Author's Note: Hey friends! I really apologize for my terrible delay! COVID has been really harsh on healthcare workers. Unfortunately this chapter is not as long as I would've liked it to be, but I didn't wanna keep y'all waiting any longer either.

As always, thank you everyone for your reviews and alerts! Makes my day always. :)

Enjoy!

Far Beyond The Truth

Chapter 21

Ino breathed in and fell on her knees, feeling overwhelmed. Deidara's laugh was slowly subsiding in the background, so it was only when the room turned quiet that Ino looked up at the young blond. He was still sitting down holding a clay doll, however his lips, once pulled back in a laugh, had settled to a light grin.

I guess this is the last straw, un. His thoughts echoed.

Is this how he leaves his village? Ino pondered, following the boy as he stood up with her eyes. She watched him take a final glance at the remaining sculptures before heading to the door, hands in his pockets.

This feels...kinda odd... Ino raised an eyebrow and walked in his shadow. She would expect him to pack something or rush his way outside the door/window. But the boy was casually jumping over the houses, his expression unidentifiable. The kunoichi was very confused when he landed outside the Tsuchikage's terrace, facing the sandaime's back.

"What did you do, Deidara?" The elder's voice sounded very stern, yet the girl was not sure whether that question was rhetoric or not. The third turned to face the blond artist and crossed his arms, the night's wind blowing through his beard and Deidara's long hair. To her surprise, Deidara was still staring at the man impassively, his eyes showing no remorse whatsoever.

"Genko was blasted to pieces. Junichiro and Kentaro ran away before they got the chance, un."

There were no doubts that the bomber did not regret his actions. Ōnoki clenched his teeth and seemed hesitant, obviously not expecting that answer. The florist was still baffled though why he was telling the Tsuchikage all of this. Did he know there was no way to escape?

"You can't ignore this one, old man. They were right. Sorry to have disappointed you again, un."

The elder took a step forward and opened his mouth to speak, when Deidara suddenly gasped and the entire scene blurred into black, leaving the girl alone.

What in the world—

The kunoichi was about to jump outside this window when light began to flicker again, as if a flashlight's batteries were running out. The area was soon revealed to be a small, poorly lit chamber, where Deidara was chained up the wall with his two extended arms handcuffed on either side of his body.

Huh?! Ino was puzzled, the series of events not making sense still. She watched as the blond pulled on the chains in an attempt to break free, but even she could guess his chakra was also sealed.

It's useless, un.

The Akatsuki sighed, stopping to resist. The Yamanaka almost jumped in her place when the door was violently pushed open, revealing an Iwa shinobi she had never seen.

"Woke up, princess?" The man grabbed a chair and turned it around to sit with his arms resting on its back, facing the blond. He pulled the cigarette from his mouth before blowing the smoke, glaring at the teen with a condescending look. "Let's cut straight to the point. Who sent you here?"

Deidara stared at the man blankly, not following his line of thoughts.

"Let's not kid ourselves. Stealing the village's kinjutsu, your history of blowing shit up, and now murdering a genin and heading for the Tsuchikage— who sent you and what's their purpose?"

The man shifted his weight on the chair. He did not seem to be patient. Not that it bothered Deidara.

"It was an accident! Even though he deserved it.. And I wasn't going to kill the old man, un! I'm his apprentice!"

The man sighed and got off his seat. He stood in front of the young Akatsuki member, furrowing his eyebrows.

"Che… wrong answer." The shinobi punched the boy really hard on his stomach, causing him to scream and cough up blood. Ino gasped at the unexpected gesture, her eyes furrowing immediately.

What is he—

"An abandoned child at the outskirts of Iwa. Nothing suspicious at all," the man adjusted the glove he wore in his hand and took a step back. "Taken in by The Tshuchikage because, well, y'know, he's too kind for his own good." The shinobi let out a sarcastic chuckle and rolled his eyes, letting out a sigh. "I'm gonna repeat this one more time. Let's not make it difficult for the both of us—" He faced the teen and crossed his arms. "Who sent you here? What's their purpose?"

