Heya everyone! Miss me yet? I really did need that break, I had so much going on the past few days I needed to breath. Because of that, I can now focus some more time on the fic!

Thank you all so much for the faves, follows and reviews. However, I will be responding somewhat out of order because something was brought to my attention, and I would like to address it right away. ^.^

triazatriborinane: Hope I spelt that right. While I do see your perspective on responses, as a phone reader myself, it can be a pain to read. However, I will not be quoting reviews. Not only are some of the reviews long and cover multiple aspects of the chapter, thus making them longer than necessary… when I "quote what they are saying" as you put it… I feel like an asshole and I cringed at even doing that for you, I'm so sorry. X.x The responses are more or less for me to talk with the readers who provide any form of feedback of encouragement, and there is the option to look at the reviews after reading all the responses. However, if someone asks a question, I will paraphrase it before answering so no one has to check the review page to see what the question was. I'll also try to make the responses more clear. Sorry that I can't do quotes, but it breaks the flow and I just really do not enjoy responding like that. Thank you for the feedback though, I hope I can improve my responses for everyone! :D

Sweet-Strawberry-09: I do plan on having more Akatsuki members appear in the later chapters and in side stories, soooo Madara may end up meeting a certain redhead~.

Reaper: I have been super busy lately so I have yet to start Drifters, I'll get to it eventually though! :)

MelonLordOfMelons: Well, I'll let my readers make their theories, but I can assure you that whoever Duckie gets paired with is either gonna make you guys really happy or really mad. XD Not like I'm gonna focus a lot on his love life though. Also, Snoop-no-jutsu… so gonna use that now.

duchessliz: He'll have plenty of time to glomp Gaara eventually. I'm happy that people are responding positively to Dei scolding Jiraiya, I was always bugged that it was never addressed, but that may just be a cultural thing… Also, is it bad that I am now tempted to have Madara discover Madara x Tobirama? I think that would have a fun reaction. Let's just say there are a LOT of pairings in Dei's memories that he does not want people to see.

18Dragon: Glad you liked the side-story!

DarkDust27: Tell me about it. Try looking at crossover pairings, I found one with Sesshomaru from Inuyasha and Snape from Harry Potter… it's as weird as it sounds.

Notsae: Madara really is the ultimate trump card, though he also has a mind of his own. So even if Dei is in a tough battle, Madara would just go, "You have no risk of death, I'm not joining in." And just sit there drinking tea. XD I don't have any plans on having Mada see Obito and Nagato anytime soon, but that is an interesting idea.

VenaHope: Madara is not gonna be evil, however it will be hard to call off Obito due to Zetsu always having his ear. There are many situations that can go wrong if Deidara is not careful, and since Dei is terrified of Obito (and by extension, Zetsu) I do not think anyone is going to let him near the masked dude for a while. But Obito will be dealt with with in shippuden. :D

kagewolf25: Awwww thanks, hun! I don't deserve the praises. :3

ArmCannos34: Oh, so it was intentional, fun! Glad you liked the chapter and it's always fun when someone discovers yaoi for the first time. XD

HitGamer22: Don't worry, I'll be making more side stories later on! While Dei studying fuinjutsu is tempting, I have no intentions of turning Dei into a woman permanently. Now, temporarily for plot reasons? Sure! I actually address this in the chapter with the reasons why it won't happen. But, might do something with fuinjutsu for the curse mark, Naruto is from the Uzumaki clan after all. :)

setokayba2n: As MelonLordOfMelons put it, snoop-no-jutsu shall be used! I shall traumatize the Uchiha! Mwahahahaha! … I am so weird.

Mackenzie Willow: Madara is that father figure SI!Dei never had, (I may go into detail later on, if so desired) so while he may act all embarrassed, he does appreciate Madara caring for him. Jiraiya will be sticking around more and I will dedicate some time to where Naruto learns about him being the kid's godfather and his reactions. I would just need to talk with my beta on how that would work out. :D

Ladybug002: And you think Dei didn't make a mess of the situation? XD He slammed a coffin lid in Madara's FACE! Kid is so screwed next time he summons the Lord of Poofy Hair.

scarlettravencrove: Glad you are liking my story!

