Deidara's Story:
Clay Hearts Molded
Chapter 5: Deidara's Price - 500k
Deidara awoke the next morning, yawning and blinking in the sunshine as it cast a pale glaze over his bed. "Hm, almost time to go I think, un." Getting up, he yawned again, stretching. Going to the counter near him in the relatively small room, he dressed, cinching up his headband and smiling into the mirror. "Well! Time to start off a new day, un!"
"Deidara-kun! Are you ready? Shizune-hime is ready if you are." It was one of the guards at his door. He smiled.
"Yes, I'm ready, un!" Opening the door, he slapped the man on the back, walking down the hallway with him. "How'd you sleep last night, un?" The man smiled at him.
"Well, we were too drunk to know offhand. Oh well, we're ready and fit this morning, thanks to a wonderful hang-over antidote that Shizune-hime concocted." Deidara nodded, still smiling.
"Very good!" Once downstairs, he nodded at the guards who were massed around. "Let's go!" They nodded, milling out the door. Apparently, the girl was already in the carriage, making it easy to start the journey onward. Once outside, the group took up position around the carriage, Deidara once again taking up a position on the top. As the convoy left the town, going back into the forest, Deidara sighed, standing on the roof and glancing around. "This is going to be boring without anybody to fight on the way, un. I killed off all those bandits yesterday. Well, if I didn't kill them off, the least they could do would be to attack again, un. For vengeance or whatever." He huffed. "So boring!"
"Ahem...Deidara-kun?" A voice from below caught his attention.
"Hm?" Glancing down, he smiled as a pretty head poked itself out the window. "Oh, Shizune-hime. Good morning. How did you sleep?" She smiled at him, blushing slightly.
"I must say, I was a little...pre-occupied to sleep..." Deidara's eyebrow rose slightly, and her features changed. "I meant that I was thinking." He nodded, smiling as his joke didn't go unnoticed.
"Yes, you had lots to think about, I think." She nodded, looking around at the changing atmosphere.
"If you wouldn't mind...guarding me from inside...so we can talk, perhaps, Deidara-kun?" He nodded, smiling.
"Sure thing!" Slipping in through a window, he sighed as he flopped onto one of the cushions. Pressing his weight against it, he smiled once again. "So...what did you want to talk about then, un?" The Princess Shizune smiled, turning her head slightly.
"I was wondering. Could you...if it wouldn't be too much trouble, I mean. Could you...make me a swan? With your clay?" Deidara smiled. A swan? Was that it? Taking out a glob of clay, he fed his hands, allowing them to munch on the material until it was pliable. Taking it from his orifice, he gently molded, carefully and meticulously. After a moment, he had a swan. Easy enough, for one such as him.
"Here you are, un. One...er, swan!" She smiled once more, and his heart melted in his chest. Reaching out gingerly, she took the earthen creature from its resting place, allowing it to preen its imaginary clay feathers in her grasp.
"I...I had always thought...I would find you again. I didn't...couldn't..." Tears were welling in her eyes as she caressed the creature, and Deidara blinked several times.
"Shizune-hime? Are...are you alright, un?" She gulped, then looked up, her smile much brighter and more irresistible this time.
"Of course. I'm just...I'm just so overwhelmingly joyful I found you again, Deidara-kun!" He gasped slightly as she pressed against him, wrapping her arms around his body and hugging herself to his.
"What do you mean? What do you mean you found me again, un?" He was beginning to hyperventilate. It was something that a good shinobi never allowed himself to do. He never should have shown emotion.
"After the incident...at the village...I thought...thought..." He could feel her tears coursing down his shirt. The fire from her eyes was transposing itself onto his skin, and he could feel it burn his flesh like a flame. Wrapping an arm around her, he patted her back uncomfortably, glancing around at the walls of the carriage in an effort to rid himself of the horribly awkward situation.
"I...um...that is. I don't...um...really know what you're talking about, Shizune-hime. Iwagakure is my home...but it isn't your's. My village is Iwagakure, un." She shook her head, her hands grasping the front of his shirt in an effort to contain her emotions.
