Fair warning Sakura and Hidan are bad people in this story, they're villains, so if you're expecting something flowery and fluffy turn around now. It's still gonna be stupid edgy and droky though, so nothing too serious. Oh yeah, I also tried out different accents. While it's an AU this still has some basic elements from the canon, like the chakra system and the profession of a ninja, except it's all in our time, like a mix of the Naruto world and our world.
As always I have picked out music to fit this story. Fair warning it's black metal (which I've been told is an acquired taste), though the two songs I'm going to suggest aren't pure black metal, so it might not be that awful. For Hidan it's ΧΞΣ (666) by Rotting Christ and for Sakura it's Ulvinde by Myrkur.
Warnings: murder, assault, character death, maybe some torture, gore and body horror. I have all of the story drafted, but I still need to decide how graphic I want to go, so some things might change.
The TV from across the room softly described the latest charity ball thrown by the Hokage, multiple images and video clips adding visual aid. It was droll and boring, nothing she didn't already know. Yet she watched if just to see the face of her childhood friend again.
She'd finished her meager lunch of a banana and a sandwich half an hour ago. The doctor's lounge was empty, rest of the doctors and interns running their shifts. She should probably go back as well and finish the five hours left of her own shift. If only she didn't feel dead on her feet. Last night she'd been a bit too enthusiastic with her latest find and had spent the better part of the night elbow deep in experiments. Only when her subject had died, had she realized that it was morning and she had had to go to work in three hours.
It had been worth it, though. She was making good progress and soon she'll have a new healing technique that hopefully will help in saving gravely injured patients.
The TV programme switched to a soap opera and Sakura lost interest. She rubbed her tired eyes; the lack of sleep making her head feel like cotton.
"Sakura! There you are."
She jolted in her comfy seat. For as long as she could she pretended she hadn't heard the shrill yell of her best friend. Ino had been pestering her for weeks now, trying to find a boyfriend for her just so they could go on a double date with Ino's own new boyfriend. It was so stupid and juvenile Sakura had tried to ignore her attempts in every way. Yes, they had made a deal many years ago to one day have a double date and yes, both of them had been hormone-induced teenagers. Still, Sakura couldn't grasp why Ino was holding onto that little deal and why was she so persistent to make it true right now.
The said woman dropped herself in a chair from across her, crossing her hands on the table. A huge shit-eating grin marred her face. "So..." she started, conversationally.
Sakura pretended to be more interested in the soap on the TV. Margaret's dramatic discovery that her baby daddy wasn't Leon but Tony was truly fascinating and she felt for the woman. Truly.
"You do know I'm only doing what's best for you."
Her head snapped towards Ino, confused at the odd word choice. "What do you mean?"
"Oh, c'mon Sakura, you're 26 and you're already acting like a crabby old spinster. You need to get laid."
Sakura spluttered. "I do not." Okay, maybe she'd had more nights than she'd like to admit when she'd foregone sleep and maybe she had a tendency to be a crabby bitch when tired. But that absolutely, positively did not mean she needed to get laid. "Have shame, Pig, you sound like a sexist man."
Ino laughed, throwing out her hands. "See! You even sound like one." She composed herself, the smile dropping from her lips. "But in all seriousness, you look like hell. You need a break, Forehead. You've been working too hard, you've been cancelling all of our plans. Shit, you even cancelled on Hinata's wedding anniversary party last weekend."
She winced, directing her attention back to the TV.
Ino continued, counting down on her fingers. "Shikamaru's birthday, Ten Ten's planned girls night out, Temari's engagement party. Fuck, Sakura, you even ditched me on my birthday." She slammed her hands on the table, rattling the vase of flowers. "If I didn't know any better, I'd think you hate us."
Sakura was tense, eyes unwavering from the TV. Ino was right about everything and the fact that she was calling her out meant that she'd been reckless. She was a passionate soul and loved what she did, getting lost in her work and her experiments was only natural. Lately, she'd been on a cusp of a breakout of something new, and it occupied her mind and having a social life had been put on the back-burner. It wasn't like she could disclose what had been keeping her attention to Ino anyway. It wasn't exactly ethical or legal.
