AN: Belated Happy New Year everyone! The Akatsuki arc has begun! It's about - yep, you guessed it - that AKATSUKI!

Thankies to: Dragon Man 180, sweetmaiden, PrincessChii, Sya0ran, grilledjellyfish, neu chi no nai u, Apple-Mei-Mei, KonoDraike, SoulShine, Lady Evilness, Green Tea Leaf (sorry, that's what was in Narutofan! Thanks though), Hinata-hime, magically-pure (the closest to a love confession Sasuke can get), YoungSasuke, Dust-in (coz we've gotta get Sasuke home soon), Niebezpiczny Ksiezyc, ellamr (it's not ended yet, so the sequel's not in a long time), Mistress DragonFlame (he still needs the clone from what I saw in the manga), Mimiru-Sama, gclp, ShyLittleAngel, karmen, Little Minamino (kya, that's the best compliment EVER, to be compared to such a genius. No, I'm not him, I'm a her, in the first place), So-kun (yap, I forgot to mention artistic license back there), Jays Arravan, jennjennr, Omolara (thanks for the heads-up), Queen Cow and Steak (seriously, I'm going to get so conceited), Bloodluvingirl, Jewny, susakuru, Sakurachild, Celestartial Blossoms, SakuraXx, Makurei, lilcutexmonstah, cutiepie777, briana, Staricy, loVeFoReTeRnItY, sillymail, warprince2000, xShurikengurlx, Tank, Annelise... Damn, the number of my expectation of reviews almost doubled... that's such a big improvement! You guys are the BOMB.

Chapter 7: The Long Way Home – Brother Against Brother

Lee watched the moonlight filter into the leaf canopy, occasionally making the shadows dance when something obscured it. He sighed. He was all for the strength of youth, but even staying up all night was starting wear – just a little - on his nerves.

As soon as the battle had been over, the eleven shinobi, plus their unconscious prisoner, had traveled out of the village where they had stayed at. It had been too dangerous to stay there, as Kabuto and the other nins could try and take Sasuke back once Neji's jutsu on the white-haired man broke. They had moved for two hours, and had settled in the forest for about six hours' rest. It was the fourth hour, as Lee checked on his watch.

His black eyes hovered over the hunched form he was watching, stirring slightly. One of his thick brows raised slightly in thoughtfulness. This boy was the cause of a lot of grief. Lee was not really one to harbor very negative feelings, so the most he could feel for him was pity, and a little indignation and anger, after the events a couple and a half years ago.

Lee was positive that Sasuke had little to no idea that he, Neji, Shikamaru, Chouji, Kiba, and the Sand siblings had tried going after him together with Naruto, with no luck. The Uchiha must have known how Naruto felt, but he seemed not to care for others. Lee could remember Shino feeling guilty he couldn't join in on the mission. Had he, then things might have gone better. He still saw Ino pace back and forth by Chouji's room, alternately worrying about Chouji's health and Shika's emotional state. He could still see Tenten close to tears at Neji's condition, when the boyish girl never cried in anyone's presence. He had found Hinata sobbing in one corner, for Kiba, Akamaru, Neji, and Naruto.

But what struck the Green Beast was the fact that Sakura, who had spoken to the Sharingan boy and begged him to stay, seemed to be far from his mind. Couldn't he sense her care and her love? Now that he had seen the strong kunoichi she had become, would he acknowledge her? And Naruto had been Sasuke's closest friend. Now that they would be taking Sasuke back to the village, what would happen to their friendship? Would they be able to restore it or would they forever alienate themselves from each other?

He watched again as Sasuke moaned a little in his sleep. What could be wrong with him? Lee knew that having chakra points sealed didn't hurt, and Sakura had made sure that he was completely healed. What was wrong? Nightmares?

His guess was confirmed when Sasuke gave a strangled shout and shot up from his position on the ground. Lee started, feeling sorry for the fallen Uchiha. "Hey, Sasuke-kun, you all right?" he asked concernedly, moving closer to him.

Sasuke looked at him with wide, bloodshot eyes, and Lee cocked his head to the side. The Uchiha narrowed his eyes, looking away. It seemed it shamed him to show his vulnerability to the Taijutsu specialist.

Sasuke scanned the vicinity. They were in a forest, he observed. Everyone seemed to be asleep, and it was early morning. He looked down, and he found red spots on his skin, and he guessed that the Hyuuga had closed his tenketsu(1). His wrists were bound by black hair, which meant he couldn't get out easily, especially in his weak state.

He met Lee's eyes, which watched him. "You were having a nightmare," the green clad boy said as-a-matter-of-factly.

"Hn." He knew that. He always had nightmares.

"I'm guarding you," Lee continued, patiently waiting for a reaction. Sasuke only grunted in reply. "Well," Lee said as he leaned on a tree, "since you're awake and all, why don't we have a little chat?"

"I'm not in the mood," Sasuke muttered, speaking a full sentence for the first time.

Lee grinned, and Sasuke could almost swear he heard a ping. "It's not like you have a choice but listen to my rambling, right? Besides, it'll keep me awake."

