DISCLAIMER: I do not own Naruto or any of Kishimoto's characters. I do not own the song.


A Traitor's Heart: Self Inflicted
Chapter One

The wind gently swayed the leaves in the forest that surrounded the small, rundown one room house. In it, two men sat around the small fireplace warming themselves as they quietly watched their dinner sizzle. Each man was in the center of their own growing puddle, the weather had taken an unexpected turn and caught them off guard. Their heavy black, cloud adorned cloaks hung, dripping on pegs by the door.

"I'm glad we have this place. I sure as hell didn't want to sleep outside on a night like this." the largest of the two spoke.

The other man gave a small grunt in response to his companion. The silence continued until the small man's body began to heave as he coughed painfully. His pale hand clutched at his chest as he tried to breath. Agony was etched on his normally empty expressions, and he fell to his knees.

The large man knew better than to reach out to him. Even after being partnered together of so many years, some things are not meant to change. He watched and waited for the fit to pass.

Slowly, his breathing evened and he collected himself from the floor. His dark eyes reflected the dancing flames for the briefest of moments before the blazed red. Using the back of his hand, Uchiha Itachi wiped the fresh blood from his mouth before settling back in his chair.

Hoshigaki Kisame continued to watch on as the ailing Uchiha rummaged through his satchel. He removed a small vile with a cork stopper. Holding it up to the light of the fire, his shoulders slouched minutely before he tossed the empty glass into the fire.

"Are you sure about this Itachi-san?" the blue man questioned once again.

"Hai. It's the only way."

"And how do you suggest we acquire this… remedy?"

"We set a trap."

- - xXxXx - -

One hand in front of the other grasped at the ground as he tried to pull his bloody and broken body away from his attackers. Hatake Kakashi was a talented ninja. It took a massively skilled ninja to bring him to his knees. Unfortunately for him, Itachi was just such a ninja.

Kakashi continued to slowly pull himself until his nose hit a sandaled foot. Kisame snorted as he roughly flipped the Copy-nin over.

"Naruto isn't… with me." Kakashi rasped. "What do you want?"

"Does a missing-nin need a reason for what he does?" Kisame shot back.

"You don't," he paused, shifting his blurry gaze to Itachi. "But he does."

"Hm. You remember my ways well, Kakashi-san." Itachi spoke as he drew closer. "I'll tell you what I want. I want relief." he answered right before sending Kakashi into the red and black world of the Tsukuyomi.

His body stilled after he screamed out in agony. Kisame looked down at Kakashi's body.

"I was hoping that would have been more of a fight, but it wasn't." he complained.

"He's returning home from a taxing mission."

The blue skinned man sighed as he slung the Samehada's massive, bandaged blade over his shoulder. He should have know that Itachi would have planned this attack while Kakashi was in a weakened state. For being as talented as he was, the Uchiha never seemed to want to fight. Albeit, recently he didn't blame him.

"Now what, Itachi-san?"

"We wait."

"Of course." he groaned.

- - xXxXx - -

Pakkun tore through the forest as quickly as his tiny paws would allow. Kakashi had summoned him with some of his remaining chakra to get help. The little nin-dog was baffled that the Uchiha had let him pass. He knew better than to think that he was unaware of the small pooch's presence.

Pakkun couldn't dwell on it much because much to his relief, the gates of Konohagakure were now in sight. He raced past the guards with a slight yip of acknowledgement before heading straight to the Hokage tower.

The pug slid into Tsuande's office barking loudly. The blonde woman stood from behind her desk to see what was responsible for the outburst. Immediately she recognized the dog.

"Pakkun? What the hell are you doing making all that noise?" she questioned.

"It's Kakashi. He was ambushed by Uchiha Itachi and his partner. He was alive when I left. He's not far out." he panted out frantically.

"Shizune!" Tsunade hollered. When Shizune's head appeared in the door, Tsunade continued. "Get me an ANBU squad and Haruno Sakura, NOW!"

"Hai, Lady Tsunade." she said as she vanished to complete the task demanded.

In a few short minutes, a fresh ANBU squad and Sakura stood in front of their Hokage. They didn't ask questions as Tsunade rambled out what she was told by Kakashi's summons.

"You will follow Pakkun back to where he left Hatake Kakashi and retrieve him. Dismissed!" she ordered.

"Hai, Hokage-sama!" the four replied in unison as they bowed before disappearing.

