heheheh... so I've been fighting this hulking beast who calls himself Writer's Block. He's got giant claws and bloody fangs and advances on me as I write. But, lately, I'v managed to beat him back with some Mocha Brownies :D There are so many ff authors out there that are so much better then me and I admire them for their skills at taking a one-time character who has less then five details, and weaving an extraordinary story with them.

I'm sorry if there are errors, I don't have a Beta so I always proofread myself.

I'm also sorry if the tone/mood of this story and its characters change, but it can't be helped if my mood goes up and down. I also can't write consistently because I get bored of writing the same way over and over again. But I'm trying to control it.

no question this time because I know you've been waiting for this, so just read and gimme a review! (Please?)

Oh, the possibilities.

Hidan was once again inside Sakura's backpack as she briskly walked through the streets of Konoha. She had decided to let Inner-Sakura take charge of things for the moment, even if Inner-Sakura might end up making a mess of everything. But hey, at least I'll spice things up around here! It's so boring! Just because my life has a simple pattern in it doesn't mean that it's boring. Patterns are supposed to constantly change. But that completely defeats the purpose! It's those ever-changing patterns that help you become unpredictable to the enemy. That's the best way to defeat them, too. I thought we were talking about my life? You have survive those enemies to have a life! Hah! I win!

Sakura was nearly humming with excitement at the prospect of unfolding a new future. She deftly walked past Ichiraku's Ramen but halted when Naruto suddenly burst out,

"Sakura-Chan! Where'd you run off to? And where's that talking head?" Sakura gave Naruto a huge smile before grabbing his arm and pulling him along with her towards the Hokage's Tower.

"No time to explain Naruto! Come on! I've got to tell Tsunade! You should be there, too!"

"Naruto! You didn't pay! Get back here!" shouted the owner of the Ichiraku's Ramen.

"I will! I promise-tebayo!" Naruto yelled back as he tried to squirm free from Sakura's vice-like grip.

"Tsunade-Shisou!" Sakura burst through the door as Shikamaru and Tsunade, who were both bent over something on her desk, turned around to look at her curiously.

"Oh! Good, you're here, too!" Sakura exhaled seeing Shikamaru.

"Sakura, what's all this about?" Tsunade asked, quickly getting to the point.

"Well, I wanted to report my findings to you as soon as I could so that we could consider all the possibilities."

"Possibilities?" Shikamaru quirked an eyebrow. Naruto still had no clue what was going on as he looked from one face to another, as he stood behind Sakura's shoulder.

"mhm, all the possibilities that open up, but first, you have to hear everything Hidan told me."

"Hidan?" Shikamaru and Naruto both asked at the same time, surprised to hear the kunoichi on a first-name basis with the Ex-Akatsuki.

"That's my name, isn't it?" Growled Hidan as Sakura swung her bag around to take out the hidden speaker. Once she had Hidan settled in her arms (A/N: aww, like a baby), she began,

"So, we all know that Hidan is no longer a member of the Akatsuki. He says-"

"Wait, how do we know he's not loyal to them anymore?" Naruto interrupted.

"Because, he told me everything he knew about them."

"He did?"

"Yes, and most of what he told me, we already knew so the facts check in-"

"Wait, you knew all that already? Why the hell did you keep asking me questions?" Hidan butted in and tried to look

"I didn't know everything, besides, now we're all on the same page."

"Not quite, so what new things did you learn?" Shikamaru finally asked.

"Well, he says there there's an emergency Akatsuki base in Fire Country but it was set to explode after only one use. Apparently, it hasn't been used yet, or we would've known already. He also told me that he knows nothing of the tailed beasts except that the Leader of the Akatsuki told them to capture them all. Hidan doesn't even know what the Leader planned to do with the bijuu once he had them all." Tsunade shot a cynical glance towards Hidan.

"You don't know anything?" Hidan snorted rudely,

"That's what she said, didn't she?"

