ephemeral-artist-blog

[ephemeral-artist-blog]

theflamehand started following you

Snowflakes drifted lazily from the gray sky and clung to the exposed skin of Deidara's face, but he scarcely noticed it. Three months in this place had gotten him more accustomed to the cold weather, and considering his current actions, the snow was the last thing on his mind.

The mouth on his left palm spat out a clay figurine, which was fashioned after one of the birds native to the Rock Village. Though he loved every one of his creations, he had to admit that it was his personal favorite formation.

From his stance on the ground, he launched it upward before the shouting a single command.

"Katsu!"

His shout was drowned out by the following explosion, which was loud enough to leave the average person's ears ringing for hours--provided they weren't the target, of course. Deidara watched in satisfaction as fire and ash rained down in what was the rewards of a job well done.

This was a sight he would never get tired of.

[ephemeral-artist-blog]

Deidara didn't like that smug look on her face in the slightest. If it weren't raining so hard, he might have considered showing her that he wasn't one to be taken lightly. Unfortunately, though, his explosions didn't make a very big bang in this kind of weather, and if she were as used to the rain as she claimed, she would probably have the advantage here.

"Then you obviously just need to get your eyes checked, yeah," he retorted instead, crossing his arms over his chest. "What brings you out here, anyway?"

Deidara & Juvia [Let the Rain Fall]

Deidara glanced up at the gray sky, a thoughtful expression on his face. Though he had never been a fan of rain, snow was another matter entirely. While rain put a damper on his art, snow...

[ephemeral-artist-blog]

That damned brat.

Deidara seethed from atop his clay bird as Naruto continued walking down the path, blatantly ignoring Deidara's threat. If there was one thing he hated, it was being ignored while he was talking, especially when he had a bone to pick with the person in question.

No way in hell was he going to let this one slide.

"You bastard!" he shouted, leaning over the edge of the bird. "Listen to me when I'm talking to you, yeah!"

With that, he immediately threw down several C1 explosives, which exploded in a loud blast of smoke and fire. That would get his attention.

narutouknowit started following you

When Deidara’s eyes landed on a familiar spiky-haired figure, he scowled. It was bad enough that he had run into Sasuke, but the Nine-tails brat, too?

“Well, look who it is,” he said scornfully, muscles tensing in the event that Naruto decided to instantly go into attack mode, which was true to his nature. “I still have to get back at you for what you did to me at the Akatsuki hideout, yeah.”

[ephemeral-artist-blog]

She was definitely not from the Five Great Shinobi Nations, Deidara decided. Only those who were unaware of his identity had ever been willing to let him demonstrate his work.

Not that he was complaining, of course. He would never turn down the chance to showcase his art.

Lifting himself off of the ground, Deidara turned to face her with a grin. "All right, but you may want to cover your ears, yeah."

He walked a few paces from the tree, one hand already digging into the bags of clay that rested on his hips. Deidara gathered a small amount into the mouth in his palm before infusing it with his chakra. He made sure to keep the level at C1, as he didn't want to cause any noticeable damage.

"Take a look at this," he called out, launching the clay bird high into the air. He lifted his fingers to his lips in a two-fingered seal, and then--

"Katsu!"

The sculpture detonated in a loud explosion, one strong enough to send Deidara's blond locks flying behind him. He always felt a rush whenever he completed a new piece, and this time was no different. He would never get tired of the beauty of his explosions.

He gazed at the spot a few more seconds before turning to look at her once again, that satisfied grin still in place. "How was that?"

