貪欲の司教

To know the ocean, I have always felt, is to recognize the teeth it keeps half hidden.

another part with some wips that will be in the zine about them

"Oh, I have been there, yes, many times. We visit the place with my children, they love the restaurant," he said quietly.

"They have different kinds of meat, it's a yakitori place. They grill the meat with the real white charcoal… it preserves the taste of the meat," he explained with an attitude of a regular visitor.

"Maybe I can even order the sake! It can untie and our mouths!" he said maybe too enthusiastically right before he stopped. His eyes widened and he started to shake his head. "No, no no- I didn't mean to…" he panicked. What a stupid metaphor. He just couldn't help himself but to make a fool of himself. And for what, a few glasses of alcohol?

Hashirama walked forward toward the village, leaves and tiny branches cracking under his boots.

He gave a slight nod at Hashirama's proposal, though he was once again taken aback by the man's insistence on him. Wanting him to feel safe? Kakuzu hadn't felt safe in months, but he could appreciate the consideration. 

He listened to Hashirama speak of the restaurant with the knowledgeable phrasing of a regular customer. It DID sound good, worlds better than the foraging and hunting he'd been doing. Talk of the sake didn't interest him as much, but Hashirama's sudden backpedaling confused him for a moment. What was he so worried about? Was it— oh. He thought his phrasing might have offended the Taki nin.

Kakuzu gave a quiet huff and shook his head as he followed. 

how long was i out?

it was dark, and i heard voices. i was trying to get out.

don't look at me. i don't want you to see me like this.

tell me the truth. how long was i gone?

who brought me back?

i don't remember what happened. one second i was there, and the next...

you were out for quite some time.

don't worry. i've got you.

i saw you die.

i can't live with myself if you're gone.

i don't know how to function without you here.

wipe those tears away.

i'm right here! there's no need to cry.

something feels off about you.

are you sure you're all right?

you don't sound like yourself.

that wasn't supposed to happen like that.

your death was all my fault.

i never should have gone in there alone.

can you please tell me what happened?

no one is telling me how i died.

i didn't hear anything while i was out.

that was a bit weird.

i'll be fine. just have to deal with this nasty bump on my head.

is that my blood or someone else's?

you were not supposed to do this.

he was supposed to stay dead!

this was never meant to happen this way.

i think you made a mistake in coming back.

i can't live without you.

i'd really like to avoid dying again if i can help it.

is this the first time you've died?

there must be something we can do to bring them back.

i think i can heal them.

death is only the beginning.

maybe you should have stayed dead.

is that really you?

don't ever leave my sight again.

there you are! welcome back! how was it, being dead?

did you see god?

are you the one i should blame?

let's just hope there aren't any consequences to this.

you never should have interfered.

i don't really feel like myself.

ever since i died, i've been feeling sort of strange.

that's what death does. it puts things into perspective.

is death something we should be able to reverse in the first place?

this is a very bad idea.

why can't you just stay dead?

please reverse the spell.

Deidara squeezes his arm as he grows frustrated by this conversation. His chest feels tight. A tremor rumbles through his arms and shoulders. Deidara literally asked. But the answer he got-- the answer he expected-- it still pisses him off. Deidara's teeth dig in and scrape against the inside of his lower lip. Onoki used to scold him about the same damn thing.

At least Kakuzu had let up.

He saw that sudden rigidity in Deidara's shoulders almost immediately.

"You asked what else you should do, and I gave a suggestion and my reasoning behind it. I never said anything was going to happen," he said. "But there's always a chance. You've seen how long my hair is. There's a reason I wear this hood. That doesn't prevent someone from getting lucky and either tearing it or pulling it off, and suddenly they've got another option to grab me by."

"But it's your hair. I'm not trying to tell you what to do with it."

"I see." The kunoichi nods, slowly.

Being locked inside was... preferable. With nowhere to go, no one to lock onto and target, it was better for her. With luck, maybe she'd have limited things to listen to as well.

"... I think my shoulders are too broad to fit in vents." She half-jokes. "I'd sooner get stuck than be able to make it through anywhere."

Carefully, she rises to her feet, though unsteady. Margaret has to catch the edge of the stone table next to her, waiting for the dizziness to pass. Not caused by standing too quickly, but from her current sensitivity to motion at this time. If she moved too quickly, she might become ill. The nausea resting in the pit of her stomach threatened that much.

Having had a moment to regain her balance, Margaret slowly released the table.

Kakuzu nodded, briefly considering the mental image of her werehare form wedged halfway into a vent and clawing furiously at the inside. Maybe he'd find it more amusing later, when the danger had passed.

He watched her get to her feet and decided they'd take the journey at her pace. Any other time he'd offer to carry her there, but past conversations say the motion wouldn't agree with her.

And so they walked. It didn’t take them terribly long to reach the barrier that hid the safehouse. It rippled as Kakuzu passed through, but behind it was a long, low concrete building with no windows and a heavy metal door. The seal on the door reacted to his ring and unlocked; it groaned as he pulled it open and gestured for Margaret to step inside.

Inside were shelves of medical supplies, shelf-stable food, and water, along with space to roll out a place to sleep.