Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Naruto characters, unless otherwise stated. In this case, I only own Kimi and her village.
Author's Note: Sorry! Sorry! Sorry! I didn't mean for it to take too long to write this next chapter. For some reason, I got stuck about half a page in. Ugh! I hate writers' block! Well, I got this chapter done (finally) in one sitting today. Finally got a burst of inspiration during a study break. Yay! Anyway, I'll try to get the next chapter done faster, but really, I don't know what to happen next. I have an idea for a small scene, but it won't last nearly long enough for an entire chapter . . . grr. I might be able to make it work, though . . . ah well. Anyway, I hope you all enjoy this chapter. It's a bit less bubbly than most, but you'll see why. Drama! Enjoy!
XXI
God's Angel moved silently through the rain. Water sluiced off of her wide hat, keeping her dry for the most part. Her cloak provided more protection against the offending damp. Her feet did not escape the wet of the rain, but by walking over puddles with the use of her chakra, she was able to reduce how much of the water actually splashed up beneath the protection of her hat and cloak.
The young woman walking next to her, however, was not so lucky. Kimi sloshed through the puddles rather than over them, splashing water up to her shins. She groaned softly, glancing up at Konan. "To think I got a bath before we left. I'm going to have to take another one when we get back."
Konan almost felt sorry for the girl. As a shinobi, she almost took such abilities as walking on water for granted. By watching the woman beside her, Konan was suddenly reminded of how hard the life of a civilian could be. For things that shinobi could use chakra and jutsu for, civilians would have to figure out some other way to achieve the same end. Their endurance was down; travel for them was considerably slower; they were all-in-all extremely weak.
And yet this woman – no, this child – walked proudly with her head held high. Her cheery smile almost never faltered; her laughter never ran dry. What about her life could Kimi find so enjoyable? What secret did she know that made her outlook of such a dreary life so bright and cheerful? It almost made Konan sick.
The kunoichi returned her eyes forward, her face set in an emotionless mask. There were times when the girl's antics were endearing, but here – in this awful rain – she was not in the mood to be amused. It was during times like these when she wondered why Pein put up with the young woman. Why did he agree to allow her to stay? True, the base was in the best state it had been in for a very long time, but what else was the girl good for?
She glanced at the covered basket Kimi held protectively in her arms. The girl could cook, too. There was no doubt about that fact. But was the work of a maid enough to justify her presence among the Akatsuki?
Kimi jogged ahead of her companion, holding the door open for the kunoichi. Konan nodded to her in thanks as she stepped out of the cold rain and into the warmth of the building. In truth, Konan did not know quite what to think of the young woman. For the moment, she would decide on indifference. As long as Kimi remained useful to Akatsuki – did her job as she was supposed to – Konan would put up with whatever oddities might come with her.
Konan watched passively as Kimi bustled cheerily around the kitchen, stowing away the groceries the pair had just returned with. After a moment, she spoke up softly, "You'll want to stay out of the way today."
Turning away from the refrigerator, Kimi gives her a questioning look. "Out of the way? Is something going on?"
The blue-haired woman shook her head. "Not exactly. One of our members is returning from a mission, and you'll want to avoid him. He has an ugly temper."
Kimi paled slightly, which strangely pleased Konan in a way. "Oh. I understand. No problem. I'll find something to do to stay out of his way," she said quickly. "I have some painting to do anyway."
Konan barely nodded in acknowledgement of her reply before turning and leaving the young woman alone in the kitchen. The kunoichi did not know quite why she had warned Kimi about Kakuzu. If the girl did something to upset the man, it was none of Konan's business. Akatsuki was not responsible for her. If she was killed because of her clumsiness or naivety, then that was Kimi's problem, not Konan's.
She left the girl to her own devices, determined to keep Kimi out of her mind for the rest of the day.
--
An hour past lunch, the peace of the Akatsuki living area was pierced by a wet crash, followed by a sharp scream. An orange-masked blur came rushing out of Deidara's room, chased by the shriek of a woman's voice.
"TOBI!!!"
After the sound of several crashes and thumps, Kimi – nearly covered in pale yellow paint – flew out of the room behind him, grabbing the door frame to help turn her faster to chase after the masked shinobi. "Get back here you – ack!"
Kimi ran face-first into something hard and solid, stumbling back and slipping to fall on her rear end on the tile floor. Yellow paint dripped from her hair as she rubbed her lower back with a wince. "Ow . . ."
"What the –? Who the hell are you?! Look what you did to my cloak!"
Kimi froze, turning wide eyes upward to look at what she ran into. A very tall man wearing a half-mask over his mouth glared down at her through strangely-colored eyes – green against black. The front of his Akatsuki robe was smeared with yellow paint.
All the color drained from Kimi's face and she started trembling. "I-I'm so sorry!" she gasped, scrambling to her feet. "I-I'll fix it!"
"Fix it?!" the man roared. "How do you think you're going to fix it? This is paint on my robe! What are you going to do?! Wash it?!"
Kimi shrank back, white as a ghost. "Y-yes?"
A low growl rumbled from the man's chest. Black threads seemed to be trailing down from the sleeves of his robe, twitching toward her. "Do you think this is some kind of joke?" He asked vehemently, advancing on her.
Kimi shook her head rapidly, backing away. "N-n-no sir, n-not at all!
The threads rose up, inching toward the girl's neck. Her eyes widened still and she did not seem to be breathing any more. "Do you have any idea how much these things cost?!"
"N-no s-sir," she squeaked.
The threads were dangerously close, but before they touched Kimi's skin, a voice spoke from behind the man towering over her. "I see you've killed another partner, Kakuzu."
The man – Kakuzu – stiffened and looked over his shoulder. "So?"
The female voice did not answer his question, merely commanding, "Leave the maid be, Kakuzu."
"Maid?" Kakuzu intoned, looking back at Kimi. His voice seemed almost incredulous.
Kimi barely had the energy to nod.
Kakuzu turned to fully face Konan. The kunoichi stared at him with blank eyes, not even seeming to take note of the splotch of yellow paint on the front of the man's cloak. "Pein wishes to speak with you," she stated flatly before Kakuzu could snap out whatever was on his tongue.
The man scowled and grunted, shooting Kimi one last fierce glare before stomping away, He jerked his cloak off and threw it on the floor as he passed Konan. Kimi stood there for a moment, staring after him. Her legs then gave way and she sank to the floor in a puddle of paint and tears.
Konan watched her from a distance. She gave a slight sigh. So much for keeping the young woman out of her mind and not caring whether she got herself killed by Kakuzu. Despite her earlier mental declarations that Kimi was not her responsibility, Konan could not bring herself to merely watch as Kakuzu took his anger out on her.
The kunoichi glanced down at the discarded cloak. Though it was true that, from the looks of things, Kimi had gotten paint all over the front of his Akatsuki robe, it did not warrant killing the girl. In fact, Konan would be willing to bet that the true fault would lie with a certain orange-masked shinobi.
In a spurt of kindness, Konan bent over, picked up the cloak, and walked over to where Kimi had crumpled to the floor. "Clean yourself up," she said gently but firmly, "and then see what you can do with this. I'll get Tobi to start cleaning up the mess he made in there." The kunoichi nodded to Deidara's room.
Kimi nodded, trying to wipe her tears off on an un-painted bit of her sleeve. "Th-thank you, Konan."
Konan nodded and laid the cloak down, careful to avoid the paint that had dripped on the floor. "Take your time." She then turned and walked away, sighing inwardly. Actually caring seemed to be much more trouble than it was worth.