Wandering Around Aimlessly [ Lucy ] [ Tag: Anyone ]

“Sounds like one helluva show, haha.” She laughed a bit, but there was some uncertainty in her voice. So, this guy creates things and uses them to explode, huh? This guy’s magic reminded her of that one guy back when she and her friends had to face Oracien Seis… What was his name? Her mind couldn’t fish the name from her memory.  In any case, this guy already sounded like he would be a difficult person to beat if battled. “It’s not my idea of art—. But it does sound like a blast.” She quipped lightly. “ 

[ephemeral-artist-blog]

Apparently, the girl had enough sense to know that this wasn't the weather to be sightseeing in. Having apparently noticed him, she began walking toward the gazebo. Deidara watched her carefully, studying her slow, precise gait as she made her way toward him. She only stopped when she was directly in front of the banister that separated them, and when she opened her mouth to speak, the words that left it made Deidara bristle.

"'Miss'?" he repeated indignantly, his signature temper already beginning to flare. "You obviously got too much water in your eyes from standing out there all that time. I'm a guy, yeah.

"And I could say the same to you. I'm not the one standing directly under it, am I?"

Deidara glanced up at the gray sky, a thoughtful expression on his face. Though he had never been a fan of rain, snow was another matter entirely. While rain put a damper on his art, snow almost seemed to amplify its beauty. His explosions would reflect off of the brilliant white snow for a brief...

[ephemeral-artist-blog]

[ephemeral-artist-blog]

Deidara's expression lit up at her suggestion to demonstrate his art. Though he would get all the showcasing time he needed during class hours, he had been more than a little tempted to use his work on something a little more artistic--namely, parts of the school itself. However, he didn't think the administration would appreciate that very much, and he still had a lot more exploring to do before he was ready to leave this place.

"They'll get all the demonstrations they can handle during my class, yeah," he said. Then, half-jokingly, he added, "Though I'll admit that the temple a few miles from here would make a perfect target."

"All right, then." With a nod, he spun on his heel and took a few steps toward the door. He turned his head to look back at her, silently beckoning her to follow. "I'm ready when you are."

It's about time

Deidara’s brows rose with interest at her comment. Did that mean that one of the other Akatsuki members had finally arrived as well?

He reached out for the announcement that fluttered toward him and held it up, cerulean eyes quickly scanning over the contents of the page. When he saw his former partner’s name, his eyes widened slightly with surprise. Inwardly, however, he couldn’t help but feel excited at the prospect of having his first Akatsuki partner around again. Truth be told, he had almost missed their philosophical debates about art after Sasori had died.

It also meant that he and Konan weren’t the only Akatsuki members at the school, after all. Deidara wondered if the rest of them would be arriving too, and if so, how long it would take.

“Master Sasori, huh?” he mused aloud, tucking the announcement into his cloak. He lifted his eyes to look at Konan again, a smirk on his lips. “That’s interesting. It’s been a while since I last saw him, yeah.” Not since he got himself killed by that kid and old lady, he added silently. “Guess I’ll be scoping the area again today.”

“I’ve got everything covered here as well. All I need now is more students to actually teach…”

“Tell me about it,” Deidara said, taking a seat on top of the desk. “This place is practically deserted, yeah. You’d think a school this size would be filled with people.”

[ephemeral-artist-blog]

fille-fantome started following you

Deidara glanced up at the gray sky, a thoughtful expression on his face. Though he had never been a fan of rain, snow was another matter entirely. While rain put a damper on his art, snow almost seemed to amplify its beauty. His explosions would reflect off of the brilliant white snow for a brief moment before the heat of the blast melted it entirely, leaving indents where the frozen precipitation once rested. He supposed that in a sense, that was art as well.

He held out a hand, his bare, reddened fingers catching snowflakes that instantaneously melted. After several moments, however, he noted that the flakes were coming down heavier and more diluted. It was almost as if--

"What the hell?"

As if on cue, raindrops began pelting the ground in a sudden downpour. Deidara held an arm over his head and ducked into a nearby gazebo in order to escape the rain. Deidara had always enjoyed spontaneity, but this was ridiculous. Not to mention unwanted.

