Hidan sat there for what seemed like (and quite possibly could have been) hours, losing himself in his thoughts, while staring intently at the rise and fall of Ai's chest, making sure she didn't stop breathing

"Her wound is more or less closed now, I think," Hidan found himself thinking blankly, glancing at the large patch of dried blood on Ai's chest and stomach. He drew in a sharp breath suddenly, coming to alert as he noticed Ai's chest had stopped rising; she stopped breathing.

"Shit! Ai…Ai!" He shouted, quickly crawling and hovering over the unconscious girl, shaking her shoulder roughly. "Damnit…!" Hidan cursed, remembering what he was told to do in this situation.

'…If her breathing stops, even for a second, you have to make her swallow this…'

Hidan cursed again, and snatched the bottle of gray-purple liquid from its spot on the ground. Putting the bottle to his lips, Hidan poured the unnamed, and now he realized foul-tasting, concoction into his mouth, hastily dropping the bottle back down and returning to Ai's side. He frowned deeply as he hovered over her for a minute, before moving to close the gap between them…

Ai's eyes popped open, immediately met by Hidan's half closed magenta eyes.

The two stared at each other, blankly, confusedly.

"Uh…" Ai began, her voice dry and raspy from lack of use. "Hidan? What…the fuck are you doing…?" Hidan shot up, turning to the side and spiting the foul-tasting liquid from his mouth, not caring as it splattered messily on the ground. He coughed slightly. Ai, growing impatient, asked her question again.

"What the fuck were you doing?" She spat, regaining movement in her neck slightly. "Trying to molest me in my unconscious state? I knew this would happen eventually."

"I was saving your life, damnit!" Hidan retorted.

"Saving my…" Ai let out a sarcastic laugh. "Okay, I'll give you the benefit of the doubt here. Now, tell me, what were you saving me from? Mono? Lupus? AIDS? 'Cause I have none of them!" (Forgive me if none of those diseases are in the Naruto era)

"You were fucking poisoned!" Hidan blurted angrily. "I was saving your damn life, so be fucking grateful!" Ai frowned, and turned her head away. She didn't quite notice her ability to move her neck.

"Fine," She spoke. "I'll give you the benefit of the doubt this time…and believe you were trying to 'save' me…"

"Saying it like that is odd…" Hidan muttered, frowning also. Ai ignored that statement, and closed her eyes, trying to recall all that had happened.

She remembered being forced out on a mission with Hidan, being attacked by Anbu, almost dieing…

"That's right…" Ai muttered, reaching her hand up and touching the wound in her chest, her fingers flinching back quickly from the pain. Hidan noticed this movement.

"Ah, you can move now?" He said, trying to hide his interest.

"Huh? Oh, yeah…" Ai blinked, her memory of immobility slightly fuzzy. "I guess."

"So that shit is working then…" Hidan said, glancing over at the splatter on the floor from where he had spat out the vile tasting liquid. He sighed heavily; all the adrenaline from the situation had exhausted him. He briefly considered sleeping, but quickly cast it aside. He still needed to perform the ritual, after all. Jashin was surely upset with him for stalling it this long. Hidan stood.

"You're alive, so I have no point in dealing with you anymore," He said, walking away. Ai frowned, and reached her hand out in an attempt to stop him.

"W-….wait, Hidan," She said, gaining the ninja's attention.

"Nanda?" He almost hissed. Ai swallowed the lump that formed in her throat.

"I almost died…twice, in the last 24 hours…right?" She asked, her voice wavering ever so slightly.

"Hah?" Hidan made a questioning noise. "Uh, yeah." Ai turned her gaze away from the man before her.

Her voice was low and quiet as she spoke, just above a whisper, "I…don't want to die…"

Hidan stared at her, his face a mixture of shock and confusion at how fragile the woman speaking to him seemed. Maybe the poison affected her brain?

"How can I be immortal like you?" Ai's voice was higher now, desperate for an answer. Hidan drew in a sharp breath at her question.

He was quiet for a while, the air lingering with the awkward silence. "What happened to not being scared of death?" Hidan asked, though it sounded more like an accusation.

