"Ahhhh! Sunshine, fresh air and freedom!" I sighed gleefully as I stepped out of the hospital for the first time in the better part of two months. I stretched my arms out behind me and smiled as the warm golden rays caressed my face. However, my joy was short-lived. A small cough behind me reminded me of the fact that I was still number one on the world's most endangered species list and my freedom only went as far as 10ft from my escort. With a disdainful frown I leaned my head back enough to glimpse the two cloaked men, one jumping up and down excitedly, the other standing with his arms crossed, smirking. Oh how he infuriated me with that cocky grin! I would give anything to smack him one and not be sent back to hospital for it.
"Hmph. Still here are you? I was sure the hospital security would have detained you when we passed through the Paediatric Ward," I lazily shot at the object of my annoyance. He raised an eyebrow but otherwise didn't move. Just keep smiling, pal! I'll wipe that smirk right off your face one of these days.
"Oh, really? And why would you think that, un?" Turning around to face him properly I graced him with my most innocent smile, despite my inner rebelliousness. I had a feeling he knew what I was thinking but I was going to say it anyway. I was determined to make his life as uncomfortable as possible.
"Sure. On account of you being a paedophile and all." I frowned suddenly as a thought occured and continued, not letting him think of a retort to my insult. "Actually, I really am surprised no one's tried to arrest you yet. It's not as if you try to hide the fact that you're Akatsuki..."
"This village takes little to do with Ninja of any sort so they don't really know what Akatsuki is, un." Deidara answered, striding past me towards the harbour. I followed suit, allowing Tobi to slip into step beside me and cling to my arm as we went. "And I am not a paedophile, un."
"Hmm... I guess that makes sense." I nodded thoughtfully. "And, oh yes you are! Don't lie to me, Bomberman. I heard all about those stunts Akatsuki pulled with Gaara of the Sand Village and Naruto Uzumaki. The whole lot of you are a bunch of ruddy child molesters!"
"Heeeeyyy!" Tobi complained, hurt resonating in his voice. "Tobi is a good boy! Tobi is not a paedophile." I assured Tobi I didn't mean him and he was instantly placated, falling into his bouncy step beside me once more. Meanwhile Deidara glared at me from the long wooden pier he'd stepped on to, trying, no doubt, to strike me down with his mind.
"There was nothing even remotely paedophilic about that, un. We went after them because they each have one of the tailed beasts, simple as. Whether they're kids or not makes no difference, un."
"Uh-huh, because that doesn't sound dodgy in the slightest." I scoffed, sarcasm naturally working its way into my voice. He didn't answer but I could feel the murderous intent in the air.
Joining him quickly, I felt the sea-whethered pine creaking in anguish under my feet. With a deep breath, I found myself relishing the salty smell of the sea, the heavy scent of freshly caught and gutted fish and even the slightly putrid hint of gull droppings - it smelt like life. Now that mine had been considerably shortened I had time to appreciate the finer details of the world and I couldn't get enough, using all the senses available to me to explore the scene down to the last grain of sand. The sound of cussing sailors and fishermen; the sight of the sun glittering on the water's surface; the taste of the sea air on my tongue; the feel of the wind pulling at my hair; it was magnificent. And I'd trade anything to be able to become a part of it; to just fade into the scene and become one with the land.
"I swear, if the Leader didn't need you alive I'd kill you this very second, un!" Deidara growled. "In fact, if he heard you say that he'd kill you himself, needed or not."
I grinned at him, putting my hands on my hips for effect. "Have you forgotten already, Dei? He can't kill me, 'cause you promised you wouldn't let him! If you or anyone else wants me dead you have to do it. Understand?"
"Maybe as a punishment I should retract my oath, un?" he mumbled, searching the pier for something. "Would serve you right."
"What?!" I gasped in mock horror. I held my left hand to my heart and draped the other across my brow. "Shame on thee, dishonourable wretch! To so voluptuously breach a legally binding pledge to a damsel in distress! Tis a sign of poor breeding, thou mark my words!"
