(A/N) Dun… dun… DUUUUUN! The moment and the chapter you have all been waiting for has finally arrived! The siblings meet. Will there be fireworks? Soon find out.

And can I just say… about the last manga chapter… SASUKE'S GONE PSYCHO!! Well, we all knew it would happen. Kinda. And does anyone else seriously want to hit him with a baseball bat? How stupid can he get?! Unless of course he's doing an Itachi… which I hope he is, otherwise he is just being an idiot, plain and simple.

From the top, much, MUCH thanks to: Mirai No Dinurs, TeenageCrisis, Starlight – Wild Koneko, 1AngelsReqiuem1, BlackButterfly-RedRose, Icecream Skittles Addict, EverMindTheRuleOfThree, randigirl, crystal teardrops, jahannah12, xxx1xxx, h3rshy675, saiyukifan526, xxpatixx, Daughter of Unending Darkness, Passionate Crow Rat and Black fire Blossom :D. Try saying all that in one breath :P

Sorry for taking so long – it's been one of them weeks and writing this chapter took a backseat.

Enjoy :D

"N…Nii-san?"

She eyed the bright orange hair, making herself thank whoever it was that was out there that she had gained pink hair. She could just imagine the insults she would have received at the Academy.

Next her eyes rested on the many piercings that he had, making him appear to live up to the name he'd given himself.

His Rin'negan eyes were as clear as day, almost completely identical to her own, and that alone was a sure enough indication of the fact they were relatives.

So Danzou wasn't lying, huh?

She would have looked away, but found herself unable to take her eyes off her brother, a slight morbid fascination keeping him (and his piercings) in her vision.

Pein's eyes flicked to the side, eyeing the areas where Sakura's fists had left sizeable cracks in the wall.

Moments later that section of the wall tumbled to the floor, leaving a cloud of debris in its wake.

Sakura started out of surprise, then looked back at Pein, her eyes wide.

"Uhh… whoops?" She said shakily.

Pein's expression didn't change.

"Itachi, Kisame. Leave us."

She heard the telltale whooshing of the two Akatsuki beside her leaving them to it.

Suddenly feeling like she'd been thrown in the deep end, she swallowed, and kept her eyes on her brother.

"There's no need to fear me." Pein said quietly, as he placed a hand on the wall, his Chakra immediately pulling the pieces back together, like a jigsaw puzzle. "It's irrational. Why would I wish to hurt my little sister?"

Sakura blinked at him. "It's not… fear, exactly. It's…" She stared at him, her head cocking to the side. "Is your hair naturally that colour?"

Pein stared at her. She couldn't decipher whether he was angry or merely taken aback. It took her a few moments to realise what she had just said.

Oh. Dear. God. Did I just say that out loud?! That's it, it's over. I'm done for.

Inner Sakura however was eyeing him with one eyebrow raised. Well what does he expect with hair that's bright orange?

She blushed. "Sorry."

He, however, smirked. "No, it's not. A certain jutsu that I use triggers my change in appearance."

"Oh."

Does that include the piercings?

I am NOT asking that.

Wonder what his reaction would be if I did? Priceless I bet.

Yeah, before he chops my head off.

Silence fell between them.

"You seemed pretty upset about something before I arrived. Is something wrong?" He asked. His expression, once again, didn't change. It reminded her shockingly of Sai, almost as if Pein too had gained his social skills from a book.

Noting the monotone enquiry after her wellbeing, it was a few moments before she realised he expected an answer.

"No. It's nothing to worry about, really." She said, though as she spoke Inner Sakura raged at the thought of being tricked by Sasuke.

He stared at her thoughtfully for a few moments, then said calmly, "Step into the light."

Deciding not to question his request, or order, or whatever it was, she stepped into it.

Suddenly, almost out of nowhere, his utterly emotionless eyes gained humanity as they widened, causing Sakura's to widen too.

Have I done something wrong?

"Pein-san?" She asked uncertainly.

"Heh. You've still got pink hair." He replied, a sudden, sad smile on his face.

The air in her lungs vanished.

He remembers me?

"I still remember how pleased our mother was when she brought you home for the first time. She had been certain that her family's trademark pink hair wouldn't be passed on…"

Sakura stared at him, and her expression darkened as she remembered the only mother she would ever recognise.

"Though I… never really supported you… becoming a ninja… though I never said it… I am… so proud of you…"

Sakura looked at Pein once more, who was already walking away from her.

"Come with me. I'll show you around." Once again, his voice had flipped back to the emotionless monotone that it was before.

Sakura stared after him, then looked back at the expanse of the lake.

No turning back now.

"Hai." She said, and followed him.

--

"So let me get this straight… instead of bringing back Sakura, you brought back someone who is bent on leaving as soon as he regains the use of his legs?" Tsunade asked, her voice forcibly calm.

The fact that Team Kakashi had once again failed a retrieval mission irritated Tsunade to no end, the fact that they then tried to save themselves by saying they brought back Sasuke instead was infuriating.

They would have had a chance in persuading Sakura to stay, but Sasuke was so bent on revenge now there was no saving him from it. Added to that…

"You do realise the situation we are in now that Sakura has reached Pein?" Tsunade asked.

Kakashi managed to keep passive, while Naruto fidgeted.

"We had no choice." Kakashi replied, "Sakura was intent on going to her brother. Now we have Sasuke back… that solves at least one problem."

Tsunade gave him an incredulous stare, "Are you completely-?" She paused, "Sasuke was focused on killing Itachi, who is one of the Akatsuki. Bringing him back may have caused yet more problems."

"If we didn't Sasuke would have died!" Naruto burst, "Now that Sasuke's back we can bring back-!"

"No we can't." Another voice said.