Loner Kid: I actually have not seen "Happy Death Day", I have yet to hear good things about it though... But I guess the concept is similar in a way. Like I have said before, I made this fic BECAUSE I was tired of everyone waking up as Sakura, or a main clan in Konoha. I love some of those stories don't get me wrong, but I wanted to have some fun with the idea. So, I did Deidara! I have only seen… maybe 2 other fics, and they are genderbend and discontinued… so even more reason for me to write this, and I love it because of that. ^.^

crazby: Jiraiya has been needing a scolding for a while, that's for sure. Zetsu will show up in shippuden, Itachi is… literally down below lol. It is hard to juggle characters, but when shippuden rolls around, I will definitely have more room to go nuts with side stories and character introductions! Thank you for the encouragement! :D

Warning: This one was… pretty tame. It is meant to be somewhat more serious. But it does have my dirty mouth, some violence, a few serious topics, talk of gambling, and Dei flipping out.

Disclaimer: Still do not own Naruto, but I do own the rights to my soul! Right…? No? Okay...


Kami forbid do I hate escort missions. The son of a daimyo had decided to stay in Konoha longer than others and paid for an escort, for some reason I got stuck with the guy. Usually, I would take my clients on one of my birds to make the travel faster, but this guy had to be in one of those stupid boxes, carried by servants.

It didn't help that the entire time, he thought I was a woman with a deep voice.

Because I wanted to keep the curse mark hidden, I started wearing a high collared black trench coat and had my clay pouches on the outside as a belt. A belt like fasten kept the neck part in place, I really just needed a high collared shirt or coat… but trench coats are just cooler. It gave me a rather feminine body shape, the damn brat flirted with me until I said I was taken.

It was a lie but… it shut him up!

I reached Konoha sighing with annoyance, "Finally, that stupid mission is done with. I need to help Naruto pack, un…" On the way back to the village, one of Jiraiya's toads informed me that he was taking my brother to go find Tsunade.

What stopped me from heading to my apartment was a bunch of familiar heartbeats and one I didn't recognize, "Huh… I thought they showed up after Naruto left… oh well, un."

I take a deep breath and leaped into some trees to find the artificial river.

Kakashi's POV

'He's fast, too fast…' I'm close to blacking out as I just left Uchiha Itachi's genjutsu, my legs hitting the water with a solid thud. Asuma and Kurenai were crouched down by me with their eyes closed.

"What happened Kakashi? One moment you were telling us to close our eyes, then suddenly you collapsed!" Asuma's words caught my attention.

'It's only been a few seconds…? But it felt like days… how powerful is this kid…?' Just as my vision became hazy, a familiar voice rang out and brought me back to attention. If only barely.

"ITACHI, UN!" Oh no… I know that verbal tic anywhere. Asuma and Kurenai open their eyes as the three of us look at the Akatsuki pair, only to see a flash of yellow and black whip past us and latch itself on Itachi's arm. The kid's got a new outfit, but that ponytail gives his identity away.

"Deidara." My eyes widen as Itachi makes no move to attack Deidara, in fact, his entire body language changed. From battle ready to relaxed, all from the blond hugging his arm.

I feel myself groan. Great, Deidara is involved in this. Just great…

"Itachi, why the hell didn't you tell me that you were going to Konoha? Seriously, I would have greeted you at the gate, un." Didn't the kid have a mission though?

Asuma and Kurenai gape at how casually the teen was talking with the missing nin, actually it sounded more like scolding. Deidara never had much in the way of self-preservation.

I just sigh, 'Why am I not surprised? Wait… something seems off about the scenery… oh Kami no…' I must be close to passing out, because behind the pair is a dramatic sunset and sparkles. No one seemed to notice the twinkling lights shining around them as Deidara scolds Itachi like they were long-time friends.

Sounds were slowly buzzing in my ear, Deidara said something that made Itachi let out a smirk. I can barely hear them, but I swear, those sparkles were multiplying and some were turning into roses.

"LEAF HURRICANE!"

Oh, it's just Gai's chakra causing the effect… and there is the darkness with water hitting my face.

