My Strange Family , The Akatsuki (continued)

Chapter four: training

I sat in the living room, thinking of ways to get back at the 'transy', when Sasori walked into the room.

"Can you teach me how to use that puppet now?" I asked eagerly, lounging upside down, my hands just barely touching he floor. He shook his head as he pulled out a scroll. I recognized it: It was the scroll he kept Hiruko in. Meaning he was leaving.

"Mission?" I asked, just as Tobi jumped onto the couch next to me dislodging me and sending me tumbling to the floor in a fit of curses. Tobi had a field day trying to cover each cuss word with a cough of his own.

"Yes," Sasori said, in answer to my question. "Deidera and I are meant to go survey the One Tail." I turned away as he climbed into his Hiruko puppet. I always thought he looked ridiculous inside that thing, but he claimed it helped keep his identity a secret, so there was no way I could dissuade him.

"In fact, most of us are leaving for the day."

I scrambled to my feet and dusted myself off. Our floor was kinda filthy. "So, is it just gonna be Tobi and me?" I asked, imagining all the pranks I could pull while the others were away.

"No, you and Hidan. Leader-sama wants to give Tobi a chance to prove himself on a mission."

"Did you know about this last night?" I asked, exasperated. The last thing I wanted was to be stuck in this hideout with only Hidan for company. He may only have been seven years older than me but he acted like an old man sometimes. Went with his gray hair.

"Of course," Sasori replied, now within Hiruko. Ugh, even his sweet voice changed. That reminded me: Did he turn his vocal chords to wood too? That must have been painful.

"And none of you decided to warn me?"

"Leader-sama and Konan didn't want to ruin the night for you."

"Fair enough," I muttered, flopping back down onto the couch. Tobi was flipping through channels, none of them even remotely worthy of my intelligence.

"Tobi," I growled, snatching the remote from his hands. "If you put on 'How to Draw Shapes!' one more time, I'm going to kill you."

He whimpered and curled against the armrest. "Yes, Reika-chan!" I sighed and pushed my shoulder length purple hair away from my eyes. Stupid bangs.

We ended up watching some weird action movie, ignoring the others as they trickled in.

Until Itachi and Kisame strolled in, with Kisame seething and sticky.

Ohhhhh! Forgot about that.

"Who's the one who sprayed soda all over our room?!" Kisame growled, his hand resting on the hilt of Samehada.

I ducked behind Tobi, peeking over his shoulder as the sword went ballistic, squirming and wriggling and... coughing? Guess Samehada didn't like soda.

"Deidera-sempai did it!" I squeaked, doing a poor imitation of Tobi's voice.

Deidera, from his place beside Sasori, turned beet red with anger. He dug his weird hand mouths into the pouches on his hips, filled with clay. The disturbing sounds of mouths chewing clay could be heard as he snapped, "You lying brat! Taste C-2!"

I squeaked again, flung myself off the couch and his under Hidan's robes. He'd just walked in, yawning and it was perfect timing. This bastard can't be killed!

"Hey, waz goin' on?" the Jashinist slurred, puzzled as to why I was cowering under his Akatsuki robe, my arms wrapped tightly around his waist.

"Deidera wants to kill me!" I whispered, honestly very afraid. If you counted me as a member of the Akatsuki, then I was easily the weakest member. Deidera, if he was really trying, could murder me in an instant with his explosive "art".