Hey, everyone. I'm planning on changing my username to NiKOpogs. Anyway, I'm sorry this took so long but I decided to make a longer-than-usual chapter to make myself more used to making longer chapters because my next fic might be longer than I expect it would be.
Anyway, enjoy this chapter. :)
Shizune could not believe what she was reading at the moment. Yamato's team already reached the battlefield they were assigned to investigate an hour after the moon lit the sky. It was now in the middle of the night when a bird made of ink landed its talons on the bottom frame of the window in the archives. Tsunade had already gone back to her office due to her careless slip-up about the enormous pile of unread reports and papers that needed signing leaving the black-haired girl to work by herself.
She knew Yamato's team was assigned a double-time task, meaning they had to finish it in the shortest period of time possible, but she didn't expect them to act so quickly. She didn't have any doubts that this team did not even pause a minute to catch their breaths.
The black ink bird flew to her table and on top of a blank sheet of paper and melted into it. At first, it all looked like someone spilled an ink bottle on the paper but soon enough, the excess ink disappeared and letters were becoming visible.
There is no body found in this site.
By-passers say that there have been two cloaked men around after the blast but none other with them which meant they too have not found Deidara's body.
It may have been involved in the explosion but the field is clear of any sign of blood. No remains either.
We will head for Konoha tomorrow morning. For now, we will be staying at the nearest village south of this area.
Sai.
If Deidara's body was not Akatsuki, then where the hell was it? She considered the body being carried off by hunter nins for bounty but even she knew that the news of Deidara's body being returned to Iwa would reach Konoha even though the Stone and Leaf were not exactly allies. She then remembered what Kakashi had reported when they returned from their small vacation. Sakura had apparently seen Deidara before Kisame caused a bit of commotion and before she disappeared.
Kisame. Why did he even pick a fight with Naruto and the others? Even without Itachi by his side to control and put him in place, Kisame was not that naïve to randomly call out on anyone just to satisfy his blood thirst. Besides, she knew Akatsuki would only bother with people that were involved in their mission. And even though it was a jinchuuriki he had called out, she doubted he was in town because of Naruto. She knew he was there purely by coincidence because he didn't even know they were on vacation. Kisame was also alone, according to the reports. He must have known he wouldn't stand a chance against Naruto and his companions.
Something about all this seemed to form a puzzle but she didn't know where to put the right pieces. She might be overlooking something obvious or maybe she lacked the information needed to solve everything. She knew there was something lacking and that was the certainty of Deidara's existence.
But if he were alive, he could possibly be traveling with Kisame who was in the same town as he was reportedly seen.
She didn't know what to think anymore. She's been in this room for about 6 hours now and she barely even had time for lunch. Though she wished to continue the research on Akatsuki's dead bodies, she wanted to call it a night.
And so she did as she switched out the lights and locked the archives.
Like she thought to herself earlier, Sakura did not leave the confinement of her given bedroom. She didn't even join the blond for dinner and refused to take a step outside until he was fast asleep in his own quarters. She was just lying still on the old mattress of the bed, thinking about today.
What happened earlier in the lake was inappropriate and downright embarrassing—especially on her part since she was naked and was practically standing on transparent liquid in front of him. She didn't think she would be able to look at him the same anymore. Recalling the memory of his eyes burning her as a whole, it made seeing him more unbearable. Maybe she should just leave.
No, she couldn't possibly do that. As much as she didn't like the situation, she was too much of a compassionate person to leave Deidara here and she hated that about herself. She should at least heal him as a consolation for choosing not to go back to Akatsuki.
Finally decided, she crept down the stairs, knowing that Deidara was most likely in his room by now because just half an hour ago, she heard a door shut. She made no sound as she entered the kitchen. Her hands searched for the light switch near the doorway and flicked it open. There was a bowl left in the middle of the dining table covered by a plate. Deidara probably had a hunch that she would eventually get hungry and left out some food for her. She hurried eating and finished cleaning the dishes.
As she led herself upstairs, she begun thinking about running off in the late night back to her village after healing him as if nothing happened—as if she had never seen Deidara and had never interacted with him or Kisame.
Finally reaching the second floor of the clay house, she stood in front of Deidara's door with one hand on the knob and the other prepared to knock on his door. Before she could even muster the courage to make a sound on the door, another one closed from along the hallway. Her head turned to the right and saw Deidara who had just come out of the bathroom.
"You need something?" Deidara asked, looking at her with a raised eyebrow and a smirk.
None of them had forgotten what happened several hours ago, that she knew. And it wasn't at all amazing when she picked up the hint that he wanted to move on from it and just get on with their lives.
She let her hands fall to her sides and gave a weak smile as she spoke. "I was thinking while I was eating—"
"So you ate after all."
