Hihi! I'm back again! :D
Here comes the hard part of the story… Damn. Or maybe it just felt hard because it took me forever to write. Hope you like it! :)
And to anyone who hasn't read anything by allismine or firefly, do so now. Feck this fic, go! :O
That being said, reviewers get love and win. :)
Ch. 9
Controlling his chakra and the mark at the same time was no easy task for Hidan. After running at the wall several times, losing balance and landing deftly on the bedrock floor again, he was starting to get annoyed. His chakra control had never been his strong point, but he considered it adequate.
He took a short break to calm himself again. Once his breathing had slowed, he turned back to face the wall, gripping the handle of his scythe for reassurance.
"This time- You better be ready you slimy son of a bitch, I'm coming for you."
He ran at the wall, still muttering darkly. He got three steps, four steps; five- then he heard a sound among his echoes. Cursing under his breath, he hurriedly climbed the vertical slope, and hid himself in the shadow of the boulders far above.
Kakuzu walked out of the nearest tunnel. Hidan could see from his lofty spot that his eyes were narrowed, combing the cave.
Hidan held his breath, resisting the urge to drop a stone on his partner's head as Kakuzu ambled underneath him. The masked man stopped, and stood below Hidan for what seemed like an hour. Hidan thought he felt a sneeze coming on. What timing! Fucking cave air.
Then, Kakuzu slowly titled his head back and stared up at the shadowy ceiling far above. He was staring right at Hidan. Hidan froze, and all thoughts of sneezing vanished.
Kakuzu squinted; luckily for Hidan, he had chosen a spot near one of the light sources. Kakuzu eyes kept adjusting to the light, leaving the area around it in total darkness, or at least that's what Hidan hoped.
"Hidan."
Hidan only just caught his jaw before it dropped. How the hell did Kakuzu know he was here?
Kakuzu shielded his eyes.
"I know you're there, I'm not blind."
Hidan bit his lip. He was bluffing, he had to be. He'd done it before, a couple of weeks back, and it had worked, much to Hidan's humiliation. He's bluffing; he's seriously bluffing. I'm not moving unless he comes up after me, which he won't, the lazy fuck.
Kakuzu continued to stare upwards, frown deepening. Suddenly, he cursed and turned away. He walked to the tunnel entrance, and glanced back.
Hidan was right in the middle of an almost silent whoop of triumph, and he abruptly stopped.
But Kakuzu had heard nothing, and continued on his way. Once his footsteps were out of Hidan's earshot, he breathed a long sigh of relief.
"Shit, I thought he'd never leave. Fucking stalker."
It was only then that Hidan realised where he was. On the ceiling. Grinning, he thrust his scythe between two boulders and threw his weight on the handle, forcing the rocks to move. The mark lent him strength, and gradually the hole widened.
Quite a few pieces of gravel and chipped rock fell and landed noisily below, but no one came.
A couple of minutes later, Hidan strapped his scythe onto his back. Gripping the edge of the rock with both hands, he hoisted himself and out of his prison and into the sunlight.
As his eyes adjusted, the landscape became clearer. He was standing by a stream, water sounds drowning out anything else that may have been there. The ground was sandy and uneven, with a gentle slope. There was only moss and boulders and stunted trees. In the distance, mountains rose up, forests growing on their slopes. The base was near Takigakure, the Village hidden in Waterfalls, Kakuzu's old village.
Hidan smirked. So that was why the asshole acted so complacent, it must've felt like home in that damp cave, or something pathetic like that.
Takigakure was in a small land north of the Land of Fire, so Otogakure was almost due east. Hidan ran a hand along the handle of his scythe, and kicked off, jumping down the hill, avoiding the stream but keeping parallel. He had experienced drowning before, and didn't want to repeat it. It would slow him down.
When he reached the bottom of the hill, he stopped by a small waterfall to replenish his water supply and to suppress the curse mark again.
He splashed some water on himself to- it was hot out, and he wasn't going to be stopping all day. He stood up again as the water stilled, reflecting a flash of purple behind him. Suddenly, he whipped out his scythe and spun around, flinging it into the undergrowth behind him. A young man in purple ninja gear, with his dark grey hair tied up in a ponytail fell out. He had evidently just avoided the weapon. Hidan grinned and tugged the scythe back out.
"Sneaky little bastard, aren't ya, creeping up on me from behind. Well I'm not playing ninja with you today, blind bastard."
The 'blind bastard' was in fact in the process of fixing his glasses.
"Whoa, hold on – I'm not here to start a fight."
Hidan laughed.
"I don't give a rat's ass why you're here, seriously."
He held up his rosary.
"Consider yourself lucky – you're gonna put me back in Jashin-sama's good books."
…
Kabuto ducked as the scythe flew his way again. He had to think fast – he wasn't prepared for a fight. He was pretty certain Hidan would kill him if this went on for too long. He probably hadn't noticed his headband – Kabuto wondered briefly if he should have worn his Konoha one – but he had to get Hidan to sop and listen before then. There was only one thing for it.
The scythe sliced through the air again, and Kabuto braced himself. As it was about to strike, Kabuto jumped back. It slammed into the ground, and Kabuto clamped his hands around the handle, holding it down.
"Wait! … I know where you can sacrifice as many people as you want!"
Hidan gave him a withering look.
"I fucking knew it. Not only do you suck at persuasion, you're a cowardly bitch."
Kabuto felt the scythe move, trying to break free, but the ground and his own grip held it for now. Wrong choice. Time for another approach.
