Draco Malfoy and the Power of Jashin

Summary: Contrary to popular belief, Jashin-sama cared deeply for each of his followers, from that annoying bitch from Shangri-La to the infamous Akatsuki no Hidan. So when Life, Death, and Fate conspired against his rather favored follower, Jashin took action. Thus it was that Hidan and those closest to him were reborn in where else but the Harry Potter universe. As the quartet regain their memories, they'll face everything from random Japanese to naïve questions to bursts of chakra to powerful enemies to the perfect man—wait, what? Reborn!Characters Grey!Akatsuki post-deaths, manga-based, partly AU

.-.-.-.-.

Contrary to what might be believed, the god known as Jashin wasn't exactly an impulsive, vulgar, or even violent man. He was rather quiet, in a slightly "emo" way, with a mild tendency to be coldly irritated with people and an even higher tendency to sigh loudly for no apparent reason when one of his loyal followers (usually one chick from Konohagakure...or that idiot Hidan) did something stupid and/or were too excessive in their sacrifices (coughHidancough).

Thus it was that, when the god suddenly let out a shouted curse and angrily whirled down to the spirit world without any warning, more than one of his sisters, brothers, cousins, aunts, and uncles flinched violently and ran off to pray to a higher god than them for safety. Only three were unsurprised at the outburst—namely Fate, Life, and Death, who all exchanged glances (two sympathetic and one completely deadpan) before leaving to let their nephew/grandson do what he felt he had to do.

-.-.-.-.-

Hidan had no idea how long he had been stuck in the hole that stupid Nara brat—Shikuki or something utterly ridiculous like that—had trapped him in, but he knew it had been a long time. He felt…weary. Tired. Like death was finally coming to claim him and bring him to Jashin-sama's own Plane of Existence.

The young-ish Jashinist wasn't sure how he felt about that thought, to be honest. On the one hand, he would finally be able to meet and stay with his God, learning directly from Him the Ways all Followers had to follow. On the other hand…he was upset with himself for the pathetic way he was dying. Lack of sacrifices was sucking away his immortality; how long before he ended up dead, like Sasori, like the sad bastard that he had killed which resulted in his death, like…Kakuzu.

Emotional pain was not something Hidan was used to, but the thought of his long-time partner certainly reminded him of its power. He had been able to sense Kakuzu's dying moments before he himself had been buried, and the curious twisting of a proverbial knife in his gut made Hidan grimace even with the dirt pouring around him. As much as the man was a bastard, Hidan had a respect and kinship with the old miser he wasn't sure he wanted to admit.

"My Faithful…" an unfamiliar tenor muttered from somewhere behind Hidan. The man whirled on his heel in shock, eyes snapping open—

Wait, what?

Hidan was distracted from thoughts of being in pieces last he had checked upon spotting the ethereal figure before him, indescribable in his handsomeness, with the most aristocratic and symmetrical features Hidan had ever seen highlighted by bright red eyes boring into his own and messy black hair that was tied back in a loose ponytail, trailing to the man's waist and flipped over one of his shoulders.

"Hello, Hidan," the man's voice smoothly greeted with much more grace than any mortal's. Hidan's eyes went wide before he sank to his knees and bowed with his forehead on the ground, eyes closed in rapture as he realized who the Being before him truly was.

"Jashin-sama," he reverently uttered, unable to believe it. All he could do was repeat his God's name once more, slightly louder, before a hand as cold of death with long fingers and sharp claw-like nails gently ghosted over his shoulder.

"Arise, Hidan," Jashin-sama commanded in that same soft and smooth tenor. Hidan was instantly kneeling upward, unafraid to admit his gaze was adoring as it drank in the features of the one and only God he believed in. Thin lips were twisted up slightly in an elegant mockery of a smile that made Hidan want to smile back despite the out-of-character-ness of the action. "It is good to finally meet you in person, My Faithful. I merely wish it were not under such dire circumstances."

Hidan could only nod mutely, too awed to trust his voice. Jashin-sama rolled His red eyes, looking exactly similar to the blood of those Hidan sacrificed in His name, before making a motion with His hand for Hidan to stand up. The not-quite-immortal was on his feet in an instant, no hesitation in his movements. He felt pride when Jashin-sama inclined His head in approval.

