A/N: Happy Valentine's Day! It's Syaoran, and I decided to publish this as a nice gift to those of you who read Contrast, and had put the story as favorite or alert. However that was worded. And I would highly suggest that Contrast be read before this, since it would make more sense. Basically, Naruto runs away with Sasuke. But it's better in what was written. And my editor insists that I mention that it is AU, non-canon [I thinks...] with a minor bit of OOC, etc.

That's about it... And this will be multi-chapter. I do hope you people are willing to put up with that... T.T

Side Note: Orochimaru's dead, Kabuto's on the run, Sasuke knows about Itachi's situation, and Obito's alive.

WARNING: THERE WILL BE YAOI. And hetero. AND GRAPHIC DESCRIPTIONS. BE WARNED AND PROCEED WITH DUE CAUTION. Though not necessarily in this chapter. I'll mention which chapters will have it.

And I don't own Naruto. Do you see any Sasuke and Naruto love? Nope. Do you see Itachi back from the dead? Nope.

Fine Line

Sequel to Contrast: The border where it ran grey.

"Sakura!"

The kunoichi turned around, eyes like faded leaves. Her pink hair seemed to have lost the brilliant hue shade that they used to hold. She kept tied up, like Tsunade, and had grown it out a bit. She no longer wore the pink and red hued clothing from the past, but rather the traditional ANBU wear. Her mask hung on a silk thread, loosely tied to her nodachi, which was secured to her back, much like Sai's.

Sakura turned around. Ino ran up to her. She was panting, and slowed to a stop next to Sakura, holding out a scroll. "Here. Tsunade-sama wants you to report to her as soon as possible. The scroll is your newest mission, but I don't know why she wants to give it to you beforehand. Just go."

Sakura took the scroll, and gave the barest hint of a smile. "Thanks, Ino. Where are you going?"

Said person pointed at the interrogation building. "I'm supposed to be working with Ibiki. We're going through some minds, for information. Should be okay, I guess. Later."

Sakura sighed. She was just about to head to her apartment to get cleaned up. The last mission was particularly bloody. There really wasn't any other way to get out of an ambush of twenty jounins, other than to slaughter them. Of course, she did all the slaughtering. She really didn't really want to deal with Lee's moodiness when he killed someone.

Turning around, she leapt on to the roofs of the buildings and quickly made her way towards the Hokage Ttower.

As she jumped across buildings, she wondered,. Thought about how it would've been like if Naruto had come home from the that one mission. Thought about how she would've ended up if the two members of Team 7 had never left. She gave a dry chuckle. I probably would've stayed weak, chasing after Sasuke like a fool. It was hopeless. An obsession. Really. I would've stayed a worthless burden to everyone.

She felt someone catch up to her, running in sync. "Sai?"

The black haired Root ANBU nodded, his inky eyes blank, his features schooled into the apathetic mask that he always wore. But that wasn't his second nature anymore. Up until Naruto left, he had slowly been improving, learning and gaining back those lost emotions. Then, when Naruto never came back, the sudden force of all those emotions came crashing down on him. It woke something within him, and now, like Sakura, he was just pretending. Pretending that nothing happened.

"It's a new mission. Right after another."

It wasn't a question; rather, it was a statement. Sakura nodded. "Yeah. It seems like something's approaching. Otherwise, we wouldn't be sent on a mission this soon. You have any idea?"

Sai shook his head. "No. But I'm hazarding a guess. It has to do with foreign relations."

A dry chuckle bubbled out. "Doesn't it always, Sai?"

The Hokage tower soon rose into view, and the two of them jumped down from the roofs, landing quietly on the ground below. Wordlessly, they walked into the building.

"What?"

That was the first actual reaction that Sakura had in years. Her eyes widened fractionally. Even Sai was slightly ruffled by the news. Tsunade rolled her eyes. "Yes. You heard me. Sound is threatening to declare war on us. However, Orochimaru is dead. So we don't know who the new leader is."

She picked up some files. "I do believe that is someone new. And you, Sakura, are to pick three others, aside from Sai, and lead a recon mission on this. If you do find something important, or feel the action is needed, just send a message over by summons or something. Do not fail me in this, and don't pick up any unnecessary attention. Now go."

"Hai."

The two of them walked out the door, and Sai gently shut it. Tsunade sighed. She glared half-heartedly at the stacks of paperwork that Shizune seemed to replenish constantly. Reaching into her drawer, she pulled out a bottle of sake. "This better work. If I'm seeing random flashes of gold, then I can blame it on the alcohol. I'm not delusional."

She looked wistfully at the two framed photos that sat framed on her table. One was of when they wereshe was still young, when Jirayia, Orochimaru, and herselfshe were chuunin. The picture resembled the one of Team 7. Orochimaru ignoring Jirayia's glare, and Tsunade herself rolling her eyes. Hiruzen-sensei was smiling.

The second picture was one of Naruto, Neji, Sai, and Shikamaru. It was the picture that Sakura had taken on Naruto's sixteenth birthday. Naruto was in the middle, Shikamaru to his right, and Sai to the left. Neji sat next to Shikamaru. Naruto looked so… happy in that picture, but there was a faint streak of sadness buried within. Sai was giving one of his rare smiles. Shikamaru grinned lazily at the camera, arm slung around Neji, who was almost as emotionless as usual, but happiness radiated from him.