"No! You weren't always...always from Iwa, Deidara-kun! You were from my village! Remember? Think!" Deidara's head was swimming. He couldn't focus. He couldn't understand what she was saying. Another village? His home had always been Iwagakure...hadn't it?
"I'm sorry, Shizune-hime. You...you're mistaken, un." Grasping her firmly, he set her down on the other side of the carriage, bowing slightly. "Pardon me. I...I have to go outside now, un." Grabbing the sill of the window, he let himself out and up, back onto the top of the carriage, where he could get some fresh air...and think.
It was nearly mid-day when the carriage stopped to water the horses and allow the men a small reprieve from the day's riding. Already, many were feeling the pressure of sitting on horse-back in their rumps, and some were walking around in a half-daze, trying to relieve the pain. Deidara smiled about, walking to the edge of the small pond they had stopped by. A horse drank thirstily on his left, and he smiled over at it. It rose its head up, gazing at him with soft, brown eyes. He grimaced slightly, thinking back on the carriage incident. Patting it softly, it went back to drinking. In an effort to clear his head, Deidara bent down, cupping water in his hands and splashing it onto his face. Shaking himself fitfully, he returned to his normal self, or so he thought himself normal. Turning, he pulled a wry face at the men standing in a circle, drinking more of the home-made sake. "They never will learn, un." Laying down on the grass, he let his mind drift like the clouds overhead, watching the wind pull and tug them in different directions.
"Deidara-kun...something vexes you?" Yodae...that annoying guy.
"Yes. Is it possible to be from somewhere...that you don't remember, un?" Yodae blinked slightly, sitting in the grass near to the blond as he pondered the question.
"Somewhere you don't remember? Like...a bar or pub or something of that nature? I tell you, Deidara-kun, you are a strange one. How can one be from somewhere that you can't remember?" Deidara shook his head at the rejoinder.
"I...I don't know, un. Funny, it seems strange and weird. But, I feel as if it's true, un." Yodae scratched at his head.
"What's true, Deidara-kun?"
"That I'm from somewhere else. But how can someone forget something so valuable, un?" The question settled on the air for a moment before Yodae laughed slightly to relieve the atmosphere.
"Perhaps you got bumped on the head, Deidara-kun. That sometimes makes a man forget. Aye, forget that and perhaps more. Hahaha!" Getting up, the guard brushed himself off. "Come, we must be on our way, Deidara-kun." Deidara nodded, still pondering the mystery. Forgotten...but not lost. Remembered...but puzzled over. Vague signs of nothing. Mists clearing into bogs of uncertainty. These were things that shinobi pondered on an average basis. To be a shinobi meant that one had to be secretive and quiet. Appear like a sunrise and disappear like the morning dew. But...this mystery. What was it? Walking to the carriage, he hopped back to the roof, sitting in a meditating position and closing his eyes. He would think more about what was going on while the trip continued.
It wasn't long after they began again that storm clouds brewed in the East. Deidara's eyebrow rose slightly as the clap of thunder in the distance boomed out over the caravan. I hate rain. I hate thunder. I hate lightning. I hate...weather! Another clap of thunder rolled down the meadow and into the forest. Thunder...an explosion without the bang. A useless commodity. Getting up, he stretched. He hadn't realized the amount of time he had taken to meditate. "Yodae!" The guard glanced up from his position in the forefront of the caravan. "Let's take a break, huh? The clouds are moving in, and a storm is coming I think, un." Yodae glanced up, noting the wind beginning to blow.
"Good idea, Deidara-kun. We won't make good time against this storm front. Men! Make ready to camp for the night!" The men nodded, getting off their steeds and leading them to the cover of the forest. The carriage yanked along as the men guarding it led the horses into the tree-line. No sooner had the camp been set and the horses cared for than mother nature unleashed her fury, sending cascading sheets of rain down upon the tents and smothering the small fire they had worked at making. Deidara sat huddled in the leeward side of a tree, looking up into the sky.
