for a few moments before asking, "Who's the Tsuchikage?"

I racked my brain once more. God, who the hell was the Tsuchikage? Suddenly, I remembered. Oh shit, the Tsuchikage was Deidara's team mate. Well, Deidara's former team mate. I mumbled, "Ryuu-sama…"

"Last name?" asked Deidara, seemingly impatient.

"Ryuu Ame…" I muttered. His name was "Dragon Rain". It's funny how things work out, right?

Deidara snickered, "That nerd became Tsuchikage, yeah? Maybe once I get outta here I'll pay him a visit."

Oh no, please don't. I bit my lip, and, nervously I said, "Uh, how about you don't. I mean, the Tsuchikage is a busy person."

"I'm aware. But I'm sure that he can put aside some time for his team mate, yeah."

I was tempted to freak out and yell that he couldn't visit him, but I remembered that I needed to keep calm in order for this mission to be a success. I took a deep breath, "Well, if you're lucky, he'll come down and interrogate you so that I can finally have a break."

"Please. Guarding me isn't that bad, yeah… at least you didn't end up with Itachi, who would've trapped you in Tsukuyomi already and killed everyone in sight," muttered Deidara, "Plus he isn't artistic at all."

I groaned, "Gah, please don't start with the artistic crap! My brain's going to explode from over-exposure to pure idiocy!"

"Art is not idiocy, yeah… Art is a solace. Art is fleeting –something meant to be there for just one moment and then be gone forever."

"Ya know what? I'm not going to debate art with the likes of you. I'm just wasting my time!" I grumbled.

Deidara snickered, and then asked, "Hey, you know something? You're voice is incredibly dull for a girl."

My brilliant reply? "So?"

"You don't care, yeah?" asked Deidara, and I could imagine him frowning.

I rubbed my temples. The darkness barely bothered me anymore. "Well, no, not really… I don't know why you think that I would."

"I thought I'd be the first to mention it," muttered Deidara, "I guess not, yeah…"

"Well, I have a life, just so you know. Just… not one that I particularly enjoy," I mumbled, slouching even more. Yes, my life was boring. Not the life that I had wanted at all. It isn't like I hated my life. It's just that I wished that I had more control. I wished that I could quit being a ninja and retire from it early. My plan had been to find someone decent and adopt children from the Sunagakure orphanage. Then I'd raise my children and encourage them to become medic-ninjas, and then work at the hospital. And maybe if I still wanted, I could maybe start courses on being a dentist.

I was brought out of my thoughts when Deidara spoke again, "You don't enjoy your life? Why not, yeah?"

"I don't know why it concerns you, but it's just because I don't even want to be a ninja," I muttered, "Can't you see how horrible I am at even guarding? I'm making conversation with the prisoner."

Deidara chuckled, "Well, it isn't that bad, yeah… I'm just the kind of guy people open up to."

"I suppose. But I wouldn't say I was opening up to you. I'm just having a civilized conversation with you. The kind of conversation that most people would have over the dinner table."

"Oh, like a date?" Deidara snickered.

I turned red, but forced myself to be calm, "no, not like a date. More like a business dinner. If you understand what I mean."

"Sure I do. Either way; it's a date, yeah."

"No it isn't. A date is when two people who are interested in each other go out to a special place. A business dinner is when two people who are having dinner for business. And besides –most dates aren't located in the middle of a prison with one person handcuffed to a chair and blindfolded."

"…Well, some are… and usually when it's these types of dates, things tend to get a little… messy," Deidara snickers.

I turned red once more, "shut up. That is not what I meant you sick-minded imbecile!"

Deidara snickered once more, "All right, all right."

Once my blush finally faded, I decided to ask more questions, "Ahem, anyway…"

"Yea?"

I suddenly forgot what I was going to ask. Ugh, what was I going to say? I racked my brain, but couldn't think of anything other than the question that I asked next, "What's it like in the Akatsuki?"

Lame. Totally, utterly, lame. I cringed, but listened to his answer: "I suppose that it's fine, yeah. I got to use my art more often, just like I wanted. It does get to be a drag though."

"I'm certain," I mumbled. The lights flickered back on. "Finally!"

Deidara smirked, "It wasn't that bad."

"I guess not." I shrugged. "But still, it's nice to be able to see again."

