helloEisley: Hey everyone! Here's the new chapter!
I DECIDED TO KEEP SASORI AS A HUMAN BOY. But probably later in the story, he'll make himself a puppet body so that I could have a bit of fun with both of his bodies … Hahaha.
To reply to some of your reviews, I wanted to change Hinata a bit for this story … I don't like the fact that she's always dressed in a jacket and I wanted to make her like something else … I was shopping in Forever 21 when I decided that the vintage style would work just fine. What do you guys think?
And to whoever mentioned that I should try to make the characters more IC ... I don't try to intentionally go OOC. Sorry. I hate those stories where Hinata is absolutely badass or Sasuke's a geek ... those are just ridiculous and make me roll my eyes. And I want to bring them out of their 'in-a-nutshell' stereotypes: the loud one, the stupid one, the lazy one, the compulsive eater, the bitchy one, the arrogant jerk ... give them all a few more sides. But tell me ... is it that bad? Is it that OOC? Tell in a review!
Also, I hate how in some of the stories Hinata stutters every single word. If you listen to her in the show, it's usually just a stutter once somewhere in the sentence or just at the beginning and when she doesn't know what to say. So I give her stutters but not obnoxiously consistent ones.
Enjoy the chapter! And review!
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The entire Rookie 9 gathered outside Tsunade's office early the next morning.
Hinata was basically being held up by Kiba. She gave a small yawn. "W-Who schedules a meeting in the middle of the night?"
Sasuke had to smirk. "It's nine a.m."
Hinata groaned.
Kiba sank down to sit against the wall, and carefully leaned Hinata's back against his shoulder so she was sitting up beside him. "Get some shut-eye," he ordered. "Tsunade won't be here for a while, I bet."
"I-I h-had a … a … a what? Oh … (yawn) … it was a … a thing for S-Sasori … I was decorating his r-room for him …"
"Who?" Kiba asked curiously.
"Tsunade … she said that boy chose m-me … (yawn)" Hinata sighed and fell asleep.
"Did Tsunade tell you guys who chose you?" Kiba asked, confused, looking up at the Rookies.
All seven heads nodded.
"Ah, that's bull crap," Kiba groaned. "I was at Hana's boyfriend's place on the other side of Fire Country all day yesterday … that woman probably couldn't find me."
"That woman has a name, and a title, and a hand that controls everything in your home village," said a lofty voice, and Tsunade appeared. "Wake up Hinata and come into my office."
It took Kiba's rough shakes, Naruto's loud yelling and Sakura's gentle calling of her name to get Hinata to wake up. They literally dragged her into the room and Kiba had to keep a rough fist on the collar of her black dress to hold her upright.
"So, I know that none of the Akatsuki showed up last night. I guess when I saw them on the radar, they were only checking out your places. However, I saw most of them sleep around the village last night."
A silence followed.
"They will most definitely arrive today. If they do not, you must tell me and I will consult my little … GPS."
Naruto barked out hysterics. "AHAHAHAA … AHAHAH … That's funny … because they're like … AHAHAHA … and you watch them … AHAH … and you see where they're going … AHAHahaaha…. Ah … ah… eh ..."
"It's not even funny, Naruto," Sasuke muttered.
"Yeah, I know, I didn't really think so," Naruto said, straightening up.
Tsunade glared. "Anyway, I wanted to tell you something before they do show up."
Kiba knocked on Hinata's head, which was suspiciously bobbing lower.
"So …" Tsunade said, "The extent of this mission is tremendously long. That's the first thing."
"How long?" Naruto asked. Sasuke didn't mind; he'd probably be living with Itachi for a longer time anyhow.
"Maybe even over a year," Tsunade said quietly. "The Akatsuki are too serious of ex-convicts to be taken lightly. Their probation has to be ridiculously long and hard-driven …"
"Yeah, because the Rookie 9 are so serious and hard-driving," Sasuke muttered.
"Hey!" Naruto shouted, offended, and raised his fist to clobber Sasuke, but Sakura pounded his head in before he could do anything.
