A/N: This chapter if not, not, not too exciting, so do not be expecting any major explosions and such. ^^

...It was okay to write...haha, well anyways, read on.


Deidara made his way out of the damaged, stone room and into the hard corridor. His face was scornful and angry as he strode down the hall.

She better be dead. He thought. If she wasn't, he would just attack her once more. But those thoughts felt reluctant, unwilling and...forced. A growl escaped his lips as he continued to stroll down the hall, unsure specifically where he was going. Deidara stopped as a dragging, heavy sound filled the air.

A hunched figure appeared, pulling forwards toward Deidara with ignorance. The blond criminal chuckled. "Sasori no Danna, un." Deidara nodded as he walked past his teammate. Sasori showed no reaction to the partial greeting and continued on. The explosive artist stopped and eyed Sasori. "Solo mission, un?"

"It's better than being isolated with you." The low, rough voice spoke as the speaker continued to move ahead, increasing the distance between the two with every passing moment.

"When did you get here, un?" The blond asked.

Sasori let out a rough, scruffy sound before replying. "I just arrived, fool. Don't aggravate me as soon as I'm here." His voice faded as he faded within the shades of the cavern's narrow hallway.

Deidara scoffed at his partner as he began to walk again.


She saw darkness. Only that pitch black horror that threatened to trap her any moment. Or perhaps it already had. She could feel nothing; nothing around her, nothing apart of her. It was as if she was a floating spirit. Ino could not feel the touch of anything, nor could she even move her body. Move. She urged to herself, trying her hardest but failing. Again. Another unsuccessful attempt at doing anything.

What was going on? Everything was scaring her; why couldn't she do anything? Why couldn't she see? Why couldn't she smell? Why couldn't she touch? Why couldn't she hear? No control.

The sound of sharp edges clashing startled her, denying her thoughts of the inability to hear, but she couldn't physically react. Was that supposed to be a good thing? Open your eyes. Once again, she tried to follow her mentality's wants, unable to do so. The scratching and clattering of the blades continued on, creating a sharp, irritating, scratchy and screeching melody. Shut up! Ino wanted to yell, though she couldn't. The shrieking song of sharp metals did not oblige to her inward commands, and in fact, grew louder.

No... closer. Wait, closer? That was good. She was slowly getting her senses back...maybe. Finally, the grinding of the sharp edges were so close, squealing right next to her. Open your damn eyes and shut that thing up! With all of her strength, she tried to open her eyes again...wherever they were. Do it again! Ino was trying so hard, she could've cried. Finally, oh thankfully, her eyelids began to flap open slightly, catching a glimpse of actual color and spatial area. Her gaze was weak, with her eyelids immensely heavy, but she forced herself to open further.

The kunoichi's eyelids flew all the way up, the abrupt full light flickering at her.

"Well," An unfamiliar voice made her gasp. The voice was somewhat low, tedious, monotone, but seemingly expectant. "You're awake."

Ino laid there motionlessly, realizing that she was laying on the ground. She could feel now...good. Though, she continued to lie there, weakly. She struggled to find her lips and make them speak. "...Wh-who...are...you...?" She croaked the words, her voice highly scratchy and rough.

"An artist of eternal beauty."

"N-no...specifically..." It hurt to speak, but she had to know.

The 'artist of eternal beauty' let out a hmph. "Sasori."

Sasori, an artist... Artist... Clay... Deidara...

Ino gasped loudly, sucking in a wind of breath as Deidara's name pushed through her mind. Deidara! She could feel the moisture rise in her eyes, softening her sight more than it already was. Deidara... You... you... I hate you!

Where was that bastard anyway? "Where...am I?" Her voice was a mere croak.

There was no response. Placing her hands on the ground, she hauled herself upright, letting out a gasp at the stab that shot through her whole body. Forcefully, her eyes followed the person. His hair was an innocent shade of red, tousled just the slightest bit. She had to be honest; his face was flawless and beautiful, with eyes that seemed focused and pondered and curved lips. He was set down, looking below at his hands, holding an object that was unintentionally hidden behind the large sleeves of his Akatsuki cloak.

