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Winter Release	By : Cepheus Category: Naruto > Yaoi - Male/Male Views: 1260 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 1
Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto, nor any of the characters from it. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

Chapter List
- 21
- 22
- 23
THIS IS UNBETAED BUT UPPED FOR
ITACHI�S BIRTHDAY, WHICH IS TODAY, 09�06�2007 � will reup BETAed version when
it comes to me.

Thanks to all the reviewers! Please
go read Endless Night�s update too ^^

Cepheus: sorry
for this long lateness on my part. I had some problems, and needed some time.

I
underestimated Itachi�s past. It needs one more flashback�thingy to be really
completed.

And, for
all the ones who wanted Itachi in this, there is a small part on him. I will
speak more about him in later chapters, ok?

Now read
and enjoy!

��

Next update: I don�t
really know� but I�ll try to return to one update every month or so.

Rating: M (or is it higher?)

Summary: Kyuubi�s secret out. Akatsuki
attacking. Fighting for strength, and falling for your ex�best friend�s older
brother. Maybe Naruto will have to deal with more than he imagined�

Warnings: yaoi,
boy x boy relationship, angsty, torture, and such.
Mental torture as well. Flames will be used to warm up food. OC warning as
well.

Disclaimer: Not own Naruto. Masashi Kishimoto
does.

�Talking�
�Thinking�
�Flashbacks, memories, dreams�

��

Winter Release

Chapter 22: Present

The silence
was deafening.

It felt like
there had never been silence before; murmurs and whispers had been rumbling in
the back of his mind, his subconscious masking them away from him, but they had
always been there.

Once more and
again, eyes fixed on what was in front of him. It felt like he�d never focused
on something this desperately, almost as if there had never been something this
real around him.

And it was
simply what it was, nature, trees, grass and the eerie silence that didn�t
belong to him, didn�t belong to this.

There had
never been silence where he appeared, because everyone had always whispered.
Being it for appreciation, jealously, admiration or hatred, whispers had been
there.

Senses not
fully grasping on� reality.

Wind swirling
around the trees, moving the leaves around and around, mixing them all together
until there was a single blur on undefined colour and he was staring at it�
nothing clear, nothing standing above the rest.

There was no
difference in colour. No difference in existence.

Had it ever
mattered, when difference was the cause of his nothingness?

Soft droplets
of dew were falling into the small lake from the trees above, dripping down and
disappearing, becoming one with the water. Mixing together water with water, and
the differences meant nothing anymore� everything was one and one was
everything.

Was this the truth
he could not see? That no one could see?

Was he in
truth no different than� them?

But his eyes
were not looking, his ears not listening. It was not that what he focused onto.
It was not the outside he couldn�t look away from.

Everything but
the sound of his own heart beating
was dulled away, everything above the sounds of his soft levelled breathing
were mingled into one another�

Inside and
outside, the cold was empty and the world had long since lost its appeal to
him.

Even in his
perfection, especially in his
perfection, there was nothing else he could look up to� shallow meaning of his
own incapacity. Perfection didn�t mean absolute.

Perfection
didn�t mean pure�

Perfection was
just a ripple in the water� causing more ripples to be created. Never ending
circle.

Crimson eyes
started spinning, the world blurred into crimson nothingness.

Not even the
crimson looked more than grey to him though.

Lost into a
whirlpool of confusing certainty, knowing that he would never stop spinning
until� unless�

�Itachi of the
Uchiha�.

A voice known,
a voice belonging to one of them.

A voice
shattering the silence that had been hurting his ears and his mind with so
unwelcoming chaotic sound, the sound of a shattering world that existed only in
his head.

Crimson eyes
widened as he focused on a shape. A figure. A man. And slowly his attention
returned to what was in front of him. A person.

It was another
face, with a name he could not remember (it had never mattered then) but it was
meaningless in its everything.
Because they were, they existed, and he could not care about it, but couldn�t
move away from it.

One of them. One of a multitude. A life
devoted to nothing. Like the others, a pathetic sickly green.

Eyes close,
burning crimson fading away, head turned. It was harder now, not to show them.
He wanted it, but he could not allow this, could he?

He wanted them
all to see, see what he had become, see what it meant to be strong, stronger
than them, show how he had moved where they hadn�t, reached heights they would
never even look up at�

Show them the
only emotion he could feel. The only emotion he had been allowed to cherish.
The only emotion he could recognize and keep tight in his grasp.

The only
searing emotion he fed with his own spirit, every day more. To show the result
of their acting, the result of his life.

The night was
approaching, and with the darkness coming nearer, he could feel his control
slip away from his fingers� would it be so
bad to close his eyes and�

�The Uchiha
Council wants to see you�.