I blinked, trying to let my eyes adjust to the sudden blinding light. I groaned and looked up at the clock. The nine forty-five pm. I grumbled under my breath and then yawned. Would I be able to sleep? Hearing my yawn, Deidara spoke, "Tired? You can go to sleep, yeah…"

I snorted, "No way. I'm not letting you escape."

"I won't escape. I don't have a good enough plan yet," Deidara said.

I narrowed my eyes, "How do I know I can trust you?"

"I dunno. I guess that's just up to you, yeah…"

I stood, walking over to Deidara. I circled around his chair, checking to see if the handcuffs were on properly. I examined the handcuffs to see that I had done it right. I looked over to his blindfold. It seemed to be on securely as well. He was relaxed, and didn't look like he was going to escape. Still paranoid, I moved the weapons so that they were directly under my chair. I must've made quite a racket, because Deidara spoke again.

"What the hell are you doing? Digging a hole to Konoha, yeah?" he muttered, frowning.

I sent him the most withering glare I could muster, "Well, I'm just putting all your weapons somewhere. Just shut up for two minutes!"

"I don't have to," replied Deidara.

I groaned as I sat down on my chair again, swallowing down two more pills with a sigh, "God. Yes, you do. As long as I am here killing myself just watching you, you are going to zip it! At least for the night."

"If you're lucky," he snickers. "What if I have to go to the washroom, yeah?"

I opened my eyes. Washroom? I glanced over my shoulder at the door that led to the washroom. I had nearly forgotten that –Akatsuki or not- we all had human needs. One of them was, unfortunately, urinating. I had nearly forgotten that Deidara was human since all I've heard about him is "big, bad Deidara" and "crazy nut job that blew up the village". You can't imagine bad guys going to the washroom.

That's just not what you think about. So I'm sure that I'm not the only one out there that thinks that it's an awkward question to answer, right? "Um, do you need to use it now?"

"No, it's just that what if I need to use it in the middle of the night?"

"Then go right now so that you won't," I grumbled.

Deidara grinned, shifting in his chair, "Uh, these handcuffs? And I'm going to have to take the blindfold off unless you're planning on assisting me, yeah…"

I scrunched up my face in disgust, "you sicken me."

Suddenly, panic and paranoia erupted within me for the second time. Oh shit. What am I going to do now? There's no way I'm helping him, so that was completely out of the question, but how do I know I can trust this moron? He might kill me if I let him go! I quickly grabbed as much as the tools as I could and ran to the washroom, dumping them into the empty, spotless bathtub. I went back and took the second load. I then ran right back to the bathtub and dropped them all in. I closed the curtains with a swoosh and then went back to my chair, heaving a huge sigh. Deidara smirked and said snidely, "That wasn't obvious at all."

I glared liquid flames toward Deidara, twitching, "Gah! You are… God!"

Deidara raised an eyebrow, evidently amused, "I've had plenty of girls swoon over me, but I don't think I've ever been called 'God' before, yeah."

"Shut up. You better not attack, otherwise, I swear to God… I'll be your personal poltergeist when I die! And I'll damn you for the rest of my life –my before and after life!"

Deidara shrugged it off, "Yeah, yeah, hurry up."

I was hesitant for a moment, but then stood up and walked toward him. I, as roughly as I could, undid the knot for the blindfold. Once it was off, I moved behind Deidara so that he couldn't see my face. I grumbled to myself as I removed the ring of keys out of my shirt and singled out a small, shiny one. I inserted it into the key hole on the handcuffs. I turned the keys, activating the tumblers, then, unlocking the handcuffs. I practically jumped three meters away, hand on the handle of my sword and anticipating an attack. Deidara merely stood up casually and stretched, looking over his shoulder and sending me a sheepish grin.

His statement pissed me off to no end: "You're short."

My eyebrow twitched, and I closed my eyes, struggling to maintain my calm, "Gee, I never knew. What a revelation! Well maybe it's because you're the freaking bean stock giant!"

Deidara raised an eyebrow, "What? I'm only 5'9..."

"Only? That is considered very tall for a person like me!"

Deidara smirked and walked toward me. He looked down at me, and I glared up at him, my hand hovering over my sword. He raised his hand and placed it on the top of his head, and moved it so that it was hovering over my head. He smirked and backed up, muttering, "You're about 5'5, yeah…"

"I hate you. You're not up and about to compare our sizes! Go to the washroom before I lock you up to the chair again!"