"Perhaps I was not wrong to come to you. But now is not the time for pleasantries. It is the time for asking, for explaining, and most importantly—the time for your next chance at life."

"Chance…at life?" echoed Hidan, at last finding his voice and not at all embarrassed at the pathetic way it cracked. Jashin-sama's eyebrow twitched as if wanting to arch, then He nodded slightly, His smile dropping.

"Yes, your next chance at life, My Faithful," He solemnly agreed. "It was not in my plans for your demise to ever happen, yet it seems that Life and Death conspired once more against my wishes. However, this time, I plan to help you as I could not before."

A pause followed, and Hidan felt that he should speak. "Jashin-sama…how?"

And Jashin-sama's smile returned, ever-so-slightly. "That is easy. I shall give you new life in another universe, where you shall get the chance to live life anew before regaining your memories of this time so you may continue my work. And…" Jashin-sama paused and Hidan barely noticed as he leaned forward in anticipation of what He would say. "…those you believe should return with you. I would assume that you know which ones I speak of."

Two specific faces followed mere seconds by a third passed through Hidan's mind; the widening of Jashin-sama's smile confirmed his thoughts. But anything he wanted to say was interrupted by his Lord.

"Our time runs short," Jashin-sama suddenly said. Slowly, He moved His hand over Hidan's bare chest (it was about then that the albino noticed both of them were completely clothes-less, but he didn't really care enough to point such a thing out) and the air He passed over shimmered before a familiar weight settled around the back of Hidan's neck.

The man looked down and gingerly fingered the pendant he had received so long ago when he killed the priest who had taught him about Jashinism. But despite the familiarity, there was also an unfamiliar power pulsing through the silver that felt like outrageously strong chakra. His gaze darted up to his Lord.

"The power that now runs throughout your amulet will allow you to see the others for who they are and return to their memories when you see fit," explained Jashin-sama even more softly. "Just remember when you regain your memories upon your fifteenth year, My Faithful: although you may not feel like it, much like the power wielded within the symbol of your faith…"

The world was fading, and Hidan strained to keep sight of Jashin-sama, but it was too quickly gone; the last thing he heard was his Lord's soothing voice, speaking calmly, but fiercely:

"…I…shall always be protecting you…"

Thus it was that Hidan fell asleep for a long, long time.

-.-

.-.

Hidan could tell you the exact moment he returned to consciousness. His new self had been idly lying awake, staring at a Tempus spell cast at the foot of his bed, silently counting down the moments until he was fifteen and one step closer to being an adult free from his father's confines, but when the Tempus struck midnight—

A pain, unbearable in one existence, familiar but exceedingly uncomfortable in another, split through the blond teenager's head. Mouth open in a silent scream, the teen tumbled off his bed and hit the floor with a loud thud, instantly curling into a fetal position as memories—familiar, but unfamiliar, dark but light, despairing but perfect, unbelievable but true—slammed their way into his skull. Finally, he was left panting in a heap, his Occlumency coming in use as he hurriedly sorted through and stored all of his memories as was fit.

For the first time in fifteen years, Hidan scowled. "Holy shit, that fuckin' hurt," he muttered, painfully pulling himself onto his hands and knees and shaking his head. Long, thick white-blond hair fell into his now grey-blue eyes, and a quick glance in the mirror revealed a too-thin face, but he felt much better than before he had been shoved into that stupid hole.

Again, in a mockery of the visitation of his God, Hidan felt a familiar weight settle around his neck and he glanced down to see his amulet dangling in front of him, the bottom of the circle barely trailing along the floor. A pulse of magic wound its way up the silver chain and into Hidan's neck, causing him to slowly close his eyes and relax almost imperceptively.

"Jashin-sama," mumbled Hidan, gripping the cool silver of the amulet in his too-thin hands. He scowled suddenly upon being reminded of his lack of physical ability outside of riding a broom, the semi-conflicting thoughts seamlessly running together despite the two different lives they entailed. "…thank you."

