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I followed Itachi as we entered the Altar grounds. It was not as I had expected; the Altar was made from grey stone, and set many steps above the ground in the middle of a large clearing. The clearing was surrounded by thick forest and then rolling hills; the last few hours had been quite the trek to reach this small valley. A little way to the east of the podium, stood a long, low slung building, which appeared to be made from the same stone as the Altar.

The surrounding hills blocked the sun, and the entire location was clothed in shadow. I stifled a shudder. Generally the place was unremarkable, but I still had a strong feeling of unease, which only increased the closer I came to the Altar.

The others did not seem in the least bit phased by the place and headed straight for the building.

Itachi knocked on the wooden door. Nothing happened for a moment, and I considered asking to come back another time. Then there was a sudden series of low clicks and thuds from the other side before a window in the door finally slid open.

A man stood at the gap, and I refrained from stepping back. His face was waxy and yellow and his hair hung about his withered face in matted white clumps. His eyes were white; he was blind.

He said nothing, nor showed any sign that he knew we stood only inches from him. His slash of a mouth finally stretched wide, revealing many rotting teeth. He let out a terrible gasping sound, and I had the sudden sensation of something cold slipping through me. I looked up at Itachi, but his face was expressionless; Kisame was calmly studying his fingernails.

The mans jaws snapped back together with a sickening 'pop'. He seemed to think for a moment, before –

"The others are already here. You are late." His voice was barely above a whisper, though it was rasping and dry.

"We took the back roads to avoid drawing attention from the Hidden Villages." Itachi uttered shortly. He had barely finished speaking with a similar series of thuds and clicks came from the door. The window slid shut and the door slowly opened.

I caught a glimpse of the man hobbling away into the shadows. Kisame pushed in front of me and followed the man before disappearing out of sight. Itachi's hand found my shoulder and he gently led me forwards.

The door closed behind us, shutting out all light. The cold I felt increased, and this time I did shiver. Itachi ignored it. His Sharingan gleamed through the dark, and I let his steer me around.

"Who was that?" I asked after a time. My eyes had still not adjusted to the dark, and I was getting a headache from the strain.

"Majo. He's the holy-man; he performs the jutsu for the pact." Itachi answered simply. I nodded, assuming that he could see me.

"And what did he mean; 'the others are here?' all the people coming can't fit in this place."

I suddenly noticed that the path was gradually sloping downwards when Itachi answered.

"This building sits over a large cavern, there's plenty of room. These sorts of rituals happen more often that you think; the Akatsuki are not the only ones to use this place."

We walked in silence, and I concentrated on memorising the journey through the dark, just in case I needed to get out again.

After another five minutes of walking, I saw light in the distance. Candles were jammed in brackets along the walls, and I could finally see where I was going. A little further along and doors began to dot the wall-sides. Muffled voices reached my ears, and I got the impression of a large gathering somewhere in the distance.

However, Itachi's hand tightened slightly on my shoulder before we reached the group and we stopped outside a large black door.

"This is where I leave you."

"What?" I balked. My voice echoed through the tunnel, and the murmur of voices halted for a moment.

Itachi pulled me closer to the door and spoke softly.

"You are to stay here for the rest of the night. Someone will come to retrieve you in the morning before the ceremony; it's just the way it has to be."

"Why?" I asked grumpily, though keeping my voice low.

Itachi seemed to hesitate slightly before he answered.

"It's to make sure you can't arrange an escape with one of the people in attendance. This place is designed to make sure none do. We are so far below ground in a labyrinth built to keep people in, that it is near impossible anyway, but this is all just a…precaution."

Finally able to see in the gloom, I could distinguish Itachi's tension in his face. He was worried, and this knowledge did nothing for my nerves. I swallowed hard and nodded at him.

"What are you going to do?" I asked, not wanting to be alone just yet.

"I'm going to join the people down the way; we need to arrange security and patrols for tomorrow."