"For once...just once! Just once I would like to go on a mission where it didn't rain so damn much, un!" Looking into the dark, the carriage looked like an uneven part of the scenery, standing against the trees and brush surrounding it. "I had better check on Shizune-hime. She hasn't made a peep for a while." Getting up, he quickly made his way to the carriage. "I hate the rain, I hate the rain, I hate the rain!" Getting back under the cover of an awning, he peeped inside. Shizune sat on her bench, reading a book by lamp light. Deidara smiled, unwittingly placing his foot in the wrong area. His position changed, and with a sharp outcry, he slipped, landing in the mud, backside first. He scowled, glaring up into the heavens as the heavy rain poured down. "Great! Not only am I wet...but I'm muddy to! Wonderful, un! That was such a shinobi move...I think I'll do it again, un!" Achieving a standing position once more, he brushed himself off, muttering darkly under his breath. A small titter from above him made him glance upward. Shizune smiled, staring down at the muddied Deidara, who glared back. "Oh ha ha! Laugh...go on. Fine! Laugh. Yuk it up, un! So funny!" Turning, he padded lightly off into the cover of the forest and his tent, to find a drier shirt and pair of pants.
Having reached his tent, he crouched down, entering into the warmer, drier space. Smiling at the warmth, he quickly stripped the wet clothes off, leaving them in a pile outside. They were muddy, so being in a mud pit wouldn't harm them further, or so his reasoning went. Laying down on his mattress, he sighed. He was still wet, but no longer soiled. As an added bonus, it wasn't that cold out. Merely wet, but comfortably warm. A few hours in a tent would soon have him dry. While he air dried, he would figure out the riddle in his head.
"Um...Deidara-kun?" Getting up on an elbow, he glared out into the rain, where Shizune crouched, gazing into his tent.
"Come to laugh at me some more, un?" She giggled slightly, but held her peace. "Well, thanks but no thanks. Why don't you go back to your reading, Shizune-hime. I'm sure no one will attack in this rain." Another small giggle. Her attitude was beginning to become annoying. Not just that, but she was staring at him...without clothes on, or without many clothes on, anyways. "Um...can I help you?" She smiled, reaching behind her.
"I...I thought this could come in handy." An object flew across the space, and he snatched it mid-air, pulling it in close. It was a towel, beautifully embroidered. He stared at it, then back at her.
"Er...thanks, un." She nodded.
"Be well, Deidara-kun." Getting up, she left him to his peace. Half-crouching in the low tent, he quickly whisked the towel about him, feeling the material against his skin like a cloud. He sighed, feeling the weight of conscience weighing down upon him.
"Well...at least you didn't act like a complete jerk, un. Wait...yes you did! You silly bastard!" Sitting down in a huff, he sighed down at his feet. "Way to act the shinobi, Deidara. Way to go indeed, un." Picking up the towel again, he gave it a sniff. Instantly, his body melted, and his pains from the day seemed to absolve themselves. Slowly, he sank to the floor, the towel over his head. "This will all look better in the light...of...day...un." Soon, he began to snore, his moaning lending noise to the maelstrom happening outside of his tent. "I...hate...the rain...un."
It was almost dawn when a loud cry shook him awake. Deidara rose up, his eyes flashing. "Who? What? Where, un?" Getting up, he quickly threw on his only extra set of clothing, bounding out of his tent. "What's happening?"
"Drop your weapons, or she dies!" A man had Shizune by the throat, a kunai poised. Deidara blinked several times before shinobi instinct kicked in.
"What do you want here, un?" The man smiled, and then laughed outright. Deidara heard other laughter echoing around the glade, and he glared.
"What do we want? Justice! Freedom! Swift atonement of the ones holding us in the yoke of oppression!" Deidara's eye twitched for a moment before his hand went to his forehead.
"Wait wait wait. Don't tell me you're Red Hand people, un." The man was caught unawares for a moment.
"What do you mean, Red Hand people? We are the freedom fighters of the world! We are the ones who will deliver you..."
"From tyranny and oppression and the cruel axe of irony and blah blah blah. Yes, I've heard it all before, un." Putting his hands up in a show of good faith, he smiled. "Look, no one here needs to be rescued or anything like that. So...just calmly...put the girl down...and..."