"I'll go back to sleep," Sasuke muttered, lying down on his back again and turning away from Lee, who looked at him from the corner of his eye.

"Sakura-san's a lot stronger now, don't you think?" Lee asked, knowing Sasuke wasn't sleeping anytime soon. "She managed to beat an Akatsuki member, you know. With help… but considering it was an Akatsuki she was fighting-"

At the name "Akatsuki", Sasuke's ears perked up. He turned to face Lee. "Sakura fought an Akatsuki?"

"Yes. And Naruto-kun as well."

"What happened?" he demanded roughly, wanting to know in full detail.

"Hmm… I'm not sure if I could tell you," Lee said easily, testing Sasuke. "I might get in trouble for telling people who weren't on the mission."

"Just tell me, Lee," Sasuke hissed, not used to not having his own way. He always had his in Sound.

"You seem quite interested," Lee said shrewdly.

Sasuke frowned, embarrassed. "It concerns the Akatsuki, therefore it concerns me."

Lee chuckled a little and told him everything Sakura had told him about her side of the battle. "So in the end, she beat Sasori with the help of Chiyo-baasama. And Naruto managed to take Gaara away from Deidara."

Sasuke contemplated on what Lee had just told him. So Sakura's… a lot stronger than I could have ever imagined. It's not just now, but even in other missions. And Naruto… he's definitely gotten stronger, from what I saw. Where have I been all this time? He clenched his fist in anger, blocking out Lee's words. If they got this good staying in Konoha, how about me? I left Konoha to get power, but I got beaten by them, which only means we're all roughly equal.

Did I make the right choice after all?

Kabuto shook. It wasn't nice when Orochimaru got mad. He really would become outraged once he found out about…

"Kabuto," Orochimaru said smoothly, and Kabuto looked up from the scrolls he was reading. He had finally found out how to get out of the jutsu the Hyuuga genius placed him in. He was itching for some rest, but he knew he still had to deal with Orochimaru's wrath. He flinched slightly at the thought. "Do you have something to tell me?"

Kabuto knelt respectfully at the Snake Sannin, fearing him at the moment. It was rare when he truly feared his master. "Orochimaru-sama, I'm afraid to tell you that…"

"Sasuke-kun's gone, I know," Orochimaru drawled, his yellow eyes glinting. His voice still held its cunning features, but Kabuto had no doubt that he was angry. "The nins told me. Before they died, of course."

"Maa, I have to clean up after you again, I suppose, Orochimaru-sama?" Kabuto asked jokingly, to ease the tension.

"Aa," Orochimaru said softly. He bent down and tilted Kabuto's face upwards. "You know how terribly disappointed I am, right, Kabuto?" Kabuto weighed his chances, and said nothing. "We will have to recapture him, I suppose. Be thankful the circumstances aren't as they were two and a half years ago, Kabuto, or we would have a slightly harder time."

"There are… other things you should know, Orochimaru-sama," Kabuto said, shifting uncomfortably as Orochimaru let go of him. The Sound leader raised a graceful eyebrow at him. "About his curse seal… This girl… Haruno Sakura…" Kabuto flicked a data card at Orochimaru, who caught it deftly. On it were the details of the battle, or at least what he had gleaned from the nins who had witnessed it.

The Snake Sannin scanned it carefully. "It seems we have taken a backseat to our plans," he said at last, flicking it back to Kabuto. But he grinned in a way which made Kabuto shiver in nervous anticipation. "But not to worry. It should only take us a few more months to recapture him. He's not due to be my body for about… a few months, I should say.

"I won't say I'm not disappointed, Kabuto," Orochimaru continued. "But… this information you have for me is valuable. Now, I have all of Sasuke-kun's old team dancing into my plans." To Kabuto, he sounded as though he was delighted at completing some kind of collection. Uzumaki Naruto-kun… Hatake Kakashi-kun… and now Haruno Sakura-chan… Even with my loss of Sasuke-kun, this is all too perfect…

As the sun rose in the east, two black-clad figures moved under the canopy of trees, jumping from one branch to another, outstripping the wind. One had grayish skin, his eyes alight with malice. The other's raven hair, flying in its movement, contrasted with his pale skin. His blood-red eyes, three commas spinning in them, looked straight ahead.

"Oi, Itachi-san, we're close, aren't we?" Hoshigaki Kisame said conversationally.

"Quite," Uchiha Itachi replied silently. "A few hours more of journey should do."

"Hm. But he won't be alone, now would he?"

"No," Itachi said. "He's been sent out on a mission, so he'll be with his team, but it won't pose as a problem. The source was unreliable, however… Didn't say what mission it would be…"

"Oh yes, that was the one I "fed" to Samehada(2)," Kisame said casually.

"You shouldn't suck out chakra all that much, Kisame," the Sharingan master said slowly. "It takes up a bit of your stamina. The bijuu(3) we're after is quite… hyperactive, after all."

Kisame snickered. "That comes from the one who's going blind from using the Sharingan too much." The shark man laughed as Itachi regarded his statement, carefully wording his reply.