Deidara rolled his eyes, "Fine, fine…"

He casually walked toward the door with the washroom sign on it and entered, shutting the door behind him. I bounced over to the door after it was shut, pressing my ear tightly to the door. I listened as closely as I could, but didn't hear any clinking or swishing from the curtain. Therefore, Deidara had not tried to get a weapon. I sighed, and as I was backing away, the door flew open, and I was hit square in the face. I fell to the ground, hiding my face and muttering curses.

I stopped my curses when I heard Deidara's sheepish apology, "Oh, sorry. Didn't see ya there, yeah…"

I looked up at him, glaring, "That's quite alright. Now, let me show you to your seat."

I grabbed his arm and dragged him to the chair, sitting him down and handcuffing his hands behind his back. I reached into my pocket, trying to find the blindfold. Shit. I checked my pack, and then I looked around the room. Where the hell was it? I scowled down at Deidara, who was innocently staring at the floor.

"Where is it? Cut the cute act, it won't work on me," I snapped, looking at him expectantly.

Deidara looked up at me, baffled, "What the hell? I didn't take the blindfold, if that's what you're thinking, yeah…"

"Well then where is it?" I demanded.

Deidara shrugged, "Probably ran away from you."

I snarled, "Damn it, Deidara!"

Too peeved to say or do anything more, I stormed to my chair and moodily plunked myself down, crossing my arms over my chest and glaring at the clock, muttering curses. Shit I lost the blindfold? What kind of dolt would do that? It can't just evaporate or anything; that's impossible. Would Deidara be able to escape now that he didn't have a blindfold? No, no way he can. How could he, anyway? Unless he has laser beam (which I doubt), I'm pretty sure that he can't escape. At least, I hope.

Suddenly, it occurred to me that hiding his weapons wasn't necessary at all. If anything, it just made getting a weapon a lot easier for him. Fortunately for me, Deidara didn't go and get a weapon. How was it unnecessary? Well, I had them beneath my chair, and I'm pretty sure that I could've guarded them. However, I had to make it more stressful for myself by hiding them in the bathtub!

Self-esteem wounded, I stared at my hands. Of course, I had to forget that Deidara didn't have a blindfold anymore.

"Pfft. I never took you as the shy type, Kaori," said Deidara, smirking.

I looked up, glaring, "I'm not shy. I just don't want to talk to you."

"It's not like you have a choice. You won't last if you don't talk to someone, yeah…" muttered Deidara.

"Uh, yes I will. I'm positive that I'd survive without talking, unlike you who can't go on without talking for five minutes," I muttered. "In fact, hey, there's number two! That's the second reason that I hate you. You can't shut up. You always need to say something, no matter how stupid and random it is, you always have to whine about something. I feel like I'm babysitting a three year old instead of guarding an s-ranked criminal!"

Deidara blinked, grinning, "Wow."

"That's it? Good. Now stay quiet," I muttered, praying that he'd listen to me for once.

Of course, Deidara didn't care what I said. He'd take action anyway, "No."

I glared at him, fisting my hands, "Why the hell not?"

"Because it'd then be quiet, yeah," answers Deidara.

"That's what I want, dumb ass! I want to sleep," I grumbled.

Deidara sighs, blowing some hair out of his face, "Whatever, yeah…"

Satisfied, I close my eyes, furrowing my brow. It isn't exactly a comfortable sleeping position, but I was exhausted. I knew that Deidara wouldn't be able to escape, so I was at peace. I imagined myself in my room, in my cozy little bed. I shifted a little bit, almost going to sleep.

You can count on Deidara to ruin it all, "You look nice when you sleep."

I sat up straight, sending him a horrified look (despite the red-ness of my face), "What?"

"What?" asked Deidara, baffled.

I opened my mouth to say something, but I closed it once again. Deidara might be complimenting me to get off easier! Well I'm not falling for that. I smirked at my wisdom and closed my eyes once again, lowering my head.

You wouldn't believe how fast I was out.

-- Author's Notes--

Aha, I updated really fast for this one. I just wanted to, I suppose. It's a fun, easy story to write. And it was second on the list. So I suppose that this is the story to update. Aha. So… hope you enjoyed! Please review!

I completed this chapter on June 25, 2008.