"It's weird...when I lay down by the campfire Sasori-danna and I build at night, I always like to watch the flames. And I've noticed recently that the more I start liking Sasori, or if we actually manage to get along for a day, the higher the flames will rise. But if something happens between us, like we're fighting or not getting along, the flames get a whole lot lower, almost like they refuse to burn at all. And I know that it's most likely all in my head, imagination and whatnot, but this entire ordeal is kind of strange if you ask me, un... Like a simple fire can read how I'm feeling, right? Either way, fires have now become extremely entertaining to observe, and all I'm saying is that I hope there isn't a day when the fire goes completely out and reduces to nothing...I feel like I could actually get a long-lasting relationship here."

"I got him," Itachi's voice echoed as he strolled into the Akatsuki hideout triumphantly, a small boy latched to his arm, Sasori and Kisame following close behind. A certain sense of pride radiated from the Uchiha, but everyone knew it was just an act—Itachi never lost in a fight. He got used to never losing. End of story.

A figure emerged from the darkest crevices of the cave, leaving his face partially hidden in the shadows to create a mysterious ambience for the newcomer. "Good job, Itachi. I knew you could recruit him without trouble; he's just a stupid kid."

"I'm not stupid!" the boy replied immediately, looking around aimlessly in the dark to find the voice that was speaking about him.

"You blow stuff up. You're stupid. But with proper training from your partner, you should make a fine addition to the Akatsuki." The figure titled its head slightly from the darkness, revealing a larger portion of his face: bright orange hair and strange ringed eyes.

The blonde flinched slightly at the sight of the man, but gathered his courage and continued nonetheless. "No! You're stupid! You're obviously too blind to recognize the sheer perfection of my art, un! Criticize my art and you criticize me!"

Without warning, a kunai flashed through the air and soared a mere inch away from the boy's face, leaving him awe-struck and wide-eyed with shock, wondering what had just happened. His breathing shallow, he turned around to see the kunai launched perfectly into the stone wall behind him, a sharp tang ringing out as it entered.

"I'm stupid? Me?" the deep voice echoed. The man took a step closer to the young recruit, lifting up the blonde's chin with his slender fingers so that their eyes met. "You were pretty stupid to try and confront me, brat. Your name…it's Deidara, right?"

Deidara turned his head away from the man's touch, an overwhelming feeling of lesser superiority coming over him. "Y-yes, un. And what's your name, exactly?"

"Pein. Not that you have the right to know, but you humor me. Now, what village do you come from again? I see you're not wearing your headband…."

"Why do you even ca—!"

"Iwagakure," Itachi answered for him, his patience steadily decreasing with each syllable. "Could we please just skip the introductions and get to the matter at hand?"

Pein looked up at Itachi darkly, beginning to lose his own patience. "Did I ask you, Itachi? No, I didn't. Shut your mouth before you receive the same treatment this kid did."

Itachi paused at the sudden affront, but knew he shouldn't argue and went on to apologize. "…Yes, sir. Please excuse me, Leader-sama. It's been a long day."

Pein kept hold of Itachi's gaze for a few moments before turning back to the boy. "Iwa, eh? Hm…no wonder you're corrupt. That place is filled with weirdoes."

Deidara narrowed his eyes at his new boss, trying to analyze his every move. What's with this guy, un? There's something…something weird about him. Well…besides the obvious. Oh yes…those piercings…they're a bit of a set-off, aren't they?

"You…you mentioned something about me having a partner a minute ago," Deidara said under his breath, keeping his eyes on the floor, secretly afraid to look at the man before him.

"Yes…what about it? Everyone in the Akatsuki is assigned a partner."

"Well…who is it, un? Who's my partner, I mean?"

"That would be me," Sasori said, stepping toward the pair in the solitude of his puppet. "You were chosen to replace my old partner."

Deidara swallowed, his imagination swirling at all the possibilities of what had happened to Sasori's previous associate. "What…what happened to him, un?"

Sasori huffed out a raspy sigh, rolling his eyes a bit too over-dramatically. "He quit. What a dumbass…he could've been as stupid as you."

The blonde breathed a sigh of relief...good, so Sasori's partner wasn't killed on duty. He felt, if anything, a bit safer than when he had first entered. "Wait…he quit? Like…just walked out? I didn't even know you could quit the Akatsuki, un!"

"Well, it was a little more complicated than that—"

"Sasori…" Pein warned, holding up a hand to prevent him from speaking. "That's enough. It's none of the kid's business."

"…I wasn't planning on continuing…."

Deidara stood awkwardly in the midst of his superiors as they argued, taking advantage of this distraction to clear his mind and think a little. Okay…so far it seems that as long as I mind my manners, I should be fine, un. Well…almost fine. Of course I have to be a good fighter so I can stand up for myself; they don't want any wimps and weaklings around here…. Deidara looked down at the lump of clay rolling around in his hands and frowned. As great as my art is…it could use some perfecting, un. It will still be my art…but I think an upgrade is needed.

Deidara was snapped out from his thoughts when a sudden grip appeared around his wrist. "AYE!" he yelped, jumping slightly at the surprise.

"Did you hear anything I just said?" Pein snapped, leaning in closer to the recruit's face.

Heart pounding, the smart thing for Deidara to do in this scenario was lie. He had his impulsive personality to thank for that ability. "Y-yes, I heard you, un. Sorry, I was paying attention to you, but I was also just…examining my detonation clay."

Pein threw Deidara's wrist from his grasp. "Next time I'm talking to you, I want your full attention, brat…eye-to-eye contact. Well that is…if there is a next time. You may not even make it through your first mission alive…" Pein laughed darkly to himself and put a hand to rest on his temple, most likely rethinking if recruiting Deidara to the Akatsuki was a good idea after all.

Deidara bit his lip, still trying to keep his fear hidden behind bravery even though he knew he was doing a poor job of doing so. Death was the last thing Deidara wanted to think about…not that he feared it…but that he wasn't ready to face it. He wasn't one of those classic "I'm too young to die!" enthusiasts…in fact, Deidara was quite the opposite. Deidara had a way of believing that you should be ready to face death, not according to how long you've lived, but how much you've accomplished in life. In essence, he thought that the best time to die isn't when you're old and decrepit, but when you've done everything on this Earth that you possibly could…when you've served your purpose. And in Deidara's eyes, he had not yet fulfilled anything according to his purpose. He had quite a long way to go.

"Well, Sasori, you better get going," Pein said, eagerly pushing Deidara toward his new partner.

"The day's still young, Leader-sama. Don't worry, the mission will be completed with plenty of time to spare."

"Mission?" Deidara asked in a tone that predicted a further series of questions would soon be pouring from his mouth. To prevent this further annoyance, Sasori shot out his puppet tail and wrapped it around Deidara's torso and mouth, cutting off his words and lifting him straight up into the air.

"MPH!" Deidara choked, pathetically attempting to wiggle free from Sasori's grasp, his feet kicking to find solid ground.

"Brat, you've already gotten on my nerves enough today…" Sasori said, his patience running dry. He began moving toward the exit of the Akatsuki lair with Deidara still lingering above him. "Just do everyone a favor and shut up; no one wants to hear your annoying voice pounding against their eardrums right now."

"Good luck," Pein said both sarcastically and seriously, moving back to the darker depths of the cave. "Make sure you send a report back to me as soon as possible."

Sasori nodded, exiting with his small, blonde partner without a further word.