A small nod was the only answer he received. She continued, "You mentioned your injuries?"
"Yeah, they're not much to heal but they definitely affect my movements," he stated, moving his arm slightly to emphasize the last word. "Maybe you can start healing them tomorrow morning?"
She shook her head at him. "I sort of had plans for tomorrow morning," mumbled the cherry. He narrowed his eyes on her, asking her to explain where she was going. "I'm going to town a bit. It gets too stuffy in this place. But you don't need to worry about me. I don't have any intentions of running away." Not until I heal those injuries, I don't.
"I'll come with you."
There was no point in arguing. She knew this man trusted her as much as she trusted him but even she wouldn't let him go out alone in a town if she were in his position. Giving him an approving nod, she walked past him, whispering him a goodnight, and finally slamming the door behind her.
Deidara waited until she closed the door before entering his own room. There, he had taken off his top and tossed it to his bed and studied his scars in front of the mirror. He had a few on his shoulders but only a few inches long. He had a large on down his back and he didn't even know where the hell that came from. And finally, he gathered his hair to his back with one hand, revealing a scar about 4-inches on his chest, and traced it with his free hand. This, he definitely knew the cause.
After one last look at his scar, he pulled on the shirt he had thrown aside earlier and sat on the edge of the bed. When he wakes up tomorrow, there were going to be only three days left until his birthday. He didn't like celebrating it. He wouldn't know how but somehow, a part of him hoped that the girl would stay with him until then.
He mentally slapped himself at the thought and remembered what Kisame had told him today. Be careful not to fall for those green eyes again. What the hell did that shark-face even mean about that? He'd never fallen in love with her before. At least he think he didn't.
The first time he'd found out that she was the one who killed his partner, he was devastated. That medic kunoichi who was always behind Naruto, as they acknowledged her, killed Sasori of the Sand, the master of puppets. He'd never seen her up close. His primary clue on her appearance was her pink hair and her clothes. The first time he'd studied her face was when he and Kisame first met in the rain.
()
Within his cloak, he concealed a Bingo book that he'd recently retrieved from a hunter nin who was apparently on his tail for about a week. He flipped through the pages as he was narrating his most recent encounter with with an infamous nin. He scanned the book for the image of the shinobi he'd been telling the blonde about and presented the photo to him.
Deidara's eyes widened though it wasn't Kisame's point that surprised him. On the other leaf of the book was a photo of a coral-pink haired kunoichi he'd recognized from some time ago and the name written in the description confirmed his guess. He pulled the book away from Kisame and studied her features. There was fury that raged inside of him but he was overwhelmed by her striking green eyes to even remember that she was the reason he'd been put together with Tobi.
From experience and as an old man, Kisame could clearly distinguish the look in his eyes. "See something you fancy, boy?" He stared at the photo longer than necessary. Kisame didn't even think that his new companion heard his smug question. Deidara merely continued to observe her photo, as if caught up in the green pools printed on the page. "Mesmerizing, right?"
"Yeah," he said then suddenly catching his tongue. He shot Kisame a startled look and then his face shifted into a confused one. "Excuse me, what?"
"No need to deny it, boy," he chuckled. "Even I found her a bit interesting during our latest encounter. Even Itachi, before he died, talked about her at some point after finding out about her training under Tsunade's supervision." The younger man turned back to the photo. "Is it your first time seeing her up close or what?"
Deidara shook his head faintly. "I saw her before but not her—"
"Eyes?"
"Yeah," and again, Deidara caught himself. He snapped the Bingo book shut and threw it back at Kisame with a toss. "Let's not talk about this, please? She's the reason I got stuck with Tobi."
Kisame shrugged. "Whatever. Just remember that when I bring it up again, you can't deny that you actually found her attractive," he said with a smug expression. "And add the fact that she's Tsunade's student, she can smash a whole boulder with her bare fists and oh, let's not forget that she killed your freaky puppet partner. For a kunoichi, that's pretty far-out. And, to add to those facts, she's a medic—similar to a nurse so—"
Deidara looked at him, quickly picking up his meaning and his face turned into a disgusted expression. "Kisame, you're despicable." The man with the stranger complexion only laughed at his understatement and told him that whatever was dancing in Deidara's mind made him just as despicable as him.
()
The next day, Deidara headed straight for the kitchen. Surprisingly, Sakura had gotten up earlier before him and had brewed herself a cup of coffee. She smiled at him faintly as a silent greeting and went back to her warm drink, her eyes never leaving his. She could see he was studying her and she let him though she was fairly curious as to why he'd developed a sudden interest in her today.
He unconsciously stared hard on her eyes, absorbing every ounce of her spirit of that they gave away. Her eyes, like the first time he'd noted them, were really striking especially now that she was sitting before him. He imagined what they'd be like if she were any closer.
