Hey there!

I'm not gonna lie, this whole thing is merely an excuse to write something - anything, really - about Deidara. Having said that, I should add that english is not my first language and this story isn't beta read either. So, if you see any spelling or grammar mistakes, please tell me so I can fix them.

Disclaimer: Obviously I don't own Naruto or a lot of characters would still be alive and Madara would rot in the deepest pits of hell :)

Part I

ENEMY

The thing is, I'd always known my Kekkei Genkai would get me into trouble. Not just once, of course. That would've been lucky, and as far as I knew there was no such thing as luck, not in my experience. Not since I had left my village and had started to learn to get by on my own. I wasn't sure what my final mission had been, the one that had really spread my reputation and had triggered whatever it had needed to get me where I was now. I never thought the day my reputation would exceed myself would ever come, so when it did, I was completely taken by surprise. Maybe I was lucky, maybe not, that really depended on how strong my will to survive was. I hadn't expected anyone to come for me at all, so I didn't defend myself, not the slightest bit. The truth was I couldn't have, I wasn't able to react that fast; on the outside it probably looked like I just didn't care enough to do so, and if one believed my reputation that seemed quite plausible. If one believed my reputation I could get out of any situation; I could easily escape if I wanted to. And that was probably the only thing that saved me from being killed right away. I figured a surprise attack probably wasn't the best way to recruit someone, if there wasn't another purpose behind it. Now when it came to actually being recruited by the Akatsuki it seemed only logical that they would want to do some sort of test. And whatever they'd expected, apparently I'd done something right by doing absolutely nothing to evade the thousands of paper sheets that had started to cling to my skin until I was completely wrapped up in them.

Joining the Akatsuki did not sound inviting, nor did it sound like the kind of thing I was drawn to, however I didn't have much of a choice either. I had never liked my clients before, not that anyone knew that. Not because they were unpleasant – not all of them were - but because I killed for them. Everything about that morality – hiring someone to do the dirty work – was against what I thought was right but I was good at it. I may not like it but what did it matter when it got me through? Sadly enough it also was pretty much the only thing I was good at. I was able do to a little bit of healing, true, but not the kind they needed in a hospital. In addition to that I wasn't exactly the warmest and friendliest person to be around; I'd long gotten rid of these characteristics. Coldness and impassiveness just made life in general easier. I had sort of developed my own mantra by now – don't talk; don't open up; don't let anyone in. And I hadn't broken it for ten years, and definitely wouldn't now, no matter how bad the situation I was in right now was. Who was I kidding; it was pretty high ranking on a scale of all the bad situations I'd ever gotten myself into. Not that I'd really contributed to this, whatever had let to one thing after another, at some point I'd done a mission that had eventually gotten me here, in this circle of rainbow coloured silhouettes of nine other people. Every single one of them was far more deadlier than a whole team of trained shinobi, that much was for certain. The only corporeal thing about the attending Akatsuki members were their eyes, which made matters only worse. Not for everyone, but I had a hard time not lingering on Uchiha Itachi's eyes. Everybody knew about the infamous Sharingan and him. Even though the silhouettes were colourful themselves, the deep red Sharingan eyes of his seemed to glow even stronger. They scared me, and right so, judging by the stories that were told about them. Not that I wasn't scared of pretty much every single one of them, again, for a good reason. The cold creeping up my neck wasn't just because of one person's eyes, it was inflicted by standing in a room with nine other deadly shinobi's, that could all kill within a matter of seconds. They'd definitely earned their position within these ranks.

