22.

Naruto © Masashi Kishimoto
Bloodstream © Hurlstien

LURKING IN THE STEAM

(for the first time I had something to lose)

He smelled of heat and earth and blood. And it was all she could focus on as the cacophony of sound assaulted her. She felt his body shudder at the impact and hugged him tighter, squeezing her eyes, expecting the worst. But once the calm finally came and at the absence of pain, her body began to relax.

Dust and heat thickened the air as she pulled her face away from her saviour's neck. Her eyes travelled up to meet his, and not for the first time did he steal her breath. He crouched over her, a thick thigh on either side of her hips, one arm wrapped around her waist, the other planted on the ground. His skin was stained charcoal black and he gazed at her so intensely she couldn't take it. She buried her face back into his neck, breathing him in, her right hand squeezed his shoulder, desperately trying to commit the moment to memory. Before she knew it, stray tears escaped her eyes and broke down her cheeks.

Kakuzu closed his eyes and allowed himself to sink into the moment a few seconds more, before tightening his grip around her waist and pushing against the slab of ceiling that trapped them. He felt Hezā's metal arm around his neck curl closer as he lifted her up with him, her feet leaving the ground. In the heat of the moment he allowed his free arm to join his other around her waist, holding her to him as the debris slid from his back and thundered to the floor. Freed from the rubble, soft morning sunlight warmed them as they held each other.

Beneath her palm she felt his iron skin recede, his flesh becoming warmer and soft to the touch. Pressing her face into his neck, she didn't want to open her eyes, but the sounds of people alerted her to the fact they were no longer alone.

Kakuzu sensed them too and let Hezā back onto her feet. They caught each other's gaze before looking toward the sounds of a crowd gathering beyond the rubble. Together, they picked their way through the debris to find Jona's rebels, bloodied and beaten and significantly less in number, along with a growing group of civilians woken from their beds by the explosions. Bleary eyed and sleepy, many seemed to not know what was going on. But the awe struck and inspired chatter of the rebels came as a shock to Hezā.

'They're… happy?'

Sure enough, scanning the faces of the men and women before her, many sported smiles and were hugging each other, thankful they'd lasted the night. Amongst the glad faces, Hezā spotted Kazue, the redhead from the bar she and Jona visited days ago.

From behind her, a flurry of curses erupted and she glanced over her shoulder to lock gazes with Hidan looking a whole lot more beaten and bruised since last she'd seen him. The man's swears quieted as he reached her and he paused, before flopping a heavy hand on her head and giving her already messy hair a quick ruffle. His amethyst eyes left hers to meet Kakuzu's briefly, before the three of them looked back over the crowd who one by one began to bow.

Ice rippled through the girl and her expression grew slack at the response. She didn't know what to do other than stand there and try to take it all in as more and more people followed suit, like a domino effect, until the entire crowd was bowing to the three of them. Beside her she could feel her superiors were also struck with shock as the overwhelming and unexpected appreciation swept over them like a silent wave. Then, much like the bow had begun, one by one the villagers straightened and cheers and applause rose into the air.

From between the bodies a man carrying a camera pushed his way to the front and knelt before them, steadying his shot before snapping a photo. As he finished, Jona broke from the crowd and climbed up the rubble to join them. His pale and scuffed face full of anticipation as he glanced to each of them before settling on Hezā.

"Is he dead?" He asked. "Kioshi?"

Hezā swallowed and gave a sheepish nod. But instead of the negative reaction she'd expected, Jona's face fell into a relieved laugh and he turned, pumping a fist into the air. At his action a fresh round of hugs and cheers erupted, cries and howls of victory filled the air and an intense sense of happiness and pride surged in Hezā's stomach, reaching up into her chest. She struggled to catch her breath and felt her eyes water.

Beside her, she felt Kakuzu turn away and head back into the rubble, a second later Hidan followed him and she was left standing beside her uncle.

Jona turned to back to her, his expression apprehensive. "And what of my brother, Kyosuke?"

Hezā felt her heart sink as she shook her head.

Jona stared at her for a beat too long, then swallowed. "How?"

"... His blood."

Jona's eyes lowered and he nodded. "Still… You don't know how much this means to us, what this means to us," he said, his eyes watering from un-shed tears. "Thank you."

