When The Psychotic Wolf Howls

This is a One-shot fan-fic I wrote for my friend, Amber.

In return she crafted a picture of a character in my own original story.

My goal had been ten pages but it ended up being thirty-eight.

So I've divided this into three parts.

This is part one of three.

I only posted it so my technique is displayed in case I decide to accept commission work in the future.

The main character is Amber's OC, "Yuki Ookami." She is a mentally unstable woman of 17 with many, many odd manners and issues. I worked with what she'd given me, haha.

Enjoy, y'all!

He watched her.

He watched as the young woman, seventeen, attacked the large oak tree in front of her. She seemed to have a fierce fascination with the kunai she was striking with.

She was garbed in a long-sleeved fishnet shirt, with a short-sleeved black belly-shirt beneath it, and baggy black shorts. Her legs, subtly toned from ninja training, were covered by knee-high fish net socks and open-toed black boots. Black fingerless gloves covered her hands, protecting them from becoming overly raw during such training sessions, if one could call her current display "training." Pein himself was more than a little skeptical.

But she did have power. Yes, there was no doubt of that.

Her eyes, he noticed, were strangely unique. Upon examining her, even from a distance he could see they varied greatly. Perhaps it had to do with her abilities somehow? Much like the eerie red irises of the Uchiha within his organization, who constantly had activated his Sharingan.

The woman's right eye was a beautiful shade of green, bright like forest leaves amidst sunlight.

The left was the opposite: purely red, with no pupil to speak of. Black, needle-thin lines pierced the iris in several places, while the surrounding white area was bloodshot to a good degree.

There was a remnant of a scar that reached her nose, a battle wound, Pein assumed.

She possessed dark brown, short, choppy hair, that was highlighted red in some places. In the moments she paused for breath, her hair tended to favor resting on an angle, hanging gently over her left eye. The eye that seemed...not quite right.

Despite the vigorous activity the woman was submitting herself to, her face was neither flushed with exhaustion nor a usual tan color. All of her exposed skin was pale. Pein wondered if she was ill. If that was the case, the ninja wasn't very smart for choosing to train in such a condition.

"What are you looking at?" the woman suddenly said. Pein's eyes snapped to hers, curious if she'd found his place of hiding.

But no, he was safe. The squirrel in the tree above the kunoichi? Not so much.

The animal flicked its tail as it looked down at the brunette. It stared, looking annoyed.

She stared back.

And then she smiled, shrugging. "Stay if you want, but this tree gave me the wrong vibe and it's comin' down."

Pein watched her intently. Surely she wasn't going to bring the massive tree to the ground with merely her knife?

As if to satisfy his unspoken curiosity, she put away the kunai and formed a few simple hand signs. Water gathered before her in a massive, floating pool. The canteen pouch she kept at all times on her side contained a good amount of water that she was able to mold, but with her level of skill, it was simple to manipulate the water already in the air.

Bringing her arms back behind her on either side, the hovering mass extended from one pool into several, stretching outward. The water then froze in place. The end result of the ninja's actions were crystal clear spikes of ice, about twenty of them, all roughly five feet in length, awaiting direction in the air around her.

She brought her arms forward in an aggressive gesture, and the spikes slammed into the tree, chopping it in half. The top half of the trunk fell backwards, away from her. The squirrel that had been watching her quickly scurried away into a nearby bush. Birds in the area of the forest she was in flew away, startled by the sudden crash.

With a small wave of her hand, the ice shattered. "Fucking tree. Had it coming. Plotting against me," she mumbled, near incoherently. "That squirrel was probably in on it, too."

Pein raised an eyebrow. What the hell is with this woman?

Rather than sit quietly in the bushes for another long span of time, Pein decided it would be as good a time as any to reveal his location. The last thing he wanted was to have to sit through another display of her clearly crazed judgment. It was likely she'd find something else to pick a fight with, perhaps a nearby shrub that looked at her the wrong way. Or maybe she'd fire that water of hers into the air to attempt to strike the sun, thinking it was just too damn bright.

As soon as he appeared, only a few yards away, the woman turned to face him, watching his every move. "Who-"

"My name is Pein. I'm of the Akatsuki. What is your name, woman?" He had no intention of calming her with small talk. The chances of her actually listening and of needlessly attacking him were equally likely.