�let
everything happen?

Itachi�s face
stretched in what could have looked a smile, had it not been so empty. So
hollow. So�

The nameless
face gasped and disappeared. Scared away.

Itachi blinked
slowly, tracing the lines of his own face to understand. Why had he been so
scared? His eyes were still empty, and he�d smiled like he used to. Fingers
tracing his lips.

Only then
Itachi did realize, he had not been smiling at all.

��

They were speaking, rambling, voices washing away until it was nothing
but a blur of words and concepts and demands and everything, about control,
allegiance, Konoha and protection.

Itachi could not understand any of them, his mind recognizing the words,
the meanings, the essence, but not able to grasp any feeling connected with
them.

Control�

He would never be controlled. He had never been controlled. He was used
to do only what he wanted, considering his own needs and whims.

Allegiance�

He didn�t know what it meant to sacrifice what he had for someone else.
He had not considered anyone enough to even think about it.

Konoha�

He�d never felt attached to it, not able to feel something for a place
devoid of rational mind. It was a place that couldn�t give him anything. It was
an empty place of black meanings and whose only interest was to preserve its
own foolish pride.

Protection�

He was a threat to them, words meant nothing to him since he could read
underneath the underneath. He could never, would never, be able to protect
something. He had nothing important enough to be protected anyway.

It was almost amusing how they could speak without really understanding
their own speech.

They were blinded by power they could not have, thinking they could
control him� thinking he would be their weapon forever�thinking he was theirs
to own.

He was not mindless.

There was a
single answer possible now, and it was not the one his clan was asking him to
say. He would not beg again, kneel in front of them only to show them they were
his masters. He couldn�t anymore.

They were going
to fall� calling death upon themselves, thinking they could control powers this
enormous, and death was going to come, and swipe them away.

Death. he was
death, it was engraved in his name� just as he was supposed to bring insanity,
darkness, disgrace and pain.

No more words.
Useless words. The truth was there in front of him, and only he could see it;
the truth about words that would bind him forever.

Everything had
been fake and useless. But now Itachi could feel the reality that was standing
next to him, objecting to the council�s words.

Everything
turned smudged. It was that again� it didn�t feel real.

It was then.
With words that were spoken to him in harsh tones, trying to control him like a
dog, a weapon, Itachi finally understood.

There were no
more words.

He�d waited
for no reason really, waiting maybe to hear something that could allow him to
dictate a different verdict, understand why.

In his
perfection, he could still not understand� but this time, it didn�t matter
anymore.

The words he�d
been expecting, words that even he didn�t know, did not exist.

He stood up.
He�d been sitting there for too long and he could not resist anymore. Watching
and listening to rants like these only made his mind spin wildly, and his mask
uncomfortable to wear.

Where was his
calm mind? Thinking about such things was breaking him too quickly.

It was not a
conscious decision. It was not a matter of closing his eyes and controlling his
own actions. He had long since allowed his own mind to relent the control to that feeling.

It was burning
inside him again, and now he could not�

He would not
control it.

�Uchiha
Itachi, even if your father is the head of the council, we can�t allow you to
go unpunished for what you did� acting without respect for us, it doesn�t
matter if you killed your friend or not�.

The world
returned to its sharpness as Itachi�s brain focused on the words that were
being spoken to him. Blinking, his attention returned on his surroundings, his
eyes moving to the old man in front of him.

One of the
elders, one of the Uchiha clan, one of them, and he was looking at him with
arrogance, his eyes flashing with so many emotions.

Emotions that
were weakening him. Emotions that man allowed to play so clearly on his face
and his eyes�

Itachi�s only
emotion was making him strong. Stronger.

�You were in
the ANBU but we ask you to drop out and come back here� the man stated. �Come back where we can control
you� was what he didn�t add loudly.

But Itachi
heard it anyway. It was spoken not with words, but with gestures and looks.

Come back
where we can use you.

Come back
where our greed can be fulfilled by you.

Come back
where we can make sure you�re ours� not Konoha�s.

Itachi�s eyes
flared crimson.

It was
burning.

It was burning
so much it was almost cold� it had been boiling under the surface like an
inferno, growing stronger every day passed by.

The hatred
that was consuming Itachi�s mind, the only emotion he had ever felt and
recognized before, the only emotion�

Hatred for his
clan.

For those that
could not see.

For those that
tried to control him.

For those that
tried to force him to submit himself to something he didn�t believe into, in
rules he could not follow, in things he found ridiculous�

Day after day
passed watching with disgust as his clan sank and deprived itself of the pride
it wanted so much.

