A DETONATING DANCE
Chapter X: Evasion and Amor
"Unless you face the past once and for all, there can be no future."
-Anonymous
Everything was dark. She couldn't see anything, except for a tunnel. Where was she? What was this place, wrapped in nothing but an ebony abyss? It was cold. She shivered, hugging her arms and looking around. Why did it smell like blood?
"Aiko?"
Her ears perked up. Someone was calling her name! She jerked her head around, trying to call out to whoever it was, but she had no voice. She couldn't speak.
"Aiko?"
Where was that voice coming from?
She began running about the darkness, feeling her way around the cold place. She was lost. She heard her name being called again, but where could she go? There was nothing for her to follow, except the voice which was now echoing all around her. She shut her eyes and clapped her hands over her ears. Was this some sick, twisted genjutsu?
Then, she felt a sudden burst of warmth erupt from ahead of her and touch her skin.
She cracked one eye open.
The tunnel had opened up to reveal an exit, light surging from the way out. She gasped. She knew that she had to get out before it began to disappear…but it was already closing. Her eyes filled with horror.
Forcing her legs to run as quickly as they could, Aiko raced towards the exit, but she wasn't getting any closer. She had to run faster. The opening was closing quickly. She focused her chakra to her feet and picked up pace, but the exit only seemed to be getting farther away. Her legs ached; why wasn't she getting any closer?!
"Aiko?"
She looked up and thought her heart might come to a complete stop.
Standing in the light, bathed in a blinding brightness, was Kimimaro. She tried to call out his name, now desperate to get to the end of that goddamn tunnel. He softly called out her name again, smiling gently but sadly. Aiko blinked and her eyes flashed. Oh god, he too was starting to vanish! Kimimaro was disappearing! She had to run faster!
Holding out a milky white hand, enveloped in a celestial illumination, Kimimaro encouraged her. "Come Aiko…follow my voice. Come back to me. I'll get you out of here, I promise." He stared at her with forlorn green eyes. Aiko felt tears welling up; she couldn't run anymore. She collapsed and looked up. Kimimaro was fading.
No! Kimimaro! Don't leave me again! Please, oh please don't leave me! I can't live without you! Her unspoken words reverberated throughout the chambers of her mind. She had to keep going, but her legs had failed her. Through sheer determination, she got back up.
But by then, she had run out of time…
"Is she awake?! Eh?!"
"She's getting there…idiot."
"Move over. Hmm?"
"Aiko-chan!!"
"Excuse me Tobi…"
"Hey Hime, you awake yet?!"
"Kisame, hush."
"All of you back off, she needs to breathe!"
Opening her eyes, Aiko found herself back in the Amegakure hospital. Her hand rushed to cover her eyes before she saw much of anything, and when she moved her hand away, she found that she was no longer looking at Kimimaro, but at Deidara. Tears glistened in her eyes.
"D-Deidara…" Aiko whispered.
"Welcome back, Hime-chan," Kisame greeted, hanging over the bed. "Nice of you to come back and join us!" He flashed her a smile, displaying all of his pointed teeth. Aiko grimaced and tried to get back up. A nurse scurried into the room.
"Hey! No leaving your bed!" the nurse scolded, rushing over. "Lay down! Lay down! You'll strain your body!" Aiko sank back into the bed so that the pestering woman would leave her alone. The disconcerted nurse turned to the Akatsuki members. "I thought I said that there could only be two people visiting her at a time? Get out! All of you!"
"What?!" Hidan frowned.
The agitated nurse began shooing the Akatsuki members out of the small room and Aiko watched them all go in silence. First Kakuzu, who seemed more than happy to be leaving. Then Sasori vanished, giving her a quick wave of his hand. The puppet nin was followed by Itachi, who only gave Aiko a passing glance, no more, no less. Kisame pursued his partner into the crowding hallway, grinning from ear to ear.
Pushed out by the nurse, Deidara and Hidan were the last to go. Hidan gave the nurse flack for a long while, cussed at her a couple times, and then swore that he'd be back. He winked at Aiko, causing her to smile weakly in response. Then, she watched Deidara go. He was wearing a casual smirk as he left the room, giving her a quick wave.
Only Pain remained.
"My apologies, Pain-sama," the nurse murmured, "I did not expect such crowding."
Aiko watched Pain in silence. He exchanged a few words with the nurse, who then departed, locking the door behind her. The blinds were drawn, and all communication with the outside world was lost. Aiko was alone; with Pain.
For a while, neither one spoke. Aiko gripped the sheets with her fists and finally looked up at Pain. Her eyes bored into his. "Leader-sama," Aiko began, her voice trembling, "I am so sorry. I didn't mean to cause so much trouble." She bowed her head, though it hurt for her to bend her stomach over in order to do so. "Please, forgive me."
