(AUTHOR'S NOTE): Hey guys, how's it going? Great, I hope. For me, a lot of stuff happened since I last posted. Firstly, I graduated recently from my program with an Honours degree, which is awesome! Put my blood, sweat, and tears into it. It was the sole reason why I haven't been able to post chapters as regularly as I wanted. But now that's out of the way, I have more time to focus on this story. Of course I do plan on doing more schooling in the near future. Anyway, I just wanna say thank you for your support and patience with me because I can't imagine waiting for a long time for updates. You guys are literally awesome and I'm lucky to have such supportive readers! Secondly, I'm currently in the middle of writing two more stories in addition to this one, hence another reason why I've been so MIA. As of this post, they're not published yet but one of them is soon to be for a… special occasion, for lack of better words. Meanwhile, I started writing the other unpublished story not too long ago, probably a few months; I'm still working on the details of it. That being said, I do plan on finishing the story since I've invested the most time and energy in making it—I mean YEARS. I swear, I'm not letting it go to waste.
Anyway, that's all I wanted to say for now. Again, thanks so much for your support! Now, on with the chapter!
Sorry in advance for the spelling, grammar, and punctuation mistakes!
Chapter 34: Stuck in the Dark (Part 8)
Kabuto's POV:
"Well, that was one way to waste crucial time." I muttered in frustration, stomping down the flight of stairs.
"We didn't really waste time, Kabuto." Hana assured confidently. "We obtained some leads, if you think about it."
"True, but there's nothing we can go on at this point." I pointed out in defeat, nodding at the friendly blonde behind the large desk as I exited the inn.
"It may seem our chances aren't great, but we can't give up now." She insisted encouragingly.
"Of course, Hana. Problem is… how much more time do we have left?" I questioned deeply, lowering my gaze as I stood in the middle of the busy street.
On that cue, I heard a loud cawing sound above my head. I glanced up at the sound and to my surprise, I caught a bird flying above my head as it soared in circles. I knew from the signal it was sending me that it wasn't just any wild bird, it was one of Lord Orochimaru's birds. After a moment of flying, it finally glided down towards me by which made me hold out my arm for it land. Once it did, I carefully opened its tiny pack it wore on its back and pulled out a small scroll. The second I gripped the scroll, I jolted by the sound and sight of the bird immediately flapping its wings and taking off from my forearm. I watched the bird flying off to the distance until it was nowhere in sight. I instantly started opening up the scroll, anxious to know what was written in it and more importantly, how it would affect Katsumi's search.
"Is that from Orochimaru?" Hana asked concernedly.
I nodded slowly, sighing as I presented myself the written memo on the scroll. I immediately recognized my Lord's handwriting which didn't help my anxiety. My eyes scanned at the writing as Hana waited with anticipation. Once I finished reading the last line, I huffed frustratingly as I rewrapped the scroll.
I never thought the day would come when I was reluctant to follow Lord Orochimaru's wishes.
"What's wrong, Kabuto?" Hana asked worriedly. "What did Orochimaru say?"
"The last thing I would want him to say..." I muttered lowly with my eyes closed and my brows furrowed.
"What do you mean?" The white dove cooed confusingly.
"Lord Orochimaru wants us to return to the hideout." I grumbled huskily, clenching the scroll in my hand. "He needs my assistance and apparently, we 'ran' out the time given to us to search for her."
"B-But, I thought he gave us a week to search for Katsumi."
"Apparently, something came up and he needs his trusted subordinate to take care of it." I pointed out, slipping the scroll inside my weapon pouch.
"So, that's it?" Hana replied in disbelief. "You're giving up just like that?"
"What else am I supposed to do, Hana? There's nothing more we can do to help her." I cut in solidly. "The trail is close to nonexistent and any clues we obtain takes us nowhere."
Hana kept quiet after my small outburst as I started to feel the guilt of taking my frustration out on the innocent dove. I couldn't blame her for her insistent mentality; she was so loyal to Katsumi since she served her for a long period of time.
"Don't... you at least want to know if she's... alive...?" She asked hesitantly.
I glanced at my shoulder where Hana was currently sitting on who jolted at the sudden look I threw at her. To assure her that I meant no harm, I softened my gaze and let out a sad sigh.
"At this point, it's out of my hands." I mused softly then gazed up at the blue sky. "All I can do now is to trust Katsumi's strength and have faith that she will try her hardest to come back..."
A moment of silence came upon us as we sulked disappointedly about the new and upsetting circumstances.
"For the record..." Hana suddenly spoke up. "You'll be the one to break the news to Sasuke, right?"
I let out a low chuckle while shaking my head; my god, this little dove carried some level of sense of humour.
"Sure, because I have a better chance in handling a high-tempered Uchiha." I scoffed sarcastically, pushing my glasses upwards.
The second I was about to take a little stroll down the town, I felt an object lightly bouncing off of my calf. I looked down and raised an eyebrow to see nothing but a toy ball sitting idly by my foot. It was bright pink and was embraced by golden stripes that wrapped around its entire shape. I bent down into a crouch and picked up the toy, examining its entire surface area. Before Hana and I commented, I sensed a presence travelling quickly towards me.
