My Pain is Yours
Author's Note: Konnichiwa readers!! I apologize for all the time that it has taken for me to update and write this chapter; my computer broke down so I was stuck using the school's computers for all eternity and trying to do my schoolwork. But that issue has been resolved and I now present you with Chapter 2! Enjoy!
Chapter II: Attempting an Escape
The rain fell harder. Lightning coursed through the sky in jagged patterns as the thunder drummed in the distance. Gray clouds rolled in to obscure the moon and stars in a cloak of darkness. If it weren't for the lightning, the sky would be nothing but a black abyss.
Plummeting from the ebony sky, glittering raindrops fell into puddles, which then turned into pools that eventually spilled over as they continued consuming the precipitation. The wind began blowing harder; rattling the bare tree branches and making the rivers flow faster until they began to flood.
Two men penetrated the sheet of rain, one shielding his head with his suitcase as they hurried underneath a tree in hope of avoiding the rain shower. Each of them donned cloaks as black as the midnight sky, embellished with crimson clouds as they retreated into the shadows.
"This sucks Kakuzu!" the shorter of the two said, although there was little height difference between the two. "I mean, come on; why did that stupid Leader-sama have to send us out in this crappy weather? Yeesh!"
"Shut up Hidan," the taller of the two, Kakuzu, muttered. "I just hope my money isn't wet."
Opening his suitcase to finger the dry bills, Kakuzu began filing through his money. Hidan snorted. "There you go again; obsessing over your cash." Kakuzu cast him a dirty look, his jade and scarlet eyes glowing in the darkness.
"Watch your mouth," Kakuzu warned.
"You don't get to tell me what to do!" Hidan kicked at a puddle, spraying water everywhere.
"Watch it!" Kakuzu shrieked, snapping his briefcase shut. Hidan stifled a snicker. Kakuzu snarled, "That wasn't funny; try it again and I will kill you."
In the darkness, Hidan rolled his purple eyes, "See? All you give a damn about is that money. Besides, you couldn't kill me even if you tried." His smug smirk irritated Kakuzu all the more; even through he couldn't see it, Kakuzu could hear it in his partner's voice.
"We'll see about that…" Kakuzu grumbled, looking into the rain.
"Oh please," Hidan sneered. "Just go back to counting your money."
"Shut up," Kakuzu snapped.
What aggravated Kakuzu the most about his partner was probably his attitude; that arrogant, egotistical air that Kakuzu couldn't stand. On the other hand, Hidan could barely tolerate Kakuzu's greed; the one thing that really seemed to set him off. Either way, it didn't matter. They were partners in the infamous Akatsuki organization and they were looking for someone.
Cracking his aching joints, Hidan began moving his neck from side to side, asking, "So who are we looking for again? Some girl who's supposed to a medic nin or something like that?"
"Yes," Kakuzu hissed. How many times have I told him this?! "For the last time, Leader-sama sent us to find a kunoichi named Aiko who is journeying from province to province with a seer. Aiko is supposed to be a medic nin with powers rivaling that of even the great Tsunade."
"Oh?" Hidan murmured, pretending to be uninterested in anything Kakuzu had to say. How am I supposed to know who Tsunade is?! Is he trying to make me look stupid?!
Pausing, Kakuzu sighed; "You don't know who Tsunade is, do you?" Hidan twitched.
"What?! Of course I do!" Hidan insisted. Kakuzu was left wholly unconvinced.
"I'm sure you do," Kakuzu dryly replied. "Idiot," he added without hesitation as he plunged back into the rain, leaving Hidan behind.
Chasing after Kakuzu, Hidan yelled over the roaring thunder, "What did you just call me?! Eh?! Come back here!" He followed Kakuzu into the rain which only seemed to continue falling harder and without rest. Hidan was drenched and now in a fouler mood.
Glancing over his shoulder, Kakuzu murmured, "We're close, not to worry. Just keep your mouth shut and we'll be there before you know it." He ignored Hidan's barrage of insults as he fought his way through the rain, soaked and chilled almost numb. He hoped that his briefcase would protect his money from the precipitation.
Looking into the black sky with lightning flashing overhead, Hidan frowned. Well I guess it doesn't matter who we're going to find. I just want to get this over with and get out of this stupid rain…
Half an hour had passed and Aiko still sat on the groaning bed with Shinsei crying into her shoulder. God, this had Shinsei more upset than Aiko had ever seen before. She looked out at the streaked window but could see nothing except occasional flickers of lightning. The thunder boomed louder than before and she felt Shinsei flinch.
Between sobs, Shinsei begged, "Please Aiko, please just lets get out of here! I'm so scared!" She cringed at the earsplitting sound of another bout of thunder. It just seemed to be getting closer and closer all the time, closing in on her…she squeezed her eyelids shut, tears still streaming down her face. "Something bad is going to happen!"
"Don't worry," Aiko soothed, holding Shinsei and running her fingers through the messy red tangles, "I'll get us out of here before anything bad happens." She held back a sigh. But where would they go? Where could they go?
Peering into the blurred window, Aiko found that for once she didn't know what to do. If they went out into the rain then they would catch colds for sure, but if they stayed at the hotel then …well, either way nothing would stop what was to come. They couldn't prevent the inevitable.
Separating from Shinsei, Aiko murmured as calmly as she could, "All right, here's what we're going to do. You and I will head out of here and go around the perimeter of Amegakure through the forests to avoid the civil war that's going on right now. Then, we'll head to Sunagakure and see if I can get you enrolled in their system."
"But Aiko!" Shinsei choked on her sobs as she struggled to talk. "What would you do?!"
Aiko shrugged. "Just keep traveling. I know that you don't want to keep traveling like this, you want to settle down; you want to have at least some control over your life. But I don't know what I want to do." Shinsei balled her hands into trembling fists as she grasped handfuls of the linen sheets. Aiko watched her friend with sad eyes.
"I refuse to be separated from you!" Shinsei cried. Her eyes were so swollen from crying that she could barely see Aiko anymore, but she knew that Aiko was looking away. "Damn it all to hell Aiko! You're the only thing I've got left!" The brunette closed her eyes.
"That's not true," Aiko murmured with a nostalgic sigh. "You still have family in Konohagakure that probably miss you a lot. By now they've probably given you up for dead."
"I don't care!" Shinsei felt the hot, angry tears rolling down her cheeks. How could Aiko suggest them parting?! Or even her suggestion of having Shinsei return to Konoha?! Shinsei couldn't imagine a life without Aiko in it. That was asking the impossible.
Understanding Shinsei's side on the matter, Aiko lifted herself off the bed and strolled over to the window, pressing the palm of her hand against the cool glass. Shinsei looked up, squinting in the darkness; what was Aiko doing?
Thumbing the windowpane, Aiko quietly said, "All right, Shinsei. If you want to come with me then you can. I won't be the one to stop you." Her hazel eyes stared, entranced, out the window as water streaked down the glass. The sad look in her eyes might have led one to believe that Aiko was on the verge of crying, but Aiko refused to do anything of the sort.
Or at least, she would do everything in her power to prevent the tears from coming.
Swallowing hard, Shinsei asked, "When are we leaving?" She could barely make out Aiko's silhouette against the dark background, but when the lightning flashed again, she caught a fleeting glimpse of Aiko's face; her eyes were brimming with tears.
"Right now."
Author's Note: Hidan and Kakuzu are in it! Yeah! Again, I apologize for taking so long to update it, I will try to prevent that from happening in the future! Please review and tell me what you think! Thank you!
-Aiko of the Akatsuki
