The next week went by rather peacefully for Deidara. The morning after his return, he dragged himself to the local medical ninja to see what could be done about his injuries. Now the doctor knew better than to ask an Akatsuki member how or why he'd gotten his wounds, but still gave Deidara a thorough chewing out for waiting so long to have his broken ribs attended to. They'd already begun to mend, and there were two that he had to break again before he could try to set them and repair the damage. It took half a day, and by the end of it Deidara was still very bruised, but at least everything was back in one piece.

When he returned to the base, Konan was waiting for him at the entrance, and seemed relieved that the bomber's injuries had been attended to. "Hey Konan, un."

"Hey Deidara. Pein just wanted me to let you know the procedure was a success. Sasori's back in his adult body, complete with all his old memories."

"That's good, un," Deidara replied, and he really did mean it. There had been a small part of the blond that had spent all day worrying that something would go wrong with the ritual, and he'd have an even bigger problem to face than chibi Sasori. "Did he…?"

"He chose to forget," Konan answered, voice trying to deliver the message as gently as possible. "Pein told him that there was an accident, he ended up as a regular human as a result, and spent the past several months in a coma. He's in one of the labs in the basement, trying to put his heart into a puppet body. He warned it could take a few days."

"I wasn't planning on interrupting him, un," Deidara assured her. In fact, the blond didn't plan on doing much of anything in the near future. There was too much going on in his mind.

The next few days were quiet and uneventful. None of the other members bothered him, and Pein never sent for him to go on a mission. Deidara had a nagging suspicion that Konan was at least partially responsible for that, but never approached the woman to confirm his theory. Instead, he spent his time doing light training in the nearby forest, more to check his body for any unhealed wounds than anything else. It was rare, but occasionally the local medics would miss a hairline fracture or torn muscle, which could be disastrous if not discovered before a mission.

It was during a break in one of these training sessions that Deidara finally saw Sasori. He'd been resting on a fallen tree when he sensed the elder's chakra signature approaching. He chose not to respond just yet, and instead took a long drink from his canteen. If Sasori had anything to say to him, it would be out soon enough.

The redhead eventually came into sight, approaching the bomber with calm, even steps. Even from a distance Deidara could make out the faint lines on Sasori's body where the joints were, and could see the bulge in his cloak that indicated his razor sharp wings were once again attached to his back. It looked like Sasori was back to normal.

Sasori continued walking until he was barely a yard from the bomber, finally stopping in front of Deidara to stare down at the younger man with the same uninterested look he gave to everyone. "You're injured." A statement, nothing more or less.

Deidara nodded, knowing the bruises on his body would still be visible now. Cuts and bruises were rarely more than superficial wounds, and as the local medics charged extra for their healing, most Akatsuki members allowed nature to take its course in healing those injuries.

"From a solo mission?" Another nod. "Of course. Pein should know by now that sending you alone into the field is a terrible-"

"If you're going to berate me, just stop," Deidara snapped, directing his glare towards the ground instead of its intended target, Sasori. "The mission was to get a powder to get you back on your feet, un. Show a little gratitude." The bomber had no idea where this anger was coming from; probably a combination of physical and emotional exhaustion, coupled with years of built up irritation at Sasori's hateful attitude towards him.

Sasori showed no emotion at the blond's outburst, but stopped his scolding. For a time, there was an uncomfortable silence between the two. And then: "Would you have been injured if I were present?"

Deidara shook his head. Of course not. Sasori was a specialist of short-range combat; the men who surrounded Deidara that night would never have stood a chance before the Akasuna's might. It didn't make Deidara feel any better about admitting such a thing, though. He hated being seen as weak, especially by Sasori.

Sasori took a minute to process this bit of information before going on. "Pein tells me that after our last assignment, I was gravely wounded," the puppet master continued. "What happened?"

"You set off an explosive tag on one of the bodies, un," Deidara explained, unable to suppress a bit of smug satisfaction at telling this. For once Deidara had been in the right, and Sasori had played the fool.

"This injury was bad enough that I had to be transferred back into a human body, correct?" A nod; Deidara really needed to start speaking more. "And at this point, I was put into a coma for the next two months, until my body was strong enough to support me again." Sasori shifted his weight, eyes narrowing a bit. "There's a slight problem with that account, however. It was told to me by Pein and Konan, who are both terrible liars."

Faster than he could blink, Sasori's stomach cable had shot out and wrapped itself around Deidara's torso, squeezing just tight enough to keep the blond trapped as the flat of its blade rested against Deidara's neck. "You, unlike them, know better than to try lying to me and expecting to get away with it. So, you have two options. Tell me the truth, or you're going to get cut and injected with a truth serum that will make you explain to me what really happened."

