Angels Like You-Miley Cirus

"Man, I don't wanna do anything today,yeah." Deidara said as he stretched, standing up from his stool. They had been practicing all morning, having started fairly early. The group was powered by caffeine and sheer will power and they were all showing it. "Jet lag's kicking my ass."

"Can't wait to fucking crash on the beach." Hidan said as he sat, grunting at the effort it took to sit. He rubbed his hand over his face before running it through his hair. "Damn, I'm fucking tired."

"Complaining won't change anything." Itachi told them gently, trying to ignore the bags under his own eyes.

"Fuck off." Hidan drawled, waving his hand dismissively. "I could kill for a line or two."

"What, like coke?" Nari asked curiously as she looked over Hidan who leaned back on his hands, stretching out his legs. He looked at her and for a moment she could swear he looked almost ashamed.

"Hidan, no!" Tobi cooed from his keyboard. "Hidan don't do that again, be a good boy!"

"Man, shut the fuck up, Tobi." Hidan shot at him roughly. "I said I'm itchin' for it, not that I'm gonna fucking do it."

"You guys make me need a drink, yeah." Deidara sighed as he began to dig through his bag. "I'm going out for a smoke."

"Mind if I bum one off you?" Nari asked as she gently lifted the sleek black guitar off of her, carefully setting it in the stand. Deidara looked at her in mild surprise.

"Sure," He shrugged as he tapped the carton against his palm while Nari walked over, the two heading towards the door. "Didn't know you smoke, yeah."

"Haven't in a while." Nari admitted. "but a cigarette sounds really good right now." The three remaining bandmates sat in silence, listening to the conversation fade away as the two walked further and further away. Tobi walked over and sat next to Hidan, pulling out his phone and scrolling through social media to kill time. The silence was filled by the plucking of bass strings by Itachi as he idly played a few chords. Hidan shook his leg as he sat thinking. After a bit, he couldn't help it.

"The fuck's eating her?" Hidan asked, looking at the bassist. Itachi stopped and looked at the silver haired singer for a moment before shrugging. Before he could say anything Hidan interrupted. "Don't give me that bullshit. You're telling me you two sat on the fucking plane and didn't say shit to each other? She looks like she damn near ready to break down any fucking minute. What the fuck, man?"

"I noticed it too." Tobi said quietly, breaking the brief silence that had lapsed again and the two men looked at him. Tobi fiddled with the sleeves of his sweater nervously. Though it was hot outside, it was cool in the stadium. "But, if she doesn't want to talk about it, we can't make her."

"Bullshit." Hidan said.

"It's not our business." Itachi said calmly though he felt tense. If anyone would understand Nari's situation, it was Hidan but he didn't have permission to speak on it and he wasn't about to violate the trust placed on him. "Just let her be."

"It is so our business!" Hidan shouted. "Are we just gonna let her fucking mope this whole trip? What about the concert? She's fucking struggling now as it is. How the fuck you think she's gonna feel if she fucks up in front of everyone?"

"That's a really good point." Tobi mumbled quietly, worry settling in his stomach at the thought of losing Nari. "I don't want to lose her as a bandmate. She's so sweet." The three sat in silence, thinking over their options. Itachi started plucking away at his bass in thought.

Nari sat crouched in the alley, a hand over her mouth, trying to be quiet as she cried. Deidara stood next to her, watching her in mild surprise. She had taken exactly one drag of her cigarette before dropping and sobbing.

"You ok, yeah?" He asked her gently as she tried to breathe and calm herself. He watched as she took another drag, tears still running down her now red cheeks. She breathed in and held it for a moment before exhaling the smoke.

"I'm ok." Nari told him, looking dead ahead, her red eyes dazed, her voice above a whisper. "I'm ok."

"You don't seem ok, yeah." Deidara pointed out before he crouched down next to her. He gently elbowed her. "Something eating you, hm?"

"I think I'm just tired." She sighed, exhaling more smoke. "I'm just tired." Deidara looked at her and took a pull from his own cigarette, exhaling before he spoke.