"N-nobody...sent me anywhere..." Deidara muttered through gritted teeth. A trail of blood made its way down the corner of his mouth. "I was dumped to die alone if you're that curious about my childhood, un."

Ino could see the same sharp blue eyes Deidara had previously flashed her back when she was imprisoned in the dungeon. In both times, ironically, those ice-cold eyes were looking down at her from above.

The man sighed and moved closer, holding the boy's chin between his thumb and index finger.

"Such a waste for a pretty face."

Deidara pulled his head away from the shinobi's grip.

"Where's the old man? I wanna speak to him, un!" Demanded Deidara, but the guy from Iwa only took his kunai out and began to polish it with his sleeve.

"13 years old and a member of the explosion corps already," he straight out ignored the artist's request. A grin lifted his lips which caused Deidara to tense; Ino was able to notice it.

"I wanna speak with the old man. This is a misunderstanding, un. I admit I accidentally killed Genko but—"

"It's Tsuchikage-sama, little brat." The shinobi's eyes suddenly darkened. Although Ino could not see it, she was still able to hear it. "I'm here to interrogate you, Deidara. You're not going anywhere near Tsuchikage-sama. If anything, you're not going anywhere before you answer my questions, fuckin' brat. These hands of yours," the man held his prisoner's left hand pulled back on the wall, turning it around to reveal the mouth on his palm. "I hear you value them a lot. You stole a kinjutsu for this?" You needn't to see his face to know the man was holding a laugh. Ino could also tell from the look Deidara wore on his face that he was holding himself back from responding to that comment. And yet oddly enough, it was still surprising for the girl when Deidara spat in the man's face.

"If you wanted me to use my hands on you all you had to do was ask—" The artist barely had a moment to grin. The interrogator was quick to thrust his kunai through the boy's palm, fixating it on the wall behind it.

"I'm starting to lose my patience with you kiddo." The shinobi stated ignoring the young artist's loud screams. "I'll cut off all your limbs if you don't give me my answers."

Deidara was still groaning in pain at the sharp weapon pierced through his body. His voice was obviously broken when he shouted: "I've given you your answers! I'm not a fucking spy, un! Let me go!" The blond became more agitated, pulling on his chains despite the blood spilling freely down his hand. At this point Ino was feeling both bad for the blond and impressed at his resilience. This cruel interrogation was uncalled for. It was almost as if that shinobi did not even care about the truth.

How horrible... he's still a child— Ino stepped forward, feeling the urge to intervene knowing she was unable to. She and her father worked in the analysis team from the intelligence division, which worked closely with Konoha's torture and interrogation force. They never had to put children in such ruthless conditions, so they were always brought to their team to extract information instead. Moving straight to violence when starting an interrogation was a sign that the man's priority was not what the boy had to say.

"Right, right," the man sighed, cracking his hands' knuckles. "You're giving me no choice then brat." He smirked while doing a bunch of hand seals, before the scenery around the Yamanaka began to blur.

Huh? What is he…?

Ino looked around her but the shinobi was nowhere to be seen. At this point the plain, concrete walls were progressively turning into a deep red, and it was only when this severe, stabbing pain has hit her in the stomach that she realized it all.

Fuck– I need to get out of here right now–

Both Ino and Deidara screamed in pain simultaneously, and the girl fell on her knees clutching her stomach. She struggled for a moment to hold her fingers in a hand seal.

The florist gasped when she opened her eyes in her own body, frantically checking her surroundings.

At noting she was back on her mattress in Deidara's room, she let out a sigh of relief, snuggling under her fluffy blanket.

That was so close, I almost got myself in a genjutsu... Ino pondered, trying to register the events of the past hour. What the fuck was wrong with them, putting a child under such a genjutsu?! This is so–

The Yamanaka almost jumped in her place when she heard the cover getting pulled from Deidara's bed, turning her head just enough to catch a look at him.

She did not know why she felt so guilty at the sight of him sitting on his bed, panting loudly while staring at his palms. She watched him brush blond strands of his messy hair back in frustration, before swinging his legs down the bed and heading to the bathroom to wash his face.