I didn't know them all, not even by reputation, especially because the Akatsuki themselves were still a big mystery apart from the general threat they posed simply by existing. Seeing the Uchiha's eyes or the gigantic sword and hatchet though made sure everyone knew not to mess with them. Although I might have been able to take out some of them, if facing them one – by – one, but in the end that would be suicide none the less. I wasn't stupid. I had to be glad I somehow made it here, it wouldn't get any better, only worse if I tried anything stupid. It had happened more than once that someone had tried to hire me to eliminate Akatsuki, which was so ridiculous it made even me laugh. I knew it was an impossible task back then, and now that I had proof I knew it even more. I might have been able to go against some of them, but there was at least one person I could not beat for sure - and if I only so much as tried Pain would easily slaughter me without even blinking an eye. No, taking out Akatsuki was not an option, not in my current position and on no other occasion.

I was certain they'd noticed the additional listener right away, but no one asked anything. Not surprising, considering that Pain called this meeting, so they were waiting for Pain to open it.

"We've found a possible lead to the Nibi, the Jinchuuriki's father.", he simply stated, as an unceremonious opening.

"About fucking time! It's been too long since I've last sacrificed some shit-head for Jashin-sama!", one of the silhouettes immediately quipped, sounding way too excited for my taste.

"Shut up, Hidan.", another monotone and cool voice next to the one who was supposedly Hidan said.

"Don't fucking interfere you gold-digging di-"

One calm and barely audible "Enough" from Pain shut the both of them up efficiently. The dead calmness in his voice made me shiver, which was hopefully not visible through the hologram. "We must lay low for now, it's crucial to not expose our intentions just yet. If they realize whom we are targeting, capturing the Bijuu's will become a lot more effort. For this mission, I believe, Hana here" – he pointed at me – "is better suited."

I hadn't expected some sort of grand introduction or anything, but this was definitely not what I had thought of either. None of them even knew I'd joined their ranks – more or less – until now. What sort of explanation was "Hana will do the job". Of course I'd preferred if he'd just send me straight into working. He didn't have to tell them, he could just let them know about the outcome.

"Who in Jashin's name is that Hana-bitch?", Hidan dulcetly exclaimed. I may not like his way of talking about me and in general, but he made clear what pretty much everyone must've been thinking, apart from Pain and Konan.

"I am.", I stated, forcing the fear out of my voice. Nothing could happen to me right here, right now. On the outside I was an Akatsuki member, I would not be afraid of someone who was the same rank as me."She fills in the empty spot.", Pain quickly added, apparently satisfied with that short explanation.

"So we've finally found a replacement for Orochimaru?", a figure next to the Uchiha stated, though it sounded more like a question ridden with doubt. Me, a replacement for the Orochimaru, one of the three legendary Sannin of Konoha? Hardly. I knew he'd been with Akatsuki. Obviously he wasn't anymore, yet he was still alive. That alone was enough to proof just how good he was. I wasn't his replacement, I never would or could be, but I shut those thoughts out. I wasn't in the place to talk anyway; it was for Pain to decide as what he wanted to present me, and it was his turn to talk, I knew that just as well as anyone else in this room.

"Let Deidara be the judge of that Kisame, after their back from their mission –", now this came as a surprise to me. I hadn't known he would team me up with someone. There was no reaction to be seen amongst the rows of Akatsuki members, nothing that gave away whether this Deidara had known about it or not, but I figured only because hardly anyone was mad enough to protest against Pain. "Phase two is drawing closer, soon enough we'll have to concentrate on capturing and extracting the Bijuu. You wait for her to join you in the hideout Deidara; she'll know where to go from there."

Even without saying it it was clear that there was nothing more to discuss. Pain had a way of making his intentions clear without saying many words. The silhouettes dispersed one after another, and I felt my chakra control waver without the help of Konan, until I was violently ripped out of the jutsu due to my incapability to keep it up any longer.

The mission scared me. It was scaring me to the point where I wanted to run up to Pain and scream until he made me shut up, just so I wouldn't have to go or face any of this. But at the same time that thought immediately sobered me up enough to stop me from going through with it. Whoever Deidara was, he was just another Akatsuki. And as far as I could judge that fact couldn't make him worse than Pain with his merciless cold heart of steel. If I was lucky enough I might even would be able to hypothetically kill him. That possibility had to stay hypothetical though, it was all in all a stupid thing to even consider, really, but even the thought that if I wanted I could end him would definitely be reassuring. If I could have that power against him in my hand I could use it, even if my threats were hollow. Nonetheless every ounce of respect or power I earned would make it easier to get this through with, without the conscious effort of keeping up the stoic façade of indifference.

