Chapter 10

"I returned the key. We can leave if you're ready." Shizuka smiled as she walked towards Sasori and Deidara. It was the day after their night at the motel and it was time for them to continue on their journey. Orochimaru was on his way to the Hidden Sand so it would only be a matter of time before they would cross paths and ambush him.

Soon, the trio was flying in the sky on Deidara's clay bird. No matter how many times they traveled on it, Shizuka would never get tired of it. To be able to see the world under her feet was truly an experience.

So much had happened the night before. She had told Sasori about her condition and even gave him her final request. To be honest, she was just grateful that he would grant her wish. Of course the additional expression of feelings that came afterwards was a bonus. Stealing a glance at Sasori, she wondered if he would ever tell her how he actually felt about her.

"What?" Sasori's voice startled her. Shizuka automatically looked back out at the clouds and rubbed the back of her neck absentmindedly, hoping the quickened pace of her beating heart would slow down.

"I-I… Your cloaks!" She cleared her throat and turned back to Sasori. "You and Deidara-kun are wearing the same cloak and he mentioned that you were his partner before. It's a pretty pattern, so I was wondering if it has a special meaning or something. It looks familiar..."

Deidara turned around and tilted his head. Given her past and personal connections, he assumed she had known. "You don't know about the Akatsuki?'

"Akatsuki? I've lived underground for almost 10 years, Deidara-kun." Shizuka answered truthfully. "I really don't know much about what went on after the war."

"Oh. Well, those who wear this cloak are part of the Akatsuki, a group made to bring world peace, hm." Deidara grinned, stretching his arms out to the side in emphasis. "Only the top of the top can be initiated in, hm. Personally, I don't really care about all that stuff but they said I can do whatever I want, hm, so it works out."

Shizuka thought about the group with interest. World peace? It was a far-fetched idea, but it held the premise of hope. She couldn't help but think of how different everything would be if her village hadn't been struck by war.

"There are more of you in this group?" The snow haired female asked, genuinely interested.

Deidara nodded. "Of course, hm. They're all really strong too, even though I don't agree with everyone that was chosen." The blond began to scowl as he thought of a certain raven-haired male. Confused, Shizuka turned to Sasori for clarification.

"Don't mind him and his personal vendettas." The red head rolled his eyes inside Hiroko.

"You're one to talk, hm! We're only here because of your personal vendetta with your old partner." Deidara crossed his arms. Shizuka's eyebrows raised in surprise as the connections started to click in her mind. So, Lord Orochimaru was once Sasori-san's partner, which meant that he was also a part of the Akatsuki at one point in time.

Sasori glared at the blond. "We're here on a mission by the leader. Nothing more, nothing less."

"I understand now." Shizuka nodded at Sasori. "I understand why you were so angry that night by the river. Did he do something to you?" Her mind drifting back to the cruelty she had seen in the Kusagakure hideout, she sincerely hoped Sasori wasn't an experiment as well.

Deidara raised an eyebrow with a knowing smirk. "The river? Did you two go on a date or something, hm?"

"Mind your business." Sasori warned.

"Who?" Deidara and Shizuka asked.

"Both of you."

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"Thank you for the food."

Shizuka smiled as she sat in the back of a traveler's cafe in a booth seat, eating a rice ball. The trio had decided to stop and eat, before continuing their journey by walking to avoid suspicion. A couple of customers in the cafe eyed the three either way due to their peculiar clothing choices.

While Shizuka and Deidara were busy eating, Sasori glanced at the female in front of him before looking out the window in thought. A couple of nights ago, she had told him that she was dying. For some reason, he felt a lot of concern for her, but something hurt within himself. Why didn't he notice it? The night he completed his new body, she had fainted, which no doubt came from her condition.

Now that he knew of her past through her and Kabuto, he had come to a conclusion - Shizuka was a target. As long as she was with him and his partner, they could be tracked down. She could be a liability and there's no telling how fast her condition was progressing. Where would she go once this is over? Taking her to the hideout wasn't an option. With their future uncertain, what could he possibly do for her?

But, he couldn't let her go.

"When's your birthday, Shizuka?" Deidara asked as he sipped his tea.

"July 17th." She answered easily with a smile.

"So, you're a cancer. I'm a taurus, so that means we'll be pretty good friends." The blond grinned. "I knew that you'd be a good person when I first saw you."

Shizuka blinked in surprise. "Wow, I didn't think you were interested in astrology, Deidara-kun."

"I-I'm not." Deidara shook his head, the slight stutter giving him away easily. "I just heard a couple things from someone I used to know. That's all."

Shizuka giggled as she finished eating her last rice ball. Nothing but good things had been happening recently and she was grateful. Traveling with Deidara and Sasori was a memory she would always hold onto and lately, she hadn't had any fainting spells, which was a great sign as well.

Once the hostess left the check at the table, Sasori took out enough money to cover the bill as Deidara eyed the receipt. Swiftly picking it up, he looked over the contents before turning to Shizuka. "Today's your birthday."

Shizuka looked at the small piece of paper in surprise. Wow, it really was. She hadn't been paying much attention to dates for a while. With the daily cycle she had been living, everyday started to blend into each other. Whenever she got a hold of a calendar, it was usually already past her birthday anyway.

"Happy Birthday, Shizuka-nee-san." Deidara smirked.