"Kisame."

"Yeah?"

"…Shut up."

It turned out to be quite a dull, grayish sort of day. The sun was hidden behind the clouds, and the atmosphere, a bit chilly, spelled gloom with all caps.

Shikamaru felt content with the formation. It was the same with the way they came, only with a few revisions. Kiba still came first, and he and Tenten came in second, while Shino, Chouji and Ino brought the rear, Akamaru and Hinata at the very back. but Neji was tasked, along with Lee, to watch Sasuke. He shook his head when he remembered Sakura and Naruto arguing with him about guarding Sasuke, who said, as the Nara plugged his ear shut with one finger, that they knew him best, therefore they should guard him.

"Naruto's right, Shikamaru," Sakura had said, almost pleading. "Please, just this once."

"No," was Neji's stern reply, intervening. "You've gotten your way once, and once is already enough. Don't push it."

"Then how about me?" Naruto had asked indignantly. "This has been my only request since the mission started!"

"Like the Godaime said, keep your emotions in check. The mission is the top priority," Shika had replied. "Besides, you're going to get in a fight with him anyway, and it'll be troublesome. Why don't you go cover Hinata or something?"

The only genin in the team had complied, although begrudgingly. Sakura had taken the position of covering Kiba. "They look depressed though," Tenten said quietly as they journeyed back to Konoha by way of the forest.

"It's not my fault," Shikamaru said quickly. "It's just that… well… the circumstances call for it."

Tenten sighed. "I guess you're right, Shikamaru. But I sure feel sorry for them. They've been stressed out a lot lately."

"Ch. Emotions are troublesome."

For now, Naruto brooded at the fact they couldn't guard Sasuke. We're the ones who know him! Why can't we guard him? The blond muttered a rainbow of words that would have earned him a whack on the head, courtesy of Sakura.

Hinata watched his expression anxiously as they jumped from tree to tree. "N-naruto-kun?" she asked. "A-are you a-all right…?" When Naruto didn't reply, she said bracingly, "Neji-n-niisan was only d-doing his j-job…"

"I know that, Hinata-chan," Naruto said wearily as they trailed from behind the group. "But Sasuke…"

Hinata offered him a shy smile. "Naruto-kun… it'll be fine…" Naruto only nodded, returning the smile. But his mind was elsewhere.

Sakura, in the meantime, mulled in her own thoughts as she traveled alongside Kiba. "Oi, Sakura, what's up?" Kiba asked in his usually loud voice, Akamaru barking an echo of the question.

"Hn?" Sakura asked, looking distracted. "Oh, it's nothing, Kiba."

"You shouldn't frown so much, you know," Kiba said, grinning. "It'll cause wrinkles. Didn't you learn that in med training?"

Sakura laughed at Kiba's attempt to lighten up her mood. "I guess I forgot." She smiled at him. "Thanks, Kiba."

"There, you see? You look prettier already!" The Inuzuka heir winked at her as she giggled. He felt he had to distract her from her troubles, seeing she was falling into depression. He searched his brain for a nice distraction. "Kind of reminds me of this one time…" he began, watching Sakura listen to his story.

In the middle of the group, Neji eyed their charge with resentment. He was glad that it didn't take chakra to jump over trees, or Sasuke would slow them all down, though he didn't seem to want to. The Byakuugan could help get information from someone just by looking at him or her, and Neji could tell Sasuke was preoccupied about something. Why he was even willing to be brought back to Konoha without being actually dragged there, though, he had no idea.

Lee observed Sasuke intently while traveling. The Uchiha had been quiet since their short-lived talk, and throughout breakfast too. Naruto and Sakura refused to meet his eye the whole day. He didn't seem to want to catch their eye, accidental or otherwise. Lee had heard Ino comment to Hinata how she couldn't understand why they wanted to stick close to Sasuke when they didn't even want to talk to him in the first place. He kind of understood this, though. They wanted to keep a close eye on him, to be close to him, even if they still couldn't find the courage to spare him a look.

Sasuke was actually brooding over the facts that Lee had given him, and was currently in a confused state. Had Naruto and Sakura actually caught up to him, if not surpassed him? Was he now the one supposed to catch up to them? Now that he was a prisoner of Konoha, how would he fulfill his goal, or even train for that matter? He decided right then and there he hated his life as it was right now. (It wasn't like he didn't hate it before, but the hate definitely intensified.)

At one point, they paused to eat lunch. They all sat down to eat leftovers from breakfast. Chouji and Kiba began to have an animated chat over the best flavor of potato chips ("Cheese, you idiot!" "You're the idiot! BBQ is the best!") while Ino and Tenten laughed over some random matter. Lee had turned to Shikamaru and Shino, trying to get them to talk, while Neji kept a close eye on their charge. However, Sakura and Naruto, for once, were not talking, only picking at their food while Hinata spared Naruto worried glances now and then. Sasuke smirked a little even in his tiredness.

It was a very short break, lasting only about thirty minutes. Soon, they were packing up the food and utensils again, ready to leave.