"It seems like more than that, man." Deidara told her and she grinned without humor and shook her head, closing her eyes. She rested her forehead against her hand and just breathed. "You don't gotta talk about it yeah, but hey, we're in Suna. Let's have some fun while we're here, yeah?" He suggested, elbowing her again gently and she grinned wider, some genuine happiness beginning to break through the clouds.

"Yeah," She nodded and wiped away her tears. Deidara flicked away the butt of the cigarette and stood, stretching. "Thanks." Nari said, still sitting.

"Don't mention it, yeah." Deidara told her. "I'm gonna head back in. I think we're gonna get lunch soon."

"Alright." Nari nodded with a small smile as she watched him leave, hearing the metal door click shut behind him. She took another pull of the cigarette and breathed. Nari couldn't exactly describe what was wrong. She had so much to be excited for. It had been a great last few days, goofing off with her new friends in the airport, practically having a sleep over with Konan, being back in her home city. She had so much to look forward to, like playing in the concert and seeing her friends after. They were going to spend a few days at the beach. Everything was going great and she had left everything behind. So why was there this deep ache of pain she couldn't seem to shake?

Shaking her head she stood, she tossed the butt of her own cigarette. She shook off her flannel shirt, not caring if people saw the bruises on her arm. They'd already seen it. She wrapped the flannel around her hips and pulled her hair into a messy bun and pulled her phone out of the pocket of her jeans, checking her reflection to make sure she didn't look like she had been crying. Nari scowled and sighed before stepping back into the cool building. She made her way to the bathroom and splashed cold water on her face, washing away any remnants of tears. After drying her face she stepped into the hall and spied the vending machine. She needed caffeine. She needed to focus.

Nari pulled out a crumpled one and fed it through the machine. The machine spat it back out. Nari pulled it out and fed it through again, only to have it spat back out at her. She scowled and tried to smooth it out on the corner of the machine and fed it through, hoping the machine would take her only dollar. Nari beamed when it seemed to keep it and pressed the button for what she wanted, only to have the machine beep obnoxiously and spit back out the dollar. Nari let out a long and frustrated sigh before she pulled at the dollar bill. Once more she scowled when now the machine didn't seem to want to let it go.

"Are you serious?" She asked it quietly and tugged again. "Gimme my fucking dollar back." She mumbled and kept tugging, trying not to rip it. "Make up your fucking mind." She swore and tugged a little harder, pulling it out but tearing it in the process. Nari looked at her ripped up dollar and sighed before leaning her head against the plastic and giving it a half assed kick. "Traitor." She mumbled under her breath.

"What did you want?" Pein asked, startling her. Nari stood and looked at him for a moment, processing what he asked and she blushed.

"Oh, don't worry about it." Nari tried to dismiss. "I have some water back on stage."

"That's not what I asked." Pein said as he stepped forward and Nari stepped out of the way as he easily slid in a dollar. "If you don't press a button, you'll get what I pick for you." Pein explained, his tone calm, making the threat even more eerie. Nari looked at him, a little surprised and very embarrassed he had walked in on her cussing out a machine. She swallowed her pride and pressed a button. The machine whirred obediently and spat out her drink aggressively.

"Thank you." Nari mumbled as she crouched to grab her drink and fought the urge to make a joke, calling him the machine whisperer. When she stood, she was surprised to see him staring right at her still, face completely blank. Her anxiety only grew as she watched his gaze flick briefly to the bruises on her arm.

"Konan tells me you have a partner." Pein stated and Nari nodded after a second.

"Yeah," She confirmed. "He's been my boyfriend for a few years now." Nari shifted her weight awkwardly before Pein spoke again.

"It's been my experience," He paused, glancing down at her arm again before gently taking her hand, pulling slightly and twisting a bit, letting him inspect the bruise, "in this profession, the relationship will come to a point where you will have to choose."

