Crack, crack.

I froze. There was something there, something in the bushes. I could sense their chakra – deep and powerful. Like a dark cloud, drifting through the forest. Ready to strike.

A few steps forward, and I craned my neck. It was silent. Nothing but the wind whistling through the trees, fluttering from branch to branch. Leaves drifted to the ground, the branches suddenly deciding to let them go. Multi colored pieces floated through the air.

But the presence was still there.

I took a deep breath, gripping the kunai knife tightly in my palm. My uncle had made it for me a few weeks before I had left home; constructed simply of metal and three sharp points. Carved on the side was a strange symbol, something to do with the religion that he practiced every day. It was the smae symbol that hung on a chain around my neck. I was told that someday, I, too, would learn the way of Jashin, but I wasn't sure. It seemed pretty stupid to me.

"Come on out," I muttered under my breath, sure that my opponent could hear me. I scanned the perimeter, but nothing seemed out of place. No footprints, no tracks, no broken branches. They were obviously trained. "I can hear you…"

A green leaf sank to the ground, catching my attention. It fluttered around my head, covering my eyes, and continued to swirl. I batted it away, irritated, and turned around.

"I can hear you, too."

And everything went dark.

"Pain," Konan drifted over to where the familiar ginger stood, gently touching his shoulder. He had been watching the horizon for days now, doing nothing but concentrate. He was wrapped up in his worries, and she felt as though his pain was affecting the rest of the Akatsuki. "How are you?"

He just blinked at her, his once fiery eyes hollow. The hypnotizing swirl of the Rinnegan had grown dull.

Konan sighed. She moved a little closer, but seeing his posture go tense, retracted her action. He continued to stare blankly over the ledge of the building, an almost longing expression forming on his stone cold face.

"Please tell me what's worrying you," Frowning, she picked a palm sized stone from the ground, rolling it in between her fingers. With a flick of her wrist, she sent it flying into the air. "You can't stay like this forever, Pain. It's not doing anyone any good."

She let her eyes drop to the ground. Pain could be very stubborn at times. His moods were like lightning; unpredictable as to where, and who, they'd strike next.

It had been a week since the Akatsuki had caught their last Jinchuriki; the three tails. They'd underestimated the jonin of Konohagakure. They seemed to never give up during a fight, and had threatened to reveal the location of the Akatsuki's hideout.

If she could guess as to why Pain was upset, she'd blame it on the fact that his life wasn't going according to plan. Or maybe he was just wallowing in past memories, reliving his childhood. Either way, the rain in the town hadn't let up for days, and that had definitely been Pain's doing.

Konan froze as an ice cold hand brushed a wisp of her blue hair behind her ear.

"It's time." Pain said softly, eyes still distant. They were clearer, though – swirling with forced decision. She took his hand. "Gather the others. There needs to be a meeting."

She nodded, careful as to not push her luck. He had spoken – that was more then enough reason to obey his every word. "Of course."

"Listen up." Pain stood in front of the Akatsuki, hidden by a cloak of darkness. He waved his hand, trying to get their attention. "There's a very important matter at hand, and it shouldn't be kept waiting."

A scoff was heard from one corner of the cave. His eyes narrowed.

"That's what you always say." Hidan muttered, rolling his eyes. His irises were glowing in the moonlight. "But it's always the same fucking thing. Capture the-"

"I don't care what you think, Hidan." Pain hissed. Two torches on one side of the stone walls were suddenly lit, illuminating the gloomy hideout. "I'm the leader here, and you're going to follow my orders."

"Fine, fine." The blond grimaced, running his hands over the blades of his scythe. Giving a sigh, he raised his eyes impatiently. "Well, then, what the hell are you waiting for? Get on with it!"

Against the light of the fire, Pain flashed his pointed teeth.

"As I was saying," He folded his arms across his chest. "There's something all of you must know."

Taking a deep breath, he began. "So far, we've captured almost all the jinchuriki. There are still four out there, running loose. And even though our top priority is to collect them, there's something else that has now come to my attention."

Konan frowned, dark eyes glimmering. She studied Pain's expression. He looked almost… nervous.

"Many years ago, before the Akatsuki was formed, I spent months on end searching for powerful ninjas who could assist me in my quest for world domination. As you know, I soon found all of you, watching your actions until I was sure that you'd be sufficient. I knew that I had chose correctly – it was apparent that you were all very powerful (and talented) – but I had no way of knowing if you could be trusted. There were ways of bringing you here against your will, by force, but then betrayal might have become an issue.

"So, as my back up plan, my "safety net," if you wish, I did something else. Something, I'm afraid to say, that was a horrible, horrible mistake."

"Where are you going with this, hmm?" Deidara called out, interrupting the leader. He looked uneasy. "What did you do?"

Pain growled. "I was just about to tell you, Deidara. Get your impatience under control if you wish to leave this meeting unharmed."

The blond nodded, slightly shaken.

"Now," The leader continued. "I did something that, at the time, seemed like a good plan. But now it's gotten out of my control, and sooner or later, it'll be too late to fix. When I watched you, I took samples of your DNA. Just a little, but enough to create children that would resemble you in most ways; and possess your unique talents, as well."

Pain's face had contorted.

"The project started out well. All experiments went perfectly, and soon, we had created young ninjas with extreme similarity to yourselves. They needed to be trained, so I split them up, and sent them to different villages across the nations."

"Then I began the Akatsuki, and they were all but forgotten. I hired many trained jonin to watch over them, but with time, I found the children had no use in my ultimate plan. I recalled all the ninjas, and let the children be. And everything had been working out – until now."