I must have triggered that nightmare... She pulled the blanket over her head and gave the man her back. The sound of water running through the faucet was the only background noise she could hear in that room. Wh-whatever...It's not like this justifies his current actions. If he was locked up in that investigation room though, I wonder how he managed to escape...?

The Yamanaka was too occupied with these thoughts to see the man leaving the room. She only noticed when the place turned too quiet, so she turned around to see the man missing.

Where did he go? She carefully scrutinized the area making sure he was not there, which was indeed the case. She sighed and lay back down on her futon, deciding to go back to sleep. It was disappointing that she could not satisfy her curiosity especially in what concerned their encounter the past 2 weeks, but it was not something she would compromise her last night of sleep for. After all, none of it would really matter once she was actually dead.

Ino woke up the next morning and to her surprise, the terrorist bomber was still nowhere to be seen. She sat up and rubbed her eyes, looking around the room to ensure she was indeed alone. Where could he have gone? The man must have been nearby keeping in mind the kunoichi was still in one piece, so she walked to the bathroom immediately wanting to wash her face.

Where did he—

Ino's eyes landed on the sink and she could not help but express a triumphant smile at seeing a second, purple toothbrush. She jumped in her place raising a fist, but unfortunately her happiness barely lasted few seconds at recalling what that day was holding for her.

That's right. What does it matter? I'm still gonna die today…

She grabbed the stick and brushed her teeth anyway. She also took her time with brushing her hair and fixing her look, for if she was going to die today, she might as well die pretty.

The girl poked her head outside the room, looking left and right for a clue to find the blond. A fine line of light shined through one of the doors which was slightly ajar on the left, so she figured the man must have been staying there.

With determination in her eyes, she headed towards the kitchen and decided to make, yet again, the best meal she could ever make. She would try to live her final day to the fullest.

He still hasn't shown up to ruin my day yet. What's occupying him I wonder? The florist munched on her apple before getting up, standing by the doorframe. She could still see the thread of light emitting from the room at the end of the hallway, and she cursed at herself for letting curiosity take her all the way to that terrorist's room. The kunoichi also hated herself for feeling bad over the previous night. She was the one triggering his nightmare but why was she feeling guilty about it? If anything, he deserved it. Did he not?

"Haven't heard anything from you the past few hours, can't believe you've finally left me alone—" The kunoichi casually pushed the door open, double-taking at seeing the shirtless missing nin sitting on the ground, clay and other art supplies surrounding him. He was still holding a half-molded clay figure in one hand when he turned back towards the girl, a light grin immediately replacing his solemn face.

"It kinda seems like you're the one who can't get away from me though, un." He uttered, turning his attention back to the piece between his hands.

Ino only rolled her eyes and stepped inside the room, contemplating the artsy mess. "You can keep dreaming. But you know if you were to unfortunately die, I'd go boom."

The man did not take his eyes off the bird he was sculpting, carefully sliding his finger along the curves to mark its feathers. "Just pretend I'm not here, un. Like usual."

The Yamanaka disregarded Deidara's last statement, still amazed by all the finished and unfinished works of art. How could someone this chaotic create such...beautiful things? It was essentially an empty room apart from a table, a chair, few shelves, and a sink at the end of the room. They were all packed with different shapes and sizes of clay dolls most of which were plain and unpainted. The Akatsuki member finally noticed the kunoichi admiring his work scattered all over the place, so he could not hide his smug smirk.

"Aha, there's more to this missing nin than the lady suspected, un?" He was still moving his fingers swiftly and skillfully around the object, only giving the blonde his attention every few seconds.

"D-don't get any wrong ideas," Ino mumbled dismissively, overplaying the awkwardness. "I still hate you."

"They say love and hate are the same, un." The artist sang casually.

"Most definitely not! Besides, you're the one who's chased me all the way here you know."

Deidara raised an eyebrow. "Me? Chase you? I don't even run when I'm running late for Sasori no danna, un." He shrugged, his playful grin slowly fading back into a thoughtful expression. Ino was not even sure whether there was a tinge of grief?

She shook her head out of these thoughts, grabbing some clay out of his bag.

"What do you think you're doing, un? Thought I told you not to touch my art?"