"Quiet." His coarse voice growled.

Ino flinced and looked down, attempting to pull her knees to her body but failing from the searing pain. Instead, she leaned limply against the hard wall, inclining her head slightly to observe herself. Her skin was clammy, however, in some areas there was a layer of light stiffness... The kunoichi looked down, a small gasp appearing from her parted lips as she stared at her skin and body. There, on her light skin, were streaks of dried blood. They created branching patterns all over her body, rooting into other streaks and ending at others. They were rigid, effecting how she felt as well.

The dry blood branched over her skin like a haunting symbol.

She eyed the man - or Sasori for that matter. Sasori was the source of the screeching noises of weapons; he was sharpening all of his senbon, kunai, shuriken and other dangerous weapons and utensils... All of that dangerous stuff. Oddly, she felt a little exhausted, though at the same time she wanted to have her questions answered.

"...What's goi-"

"Don't make me repeat myself." Sasori interrupted.

Ino stared at him for a short moment, before turning her attention away. The silence was awkward. She brushed some dust off her tattered skirt. Her body ached, and under the dry blood, she could see that her skin was swollen, pink and sore. Medical ninjutsu wouldn't work either; her chakra system was damaged.

What time is it? Where's Deidara? What do you want with me? Are you here to kill me? Did Deidara think I was dead? Well, she was quite close to dead. Ino gently placed her scathed hand on her abdomen; muscles were torn, organs were harmed. How the heck was she even able to sit? Her eyes flickered to Sasori once more... Did he have something to do with it? He was obscure enough.

"Stay here." The red head began to rose, exiting the room with light footsteps.

Now was her chance to escape! ...If Sasori found her, it wouldn't be too bad... Ino pulled her feet to herself, applying her weight to them with shaky movements. She shrieked at the tear in her body, falling back with a cry, her body still instinctively quaking from the wounded nerves. Shit. She breathed in steadily, careful with twisting her body as she gazed around. There were large figures leaning against the walls, surrounded by weapons... No, puppets.

Her heart began to sprint as she heard a familiar voice approaching from outside the door, though she wanted it to stop. "She's in here, un?"

"Indeed."

"Why the hell did you take her, un? You're interfering with her death!" Massive weight blocked her chest.

Sasori groaned. "Fool, do you really think all of it shows any significance to me?" The door began to open, and two men garbed in Akatsuki cloaks merged into the room. Ino averted her gaze, inclining her head so that the side of her face that had long bangs draped, concealing her whole face.

"Ino, un." He said. Her heart drummed maniacally, but she maintained her position, even though it pained. Deidara turned and faced his partner. "What do you plan with her, un?" His voice was a little harsh, though it wasn't too noticeable.

The puppet master answered with one word. "Art." With one single word, Ino felt chills creep around her body. More art? Did he...believe in explosions too!?

The blond criminal stared at Sasori for a small moment, before letting the words fully sink in. "What?"

"Art."

Deidara growled. "Why her!?" What was going on? Ino stole a glimpse of the two, registering Deidara's angered face and the flat expression on Sasori's. Why her? Again, what was going on? It didn't sound too good.

"Idiot. You requested art that would appeal to you. Of course, I would never do something as to oblige to your wants, but it seems as if this was a coincidence for me to pick her." What? What are they talking about? What type of 'art' was their conversation's peak?

"No, I suggested that you stop using mindless puppets, un." Deidara rectified.

The former sand shinobi let out a sigh of annoyance. "She's not going to be mindless." His eyes narrowed. "She'll be like me; Alive and everlasting."

The blond Akatsuki member clenched his fists. "She'd be weak." He retorted adamantly.

Sasori shook his head. "None of my art pieces are weak. I adjust them."

"Why do you suddenly need one more, un? I thought you never got bored of your current collection."

"I just stated that she would not be like the others. Yes, the girl will be a component of my collection, however she's going to be different. It's mere curiosity and the wanting to experiment."

