Fanaticism

Fanaticism(fromlatin "fanaticus") is a general term of religious,politicalorpersonaldirections that drives its cause without any consideration of rational arguments. The fanatic is the skeptical person's (extreme) opposite.

To Hidan, his god is everything. The reason he breathes, sleeps, moves, thinks. Everything circles around his precious lord, Jashin. Maybe his common sense went along with it as well. From some point in his life, blood, torture, pain and death had somehow become something different. Something that he didn't fear, but rather worshipped.

Death and destruction. Those are absolute to a Jashinist. And honestly, he didn't mind one bit. He enjoyed every moment of bloodshed left in his wake and he loved the rush of adrenaline, the sound of tortured screams and that little something only his God could make him feel. Hidan had always loved a good fight – which was the main reason he became a shinobi in the first place. He knows he's a very difficult opponent as well, mainly because he cannot be killed. Then it doesn't matter if his tactic isn't waterproof at all times. He can bring down any man or woman either way.

Then he had met Kakuzu. The moment Pein had announced that they were going to be partners Hidan started to truly believe that the man was insane. What had he been thinking, really? Everything about the dark haired man had been infuriating to him from day one. How he was always thinking about his damned money, his high and mighty indifference, the fact that for once, Hidan had to tilt his head slightly upwards to make eye contact or that he was unable to defeat him. For the first weeks – or maybe months – he tried so many times to make one fatal wound to the former Taki shinobi, but without any success. For the first time, he had found an opponent that he didn't seem able to defeat.

And perhaps Pein had not been completely out of his mind when he put the two of them together. Because neither of them was able to kill the other and they were both bloodthirsty beasts who thought little of human lives, although for different reasons. Hidan craved the pain, the torture and the blood. Kakuzu didn't have any problem with that. He wasn't freaked out or disgusted at all.

Somehow, a relatively good partnership started to grow. Even if they were getting into constant arguments about the most ridiculous things, the murder attempts had decreased dramatically on both ends after some time.

Well, at least until it came down to religion and money.

If a single insult was thrown at their respective obsession, the enemies' heads were not going to be the only ones flying through the air, nor would it only be their blood that was spilled onto the ground.

Because even if money wasn't a religion, Kakuzu believed in it as much as Hidan believed in Jashin. Those two things were their greatest weaknesses, but also what kept them going, breathing, living, fighting and hoping. It was something that could not be compromised or looked down upon, because as much as it was religion, it was personal. A part of who they were. Still, they wanted to prove to be the one with the right answer.

"Jashin is the only important thing in this damned world! Every heathen should give up their filthy souls to Lord Jashin!" Hidan would curse. Kakuzu would roll his eyes and feel his temper flaring.

"Idiot. There is no god who can help you. Money is the only thing that matters, it could even buy your pretty little lord and he'd be begging on his knees." He would answer and immediately prepare for the attack, which never hit the attempted target.

"You fucking asshole!" Hidan would shout and then they fought it all out until they grew tired of the endless battle.

To say that they had been shocked out of their minds when the two of them had woke up naked – in the same bed – next to each other on morning would be the biggest understatement of all time. Things had been awkward to say the least for about a week after that. Then Hidan and Kakuzu had managed to end up in the very same situation again, despite both of them knowing better for once.

But it was actually a better way to take out their frustration with each other that way than fighting constantly over trivial matters. Or accidently messing up their mission. Sex, it turned out, did calm them down for a while and Hidan would be lying if he said he didn't enjoy it. He craved pain and blood and from Kakuzu, neither of those two were hard to get. The rather rough manners of his partner could not have been better.

Though, he never figured out what Kakuzu had to win on it. Maybe it was the lack of blabbering about Jashin, heathens or his flaws in lifestyle choice. Of course, he didn't complain about it, no rather the opposite. Perhaps he had let himself come a little too close to the former Taki shinobi. And maybe he should have set up warning signs in his head when he begun to try to convince him to convert to Jashinism. Because even if it made his partner roll his eyes and sometimes punch him through a couple of trees, it had a deeper meaning. Something Hidan only realized much later.

Kakuzu was already immortal, of that he was sure. He wasn't in any need of something he already had. But Hidan understood later that he had wanted to share his God with him. His precious Jashin-sama that was his sole purpose for living. He wanted to share it with someone else, since he knew it was the right thing in life. Something he was so sure about that he wouldn't even think about what he was doing if it was his God's will.

And of course, his partner thought it was all a load of bullshit. Kakuzu would admit that there was some extraordinary power that had made Hidan unable to die, but it didn't have to be something so silly like a god. He thought it to be simply a waste of time, even if time was something they both seemed to have a lot of.

"You're stupid. How is there any guarantee that this god will do anything for you?" He had shouted during one of their arguments.

"Shut your face, asshat! Jashin-sama gave me immortality! He's-"

"That's not what I meant!" Kakuzu had shouted, before grabbing his partners collar. "That's not… He doesn't have to do anything for the people who believe in him. And giving you immortality is as much of a curse as it is a blessing. What if he won't let you die? Then what?"

At the time, Hidan had been infuriated by those words and actually managed to land a decent punch. How dare that miser insult his God like that?! But the doubt had begun to grow a little anyway. What if there's nothing more? What if Jashin abandons me when I am no longer useful?

And those words were echoing through his scattered mind down in the darkness.

That greedy bastard was right, huh? Hidan thought through the incredible, never-ending pain. Not being able to die… I have been bloody cursed.

Well. At least he wasn't fucking right either. Money can't buy everything. That fucker couldn't buy me, heh.

And he had waited and waited for Kakuzu to come back and dig him back up from this hell where his body had exploded into pieces. The pain he felt wasn't the one he craved and almost got high off. No, it was that weak, mortal pain he had felt in his younger days. He had relied in his immortality, yet, all he wanted was to die and finally get rid of this darkness. And his mind wander back to his partner, wondered why he didn't come. He had been betrayed by the one he had to some extent come to care for. Still, he couldn't help himself.

I guess he didn't have to. He already got me anyway.