"Yuki Ookami," she said, still watching him. "What do you want?" She raised her arms to chest level in front of her, a defensive posture. She tilted her head slightly, gaze unwavering, and the red highlights in her hair shined brighter in the rays of sunlight piercing the canopy. She'd heard of the Akatsuki before, but only knew they were a criminal group. She had no knowledge of their actual goals.

"You've got potential, Yuki. I could use someone with your abilities."

"You think I'm going to wander off with a complete stranger wearing a creepy cloak?" she said, mocking him.

"If you want to live, you will," he replied flatly, watching her. He then gestured for her to follow him, turning to walk deeper through the trees.

Yuki shrugged. "Why not." She found Pein more than a little strange. The black cloak with red clouds definitely boded something ill for her, but his eyes were what sent her on alert. The abnormal red-orange color of them reminded her of herself, how her own eyes were not what people considered "the usual."

Her eyes were the reason she was training in the forest in the first place. Back home, they banned her from their village, the village of the Ryu-Ookami clan, because of what she'd done. Complete rejection.

Yuki's mind was not stable enough to argue against the possibility of death by following the man she was now walking beside. Her mind was also not stable enough to perceive the fear any normal person would've felt during such a situation.

Her perceptions of her surroundings were cut short, though, when she felt a sharp pain at the back of her head. She fell forward but was caught by strong arms. Yuki looked up, and the last thing she saw before blacking out was the owner of the Rinnegan staring down at her, fiery hair framing his stoic face.

"Ugh...what happened?" Yuki mumbled, opening her mis-matched eyes to the world. The room she was in was very dark, but she could make out the shapes of furniture, including the bed she was lying in.

"Pein had to knock you out to bring you here," a man spoke up from beside her bed. "Didn't want you telling our enemies our current position." Yuki turned her head to peer through the darkness at him, but didn't bother sitting up. The voices told her it would harm her if she did.

"Who are you?" she asked, faintly making out blond hair.

"Deidara. And you're Yuki Ookami, the ice-wielder we were told about. If it helps to console you any, we don't plan to kill you. Well...not right now."

Yuki couldn't see his face, but his tone of voice told her he'd smirked at her then.

"Why the fuck am I here?" she demanded, though she wasn't sure where "here" was.

"The base of the Akatsuki. Pein said we could use your abilities, though I'm not sure why he chose you. You don't seem all that powerful to me. Not very nice, either."

"I don't care what you think," Yuki hissed. She raised her arms from the bed to conjure water, but the man attending her shook his head.

"There are several other people in our organization. They're not nearly as tolerant as I am. Pein told us not to kill you, but there's a few members here at the base who wouldn't refrain from injuring you if your behavior became too intolerable."

"If you're going to kill me in the end, anyway, why does it matter?" Yuki asked, forming a sphere of water in front of her.

Deidara was silent in response, watching her. He was prepared to defend himself if she decided to launch an attack at him, though something told him that wasn't what she was planning.

The water became the shape of a bird, its wings outstretched in flight. And a second later, it froze, still hovering in the air before her. She took a kunai from a holder on her leg, and began carving designs in the ice for the creature's feathers.

"You're into art, too, hm?" Deidara said, putting his closed hand in front of her. He opened it, and as his fingers moved away from his palm, a small bird made of what Yuki assumed was clay was revealed, moving its tiny wings. "I like birds, too," he said, though not slathering on sincerity.

Terrorists didn't do that kind of thing.

"Clay?" Yuki questioned, looking down at the man's moving art. She gazed at it for a moment, before reaching forward with one hand and poking the object, watching the bird twitch with a strange fascination.

Her forest green and red eyes stared, transfixed on the clay. Deidara formed a single hand sign, invisible in the cover of the darkness of the room, and the bird suddenly exploded. A black cloud enveloped the air between them, and Yuki turned her head sideways against the pillow so as not to start coughing.

"Hm, art's a blast," he said, satisfied with what he'd done. Once the smoke cleared he could see the grin on the woman's face. She sat up and realized it was a mistake, as the voices had said it would be. Her head throbbed with pain, though she did her best to ignore it.

The ice bird she'd created remained floating in the air in front of her, but she put her knife away. She was actually surprised that they'd let her keep her weapons, considering she had motive to attack them, those in the group, or possibly kill them in their sleep. Not that she would, from what she'd seen.

