Chapter Ten

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. I do however own a laptop which is playing a DVD movie named Priest. And I love this movie to death and would rather watch it over and over than read oneshots people write for me.

A/N: Thanks for the reviews. You guys make me happy. :3 Don't forget to vote for the title!

1. Painting Roses

2. Contraband Quest

3. The War of Roses

.x.X.x.

"Is this the world I fought for?"

"No. But it's the only world we have."

-Priest and Father.

.x.X.x.

Vanille's POV

I didn't wanna open my eyes. I was afraid.

Afraid of what I might see. I would either see Deidara's sleeping form or the ceiling to my prison.

The torturing weakened my senses.

I couldn't tell if It was Lexi sleeping from across the room or my blonde criminal beside me.

I couldn't tell if the bed I was laying on was the hard cot I'd been laying on for two months or my warm comfortable bed made out of goose feathers.

I couldn't tell if the smell was of the rot, death and blood of the cell or the warm vanilla smell of my bedroom.

I just couldn't.

Maybe it was the lack of nutrition, the lack of sleep or the lack of seeing sunlight.

My roots were beginning to show and it was annoying me. I was a redheaded Asian. Lovely, ain't it? Besides my face, I didn't look Asian. I had bright green eyes and my natural hair color is a deep crimson color. I love my natural hair, but people gave me so much shit about it that I kept dying it black. But now, the black was fading from whatever they kept injecting me with.

I opened one lazy eye and stared at the ceiling.

...

...

Darkness.

It was only a dream before. Once again, just a dream.

I sat up and sighed, rubbing my shoulders. The pain in my body subsided a bit from Ino and Sakura's last healing session.

Lexi sat up slowly as well and breathed in deep, giving me a weak smile.

I dipped my head torwards her and stood up, stretching.

I was knocked over by the cell wall exploding.

Hollllly shiznitz.

Another one of my dreams? Lovely.

I grabbed Lexi's hand and pulled her to the ground and bricks and stone flew past us, narrowly missing our heads. When all seemed calm, we stood up and stared at the gaping hole in the wall.

"Am I dreaming?" I murmed. I poked my cheek and winced as the wound started to throb and bleed profusly.

"Nope." Lexi observed.

I glared at her and we limped/ran over to the hole in the wall. We could both fit through it comfortably. I slid out first and dropped down into a bunch of bushes. Lex fell down beside me.

"Run! Ino!" I heard. I looked over to my left and saw Shikamaru trying to shove Ino in the direction of the evacuating children and civilians.

"No!" the blonde responded, "I'm a kunochi! This is my job, Shikamaru!"

He grabbed her wrists and stopped her from moving away from him, "I can't lose you too, Ino..." he mumbled, touching his forhead to his.

My heart almost stopped at the sight.

"You won't.." I heard Ino respond. I didn't give them a second glance as I tiptoed the other way and continued along the wall of Kohona prison.

"DIE, BITCHES!" a familar voice yelled. I looked up and saw a silver haired male on a huge white bird. I then started grinning like a maniac.

"HIDAN!" I screamed hoarsly. Two months without yelling or screaming at someone sure does wear on a person.

Said zealot looked around frantically and finally spotted us. He soared down and planted the bird on the ground.

"BITCH!" he yelled, as if not believing himself. He hopped off the bird and slowly walked towards us.

"Alexis! Vanille!"

I turned around and saw Hinata and Neji running towards us.

Hidan jumped in front of us and growled, getting in a protective pose.

"Move." Neji glared, getting into his own battle stance.

Hidan bared his teeth, grabbing his scythe from his back, "Make me. You cocky little shit."

Hinata took her own stance. "You don't stand a chance against us."

Hidan let out a loud, pyscho-ish laugh. "HAHAHA! I am IMMORTAL! You're the ones that don't stand a chance!"

I saw Hinata's eyes widen.

"Nii-san..." she said quietly, looking over to Neji.

Said Hyuuga dropped his stance and started past Hidan to us, "We won't fight you."

Then they both turned and ran.

The zealot grabbed us both gently and jumped onto the bird. It rose in the air and zipped forward, sliding through the wind.

"There's the Uchiha." Hidan said conversationally as we flew over the Hokage building.

Lexi smiled and stood, somehow keeping perfect balance. She then jumped.

Damn crazy bitch.

"LEXI!" I screamed, my voice cracking.

Itachi dodged Gai's kick and looked up just in time to see Lex and catch her. I sighed in relief.

We past another white bird as we flew in the air and I whipped my head around, watching Deidara as he dropped a bomb on a group of shinobi that was ganging up on Danna.

"KATSU!" he yelled. It dropped down and exploded.

"Dei!" I hollared. He looked over to me and flew past. He had just enough time to wrap an arm around my waist and pull me up onto his bird before Hidan flew his straight at another group. I watched as he hopped off of it just in time for Deidara to blow it up.

The blonde male pulled me up to sit between his legs and hold onto the bird's neck.

"I wanna drop one!" I said gleefully. He chucking and took some clay into his handmouth. When the bomb was done, he handed it to me and we flew over the Hokage building. It was the bomb that Deidara used on Suna's village when he went to get Gaara.

I dropped it and watched as it fell.

"KATSU!" Deidara shouted. It exploded and he whooped. "Art is a BANG, un!"

"YEAH, UN!" I answered, laughing as Kisame gave me a weird look from below.