"Hey, you found my ball!" A high, childish voice proclaimed merrily to which I jerked by its level of innocence.
Curiously, I glanced at the owner of said innocent voice and was both stunned and confused to see no one but a little girl smiling brightly at me with her dimples topping off her undeniable cuteness. She wore a long-sleeved purple shirt with blue shorts while wearing black leggings under it that reached halfway her calves. She wore what seemed to be black shinobi sandals made for kids. She had golden-like blonde hair that reached her shoulders with cute bangs that framed her face perfectly. She also wore a matching purple headband and sparkly blue eyes to top off the little girl's appearance perfectly.
What was very odd was that she looked awfully familiar, now that I thought about it. I could've sworn that I'd seen her somewhere before.
"Is this yours?" I asked vacuously, unsure what to make of it as I held out said ball.
She nodded eagerly and held out her hands, signalling me to hand it to her. With my lips curving slightly upwards, I kindly gave what was hers and her face beamed gratefully as she reunited with her precious ball.
"Thank you, Kabu!" She chirped happily, smiling widely at me.
I choked on the name she referred me to. Though it wasn't my correct name, it was stupidly close especially for someone in her age. Kids' brains don't fully developed and because of this, they tended to not recognize faces of those they'd met in the past. So it was baffling to see that this kid hadn't forgotten my face and she impressively didn't forget my name—well, sort of.
"Kabu?" I repeated incredulously with a vacant look.
The little blonde blinked confusingly at me.
"Well, yeah." She replied, then grinned. "Sorry, I forgot your full name... but I do remember it starting with 'Kabu'."
"So, you've met me before?" I questioned huskily.
She let out a cute giggle as a response to my supposedly 'stupid' question.
"Yes, I did!" She exclaimed sweetly then moved closer to me. "You were with your girlfriend, Kat. She was so sweet and nice; she gave me her prize, remember."
That small amount of information was enough for a flashback to that exact moment when I first encountered the little girl whose family gathered around their small infant who was cradled by Katsumi. I remembered her dark orbs sparkling like bright pearls the moment I laid eyes on her. How she held the small child protectively in her arms as if it was her baby. Not to mention how incredible gentle and kind she was towards the little girl as if she was her adorable little sister.
It was that same day I discovered Katsumi Uchiha had a soft spot for children.
"Yes, you're right." I recalled encouragingly, giving her a small smile.
She beamed happily, more than glad that I remembered her.
"If I remembered correctly, your name is...?"
"Akemi!" She interjected brightly as her posture perked up. "My name is Akemi!"
"Ah, that's right." I mused as my smile stretched a bit further. "How could I forget a precious face?"
"It's okay, Kabu!" She insisted sweetly. "I can call you Kabu, right?"
I couldn't help but pet the girl's golden locks for emphasis to my words. "You can call me anything you please, Akemi." I assured calmly.
Akemi nodded in thanks, then asked me such an innocent question but nevertheless the last question I ever wanted to be asked at a time like this.
"Where's Kat?" She asked curiously, scanning her surroundings. "She's with you still, isn't she? I wanna seen her!"
I couldn't break the news to an impressionable little girl when a grown man like myself couldn't accept the situation myself. On top of that, she doesn't even know that we were ninja, never mind the fact that I was currently on a mission to locate and save the ravenette. But couldn't say, "Sorry sweetie, but Kat is currently in the ladies' room, doing her business". Kids aren't stupid because no matter what excuse you give them, they won't set it aside until they saw what you told them.
What the hell should I say to this child that wasn't suspicious nor worrying?
"Well..." I dragged hesitantly, averting my eyes. "She's kind of MIA..."
"What does that mean?" She pouted confusingly, batting her blue orbs.
I sighed heavily, giving myself a bit more time to clarify my statement.
"She left without telling me where she was going, and I'm trying to find her." I answered briefly.
"Is that why you're here?" She asked, batting her big eyes.
I nodded slowly. Then a sudden question begged me to escape through my teeth.
"What are you doing here all alone in this town?" I asked solicitously.
"This town is my home, Kabu!" She apprised in glee. "This is where I live!"
"That's nice." I complimented then scanned my surroundings. "I can see why. The area is calm and peaceful; a good place for a family to live in."
Akemi nodded in agreement. Then her bright, smiling face instantly switched to a sad, gloomy face.
"It's sad that Kat just left without saying goodbye to you." She sulked as her head slightly dropped. "You guys are still together, right?"
"Of course, we're still together..." I answered curtly, surprised that she of all people thought that we cut off ties.
Hearing this gave the little blonde enough energy to give me a weak smile.
"Well, that's all that matters..." She stated sanguinely, reassuring herself with a confident nod.
"Regardless, there's no sign of her anywhere and I have no clue where she is." I remarked frustratingly, clenching on my knee.