"It…" Hezā didn't know what to say. "It's okay." She watched as her uncle turned back to address the crowd and took the chance to take her leave. She made her way back through the rubble, spotting Hidan drag his scythe out from under a slab of ceiling. She found Kakuzu nearby, searching the debris for some unknown treasure.

"So you made it out, hmm?"

She knew that voice. And as she turned Hezā found herself in the shadow of an enormous clay bird, it's smirking rider silhouetted against the rising sun.

"Pretty impressive, wouldn't you say?"

"Impressive…" The girl paused. "Wait, this was you?"

"The one and only, hmm," Deidara grinned. "The guards were rushing the building once they realised it had been infiltrated. It made sense to take 'em out in one go."

"You gotta be shitting me," Hidan growled as he drew closer, scythe finally back in his grip where it belonged. "You ass-hat, what the fuck were you thinking?"

Deidara crossed his arms and turned up his nose. "You're all immortal one way or the other, right? Didn't think it'd be an issue for you."

Hezā's jaw clenched. "I'm not!"

Deidara quirked a brow -"Really?"- and shrugged off his wrong assumption. "My bad, hmm." But Hezā didn't miss the smirk at his lips.

"You ignorant shit, you drop a fucking building on us and all you have to say is 'my bad'?" Hidan yelled, when something flew past his face.

Kakuzu's blackened fist shot for Deidara's head. The blond's eyes snapped open and with a beat of its wings his bird narrowly heaved itself out of range. With a growl, Kakuzu whipped his forearm back to his side with a wet snap.

"And that's the thanks I get, huh?" The blond received little more than glares in response.

"I'll have words with the brat." The rumbling tone of Sasori reached them as Hiruko emerged from between two slabs of rubble.

"Che!" Hidan sneered at him. "He is your problem after all."

"Much like you are Kakuzu's."

"Fuck you, puppet-boy!"

"Enough bickering," Kakuzu said, "We need to find Kioshi's safe."

Hidan scowled at him. "What?"

"He will have had one hidden away in the house somewhere," he said, "This mission is a failure, the best we can do is take what we can and get out."

"Don't be so rash," Sasori said, "With Kioshi gone, this village will be under a new ruler soon. It's the ideal time to build a good relationship with them."

Hezā glanced at Kakuzu as he crossed his arms. Sure, he was good at getting money, but as far as building relationships was concerned, she guessed he was better at tearing them down than anything.

"I can do it," she said, and all eyes swept to her. "Jona was th'leader of th'rebels, an' he's my uncle. I'm sure he'd hear me out if I asked 'im 'bout further negotiation." She felt Kakuzu's eyes on her, but didn't meet them.

"Good," Sasori nodded. "Do your digging tonight, then let me know tomorrow." The puppet turned to shuffle off toward Deidara's clay bird as it drifted in circles close by. "We'll make camp on the outskirts of the village," he said, knowing all to well that Deidara would not be welcome to stay in Hidan's home after the shit he pulled. "Find me in the morning."

"Is this natural?" Kazue asked as she ran her fingers through Hezā's hair. She nodded and Kazue whistled, "Such a pretty colour."

"Um, thanks," Hezā said, looking down. "I never really thought about it."

The two women were currently in Kazue's bedroom, knelt before a mirror, where the red head prepared to work on pinning back Hezā's hair as best she could. Jona's voice could be heard floating up from downstairs as he and two of his friends chatted with Kazue's parents. Outside the street throbbed with people, the roar of the crowd clear even through the shuttered window. The impromptu festival had evolved into a huge success and in the late afternoon heat, alcohol ran like a river while a heavenly scent filled the air as people dug out everything they could find from their pantries and took to making as much food to share out as possible. And though she was excited, Hezā felt a heady anticipation rise in her stomach knowing she was one of the three people it was being held in honour of.

"Why did you cut it so short?"

Taking a strand between her fingers, Hezā thought back to the day of the empty oil drum and the clothes and hair she'd left to burn in it. "I was tryin' t'make a change… I had t'get stronger an' I guess it was a way of takin' that first step."

"Did it work?"

Hezā thought of Kakuzu and her lips twitched into a smile. "Yeah… still got a long ways t'go though."

