[do not] Lie to me - tobidei

CHAPTER 4 - Poison

Obito's POV

The next morning things are quiet between the two. Obito knows it is very out of character for him to stay silent for that long, but his mind is still buzzing with confusing thoughts.

He should have killed Deidara that night. He did not see much, but any suspicion could ruin his plan. Couldn't it? Why didn't he kill Deidara? The fact is, his "senpai" has been occupying Obito's mind rent free for a while now, even though he will refuse to admit it. Making his partner pout or get red has been the one thing that has made him smile since... back then. Maybe he is afraid to rationalize that information, because it could mean that his plan no longer has any meaning.

But is it fair to throw years of work out of the window like this? Deidara does not know about his façade and does not know his real self, so how could he correspond to Obito's feelings? How could anyone even look at a face like his without feeling sick? Moreover, another thing is for sure: if Deidara finds out he is an Uchiha, the blonde-haired nin will for sure hate him.

No, he must suppress these idiotic ideas. Do what you have to do, for her, and only her.

The pair approaches a small outpost right beside the road, there are vendors selling trinkets of all sorts. Not worrying about concealing their cloaks and crossed bandanas, both walk by examining the items for sale. Deidara scoffs in the direction of a pottery vendor and walks faster, resolute to get it out of his view. Pretentious kid, ha. Obito thinks, as he gets closer to an old woman selling necklaces with precious stones. His eyes immediately lock on a brown topaz one.

He, of course, buys it. What for? He does not know, maybe its color reminded him of her. Obito stores it in his pocket. Tobi is not the kind of person to accessorize, after all.

"Oi, dumbass, I'm not waiting for you any longer"

"Sorry senpai, Tobi is coming!"

Deidara's POV

They are resting in a clearing after having walked the entire afternoon. The hideout is still a few hours away and they have to make sure to be well rested and prepared at all times, since the area where it is located is quite hostile and full of mercenaries. Tobi stands watch while Deidara leans on a nearby tree.

He still cannot believe he did that last night. Was Tobi mad at him? He did bother Deidara a little less today, and the blonde nin can't help but miss in some weird way. What? No, how could anyone miss being fucking annoyed 24/7 like that? He does, kinda. This matter is poisoning Deidara's thoughts with absurd ideas; he has to do something about it.

"Tobi, hm"

"What senpai?"

"Sorry, yeah?"

"What for? Tobi doesn't understand."

"You know what for. If you're hiding your face you have a reason, and as your partner I should have respected that, hm."

Tobi stays silent, looking at the ground. Deidara lets out a soft laugh and continues:

"Sasori no danna also hid his face from me for a while. At first, I thought it was pretty stupid of him to do that, but he had his reasons. My point is: you also have yours, and I will respect it, for now."

Tobi's broad shoulders relax a little bit, Deidara lets out a huff of air.

"Just don't be an Uchiha under there and I am sure we will get along well, hm." Deidara laughs again.

"Senpai really hates Itachi's family, huh?"

"Hell yeah! Those fuckers think they can manipulate everyone with those cursed eyes and all. Lack of freedom is not very artistic, yeah. People should not be controlled like that by anyone, no one has that right."

They walk back to the hideout and Tobi is back to his antics, but Deidara is capable to catch a warm quiet look in his partners eye when they share a quick gaze, different from the usual. It sends shivers to his spine.

Obito's POV

Back in the hideout, Obito cannot get what Deidara said about freedom out of his mind. He lays in his bed looking at a wall considering every time he has put someone in a genjutsu. Did he really take their freedom?

People do bad things when they are free. The war that ruined his life is a direct product of said freedom, people suffered because of it. Is it really something worth that much pain? His eyes could fix it all, give people a world where there is nothing but happiness.

However, is it really happiness if it is not spontaneous? Which is prettier, a wild flower or one grown artificially? Both are pretty, but there's something about finding a wild sunflower in the middle of a field that has a certain kind of magic, than just buying one at the store.

Even though his body does not need it, Obito falls asleep unexpectedly.

For the first time in years, he has a dream: he is in a field, surrounded by sunflowers. The sun is setting and the sky turns in a pretty tone of yellow and red. He feels someone squeeze his hand and interlace their fingers together, but he is too afraid to look in their direction, so he just admires the flora that surrounds him. He closes his eyes, feeling a familiar smell take him by surprise.

He awakes a few moments later with a smile in his face. Yellow is his favorite color now, apparently.