"Fool!" He hopped back as two others entered from the treetops, their hands flying. The guards were beginning to mill about, drawing weapons.
"Suiton: Atsubottai Kasumi Tokai no Jutsu!" Almost instantly, the glade became shadowed in a dense fog. Deidara glanced around, scrunching up his face against the wet stickiness that developed.
"This fog is like soup, un. How am I supposed to fight in this?" A voice from the dark abyss answered back.
"That's the point. You are supposed...to die!" A foot lashed out, catching him on the chin and sending the blond sprawling. Lying in the dirt and muck, he looked up in anger. A fist crashed into the bridge of his nose, and he tasted blood pouring down the back of his throat.
"Ouch...that hurt, un." Rubbing his nose, he rolled to the side as another fist crashed down. Grabbing it, he wrenched the owner closer, a kunai already in his other hand. The man gasped as his balance was overwhelmed, and he toppled to the ground. The kunai flashed out, but stopped before doing any damage. "Wait...Yodae?" The guard blinked several times from his position.
"Dei...Deidara-kun? Forgive me. I thought you were one of them." Deidara sneered, kicking him in the side as he stood up.
"Idiot! You attack them, not me, un!" He heard the whistle coming before the weapons penetrated his field of view. Barely able to react in time, Deidara threw up his hand, his own kunai deflecting the enemy's. "This is pissing me off, un!" His left hand dug in his pocket for clay whilst the right was otherwise engaged, the kunai warding off other attacks.
"Doton: Insutanto Ryuusha no Jutsu!" Deidara felt the ground below him begin to cave, and he yelped as he sank down into the loam, his body stuck in the coffin like hole. A ringing laugh echoed around the encampment as frightened animals and men milled about everywhere.
"Hey! Don't step on me! Watch it, un!" Deidara gasped as a horse bucked wildly near him, and he shut his eyes as it stomped the ground mere inches from his face. As he felt it leave, he felt the ground beginning to suck him down further. "I need to get out of here." Looking about him in the fog hazed clearing, his brain suddenly caught onto an idea. "Hey...that could work...or get me killed. Either way, it's got to be better than being sucked under the ground, un." His left hand began churning the dirt, making a small chasm between his pocket and his left hand's mouth. The tongue lolled down, and began feeling its way to the pouch. "A...little...more. There!" Lapping up some clay, it brought it up, beginning to chew...as Deidara was completely immersed in earth!
Far away from the clearing, Shizune's captors were standing around a lake. There were only three of them, but they thought themselves sufficient enough to take out a few guards and one Jounin ranked nin. The obvious commander of the group, a tall, lithe man of about thirty, eyed the girl in front of him. She had been bound and gagged, effectively ending any struggle she could have put up. Though, they figured that she wouldn't have struggled much.
"Good. Now, we just ransom her out. The money should help fund our operation." He smiled, kneeling and rubbing a hand over her cheek. She recoiled slightly, feeling the pressure against her flesh like a hot iron. "Now now, girl. No use crying or struggling. It won't get you anywhere."
Suddenly, the forest went dead, as if the animals were expecting something. The leader glanced up, standing and eying the woods. "Well, let's get out of here. The fog will dissipate slowly enough to let us to get away without too much..." However, his words were cut short as the forest erupted in an explosion, the noise deafening the three as they withstood the initial blast. One threw himself on the ground, attempting to escape the falling debris. The other two merely sidestepped and kicked away the trees and rocks that flew at them. As the atmosphere settled, the leader glanced at his man. "What in Kami's name was that?" A flash flew by, and the man found himself staring at an irate Jounin, his blue eyes flashing dangerously. Deidara's clothes were in shambles, and they hung loosely from his body, patchy and worn.
"Those...were my favorite clothes, un!" The three eyed the Jounin for a moment before they smiled.
"So sorry. But, don't worry. We'll keep the girl as a consolation prize. That way, you won't have to see her anymore, and clothes won't be your biggest worry."
