A/N:There's going to be a little OOC'ness in this chapter, so brace yourself. Otherwise, enjoy ^ ^
Chapter 2 – The Leader's Choice
Everyone was silent. We had been walking for at least an hour, and my arms were aching terribly. Yume-chan had tried insulting, negotiating, lying by promising treasures, and even begging the S-rank missing nins to let us go, but Deidara-kun ignored her completely while Tobi just ignored her pleas. They had not even asked us why we didn't just run on the trees like they usually did, so they must have known we didn't know how to use our chakra.
"Ahh, your hair is so pretty, Yume-chan!" Tobi would coo, walking beside her excitedly while playing with her hair, "Deidara-senpai, can I keep her?"
"She's not an animal, un."
"Maybe she's a puppy in disguise, Senpai!" Tobi said, mocking a whining tone.
"I'm not a freaking puppy, you idiot!" Yume-chan yelled angrily, "Just let us go! Please!"
"Don't talk so loudly, Yume-chan," Tobi whispered loudly, "People might hear us."
"WE'RE IN A FOREST!" Yume-chan yelled at the top of her voice, and Tobi ran away to stand behind a tree, peeking out from behind it this way and that.
When he was certain no one would attack us, and he had fallen a considerable length behind, he caught up and started walking beside me instead, causing me to cringe a little in discomfort.
"You won't be able to get a word out of her," Yume-chan said carelessly, and I glared at her. She knew it wasn't my fault.
"Are you mute, Yoku-chan?" Tobi asked in wonder, and I looked pleadingly at Yume-chan, begging her with my eyes to save me.
"She's not mute," she said, "She doesn't talk to strangers."
"Why not, Yoku-chan?" Tobi asked, as though I had been the one speaking. I walked a little faster so that I was walking inches from Yume-chan, begging her with my eyes again, but Tobi just moved with me, "We're nice strangers. We won't hurt you, Yoku-chan. Isn't that right, Senpai?"
Deidara-kun just grunted a grumpy 'un' as the forest became denser, and suddenly he stopped walking, causing me to blush as I nearly walked into him.
"What now?" Yume-chan asked grumpily.
"Do they have to be blindfolded, too, Senpai?" Tobi asked cheerfully, and my eyes widened with shock. Say what?
"Blindfolded?" Yume-chan asked softly, then raised her voice angrily, "WHAT THE HELL DO YOU MEAN, BLINDFOLDED? YOU WON'T HAVE ME BLINDFOLDED! LIKE HELL! THERE'S NO WAY—"
Her sentence was cut off when Deidara-kun released a handfull of clay and directed it to each of our faces. I felt my vision darken instantly as the clay wrapped itself around our eyes, and Yume started throwing a fresh wave of curses.
"I WILL KILL YOU, YOU PSYCOPATHIC DICK!" she yelled, "GET THIS FREAKING THING OFF ME!"
A gasp and a small shriek escaped my mouth as my legs were swept from under me and I was held bridal style. Yume-chan's shouts and swearing became even more heated.
"I will kill you if you say another word, un," Deidara-kun said, and my breath caught when I felt the vibrating against my chest and his voice from directly above me. He was the one carrying me? I felt my muscles numb instantly and Yume started muttering curses under her breath instead of yelling them.
Another small shriek—and a terrified yell from Yume-chan—escaped my mouth when I felt myself rise rapidly as Deidara-kun started running on the branches of the trees.
"Yume-chan, it would help if you relaxed a little!" Tobi called in a panicked voice from my left.
"DON'T YOU FREAKING DARE TELL ME TO CALM THE HELL DOWN! WHY DON'T YOU TRY BLINDFOLDING YOURSELF AND BINDING YOUR ARMS BEHIND YOUR BACK WHILE DOING THIS? THE HELL IS WRONG WITH YOU?"
"Yume-chan, you don't have to worry, I won't let you fall!" Tobi cried desperately.
"ARE YOU HITTING ON ME? ARE YOU FREAKING KIDDING-"
"Shut up, un!" Deidara-kun said irritably, and I felt myself cringe while my heart pounded away furiously. I felt as though it had gone and gotten stuck in my ass.
Yume's yells became panicked mutters again, and my discomfort increased by the second. My panic levels rose tenfold when Deidara-kun started sometimes jumping horizontally—I guessed to avoid running into a branch.
"Will you at least prove that you have a heart and let our arms go, at least?" Yume-chan called, "I really don't feel safe here, and it's not like we have any idea where we are."
"Deidara-senpai, she's right," Tobi called, "My hand is slipping."