Tsunade tipped the bottle back and look a long draft of the alcohol, feeling the buzz slowly radiate spread through her body. Dear kami, she missed the blond. Missed his rudeness, even as a top ANBU, missed him calling her obaa-chan. She picked up the picture, thinking about the good times. Before Naruto disappeared. From Shikamaru and Neji's reports, they had not found a single trace of the blonde, except for the red sash that he had used to secure his katana to his back.

"Naruto…."

"If only I had been more careful. Then we would've never lost him. It's my fault. Shika—"

Shikamaru sighed, holding up a hand to stop Neji's rant. Ever since Naruto disappeared, the Hyuuga seemed to be losing his nerves, though he managed to keep it under control in front of everyone else. Neji took a deep breath, and walked over to the couch where Shikamaru was sitting and collapsed next to the brunette. "I'm sorry. But it doesn't won't stop plaguing me. Even after these many a few years, even."

Shikamaru slung an arm over Neji's shoulders and gently pulled him closer. "It's okay. We'll find him, even if it is too so troublesome."

The two sat there in silence, one reliving the fear of realizing that Naruto was nowhere in sight, and the other wondering where the kitsune had gone. A small breeze filtered into Shikamaru's apartment through the open window. Neji shifted so that he was facing the shadow-nin. "Shika?"

"Hmm?"

Neji sighed and leaned back into Shikamaru's embrace. "I hope that he's happy if he had decided to leave us. It actually might be plausible, since the rest of village still treated him like trash."

Shikamaru nodded. "Probably. Troublesome people."

Suddenly, there was a knock and both of them hastily stood up. Neji strode over to the door and pulled it open. Sakura and Sai stood at the doorstep, Kiba in tow. Kiba gave a small smirk. "Cuddling with the Nara, Neji? See, Sakura? We should've waited a little."

Shikamaru yawned. "I guess you could call it that."

Seeing the somewhat irked Neji made him smile. Then he turned to Sakura, serious again. "Is it another mission, Sakura?"

The pink-haired kunoichi nodded. "Hai. Sound's planning to declare war on us. Tsunade wants us to find out who the new leader is. It's a recon, so I can only bring three others. So I wanted to ask you and Neji. A Byakugan user would be very helpful, and you're a tactical genius."

Neji smirked lightly. "Then we're coming. Despite what Shikamaru says."

There was a small pause as the information sunk into Shikamaru's brain. Then he sighed in defeat. "Fine. When do we need to leave?"

Sai handed a scroll to the shadow-nin. "Tonight. Be at the gates by five."

Kiba gave a whoop. "We get to spy on Sound!"

He gave a yelp of pain when Sakura nailed him over the head. "Keep it down, baka. Neji, Shikamaru, thanks for the help. I really do want to see this new leader. Hopefully I have an excuse to beat their shit into the ground."

Shikamaru laughed. "Sure."

The three of them flashed away, leaving the two standing. Shikamaru shut the door, and gave a low groan. He really didn't want to haul his ass around for another mission. They had just come back from one the day before. Neji smirked at the shadow-user. "Let's go watch clouds after packing."

Shikamaru found himself being propelled into the bedroom that they shared, pushed by an eager Hyuuga who was rather hyped up, so to speak. "W-wait, Neji—"

"Hey, kit!"

The Akatsuki member turned around, with the cerulean eyes that never dimmed, and blonde spikes that remained untamed, even though they were soft to the touch. Kisame walked over, Sameheda slung across his back. "You ready? The meeting's in five minutes. The others are already there, except for Juugo and Tobi, who; they're are on another mission."

Naruto nodded. "Yeah. Let's go, Sharky."

He grinned at Kisame, who was desperately trying to pull off an Itachi-indifference. Finally, he let loose a growl and caught Naruto in a headlock. "I'm just going to drag you down there like this."

Naruto stuck his tongue out playfully. "Fine, Kisame. But don't drag me. I think you'll end up tearing the new cloak I replaced."

With a sigh, Kisame let go of Naruto, who grinned and grabbed his hand, pulling him along.

Kisame let a small grin show. Naruto hadn't changed one bit from the hyperactive nin that Sasuke had brought back as his new partner. And they kinda needed it. Some bit of light, in all the dark they had. Kazuku became slightly more animated than he had been after Hidan's death, talking more.

Pein loosened up, and found support in his endeavor for peace. Naruto mentioned that they should destroy the Five Great Nations. Deidara and Naruto spent hours talking about art, with Deidara teaching him how to shape the explosive clay, and Naruto teaching him how to paint, something he picked up from Sai over the years.

Somehow, Naruto found out Tobi's true identity, which had scared the hell out of everyone, including the unflappable Pein. Under the bright orange mask was Uchiha Obito, Kakashi's former teammate, who was thought to be dead. One Sharingan eye still worked, and Obito abandoned the happy-go-lucky cover that he had kept up for so long. Even so, they still called him Tobi.

Naruto got along with the remnants of Team Taka. Suigetsu and Juugo reminded him of Kiba and Neji. He also got along with Pein, Konan, who treated him like a little brother, and Zetsu, who was usually being a houseplant.

Instead of taking the Kyuubi out of him, the Akatsuki decided to let him keep it, as long as he stayed with them. And the members had accepted him easily, after a while. It was hard to ignore him, and they fondly called the blonde 'kitsune'. Despite the initial distrust and animosity.

