A/N: Special thanks to all the Pein/Konan fans out there, this is for you!

Pein and Konan: The rainy days are the hardest

Konan watched the sky as Pein released his hold on the clouds, the harsh rain returning in full force as his chakra dwindled from the sky. She hated the rain. Paper couldn't survive long under the harsh downpour, turning to a pulpy mush under its incessant pounding. Despite her dislike, the rain was a part of him, he was a part of her, and she could never hate the rain for too long. When it rained, it made her think of him.

"Pein, let's go." She called out to him softly, hoping he had the sense not to stay out in the rain all night long as he often did. What did he think about when he looked up to the sky like that? She remembered long ago, how they had agreed that the sky cried for those who couldn't. It was still a strange, abstract concept.

"Not yet." He stayed on the ledge, still in deep concentration after their surprise visit from Uchiha Madara. The Kyuubi was still at large and the man was growing impatient. They all were. All too soon, the sealing statue would grow unstable and the ritual would no longer be usable. The bijuu might even break free from their bonds inside the statue, and then where would that lead? Only complete, unhindered destruction could result if they didn't complete their goal. That wasn't the plan. It was Pein's goal to use the bijuu as weapons of war, methods of persuasion when the usual tactics failed.

"Pein..." Konan hesitated, but he couldn't stay out there all night. She reached out her hand tentatively, only to have him swat it away with irritation.

"Not yet."

"When, if not now?"

His eyes scanned the gray clouds, so similar to his steely eyes, wondering if ever were a time to return to the dry interior of the complex. "Never."

She sighed, edging closer out from beneath the rocky shelter, moving to his side in complete disregard of the rain that pelted down on her from above. True, she hated the rain, but she hated watching him sit here getting wet much more. Her steps were quiet, and he didn't even notice her approach, thinking she had let him stay out for once. His breath faltered slightly as she wrapped her arms around his neck, leaning over him so the rain could no longer soak through.

He looked up at her with irritation. "What are you doing?"

Her body didn't shift in the slightest, herself a sort of makeshift shelter. "If you won't come in from the rain, then I will protect you."

Ridiculous. "Fine." He rose abruptly, knowing he would get nowhere with this. She staggered backwards, caught off guard by his sudden movement but recovered in time to follow him. His drenched cloak clung to his body tightly, hanging low and dripping all across the floor as he moved to the bathroom. He hung his cloak just outside the room, grabbing a towel to dry his fiery hair. With one last flick of his head, scattering drops of water all over the small room, he placed the towel on the rack and stared coldly back at her. She stared back with no remorse, only a blank look gracing her features. His eyes didn't divert from hers, and his low voice was the only sound heard over the rain. "Konan... Why do you do this every time?"

Her icy glare shot across the room. "You're acting like a child."

"I am not!" He grimaced slightly, turning his back on her, his hand brushing back his wet hair as he fumed to himself. The stress was getting to him. How could it not? Members were dropping like flies, the Kyuubi was so horribly elusive, hope was nowhere to be found. Of course he was acting like an idiot, of course he was being unreasonable. He was desperate, he needed an answer, just something, ANYTHING that would be useful.

"Pein, stop pacing, you look ridiculous."

He didn't even realize he had started pacing, the stress had caused him to blind himself to even his own actions. His steely gaze turned sharp as a knife as he glared back at her. "Shut up."

She scoffed. "Me? I'm not the one spewing nonsense."

"Please, Konan." He ran his hand through his hair again, one habit she knew all too well. She knew he was stressed, worried about the organization. Possibly worried about Itachi, now that the final battle with his brother had come to pass. Maybe he knew just as well as she did that Itachi would not come back. Kisame was in battle as well, and who knew what would pass during that fight. At the very least, they would lose one more member today. What plans did Madara have for the young Sasuke? Whatever it was, it was enough to make Pein nervous.

"Relax, Pein. There is no need for concern."

"No need?" His Rin'negan whirled violently, its circling being the only thing that ever betrayed his true emotions. "We have every right to be concerned. If Itachi doesn't come back... we will only have five members! Five! And Kisame... I'm worried about him. He's vital to our plans. If he dies as well, we won't even have an organization."