"Choose?" Nari repeated as she let him inspect the bruises, surprised at how gentle he was with her arm.

"It may come down to the choice between your partner and your career." Pein explained. His tone never changed, but Nari couldn't help but stare at the intensity of the stare he was giving her. He released her hand and she let it fall back to her side. "If it does, I genuinely hope you make the choice that you want." Nari held his stare for a minute before looking away, ashamed and embarrassed. No one ever accused Pein of being stupid, and he was more observant than she would have liked. She knew he knew something was wrong. Nari recognized the truth in his words. She fought the urge to break down again, to tell him everything, to beg for him to help her but she stood there silent. Pein stepped back slowly.

"That's all." He said, his tone a little softer, and she looked back at him as he walked away. "And if you require assistance in following through on your decision, say so." Nari watched him walk away as she mulled it over in her head. She had loved Eric once but it felt so long ago and she'd be lying if she hadn't been asking herself why she stayed. If it came down to it, she felt almost certain she knew which she would chose.

"I will." Nari blurted out and Pein paused, hand on a door. He looked at her and she nodded at him. "I promise." She told him, sounding more sure of herself than she felt, and to her utter shock, Pein gave a small satisfied smile and nodded in approval before stepping into a room.

Oh my god, he smiled? Nari thought over and over. The stoic and aloof Pein gave her a smile of approval. That little hint of validation left her smiling softly to herself in the hall for a minute. She was ok. For now, she was ok.

Kisame was sitting at his station, up in the booth at the back of the stadium that let him see over the entire area. He had his feet propped up on the desk and one earbud in while watching a video on his phone as he chewed on his lunch. Everyone was gone for lunch and he had told himself he was going to keep working, yet here he sat in the dark on his phone. He needed a minute to himself. He loved hanging out with the group, but having to run the entire back stage crew was exhausting, answering question after question, and he was already exhausted from the flight. He just wanted to sit with no thoughts or decisions for a bit, enjoying the time alone.

Well, he thought he was a lone.

Kisame furrowed his eyebrows as he heard the strumming of an acoustic guitar. He dropped his feet and sat up, looking down at the stage. Nari stood there on her own, tuning her acoustic guitar and Kisame smiled a bit, happy to see her more comfortable on stage. He paused the video on his phone and leaned on the desk, curious to see what she would do. He chewed on his sandwich as he waited and watched. Nari stood at her microphone and tapped it. He could see her smile as she realized it was still hot. Kisame could also see the bruises on her arms but tried to ignore them, focusing instead on what she was going to play.

Kisame was expecting something upbeat and happy since she had been so excited to be here. The last thing he expected was one of the few soft songs the Akatsuki had produced. Kisame stared, surprised, as she began to strum the first few chords of their first ballad. Her voice followed, strong and clear.

Flowers in hand, waiting for me

Every word in poetry

Won't call me by name, only "Baby"

He was surprised to hear it. It wasn't one they played often and their fan base tended to prefer their more aggressive stuff, but she was absolutely killing it. Kisame smiled to himself and turned video called two people: Hidan and Konan. He waited for them both to join the call.

"The fuck you want, fish face?" Hidan asked.

"Is everything ok?" Konan asked. Kisame said nothing and just switched the camera, letting them see what he was seeing.

"Hey, assholes! Get a load of this!" Hidan shouted over the noise, waiving over the rest of the bandmates and Sasori. Sasori and Deidara leaned over one shoulder while Tobi bounced over to the other, his piece of pizza still in hand and he took a bite. Itachi stood behind them, watching the video as well. He saw Konan was also on the call and though she was muted, she was talking excited to someone off screen before pulling Pein over, making him watch as well.

It's not your fault I ruin everything

And it's not your fault I can't be what you need

Baby, angels like you can't fly down here with me

I'm everything they said I would be.

"Damn, is this live, yeah?" Deidara asked as he smiled at the performance. "She's really good!"

"I haven't heard this song in so long!" Tobi bounced on his heels, excited.

