A/N: Yey! I wrote something! *confetti and explosions.*

Nah, not really.

This is really my take on what happened to Deidara before joining (or being forced to join) the Akatsuki. This, to those who have read it, is nothing like that in 'Those Hollow Blue Eyes,' due to my... concept being more or less more realistic and ultimately less cliche. No OCs, believable concept, longer... I really hope you enjoy this more than before. Because I loved writing it. :) This is a oneshot, so I won't be posting anymore chapters, but I hope you still like it.

DISCLAIMER: I no own Naruto.

Read on, mah lovlies!

He walked down the Dungeons hall after the Hokage, blatantly ignoring the dungeons cold, menacing, and generally hopeless atmosphere. He frowned thoughtfully as he stared at the empty cells; most of the criminals kept inside were released to take part in the third shinobi world war. He stared at the blonde woman leading him. The disturbing appearance of the jail didn't seem to be affecting her in the least. "Tsunade-sama, with all due respect, why are you bringing me here?" he asked, a frown splaying across his masked face. What was down here that she could show him?

She smiled at him, and somehow that universal act of reassurance sent shivers down his spine. "Kakashi, you are one of my most trusted advisors. You should be allowed to see this."

The war had been won months ago; the Akatsuki defeated in a suicidal but extremely selfless act by Naruto. Kakashi knew that Minato would have been proud of his son. He had spent many months attempting to console Sakura; but in the end, his whole-hearted efforts went to waste. She simply didn't want to be comforted. A few weeks after she had attempted suicide, only to be stopped and put into a mental hospital.

Sasuke seemed rather indifferent at the sight of Naruto's death, and while Kakashi was happy that he hadn't turned out like Sakura, he was also livid that the raven didn't care for the one who saved him and brought him back to his home without any outward harm (or charges- remembers Kakashi bitterly. Sasuke didn't even have to go to court for all of the trouble and heartbreak he caused.)

Tsunade stopped suddenly, turning to a dark, seemingly empty stall. "Come out," she ordered, her voice unsympathetic and cold. Her speech loudly echoed, sending a vibration though the cheaply lighted halls. It unnerved Kakashi how she could be so kind to him and unfriendly to this prisoner. But then again, if this person was in jail, they probably didn't deserve anyone's kindness or redemption.

The person inside the cell laughed bitterly, emerging from the darkness. Kakashi's eyes widened at the figure, and the familiar crooked grin splayed unnervingly across its face. "Come to show me off, Tsunade, yeah?" the person teased, its voice sounding more playful than it had during battle. The shape's stormy blue eyes twinkled mischievously, the feature more childish than what stereotypes allow.

Tsunade frowned in annoyance, her eyebrow rising slightly. "After what you did, Deidara," said the big-breasted woman, her words sounding more like a growl than a statement, "No one would show you off." Deidara laughed at this declaration, his chuckle more dead than the normal types of insane one would associate with him.

"I suppose you're correct, Tsunade," he agreed, a tired smirk spreading lazily across his features. He honestly looked nothing like the deranged, rebellious murderer he, in all actuality, was.

"Tsunade-sama, why did you capture Deidara, when you could have just had him executed?" asked Kakashi, raising his eyebrow. Truthfully, it would've been much easier to kill Deidara. What would happen if he broke out? Many more innocents would be killed and villages would become wreckage. Not to mention, if the other lands found out they were harboring him, they would all turn against the Konoha. For this one act, they were at risk to another World War.

"Because, Kakashi," she orated officially, her voice almost stoic and uncaring, "All villains do crimes for a purpose, whether it is money, fortune, greed, fame, or revenge. It always has a motive. Always."