"Then if you didn't know what you were doing it for, why did you even join the Akatsuki?" Shikamaru stared at the disembodied head in Sakura's arms. Hidan evenly stared back. There was a tense moment of animosity and mistrust between the two shinobi until Naruto cleared his throat,

"ah-h-m…uh…Sakura-Chan, I think you can put him down on the desk…heh heh…" Sakura looked down at herself and blushed before hastily agreeing and placing Hidan on the desk, she hadn't even realized that she had been holding him. Once on the desk, Hidan finally answered, but it wasn't what they wanted to hear.

"I joined those bastards because they offered me a way to better please my Lord Jashin."

"And just what exactly pleases Lord Jashin?" Tsunade asked, looking skeptical and wary with her arms crossed over her expansive bosom. The task itself was something difficult, that the ninja around her always wondered how she managed to do it so much.

"To relieve the world of those that cause pain to others."

"Really? So what were you doing in the Akatsuki since you weren't causing pain to others yourself?"

"Sacrifices must be made to reach the ultimate goal. Leader had convinced me to join them because he wanted to rid the world of pain as well. Or, at least, that is what the bastard told me." Hidan answered gravely. Everybody remained silent and lost in their own thoughts that had been provoked by the man's first statement. Many had lost their lives for Konoha. The great Memorial Stone that had all the diseased shinobis' names carved into was a constant reminder that they had died. Though few people understood why. They always became angry or aggrieved or overwhelmed by what the future could bring. They never understood that the purpose of Shinobi was to die protecting something they loved. To die protecting Konoha. To make Konoha safe. To let it have a future worth living for. That was the ultimate goal of Konoha and the Memorial Stone was the story of all the sacrifices that had been made for it.

Tsunade finally looked away from Hidan because of the truth of his words. With a deep sigh, she asked him the question that had been left unanswered from their previous meeting.

"So where do your loyalties lie, Hidan?"

"To Jashin. My life is to be His devoted servant." Hidan rolled his eyes as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. Shikamaru rapped lightly on the desk with a knuckle to get Hidan's attention as he spoke next.

"So, Hidan, hypothetically speaking, if you were to be freed from Konohagakure and had your body reassembled, what would you do? You can't go back to the Akatsuki."

"What is this? Some interrogation shit you're trying to pull on me?" Hidan looked at Shikamaru with an irritated face.

"That's the idea. That's why you're not in that hole of your's right now. So answer the question."

"Well, for starters, I'd go an take down the rest of those Akatsuki bastards who left me to rot. Then, I'd kill them again. After that…I don't know, I'd just do whatever Jashin-Sama requires of me. What's it to you, kid?" Shikamaru glanced at Tsunade, she gave a tip of the head. Sakura watched the silent messages between the two and realized what was about to come next.

"Naruto…" Tsunade began as she sat down in her chair.

"Take Hidan and yourself out into the hall until I call you both back in." Naruto stared at the Hokage, puzzled.

"Wait…you want me to take him out? I have to hold him? Baa-chan…are you sure about this? " Naruto vehemently pointed from himself to the head on the desk that glared every time the accusatory finger indicated him.

"Naruto…" Tsunade growled.

"Okay! Okay…so how do I do this?" Naruto tried to placate the other blond with his hands before tentatively coming closer to the desk and placing his hands around the silver-haired man's head. Oh Jashin… I swear…I though the kyuubi was supposed to be a lot smarter then this... Hidan thought as he felt fingers nervously settle under his jaw.

"Yeah, that's right Naruto. Hidan, is that fine?" Sakura encouraged the blond as she adjusted Hidan in Naruto's grasp.

"If 'not-being-choked-but-coming-close-enough is fine, then yeah, I'm perfectly fine." He muttered.

"Alright then, let's go." Naruto turned around stiffly, afraid of dropping the head. Once he exited the office, he heaved a deep sigh, then leaning back against the wall, he slid down on the floor and placed Hidan beside him.