Deidara's POV

I quickly yank Itachi away as Kisame was sent flying backwards by Gai's kick. I was so focused on the Uchiha that I didn't realize Gai was on his way.

Kisame lands on his feet and jerks his head towards Gai, "Well, who have we here?" Oh my Kami it's that scene.

"Konoha's noble, fierce animal, Might Gai!" I need to meet his dentist, his tooth just sparkled!

Kisame straightened his back, "You're Might Gai huh? Mighty stupid looking Gai." I cover my mouth to suppress a chuckle, Itachi was anything but amused. Who can blame me though? He said the best line the dub ever gave him.

"Kisame, do not underestimate that man… and besides, we must leave." Itachi shifts his attention to me, "Lead the way."

"Huh, my youthful friend, why are you latched to the Uchiha's arm?" Gai quickly grabs Kakashi before he could sink more into the water.

Ignoring Gai's question I give a quick nod to Itachi before waving to the jounins, "I got this guys! They won't cause anymore problems… I think, un." I eye Kisame warily, "Anyway, make sure no ANBU bother us please!" Without another word I grab Kisame's arm and proceed to drag him away, Itachi following. I could hear Gai avoiding Asuma and Kurenai's questions as he takes Kakashi to the hospital.

Leaping through some trees, Kisame focused his attention towards his younger partner, "Care to explain to me why I am allowing a kid to drag me somewhere, Itachi-san?" The fact he isn't trying to kill me is a miracle in itself.

"Remember the girl I kept talking about?" Wait… who said what now? I give the Uchiha a glare as he remained passive.

I could feel Kisame sweatdrop, "... Itachi-san… this is a guy dragging me." Thank you, "We need to have a long conversation on this huh?" I'll help!

"Hn… he'll explain later. Where are we heading Deidara?" I can hear Kisame exhale as Itachi dodged the question.

"Duck-kun is painting, so I need to bring you two to where he paints, un." This only furthered the Uchiha's confusion when we arrived at the compound.

I interjected his question that was threatening to spill out, "He doesn't live here… but he ran out of room for all of his art supplies. Better to use one of the houses for something rather than let them get dusty, un."

It took weeks to clean up the place and despite no one living in the compound, Sakura and the girls took it among themselves to plant some greenery around the area. Sasuke is going to inherit the land when he becomes a chunin anyway, might as well make it nicer.

The only house no one dares to enter is Sasuke's old home. We had enough respect to stay away from it.

"So this is where you grew up in Itachi-san?" Kisame looks at the empty homes with a mixture of curiosity and boredom. Despite his large appearance, he was mindful of his step and careful to avoid crushing some of Sakura and Karin's medical plants.

"Hn."

Kisame groans as Itachi avoids another question, I pat the shark man's shoulder is sympathy. We both have to deal with it.

I all but throw open the screen door to one of the houses, specifically one that smells like a paint shop mixed with a sculpting class. I feel Itachi tense behind me, as if he recognized the house… I mean, this was his clan's land, so of course he knew who lived here.

Taking off my shoes and stepping onto the new tamami flooring, I cup my hands around my mouth, "Duck-kun! I brought some friends over, un!" In the room nearby, I sense Sasuke pause his painting for half a moment.

"You know where the tea is." Before he goes back to being a wannabe Bob Ross. Hell, the two shinobi jolted when the sound of Sasuke mercilessly beating the devil out of his brush against his easel* suddenly erupted from the room he was in.

Once again, I was trying not to die of laughter as I made my way to the kitchen as the two sat at a table and awkwardly look at all of the paintings.

Sasuke painted mostly abstract, and on occasion painted realism ad landscape. A personal favorite of mine was him painting a picture of him, me, Naruto and Sakura not long after Team 7 was made. He wasn't a fan of Kakashi back then, and took every chance he had to express it.

I had him label his years in painting on the back of each canvas he finished, it was like an evolutionary chain of his psyche. At first, his paintings were dark, gritty and full of harsh brush strokes… but as the years went on, not only did the strokes become softer, but so did the colors. Ranging from moody to light colors, with the occasional dark painting during stressful days.