"Huh?" Ai spoke, giving the religious potty-mouth an odd look.

"You said once before that death didn't scare you," Hidan stared down at her, his eyes almost scolding Ai for her weakness. "What, were you lying?" Ai frowned.

"Just because death doesn't scare me, doesn't mean I'll welcome it with open arms!" She said. "Fine, I don't like the prospect of death, alright? Just…answer my question." Hidan rolled his eyes slightly.

"It's impossible," He said, turning to leave again. Though that was a lie, he didn't feel like arguing. He had a hunch Ai wouldn't like the conditions anyway.

"What do you mean it's impossible?" Ai asked, miffed. "You're immortal, right? Something had to have made you that way…right?" A vein popped out of Hidan's forehead, his patience running thin.

"You have to believe in Jashin-sama as I do," He spoke quietly. "Otherwise it's nothing more than a suicide." Ai caught this quiet statement.

"I do believe in Jashin," She said, forcing herself into a sitting position, cringing at the pain her wound caused.

Hidan turned and gave Ai a look that could have been compared to the devil himself. "Don't fucking lie about that," He hissed. "Just because I saved your damn life once doesn't mean I won't sacrifice you."

"I'm not lying!" Ai defended. "You said 'believe', and I do believe. Your following Jashin had something to do with your being immortal, right? That enough is proof that he exists, at least in some form." Hidan frowned; he wasn't expecting this reply. He sighed. Sure, he was all for Ai converting to Jashin, but he wasn't quite sure she actually would. Even so, there were other reasons Hidan hesitated with agreeing to make Ai immortal (or at least try). He decided to try and make Ai understand.

"You don't want to be immortal," He spoke.

"Why not?" Ai asked, persistently. Hidan frowned deeper, not wanting to explain the suffering his being immortal caused.

"No matter how much you want to die, you can't," He began. "You have no choice but to endure the pain of thousands of wounds, yet you can't die, no matter how much it hurts…" Ai stared at him, speechless. She had no clue he could be so…angst-y. She turned her gaze away, feeling awkward and…slightly guilty.

"I…guess you're right," She muttered. "But that doesn't change my mind." Hidan twitched, blushing slightly. She was so damn stubborn!

"Besides," Ai began again, her voice quiet. "There's…a worldly possession that I…don't want to leave behind…" She turned around, looking in the opposite direction of where Hidan was. She tried hard to push the blush covering her cheeks back, but to no avail.

Hidan sighed again.

"Fine," He said. "Don't get your hopes up, though." Ai smiled, feeling accomplished, Hidan's pessimistic words not bothering her.

"Got it," She said, standing.

The area the two were in was secluded enough, Hidan figured. Not that it really mattered if anyone else was around.

But Pein would surely chew his ass out if Ai died from this.

Hidan cast those thoughts aside, and retrieved a kunai from his kunai pouch. He walked back towards Ai, and grabbed her wrist. She flinched slightly, not sure what Hidan was doing as he pulled out her arm and slit open her palm.

"I assume this is part of…whatever you're doing?" She asked, wincing as Hidan turned her hand over, allowing her crimson blood to fall onto the floor. All he did was to reply to her was nod.

Hidan spread the small puddle of Ai's blood out with his foot, forming the symbol of his faith around her.

Motioning to the ground, Hidan gave Ai an order, "Lay down."

Hesitating only slightly, Ai did as she was told. Hidan retrieved a stake from his cloak, one he often used for his own ritual. He raised it above her, not fully expecting the ritual to work. In the back of his mind, Hidan gave a prayer for Ai's soul.

"Jashin-sama, please forgive this woman of her sins, and allow her in heaven with you…"

With that, Hidan plunged the stake he held into Ai's chest, watching with an unwavering gaze as she coughed, her own blood staining her lips and trailing down her chin. Her golden eyes widened, corrupted with pain and anguish. Within seconds, Ai's body stopped moving, and she lay limp on the ground before Hidan.

She was dead, Hidan figured. Thinking it a sacrifice, he then turned the stake in his hands upon himself, pushing it through his chest as he had done with Ai.