We stared at each other for a moment, and I had the odd sensation that we were saying our final farewells. He had left me alone in far more dangerous scenarios before, with far less ceremony than now.

"This is my room?" I asked finally, looking towards the door next to us. Itachi nodded, and leaned forwards to open it for me. I passed over the threshold, and was relieved to feel that the room was heated. I turned to face him in the doorway.

"I guess I'll see you tomorrow then." I said, trying to sound braver than I felt. Itachi was staring at me, seeming to struggle with himself. He opened his mouth to say something, and then thought the better of it. Instead, he leaned forward and kissed my forehead.

Then he drew back, nodded again, and closed the door softly behind him.


They ran through the trees for hours, but Kakashi had no notion of stopping. He didn't know how to feel about the information he had received only mere hours ago. Indeed, he didn't now how he would react when he saw her again. God, he was so angry, he didn't know whether to kiss her or strangle her.

He knew Gai and Asuma were watching him carefully, communicating silently behind him. The others seemed to be holding their breath, waiting for a reaction.

But Kakashi was not dramatically inclined. Intense emotion would jeopardise the mission.

As he flew through the trees, he made the conscious decision to swallow his emotions until they had fulfilled their goal and had brought Mai back to Konoha.

He set his mind to the task at hand, and blocked out all other thoughts.

Kakashi didn't even realise how much time passed before Asuma gave the command for the team to stop.

"What for?" Kakashi bit out, frustration gripping him. They were pushed for time as it was, they couldn't stop for breaks – what was Asuma thinking?

Asuma was calm as he lit a cigarette. He looked back at Kakashi blandly.

"It's too dark to see, and if we continue, we will only attract attention. Have you not noticed just how loud we are?"

Kakashi gritted his teeth, but reminded himself to stay impassive and put personal feelings aside.

"We will rest for three hours, and then we will continue." Asuma gave the cue for the ninja to disperse and find the most comfortable patch of ground they could. Once the others were out of earshot, Asuma and Gai approached Kakashi warily.

"I know this is hard for you; we understand,' Asuma said quietly after a strained silence, 'but you are not at full strength as it is. We may only be going up against mercenaries, but it's still Akatsuki. You need to rest if we have a hope in hell of pulling this off. She's not going anywhere until after the ceremony – we have time."

Gai watched Kakashi solemnly. They had known one another the longest, and though their relationship had started as rivalry, beneath the bravado, they were friends before anything else.

Kakashi had been waiting for Gai to comment on the situation; his friend had a bizarre fascination where he and Mai were concerned. So when Gai finally opened his mouth, Kakashi prepared himself for something light and crass.

"I never truly believed that she had deserted Konoha, you know', Gai said calmly.

"I saw her only minutes before she left, and I knew something was amiss. I've known her as long as you have Kakashi, and I believe that she thought she was acting for the best."

Kakashi grimaced slightly.

"Yeah, that's what I hoped, but then I'd remind myself that she sunk a knife three inches into my chest."

"But didn't you think it odd that an apprentice of Tsunade, a medical ninja, would miss the heart? What she must have been thinking when you showed up that night – what do you think would have happened if she hadn't stepped up? Do you think that Uchiha or the shark thing would have let you go?"

Kakashi was silent. He had tried to avoid thinking about her for so long, and yet Gai, who he had dismissed at times as shallow and childish, had behaved as a ninja, and a man, should.

"I don't know that her not telling you was the right thing to do…But she has successfully protected Konoha for two years and made huge discoveries within the Akatsuki – and she's saved your sorry ass several times. So when we get her back, and we will, don't be too hard on her. She sacrificed a lot to save us."

Asuma was staring at Gai in shock; his cigarette had fallen out of his gaping mouth. Kakashi's mouth twitched into a small smile, and he closed his eyes for a moment.

"G-Gai,' Asuma stuttered, before he collected himself, '…Well said, and I thought you slightly simple."

Gai shrugged and grinned.

"I have my moments. But for now we should rest up - the fiery dragons of Konoha feast on Akatsuki scum at dawn! Fitful slumber to young and old!"