Shaking his head and ghosting over, Pain murmured, "Do not be sorry, Aiko-san. I understand the situation. You have done nothing wrong. I only ask that you heal up soon because I would like very much for you to go with Itachi and Kisame to Konohagakure." He lowered himself into the chair at Aiko's side. The look of bewilderment on the kunoichi's face was staggering.
"K-Konohagakure?" Aiko stammered. She had completely forgotten about that small village, hadn't she? Pain nodded. Aiko closed her eyes. It's not like I have any connections anymore. She looked back up at Pain. "All right, I'll go. I would like to see it one last time."
Pain would have smiled had he not been so solemn. With a grunt he stood up. Aiko watched the ambitious Akatsuki Leader sweep over to the door. His hand rested on the handle as he murmured, "By the way, Aiko, Konohagakure is a little different from when you last saw it."
Aiko blinked. "What do you mean, sir?"
Sighing, Pain turned away from the door to face Aiko. "My condolences. I suppose that you have a right to know." Aiko tensed. Know what? What was he talking about? "You've been in a coma for about a week and a half now, so you're a little behind on what's going on outside Amegakure." His voice had a warning tone to it and it made Aiko curious.
What happened to Konoha?
Thinking back on what Pain mentioned about her being in a coma for about a week and a half, she now noticed the broken I.V. hanging off to the side, and many cords that used to be attached to her had been uprooted and broken when she woke up.
But what about Konoha?
Her thoughts were interrupted when there was a knock on the door. Pain glanced over to where the knock was emanating from and looked back at Aiko. "I'll explain about Konoha later. Just come and find me when you get out of the hospital."
Unlatching and unlocking the door, Pain opened it quietly. Aiko looked down at the sheets covering her lap. Konoha was in trouble? But not from the Akatsuki, right? She refused to lift her head to ask, but could hear Pain exchanging words with someone. She discontinued her thoughts for a moment to eavesdrop. Was he talking to Deidara?
"Yes, yes that's fine," Pain was saying, "go right ahead." Aiko could hear two sets of footsteps, and then the door closing. She chanced a glance at her visitor.
"How are you feeling, hmm?" Deidara asked, walking over to her and sitting on the end of her bed. Aiko quickly looked away. Deidara made a face. "What's wrong with you?"
Still holding the crumpled sheets in her hands, Aiko's fists quivered. "Deidara…do you know what happened in Konoha? I need to know! Deidara, please don't make me wait; if you don't tell me I'll find someone who will." She locked eyes with him.
Sighing heavily, Deidara shook his head, murmuring, "A couple days ago, Orochimaru went to Konoha and destroyed it." Aiko gasped. "That's why Leader-sama wants to send you, Itachi and Kisame soon while they're in the process of rebuilding it. Hmm?" Deidara's face drooped as he realized how upsetting this was for Aiko. She burst into a rage.
"Orochimaru destroyed Konoha?!" Aiko shouted. "Deidara! You better not be lying!"
"I'm not!" Deidara insisted indignantly. "Keep your voice down!"
Reprimanded, Aiko whispered, humiliated and on the verge of tears, "I'm sorry. But he… Orochimaru was so…so close back then and I…" She squeezed her eyelids together, bangs falling onto her closed lids. "I couldn't stop him…!"
"Aiko," Deidara sighed, brushing her hair out of her face, "please don't be like this. Hmm?"
"Deidara…y-you don't understand!" Aiko pressed her hands to her face. Deidara couldn't tell if she was crying or not, but assumed that she was through her trembling. "Leave me alone. Please. I don't want to talk about it." Deidara waited a moment before saying anything else.
"Aiko, what happened between you and Orochimaru? Hmm?"
Aiko flinched.
She trembled.
Why the hell did Deidara want to know that?
Aiko gritted her teeth.
"That's none of your business," Aiko murmured coldly. She removed her hands from her eyes to glare at Deidara. He recoiled.
"Hey, don't look at me like that!" Deidara exclaimed. "I didn't know—that you were-!"
"Deidara," Aiko cut in curtly, "I don't need you to explain. Please leave."
"Aiko…why?"
"Leave." Aiko commanded, pointing to the door.
Insulted at the way she was treating him, Deidara stood up and strode across the room. When he turned to look at Aiko, she was still glaring at him. He seized the doorknob and wrenched the door open without a second thought, slamming it shut behind him.
Aiko burst into tears.
