A/N: I'm quite enjoying writing this fic actually, I hope you're enjoying reading it!

Answer to the question: It takes around 8 days for nicotine to leave the bloodstream, taking with it the physical craving. However they may still feel the effects of the habitual nature of smoking.

So basically, in theory, if you go into a coma you'll be able to quit smoking easier :P

And the riddle: His breath!

(Well done to trIchstEr99 for guessing both answers!)

Disclaimer.

It was Only a Matter of Time

She could definitely not do this.

Still pitch black outside, Mika had barely managed to grab a second of unbroken sleep, terrified by every slight creak of the floorboards and every sudden noise of the nightlife.

It wasn't the dark that scared her, nor was it the fact that she was in a strange house with a strange man. It was the fear of being found that had her squirming in her sheets, the omnipotent dread that she'd be dragged kicking and screaming back into the evil clutches of her current foster family or worse, back to the orphanage.

The paranoia had set in quickly, and now as she listened to the early rising birds begin their merry morning tunes, she realised with dismay that she had absolutely no idea where to go next. She supposed she would wander into the town, and try to figure out something from there.

So maybe she hadn't been entirely thorough when thinking this plan through. Where was she going to get food from? What if her 'parents' were here looking for her?

She sat up and moved over to the window to peek out the curtains. The sun was being lazy this morning, heaving himself drowsily over the mountains in the distance as though even he didn't want to face the day.

It was only when Mr Sunshine had risen to a reasonable height of around nine hundred hours, when there was a loud rapping on the bedroom door, followed by it being flung open, almost flying off its hinges. Mika spun around from her position of leaning against the windowsill, startled.

'The old man told me to come… up and…' The voice trailed off as its owner's magenta eyes widened, mirroring Mikazuki's own golden orbs.

'YOU AGAIN?' The pair screeched in disbelieving recognition and perfect synchronisation.

'I knew you were following me, seriously.' Hidan smirked, recovering before her and shaking himself out of his shock.

This was enough to also snap her out of it, as her features soon turned sour as she scowled with all her might. 'In your dreams! Why are you here?!'

'I live here. Duh!' He crossed his arms over his chest and shifted his weight to one leg cockily. 'Why are YOU here?

'I… W-well, I'm…' Shit. What could she tell him? 'I erm, got lost last night…'

He regarded her suspiciously for a moment. 'Where do you live?'

'The Land of Rivers…' It wasn't a complete lie. That was where the orphanage was based.

He raised an eyebrow. 'And you ended up here how?'

'I walked!' She snapped, which also, wasn't actually a lie.

He scoffed, clearly not believing a word she was saying, but playing along anyway just to annoy her. 'All the way from the Land of Rivers? Fuck that. So how're you getting home?'

'I guess I'll walk again…' She stated slowly, tilting her head as she wondered where he was taking this.

A grin spread across his face, making the girl instantly regret her reply. 'Then I'll walk with you.'

'…W-what?! You can't do that!' She spluttered, head snapping up in surprise.

'Why not? I'm headed that way anyway for a mission.' He shrugged, maintaining a calm façade as he internally laughed at her outrage.

'Mission?' She paused, briefly distracted. 'What do you mean? You can't go on missions yet – you're too young!'

'Tch, you really are dumb. You can go on missions as soon as your graduate the academy, you know! But I've been going on missions since I was 9.'

She stared, momentarily dumbfounded. But before she could think of a clever enough remark, he grinned triumphantly, reaching out to grab her arm and tugging her out of the room.

'Come on then, what're we waiting for?' He marched her all the way down the stairs and out the house in seconds, shouting a vague goodbye to the old man before slamming the door shut behind them.

'Wait a second!' She snapped, yanking her arm back a little too hard and stumbling backwards at the force. Regaining her balance, she rounded on him. 'Who the hell do you think you are?! I don't have to go anywhere with you!'

Hidan forced the smirk off his face and replaced it with his best innocent 'acceptance' expression. 'Well if you insist. Off you go then.' He gestured to the road ahead and she faltered at his sudden change of heart.

'Go on!' He urged, moving to lean on the garden fence and crossing his arms over his chest. 'Unless you're scared?'

'Yeah right! Fine, good riddance to you!' She huffed angrily, stomping off and never once sparing him a goodbye glance. No way was she scared! She'd survived the night before, she could survive today as well. Just you watch…

Waking up from a rare but pleasant sleep, Mika was incredibly comfortable. Unnaturally so. It was only when she made to move that she remembered she wasn't alone, sitting up so quickly that she gave herself head rush and managed to elbow Hidan in the chest.

'OW!' He yelped, followed by a habitual string of curse words that Mika only rolled her eyes to.

'It wasn't that hard, don't be such a baby.' She muttered, ignoring his irritated response and turning away to hide her reddening cheeks. Hurrying into the bathroom, the girl leaned over the sink to stare into her reflection's amber irises as she listened to her companion fumbling around in the next room.

'Urgh, what the hell is wrong with me?!' She growled under her breath, splashing water over her face as though trying to wash away her blush.

The recollection of her runaway-aged-twelve-self was slowly coming back to her, vague blurred images from the dream flashing through her mind as she brushed her teeth and fought with her dyed red locks. A loud smashing sound followed by a muffled 'fuck' had her clenching her jaw and exiting the bathroom, bracing herself for whatever mess the ex-Yugakure nin had created for her now. What a pain.