"Don't you dare hurt Sasuke-kun!"
Tsunade sighed. "So, are there any of you willing to abort mission now?"
No one moved. Then, a few uncertain but clear 'no's came up, some people merely shook their head, but Sasuke didn't hear a single 'yes' or see a single nod.
"Excellent," Tsunade said, actually smiling. "The other thing is that you all go to a public school, don't you?"
There were scattered nods, and Ino spoke up, "Konoha High."
Tsunade nodded at the name. "Right. Well, what are you? Freshmen?"
"Sophomores!" They all said indignantly.
"Sorry, sorry. Well, so that means these Akatsuki members will be … seniors. Yes, seniors. The year just began, didn't it?"
"It begins tomorrow, Tsunade," Sakura peeped.
"Oh. Perfect. So they'll be going to school with you."
"Are you joking," Kiba growled. "This is insane!"
"I agree," Naruto said, scratching his cheek. "They're criminals! It's a public school, where people piss each other off … do the math …"
Tsunade smirked. "That's why it's your job to make sure they don't get in fights, or situations. You'll serve whatever punishment they receive as well, whether it's community service, detention..."
"Great," Naruto muttered.
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Deidara and Itachi found Sasori, Nagato and Konan sitting outside by that same rail fence the next day.
"Where did you sleep last night?" Itachi asked everyone, knowing full well that no one had gone home to their assigned genins.
There were a few who muttered "motel", "forest" and "rooftop". Itachi had spent the night awake, circling the Uchiha compound and reminiscing. He was tired now, but he was on his way to get some coffee.
"Well, today we have to move in," Konan reminded them all. "The genins have had a full night to prepare."
"How about some coffee," Itachi suggested, pointing to a nearby Starbucks.
They all agreed, and as they walked in, there were several stares, squeaks and cries for help. But once the villagers realized there was nothing to fear, the atmosphere settled from a terrified one to a tense one.
Itachi ordered black coffee, Deidara ordered a muffin, Sasori didn't want breakfast, Konan asked for a vanilla soy latte and Nagato only bought an organic slice of carrot cake.
As they occupied an empty table by the window at the back of the coffee shop, the Akatsuki members reflected on their numbers. "Where're Kisame and Hidan and Zetsu and Kakuzu?"
Konan shrugged. "Nagato said he saw Kisame and Hidan at the motel he stayed at … and I saw Zetsu sneaking around the forest last night."
"Kakuzu was with me," Deidara said, surprising everyone. "He left when he woke though, which was way before I did … at like three in the morning, I think. He might have gone to his kid already, yeah."
"Doubt it. The four of them might be together," Sasori mumbled.
Sure enough, the bell of the shop rang and the four remaining Akatsuki members strolled in and walked over to the full table, drawing up another one and conjoining them.
"If Zetsu hadn't spotted Konan walking into here, we would never have found you guys," Kisame said. "Can I have a bit of that?" He picked at Deidara's muffin.
The large blond huffed in annoyance and immaturely smashed the muffin into his comrade's face. "Fine, take it!"
"Control yourself!" Konan snapped peevishly. "Gosh. You act like a child."
"It's already noon," Itachi observed, as he looked at the clock at the front of the shop. "Do you think the kids are expecting us?"
"The old hag Hokage said they wouldn't have missions for the next week or so," Konan replied.
"Ah."
"Who did you pick, Konan?"
"…I'd rather not say."
Sasori gave her a smug look.
"Wipe that smirk off your face," she said quietly, angrily.
He just turned away, but his smirk remained.
Itachi watched the two of them curiously. Sasori got to his feet after a few moments' time.
"I know I hate waiting and making others wait," Sasori said, "so I guess I'll go buy a few essentials and be on my way."
The others all nodded in silent agreement as they all stood up from the table as one, and strode out of the shop. After a quick hour of buying suitable clothes, each of the Akatsuki separated and sauntered off to their designated address.