Though the kid was an amazing painter, he prefered sculpting, but he never kept the same shape. He would just smash it and start all over as a form of stress relief.

I allow a small sniff to escape me as the water boiled, he is so much like me when it comes to art.

I felt Itachi allow his bewilderment to escape onto his expression. He was expecting his brother to be full of hatred and despair. Someone who would try to kill him at first sight.

The painting of an uber fluffy bunny nomming on some clovers was making him question if his brother was capable of hatred.

I return to them with a tray holding four cups, gently setting down cups for the two of them and one for me, the last one was Sasuke's. Speaking of the duck, he steps out of his painting room wiping his face with a damp cloth, splatters of dry paint on his clothes.

"Deidara, who did you bri-" He drops the cloth as he stares at Itachi and Kisame, his attention focused solely on his brother.

"It's been a while… Sasuke..."

I let out a sigh as Sasuke's face contorted with rage, chidori forming on his wrist. Without a word I get up from my spot, walk to the boy as he was distracted, and swept my leg under him. Sasuke falls flat on his back and before he can get up, I promptly sat on his stomach side-saddle and pinned the arm that was using chidori.

"Mind your manners Duck-kun, un."

Sasuke growls venomously, turning his head to glare at Itachi. Upon seeing the amused expression of his brother's partner, he began struggling, pushing at my shoulder with his other arm and kicking his legs. He snaps his head towards me with the nerve to have his sharingan activated, "Get off me!" I hear the chirp of chidori start up again, aiming his free arm toward my shoulder. Oh? He plans on attacking me?

If he thinks I'm going to tolerate this kind of behavior, he must be mistaken. Using my free hand, I grip his hair and yank his head still. Like an alpha wolf disciplining an omega, I leak out my dominating aura, "Sasuke."

I can feel the other two's confusion when Sasuke's whole body goes stiff as a board. However, I have a child to scold, "Were you seriously planning on attacking me? Me, of all people? Must I remind you that we agreed that you would talk with your brother, un?" My voice had that calm tone that everyone knows is underline with an unspoken threat.

"That was before you brought that bastard here- erk!" He winces in pain when I twist my hand that gripped his hair. He quickly deactivated his sharingan, which resulted in his head being freed, "... Fine, but get off me… you're heavy."

I smirk and got off the Uchiha, who sits up and rubs his head. Tough love, but he's use my choice of discipline.

I give Itachi an apologetic smile, which he nods in response, understanding my methods of raising him. I have Sasuke sit next to me as I become a human barrier between the brothers, allowing the kid to be more comfortable.

Kisame quickly got the hint, "Well, I'm going to go explore for awhile… I will have some questions when I get back."

"Stay in the compound Kisame, your appearance will drag unwanted attention." Itachi has already made himself comfortable by unbuttoning his coat. Getting a nod of confirmation from the shark man, he leaves.

The room became quiet as Itachi and I calmly drank our tea, Sasuke was uncomfortably squirming where he sat. I let a small smile form on my lips as he is trying to keep his anger contained.

Finally, the older Uchiha broke the silence, "How much did you tell him Deidara?" Itachi tilts his head so I can see his face, as he sat on my blind side.

"I told him that the Uchiha was planning a coup, and that you were ordered to kill the clan… you also threatened the village to keep him safe. That was all I knew, un." I smoothly lie while taking another sip.

Itachi quickly understood that I'm playing ignorant and sighs, "Very well… What do you wish to know, Sasuke?"

"Tell me the truth." Sasuke gives Itachi a demanding look, "I want to know everything."

I change my seating position so I have my feet planted on the ground. I can feel everything just by sitting in the lotus position,but Sasuke is more likely to believe us as long as he sees my feet are on the ground.

At this rate I might as well use Itachi as a footrest to calm the kid's nerves.

… That is oddly tempting, Itachi didn't even blink when I began to use his lap as a footrest.

Itachi sighs, "Here is the truth…"

Roughly an hour later

The whole hour was Itachi explaining and Sasuke asking questions, and by the end of it, I learned more things than I cared to know about the coup. But I could confirm that Izumi from the novels died just like in the books, and not how the anime shows it. (AN: Yes, I consider the light novels as canon for this fic.)