My head hung low while my bangs covered my hopeless looking eyes. Despite tampering the truth, my feelings were just as real. I don't know where Katsumi was and frankly, I don't know if I could convince my heart in believing that she was alright. Not knowing anything... being left in the dark was forcing my anxiety to spike rapidly.
Then, a pair of soft, small hands cupped both of my cheeks—barely holding my face—and then I felt their grip lifting my head until my dark eyes met a pair of sky blues. Akemi grinned widely at me as I remained still, blinking curiously at her.
"Don't worry, I know for sure Kat will turn up." She beamed encouragingly.
"How can you be so sure?" I questioned skeptically.
Akemi jerked at my tone then pouted in thought as she looked up, trying to come up with an answer. After a minutes of thinking, she made an 'aha' look on her face.
"'If you love something, set it free...'" She quoted brightly. "'...if it comes back to you... then it's yours...'"
I let out a weak laugh at the girl's attempt in trying to lift up my mood. I briefly faced the ground, shaking my head slowly.
'Gotta hand it to the kid... she's intelligent...' I applauded in thought.
Then, the dark cloud that was slowly fading above my head thickened when a minor detail that was yet to be disclosed. Containing my emotions, I slowly lifted my eyes to make eye contact with the young child, giving her a solid look. Luckily, Akemi didn't take this the wrong way nor believed that I was "upset" with her; she did nothing but smile comprehendingly.
"Then, let me ask you this..." I insisted roughly, earning an innocent look from the child. "What if that something that I love wasn't set free by me... but instead taken from me by force...?"
Akemi's lips quirked uncomfortably at my question. Couldn't really blame the kid considering how talented I was for making people feel god-awful awkward. Regardless, I wanted to know her answer because in rare occasions, children could be more insightful and wise than adults. I knew that consulting my feelings to a child was ludicrous to say the least, but I believed that kids know more than what we adults credit for.
Katsumi herself was the person who gave me this belief.
"Kids are little, they're not stupid."I recalled her telling me during our experimental sessions. "Kids actually absorb more of their surroundings than adults do because they're still developing their senses and it's because they're developing, they oblivious to 'big people stuff'..."
She made a point, however this stemmed mainly from her childhood and not from the general population so it was debatable if whether or not it was accurate. This, for instants, does seemed accurate to me.
"If Kat is taken from you, Kabu..." Akemi repeated thoughtfully then a light bulb went on above her head and smiled kindly.
"Then, hopefully... she loves you more enough to return where she belongs... no matter where she is... no matter the obstacle..." She mused sweetly, eyeing me confidently.
"Akemi..."
Akemi responded with a big smile, showing off her pearly whites. I couldn't help but return the smile; it was so contagious not to reflect the girl's bright personality. My hand subconsciously reached over her head and I petted the girl's golden locks gently as the child was taken by surprise once again.
"No wonder Katsumi adores you so much." I complimented softly which made the girl blush.
She then smiled shyly as her pink cheeks reflected the gratitude of my words. Then, something in that child brain of hers clicked, to which I cocked an eyebrow.
"Hey, I know what'll cheer you up..." She purposed playfully.
Confusion turned into suspicion. "What is it?" I asked warily.
"Food!" She exclaimed excitedly, grabbing my hand. "I know the best place with the best food, c'mon!"
Akemi instantly started running down the streets with me tailing behind her thanks to her surprisingly strong grip on my hand. I couldn't even begin to think how she was able to get me from a crouching position to a running motion. I assumed this amount of strength came from the large amount of compassion and confidence she carried on her shoulders.
I was blown away by this kid's positive mentality, it forced a loving smile on my face which was baffling considering the only other person I'd ever given this smile was Katsumi.
Katsumi's POV:
"Damn it, Tobi!" The blonde growled as he returned with an ice pack in one hand. "When will you EVER learn to calm the hell down, hmph!?"
"I'm sorry, Deidara~!" The boy whined in guilt as he stood by my side.
As of now, I was currently sitting against a tree with a throbbing bump on the right side of my forehead. How I got this injury? Well, it was simple: Tobi doesn't know when to chill the f**k out. From what I'd analyzed, something frightened the poor child and he just wanted to get the hell out of that shop. Without warning, he grabbed me and literally pulled me out of the shop and ran his damn fastest down the streets with me trying my best not to have my mouth shovelling dirt. Long story short, my attempts in keeping myself up failed and I fell forward. That wasn't even the best part: before my head greeted the ground, I got a good kiss to my forehead from Tobi's heel. Thank god, my pain tolerance was ludicrously high.
The man-child was goddamn lucky for having the innocence and being "Tobi" because if it were anyone else, I would kiss the dude's face with both fists.
"Sorry is NOT gonna fix the damage you caused, you idiot." Deidara stated harshly, lowering himself in front of me.
The blonde held out the ice pack he so kindly brought for me, and I nodded at him to tend to my bump. Because I had no chakra at this point, I couldn't use medical ninjutsu to heal the bump. And for some odd reason, my body took way longer to heal itself from bruises and bumps than open-wounds. There was never a clear reason why; the human body was an interesting yet weird machine.