"I can play with this right? They won't explode on me?" She flat out ignored his question, trying to shape the clay. It was more difficult than she initially imagined.

"They might, un." The bomber lifted his index and middle finger in a seal threateningly. Ino sighed and placed her hand over his, pulling it down.

"C'mon now just this one time? There's nothing else for me to do Deidara." She pouted cutely like a little girl, and Deidara was taken aback so much that he did not even notice her small gesture. It was only when the room had turned quiet that the teens noted their hands were still touching, so both of them withdrew their hands immediately.

"F-fine—" The man looked down at the animal between his fingers, his long sigh causing his blond locks to sway away from his face. "Just make sure to return everything back to where you found them."

"Really?! Yay!" Ino was more excited than what she had expected. She enthusiastically began to mold the clay, openly stealing a glance at Deidara every few minutes trying to copy his techniques. The florist was so focused and determined that she did not even see that shinobi of Iwa gazing at her, a light smile lifting the side of his lips.

"So? What do you think?" She held her finished product proudly, presenting it to the blond. Said man blinked and tilted his head to the side, squinting his eyes.

"The fuck am I looking at, un?"

The Yamanaka frowned. "It's obviously a flower!"

Deidara snorted. "A flower paying for its sins maybe, un."

Ino glared and stuck her tongue out at the boy. "This was my first attempt at molding clay. I'd like to see you try to arrange flowers!" She folded her arms and huffed, secretly trying her best to hold her grin in.

"Not really interested in temporary art, un. The only art I practice is...fleeting, un." Saying that the bomber lifted his index and middle finger back up. "...Katsu."

To the kunoichi's surprise, one of the clay dolls lying beside her exploded into flames, which drove her to jump in her place letting out a yelp. Naturally, the Akatsuki member broke into laughter.

"Ugh was that really necessary?!" Ino stood up on her feet promptly and dusted her skirt, heading towards the door. It sent goosebumps down her spine when Deidara's laugh suddenly came to a halt to speak the following:

"Yamanaka, meet me by the stairs in 2 minutes, un." Those words were enough to trigger palpitations in the girl's chest. She was already outside the room when she heard the water running through the faucet —Deidara was probably washing his hands.

Stairs? Meet him? I-is he gonna kill me now? Should I fight back?

It took the kunoichi of Konoha few minutes for her to realize she was actually trembling. At reaching the end of the hallway, at the stairs, she stopped to hold her arms tightly together, desperately trying to come up with a plan. And failing at it.

C-c-mon Ino. Think. What should we do? We can't die yet—

"Oh you really came, un."

Ino jumped in her place yet again at hearing the Akatsuki member's voice. Why was she easily startled today?

"W-well you asked me to." The Yamanaka shrugged, straightening her posture up. She had to at least look confident. Showing that bastard weakness was out of the question.

"Ha? When did you ever listen to me, un? Weren't you afraid I was going to kill you or something?" Deidara grinned, starting to walk down the stairs. Ino only followed, swallowing the lump of saliva that had formed too quickly.

"Killed? Why would I be killed?" She stretched her arms casually. Why were these goddamn stairs so long? The suspense was killing her.

The artist smirked. "Because you're cocky, un."

"Then you would've killed me sooner. You won't kill me yet while I'm still of use to you." It was worth a shot. It was not like she was useless after all. Back at Konohagakure, every individual mattered. They would never trade anyone's life for another, but surely they would benefit somehow from keeping her alive.

"True, I won't kill you while you're of use to me, un." The blond repeated absent-minded, pushing the dungeon gate open. Ino gulped as they both stepped inside, prison cells running along both sides of the stony floor. Was that psycho planning on torturing her here where no one could hear her? Can't he just make it quick?

"…but I still absolutely fancy the beauty of that single fleeting moment of explosion, un!"

No wait. He views his Art as fleeting. He would never enjoy not killing me in an explosion. Hold on, how do I even know this? I—

"Alright Yamanaka," the man interrupted her thoughts, turning back to face the kunoichi before reaching inside the pouch hung on his belt. "Let's get this over with, un."

Hope you enjoyed this mini chappie! Don't forget to drop down your thoughts in a review! :) Cheers!