"…and he's back." Kakashi murmured.


The next morning, Gai crouched in front of the map supplied by Tsunade of the area to be invaded. The others stood back as they watched Gai point and chatter excitedly about plans of attack and strategies.

"There are nearly one hundred members of the Akatsuki Mercenaries attending this thing. We have nine Jounin. So numbers are a bit of a problem." Asuma contributed.

"But I think we could overcome that with-,"

"Oy! You said I could tell them!" Gai interrupted angrily.

"Then get to the bloody point!" Asuma grumbled back. Some of the others looked to Kakashi to give input, but in cases such as these, he found it was better to remain silent.

Gai huffed, and gestured back to the map.

"The Altar is in the middle of a large clearing. There are three rings of security around this clearing, presumably teams of two to three guards in each ring. They will be lowly members of the mercenaries, but do not discredit them just on that basis. Akatsuki have a habit of surprise.

"Anyway, as we are outnumbered, our best chance is to create a distraction. I'm thinking Mass Shadow Clones all around, and we take them by surprise. We continue to send them out for one minute, and capture Maia. We get her to the edge of the forest, where one of our real bodies will take over and whisk her away to Konoha. Simple, huh?"

Gai grinned at the group proudly.

"It's not perfect." Asuma said after seeing the unimpressed looks of his team. "But I want to get everyone out alive. Real bodies only go into the field in an emergency. We will divide into teams of three and surround the clearing before I give the signal for the clones. It's our best shot to get her in the midst of confusion."

Everyone was silent again, until –

"I guess we had better get moving then." Kakashi said calmly, before heading for the forest.


Kisame swung his sword cheerfully down the dark corridors of the Shizaru Station. He was the designated guard for the Konoha bitch, and it was his duty to retrieve her from the detention chamber once proceedings were ready on the surface.

He rolled his eyes to himself; if the Akatsuki were actually letting in trash like this, it was hardly going to remain elite.

But whatever. He could just leave if things got really bad.

Kisame reached the girls room, and opened the well-oiled door silently. She was sitting at a mirror, staring blankly at her reflection. Kisame paused for a moment, watching her carefully for any sign of second thoughts.

The girl was wearing a red dress for the occasion; her normal, ugly training attire discarded somewhere.

As he watched, she lifted one hand and traced the scar that ran along her chest. It was jagged and ugly.

She should cover that up, clumsy girl, Kisame thought to himself. What Itachi saw in this weakling was beyond his understanding.

He pushed the door open sharply so it banged against the wall. He was pleased to see her jump slightly. She turned away from the mirror to glare at him.

"Is that really necessary?" He asked mockingly, gesturing at the dress.

"It came with the room; it is a ceremony after all." She answered haughtily.

Oh how Kisame would love to cut her up and save Itachi the trouble of realising what a pain in the ass this girl was.

"Whatever. We're starting."

Kisame turned away and into the dim hallway, and the girl hurried to catch him up.


Kisame walked me down the pathway in the middle of the dense crowd that had assembled in front of the Altar. I felt many pairs of eyes follow my journey, and the whispers that fell in my wake.

I wondered just how many of these people already wanted to kill me – spots in the Akatsuki were extremely hard to come by. I wondered how many hoped that I would run or turn back, just so they had an excuse.

I fixed my eyes on the ground, remembering Kisame's threat a few days before.

I wished I had remained in my training gear, at least it was warm. The dress was fine in the heated bedroom, but I had forgotten the cold on the surface; in fact, the chill increased the closer I came to the Altar steps.

I looked up, some thirty feet above ground and saw Majo and Itachi waiting above. Majo's white eyes followed my movements, despite his blindness. I remembered the night before, the odd sensation I experienced when he met us, and wondered if the cold I felt came from him.

"Up you go weakling." Kisame grabbed my shoulder and pushed me towards the steps. I threw him off angrily, and set about climbing. The stairs were cracked, jagged and shallow, and I made not tripping over my only focus.