The amulet pulsed lightly in response, and Hidan gently let it go before climbing to his feet. He made his way over to the full-length mirror he had caught sight of his face in earlier and scowled faintly, a hand cockily on his hip and said hip jutting out. The femininity of the action flew over/through-and-out-of his head.

"Holy shit, I need to work out."

Sure enough, he did; Hidan's new(-ish?) body felt like it was made of sticks compared to his old one, and looked much less intimidating. At least he still had some height on him, mused Hidan, smirking faintly at himself before dropping his arm and flexing his fingers. But other than Seeker/Chaser reflexes and muscle groups, he definitely had some work to do.

A glance outside his window and Hidan's smirk widened. Well, no better time like the present.

So it was that Hidan began his first of many training routines in preparation for the future.

.-.-.-.-.

One little thing Hidan forgot to take into account when he left the house/mansion that morning was rather important, in retrospect. Namely his new parents.

The Jashinist couldn't remember much about his old family. He had some hazy memories of two younger brothers who had inherited their father's kekkei genkai even though Hidan himself had not, and of his mother dying during the youngest's birth while his father died some time later, but that was literally a lifetime ago. But his new family…

Well, see for yourself:

"My Dragon!" his mother shouted in a half-hysterical voice the minute Hidan walked in through the door, enveloping him in a hug that made him stiffen slightly in surprise and preparation of an attack. His broom, having been taken just in case he was caught while coming back (which he obviously was), clattered to the floor as his arms wandered of their own accord to wrap around his mother's back, all too aware of how much taller than her he was.

Holy fuck, his mother. He wasn't quite sure he had known about the implications of such a thing earlier, elated by his memory's return, but wow. A quick prayer of thanks was sent up to Jashin-sama without much thought just a moment before Hidan crashed down from his high in the face of his steel-expressioned father, positioned over his mother's left shoulder.

It wasn't that Hidan's new life hated his father. On the contrary, he had idolized the man for so many years that he would do anything to make him happy, even though that often was the most stupid and painful thing he could do. But growing up began a sense of disillusionment, and the upheaval of Hidan's memories sealed the deal that following in his father's footsteps wasn't the best idea.

"Where have you been?" the elder(technically?) man asked in a low tone. Not quite sure how surprised he was by, well, everything, Hidan merely frowned slightly at his father.

"I woke up early," he said, mentally wondering at the much different accent he had within this new life, "and decided to go practice Quidditch, Father. Did I do something wrong?"

His father hissed out between closed lips. Luckily enhancing senses naturally was a mental skill rather than a physical one, or else Hidan would have missed the noise. But before his father could say anything, his mother pulled back with a warm—if slightly watery—smile and gently took Hidan's too-thin face in her hands, either ignoring or not caring about the thin sheet of sweat over it from the intense workout he had begun.

"It's fine, Draco," soothed his mother with a smile that honestly made her much prettier than the sneer she kept in public ever did. "Your father and I were just worried because of everything that happened at the end of last school year…"

"Narcissa," his father half-interrupted with slightly narrowed eyes. Narcissa shot him a look in return, her hands moving to Hidan's shoulders instead.

"Lucius, hush," she responded tersely before smiling again at Hidan. "Now, come on, Dragon; it's your day, and the house elves made your favorite breakfast and everything. Then we can go to Diagon Alley and choose your present, yes?"

"Thank you," Hidan quietly said, wondering how many previously-foreign emotions he could feel in one day. He could count on one hand how many times he had felt anything positive that didn't involve killing or fighting or torturing on any level in his past life, and he was faintly disgusted with how spoiled his current self had once been. But Hidan certainly hoped, as he and his parents walked into the kitchen, that the moments would continue for years to come.

-.-.-.-.-

Later that day, Hidan was walking through Diagon Alley with his mother, absently looking over each of the shops in search of what he wanted for his birthday (preferably something shiny and pointy and capable of killing) when he was distracted by a pulse of magic. He instantly stopped, his hand wandering to the area over his amulet, and—there. Another pulse of magic from the cool silver, unnoticeable to any other than himself, judging by the glance he gave around the area.