Why was she crying all of a sudden? Because she had yelled at Deidara. She hated herself. Why did she do that?! It wasn't his fault! The tears wouldn't stop now. She drew her knees to her chest, uprooting the sheets and burying her face in her knees. Damn did she hate herself right now. How could she be so horrible?!
Then, someone else settled down at the end of the bed.
"Go away!" Aiko's voice protruded through the sheets, muffled. "Just leave me alone!"
Much to her surprise, a female voice answered her, "Please, Aiko-san, do not be so angry with me. Let me help you." Aiko picked her head up and was surprised to find Konan sitting with her. The other blue-haired woman touched Aiko's flushed cheeky gently. Her touch was comforting. Aiko tried to smile, but couldn't. "Try not to be so upset."
"Konan-san, you don't need to be so kind to me," Aiko murmured. "I don't deserve it."
Shaking her azure head, Konan replied, "That is not true. If I may be so bold, Aiko-san, you and Pain-sama are a lot alike." Aiko blinked. Her and…Pain? Konan nodded to Aiko's look of pure puzzlement. "Yes. You are both very strong individuals out to change the world."
Laughing feebly, Aiko managed a small snort. "I'm not ambitious enough to do anything of the sort. All I am is a kunoichi who needs to be put in her place. And a woman who needs to get her priorities straightened out. I'm an average human being." She wiped at her cheeks, but found that the tears had already vanished.
Closing her eyes, Konan nodded. "I see. Tell me, Aiko, what is it like with you and Deidara?"
"Huh?" Aiko blushed. "What do you mean?"
"He likes you very much," Konan elaborated. "To tell you the truth, I'm jealous." She looked down at her hands. "There is someone…precious to me that I want to love me the way I love him. He is…my God." Aiko knew exactly who she was talking about; Pain, it had to be him.
"You mean, Leader-sama, right?" Aiko murmured, half-embarrassed. Konan nodded without any hint of hesitation. Aiko blinked. Well, she sure was bold! This made Aiko smile. "Konan, thank you very much. I'm…feeling much better now."
Konan stared at Aiko for a moment. "You are most welcome, Aiko. But, may I inquire how you feel about Deidara-san?" Aiko breathed in deeply, sorting through her clouded thoughts for a minute. That was a good question. How did she feel about him?
"I'm not sure how I feel about him at the current moment," Aiko admitted. "Before I figure out how I feel about him I have something else that I have to sort out."
"I understand," Konan tried to smile. "Is it…another man?"
"Yeah," Aiko nodded her head.
"Who?" Konan pried.
"Someone…from a long time ago…" Aiko trailed off, the look in her eyes dreamy. "Until recently, I thought he was dead…I was convinced that he was dead…but, I'm starting to think that maybe…maybe I was wrong about the entire situation…" Her empty eyes possessed a haunted look. Konan pursed her lips.
Touching Aiko's arm to reinvigorate her, Konan withdrew her hand at Aiko's sudden jolt. My, she was so jumpy. But Aiko tried to laugh it off as she thanked Konan again. Sometimes, it's necessary for a woman to speak to another woman about feelings and emotions and such, because there are some things that men just don't understand.
These were one of those times.
Back in Konohagakure, Tenzo found himself gazing out a hospital window. Damn, he got pretty beat up during the Invasion of Konohagakure. Sand ninja…sound ninja…Orochimaru. It all seemed like one horrible nightmare as he tried to sit up, holding his head gingerly. God, did he have one hell of a headache.
Breathing out deeply, all he could think of was that he was partially relieved that Aiko hadn't been involved for obvious reasons, but on the other hand…he was really starting to miss her. The nurse walked in.
"Excuse me, sir, you have a visitor," the woman murmured quietly, holding a clipboard to her chest. She waited patiently for Tenzo to answer, but his mind was elsewhere. "Sir?" She tapped his shoulder lightly. "Excuse me sir?"
"Oh!" Tenzo was snapped out of his trance. "Yes ma'am, I'm sorry."
"All right, then I'll show him in," the nurse smiled sweetly as she exited the room, a little bounce in her step. Tenzo swallowed hard. Not only was he physically drained, but mentally he wasn't all there either. He wished Aiko was there, just to visit at least.
Closing his eyes and chuckling inwardly, Tenzo could still see the little kunoichi dancing around in a happy state, telling him to brighten up. Drawing back the shades to allow some light in, while chirping about some story to try and cheer him up. Or her sitting and reading a book beside him, just to keep him company. Maybe her even nursing him back to health. He was disappointed when his thoughts were interrupted by Kakashi plodding into the chair next to him. The euphoric gleam in his eyes faded.
"How are you feeling?" Kakashi asked amiably. "I haven't seen you in a while."