Pakkun led the four Leaf shinobi through the surrounding forests in the direction of his master. With one ANBU in front of her and two more flanking each side of her, Sakura raced towards her ex-sensei, silently hoping that they weren't too late. Konoha couldn't withstand such a significant lost to their ranks. Kakashi was an elite and in the times ahead, the Village Hidden in the Leaves would need him.

Within an hours time they slowed. The ANBU were on guard as they searched their surroundings. In the middle of a clearing laid a still Kakashi. Sakura gasped out loud when she saw him. She made a move to head towards him when she suddenly stopped. Something had just occurred to her, why would the Akatsuki attack him in Fire Country borders, let alone so close to Konoha herself?

The hairs on the back of her neck stood up just as an unnatural mist rolled in from somewhere in-between the trees. She reached in her side pouch and pulled out a kunai and fell into her stance. She froze when she heard the sound of three bodies falling to the ground followed by barking and the clear sound of a summons vanishing.

"What do you want?" she called out into the mist.

She squinted her eyes as she tried to look into the thick mist. There was no such luck. She closed her eyes and pushed some of her chakra to them hoping that this would help. She took a deep breath and opened her green eyes to find herself face to face with blue skin and two small, beady eyes.

"Boo." Hoshigaki Kisame laughed as Sakura stifled a small gasp.

Her eyes widened as she turn to flee. It wasn't that she didn't think she could take the shark like man, it was that she knew that she couldn't take him and Uchiha Itachi. They had easily dispatched a squad of ANBU and Kakashi, she knew she couldn't handle them both.

She spun around in vain as she then came face to face with the crimson of the Sharingan. In reflex, she tightly closed her eyes. Her jaw clenched harshly. She had no way out. Sakura knew she would have to fight no matter the cost. Opting to attempt to catch them off guard, she loosened her grip on the kunai and let it fall to the earth, imbedding itself with a light thud.

She quickly charged her hand with chakra forming scalpel blades. Widening her stance, she thrusted one hand at the Uchiha's face watching as he expectedly dodged it. She swung around and brought the other hand in an upward arc, aiming for Kisame's head. Kisame pulled his head back a little too late as the edge of her scalpel grazed his cheek.

"Damnit!" he hissed at the contact.

He brought his large hand up to the cut and wiped the blood away. His eyes narrowed as he pulled his hand back with the intent on back handing the kunoichi through the forest. Kisame's hand snapped out but made no contact. Eyes widened in shock, he looked around for her. He let out a growl of disapproval. Itachi was standing a few feet away with Sakura's flailing body tossed over his shoulder.

"Put me down you bastard!" she screamed.

When Itachi made no move to do so, she charged her elbow with charka, planning on hitting him in the back in order to make him comply. Sensing the movement of her charka, he unceremoniously dumped her on the hard ground. A grunt of discomfort escaped from her mouth before she pushed herself to her feet and glared at the Uchiha.

"What do you want?" she asked again.

The Uchiha just stood there. He made not attempt at answering her. He just looked at her with those eyes. He was slightly amused that since her anger flared, she held his gaze seemingly un-phased by the Sharingan.

"I know you want something. If you were just here to pick a fight then you would have let the puffer fish over there hit me." She reasoned out loud.

"Puffer fish?" Kisame repeated. He looked to his partner, "Are you sure about this Itachi-san? I mean how smart can she really be if she can't tell the difference between shark and puffer fish?"

"That's irrelevant." he answered evenly. "And yes, I'm sure."

Sakura's glare darkened. She hated being ignored. And even more, she hated when people talked about her right in front of her face.

"What are you sure of?" she growled.

"If you are so sure you better knock her out because I doubt she'd come willingly. I can't take the trip back with a loud mouth. She's a lot like her little jinchûriki friend." Kisame said as he turned his back to the two before walking off in to the fading mist.

"Hell no, I won't go anywhere with either of you willingly!"

"So be it." Itachi replied.

Sakura watched as his eyes widened minutely. It was too late she realized, she was already looking into his Sharingan.

Shit.

She thought to herself the second before the blackness of unconsciousness consumed her. Her limp body crumpled to the ground. Itachi looked at her for a brief moment before he bent down and scooped her body up. In a fluid motion, he swung her over his shoulder and followed in the direction of his partner.

It had gone perfectly according to his plan.