Now let's get more on the Akatsuki side of Naruto. An S-rank missing-nin from Iwagakure. During his time in the village, he was a member of the Explosion Corps. After defecting from the village, he was forced into Akatsuki and was its youngest member. There, Deidara was partnered with Sasori until the latter's death, and later with Tobi before his own death.

     Fun fact: Deidara's catchphrase was originally coined by famous Japanese abstract artist Tarō Okamoto, whose works inspired many of Deidara's explosives.

     (this takes place before he was a rogue-nin)

     Finally, your last stop was the art shop. You loved that place with all your heart. Think of it as a home away from home, then again you can't live in a store now, can you? If only that the owner would let you live there, it'd be a dream come true.

     Plus, it also can be a chance to learn more about Deidara.

     That blond man. You never knew how the two of you became friends, but what you do know is: He has a fine taste in art. He's into sculpting, and so are you. With ice, not explosive clay. He once tried to persuade you to try his explosive clay. Good thing you didn't listen to him, or else you would've ended up in a hospital by now. 

     The downside is, he sort of hates you for not listening to his suggestion. He said that you were just being a pompous person that pretends to know everything.

     When you reached the art shop, you opened the door and can hear the bell ring in your presence.

     "Ah, hello (y/n)-chan!" the owner welcomed you with his usual warm-hearted smile, "Deidara's here too! See?" he pointed at the back of the shop, you saw Deidara moving some boxes behind a blank canvas.

     You raised your hand to greet him. However, when you noticed that he wasn't acknowledging you, you lowered your hand before you could even say hello.

     "Thanks, Fujio-san. But, I'm just here to pick up some stuff." you thanked the old gray-haired man as you rubbed the back of your neck.

     "Sure thing, (y/n)-chan. What do you need?" he asked, leaning in towards me using his arm to support himself. "Paint? Brushes? Paper?" he's so sweet. Regardless of his age, you liked him because of his caring nature. He feels like a grandpa, you don't have and yet you wished you do. Though, you'll probably regret it when you saw how Kurotsuchi regrets having to take care of the stubborn old geezer known as Onoki the fence-sitter.

     "Um, paint, please. My old man needs to paint the new statue he just sculpted yesterday." you stammered. It's weird why you did, you're so familiar with the man yet you always talk to him as if he was a stranger or someone else.

    "Sure, down aisle five, you'll see it straight away." he pointed to the aisle right next to the window.

     "Okay, thanks, Fujio-san!" you thanked again as you slowly scooted away from the counter. 

     When you reached the aisle you soon spotted a certain someone. Deidara.

     "Deidara..." you mumbled, afraid that if he's still mad at you or even started to grow some feeling of hatred towards you.

     "Yea, it's me, un." he spat out with venom laced in his tone. Yep, he's still mad at you. You paused for a minute before answering, thinking of what to say. To either get straight to the point or just built it up about the problem the last time you went face to face.

     "Look, Dei. About last time-"

     "No, no. It's okay. I should've known," he cut you off before you could even finish your sentence, "At least I have Kurotsuchi as my friend that respects my art." You paused, not liking one bit of how he's treating you. Your chest felt heavy all of a sudden when he mentioned Kurotsuchi and the fact that she actually appreciates his art. Little does he know, she's annoyed by it, and the continuous rants regarding his explosive art and that art is an explosion.

     "Listen, Deidara. I'm sorry." you finished what you wanted to say.

     The blond's gaze shifted to you. "You- mean it, un?" he croaked out.

     "Yes, Deidara. I mean it. I wanted to say it to you since yesterday, but you kept on avoiding me!" you exclaimed, you soon covered your mouth when you realized you raised your voice a little. You peeked around the corner to see Fujio-san still minding his own business. 

     "Woah, you better calm down there, (y/n)." Deidara chuckled, you only sweatdropped at him with a death glare.

     "It's okay," you slumped against the window as your gaze went up to the ceiling. Trying to lessen your weight on the clear fragile window, you felt that deep down in your gut telling you that saying sorry wasn't enough. You knew for a fact that Deidara loved to eat bakudan, a pun on the actual food: boiled eggs in surimi and it actually means bombs. So, that'll solve it. "Wanna grab a bite?" you suggested.

     His head shot up. "Sure, what? Dangos? Dumplings?"

     "No, bakudan." you winked, confirming what you two were gonna eat. Happiness soon devoured Deidara as he threw himself and caught you in a tight embrace.

     "Thanks, un!" 

     "No problem, Dei." you two exited the shop and went toward a nearby restaurant. Deidara wanted to cover the bill, but you interrupted him and explained that you were the one to cover the bill that day and that to accept the food as an apology. 

     When the two of you exited the restaurant, you walked home. Deidara walked you home of course.

     "Wait." you stopped dead in your tracks.

     Your friend was already a few steps away turned around to see you dumbfounded. "What is it?"

     Your mind soon reminded you of something, something that you needed to buy at the art shop. "Paint. I have to buy paint from the art shop!" you exclaimed, trying to keep it down when you reliazed the sun was setting and the store's gonna close in minutes.

     "Well, why can't you just buy it tomorrow then?" Deidara questioned, 

     "Fine, I guess it can wait tomorrow." 

1043 words

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