Akatsuki Fundraising Idea #37
It had taken him three hours to crack through the trap door and a further two to clear the tunnel, but Deidara didn't mind. He was bored and it had been far too long since an explosion had rocked the base.
As the dust cleared away, he noted the wires hanging down from the ceiling and the pile of wood on the floor.
"Hey Tobi? Walk through there, yeah." He pointed toward the opening, silently cheering when his happy-go-lucky partner strolled through.
Unfortunately (depending on how you looked at it), it appeared that last explosion had destroyed all of the traps.
"Would you look at this!" Deidara exclaimed, staring around the room. It was a veritable treasure trove of puppet parts and concealed weaponry. He'd done it, he'd finally found Sasori's hidden workshop.
"Don't touch…never mind." He smirked as Tobi began flailing around, a broken puppet hanging around his neck, with exposed blade swinging wildly. "Just stay over there, alright, yeah."
His eyes gleamed as he began to take inventory. This was going to feed them for a month, and he knew just where to send it.
"Lord Kazekage, sir. We've received a letter offering us a vast collection of spare parts and weaponry suitable for the puppet corps. Sir? Sir?"
Gaara stared at the envelope, one eye twitching, "It's them again!"
Selling Sasori's puppet collection to Suna: Success (After Gaara goes through therapy).
Aftermath
It was a clear, hot, dry day in Suna. There was only a light breeze. The whole of Suna's ninja corps were on standby, awaiting the Akatsuki's arrival. Sentries were posted around the city, all eyes on the horizon so that no one can sneak up on them.
Gaara stood at the top of the Kazekage's residence, arms crossed impatiently, when his hair stood up on his neck. There was a shout from the sentries on the north-east corner and his head slowly turned. He could just make out the lone silhouette of a large bird. He'd seen this brid before.
He suffered an horrific flashback, of fighting and being defeated by an awful blond man with one eye.
Deidara flew high overhead, unable to contain his laughter as he stared down at the impotent ninja of the Sand. He spied Gaara on the roof, staring up at him and offered a jaunty salute before casually kicking all of Sasori's weapons and puppets off his bird. The purchased merchandise rained down on the village as people ran for cover, screaming.
His return to Ame was marked by Konan's berating him for destroying valuable goods but Deidara didn't care. The money was already being counted by Kakuzu. Instead, he took the seat of honor as Tobi happily prepared his favourite food: reward for a scheme well played.
Author's Note: The above was sent to one of my reviewers, KiyumiArashi, who asked how Deidara avoided being arrested. Now it's here for all to enjoy.