Day after day
realizing they were hindering themselves, but most of all hindering him.

He could no
longer look at the man.

Everywhere he
turned, he could only see them, their eyes, filled with the same emotions,
their faces, and they were all looking at him. They were all the same,
identical eyes, identical faces, identical destiny�

He could not
stand it, it felt like everything was going to collapse.

His sight
blurred.

�You will have
to show your appreciation to the Uchiha council��

A mere instant
later his sword was pressed deeply inside the man�s neck, passing through it
from side to side.

Blood exploded
around him, drops twinkling in the dim light as they soared in the air, landing
everywhere.

On his hands,
face, clothes, over the other ninja around him

Everywhere he
could see the red was spreading, the feeling of a trembling and gurgling frame
underneath the blade of his katana sending shudders up his spine.

His hands were
trembling as he turned towards the yelling Uchiha shinobi around him, as they
cried and shouted and apparently stepped in to stop him.

He could not
stop. He would not stop. It was burning so much inside him it pained him, made
him feel overexcited, eyes spinning wildly in Sharingan intensity, recording
everything.

Recording each
single move as his katana fell again�

And again�

And again�

And blood
covered everything in the missing beat of a heart.

There were
fifteen corpses around him now, slowly dying away in a sea of crimson blood at
his feet, gurgling bubbles of saliva and air coated with the red liquid, open
eyes staring in shock at nothing as they slowly dimmed away, covering with the
thick layer of death.

Itachi stared,
every single instant burning in his mind forever, his hatred burning again. it
was not enough. He needed more. He needed to move, his trembling body shaking
as he tried to restrain the sudden urge to run.

Breathing
deeply, shuddering as his hands grasped the handle of his katana, he stared. They
were dead. Just like this.

So easy.

But there were
more. More to see, more to curse, more to look at. Observing in delight the
moment of death in each and everyone�s eyes.

And then he
was in the streets, not seeing faces anymore, only the same cold eyes over and
over again as he moved through one person to the other, his katana slashing
again and again until there was no inch of it that was not crimson

Until the
ground was covered with rapidly freezing bodies, corpses, those that had been
his family�

No family. No
clan. Never again. the curse was finally spreading, demanding its victims.
Sacrifices.

The hatred
burned again, demanding him more. It was not enough, it would never be enough

It didn�t
matter to him that many he killed were not even ninja. They were still Uchiha,
blind to his real face, seeing only the mask and only now watching the real
Itachi as he slashed them to dead, not smiling, not smirking, simply moving
with no hesitation.

He could feel
no tiredness, no strain, his arm moving by itself, his legs carrying him faster
than lightening, from face to face, to�
unnamed endless sea of them.

A small child
that had looked at him with wonder, swearing he�d be as strong as Itachi was in
the future, but that instead was just as arrogant as they were �a quick move of
his arm and he was gone, his head severed.

Children�s
skin and bones too fragile to take such strong blow.

The old couple
living down the main Uchiha street, who complimented Itachi for his missions
but were never interested in anything but perfection �it took nothing to take
their life away.

Their bodies
falling to rot on the ground.

Itachi didn�t
feel anything. Each swipe of his blade meant nothing, each single movement
bringing death to a person, but it didn�t give him satisfaction.

And then there
was silence.

Eerie silence that finally belonged to the
place. After countless moments, after searching everywhere, wiping blood from
his katana only to have it as bloodied again after mere seconds, it was done.

They were all dead, corpses laying on the
ground, unmoving, bathed in their own blood, finally understanding the enormous
meaning of the curse they had called upon themselves.

He had left only two people behind, there were
only those two that were left� and he would soon dispose of them, too.

��

It had been a shock for him, the first
day Naruto had finally been allowed to step out from the hospital wing he�d
been in. After two whole weeks there, there was no patience inside him anymore,
only the strong desire to leave.

But it was not a one�sided desire. He�d
been bugging nurses and doctors all the time, treating his daily recovery time
like he did with wasted days �stubbornly demanding to be let out for training,
and trying to find a way to get ramen.

Many times the passing nurses had found
him doing push�ups against the bed, or flexing his sore muscles.

It was not like he didn�t know the
importance of resting and waiting to heal completely, but he felt the urgent
need to see if he could still be at the same level as before. A part of him had
been afraid of this� of losing his strength, of not being able to return to his
complete healthy state �after all, Kyuubi had never been in such a
close�to�death situation ever before.

He owed this to Sasuke.

If he were to be not at his best the day
the two would confront with each other, it would look like he hadn�t taken
seriously anything at all, not the training, nor anything else, and Naruto was
taking this seriously. Really seriously.