It was then that Sasuke felt it. A chill wind blew, making him shiver. His heart began to beat faster, and his eyes flicked from side to side. Something was there. A hated presence. He couldn't put his finger on it, but something was there.

"Oi, Uchiha, what the hell are you standing there for?" Neji asked harshly.

His eyes refocused, and saw the whole team was standing there in their formation, waiting for him to move. He needed to tell them what he felt, even if they were currently his captors and quite unlikely to listen to him. But this matter seemed so deadly that even they might not make it unscathed.

Before he could open his mouth, however, the look of apprehension on his face somehow mirrored onto Neji, Hinata, and Kiba, the main trackers. Akamaru began growling. The anxiety seemed to find its way onto the rest of the team. "What's wrong, Neji?" Tenten half-whispered.

"We are… not alone," the boy addressed muttered, silently activating his bloodline limit, his cousin doing the same. The team watched with bated breath as the two Hyuugas searched the perimeter with their eyes. When they found what they were looking for, Hinata gave a small gasp and Neji's frown was more pronounced than ever.

"What?" Naruto asked sharply.

Hinata and Neji's eyes focused on Sasuke and Naruto, who stared at them in bewilderment. "A couple of Akatsuki," the male Hyuuga said, watching the two boys' expressions change from anxiety to anger.

Hinata looked at Sasuke with some kind of bewildered amazement. "And one of them…" she murmured. "…looks just like you, Sasuke-san."

The other ninja exchanged bewildered looks, while Naruto, Sakura and Sasuke shared looks of mixed rage and fear, mostly on the first two's part. Sasuke looked simply furious. "They're dangerous, very dangerous," Neji said urgently. "The other one, Tenten, Lee," he said, directing his statement to his two teammates, "he's the one whom we fought in the last mission."

"The shark man?" Tenten said, gasping, while Lee set his jaw in grim determination.

"We'll have to fight," he said. "We've got no choice."

"Hyuuga," Sasuke said from behind Lee. "Remove the tenketsu seal."

"You're in no position to give me orders, Uchiha," Neji said, matching Sasuke's cold voice Celsius per Celsius.

"Remove it, dammit!" he yelled. "I'm going to fight Itachi!"

"What's the guarantee that you're not going to run away after the battle?" Shikamaru asked, distrust in his narrowed eyes, which most of the team mirrored.

"I can't give you any guarantee," Sasuke replied, "but rest assured that just this once I'm going to be on your side of the battle. I'm here to stay. I might have some business to settle in Konoha after all, if the battle turns out well."

Neji still looked skeptical. "I have no time for games, Uchiha. Stay back." Sasuke started to give a biting remark.

"Remove it, Neji," a feminine voice said, interrupting his progress, and everyone turned to look at its owner.

Hn, typical. Neji snorted in distaste. "What makes you think I'm going to follow your orders, Haruno?"

"I'm not asking for obedience, Neji," Sakura said. "I'm asking for patience. And trust. If the battle goes well for Sasuke, then he won't have any reason to go after Orochimaru. This is what he has been training to do, after all."

"And if it doesn't go well?" Neji asked.

"Then we'll go after him ourselves, like we always would," Naruto said in hard determination. "We'll vouch for the bastard, as always." Sasuke stared at Naruto with a new kind of light. This one he tried to kill just the night before… was rooting for him? His gaze flickered towards Sakura, her eyes pleading at the Hyuuga captain. So was she… He couldn't understand it. He had betrayed them in a way that he could probably never mend. Why were they still supporting him?

"Besides," Naruto added, a grin on his fox-like features, "this way, he'll have debt to us, which he'll repay by going back to Konoha!" His cerulean orbs met obsidian ones. "Right, kono yarou(4)?"

This quick, they were comrades again? Sasuke could never understand life sometimes. Naruto and Sakura were even harder to understand. "Hn," he replied, smirking.

Sakura felt something light in her chest even in the dire situation they were in. She began smiling in relief. "Quick, Neji, we don't have much time," she said urgently. "What's it going to be?"

Neji stepped towards Sasuke. "As it is, we're short on people. I suppose a temporary addition won't hurt, as long as this temporary addition-" at this he glared at Sasuke, who gave it back in spades, "-won't be a liability nor a runaway."

"Hurry, Neji-niisan!" Hinata murmured quickly. "They're almost here!"

As Neji assumed the stance to unseal Sasuke's chakra points, Sakura began instructing them. "I know Sasuke-kun isn't the one Itachi is looking for," she explained to the rest of the team in low, fast tones, "but Naruto. I'm not supposed to say this, but Naruto is being chased by the Akatsuki. So protect Naruto at all costs."

"I have a question," Kiba said. "Who are the Akatsuki?"

Sakura remembered that information about this was kept to the higher powers in Konoha, after all. She only knew about this from what Tsunade and Kakashi had told her. But she couldn't keep the knowledge to a team who needed it. "The Akatsuki are a group of missing nin, eight or nine of them, I think, who are after the jinchuuriki(5) of the bijuu. They extract the bijuu, put them in their control, and use them to terrorize other nations."