"Wow… I could never do that- too scared," Kazue shook her head, "I don't think short hair would suit me."

Hezā furrowed her brow. "Actually… would y'mind cuttin' it for me?" She wound the strand around her finger, realising that she hadn't cut it since that day. "It's gettin' too long."

Kazue smiled and nodded. "Sure! Let me go get the scissors."

Hezā watched her leave in the mirror, then turned her head to the window, wondering where Hidan and a certain falls nin had gotten to. Once Kakuzu had found and broken open the safe, he'd discovered, to his chagrin, no money to be had. He'd disappeared after that.

At Hidan's command, Hezā had returned to the house and immediately passed out in the living-room. She'd sunk into ten hours of sleep and would have stayed there had Jona not shown up, banging at the door. Turned out they had been invited to the festival in their honour and Hezā had found herself swept up by her uncle who insisted she join him and his friends in their celebrations.

The thump of Kazue's footsteps brought Hezā back to the present and she and the redhead chatted while her hair was cut short at the back and left longer at the front, then pinned up, leaving wispy strands to frame her face.

Hezā had never been to a festival before and though Kazue found it odd, she had jumped at the chance to help the younger girl prepare for such an event, even going as far as to let her borrow a kimono for the night and getting ready with her. And when the redhead broke open her bag of make-up, Hezā lost herself in her staring at the variety of colours and tools that spilled onto the floor.

Kazue laughed. "I guess you don't have many girl-friends you can do this with, travelling like you do," she said, preparing a deep shade of red to paint her lips with and Hezā nodded.

"T'be honest, I've never had a friend I could do this with," she said, shrugging and enjoying the sensation of a brush against her lips to distract her from thoughts of Kemushi. "I've never done this."

"Well, do you like it?"

Hezā looked back to her reflection, her face looked younger with her hair pinned up and covered with white powder. Her eyelashes were dark with mascara and liner, her lips a deep red, matching the flecks in her eyes and she smiled. "Yeah." Kazue beamed back through the mirror. "It's nice to jus'…" She paused, trying to find the right word. "Relax." Dabbing her now red lips, Hezā let her gaze drift over the reflection staring back at her. "I've never looked…"

"So pretty?" Kazue finished. "Red suits you." Hezā blushed the same colour as her lips and Kazue laughed. "So tell me. What's with you and that man in the mask?" Kazue asked.

Hezā's heart skipped and she paused before shrugging. "Nothing."

Kazue scoffed. "It's not nothing. When you were stood in front of the crowd this morning, I saw the way he looked at you. Its the same look Jona gives me." She smiled. "And the look I return."

Hezā's brow raised. "What look?"

"Come now, Hezā, surely you've seen it… a look full of admiration and lust and fear."

Hezā blinked. "… Fear?"

"Yeah fear, you know… because now you have something to lose."

"Oh…" Hezā looked down and stayed quiet for a moment, before asking: "Y'like Jona?" Kazue's reflection blushed. "Back in the bar… didn't seem that way t'me."

"Well, he is an idiot." She said and pair laughed.

They proceeded to chat as they helped each other get dressed into their respective kimonos, Hezā's being a deep crimson with silver embroidery to match her make-up and Kazue's an emerald green and gold, complementing her fiery hair.

Walking through the street many people barely recognised her, but those who did stopped and bowed, catching her off guard. She returned the bow each time and listened as they thanked her. A few even asked after the two men she'd been standing with that morning and set her to thinking on the whereabouts of Hidan and Kakuzu once more.

"Umm, Hezā-sama?" A voice squeaked. "Hezā-sama?"

Hezā's cheeks burned. "S-sama?" Jona shot her a smirk as they turned to find a little girl with an eye patch clutching a pink flower in her hands.

The girl stared up at her with wide eyes, her little mouth hanging open, before she caught herself, bowed her head and offered up the flower. "For you." Hezā crouched down to take the plant and the girl looked up. "It's Heather. Like your name! I found some on the hills outside the village."

Hezā stared. "Y'did this for me?"

The girl nodded, her cheeks turning red. "It's pink, so it means good luck."

"So it does." Hezā smiled. "What's y'name?"

"Ichika…" The girl said as her eyes settled on the metal fingers curled around the flower stem. Hezā noticed and pulled the arm back into her sleeve, but a squeak stopped her. "Cah-can I see?"

