Full summary (since the blurb's character limit made it impossible to write the whole thing there):
The re-written version of 'Changing Destiny'. Aoi Coulter is a lonely girl who wants friends. The Akatsuki need information about the success or failure of their goals. When Aoi finds herself in the strange world of ninja and their extraordinary abilities, she crosses paths with the organization. They soon discover that they can surprisingly help each other succeed. Aoi knows navigating this world of belligerence will be tough, and that she shouldn't let her guard down, but can she handle the strain and pressures that come with being Akatsuki's reluctant tool? Knowledge can be a gift and a curse, something that Aoi will soon discover. From Ame, to Konoha, and to many other places, Aoi forms bonds with and makes enemies of people she never imagined meeting, and changes the course of a story she previously thought was fictional. The only question is, will she survive the outcome?

Also, just a note: I included Suigetsu in the character list on here because he shows up later on in the story (like in the 21st chapter onwards), but he's a central character to the plot from that point onward.

*EDIT 2014*:

Just polished this up a bit more, and fixed some odd sentence structures. This obviously looks like older writing of mine, since I didn't feel like rewriting the entire thing, so the more current chapters will be written better.

/

EDIT 2012:
Hello, everyone~ I'm back! Since my writing style has improved, I am editing and re-writing some chapters. This chapter won't be edited very much, since this is just the prologue, but there will be some changes. I will keep the original A/N just because it explains a lot.
I will say that there will be some MAJOR edits and plot changes in future chapters.
Also, because of a certain chapter, I had to rework "Tobi"'s entire character. Ugh.
Enjoy this edited chapter~

Hello there! Welcome to my first Naruto fanfic. I have been working on this prologue for awhile, yet I am still not sure if it is very good. I hope the characters aren't too OOC. *Sigh* I'm my own worst critic, I suppose… Anyways, before I start the story I will warn you that it has an OC. I also warn you that there is language *coughcough, Hidan, coughcough* and violence. This story takes place before they capture the One-Tail. It is a slightly alternate timeline, with Tobi being an honorary member while Sasori is still alive. I will be using Japanese honorifics and village names (ex. Konoha will be used instead of "Hidden Leaf Village", etc.), yet I will call the headbands 'forehead protectors' instead of the Japanese term. I will also use the Japanese spelling of Pein/Pain's name. Oh! I do not own Naruto (Oh, how I wish I did!) Now, on with the story…

Blah, blah, blah: White Zetsu

Blah, blah, blah: Black Zetsu


-Prologue-

Pein sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. Every time the entire Akatsuki got together, there was always enough arguing to make the pierced man wish he was deaf. But as annoying as they all—minus Konan—were, he needed them for this particular jutsu. He finally opened his eyes to see what all the fuss was about. Deidara and Sasori were having yet another one of their "art debates", while Hidan and Kakuzu were arguing about the importance of money and religion. Kisame was snickering at both arguments while his partner, Itachi, observed silently, looking just annoyed as Pein. Finally, the Akatsuki leader's Rinnegan eyes rested on Zetsu, who was arguing with himself yet again, and Tobi, who was childishly poking Deidara. Pein wondered how Tobi—or should he say Uchiha Madara, though he didn't know his real identity for sure—could act so stupidly without driving himself crazy. He's a damn good actor.

When the orange-haired man couldn't take any more of the arguments, he took a deep breath and yelled, "QUIET!"

Suddenly, everyone fell silent. When the Akatsuki leader gives you an order, you follow it without question. Pein internally sighed and continued. "The reason why I have requested for you all to come here today is because I need all of you for this particular new jutsu to work. This is the first time it is being used, and I want to—"

Pein was cut off by Hidan, who loudly asked, "What fuckin' new jutsu?"

"You never mentioned that when you called us here," added Deidara. What if it doesn't work, un?"

"I don't wanna waste my chakra on something that won't even work!" Hidan persisted.

Now Pein was really starting to get angry. No one talks to him that way, especially not the newest members of the Akatsuki. With a blink of an eye, he was behind Deidara and pinned one of the blond's arms behind his back. He decided to punish the Iwa-nin because Hidan was immortal and masochistic. Deidara, on the other hand, was not. He did not hate the bomber, but in order for the organization to listen to him, he needed to do something a bit dramatic. He pulled the blond's arm harder and hissed, "I'd apologize if you still want to use this arm!"

Deidara pondered this, trying to squirm out of the leader's grip. Pein could see that he was trying to keep any emotion from showing on his face. Trying but failing, he smirked. Despite the younger man's cockiness, he was still intimidated by him, a fact which amused Pein. For emphasis, the pierced man yanked on the blond's arm even more; he could feel it beginning to dislocate from the shoulder. He knew that Deidara felt it too when he grudgingly replied, "Yes, Pein."

"Yes, Pein what?" asked the leader, still gripping Deidara's arm.