Flashback:

The door to the Pein's slammed open, and Sasuke sauntered in, a blonde in tow. Pein glanced frostily at the pair. His purple ringed eyes were filled with suspicion and wariness. "Is there an explanation, Sasuke?"

Sasuke shrugged. "I found a new partner. Isn't that what you've wanted me to do?"

Pein's eyes narrowed. "The Kyuubi container, nevertheless. I cannot allow this. And we need the demon inside of him."

He noticed Sasuke's grip on the blonde tighten. Sasuke glared. "Naruto is not going to be killed like all the others you've captured and extracted."

Pein merely sipped his tea. "And what solution do you have? We need to verify that he is willing to do what he is told. Once he is here, he cannot leave. Or I will send others to capture him and extract the Bijuu from him immediately."

Sasuke's face slipped back into its emotionless façade. "He will stay. And having a 'container', as you put it, can control the Kyuubi better than if you could if it was separated."

An eyebrow rose. "And how would that benefit us?"

"I'll do anything. Even if it means destroying what I once treasured as my home. Or those who were my friends."

Sasuke inwardly smirked. Pein put his tea down. "You do say. Then as your first assignment to prove your willingness, I want you to go back to Konoha and kill one of your former teammates. Doesn't matter which one. Then afterwards, if you still manage to stay, then we're going to test your capabilities on a nearby village."

Naruto nodded, his face trained into a mask that he wore as an ANBU. "Hai. Do I need to bring back evidence?"

Pein shook his head. "I will know."

He dismissed the pair, and Sasuke slammed the door behind him.

Outside, Sasuke looked curiously at Naruto. "Who are you going to kill?"

Naruto shrugged, his blue eyes devoid of regret. "The first person I see, I guess. After that, I'm going for some ramen."

Suddenly he collided with something, and surprised, careened back unsteadily. Sasuke gripped him by the shoulder and steadied him. Naruto looked over, and noticed Kisame and Deidara. Kisame gave an unpleasant grin, exposing sharp teeth. "Look. It's the Kyuubi's container."

Deidara glanced at Naruto and grinned evilly. "Shouldn't he be dead, un?"

Naruto gave a sweet smile. "If you don't shut up, then you will be."

Deidara's face contorted into fury. "Your teammate, the pink-haired bitch, killed Sasori-danna. How could you say anything, un? Bastard. You should die. Maybe your death can avenge his death."

Naruto shrugged. "She killed him. I didn't do anything. If you have anything to complain about, then where were you at the time?"

Deidara gave a growl, and rushed at the blonde. Catching the movement, Naruto quickly sidestepped the blow, and slammed a fist towards Deidara's head. The other jumped back, blue eyes glittering with malice and contempt. "Bastard."

Kisame grinned, but pulled Deidara back. "Better leave him intact. Pein won't like it if we injured the demon-brat that badly. Though I suppose Kakuzu could easily stitch him back up."

Sasuke growled warningly. "Back off, Kisame. We need to complete a task."

"Tch."

The two walked on, but not before Deidara viciously rammed into Naruto. Sasuke sighed. "You okay?"

Naruto nodded. "Bunch of retards, they are. I'll get used to it."

They ran into Juugo and Tobi. They didn't say anything, but Tobi gave some rather disapproving glances at the two. Kakuzu ignored them outright.

Naruto sighed. "Bastards. What do they have against me?"

"Everything. But we all go through it."

Somehow, the pair managed to run into every one that was there. The last person was Konan, but she was slightly more accepting. She glanced at him. "Kyuubi-brat? I suppose it's fitting that we test you out first. Good luck. While you're there, kill with a move and style that you'll keep as your signature."

Naruto looked questionably at her. "Signature?"

She nodded. "The way your enemies are left. That way, people can tell who killed the person. For me, it's the paper blossom that I leave on their bloodied corpses."

Naruto grinned at her. "Thanks, Konan-san."

Quietly, she left.

Naruto stood over Tenten's dead body. Indeed, true to his word, he had killed the first shinobi that he ran into, and it happened to be Tenten, who was leaving for a mission, and not even out of the village. It was dark, and in the quiet, he killed her without even thinking.

Sasuke glanced down at the corpse. It reminded him of the corpses that he saw when he jumped Naruto out in Shimo. The same diagonal slash that opened up the throat. Naruto grinned at him. "Is that enough of a familiar kill? Or could it be better?"

Sasuke smirked lightly. "Depends. Does anyone else kill like this?"

Naruto shrugged. "Not really. Though—"

He knelt down, and with a vicious swipe, opened up another cut. It looked like a cross, with a broad belt of red across and a thin sliver down the center. Naruto grinned. "There."

"You really did it, didn't you?"

Naruto looked up from his ramen, and saw Kakuzu looking down at him. "Yeah. It's not a big deal."

"How so?"

Naruto paused. "Well, I'll do anything for Sasuke. Because he's protected me since forever."

"Hm."

He walked away, pondering what the kitsune had to say. Maybe changes could come. After all, they kinda needed some more people.

Naruto saw Kisame's thoughtful look and gave a cheeky grin. "Whatcha thinking about? You don't usually have that face on."