Dumbstruck, Hezā nodded and held out her arm, pulling back the sleeve so the girl could get a better look.

"So cool!" Ichika balled her fists as her eyes roved over the prosthetic limb. "How did you get it?"

Hezā's smile turned sheepish. "I guess I was jus' lucky. If it hadn't been f'some very strong an' smart people I wouldn't be here talkin' t'you." She gestured to the girl's eye. "What about you?"

"It was an accident on the farm." Ichika's face fell and she ran her fingers over the eye patch. "Because of this I'll never be a ninja…"

Hezā bowed her head. "Well, I think it looks cool, like a pirate. An' y'know what pirates are?" Ichika shook her head. "They're fearless and strong! Survivin' out there on the sea takes guts."

"Oh yeah," Ichika's eyes grew wide.

"So that makes you fearless an' strong too, 'cause y'still here. Y'survived." Ichika's cheeks burned bright under the coloured paper lanterns. "Before I got my arm, I had t'make do with jus' one," Hezā said. "If you want to be a ninja, be a ninja. Nothing makes you stronger than overcoming your weaknesses."

Restraining an excited squeal, Ichika nodded eagerly and bowed once more before saying her goodbyes and disappearing into the crowd.

"You're good at this," Jona quipped from her side and Hezā shook her head.

"Not really," she said, "She jus' reminded me of me too much." Jona remained silent as they continued their stroll through the village. "I never thought t'ask," Hezā began, glancing at Jona as they meandered through the streets, leaving Kazue to chat with her friends. "You okay with Hidan bein' here, knowin' what 'e did?"

Jona twisted his lips. "Well, I'm not entirely happy about it, but there isn't much I can do considering he is one of the people who liberated us," he said. "Many of the civilians wouldn't recognise him anyway, not any more, and any ex-shinobi who would either left the village legally years ago and travelled to other villages to offer their services, or became rogues themselves… Hidan wasn't the only one to have that idea," he sighed. "Kioshi would have driven this village to ruin in pursuit of revenge… I think it's time the past was left in the past." His eyes drifted to the demolition site further down the street.

"Um… Sorry 'bout the…" Hezā trailed off, following his gaze.

Jona shook his head as their slow walk took them further from the festival. "Hidan wasn't alone in his opinion on the demilitarisation of Yugakure. Many were made jobless, and some even homeless when their skill-set didn't match up to civilian life."

"Seriously?"

"Mm," Jona nodded. "Even more were plagued with post-traumatic stress, and that only made it harder for them to adapt," he said, his gaze tightening. They stopped to perch on a low stone wall leading up to the razed building in question. "And then, when his father died and Kioshi took control, matters grew worse; there was less money available to look after those who needed help… That house became a symbol of oppression all on it's own. Hidan had nothing to do with it… I'm glad it's gone."

Hezā's eyes grazed over the rubble, trying to trace the exact place she and Kakuzu had held each other that morning. "If Kioshi was such a bad leader, what was Kyosuke doin' servin' 'im?"

Jona looked down at the mention of his brother's name. "Everything is relative. Everyone believes they're right. If they didn't, nobody would ever do anything… And who's to tell them otherwise? You? Me?" He shook his head. "No… Kioshi believed what he was doing was justified. Ditching the Akatsuki and hiring strong shinobi to risk going against them was a gamble he felt necessary to take. All to have a chance at killing Hidan… My brother believed what Kioshi was doing was right for the village. I know that. Just as I believed leading a rebellion was the right thing to do… Who is to say what is right?"

Hezā sighed. "So what 'appens now?"

Jona took a deep breath. "Not sure. Though I don't think the people are so eager to allow their village to be led by just one person anymore… Perhaps a council would be best, and the members would be those voted for by the villagers. Those most trusted to do right by the village and it's people."

"Sounds good," Hezā said. "And… what about Akatsuki?"

Jona quirked a brow. "What about them?"

"Do you think the village would ever consider their protection again?"

Her uncle was silent for a moment, then gave a nod. "Perhaps. While under their protection our village never suffered, so they have a clean record going for them… Not to mention what happened today." He looked at her. "I never did ask; do you work for this group?"

