Average day. Iwa was gloomy-looking and sunlit. It was around 75 or 80 degrees. And, just like normal, the children were walking to school. Always traveling in the same little packs and cliques…except for one boy. He was completely alone. This always happened as well. The boy was 7; he had semi-long blonde hair that came to his shoulders. A portion of it was covering his eye, as he was tired of having to squint in the sunlight. The only difference today showed from the others was so minute that it could hardly be noticed. This boy, this strange-looking boy named Deidara, always outcast and bullied, was almost shaking with excitement. It was the day he would finally attend school. Surely his talents would be recognized there? Finally he would learn how to perform the techniques his brother had been practicing for years… Deidara's brother, Hideki, was two years older. Hideki was always pleasant to everyone; except Deidara. Well, Deidara and anyone else who didn't "fit in". Hideki was big on the idea of having everyone be identical (or at least partially so) in intellect, opinions, and looks. Most everyone in Iwa had brown or black hair. A select few, however, were either blondes or redheads. These were the kind of people Hideki refused to accept into his dream world of perfection. Unfortunately, Hideki wasn't the only one who thought so. These few people were all rejected by society; they were constantly treated like garbage and abused. Many were killed because of their abnormality, until the Tsuchikage passed a law prohibiting the knowing exposure of these people to fatal situations inside the walls of Iwa. They were like their villages tailed beasts (but of course nobody knew about those yet). Only they could truly accept one another. As Deidara neared the school, he passed many other kids who glared at him in disgust. Then he saw them. "Hey-Hey! Kara! Akira! Hiro!" A girl and two boys turned. "Deidara!" said the girl excitedly, rushing forward to greet her friend. "Isn't this awesome? I could barely fall asleep last night, I was so excited!" said the taller of the two boys. "What about you Hiro?" "Yeah me too, I guess…" said the nervous-looking boy. These were Deidara's closest (and only) friends. Kara was a girl with long, red, flowing hair. She was a bit of a klutz, but she made up for it with her amazing speed. She wore a white shirt and black shorts that went to her knees. Akira was a tall, confident boy whose position in society affected his confidence and determination very little. He was also a redhead, only his hair was very unkempt. It's not as if he didn't try to brush it, it just never stayed down. He wore a green tunic with brown pants. Hiro however, was the opposite of Akira. He was shy and sensitive about everything…except for weaponry. His father was a popular blacksmith whose weapons easily exceeded standards of normal ones. Hiro shared his father's passion for blacksmithing. Hiro was also blonde, and his hair was about as little-boyish as anyone's could ever be. His dark green eyes were always half-hidden by the same two pieces of bangs. He wore a black shirt and navy blue shorts. "Where've you been? We've been waiting here forever!" Kara said, shaking Deidara's shoulders. "Oh, well Mom cooked breakfast a little late, so…" Deidara replied smiling awkwardly. "What're you guys doing here?" drawled a familiar voice. Deidara's smile faded instantly. Hiro winced. "Go away Hideki." said Deidara through gritted teeth. "We come to school here now, for your information." Akira stated triumphantly. "Well aren't you a brave one? Be careful, that could get you into trouble." Hideki said with a sneer worthy of Draco Malfoy. "Go…. away…" Deidara tried his best to not turn around and kick Hideki right in the jewels. "Heh. Fine. But only because I want to see your reaction when you realize your place in this school, street rats." Hideki finished savagely. He turned and walked back to his group of bully friends. "I don't know how on earth you live with that…" Kara said quietly. The bell sounded just then. "C'mon guys, let's go or we'll be late." Hiro whimpered. The foursome set off for their classroom. They sat in the very back, where none of the seats were occupied with staring students who looked ready to attack. A few minutes later, the teacher walked in. He had pale skin and a large scar across his left eye. "Alright class, I am your instructor Ishido Mamuda. You will refer to me only as 'Sensei Ishido' or 'Ishido Sensei'. Is that understood?" The class was silent. "Good. Now, before we begin, I will test your already existing knowledge. Who can tell me what the two primary handheld weapons a ninja uses?" Hiro's hand shot into the air. "Yes Mr…." "Hiro, Ishido sensei. The two most common weapons used by a proper ninja are Kunai knives and Shuriken throwing stars. However, some ninja also like to use Senbon acupuncture needles or various types of poisoned knives." Hiro said quickly. "Very good, Hiro! You seem to be a very smart little boy." Hiro blushed to the point where his ears had turned bright red. The class glared at him. "And you, boy on his right," Deidara's attention sharpened immediately. He had not expected any acknowledgement. "what is the first name of Lord Tsuchikage's right-hand man?" Excitement swelled inside Deidara. He knew this one by heart. "Shugo. He also likes to be called Kohaku by his close friends." Deidara said this a little louder than he had meant to. "Impressive! Barely any adult I know could answer that. Say, how did you know about the Kohaku thing?" Deidara was hoping Ishido sensei would ask this. "Well…because….er…well he's my dad." Deidara knew this would catch people's attention. The whole class stared at him in amazement. Slowly, their looks of amazement turned into looks of amusement. Deidara had heard a few sniggers before a girl named Chi piped up. "Oh come on. You don't expect us to believe that, right?" Deidara was happy he had a poker face on already. But before he could open