Deidara sighed; there was no room for argument here. He mentally cursed both Pein and Konan for thinking they could deceive the Akasuna, thereby leaving him in this predicament. "Fine, un."

"What really happened to me, and why can't I remember?"

"After you were put in a human body, you weren't yourself, un," Deidara answered, trying to be as vague as possible. He didn't want to let out too many details; it would just make Sasori's inevitable rejection more painful. "And I don't know why you chose to forget, un. You had the option to remember, you know. You just picked not to, un."

Sasori narrowed his eyes at his partner; the bomber was being deliberately evasive, and they both knew it. "Well then, why do you think I forgot?" he demanded, turning the cable ever so slightly to lightly press the blade against Deidara's neck.

"Because I asked you to, un," Deidara snapped, hoping to catch the redhead off guard and make a hasty escape.

Sasori was unable to conceal his surprise quickly enough for it to go unnoticed by Deidara, nor did he prevent an involuntary tightening of the cable around his partner. "And why would you ask that?"

"I told you, you weren't yourself after the procedure," Deidara hurriedly replied, wincing as the cable pressed against his still sore ribs. "You said and did some things you normally wouldn't, and it would've made things awkward for us if you remembered-ACK!"

The blade had nicked his skin; apparently Sasori had grown tired of answers that didn't really answer anything. "Deidara, tell me exactly what I did," the puppeteer ground out.

The blond couldn't lie now, but that didn't mean he was compliant in his position. He stared directly into Sasori's eyes, and in a quiet, even voice, answered, "You held me and promised to protect me." At least that would get a reaction.

It was as if the words had physically struck Sasori. The cable unwound itself from Deidara so quickly it nearly scraped off the top layer of his skin, but the Akasuna seemed not to notice. His eyes, normally so devoid of any sort of expression, were now wide and staring dead ahead at absolutely nothing, while a hand was clasped over his mouth, as though he was about to vomit. "Shit," he whispered, feet rooted to the spot.

"I was bloody and couldn't stand upright, un," Deidara went on, hoping to catch the Akasuna's attention, even if it meant refocusing on the blond's wounds once more. Seeing Sasori so visibly shaken was unsettling, to say the least.

The Akasuna groaned, moving his hand from his mouth to cover his eyes. "That would do it," he stated, as though that would explain everything.

Unfortunately for Sasori, it did not. "What's that supposed to mean, un?"

Slowly, the Akasuna removed his hand from his eyes, passive and emotionless mask back on his face, but just barely so. "Do you have any idea how terrible you were at hand to hand combat when we first became partners?"

"I was not terrible, un!" Deidara snapped, temporarily distracted from their discussion by the insult. His pride was on the line, and he had to defend himself.

"Yes, you were," Sasori countered with forced patience in his tone. "I've spent the entirety of our partnership going out of my way to spar with or assault you in the hopes that you'd develop into a decent close-range combatant."

"Tch, did Pein order you to do that, un?"

"No. The fighting was for entirely selfish reasons."

"What are you talking about, un?" Deidara inquired, back in the realm of the extremely confused now.

Sasori took a deep breath, finally looking at his partner again. "It took me years to perfect this puppet body of mine. To completely disconnect myself from human wants and emotions, and to make myself into an artistic masterpiece. Becoming an infamous criminal was an added perk, to be sure, but the real victory was transforming myself from a weak human into an all-powerful puppet." Here his eyes narrowed at the blond. "And then, you showed up."

"Well excuse me for getting kidnapped and being forced to be your partner, un!"

"I was finally alone," Sasori went on, oblivious to the blond's remark, "And Pein saw fit to partner me with a loud, obnoxious, uncoordinated, incapable brat with an ego so big it couldn't fit through the door. It annoyed me. It angered me. And worst of all, I couldn't get these emotions to go away." Here the Akasuna sighed and shook his head. "My life was easier before your arrival, Deidara."

"Gee, thanks."

"There was nothing I could do about the arrangement, so I had to make do. I argued with you, I fought, I attempted to correct your perverse opinion on art whenever possible. And eventually, you changed. You became stronger, faster, more capable on the battlefield, and your skills were nearly up to par with your ego. Granted, you still have that ridiculous notion of art in that blond head of yours, but one can only ask for so much. It was a…pleasant change." Deidara, who had been seething until now, was surprised. His danna really thought that of him?

"Of course, there was still the issue that your presence was causing me to feel things," Sasori went on, frowning. "That was a problem. A problem I could have handled better."

"You mean something other than years of attacking and berating me, un?" Deidara snapped.

Sasori narrowed his eyes at the accusation. "Well obviously I didn't damage you too badly, if your reactions to me are anything to go by."

"What do you-"

"You, brat, are head over heels in love with me. And don't try to deny it; I've known since you were 14."