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Shikamaru and Choji were standing outside of Shikamaru's house when Kakuzu and Nagato showed up.
"Kakuzu," Kakuzu said, extending a hand to Shikamaru, who took it.
Nagato was about to do the same, but he saw Choji's greasy fingers and thought better of it. "… Nagato."
"Kakuzu, I'll take you inside. You can meet my dad and mom and they'll do everything from there." Shikamaru said, groaning as he rubbed the back of his neck. "What a drag … this is so troublesome."
Shikamaru led Kakuzu inside, leaving Choji and Nagato to themselves.
"… You weren't at your house."
"I'm not right now, am I?" Choji said, munching another chip.
Nagato rolled his eyes. "Just take me there."
"Fine, whatever. Follow me." Choji sighed. "What a jerk."
"My hearing senses are ten times better than yours and so is my figure," Nagato snapped. "Don't be such a bitch."
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Kisame showed up outside of Shino's house. He didn't mind the bugs all over the floors, windows and walls as much as he minded the fact that his sword happened to be inconsequently killing all of them as it dragged along the wood.
"Sorry, sorry," he muttered, weaving through the room and trying to avoid the bugs. He'd heard of this clan and how significant these bugs were. "Ah, hey kid."
Shino acknowledged him with a nod of the head and merely gestured the shark-like man into the guest room. "The room," Shino said quietly, "has been equipped with a jutsu to dispel the bugs. You won't be disturbed."
Kisame gave a nod of gratitude.
"Oh, and," Shino said, his eyebrows drawing into a scowl, "See if you can't walk around without killing every bug in your path."
"But that's impossible," Kisame whined. "Every time I walk they just get under my blade!
"... Ditch the blade or use the window."
"F … my life."
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Ino was assorting flowers into a bouquet for a lady.
"Here you go, ma'am, I'm sure your husband will love it."
The woman thanked Ino profusely, paid for the bouquet and exited with a smile. Ino hollered up to her father that she'd made another sale as she ran into the back room to answer the telephone.
"Hello? Oh … Sakura! Hi! I'd love to … when? … Sure, I think I can make it. I'll meet you there, alright? Sorry, I have to go. I think I heard a customer. I'll call you back later, okay? Bye-bye!"
She hung up cheerfully and skipped back into the front of the shop, where a scary-looking man with slicked gray hair stood. He wasn't wearing the Akatsuki cloak; Hidan had in fact changed clothes.
"I'm Hidan," he said, but apparently Ino didn't recognize him.
"Ino … can I interest you in assorted orchids? … They're very popular this time of year."
The man sighed. "No, no. Take me to the bedroom."
Ino's eyes widened. "RAPE!" she screamed, cowering behind the counter.
"I'm not – I don't – stop – don't-"
"RAPE! HE'S TRYING TO RAPE ME! GO AWAY!" Ino bellowed at the top of her lungs, stomping her feet like a child as she backed up against the wall.
Hidan shouted, "I'M NOT FUCKING TOUCHING YOU!"
"What's going on here?" A police officer said, walking over.
"Nothing," Hidan glared at Ino. "I'm ... her big brother."
Ino got the hint. "Ohhhhh ... hehe."
The police officer handed a note to Hidan. "Charges. For breach of peace."
Ino just winked at the police officer and flounced back behind the counter to help a scared and sympathetic customer, leaving Hidan to pay the charges.
"Unfreakingbelievable."
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There was a shatter of glass, and Naruto came running from the bathroom.
"INTRUDER!" Naruto yelled at the top of his lungs. "Show yourself! I'll kill you! I'm Naruto Uzumaki and I won't let you steal anything!"
Deidara rolled his eyes as he snagged the flying kunai with a single finger. He had jumped in through the window. "Gotta do better than that, little brother," he mocked. "Hey. I'm Deidara."
Naruto surveyed the large blond. "H-Hey…"
"I'll be living with you."
"Eh? Oh, right … well, um, the perverted hermit helped me get ready for you. Come on in."
"Perverted hermit?"