Pein, the leader, she assumed, wasn't overly rude to her, and this Deidara guy didn't seem too bad.

Why are they such feared criminals? she wondered. The two members I've met so far aren't horrible. Although...they might just kill me when they're finished with-

"Why am I here, again?" she asked, controlling the bird before her so that it flew in small circles.

"Pein will tell you later on. For now, adjust, and don't piss off anyone. Especially Hidan."

"Who's he?" Yuki asked, tilting her head. The ice bird landed on Deidara's shoulder and tilted its head, as well.

"You'll know when you meet him. Same for Zetsu, actually."

Yuki looked to the bird she'd created and carved to beauty, and in a flash it liquefied into water. She opened her canteen and the water flowed into it from the air.

Deidara just looked at her strangely for a moment, before standing up. Her gesture reminded him of Gaara, how the special sand he used in battle always returned to the gourd he kept on his back.

"Is that special water?" he asked.

Yuki rolled her eyes. "It's normal, idiot. 'Special' water sounds like something spiked."

"What I mean is, is there some reason you keep it in that pouch?"

"It's easier to use than concentrating the water in the air. And with my chakra always flowing through the water's cells, I can take a liquefied ice sculpture, place it inside, and when it emerges again as water, my chakra will reform it to its previous state."

"Hm. Quite a talent you have."

"It's unfortunate your leader thinks so, too."

When they entered the hall, much brighter in lighting compared to her previous room, Yuki noticed Deidara had some sort of device covering his left eye, though she didn't bother asking what it was for. She also realized that he was wearing the same cloak Pein had been.

"You all wear those, don't you?" she asked, fiddling with the fishnet of her shirt.

"Yeah, why?"

"Nothing. It just looks good on you. Must be the blond," Yuki said, slowing her pace as she walked. There was door fast approaching and she was nervous as to what (or who) was on the other side.

"Hm. We're just going to the kitchen. If we're going to use your power, you need to have your strength up."

Yuki half smiled. "Oh." He allowed her to enter the room first, then walked in behind her. Kisame and Itachi were already in the kitchen, looking as if they'd already eaten and were standing by idly, waiting for something to happen. Zetsu was leaving through another door just as Yuki entered, and Tobi was standing near one of the counters.

Itachi gave Deidara a questioning glance, while Kisame just looked at their new pawn.

"Oh my gosh!" Yuki exclaimed, merging her words into one with the speed she'd uttered them. In an instant she was beside Kisame, staring up at him with wide eyes.

"What the hell, Deidara," Kisame said, wishing he could back away from the girl. The counter behind him prevented it. "Keep her on a shorter leash."

Yuki didn't seem affected by the man's chatter. "You're like...a shark...only...you're a person." She reached up to touch his face, wanting to know if what she was seeing was real, but he grabbed her wrist before she could.

Yuki glanced at her halted arm and grinned in amusement. "So you like to play that way, do you?"

Kisame raised an eyebrow. "What's she talking about, Deidara?"

The blond shrugged. "Who knows. Pein said she was a little...odd."

Itachi merely looked at the woman, with no sympathy for the attention she was giving his partner.

"Tobi is happy to see you," the masked member spoke up, beside Yuki. Yuki turned, pulling gently away from Kisame in the process. "Oh, hello. I'm Yuki."

"He's Kisame," Tobi introduced, "and his partner there is Itachi. The one who left earlier is Zetsu. Tobi thinks Yuki should stay away from him."

Yuki's stomach growled, and she smiled nervously. "I guess I was hungry and didn't realize it?"

Deidara walked over to a cupboard and sighed. "What do you want?"

"Pancakes."

"It's eight in the evening."

"Add strawberries, then."

Deidara retrieved the pancake mix and placed the box on the counter. "Make it yourself. I've got things to do. Just don't burn down the kitchen."

Itachi silently left the room, and Kisame followed, a little freaked by the new girl's behavior. Why, exactly, had Pein brought such a woman to the base? He'd contemplated chopping off her arm when she'd tried to touch him, but Pein's order had rung out clearly in his mind. Don't bring serious harm to Yuki. She'll be valuable to us, with the power to manipulate water and ice. She'll serve our plans better if she's still able to move and cast jutsu.