his mouth to retort, Ishido sensei had replied coldly: "Yes, he does. As do I. Now, I think I should lay down a few rules." If anything could shut Chi up, it would be that. Deidara felt a surge of affection towards Ishido. "Firstly, you will raise your hand if you wish to speak. Secondly, there will be no bullying of any kind in my classroom. And lastly, respect all, and I do mean all, of your classmates. You never know how powerful they will become or already are. This goes for all of you." He said this eyeing Deidara and then Chi. Why is he acting like I'm the one who needs to respect them? They're the ones who make fun of me! Deidara thought. Kara seemed to know what he was thinking and pinched him just below the elbow. Alright class, let's begin our first lesson. The day dragged on slowly. By the time they got out of school, it felt like midnight; despite the fact that it was still very bright out. "Move faster, dammit. Mom'll kill me if I leave you behind." Hideki said, pushing Deidara forward. Deidara quickened his pace, but mostly to avoid being pushed again for no reason. "Ugh, finally!" Hideki moaned as their house came into sight. Hideki trotted over to the front door, and Deidara followed suit. "Hi Mom." Deidara and Hideki said together. Their mother turned. She had light brown hair to match Hideki's. Two small strands hung from her heightened bangs. Her hair was waist-length and went beautifully with her sky blue "battle dress" as she called it. Deidara noticed this. "Mom, were you on a mission or something?" Deidara asked. "No," she said in a voice as smooth as butter. "I was actually out hunting with your aunt ("In the wooded area of town"). It gets pretty wild out there. Ah yes, we're having deer for dinner. But enough about that, how was your first day honey?" "It was…" Deidara didn't know how to explain it. "I guess it was alright." "What do you mean?" His mom asked, still focused on cooking the deer just right. "Well…it started out really good but it got kinda boring after that." Deidara sighed. "Wait till you get used to school. It's boring all the time after that." Hideki said. This was one of the occasional moments when Hideki would actually treat Deidara like a brother. "It would be interesting if you actually paid attention, Hideki. Start your homework. You should be done at about the time I'm done cooking…" Their mom said. There was a knock on the door. Deidara walked over to open it. Hiro was standing there, twiddling his thumbs. "Um… ca-can I stay the night here? My dad is on a mission and my mom is doing business in Ame…" "Of course! You can stay here as long as you want whenever you want!" said Deidara's mom. "R-really?" said Hiro, obviously flustered. "Th-thanks Ms. Kishiba! (Kishiba is Deidara's mom's name)" For about an hour, Deidara and Hiro were helping each other on their homework, which was about different pressure points on a person, the process of electing a new Kage, and the names of the Hidden Villages. "I'M HOOOME!" A man yelled. It was quite unnecessary, because the front door was right behind the kitchen and dining room, where everyone was settled. "Hi Dad…" Hideki and Deidara chanted, both rolling their eyes. "Hi boys. No time for dinner, Kishiba." He said as Kishiba opened her mouth to ask him if he wanted dinner. "I've got a lot of work to do today. I just need to pick up some papers…" "Hey Dad." "What Hideki?" "Do you know anything about Konoha?" Hideki asked this in such a manner that he could've easily been a stressed-out accountant. Shugo looked at his son's paper with mild surprise. "A little. Are you doing a report on it?" Shugo said, now showing much more interest in his family than his work. Hideki nodded. "Well, I can tell you this: Iwa went to war with Konoha a few years ago, and it was a bloody battle. We lost many soldiers, but not nearly as many as Konoha. It was because of a man named Yoindaime that we lost. Yoindaime is now the Hokage, and we do not want to meddle with power such as his. Doing so might, no, will resort in the loss of everything we hold dear. If we began another war, let's just say, there is a high chance you would all be killed." Following Shugo's small report, there was silence. Deidara, Hiro, and Hideki all stared in disbelief. Kishiba was staring intently at the slab of meat that was now radiating hot bubbles of blood that had not been sucked out. "But we're smarter than that now, and trust me, you'll all be fine. Unless Lord Tsuchikage has an aneurism suddenly, and we're lead by a total crackpot, you're all going to be perfectly safe." Said Shugo, realizing the worry he had caused. "Um…anything else that isn't so negative?" Hideki chuckled. How the heck does he find that funny? Deidara thought accusingly. "Well, Konoha has a lot of greenery, more than the wooded area of town. It's mostly trees really… there is a lot of room for mass attacks and-FU" Shugo cut off, remembering that there were children in the room. A gray and white cat had just sprung through the open door and clawed Shugo right in the leg. "It's that damn stray cat again! Deidara, get it out!" Kishiba yelled furiously. Deidara picked up the cat by the scruff of the neck and set it outside, closing the door behind it. "Dinner is ready!" Kishiba said, another hour later. Everyone hurried to the table. When they were all finished, it was already pitch black outside. "Hiro, you will be staying in the guest room. It's right over here…" Deidara wrapped himself tightly in his warm blankets. As soon as Hideki turned off the lights, Deidara shut his eyes tight, trying to think of anything but what his father had said about the war. But an image stuck in his mind like a fly on a frog's tongue: bloody, dismembered corpses of Iwagakure ninja. Some with scrolls and kunai still grasped in their hands, others in the middle of jutsu. Being cut down like trees in the barren wasteland that was Iwa's borders…. Eventually, he fell asleep. But thankfully, he did not have any dreams that night.