It was only after he had stood under the gazebo roof for several seconds did he notice that someone was standing out in the rain. From what he could tell through the heavy downpour, it was a girl with striking blue hair, though most other details were obscured from his line of vision. He considered calling out to her, but quickly pushed that thought aside. If she wanted to stay out there and catch pneumonia, that was her problem.

[ephemeral-artist-blog]

narutouknowit started following you

When Deidara's eyes landed on a familiar spiky-haired figure, he scowled. It was bad enough that he had run into Sasuke, but the Nine-tails brat, too?

"Well, look who it is," he said scornfully, muscles tensing in the event that Naruto decided to instantly go into attack mode, which was true to his nature. "I still have to get back at you for what you did to me at the Akatsuki hideout, yeah."

[ephemeral-artist-blog]

Deidara could see the wheels turning in her head now. The smile dropped from her face and was replaced with an expression that Deidara could clearly define as being fear. He could tell from her cool tone and lack of honorifics that she was well aware of who he was, and that she wasn't comfortable with the fact that an S-ranked criminal was now walking among the student body.

"I'm here to teach," Deidara explained like it was the most natural thing in the world. "The academy was interested in my particular set of skills and they offered me a job, yeah."

It was similar to his recruitment into the Akatsuki, now that he thought about it. Aside from the fact that Deidara had been the one who was searched out last time, both recruitments had occurred due to him possessing a unique set of skills. Though teaching wasn't his forte, he was satisfied at the knowledge that his art was appreciated by more than one group of people, and that he would be able to showcase it to his heart's content here as well.

"And what about you? What's a flower shop girl doing in a place like this?"

@Deidara;

“I’d hardly call it interesting,” Deidara replied wryly, referring to the near-silence around them. He was almost surprised that she had decided to strike up a conversation with him. After all, he was still donning his Akatsuki cloak and ex-Rock Village forehead protector. He wondered if she had any clue who she as speaking to.

“Yeah, that’s right. I’m the explosives class teacher,” he continued. “My name’s Deidara, yeah.”

Deidara had never heard of the Yamanaka florists, but if she was their daughter, then maybe that meant she was a civilian. That would explain her lack of hesitance to speak with him.

[ephemeral-artist-blog]

Deidara blew against a clenched fist, trying to breathe some warmth back into it. Though he had spent many years away from the dry terrain of Iwa, he wasn't quite used to this type of frigid winter weather. However, it wasn't the snow that bothered him as much as the fact that it was so damn cold.

Kurotsuchi probably wasn't handling the weather any better than he was, he mused with a vague feeling of smugness. If anything, her years spent on the solid grounds of their home village had probably left her unprepared for the ice that was currently covering the school grounds. At least it would give him even more leverage over her during the class session today.

If she showed up, that was.

Then again, this was Kurotsuchi. If she was as stubborn as Deidara remembered her to be, she would definitely be there.

He found that his assumptions were correct as he approached the training grounds where he would be giving his lesson. A small group of people had already gathered, and Kurotsuchi was among them, looking somewhat smug at the fact that Deidara was late for the class. If Sasori were there, he probably would have berated Deidara for his lack of punctuality.

“OI BLONDIE! Are ya always gonna start us out with frost bite in the morning or will we actually get ta use our fingers in this class before they fall off?”

Apparently, one of the other students felt the need to scold him in place of his former partner. Scowling, Deidara turned to face the student in question, his left hand reaching for the bag of clay hanging from his belt. He remained silent as the mouth on his palm began lapping up clay, and after he had infused it with just the right amount of chakra, he launched it upward and brought a hand to his lips in a two-fingered seal.

"Katsu!"

The sculpture exploded in a brilliant flash of smoke and fire not ten meters away from the brat who decided to speak up against him. The girl screeched and ducked, covering her head with her hands as the charred remains of his sculpture came raining down.

Feeling pleased with himself, Deidara turned to face the general student body once more, a cocky grin on his face. "Rule number one: the class starts when I get here," he informed them. "If you've got something to say about that, then you might just end up being the target in one of my lessons, yeah.