"Jiraiya," Naruto said absently as he showed Deidara around. "See that mattress? That's mine … it's got that black sleeping cap on it. And the one next to it against the wall is yours. You can just put your stuff anywhere, I'm not a big one on privacy … and I won't take anything, either."
Deidara nodded appreciatively and dumped his pile of belongings on the mattress.
"The bathroom's down there … there are some laxative medications … you know, I don't keep track of my expiration dates and sometimes I get heavy diarrhea … if you're going to live with me you should know that randomly eating and drinking the things in my fridge might not always be safe."
Deidara gulped.
"And I also bought you some condoms. They're in the drawer under the bathroom sink."
"Thanks, buddy," Deidara said, ruffling Naruto's head. "Thought of everything, didn't you?"
"Well, I asked my Kakashi-sensei what older men need to have and he mentioned urges or something … I'm not stupid."
"Good. What size did you get?"
Naruto paused and scratched his cheek. "... Size? Well, eh ... I got my size ... so what? I'm pretty big ... don't worry about it! Just use them for now, I guess ... or not at all ... I mean, does a guy like you even get laid?"
"Agh ... go fuck yourself."
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Sakura heard a scream. She ran downstairs to find her mother on the verge of consciousness, leaning against the doorframe.
"You – Akatsuki … you're …"
"Mom! It's okay!" Sakura exclaimed quickly. "This is my mission." Sakura quickly explained to her mother, who still cautiously watched Konan as the older, criminal kunoichi explored the house gingerly.
"Here, Konan, I'll show you your room," Sakura smiled.
She smiled a small smile at Sakura and followed the pink-haired girl upstairs.
"See this room?" Sakura said, motioning to the door to the left. "That's my bedroom. Come find me for anything you need. The room at the end of the hall is the bathroom. Your room is this one."
Sakura walked her into a magenta-painted room with sunflower-yellow bedsheets and a cherrywood bureau and matching writing-desk in alternate corners. There was also a wall closet at the back and a mirror on the far wall.
"Sorry about the colour scheme, if you don't like it, or the arrangement of the furniture … this was just always our guest room. My mom designed it four years ago."
Konan quietly thanked Sakura and began to move in to her room. She piled some of the bras and undergarments into the bureau and used the wall closet for the outfits she'd brought.
Then, she littered her weapons onto the writing desk, removing the Akatsuki cloak and changing into a simple fighting outfit. She mussed the bedsheets a bit, bounced on the edge of the mattress, and then crossed the hall to the bathroom.
She then emerged, a few minutes later, running out looking very uncomfortable in her pants.
She bumped into Mr Haruno at the top of the stairs. "Ah … is there anything you need, Konan?" he asked politely.
"Er … is Sakura or the missus home?" Konan asked desperately.
"They've just gone out grocery shopping, but they should be back in at least a half hour," Mr Haruno said. "Is there anything you need?"
"Ah … this is awkward … but I really need a tampon right now."
Mr Haruno dropped a sweat.
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Kiba unleashed an uncharacteristically high-pitched scream as Zetsu leaped in front of him.
"Quiet it down, kid," Zetsu said. "I'm your guest, remember?"
"Play it cool," Zetsu's split personality suggested. "We can't trust him just like that."
"Why are you always like that?" Zetsu's other personality asked.
"Whatever. Just watch out."
"The hell should I listen to you?"
"Because you're going to kill yourself one day and I'll be the one to save you."
"Keep dreaming."
"Eh?" Kiba scratched his cheek. "So … you talk to yourself often?"
"I'm Zetsu."
"Hey, I remember you. Welcome."
"Thanks, kid."
"Here's your room. My mom made it up for you. Here she is."
Tsume Inuzuka walked into the room, nervously shook hands with Zetsu, whose Venus-fly-trap appearance seemed to make her uneasy. She shot Kiba a warning look before announcing she was leaving to find Hana.