When he was first blown away by her jade orbs, it was when he saw her picture in the Bingo book. Her expression firm as can be but her eyes, even though it was just a photo, gave so much away about her. Her expression was calm hard, her jaws clearly clenched, and her eyes were looking right at whoever shot the photo. He immediately sensed determination, fury and a hint of pain and fear in the background. He didn't know where he got all that and the reason he'd spent so much time looking at her photo was to confirm the feelings her eyes failed to conceal—at least to him. He asked the heavens how the hell he got those ideas from a mere photo.
But what he had thought before was true. She had a lot hiding behind her jaded eyes and there was much more pain than he'd thought beforehand. He could see it now although she was about three meters away from him. His expression went from observant to soft and she saw it.
"Something wrong?" She finally asked, bothered that he seemed troubled just by looking at her.
Her voice brought his head back into the kitchen. He avoided her gaze to prevent himself from trying to analyze her more because the more he tried to grab the puzzle pieces, the more curious he was of the image it would form. He didn't want to know what she's been through. He already had his share of troubles and he didn't need to learn more but something about her just needed to be released. It was like she's been hiding some greater deal of problems within her and her eyes were just screaming to let the feelings out but she couldn't.
He shuffled around the pantry and looked for something he was up for munching this morning. "Nothing," he said, rummaging through the cupboard. He felt her eyes on him. She was watching and she probably knew that he knew. He turned around to meet her eyes and asked in the same tune she had. "Something wrong?"
Finishing the cup of coffee, she got to her feet and washed the cup in the sink beside him. "Not much. I was just trying to see if your wounds really did affect your movements." She absently had her shoulder brushing against his arm because the cupboard he'd been reaching for earlier was almost overhead the sink. She turned off the faucet and placed the cup on the dish dryer and placed both hands on the sink. "They actually do and in more ways you didn't notice."
"Hm? In what ways then, doctor?"
Sakura brushed off the last word but the side of her lips sank into a frown. She didn't like being called a doctor since she wasn't trained to be one—she was a shinobi. She moved back to the chair, continuing her explanation. "You probably know that you can't stretch your right arm as high as your left arm and that's why you use your right arm to look for something edible in that cabinet, right?" A firm nod. "But you probably don't know that you keep your back arched a little so as to not stretch or strain a scar too much. And you may be used to it since you don't even notice how straight you stand most of the time. I'm guessing there's a scar on your back then?"
"A large one," he answered, reaching for the loaf of bread before he closed the cupboard and sat on the chair beside her.
She nodded then looked away into the window he had snuck out of yesterday. "Anymore scars other than your back, shoulders and arms?"
"There's one on my leg but it was from a long time ago, yeah." He paused a moment, as if remembering how he'd gotten it. She could have sworn she saw his eyes darken a little but she didn't confirm it because he had begun speaking once more. "I've got one on my chest."
Her head turned to him, her eyes magnetized on his chest. It was the first time she'd noticed that he was wearing a shirt with neckline reaching near the end of his shoulders and exposed the upper half of his chest underneath the mesh tank. "Can I… Can I see it? The scar on your chest?"
He didn't think twice about it. In fact, he didn't think about it at all. He merely pulled the left side of the neckline of his shirt lower to show him that he had a scar—just right over his heart. And it seemed like something was stuck on his chest and detonated because of the burn marks—
Oh god. That was it, wasn't it? The reason he'd died before was because of this?
"Was this the one—?"
In the corner of her eye, she saw him smirk. "Yep. The most beautiful thing I've ever made in my life. It may have cost me my life but it was great and considering that I'm still alive to remember every precious second of my art, it's even greater because of the memory I have of it. It would have been far better if I succeeded in my goal though." He stopped, realizing he had just reminded her that he almost killed Sasuke who was now her teammate again.
She knew why he had pulled back his tongue but she didn't mind. Sasuke was alive, wasn't he? And so was Deidara.
She didn't realize it but her hand was about to reach out and touch the remainder of his art but she stopped midway and placed her hands in between her knees and squeezed them so as to prevent them from doing so again.
He pretended not to notice what she had almost done and turned to the wall clock. "It's almost 8 o'clock. We should get going so we can reach Byakurai before the sun toasts us up, yeah." He pulled out a slice of bread and stuck it between his lips. After returning the loaf in the cupboard, he munched down on his breakfast as he made his way back upstairs.
A door shut and the sound of the shower turning on sounded in the house. It was too peaceful in there to not hear things that made images run through her mind—images of him under that shower. Images of his wet hair dripping on his chest and down to his—
Someone knocked on the door and apparently, Deidara heard it too because the running water from the second floor seemed to have stopped. She answered the door and wasn't at all surprised to see Kisame there.