And so he'd restrained himself. He noticed Deidara had been the first one to take her under his wing, if it could be called that. He displayed a tolerant attitude towards her, though it was probably for the sake of their overall goal.

"I can't make any promises," Yuki said, approaching the stove. Tobi slid gracefully over to her. "Need help?"

"Go away Tobi," Deidara said, already annoyed. He then left the room, off on errands, expecting Tobi to follow him. Reluctantly, the masked man obeyed, waving to Yuki as he left.

"Yuki should come by Tobi's room when she's done! Tobi loves pancakes, too!"

The door closed.

Yuki poured the batter in the pan over the flames and sighed. "I don't even know where his room is. Do I?"

The voices answered, saying that no, she didn't.

Unlike the other members of the Akatsuki, Yuki didn't find annoyance in Tobi's manner of speaking, which was for the most part third-person. It was unique. Like her.

She also wondered why he wore that orange mask. Just what was he hiding? Her thoughts on possible answers to that question clouded her conscious thought, causing her to nearly burn the pancake she was making. She flipped it over in the pan and her thinking shifted to Deidara.

Damn was he good-looking.

Knock knock. "Tobi?" Yuki heard no answer from the other side of the door she was knocking her fist against. Her other hand held a plate with pancakes topped with syrup and strawberry pieces. A part of her didn't know why she'd made them for him at all. Another part did it out of boredom. And the part of her inclined to insanity felt there was no harm in the gesture, despite the fact he was probably a murderer.

The fifth door she came to she didn't even bother knocking on, for she hadn't once gotten an answer. "Tobi, are you-"

The sight within the room made Yuki nearly drop the plate she was holding.

A bloodied silver-haired man with a scythe was standing in the center of what appeared to be some sort of pentagram. He had numerous injuries to himself, so many that blood was pooled on the floor in some places. There were a few candles around the dark room that made everything dimly illuminated.

"What the fuck do you want?" Hidan hissed, standing up. Yuki's eyes diverted to his chest, exposed by the cloak, cut deeply in a few areas, then returned to his face. He looked beyond angry. Hidan had heard what Pein had said about the girl, but he didn't plan on being merciful to her. He thought her better suited as a sacrifice to Jashin, not a puppet to use in missions.

"Well I was looking for Tobi and-"

The scythe the man was holding caught her eye. The blade shined in the dim light given off by the candles. Blood dripped off the three blades and on to the floor. The fatally sharp edges gleamed beautifully, calling out....

Yuki set the plate down on the table beside the door and launched forward, seizing the handle of the scythe and succeeding in temporarily taking the weapon from him.

Hidan glared. "What the hell do you think you're doing, bitch?"

Yuki tuned him out and ran her fingers along the separate blades, admiring them. "Sharp." She smiled mischievously to herself.

"I could kill you," Hidan said, seething with rage now. He grabbed his scythe from her hands and held it in an aggressive posture, hoping she would get the message and leave.

Normal Yuki thought it best to leave, to take her pancakes and go. But unstable Yuki wanted to stay.

"Deidara warned me about you. You're Hidan, right?" She pointed her finger at him while speaking, acting in no way threatened.

"Yeah, and you're the bothersome bitch that interrupted my ritual prayer to Jashin. Leave before I-"

"There's a ton of blood, just, everywhere," Yuki continued, looking around. "How are you not dead?"

"I'm immortal, bitch," Hidan replied, further tempted to decapitate the woman on the spot. She was crazy for entering his room at such a time, and crazier for staying.

Yuki then dropped to her knees, running her index finger through a pool of blood. "Still warm," she mused, moving her bloodied finger around the floor, drawing something the man above her could only guess at.

"What the fuck are you-"

"Ta-da!" she moved her hand away and revealed a dragon. Thick and thin lines, curved simply but precisely, comprised the form of a dragon with its wings spread wide. "Ryu," she said happily, smiling.

Hidan snapped. "Drawing a fucking picture with my blood, bitch? I don't care what Pein said, I'm seriously going to kill you. And I'm going to enjoy it."

He swung the three-bladed scythe down upon her, but not before Yuki rolled skillfully out of the way. Kneeling beside him now, she watched as the scythe collided with the hard floor and was then dragged back up. Hidan spun to his side to see Yuki backing away, conjuring water in front of her, probably for an attack.