A pike whistled past, he gasped and veered to the side. In that second, the scythe broke free and only just missed his thumb. Kabuto quickly leaped back, gaining a height advantage by landing on a nearby boulder.
"I know where you're going. Please, hear me out."
…
Hidan's voice was laced with malice.
"Tell me then, before I cut that fucking tongue out."
This boy was getting more annoying by the minute. He got the distinct impression this shinobi was trying to appease him. But, thought Hidan rashly, he'd mess with him a little before sending him to the afterlife. If he wanted to suck up to him, he'd let him, for now.
"Come on, out with it. Tell me where you think I'm going. You get it wrong, I get a free shot, how about that?"
The coward just stood there and looked relieved.
"…Otogakure, to Orochimaru."
That caught Hidan off-guard.
"Lucky guess. Someone wants you alive."
"Not at all. I know what happened to you, I'm one of Akatsuki's spies."
Hidan surveyed the ninja with renewed suspicion.
"How do I know you're not Orochimaru's? It's easy to pass yourself off as Akatsuki, but I'm not that stupid, seriously."
"Well then, don't you think that if I was Orochimaru's, I would be trying to get you to Otogakure instead of delaying you?"
Hidan arched an eyebrow.
"How the hell should I know? Anyway, how are you supposed to delay me? You couldn't stop me lifting a finger."
The shinobi hung his head.
"That's true. I'm not much of a fighter. But-"
He gave a benign smile.
"-I can raise the alarm."
Hidan expression darkened.
"if you fucking go near that base-"
The shinobi laughed nervously.
"I take it you don't want to spend another month in there, huh?"
"Who the fuck asked you?"
"I didn't mean to offend you, Hidan-san."
Hidan narrowed his violet eyes. His name seemed to be attracting honorifics lately.
"Who the fuck are you, seriously?"
The shinobi gave another warm smile.
"My name is Yakushi Kabuto. I hope that by asking about me, you've lost the urge to kill me?"
The edges of Hidan's mouth twitched.
"Nope, that urge's still going strong."
Nervous laughter again. Hidan was pleased to hear a slight quiver in Kabuto's voice.
…
Kabuto wasn't quite as intimidated as he acted, but he kept it up for effect. His next few lines would be dangerous ventures, he only hoped he had gained enough of Hidan's trust to avoid getting stabbed with that scythe. It was essential he gathered information on Hidan's motives.
"I can see why you'd want to leave Akatsuki if they are keeping you locked up like that."
He gestures back to Hidan's escape hole. Hidan frowned.
"I'm not leaving them, this is just-"
The missing-nin paused. Then the words came, with a hint of sarcasm attached.
"-a side trip."
Kabuto inwardly cursed, but kept his face passive. There was something else he needed to ask.
"Then why are you going to Otogakure?"
Hidan regarded him with open suspicion.
"Why should I tell you?"
Kabuto quickly gave a nonchalant shrug.
"Just wondering…" he uttered casually.
"Yeah? Well don't."
Hidan turned his back on Kabuto and started walking off.
"if you keep sticking your nose into my business, you'll lose it."
Kabuto knew he was losing him. He only had one more day until Orochimaru expected him back. He had to act fast.
"Well," he called airily, "Don't do anything rash or Orochimaru will never give you your death wish."
…
Hidan froze in mid-step. He turned and stared at Kabuto with a look of utter disbelief, hands curling into fists.
"How the hell-?"
The thoughts came, and he left his question unfinished.
His death wish… he hadn't thought about that for so long. Why was that? Because of Akatsuki?
Yeah, like any of those bastards could change his thoughts on anything. But…why had he wanted to die? That was easy. There was no purpose in a life that never ended. No 'life goal' or some spiritual shit like that. Sure, he'd had one, or it might be more fitting to say Jashin had one for him. Confronting heathens, converting some, killing and/or sacrificing others that wouldn't convert. Years and years of his life devoted to that. After every kill, willing Jashin-sama to take him too, let him rest. And always disappointed.
It wasn't a one-man job. Even if he had all eternity, he couldn't handle them all. Heathen multiplied like maggots on rotting meat. He'd done more than his share of work already.
No, he had to stop thinking those blasphemous thoughts. If Jashin-sama wanted him here, he'd stay here.
He glared at Kabuto, raising his scythe.
"You-"
But the ninja gave a jaunty wave and vanished. Hidan gritted his teeth and jumped on the boulder where Kabuto had sat. He kicked out at a small stone that lay on top of it, sending up shining drops of mountain spring as it crashed into the stream.
This wasn't the first time he'd thought like this. It was the thought of finishing his life's work that led to the idea of death. That moment when he'd finally finish his work in this place and literally got to 'meet his maker', like he'd sent so many others to. They all got to see him, when would it be his turn?
That was the reason for his death wish.
That fucking curse-induced phantom had got it wrong.
He didn't miss people that much.
He envied them.
Turning his back on the Akatsuki base again, he sprinted away.
.. .. ..
I swear, I'm not making him emo. XD It will all make sense…I hope. -.-;
If there was any grammar mistakes, please say so. I only skimmed over the proof-reading. -.-;
A small note: There were doodles of Akatsuki all over the top of the second page of this…I had Hidan, Kakuzu, Deidara and Tobi playing Mario Party multiplayer on DS lites, and a mini version of my pic 'Baaaaagels…'. So this is what I do when I'm stuck... :P
Until next time! :D