Deidara slowly applied the cold pack on the bump as I sat completely still. As he pressed it a bit further, I jolted when the pain signals shot throughout my nerves, which also shocked the blonde.
"Sorry, hm."
I waved off his apology. "Don't worry about it, Deidara."
The blonde tried again and this time, he inflicted no pain whatsoever and then froze when he was certain that the pack covered most of the bump.
"You really took a hard hit to the head." He acknowledged flatly, breaking the brief silent.
"Way to state the obvious, blondie." I congratulated wryly, smiling jokingly at him.
Deidara rolled his one blue eye in response as I scoffed nonchalantly. Then my pupils turned to Tobi without moving my head.
"Care to tell me what you were running from, Tobi?" I asked expectedly, urging him to explain.
"Well... um..." He stalled awkwardly, scratching the back of his head.
"Spill it already, Tobi!" Deidara snapped impatiently. "She deserves an explanation for her injury that you caused, hmph!"
Tobi moaned in defeat as his head hung low in disgrace.
"I entered the bathroom and walked into one of the stalls, then I pulled my—!"
"Dammit, Tobi!" The blonde interrupted in disgust. "Not in detail, hmph!"
"I washed my hands when I was done, then I reached over to get my ring." The boy continued, unfazed by his partner's outburst as he showed me said ring. "But it slipped and bounce under a closed stall door."
By this point, I started to understand what freaked the poor boy out. 'Poor kid...'
"Once I got my ring, I noticed that... well..." Tobi trailed hesitantly as he chuckled in embarrassment. "Uh, that stall that I was in was already... occupied... by someone as big as Kisame... and he didn't look too happy with me peeking..."
"And considering he was in a stall... he was dropping a deuce..." I concluded theoretically.
Tobi nodded in confirmation to which I giggled at the sight of Tobi's traumatized state.
"Can't blame the guy. I would've knocked the crap out of you if you were peeking, never mind crawling underneath the stall, hm." Deidara muttered sympathetically which earned him a disapproved glare from yours truly.
"I just had to get that ring back!" Tobi whined, holding his head in distress. "If I lost it, Lord Pain will punish me for the rest of my life!"
"I don't see the big deal about it, though." I commented bluntly. "It's just a ring..."
"It's more than 'just a ring'..." Deidara critiqued dryly, surprisingly taking defence for his partner. "Whenever our Leader needs us, he notifies us with our assigned rings..."
The blonde switched his right hand—the same hand that was holding up the ice pack—with his left so that now, his right hand was off duty. He then lifted up his hand, showing off his assigned ring that was comfortably worn on his index finger.
"We're required to carry out missions and half of them are ways away." He continued. "We travel far and wide to the point where we wouldn't see each other for months. This is sort of our way in communicating each other during our long journeys, hm."
I pursed my lips in comprehension as I nodded. "That makes sense..."
Deidara flashed his friendly smile until he jolted out of nothing, which stunned me a bit. He brought his eyes down to his ring which made me look down at his ring too out of curiosity. He clicked his tongue then motioned me to hold the ice pack on my forehead myself. As I did so, I watched the blonde sitting on the ground, cross-legged while Tobi did the same.
"What's up?" I asked puzzlingly, carefully adjusting my grip on the cold pack.
"The boss is calling us, that's what." He mumbled displeasingly then shot me a serious look. "Just keep quiet while we're talking to him and the others, hm. He thinks that I'm running personal errands today and not hanging out with you..."
I narrowed my eyes then nodded in comprehension.
"Will I hear the conversation too?"
The blonde shook his head and I exhaled in response. Both Deidara and Tobi made a hand seal with one hand then closed their eyes—at least I assumed they did because the kid had a mask and only one blue eye was what I got from the blonde and it was closed. They were dead silent as I sat there casually, wondering if they started talking to the other Akatsuki members or not. Luckily, we were currently resting by the outskirts of the small town so no one would notice us.
I was about to allow myself to be absorbed by my own thoughts until...
"Sorry for not answering sooner, Lord Pain." Deidara acknowledged respectfully. "I was caught up on some stuff, hm."
'So, they started chatting...' I thought flatly, laying back against the tree as I inhaled through my nose. 'In that case, I guess the only thing I can do right now is listen and try to piece out what they're talking about.'
Deidara's POV:
One moment, I was tending to the Uchiha girl's injury and now I was conversing with my fellow Akatsuki members and our Leader who were all seen as holograms right now, hm. I was baffled that the boss called us at this time, let alone this being the second time today. This only happened when he had urgent and/or serious news to share with us and the only news that would be considered "urgent or serious" as of late was that Katsumi had "escaped" from the hideout and he wanted all of us to either recapture her or kill her. Now that I mentioned this, I started to feel anxious, hm.
It made sense—I mean, why else did he call everyone?
More importantly, I wondered if Uchiha noticed that his sibling was missing too since I wasn't certain of how long his mission would take, hm.