"Fine," Tenzo forced on a grin. "I got hit in the abdomen; sword ran right through me."
"Ouch," Kakashi chuckled, "sounds painful." Tenzo gave him a 'please stop mocking me, this hurts like hell' look. Kakashi shook his head, placing a hand on Tenzo's shoulder. "Sorry, I'm not trying to make it worse for you, really."
Rolling his eyes, Tenzo muttered, "Oh sure you aren't." He watched Kakashi pull out Icha-Icha Paradise and frowned. He was still reading that series? It reminded him of Aiko, who had coincidentally started reading it first. Why did everything remind him of her? Speaking of which, he had heard a rumor about a girl in Iwagakure with the Akatsuki…a blue-haired kunoichi with strange eyes and powerful medical ninjutsu…Aiko.
He had hoped that it was just a coincidence, but Jiraiya had gone to Iwagakure personally before retuning to Konohagakure and deemed it true. Aiko really had turned sides. She was really a full fledged Akatsuki member. But Tenzo would never accept that as the truth. She had to be being brainwashed. There was no way that she could be an Akatsuki member.
But alas; it was the horrible truth.
And he knew it.
Kakashi sighed. "Thinking of Aiko?"
"Always."
Kakashi sighed again. "Same here."
Another couple of days passed before Aiko was able to get out of bed on her own and move around again. Tobi was her most avid visitor as she recovered. Konan seemed to visit often and checked on her during her spare time. Pain came to say hello once or twice. Even Itachi and Kisame dropped in to wish her well.
Her most regular visitors, however, were Hidan and Kakuzu, and Deidara and Sasori. Although, Aiko for the most part refused to say much to Deidara after he had gotten her all worked up and she had yelled at him. She still regretted doing so and wasn't feeling up to talking to him yet and wanted to hold off on that.
Apparently, when Aiko first arrived at the hospital, she was on the brink of death after running almost completely out of chakra and her body almost shut down permanently. Many of the nurses apparently thought that she might not pull through, and come to find out, Deidara, Tobi, Sasori and Hidan were the only ones convinced that she was going to pull through.
The blue-haired kunoichi sighed as day after day passed. The window was darkened by the nocturnal night. She looked at her ceiling. Yesterday she had talked to Pain; she would be heading out with Itachi and Kisame to go to Konohagakure the next day. She closed her eyes.
Konoha, huh? I wonder if I'll see…Kakashi…or Tenzo…or…well, anyone else.
A knock sounded upon her door and she glanced over to it, and then to her clock. She narrowed her eyes. It was around ten. Who would be visiting her so late at night? Kicking off the blankets, Aiko placed one foot onto the floor, then the other. More knocks sounded.
Who is that?
Staggering over to her door and tiredly unlocking it, she cracked the door open and peeked out through the crack; Aiko found the familiar face of the Akatsuki Jashinist waiting for her; it was Hidan. She blinked and opened the door even further.
"Hidan?" she whispered, rubbing her eyes. "What are you doing here so late at night?"
"What are you doing up so late at night?" Hidan challenged, raising his eyebrow. Aiko blushed.
"I was just thinking about tomorrow," Aiko murmured tiredly.
"Oh?" Hidan placed his elbow over the side of the door.
"Yeah," Aiko stared at Hidan. Why was he there? He still hadn't told her. "Why are you here?" Aiko asked at length. "It's late. I need to get to sleep."
"Actually, Aiko," Hidan said, stepping into the room and pushing the door back with his elbow, smirking as he did this, "I came to talk to you about something." Aiko frowned. About what? She suddenly found herself being backed into the wall as Hidan advanced on her.
"Um, Hidan?" Aiko stammered, causing him to stop. "What do you want to talk about?"
Grinning, Hidan cocked an eyebrow. "Wouldn't you like to know? Eh?" He stepped closer. Aiko suddenly felt threatened. Wait, why was he making advances on her? Oh no! A thought passed through her mind.
What if he…wanted to…?
She shut the horrid thought out of her mind completely. Hidan wasn't going to do anything horrible to her, right? She looked up at his lavender eyes glinting in the dark and couldn't tell what he was thinking. In a way, she didn't want to.
"Hidan…I-I…you need to go back," Aiko managed as her back made contact with the wall.
"Back where?" Hidan pouted. "You can't be serious?"
"I am," Aiko straightened up, but shrank back down.
Oh damn, he was getting closer.
In an instant, Hidan took one large step and was in front of Aiko in seconds. He smirked at her. "You didn't think that Deidara was going to end up with you, did you?" Hidan chuckled, placing his leg in between Aiko's and placing his face inches away from hers. She felt her heart beginning to pound. Oh god…what now? She shut her eyes as Hidan leaned in closer…
"Hidan, what are you doing in there? Hmm?"
