Disclaimer:I don't own anything that doesn't have my name on it.

A/N:I took little lessons here and there and right now, I think my writing might have improved a little. I dunno, it's the readers that make the choice. Might be a little OOC here and there. I'm not good at writing letters, lol.

Pairings:

Naruto x Sakura

Temari x Kensu

Shikamaru x Ino

Naruto Shippuuden: New Enemies, Old Friends

Chapter One: News Reaches Sunagakure

The messenger ran through the corridors with much worry in her. The scroll that had just arrived from Konohagakure did not look like it was anything good. She knocked on the door to the Kazekage's office frantically and called from the outside, "Kazekage-sama! There is an urgent message from Konohagakure!" She entered the room and placed the scroll politely on the table. Gaara sat upright and opened the scroll. He read it over and over again, not believing his eyes. Slamming the scroll down on the table, he frowned and ordered, "Alert Kankuro, Kensu and Temari." The messenger nodded and left the room, leaving Gaara in the office all by himself. Scratching his head, Gaara stared at the message in the scroll, still trying to take it all in. He sat up again and read the scroll one more time.

Gaara, I have urgent news to tell you. The Akatsuki has finally made a move. They've captured Uzumaki Naruto. We need your help and Sunagakure's immediately!

Tsunade

Godaime Hokage

Uzumaki Naruto, the blonde Jinchurikki with amazing skill and determination, had just been kidnapped by the Akatsuki? Gaara frowned darkly and glared at the message again. Naruto was a strong ninja, and the best that Gaara had seen by far. But right now, the dreadful message that lay before him said otherwise. Temari and Kankuro rushed into the room, along with a very worried Kensu. "Gaara, what happened?" asked Kankuro, stepping forward to take a better look at the scroll on the desk. Gaara turned it around and sighed. Temari, Kensu and Kankuro read it, their faces pale with fear. "Naruto … kidnapped?!" exclaimed Kensu, finding it very hard to believe. "What a bold move made by the Akatsuki," commented the Kazekage flatly. He folded his arms and continued with a grim expression on his face, "We must help." Kankuro nodded and suggested, "Let us travel to Konohagakure and discuss plans with Tsunade." Gaara nodded in agreement and stood up. Kensu stepped forward and asked, "Can I go along, Gaara?" The red head raised his eyebrows and nodded. "We must leave now," hissed the young Kazekage.

Two Days later …

The journey from Suna to Konoha was sped up since Gaara had insisted that they continue even at night, and soon enough, Kankuro and Kensu were yawning. "Kazekage-sama!" greeted Izumo. Gaara nodded in acknowledgement and said, "Lead the way, Izumo-san." Kensu rubbed his eyes and looked at Temari, who looked the least bit tired. "Aren't you tired, Temari?" asked the brunette. The blonde smiled at him and shrugged. Kensu held her hand and murmured, "Are you angry because … itwas cancelled?" Temari pouted and squeezed his hand. "Things like this come first, Kensu-kun!" she replied cheerfully. Kensu frowned, still feeling doubtful. Was it something he did to her? "Daisuki, Temari-san," crooned the Jounin, wanting to let his lover know he still loved her. Temari blushed and pressed a gentle kiss on his cheek. "Like I said … let's just pay attention to the problem now, okay?" Kensu nodded, but couldn't help but to put on a small frown.

"Gaara!" called Tsunade when they entered the office. "I came here as soon as I can when I received the news," said Gaara calmly, and nodded to the three behind him. He sat down opposite of Tsunade and folded his arms. "When did they do it?" asked Gaara, that being the first question on his mind. Tsunade frowned and replied, "It was only yesterday when we found out. There weren't any signs of a struggle. It's pretty much a mystery to me and the other Jounin, even Shikamaru." Kensu raised his eyebrows; Shikamaru, the genius Jounin, couldn't figure it out? Gaara sighed and said, "There would be only two possibilities. One is that they captured him when he wasn't paying attention. Two, is that he was willingto go with them." Tsunade frowned and exchanged dark looks with the Kazekage. "Naruto would never-" began Tsunade, but was cut off by Gaara. "Don't rule out anything else, Hokage-sama. I know Naruto inside out. He would do anything for anyone," growled Gaara, his tone serious and dark. Tsunade sighed and rubbed her temples, feeling tired. "I need to see Jiraiya," said Gaara suddenly. The blonde Hokage sat upright and asked, "Why?"

"You know he's the one who is always researching on the Akatsuki," stated Gaara with a bored sort of tone.

"Yes … yes, that is true," said Tsunade, "but he hasn't returned from his trip to the Rain Village."