"Is everyone here?" Pain questioned rhetorically, eyeing no one.
"Looks like it." Kisame mused in a low chuckle.
"Alright then."
"Why'd you call us this time?" Hidan asked obnoxiously. "Don't tell me you have another long ass mission for us!"
"We're shinobi; we're supposed to go on missions, you good-for-nothing fool." Kakuzu hissed in annoyance.
"I wasn't f**kin' talking to you, old geezer!" Hidan snapped defensively.
"Enough." Boss cut in demandingly. "Down to business."
"What's the news this time?" Kisame wondered huskily.
"The Nine-Tails Jinchūriki, Naruto Uzumaki." Pain answered briefly. "I think now's the best time for the Akatsuki to reattempt in capturing him."
"Um, are you sure, sir?" Tobi pitched in hesitantly. "He's really strong, from what I've heard. He even kicked Deidara's butt without breaking a sweat."
"TOBI!" I hissed coldly, glaring sharply at the soon-to-be victim of mine. "Shut up! The brat didn't even bring me down. Besides, I was at a disadvantage 'cause I had no arms at the time, hmph!"
The fool simply shrugged his shoulders at my words. "Either way, his fist made contact with your face..."
"Why you—!"
"Silence." Our Leader commanded exasperatedly. "As I was saying, we should move on ahead and capture the Nine-Tails when he's currently in his home village."
"With all due respect," Kisame spoke up in a gruff. "but why should we capture the brat now? It'll be difficult to obtain the Nine-Tails when other Leaf Ninja are guarding him, most likely."
"Um, yeah." Tobi chirped weakly. "Sir, I thought you said we're supposed to capture all of the beasts in order by number of tails. The last beast we captured was the Two-Tails; the Nine-Tails isn't next, it's the Three-Tails."
"I'm pretty sure Lord Pain knows how to count, Tobi." White Zetsu commented coolly. "If anything, I'm surprised that he can count himself."
"Yes, I did say that." Pain admitted nonchalantly. "However, it doesn't hurt to make an attempt. Besides, I have a pair in mind that will be perfect for this mission..."
Of course, our respected and scary boss asked us "kindly" to go on yet another Jinchūriki mission at the worst possible time, hm. First off, Tobi and I were currently occupied by the ravenette and we couldn't just go on a high-class mission with someone who could barely use her chakra—she would be killed instantly and would only get in our way. Second, the Nine-Tails Jinchūriki was a former teammate of the girl's and no doubt about it, she wouldn't be too happy to hear that we were about to hunt down her friend on her watch. Thirdly—and most importantly—if the ideal pair wasn't Kisame and Uchiha, then that meant they could head back to our main hideout sooner, therefore returning to keep an eye on his sister who was "still locked up in his bedroom", hm. I already had bad blood with him ever since he screwed me and my art over with his damned kekkei genkai to force me into the group. Then there was the estranged relationship between him and his sister. The last thing I wanted was for him to jump to conclusions and cast his dreadful genjutsu on me for being the person to actually take care of her when he couldn't bother to lift a finger for her.
I didn't want to worry about returning to the hideout before him because for once, I was actually enjoying someone's company, hm.
"So, who's the lucky pair?" Kisame pondered jokingly.
Silence was upon us as we waited in anticipation to hear which team was going to head to the Leaf.
"Kakuzu and Hidan." Boss answered flatly. "I'm assigning you to this mission. I expect the result is up to my liking."
"F**kin' hell!" Hidan hissed in frustration.
"Either you shut up or die." Kakuzu snapped lowly.
That was apparently enough to finally shut the Jashinist's mouth up but he wasn't too happy about it according to the curses underneath his breath.
"You'll do great, Hidan!" Tobi encouraged in support. "Besides, you're immortal so no matter what, you'll never die!"
"Whatever." He grumbled as he rolled his eyes.
"Itachi." Our Leader acknowledged grimly as his lavender pupils shifted in Uchiha's direction.
Seeing nothing of the man except his unforgivable, art-killing Sharingan returning the icy stare, hm.
"Is your sister adjusting smoothly in the hideout with the Akatsuki?" Pain asked slyly as if he was trying to pull a string.
"Particularly, you?" Kisame chimed in amusedly. "Can't believe she hasn't tried to kill you yet."
Hearing this from his partner forced him to throw a glassy look at the tall swordsman, then returned his gaze to look ahead of him.
"Unlike our brother, Katsumi is more sensible in handling things put out in front of her." He stated simply. "According to her, she doesn't seem to have any desire to kill me."
"Really? Well, this is news to me..." Kisame awed intriguingly.
"Care to explain, Itachi?" Boss questioned solidly.
Uchiha stood there in silence, thinking to himself as to what he should say. Of course he would give any details to Pain because he was—in Tobi's words—a "good boy".
"No." He responded bluntly, bringing everyone to shock by the act of rebellion coming from him.
"Uh-oh, Itachi just said no to Master Pain~!" Tobi remarked with instigation.