Deidara's entire world stopped in that instant. That couldn't be right. What he just heard couldn't have possibly been spoken by the puppet master. There was no way Sasori could have known…but nothing about the Akasuna's demeanor suggested his accusation was a bluff. "You…knew?" he choked out, legs giving out at last.

Sasori's stomach cable caught the blond on the way down, setting Deidara down gently and remaining loosely curled around him. "The sighing and moping of our early years together told me you had someone in mind, but I wasn't sure until the dozen or so separate occasions I walked into our room and found you with your hands down your pants screaming my name."

Deidara let out a sound like a wounded animal and curled in on himself, embarrassed beyond all reasonable belief. Sasori's unusually good stealth capabilities had often led him to suggest the Akasuna wear a bell, or at least knock before entering their room. Sasori had finally started doing the latter, but Deidara had no idea this was done because the Akasuna had learned of his little sessions in his fantasy world.

Wait a minute. Sasori had known about the bomber's feelings. He'd known all this time, and still treated his partner with such scorn and abuse? Deidara didn't know whether to run, cry, or throw up. "Bastard," he finally got out, the single word not nearly enough to sum up his inner turmoil. "Is that why you treated me like dirt, un?"

"No," Sasori quickly responded, eyes once again looking anywhere but at Deidara. "I did that so your affections would disappear, or at least redirect themselves towards another person. Knowing you felt that way about me made things far more difficult than they had to be."

"I didn't ask to feel this way," Deidara hissed. "If I could, I'd go after anyone but you, un. But even after everything you've said and done to me, I still love you, Sasori danna."

"I hate you," Sasori spat out. "You're the reason I feel things, you're always getting injured on our missions, you won't shut up about your artistic nonsense, and no matter how hard I shove, you won't take a hint and stop caring about me! Some days, I really wish I had just slit your throat the minute I saw you." Retracting his cable once again, Sasori turned his back on the bomber and took a few paces away, positively shaking with anger.

Deidara didn't allow the words to get to him; he'd heard far worse from the redhead before, and this was unlikely to be the last time he'd endure such a slew of verbal abuse. What was new to him was the raw emotions he was seeing in Sasori. Never had the redhead shown such a high amount of passion for anything, even his art. Deidara had shaken the elder man right to the core. Cautiously, the bomber rose and stepped towards Sasori. "Danna, why does it bother you to see me hurt?"

"Because you being hurt hinders our progress," Sasori snapped, still facing away from the blond.

"No," Deidara replied, voice calm as a sudden revelation swept over him. "When you and I train at the base, your immediate reaction to me being hurt is to tell me to fix it or seek a medical ninja, un. And you do that for any cut or bruise…"

"Because otherwise you'll slow me down!"

"I've never failed a solo mission, un. Why do you get upset when Pein assigns me one?"

"It could be done much faster with both of us, or just me."

"Do you really hate to feel emotions, danna? Or just the fact that I'm the one making you feel things, un?"

"Brat," Sasori growled in warning.

"You love me, don't you?" Deidara inquired softly as the final piece fell into place in his mind.

Sasori spun around to strike Deidara at the accusation, but the bomber was ready for it. Sasori's hands were caught, and his fingers captured so as not to be in a position to use chakra strings. Deidara threw his weight against the redhead to send him toppling to the ground, and a knee well placed in the center of the Akasuna's chest prevented to stomach cable from coming into play. With his wings and scrolls now pinned under him as well, the puppet master was completely at his partner's mercy. "Get off me, brat," he ordered.

"You're an idiot, un," Deidara accused. "You could have made things easier for both of us by admitting you liked me, but no, you had to try and beat my love out of me while denying yours, un. Well guess what Sasori danna? I love you, you love me, and even if you kill me right now, you'd just spend the rest of your life being depressed about it, un." Sasori bucked at this declaration and managed to knock Deidara off of him. In seconds the blond found himself pinned under the redhead.

Deidara watched with baited breath as the Akasuna stared down at him, the stomach cable twitching every now and again as Sasori waged in inner battle with himself, probably over whether or not he was finally going to fulfill all those threats and murder Deidara in cold blood. Finally he sighed and slumped forward, stomach cable wrapping itself around the bomber's waist in a way that was quickly becoming familiar to Deidara. "Why you?" he murmured, looking down at Deidara with an unreadable expression. "Why me, for that matter? This is absolutely insane."

"I don't know," Deidara admitted. "But I think it's because you're my opposite, un. You're quiet, calculating, more mature than me, things like that, un. You pick up my slack, and I pick up yours, un. We're two halves of the same whole."

"I don't keep track of dates or anniversaries," Sasori continued. "I won't give gifts or anything traditional like that."

"We're not exactly traditional, un," Deidara reminded him.

"I'm old enough to be your father. I don't even have a human body."