"So, that's why I set you up for a blind date."
She sat straighter. "You did what!?"
"Well, it's more like a blind date for you. He knows what you look like, I showed him your picture. But don't worry I know the guy and he's a total snack. A bit on the crude side, though I doubt that'll be a problem for you."
Sakura opened and closed her mouth, at a loss for words.
"And don't even dare to bail on this, I'll know if you do." She glared, pursing her lips. Then she clapped her hands in a total one-eighty. "I hope that this works out. I've been dying to set up a double date."
She sighed, rubbing the bridge of her nose. "Ino, I don't want to date. I don't need a man in my life."
"Then a woman!"
"No! Listen, I appreciate what you're doing for me, but please understand that work is important to me ("Yeah, you're basically married to it.") and it's what I'm passionate about. If that makes me a spinster, then so be it because I'm happy like this."
Ino frowned, dipping her head. "Maybe so. Though you're driving yourself to ruin like this. I have eyes, Sakura and each day you look more awful. You need a change of pace in life. Please, give this a chance. Pretty please. For me and for yourself." She pouted, sticking out her lower lip almost cartoonishly.
Deadpan Sakura stared at her friend. She wasn't going to give on this, no matter how many puppy dog eyes Ino threw at her. Her past self might have been enamoured with love and boys (mostly one boy in particular), but she had changed, she had found something that excited her way more than the flutter of butterflies from her first kiss. Maybe she had been lacking a bit in self-care lately and maybe she was more irate than usual, but that did not translate to her needing to date or to get dicked down or whatever.
"Fine." Yet the damn guilt got to her. She had been ditching out on her friends for months and while she was scared that secretly they could see right through her and what she actually was doing, she couldn't avoid them forever. Someone could get suspicious and find out, and she didn't fancy the outcome that might come from that. On the bright side, if the date is absolutely horrendous maybe she'll use the guy as a new test subject.
Ino beamed. "Wonderful. You won't regret this, Forehead. A break is just what you need."
For the remainder of her lunch break, Ino grilled her about what she'll wear, how she should write the date and time down and how if she dares to forget she'll blast her phone with angry messages. And admittedly by the end of it, Sakura was kind of excited herself. It did sound like something super simple and stress-free, something she'd been missing from her life. Maybe Ino was right – she did need a break.
xxx
The cafe Ino had chosen for them was posh yet rustic with chandeliers made from antlers, stuffed deer busts on the wall, heavily padded soft yellow chairs around the tables, expertly draped, wine red curtains and champagne coloured walls. Across the six tables lining the windows was a bar. The candleholder that was made out of an antler on the bar immediately caught her eye, and she grinned. It was a small place yet homey.
A few patrons were chatting amongst themselves. Soft jazz music filled the room. The bartender was animatedly conversing with one of the patrons at the bar.
Sakura positioned herself on the closest barstool, straightening her skirt as she sat. The bartender excused himself from the conversation to greet her and hand her a menu.
She felt skittish and no matter how she sat on the stool she couldn't find a comfortable position. Her eyes raked over the menu, not really reading the words. It had been a long while since she'd last had a date, let alone a blind one. She pulled out her phone from her purse to check the time. Five minutes till six. She'd arrived early as she always did.
At the back of her mind, she reprimanded herself for stressing so much over a flimsy date (Ino had been at fault for hyping it up so much). She faced much more nerve-wracking situations almost daily, this should be a cakewalk for her. That's right, she didn't care what some guy might think of her, she was better than that and there was no reason to stress over that. Part of her had always wanted for everyone to like her and sometimes it was hard to kick the habit.
Her mind wandered. Usually right about this time she'd be back at her lab, experimenting or just having fun. A list of things she thought would be fun to do after the date formed in her mind. If she was trying new things today maybe she should switch up her usual process as well and see how that works out. Hmm, out of the box thinking might even be the missing piece she has for her technique.