The bomber scowled, his eyes flashing dangerously. "Why is our motive important?" muttered the blond bitterly, "They're all dead. Dead and gone. It's not like knowing why we did all this shit is significant. We did it, and there's no possible way that we can ever do it again. So why the fuck do you need to know why the Akatsuki-"

"Silence," ordered Tsunade, her eyes hardening angrily, "I never said that we wanted to find out why the Akatsuki did all this. Kakuzu did it for money. Madara did it for power. Hidan did it for religion. Itachi, Sasori and Kisame did it for revenge. Konan and Nagato did it for peace. Zetsu did it for Madara. I already know why the Akatsuki did it," She smirked at the glaring blond, "I do not, however, know why you did it. Why you killed all these people. Why you committed crimes. Honestly, I don't even know if 'Deidara' is your real name. And I want to find out." She turned to Kakashi and smiled, the gesture once again unnerving him for a reason even he did not know. "That's why you're here, Kakashi. I know he won't tell me anything. But maybe… he'll tell you?"

And with that, she disappeared into the darkness of the hall, her heels making unsettling clicks as they hit the stone floor.

"Hello, Deidara. Are you ready for another session?"

The blond didn't answer, choosing instead to fixate his dead orbs at the floor in an almost dejected manner. The silence he held carried a cynical air, and the bitter half-smile on Deidara's face only added to that. It was honestly starting to freak the silver-haired man out.

Kakashi inwardly sighed. It had already been months of questioning, and the former Iwa-nin hadn't spoken a word since the first meeting. Their sessions usually consisted of him asking both personal and detached questions ranging from "How was your time in Iwagakure?" to "What was the relationship between you and Akasuna no Sasori like?" to "What is your favorite color?" to "Is blond your real hair color?" and the blond staring at him blankly in complete muteness. To be totally honest, Kakashi was growing desperate. The ex-Akatsuki member was not talking, and Tsunade was getting rather vexed. She claimed that his public execution would be in only a few weeks. The monotonous interrogation period was droning along almost completely like always.

"Deidara, did you have any friends in Iwagakure?"

No words were pressed out of the teenager at that question, his tired-like facial expression stayed splayed haphazardly across the boy's sympathetic face.

"Deidara, did you care about the Akatsuki?"

Deidara was silent, staring back almost dumbly at Kakashi.

"Did Sasori's death sadden you?"

Silence.

"Do you hate the Hidden Villages?"

Silence.

"What was your family like?"

Silence.

"What do you like to eat?"

Silence.

"Was being in the Akatsuki fun?"

Silence.

Kakashi stared at the boy, his eyes hard, and swallowed noticeably. This man, no, this kid, was going to be murdered in cold blood. Ice ran through the masked man's veins. Kakashi knew he had to man up to reality, though. This boy was a murderer, a criminal. He deserved what was coming to him. The masked man opened his mouth to speak, but he found no words to let go of and closed it again with a snap.

No matter what he said, Deidara was not going to speak.

Kakashi opened his mouth again, forcing harsh, realistic words through it. "Deidara. Your execution date is in exactly eleven days. Did you know that?"

Surprising him, the blond did react to those words, but not the way he had deduced he would.

Deidara's pessimistic half-smirk widened into an insane grin, the unnerving smile spreading almost to the sides of his face. Then, as quickly as it had come, it dyed down into a small, surprisingly heart-breaking smile. The blond's breathing came out harshly, and he slowly closed his eyes. His mouth released slightly in something almost akin to relief, as if about to speak, but no words came out.

Silence.

"You know, I did miss you, Kakashi."

Kakashi stared in shock at the blond. The same softly closed eyes, the same slight smile, the same faintly agape mouth. Nothing had changed, and Kakashi wondered whether he had actually heard those words or it was his imagination playing a cruel joke on him.

Suddenly, the stormy eyes opened almost sleepily, and his genuine smile widened marginally, the innocence in the expression shocking the masked into silence. This man was a murder. This man was a criminal. This man was-

familiar.

A dry, dark laugh escaped Deidara's chapped, bleeding lips. The sound was almost like a relieved sigh, in consideration. "I really did, yeah. I missed you a lot. I wished that you'd come save me. That you'd bring me home. But you… y-you never did." The blond choked, as if in pain. He stared hollowly at the ground, once again not looking anything like the killer he really was.