"We got them both?" someone asked. I looked around until I realized that Deidara had an earpiece in his ear.

"Yes, un." he replied.

"Bring 'em home then."

Deidara clicked the button and we dived for the gate. We flew right out and I saw that we were joined by all the members of Akatsuki running on foot. Deidara made his bird disappear and he hopped off, placing me on his back. I winced as I felt my broken rib rub against my other rib.

Dammit all! That hurt!

I sighed, burying my face into his mass of blonde hair.

"You okay, Vanille?" Sasori asked from beside me.

I nodded, "Only hoping this is not another dream." I mumbled. Truth is, I believed very much so that I was dreaming

"It's not, yeah." Deidara told me. I shook my head, remaining silent.

.x.X.x.

I opened my eyes slowly and looked up at the ceiling.

It was a white-ish color.

I nearly screamed out in delight.

I turned over on my side and looked at Deidara. He was watching me with a curious look. "Still think you're dreaming, un?"

I smiled at him, kissing his cheek. "Not anymore."

He grinned and rolled on top of me, kissing my forehead. "You promise, un?"

I nodded.

Deidara whopped and jumped up, "YOSH! RESCUE SEX!"

"Aw. We wanna see Vanille too!" someone said. I laughed and stood up, seeing Kisame and Hidan at the door.

I ran over, no I limped over, and jumped onto Hidan. "My religious freako!"

He laughed, wrapping an arm around my waist and kissing the top of my head, "My bitch!"

Kisame turned the lights on then and everyone grew quiet.

Did I mention they were off? Well they were. No one had really seen me or Lex since we got back. They rescued us in th darkness and brought us home in the darkness.

"Who the hell.. did this?" Deidara asked through gritted teeth.

I looked over my shoulder and sheepishly walked over to him, "The ninjas that tortured Lex and I..."

"What?" all three of the criminals roared.

I winced, "Mhm."

Deidara growled and marched out the door. I cast a glance to Kisame and Hidan before following him.

"Dei! Wait!" I called, trying to run after him.

But I was too late. I stood at the door as I watched Deidara walked past us and jump on a white bird.

Lexi soon ran to my side and also stared out the door. "Itachi left."

I looked at her, "So did Deidara."

"Probably to Kohona for revenge." she mused.

I nodded, "I hope they stay safe."

.x.X.x.

I sat on the couch numbly with Lexi beside me. Deidara and Itachi didn't come back last night.

"Do you think they'll be okay?" she asked me. I shrugged and jumped slightly as my ipod vibrated. I took it out and smiled to myself, "New episode of Naruto."

She took her own out and we oth put our headphones into our ears. I pressed play and watched the whole scene frm then switched and showed our two criminals being held in a cell.

Actually, the same exact cell.

Lexi gasped from beside me and ran out. Probably to go show Pein. I continued watching.

. . . . . . . . .

"Where are they?" Ibiki asked Deidara. He only glared.

Ibiki growled and strutted over to the wall, taking the chain he used on us off of it. He walked back over to Deidara and Itachi and showed them. "Like it? I used it on your little pets. That's where the black and blue spots came from!" he cackled evilly.

I growled, clutching my purple ipod tightly.

"Pets? They're not our pets, un! They're our-"

"Deidara." Itachi said sharply, cutting him off.

Ibiki raised his eyebrows, "They're your what?"

"Err. Sex slaves, yeah." Deidara said jokingly.

I glared.

"That is a lie!" Ibiki roared, bringing the chain down upon Deidara's head. He raised his hand for another swipe when Itachi spoke up.

"They're our loves."

I smiled softly.

Ibiki took in this knowledge and seemed throughly interested. "I suppose you prefer the quiet one, ey?" he asked the Uchiha.

Itachi glared and didn't answer.

Ibiki howled with laughter, "Oh this will be fun." he turned to Deidara, "I'm sure that Vanny and Little Lexi didn't tell you that I broke two of Miss Vanille's ribs and Alexis's wrist."

Itachi attempted to get up, though the chains that had him down prevented it.

Deidara growled and tried to shake off the chains; but he failed mercelessly.

Ibiki threw the chain to the other side of the room and strode to the door, "We'll fine them. And when we do, I'll kill them here just for you to see."

. . . . . . .

The screen of my ipod then went black.

I sniffled, standing up and tossing it carelessly to the cusion, walking into the kitchen to find the others.

They were all in a circle at the table. I sat down beside Danna and he put a comforting arm around my shoulders, "The brat will be alright. As long as he has something to believe in."

I raised my eyes and stared emotionlessly at him, "What does he have?"

"Well he has you, of course." Sasori said, giving me one of his ever so rare smiles.

Kakazu pat my head from my other side and Lexi gave me a forced smile.

All these times, Deidara and the others came to save me. They came to save Lex. Both of us. But now, now was different. They couldn't save themselves and they couldn't save us. I wanted Deidara to be back soon, but we were facing ninjas. There is only so much two non-ninjas can do against the whole village of ninjas. It would be an impossible mission. It would be the most scariest thing I probably would have ever done. But I was going anyway. I would prove to them that I could be as useful as any ninja could be. I would prove it to Danna and Deidara and the rest. More importantly, I would prove it to myself.

"We leave at dawn." Pein said, standing up and leaving the room, followed by Konan and Zetsu.

.x.X.x.

Don't forget to vote for the sequel's title!

Painting Roses.

Contraband Quest.

War of Roses.