"Oh yeah, Hana is my sister," Kiba explained. "She's great. Okay, there's Akamaru … I hope you like dogs … hey, boy, how're you doing?" Kiba rubbed Akamaru behind the ears and the dog started to follow at his heels as Kiba led Zetsu further into the room.
"You can use the closet for your clothes … there's the hamper for dirty clothes … um, you don't have to make the bed every morning, we're not a neat freak family."
Zetsu purred in contentment. "Thanks, kid," he said again, jumping onto the bed and throwing his clothes straight into the closet. "This room is pretty sweet ... It's nothing special ... be grateful!"
Furrowing his brow, Kiba turned away to the kitchen.
"What a freak."
"We heard that."
"I didn't - I mean, I … shit."
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Sasori stood outside of Hinata's window. She lived in a small bungalow house, he found. He didn't want to go inside yet, so he merely scaled the wall outside, occasionally peeking inside.
When he reached the window to her bedroom, he paused. She was standing in front of the mirror. She was wearing just her long-sleeved black dress, and she was fixing some of the bandages around her legs.
He watched as she put the white puffy vintage blouse again over top of her black dress, flexed her fingers, and leaned over to the nightstand.
She grabbed a hair tie and gathered her hair into a high-ended ponytail. Then, she grabbed a kunai from her thigh pouch and two senbons, holding them in her fingers like chopsticks.
She surprised him when she whipped around to face the window.
"Who are you and what do you want?" she said suddenly, a trace of fear in her voice.
Sasori raised his eyebrows and hopped in through the window. "Take it easy," he said, lifting his hands in defeat.
"O-Oh … you're from the Akatsuki." She lowered the senbons in her hand; Sasori noticed that although she returned the kunai to her thigh pouch, her hand hovered over it.
"I'm not going to kill you," Sasori told her, annoyed.
"And I'm not going to trust a guy I just met," Hinata said, without looking back as she brought him through to the front of the house. "As far as you go, you're still an ex-S-ranked c-criminal missing-nin."
"And as far as you go, you're still just a teenage girl. You can't handle me." Sasori didn't really like her stutter … in fact, it was getting annoying. "And can you stop stuttering?"
"It's a reflex!" Hinata snapped back, angrily turning around to face him. "You make me nervous and frustrated!"
Sasori hid a smirk as he followed her to the kitchen.
"This is the kitchen," Hinata sighed, in an I'm-sure-that's-obvious tone.
Sasori's inward smirk grew, but he remained outwardly passive. "Okay."
There was no living room. The kitchen took up the entire front of the house, with a table for four or five in the spacious other half where the refrigerator and stove weren't.
"Down that hall is the bathroom."
"All right."
"If you want me to trust you, don't give me monosyllables."
Sasori scowled. "Don't tell me what to do."
Hinata only gave him a fake sweet smile and shrugged. "That's better."
Sasori glowered at her. "What are you trying to pull here?"
Hinata's fake sweetness disappeared. "T-Tell me one thing," she said, stuttering for the first time in a bit as she stared straight into his brown eyes. Of course, she had to look up quite a lot to meet them. "Why did you even pick me?"
"Honestly?" Sasori looked away. "I didn't want the fat one, the lazy one, the loud blonde, the squeaky blond girl, the bug freak, the dog boy … and Sasuke was Itachi's. I saw Konan had her eye on you … but I wasn't going to be stuck with cotton-candy-head. I fought her off and grabbed your card."
"I would have liked Konan," Hinata admitted. "S-She seems a lot l-like me."
Sasori had to agree. Both dark-haired girls were reclusive, mature and quiet in their own way.
"I'm tired of fighting," Hinata sighed. "I-I don't like to."
Sasori shrugged. "Show me where I'm staying."
Hinata nodded and led him through the hall to a bedroom that was right beside hers. When Sasori walked in, he was pleasantly surprised.
The walls were painted in three layers of colour – the top layer was a fat strip of black, the middle was beige, and the bottom was a dark, brooding red. The walls were covered with black-and-white framed photos of storms, warhorses, battle scenes, mesmerizing pictures of bloodshed and rage. Sasori traced his fingers along the capturing glass, feeling the emotion behind the images.
