((Hi, guys! I'm actually really pleased with the feedback I've been getting so I decided I'd quickly update because tomorrow I'll be unable to! I want to thank everyone for the positive reviews and I highly encourage more! I promise I won't bite :) But anyway, here's just a little filler to hopefully tie you guys over. Thank ya'll for all your support!))
Chapter 2.5
Day One and a Half: This Little Boy
"Hey, Deidara, get sick of being mistaken for a girl?" Kisame jabbed, allowing a cackle to escape from his serrated grin as his eyes landed on Deidara's mangled tresses.
"Shut up before I blow your head off, un!" Deidara retorted sharply.
The Akatsuki was congregated at the dining room table after about an hour of Kanon bribing each to wander outside of their room. Deidara sat sulking at the end of the table, shooting glares at everyone who made a joke or even so much looked at his new haircut. Kisame sat two down from the blonde's right, poking and prying at Deidara's sensitivity. Hidan sat in-between the two Akatsuki, a scowl representing how pissed off he was to be in the middle of the two bickering members. Everyone else was scattered about the table on either side of the potential fight brewing.
"I'm sorry Deidara, I just can't keep up with your female tendencies," Kisame muttered, waving Deidara off. His gesture only made the blond more aggravated.
"Do you want to take this outside?" Deidara growled, standing up from his chair.
"Ladies first," Kisame taunted, calmly rising to his feet.
"Oh I'll—"
"For Jashin's sake!" Hidan trumpeted, slamming his fists onto the table and standing erect in the process. "If you don't shut the fuck up I'll shove my scythe so far up your—"
"Stoooppp!" Tobi interrupted, rushing out of the kitchen with a pot in tote. Pausing to set the steaming pan down carefully in the center of the table, he then raised his oven-mitted hands in the air. "Can't we all just get along?" He whined, flailing his hands in a blur of blue and orange.
"We were just having a little fun, weren't we, Deidara?" Kisame jabbed.
"Go back to the lake, Swamp Thing," Deidara retorted coolly, crossing his arms against his chest and plopping back down into his chair. Kisame followed on suit.
"I hate you all," Hidan announced, sitting back down as well.
It wasn't far into the meal of Tobi's secret recipe stew—which was surprisingly edible considering it was Tobi's creation—that Konan strode down the hall, the twins following behind her. Upon entrance, Deidara instinctively gathered up what was left of his ponytail and clutched it in his hand, eyeing Kora as she paraded past him. Kyo, the male twin, noticing that Deidara was flashing his sister weird glances, stuck his tongue out at the blond haired man. "You little—" Deidara mumbled, whilst Kisame chuckled.
Konan ushered the twins to the opposite end of the table where three seats were left unoccupied. Kora timidly sat down next to Itachi, who didn't bother glancing up from his plate, and Kyo sat next to Tobi. Konan took her seat at the head of the table.
"Hiya!" Tobi exclaimed, turning his head toward Kyo. "I'm Tobi!" he announced.
"Why do you talk stupid?" Kyo questioned crudely, glancing up at the masked man beside him.
"That's not nice!" Tobi stammered, unsure of how to reprimand the child.
"Shut up, Lollipop," the boy retorted, reaching for the stew.
"Ah, ah, ah!" Tobi crooned in a disapproving sing-song tone, rising to his feet and picking up the pot, holding it out of reach of the rowdy child. "You can't have stew until you're nice!" he announced, proud of himself for thinking up a consequence.
"You're not my mother," grumbled Kyo, crossing his arms against his chest.
"But we're all in charge, so technically Tobi is too, so Tobi can—" Tobi's lecture was interrupted by the young boy's foot making contact where no little boy's foot should ever make contact. Tobi doubled over in agony as the pot of stew tumbled out of his grasp and crashed onto the floor, narrowly missing Tobi's foot.
"Oww," Tobi wailed, collapsing onto the floor in a pathetic puddle of a man. His pain was only greeted by the boy hopping off of his chair and stepping on his ankle in order to clear Tobi's body. Tobi curled up in a tight ball, unsure which area hurt more.
"You're lame; I'm going to make cereal," the boy announced, stepping over Tobi's body to cross over to the kitchen.
The rest of the Akatsuki stared on as Tobi raised a shaky hand, planted it on the table, and pulled himself up to stand. If it wasn't for his mask veiling his face, he probably would've sported a pitiful expression unworthy of belonging to someone in a band of such high ranked criminals.
"I like that fucker," Hidan announced, gesturing to Kyo's distant silhouette slipping down the hall.