"Does that mean Naruto is a jinchuuriki then?" Shino asked. Sakura didn't mean for that to slip out. Naruto looked at his feet as Ino gasped, while Shikamaru considered the logic of it all. Kiba and Chouji looked aghast, while Lee and Tenten nodded knowingly, having encountered the fact already. Hinata was practically trembling.

"Na-naruto-k-kun… is in trouble?" Hinata asked, close to tears. She turned to him. "A-are you, Naruto-kun?"

"Yeah," the boy addressed replied. At Hinata's horrified expression, he amended, "But don't worry, Hinata-chan! It'll pull through, really! I mean, we outnumber them one to six, right?"

"Right," Sakura said, a new fortitude in her eyes. "As I know, there's one Akatsuki to a bijuu, and Itachi seems to be after Naruto. But we won't let him fight alone. Whatever you do, don't look into his eyes. Look anywhere but there, because he has the Mangekyou Sharingan, which can evoke the three of the most powerful jutsus through eye contact: Tsukuyomi(6), Amaterasu(7), and Susanoo(8)." Everyone gaped at her fast explanation.

Above them, they heard a slow clapping sound. Naruto's brow furrowed as everyone followed the sound.

Dressed in the Akatsuki uniform of a black cloak set with red clouds, Sharingan alight, was Uchiha Itachi. Beside him was his partner, the shark-like Hoshigaki Kisame of the fabled Seven Swords of Hidden Mist.

Everyone's reaction was immediate and predictable. Naruto and Sasuke growled angrily, Sakura bared her teeth slightly, Neji, Shino and Shikamaru regarded the situation carefully as Kiba and Chouji tried to calm themselves and Akamaru down. Ino choked back a scream, Tenten's hand slid into her pack for her morning star, and Hinata trembled more than ever. Itachi smirked a little, while Kisame's teeth were bared in a malicious grin.

"Impressive," the older Uchiha said, addressing Sakura, who held her breath, while Neji tried to restrain Sasuke from jumping onto him. "I've never known anyone outside the Uchiha clan who knew even a part of the secrets of the Mangekyou. For a little girl, you also know a lot of the Akatsuki." All of them turned to look at Sakura, wide-eyed at what she knew, but she could hardly feel any pride in her great fear of Itachi's presence.

"W-well, they say knowledge is power," she said, hoping she sounded braver than she felt. She tilted her head up, feeling braver when Itachi didn't reply. "What do you want, Itachi?"

His eyes rested on Naruto, who didn't meet them, only clenching his fists furiously. "I think it's clear what I want."

"You're not taking me!" the orange-clad ninja yelled at him. He swiped his hand across the air. "Go away, Itachi!"

"So you prefer to do this the hard way, children?" Kisame asked, his hand on the hilt of Samehada.

"Preferably, yes," Sasuke growled, gritting his teeth. Itachi looked mildly surprised as he turned to him. Sasuke's eyes faded into the Sharingan, and, disregarding Sakura's suggestion, met his brother's eyes.

Even the leaves refused to move as both Uchihas scanned each other after three years. One eyed the other with pure and intense loathing, and the other watched the younger one with an expressionless face, only marked by the apparent disregard and mild amusement in his crimson eyes.

"I didn't expect you to be here, foolish little brother," Itachi said quietly. "So the mission of the jinchuuriki Naruto… it was to retrieve you." He shook his head. "You almost betrayed your blood by offering the Sharingan to Orochimaru."

"Better than killing my own clan," Sasuke spat. "I'll kill you for that, Itachi."

"Oh really?" Itachi replied, the amusement growing in his eyes. "We'll see, little brother, we'll see. But I'm not here for you, I'm here for Naruto." He glanced at the blond again, who promptly turned away, anger beating in his heart. "Kisame. Take care of the rest. Naruto is mine."

All it took was a blink of an eye for the two of them to move from their previous positions. Acting quickly, Sakura and Sasuke went closer to Naruto, knowing that the chance for fighting Itachi would be higher if they were there. "He's mine to kill," Sasuke said viciously to his former teammates. "You stay out of this."

Sakura was naturally indignant. "No way! I swore to myself that my teammates' goals are mine as well!"

Sasuke looked at her quickly, and so did Naruto, and only did Sakura realize what she had just said. "Teammates…?" Naruto asked softly as Sakura clamped her hands over her mouth and Sasuke stared at her dubiously.

Sakura then understood herself. All this time she had not been working only to get Sasuke back, but also to help Naruto reach his goals. Even now they weren't sure about Sasuke, she was still willing to give her all. All she had really wanted in her life was to help out in any way possible. She was a true medic nin, the supporting role in a team, yet an important member nevertheless.

That was enough for Naruto. If Sakura was willing to help Sasuke, then he'd help too. "Yeah, Sakura-chan's definitely right! We're going to stick by you no matter what in this fight! Besides, he's after me, so you have no choice!" Sasuke couldn't wipe that surprised look on his face. "But," he added, frowning, "this doesn't mean I forgive you yet."