"You gonna take the disrespect, sir?" Hidan pitched in with a snicker.
"I'll admit, Itachi. I'm shocked that you upright refuse to sell your little sister out..." Zetsu commented surprisingly. "Especially since she's nothing but a weak little brat."
"Watch what you say, Zetsu." Kisame warned huskily. "From experience, I'd bet on my Samehada that the kid can kick your ass in five minutes."
"Itachi, what's with the sudden act of pettiness?" Even Kakuzu who doesn't give a crap about anything except his green stacks sounded curious too.
"Itachi." Pain stressed darkly.
Said raven gave our Leader a quick glance before he parted his lips.
"In spite of our hatred... her reasons are hers alone and I have no right in explaining." He clarified warmly. "She's the one who owes you that explanation…"
"Aw, well would you look at that..." Hidan purred mockingly. "Itachi actually cares about his adorable baby sister! Isn't that cu—?"
"Hidan, shut your mouth, you zombie." Kisame retorted coldly.
"Shut the f**k up, you walking aquarium!" Hidan hissed back. "Why the hell are you even—!?"
"Because he doesn't owe any of us an explanation, especially you." Kisame interrupted abruptly with ease in his tone. "Whatever's going on between the two is their business, not ours. For once, we shouldn't force ourselves into someone's personal life..."
"What do you mean by 'personal life'? None of us no longer have a life." Kakuzu scoffedcandidly. "We wouldn't be in this organization if we all have something to live for. That doesn't excuse Itachi..."
"But, still... after everything that's happened to the child caused by the one person she once loved so dearly, you can excuse her with that claim." Zetsu remarked coolly. "Besides, we all know we have a better chance in making a rock cry than make Itachi flinch. We'd just be wasting our energy..."
"Alright, then." Pain grunted begrudgingly. "However, you're required to give us an update on her regardless, Itachi..."
Once again we were engulfed with silence thanks to the stubborn Uchiha. Apparently he was too busy daydreaming about something while staring at the rocky wall in front of him, hm.
"She's behaving accordingly, and seems to understand her position in the hideout." He informed, seemingly being direct and honest about it. "However, I made it clear that she's not trusted completely. I locked her in my bedroom the last time I checked before I left for my mission."
"Good." Pain slightly nodded in approval. "Is she carrying out her duties like I instructed?"
"Yes. From what I can tell, she's made a mental to-do list." Itachi analyzed briefly. "Nonetheless, she's slowly but gradually progressing to completion..."
I glanced over at our boss who seemed to be thinking deeply to himself, hm. I assumed it had something to do with Uchiha and/or Katsumi because he was eyeing the raven. He took notice to this as he stared at Pain back, like he was challenging him. After a long moment of watching the two have a staring contest, the man who called himself "God" scoffed at Uchiha smugly as he closed his eyes then opened them.
"I'm impressed that she's getting along decently with you." Pain acknowledged slyly, testing the waters of Itachi's composure. "I assume she inadvertently looks up to you, being an exceptional shinobi..."
I rolled my eyes at his compliment to Uchiha, trying not to gag and bring attention to myself, hm.
"What do expect from a little sister?" Tobi chirped gushed cheerily. "She obviously wants to be just like you when she's all grown up, Itachi."
"More like murder you in your sleep..." Hidan murmured to himself, rolling his eyes.
"Enough of the futile remarks." Pain ordered in bore. "You all should get back to completing your duties. Excluding Hidan and Kakuzu, I expect everyone to be back in the hideout before the end of the day."
We all either nodded or remained still at our Leader's orders. However, a question in my head was begging on its knees to come out so I finally gave up in keeping it in. Inhaling, I glanced over at Uchiha who seemed busy with his personal thoughts, hm. I tried to gather all the patience I had within me just for a brief conversation with the man I hated the most, hmph.
"Hey, Uchiha." I spoke up brusquely, gaining everyone's attention except his.
Of course I was the last person he wanted to talk to since we weren't exactly friendly with each—or I wasn't the friendly one, according to Itachi and everyone else. The damn bastard used the incredible amount of stubbornness in him to not look at me, never mind acknowledging me as an ally, hm. I allowed myself to briefly clench my teeth impatiently then took a deep breath in, recapturing my composure.
"Do you have a good idea when you will be returning to the hideout?" I asked hastily.
Apparently, my question alone was enough to finally bring his crimson eyes on me but seemed to rather stare at the swordsman toothy grin than my entire face, hm.
"Why you ask, blondie?" His partner asked suspiciously. "I thought you don't give so much of a damn about Itachi, you'd blown him up the second the chance presents itself."
"I'm not asking you, Kisame, hmph." I gritted hardly, signalling him to mind his own business.
"I'm with him, so why does it matter if I answer your question?" He questioned challengingly.
"Whatever, hmph."
"How would my return affect you in any way?" Uchiha inquired lowly, staring strongly at me.
"Nothing, alright!? Why do you even care to know, hmph?" I interrogated prickly. "I'm just worried that your long absence would give your sister a better chance in escaping!"
