Shooting Straight II

Chapter 6

 "Itachi, tell me numbers and features."

Pein cut straight to the point when Itachi's awareness returned; Itachi turned, taking a second to look around before answering. Arrow listened very closely, eager to hear Itachi recount what had happened. Deidara couldn't help but notice that it seemed Arrow hung onto every syllable the Uchiha spoke and he took note of it, digging a nice spot in his memory to hold it close as blackmail material.

"They're a four-man squad; Kakashi Hatake-" Arrow felt the hair on his neck bristle, "Sakura Haruno, nine-tail jinchuriki Naruto Uzumaki, and Chiyo, advisor of Suna." 

Arrow couldn't mask the wash of confusion across his face, his eyes snapping to Sasori's to gauge his cousin's reaction. As always, there wasn't one. Arrow's face went flat despite his mind reeling. Of all things he had anticipated - his grandmother teaming with the squad he'd left in Konoha was not among them.

The thought that he couldn't shake was how the kami was he going to explain the situation to Seishi. There was nothing he could do but sit there in a state of shock, presenting a blank face so nobody else could see the inner turmoil while wondering how he was going to explain the fact that he might have to fight Seishi's twin brother AND Arrow's own grandmother. 

He wished his brother was here. He'd know what to do. He would probably have Arrow's head mounted on a pike a long time ago, but at least it would've been Ash's right and Arrow would've accepted that - been happy with it, even. He never would've thought he'd miss the sound of his brother's lectures. 

He never would've thought he'd have to miss his brother.

So, he stood there... crushed under the weight of his own decisions, the pit in his chest grew along with the red-hot rage, fuelled by indignation, spite, and sometimes even brute force, he stood there with the most devoid expression he could muster. 

He was empty, eyes dull, body knowing only the steady pull of his chakra being eaten away bit by bit, assisting in the murder of an important figurehead. Meanwhile, potentially the last remaining person to genuinely care about him lay awaiting his return in the next room. 

He felt like he was spectating his own life and hating every second of it.

~~~

With Pein's announcement that they would be entering the final stage of the jutsu came Zetsu's report that their pursuers were moving much faster than originally anticipated. 

"It's not a problem," Pein assured, "We stalled them effectively, right now all we have to do is ignore them. Besides, we have insurance." 

Deidara glanced over to Arrow with a knowing smirk, "In the end, we will be the ones who'll have to take care of them." Arrow wanted nothing more than to wipe that smirk right off Deidara's face, but he remained stone-faced.

Sasori grumbled, "Let's hurry and finish things here. We've got guests to greet."

Arrow, being unable to resist getting a word in, eyed Deidara. "You'll need to catch a breath before that, won't you?"

Deidara scowled, mumbling something about welcoming preparation that Arrow didn't care to respond to.

"Enough idle chatter, mistakes will not be tolerated. Concentrate." Pein looked around to meet the gaze of each member, none of whom made another sound.

 ~~~

Seishi wasn't quite sure how long it had been since Arrow left, but he jolted up as the door creaked open. Candlelight from the room illuminated the door frame and the figure standing in it; Seishi smiled warmly before scanning Arrow's body, looking for injury. He ushered him into the room.

Arrow obliged and stood there silently while Seishi fussed over him until the other boy was satisfied. A grim tension filled the room, heightening Seishi's anxiety.

"What is it, Arrow? What's wrong?" He peered through the messy red hair that had fallen over his face in his rush to get up. Arrow's hand came up to brush it out of the other boy's eyes before he answered.

"We extracted the one-tail, but we were pursued." Arrow's voice was low, not much above a whisper. Seishi urged him to continue. "We were pursued by Team 7 accompanied by Lady Chiyo of Suna..." Arrow winced before finishing, "...my grandmother."

Seishi paused before his eyes widened before looking down to the wound across Arrow's torso that still hadn't healed from Sasori's poison, "You can't fight them," Seishi's tone was very matter-of-fact but lacking conviction, "You just... can't."

 Arrow steeled himself, knowing that if he softened in the slightest, he wouldn't be able to do what he needed to do. His expression cemented and Seishi swore he felt the temperature drop in the room; the Uzumaki wilted, knowing there was no arguing to be done. Before even pleading his case, he was overwritten by Arrow's will. 

"You will leave," Arrow paused, lifting his shirt to reveal the ugly laceration and pressing his nail into the edge, reopening it enough to leak blood. He used it to activate a seal, producing a black scroll and handing it to the redhead. "- take this, I will meet you in Amegakure when I am done here."

Seishi nodded, resigned to his role. He reached for his cloak before pausing, remembering something and quickly digging in his pouch. Arrow gave a confused look before Seishi pulled out a jar and readily offered it. A custom label with Seishi's handwriting scrawled across it read "anti bads".

Arrow snorted, "'Anti bads'?"

"Um," Seishi's face flushed, "yes. it will help with the poison. I stole some of Sasori's stash and did my best to create something to neutralize it. I had a lot of free time these last few days." 

He tried to appear confident, but Arrow saw right through it, offering a small smile of gratitude.

"Thank you."

Seishi looked down, fighting a grin. He grabbed his cloak and pulled it over himself, trying to come up with something coy to say in return. He was interrupted, however, by the trembling of the ground beneath their feet. Horror flashed across his face as he whirled around, only to find Arrow was already gone.

He grabbed the nearest thing - a potted plant that had died a long time ago - and threw it at the wall with a yell of frustration. Grabbing the scroll Arrow had given him, he left the hideout under the cover of Arrow's kekkei genkai and the blind faith that he'd see his partner again.