"With two of the 'Akatsuki' down, Konoha can finally take a sigh of relief... or not?"
Underneath a large mass of rocks and dirt, a severed head featuring a mane of white hair spoke by itself, trying to keep the dirt off its mouth.
"Fuck those fucking heathens! I swear to Jashin-sama, I'll fucking sacrifice them when I get out of here. AARGHHHH... what the fuck...?"
Suddenly, it seemed as if the ground itself was pulled upwards, drawn with the force of thousands of small threads. The large mass of earth was decomposed and set aside, revealing Hidan's head.
"Ka...Kakuzu? So you beat up those fuckers!"
"Not quite." the cloaked being said, seemingly completely intact from the previous encounter. "I was defeated. I lost four of my hearts. But we'll catch up later. I have to patch you up quickly-the Leader has ordered for an immediate meeting."
A tall figure whose head looked like it was engulfed by a venus flytrap was standing right next to the masked warrior.
"Right." he spoke. "Hurry up now."
---scene change---
At the Ichiraku Ramen Bar, five familiar faces were having their lunch together. One of them was rapidly consuming his fourth portion of ramen, while the others were simply staring at him, surprised at his ability to consume so much ramen in such a short timespan. Naruto's appetite seemed to have tripled since the fight with the Akatsuki.
Finally finishing his meal, the blonde-haired boy gave a broad smile and put down the bowl.
"Ah! That sure was great!" he said. "Now, let's get on with the training!" he got up, ready to set out and continue his training.
"Naruto... your training is finished. You have already mastered that jutsu to the perfect extent." Yamato commented, eyeing Naruto.
"Hmpfh." The silver-haired jounin sitting just nearby grunted. "Then I guess it's time for an old hag like me to go to retirement, isn't it?"
"Don't say stupid things Kakashi-sensei" a girl whose extremely large forehead drew immediate attention, along with her pink hair, that was the fourth member of the little company said. "You are still one of the strongest shinobi in Konohagakure."
Suddenly, from the wall behind them, a familiar mane of long, silvery-white, spiky hair popped up.
"Yosh! Naruto! How's it going?"
"Ero-sennin! It's Ero-sennin!" Naruto commented, almost jumping up from surprise.
The slightly perverted member of the three legendary Sannin team sighed. "I told you not to call me like that..."
"Ero-sennin! Come on! I'll show you my new awesome jutsu!" Naruto interrupted, full of joy, dragging Jiraya along with him.
"That's Naruto for you..." Jiraya gave up, while being pushed outside.
"Well, I have to get going too. I have to run an errand for Tsunade-sama." Sakura said, rising from her seat.
"Yeah, I will accompany you there." the raven haired boy that had not spoken till then said, getting up as well.
"Thank you, Sai." Sakura answered politely, as the two of them headed out of the door. Kakashi and Yamato followed them with their eyes for a bit.
"Kakashi-sempai, now that Team 10's mission is completed, what are you going to do? Do you intend to rejoin Team 7 with us?" Yamato asked.
"Nah, I think I'll be doing some freelance research on the Akatsuki. Two are down, but there are more that are bound to come."
Yamato gave a slight chuckle. "Well that's Kakashi-sempai for you. Never a moment of rest..."
"Very well then. I will see you around, I guess." Team 7's leader got up and disappeared in a blur of smoke.
"Yeah..." Kakashi said absent-mindedly, eyeing the table in front of him. Now that his companions were gone, a dark frown shadowed his uncovered eye.
---scene change---
Darkness clouded a small chamber, making it impossible to identify anything but nine figures that stood, apparently forming a half-circle in front of a large statue on top of which another man stood.
"Well well." the man, who appeared to be a leader, started. "I guess that the Jinchuuriki of the Kyuubi proved a tough opponent after all, didn't he, Kakuzu?"
Kakuzu mumbled something incoherent, while Hidan impatiently interrupted.
"Yeah, those fucking heathens, I'll be fucking sacrificing them..."
"Silence." a figure standing in a more dim-lighted position than the rest spoke. "You disgraced the name of the Akatsuki. You were nearly killed by a weakling."
"You fucking atheist! I don't give a fucking shit about your weird red eyes, I will..."
"Shut up." the leader interrupted again. "Due to the recent circumstances, I decided that I should re-form two of the Akatsuki teams. Kakuzu, there is your new partner." he pointed to the shadows, where a person stood, his long hair endowed by a small flower.
"Hidan. let me introduce you, to our newest member." This time, the leader pointed to the person who stood nearest to the entrance. Everyone but Kakuzu, Zetsu, and the always apathetic Itachi stared in disbelief as the person moved forwards, revealing his features.
The glowing Sharingan in his left eye could make the untrained observer mistake him for one of the remaining Uchiha, Itachi or Sasuke. However, the grey, upwards standing hair and the black mask concealing the lower part of his face told otherwise.
Next chapter: The organisation known as 'dawn' set out in their quest. Will anyone stand against the path they forge with destruction?