"You can't have her. I need her!" A kunai in his hand, Deidara swung upwards, being countered almost instantly. The man with whom he fought hopped nimbly away, grabbing Shizune on the upbeat and tossing her to his follower.
"You! Get her out of here! I'll take care of him!" He kicked his other man in the foot, making him rise. "Come on, be useful and help me!" He nodded, taking up a stance behind as the other grabbed the girl, hopping across a small lake for the other side. Shizune gave a muffled sob before they were out of hearing distance. "Boy...you should have stayed underground!" He launched himself across the glade, kunai poised. Deidara shook his head, his teeth shining in the sun of the new day.
"Sorry...cold underground, un. I prefer sunlight." They clashed, their kunai's ringing out against the day. The other nin stood to the side, watching the fight. A spear flew in, and he barely dodged in time. Yodae and the other guards were running across the field, and the man glanced desperately at his commander.
"What? Go take care of them! Grow a backbone! I'll take this one." The man nodded, turning to intercept the guards that were running for them. The commanding nin leered down at Deidara as they pushed against one another. "You're going to die here. I'll make the girl scream long and hard before I let her go. That can be on your mind as I send you too hell!" His foot lashed out, catching Deidara in the stomach and doubling him over. The kunai flashed down, and Deidara rolled to the side, feeling it catch on his shirt. However, his left hand was already at work, chewing more clay. The man in front of him sneered, hands flying in a jutsu. "Are you a gambling man? I am...Hahaha!" His hands stopped, ending in the sign for ox.
"Ninpou: Ichibanshoubu no Jutsu!" His hands flew down, grounding themselves. A pair of large, purple dice erupted from the ground, settling in front of the two. The man smiled, placing a foot on one as he eyed the blond in front of him. "This is my die roll technique. Choose a die. If you roll higher than me, you lose. If you roll lower than me, I win." Deidara quickly calculated the odds in his head. Higher...lose. Lower...win. His brain ached with thinking, so he smiled.
"Fine! Left!" The man nodded, making another hand-sign. The die flew in the air, twirling and spinning around. Then, they began to fall, still twirling. Hitting the ground with a thump, Deidara gasped at his die. He had rolled one. He smiled as the other die turned up five. "Ha! Lower! I win!" The man smiled.
"Wrong, shinobi! I win! Remember, higher, you lose, lower, I win. So, I win! Your penalty...is death!" The die began to spin...faster and faster in front of the confused Deidara. He cursed himself for never learning how to play games. Suddenly, it stopped, the six in front of him. The holes in the die opened, and senbon sprayed out. Deidara had no time to react as his body was covered in the pointed objects. With a groan, he fell to the ground, his eyes closing. The Red Hand shinobi smiled above him, shaking his head. "Your luck just ran out, Iwa-nin. You lose!" He began to laugh, turning to go find his other compatriot and the girl. However, his laugh turned into a grunt, and he glanced down at the kunai appearing from his middle. A gurgle arose in his throat as Deidara smiled from his left.
"Sorry...never really believed in luck, un!" Hopping away across the water, Deidara made a single hand-sign. "Katsu!" The Red Hand nin gave one last cry as the clay kunai burst into an explosion, sending him into the next life. Deidara smiled, hopping across the water to the other side. Looking down, he noticed the broken plants and slight footsteps of a petite form. "I'm coming...Shizune-hime."
In a meadow on the other side of the small forest, the third nin kicked the prostrate form of Shizune, who had taken to sobbing lightly. "Quit your whinin'. You should act like a shinobi! No crying!"
"No crying? I'm sure I can make you cry sooner or later, un!" The man gasped, turning around as a fist planted into his face. Deidara glared at the man as he was thrown head over heels, coming to rest against a rock near the middle. Taking out a kunai, Deidara slashed Shizune's bonds, and she smiled weakly up at him.
"Deidara-kun. You...you..." He shushed her, standing back up to stare down the other nin.
The nin in front of him sneered, pointing a finger at them both as he yelled out, "you! You...bastard! I'm going to kill you!" Just then, a small mound of dirt began to form in front of him, and the shinobi glanced down, staring inquisitively at it. Deidara's head popped up, looking around. Then, he extricated himself from the dirt, shaking himself off before waving at the Deidara across the field.