Aiko gasped and Hidan tore away from her just in time to see Deidara appear in the doorway, his silhouette outlined by the dim light. He had his arms crossed over his chest, and, from what Aiko could see, was glaring, unforgiving at Hidan.
The purple-eyed man snorted. "Well, well, if it isn't Deidara." He sneered. "I was just talking about you, you know. Speak of the devil as they say." He matched eyes with Deidara, striding over to him. Aiko's heart raced. He wouldn't hurt Deidara, would he?
"Hidan, get out of here," Deidara murmured coldly. Hidan scoffed. "If you don't, I'll report you to Leader-sama and he'll throw you out of the Akatsuki before dawn breaks over the horizon tomorrow." Hidan twitched. Deidara's icy-blue eye flared. "Go ahead…keep pushing me."
The blond nin thrust his hands into the pouches at his side. Aiko knew what that was for.
He wouldn't, would he? Not in the hospital at least!
She gulped and caught a glimpse of his eyes.
Well, the scary thing was…
…he would.
Rushing in between the two men to stop them, Aiko intervened without hesitation, clamping her hand on Deidara's arm. "Stop it, both of you," Aiko scolded. "This is a hospital for god's sake!" She looked up at Deidara with those eyes that always seemed accusing whenever he was doing something wrong. "Please," she pleaded. "Not tonight."
Gazing into Aiko's glistening green eyes, Deidara was taken aback. It wasn't like he was going to actually blow Hidan up in the middle of the hospital; Leader-sama would be furious. But, this was the first time he had looked the blue-haired kunoichi in the eye for a long while.
Sighing heavily, Hidan began strolling away, stuffing his hands in his pockets. Aiko whirled around and Hidan immediately turned back around, jabbing a finger at her, "Don't you dare do anything else, Aiko. Go back to your room and rest." He smirked. "I'll see you tomorrow."
"Huh?" Aiko blinked. Hidan smirked at her once more.
"You heard me," Hidan's voice rose and he began walking away. "You too, Blondie!"
Deidara twitched. "Why the nerve of that guy! I can't believe him, hmm? He tries to do something to you and then he…argh! I can't stand him!" Storming down the hallway in the other direction, Deidara seemed like he would've been a shot gone off into the distance, had Aiko not called after him. He came to a halt upon hearing her voice.
"Wait! Deidara!" Aiko exclaimed. She waited for him to give her a sideways glance. She felt her stomach rise to her throat. "Um…I…well…thank you!" She stuttered. "A-and I'm…really sorry…about the other day…"
The blond nin blinked. Had he heard her right? A smirk spread across his lips. "Yeah, you better be sorry, Aiko." She bit down hard on her lower lip as Deidara turned away again. "I'll be seeing you around then, hmm?" Aiko didn't answer. "Hmm?"
Aiko blushed and glanced down to the ground. "Y-yeah…"
Arching an eyebrow, Deidara chuckled to himself and replied, "It's nice to be…talking to you again." Aiko nodded the unspoken word; yeah. Deidara could tell that she was still feeling guilty about the situation. "Hey, it's not like my feelings are so fragile, hmm? Just go back to bed and don't worry about it."
Closing her eyes and nodding, Aiko quietly walked back into her room and closed the door behind her. She breathed out a relieved sigh as she pressed her back against the door, waiting for the click. It still hadn't come. Was her door…broken? She looked at the handle.
Nothing was wrong with it. She pressed her eyelids shut. Why couldn't she stop thinking about Kimimaro? Sliding onto her knees, Aiko fell to the ground and buried her face in her hands. Why? Why couldn't she get over him? He was supposed to be dead!
How unfair is this? Aiko balled her hands into fists and set them down firmly on her lap. I've never dared even think about liking anyone else as anything more than 'just a friend' because I didn't want to feel like I was betraying Kimimaro. We loved each other so much. So, so much. I didn't know that I was capable of anything like that.
We were close; closer than anything in the world. It's scary, how one moment you can have something and then the next moment it's gone. I still remember that night…after the 'accident'…Kabuto came into my hospital room and…nnn! I don't want to think about that. And how dare Orochimaru destroy Konoha! I wonder if…if Kimimaro was there…
I wonder…if Kimimaro still loves me…because…
I think I still love him…
Author's Note: Aiko is such a problem child, isn't she? Sigh, she needs to hurry up and get her priorities straightened out!! But alas, she returns to Konoha in the next chapter, so things could get a like hectic for our heroine!
We'll just have to wait and see…
Until next time my dear readers,
Aiko of the Akatsuki