I was still in the position I had settled in right after the meeting when a dragging sound like something heavy was moving closer echoed through the hallway. Whoever it was sounded like they had a hard time heaving their body over the rough stone floor, and were was definitely coming towards me. Soon enough a hunched over, rather broad figure appeared in the doorway. If I wouldn't have remembered that particular silhouette from earlier the black cloak with the red clouds answered my questions anyway.

"Hana." The voice that belonged to the figure in the doorway was so deep and rough, I had trouble accepting he had actually said something. Or rather, it even belonged to a human. It had sounded more like a cough than my name. I stood up nonetheless, not sure what he wanted from me, but I figured any indication that I'd indeed heard him was better than ignoring him. Anyone would've known that after spending only minutes in the presence of an Akatsuki. Patience wasn't one of their most prominent traits.

"Gather your belongings and do it quickly. I don't like waiting." He didn't leave me any time to ask any questions, and I didn't intend to anger him in any way.

"I don't have any." To my satisfaction it didn't sound as pathetic as I would've expected it to. Then again, by now I'd gotten so used to being on my own without any ties; and this was the least of my problems anyway. Not that he'd care either, I was an assingment and nothing else.

"Then follow me; We're heading to the hideout Deidara's currently at. It'll take a few days to get there. Don't fall behind; I don't care if you're the new one or fragile. If you slow me down I'll leave you behind. You can be replaced girl, remember that." As rude and cold that statement was I could not supress a dark chuckle. If only he knew how very much I could not be replaced. After all that was how I got here initially wasn't it? Because my Kekkei Genkai was nearly unique, because my clan was at the brink of extinction and apart from me there was not one other member who'd made themselves even just minor a name. My spot could be replaced, but not me. I was stuck here. If I could've been replaced that easily I would've long but ran away. Apparently he'd heard my laugh. He didn't bother to stop or turn around, but it did bother him enough to at least talk to me.

"What's so funny?" His voice however did not express the slightest interest whatsoever. It sounded as indifferent as it had from the beginning, and I began wondering whether he possessed any emotions at all. I wouldn't have been surprised if he didn't, people with intact moral standards and a functioning conscience didn't just randomly become killers after all. I could've simply told him why I had laughed but he didn't seem to care, and I had no interest in revealing any details about me.

Maybe my answer was a bit risky, but if I wasn't completely wrong he was the type who'd understand it, and in some twisted way might even appreciate it. "I have no interest in sharing information with you. Can we just move on?"

This time I got a croaky laugh from him, confirming my suspicions. And it shut him up. The silence was something I was very comfortable with. The sooner we got this over with the better.

The hideout wasn't as far away as I'd have expected. Despite his form Sasori, as I found out was his name, was very fast, added to the fact that he basically hardly ever seemed to tire. I'd always thought my chakra reserves weren't too bad, but compared to him they were petty. As much as I hated it I had to ask him more than once for a stop, too tired to go on any longer. He did stop, however never without complaining about how weak I was. But despite that, from what impressions I'd gathered, even though he was rough, at least he wasn't exactly cruelly unpleasant. He seemed to want to keep his distance, and was just as uninterested in me as I was in him. That was fine by me, especially because he creeped me out even when keeping his distance. There was just something unnaturally cold and inhuman about him. I couldn't point out what it was, but it wasn't just the way his movements were somehow unnatural or his eyes were cold and lacked any emotion; his chakra wasn't like 'normal' chakra either. If I would have tried tapping it I probably would have failed, because it didn't flow through him the way it should. It was more like it was attached to him on certain points, but not at the actual opening points. In addition to that there was a huge pool of chakra in the center. If I wouldn't have known better I'd have said it was like there was a shell around something that was much more alive than the person I saw on the outside.