"You must be Sakura."
Her thoughts were interrupted by a voice very near to her. Automatically she smiled finally coming face to face with her blind date and...uh wow. The first thing that caught her eye were his vibrant lilac eyes and the easy, crooked smile across his lips.
"You must be Hidan then." She returned in a way of greeting. Ino hadn't been wrong, he was a snack. A strong jawline, straight nose, neat, slicked-back silver hair. He had on a simple, black button-down with the top two buttons undone and dark jeans. A silver chain that dipped in his shirt towards a pendant she couldn't see was around his neck. She wasn't sure, but there also was a slightly purplish tint to one of his eyes as if he'd been healing from a black eye. Somehow that just added to the appeal and the devil may care vibe he was giving off.
He easily slid into the barstool next to her and wordlessly she handed him the menu she'd been holding. While he eyed it, she observed him and his easy posture, how he slightly sat with his body facing her. He whistled lowly. "This is a bit out of my price range, sorry to say." He spoke differently, there was an accent that wasn't local to Fire country. Must be a foreigner then.
Sakura smiled warmly. "That's okay. I totally agree. I figure we can just get drinks instead." That's what she gets for trusting Ino to choose a place – the blonde loved elegant and extravagant places.
The bartender finally came around to them again and they ordered their drinks. She got a piña colada and he got a bloody mary. Upon silent agreement, they paid for their drinks separately.
Before the silence could elongate and get awkward Sakura jumped on the first topic of conversation she could think of. "So, how'd you get that shiner?"
Hidan chuckled, running fingers over the bruise and accepting the drink the bartender set down for him. "Didn't think it still would be that visible." Something clinked when he picked up the glass and she noticed a silver signet ring on his index finger. He took a sip of the bloody mary and continued, "Bloke just got lucky with his hit, 'ts all. Hazards of the job and all that."
She thanked the bartender for her drink before turning back to Hidan, curious. "Oh? What kind of job has the hazard of getting punched in the face?"
He swished the ice around in his drink with the celery stalk. "Government job. Nothing interesting really, it's all bureaucracy an' mountains of paperwork."
She'd beg to differ. Government job that involved physical harm could only mean that he was working as a ninja. She hadn't noticed before, but his chakra signature was stronger than a regular civilian would have. This just made it all the better in case the date wouldn't work out. Snagging ninja for experiments was a lot easier, people expected them to die early. She took a sip of her drink, enjoying the taste. It'd been a while since she'd last had anything alcoholic.
"What about you, what do you do?" He finally met her eyes, and her stomach did a flip. Uh oh...
"Oh, I'm a resident at Konoha General hospital. Working my way up into the diagnostics team."
Conversation after that flowed easily. Her suspicions about him being a foreigner got confirmed when he admitted that he was here on vacation for a while. Though she didn't miss how he avoided giving her straight answers, giving vague details as to where he was from and what he was doing in Konoha. He constantly tried to steer the conversation towards her and get her to talk about herself with this easy smile and interest that if she had been a less cautious person she would have spilt her guts.
It was a battle if anything and she wasn't afraid of participating, giving vague answers in return with a coy bat of her lashes while trying to pry more into his affairs in return.
For half an hour they danced around each other until their drinks were done and with a mutual agreement, they left the cosy but admittedly pricey cafe.
"So where do you suggest we go next?" Hidan had donned a black jacket, hands stuffed in the pockets of it. He leisurely matched her pace.
Sakura grinned and named the furthest dance club she knew. He showed no indication of knowing that she'd purposefully had done that, only nodding in an affirmative and jumping into a conversation about some kind of space discovery that had been announced on the news recently. Sakura gladly contributed, asking questions, finding his interest in space transport developments appealing.
She huddled her hands deeper in her own jacket, the late-night chill biting her skin.
There was something different about him, something she couldn't quite name. She could admit that confidence was sexy on a man, but he seemed more than confident like he was sure he was winning some kind of game.