"Tsunade-baa-Chan always kicks me out of the room during important meetings. What do you think they're talking about?" Hidan sent Naruto a sideways glance, he couldn't believe how dense this kid was.

"Seriously? Who do you think? They're obviously talking about me?"

"Oh. See…If I'm going to be Hokage one day, I should know what's going on. I should be in there, too. Why doesn't anybody understand that?" Naruto folded his arms behind his head and stared at the wall.

"pfft. Kid, you're planning to be Hokage?" Naruto gave Hidan a sharp glance.

"I'm not just planning. I am going to be the Hokage of this village, one day. And, I'll be great one, too. Just like all the Hokage's before me." Hidan scoffed up at him.

"You sure about that, Kyuubi? It takes a little more to be leader of anything." Naruto cast Hidan an annoyed look. He really hated it when people underestimated him.

"There's a special bond between a village and its shinobi. As long as that bond is there and the shinobi are willing to protect it, they can do anything. Believe it! That's what the Third told me a long time ago, but I guess you couldn't compare, could you?" Hidan crinkled his brow,

"Why the hell do you say that?"

"Well, you abandoned your village. You don't know anything about the bonds I'm talking about."

"That's because my village was full of idiots and none of them understood the ways of Jashin. Kind of like this one, here." Hidan smirked at the casually thrown in insult. Naruto decided that talking to this guy was useless, so he pointedly ignored him in order to listen in at the Hokage's office door.

…………

Sakura watched Naruto slowly leave with Hidan as apprehension clouded her eyes. She wasn't sure why, but she didn't trust either of the men to hold a decent conversation. She was afraid that Hidan's head might come crashing through the door any moment now with Naruto jumping in after to kick the head around like a soccer ball because of something that Hidan has said to him.

Holding in a sigh, Sakura turned to Tsunade and Shikamaru. Tsunade now had her hands steepled in front of her and she was thinking about what could be done. She knew Sakura already had ideas, but wasn't sure if she was ready to hear any of them.

"Alright, Sakura, I assume that you have a couple of options open. What do you think we should do with Hidan?" Sakura, who had been standing until now, decided to pull up a seat across from her mentor. Swallowing the saliva that had gathered in her mouth, she twiddled her fingers together.

"I-I…well…I don't really know. The only thing I have thought of is that, if the Akatsuki really don't expect Hidan to return but they do trust him because he has been loyal to them…ugh…hold on, what I mean is that perhaps Hidan can be used as a spy to infiltrate the Akatsuki and gather their information."

"That is a possibility. Sakura, but remember, Hidan is not regular shinobi, he has no ties to any village." Shikamaru said.

"And there is no way that we can trust him. If we let him go, he could turn back on us and endanger Konoha." Tsunade added.

"But isn't there a way that we could trust him?"

"Sakura, one again, you're forgetting, why would he help us?"

"Because, he has the same goal as us. We want to stop the Akatsuki from getting Naruto. I know, he doesn't care about Naruto, but he does want to stop those guys, too." Shikamaru's logic cut through her own, once more.

"Then, we only know who he will attack, we don't know who he won't." Tsunade watched the argument unfold. Her eyes quietly darted back and forth between the two sides. Trust Hidan or Don't trust Hidan.

"We'll just have to test him. If we want any plans to succeed, we need to know if we can trust him. Testing him is the only option." Shikamaru and Sakura both stared at the Hokage. She could see their minds whirring as they digested this new solution.

"I see…" Shikamaru most likely already devised a way to test Hidan in the few seconds it took for Tsunade to speak. Sakura spoke up,

"But how?"

"We'll just have to observe him for a while. He can have his body back but he'll live with one of us for a couple of weeks. We'll throw in a few extra temptations to see what he does to us and the villagers. Depending on how he reacts, we'll know what to think of him."