"Any objections?"

Lost In Mercury

“I’ll see you first thing Monday morning, yeah.”

Their last conversation had not ended on an entirely pleasant note, Kurotsuchi wondered if any of them ever would again. But even though it had ended rather curtly, a positive note had been that they weren’t at each others throats yet. Key word being yet. With an exasperated sigh, Kurotsuchi shoved several things she would need into her pouch and finished getting ready for the day.

Lacing her fingers together and resting them against the back of her head as she walked down the halls, Kurotsuchi idly admired the intricate layout of the castle as she wandered through them. It was much colder here, though not like the Land of Iron cold. And because her village was located in a mountainous region, she was pretty much used to the cooler elements. Still….

“It’s still balls ass freezing!”

Says the silly onna wearing only her typical Iwa attire. Rubbing her palms together for a little extra heat, the raven haired shinobi stomped down the hallways and headed to the location where the blond was said to teach his class. Remembering the promise she’d made, she picked up the pace and walked faster.

She had said she would beat Deidara to his class, she said she was going to and she would be damned to keep her word.

Fortunately, she had managed to do just that. A smug grin dripped off her lips and she crossed her arms across her chest. First thing eh, big bro? Yea right, he never was the type to be punctual. Dark orbs scanned the faces of the other students, a couple of them unfamiliar and considering the way their chakra patterns..or lack there of were she realized that a few were mages. Interesting…I doubt they could perform any ninjustsu…

Shrugging it off, Kurotsuchi distanced herself from the small group of students and turned to gaze off into the distance. She was going to prove that she was worth even a ounce of respect from him…even if it meant that she herself had to earn his. And she could do that, she could earn it back somehow and one day she would.

Kurotsuchi didn’t bring much with her when she came to the training grounds of Seino Academy; only the clothes on her back and very little personal belongings. Among those belongings was a somewhat squished little white bird a much younger and much happier Deidara had tossed her when she had been been serving out a punishment.That same little bird was perched on her dresser back in her room, with its deformed beak and ‘broken wing’ as she referred it.

Akatsuchi had been the cause of it’s malformed features, having accidentally sat on her bag in which it resided for the longest time. Kurotsuchi had been understandably upset considering it was priceless memento of a friendship that was once as strong as the mountains themselves. Onoki had reprimanded her for being hard on Akatsuchi but the burly male himself had understood and apologized later for the mishap.

Kurotsuchi had forgiven him, not so much forgiven herself for getting upset in the first place. Deidara was a criminal. Someone who had defected from the village and damn near destroyed it. Yet despite all of that, Kurotsuchi still hoped that one day things could go back to the way they were. A childish and selfish desire it was, one that would likely never happen. But perhaps, if she could learn from Deidara and show him she could understand and appreciate his interests…

It may have been years since he departed, but he had that unique pattern of chakra that singled him out from the crowd. And after that brief encounter with him a few days ago she was able to sense when he drew nearer…though it wasn’t until he was practically upon the group and finally addressed them that she turned around and faced him.

Kurotsuchi may have made a remark about him being late, even though she had reached an epiphany about being serious for once and giving him the chance to prove that he could be a respectable teacher. But another student beat her to the punch and quite boldly shout out.

“OI BLONDIE! Are ya always gonna start us out with frost bite in the morning or will we actually get ta use our fingers in this class before they fall off?”

This bitch is gonna get us all killed…

A vein throbbed at her forehead and she shot the loud mouth a dirty look, wondering how Deidara was going to handle the snarky student. If he didn’t do something about it, she sure as hell was going to. In just a couple of short strides she could waltz over and BAM! POW! He’d be whisked right off to the nurses office for the remainder of the day. Her gaze hesitantly shifted over to him and their eyes locked for but a moment.

Your move big bro…

[ephemeral-artist-blog]

iamuchihasasuke started following you

Deidara supposed that he should have seen this coming.