The audience followed my ascent; I felt every stare as if it were a brand on my skin.

I reached the top, which was a long flat platform. Neither man spoke when I reached them, so I turned silently towards Itachi. I shrugged at him slightly, and he replied with a small nod.

"Good,' Majo's rasping voice interrupted, 'we shall begin."


Yowai did not sign up for this. He scowled down at his muddy boots; he'd wanted to watch the ceremony at the Altar. But he, being one of the lower in rank in the group had been ordered for guard duty.

At least it was in the inner-circle of defence, his ever optimistic partner, Toru, had pointed out.

The other ninja had a point, it would have sucked big time if they had been assigned to the wasteland - at least they were close by.

Still, Yowai resumed his scowl; he'd rather be with his friends.

Toru was sitting on the ground near-by whistling cheerfully. Yowai had no idea how he had even gotten into the mercenaries, he was such a flake. Toru pulled out his weapons, and started polishing his already immaculate kunai.

"Do you think they've done it yet?" Toru said wistfully. Yowai grunted.

"I can't believe she's climbed this far – in just over two years! She must be fantastic, have you ever met her? I hear she's a total bitch, with awful hair too." Toru tried again.

Yowai pointedly ignored the younger ninja. He had an image to uphold.

Toru clicked his tongue at the lack of response and decided to disregard Yowai from now on.

That is, until Toru felt the slight surge of chakra. He paused and looked over his shoulder. Yowai was still sulking, and did not show any sign of noticing the signal.

Perhaps it was just an animal; a bear or something. Still, Toru put away his set; just in case. Yowai glanced at him but said nothing.

Toru could not relax, the hair on the back of his neck were on end. He began to fidget with two kunai, stabbing them into the ground as he searched the woodlands with his eyes. The signal was extremely faint, most would miss it, but chakra sensory was his speciality.

"Can't you feel that?" He finally asked exasperatedly.

"What?" Yowai said gruffly, playing with the zip of his coat. He didn't want to socialise with Toru anymore than he had to.

Toru didn't reply; now looking into the dark forest behind him.

"I'm going to go on patrol. You stay here okay?" Toru spoke again, taking a hesitant step towards the dark. Yowai waved him away. He wasn't going to do any more work than necessary, and if Toru wanted to go for a walk, that was good.

Give me some damned peace, Yowai thought grumpily.

Toru gave Yowai one more glance; truthfully, he would have liked Yowai to join him. Yes, he was superb at chakra sensing, the best in three countries, but he was not particularly mighty or powerful. Yowai was an idiot, but at least he could hold off an enemy long enough for Toru to run away.

Still, just because he was a weakling didn't mean he would advertise that fact by asking Yowai for help, so after a deep breath Toru disappeared into the woods.

It was not until ten minutes had gone by that Yowai felt the first pangs of anxiety. Toru had not returned, nor had he sent word of his findings. And to top it off, he now had the feeling that he was being watched.

Yowai closed his eyes for a moment and felt for chakra signals, though there were none. He grunted again.

Stupid Toru, putting ideas in my head.

But the feeling of being watched did not go away. Yowai's stomach tensed in anticipation. He looked back into the shadows again, though it was impossible to see anything in the unusually dark forest.

"Toru! I'm going to kick your ass for this! Get out here right now!" He shouted at the close set trees. He'd hoped to give the stupid ninja a fright, something to make him give away his position. But the forest stood still and silent around him. Yowai yelled again; it made him feel slightly braver.

"I'm serious Toru! I'll knock your damn block off!"

Nothing happened for a moment, and Yowai decided that he must have scared Toru away. He smirked to himself; yes that was it.

It was not until Yowai heard a faint frenzied chirping sound that it occurred to him to be seriously worried. And by the time he turned to defend himself, his vision was filled with blue lightening before darkness consumed all.