The mist missing-nin gave a shrug. "Thinking about how you ruined the Akatsuki's fearful reputation for being cold-blooded killers. You turned them into soft marshmallows. Getting Kakuzu to call you 'kitsune'? That's like, hell freezing over three times. And if Itachi was here, and he called you that, then we officially know that the world has ended. Period."

Naruto gave a bright laugh. "It's alright. You guys are like a family that I never had, even among my former teammates and friends. It's not like they'll believe that you bunch have gotten soft either. C'mon, we're gonna be late."

The two ran the last remaining meters and slowed down into a walk as they entered the meeting room. Everyone was seated around the large wooden table. Pein looked up from his files. "Kisame, Naruto."

Naruto eased into his seat between Deidara and Sasuke, while Kisame sat next to Deidara. Pein shuffled the papers over, and coughed lightly. "As things have proceeded, Sound has declared war on Konoha, under unknown leadership. The Hokage has already been informed, and we're waiting for potential negotiations and recon from the Hidden Leaf."

Sasuke leaned back with a smirk. Naruto had become the leader of the Sound village, and had, for both of them, declared war on Konoha, the village that caused them both pain. With Pein's permission, they were now pushing forward. Under the new leadership, the village had bloomed and prospered, and now was on par with the Five Great Nations; except no one knew of the developments, since no one traveled through there anymore. If anyone went there, they would see a reflection of Konoha, but more welcoming. People accepted each other, even if some were the remains of Orochimaru's experiments, and even if they were different. It was a rule that Sasuke had beat into every single person living in that village, and it paid off.

Akatsuki moved their headquarters to under the headquarters that Sasuke and Naruto worked in as the leaders of the village. Amegakure was no longer suitable, since Konoha had extended the borders, and other villages had pillaged some of the land. It still rained there, and it was still war torn territory. But now shinobi traveled back and forth across the land.

Pein flipped another sheet of paper. "With this operation, we have also been hunting down Kabuto, as well as some of the other shinobi."

He was cut off by a loud slam of the door. Everyone looked over, each ready to attack if needed. There was a period of silence. Then Deidara sprung up, as well as Kisame and Sasuke. The bomber's eyes were wide, filled with shock. "Danna?"

Kisame and Sasuke imitated goldfish. Sasuke snapped out of the daze first. "Aniki?"

Standing by the door was Sasori and Itachi. Sasori was out of the large puppet, and Itachi looked healthier than he had ever been.

Chaos broke out. Sasuke mildly glared at his brother. "I thought I killed you."

Deidara grabbed Sasori by the shoulders and shook the puppet-master, making sure it wasn't an illusion. Said puppet-master gave a glare, but remained silent. Pein looked rather mystified, and Konan smiled. Naruto was busy pestering Kisame for answers, and the others sat there, not knowing whether or not they should do something.

Finally, in a small opening of silence, Naruto cut in bluntly. "I thought you were dead. Both of you. So unless it's Orochimaru's jutsu or something, I'd like to know how you two are standing here, very much alive and breathing."

Itachi remained expressionless. "Hn."

Naruto facepalmed. "Even though I can interpret that fine, I would like it better if you didn't speak bastardese like teme. It's rather interesting though. Does it run through the family?"

Sasuke rolled his eyes, standing next to Itachi. "No. I just picked it up from Itachi."

Then, leveling a finger at Sasori, Naruto narrowed his eyes. "And you. I was aware that Sakura 'killed you'. Explain."

In a monotone, Sasori explained the whole situation to them all. "It was a rather ingenious idea. I simply made another puppet of myself, down to the very last details, and animated it. So Sakura killed 'me', and I was free for the time being. However, I was severely weakened, and couldn't keep up with constant moving of bases. I found Itachi about two years ago, after his battle with Sasuke, and found him in a coma. So I have been tending to him, keeping him stable, until he woke up two months ago."

Sasuke twitched.

There was a moment of silence. Konan frowned. "Sasori, why didn't you come straight back to the base? If you were severely weakened, you could've gotten medical assistance here."

"I was weak enough that I wasn't even able to hold up against a team of ANBU should I have crossed paths with them."

"That was three years ago."

Sasori nodded. "Yes. But I found Itachi on my way back to the base, after gaining enough strength. And I could not risk anything."

"And he was being a vegetable."

Itachi ignored Sasuke's remark, instead remaining stoic and cold.

Pein glared at the two. "That was rather annoying. Ruined my plans."

Konan rolled her eyes and lightly cuffed Pein over the head. "At least they're alive."

Then Sasori's attention refocused back on Naruto. "Why is the Kyuubi here?"

Naruto gave a grin. "I joined. I just declared war on Konoha. You saw the Sound village as you came here, didn't you? That was after Sasuke and I took over."

Sasori nodded. "That's something unheard of. Have the other's been teaching you?"

Deidara jumped in. "I taught him how to make art fleeting and spontaneous, un."

The others joined in the conversation, each stating something they contributed to the little kitsune, and how they taught him. Naruto was now beyond the level of ANBU, having improved his rasengan and rasen shruiken. With some help, he also managed to obtain Minato's flash jutsu. Then there were the other new jutsus. He was just as dangerous as the other members, give or take. Itachi nodded in approval. "Hn. At least you taught him not to be a burden."

Sasori gave a faint smile that looked more like a twitch of a muscle. "In that case, I'll be teaching you how to use puppets. It's always good to have one around."