Sasuke would occasionally look over towards me to make sure Itachi was being honest. Every time he would look at my blank face, his meaning of life was slowly chipping away.

I reach over to the boy and give him a gentle kiss on the head, "I'll leave you two alone to discuss things, un." Slowly getting up, I slip on my shoes and head out to Kisame, who was laying on a porch.

"Wanna tell me what is going on?" Kisame gives me a toothy grin as I plop down next to him.

I decided to be blunt, "I have been spending the last five years working on reuniting the brothers, un." When Kisame's eyebrows slowly raise in confusion, I took a deep breath and explained everything.

He slowly rubs his neck, "Wow, reincarnation and we are a popular T.V. show… that's both disturbing and intriguing at the same time."

Now it was my turn for my eyebrow to raise, "You are taking this rather well Kisame-san…"

He shrugs, "Considering how strange Itachi-san has been acting these past few months, I decided it's better for my own sanity to just go along with what you said… though it does explain why he referred to you as a woman when speaking to me."

I grit my teeth, "Tell me about it... Guess I deserve that for always calling him a weasel, un."

Kisame laughs, "Weasel? Good one, I'll have to use that sometime. You really do care for Itachi-san, huh?"

I feel my cheeks heat up as I look away, "He deserves a better life, un." I quickly shot down any other questions regarding Itachi.

But that didn't stop him from jabbing at a more sensitive topic, "Tell me, you use to be a girl, why don't you turn into a woman permanently? I'm sure there's a jutsu for it."

I almost responded but then I paused. In all actuality, I never thought about that, I just… adapted into this body. I look down at myself in thought as the pros and cons of the idea flew by me.

"I… think I'll stay as a man… I've adjusted to this body and… frankly I like not having to deal with a certain event that happens for women every month, un." Kisame winces, getting my hint, "I… Also have a fourth mouth on my chest… and I doubt it would go away, I'm scared to know what happens to it if I even considered the idea, un."

He pats my back, "Whatever makes you comfortable kid… Though, keep the idea in mind if you ever decide that you need it in the future."

'I'll need to snoop around Orochimaru's labs and Uzushiogakure later on…'

Kisame snaps his head in a random direction, "Oh, seems like they're done."

I turn my head to see the Uchiha brothers walking towards us, Sasuke was keeping his distance, but he seemed more relaxed. I sprung to my feet and met them halfway, "Well?"

Itachi gives me a slight nod before looking at Kisame, "Kisame… I am leaving the Akatsuki." Wow, way to be blunt.

Though the shark man didn't seem too phased by the proclamation, "I had a sneaking suspicion the moment you allowed the kid to drag us here... Before I make my decisions, hey kid!" Only Sasuke responded to that, "The blond."

Oh, me. I return to Kisame, "Yeah, un?"

Kisame leans on his Samehada and gets to my height, "... I want to know how I die."

I let a smile grace my lips, to keep Sasuke from hearing, whisper into his ear, "You were going to leave the Akatsuki after Itachi died… but Tobi revealed his true identity, making you stay. You died by killing yourself to protect Akatsuki intel against Might Gai and the Hachibi Jinchuuriki, Killer B, un."

Stepping away, all I saw was shock on Kisame's face. I watch in puzzlement as he slowly removed his ring, dropping it onto the ground, I had to quickly grab his ankle before he could crush it.

"You big idiot! What if I lied to you, un?"

Kisame tilts his head, "Considering Itachi is leaving tells me that he has your trust. Also, I can tell you can only hold back information, not lie."

I sputter, "B… But why crush the ring?! What do you have to gain by doing that, un?"

He shrugs, "I might as well leave too. Wouldn't do me any good to return without a partner and be questioned." He shrugs as if he wasn't a big deal, then proceeds to ruffle my hair which screws up my ponytail

"Arg, don't touch my hair, un!" I hide behind Itachi with a pout, Sasuke snorts by me with amusement, but he quickly runs back to the house as I give him a threatening glare, "Anyway, leaving the Akatsuki right now would be a bad idea, un. I have to leave for a few days to monitor Naruto. If you two suddenly left…"

Both Akatsuki members exchange glances, the reasoning is obvious. If they suddenly left, Naruto would be targeted by other members.

