Chapter ten
"You're a very lucky woman, Lady Hidako." The queen began, a smile on her face as she sat in a large, plush chair. Hidan smiled as well as he sat across from her, though he truthfully just wanted to run. There was something about her that made him feel uneasy. "Lord Kakuzu is very handsome and rich; but most of all, kind."

Hidan snorted at this, not caring it was un-ladylike. "That man is kind?"

Konan giggles. "He is; Pein and I have known him since we were young children, back when the plague had hit."

The Jashinist looked up at this. "How old was he then…?"

Queen Konan shrugs, the smile still on her lips. "He was at least in his twenties, far older than Pein and I… of course, back then our friend Yahiko was still alive and Pein was called Nagato."

"Yahiko…? Nagato…?"

She nods at this. "Pein changed his name after Yahiko was taken by the plague; Lord Kakuzu had taken us in during those times, Pein being unable to go back to the castle. His mother, the queen, had died as well. The lord did all he could to make sure Pein and I weren't taken as well."

Hidan stared at the woman in amazement. "How old were you then…?"

"About five or seven; why…?"

He gulps at this, glancing at the stairs around the open doorway. How old was Lord Kakuzu anyway…?

Shaking his head to clear his thoughts, the masochist turns back to the beautiful woman. "What happened to the king? I mean, King Pein had a father as well, right?"

Konan nods at this. "He died in the war that happened when the plague came. I'm guessing you weren't born yet, Lady Hidako."

Hidan nods at this. "I'm only twenty-two…"

"And I'm forty-one; Pein is three years older than me."

His pink eyes widen at this. "You look to be my age though!"

Konan giggles again. "Not everyone looks their age, Lady Hidako. I'm sure Lord Kakuzu was far older than what I thought he was back when I was six." She pauses, glancing up at the ceiling to think. "Maybe… forty years older than I."

Hidan twitched at this. His math wasn't that great, but as far as he knew, his husband was eighty-one.

"Don't get discouraged by the lord's age, my lady. He's quite healthy, and probably has thirty years left in him. Maybe even more…!" Konan says, noticing the look of shock on Hidan's face.
He gulps, smiling a little—though it looked struggled. "So you've known my husband for a while… Queen Konan, may you please tell me more about him?"

She smiles again this, her orange eyes shining. "You're the first person to want to know about him! Though, I can see why; you're married until death due you part."

Hidan smiles and nods, happy he didn't have to explain himself.

"Let's see, where should I begin…" She puts her index finger to her chin in thought. "Well, I should warn you, Lord Kakuzu may be rich, but he is very greedy. He won't let anyone touch his money." Hidan slumps at this, a look of exasperation on his face. He had married a miser?! "Anything that has to do with 'wasting money' makes him cranky; he's also very big on not spending a lot. Lord Kakuzu complained the entire time he took care of Pein and I when the plague had hit, spending his money left and right for the prince and I."

Hidan could tell this fact about his husband annoyed the queen, a look of annoyance crossing her face.

"But he still spent all the money he needed at the time, so at least he isn't cruel." A smile appears on her face then. "He worried for the two of us, and now that he has a wife I'm sure he'll show more kindness." She scowls then. "And, as Pein puts it, 'get laid for once'…"

Hidan blushed at this. The king expected him and Kakuzu to have sex… this isn't good.

Konan smiles again though, and Hidan flinched at her mood swings. "But he is very kind, Lady Hidako. I'm sure he'll be gentle, even though he is much larger than you."

The Jashinist nods at this, not wanting to think about his marital bed with Kakuzu; it just made him want it more.

"Queen Konan…?"

"Yes, Lady Hidako?"

"How did my husband…" He pauses then, biting his bottom lip. "How did he get so many stitches…?"

A frown formed on Konan's face, and she looked down. "Nagato was the prince of England at the time, and everyone wanted to get their hands on him for a ransom from the king. Before the plague struck, Nagato, Yahiko and I would go to Kakuzu's home here in London to see him. He always said we were a nuisance, but we knew he enjoyed out company."

Her eyes become distant then.

"But then one day we were out in London, Lord Kakuzu was buying things for us. Nagato and Yahiko ran off, playing with their wooden swords. Kakuzu and I went to look for them and…" Tears form in her eyes a bit. "They were in an alleyway… a man was holding an unconscious Nagato and Yahiko was on the ground, passed out and a large gash in his head. Kakuzu went after the man kidnapping Nagato, and I stayed with Yahiko…"

The tears fell from her eyes then, and Hidan held his breath, certain he knew what happened next.

"All I remember after that is Lord Kakuzu returning with Nagato, but his body… his face… everything was scarred and his clothes were ripped. He needed stitches, and most of the scars healed… I'm amazed they all haven't healed yet, because that was thirty-six years ago…"

She gulped then, trying to hold back her tears now. Hidan looked away from her crying face, trying to imagine what that would have been like.

"I'm sorry I asked…"

Konan shook her head. "It's alright; you wanted to know."

They sat in silence for a few moments. Hidan stood then, murmuring that he was heading to the bathroom.

"Lady Hidako…?"

He stopped and turned back to her. Her tears had stopped, but she still silently sobbed. "Yes, Queen Konan?"

"Before you head to the lavatory, could you tell me something?"

Hidan blinked in confusion, but nodded his head slowly.

"What's your real name…? Because it's getting odd for me to call a man by a woman's name…"

Hidan's eyes widened at this.