"Good morning, pinky." He grinned. "And may I say, you don't like shit anymore." He stepped forward and entered the house without even closing the door. Typical. "Where's the kid?" Asked Kisame as he set Samehada where he had placed him yesterday.
She pointed to the second floor. "He's taking a bath. And might I say, shark-face, your complexion is looking bluer and bluer by the day. That must be good for you, right? Healthy and not turning scarily grey."
Kisame frowned. "I never turn grey. I don't turn into a zombie who patches up his body parts after being brutally ripped off. No, that's Kakuzu. Akatsuki's Frankenstein," then he laughed as if he had remembered a funny encounter with the member he'd been pointing out. Sakura looked at him, slightly amused at his not-so-shocking sense of humor. "I had your letter delivered to Konoha last night. It should arrive there today past noon."
She didn't know how Akatsuki moved so fast. She knew that she was miles away from home and yet Kisame was positive her letter would arrive overnight. Fair enough. She didn't even know how long it took for them to travel from the previous town to this place.
They heard steps on the stairs and both of them turned to see who it was. No doubt, it was Deidara but Sakura just had to turn away and forced herself to find the front door interesting when she'd seen him climb down the stairs in nothing but his bath towel hanging dangerously loose around his hip. "For crying out loud," Deidara groaned when he saw Kisame and marched right back up.
A couple of minutes drove by and Deidara went back down, fully clothed, and threw Sakura a change of clothes and a towel. She looked at him, puzzled. "You don't want to smell like clay before we go to town, do you? Yeah."
She was reluctant to even think of washing up in his bathroom where he had just been. Under that shower, he must have been as magnificent as he was under the falls. With water dropping on his skin delicately and trailing down on his torso. She could see him in her head, tilting his chin up to catch the droplets on his face, looking serene with his eyes closed and—
"Yeah, I could really use a good shower right now," she said as she met his gaze as he looked at her like he could actually see what was running through her mind. That was impossible though. Though his eyes were extraordinary, she knew they could do nothing out of the ordinary—except, of course, leave her hypnotized and lost, which shouldn't be natural for her. She should really lock herself in that bathroom until she gets her mind back from wherever it was wandering right now or who knows what other thought might enter her head.
Almost hurriedly, she walked upstairs and as she slammed the door behind her, she remembered to hit the lock. With her back against, the door, she sank to the floor and observed the pieces of clothing in her hand. Obviously, they were his. She shouldn't have a problem with his shirt. She was used to wearing loose clothing. What worried her was the pair of pants he'd lent to her. She unfolded the pants and to her delight, there was a string on the waist so she could tighten them.
The pants suddenly became a reminder of yesterday's incident. This pair had a close resemblance to what he'd been wearing when he came out from behind the falls. Only, this was charcoal grey while those he wore were grape violet and almost black.
God, what was with her and her head? What had yesterday done to her? Before she tucked herself in last night, he was the last thought on her head. When she'd waken up earlier today, he was the first thing to come to mind. Seriously, she should just leave this place before she even attempted to figure out how and why he messed her up like he did. There were things she was afraid of realizing and afraid of knowing.
Finally, she got back on her feet and her head calmed a little. She left the clothes hanging on the towel rack along with the cotton cloth he'd handed to her with his clothes. Carefully, she stepped into the shower and turned the knob, letting the cool morning water run down on her body.
Meanwhile, downstairs, Kisame and Deidara had heard the water beginning to run. The shark was first to break the silence between him and his obviously irritated friend.
"What are you scowling for?" He smirked, asking the question. "Did she get rid of your scars yet?" Deidara shook his head. "No? Well—"
"Why the hell did you tell her about that place?" The younger man snapped at him. Kisame's smirk grew and he suddenly had this desire to know what had happened yesterday to agitate the blonde early in the morning. And Deidara was eager enough to tell him what happened. Well, not exactly eager but he was willing to tell the tale without a request from the shark. "I was there, minding my own business, in the cave behind the falls. I was sitting there when this beetle bit me. When I came out of the cave to wash the bite, she was… There." As he said the last word, his tone softened a bit. The memory of seeing her like that was… Well, he didn't know if there was an appropriate word to describe that moment and memory.
Her pale skin looked even paler underwater. Her pink hair seemed darker when wet but one thing that didn't seem to change was the pair of eyes that never strayed from sea green. Those eyes, from afar, seemed to hold nothing but determination and faith in oneself. But up close, he could see the invisible tears caused by everything that had happened to her because of her choice to become a kunoichi. There were things she'd seen, done and known that wrecked her without her knowledge. He knew that well because it was only when he had lived again when he realized everything he'd done during his time in Akatsuki.