My teeth had started chattering at this point. I laid my hands in Itachi's so that my right palm faced upwards, and the other supported his right hand, also pointed at the sky. Majo's voice picked up. He excitedly chanted words in a language unfamiliar to me and raised his own hands skywards. The wind picked up, chilling me further. Itachi was staring at me intensely, his mouth set in a grim line.

Below the Altar, about one hundred faces were upturned towards us. No one moved or whispered, standing in awe of the holy-man's dramatics.

Nerves would come in waves, settling in my stomach, before rushing numbness quashed the emotion. I felt as if I were watching this entire thing happen to me, as if it were beyond my capability to understand the magnitude of such an event. There was no thought in my mind; I was completely adrift from my circumstances, as nothing I did now mattered.

Majo's rambling slowed suddenly, and finally stopped. He lowered his hands from the sky and reached deep into his dirty robes. He pulled out a knife with a long narrow blade. It was dark and dull in shine, the sharp edge rusted over with decay and blood.

Itachi was right. I won't survive this; I'll die of blood poisoning before I betray anyone I thought blandly.

I finally met Itachi's eye. From beneath the fog of indifference I had cast upon myself, I was vaguely surprised that he hadn't tried anything to get me away. After all the nagging and worrying on his behalf, he had given up on getting rid of me fairly easily.

The priest resumed his chanting, but it was now in a low whisper. I sensed our audience lean forward in excitement.

I guess this is it; the thought floated through my head.

Itachi looked down at our hands, and guided them together. His hands were on the top and bottom, pinning mine in the middle. The priest raised the knife above his head, and I realised that he intended to plunge it through our palms.

I looked away, out over the masses. I looked above the tree tops, at the rolling green hills that hid us. White Mountains were barely visible, sitting behind the wasteland we had trudged wearily through.

The priest's voice grew louder; the knife was raised above his head.

Beyond that lay the swamp, and an ocean, a meadow.

His voice grew shrill as the knife trembled.

And somewhere in the world further away than I could imagine, was Konoha.

Itachi's body suddenly tensed, and my attention was dragged back to him. His face was impassive, though there was a triumphant gleam in his eyes.

The knife plunged down towards our hands.

A kunai whistled through the air and Itachi threw me backwards. The kunai sank into Majo's forehead, crackling with blue light.

And then I saw them. Wave upon wave of Shadow clones surged out of the forest and fell upon the shocked mercenaries. My numbness vanished in an instant, giving way to all consuming relief.

Itachi watched silently for a moment, before Kisame started shouting far below.

"Somebody told! Who the fuck opened their damned mouth?" He swung his Samehada in an arc at advancing clones, which disappeared in a puff of smoke.

Realisation hit me like lightening, and I turned towards Itachi, just in time to duck under his attack.


Kakashi tore out from the cover of the trees, ignoring Asuma's command. The real bodies were supposed to stay behind unless it was absolutely necessary. But Itachi had turned to throw a punch at Mai, and that was the last thought he gave to the team leader. He shielded himself with the clones, which still poured from the surrounding forest.

He grabbed a kunai and set it through a mercenaries gut. There were suddenly several Asuma's around him. They rolled their eyes at him in annoyance, but worked quickly to clear his path towards the Altar.

Itachi kicked out at me again, but I jumped over his leg and pushed him back with a chakra fuelled palm. I knew what he had done. I'd been wrong that he had given up; he had gone above my head and straight to the Hokage. Our attacks slowed for a moment as his genjutsu rushed by me, containing the simple message: Run.

Kakashi sent five of his clones to stop Kisame's climb up the steps. The blue ninja's fury was palpable. Not that he had time to watch his clones fight; a one armed ninja suddenly blocked his path amongst the chaos. With its free hand, it tore the wrappings from the bottom of its face, revealing a hole where its mouth should have been. Kakashi's Sharingan narrowed in on the chakra focused in its throat, and he threw himself out of the way as a jet of something black shot forth. Several clones that had stood in its way evaporated on the spot, and two of the enemy dropped dead. The things eyes shone in delight as it set its sights on Kakashi.