Fortunately for him, Kyuubi had recovered
pretty fast from his own chakra depletion and the moment the fox had regained
his normal amount of strength his own fast healing had kicked back in, aiding
his body to regain strength sooner than expected.

Knowing that at least something was going
the way he wanted was a relief for him.

The doctors had been fairly pissed off to
find Naruto trying to sneak out from the hospital at least once or twice a day,
ignoring the pain in his legs and arms and ignoring most of all the angered
pleads for him to stay in his bed, and even though Kakashi should have been
there to make sure of his rest, the copy�nin found it amusing to actually stay
on Naruto�s side, helping him sneak out �only to see him being taken back not
even ten minutes later by some cranky nurse.

Kakashi felt much like an older brother,
and despite all his previous mulling over things, he felt this way was the
right way to act. Things would be different, very different from before, but
not in a bad sort of way. And his smiles were just the tiniest bit truer.

Naruto wasn�t one to be hindered by small
things such as restraints and bitching from the doctors; he happily invested
himself in inter�hospital training, much like his exercises in the Akatsuki
hideout, but this time with a greater optimism.

He�d survived Akatsuki, he could survive
the wrath of the doctors.

In the end, stressed, pissed off, tired
out of their minds and ready to mentally collapse, the hospital nurses and
doctors finally admitted defeat, allowing the blond to get out.

Of course, they had chased him down and
drowned him in orders and recommendations, to not walk into big crowds, not
linger under the sun too much, and had glared at the silver haired shinobi,
placing Naruto under his responsibility, or Gaara�s �which meant Naruto had to
go everywhere with at least one of them.

That was why Naruto was making his way
through the streets of Sunagakure with the Kazekage at his side, looking
everywhere with wide eyes, staring impressed at the city surrounding him.

The first time he arrived there, three
years before, he�d not been able to see it at all as he�d arrived late at night
and Jiraiya had forced him to depart the morning afterwards, caused by
Ero�sennin�s latest visit to a local onsen.

Everything looked so� different, and new
to his eyes, not like Konoha at all, and of course completely different from
any other city Naruto had been into in his travels. A village created to hide
in a desert, Suna had grown to match its surroundings perfectly.

Naruto was excited and happy, but of
course half of this was to impute to the fact that he was walking and was not
sitting in a hospital bed anymore.

The air was hot and oppressing, but felt
nice, the warmth of the sun sticking pleasantly to his skin as he walked
around, careful to wipe away the sweat from his forehead every once in a while,
looking everywhere with the kind of curiosity only he could sport.

The first thing he noticed was that the
buildings were of two types �small and round�shaped, around two floors of
height and with many small windows, or really tall and square�shaped, with
strange�looking windows with thick glasses, and the mix of these two styles
made Sunagakure look exotic in his eyes.

The only thing that was the same for all
buildings was the colour of the walls, which could go from shades of light
brown to shades of dirty yellow; in the evenings when the sun slowed down the
horizon, all the buildings turned of a dark eerie colour, blending completely
with the landscape.

Naruto was fascinated by this.

But there was something that attracted
Naruto�s attention and shocked him more than Sunagakure as a village�

He started to notice this on the third
day he walked around with Gaara (his company was much preferred to Kakashi�s,
since the older shinobi would simply walk around, grunting under his breath as
he read his book instead of replying to Naruto�s questions).

Naruto found out, much to his confusion
and light embarrassment, that everyone looked at him as he passed. Not just
kids, but also grown ups. It was not because he was an outsider, he was sure of
this, since Suna was not a secluded place and it got its fair share of
incomers, nor for his coloured clothes �he�d been forced to wear light tones to
match with the strength of the sun.

Even though he�d been used to this in
Konoha, the stared had felt different from the distaste, hatred or disinterest
he was accustomed to.

Here it was somehow different and he
couldn�t understand.

He�d never been able to voice out his
thoughts because it felt like he was being paranoid �but when he actually saw a
group turning to look at him as he walked away from them, on his fifth day out
of the hospital, he knew he couldn�t let it go anymore.

�Hey, Gaara�� Naruto tried to attract his
friend�s attention, since the red head was walking at his side with no care at
all, his stare fixed in front of him. �Why� why is everyone looking at me like that?!�

Gaara turned towards him, a small smirk
playing on his lips, and shook his head in wonder at Naruto�s denseness.

But before he could answer three
villagers moved from the side of the street and hesitantly walked towards the
two walking nins; two were girls, and both were blushing and shifting
uncomfortably as they stared at both the blond teen and at the redhead, whilst
the third was a younger child, who was looking up at the blond with wide eyes.