"Deidara, you like her, don't you?" Kisame asked in a tone that reminded Deidara of a teasing school girl. The giant man did not drop his smug expression even after being shot a knock-it-off look. "Look, it's either you like her or you don't and you can't tell me that it's the latter choice because it's impossible not to like her. I'm quite fond of her, really. She's fun to kid around with. Besides, what's wrong with admitting you like the girl?" The blond rolled his eyes, acknowledging that there was more meaning to what he had been told.
The explosives pioneer slumped back on the couch and had a hand massage his temples. Really, he didn't know just what to do with the swordsman. Without looking at him, Deidara coldly yet playfully commanded him, "Man, get out of my house."
Kisame snickered in his mind, enjoying his little mock on the blond. "Kid, if you fell in love with the girl again—"
"I didn't, okay?"
The older wasn't taken aback by Deidara's feisty snap at him. He brushed it off with a shrug. "If you say so, kid." Kisame sighed. "But eyes are not the most significant, though. It's the hands that you need to learn about and that you need to be careful of. If the girly's hands are rough, surely, there's one heck of a story behind it. Hands tell you more."
"I'll remember that." Deidara replied, his face lightening up a bit but suddenly falling into a frown once more. "Now, get out, old man. Don't you have a mission to get on with or something?"
Kisame gave a negative shake. "I just came back from my mission on the border. I just need to report to Pein now. And I should probably get going before ring-eyes gets any suspicious." He rose from the couch and started towards his sword. After slinging it onto his back, he was ready to go. "Maybe I'll pass by here tonight and we can have a drink. Invite the girl if you want."
"No drinking this time for me, shark-butt."
The elder of the two huffed and smirked at Deidara before leaving the clay house. Deidara knew he had little time left when the running water stopped and a door from the second floor opened and shut close shortly after. With a sigh, he got to his feet and grabbed the cloaks from underneath the stairs and readied them on the couch.
Naruto, Kakashi and Sasuke had been summoned to see the Hokage in half an hour. The sun that was glaring at them mercilessly was now nearing its highest point of the day but Naruto didn't seem to be bothered by the heat. He was even draining down on a hot bowl of ramen at Ichiraku's when Kakashi arrived to look for him.
He patted Naruto on the shoulder and shook his head when he saw that Naruto didn't seem to realize his attention was being called for. "Oi, Naruto," Kakashi called in his usual laid-back voice. "Tsunade wants to see us."
The blond stopped eating and looked straight at Kakashi. "Any word from her?"
The Copy Nin's firm nod was all he needed to stop him from eating the bowl as well. He slapped his payment on the counter and thanked the old man who had always graced him with his ramen. Naruto had taken the lead and led Kakashi on the rooftops. Finally, some news about Sakura.
They both landed outside Tsunade's office window and knocked. It turns out that Sasuke was there as well and it was convenient for Kakashi since he'd been looking for him all noon. Maybe the word had gotten to Sasuke before it did to him. But then again, he'd always been late for things like this. He just managed to drag Naruto along with him this time.
"Sakura sent this letter to us by air mail," she said, immediately going to her point as she handed the eldest the scroll. "Weirdly enough, Sakura has no jutsu to control the bird that was used to send this letter. It was a to-fro bird. It sends a message to us and needs to go back to its owner so we naturally need a reply to this letter to return the bird to whoever its owner is. We also have no lock on Sakura's location so it's best to use this bird."
All three of the summoned shinobis listened tentatively while Kakashi opened the scroll to read the contents. It wasn't hidden in Leaf encryption. It was simply a letter so it's a huge possibility that Sakura is far from harm's way.
Tsunade-sama,
Please be informed that I am safe and I am in another country. Please also send my apologies to Team 7 for taking off unexpectedly. Though I heard a commotion in town, there was a thief in my room at the same moment, trying to steal my pouch which contained the kunai you've gifted me after completing my training. After chasing him, I ran by an old friend who wanted to catch up. Since the commotion was over, I agreed and by the time I got back, Team 7 had left. I'm staying with my friend for a few days. Please excuse me if the letter is received late.
Apologies for taking of without permission.
H. Sakura.
Something about this didn't seem right to Kakashi. Sakura wrote formally though she would only right in such a manner when she was writing an encryption somewhere around the second or higher level. Usually, she'd tell them where she was, exactly how she'd take and with whom she was. But the letter was vague.
In another country… A few days… An old friend… None of them were specifics! But of course, he wouldn't tell the Hokage that. She'd already been suspicious enough because of the bird that brought the message. He didn't want Tsunade to doubt her own student and so before she would report to her shishou when she gets back, she would have to answer to Kakashi first and foremost.
He looked up from the letter, noticing that Tsunade had been watching him warily. "Well?" Her eyes narrowed down on him. "What do you make of the letter?"