Itachi's attacks came thick and fast, though I was able to deflect them all. I realised that he was fighting at full force, though without the Sharingan. Anyone who saw us and reported to Akatsuki would say they saw Itachi fighting to contain the traitor as hard as he could.

He shot a kunai out at my stomach, but I used the replacement jutsu. A clone appeared beneath him, and attempted the head hunter jutsu. It failed, though it drew his attention long enough for me to run up and kick him in the chest.

But more ninja were running up the steps to help contain me.

I weaved hand signs and summoned the fire bird. It wouldn't last as long without the Hou-ou, but it would do. The bird swooped on the enemy and knocked most of them back.

And then there, through the flames and smoke, I saw him.

We locked eyes for a moment, before Kisame swung his Samehada into my side and knocked me off the Altar.


Kakashi watched Mai's fall in horror. However, another jet of black light from the ninja before him brought him back to his senses. Anger flashed through him again, and this time he reacted.

Kakashi shot beneath the ray, and swept the things legs. Before it even hit the ground, a clone reached up from underground, wrapped an arm around its neck, and buried the ninjas head below the surface.

Kakashi was up and running, leaving his clones to finish the ninja off. He needed to grab Mai and go – the clones were meant to be nothing but a distraction, and at least half had been destroyed by now. It took a lot of chakra to produce so many and sustain them all, so he had to act fast.


As I fell through the air, the only thought that whirred about my head was of Kakashi's face looking up at me. He came, he actually came.

But for now, I was going to die if I didn't do something…

I powered chakra to my legs and feet and summoned a clone. She turned me around in the air, and manoeuvred beneath me. The ground raced up to meet us, and I landed upright on my clone. She took most of the impact, and my legs were only a little jarred.

I looked up to where I fell, forty feet at least, and saw Kisame glaring down from the top. I took a step backwards to run, when he jumped from the Altar.

I turned and sprinted in the direction I remembered Kakashi to be in, but suddenly I was surrounded by the clones. I could no longer tell who was real, and the enemy had begun to notice my presence. I ducked and weaved by them, intending to head for the forest when someone grabbed my forearm and dragged me back.

When I looked back I realised it was Kakashi. I opened my mouth to say something, anything, when a kunai flew over our heads.

"Later" was all he said before we started to run.

Clones worked quickly to clear a path as we sprinted through the commotion. He never let go of my arm, as though he were afraid I would try to escape. He reached into his kunai holster and pulled out a knife, one of the Fourth's transportation weapons.

But we were drawing attention to ourselves, and more and more of the mercenaries began pursuit. Itachi and Kisame were nowhere in sight.

Kakashi threw the knife as hard as he could over the forest. He let go of my forearm and grabbed my hand tightly; we couldn't disappear until the knife landed.

The hair on the back of my neck prickled as I turned to look over my shoulder. I watched in horrified slow motion as Kisame appeared out of the crowd. He stretched his Samehada back, and its spines pierced through the restrictive fabrics.

It swung forwards – it was going to hit –

"N-," Was all I could breathe before Kakashi's hand tightened around mine and what felt like a strong wind hit me.

The next thing I knew, I was running in a dark, silent forest.


A Kunai sank into Kisame's hand, halting his attack just before they disappeared. The blue ninja whirled around angrily to face his attacker. Itachi stood on the edge of the baffled crowd.

He shrugged when Kisame spotted him.

"Sorry, I missed."


Kakashi slowed, and pulled me to a halt. He let go of my hand, panting, and stared at me.

Where was Itachi at this moment? I hoped he was okay, after everything. This must have been hard for him too…

Kakashi was still yet to say anything.

I didn't know what to say or where to begin. I was still sure that any moment the mercenaries would appear and drag me away, but when nothing happened, I had no choice but to turn my attention to Kakashi.

"A-are you okay?"

He nodded silently, apparently also lost for words.

I swallowed hard, I suddenly wanted to cry.

"I'm sorry. I'm so, so sor-,"

He pulled me roughly into his chest and held me silently while I cried.