Naruto gave one of his bright grins. "You guys are the best. Are we starting tomorrow?"

"Hai."

Finally, Pein gave up. "Just go. All of you. Meeting's over. Just remember that war is possible, so keep training. And pPartnerships can be changed around now. Do it in the kitchen."

All the members filed out, leaving Pein in silence. He sighed. "Naruto really did change us."

In the kitchen, pandemonium was close to breaking out. Everyone was either sitting at the table or wandering around the kitchen, the two not separated by a wall. Finally, Kisame snapped.

"SHUT UP."

The sudden roar of fury shut mostly everyone up. Naruto stopped halfway in a conversation with Sasuke, and the rest froze. Realizing that Kisame was trying to keep order, they all calmed down. Kisame shrugged. "If we're going to switch partners, we better do it now. Anyone have a suggestion?"

Naruto pulled a blank scroll from his black cloak. "I'll write it down."

Surprisingly, it was Sasori that spoke first. "I will pair with Deidara."

There was general consent, and Deidara grinned. "We can still argue with each other, un. It's not gonna be so different, un."

"Art is eternal."

"No, un. It's supposed to be fleeting, a bang, un!"

Naruto wrote the names down, ignoring the argument that started up. "Next? Though I was thinking of putting Kisame and Itachi in a team again, since they know how to work with each other."

"Hn."

Kisame rolled his eyes, but he wasn't annoyed. "Whatever you say, kit."

The eyebrow went up. The famous Uchiha eyebrow. "Kit?"

Sasuke smirked. "That's what we all call Naruto. Are you willing to do the same, aniki?"

"Hn."

Naruto glanced at Itachi. "I'm surprised you agreed. But nevertheless. How about—"

"How about pairing Juugo with Zetsu and I?"

The blonde looked up from the scroll. "Suigetsu, Juugo, and Zetsu? Are you sure, Suigetsu?"

The white haired boy nodded. "Yeah. It's not as bad as it seems."

There were footsteps, then two people walked into the kitchen. Tobi and Juugo looked questioningly around at everyone, until they noticed two new members. Tobi's one visible eye widened in surprise. "Itachi?"

Itachi nodded. "Hn."

He was half expecting Tobi to go into hysterics or something, but the missing-nin simply stood there, looking around again. "Kit, should I tell the two of them?"

Naruto looked up. "Huh? Oh, Juugo, Tobi. Did the mission go well?"

Juugo nodded, answering quietly. "Hai. Kabuto's dead."

There was a grin of approval. "Good. He's dead. And Tobi, if you want. It's fine if only the Akatsuki know. It's not like some kind of secret anymore."

Itachi looked at Naruto with curiosity. "Who?"

Tobi sighed. He reached up and grasped the orange mask and removed it. There weren't many things that could startle the Uchiha, but Itachi's eyes widened fractionally, and Sasuke doubled over with suppressed laughter, seeing the reaction. "Obito-san?"

Obito nodded. "Hai."

He was just about dead, after the rocks collapsed and sealed out the light. It was supposed to be his grave, of course. If he had died. But Kakuzu and Hidan had stumbled upon him, and dug him out, just out of curiosity. Kakuzu used his medical abilities, and managed to stabilize the Uchiha, before bringing him back to the hideout. There, he covered himself up, and put up the front they all knew as Tobi.

To everyone back home, he was dead. At least Kakashi and Rin made it out, and with one Sharingan that they could put to use. That was something he'd never regret, even after all these years.

Finally, Sasori broke the silence. "At least Hidan and Kakuzu did some decent work on you. The facial structure was supposedly crushed, but they managed to reconstruct it, correct?"

Obito nodded. "It actually doesn't look like it got crushed in the first place, except for the long scar running down one side of my face."

Naruto laughed. "It's fine. But hey, who do you want to be paired with? We're reorganizing the pairs, since Sasori and Itachi decided to drop in out of nowhere. And after this, I'm bringing you all to go eat ramen. My treat this time."

Obito grinned and reached up to replace his mask. His motion was stopped by Naruto, who had somehow got up and flashed over. Sasori's eyes flashed with surprise. The kit was fast. Fast enough that he almost couldn't catch his movement. Obito frowned. "Kit?"

Naruto rolled his eyes. "Just take it off and abandon it. It's not like anyone's going to care. Besides, it's not you look bad or something. You look fine. Please?"

A combination of Naruto's famous puppy look and some pleading broke Obito's resolve. "Fine. I give in."

"Yeah!"

Sasuke smirked, sneaking up behind Naruto and circling his arms around his blonde. "You could've gotten him to do that a long time ago."

Naruto grinned, leaning back into Sasuke's embrace. "Yup."

He looked around at the others. "Meh. How about Kazuku Kakuzu and Obito?"

The said two agreed, and Naruto grinned triumphantly. "Then let's go for ramen!"

Sasuke was towed along, and Tobi and Deidara followed behind. The others looked around, and deciding to try it, followed the others, up the long column of stairs that lead up to the surface, into the headquarters, however reluctantly.

Shikamaru stared at the clouds that floated across the blue canvas of sky. The wind gently ushered them onwards. Some were rounded, plump, while others were wispy and drawn out. He sighed. Why couldn't life be like this? Unhurried, just gliding along. They were only things that weren't troublesome.