"Alright! It's done!" Then, with a poof, he was gone. The Red Hand nin glared about.
"What? What's done? What did you do?" Deidara smiled at him.
"I had my clone plant some explosives around. Don't worry. As long as you don't move from that spot, you aren't in any danger!" Picking Shizune up in his arms, he turned, beginning to walk away.
"You coward! Come back here and fight me fair!" Deidara turned his head to address the angered man.
"Coward? Coward's pick fights with women who can't defend themselves, un. If anyone is the coward here...you are! Tah tah!" Resolutely, the blond walked out of the clearing, leaving the man high and dry on the rock, staring out into a sea of uncertainty, and unless he was careful...certain death!
Back at the small pond, Yodae and his men, though severely bruised, battered, and tired, had managed to subdue their man. He lay on the ground, glaring about him, though obviously scared. Deidara smiled down at him as he struggled vainly against the bonds that held him. "Don't try to struggle, un. I'm sure Yodae and the others have been trained for these kinds of situations." Looking up, he nodded at the guards, who smiled back. Yodae gave a weak salute before allowing his arm to rest against his side tiredly.
"Deidara-kun...you...you did it! You rescued Shizune-hime." Deidara nodded, looking down at the woman in his arms. She had long since fallen asleep, her body worn and tired from the day's episode. Deidara felt his own body like a weight, his legs barely keeping him up.
"Yeah. It wasn't too hard, un. I feel bad for that other guy...but I'm sure that..." However, his words were interrupted by a loud explosion nearly a mile off. The guards and Yodae watched a plume of smoke and dirt rise into the air, and Yodae scratched his head.
"What on Kami's great Earth was that?" Deidara sighed, walking towards where the carriage should be.
"That...was the wrong place to walk, I think."
Lifting Shizune carefully, he set her down on the carriage seats, stepping out gingerly. "Dei...Deidara-kun?" Looking up, he smiled, waving at her.
"Yep. You're safe, un. Go to sleep." Shizune shook her head, getting up slightly.
"No. No, I'm fine. Just...woozy, I suppose. Please, stay with me, Deidara-kun." Deidara grimaced, looking about him.
"I...really should be seeing to the campsite, un."
"Please...Deidara-kun?" Deidara sighed, getting back inside and closing the door.
"Ok. Sure, I'll stay. But I think that if I do, you should tell me some things. Like...where I came from before Iwa, un."
Shizune blinked several times, as if registering the comment. "Where...you came from? You don't remember?" Deidara shook his head.
"No. I don't. I don't really remember anything from my past." He smiled, laying back and tapping his head. "I guess all those knocks to my noggin never helped matters, un." She tittered slightly, but held her peace.
"Deidara-kun. You and I came from the same village. The village of Genso. Don't you remember?" He blinked, feeling through his clouded memories for any recognition of the name or anyone from it.
"Hm...I don't really know. I can't say for sure if I remember, un. Wait!" His eyes lit up, and he smiled. "I do remember! At least, I think I do, un!" Shizune smiled, waiting. "There was...a school. There was...a girl. A girl...who was kind and thoughtful, un. I thought...she was the most beautiful girl in the world!" He was excited now. "I...I went to class. We...we were doing something with clay! I made a swan, if I remember correctly. Hm...yes! A swan! I...gave it to the girl, but someone took it away. That boy. That..." His hand began to tremble, and he looked down at it. "That boy took it, began to pull it apart. I tried to stop him. But...he..." As he talked, a tear fell from his face. "He...died. I...I killed him."
"No!" Shizune stuck her face up to his, glaring at him. "No! No you didn't! He brought that on himself! How could you have known?" He shook his head, looking back at his hand.
"But...it was me. I did it. I..." Turning from her, he dashed from the carriage, taking to the treetops and hopping through the branches and foliage. After having attained the height of the trees, he stopped, gasping for breath as the thunder clouds clapped in the distance. "Who...who..." Looking up into the clouds, he grimaced, then threw out his hands. "WHO AM I?" A lightning bolt struck the tree he stood on, sending him falling, whirling in a world of chaos and discord. The last thing he felt was the ground beneath him, swallowing him into the world of darkness.