"I've got four mouths and a speech impediment, un." Sasori appeared to be caving now, so Deidara decided to push a little harder. "Besides, do you really think you could handle me being with someone else like that, un?"

The cable tightened around him as Sasori's hand balled into a fist. "No. It would be better for both you and myself, but no. I'd probably kill the poor bastard for looking at you."

"Then stop fighting it," Deidara begged. This was it; he could see the Akasuna's resolve wavering. It would just need a little nudge in the right direction, and this would be over. Slowly, Deidara slid his hand up Sasori's chest to wrap around his neck, fingers rubbing soft circles in the artificial flesh there. Sasori had watched the entire process in silence, and now chanced another glance at Deidara's face. "Please Sasori danna?" Never in his life had Deidara begged anything of his danna. His pride wouldn't allow for it, but at the moment it could go to hell.

There was a sigh as chocolate brown eyes closed, and then Sasori was leaning forward and pressing his lips against Deidara's. Deidara, for his part, was so shocked he couldn't move. This was it; Sasori was finally his! Almost too late did he notice the Akasuna was pulling away, probably upset at the bomber's lack of a response. Deidara was having none of that and wrapped his arms around Sasori's neck, pulling him back down for a much longer, much more passionate kiss. The puppet master would be let up when Deidara was good and ready to let him go, and not a moment before.

Eventually Sasori's inhuman strength won out over Deidara's desire to keep them permanently fused at the lips and he sat up, albeit bringing Deidara with him and holding the blond in his arms. "I'm very possessive," he warned in a final move to drive Deidara away. "If you attempted a break-up in the future, it would be messy. Possibly deadly."

Finally having had enough, Deidara smacked the back of Sasori's head. "I told you," he groaned, settling in to the Akasuna's shoulder, "I love you, so stop acting like I'm going to hate you one day, un. And before you can suggest it, no, I don't care if you don't have your 'equipment' down there anymore, un. There's ways around that."

"My 'equipment' is still intact," Sasori dryly remarked. "Konan caught me in the middle of transforming my body back to a puppet and gave me a few guidelines for the procedure, in case I'm badly damaged again. One was to preserve most of my nerve endings, another to keep my body mostly anatomically correct. Although I'm beginning to think she had ulterior motives for telling me that…"

Deidara made a mental note to thank Konan and squeezed Sasori. "In that case, there's no more problems you can bring up, un."

"Fine," Sasori conceded. "We'll try it. On one condition."

"What, un?"

"You have to tell me what really happened during that period of time which I can't remember."

Deidara paled at the ultimatum but agreed to it. After all, most of the other members didn't remember what had happened, and the ones that did wouldn't bring it up. And surely Sasori wouldn't kill his new boyfriend so soon after they became a couple, right?

"Brat, you look like you're going to throw up."

Deidara sincerely hoped so.

- Later that evening-

"GAAAAH!"

"Hold still brat!"

CRASH

Itachi, Konan, and Pein looked at each other in mild confusion, wondering what was going on. Their answer came a few moments later when Deidara raced into the kitchen at full speed with Sasori fast in his heels. Deidara dove behind the counter to avoid Sasori's chakra strings, but nearly had a few blond locks sheared off by a flying knife. "Deidara, come out from there," Sasori growled.

"You asked what happened and I told you, un!" Deidara whined.

"Deidara-"

The bomber reappeared then, but not before snatching Pein's sandwich off his plate and hurling it at the Akasuna's face, temporarily blinding the redhead and allowing him to make a break for the living room. Sasori wasn't one to be slowed down for long, however; a few seconds later he was back on the blond's heels. There were several more crashes, a squeal, a thump, and then Sasori walked back into the kitchen, carrying Deidara over his shoulders. "Sasori danna, you really don't want to kill me, un," Deidara reasoned nervously. "You love me, remember?"

"I'll make sure to engrave that on your headstone," Sasori flatly replied as he hauled the bomber down the hallway towards their room.

"Konan, help!" the bomber begged before he disappeared completely from sight.

"Sasori, don't kill him," Pein called out as he made a new sandwich to replace the one that had been turned into a projectile.

"Wait a minute," Konan began, "did Deidara just say what I think he said?"

"Pay up," Itachi demanded, holding out his hands towards Pein.

Grumbling, the leader fished several twenties out of his pocket and handed them over to the all too smug Uchiha. "I hope you choke on it."

"Hn," Itachi replied, pocketing the money.

"You people should be ashamed for betting on their love life," Konan huffed at the boys.

"The payout's doubled for how long it takes them to have sex," Pein replied. "You want in?"

"…Twenty bucks on two weeks." A loud explosion went off somewhere down the hall, followed by sounds of Sasori swearing loudly. "On second thought, make it a month."