Both Tobi and Deidara stared at me with incomprehensive expressions. Time froze, neither one of us willing to speak first, no one knowing quite what to say. Suddenly Tobi bounded up to me and slapped a hand across my forehead. I swatted it away on instict and gave him a puzzled look which I assume he returned behind his swirly orange mask.
"Are you alright? Tobi thinks you might not be well. Maybe Mizuko should go back to hospital?" he asked tentatively. The way Deidara eyed me with unwilling concern told me he thought as much too. Eyebrows knit in the middle of his head he peered at the hospital behind me as if deciding whether or not to drag me back.
"What?!" I cried defiantly. "I have an abnormal love of classical theatre! Don't judge me just because you have no respect for art!" Now this statement could quite possibly have been the most stupid thing I've ever said (excluding my dance with death when I first met Pein). I loved art and all its shapes and forms. I didn't know, however that Deidara had a rather special opinion of art and was a dedicated artist. Thus I was not prepared for his speech.
"Hah! You call that drivel art? Art is not a bunch of idiots prancing across a stage muttering some long winded rubbish, un. Art is that fleeting moment of beauty before something disappears from this world forever. Art is the destruction of something so wonderful, it is damnable to look upon it twice, un. But most importantly, Art is a bang!" Deidara declared. Now it was my turn to stare. Who knew this rogue ass was such an art enthusiast? Finally a side of Deidara I could potentially like!
"I see... you have an interesting view on art, one that I can understand and agree with to some level. However, I think true art is life itself. Everything about life; it's birth, it's life, it's death and it's memory, are all art in my opinion. Art is everything because everything is beautiful in it's own way."
Deidara shook his head exasperatedly. "Yet another fool who can't understand art for what it really is, un." What did he just say?! Too far buddy boy! I let lose a stream of colourful curses before confronting him head on.
"Excuse me?! I'm no fool! What gives you the right to dictate what art is and is not, you overconfident, son of a god damn she-devil?! People are entitled to have opinions you know! Or is that another privelidge I'm to be robbed of?! AARRRGH! YOU MAKE ME SO DAMN MAD, YOU ARROGANT BAS-,"
"Hoi! Ms! Quiet down, will ya? Yer scarin' away all the fish!" a nearby fisher cut me off mid-sentence. I let out a feral snarl and stamped my foot but did as he asked.
"Where is it we're going from here?" I snapped, voice dripping in poison. Deidara had turned as white as a sheet in the face of my wrath; he wasn't afraid - I wasn't dumb enough to think I had that much of an effect on him - but he definately didn't know I was capable of that. He pointed vaguely in the direction of one of the larger ships, clearly intended for long overseas voyages, and with a final withering dose of the evil eyes I marched over to it.
As I passed I heard the fisher who'd scolded me turn to his companion and whisper. " Poor lad... She's a fiesty un! 'N' what a set o' lungs she's got!" He chuckled and his partner did likewise.
"Aye, Takemaru. A mighty set o' pipes sure enough! I'm fair impressed wi' a' her swearin'. She'd make a fine sailor's wife, tha's certain!" the man agreed. I blushed slightly, almost sorry for my lack of self-control. Almost. Seriously! Who the hell did that Deidara think he was?! No way I was letting him away with that, no matter who was around.
I slowed as I approached the ship we were going to cross the water on and scrutinized it carefully. It was a powerful piece of work, capable no doubt of out sailing any other ship in the harbour. The wood was a sturdy oak, perhaps mahogany - it was difficult to say for sure because of the sanding effect the waves had had on it - with a light coating of varnish. The sails, folded high in the rigging, were the pale beige of a non-threatening merchant ship and the ropes that were visible everywhere I looked, were encrusted with salt. The front of the beast extended many meters over the deck's end in a sort of point, like a javelin or spear. The painted black strip around the middle of the boat's exterior was the only feature that wasn't merely bare planks and upon the strip was the ship's name in a flowing calligraphy of white. The S.S. Kariya. What a fitting name. It meant nothing to me in particular but it was a suitable name for such a masterfully crafted leviathan.