"Yes, Pein-sama," answered the bomber, spitting out the honorific with obvious distaste.

"Good," answered Pein. Thinking that the leader was going to let go of him, Deidara began to relax. Before the blond even realized what was happening, Pein had yanked on his arm once more, finally dislocating it. Deidara tried to hide his pain, but let out a small grunt of discomfort.

"Next time, remember who you are speaking to," hissed Pein, harshly pushing him toward his partner. To the untrained eye, Sasori looked apathetic as usual, but Pein caught the tiny glare that was meant for him.

"Wasn't that a little harsh?" asked Zetsu.

"Maybe, but it was certainly entertaining," retorted the plant-man's darker half.

Answering Zetsu's light half, Pein replied, "It might have been, but it got all of you to shut up, didn't it?"

Both halves of Zetsu stopped arguing, while Konan gave him a glare.

Pretending that he was never interrupted, Pein said, "As I was saying before, during one of Konan-san's trips into Ame, she found an unusual scroll. When she brought it back to me, we both opened it and saw that it was a jutsu I have never heard of. Apparently, it will bring someone from this or another world who knows the users' futures, as well as their successes and failures. Since we are soon going to hunt the Ichibi, I figured we should know if this goal will be achieved, as well as future captures of the bijuu. However, this jutsu requires a large amount of chakra, so I need all of you to help me perform it."

Seeing what had just happened to Deidara, nobody wanted to speak out, even though they had many questions. Instead, they just nodded, and Kisame asked, "When do we start?"

"Right now," answered Pein. "I will show you the necessary hand signs. Once you have the sequence memorized, we must all perform it at the same time. Afterwards, we must all draw some of our blood and place it in this diagram I drew." Pein pointed to an elaborate design of swirls and circles painted on the floor behind him.

Everyone except Deidara nodded, and Pein took note of this. He knew that Deidara wouldn't defy him again, so he wasn't worried that he wouldn't participate. He made sure everyone could see him as he showed them the sequence of hand signs. He also made sure that Deidara could perform them with his shoulder injured. It looked a bit painful, but he could. When everyone was ready, he yelled, "Go!"

Once they all completed the signs, they bit their thumbs and smeared the blood in the design. The diagram began to glow, but when the brightness dimmed, nothing appeared in it.

"Told ya it wouldn't fucking work," Hidan muttered.

"Just wait," said Pein. "It didn't fail. The scroll said that the person would not appear. He will find us."

"And how long is that supposed to take?" asked Sasori. "You know I—"

Pein cut him off. "Yes, yes, we all know you hate waiting!" What is with him? He doesn't age and has all the time in the world, yet he hates to wait. I'll never understand him. He continued, "The person should arrive here in about a day or so. Until then, we have to wait. Now that the jutsu is complete, you are all dismissed. But stay in the base. I'll send you out in pairs tomorrow to look for the person."

Everyone was about to walk away when Pein thought of something. "Kakuzu-san, please fix Deidara's shoulder."

The stitched man nodded, and slightly tilted his head when he heard Deidara's name mentioned without an honorific. However, he didn't say anything; it wasn't in his nature to care. He just motioned for the bomber to follow him to the infirmary.

Once everyone finally left the room, Pein massaged his temples. It was hard work getting everyone to focus, and he was physically and emotionally drained. He hoped the jutsu worked. No, he needed for it work. Besides wanting to know the future of the Akatsuki, he also injured Deidara, one of his own, for this. He was sure that the blond wouldn't trust him for a long time, and he didn't want it to be in vain. Yes, being the leader was hard work. He sighed, and then he too left the room, shutting the lights behind him.


So, what did you think? Was it good? Was it awful? I know Pein seems like a jerk in this, but he has his reasons. Don't hate him, haha Chapter One will be posted soon, which will focus on my OC.

This was my first time writing with honorifics; please tell me if I made any errors. I know having no honorific attached after a name means intimacy, but it also can mean that a person has no respect for the person he is addressing. I hope this is true, because I wanted to show that Pein was irritated with Deidara at that moment. I know he didn't say much that was offensive, but I wanted to show Pein's frustrations with everyone. On another note, I have no idea if you can still move your hand with a dislocated shoulder. But this is Naruto for crying out loud! People can summon animals and walk on water! I know that this particular part in the fic might be unrealistic, but I needed everyone to participate in the jutsu.

So anywho, reviews make my day! If you like the story (or want to offer some constructive criticism, but no flames), please review.

EDIT 2012:

So, that was the end of the first edited chapter. I only added some minor details, and changed Pein's personality to make him a bit less jerky.

Also, I had a question. Should I keep Deidara's verbal tic as 'un', or should I change it to 'yeah' (since that's what it translates to), or 'hmm'?

I hope you enjoyed the chapter! The next one will be posted soon.