Kakashi stared incredulously as the immoral arsonist was reduced to a forlorn child. "Deidara," he started, his low voice calm despite his inner turmoil, "what happened to you?"

Deidara smiled bitterly, softly mumbling, "I wasn't let in," then, as if quoting someone, "Only family members are let in. The monsters need to be kept outside."

The silver-haired man opened his mouth to speak, but Deidara continued darkly, "They died because I was selfish. His life was ruined because I was selfish. I was already a freak but, he, he was normal… it wouldn't have been a big deal if it had been me instead. It should've been me, yeah. So… pathetic." A second laugh tugged at his lips, his eyes dark and acrimonious. Self-hatred burned in his stormy orbs, and Kakashi had the sudden urge to look away.

The blond stood up and smiled dryly. "I think I'm done here," he said, his voice hoarse and apologetic. Kakashi nodded slowly, smiling pleasantly at him.

"It was nice talking to you, Deidara," he stated politely, before ordering a clipped, "Guards, you may bring him to his cell," to the three chuunin at the door.

They nodded, two of which grabbing an arm and the other trailing behind. Kakashi could not help but noticing the shaky, tottering, gait in which Deidara walked. It seemed that all of the blond's energy and arrogance had died with the Akatsuki.

The overly-confident, insane, somewhat imprudent boy was gone.

Kakashi swallowed thinly, thinking over his thoughts, and a second blond, who also had been overly-confident, insane, and somewhat imprudent, that had also given his life away.

Eleven days later, when the masked man finally figured it out, he swore…

A silver-haired teen sauntered casually down the path, his hands in his pockets and whistling a cheerful tune. Suddenly, a flaxen flash of chaos and disarray tackled the boy into the ground, rambling chirpily about this and that. The teenager rolled his eyes and pushed the tornado-esque young boy off of him, snorting as the flaxen-haired child wailed pathetically.

"Kakashi-oji!" whined the three year old in a distressed manner, pouting slightly and pushing his extremely long, unruly golden bangs out of his eyes and peeking up from under them.

Kakashi exhaled roughly, ruffling the boy's disorderly, straight, shoulder-length hair and messing it up further, making the poor little blond squeal and scramble to escape the other's grip.

The silver-haired teen smirked slightly as he heard a slightly coarse, feminine voice scorn, "You're so mean to him, Kakashi."

He turned around, his smirk widening as he saw the mock-anger on the female's sympathetic facial features. "It's not my fault," stated Kakashi matter-of-factly,"that he's an annoying little shrimp, Kushina."

"Oi!" cried a boyish voice from under him, "I ain't little, yeah!" More struggling was attempted, Kakashi snickering lightly and effortlessly holding the rambunctious blond down.

"Oh yeah?" teased the older boy, "Then why're you so weak?" Kakashi let go, the young boy tottering out of his grip and shaking his head dizzily.

He glared darkly up at Kakashi, once again pushing his bangs out of his face. "Shut it, dummy! I'mma be big an' strong like Pops, then I'll kick your butt!"

Kushina rolled her eyes, shaking her head amusedly and making her long red locks hit against her rosy face and delicate neck. "Whatever, kit. Say goodbye to Kakashi and come on. We need to go to the market. I'm making nikujaga* for dinner."

The three-year old blinked and cocked his head to the side. "You mean, you're gonna try to make nikujaga, then get frustrated and allow Pops to pencil you in to buyin' ramen, yeah?"

The red-headed woman grinned proudly down at her son, nodding. "Good job, kit," she stated, ruffling his hair like Kakashi had done (albeit a lot gentler,) "you're finally learning how our family works." She sighed and rubbed her large stomach soothingly, mumbling, "I swear to Kami, by the time this kid comes out, he'll be hooked on ramen."

