Hi all! I hope everyone had a wonderful week. Me? I had two exams and am looking forward *note sarcasm* to three more. I am dying of joy. Anyway, here is another chapter. I hope you enjoy it.

One Warning, this chapter has some adult themes; nothing explicit and some bad language. I hope it doesn't offend anyone...

Special Thanks to my wonderful, very consistent reviewer EmilyMichele01 who encourages me with her sheer awesomeness.

Anyways, on with the story!

Sam had been halfway to Konoha when he realised that he couldn't do it. She was right. He couldn't leave her behind like that. The moment he stepped out the door he felt a weight settle in his chest and it got heavier the farther he moved away. He remembered the tears running down her face. He knew she didn't mean it when she said she hated him, she got mad a said things she regretted almost instantly. He didn't blame her for that, but dammit, he was only trying to do what was best for them. He didn't want to leave her but he was sure that if there was danger to be found on that supposedly safe road then she would undoubtedly find it.

He ran some of the way back, surprised that he had the stamina for it. He wasn't a very active person but a week's worth of hard labour was already improving that. He got back to the store the next morning just as the sun was rising. Higachi san was already hard at work turning vegetables into cholesterol, looking just as surly as Sam remembered.

'Well it's about time you showed up? Where's Erica? I thought you said she wasn't going with you?' Higachi said

'She didn't go with me. She's supposed to be here. She's not here?' Sam's face darkened.

'No, came in this morning to find the door open and the two of you gone. I figured you two took off together, wouldn't be the first time the help up and left without notice.'

When Higachi looked up again he realised that he was talking to himself. Sam had left the talking man and went to their room at the back of the shop. It was just as he left it. He found her shoes kicked off into a corner under the bed and he felt himself start to shake. None of their meagre possessions were missing so robbery was out. He stood up, fists clenched and head bowed. It was as though a shadow had covered him as guilt washed over him in waves. He ignored Higachi's questions and went straight out into the street. She had been missing for about 12 hours. He needed to find her and he needed to find her fast.

Deidara stood and waited as the girl huffed and puffed to catch up with him. Her feet were bare and she was she was sweating profusely. She didn't smell too good either but since he wouldn't let her return for her shoes or to take a shower, he had only himself to blame. She took the time to bend over, taking deep breaths with a hand clutching her side.

'I need to stop. Please. I can't go on for much longer.' She huffed some more before falling to her knees.

'Get up, yeah, we need to keep going.'

'Why? Where are we going?'

He gave her a look that was intended to frighten her into silence. It didn't work. She merely waved it away.

'Hold your panties on,' she said illogically, 'Isn't there a better way to do this? Can't we like teleport or fly or ninja jump or something?'

'Ninja jump?' he asked.

'You know what I mean, like whoosh, jumping through the trees.'

'You can't walk much less jump from tree to tree, yeah.'

'You could carry me.'

'No.'

She sighed and flopped over till she was lying half on the grass and half on the road. She was even dirtier now. He shook his head. Maybe he should just kill her and be done with it.

'What about your clay birdie thing? Can't we ride that?'

'No. I'm out of clay, yeah.'

'Well buy more and while you're at it I really need a pair of sandals or something, please...'

She looked up at him with wide hazel eyes. She was so annoying, he thought.

'Come on. I have to be in the next village by nightfall.'

Pushing herself laboriously to her feet, she took a deep breath and began to walk again.

He tried to figure out how he had gone from fixing a simple problem to chatting with a grubby hostage on his way back to Ame. Damn Tobi, he thought yet again. When he saw the man again, and he had clay, kunai or even a freaking rock, he was going to torture and kill the bastard. He smiled in anticipated satisfaction and the girl gave him a concerned look. Oh great, now, he managed to scare her. He recalled his earlier failure at interrogation and resisted the urge to pull his hair.

He had never been good at intimidation. Sure plenty people had told him he was fucking nuts but it just didn't seem translate into the kind of fear needed to make someone talk. Whereas the Uchiha could smile, not that he ever did, and people fell over themselves to answer his questions. To fail at questioning a civilian girl, however, was beyond tolerance.

How the hell had he gotten here? It really was all Tobi's fault. They had been on their way back from a short mission in wind country when Tobi had gotten word of a solo mission he had to complete in Earth Country before heading back. He had left in the middle of the night during his watch with all of the money they had. That included Deidara's personal cash as well. He clenched his fist and mentally promised to castrate the little shit when they next met. It was because of Tobi's theft that he had had to take that mission in Shiza and had consequently come into contact with this idiot. He looked up at said idiot just as she bent over to pull a bur off the hem of her pants. Hmmm...She saw him staring and waved at him merrily from her bent over position. Still an idiot, he thought but smiled unconsciously all the same.

They were still miles away from their destination when she simply collapsed. One minute she was upright and walking, the next she was face down on the road. He sighed at the increased aggravation. He did a mental calculation of how long it would take to get to Himitsu, the only town thereabout, and decided that maybe a break wasn't such a bad idea. If he was honest, he would admit that he hated walking, hell, he hated being on the ground. He preferred to be up in the air where everything was clean, fresh and uncomplicated; People were specks who were easily and cleanly eliminated without so much as a trace that they had ever existed. In the air, he was a god raining destruction unto the world, untouched and untouchable.

He nudged the girl with his toe.

'Get up.'

'Five more minutes...'

'Now.'

'I hate you.'

'It's mutual, yeah.'

She sighed before rolling over and looking up at him.

'Deidara, I have a suggestion. I know that you have no reason to listen to me but if you do what I suggest we can slow the fuck down and you can get your clay or whatever the hell you want. If you don't like the idea you can always kill me, I'm tired enough that I don't care anymore. Do I have your attention?'

He simply nodded.

Sam was tired and frustrated by the time he got back to Higachi's place. What he had found had been a case of good news and bad news. The good news was that Erica hadn't been...absorbed into any of the many brothels that operated out of the village. It had shocked him to find out that, not only was prostitution legal in Fire Country (where they were apparently), villages had sprung up as so called entertainment areas where every vice could be indulged. Because of the revenue these village produced for the daimyo they were left untouched and unobstructed in their trade.

Shiza was one such village with brothels and drinking dens being the most prevalent businesses in the area. Those who were not owners, were investors or catered to the other needs of patrons. It was also a hub for erotica and other related shops. While the place wasn't lawless, it wasn't unheard of for unsupervised women to be accosted by drunk customers or to simply disappear. He had found it impossible to explain any of this to Erica and had resorted to the heavy handed 'Don't go anywhere' approach. She had not been happy. Fortunately, she was not in Shiza somewhere; unfortunately she wasn't in Shiza at all.

He had spoken to Maki, the owner of one of the few regular hotels and he had admitted to housing a young blonde haired man who had left sometime the night before. The man had declined to give his name (but that was common here he'd said) but his description matched that of the Deidara person Erica had mentioned. He had then gone to the Barrio where the village 'Headman' lived.

The headman, part businessman/part crook, denied having any knowledge of a Deidara of the Akatsuki. Sam knew he was lying, the man was said to know every time someone sneezed or a coin dropped in the village. The man had made it clear that further questions were unwelcome and had his henchmen (the best word in this case) toss him out bodily. Sitting on the curb he had realised that he had only one option. He knew that more than likely Erica had been taken by that Deidara person who belonged to an organisation that no one seemed to know about but even the Headman hadn't dare acknowledge. Her abduction was likely due to her knowledge, though how the blonde had found out was beyond him. He also knew that he was not capable of tracking them down or rescuing her even if he could find them. It was ironic really, he thought, his only option was to go straight back the way he had come. He had to go to Konoha.