Outside the office window stood a man, his feet planted on a large white bird.
He was gazing excitedly at Uchiha Sora.
"Artist... no, Master! You're my master! Please take me on as your disciple!"
"Someone from the Akatsuki! Why haven't you left yet?"
The Hokage's expression changed, and he nearly jumped out of his skin.
This guy had been working with Orochimaru just moments ago, trying to kill him. And now he was brazenly appearing at the office window?
If the Hokage had been any less composed, he would have attacked on the spot.
Fortunately, the Hokage was a shrewd man. He knew that, just like Itachi Uchiha, this guy had sat out the whole fight.
He hadn't really attacked him.
Besides, this was a dangerous fellow. If they provoked him, the village couldn't withstand a second upheaval.
All things considered, it was best not to antagonize him if they could avoid it.
Just as the Hokage was about to speak, Uchiha Sora turned and glanced at Deidara with a helpless expression.
"I can't guarantee I'll be able to teach you. This takes talent!"
"If you can't learn, don't blame me. Even so, are you still willing to become my disciple?"
Uchiha Sora wasn't lying. If you didn't grow up surrounded by technology and study the relevant fundamentals, how could a native of the Naruto world possibly learn it?
It was like trying to teach a monkey to play a video game. It didn't even know how to use a keyboard, let alone how to play.
But Deidara heard something entirely different in those words.
Well, damn! Wasn't this art?
Whether he could learn it depended entirely on talent, and the vague, uncertain way Sora had put it carried an ineffable sense of imprecision!
What else could it be but art?
Art was something inscrutable, something that left people racking their brains without understanding it.
"Don't worry, Master! I'll definitely learn. Even if I can't, I'll keep at it. And even if I really can't learn, I'd be happy just doing odd jobs for you!"
Deidara jumped through the window and enthusiastically grabbed Uchiha Sora's hand, looking like a lovesick fool.
The sight made the Hokage beside them leap to his feet, his old face scrunched up in alarm.
If he remembered right, this was the Hokage's own office in Konoha...
Why did these two seem even more at home here than he was?
There was a door! Couldn't they use it?
At this point, to keep his position from being undermined, the Hokage gave a pointed cough.
"Deidara, right? Not long ago, you attacked Konoha and put the children in danger. You even stood by while your so-called master was left to die. How can you have the nerve to ask him to take you as a disciple?"
"Besides, Konoha doesn't welcome dangerous people. If you leave now, I'll let bygones be bygones!"
Deidara rolled his eyes, looking impatient.
"Enough, enough! I get it. Don't worry, I'm a man of principle. Once I've chosen my master, I'll never do anything he tells me not to, even if you beat me to death."
Then he turned excitedly back to Uchiha Sora.
"Master! Please take me on. With me around, nobody in the village will dare bully you..."
He stopped halfway and thought it over. Someone who could kill a Tailed Beast with his bare hands probably didn't have anyone in the village who dared mess with him.
So he quickly changed his offer.
"Master! I can wait on you hand and foot. I'll do anything you ask!"
"As long as you let me see those explosions a few more times, I don't even mind if I can't learn. I can just listen to the sound!"
Seeing how sincere Deidara was, Uchiha Sora could only sigh and reluctantly agree.
"Fine... Given how passionately you pursue art, I'll take you on as my disciple."
"But I can't just set that stuff off whenever I want. It takes a lot out of me. And art wouldn't be art if it happened all the time, would it?"
Deidara looked as if he'd been enlightened, nodding every now and then.
"From now on, you can serve as my bodyguard for the time being. You can study with me too. If you're a quick learner, maybe you'll figure it out!"
Deidara couldn't hide his excitement at those words.
"Yes, sir! Understood!"
The Hokage, who had watched the whole thing unfold, twitched at the corner of his eye.
He couldn't help grumbling to himself.
What was Uchiha Sora made of? He looked barely into his teens, so how could he be so cunning?
Sure, Deidara had come looking for him of his own accord, but somehow it still felt like he'd been conned.
How had he suddenly become Uchiha Sora's bodyguard?
And why was a Chunin acting like he couldn't be bothered?
Have some shame!
On top of that, it looked like Sora wasn't going to pay him or provide room and board.
Sora, you're incredible!
But then again, this was a good thing. Deidara was a member of the Akatsuki, after all. He had to be at least as strong as a Kage, right?
If Uchiha Sora really could keep him under control, wouldn't the village have gained a Kage-level fighter for free?
A fantastic deal!
The Hokage even thought the village being wrecked today was nothing worth worrying about.
At least no one had been hurt.
At that moment, he coughed. As the Hokage, he still had to say something.
"Uchiha Sora, if you want to take Deidara as your disciple, he has to join Konoha. It wouldn't be appropriate for an outsider to stay in the village."
As he spoke, the Hokage kept winking at Uchiha Sora.
He couldn't have made it any clearer.
Uchiha Sora wasn't stupid. In fact, he had already thought everything through by the time he came to the office today.
He knew the Hokage might look like a kindly old man, but he had plenty of tricks up his sleeve.
Without Deidara today, Sora might already have been put under house arrest.
He might even have been sent to the Anbu for research.
Deidara was a shield he could hide behind. He really couldn't do without him!
So Uchiha Sora nodded.
"That's only right. Deidara... my disciple, are you willing to join Konoha starting today?"
"Once you've joined, I can take you straight into the Uchiha Clan. Then you'll be able to appreciate art more closely!"
Deidara hesitated.
He was used to being a rogue ninja. Suddenly joining a village—and Konoha, of all places—was so formal that he wasn't quite used to it.
But he quickly shook his head. What did any of that matter compared to art?
If he could witness art every day and learn how to create it, then he'd gladly join Konoha. He'd even be willing to become Hokage!
"Yes, Master! Whatever you say!"
Uchiha Sora nodded with a faint smile, looking pleased.
The scene made it seem as if Uchiha Sora were the elder, while this Akatsuki member was the younger one.
Watching this, the Hokage's eyelids twitched, and the corners of his mouth spasmed several times.
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