Gaara looked up at the old Hokage and drawled, "Then we now know that the Rain Village will be where the Akatsuki could reside in."

Kensu looked up; that was definitely true as he had gone in there before. "That is a fact, Tsunade-sama," piped Kensu suddenly, wanting to help the two dearly. Tsunade frowned again and remained silent for a while. She knew that Kensu was right, they were definitely where Jiraiya was now, but how would they rescue Naruto before he is killed? How would they commence the attack? How would they know what power the Akatsuki holds?

Tsunade sighed in despair; there were indeed too many questions, too little answers.

Rain Village, Akatsuki Hidden Hideout

Naruto opened his eyes with much effort, but everything was a blur. He shook his head and everything gradually slid into focus. Where the hell am I …? It was a dark and damp room, Naruto knew it, since he was the one sitting down on the damp ground. "Finally awake, Naruto-kun?" asked a strangely familiar voice. Naruto looked up into the eyes of the Sharingan holder. "Itachi," snarled Naruto, who had been waiting for the chance to meet the Uchiha once more. Itachi frowned and asked, "How are you feeling, Naruto?"

"Not that good, since the bastard that made Sasuke what he is right now is standing in front of me," spat Naruto angrily, his voice dripping with venom, ready to lunge at the Uchiha any moment. "Now, now, Naruto-kun, there is no need for the vulgarities, is there?" mocked Itachi, somehow enjoying making the Jinchurikki agitated. Naruto mumbled something under his breath and looked down to the ground. He was feeling helpless already; no one probably knows where he was, he reckoned. Itachi knelt down before Naruto and muttered, "Do you know why you're here?" The blonde glared at the dark-haired adult and spat, "You people want the Kyuubi." Itachi chuckled and patted Naruto on the head. "You're alert enough to know, Namikaze," growled Itachi as he stood up. "Better be prepared for death, Naruto-kun."

Naruto frowned and breathed slowly, trying to think of a way out. Where am I exactly…? What to do, what to do? Damnit, I'm sure Tsunade would've found out I'm missing by now … right? Ero-sennin can help them, right? He tried his best to reassure himself that he would be saved soon, but one side of him thought otherwise. He was afraid of losing his life, afraid of not seeing Sakura again, afraid of not completing the mission of getting Sasuke back. This time, he was afraid.Gritting his teeth, Naruto held back the tears that stung his eyes. Shaking his head, he told himself that they were coming … they were coming to save him. Naruto sobbed uncontrollably and cursed himself at the same time. Damnit, Uzumaki Naruto! You're not going to cry … you're not going to cry, god damnit!!

The eighteen year old Jinchurikki glared at the ground, no longer crying, but he could still feel tears rolling down his cheeks. He looked around the dark room but found no exit at all. "Need my help, boy? I can get you out with much ease," suggested the Kyuubi, tempting the young adult to release it from its dreadful seal. "I don't need your stupid help, Kyuubi! I can manage all by myself," argued Naruto angrily, not wanting to succumb to the temptation, not wanting to lose control and turn feral like the last time. "It is no use resisting my power, kid. I can get you out and maybe even do more for you …" pressed the Kyuubi, wanting so much to be free and rampage lands again. Naruto clutched his head and screamed, "Shut up!!" He fell to the ground, getting a serious headache from the Kyuubi, Sasuke and the damned situation he was in. He felt angry, disappointed in Tsunade and in himself too. Naruto sighed, feeling confused about his feelings. What was he supposed to do now? They can't … they won't have the chance to kill me. When they come … I'll kill them all. "That's it boy … let your anger be your power," hissed the Kyuubi. Naruto leaned against the wall, letting his anger consume him; blind him from what was right and wrong. What am I doing …? I shouldn't be doing this … I should be finding a way out of here and hopefully return home safely … right?

"Those people don't care about you. If they did, where were they?"

"Get out of my head, Kyuubi!"

"Let your anger be the weapon, and kill the Akatsuki!"

"… I know what you want, Kyuubi. You want freedom. If I listen to you, you would be set free, and you can live again to destroy countless lands and countries … isn't that right?" growled Naruto, his fists clenched. The Kyuubi glared down at the adult and argued, "You don't know how invincible you can be if you join me!" Naruto sighed and replied lazily, "I can be stronger than you. Even without you in me, I will still be stronger than you." But Naruto didn't feel determined as usual. Only one feeling remained inside him.

Utter confusion.

