And here we have chapter three!
Please review and enjoy!
I do not own Naruto, however much I'd like to.
After about fifteen minutes of trying to find her way through the tangled corridors of the Akatsuki base, Tenten finally managed to locate the kitchen. As she entered the room, she looked around wondering what sort of food they had here. The kitchen was slightly larger than the other rooms, but shared the bland grey walls and bare wooden flooring. There were surprisingly two fridges in the room, but she supposed with quite a few members with different preferences, two fridges were required.
There was a solid oak round table in the centre of the room, with about six or seven chairs arranged around it at random intervals. Tenten sighed as she saw stacks of used dishes and remnants of old meals littering the surface. Then again, she had never been the neat type, unless you counted her weapons.
Along the wall next to the fridges was a long work top on which more detritus lay. Below these were numerous cupboards and there was a sink on the other side of the room from washing up, although she guessed this didn't often happen.
After a drawn out sigh, Tenten crossed the kitchen to the nearest fridge, and tentatively opened the door. Her eyes roamed around the mostly empty space, and seeing nothing that really enticed her, she pulled open the freezer below it. There was something in there, something pink and dull red…
With a gasp, Tenten realised what it was. In the freezer lay a human hand encrusted with ice crystals, the severed end showing some of the white bone sticking out of the frozen flesh. Tenten gagged and slammed the freezer and the fridge, taking a step back.
"Ah, I see you've found Zetsu's stash then!" came a voice from behind her.
Tenten whirled around, surprised at the sound of the voice. It was not emotionless or arrogant or just plain weird like some of the other Akatsuki, but strangely cheerful and enthusiastic. Before her stood a tall Akatsuki member, wearing the usual uniform but with a bright orange mask completely covering his face.
"Zetsu's…a cannibal?" spluttered Tenten in horror.
"Yup! Although, I don't know if cannibal's the right word for him, I mean, he's not exactly all human…" Tobi answered, scratching his head uncomfortably.
"What do you mean?" Asked Tenten, perplexed.
"Trust me; you'll know when you see him!" Said the masked Akatsuki member happily.
Tenten looked at him in wonder. What other freaks did this place hold? In any case, she felt very much like she had lost her appetite after the glimpse of the delicious frozen human hand, so moved as if to leave the kitchen.
"Oh, my name's Tobi, by the way! I was the previous rookie here, so I hope we can get to know each other! You know, if you aren't killed today an' all." He added.
"Uh...thanks…" Tenten said, unsure of whether she meant it or not.
Suddenly, she had an idea. Whoever her opponent might turn out to be later, she knew that some scope of the battle-field was always a good plan before the test began. She turned to Tobi, who was watching her leave.
"Say, Tobi, do you think you could she show me where it is I'll be fighting later?" She asked.
"Of course! I'd be happy to! It'd be like being Senpai for once. But it's outside so you'll have to promise me you won't try to escape." Tobi said.
"I promise I won't try and escape." Tenten replied with a sigh.
"Good!" Exclaimed Tobi.
The masked Akatsuki member then turned and began to walk through the maze of corridors, his footsteps echoing on the wooden floor. Ever now and again he would look briefly behind himself to check that Tenten was following before facing forward and concentrating on the route again. At least, that's what Tenten thought; after all, that mask obscured any chance she had of reading his face.
Tenten began to think seriously about the test ahead of her. Loosing was out of the question, as she would be killed incase she blabbed about Akatsuki if they let her go. Her only chance was to somehow defeat her opponent or at least put up a good fight against them long enough to suitably impress the others so that they would allow her to join Akatsuki. One she reached that point, she could start thinking about escape.
However, the more Tenten thought about running away from the orginistaion and returning to her village, the more doubtful she became. The Akatsuki would pursue her of course and try to murder her. As well as that, she started to wonder whether she really wanted to leave at all…as soon as those thoughts crossed her mind she banished them instantly. What was she thinking about? Of course she wanted to go back home!
Tenten sighed, pulling her thoughts back to the present as she walked behind Tobi. Most importantly right now, she needed to come up with a plan for her match, a plan that would hopefully work for all of the Akatsuki members despite the fact she didn't know what kind of freakish powers they had apart from what she had heard about Itachi and Kisame and what she had experienced of Sasori and Deidara.
At last, just as Tenten had begun to think the base had no end, they reached a door right at the end of the corridor. Tenten sighed with relief. It really was a good idea, she thought, to have a base that was almost impossible to find your way out of unless you were a member of the orginistaion. Tobi took out a key from his robes and fitted it into the door's lock. With a 'click', it unlocked and Tobi swung the door open.
Tenten blinked at the sudden bright light. She had no concept of time in the Akatsuki base, as there were no windows or links to the outside world. However, as she stepped out into the sunlight she realised she must have been out cold for at least a day, maybe more. More than that, the horrid misty rain had petered out and the sky was cloudless. On the downside, this meant it was going to be extremely hot fighting out here, but she supposed it was better than being wet through and blinded by rain.
She looked back at the door from which she had just emerged and her eyebrows rose in surprise. The door frame was sunken into the wall of a sheer rock-face that rose above them almost vertically.
"Neat, huh?" Asked Tobi as he watched her awed face.
"Very…so where is this?" Tenten asked.
"I can't tell you exactly, but it's the 'back door' to the base. There is another concealed entrance around the other side, behind a waterfall. Oops, I guess I shouldn't have told you that. Never mind, just don't tell Senpai okay?" Tobi said.
"Of course." Tenten replied with a smile. This Tobi guy sure was odd; not what she expected of an Akatsuki member at all.
"I'm going to wait here until the others turn up. You can have a look around and plan what you might do but don't try and run off." Tobi continued.