The female looked up at Deidara before tears pooled in her eyes. Quickly, she looked away to wipe her eyes as Deidara looked at her, flustered. He hadn't meant to make her cry. Feeling his ears burn in embarrassment, he looked to Sasori for help. "Sasori-danna, I didn't mean…"

On the other hand, Shizuka was trying to get a hold over her emotions. It had been so long since someone told her that and it brought back a lot of memories of her family. Turning back, she smiled at Deidara through her tears. "Thank you."

The group left the cafe and began their journey on foot, jumping from limb to limb in the trees. They would continue this for a couple of hours before setting off back in the air. With this method, it wouldn't be long until they would meet up with Orochimaru.

Deidara took off on his own after a while, saying he needed to do something really quick before they flew away. Shizuka sat on the back of Deidara's clay bird with Sasori, humming a soft tune. Sasori searched the area for any hidden onlookers, knowing that Deidara probably went to use the bathroom or something. Once he determined everything was fine, Sasori looked at Shizuka.

"Happy Birthday little girl."

Shizuka stopped humming and looked back at Sasori before smiling sweetly. "Thank you."

"Hmph." Sasori spoke sarcastically. "No tears this time?"

Blushing in embarrassment, Shizuka turned her head away, crossing her arms. "I-I was just caught by surprise, that's all. I hadn't heard that from anyone besides my parents." Looking at him out of the corner of her eyes, she pouted. "I really wish you'd stop calling me little girl. I'm twenty years old now."

"With a pout like that, the title still fits you."

Her eye twitching in annoyance, Shizuka turned completely back to Sasori. Deciding it wasn't even worth it to respond, she let out a sigh and changed the subject. "The funny thing is, it's not just my birthday; it's your birthday too."

Sasori furrowed his eyebrows in confusion. "My birthday?"

"Yes, yours too silly." Shizuka laughed softly. "On the day of my eighteenth birthday, we finished your body. Today's your day of rebirth, so… Happy Birthday Sasori-san."

Sasori watched the snow-haired female in front of him. The sound of her innocent, carefree laugh, filled with nothing but happiness. Her funny reactions when he teased her. The way she talked about him with respect and love. She grew on him over the years and he harbored feelings for her, but in the back of his mind with the line of work that he did, he already knew he didn't deserve her.

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"What can you do, Shizuka…nee-san?" Deidara asked, turning around to face the female. Although he had said it so easily in the moment before, speaking to her like she was an older sister still didn't sit right with him - partially because he was still in disbelief that she was only a few years older than he was. "You must be pretty capable if you're Sasori-danna's 'assistant', hm."

"There's no need to put an emphasis on assistant." Sasori rolled his eyes.

Shizuka let out a soft laugh as the blond's slight awkwardness. "Please, you can just call me Shizuka." Honestly, she preferred not to be referred to as an older sister because it made her think about Kimimaro. What was he doing now? Was he feeling better or was he still wallowing away? Was he eating now or was he still refusing to have even a sip of water? Did he forgive her?

"Shizuka?" Deidara raised an eyebrow in curiosity at the female's sudden silence as she stared in deep thought.

The snow-haired female shook the thoughts out of her and looked back at Deidara. "I know how to keep myself alive. I don't have any prominent features like yours or Sasori-san's art, but I do have my mud. Maybe that counts for something?"

The youngest tilted his head. "Mud, hm?"

"Yes. It's a jutsu passed down through generations in my family." Shizuka smiled, thinking about her past days in Kusagakure on her clan's grounds. "We were able to use mud for everything so you don't need to worry about me."

"Hm.." Deidara thought to himself as he looked back in the direction they were headed.

Continuing their travel for a couple more days, the trio stopped in the Land of Rivers. It was more efficient to avoid the main village, so they settled for a smaller travel station near the border. Shizuka jumped down off the clay bird and looked back at Sasori and Deidara flew off. Sasori had told her to stay put and he would come back after he was done. Even though she was worried, what else could she do? She was in no condition to assist in the fight and would only be a bother.

With some of her money, Shizuka was able to get a small motel room for herself. She'd visited the market and picked up some fruit and nuts so she could eat if she got hungry. If her calculations were right, it would take Sasori and Deidara almost two days to get to the rendezvous point, fight, and come back.

It only took a couple hours of sitting in the room for Shizuka to become restless. From everything she had witnessed at the different hideouts she had been at, Orochimaru was not an easy opponent. The last thing she wanted was anything bad to happen. If Orochimaru found a connection between her and Sasori, what would happen and would it be her fault? Maybe she should've never left the hideout.

Shaking her head, Shizuka stood up, trying to get rid of the thoughts. Sasori will be okay. She made the right choice to leave and she can't regret it now. Right now she was just thinking too much. Pulling out the futon from the closet, she turned out the lights and tried to go to sleep. Sasori wouldn't leave her again.

Late the next morning, Shizuka woke up from her slumber. Although the bed was comfortable, her mind hadn't stopped racing since yesterday; she was too anxious. Opting to skip breakfast, she took a quick shower before heading out to take a walk. Perhaps feeling the earth around her would help her calm down.

She'd been walking for about thirty minutes before she came to a small stream. There were some unusual flowers that reminded her of the ones near Sasori's old abode. Maybe there were some herbs that she could get to pass the time while she waited for Sasori to come back.

As she plucked a couple of stems, Shizuka got a weird, familiar feeling and immediately stood up. Turning sharply on her heel, she stared into the forestry until she jumped back to the other side of the stream, barely escaping a thrown kunai. The female narrowed her eyes as a silver-haired male stepped out from behind a tree and into the light.

"It's nice to see you again, Snow White."