"Uh, no, I… I guess I jus'… also have their protection," she said. "I'm Hidan an' Kakuzu's subordinate. I travel with 'em and help 'em when I can."

Jona made a humming sound. "Well that makes me feel a little better, you're the only family I have left now," he said, before his tone turned cautious. "… And those two certainly seem strong."

"They are." Hezā chewed her lip. "I should'a said it earlier… I'm sorry 'bout Kyosuke."

Jona nodded, a small sigh escaping him. "It had to happen sooner rather than later; his eyes were completely red the last time I saw him."

Hezā let her gaze drift and gently shook her head. "It came on so suddenly. One second we were fightin', th' next… I didn't know what t'do, I-" she paused, pursing her lips and closing her eyes. "… He's my enemy, I should kill 'im. He's my family, I should save 'im." She met her uncle's gaze again. "Not that I could'a done anythin' t'help… in the end I jus' held 'is hand."

Jona reached out and poked the scar on Hezā's cheek. "He would've been happy with that," he said. "When we found out our sister had abandoned you, he seemed to take it the hardest… He was a family man. He should have been a father. And he'd always hoped he would get to meet you, as unlikely as that seemed back then." Silence spread between them and Jona let it settle for a few minutes, while Hezā stared into space, absorbing what he'd told her. "Kyosuke truly believed in Kioshi and what he was doing. He served him 'till the end," Jona said. "He never stopped being a shinobi… not really.

"But enough about such depressing matters," Jona sighed and smiled, putting a warm hand on her shoulder. "This is your night. You should enjoy it."

The remainder of the evening passed by in a cocktail of colours and laughter, but abstaining from too much alcohol, it wasn't long before Hezā excused herself. Returning to Kazue's house, she returned the kimono and changed back into her Akatsuki pants, sandals and dark blue, v-neck tank, then made her way back to Hidan's home. Opening the front door she was surprised to find the camp fire in the back garden alight, its flames drawing her eye through the kitchen window. Closing the door behind her, she slipped off her sandals and stepped through the house, making not a sound as she reached the back door. She half expected to find Hidan or Kakuzu or both sat by the fire, but no familiar face greeted her.

Feeling her heart sink a little, she sat down, crossed her legs and enjoyed the warmth of the flames. Sighing and tilting back her head to listen to the crickets, her mind wondered off to thoughts of emerald eyes and a warm body against her own.

And from the rooftop behind her a green eyed guardian kept watch.

I dreamed of you

The words echoed in Kakuzu's ears as he woke, the dream of the woman who'd spoken them fading like stars in the morning light. His eyes opened to look upon a sky stained pink with the sunrise and he breathed in deep. Like clockwork, his chakra reached out for hers, to find the comforting pulse of it still sleeping in the garden. He sighed and closed his eyes.

I dreamed you were lost in the dark and so was I… We found each other. We found each other in the dark.

The memory the words belonged to had occurred in a tea house back in Waterfall, where Akina had sat across from him and told him of her own dreams as she swirled her green tea around in its cup.

But I'm not lost, he'd said. And neither are you.

She'd looked down then, a smile one might describe as sad tugging at her lips. Perhaps.

Kakuzu didn't move from his spot laid out on the roof of Hidan's home as he let the memory wash through him. Her words repeating in his mind until they became nothing more than blurred whispers. He hadn't been lost back then… but he was now. Had been for a long time. And perhaps, though it seemed so absurd to him, perhaps it hadn't been herself Akina had seen lost in the dark with him all those years ago.

Kakuzu sighed and sat up, letting his gaze fall to the girl curled by the smoking remains of the fire below.

They looked so much alike. And God only knew the girl was lost. She always had been.

'She probably always will be.'

He wrinkled his nose and got up.

The morning air chilled his skin and dew coated his bare feet when he dropped down into the garden. Stopping by the smouldering remains of the fire and Hezā's sleeping body, Kakuzu allowed himself a moment to breathe. He closed his eyes, feeling his lungs expand and blood rush, before beginning a set of stretches.

Meandering around the little garden, gently twisting his core and folding his limbs, his chakra system throbbed and his muscles ached. A growl worked up from his throat when his deltoid gave an unexpected twinge. He couldn't remember the last time he felt so exhausted.