When he awoke, he pressed a hand to his head. He could tell that he was moving, his body jostling slightly back and forth. Getting up, he gave a sharp intake of breath. His head felt like it was on fire, and he could hardly think straight.
"Where...where..."
"You are with me, Deidara-kun. We found you out in the woods. Just one more knock to your noggin', eh?" A wet, damp cloth pressed itself to his forehead, and he sighed. Glancing up, he smiled at the girl who was tending to him inside the carriage.
"Thank you, Shizune-hime." She nodded, smiling back.
"Deidara. Before you left, you mentioned a boy. A boy you said you killed." Deidara nodded, sitting back and remembering that fateful day in the playground. That horrible day... "Deidara, it wasn't you. You can't blame yourself." He nodded, looking at his open mouthed hand as it panted at him.
Sitting back up, he winced at the pain in his head. "Well, it's good to know that I have a past. After all the fighting I had done...I kind of forgot I had one. Hm...maybe I'll go back to it one day and figure things out. Talk to the people and see who I was, my mother was...things like that, un." He smiled once again, leaning back on the cushions.
Shizune shook her head gravely. "I'm sorry, Deidara-kun. But...that wouldn't be a good idea."
"What? Why not, un?"
"Because...there is a price on your head in our old village." Deidara blinked at her statement, and lifted himself off the cushions once more.
"A...price, un? Why hasn't anyone told me?" The girl smiled, almost chuckling.
"My father has cut ties with the village since he found the mine...and I never really had any friends there anyways. Besides, I couldn't be sure it was you until just recently." Turning to him, she smiled. "The man whose son was killed. He has placed a price on your head."
Deidara nodded, thinking to himself. "Hmm...but I wonder how much is enough for me, un?" Shizune sighed, looking down as she twiddled her fingers.
"The last time I heard, it was at five-hundred thousand yen. That was the last time, almost five years ago. I don't know how much it is now. Possibly more. However, the fact that it still remains makes it that much more dangerous for you." Deidara nodded.
"I see. Thank you for telling me, Shizune-hime. I suppose that I will have to go back later on and give atonement. But..." and now he stood, shaking himself off. "First, let's get you married, hm?" Shizune looked up, smiling slightly, and nodded as well.
"Yes...without more mishaps, I hope." Deidara smiled back, exiting the carriage.
"Deidara-kun! You're alright!" Yodae and a few of his men came running up, panting slightly as Yodae saluted. "Good! Good! I was wondering whether you would survive that. It was a nasty fall you took, Deidara-kun!"
Deidara smiled back, nodding and taking the man's hand. "Ah, that it was. But, I'm fine now..."
"Probably because of Shizune-hime, hm? Well well, good going!" Yodae said, laughing. Deidara grimaced, blushing slightly. Letting go of his hand-hold on Yodae, he jumped to the top of the carriage.
"Alright then! Let's get going! We have a ways to go before we get to the castle, un!" The others nodded, and Yodae shouted out for the men to get on their horses. As Deidara sat, he began to ponder. Five-hundred thousand? If worse came to worse, and he needed money, he could always get Yanoi to bring him in for the ransom. He laughed slightly, looking up into the sky. He wondered how she was doing back at home...and how home was doing without him.
Suiton: Atsubottai Kasumi Tokai no Jutsu - Water Release: Heavy Mist Of Concealment Technique
Doton: Insutanto Ryuusha no Jutsu – Earth Release: Instant Quicksand Technique
Ninpou: Ichibanshoubu no Jutsu - Dice Roll Of Chance Technique
A/N: As this is the last thing I will type up before Christmas, I wish to say to you all Merry Christmas! Happy Hanukah! Happy Quanzah! Oh! And if I mispelled anything in there, then sorry. I never was good at spelling. Happy Holidays, everyone! Hope you all get what you wanted for Christmas!
...I want more love and joy. But, that will never happen. So HA!