"She's fine, Godaime-sama. I can tell," lied the Copy Nin. "Would you like us to write a reply or—"
"No need, Kakashi. I shall write the letter myself and send it back to her," she stated as her hand reached for a pen. "In the meanwhile, until I call for you again, ready yourselves because I will send you to look for Sakura."
Sasuke was calm about everything, like usual. But as for Naruto, he didn't understand why Tsunade was still sending them. "But Kakashi said she was fine—"
"Naruto, if you're a ninja then why don't you look underneath the underneath?" Tsunade snapped at him. "It isn't like Sakura to take off like this! You're looking for her and bringing her back here, understood? I won't ask any unnecessary questions because I don't like interrogating my own student. As long as she's in the village, I will be fine with her."
Kakashi needn't say more because it looked like the Hokage had her own reasons to doubt the situation. She was right though. Sakura isn't the type to suddenly leave when she felt like it. She couldn't leave the hospital to go home without even asking permission from Shizune. Something was definitely amiss and he didn't know if he wanted to find out what was going on. He wasn't even sure if Tsunade wanted to know.
It was a good thing the restaurant they had entered was air-conditioned and well kept because Sakura felt like falling on the ground while they made their way here. It was hot and it made her wonder how she survived in Deidara's house when there was not a single sign of air-conditioning in there.
After the two of them had ordered, they both started on their meals, Sakura being ahead of Deidara since she was much more tired than he was.
Deidara asked him about the letter she'd written since he wasn't around to actually reread it before she sent it. She told him about the fake theft she'd written down. He had his undivided attention on her, listening carefully to every word that slipped out of her mouth. What caught his interest the most was the kunai she'd mentioned.
"It's a gift from Tsunade-shishou," she started, smiling as she began to reminisce. She missed the village and it's only been a few days since she'd gone. "She got it made for me a week before she said my training was complete. When I looked at it, it was tragically beautiful." She held out both palms near her chest as if mimicking her appearance when she first looked at the kunai. Her face was pleasant and she had a faintest smile across her lips. "Its details are very elaborate. Every curve, every turn. It was sad that something so beautiful was created and meant to be stained with blood."
Deidara understood. His art was the same way though by the time the blood oozes out of the victim, his art had already exploded. Destruction caused by his art to him was art. But that was something he knew Sakura would never understand. Medic nins were supposed to be gentle and compassionate and she wouldn't get how he found his destruction such wonderful art.
She took the napkin from the table and wiped the corners of her mouth. He noticed the delicacy of her actions and took notice of her hands, like Kisame had told him. They looked soft, untainted and clean. Despite being under the Amazon-like sannin, she looked so lady-like while wiping herself clean like that. But he knew that wasn't true. She killed her partner. That was more than enough to tell him that she was so much more than what people would think she is.
She pushed herself from the table and Deidara was about to follow to but she stopped him. "Please, stay. I just have to look for something real quick in town and then I'll come back."
You better, he thought to himself as his eyes followed after Sakura while she walked to exit the restaurant.
Walking out of the restaurant might have been a mistake because after two minutes of walking around town, she found herself sweating like a pig. She passed by an ornament shop. From first look, she knew it had air-conditioning because the old woman didn't look like she was sweating to death. After wiping her forehead with the back of her hand, she walked toward the shop and entered. A small bell rang above her as she opened the door.
"Good afternoon, dear," the old woman in the shop greeted her. She looked not a day under 40 and she was small and looked even smaller because she was crouching. "Would you like a tissue or a small towel to wipe off the evidence of heat, dear? You look very exhausted from the heat. What brings you in our shop, dear?"
She smiled at the old woman's hospitality. "No thanks. I'm looking for a gift. For someone who's never received them before and he—"
"Ah, a special someone, I see," interrupted the small woman. "I have a few chimes in here. Pleasant music, the sound of chimes. Eases you a bit even when the person entering isn't exactly someone you like. I'm not talking about you though, dear. Would you like a little figurine? We've got it all from angels to zebras."
The little lady went on and on about the items that were displayed all over the small of the store. Sakura kept smiling but was looking for something in particular. She didn't know what just yet. And as she rounded the corner on one aisle, she definitely saw something no one would ever come to dislike—at least not in Konoha. Snow globes. Tons of them.
One that specifically caught her eye was a snow globe, unusually bigger than the rest, whose dome contained a white town house which reminded her of Deidara's clay house. A miniature snowman had been placed in front of the house and a black dog which was positioned to seem like he was playing in the snow. She crouched down until the she was eye level on the surface the snow globe was on and read the words carved on the white porcelain outerbase. A smile unconsciously brightened up her face when she was reminded of Deidara when she had read the word serendipity.
She reached out and held it in both hands as it was too big for one hand. Sakura watched the white particles fall to the bottom after giving it a gentle shake.