"Pein has never lost a battle." She stepped to him cautiously, hoping to placate him. "Why can't you trust yourself when I trust you so?" Her face edged ever closer to his, her cold blue eyes staring unafraid into silver.

The corners of his mouth turned down sharply. "It's not a matter of trusting my own ability. Even I can do nothing if the bijuu break out of their seals. If that happens..."

She shook her head lightly. "It won't happen."

He was unconvinced. "But if it does..."

She silenced him by putting a finger on his mouth. "I trust you. I will follow you. What more assurance does a god need from his angel?"

His frown deepened and he pulled away from her touch, shrugging her off as he grabbed another towel from the bathroom, drying the rest of his body off. He needed to think. What would they do? To his people, he was a god. Even to her, he might be. Pein may have never lost a battle, but that was only part of himself, the part that only won outer physical battles. Inside he was broken, empty, a fighting shell that couldn't even cry anymore. True, he could get irritated and lose hope, maybe even hold anger, but even those feelings were subtle and used only in her presence. That person he used to be... Nagato. It wasn't him anymore. Pein had never lost a battle, but Nagato had lost every single one.

He remembered those times. Those times when they were still small and weak, before fate had turned him into a near-god, playing judgment with his pawns on the chessboard of life. Even his more powerful pieces had been captured, leaving him with only a handful. White was starting to gain ground on black, moving one of its pawns to the black side intent on becoming a second queen. This couldn't happen, it was too much, and he as the horribly immobile king could do little.

Her shoulder brushed against his as she leaned towards the hook on the wall, hanging her own cloak up to dry alongside his. The almost imperceptible touch caused the hair on his arms to stand on end, goosebumps prickling from the cold, the wet, and a bit of something else. She reached up, fitting the inside of the collar to the large hook, her warm breath just faintly reaching his bare skin, the soft fishnet on her arm just barely glancing him. Underneath the fishnet was a tiny black camisole, soaked just as thoroughly as the rest of her clothing. Her skin felt cold and clammy against his own numbed skin, and he shivered uncontrollably as the chill permeated his core.

The paper flower that had laid so crisply folded in her hair dropped to the ground in a soggy lump, its soft thud the only sound that dared come between them. Pein reached down for it, holding it out in his hand as he inspected it carefully, though his eyes never left hers. He reached out with his other hand, brushing the fallen locks out of her eyes gently and speaking quietly. "Why, Konan? Why do you follow me so? You know I only lead us to our deaths."

She put her hand to his cheek reassuringly. "Death or not, I will follow you. I would go nowhere else, and if I must follow you even to Hell, I would do so."

His lips pursed into a small frown. "You should leave and live your life while you have the chance."

Her hand tensed against his face as her eyes narrowed. "There is no life I would have that does not have you in it. I will follow you, and there is nothing you can say that will change my mind."

He withdrew from her grasp, his gaze darkening. "You deserve better. I have nothing for you anymore."

"Don't be stupid," she chided, facing him with her chin held high. "I have you. I don't need anything else you think you ought to provide. Don't you understand? All I need is your path to follow."

He sighed, eyes softening as his frown faded. "What if I needed more from you?"

Her head tilted casually, a slight nod following the motion. "All I have to give is yours." She hesitated, smiling slyly. "But all you have to give... is it mine as well?"

His brow raised subtly, intrigued by the question. "All I have is myself."

"Then I will take it." Before he could react, her hand slid up his jaw line, pulling him closer as her lips sought out his, softly brushing up against them before furthering the pressure. She could feel the chill of his skin as her hand lingered on the side of his neck, trailing along a sensitive point as she felt him respond to her kiss. The sudden warmth of skin on skin sent shivers down her spine, the former chill in her body replaced by a small glow.

When she released him, his half lidded eyes scanned her curiously. This was so unexpected. For a long time, there had been tension, certainly. She was female, after all. He had thought himself better than a mere man, beyond desire, not needing love or respect. Wasn't he a god? Did a god not require emotions, not need humans by his side, not need anything as long as he had his divine will? He was not a god, he was just a man, a man who thought he could do right by his people by playing god. What of her? Though he was not a god, she would always be his angel. "Konan, I-" He was silenced again by her finger on his lips.