"You wear gloves, un," Deidara-kun said simply.
"For goodness' sake, man, have a heart!" Yume-chan yelled.
"Don't go 'Katsu'," Tobi pleaded.
A low and angry growl escaped Deidara-kun's throat, and his chest vibrated, setting my mind spinning. After a few seconds I felt the clay binding my hands shatter and fall off, and brought my hands over my sides to rest on my stomach as Yume-chan's gleeful cries filled the air.
Deidara-kun took an especially dangerous leap and I automatically clutched onto his cloak, unsure whether I had only grabbed cloth.
"You're hurting me, un."
I let go immediately and felt my ears and tail appear, an embarassed blush creeping onto my face. Oddly enough, he didn't say anything about them, and neither did Tobi. I was so glad I was blindfolded. I didn't want to see the look on Deidara-kun's face. I wanted to apologize for pinching his skin along with the cloth of the cloak but, as always when trying to talk with people I didn't know, my voice was stuck somewhere in my throat.
"I didn't say you have to let go altogether. Just don't cling on so tightly, un," Deidara-kun said, and my blush deepened.
"Ooohh, I bet Yoku's blush is redder than Itachi's eyes!" Yume-chan called gleefully.
I wanted to tell her to shut the hell up, but my voice was still stuck in my throat. Deidara-kun took another dangerous leap and I clutched on tightly, sure that I only grabbed cloth this time. I clutched even tighter when we descended rapidly and, with a soft bump, we landed on the ground, and Deidara put me down.
Struggling to keep myself upright, I let go of Deidara-kun's cloak just as the clay over my eyes shattered.
We were standing in a massive clearing surrounded by trees that stood several yards high. Right in front of us was the Akatsuki hideout. I was surprised when I saw that the sun had already set and the last few rays of light were just disappearing.
Yume-chan was still cussing and swearing when Deidara-kun led us to the large front doors of the building. Tobi handed us our weapons before trailing behind him excitedly while the two of us lagged behind.
"That was so awesome!" I whispered.
"Yeah, because you were held by your stalkee bridal style," she replied grumpily.
"I'm NOT a stalker," I said heatedly, but my ears and tail appeared, betraying me.
"Whatever," she said, "Let's catch up."
"You just want to see Itachi," I said, rolling my eyes as we sped up to catch up to the two men in front of us. I knew her non-reply was an agreement, and jogged to catch up with her.
We entered through the double doors into a cool atmosphere and my ears and tail finally disappeared. We passed through a few corridors, all empty, until we reached another, where Hidan was leaning against the wall, playing with a PSP. His cloak was folded over and tied to his hips with a belt so that his torso was bare, but a few beads of sweat were still glistening on his skin.
I wondered why he was sweating—it was that hot out. I exchanged a glance with Yume-chan. She was nuts about Hidan as well—though only because he was funny to her. He looked up from his PSP for a moment, carelessly at first, but snapped his gaze back up when he saw Yume and me.
"Who the fuck is this?" he asked.
"We found them in the forest!" Tobi said excitedly, "Aren't they cute?"
"We're taking them to the Leader," Deidara-kun said, "They know about us, un."
"I like your shirt, by the way," Yume-chan snorted, and I glared at her in exasperation.
"So do I," he said, returning to his PSP.
"Wish you would leave my stuff alone for once, un."
"The fuck are you talking about? This is mine," Hidan said.
"Liar. Konan bought it for me, un."
"I will fucking sacrifice you to Jashin-sama if you tell me one more fucking time that this is yours. Konan gave it to you to give it to me. You're just fucking stupid."
Yume-chan laughed softly and, at Hidan's expectant glare, said, "You cuss even more in real life."
I nudged Yume-chan on her arm, and she cleared her throat.
"I mean, I've heard you that cuss a lot, but I didn't know it was true," she said, "That's what I meant—b-by—real l-life …"
I thought she started stuttering because of everyone looking at her as though she was insane, but then I saw Itachi and Kisame turning into the corridor and pointedly glaring at us. I stepped in behind Yume-chan, pretending to be her shadow again. Kisame-san's face was even freakier than normal.
"Ah, who's this?" Kisame asked.
Deidara-kun sighed, "We found them in the forest. They know all of our names. We're taking them to the Leader, un."
"They know all of our names?" Kisame asked, a look of confusion passing over his face.
"I'm Naresome Yume. It's n-nice to m-meet you, Itachi-kun," Yume-chan stuttered, having eyes only for the red-eyed nin, but he only grunted.