"That won't do shit!" he yelled angrily, lunging forward at her. He brought the blades down again and Yuki side-stepped most of his attack. The edge of the bottom blade just barely nicked her shoulder, cutting a large section of her black short-sleeve and an even larger section of the long-sleeved fishnet shirt she wore over it. Blood trickled down her arm but she didn't seem to notice it.

From a few feet away the girl created a sword out of the water, then hardened it into ice, making it deadly sharp. But before she could think to aim a strike, Hidan impaled her stomach with the handle of the scythe, quickly spinning it in his hand to return it to its normal attack angle. "Fucking bitch!"

He thought it pathetic she even bothered creating the sword at all. Watching as she fell to the ground by the force of his blow, he readied his weapon to attack again, the finishing touch.

Yuki had landed on her back by the sheer power of his offense, but she knew he'd throw the scythe again, she'd expected it. With a burst of speed she rolled to her right, standing up with ease, sword still in hand. The scythe once again met the floor, causing a loud clang to echo in the room. Yuki jumped forward and spun to her left, easily landing in front of him. In comparison, Yuki's speed was so suddenly great that Hidan appeared to be moving in slow motion.

He wasn't of course, and clearly saw her clever move to get close and attack before he was able to raise the massive blades again. Yuki thrust her ice sword into his chest, not aiming for the heart, just a really, really bad flesh wound. And if it happened to hit a lung? Well, he started it.

The short sword she was holding must've hit a bone somewhere, she guessed, because it ceased to slide into him any further. What she didn't know was that he'd let her do it.

"Stupid bitch," Hidan cursed, a sadistic smile forming on his face. The previous injuries from his ritual didn't phase him, and he seemed to be grinning in joy at the fact blood was escaping from both the wound she'd inflicted and his mouth.

For a moment Yuki seemed mesmerized by him, watching as the crimson liquid passed his lips, and flowed almost poetically from his many cuts and gashes. She wasn't a masochistic person, but Yuki's mind tended to distract itself occasionally by the simplest – usually strangest – things.

Green and red eyes, both fierce, met those of a silver, lavender hue. Normally, Yuki wore a bandage over her left eye, the one that suffered from being half blind. But the day she'd been training in the forest, she'd put away her bandaging cloth and had not had time to re-wrap it, having been basically kidnapped via an alternative of death.

She noticed Hidan's eyes were just...beautiful. Beautiful for someone whose face was twisted with a sickened joy and unrestrained anger, both emotions shining through at the same time. Both directed at her.

"I'm immortal, your weapons can't hurt me," Hidan said, raising his scythe behind her.

Yuki felt the movement and near panicked. The seventeen-year-old girl in her was somewhat enjoying the close proximity to the man she'd struck, but the ninja in her was fearing for her life.

"Bitch, you're going to die," Hidan said maliciously, smirking as he readied to strike the final blow. The sound Yuki heard immediately after, though, was not the sound of metal piercing flesh and bone, but rather a voice.

"If I'd known you were having a stripper get involved in your sadistic rituals, I would've taken my time coming back here," said a man in the doorway, sporting the Akatsuki cloak and white and black cloth that concealed his face. Cold, green eyes stared at the two ninja, the mystery man's build shadowed by the light framing him from in the hallway. He glanced down at the pancakes on the nearby table, but delayed in saying anything regarding them.

"Fuck you, Kakuzu!" Hidan shouted. "This bitch ain't a fucking stripper! She-"

"Yeah, her hair messed itself up and the clothes tore themselves. Girl's probably loving all that blood with the mix of elixirs you put in those pancakes, eh? Real potent, by what I can see. Still several left on the plate."

Yuki looked from herself to Hidan, noticing they did indeed look strange, standing the way they were, both bloodied, disheveled, out of breath.

"Shut the fuck up!" Hidan roared, aiming his rage at his partner. Yuki took this opportunity to run. She slipped out of his range, leaving the sword intact, ran past her blood-drawn dragon on the floor, grabbed the plate of pancakes, and slipped past Kakuzu effortlessly out into the hallway.

Of course the bright lighting in the hall didn't guarantee her safety, so she ran into the nearest room, closing the door behind her.