Apparently the Akatsuki weren’t the only ones making a comeback at Seino, because standing right in front of him was none other than that damned brat, Sasuke Uchiha, who was—unfortunately—alive and well. Deidara assumed that Sasuke had been revived by the same power that he himself had, but it still irked him to see the kid appear untouched by the effects of his greatest creation.

"You," Deidara said darkly, sending a glare in the other's direction. "I have to say I liked it better when you were still dead, yeah."

[ephemeral-artist-blog]

"It's beautiful," Deidara told her, his voice taking on a passionate tone that he only used when discussing his art. "I doubt you've ever seen anything like it, yeah."

He had heard the hesitation in her voice, but it was to be expected. His art wasn't easily understood by others, and because of that, they often feared it or discredited it altogether. This girl hadn't done the latter, so Deidara decided that she wasn't a lost cause.

"How about I give you a demonstration?"

Wandering Around Aimlessly [ Lucy ] [ Tag: Anyone ]

“Sounds like one helluva show, haha.” She laughed a bit, but there was some uncertainty in her voice. So, this guy creates things and uses them to explode, huh? This guy’s magic reminded her of that one guy back when she and her friends had to face Oracien Seis… What was his name? Her mind couldn’t fish the name from her memory.  In any case, this guy already sounded like he would be a difficult person to beat if battled. “It’s not my idea of art—. But it does sound like a blast.” She quipped lightly. “ 

[ephemeral-artist-blog]

"Well, as you can see, I'm not," Deidara said, his grin never leaving his face despite Sasori's usual indifferent countenance. "It's good to see you alive, Master. The last time I saw you, you'd been killed by that kid and old lady, yeah. Whatever happened to 'true art is eternal beauty'?"

He knew that would be a sore spot for Sasori, but he couldn't resist making a jab at him. The puppet master had been so adamant about art being eternal that he had turned his own body into a puppet to gain immortality, and in the end, he had died before Deidara had.

It was the most amusing form of irony.

"Beats me," he said with a shrug, falling into step with his former partner. "The last thing I remember is creating my ultimate masterpiece, and when I woke up, I was in a spring in that forest, yeah.

"And we're not the only ones, either. Konan's here too."

eikyuu-no-sasori started following you

Ever since Deidara had stolen the kinjutsu that had given him the mouths on his hands and chest, allowing him to bring his creations to life with his chakra, flying had become his absolute favorite method of traveling. There was something liberating about soaring through the skies on one of his clay birds, something he was never able to feel on the ground below.

The wind was strong this high up. It blew through his hair, sending long blond locks back over his shoulder and away from his face. His left eye, which was usually closed and covered by his long fringe, was currently open and scanning the ground below. Though his Akatsuki cloak had been intact when he’d been revived in this world, his eye scope, unfortunately, hadn’t come with it. Deidara would have to build a new one, but until then, he would have to use his genjutsu-specialized eye to see long-range.

He continued searching over the area for several more minutes before deciding that he shouldn’t overuse his eye. Just as he was about to close it, however, a familiar flash of red caught his eye.

Deidara grinned. He knew that red hair by heart.

He made his bird dive down low enough so that he could safely jump down to the ground below, landing only a few feet from where his former Akatsuki partner stood.

“Look who finally decided to show up,” he said, his grin widening at seeing Sasori up close, and more importantly, alive. “So much for hating to make people wait, yeah.”

[ephemeral-artist-blog]

[ephemeral-artist-blog]

Deidara glanced over at her work and resisted the urge to roll his eyes. "That's because you're doing it wrong, yeah. Here, let me show you how it's done."

With that, he pulled her hands toward him and began smoothing out the sculpture's head with expert fingers. His fingers lightly brushed against hers, but he didn't even notice as he began giving her instructions.

"The head is way too small compared to the rest of the body. If you don't know what it's supposed to look like, then get a reference. And stop pressing so hard, or everyone's going to see your fingerprints on the finished piece, yeah."

