I want to redeem myself as an author. I want to attempt Naruto romance again. And so, my most treasured couple, Pein and Konan.

For my Konan

Konan opened her eyes, her dreams of hapiness fading to be replaced by the cold reality of pain. She said nothing as she got up, moving to her closet to get her clothing. 'I have work to do.' Was her only thought as she prepared herself to do paperwork till the sunset over Amegakure while the ever persistent rain pelted the windows. She exited the bathroom, acknowledging Pein's consciousness while looking out the window, the rain hitting it lightly, making a soft thud as some ice started to mix with it, producing hail. 'There is something wrong today.' She thought simply, knowing that asking her leader will result in fridgid glares and most likely pain.

She shook her head, turning away from the window and exiting her and Pein's room, going to their office to work while he got ready for the day.

'Why is Konan looking out the window?' He wondered while sleep still gripped him, ignoring the clenching of his stomach. She nodded to him absently, keeping her eyes focussed on the window. She walked out of the room, fully dressed, going to go get a head start on the paper work they had to do while the other members were still asleep and would not disturb them. He stood up, gathering his clothing and changing slowly, slowly waking up, the feeling of fear and apprehension gripping his stomach tightly. He thought about how Konan always seemed entranced in the morning, always looking out the window when he awoke. He put his hand on the doorknob of the door that lead to the office he shared with Konan when it hit him. 'It's her only way she can see how I'm feeling without me saying anything.'

She stood up when Pein entered, turning to him and bowing respectfully before returning to her work, the papers shifting slightly when Pein walked past her desk. She went through the papers on her desk, organizing them in the order of urgency, removing the ones that were redundant, putting them aside as she wrote notes on the documents, highlighting some parts before putting them to the side, moving onto the next page.

When he saw Konan stand and bow to him before returning to her work made him feel a little less apprehension and nervous. He walked past her desk, the papers shifting slightly from the wind of his stride. He sat at his desk, going through the forms, placing the taxes and bills aside for Kakuzu to deal with while he dealt with the more pressing work. He turned his head slightly when Konan stood up, walking to his desk and placing down papers she had gone through, made notes on and high-lighted to make his work a little easier. He nodded his head slightly, muttering a quiet thank you as he looked through the documents she had given him, reading the notes and high-lighed areas quickly while she headed back to her desk to deal with the other stacks of paper on her desk.

"Pein-sama... May I ask something?"

He turned to her, looking at her with no emotion. No curiosity, no kindness. Nothing.

"What is it, Konan-san?" He asked.

She knew he did it out of duty. She missed her Nagato, who was replaced by this emotionless creature.

"Where did Nagato go?" She asked softly, his stomach clenching painfully.

"You know what happened, Konan-san." He stated. "He died along with Yahiko." He said, watching her recoil at the name.

"I miss them." She said softly, standing up, holding the last of her finished paperwork, walking over and placing it on his desk as she walked out of the office and into the narrow hallway that lead to the living room of the Akatsuki base.

He looked at the papers, his clenched stomach seemed to become even more painful after Konan had left. 'She will never accept Pein in Nagato's place.' He thought, putting the papers aside and putting his head in his hands.

He sat there for an hour, thinking of Konan, remembering how happy she used to be and now how much pain she felt everyday with a man she didn't know anymore in the body of her dear friend.

'Maybe I can be Nagato for her...' He thought 'Just for today...'