Tenten gave a haggard nod before turning away from the masked Akatsuki member and surveying the battleground. Spread out in front of her was a clearing in the forest that stretched away in either direction and in front of her. It was about one hundred meters in diameter, and the ground was bare earth, with some occasional patched of faded grass that became more numerous the further you were from the centre.
She guessed that this area must serve as the training ground as well as the premises for her battle, which explained the potholes and where it looked like whole chunks of earth had been blasted out of the ground.
In places there were dark patches stained with blood, although Tenten decided she didn't want to know where those came from. She paced from one side to the other of the clearing before an idea hit her. Allowing herself a small smile, she kneeled down and got to work.
Twenty minutes later, she heard her name being called. Getting quickly to her feet from where she had been kneeling a few moments ago, she sighed. This plan had better work. Brushing the earth off of her dark burgundy trousers, she walked over to where she saw an Akatsuki member waiting for her ho she hadn't met before.
The woman was tall, taller than Tenten, and had a graceful yet intimidating face that was devoid of feeling. Her eyes were bright amber and burned into Tenten fiercely. The woman's hair was a vivid dark blue colour. This surprised Tenten somewhat, having never seen someone with such strangely coloured hair, unless you counted Sakura's ridiculous pink mop.
"My name is Konan," Said the woman in a voice that was as expressionless as her face, "Your time is up. When the others are here, I will tell you who your opponent is and you will begin."
Tenten nodded quickly, not saying anything. She too a deep breath and turned away before pacing a little way into the clearing, running through her strategy again and again in her mind. For a situation like this she really needed Shikamaru or Neji…
Looking back at where she had left Konan, she noticed the rest of the Akatsuki were filing out of the door in the rock face to stand by her. Tobi of course was still there from earlier, but she now also saw Deidara, smirking as usual, the Hidan guy who had tried o impale her earlier, and an assortment of others. There was Itachi Uchiha, and the blue shark-man who had fought her before and almost made her drown. She also saw a tall man with weird red and green eyes and a mask that covered most of his face. Sasori also soon emerged, looking bored and uninterested. Lastly the astonishing person of them all appeared. He was almost as tall as Kisame as it was, but also sported a pair of huge green growths on either shoulder that looked like mandibles, but dark green, like an aloe plant. His face was split into a white side and a black side, and his eyes glowed eerily yellow.
All nine of them stared at Tenten, and Tenten stared defiantly back, refusing to be intimidated or scared. Konan, the only woman Tenten could see, crossed her arms and prepared to speak.
"Tenten of the Hidden Leaf. If you win or show significant prowess against you enemy in this fight, you will be permitted to join Akatsuki. If not, we will kill you. Do you understand the terms?" She asked her voice loud and clear.
"Yes." Affirmed Tenten equally clearly.
"Very well. After careful deliberation, I have decided who your opponent will be. You are going to battle Deidara." Continued Konan.
"What? Why him?" burst out Tenten indignantly; she had had just about enough of that arrogant blonde.
"You both have some experience of each other's fighting styles. Therefore, the fight should be a little more thought out than if you were ignorant of the others abilities." Konan explained, her eyes narrowing in irritation slightly.
Tenten clenched her fists in anger as she looked at Deidara. He grinned back at her; evidently thinking that this fight would be as simple as their last one. Tenten put on a grim smile. This time things would go differently.
"Deidara, as Tenten here is still recovering from Sasori's poison, you will naturally be handicapped." Said Konan.
"Sure, whatever. What do you want me to do, hmm?" Asked Deidara casually.
"You are not allowed to use any chakra level in you explosives over C2, understood? That means no Ohako, or the Karura." Replied Konan.
"What? But!"
"Shut up and get on with it, brat. Don't keep me waiting." Growled Sasori, his cold eyes narrowed in impatience.
Deidara sighed and walked into the clearing, facing Tenten. His face was full of irritation as he mumbled angrily to himself about 'trying to tell him how to create his art' and 'trying to contain his artistic ability'.
He looked up at kunoichi in front of him, the mouths in his palms chewing the clay inside them, preparing it for use.
"Do you think you're ready, girl?" Deidara asked with his familiar self-confident smirk.
"I do." Replied Tenten in a voice that was dangerously low.
"You may begin." Konan said.
Tenten at once leapt backwards several feet and flung a scroll into the air, catching it in the other hand as it flapped open and the symbols on the inside became visible. Instantly, it vanished in a cloud of smoke and was replaced by Tenten's prized twin scythes.
At the same time as Tenten was doing this, Deidara had left his hands as the mouths spat out an array of explosives and his transport bird, the owl design that he had used for the capture of Gaara. It flew out of his outstretched hands and alighted on the earth in front of him as Deidara formed a hand-seal and grinned as the small doll instantaneously grew to the size that was capable of carrying him.
Deidara jumped onto its back as the bird extended its wings and took off into the air, clouds of dust billowing out from the draft it created as it rose. Soon, Deidara was hovering about thirty feet above Tenten.
Tenten looked up, her teeth clenched in concentration as she began to spin the scythes, one acting as her defence, the other as offence. However, however far she cast the offensive weapon, Deidara would simply dodge out of the way. At that Moment, Deidara threw three of his small clay spiders at her. She saw them flying straight for her, perfectly aimed. She had to commend him for that, at least. Transferring both scythes into one hand quickly, she reached into her pocket and drew out a hand-full of kunai.
In the nick of time, she hurled all of them, much like she had done the day before training in the forest. The Kunai hit each of the bombs that were flying towards her simultaneously, and they were pierced right through and carried with the trajectory of the kunai until they sunk into the bark of three trees that surrounded the clearing. Tenten stumbled as they exploded, making the ground shake beneath her.
Deidara laughed dryly from where he hovered far above her.
"So, kunoichi, what are you going to do now? He asked.