"I'm not surprised," Sasuke said stonily, matching Naruto's glare. "I don't really care. Let's just get this over with."

Sakura felt crushed, and Naruto knew it, but there were just some things that couldn't be forgiven and forgotten that easily. However, whatever words she wanted to say were cut off by a sudden presence in front of them. Itachi looked at them with his usually expressionless face. Sasuke opened his mouth angrily, but his brother cut him off.

"Susanoo."

The world slowly faded into black. The last thing they saw was Itachi's murderous eyes.

"Oh!" Ino cried, watching as a black thing engulfed the three. She paid for her lack of attention by getting hit by the rampaging Samehada, wielded by Kisame. "Look at that – that thing! It looks like it's eating them alive!"

Some of the team spared a glance at the former Team 7, currently disappearing from sight as a black hole seemed to cover them. Kisame smirked. Susanoo, one of the Mangekyou's doujutsus(9). It allows Itachi-san to rip open a dark dimension and trap his enemies there. Combined with the Tsukuyomi and the Amaterasu, those three brats are dead faster than you can say-

"Kanashibari no Jutsu(10)!" Shikamaru yelled, staring Kisame down. The shark man froze in his tracks. But before anyone could attack, Shikamaru got hit in the back by someone, who turned out to be the real Kisame. Everyone looked back and saw that what Shikamaru had frozen was a Mizu Bunshin(11). Shikamaru went out of the way.

Neji and Hinata went for Kisame, Hinata at the back, Neji up front. Without preamble, Neji ran quickly upfront, carefully ducking under the sword. He pushed chakra into Kisame's stomach, while Hinata managed to get in a hit behind his leg. Kisame swung the sword, and before Neji could react, hit him. He gasped out in pain as the Samehada grazed his back. The shark man smirked and began to bring down the sword onto Neji. White eyes widened, but the attack never came.

"Hiyaaa!" Tenten exclaimed, diverting the sword's course with a strong swing of her morning star. As the sword was out of the way, Hinata and Neji decided to attack again. They went to squeeze Kisame in between them, their palms forward, but suddenly, there was a poof and a cloud of dust. The cousins were hurled into opposite directions.

"What the-" Neji began sharply. The dust cleared and all that was left was a log. "Kawarimi(12)," he hissed in realization. He had hit his own cousin, who had hit him with her attack unknowingly.

"I'm sorry, Neji-niisan!" Hinata called as she quickly stood up. He only nodded, looking around for their enemy.

"Here I am," Kisame's voice said behind Chouji. The orange-haired boy grit his teeth and quickly rolled away to avoid the attack. He narrowed his eyes as the Samehada scraped against his back. Kisame smirked as the Akimichi began to bleed freely.

Hinata found the flow of chakra disturbing as her teammates fought the Akatsuki. Something wasn't right. She watched as Kisame swung the sword again, catching Ino and Kiba at once. There was that disturbance in chakra flow again. Akamaru barked, and Kiba, although injured, threw a smoke bomb. Purple smoke engulfed Kisame, and the dog and his master did the Gatsuuga(13). When the smoke cleared, Kiba cried, "No way!"

Kisame had disappeared again. "He's fast," Shikamaru muttered, frowning. Hinata went to heal Kiba with her ointment.

"I'm right here," Kisame said, and Shino whipped around. Quickly, he made his bugs cover the sword as he attacked Kisame. Unfortunately, even as the bug controller got in a good punch, the sword managed to scrape against his skin.

It was then that Hinata understood the chakra flow. "You guys!" she yelled as loud as she could. "The sword sucks out chakra! Be careful with it!"

"That's a nice deduction," Kisame muttered into her ear. Hinata saw with her Byakuugan the shark man behind her. She sucked in her breath. Kiba tried to grab her away, but one swipe rendered him flying away from Hinata.

"Hinata-sama!" Neji shouted, starting forward. Kisame smirked as a water replica appeared beside him.

"Suiro no Jutsu(14)," the replica muttered, mirroring the original one's sneer. Hinata's breath caught, and in an instant, she was trapped in a bubble-like chamber, filled with water. There was no escape for her.

Naruto looked around. This void was so strange. He could feel the ground beneath him, and he felt a tree behind him. There seemed to be no escape. He could see Sakura and Sasuke, but otherwise, it was all black. "So this is the Susanoo," Sasuke muttered under his breath as Sakura fought to get her bearings.

"It's like… being underwater, except that I can breathe," she said, her voice quivering. "It's like – the lights went totally out."

"What an accurate description," Itachi's voice murmured against her ear, and she started, her hair standing. She turned around and saw the older Uchiha looking coolly impressed. She averted her eyes as she backed away from him.

"Itachi…" Sasuke seethed. "I'm going to kill you!" Itachi only looked at him as if he were a mildly interesting TV show.

Naruto and Sakura walked towards Sasuke, the former baring his fangs, the latter apprehensive with fear. "You guys," she whispered. "Don't let your anger blind you. You know more than I do how dangerous Uchiha Itachi is. Don't let your anger get the better of you, okay?"