"Shut the fuck up, guys." Hidan whined, exasperated with the chatty crowd.

I know that you're wrong for me

Gonna wish we never met on the day I leave

I brought you down to your knees

'Cause they say that misery loves company

"She's amazing!" Konan beamed. "Aren't you glad I had her join us?" She teased, earning a hum from Pein as he watched her performance. He was surprised she knew the song so well. She was singing her heart out. They hadn't seen or heard her practice this song and Konan wondered how long she'd been practicing it. Then an idea popped into her head. "Tonight's the last show of the tour." Konan reminded him and turned to look at him. "What if Hidan and Nari sang this together, as the finale." Pein looked at her for a moment, thinking it over.

"Have them practice it." Pein told her, moving away. He had seen what he needed to see. "I want to see the full performance before they finish tonight. We will decide then."

"Yes, sir." Konan teased as he walked away, rolling his eyes with a small smile.

I know that you're wrong for me

Gonna wish we never met on the day I leave

I brought you down to your knees

'Cause they say that misery loves company

Nari sang her heart out, expelling all the tension and stress as she sang, projecting her voice and putting her soul into her lonely performance. She was free to be herself, to be sad, to be lonely, to be full of regret. She wore no mask, she hid nothing. Nari was singing her favorite song, the one that made her fall in love with the band, the one she had sung along in with in the car while she drove with her brother. For these few minutes, she was raw.

It's not your fault I ruin everything

And it's not your fault I can't be what you need

Baby, angels like you can't fly down here with me,

Angels like you can't fly down here with me.

Hidan and the group watched as Kisame stood and snapped open the glass window of his booth and shouted.

"Get it, Nari!" He shouted, his voice booming through the stadium, making her yelp in surprise. "Killing it out there!" He cheered loudly, a big grin on his face and they could hear Nari laugh.

"How long have you been up there?" She laughed into the microphone.

"I never left!" Kisame shouted back.

"Sorry!" She apologized for interrupting his lunch but she just heard him laugh in response. She jumped a bit when she heard a door being yanked open and someone running over to her. Konan ran out of the shadows, a big smile on her face.

"That was really good!" Konan encouraged and Nari looked at her in surprise. Konan realized why she was confused and giggled. "Kisame called us on video chat and we got to see most of it."

"What?" Nari asked. "Wait, who all was on the call?" Konan just laughed and shook her head.

"Hey! Why the hell didn't you invite us?" Hidan called, a big lazy grin on his face as he and the rest of the band followed, Sasori hanging back in the shadows off stage. "Why the fuck did you play that one?"

"Oh, it's my favorite!" Nari beamed and Hidan laughed.

"Man, that's no one's favorite." Deidara chuckled.

"It was when we first put it out." Tobi pointed out. "It was really popular for a while."

"Yeah, man, then we put out better music." Deidara countered.

"You're just mad there isn't a lot of drumming." Tobi pointed, sticking out his tongue and Nari laughed at the two of them.

"Hidan," Konan said and the singer looked at her with raised eyebrows, waiting for her to continue. "Pein wants you and Nari to sing it as a duet. This is the last show on the tour. We were thinking you guys could add it as a finale."

"Woah, wait, what?" Nari asked, stage fright creeping into her bones and Hidan rolled his eyes.

"I'm gonna roll you the fattest blunt tonight, fucking Christ." Hidan grumbled as he ran his hand through his hair, ignoring the glare from Nari. He looked at Konan and nodded. "We'll get it done." He told her before walking over to his mic. "Alright, bitches, let's get this shit going." Nari watched as the rest of the band moved to their stations. "We're gonna do a quick run through. No fuck ups. Let's see if we can get this shit down pat."

"Hidan, are you sure?" Nari asked, suddenly feeling almost unworthy to be singing a duet with him. Yeah, they'd sang together during practice, but on stage? During the last night of the tour? Was she ready?

"You just sang back up last time." Hidan gave her a grin that almost seemed malicious. "Consider this your fucking debut."