The poison. It was the only thing he could think of. That, and fighting so soon after his recovery.

A disapproving grunt escaped him and he began a series of kicks. It didn't take long before he sensed another. A chakra system he'd studied so often now it was as familiar to him as his own.

Kakuzu ignored the joy he felt when Hezā wordlessly took her place by his side and did her best to copy his movements.

They practised together in silence, stepping through sequences and enhancing muscle memory until Kakuzu found himself fully warm. He took a discreet look at Hezā, noting her concentration and the shine of sweat on her brow. She had stopped copying him some time ago and now took to repeating a series of kicks, straining to get the steps just right in order to keep from losing her balance as she twisted into the next sequence.

For the briefest of moments, Kakuzu paused. Then swept into a roundhouse aiming for the girl's head.

He cracked a grin when she ducked, and deflected her incoming series of punches with ease, noting how flowing they'd become since last they'd trained. Efficient. Less wasted energy. She was learning, and fast.

He ducked beneath her left hook, feeling the strength of it as it rushed overhead and he pulled out a kunai, swiping for a her shoulder. The girl's eyes flashed to the blade and she twisted, putting the scratched metal of her arm between it and her skin. The clang of metal on metal sang in the silence of the morn and Kakuzu pushed into the attack, bearing down upon her and forcing her back a step. He heard her growl as she lowered her crouch, finding strength in her new stance and at once they forced each other away, both leaping back.

Hezā's eyes caught the flick of his wrist and pinpointed the kunai as it flew for her face. Using her chakra to help her trace the knife, she threw up her left arm and snatched it from the air, surprising herself with her own accuracy.

If her opponent was impressed, he didn't show it as he lunged forwards. Swapping the knife to her right hand, Hezā stepped back into a defensive stance. She slipped past his punch and swept the knife for his ribs as their bodies twisted past each other. She missed and instead felt his ankle hook her foot and she fell to the ground. Landing on her back she tried to kick into a backwards roll, only to find herself restrained by Kakuzu crouched over her, one hand finding her metal wrist and a knee resting not too heavy on her stomach. She pulled up her leg, hooking it over the knee in her belly and pushed it off. Following up with a pump of chakra to her foot, she kicked it into the dirt, pushing them both over and found herself straddling Kakuzu's torso, kunai at his throat. They froze.

Chest heaving and eyes wide, Hezā felt the fight leave her and she was lost in his stare.

Kakuzu kept his gaze on hers, feeling her body lower its guard as he slowly lifted his hands, before grabbing her hips and flipping them over once more. The girl in his grasp did nothing, one hand fisted in the material of his shirt, the other still pressing that cold steel into his throat. He could feel it push against his jugular with every beat.

"This is sickening… would you two just fuck already?" Hidan's voice boomed from the porch. "It's driving me nuts, seriously."

Watching Kakuzu's eyes tighten, Hezā had never been so overwhelmed with the desire to die on the spot. Her cheeks burned as Kakuzu pushed himself to a stand and marched back towards the house.

Hidan shifted his feet as his partner drew closer, a sly smile spread on his face, but Kakuzu walked right past him, not even sparing him a scowl. The priest watched the man retreat into the house before swinging his head back to Hezā who remained lying on the ground. "The fuck's up with him?"

Hezā's fluctuating chakra was easy to pinpoint in the lazy afternoon heat, and Kakuzu followed it until he found her in the village graveyard, knelt before a moss-stained headstone. He stopped a few paces behind her and knew she felt him, her chakra soothing in his presence.

He looked over her shoulder to see the name Yūdokuna Rin etched into the worn, pockmarked stone. "Who was she?"

The girl was silent for a moment before answering. "My mother."

Kakuzu recalled her telling him she'd been abandoned in a small, backwater village where Orochimaru found her years later. After that her life had only seemed to get worse. He barely remembered his own mother; she died when he was a kid from a plague that had swept through the Waterfall village. His Shinobi father followed soon after, having lost his life during a clan skirmish on the outskirts of the country. Kakuzu had been left alone, funnelled into the half-baked system that was Takigakure's answer to an overflow of war orphans, and quickly grew to be the perfect child soldier. His life hadn't changed much since.