Deidara snarled loudly. Ino gawked at them both. What were they talking about!? Did they not notice that she was sitting right there!? "U-um..." Ino cut the short silence. The golden-blond stopped and eyed her. Slowly, he lurked over, bending down and grabbing her by the wrist, then proceeding to pull her up. "Ou-ouch!" She screeched. Her body was weak, and the affliction was massive.

"Stop pulling, un." Deidara demanded as she continued to yank her arm back, despite the pain that took control. He continued to pull her along as she followed with frail, uncoordinated steps. Sasori blocked the doorway, sending the golden-blond a cold, but flat look. He pushed past Sasori, leaving the room with Ino's wrist in hand.

"...Let go..." Ino's body was slumping; slumping from injury and wounds. She couldn't walk anymore and collapsed onto her knees, her wrist still locked within Deidara's grasp. He tugged once, but she did not rise, but instead fell down to her side.

"Tch." He muttered as he bent down, letting her hold onto him for support to stand up.

The Yamanaka kept silent as she weakly ambled behind Deidara, clutching him to make it easier to even stand. Her feelings were mixed; she wanted nothing to do with the man in front of her...not after what had happened, but yet, she wanted to hold onto him, to grasp him for as long as she could. After a long moment of strolling, he held open the door for her. Her eyes widened as she took in the large, spacious stone room.

Letting out a whimper, Ino helplessly tried to yank her hand back, altering nothing.

"I'm not gonna hurt you, un." He assured her, though he wasn't sure whether it was a lie or the truth.

He watched as she gave him a glance, before hesitantly walking into the room. The door shut as Ino fell down onto one of the rags. The room was full of ripped and torn cloths and fabric; all of them absolutely worthless. Ino sucked in a breath, as she felt her thighs began to sting from too much movement.

"...What was that about?" She managed to whisper.

The golden-blond shook his head a little angrily. "...He wants to change you into something else, un."

"What else?" The kunoichi dared herself to ask the question.

However, the response was not too helpful. He took a seat against the wall across from her, propping his forearm onto one knee. "What he thinks is art... But it is most definitely not art, un." The words were quite bitter, a hint of decrying.

"But...exactly is this 'art' of his...?"

He let out a sigh, followed by a groan as he let his head drop, eyebrows furrowing together in anger. "Puppets. His art is puppets." Words filled with disdain shot out of his mouth. "The bastard believes that art should last forever, never fading, never withering away, un."

Oh. They have the exact opposite views on art. But then, a chill ran down her spine. "...He wants to turn me into a puppet!?"

"Yeah."

Ino gaped at him, utter shock rendering her frozen. After a short while elapsed, she composed her face, looking down and sinking back into the fabric. The whole beauty thing would be nice, and living forever would too... but, a puppet? Seriously? The image of Kankuro flickered inside of her head, before wilting away.

Deidara gazed at her curiously. "Well?"

But Ino didn't reply with words. She simply shook her head.

He pressed his lips together into a tight line. "I won't let him do it, un."

For a short moment, her heart lurched before dropping dead. Deidara wanted to kill her... which was exactly why. She was unsure which one seemed worse. Deidara frowned as she remained silent, no words spoken with eyes full of melancholy. "I won't hurt you, un." He reassured her. This time, when the words came out, he realized it was a lie. He wanted to hurt her; the dry blood sticking crisply to her skin did not weaken that fact. He wanted to crush her. He wanted to annihilate her.

I won't hurt you, un. A glow of hope spread through her body, though there was also a spark of doubt along with it. "...Liar." She whispered forcefully, recalling his words from long moments ago. You're interfering with her death!

"What?" One eyebrow raised.

Ino shook her head, ironically laughing shakily to cool of the intensity of the air. "Nothing."

"Hmph." He didn't bother repeating his one-worded question. She wouldn't answer. "Get some rest, un. I want to speak with you a little more later." He rose, leaving the room without anything else to add or say. Ino cannily shifted her weight gradually, allowing the process to be less painful.

Perhaps things would not go as expected, when it came to her survival. ...Was that something good...? Or bad?

A/N: And there we go...very boring chapter. Sorry!

--Reviews are highly appreciated. --- Plenty of authors say this. ^^