Title: Quotidian
Author: firefly
Rating: M
Genre: Drama/Suspense
Chapters: 9
Words: 75,748
Status: Complete
Fandom: Naruto
Pairings: Hidan/Temari (sort of, not really)
Summary: When she accepted the graveyard shift of border patrol, Temari expected to find nothing but snakes and scorpions nestled between the dunes of dark sand. Amongst them, the last thing she expected to find was a missing nin out for a midnight prayer.
Link: FFN

I've looked around and haven't seen this posted anywhere yet, so I'll go ahead and recommend it.

This story is about a relationship, but it is not a romance. It's also possibly the best characterization of Hidan I've read so far, and really delves into his personality far beyond the "immortal masochist who curses a lot and really likes killing" surface.

I'm really not sure how to exactly describe this story, but I know that it's a work of art. The prose is well constructed, the imagery beautifully horrifying, and the characters wonderfully insane. It's enough to keep the reader slightly off balance for the entire ride, and yet begging for more at the end. This is the kind of text that I would have expected to be reading for a creative writing assignment, except this is a fanfiction.

This likely isn't everybody's cup of tea, but if you like artistically beautiful toxic trainwrecks, you'll probably love this. 5/5 for me.

 

It's been so long pinned to the Review Board without any reviews. Is no one reading Naruto any more?

If it gains no reviews within the next five days, I'll move it into Almost Recommended despite the ratings (obviously it's not worth to be reviewed).


EDIT: Ok - it got at least a few votes now. Thus -> library

 

I've read this ages, and while I can't remember the particulars and specifics of the story, stuff like scenes or lines, I do remember it being excellent and loving it. Then again, all of firefly's stuff is worth reading.

She writes a lot with Temari and usually does a great job with her, so, yeah, doubt this story is the exception. Giving it a 4 out of 5, simply because there are stories where even after years of not reading them, I still remember scenes and lines vividly and this was unfortunately not one of them.

 

Do you have to be a certain level to review a story ?
on the story itself it was really good but not exactly my cup of tea

 

This was a fascinating read.

Two ninja who find themselves hating each other so much that it warps who they are simply isn't your typical kind of story. Yet it's suits the conflict-ridden and hate-filled shinobi world in its own way.

It's a rare thing to have one focus on Temari despite being a solid character and just as rare to see Hidan in a role outside of just being one of the more psychotic members of Akatsuki. Some writers might make him more dangerous and threatening than his lackluster showing the manga but no-one ever actually gives him character.

I like how it builds on Temari's general hatred for Akatsuki after kidnaping (and essentially murdering) her brother by having Hidan act in such a way that it develops into a very personal kind of hatred. Sacrificing innocents for his beliefs while she's not in a position to actually stop him - and questioning whether she'd even be capable of it - and stimulating her paranoia about what he might do and she's not there to deal with him.

Hidan's own desire to end his immortal life and his justification for the existence of Jashinism were an interesting look at his character. He was made immortal as a reward for his massacres in Jashin's name and I always assumed that he volunteered for it but I never considered that he may not necessarily have wanted to become immortal in the first place.

It's definitely a twisted kind of tale but I wouldn't say no to reading more like it.

4/5