"My sister is none of your concern, Deidara." Uchiha grounded bluntly. "I was entrusted with the task in watching over her in which I am very capable of doing so alone."
"Don't boast about being the 'best big brother in the world', hmph." I hissed irritably. "I'd like to think that your sister would disagree herself."
"Deidara, would you just drop it already?" Kisame prompted exasperatedly. "If you must meddle into Itachi's business, do it at a different time when the rest of us aren't wasting our time."
"Kisame's right." Boss grunted in agreement. "You're all dismissed."
I made it clear that these people—who were supposed to be my allies—pissed me off by huffing obnoxiously loud then immediately cutting off my connection with them, hmph. I opened my eyes—or in this case, eye—and unashamedly pouted my lips and crossed my arms. It wasn't until then I heard giggling and looked to see the Uchiha girl chuckling at the sight she was seeing as she still held the ice pack on her forehead.
Katsumi's POV:
"What's the matter with you?" I asked in between giggles.
"Your bastard of a brother, hmph." He grumbled coldly. "The man doesn't know respect when it hits him, the jerk."
"To be honest, so do you." I corrected straightforwardly. "And secondly, Itachi does know respect."
"I can't believe you just said that, hmph." The blonde scoffed in disgust.
"Well, I'm not lying. Why would I when I benefit nothing out of it?" I defended in a frown. "He gives credit where credit is due, even if he despised someone."
"Still, you defend his honour, in spite of what he did and what you said to me, hm..." He mused confusedly, not following my perspective.
I shrugged. "I guess I inherited that from him."
"Sadly." I heard the blonde mumbled to himself which earned him a displeased look from me.
"So... what did Itachi say?" I asked dubiously, looking away.
I could see the blonde blinking his one eye blankly at me from the corner of my eye.
"Well, like always he didn't really say anything, hm. At least until our boss mentioned your name..." He huffed uninterestedly. "For some reason, that was basically the one thing that makes him quite talkative, hm..."
I glanced at him as I cocked an eyebrow. "That's weird, even for him..."
"Yeah, and that's not the only thing. Boss asked him questions that were apparently deemed 'inappropriate' and flat out refused to answer." He added as he casually groomed his blonde locks.
"To paraphrase, he somewhat didn't sell me out to the 'almighty leader'?"
"Yep." He confirmed with a nod.
I scoffed in disbelief as I gawked out a sarcastic smile. "How noble of him..."
"Heh, yeah right." The blonde snorted uninterestedly. "Apparently, his so-called 'big brother instincts' kicked in, hm."
I dismissed Deidara's snarky comment as I slowly removed the ice pack—which was more cold water than actual ice—and gently pressed my fingers on the bump glued on my forehead. I sighed in relief when I noted that the size had decreased in a satisfying matter.
"Can I ask you something?" The blonde asked sincerely.
I blinked at him puzzlingly as he gave me a weird look.
"I don't know. Um... sure...?" I muttered unsurely.
"Between you and Uchiha, I only know your personal feelings with him, hm..." He analyzed as he lowered his gaze. "But I'm curious about his feelings..."
"I'm trying to read between the lines..." I told him frankly. "Clarify, please?"
"You and your brother know about your feelings towards Itachi. But I'm pretty sure that you don't know his feelings about you, hm." He clarified huskily, eyeing me intently.
I folded my arms across my chest. "What are you trying to say, Deidara?" I questioned with a frown.
Said male narrowed his blue eye at me hardly, as if he was trying to look through my onyx orbs to see within me like a window that showed a room behind the frame.
"Do you know if Itachi hates you, hm?" He interrogated flatly, urging for an answer.
I jerked astonishingly at his question, widening my eyes as my jaw slightly hung. Then, the feeling of shock turned into stubbornness as I knitted my eyebrows and glaring unhappily at the blonde.
"Of course, he hates me." I briefly sharply. "He made that clear with his actions..."
Deidara huffed, not impressed with my defensive response while slowly shaking his head.
"I'm not defending nor excusing his actions—like hell I would, hmph. I'm just saying that he doesn't seem to carry ill feelings towards you, from what I've observed. If anything, he's acting like an older brother, never mind a decent human being." He claimed adamantly.
"Everyone knows that Itachi is bad at expressing his feelings as he is a skilled shinobi." I told him curtly.
"But, still. I'm starting to doubt if he even dislikes you, hm." He contended insistently.
"Gosh, partner!" Tobi spoke astonishingly after a long period of silence. "I can't believe you're actually looking things at Itachi's perspective."
"I can't believe you actually kept your mouth shut for this long." Deidara hissed wittingly. "It's just as pleasant as you not being here, hmph."
"Alright, blondie." I huffed sharply, gaining back his attention. "Let's say if what you're saying is miraculously true. That doesn't explain why he looks down on me like a hopeless pup."
Deidara shrugged at me. "Maybe because he knew he screwed up big time, hurting you and your other brother. Rather than confronting the problem, he's avoiding especially since you're currently staying with him, hm."
