Hey. Author-chan here. But Author-chan is in a bad mood. Well, here's the next chapter. Because it's kinda short, I updated a bit earlier than usual so that you guys can get a normal-size chapter on Saturday as usual. Enjoy.
Chapter Eight: Surprises Back "Home"
I convinced Sasori to ride my bird hom-no, to the cabin. We managed to get there in two hours. Kakuzu and Hidan weren't back yet. I was really counting on Kakuzu for money for grub. "How long does it take to steal a stupid scroll anyway, un?" I grumbled. Sighing, I reclined on the couch and closed my eyes.
I heard Hidan and Kakuzu come in a while later. "Man, that fuckin' rocked!" Hidan said as he came in. "We would've gotten here earlier if not for Kakuzu and his newest bounty," Hidan told me. "Uh-huh," I mumbled, eyes still closed. Deciding he was bored with me, Hidan turned his attention to Kakuzu, who was tampering with a sword.
"Hey, where'd you get that?" Hidan asked. "A samurai," Kakuzu answered curtly. "Cool! Hey, why didn't you just fuckin' trade it at your corpse market?" Hidan teased. "Shut up," Kakuzu said. "Ya know, it isn't fair that your motherfucker of an 'agent' trades only in dead bodies," Hidan commented. "Shut up," Kakuzu growled. "You should be able to get other bullshit for cash. Like ramen, ink, bugs, cereal, movie tickets-" "SHUT UP!"
Kakuzu whipped around and flung the sword at Hidan. It went through his heart and came out from the other side. Blood dropped to the carpeted floor and seeped through his cloak, staining the red clouds an even darker red. My mouth dropped open in shock. I was wide awake now, un!
Hidan just pulled out the sword and said "Hey Kakuzu! That hurt!" My jaw just freakin' hit the ground!
"Kakuzu has killed hundreds of his partners in a fit of rage," Sasori said, suddenly behind me. "But Hidan is immortal, so they make a perfect match." Kakuzu stomped out and Hidan chased after him. "Hundreds?" I echoed. "You're exaggerating, right? He's way too young to have had hundreds of partners." "Well, Kakuzu did fight the First Hokage," Sasori pointed out. My jaw fell through the flor. How old does that make the guy?!
"He steals people's hearts to live longer," Sasori explained. "He has five of them." "Well...Hidan didn't tell me that," I said, mostly because I was too dumbfounded for my brain to process anything else. Sasori rolled his eyes. I remembered Hidan impaling himself with wooden stakes earlier. His immortality explained that. It must be some kind of religious thing.
"The Zombie Brothers," I said aloud. "That's what I'll call them; they're supposed to be dead, but they're not. They're basically the walking dead, un." Sasori shook his head at me, as if he couldn't believe me, and left.
I stood from the couch and strolled outside. Kakuzu was still trying to kill Hidan with the sword. The scene provided a sharp contrast to the calm demeanor he usually had. "Hey Hidan! Will you stop annoying Kakuzu long enough for me to ask him for food?" I asked. "It's in the bag by the door!" Kakuzu growled, throwing the sword at me. I dodged with a graceful smirk (if you can actually use those words together). "Thanks," I said, picking up the bloody sword and tossing it at Kakuzu's head. Thread-like materials sprouted from Kakuzu's arms and stooped the sword in midair. More weird abilities, ano futari-domo.
I opened the bag I saw right where Kakuzu said it was. (Why did I ever doubt him? Oh yeah, he threw a sword at me.) Dango. For dinner. Seriously? Who does that? Well, not that I'm complaining… I finished the sticky snack and licked my fingers happily. Then I headed to my room. Yes, the Room of Doom where the Puppetmaster of Doom awaits.
I walked in on Sasori. Out of Hiruko. Without a shirt on. I think my jaw broke off and fell on the floor.
Sasori was a real, actual puppet! Where his stomach should've been, there was a roll of rope. There was a circular scroll-like structure with pulsing veins on his chest. His core… I recalled Hidan saying that Sasori was a puppet with a living core. I had figured that Hiruko was the puppet and Sasori was the living core within.
I swallowed my surprise almost immediately and smirked. Sasori regarded me dully. I pointed at his chest. "What is that?" I asked. "My most powerful form," Sasori responded monotonously, turning his back on me. "I mean the scroll with the kanji for your name on it, un," I said, slightly ticked. "Is it your living core?" "You could call it that," Sasori said. "Your 'most powerful form' leaves you open," I pointed out plainly. "Your opponent would immediately figure out it was your weakest point, un." Sasori ignored me.
"Why did you turn yourself into a puppet?" I tried. "Art lasts forever. Puppets last forever. I am the embodiment of art itself." I scoffed. "Art doesn't last forever…" I began. "Go to sleep, gaki," Sasori snapped. Clearly, he was not ready to have this argument. "Hai hai, Sasori no Danna,"I said.
After changing into my night-dress, Sasori gave me a ring. It had the kanji "ao" on it. "What's this for?" I asked. "Everyone in the Akatsuki gets it after their first mission," he told me. "Thanks," I said, putting the ring on.
"It symbolizes membership of the Akatsuki," Sasori added. Great, as if the cloak wasn't enough. I crawled into my bed. "Oyasuminasai, Sasori no Danna," I chirped. It took a while for him to answer, as if he was contemplating whether to say something or not. "Good night."
Sorry for the shortness, but at least I made it to 950 words!
Ao means blue or green.
Ano futari-dono loosely translates as "those two".
So why is Author-chan not happy? Comments! My friends tell me its good, but I wanna know what my other readers think! Please review! Every author needs criticism to cope, though probably not as much as me.
Oh yeah, remember, this is an AU (Alternate Universe). I know that Dei is a guy. I'm just recreating him as a girl, although I know he doesn't like it! ;)