Both Kakashi and Naruto looked around, standing in the opposite corner, shrouded by shadows, was Jiraiya.

Naruto's eyes widened. "What?"

Jiraiya's eyes were focused on the opposite wall, as if he was seeing something that only he could see, there was an odd, haunted expression on his face, almost as if he was afraid of what he saw.

"Or should I say… you can't, Naruto."

Naruto bristled instantly. "What – but Sakura-!"

"If you go after her, you will die." Jiraiya said, "You seem to be forgetting exactly who is after what's inside you."

Naruto stared at him, "But I-!"

"No." Jiraiya said, "This conversation is over."

Naruto glared at him, "She's my friend and-!"

"If you die, the fate of the world is at stake. Don't you understand that? We can't take that risk! You're the only Jinchuuriki who hasn't been put through the extraction process! The fact that you're still alive right now is a miracle in itself!" Jiraiya said severely, he then sighed, "I'm sorry… but you can't."

Naruto 'hmph'd a reply, and crossed his arms. "Then what do we do then? Sit around waiting?"

"Sakura… whatever she has become… is still a Leaf Ninja. The Akatsuki's ways may not sit right with her. We can only hope that Sakura will reason with Pein." Tsunade said, "She's the only one who will have an effect on him."

Naruto's jaw dropped. "But that's-!"

"Like Jiraiya said, this conversation is over, Naruto." She said,

"But-!"

"Out." Huffing angrily, Naruto left the Hokage's office, and Kakashi made to follow, but Jiraiya held a hand out to stop him, closing the door in Naruto's wake.

"I'm going to Amegakure. I need you to keep an eye on Naruto while I'm gone." Jiraiya said, his expression darkened, "And… make sure he doesn't do anything stupid, ok?"

Kakashi stared at him.

"Jiraiya-sama, with all due respect-!"

"Pein was my student. I helped train him and his friends so they could survive the war that was raging there. I'm not intending to fight him, merely gain information. But if it comes down to it, I will." Jiraiya said calmly.

Kakashi glanced past Jiraiya to look at Tsunade, whose haunted eyes were once again on her stash of Saké.

He sighed. "I guess there's no persuading you otherwise." With that, he left, his frown growing deeper as he did.

The Hokage sinking into depression…

One of the Sannin going on a suicide-mission…

Naruto unable to leave…

Sasuke unable to move…

If you knew, Sakura… would you come back?

--

Meanwhile, Pein was showing Sakura around the labyrinth of winding corridors that was the Akatsuki base. Fortunately, different Chakra signatures were implanted in each of the rooms, so if she needed to be somewhere, she could get there quickly. However, she also assumed that she could now teleport, so she always had that to rely on.

The Leaf Ninja in Sakura kept jumping up in her mind now and then, noting information that she perhaps could tell Tsunade when she returned to Konoha, and every time she did, she felt a stab of pain at the loss of her home and family. She knew there would be many reminders, she just had to learn to deal with them, for her own sake.

She watched as he mentioned various meeting rooms, the kitchen, the bathrooms, all of which were in the bedrooms, which he noted as he passed, mentioning names of several Akatsuki that Sakura hadn't heard of before. Until finally they stopped.

"This, is your room." He said.

She paused, then pushed the door open. It was pretty simple inside, a bed by a window, a bathroom to the right of her. Nothing too flashy. "Thank you."

He nodded, "You should head to Meeting Room One as soon as you're ready. I'll introduce you to the other Akatsuki members." With that, he left.

She stared after him, then walked into her room, a soft sigh escaping her. She walked over to the window and stared at out at the ever-raining village of Amegakure, and once again felt a pang at the loss of Konoha.

She looked to the side, and was surprised to see a chest of drawers there. Sitting on top, was an Akatsuki cloak, and a blue ring which bore the kanji for 'Sora'.

So this is it? This is the big Akatsuki inauguration? A cloak, a ring and a room?

She moved forwards cautiously. She didn't like the look of the cloak, it still drove a spark of equal fear and hate in her that wouldn't be gone any time soon. She moved forwards and picked it up, and the ring, which refused to slide onto any other finger than her left little.

She then shrugged on the Cloak, which was unnervingly a perfect fit, and went into the bathroom to look for a mirror, which, when she found she had to do a double take to make sure it was actually her, not another Akatsuki.

She stared at herself in the mirror.

So this is me now, huh?

She closed her eyes, finding herself forcing back tears.

This is me.

Get used to it, Sakura.

She opened her eyes once again, and sighed.

No more tears.

--

"Sai… SAI!"

The raven-haired young man looked around and smiled at Ino, who appeared to be flustered. He had read in a book that he should try to calm someone down when they were angry about something, and he was about to attempt to when–

"Your house – it's been broken into!"

He stared at her. Now how would one usually react in these situations? "Oh, really?"

Ino sighed, staring at him incredulously. "That means someone may have stolen your possessions, aren't you bothered about that?" She paused, "Actually no, don't answer that. Your house is a mess, one of the windows was broken and your wardrobe looks like it exploded."

"My wardrobe?" He asked, surprised.

"Yeah."

"Why would my-?" He stopped mid-sentence, his expression unreadable.

"Uhh… Sai?" Ino asked, she waved a hand in front of his face, "Sai?"

"My mask." He replied, "My ANBU mask was in my wardrobe."

She stared at him, not comprehending what he was trying to tell her.

"My Root ANBU mask."

(A/N) Tick – tick – BOOM. A lot of things are going to kick off next chapter. Yup, Jiraiya's leaving, but that's the question - will he die or will Sakura jump in and save him? I've got the Plot, but if there's anything you want me to slot in, any funny, angsty, whatever ideas, go for it, but to do that, you must review :D

Next Chapter: The Other (Spoiler: Danzou's words haunt Sakura)