As Shikamaru, Tsunade, and Sakura discussed all the other aspects of the decision, Naruto and Hidan grew bored by just sitting around doing nothing. Naruto had tried to eaves-drop, but the wooden doors were too thick to let anything out but quiet murmurs. Huffing in defeat, Naruto slumped lower on the floor. Hidan, on the other hand was incessantly curious about a certain someone who'd been niggling away at his thoughts ever since he'd left her house. Why the hell is she trying to help me?

"Hey, Kyuubi, tell me a little about your pink-haired friend in there. What does she normally do when not babysitting me?" Naruto cocked his head to look at Hidan wearily.

"Why do you want to know anything about Sakura-Chan?"

"Because, idiot, I might end up as a talking ornament in her house for a long time, it helps to know who I'm dealing with." Naruto snickered,

"A 'Talking Ornament'? I wonder where she would put you. Probably by the shoe closet!"

"Just answer the fucking question!" Hidan tried to look as angry and threatening as he could, but without his scythe, and without his body, he didn't look as intimidating as he wanted.

"Ok, ok, cool down before your blow your head up. Sakura-Chan is a medic. She works shifts in the hospital to pay for the bills."

"Does she live all alone in her house? She wouldn't be able to afford it."

"Yeah, she wouldn't be able to, but it was her parent's house before they passed away. They left it to her in their will." Oh. Hidan thought, that's why I didn't see anyone else around.

"So how long has she been alone?" Naruto looked at Hidan funny.

"Sakura-Chan has never been alone. She's always had the rest of us to keep her company."

"Not like that! I meant when did her parents die?"

"Oh. About a year ago. But that hasn't changed anything. She's still the same Sakura-Chan that we all know." Naruto gave a small smile as his gaze shifted back to the wall and he became lost in his own reminiscing. He didn't look like he'd be talking anymore so Hidan shut his eyes and tried to sleep. Before he even cleared his mind, the Hokage's door flew open and Sakura stepped out looking around.

"Oh! You two are right here!" Seeing the Naruto sprawled next to the talking head peacefully, she began to giggle.

"Aww…were you two bonding?" Naruto and Hidan gave a huff of indignation and looked at each other before refuting her beliefs.

"No! I just didn't feel like going anywhere! That's all!"

"And it's not like I can fucking go anywhere, myself." Sakura smiled at the two.

"Well, Hidan, looks like you'll be able to soon."

"Huh?! Sakura-Chan, what's going on? Will somebody pleeease tell me, already!" Naruto asked, getting to his feet. Hidan remained on the floor.

"So, I'm getting my body back?" he asked uncertainly.

"Yeah!" Sakura grinned, but Hidan narrowed his eyes.

"Then what's the catch?"

"Ah. You see, all you have to do-" Sakura bent down and picked him up to hold him at her eye-level. "is agree to help us. You said you wanted to get back at the Akatsuki, right?"

"So you want me to team up with Konoha? No fucking way." Sakura frowned at him. She had considered this to be a possible problem.

"Why not?"

"I'm loyal to only Jashin. If I help you, then my loyalty will diverge."

"But we have the same freaking goal!"

"So?" Hidan blurted out his answer but he instantly regretted it as he saw anger light up Sakura's eyes and she let out a strangled "Urgh!!!" and shoved him into her backpack.

"We'll talk about this LATER!"

"Mmph!" was the last thing Naruto, Tsunade, and Shikamaru heard of Hidan as Sakura stomped out of the Hokage's Tower.

"I knew this sort of thing would happen…man…this is so troublesome." Shikamaru stated before pulling his head back into the office. Naruto on the other hand looked a little more pleased than he should have. Smirking smugly,

"I think I almost feel sorry for him now, hee hee."

pwease pwease pwease review!

reviews help me fight writer's block and stay motivated.

The more reviews I get, the better I can fight the block, the faster I can write chapters.

ergo

more reviewsmore chapters yeah, I love linear logic.