The streets were dark, the street lamps illuminating everything in hues of dull orange. Drunk students loitered around the corners. As a local, she knew the place quite well and purposefully stuck to the less walked paths where the side-walk was run down and overgrown shrubbery hanging over their heads. No street lights. The path was narrow enough that in order to walk side by side she brushed against his hand every few steps.
He was quite passionately describing one of his favourite TV shows. As someone who hardly had any time to watch TV, she could just listen and nod along.
Sakura liked Hidan, she really did, but she liked her job much more and while she enjoyed talking with him, and she could only imagine how he would be in the sack, she got a weird vibe of off him. A vibe she knew quite well. If she were a regular woman, this probably would be the point where she'd thank him for the wonderful time and briskly walk back to her car while throwing worried glances over her shoulder.
She wasn't a regular woman, though.
They wandered off the side-walk. Sakura knew a shortcut through this one particular parking lot. It was dark, the only light the moon overhead and street lights up ahead. She weaved through the cars, Hidan right on her tail. Her eyes scanned the surrounding buildings, the nearby fence and the bushes. Her hand had a tight grip over her trusty syringe in her pocket.
Conversation had died down and the air between them was tense. His gaze was burning the back of her head.
A gleeful smile threatened to cross her features. This was so easy, ninja or not, she had an upper hand over him and the element of surprise on her side. Her hands shook slightly from the excitement on what she was about to do. She was going to be the first to strike.
The crunch under their boots was loud in the quiet between them, a random far off passing car only breaking the tense silence.
There. Her eyes locked on a smaller building at the edge of the parking lot, just before the fence. It was perfect – no direct light bushes all around.
Sakura turned to face him with a smile on her face. She was only briefly caught off guard at the intense dark look on his face.
One moment they were looking at each other, the next she had her syringe poised at the ready near his neck and he had a butterfly knife pressing into her throat.
"I knew there was somethin' fucking fishy about you." His voice was low and menacing, accent rougher, in complete contrast to the grin on his face.
She swallowed, the knife pressing into her throat even more at the action. "Likewise." She tried to not think about the fact that he'd seen right through her ruse and worse had responded with the same fervour.
"What's in the syringe, love?" he motioned with his head towards her hand in the process bringing the needle closer to his neck. "Something that could knock me out I bet."
She kept her face in a cool neutral, head held high. She didn't like the pet name. "What's with the knife, darling?" she mimicked his tone in mocking.
He chuckled shortly, stepping closer to her, making both of them to rearrange the positions of their weapons. "Oh, I think you know." He licked his lips as his eyes searched her face. "And here I thought I'd be gettin' just a fuckin' boring date."
Sakura inhaled sharply and measured a dark glare his way. She couldn't believe that he was turned on by this. It almost irritated her. He should be afraid, trembling in his boots, begging for her not to inject him. Yet here he was, standing toe to toe with her and enjoying it. How fucked up one could be? "Why are you here?"
Hidan pretended to think for a moment like she'd just asked him what kind of ice cream flavour he liked, and it peeved her. It was like he wasn't even scared that she could inject him with what was an unknown substance to him. "Vacation, I wasn't lyin' 'bout that. Don't worry, 'm not here to invade your turf."
She exhaled a bitter laugh. "I'm not an animal. There are no turfs."
He hummed in appreciation. "No, you're not. You're a killer, jus' like me."
Her eyes didn't waver from his. He'd given himself away right on the spot. Cocky bastard. "And what are we gonna do about that?" No point in denying the obvious.
He shrugged with a laugh. "Dunno, you tell me."
The need to just push the needle into his skin was overbearing, she was so close. Yet she couldn't risk it without endangering her own life – she pushes, he slices her throat. The knife was sharp, the cool metal prickled her skin.
In a swift move, she removed her hand and stepped back just as he did the same. Their unified actions freaked her out a bit; it was like he could read her mind. Keeping her eyes on his figure, she was pleased to note that he was just as tense as she was, despite the grin.