"Yuki's here!" Tobi exclaimed, happy to see her. "Tobi's been waiting. And Yuki really brought pancakes!"

Yuki nearly dropped the plate once again, shouting in frustration, "God damn it!"

"Once wolf and dragon were friends, the dragon controlled the sea and skies while the wolf controlled the ground and darkness. They would laugh and play and the days passed quickly, but one day things changed. A ghost stole the moon from dragon and blamed it on wolf, saying that he could not steal the glorious moon. Dragon after much persuasion agreed that wolf had done it and pushed the seas, creating dragon minions that destroyed wolf's home. The wolf shocked by his friend's anger asked why, but the ghost said that Dragon threatened to steal the sun. The wolf, angry at this, sent shadow wolves after dragon. Both being able to control elements, they fought in a large battle, ending it in an area that was complete ash. Both were evenly matched, and established that the shadow wolves and water dragons would serve as the spirit guides to any person born with the physical traits of a dragon, whiskers and red hair, and wolf, red tinted hair. But that is why the sun and moon come and go each day, the wolf steals the moon while the sun shines, and the dragon steals the sun when it sets."

Tobi took another bite of pancake. "THAT'S the legend of Yuki's clan?" he confirmed, sounding like he was in awe.

Yuki nodded. "Yes, that's where the two strains of our clan came from. The Ookami stand for the wolf, and the Ryu represent the dragon in the story. I memorized it, years back."

Her memorization was a feat by itself, considering the girl's short memory and tendency to be absent-minded, often at inconvenient times.

"If all the people are of the same clan, how do people know what group they belong to?" he asked.

"It's all directed by element affinity, what your gift is, when you're born. The Ookami are the ones with the water-crafting ability, which I have. The Ryu have power over shadows. Though it's uncommon, I gained skill in water and developed power with ice. I was named a Ryu, officially, though."

"Yuki is a lot like an Ookami," Tobi noted, taking another bite of pancake. "So how does Yuki fall under the group of Ryu?"

"The Ryu posses the Dragon Wheel, which lets us see various forms of chakra. Unlike other Ryu, though, I can't use it to put enemies into the feared shadow world. Mine is limited that way, but it's always activated, to see chakra." She pointed to her left eye, drawing attention to its bloodshot state, a red orb scarred by black needle-like marks, lacking a pupil. Her green eye stood out in comparison.

"The Ryu are also afflicted with what's called the Shadow of Progression. It is said that the shadows the Ryu control as their affinity slowly take over their body, making them lose their minds. For me, it's worse, my mind has suffered more than others my age."

"Why?" Tobi asked simply, taking another bite.

"Because of what I did back home, my blood became mixed, and is a danger to me. I was raised as a Ryu because of my family ties, my Ryu parents, even though my affinity fit that of an Ookami. My sister, Kaji, she was brilliant with shadows, the Ryu affinity. It made me jealous, seeing how much others respected her, how good she was. I loved Kaji, but I wanted to be shown that same love by the rest of the clan. So...two years ago, when I was still living with the clan, I took her left eye and replaced it with my own, which is why the Shadow of Progression affects me so much, my blood. I thought it would give me the same ability with shadows, so I would be recognized like her. But the Ryu all hated me for it, and sent me away."

"Into the forest, where Pein found Yuki," Tobi finished. He moved his mask a final time to eat the last bite of pancake, then placed the fork on the plate on the bed beside him, where they were both sitting.

"By being banned, though, I spent much time training. I learned how to better control my powers, and reached new levels of ability with my water and ice skill." She ran a gloved hand through her brown and red hair and smiled. "And now I'm here."

"Tobi is happy Yuki is here," he said cheerfully. Yuki, sitting next to him on the bed, hugged him suddenly, nuzzling her pale face against his orange mask. "Aw, really?"

Tobi nodded. "Yeah, Yuki makes good pancakes!"

Yuki ceased the embrace and huffed, crossing her arms. "Hidan enjoyed my company more than you," she mumbled sarcastically, referring to the man's obvious liking for her pancakes rather than her presence itself.

"Yuki visited Hidan? Is that why there is blood on Yuki's arm and chest?" Tobi asked, sounding concerned, now.

Yuki smiled sheepishly. "I got a little lost."