"Shikamaru?"

He snapped out of his reverie. "What?"

Neji gestured at the map that Kiba was holding. Akamaru gave an affirmative bark, tongue lolling out. "Up ahead, it should be the Sound village. What should we do?"

Sakura slowed her pace down and looked at the map as well. "We are not supposed to attract no attention, but I don't know how we would otherwise find out anything otherwise. From the information gathered, no one has traveled through the area in years. And no one has come out."

Sai frowned. "Then why would it suddenly declare war on us? We don't even know if the village is capable of holding up against the Five Great Nations. Certainly, if Konoha is going into war, Gaara-san is going to follow behind, and; Suna will add support and more soldiersnin. Not to mention a bunch of other villages that are going to get involved."

Kiba shrugged. "Don't know. But that's why we're being sent for recon."

Shikamaru thought about it. They weren't supposed to attract no attention, but that wasn't possible, since the occupants and people living in the village would recognize if anyone was new or different.

He sighed. It was going to be troublesome. It was even worse than trying to bring Temari on a date without Kankuro or Gaara knowing. "We're goingIt looks like we'll have to go straight to the village and ask to request a meeting with the leader."

Neji nodded in agreement. "That way, we wouldn't have to risk being caught as spies."

Suddenly Akamaru gave a growl, and Kiba looked up ahead, where Akamaru was gesturing. "Holy shit."

Everyone looked up where Kiba was pointing. There were a variety of reactions. Shikamaru sighed, while Neji's eyes barely widened. Sakura froze, Sai accidently running into her.

Up ahead, there was field of desolation and destruction. The buildings were destroyed, flames still ravaging the area. There was no sign of life. Blood seemed to be coated everywhere. The team came to a stop at the top of the hill where the trail started fading out. It was gloomy. The silence seemed to seep everywhere, and the coldness sent chills running down Sakura's spine.

Kiba gaped at the scene. "What the hell happened here? I thought they just declared war on us?"

Sakura pointed at the mess ahead. "Neji? Can you use Byakugan and see if you can find anything."

There was a moment of silence as Neji surveyed the scene in front of them. Then it clicked as he noticed small cracks in the visage he was seeing. "It's not real."

Sai frowned. "What?"

Neji's eyes widened. "It's a genjutsu. Put up to hide the village. It's huge."

Sakura narrowed her eyes, and flinched when she realized the enormity of the whole situation. The illusion was well crafted, and secure. It would take quite a hell of chakra to disrupt. "Shit."

The illusion before them seemed so real, but Neji and Sakura could tell that it wasn't actually real. The genjutsu could've only been crafted by someone extremely skilled, but trying to maintaining such a large scale illusion was would be fatal to the user.

Sai glanced at the village. "It's not managed by a person, so it isn't a visual genjutsu. Otherwise the person couldn't have been able to keep it for long."

"Ah!"

Everyone looked at Kiba. "It's the Sound village right?"

Sakura nodded slowly. Then it all fit. "God. They could use sound to manipulate a large scale genjutsu without taking up too much energy. And we can't just dispel it easily. We'll have to go on like this. Let's run the last mile. The faster, the better."

"RAMEN!"

Naruto's happy yell could be heard throughout almost the whole village. Kairi laughed as she watched the enthusiastic blonde dig into the ramen with fervor. The others followed suit after a round of thanks, though not as ferociously. It seemed like the blonde hadn't eaten for years.

Naruto looked up after two minutes, finished after inhaling the his first bowl of ramen. "Thanks Kairi-chan. I haven't had such good ramen after since leaving Konoha. Can I have another bowl?"

Kairi grinned. "Yeah. And it's on the house this time, for everyone. Eat your fill. It's our way of thanking you for restoring this village."

The eleven members were currently in the ramen shop that had opened along the main street of Otogakure. Kairi used to be one of the few kunoichi that were there during Orochimaru's reign, and now, in times during the time of peace, she worked at the ramen stand with her brother, who was also a shinobi.

Naruto delightedly made his way through the ramen, and the others watched in amazement as the pile of empty bowls grew rapidly. Sasuke finally finished his first bowl, only to discover Naruto more than halfway through his fifth bowl. Itachi watched in mild amusement, while Obito tried to explain to Sasori the blonde's eating habits.

Even though he was a far stretch from the ANBU he was in Konoha, he still retained his love for ramen, which was unrivaled by anything, except for his love of Sasuke and his apparent bloodlust that he somehow picked up from the members in the four years he was with them.

It was about half an hour later that he finally finished his fill, fifteen empty bowls piled up. He grinned at Kairi, who smiled at him. "Sorry for the large amount of bowls I'm leaving here."

He gave a sheepish grin, and Kairi laughed. "That's fine with me. The least you can do is keep our village like this, the proud village that rose from the destroyed remains that Orochimaru left us in. I thank all of you," she said, facing the other Akatsuki members, "For for keeping us safe and giving all these people the refuge that we need."

Most of the members blinked in surprise for being thanked, and Naruto laughed. "It's the village that I created from my dream to be accepted by my own village, which still had rejected me. We'll be leaving. See you again, Kairi-chan!"

The kunoichi waved at them as the eleven of them left.