"No. No more. No more god talk, no more business. Forget about it for now."

He smiled ever so slightly as she drew back her hand. "That wasn't what I was going to say."

She seemed intrigued, and looked up at him slowly. "No? What, then? No more angel talk either?"

He chuckled deeply, his hand idly brushing her shoulder. "God or not, you're still my angel. I am just a man." His hand drifted up her neck, his eyes admiring the pale, soft skin as he trailed along it. He spoke softer, barely a whisper. "Just a man who loves his angel." His hand pulled her neck closer as he kissed along the other side of her neck, lingering as his warm breath heated her icy skin.

She didn't need words as she responded to his touch, the shiver down her spine becoming more and more distracting. He smiled when she shivered visibly, his intent gaze burning with a look she had never seen in him before. What was it? Desire? A cold, feral hunger for her, something she found herself uncontrollably wishing to return in kind. Her stomach twisted in a knot as he returned to her neck, brushing his lips lightly against her sensitive skin, his fingers drifting down her shoulder. His other hand touched her hip lightly, and when she didn't pull away, he snaked his arm around her slender waist, pulling her close enough to feel the heat of his body.

The chill, wet sensation on their bodies was soon replaced by a damp warmth as they pulled close to each other. He couldn't help but wonder why he loved her so. Perhaps it didn't matter. Her long wet hair clung to the back of her neck and he brushed it aside hastily, replacing it with his warm hand, sending another shiver through both of them. Who was she that she could elicit such a reaction from him? His lips met hers in a sudden crash, his mind reeling at the new surge of emotion bursting through him. What was she, this person that made him so desperate?

She rose slightly in his heated embrace, neck angling to meet him halfway in their clash, the instant mingling of warmth helping her forget the cold liquid dripping down her skin. Her warm hands drifted to his chest, feeling the damp cling of his fishnet shirt. The chilled muscles beneath her touch quivered slightly in response to her, his shiver making her gut clench. Who was he that she could be so helplessly devoted to him? Her hand daringly moved beneath the shirt, stroking the skin underneath, feeling the change as her heat slid up his side. What was it about him that invoked such a strong desire to touch him, to get a reaction out of him?

A surge of energy welled up from within him, and he vaguely recalled the emotion of lust, long forgotten in his store of lost emotions. Lost until now, at least. Just when he thought he had expelled such things from his memory, she did something amazing or amusing that kept his cold heart in check. Her touch warmed both body and soul, soothing the monster within that threatened to consume his being, reminding him why he no longer wished to be a god. No god could ever feel what he felt now, and he didn't envy deities in the least. What could they boast of that the love of a woman could not outdo? Immortality? It was useless without thought, without feeling, without love. Power? All the power in the world could never turn the true heart of a woman to love. Money? Of course not. No amount of money could buy love. Ridiculous. He wouldn't be a god, he would only be himself. It was he that Konan loved, and there would be no other he would rather be right now.

Konan glanced up at him cautiously, taking a risk. "Nagato?"

That name he hadn't heard in years... It used to be that he couldn't stand it when she called him by his former name, but this time... Maybe now he would allow it. A small smile graced his face as he nodded, concentrating and shifting his body back to his original form, the body of the dark haired Nagato. Only with her was he ever comfortable showing this to. None of the other members had seen it except for Madara, but that had been years ago. "Yes, Konan?" He touched her face gently, showing that he didn't mind what she had called him.

She sighed contentedly, smiling back at him. "That's better."

He nuzzled against her neck, speaking softly. "Only for you."

Her hand threaded through his long black hair, smiling against his neck as he stayed close. "Then stay this way when we are together, because it is only you that I can love."

He kissed up her neck slowly, never loosening his tight grip on her slender form. "I will."

A/N: Whew! This couple is my favorite. There might be ONE more chapter yet, so hang in there. It might take a while, to be honest. Dang this is a hot couple. I want to do more... Well, it will have to wait until next time, seeya then.