Naruto 1. Chapter 1

Deidara steps carefully in this place, the place where according to Zetsu, his Danna has died. He looks around, hoping that for the first time, Sasori is kidding. Somewhere in the gloom, a rock falls. Deidara moves forward, catches sight of something that just might be Sasori… No, just an empty shell of a puppet, still caught in the air. The blades on its back almost look like wings at first, making the whole image like a broken angel.

"Danna?" Deidara asks, standing on tiptoe, as if to check for a pulse even though he knows there won't ever be a sign of life from the puppet. He stops, afraid to confirm what he knows to be true.

A sound of rustling fabric on the rocky floor, followed by a hiss of pain and a thud. Deidara spins on the spot, eyes scanning every surface for the source of the noise. The last thing he wants is to be attacked while in mourning.

"Who's there?" He asks. The enemy sounds in pain, but Deidara is in no shape to fight. He's already exhausted the last of his strength. The bomber takes a step out of the light, attempting to hide his missing arms from view.

"Brat… Over here…" Deidara is there before the sentence is finished; kneeling beside what he thought was just a pile of broken weapons. Looking closer he can see the three blades shining in what sunlight can reach the shadows. He begins pulling at the puppets that he assumes must be crushing Sasori and all he can think is that it's going to be okay because Sasori's alive and he'll be forgiven.

But then he recognises the bright red hair and feels like screaming. Sasori is lying face down in the dirt with various sharp weapons sticking out of him. Even so, Deidara remembers that the worst thing that could happen is Sasori being angry at having to be rescued. Gently, he turns Sasori on his side. No reaction, but soon the puppets eyes snap open and look to the side.

"You're a little late, Brat." He says, closing his eyes again. Deidara curses aloud, shaking Sasori a little. His eyes don't open until the bomber pulls him into his lap. The swords shift a little and Sasori yelps in pain and shock, meeting Deidara's gaze.

"Danna, you'll be okay, un, Zetsu knows healing jutsu, un, he'll be right here!" Deidara chokes out the sentence, still in shock. He looks around, as if he can summon the plant-man simply by saying his name. Sasori looks up at Deidara, revealing a crack running right across the left side of his face. He smiles in a way Deidara has never seen before, more bitter than happy. Sasori never smiles unless Deidara's there. With shaky movements, Sasori reaches a hand to try and wipe away the tears that are already forming in Deidara's eyes.

"And I thought you didn't care about me?" He says, almost amused. Deidara doesn't see the joke.

_I wish I'd never met you! I wish you were gone!_

Maybe Sasori can see thememories rushing through Deidara's mind, because he leans in a little closer, wraps his arms around his soon-to-be former partner.

"What happened to your arms?" He asks, without moving. Deidara turns away, embarrassed by showing weakness even now.

"It doesn't matter, you're more important…" But Deidara knows it does matter, because it means he can't hold Sasori one last time before he's gone forever.

"There has to be a way, Danna, un!" Deidara's not making any effort to hide his tears now.

"It's Sasori…I'm Sasori." Deidara is confused, before he notices the glazed look in Sasori's eyes. Was he dreaming? Of what?

"I know, Sasori, un, just keep talking, un…" Deidara's voice fades to a whisper, and Sasori wakes up again.

"Who said you could call me by name?" Another strange smile. Deidara recognizes the conversation from when they'd met.

"See, un? You'll be fine…" Deidara's clutching at strings now. Sasori shakes his head in pity. Even now, he's annoyed by his partner's stupidity.

"It's over…" He says, just so he believes what he's saying. "But… I was so close…" Sasori moves so he's resting on Deidara's shoulder, taking care not to accidentally kill him.

"Deidara…" The tears have stopped now, but at the sound of his name, Deidara can't help but let another teardrop fall.

"Yes?" There's no answer, and for a moment Deidara wonders if Sasori is already gone, but then there's something, barely audible.

"I'm scared…" Then there really is nothing, save for the sound of two heartbeats turning to one, and a promise.

"I'll bring you back Sasori…whatever it takes."

_At the end of the world_

_The last thing I see_

_You are never coming home_

_Never coming home_


	2. Chapter 2

It should be pointed out, I'm honestly not expecting anyone to read this, hence the lack of A/N in this thing. That said... thanks for reviewing anyway ^^

Ali, this is a much belated present, enjoy it or I will eat your soul.

* * *

This is the room, where Sasori is, for sake of Deidara's sanity, sleeping. He's been there for almost a month now, but nobody comes near. There's a glass panel that splits the room in half, with access to each via a glass door. Get close and you can see the explosive tags. But by then, you're probably too close. Deidara isn't taking any chances. The base is in Suna, a simple underground structure, built for this kind of emergency. It's small, cramped, and definitely not built to house the six criminals that have found their way there, one way or another.