Suddenly, there was a series of chimes ringing through the village, the signal that Naruto recognized as a the signal that the sentries had used once they had seen someone coming down this way, and were headed this way, despite the complex genjutsu cast by a complex chime system, which Naruto and Kosuke, a skilled Sound shinobi genjutsu user about Deidara's age, had developed to protect the village.

Sasuke heard the chimes as well, and the two face the rest of the group. Naruto summoned a large kitsune, the size of Akamaru. The kitsune faced Naruto. "Yo."

Naruto pointed at the gates. "I need you to go reinforce the gates."

"Of course."

The summoning flashed away, and Naruto sighed. "The rest of you, you'll need to go to the hideout underneath the headquarters. It wouldn't do well for others outside of the village to know that the Akatsuki are here. Obito, can you stay?"

Obito cocked his head to one side. "Why?"

Sasuke smirked. "No one knows you, and even if it was Kakashi, he wouldn't believe his own eyes. And I doubt he's coming this way"

The other members nodded in agreement, and flashed away, understanding the importance of remaining unknown for the time being. There was time later. Sasuke tugged his cloak off, and gestured for Naruto and Obito to do the same. They handed the cloaks over to Sasuke, who sealed them into a scroll. Then the three of them took off their headbands, where a slash ran through all three, signifying their split from Konoha. the village. Instead, they pulled out Sound headbands, the a music note proudly engraved into the metal.

Under their cloaks, they wore various things. Naruto had abandoned the bright orange in favor of dark hues, mostly black. The occasional crimson graced his outfit, like streaks of blood. He wore a tight black tank that also covered his neck tightly. It was tight enough that his muscles were slightly pronounced, but loose enough for movement. Over the tank was a dark grey flak jacket, designed by Deidara himself, when he was in a rare mood for art that lasted slightly longer than an instance. Black arm warmers covered his forearms, and covering the metal arm guards. Naruto also wore black pants and sandals that were also black. Crimson hued bandages wrapped around his torso, and a silk red sash held the katana across his back.

Sasuke was wearing just about the same thing, but on the back of the tank was the Uchiha family crest, and it was dark blue. The flak jacket was black instead, and he wore baggy shorts that were white. A katana was secured to his side by a black sash. His arm guards were clearly in view.

Obito wore a mesh shirt, one exactly like what Itachi wore, and the black flak jacket over it. He was also wearing the customary arm guards, and pants like Naruto. Instead of a katana, he carried two scythes that were linked by a metal chain.

Naruto gave a grin at the other two. "Now we look like 'normal' people. Sasuke, do you still have that scroll with you?"

Reaching into his flak jacket, he pulled out a scroll. Naruto unsealed the mark, and retrieved his white short sleeved coat. "Now….I just need this. And I guess it's back to normal."

Obito laughed when he saw Naruto put the coat on. "Now you look like Minato-sensei. It's like a spitting image. I swear, you really do take after your father."

Naruto gave a cheeky grin. "The first Otokage is on the loose! But it works, doesn't it?"

Sasuke rolled his eyes, but smirked. "Then we have to be at the headquarters. Funny how it looks like the Hokage's Tower back in Konoha, doesn't it?"

The three of them observed the tower. Naruto's eyes widened. "It does."

Obito nodded. "But the village is better. The foundation and core values are well taught. At least there's a future here for the people."

The three of them bantered back and forth, make their way to the tower, where they were going to settle into the office before anyone came.

"Well, that's nice."

Sakura glanced at the half destroyed gate that stood in front of the village. Neji shrugged. "I guess that's where we go through."

Before any of the five could move, a kitsune the size of Akamaru flashed in front of them. It was a reddish hued orange fox, chocolate hued eyes soft and wide. Kiba and Akamaru stepped back a few paces, while Neji unconsciously slid into a fighting stance. Shikamaru and Sai didn't move. The kitsune looked at them and gave a toothy grin. "I suppose this is the recon team?"

Shocked, Sakura answered truthfully. "Hai. Is this the Sound Village?"

The kitsune gave a slight sniff, and one of the ears twitched slightly. "Is it? I suppose it is. It used to the Village of Rice Fields. Maybe now it's the Sound Village."

Kiba gave an aggravated growl. "Answer straight, will you?"

The kitsune ignored him. "What are you here for?"

Attempting to somehow avoid conflict with the kitsune, Neji cautiously replied. "We want to talk with your leader. That is all."

"Hm. I suppose that's a decent answer. Okay. In that case, welcome to the Otogakure. The village of music."

Following the kitsune, the team stepped past the large gate. Instantly, the genjutsu flared off, since they passed the barrier. Sakura gasped out loud. Kiba whistled in admiration. "Woah. This place is beautiful."

In front of them was the massive village, even more elaborate and graceful than Konoha. Or any of the other villages they had seen. The village was built upon a great flowing plain, the fields sweeping and circling the village, while in the center of the plains was a vibrant village., Tthe buildings were built with care, and bustling with activity. Further back, near the edge of the village, and facing straight ahead, was the tower. It mimicked the one back in Konoha. Around the perimeter of the village, where the long grass thinned out, was a high but narrow stone wall, inlayed with copper carvings of music, the notes flowing freely from one end to the other. Chimes were hung high up in the air by tower- like structures, and the chimes chimed tinkling gently in the breeze. They could hear music in the village.

Shikamaru sighed. "I actually wouldn't mind living here. It seems like a nice place to go cloud-watching. Is it possible for us to stay a little while?"