"Aa," Sasuke replied, not taking his eyes off Itachi as Naruto nodded.

Itachi seemed to sense they were not going to go down without a fight. "Very well," he murmured. Doing a seal quickly, he said, "Magen: Jubaku Satsu(15)." He disappeared. The three looked down and realized roots were growing under their feet. Soon enough, they were bound by the quickly growing branches of the tree.

"Gnn!" Naruto said. "I – I can't get loose!"

As the three of them struggled, Sakura thought, But this is impossible! We're in a genjutsu, we can't be trapped by another genjutsu! "Kai(16)!" she said, releasing the jutsu's hold on them before Itachi could attack. She looked around quickly at Sasuke and Naruto. "This isn't a genjutsu!" she said. "We really are in another dimension!"

It's a junction between two dimensions, Itachi corrected in his head. That's why you can feel tangible things in where you had been, but cannot see them. A more accurate description would be a literal black hole – in the continuity of space, that is.

Sasuke only frowned harder and molded his chakra to summon the curse seal. Sakura bit her lip, but she reassured herself that this time, they were on they same side. Itachi reappeared, his face still stoic. Sasuke growled and proceeded to throw quick punches and kicks to his brother. Naruto cried out as well and went to join Sasuke in trading blows with the elder Uchiha. They didn't seem to notice, but Sakura could see that Itachi was countering with ease.

After playing with the two for a while, dodging and ducking their blows easily, he decided to end it. As Sasuke flew to him with a fist aloft, he grabbed the oncoming fist by the wrist. Naruto, simultaneously attacking, was kicked to the side, flying to the opposite direction, hitting something unseen. As Sasuke was in hang-time, Itachi increased the pressure on his younger brother's wrist. It snapped, and before Sasuke could cry out in pain, Itachi sent him flying away.

Sakura, moving quickly, caught Sasuke before he crashed into an unseen tree. Without waiting, the medic healed his wrist. "Thanks," he muttered. It'll make a difference now, fighting with him, he thought. At least now I have a medic nin on call.

"Kage Bunshin no Jutsu(17)!" Naruto cried, creating about five clones of him. Itachi stood on the ready. The five bunshin ran to the Sharingan master. "U-zu-ma-ki Naruto Rendan(18)!" each clone yelled, hitting Itachi with every syllable. However, all he had to do was send shuriken flying to make all of the bunshin disappear.

Sasuke watched as Itachi was distracted with the bunshin. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw another Naruto clone summon from a scroll a familiar weapon. Fuuma shuriken(19)Sure enough, the giant throwing star was in his hands.

"Here, Sasuke!" he yelled, throwing the Fuuma shuriken towards him. Sasuke then remembered the maneuver he and Naruto had performed during that fight with Zabuza, and realized that Naruto was planning to do a similar thing.

"Aa!" he shouted, catching the weapon in his hand. He threw the giant shuriken at Itachi, which was the real Naruto transformed as a Fuuma shuriken.

What are these two planning? Itachi thought, holding out his hand to catch the rapidly approaching weapon, which he saw, with his Sharingan, was the Uzumaki.

As Itachi focused his attention on catching Naruto, Sasuke smirked, holding the real Fuuma shuriken in his hands. Katon: Housenka no Jutsu(20), he thought, sending the shuriken flying, disguised in the flames.

It was too late for Itachi to realize that what he was supposed to be watching was the flaming shuriken. He dodged Naruto and caught the flaming shuriken. The blond used the split second Itachi used to catch the shuriken to lift up in the air. Giving an almighty cry, he brought his foot down onto Itachi.

The older Uchiha managed to dodge, but barely. As he moved to the side, Sakura caught him at the end of her punch. "HERE!" she shouted, sending him flying to Sasuke. Moving as quickly as he could, he got in a stab to Itachi's thigh with a kunai. The older one's eyes widened, and Sasuke smirked.

"Don't feel like you've won, yet, foolish little brother," Itachi murmured. From behind him, Naruto spotted movement. A Kage Bunshin emerged from the shadows, knocking Sasuke away from the real Itachi. As Sasuke was preoccupied with the bunshin, Itachi sped to Naruto, who still refused to meet his eyes. "Yume no Sekai(21)," Itachi said.

Immediately, Naruto felt his weariness fade from his body. Suddenly, it was bright, and he felt energetic again. He blinked, and what met his eyes was something he didn't expect.

There was a twelve year old Sakura, trying to get a younger Sasuke to talk, in vain. Kakashi was there, lounging by the bridge, reading the infamous Icha Icha Paradise. Naruto grinned, the real situation fading away from his memory. "Sakura-chan!" he yelled at the top of his voice.

"Naruto!" she yelled back. "Come over here!"

"Hn," Sasuke muttered, smirking a little. "You're even later than Kakashi this time."

"Well, well!" Naruto stuttered. "I was going to get ramen!"

"Then we should've gone together!" Sakura exclaimed, taking his hand. "Come on, Sasuke-kun, Kakashi-sensei!"

