Suteta - (Akatsuki fanfic)

Part 13

The forest was fairly quiet as they leapt through the trees to avoid the main road. Until they were far enough away from the base, they had to avoid being seen. Later on they could use the trail without being concerned. Like Konan said, the snow melted for the most part since the blizzard. However, the dark clouded sky and cold air indicated it would snow again soon. Hopefully they would be back before then and not have to be out in such horrible weather.

Currently piggybacking on Konan, Hanaki had her face buried in the co-leader's shoulders, likely to avoid seeing the sheer drop to the ground beneath them as the plant nin traveled alongside. She wore an extremely oversized, thick black sweater, scarcely leaving enough room for the ruffles of her pale green dress to show below the hem. It was Konan's last-minute solution to the toddler not having anything warm to wear. Really she didn't have anything other than the dress, pair of socks, and sandals he found her in, which left her wandering around in borrowed clothes whenever they were washed. That being said, Zetsu had a feeling this was small part of the reason Konan changed her mind about going to the village and bringing her along.

Really Zetsu believed this was a bad idea especially since Hanaki literally just had her bandages removed and it was never good to have a newly healed injury exposed to the elements for very long. Unfortunately, the co-leader seemed to be telling him they were going to the village instead of suggesting, and orders were orders no matter how much he didn't like or agree with them. At this point he wished he never said anything to begin with and never put the idea in Konan's head. All he was trying to do was make a point, not start this fiasco. He should have let sleeping dogs lie. He sighed after they dropped to the trail and Hanaki squeaked at the impact. Oh well. His fault, his problem.

Getting down from Konan's back, the toddler took her place between her and Zetsu as they walked. She kept one arm on the teddy bear and latched onto the plant nin's solid black cloak with her free hand, watching ahead excitedly. His black side groaned inwardly, but didn't comment. Both sides were gradually growing to accept she preferred to be near him. Whenever she wasn't inadvertently getting herself in trouble these past several days Hanaki practically glued herself to his side and he hadn't a clue as of why. At the very least she had to be in the same room most of the time. He wasn't sure he was okay with all the clinging. By no means was he used to so much attention, and it really set him on edge. His black side mainly. The sooner we get her out of our hair the better, it groaned. And his white side, though not remarking on the matter, agreed. Even so, the second he glanced at her, he wondered if he really felt that way. Probably.

Soon the village entrance came into view. The archway hardly rose to twice Zetsu's height, which wasn't impressive. The bricks had tiny patches of ice still clinging to them and they looked cracked and weathered, and the gate itself was dusted with signs of rust. Even for a small village it didn't seem to take much care and pride in first impression. Talk about disappointing. Hanaki, however, chimed happily and made it evident she didn't mind. Actually, when they stepped into the village and she saw so many people bustling around and all the different buildings and markets her eyes grew wide in surprise and curiosity. She kept tugging at Zetsu's cloak or poking Konan to get her attention, then pointing and saying, "Lookit! Lookit! Lookit!"

"We see," Konan said humoring her with a slight grin and the toddler looked up at her with a wide smile and giggled. Though, Zetsu wasn't paying attention to anything she pointed out. He was too busy noticing all the strange looks and glares he was getting from the villagers and trying his best to ignore them. He growled under his breath. I wonder if I could kill them all as they stand in one shot. Likely, his white side mused. But then a thought occurred to him and he settled his anger. Not only would Konan reprimand him for attacking someone out of the blue, but having Hanaki see something like that would be a serious problem.