�Ah� Sumimasen�� Gaara�s eyes narrowed a
bit, but none of the villagers cowered at this �and in Naruto�s book this made
them really brave.

The little child looked up at Naruto and
sniffled, �you�re the one that saved our Kazekage?� he asked in a whisper,
mouth opening in a �o� of wonder.

Naruto laughed sheepishly, moving his
hand behind his head in his usual embarrassed pose, �ah, that�s not entirely
true��

�Everyone talks about you!� one of the
girls exploded, clasping her hands together as she looked with admiringly gaze
at Naruto, who was a good two inch shorter than her. �You�re everybody�s hero
and��

The remaining girl hastily pushed
something in Naruto�s hands, then both girls bowed, �thanks so much! you�re
awesome!�

Then both started giggling and pulling
the amazed child with them they rushed away, leaving a blinking Naruto staring
down at a chocolate box.

�Wha� what was that?� Naruto had a light
flush on his cheeks, not really able to cope with what had happened, and as he
looked at Gaara he found the Kazekage smirking at him. �Why��

His flustered blush deepened without his
consent at the smirk on his friend�s face.

�You�re their hero, Naruto� the redhead
murmured.

�But� I didn�t really save you and��
Naruto fidgeted, scratching again his head, but shut up when Gaara lifted his
hand in the air.

�It�s not just because you saved me� the
redhead shook his head lightly. He had not thanked Naruto yet, but words like
these were not needed between them �their uncanny ability to understand each
other without speaking was not a trait Jinchuuriki alone had� it was because
they were friends, and Naruto would have never accepted his grateful words.

Naruto blinked unsurely. �Then��

�Naruto, they respect you. This village
has changed from how it was before. People have been changing their opinions of
me since I became Kazekage, looking past their former hatred and disgust only
to realise the depth of my love for this place� and they started loving me
back� Gaara�s voice was low and calm as he spoke, but it held so much more than
this �a hint of emotion that Naruto caught with ease.

He only told this to one person before,
his brother, but speaking to Naruto made it sound much more powerful �Gaara
wanted to make sure Naruto understood just how much he�d helped him.

�And they gave me a second chance, just
like I gave one to this village� but who convinced me to give them one? It was
you, Naruto. You�re the one who made me accept this charge, you were the only
one who truly believed in me, making me believe in myself as well, and in turn,
you made Sunagakure believe in me�.

Naruto felt a painful squeeze in his
heart at the redhead�s words. He�d never heard him spoke so much before, and
his words felt like cool water, filling something in him he�d never realised it
needed to be filled before.

�And they know, Naruto. You saved me, and
this village, not just once. Giving everyone something, someone, to believe
into. Naruto, Sunagakure respects you�. Gaara fell silent, not wanting to add
anything else.

Naruto�s eyes widened as he stared around
him. Noticing the smiles on everyone�s faces, the warmth he�d missed at first,
the gestures he�d unconsciously blocked out until then. Whispers and smiles and
hushed words that were not meant to hurt him.

A man who had been cleaning a pair of
shoes in front of his house nodded at Naruto, smiling, and next to him his wife
smiled as well bowing a bit, both staring in satisfaction at the blond.

They were� they were thanking him?

Naruto�s blush intensified as he shook
his head hard. the bubbly feeling inside his chest was not going away. The fact
that they were thanking him had another meaning, more important to Naruto than
their gratefulness. It meant their love for Gaara was strong as well.

Looking around again, at all the happy
faces pointing at him, he finally realised what he was feeling. This was it�
this was how it was supposed to feel� Suna was recognizing him. They were
thanking him.

But at the same time he knew he didn�t
deserve that.

All his training had amounted to nothing.
Yes, he�d escaped from Akatsuki�s hideout with his own strength, but in the end
he had been forced to use Kyuubi�s own powers and even strike a deal with the
demon.

He had still a long way to go before he
could finally feel ok with himself.

And even the grateful smiles Suna was
reserving for him were enough to embarrass him. But he couldn�t chase the
bubbly feeling anyway, so he merely smiled and waved back at the people around
them, all the while assuring himself one day he would feel strong enough to
accept this�

To feel worthy of the first acceptation
he ever received.

��

He walked down the street without
hurrying, calmly, not bothering to hide himself, as the cape he wore was enough
to cover his face. He was far from any place where someone would recognize him,
so he was relatively safe.

His cautious side asked him to be aware
of his surroundings anyway, no matter how relaxed he could appear.

A pair of glasses underneath the cape
caught a stray ray of light, glinting behind the shadows of his face. Yes,
cautious. Kabuto had learned from his past mistakes, after all.