"T-This is great," he said.
"I painted it and d-designed it yesterday," Hinata said shyly. "I saw that big blonde boy … and he said you like art."
"I do." He laid down his latest puppet in the corner.
"W-What's that puppet?"
"I made it … I make them for weapons."
Hinata made a noise in her throat and said, turning away, "A housewife can think she needs the best kitchen equipment to cook a gourmet meal, but the best chef knows that all he needs are the basic tools."
"Are you saying what you think you're saying?" Sasori growled.
"That you're too narrow-minded of a ninja to be a good fighter? … Yeah, yeah I would be." Hinata's confidence was returning to her now, now that she was arguing with Sasori again.
"These puppets are what I know," Sasori snarled. "Don't talk like you know what they are."
"I know a Sand ninja who uses a puppet …" Hinata mused, thinking of Kankuro, "and it's because he isn't the most accomplished at taijutsu."
Sasori was beyond angry. He was about to lash out again, but as he was thinking of what to say while looking around the room, he thought about how much time and effort and money she had spent to ready his room and just remained quiet.
"This," Hinata said, handing him a key, "is a key for your bedroom door. It's the only key and I can't pick locks."
"Why do you think I need it?"
"… Well … are your puppets really just for fighting?" Hinata asked, blushing, curious.
"What … are you …" Sasori's face turned to one of horror, and he jumped back a foot or two. "Oh my God, NO! Just … no! Get out!"
"Don't tell me you aren't a teenage boy," Hinata mumbled, blushing even redder.
Sasori wanted to laugh. And cry. He just remained horror-stricken and pointed at the door. "No … really, no. Just – leave. I'm going to unpack."
Hinata was so pink. She wondered if Sasori actually did, well, masturbate. Angrily, she wrung open the door. "Fine! I'm going! Out! Who knows how long! Who even cares!"
She slammed the door, and Sasori felt something twist his gut. She was more angry at something else than at him … he remembered that she was a Hyuuga, and she not living in the Hyuuga compound but rather in a house on her own … something must have happened to her.
He sighed. Sasori then looked at the clock. It was still early, and she'd gone out. He had no wish to find her in the village, or to wander aimlessly around the house until she got back.
Sasori gave his puppet a curious look. Then, he stared down at the key in his hand.
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Sasuke looked up as Itachi walked into his house. "Eh, Itachi."
"Hey, little brother. This is quite a nice place you've got." He looked around the small bungalow house. It had a carpeted floor, a single bed in the corner of the living room – where he supposed he would be sleeping – and a television. There was also a fridge in the kitchen, an oven, a microwave and a small table that seated four.
Down the hallway was only a bathroom and one closed door, which Itachi assumed was his little brother's bedroom.
"So, this is where I sleep, then?" Itachi asked, gesturing to the bed in the living room.
Sasuke nodded. "There's a bureau in that crook where the fireplace should be."
Itachi nodded and started filling the bureau with the few sets of clothes he'd just bought, and then sat down on the bed. "How do you live?" he asked curiously. "You can't have a job…"
"I get some money from my missions," Sasuke admitted, "and a little help from the Hokage and Kakashi."
"Ah. Well, that was kind of them."
"Hn."
"You know, have you even thought about … you know, reviving the clan?'
"Well, sure. It used to be one of my goals that came right after killing you." Sasuke snorted humourlessly as he grabbed a soda from the fridge and hurled it playfully across the room at Itachi.
For anyone other than a skilled Uchiha prodigy, the catch would have been difficult, but Itachi's hand shot out and snagged the soda can, opening the latch with one swift motion. He took a long sip before saying, "Anyone in mind? Anytime soon?"
"I'm fifteen, dude."
Itachi smirked. "So was I."
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helloEisley: It was a lot of fun pitting personalities like that. I want you to tell me which first meeting you guys like the most! For me, it has to be Kiba's, Hinata's or Sasuke's. Hahaha. Review!