"You see, all information had been destroyed. Records, documents, files – burned. The jonin – killed. No one knew anything about the project except for I, and now, you. But for some reason, there was one little detailed that I overlooked when extracting your DNA. Not only did the children possess your qualities, but they held some of your memories, as well. They've began to question their existence, and wonder why they had these odd dreams of your past experiences. Their past is unknown. Their foster families have been able to provide them with excuses, but haven't been doing a good job. And now – they've begun piecing it all together."

"They're harmless on their own – not nearly as powerful as an s-rank ninja. But together, they may be just as strong, and maybe even… stronger. I had combined their DNA with some of my own creation, causing them to get stronger as they come together. This was a preventative measure – but still, could prove to be dangerous. Besides, we have the Leaf ninjas and Sasuke's cell on our hands. We don't need competitors."

"So, listen up. These ninjas need to be located, and captured. I'll give you a list of where to find them, and the rest is up to you. Be careful, though – some aren't as weak as they seem."

Pain let out a deep breath, relieved. He studied the Akatsuki's expressions. He tried to read their expressions, scanning their faces, but all he could find was genuine confusion.

"How…" Kisame trailed off, staring into nothingness. He pursed his lips, trying to word the question. "How do we know… if you're telling the truth?"

A murmur from the rest of the cave confirmed their suspicions.

"You don't think I'd tell you all this without having any evidence, do you?" Pain gave a weak chuckle. He snapped his fingers at the stone wall. "Behold, experiment four, or, if you prefer, Daniel."

Slowly, one of the cave's sides opened up, exposing a dully lit corridor. It was about two meters in width, no larger then a normal doorway. Gesturing to the shadows, Pain watched as a teenage boy was brought out of the room, held by two masked ninjas. He was tied by rope, mouth covered by a thick piece of tape. He was a prisoner.

"Holy fucking hell." Hidan's jaw dropped open, his eyes growing as wide as tennis balls. He took a step forwards. "What kind of twisted illusion is this?!"

"It's not genjitsu, Hidan." Pain frowned. He pointed towards the boy. "Meet Daniel."

Daniel had blazing purple eyes, and spiky white-blond hair. He had a strong, defined face, and a thin/muscular body. His outfit was composed of black clothing… even his eyelids were rimmed with black eyeliner. A strange symbol hung on a chain around his neck – the exact same necklace as Hidan's.

"Let him go." Pain ordered, motioning towards the guards. "You can leave now."

The ninjas threw the teen to the ground, ripping off the tape with a painful screech. Soon the ropes were loose, and Daniel was able to wriggle his way out.

"Why the fuck am I here?! He spat, glaring at the Akatsuki. His face was covered in dirt – a mixture of mud and rubble. "Let me go! I didn't do anything, dammit!"

Kakuzu chuckled. "I'm beginning to see a resemblance…"

"This is fucking insane!" Hidan yelled, barring his teeth. Stomping over to the boy, he grabbed Daniel's shoulder, seething. He spun his head around, and locked eyes with Pain, who stood, smug. "So, you're telling me that this kid is partially me?"

Pain nodded. "Partially."

"So, what else don't I know?" Hidan pulled out his scythe. "How far does "partially" go?"

"I'm afraid he's immortal, too." The leader's expression grew stern. "He has your personality, your abilities, your rituals… even your bad swearing habits. The only difference is his appearance, and the way his mind works."

"Is that so?" Within a second, Hidan had raised his arms, clutching his scythe with both hands. He lunged forwards… and drove the pointed end into Daniel's heart. Blood pooled on the cave floor. "Huh, just like me…"

"What the hell?!" Daniel took hold of the weapon and yanked it out. He then reached for his own, pulling out a three sided blade. In a moment it was pointed at his attacker. "Of course I'm immortal, you moron! Do you have any idea how much getting impaled in the chest hurts?!"

Hidan chuckled. "In fact, I do."

"This isn't funny, you bastard."

"It's a great feeling, isn't it? In faith of Lord Jashin, I love it."

"Lord Jashin?" Daniel's ears perked up. "You worship him, too?"

"Of course, asshole!" The Akatsuki member sneered. He pointed at his pendant. "I thought you were listening! You're me, but a crappy, weaker version. Everything you are, it's because of me."

"Hidan…" Pain warned. "That's enough…"

"Are you fucking with me?" Daniel seethed, pointing at his own necklace. "I'm not you! I'm nothing like you! Who the hell do you think you are?!"

"Hidan, loyal follower of Lord Jashin."

"Tch, as if."

"At least I know who I am!"

"What the fuck's that supposed to mean?!"

"It means your life's a lie, moron!"

"Why you little- I know more about myself then you do! I'd like to see you fight me. I'd find a way to kill you, I swear to Jashin!"

"Says the twerp who's being held captive."

"Fuck you!"

"No, fuck you!"

"I always wondered what it'd be like with two Hidans, un." Deidara snickered.

"Guys, shut the hell up!" Konan pointed to the cave's entrance, where Pain was seen leaving. He disappeared within seconds, without warning. "Now what the heck are we supposed to do? Keep him here?"

"No fucking way!" Daniel hissed.

"I hate to say it, Hidan, but that boy's got a dirtier mouth then you do." Sasori chuckled. Rolling his ash tinted eyes, he turned to leave, catching Hidan's attention. "You, keep the kid tied up. Pain'll have your head if you let him go. And try not to start any arguments with "yourself," okay?"

"Since when are you the leader?"

"Sasori shrugged. "I'm not. But Daniel's your responsibility now. We've just got to wait until Pain returns, and then we can start hunting down the others. Until then, see ya. Come on, Deidara."

"Un," Deidara stepped out onto the rocky ledge. "So if it's that bad with two Hidans, how are we gonna survive two Tobis, hmm?"