He�d been travelling from Otogakure
through the forest for two days, directing towards a small village in the east
where he�d been given appointment �he really didn�t need to be late for that,
but after all he was never late.

Even when the appointment had been made
so many years before.

After five hours of running without a
pause, as he was used to never rest unless necessary, the grey haired shinobi
was finally reaching the village where his previous master had planned a
meeting with him, and he had to slow down in a quiet walk so to not show his
impatience.

There shouldn�t be impatience when the
opponent thought him under his strict mental control� and he would not break
his cover, not now, not when the plans had not yet been uncovered.

After the few news they were receiving
from their lesser spies around Akatsuki, Kabuto knew that Orochimaru would want
something more reliable about the organization�s latest accomplishments and
failures, especially given the fact that Sasuke had returned with a
considerably good mood from his �trip� to Kaze no Kuni, and had not bothered to
tell anything to them.

It was terribly upsetting, at least for
him (since Orochimaru didn�t seem to mind too much his future vessel�s
secretive acting), knowing Sasuke had somehow managed to know more than he on
the Akatsuki, or so he believed �that smug Uchiha, acting high and might,
smirking smugly whenever Kabuto was around, as if knowing exactly how to irk
him.

Kabuto himself was intrigued and wondered
just what had exactly happened with the blind idiotic Jinchuuriki, and if he
was still in Akatsuki�s hands or if he�d been able to escape� and what with the
news of the Kazekage�s kidnapping? Their spies had reported he was somehow
back, but didn�t know if he still had his demon or not.

Either way, he should have been dead.

Unfortunately he had to hide his
curiosity since his master could not suspect he wasn�t as loyal as he thought,
and he had to act like a mindless puppet with him, unless he wanted his cover
to blow and risk death at the older shinobi�s wrath. Swapping loyalties was the
thing he knew better how to do, but it was also one of his small, guilty
pleasures.

The pleasure of a work well done,
probably.

Looking around to assess where he was and
where he would be meeting his �master�, Kabuto couldn�t hide a smirk.

It had been five years since he�d seen
that man, and he really didn�t want to; though, Orochimaru had been strangely
helpful, deciding to stay in Otogakure instead of� following him �last time they had almost been
discovered and he was the one risking the most, not the snake.

Thankfully, to cover everything up Sasori
would be forced to reveal some of the news to Kabuto, so not to make Orochimaru
suspicious� this was what Kabuto was counting on. He had the ending decision on
what to tell to his current master.

What he would listen would be for his
ears only� unless he decided to share, but he had to thread with carefully
weighted patience.

The grey haired teen pushed his glasses
up a bit in his usual calming gesture, and continued walking, passing through
the village without attracting anyone�s attention; he�d been getting pretty
good at that, but it was easier since it wasn�t a ninja village.

He had no trouble hiding himself, masking
his presence if shinobi from other villages were to appear.

Looking up a bit without removing his
cape, Kabuto noticed it was turning dark fairly rapidly, and quickened his
pace, leaving the village behind his back as he finally reached the meeting
place �Tenchi bridge.

It was not too big, to his surprise (he�d
been expecting something a bit wider, since it was the only way to pass from
one side to the other in a range of three miles or so), but it looked solid
enough, even if it was wooden�made.

The place was perfect for a secret
meeting, but it was also perfect for an ambush. It was a bridge connecting two
sides of the mountain, where winds blew so strongly that they carried away both
scents and voices.

On a twenty�feet range, the trees had
disappeared, leaving the two sides bare and open to any kind of attack.

Ninja had to be attentive because the
only way to know there were enemies around was by feeling their chakra, and if
the enemies were strong enough, covering up their chakra signatures was not an
impossible feat.

As it was, he had to act a bit
disoriented and confused so to prove Sasori he�d really been under his control
all this time, but without faking it too much.

Stepping on the bridge he could instantly
feel the strong winds slam against his sides, threatening to steal away his
cape; Kabuto closed one of his hands around the neck of his mantle to prevent
this from happening, and moved until he reached the middle of the bridge.

Sasori would soon be there, he knew it.

True to his word, soon enough he noticed
a hunched figure moving slowly his way from the other side of the bridge, and
he tried to relax his shoulders, knowing he was nowhere the level of power
needed to defeat Akasuna no Sasori.

If he played well his cards he would go
back to Oto with the information Orochimaru needed and he would still be able
to play in both sides of the fence.

Sasori inched slowly towards the still
figure on the wooden bridge, twitching his hidden scorpion tail underneath his
Akatsuki cape; at first sight it looked like his mind�control jutsu had worked
perfectly and he had been able to remove it from Orochimaru�s lackey as well.