"Deidara.", Sasori barked as soon as we'd entered the main room, apparently eager to finally get rid of me. Not that I had a problem with that, losing his company felt like a huge relief.

"You don't exactly try to keep your hideouts warm and welcoming, do you?" I wanted to slap my hands over my mouth if it would help take back that remark. Snarky was not the image I had tried to maintain so far, it did not fit with the façade I was constantly building. And it made me seem more human, not as disinterested and remote. There was just something about the Akatsuki that constantly sat me on edge. This hideout was just as bad as the last one, the only good thing was that I'd be leaving it as soon as possible with this Deidara-guy.

"We have an image to maintain, yeah.", a voice suddenly replied mockingly an I turned around with a frown. An Akatsuki with a sense of humour? Even through the dim light my opposite's eyes were astonishingly blue and blazing bright with amusement and curiosity. At least I assumed both his eyes were, since I could only see one. The other one was hidden behind a curtain of long blond hair, that seemingly spilled all over his back underneath his cloak, accompanied by a high ponytail. This one could definitely afford being arrogant. He didn't strike me as a ruthless killer though. He didn't look particularly threatening; if I wasn't completely wrong I even had one or two years on him. Now that definitely gave me confidence. Maybe being paired with that Deidara wasn't so bad after all.

"Oi, Sasori-no-danna, it took you awfully long to get here, yeah."

"Tell that to the girl. If I could I would have left her halfway.", Sasori, apparently somewhat superior to the blonde, replied grumpily. It was offending, yes, but not enough to make me risk replying something. Deidara turned his attention towards me and crunched his delicate eyebrows together. Instinctively I wanted to lower my gaze, but I forced myself to keep staring back. I would not back down, not to someone like that boy, barely the same age as me. Sasori or Pain, yes, with them I had every reason to do so, but until Deidara proved me wrong I would stick to being convinced that I was somewhat superior to him, if only because Pain had assigned him to accompany me, not the other way around.

"I presume you're the one I am to babysit, hime-sama?" A growl made its way up my throat but I managed to hold it back. I knew it hadn't been meant as a nickname, his eyes, the mocking in them said it all. He thought of me as literally that, a little naïve princess that stumbled into something she had no idea of. And while that might be true on some degree, I was anything but a princess. Even if this situation was too big for me, I knew how to behave in order to survive. He'd not win the upper hand.

"Aren't you a bit young to get caught up in the Akatsuki, yeah?"

Aren't you a bit young to be up this late?

"I am Hana, and I'd like for you to call me by my name, since I am not the conceited little girl you seem to take me as." As soon as I'd finished I realized that my harshness did not have the desired effect, rather than the opposite; he seemed to enjoy it. Sasori huffed next to me, and I figured I wasn't the first one to be frustrated by Deidara's attitude. His cheeriness had not vanished the slightest bit.

"I'm Deidara, nice to meet you … hime-sama.", he extended a hand at me, that I had no intention of shaking, especially after seeing the challenging smile he gave me. He was toying with me, and I did not like it one bit.

"We'll be off tomorrow at sunrise, and I will not allow this mission to be a failure, should you get in my way, I'll take you out, got that?" I nearly added a "pretty boy" and bit the tip of my tongue to hold it back. As much as I would've loved to bite back just as much as he did I restrained from it. If I wanted to be cold and unapproachable I could not afford to join this banter, even if I would've known plenty of things to tell him; he was especially infuriating, but not enough to make me forget that I was still lucky to have him insteadof someone else. He didn't reply or show any sign of acknowledgment apart from chuckling and I decided I didn't care either. My patience did not extend to dealing with him.

Obnoxious brat.

If you want to be really really nice leave a review, however short - I'd greatly appreciate it. If not, I just hope you enjoy the story and I can fill your need for a Deidara fix.

'till next time :)