Konohagakure, Two Days Later

Jiraiya stepped into the Hokage's office and noticed a dark look on Tsunade's face. "What happened, Tsunade?" asked the old Sannin. The Hokage rubbed his temples and sighed. "Naruto has been kidnapped," stated Tsunade grimly. Jiraiya was taken aback. "By whom?!" asked Jiraiya, apparently worried about his student. Tsunade looked up at her teammate and replied, "The Akatsuki." The white-haired Sannin sat down opposite of Tsunade and scratched his head. Naruto, captured? Impossible. "How is that true?" asked Jiraiya firmly. Tsunade sighed and shook her head. "It is," she replied glumly. Jiraiya slapped his forehead and exclaimed, "You should have told me earlier!!" Tsunade stood up and slammed her fist on the table, agitated. "We only found out three days ago, damnit!!" screamed the Hokage angrily.

Jiraiya fell silent, then said, "I'll provide you with all the information I have."

Tsunade rubbed her temples again, it becoming a natural habit, then picked up the cup of sake and drank it all in one gulp. "Now, the Akatsuki uses the Rain village as a base of operations. They are often seen by the villagers, but none of them dare talk about them. One of the Akatsuki, Zetsu, is a scout. He keeps an eye out for suspicious strangers. That is how Nagato and Konan knew I came. The only way to sneak in is to use the most stealth, and have no contact with any villager at all," explained Jiraiya, his expression serious and firm. Tsunade nodded slowly, taking in each word with much carefulness. "The way to rescue Naruto will not be the same way they took to rescue Gaara. Instead, we will use another scout," continued Jiraiya, "and that scout has to be extremely fast."

Tsunade looked up at Jiraiya and said suddenly, "Rock Lee."

-----

"Five hundred more laps around Konoha!" shouted Lee, full of bursting energy as he sped around the village with incredible speed. Neji and Tenten watched as Lee zoomed past them every time with much boredom in their expressions. "This is boring," complained Tenten. "But we did promise Lee to accompany him here," said an exasperated Neji, regretting ever agreeing to stay with Lee and Tenten. "We shouldn't have done that," said Tenten as Lee sped past both of them for the tenth time. Neji folded his arms and shook his head. "Gai-sensei should be here by now."

Suddenly, the older looking version of Rock Lee appeared right in front of the two shinobi. "Ohaaaaaaayou, Neji, Tenten, Lee!" screamed Gai excitedly. Neji frowned and murmured under his breath, "I'll never mention these two again." Gai watched Lee run around the village with much pride in him for raising such a swell student. "You can do it Lee!!" cheered Gai, feeling proud of his student. "The power of youth is within us!!" Tenten rolled her eyes and sat down on the log and watched the green thing speed past them every fifteen seconds. "So much for being a short while," muttered Tenten. Gai continued shouting at Lee, which irritated Neji a lot. After ten minutes, Lee stopped and walked towards the log and plopped down on it. "That was a breath-taking exercise!" exclaimed the Jounin. When the whole team was finally silent (much to Neji's pleasure), Shizune suddenly came running towards them. "Lee-san, Lee-san!" she called with much impatience in her voice. Lee immediately stood up and answered, "Hai, Shizune-san?!" Shizune stopped and panted heavily for awhile, then standing up straight and saying, "Tsunade-sama wants your attention, Lee!"

"You called for me, Tsunade-sama?" asked Lee, still sweating, even in the cool room of Tsunade's. The Hokage nodded and pointed to the chair opposite of hers. "There is something I would like you to do with Jiraiya," stated Tsunade. "You have heard that Naruto is in grave danger, yes?" Lee nodded and listened intently. Tsunade furrowed her brows and continued, "I want you to be a scout for Jiraiya in the Rain village." Lee raised his eyebrows and raised his fist triumphantly. "I can do it, Tsunade-sama!!" he exclaimed, feeling excited at the mention of an important mission. "Shut up!" screamed Tsunade, feeling annoyed at Lee's apparent impatience to start the mission. "I have to explain the plan."

"Firstly, you and Jiraiya will head to the Rain village, as I have said. Then, he will tell you to scout the area first, and when I say scout, I mean observe every single detail," Tsunade emphasized the last three words with much seriousness in her voice. Lee nodded and saluted the Hokage. "After that, it will be up to you and the reinforcements to rescue Naruto."

Lee raised his hand, despite the fact that he was alone in the room with Tsunade. "Do we engage the Akatsuki members?" he asked. Tsunade frowned and then replied, "If the situation deems it necessary."

TBC

Yay, first chapter completed

I'm hoping to reach at least 40k words!

Chapter Two: Dreadful Feelings