This would prove to be informative, at
last.

�It�s been five years, Sasori�sama�
Kabuto said mildly, his voice silken. He tried to appear innocuous.

�How do you feel now, Kabuto?� Sasori�s
voice was raspy but still as deep as ever. Kabuto was startled to realise just
how familiar that voice was, even though an eternity had passes since he heard
it last time.

The grey haired shinobi wondered once
again what was underneath the shield he wore. He had never been able to see it.
As intriguing as it was, he ignored the pull.

�Ever since the jutsu on me fell, I�ve
been feeling a bit confused� my brain processes are� fuzzy� he stated, looking
like he was admitting his current weakness without wanting it. He fidgeted,
trying to appear uncertain as if under the effect of two opposite orders.

Sasori nodded, his expression not
changing on the outside. On the inside, hidden behind layers of his protective
puppet�s body, he allowed a slow smirk to appear on his face.

This was proving to be really informative
already, indeed.

Yes, it was just like he�d thought at
first� but the organization had already taken it into consideration, so even
though it had looked perfectly fine the moment Sasori had stepped on the
bridge, now it was unfolding in front of his eyes.

Did Orochimaru think he wouldn�t have
been able to recognise the signs? He wasn�t weak� and the snake this time had
underestimated him a bit too much. It was maybe even too clear�

�What is Orochimaru up to?� he asked
sharply, waiting with a secret smirk for Kabuto�s reply. �And where is his
current hideout?�

Kabuto bit his lip.

�We move from hideout to hideout, so not
to be detected� he carefully replied, waiting a second as if to clear his
thoughts. �We�re currently moving to a hideout in the east side of Oto no Kuni,
where we will be staying for the next month or so�.

He wondered if he would be able to give
out the wrong information and pass it as true until the very end.

Sasori�s smirk only widened.

�I want the exact position of the base�
he replied. �Together with all your others�.

It was like a game of mouse and cat to
him, and there was nothing better than playing a bit with your prey before
killing it.

The fact was, the Leader had deemed more
important to just leave the last two Jinchuuriki be for a while, at least until
they settled down again; the fact that their attack to Suna had alerted the
village and Konoha as well would cause them to raise their guards, thus going
now to capture the Ichibi and the Kyuubi would be a hard feat even for
Akatsuki.

Besides, even though Ichibi wouldn�t give
them a problem, Kyuubi was a different thing entirely and they needed some time
to research on Yondaime�s seal.

Not to mention the upsetting fact that
they all needed to recover. Their chakra had been wasted out on two consecutive
extractions, both gone terribly wrong, and even the deity that had been
absorbing all the other tailed beasts was acting strange.

Even Itachi had been acting differently,
if only lightly, something that was almost impossible to notice unless you were
searching for it. And Sasori knew where and what to look for. Probably only the
Leader himself had noticed something was slightly off, and maybe Kakuzu� but
that was because the other man was just as observing as the red scorpion
himself was.

Only time would unravel the latest tight
knots. Sasori had all the time in the world� to amuse himself.

So, since they had to revert to lesser
missions until the time was right again, the Leader had decided they could as
well concentrate on eliminate the Snake, knowing he was a traitor to them and
nothing but a bothersome annoyance.

That�s why Sasori was here alone, whilst
Deidara was playing in a nearby village with his clay�bombs �to assess if
Kabuto had been freed from his mind control and to exchange information,
lulling Orochimaru to a false state of security.

The answer was pretty simple in truth.
Orochimaru hadn�t realised yet, and Sasori himself had only been able to
confirm his suspicions the moment he set his eyes on him, but Kabuto himself
was a ticking bomb� and the smallest movement would make him explode.

The Snake had been a fool.

Sasori could say it without hesitation,
as they had once been partners.

Orochimaru had allowed someone like
Kabuto to be freed by Sasori�s mental control, but had not counted on Kabuto�s
own intelligence. The younger shinobi had welcomed his mental freedom, acting
like he owed Orochimaru, serving him, coming to follow all the Snake�s orders
without questioning not even once, but Kabuto had a mind of his own.

A dangerous mind that didn�t belong to
anyone else but himself.

Sasori could see this. It was a
double�edge weapon.

Only time would tell who could gain the
most out of this.

Again, a smirk appeared on his real face,
as he proceeded to exchange information.

��

Things had shifted. Considerably if it
was him saying this.

Probably the something that had been bothering all of them was slowly gaining
importance� probably they had realised that even the smallest detail had been
able to throw them off with outmost ease.

Things were tense. And not in the good
way.

Things had changed to the points where
everyone had noticed. The silver haired shinobi was sure, if he were to care a
bit more, he�d say one could feel the tenseness in the air.