Slowly, grey-blue eyes scanned the Alley as the not-teenager ignored Narcissa's worried glance in his direction. His eyes soon landed on a figure that stood out from the rest, and when he blinked, he saw—

"Of course," Hidan breathed, shaking his head irritably as he tried hard not to scowl.

"Draco?" asked Narcissa quietly. Hidan cast her a quick smile.

"Sorry, just thinking…Mother, I'd like to go to Quality Quidditch Supplies. Do you want to meet me later?"

Narcissa seemed torn for a few moments, most likely because of her dislike of Quidditch, then apparently thought of a reason why Hidan wanted to be alone and smiled knowingly.

"Okay, Draco," she said quietly, nodding. "I'll meet you at Flourish and Blotts in an hour, okay?"

Hidan just nodded with a slight smile, watching his mother disappear into the crowds before a scowl turned his lips. He yanked the Amulet of Jashin out from under his shirt and held it tightly in one hand, his eyes scanning the area once again. A flicker of energy quickly caught his attention wandering into Magical Menagerie and Hidan was there just moments after it disappeared into the popular pet shop.

After only a moment's hesitation, Hidan opened the doors to the shop, wincing faintly at the sharp smells that hit him head-on before he began wandering down the aisles in search of the one that he had seen earlier. Too soon, he found her, and as he glanced down the aisle at her long blonde hair and vacant-looking eyes, it was all he could do to prevent himself from laughing.

Clearly, Jashin-sama did love him, Hidan decided with a barely-stifled snicker. That was the only way this situation could be so humorous and poetically perfect. But at the same time, it was a disaster, because this was his second cousin that he honestly had minimal interaction with in their lives.

"Hello, Draco Malfoy," the girl's dreamy voice suddenly said as too-wide, but bright blue eyes turned towards him. Hidan blinked in surprise before he recovered himself, at which point in time he slowly crept over and gave a brief nod in greeting.

"Luna Lovegood," he greeted back as politely as possible. Luna smiled slightly and inclined her head in return, fully turning away from the spider tank she had been inspecting.

"It is nice to see you again. Were you aware that you have far fewer Wrackspurts than a normal wizard?"

Hidan, again, blinked. "…far fewer what?"

"Wrackspurt!" chirped the blonde with only the barest hint of something in her eyes. Hidan had never been the best at identifying more complex emotions on other people. "They are invisible creatures that make your mind hazy and mess with your perceptions of the world. You seem to have less than half the amount nearly everyone else I have ever seen hold."

"That so?" asked Hidan, faintly amused. His Draco memories brought forth a conversation with Lucius about how they were not to talk about his father's brother or his spawn in public, because they were disgraces who believed in things that weren't true, but Hidan completely disregarded that now. Partly because he now knew who Luna Lovegood truly was.

And partly because she was totally fucking amusing, seriously.

"Yes," Luna said, still smiling, but with a serious look in her eyes. "It's easy for someone perceptive enough to notice."

"Hmm," was Hidan's noncommittal reply. Luna tilted her head slightly and just stared at Hidan for quite a long minute. Hidan just stared back. Then, quite suddenly, she was completely lucid and had a spark of intelligence in her eyes that was clearly the mark of a Ravenclaw and, somewhere buried under her new life, a prodigy.

"Tell me, Draco. Why is it that you followed me in here? Do you need something, or are you just looking for new material to make fun of," a slight sneer alit to her eyes, "'Loony Lovegood'?"

Hidan was slightly taken aback. "Er, what?" Luna continued to stare in that unnerving way that reminded Hidan of a spell that allowed people to see through the body to the bones underneath. "…would you believe that I just wanted to talk?"

It took a few moments for Luna to stop observing Hidan, but when she did, she was instantly back to that dreamy state and smiling hazily.

"Well, then, come with me, Draco Malfoy," she asked/commanded, holding out her hand expectantly. "I know just the place we can talk."

-END-

MKL's Post-Production Notes (8-7-13): SPOILERS! Luna=Deidara. -evil laughter- Also, Kakuzu was Neville and Tobi was Harry. Yeah.