Itachi turns his head to look at me, "Very well… when should we return?"

I pause as I roughly estimate how long it took to find Tsunade, "Hm… takes the duo about 4 days to find Tsunade… and another week to master the rasengan… but it may take less time because I've helped him with chakra control, un…" I scratch my head in thought, one of results in messing with the flow of the story is that dates may screw up.

"We will return in 10 days then." Itachi picks up Kisame's ring and hands it to his partner.

I nod, "Okay, that'll work. Tell Pein that you ran into Jiraiya and was unable to capture the kyuubi because of his interference. I'll be able to meet you by the time you come back, I have to return to Konoha anyway to watch over Kimimaro, I just need to speak with Tsunade, un. Let's go back to the house to let Duck-kun know."

Sticking close to Itachi we return to the house as I fixed up my hair. I noticed Itachi kept staring at the house, so I tilt my head, "What's wrong Itachi, un?"

"This… was Shisui's house…" The nostalgia dripping from his voice was mixed with sadness and longing.

My eye widens, "Wait, really? Oh man, I'm so sorry I didn't know. Sasuke needed a place to paint and I thought it was a nice house and-" I stop my rambling when he put his hand on my shoulder.

"It's alright, he would have liked the colors. The clan never spent time on art, but he always liked to look at it on his days off." I relax at Itachi's reassurance

Of course, I was planning on avoiding anymore questions, but Sasuke decided to bring in the big guns.

"What's with the coat? I thought you hated layers." Damn this child.

"I thought a new look would suit me more, that's all, un." I fold my arms in defiance, not expecting Itachi to flash step in front of me, "What?"

"What are you hiding?"

Why is Sasuke the only Uchiha that lacks a imposing aura? I feel myself wilt as I take a step back, "Nothing! Does everyone need to get in my business when I decide to change things up, un?"

"Yes." My eye twitches as the brothers spoke in synch. Damn Uchihas…

"You're a creature of habit." Sasuke folds his arms with his face blank.

Before I could respond, I felt the coat remove itself from my person, like it wasn't completely fasten on… which it was. I forgot Itachi was one of the quickest shinobi to ever exist.

Itachi stared at the curse mark with a passive face. I don't even bother trying to cover it, he already saw it.

After what seemed like an eternity of staring, I sigh in defeat, "I got this from Orochimaru when trying to collect someone. Let my guard down, un."

"I can see that." He doesn't scold, or have any physical responses, the only signs of rage was a quicker heartbeat.

I quickly throw the coat back on, "I don't plan on using the stupid thing, my art is strong enough to where I don't need the hickey, un!"

No one spoke for a whole minute, until Kisame piped in, "Hickey?"

I roll my eye, "Orochimaru bites people's necks and a mark appears, so I call it a hickey, un."

Itachi's POV

'I want to kill that man…'

Deidara's POV

I shiver after feeling Itachi's kill intent, isn't he suppose to be a pacifist?!

I run the back of my neck, "Well… I guess it was the price I paid for keeping him away from Sasuke, un."

That caught the boy's attention, "What do you mean?"

I pull at my collar awkwardly, "From what I could see, it was either you get the curse mark, or I would. So I guess I took your place, un." I do not like the look in their eyes...

Sasuke and Itachi's POVs (AN: They are thinking the same thing.)

'I will skin him alive and burn his remains…'

Deidara's POV

All I could do was sweatdrop as I felt the brother's almost thinking at the same time. It tempted me to say a silent prayer to Orochimaru, as he now has three pissed off Uchiha wanting him dead.

… Nah, too much effort.

"Can we stop talking about the curse mark? It's bad enough it reminds me every day that the asshole bit my neck, un." I subconsciously tighten the fasten on my neck, as if shielding myself.

Just as Itachi opened his mouth again, something latched on my arm, resulting in a high pitch scream to erupt from my throat.

"Wow, never had a human act like that, kero." One of Jiraiya's toads decided to get my attention by clinging to me, sadly I do not react kindly to anything fast moving and not fuzzy… spiders don't count.