Sakura pocketed her syringe just as he closed the knife and slipped it in the pocket of his jeans. "You stay out of my way, and I'll stay out of yours."
"Is that what you want?"
"Why wouldn't I?"
Hidan stuffed his hands in his pockets and casually took a few steps around as if he hadn't just been almost sedated. "The way I see it, this is a unique opportunity. A chance to experience something new. Dontcha think?"
She kept her hands balled to try and stifle her shaking and the need to move, to punch him in the face, anything. "No." And with that at the risk of getting attacked, she turned her back to him and walked away. She kept her gait measured and confident all the while his gaze burned her back. If he'll attack her, she'll just use her superior strength to rearrange his face.
Just like him, she wasn't afraid.
In a confident stride, she walked back to her car only then allowing herself to look over her shoulder. He had walked the other way, but she could never be too sure with ninja, that is if he even was one. She got into her car and as soon as the door was closed she exhaled slowly, the adrenaline leaving her body. Still, she was going to be restless for the rest of the night unless she got all of the pent-up energy out. Hitting the gym probably was the best choice, the punching bag was screaming her name.
In a way Hidan had been right – it was a unique situation. It wasn't every day she came across someone who killed for the shits and giggles. Of course, she didn't know how Hidan did it, but her first guess was that he was really reckless in a dumb teenager kind of way.
Ninja did assassination missions, despite mainly doing espionage missions. Some of her friends were ninjas, so she wasn't a stranger to people who killed. Hidan, on the other hand, was different. It was possible that just like her he did it for personal reasons, though unlike her it seemed like he enjoyed or even got off on the killing. She scrunched her nose.
While they both killed, they were not the same. She was in no rush to ever see him again.
xxx
Next day during her rounds Ino caught her in the hallway. Ino had just finished a difficult surgery and was telling her all about the success until she got that mischievous sparkle in her eye. A string of excuses formed in her mind while she kept her face neutral.
"So how did the date go?"
Sakura stayed quiet for a while, letting Ino stew in curiosity. "Interesting."
Ino exhaled in exasperation. "Oh, c'mon is that all you have to say? What did you think of Hidan? Was he a match for you?"
She tuned out the rest of the questions by reading a patients chart. Oh, that's right, she'll have to do labs for Miss Kaname, something she quite enjoyed to do herself; it was therapeutic.
Ino caught on to her quick and changed the subject. "You know that this means that you can't bail on me and Temari on Saturday, don't you? We planned this." She emphasized the last part with a stern look and a finger waggle like she was a disobedient child.
Sakura rolled her eyes. Of course, the plans, all of the damn plans Ino had made to integrate her back into their friend circle, ignoring all of her protests to have some time to herself. "Sure." She fake smiled.
Goodbye to her free time and to her precious experiments and projects. This was going to be hard.
I've had this story in mind ever since 2017 back when I used to watch documentaries about serial killers a lot. It just inspired me to write a story about that topic as well. Initially, this was going to be a lot more serious, but then I realized that I'm not going to have fun writing it otherwise. It's pretty romanticized here all things considered. In reality, this stuff is a lot darker, they're the scum of the planet and they engage in actions that I won't write about on principle i.e. rape, sexual abuse.
For serial killers rape is all about power and control, they want to dominate someone completely. Now this kind of behaviour simply didn't align with Sakura and Hidan's MO - Hidan is a religious zealot and Sakura is the crazy doctor type (I very much realize that she kind of is similar to Orochimaru here lol). Another thing I tried to show is how both of them have this calm and charm. In real life, most of the serial killers have been described by the people who knew them as someone normal, someone who was nice and caring and in fact very charming and when the truth came out a lot were shocked and surprised because they couldn't believe that this loving family man who took out his kids sledging could murder and rape in cold blood.
Oh yeah, this was also a birthday fic to myself. You can also go on my Tumblr Rhearenee-Magane where I posted some art in relation to this story, also has a full view pic of the cover art.
Thank you for sticking with this story this far. Also, please leave a comment or anything it always means a lot.