Deidara carried Sasori's body there himself, using Tobi's help to seal off the room. Zetsu soon went to tell Pein, and fetch Kakuzu. Hidan was just an extra annoyance, and definitely not a welcome one. The immortal didn't mind all that much, he was used to that kind of treatment from the others, but Deidara… He'd never seen Deidara quite like this. The man was almost obsessive over his plans. He hadn't stopped searching, this past month. Hidan had accompanied him to the city, hoping to get a real conversation from the blond.

It was hot, and dusty, and nothing like what Hidan was used to. This was his first time in Suna, and he was beginning to wish he hadn't practically begged to go along with Deidara. It was a wonder that Tobi had let go of his 'sempai' for even a few hours, which was all this little distraction should take. That was the thought that was keeping the immortal from whining, that and the fact that if he quit, or messed up, he had no chance with Deidara. Not like that, not after last time. It was a one-time thing, and it screwed everything up so badly that even Hidan knew it wasn't worth trying again.

"Dei?" Damnit, he'd vanished again. Hidan picked at the shirt he was wearing as part of his disguise. After Deidara's last trip to Suna, they weren't likely to forget the uniform, and a fighting off half the town wasn't really on their agenda. Then again, Hidan could use a bomb or two right now – The streets in this place were too narrow to fit this many people. It didn't exactly scare him – but it did make the immortal slightly nervous. And now he'd lost Deidara. All in a days work, for the most incompetent member of akatsuki. Hidan sat down on a nearby doorstep, pulling himself away from the crowds. It was times like these that he freaked out, and that would ruin Deidara's plans. Hidan looked towards the door. Hell, a little breaking and entering was nothing compared to what he'd done. Provided no-one was in there, it shouldn't be a problem. Even if they were, they wouldn't slow him down too much.

Hidan didn't do careful, but he could just about manage quiet, if he had to. The noise of the crowd drowned out the sound of the lock breaking, and the creak of the door swinging open. It shut quickly, and Hidan was inside.

It was dark in here. Again, not the perfect situation, but good enough. Slowly, Hidan made his way up the stairs. He needed to be outside, lots of space. He was developing a genuine hatred for the desert town. Was everyone here short or something?

Hidan found his way onto the hallway. No ladder up to the roof, so he'd be using the old fashioned wall climb. He opened the first door he came to. Surprisingly, it was light in here. Hidan made straight for the window. Some fresh air sounded good right about now. This place stank of dust and… well, old stuff. As if it had been abandoned for a long time. Hidan looked out onto the street. He was higher up than he'd thought, which made him feel a little better.

"Damn it…" Hidan cursed aloud, realizing that the window had lost its catch long ago. He couldn't even prise it open, since it was stuck well into its round frame. Who the hell had round windows anyway? Without thinking, fist and glass connected, spraying broken glass into the air outside. There were a few startled shouts from below, which meant Hidan would have to be leaving shortly, one way or the other. Not that he'd even considered that. He was too busy breathing in, keeping himself calm. He hated these kinds of situations. Next problem – actually getting out the window. Now that Hidan stopped to think about it, the frame was kinda… small. Fairly obviously, Hidan wasn't. Was this room some kind of prison? For the first time, Hidan noticed his surroundings. A single bed at an angle to the window, like it had been shoved out of place. A desk, and a lot of dust. This was a child's room, he realized. Of all the places to wind up…

Footsteps, coming upstairs, quickly.

"Anyone in there?!" _Fuck._ Hidan could imagine exactly what Kakuzu would say, and do. It wasn't that though, that made him make the worst decision of his life. It was imagining the look on Deidara's face when he realized Hidan had fucked everything up for him. _Again._

Hidan dived under the bed, and immediately regretted it. It was dark, and dusty, and Hidan was beginning to twitch quite badly. The footsteps were getting louder, and the door creaked open. Two men, both quite old. The kind of people who stayed at home sick whenever something came up. They didn't even think to check properly, leaving in a hurry. For a few seconds, Hidan lay there, remembering that they always came back. Then he heard the explosion, away behind him. Hidan breathed a sigh of relief, clambering out from his hiding place. His foot connected with a loose floorboard, which sprang up and tripped Hidan over.

"Fuck!" Hidan cursed as quietly as possible. It was pretty likely that whoever was following him would be out looking for the cause of the explosion. It seemed that even with an important mission, Deidara couldn't resist a show.

The space beneath the floorboard seemed to be full of paper and other odd pieces. Hidan flicked through some of them before feeling a little guilty about disturbing something that was obviously important to someone. The feeling didn't last too long, and soon the immortal was searching around for more loose floorboards. Hey, curiosity never hurt anyone, right?

Satoshi hadn't been in this job too long. After fucking up on over ten separate missions his superior had decided to hand him over to the Suna Archive team – all he had to do was look smart and stop people from getting in. Most idiots could manage it with little effort, but Satoshi was no ordinary idiot. In fact, you could almost say he deserved exactly what was coming to him.

It had been another routine day. Walk around, check shelves, walk around, check shelves, the usual. By now he was on the basement level, the lowest of all. Hardly anyone ever came down here, so it was quite a surprise when Satoshi turned a corner to find a very, very beautiful woman attempting to climb the shelves. Almost as soon as he appeared, she slipped, falling to the floor in a cloud of dust.