"GET IT OFF! GET IT OFF!" My arm rapidly flapped in the air, trying to shake the amphibian off. Sasuke had to quickly take the toad away before it could get injured or I injure myself with the excessive arm flailing. With a whimper, I rush behind Itachi and buried my face into his back to hide not only from the toad, but from sheer embarrassment as Kisame was laughing his blue ass off.

"You didn't act like this the last time, kero." The toad stares at me unimpressed as I kept myself hidden.

"That was because you didn't go near me, un! Itachi! Stop laughing, it's not funny!" I lightly whack him on the back. Itachi kept a passive face, but the shaking of his shoulders betrayed his amusement. I let out an annoyed groan, "What is it this time!" That was more of a demand than a question.

"Jiraiya-sama is on the move with Naruto, kero. I delivered your message and he is going to train the boy the rasengan, kero." With that the toad poofs away.

"Stupid thing…" I release myself from Itachi and stands by Sasuke blushing, awkwardly coughing into my fist, "Itachi and Kisame-san will return in 10 days. Make sure to meet them here, un."

"I'll be painting," Sasuke shrugs without a care, "as long as they do not disturb me."

My eye rolls, "Yes, wouldn't want the palette knife incident to happen again, un." I smirk in a teasing way as Sasuke's face turns red.

Itachi tilts his head, "Palette knife…?"

I jab my thumb towards Sasuke, "Your little brother here, nearly killed someone with one of these, un." I pick up a palette knife that was laying on a bookshelf. Emphasizing the ridiculousness of it all by showing off how flexible it was.

"One time Deidara!" Sasuke snatches the knife from me and throws it in his painting room.

I let out a snicker, "Whatever you say, Duck-kun. I have to leave so spend some time with the girls while I'm away, un." I nod to both of the Akatsuki members and head outside. Creating a hawk, I hop onto the bird and take off to where Jiraiya and Naruto were travelling.

Four days later

I kept my distance from the duo, usually staying on my bird and getting a room at an inn about an hour after they check into theirs. I didn't want Naruto to be distracted from his training. Though I was still unhappy that Jiraiya took all the money I allowed my brother to bring.

Good thing I sealed most of his allowance away back home.

From what I could tell, after the cat scene when he learns to beat up the water balloon, he ended up progressing faster than expected. At some point, he was handling it so well that I tested my luck with some casino games, disguised as a woman of course, gotta make sure I'm underestimated.

I would enter a game store with 500 ryo, and leave when I doubled what I got, not tempting fate and risk losing the money I won. After doing this about 10 times I ended up with a nice bundle of cash. Helps when you can sense the machinery and be able to play the least rigged one. When I wasn't gambling, I was training, a fair distance away from the duo.

Finally, they located Tsunade at the bar, I kept to the air until the four of them left. Tsunade truly was beautiful but terrifying in person, despite being half-drunk her aura was powerful.

Sadly, my darling baby brother can't sense auras worth shit.

I flinched when Tsunade pummeled him to the ground, only for her to become angry when Naruto tried to use the rasengan. After a brief conversation, Tsunade dangles her necklace in Naruto's face, they made their bet.

Time to get involved, leaping off my bird I shout, startling everyone, "I'll add to that bet, un!"


FINALLY! The Uchiha brothers have made up! Granted, it is rocky, but it's a good start. Sasuke won't just buddy-buddy Itachi overnight, even with Dei's persistent nature, but the 10 days will allow him to stew his thoughts. I wanted to make sure this scene was fleshed out in dialogue as much as possible, while also allowing Deidara to express some thoughts.

So, Deidara will NOT be turned into a woman permanently. I wanted to address this as it is starting to show up in some reviews now. This is not a si!fem!Dei, but Dei will turn into a girl briefly for a very specific reason later on in the fic. I will not say what it is though. Gotta wait for that one! :P

* Bob Ross is known for saying "beat the devil out of it" when cleaning his brush. I decided to make the reference because for some reason YouTube decided to play some of his videos while I was typing.

Next chapter will have Tsunade and I will start that chapter off before this one ended, but from everyone elses POV.

As always, reviews are loved and updates will continue as normal!

Bye!