********** Later **********

The wind was strong today, almost as though the weather itself was on edge, sensing an upcoming change in the near future. A force that had most living beings scurrying away for shelter.

The pair of ninja were sat beside the same river they had sparred by the day before, a peaceful silence lingering between them, despite the weather. Hidan was leaning back on his hands with his legs stretched out in front of him, while Mika was sitting crossed legged, her chin resting on her open palm while her free hand tugged out random strands of grass.

'Hey Hidan?' Mika spoke quietly, barely loud enough to be heard over the roaring winds.

'Hm?'

'What happened last night? You know, after I got home… Did you find him?'

He tilted his head back to stare up at the sky, his expression twisting into something unreadable and slightly disturbing. 'I found him alright…'

Unable to hide her relief, Mika let out a breath she hadn't realised she'd been holding. Deciding to change the subject to a less depressing one, she spoke again. 'So how long have you been with Akatsuki? I never had you pegged as the type to follow a leader…'

Hidan snorted. 'Yeah, if you can call that know-it-all bastard a leader. I was 19 when they found me so three years now. Too bloody long if you ask me…'

She chuckled as he broke off grumbling about the organisation, but when he spoke again he surprised her.

'Honestly, I never wanted to join. Didn't have much choice though, and it does give me all the chances to make sacrifices to Lord Jashin I want. That bastard leader can't control me anyway, screw him!' His hands balled into fists as he ranted, eyebrows knitting together in obvious distaste.

'Lord Jashin?' Mika blinked, becoming more unnerved when his eyes met hers with a sadistic grin. She'd heard him mention the name before, but only now really took notice.

'Oh yeah, I forgot you don't know about that…'

'Know about what?' She raised an eyebrow, unsure if she actually wanted to know or not. The trees howled around them as though warning her not to ask.

To her irritation, he only chuckled, changing the subject to one she really didn't want to discuss. 'So, what was on the paper that guy gave you?'

'W-what paper?! What guy? I don't know what you're talking about!' Mika spluttered, before recollecting herself and snapping her gaze to his, accusing. 'You were there the whole time and didn't step in sooner?!'

He smirked as she gave herself away. 'I just wanted to see what happened, but hey it all turned out fine in the end, right?'

'No! Not right…' She trailed off, her thoughts whirling in a tornado of panic and planning. Would she need a new disguise? Maybe she should just disappear altogether, pack up and leave this poisonous land and start anew in a different country, one where no one would know her face…

She stood up abruptly, painfully aware of Hidan watching her every move curiously. 'I-I have to go. There's s-something I need to do right now.'

Spinning on her heel without even giving him a chance to react, she stalked off hurriedly in the direction of her home. She needed to leave, immediately. If there were posters and a bounty out now, then the situation must have changed. Perhaps they'd found more evidence? Perhaps they were simply growing desperate.

Her eyes remained wide and alert as she raced through the town, catching vague glimpses of the very poster she still had stuffed in her coat pocket from the other night. They were pinned to lampposts and shop windows, seeming to mock her as she strained to hide from their eyes that glared out so familiarly. They must have put them up very recently, since she'd never noticed them before.

She reached her apartment in record timing, running straight to her wardrobe and pulling out an old, worn-looking duffel bag and throwing it on her bed. Then began the assault on her clothes hanging neatly on their hangers, flinging t-shirts and jeans in the vague direction of the bag. She had known it was only a matter of time until something like this happened. She was just thankful she packed lightly and didn't own many valuables that she'd have to carry with her.

Moving on to raid her drawers in a blind flurry of flying underwear, she missed the sounds of someone entering her apartment and shuffling into her bedroom until he snorted obnoxiously.

'Going somewhere?'

She squeaked unceremoniously as she spun to meet his partly amused but mostly confused expression as he held up a pink lacy bra he'd caught mid-air.

'Hidan! Go away, now's not the time.' She huffed, snatching the underwear off him and stuffing it into the side pouch of her duffel bag.

'Fucking hell, Mika. What've you gotten yourself into now?' He folded his arms over his chest as he leaned against the wall. She groaned loudly and ignored him as she began to tug on the zip, forcing the bag to close. It jammed about 2 inches from the end, threatening to tear open completely as she sucked her breath in and pulled with all her might.

'You wanna tell me what's going on, or shall I just ask one of the locals to explain those posters to me?'

He watched as she froze at the mention of those cursed flyers, her shoulders stiffening while she debated her options. Finally, after several long minutes of silence, she turned slowly to face him, her eyes watery and her breathing shallow.

'Alright. Fine, you win. I'll tell you, but you got to help me get out of here first…'

A/N: So this is a new arc of her past that I'll be revealing over a few chapters, its important in the development of their relationship so I hope you enjoy it!

I'm loving finding all these questions and riddles for you guys, you know :')

Not a question today but a fact that I was amused by for way too long: While sitting at a desk, make clockwise circles with your right foot. While doing this, draw the number '6' in the air with your right hand. Your foot will change direction!

I can't even feel it happen, so weird! :O

And the riddle for today: If I drink, I die. If I eat, I am fine. What am I?

See you next week!