Deidara sidled up on my left and I could feel his eyes boring into me with an intensity that set my skin aflame. With a sly sideways glance I registered curiosity and a hint of admiration in his electric blue eyes... Curiosity much the same as he'd displayed that time in the hospital. As if something about me fascinated him and he couldn't decide what it was. It was unnerving, him looking at me like that; set me on edge. Yet at the same time I loved it. I loved that I could command such attention from him and I loved that his eyes focused on me and me alone. As soon as I discovered this I mentally slapped myself. Get a grip, Mizuko! He's irritating and you hate him! He's the one who sentenced you to death for goodness sake!
Ignoring him I purposefully boarded the ship, heading straight for the stern to look over the edge at the steady rise and fall of the murky green waves. I saw my own reflection in the swaying water and beneath that I thought I could see a silver fish dart away through the seaweed. The avalanche that was my hair tumbled over my shoulder as I leaned in closer for a better look. I couldn't see the fish but my molten honey eyes stared blankly back at me. There was no sadness in them, but rather acceptance; acceptance of an inescapable future. There were several bruises on my face that hadn't quite faded yet - no longer the violent purple that they'd once been but a sickly yellowish-brown. There was a silvery scar on my left cheek where some shrapnel from Pein's attack had cut particularly deep and my nose had a peculiar set to it that suggested a breakage had occured - highly probable in sight of the power Pein'd hit me with. It was a shock to see myself like that. It made me wonder what kind of inhuman monsters I was really dealing with here...
"D'you aways admire yourself like that? And you called me arrogant, un." an all too familiar voice drifted from behind me. He was trying to entice another violent outburst and maybe I would have given it to him... if I weren't so empty all of a sudden. I don't know what brought it on, but for some reason I just didn't have it in me to fight anymore.
Face blank, voice devoid of emotion I replied with composed dignity. "I was inspecting the damage. It's nice to know why people are staring at you as if you're missing a head."
"I didn't really take you for the vain type, un."
"I'm not. I just wanted to see the state Pein left me in. I'm going below deck for a while... I'll find somewhere to sleep, maybe. Wake me if you need me." With that I turned tail and headed off to find a cabin, not looking back even once, though I knew he was staring after me with that same scorching look from before.
Finding a place to sleep was easy; I met the Captain and asked about it and he said I could take my pick of any of the guests cabins since we were the first passengers to arrive. I chose a small room near the back of the ship, with a single bed fixed in the corner and a small chest next to the door for my belongings, not that I had any of those anymore. It was a cosy room, warm and dry with a porthole looking out over the lulling waves. Some royal blue curtains were drawn on either side of the porthole and I pulled them shut before falling on to the bed and snuggling up to the pillow, the emptiness clawing at my mind and wrapping itself around my heart.
Eventually I drifted into a sleep laced with terrible nightmares; I saw my death at Deidara's hands and myself, pleading on hands and knees for mercy. I was crying, sobbing until I was forced to calm down in order to breathe. When I was still he bent before me and handed me a small clay sculpture of a cat. It was vividly detailed, right down to the tiny whiskers. Confused I looked up at him and saw pain... no, agony shining in his eyes. And indecision... a hesitation that was driving him slowly insane.
Eternities passed and we stared at each other, never moving, his agony and my confusion frozen in the crystals of time. Until at long last he twitched. Bringing his hand infront of his chest, pointing finger and middle finger held up straight in what I realised was a hand sign, his eyes pierced my soul with their overwhelming infusion of loss. What is it he's lost? I wondered.
"K-katon." he breathed, gazing at me in shock, as if he couldn't believe what he was doing. The cat sculpture glowed blindingly and I focused on it briefly before... nothing... a deep darkness that stretched on for ever. Never changing, never touched by the passage of time. And I was suspended in its very core, alone.
I woke up screaming, tears flowing freely down my cheeks, sweat plastering my hair to my face and soaking my clothes. I was trembling, fear and adrenaline pounding through my veins without pity. In that moment, if I knew nothing else, I knew this: I had to get off this boat and get as far away from all things Akatsuki as possible.
Mizuko makes her first escape attempt in the next chapter. I'm not sure how I want it to go yet but when I know, you guys'll know. Hope you liked this chapter and thanks for all the reviews. All ideas and suggestions for improvement are welcome! ^_^