"So you like that little piece?" The old woman ask, her face brightening up as well at the customer's interest. "It's my favorite of all the globes. Just looking at it makes me feel relaxed. The white house, the white snow and the pearly porcelain... My husband made it and it's his favorite piece too."
Sakura listened as she watched the final snowflake fall to the ground. She returned it to where she had found it and turned to the woman. "Must be really expensive if the both of you found it really great. How much is it?"
The storekeeper shook her head and chuckled under her breath. "Oh no, dear. Actually, it's the cheapest one of the snow globes," she remarked as she took the snow globe from its place and headed to the counter. "Smaller globes are usually harder to make, says my husband. Getting the details just right is more difficult. This, my dear, is the last piece. There were only two of these and the other one was sold a long time ago."
"To whom did you sell it to?" She pulled her wallet out, secretly hoping she had enough money to pay for it.
The old woman behind the counter made a receipt as she answered. "I bought it for my husband when he had died. The house he used for a model was our house in the woods. We made that house together and made lots of memories in it. You want it gift wrapped, dear?"
"Oh, very much, yes," she answered with relief because she almost forgot that it was supposed to be a gift for Deidara. "I'm really sorry to hear about your husband."
"It's fine," she said like Sakura had just dropped a pen. There was neither pain nor regret in her voice. She was perfectly happy from what Sakura could interpret. "It's our life, isn't it? There are people who leave and people who get left behind. But one thing I'm certain of; it was more than serendipity when he found me lost in the woods when he was looking for firewood. He used to tell me that he was lucky to have found me that night but I always told him that it wasn't a matter of luck. It was destiny." She then handed the box where she stored the globe and handed it to Sakura over the counter after it had been gift wrapped. "Well, there you go, dear. Thank you for coming and thank you for listening to an old hag like me. Usually, customers just come in here, ignore me and buy whatever they want, not even wanting to here the story of why my husband made it. And dear, you don't have to pay me. Just by listening to my story is enough payment."
"But I have to at least—" She cut herself off when she saw the soft look on the old woman's face. "Thank you." Sakura pulled the box with care and locked it in her arms as she looked around the shop. Hundreds of decorations, all detailed yet looked very simple from afar. "So, you mean all these are—"
"Yes, miss. Every single item has its own story behind them. The door chimes my husband made? He made those for me because the sound relaxes me. Because he had a lot of friends coming over, he knew I might get mad at some point and so he put it on the door and every time a guest comes in, I simply brush of my irritation." She looked around as well. "All these memories," she whispered, "will lessen as time comes until they're all gone. And when all these have disappeared, I will close the shop and retire."
Again, another smile from the younger woman. She felt very sorry for the widow. She ran the shop all alone, nothing to accompany her but the memories and creations of her late husband. Stories about the two of them filled the place and now that she thought about it, the atmosphere of the shop was almost really sad and the only thing around that was happy was the storekeeper.
"Good luck on your shop," she said before bidding the old woman a silent goodbye.
On her way back to the restaurant, she thought about what the woman said—about him finding her being more than just luck. What if things were like that for her and Deidara? What if the room in the inn he'd stayed in before was really meant for her to pick? Kakashi made her pick a room and she picked 14 because it was the smallest. Did she really pick that room for that reason or just because? Did he really leave his necklace in the drawer by accident or was there a more powerful force that made him forget about it?
Really? Was she thinking about this? About him? Seriously? The heat was probably getting into her head. She had to return to the restaurant at once.
Just when she was about to pick up her pace, she passed by the bookshop which was just being opened by the owner, Dino.
"Opening up late is not really good for your business," she started. When the dark haired man turned around, he smiled and seemed very happy to see her again. She continued, "But then again, you seldom get customers, don't you?"
"Well, good afternoon to you too, miss," he chuckled. Dino pushed the door open and gestured. "Would you like to keep me company for a while? I could really use someone to talk to."
She rolled her eyes, completely forgetting that she came in town with Deidara. She smiled as passed by Dino and entered the dark and cramped shop. Dino followed shortly after.
It was hard not to brush his chest on her shoulder since the shop was so small and there was more mess in the shop than yesterday. She liked the unintended contact though. His scent lingered on her longer than she thought and it was not easy to seek for his manly scent. She followed in after him and stayed in front of the counter while Dino crawled out the back and found the switch for the whole store.
"Isn't it inconvenient of the switch of the whole store to be located in the back?" Sakura asked, her voice a little louder. "
Dino came out of the back and began picking up some of the books scattered on the floor. He started explaining as to why everything in this shop was in their place though it was confusing. Sakura settled the box of the snow globe on the counter and lent a hand in picking up the other items on the floor. He shared stories about his customers and how he'd fallen in love with one of them before but she died of pneumonia.
