A/N: Here's the promised chapter. I decided to update it today since I finished it today… I also want to tell you guys that I will gradually be going away from using Japanese words and stuff because honestly, who am I kidding? The only words that I will use will (obviously) be imouto, aniki, and any suffixes.

Oh, and Deidara comes off as a bit dumb in this chapter, and I know that it's OOC, but hey… A dumb Deidara ensures some humor to come, right?

Thanx to: Cookizilla, Every shadow has its twin, moonlightrurouni, Tensa Zangetsu 17, redrobin, and WraithReaper for reviewing!

Please read and enjoi!

Disclaimer: I don't own Bleach or Naruto.

0—My Precious Imouto/Eight—0

Night fell swiftly and soon enough, a fire was prepared to cook the game that Kisame had caught a few hours earlier. The meat was strung up and quickly skinned, the smell of raw meat so pungent that Karin was surprised that the hungry animals of the forest have yet to make their move on the campsite. Her nose crinkled in distaste as the smell of rust afflicted her nose; it was so bad that she had to take a few steps back, a move that didn't go unnoticed by the four men in their group.

"What's wrong Karin-chan? Aren't you used to the smell of raw meat, un?" Deidara asked as he slowly made his way over to her side, his head tilted slightly to the side, conveying his confusion.

The female lifted a tanned hand to shield her nose and mouth from the smell that seemed to thicken the very air she breathed, pausing to send a curious look towards the blonde male. "Why the hell would I be used to this?"

Large blue orbs blinked down at the female. "Well, aren't you used to smelling this when you cook, un?"

"Kekeke. Here we go…" Kisame guffawed in the background, his small pallid eyes crinkling as much as they could with this new source of amusement that was about to be displayed.

"Oh Kami… You can't be serious…" Karin's hand dropped from her face as she turned towards the older teen. Deidara couldn't help but flinch as the ebony haired female's onyx hues narrowed into a dark glare. "Do you want to repeat that, you sexist pig?"

Deidara, the poor bastard, didn't catch the dangerous tones coating Karin's voice, somehow managing to make it worse. "Is your hearing going bad already since you're aging, Karin-chan? I was merely wondering why you aren't accustomed to the smell of raw meat because women of this world don't seem to be equipped to be any type of warrior, they seem more like they—." The male cut himself off when he finally noticed the younger teen's change in demeanor. She now had her palms resting at her sides and a wicked smirk tugging at the corners of her lips. "What is that look for, un?"

"I just want you to know that you brought this all on yourself, Deidara." Karin snickered lightly, and before the blonde could even blink, her foot shot up, heading straight for the male's family jewels. If he was a lesser shinobi, he wouldn't have been able to catch her foot in time.

Deidara's hands quickly grasped the female's ankle, his visible blue eye wide as he glanced up to her face. "Why did you—?!"

"Heh. Let's see how you deal with this, you bastard." Karin's devil-like expression morphed into one of innocence. "Deidara-kun, what are you doing? I said no when you asked me the first time!" The teen fought to keep her face from showing the glee she felt when she caught sight of the blonde's face. It was slowly changing from confusion to that of horror, his mouth forming an 'o' as a tall shadow fell over his form.

Two pale hands came down on the blonde, one on his shoulder, while the other chose to gravitate towards the hand grasping Karin's ankle. "It's too late to train with you, but I feel that we should go for a late night swim, Deidara." Itachi's frosty voice sounded so close to the teen's ear that he couldn't help but flinch away, his hand numbly dropping the female's leg.

He's going to drown me! Itachi is going to drown me, un! The blonde's visible eye flicked away from the she-devil before him to his former teammate and Kisame, pleading with his gaze for one of them to step in and save him.

Sasori didn't even acknowledge the look, he merely continued on with carving his sixty-fourth puppet without a hint of care for his former teammate's wellbeing. He's no help. Deidara thought before turning his attentions to the shark-like male. He nearly whimpered aloud when he caught sight of the blue-tinted male's wide smirk. That bastard is enjoying this!

Deidara knew that his chances of finding a way to delay the inevitable were gone the moment the Uchiha's hands tightened on him. "The night is young, Deidara. Let's try to get you as much time in the lake as we can."

I'm going to die… Again. The blonde thought inwardly, his only visible eye watering at the thought of just how many times the Uchiha would drown him before he felt that it was enough to put him out of his misery.

Itachi's cool gaze landed on the shorter male he held in his grasp, a miniscule smirk spreading across his lips before flicking his eyes towards the female who was having trouble hiding her mirth. He was no fool; he knew exactly what had transpired between the human and his fellow Akatsuki member. He was well aware that if the female had been fast enough to actually land a hit on the blonde, she would have merely left it at that, but seeing as she could not, she had to settle with being devious. I won't kill Deidara though. His eyes slid back to the blonde. I suppose that mental torture would be more than enough punishment in this case…

"Come along, Deidara. The water awaits us." Itachi didn't allow his amusement to show on his face; in fact, he made his face a complete blank mask, and from the way the blonde flinched away from him proved that the look was quite convincing. "I'll be back later, imouto-chan." He called over his shoulder.

0—Break—0

"…The feeling didn't go away until they were long gone and Renji was carrying me away from the site." The orange haired male said at last, his gaze not wavering from the man before him. He felt the encouraging touch of Rukia's hand on his shoulder and knew that his redheaded best friend was also giving him his support merely by not interrupting throughout his entire explanation. All that was left was to hear what the blonde haired shop keeper had to say.

"Hmm…" Urahara leaned away from the small table, his hand gravitating towards the light scruff on his chin. "That's interesting… Have you attempted to contact your inner hollow to see what happened from his point of view?"

"I haven't." Ichigo's honey hues flicked away from the shop keeper for a few seconds before they returned, blazing with determination as he slowly climbed to his feet, being mindful of his injuries.

"You may use the training grounds if you wish." The blonde former captain stated. The hand that had fluttered unnecessarily at his chin moving to get a hold of his fan.

"Thanks."

Renji and Rukia had to refrain from helping their orange haired friend, knowing full and well that now was a time to leave the headstrong male alone. They did, however, make sure that he made it downstairs safely before closing the door quietly. This was something that he had to face on his own.

Ichigo sat down Indian style onto a tall rock that had immediately drawn his attention upon entering the training grounds. He shifted around for a few moments, trying to find a most comfortable way to set his back, before giving up with a scowl, clamping his eyes shut as he kept his back ramrod straight. I've never really been that great at these sorts of things, but if you can hear me, answer!

A tremor went down the orange haired captain's back as a thick, watery chuckle sounded in his ears.

Well, well, well… I was wondering when you'd come calling, King.

0—Eight/End—0

A/N: Yo, would you prefer me calling Ichigo's inner hollow Hichigo or Shiro? I've seen people use both… Just leave a review and let me know!

Oh, and thanx for reading!