The presence of another's chakra riled him and he turned to find the girl's uncle entering the yard. He glowered in response and turned his attention back to Hezā. "Don't be long." he said and left the graveyard, sparing one last scowl at Jona. The man smiled cheerily back.

Feeling Kakuzu leave, Hezā greeted her uncle and she lifted a hand to pick a growth of moss from the gravestone before her. "Tell me about our Kekkei Genkai," she said and felt Jona shift behind her.

"What do you want to know exactly?"

"Durin' my fight with Kyosuke there was a moment where I felt pressure b'neath my skin," she said, "Then it jus' seemed t' release."

"Poison." Jona said. Hezā nodded. "It's pretty uncontrollable to begin with. It comes with practise."

"It's 'appened b'fore," Hezā said, "I spat acid at an opponent an' it burned through 'is sleeve."

"Well that doesn't surprise me; Rin was always very good at the acid techniques," Jona sighed. "Unfortunately the higher level jutsu of our clan are usually only unlocked through real fear of death. In many cases they won't even kick in - only those of purer blood will ever be able to access them."

"Did y'ever unlock yours?"

Jona was silent for a moment. "Yes. And my team mates paid the price." Hezā shot him a look, prompting him to continue and the man rubbed the back of his neck. "Years ago, when I was a Chunin, my squad and I got caught up in a situation we weren't prepared for. One of my closest friends was murdered before my eyes and I gassed the enemy in my fury. Unfortunately I wasn't able to control the poisons spread… I quit my life as a shinobi after that."

"I'm sorry."

Jona gave a one shouldered shrug. "It was years ago. The pain goes away and the memories remain."

Hezā thought of Kemushi and swallowed, looking back to the grave for a distraction. Her mother's name stared back at her.

"Are you okay?"

"I think so," she said, tracing the name with her fingers. "If it's like y'said, an' everythin' really is relative… if no one knows why she abandoned me then it's whatever I choose t'believe- an' I believe she had a reason." She dropped her arm and stood to look at him. "An' whatever that reason was, good or bad, it had t'be more important than me, so… that's why she did what she did. An' I'm not gunna let it get me down."

Jona stared at her, then pulled her into a tight embrace. She hugged him back and he felt the cool metal of her arm press through his clothing. He still hadn't asked her how she lost the original. But now wasn't the time. Today was the day she was leaving. And though he still had a meeting to attend with one her colleagues, a man named Hiruko, her job here was done. They walked together to the outskirts of the village to find her superiors waiting beneath the boughs of the trees marking the border of the surrounding forest. Before they drew too close they stopped.

"Why do you stay?" asked Jona.

Hezā was silent for a moment as she regarded Hidan and Kakuzu, the former slumped against a trunk, fiddling with his rosary, the latter studying a map. She smiled. "I'll regret it if I don't."

Jona nodded. "Following your heart… that's a brave way to live."

Hezā gave him a small smile, "I was afraid you'd call me an idiot an' tell me not t'go."

"Well, I'd be much happier if you didn't," he sighed and looked down at her. "But who am I to say what is best for you? It's your life and you need to live it… Just remember I'll always be here for you." Her smile fell and he poked the scar on her cheek. "You'll be all right… It's in your eyes," he said and gave her a wink. "Go. Live a life to remember."

Hezā swallowed, nodded and turned to leave, then paused. She spun back and pulled him into one last hug. Tight and almost desperate.

He laughed, curling one arm about her shoulders and resting the other on her head. "I'll be here." He felt her nod into his chest, before she broke the embrace and left. Watching his niece walk away from him to join the two Akatsuki, Jona swallowed the lump in his throat. "You made many mistakes sister… but abandoning that girl was your worst one."

Sorry this is so late!
I had no internet for weeks, broke my phone with all my notes and the last 2000 words of this thing refused to be written.

Not to mention its long as fff-!

I honestly think Kishimoto wasted Hidan's character (and Kakuzu's!).
I know how hard it is adapt to civi life. And though he didn't go about it in the best way, I can understand why Hidan was so pissed about it.
Though, I doubt the way I've written it is the canon reason why he abandoned his village! His character is painted out to be a true psychopathic killer with no redeeming qualities.
But it's fun to speculate and dream!

After all, it's what this story is about; seeing the good in evil.

Thank you for reading