After cleaning up most of the mess in the bookshop, Dino sat behind the counter and offered Sakura a chair to sit beside him. He asked about the box she'd been hugging earlier when they met.
"It's a gift," she briefly explained. "It's a snow globe for that person I came here with yesterday. But I don't know how to hide it from him. I mean, I can't walk home while hugging it when it's obviously a gift," explained Sakura while tracing the blue tribal designs on a white background of the wrapper.
He shrugged. "Maybe I can keep it for you and you come back for it when you need it. Sound good to you?"
"Deal," she said with a nod.
Dino took the box in his hands and kept it in a safe place at the back, making sure it wasn't going to fall and nothing was going to fall on it. When he returned beside Sakura and they resumed the chitchat.
()
Deidara was getting annoyed. It's been at least half an hour since she'd left him in the restaurant. Where was she and what was she up to right now? She said she'd return but he wasn't so sure he had any patience left in him to wait for her any longer. What reason could she have to want to walk around town? It wasn't like she was out for an after-meal stroll. It was 40 degrees outside. Finally fed up, he slammed his payment on the counter and left the restaurant without a word, not forgetting to shut the door loudly behind him.
When he stepped outside, he looked around and there was no sign of Sakura. Where was she? As he started to walk, his eyes kept searching, hoping to find his pink-haired companion. Instead, he found something else—the sign of the bookshop. He didn't know why he had the sense to look for her there but somehow, though it was just his intuition, he had a feeling in his gut but it didn't at all feel too good.
Deidara finally reached the window of the shop and looked inside. The sight of a laughing Sakura beside the shopkeeper enlightened. He'd never seen her like that but watching her right now, her unheard laughs rang in his head… But it wasn't enough to overcome the fact that his blood was boiling. She left the restaurant to come to this place and talk to that guy. He marched immediately in the shop.
She startled at the sound of the door banging against the wall. Realizing that she'd been talking to Dino for some time while Deidara was on the doorway, it explained so much as to why he looked like he was going to bite someone's head off. She completely forgot that she came in town with Deidara and she'd left him alone in the restaurant.
She walked from behind the counter and approached him, her expression apologetic. But it didn't seem to have any effect on Deidara. He didn't even look at her—he was glaring at Dino who, at the moment, was frozen surprised on his seat. He turned away from him with one last frown and exited the shop, grabbing her wrist in a bruising grip as he pulled her out of there and to the exit of the village.
Upon reaching the exit, she yelled at him to let her go since she got the idea that they were leaving already. Deidara dropped her hand with some force and didn't even bother to look back.
He was mad. He was furious. He shouldn't have offered to come with her. If only he knew she'd only come in town to find that guy, he would have left her alone to flirt with that lowlife. But no, he had to be a gentleman and kind man to offer to escort her to town. It wasn't about the hostage-thing anymore. If it was, he wouldn't be feeling this. What was this feeling, anyway?
Seeing her laugh like that when it wasn't him who made her laugh, it enraged him. Come to think of it, he's probably never seen her laugh until today. But he still hasn't heard her laugh all the while. Dino was a lucky man to have heard such a violent yet deeply-troubled kunoichi laugh. Deidara had a hunch that Sakura would never laugh in front of him. He was jealous of Dino who was capable of even getting a giggle out of her.
That was it, wasn't it? Jealousy? No. It couldn't be. Why would he be jealous? It wasn't as if he liked her more than Kisame does… Does he?
Sasuke was now packing his bag, getting ready for their journey to Kawa no Onsen Machi tonight. From that town, they would track down Sakura's scent and follow it. He wouldn't admit it out loud or to anyone but he was worried for Sakura too. Even more so than Kakashi was, he was confident.
Sakura had improved over the years and he couldn't hide his impression on her the first time they trained in Konoha since he got back. He was supposed to challenge Naruto but Sasuke was unfortunate to get the short end of the stick. He didn't know why fighting Sakura in taijutsu would be unlucky until she advanced towards him, her fist surely aiming for his ribs. He was just in time to tumble sidewards while she continued to advance towards the tree behind him. When her fist hit the trunk, a dozen other trees followed and collapsed due to her enormous chakra impact.
He knew how valuable a kunoichi she is to Konoha and he would do anything to get her back—back beside him.
If only he knew she'd be this powerful someday, he might have taken her with him when he left the village. But that didn't seem right, even now. He didn't want anyone he knew dragged in this mess and mostly, he didn't want to take her with him because he was already too attached with Team 7 and he needn't a reminder of his home tagging along with him when his goal was to let his hate grow.
Someone rapped on his apartment door, bringing him away from his deep thinking. He opened the door only to see Kakashi standing on the doorway. The way Kakashi looked at Sasuke, it made him feel like he was a twelve-year-old in trouble.
"Sasuke, we need to talk about Deidara."