⍞

[ephemeral-artist-blog]

Despite her protests, Deidara followed behind as she marched down the halls of the academy, muttering angrily under her breath. She was an unpleasant person, he decided. The more time he spent in her presence, the more certain he became that all Sand ninja were difficult to get along with. If he hadn't been headed to his apartment in the first place, he wouldn't have had to think twice about heading in the opposite direction.

"For your information, I'm in Nakatsu," he retorted, eyebrow twitching at her comment about his hair. "With your masculine temperament, I'm surprised they didn't stick you in Sano, yeah."

If she wasn't in Ashiya or Sano, that could only mean that she was in Nakatsu Hall as well. Great, he thought sarcastically. He hoped she was at least on the top floor and far, far away from his and Konan's shared unit.

Deidara's footsteps fell just as loudly as Temari's did on the frozen ground outside. He irritably pulled his hands into his Akatsuki cloak to protect them from the frigid December air, a scowl on his face. He was so busy glaring at Temari's back to notice that the ice below him was thicker than it had been at the academy doors. Momentarily losing his footing, Deidara lurched forward at the same time Temari fell backward, limbs flying in every direction. His face collided with her elbow, and he instinctively clutched it, groaning in pain as they fell into a heap on the ground.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?" he snapped, sitting up. He could feel a warm substance slowly dripping down his fingers, and he knew right away that she had given him a bloody nose. "Why don't you watch where you're walking, yeah?"

Bombshell Blondes (Deidara/Temari)

ephemeral-artist:

Her reaction was definitely satisfying. Deidara could tell that she was quickly losing patience with him, and it almost reminded him of how Sasori got when the two debated about art. Deidara was starting to wonder if having a short fuse was a personality trait inherent to Suna ninja.

“Wind element?” he repeated, knitting his brows together in distaste. “That’s hardly what I’d call art, yeah. Art is fleeting and destructive; a single moment of chaos. Something as controlled as wind couldn’t possibly be considered art.”

“Maybe I should check yours out. Sounds like a blasty blast.”

“Fine by me,” Deidara called to her as she stood up and walked to the sink. “Maybe then you’ll get to see what true art looks like.”

Temari walked back and snatched Deidara’s empty mug from his hands before washing that one out as well. He scowled at her retreating back, though inwardly he was unsure whether he should be amused or annoyed at her candid behavior. He was used to Sasori taking this kind of attitude, but getting it from someone else—someone he hardly knew—was an entirely different story.

“I’m heading home.”

“I was just about to head out too,” he said, ignoring the implicative look she shot him. He had been spending only about half of his nights at home, and he figured that Konan was surely getting tired of spending all of that time alone. Independent though Deidara was, even he knew that being by oneself got boring very quickly.

He stood up and made his way to the door, then turned to look at her with a challenge in his eye. “Guess we’ll be heading in the same direction, yeah.”

Temari bristled the moment Deidara joined her on the doorway. “What?? The hell we are!” she protested, not liking the cocksure look he was giving her one bit. The nerve of this guy! She whisked out of the lounge, bumping his shoulder roughly as she squeezed past.

Once in the hallway, Temari set a snappy pace for the teacher’s dorms, marching toward the exit grumbling about art and wind and men not knowing anything about anything. Hearing footsteps behind her she balled her fists and groaned. “I suppose it would be too much to hope that you’re in Sano apartments,” she groused without looking back. “Or maybe with that hair of yours they put you in Ashiya?” she added with a sneer, putting palms to the exterior doors.

Outside it was cold and damp, long icicles suspended from the eaves. Temari stomped moodily down the steps, too busy pointedly ignoring Deidara trailing after her to mind her footing on the icy walkway. Before the sand kunoichi knew it, one of her heels went sliding sideways and she swerved off balance, limbs akimbo, watching the scenery lurch as her elbow collided with what felt uncannily like someone’s face.