There was a tap on Naruto's shoulder, and as he turned, he saw, that beyond the young , smiling, Sakura, was a taller version of her, scratched and tired-looking. He frowned in thoughtfulness, not remembering, and she said, "Kai!"

Immediately, reality came flooding back to him as Sasuke grabbed him away from Itachi. Sakura managed a kick to the missing nin's shin, and he stumbled. "What happened?" Naruto asked Sasuke, who watched Sakura scramble away as Itachi swayed.

"He trapped you in a genjutsu, and Sakura broke you away from it," Sasuke muttered. To Sakura, he asked, "What's wrong with him?"

"He's weakened," Sakura muttered. "Kakashi-sensei told me using the Mangekyou has bad effects on the stamina. He's weakening little by little while he tries to keep us in this jutsu."

"What would that pervert know?" Sasuke spat. "Not unless he has-" At Sakura's expression, realization dawned on him. "He – he got the Mangekyou? B-but how?"

"I don't know either, Sasuke-kun," Sakura said, focusing her attention on Itachi. "Right now, we have to deal with him." She grinned at them, that light of resolve in her eyes again. "I have a plan."

Itachi watched as the three muttered among themselves. They have a plan. His crimson eyes rested on the pink-haired girl he didn't know. She seemed to have figured out that my stamina has lowered because of using the Mangekyou. As expected. Kakashi-san must have told her. Suddenly, his eyes told him that they were about to attack.

Sakura focused chakra to her feet and ran towards Itachi, sending a punch his way. He dodged it easily, catching her gloved hand in his own, but she twisted so that she could hit his head. The eldest Uchiha looked around and saw that he was surrounded by about a hundred Kage Bunshin of Naruto. Using his head as leverage, Sakura flew out of the way as Naruto sent all his bunshin to attack Itachi.

The Uchiha Akatsuki felt the apparent uselessness of the bunshin attack. As he kicked, dodged, punched and eliminated the bunshin, something was amiss. Team 7 wasn't attacking him anymore.

"Chidori!"

As he made the last of the bunshin disappear, he realized his younger brother had just evoked his most powerful jutsu to date. The younger boy ran to him in high speed, the blue chakra concentration crackling in his hands. Itachi quickly read his brother's movements. Right… left… jump… above!

Sasuke thrust his arm quickly towards Itachi's head. The older one grabbed the younger one's wrist, but the Chidori managed to graze his arm, singeing his sleeve and melting off some of the skin.

But unfortunately, the attack was unsuccessful. "Foolish little brother," Itachi said slowly as Sasuke's face was a canvas of frustration and rage, "you've been a hindrance to my goal long enough."

Naruto watched apprehensively as Sharingan met calm Mangekyou Sharingan. Sakura waited with bated breath.

Then she sensed a change in the flow of Itachi's chakra. Oh no! she cried to herself. Focusing her chakra into her feet once more, she sped into the space between the two brothers.

Sasuke watched, entranced at the swirling commas of his brother's eyes. The Mangekyou was about to work its skills.

"Tsu-"

Before Itachi could finish molding his chakra, his eye contact with his brother broke, to be replaced by Sakura's eye contact with him. It was too late now.

"-kuyomi."

Sakura's eyes widened, and her knees met. In the fraction of a nanosecond, she knew she was about to experience absolute hell.

Tsukuyomi…

Next chapter…

Naruto: That murdering bastard! How could he! I've never seen Sakura-chan in this kind of state – it's even too painful to listen to her scream in agony! She's suffering because she just saved Sasuke's betraying ass!

Sasuke-teme seems to think so too, since he's gone crazy, saying he'll kill Itachi. Well, who can blame him? Personally, I'd like to kill that freaky-eyed bastard a thousand times for making Sakura-chan suffer like that! I'll really REALLY kill him! I swear to Buddha and Kami-sama I will!

Next chapter: Pain Beyond Pain – An Avenger's Choice.

Sakura's down for the count. I just hope she makes it…

AN: (1) Chakra points
(2) Shark skin. Kisame's sword
(3) Tailed beast/demon
(4) Jerk
(5) Human vessel
(6) Moon Reader
(7) Shining Heaven
(8) Dark Storm (rough translation); made up. Amaterasu, Tsukuyomi and Susanoo are divine siblings. It's known in the anime that the first two are of the Mangekyou Sharingan, so it's logical that the third unknown jutsu would be named Susanoo. I think it has something to do with manipulating dimensions just like Kakashi did with Deidara.
(9) Advanced bloodline eye technique
(10) Body Bind Technique
(11) Water Clone
(12) Body Switch
(13) Double Fang
(14) Water Prison Technique
(15) Demonic Vision: Tree Bind Death
(16) Release
(17) Shadow Clone Techniqu
(18) Uzumaki Naruto Combo
(19) Shadow throwing star
(20) Fire Skill: Mythical Fire Phoenix Technique
(21) Dream World; quite literal and made up.

To those who reviewed... you get... drum roll please... a free Akamaru plushie in all its big-white-doggish glory!