"Who's this?" Kisame asked, glancing at me from over Yume-chan's shoulder, and I looked at her expectantly, waiting for her to introduce me, but she was still just staring at Itachi. I rolled my eyes and looked at Tobi for help, who giggled excitedly.
"She's Amamhiro Yoku-chan!" he said excitedly, "She doesn't talk."
"She's fucking mute?" Hidan asked, and I shook my head sharply, hiding further behind Yume-chan to hide my ears and tail.
"She's shy," Tobi said affectionately, "And these ears and tail appear whenever she blushes! Isn't it cute?"
"That's enough, un," Deidara-kun said, "Let's go."
I followed Deidara-kun silently while Yume-chan stood still, staring at Itachi, until I pulled her away by her arm.
"See you later, Itachi-kun," she called over her shoulder.
"Just when I thought I wouldn't have to endure any more lovesick fangirls, un," Deidara sighed, and I grinned at a fuming Yume-chan.
"I'm not a lovesick fangirl!" she said heatedly.
"Yume-chan loves Itachi-san, Yume-chan loves Itachi-san!" Tobi chanted all way to another set of double doors. He had dodged all Yume-chan's attempts to hit him other the head easily, while I stared at her with a look that said 'way to go'.
Deidara-kun opened the large doors effortlessly and we entered, and Tobi's chants faded away instantly. Spiky rust-brown hair was visible above the high back of a chair, which turned to face us, and none other than the piercing-mad Pein was revealed.
"What's this?" he asked in a voice that sent chills down my spine, looking at Yume-chan and then at me hiding behind her as always.
"We found them in the forest, Leader-sama!" Tobi said, dragging the 'sama' out cheerfully.
"They know our names, and I didn't know what to make of them, un," Deidara-kun said.
"They know your names?" Pein asked.
"We know all of your names, to be more precise," Yume-chan said fearlessly. Oh, her guts was going to get both of us killed, but my voice failed me when I tried to stop her from continuing, "We know more than just your names, too."
"Deidara, Tobi, leave," Pein commanded, and they obeyed immediately.
When we were the only ones in the room, I started trembling. The room was dark and barely furnished, and the walls themselves gave off a vibe that left me feeling very unsafe.
"What are you names?" Pein asked.
"I'm Naresome Yume," Yume-chan said, "This is my friend Amahiro Yoku."
"And what do you know of us?" he asked.
"We know about your seven bodies, and the Akatsuki's motive to gain control over the whole world," Yume-chan said, "We know a bit of each Deidara, Tobi, Kisame, Hidan, Kakuzu, Itachi, Zetsu, Konan and the deceased Sasori's past."
'Dammit, Yume-chan', I thought, 'You didn't have to go that far.'
"Well, we can't have that kind of information leaking out, can we?" Pein said, the ghost of a smirk on his lips.
"So let us join," Yume-chan said simply. Damn, she was pushing our luck so far. We're going to die. I knew we were going to die.
"From which village are you?" he asked, "I see no forehead protectors."
"Well, we're not actually from any village," Yume-chan said uncomfortably, "We don't have forehead protectors, and we know of a lot of jutsus and the definition on how to use chakra, but we can't actually use it."
'Oh, damn, this is bad', I thought, 'We are so dead. So very, very dead. How is she not afraid of this man?'.
"Have you ever tried?" he asked.
"No."
Pein sighed, "Then I cannot let you join, but I cannot let you go either. You know where the base is, and you know too much about us."
"We don't actually know where the base is," she said, "We woke up in the forest, but we don't know how we got there. We were blindfolded on the way here. If we can't be of any other use, let us out as spies."
"I cannot allow that, either. I do not know you, and therefore I do not trust you."
Yume-chan was silent for a moment, and I hoped some of my panic was rubbing off on her, because she needed to see the mess she had put us in, "So what will you do with us?"
"I will allow to live and be trained here, within in the base, by some of the members," he replied, "Only if you agree to my terms, that is."
"What are your terms?"
"You are not allowed to leave the base at all, unless you are escorted by one of the members," he said, "Also, if you attempt to contact anyone outside the base, you will be killed instantly."
"Will it be like that forever?" Yume-chan asked slowly, "Can we do something to gain your trust?"
"I will think on it," he said, "You cannot use chakra, you say?" Yume-chan nodded. "As Deidara and Tobi were the ones who found you, they can train you. When you are on their level, we can talk once more on your options. You may leave. I will have a room prepared for you."
'One more time', I thought, 'We are so very, very dead.'