"Ow, ow! Help!" She shrieked. Satoshi was there in a flash, because even an idiot like him could spot a girl just waiting to be rescued. Well… maybe that wasn't entirely what he had in mind, but chivalry works in mysterious ways.

"Are you okay, miss?" The girl suddenly looked angry before going back to her normal expression.

"Oh not at all… I was here looking for something for the… the… my boss…un…" The girl blinked innocently. Something about her voice... it just seemed a little _too_ high pitched. Satoshi looked blankly back down. She looked kinda familiar, but he just couldn't place her. And what was with that 'hmm' thing?

"Well, let's see if I can help you out there!" Satoshi helped the girl to her feet. She smiled gently at him, batting her eyelashes.

"I'm looking for a certain jutsu…" Their conversation carried them through the library, eventually ending with a yell of confusion and pain, followed by a distinctly male voice detailing exactly what would happen if Satoshi didn't hand over the keys to the forbidden jutsu _right that second_.

In Deidara's mind, it was better that a dumbass like that couldn't reproduce anyway.

---

Hidan had pulled up most of the floor by now, and was still only halfway through the papers. Most of them were old and yellowy, some of them even looked like they had rotted. From what he could make out, they were sketches of something. Art really wasn't his thing, but this wasn't the kind of stuff that kids drew. It was the kind of thing they gave you back in the temples, so you coukd tell the difference between body parts.

He was pondering over this as the shouting resumed downstairs, followed by a sudden sensation of heat. He looked down slowly, just as the floor collapsed, sending him hurtling towards the ground below. Was this Deidara's revenge? It hurt like hell, anyway. Cursing, Hidan crawled his way out of the wreckage, ignoring the cries for help coming from the street. Deidara would be waiting for him, so no matter.

As soon as he was clear, Hidan was accosted by various townspeople, all wanting to know if he was okay, what a miracle this was.

"I'm with akatsuki." He muttered, pushing them aside. He wasn't in the mood right now. Part way down the street, a couple of people tried to grab hold of his still-flaming cloak, only to be thrown off with some force into neighbouring buildings. Deidara was waiting, a few feet off the ground. He reached out a hand, which gave Hidan a customary lick as he used it to pull himself up and onto the clay bird. He gently patted out most of the flames, leaving a couple still burning. Eh, they'd go out soon enough once they were airborne.

At which point, he fell asleep. He couldn't deal with this crap all over him.

---

Deidara looked down at the sleeping immortal on the bird next to him, wondering, not for the first time, if things were ever going to be the same.

Normally Deidara would at least use a med kit to treat the injuries, but already he could see the scorch marks fading away, burnt skin slowly healing. Hidan rolled over in his sleep, almost sending himself plummeting to the ground below. _Again._

Sasori hated flying. Or at least, he hated flying with Deidara. Irritated by his thoughts, the bomber pulled the bird into a dive, hurtling towards the ground before stopping just in time.

"For the love of all things holy, don't do that again!" Hidan warned with his customary whine. Deidara bit back a grin, instead choosing to simply hop off the bird and land neatly on the forest floor.

"Pit stop, they'll be way behind us by now." Deidara set to work manipulating the clay for less speed and more control. Hidan sat still, watching with feigned interest, occasionally shifting.

Less sharpness on the wings, they needed to move quietly. Lose the claws, they weren't carrying anything important. This one would be a masterpiece. Deidara smiled almost maniacally.

"Something up, Blondie?" Hidan was stood right behind Deidara.

"Fixing something, un." Deidara was too absorbed in his art to stop for conversation. Forget that, the wings ought to be sharper, so they could cut through the air.

"Dei-chan…" Hidan whined. "How long are you going to take on this thing?"

"Just a minute, un…" Deidara fixed one tiny detail and stepped back to admire his work. Hidan didn't give him the chance, jumping on board before Deidara could see things properly. Sighing, the blond joined him, reluctantly.

"You've been thinking about Sasori a lot, haven't you?" The quiet tone surprised Deidara.

"No shit, un!" He smiled, trying to laugh it off before noticing the real nature of his sculpture. Sure, it would fly just fine. But it did hold a couple of similarities with a certain person. The helicopter wings, the ever so slightly pointed tail... right down to the kanji written on it's neck. It said Sasori. Suddenly Deidara just snapped, there and then. He lay down on the bird, shaking and sobbing quietly. He felt Hidan pull him into an embrace.

"I'm sorry I fucked everything up for you, Blondie." He says, reluctantly. Deidara wants to say that he didn't, it was all his own fault, but he doesn't. Instead he pushes the man away and wipes his tears. Panic over. Time to go back home.

"You should be, un." Deidara half-growls, taking off like nothing had happened.

* * *

In my own personal fanon, those two were so totally dating at one point .

Apologies for the lack of updates, next chapter might just get out on time. Maybe.

(AND IT SHOULD BE BETTER)


End file.

Naruto, Hurt-Comfort, Romance