He wondered why in hell he had not
noticed before. He was not blind. Uncaring, yes, brash, that too� but he should
have seen the warnings.

Things were tense alright. Between all of
them, at least since the double wasted effort. Knowing they had lost not just
three days, for the first time, and then countless days trying to understand
what had gone wrong� but three more days as well. Six days worth of chakra,
being drained from them.

All for nothing.

It was unnerving enough.

He�d been complaining a lot, he felt they
owed him. At least this.

But he had failed to see the warnings,
and then, even though he�d been warned, he had decided he didn�t care. Acting
around. He should have been more cautious. But caution was not a word he had in
his personal vocabulary.

Hell, Jashin knew caution was not even
contemplated in his religion. Arrogance, yes, because his was the true, real
God. Blood thirst, yes, of course. He was entitled to kill all his enemies in
the goriest way, to appease his God with their sacrifices.

It was a requirement, and his personal
pleasure. Jashin knew just how much pleasure.

Sometimes he wondered why to others, this
sounded preposterous. Stupid atheistic people. He was the one in the right, not
them, damn it all to Jashin�s hell.

Blinking in confusion, was all he could
do as he suddenly found himself staring in hard, glaring crimson eyes, spinning
wildly at him.

The pure, raw anger inside them scared
him, but he�d never voice that thought aloud for anyone else to hear, as the
sole thought of it made him feel ashamed of himself. He was strong, belonging
to the strongest organization existing, and he was immortal �there was no way
he�d be scared by a child like the
one he had in front of himself�

But he was.

He could laugh at it on the outside,
acting and covering up his uneasiness, but he couldn�t lie to himself. It had
never posed as a problem before though, as the sight of those crimson filled
orbs had never been spinning with such� raw something.

He�d always evaded him, both staying away
from each other, not caring, not bothering. You were never friend with your
co�workers. It was not how it worked inside Akatsuki. Not at all �most of the
time, distress and distrusts were the strongest feelings.

This glare made him regret his
immortality for the first time in his entire life.

The glare removed itself from him, and he
inwardly shuddered, feeling cold sweat run down his back. Hell if he knew what
was going through the young Uchiha�s mind. Hell if he wanted to know.

Probably he�d finally snapped, he had
heard often it was a common trait in old families like his.

At his side, next to his own companion,
who had been silently shifting underneath his black outfit, was the Uchiha�s
usual mate, his huge sword draped on his back as unwavering eyes followed the
younger shinobi away from their sight as he turned the corner. He vaguely
thought, as usual, that the huge sword was just compensation �but the joke held
no importance. He still felt cold.

Those eyes, shit.

The Uchiha could be damned to Jashin�s
hell and back for all he cared!

�He�s been particularly tense lately�
Kisame commented offhandedly.

His voice held more than he spoke though.

It made him scoff.

�Impudent brat, he should convert himself
to Jashin and stop acting all high and mighty�.

Amused eyes turned towards him, as Kakuzu
let out a raw sound that was his way to laugh. He felt irked as Kakuzu was
again laughing at him.

Damn atheist. Money�lover. Corrupt soul�
if only he could kill him and be done with it�

Not that he hadn�t tried already. Be
damned to Jashin�s hell all his hearts. He�d never been able to take away all
of them yet.

�Hidan, you�d better stay away from
Itachi�kun�s path and sight from now on� was what Kakuzu commented after his
short barking laughter.

�Do you think I care?!� Hidan�s eyes
widened in hatred.

He�d never wanted to kill them all as
much as he wanted now.

�He�s been awfully tense� a voice coming
from behind them made the three shift around, only to find Zetsu come out from
the rock wall. �His control is wavering a bit� his other voice echoed darkly,
but with a tinge of amusement.

Hidan wondered once more why he�d joined
Akatsuki in the first place.

�We�re all awfully tense� Kisame grumbled
under his breath. �But you�re not forced to go on missions with him�.

Kisame walked away, following Itachi�s
trail and disappearing behind the corner.

��

Cepheus: another small detail about
Itachi�s past� the name Itachi in Japanese means �weasel� and it is known that
in ancient Japan
people believed weasels were unlucky animals who brought pain, disgrace and
ultimately death.

BELIEVE ME
WHEN I SAY, I WON�T LET YOU WITHOUT AN UPDATE FOR THIS LONG EVER AGAIN.

Well, review? Your reviews are like water
for thirsty me�

Annnnd. OMG. I think I love Kabuto right
now. And I disliked him before. :3 finally some sunshine over the last horrible
chapters of Naruto.
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Winter Release