"Need I remind you that Itachi doesn't have the capacity to be frightened nor compassionate?" I offered sarcastically.
The blonde rolled his blue eye at my comment.
"All I'm saying is that maybe... just maybe Uchiha has some guilt for hurting you which is why he's making your life easier in our hideout, hm." He hypothesized persistently. "What you could do is confirm this."
"And how should I do that?" I questioned uninterestedly.
"Ask him?"
"Sure, I'll ask him. Right after I ask him if he's best friends with tuna casserole named Kisame." I quipped wryly, resisting the urge to gag.
"Katsumi..."
"Uh-uh, don't you even go there, Goldie." I cut in swiftly, eyeing him in disapproval. "Don't be hypocritical and tell me to have a family reunion with him when you too have bad blood with him."
"That's different. I'm not related to him in any way nor am I friends with him, hm." He vindicated flatly. "But you two are brother and sister; you're supposed to have unconditional love for each other..."
"Well, what about you?" I inquired defensively.
"There's no point in making amends and be 'friendly' with Uchiha since he has no interest whatsoever." The blonde remarked nonchalantly. "It's better if we respect each other's space until the day I finally get to blow him to pieces, hm."
"If there's ever a chance Deidara gets to face him and blow him up, it's when he's lucky." Tobi added perkily.
Hearing this made the blonde and I snap our gaze to the boy who sat there happily, cross-legged.
"What the hell is that supposed to mean, hmph?" Deidara questioned suspiciously.
"What!?" He yelped anxiously. "Did I say something wrong again?"
"Sort of." I answered warily.
"C'mon! Not you too, Katsumi!" He whined sadly. "You're supposed to be nicer than Deidara!"
"Tobi, what are you hiding?" The blonde interrogated hardly, slightly offended
"Nothing, partner!" He cried in distress, holding his head.
"You're not foreshadowing anything, are you?" I questioned skeptically.
"I swear, Katsumi!" Tobi wept as his head hung. "I don't even know what foreshadowing means!"
I huffed at the boy's miserable state then glanced at Deidara who was still eyeing his partner suspiciously. What was the point in interrogating a kid who doesn't have a filter nor the proper vocabulary?
"Maybe we're just jumping to conclusions..." I shook my head dismissively.
"You sure about that, hm?" The blonde questioned skeptically, glaring at his poor partner.
"DEIDARA!" Said partner cried miserably, gripping his head and moving it erratically.
"Leave the poor kid alone, okay?" I ordered hardly, my tone grabbing the blonde's attention. "He has the mind of a five-year-old; he barely knows half the stuff he's saying."
That point was enough for Deidara to drop his suspicion on the boy, grunting displeasingly.
"Anyway, there's no point in mending my relationship with Itachi when my days living with you guys are numbered and him having less emotions than a rock." I asserted firmly.
"Forget about everything and every factor for a second..." The blonde grunted impatiently. "…I know that deep down, you still carry the slight belief that he's the same loving brother, hm."
I frowned stubbornly at the annoying blonde who examined me carefully, waiting for me to crack at any moment. Even though I would take on the Nine-Tails one-on-one before admitting anything, it was somewhat the truth. Unlike Sasuke, I actually believed in second chances—mainly because second time's a charm—and Itachi was the only person I couldn't stomach being a heartless human being. I knew when he was telling the truth and when he was bulls**tting, more than he knew. I guess the only reason why I hated his guts was because of his actions. It was true actions spoke louder than words, but it was because some meaning to the words were meant to be hidden intentionally. And I knew in the past, he loved me, he loved Sasuke; not everything he did was an act.
Maybe if I just analyze and observe him better rather than acting like a little b***h, what Deidara was implying could be the truth. I did the same with Kabuto—being more patient and willing with him rather than snapping at him. That left me now adoring the bookworm so much.
"F**kin' hell, blondie!" I hissed in frustration, hastily getting up on my feet. "You're such a hypocritical a**hole, telling me to get along with that bastard! I hope he destroys you in a fight!"
With that, I stomped away from the Akatsuki duo into the town without any sense of desired direction. My gritted my teeth tightly when the sound of laughing coming from the blonde wafted into my ears, irritating me even more.
"Oh c'mon, Katsumi!" Deidara called out apologetically, trying to contain his laughter. "Don't be mad at me, hmph!"
"Kiss my ass, you terrorist!" I spat angrily, glaring over my shoulder at him as he smiled widely.
What could I say? I already mentioned that I really hated giving people the satisfaction of being right.
Holy crap, I'm finally done! Anyways, hopefully with school out of the way for the time being, the chapter updates should come out more frequent. Again, no promises but I will guarantee that I have more time on my hands. Also, sorry again for the grammar and spelling mistakes. I've been rushing through this chapter because it was taking a way too long to get through. Next chapter isn't gonna be as interesting, it's more like a filler if anything but it's necessary. Hope you guys keep yourselves updated anyway! Till then!