She reached out and grabbed the flaxen-haired boy's hand, not even wincing as something wet and slimy licked her own. Kushina rubbed his hand calmingly, smiling down at the slightly flustered boy in a motherly way, and then led him down the path towards the market place, pretending to be oblivious to the disgusted stares she got as she held the poor boy's hand.

Kakashi stared after them for a few minutes, and then snorted amusedly. Minato's family was so weird.

Explosions and loud cries littered the streets. Civilians and children ducked down, hiding wherever there was room; underground, under bridges, shops, alleyways, wherever they could escape the mayhem.

A young blond ran through the ashy streets, not running for cover, but, rather, away from it. The shaky sprint that the boy held led him through the city and towards the outskirts of the forest. In his sights, he saw the faint outline of a building. The young blond boy headed towards it, his pace becoming erratic as he slid hardly over logs and stepped on sharp stones and twigs with his bare feet.

He ran straight towards the closed entrance of the building, but was suddenly stopped by the two ANBU members guarding this single doorway. They pushed him back harshly, the boy crying out as he hit the forest floor.

One of the two sentinels glared darkly at the blond boy, as if inspecting him. His lips curled into something akin to a feral snarl. "Go away, brat. Only ANBU and family are allowed inside."

The three-year old blinked bemusedly, frowning slightly. "Eh?" he questioned, his lips twitching slightly, "But I am family. My mum is the one giving birth. I'm the son of the Yondaime Hokage, remember, yeah?"

The second ANBU sneered mockingly at the young child, crossing his arms sardonically. "Stupid kid," he stated coldly, the cruel smirk only widening at the blond's desperate expression, "The monsters are supposed to be kept outside."

"Remember, yeah?" mocked the other, making the second snicker callously.

"B-But I need to get in there," said the blond despairingly, "Mum'll wanna know I'm okay."

"Look, kid. No one cares about you. It'd help your mom if you didn't come in." The man's eyes hardened at the desperate boy, whose eyes filled with tears at the words.

"T-That's not true!" cried the blond boy, shaking his head violently.

The male grinned cruelly. "Oh, but it is. You're just a freak- a mutant. No one wants you here. You should just kill yourself already, and save us the trouble!"

Thrashing his head to the side fiercely with a snap, he ran away. Tears fell from his wild stormy eyes, streaming down his boyish face. Shrieks sounded around him as he slipped into a trench caused by the beast and scrambled up around it.

A loud, inhuman roar, announced that his arrival hadn't gone unnoticed by the being. His eyes widening wildly, he stumbled away as the creature attacked.

Crash! He jumped to the side to avoid its tail, the projectile breaking the ground and creating a crater just beside him.

Crash! Crack! He screamed as the projectile caught onto his leg, stumbling he attempted to get back up, futilely.

Crash! The world went black.

Weeks later, Iwagakure found a half-dead blond boy near the border between the Leaf and Stone. Claiming him to be of Iwa blood, they took him in carefully and treated a major concussion, as well as broken bones and bruised ribs.

This was notably the start of the boy's hell.

…But, by that time, Deidara was already lying in a pool of his own blood.

A blond blinked his stormy eyes, his head turning around to glance at the black room.

He wanted his parents. He wanted his brother. He wanted his Danna and his friends and his new family and the Akatsuki and his old clan.

But this time, he was alone.

Because not everyone gets a second chance…

A/N: Yeah. In my belief, Deidara is Naruto's brother. Why?

a) while most Akatsuki members (other than Itachi and Kisame) weren't that important to the plotline or very definate and distinguished, Deidara was given a very long, important role. This leads me to believe that his role is important to the plot in more ways than one, if you catch my drift.

b) his appearance. He has Minato's eyeshape, Kushina's eye color, Minato's hair color, and Naruto's skin color. Honestly, I find this to be more than enough evidence. ^^;

So yeah. Let me believe whatever I want, 'kay? I don't mind if you have a different opinion- actually, I encourage it, but please don't flame or disrespect mine. I understand that it's rather far-fetched... but yeah. Whatever. :)

R&R, please. 8D