The kitsune let them admire the view a while longer. It glanced over at Shikamaru. "Depends. You might want to ask Leader-sama first before you do anything."

Neji turned to the kitsune curiously. "Who is Leader-sama?"

It shrugged. "You'll see."

Then they proceeded to walk down the well worn path down to the village. When they did enter into the heart of the village, they were greeted by sights that rarely graced the streets of Konoha. Everyone was welcoming, flashing smiles and occasionally greetings, even though they evidently were evidently newcomers. Children played with each other, and people talked with one another.

Sai's inky black eyes were full of wonder. "This place is beautiful. And so…kind."

The kitsune gave them a grin. "Today's the market day, so there are more stalls than usual. And a larger variety of goods. Not to mention the abundance of good foods. The medic-nin, the one with pink hair, should highly enjoy the selection of medicinal herbs that show up here."

Sakura blinked in surprise. "That would be nice."

They could see the small chimes and bells that hung around the village, and when the breeze came by, soft melodies hung in the air. There was this aura of peace and prosperity. Sai gave a tentative smile when a small child ran up to him and handed him a small reed flute. He thanked the child.

Sakura smiled contently. "This doesn't resemble anything that we saw when we last came here. To hunt down the Uchiha. This place could actually become a large city."

Sai nodded. "I like it this way."

They walked down towards the tower. Neji looked at it in surprise. "It looks like the one in Konoha, except newer and grander."

Then they passed by the ramen stand, and Sakura couldn't help but think of Naruto, and his obsession with ramen. A pang of nostalgia hit. The kitsune took a small detour off to the stand, and leapt up onto the chair. A brown-haired girl was humming as she cleaned off the counter. The kitsune purred lightly.

The girl looked up, her light orange eyes lighting up when she saw the kitsune. "Kyu, what brings you here?"

The others followed into the shop, and stood uncomfortably. She noticed, and motioned for them to sit down. "Take a seat. Welcome to Otogakure."

The kitsune, Kyu, gave a toothy smile. "They're the newcomers, and they want to see Leader-sama."

She rolled her eyes. "He wouldn't really like the formalness you're giving."

Then she turned to Sakura. "Nice you meet you guys. Otokage isn't that bad. He's actually an awesome person. My name's Kairi. A kunoichi who cooks ramen in her spare time."

Sakura smiled. "Nice to meet you too. I'm Haruno Sakura, and here with me is Kiba, his dog Akamaru, Shikamaru, and Neji."

Kairi gave a bright grin. She poked Kyu. "Are you guys in a hurry?"

Kyu shrugged. "Not really. They have some time, and I'm sure Leader-sama wouldn't mind."

Kairi flicked Kyu in the head, and turned back to Sakura and the others. "Want some ramen? It's on the house."

Kiba felt his stomach growl, and he gave a sheepish laugh. "Okay."

The others laughed, and nodded in agreement. Sakura thanked the girl, and they say there. Neji took a closer inspection of the kitsune. "I wasn't aware that there was a kitsune summoning."

Kyu flicked his ear. "Well, it depends on how broad your view of the world is."

Shikamaru sighed. The village really did reflect a place that he wanted to live in. There was no corruption, and everyone here was welcoming. Now if only they would let him in. He actually would gladly stay.

He started with when Kairi slipped a bowl of steaming ramen in front of them. "Thanks."

Kairi grinned. "My pleasure."

They dug in, filling their empty stomachs. Kiba managed to inhale most of the ramen in ten minutes, and sighed contently. He left some for Akamaru, who seemed to devour the rest instantly. "This is the best I've tasted yet."

The rest of the group finished soon. Neji smirked lightly. "I'm surprised. I've never actually enjoyed ramen this much before. I'll probably come back for more."

Kyu snorted. "Okay. Now, Kairi, if you'll excuse us. Otherwise kit will start worrying. Then my tail is on the line."

Kairi grinned. "Then I'll be seeing you. Have fun!"

The others waved goodbye, and continued down to the tower. It wasn't long before they stood in front of the building. Kiba gulped. Sai remained expressionless, carefully controlling his newfound emotions. Sakura took a deep breath. Neji felt Shikamaru's comforting hand on his own, and he squeezed it gently.

Kyu gave a mock bow. "Here we are."

They passed the guards, which were friendly enough, but by the way they carried themselves and moved, they were obviously extremely skilled shinobi.

The group, led by the kitsune, walked down the round hallways, and went up the floors, until they reached the top floor. The tension seemed to thicken as they neared the door.

Finally, Sakura reached the door, Kiba and Akamaru and Sai close behind her, Neji and Shikamaru a little to the back. Kyu took a bow. "Your honor."

Sakura took a deep breath, and opened the door. They quickly filed into the room. There were two masked shinobi on either side of the solid wooden desk. No one sat in the chair, which had its back to the window. Someone was standing, looking out the window. Kyu slid in, and shut the door. He padded up to the desk and jumped up on to it. "They're here, kit."

The Otokage turned around.

A/N: Our little Naru-chan's all grown up!

Dracen: Into a murderer.

Matai: Is he?

Tatsuhiro: Well, he's definitely kickass.

Also, here be the introduction a few others. Kairi is one of them. There's always time for ramen.

Thanks, and please review~

-Syaoran