AN: I came close to tears reading the reviews. Thank you all so much. All you're support meant a lot to me because it pained me to write that chapter. This chapter won't be anywhere near as intense as the previous one.

I won't elaborate too much more on the story line but I was never planning on a completely happy ending. I felt it would be too boring if everyone escaped with ease and it would be less interesting.

There will probably only be around five chapters left.


Sasori sat outside near the west fence. He was hidden from the other inmates by the concrete wall that surrounded the basketball court. The guard could see Sasori if he looked down. A hollowed out piece of bone was clutched in his hand. Even though he couldn't see it, a dart was in his pocket. It felt heavy. He had one chance to hit the guard. If he missed, then the plan would be over. Pein would kill him. Sasori checked his watch, five minutes left. As the sun moved across the sky, it cause the guard on the west to look away from the prison. The guard would have his back turned for five minutes. Sasori felt his heart thudding uncomfortably. His breathing was uneven. Sasori was positive he was having an anxiety attack. He tried to calm his breathing down, in and out in and out. He wanted Deidara to be here but the blonde was getting ready to play his part. Sasori focused on an image of Deidara, he was doing this for Deidara. If he failed, Deidara would fade away into nothing. Sasori checked his watch again. It was nearly time. Almost on que the guard turned away from the prison to avoid the setting sun. Sasori placed the dart into the hollowed bone and stood slowly. His heart was going to explode. He glanced at his watch. One minute.

Deidara left Kimimaro's cell. He was going over last minute plans with Kimimaro and the twins. Deidara left and checked his watch. Five minutes. In five minutes he'd press a button and betray Kimimaro and the twins. The cell they were sitting in was death sentence. In an art work explosion, the cell would be gone, they would be gone and chances are a lot more would also be gone. Deidara wouldn't enjoy it though. He used to live for his art work but this, it was just a part of something bigger. Deidara's heart was too heavy from losing Hidan and then Kakuzu. Now he would kill Kimimaro and the twins, who weren't really that bad once they were on his side. It would cost Deidara a part of his soul to do it. Small pieces had already been chipped away, losing Konan, losing his innocence, losing Hidan and even losing Kakuzu. Deidara checked his watch again. The only thing that was making him keep going was Sasori. If he screwed this up, Sasori's cover would be blown. The other inmates would see Sasori dart the guard. Sasori was his only reason to keep breathing now. Another glance at his watch. One minute.

Pein, Zetsu, Itachi and Kisame stood in Orochimaru's cell. They were silent. No words could convey what they were feeling. Pein looked at his watch with impatience. Five minutes. Years and years of planning, collecting blue prints, information and questionable patience was now gone, in five minutes the waiting would be over. He would escape from here. It was not without loss that they were here. Hidan had given his life for the plan, Kakuzu had given his life away for Hidan. Without Hidan's constant talking, it made the atmosphere tense. There was no relief. Pein looked back at his watch. One minute.

A finger hovered the button. ten...nine...eight...seven...six...five...four...three...two...one... Deidara pressed the button and took cover. It was almost instant. A large bang shook the prison. All the inmates looked around in shock. Pieces of rubble flew past Deidara and he stood up. The main danger was over, he looked up the corridor. Fire was licking at the walls. Large holes were blown through the walls. Deidara nodded his head in grim satisfaction and headed towards Orochimaru's cell. Just as he entered the cell, a siren went off. They were locking down the prison. Deidara worried that Sasori wouldn't make it back in time.

Sasori blew the dart at the guard. With a perfect shot, it stuck into his neck. No one noticed Sasori's actions because as he blew the dart, a large explosion was set off somewhere in the prison. Deidara had done his job successfully. Sasori waited until the guard dropped to the ground and hurried back inside. He'd only just made it inside when the wailing siren began. Sasori picked his pace up. All prisoners were meant to return to their cells. The doors would slide shut in three minutes of the siren going off. If they weren't in their cells then they had to lay on the ground. If they didn't, there was the high risk of been shot dead. Sasori was grateful Orochimaru's cell was on the ground floor. The red head slid into the cell just before the door shut. Deidara hugged him the second he stepped in the cell. Sasori pushed Deidara away gently after placing a kiss on his lips. The cell looked completely different to before. The bunk bed had been fixed and moved back into place except for the lower bunk which was laying on the floor.

"Kisame, Zetsu, Itachi, Deidara and myself are to go through first." Pein informed them all then looked at Sasori, "As you are the smallest you will go last but not before placing the bunk back in place, removing the sheet from the cell and then you will follow."

"What if he can't follow un?" Deidara asked in panic.

"Do not worry brat. I will be right behind you."

"Let's go."

Kisame lowered himself through the gap first, he was then followed by Zetsu, Pein and Itachi. Deidara hugged Sasori tightly. "I love you yeah," he whispered into Sasori's ear. Deidara stepped away after Sasori returned his love. The blonde slid through the hole after the others. They had already begun the walk through the narrow walkway. Kisame was on his side, struggling to squeeze through it. Deidara refused to follow them until Sasori was by his side.

Sasori quickly placed the lower bunk back to where it belonged. He ripped the sheet away from the door way. Prisoners were dropped on their stomachs outside. Sasori slid under the bunk stealthily, no one noticed him. The small male landed next to Deidara softly. The blonde male smiled in relief and grabbed Sasori's hands. They followed the others. The pipes were still warm but they didn't burn their skin. Deidara whispered out his thanks to Hidan. Sasori gave his hand a soft squeeze. They joined the others at the end of the walkway. The group continued to walk and entered through a door. Large industrial washing machines and dryers lined the walls. In the middle of the room were large tables. Two males stood in the room, folding washing diligently. A tall, lanky male looked up and waved excitedly, his face was obscured by a swirling orange mask. The second male was bulky with orange hair. He nodded at Pein.

"Tobi was a good boy, he's on washing duty just like you told him to." The masked male was almost bouncing with delight.

"I trust everything is in order Juugo and Tobi?" Pein asked.

"Everything is in order. Where is Kimimaro?" Juugo looked around.

"I'm sorry, Juugo. Kimmimaro didn't make it to the cell before it locked." Pein pulled off a sincere look with ease.

"Yes, Tobi has everything ready!" Tobi exclaimed, cutting off Juugo's reply.

"Tobi is a good boy." Zetsu smiled fondly.

"Who that fuck is that yeah?" Deidara looked appalled.

"This is Tobi, he spends his time in the psych ward of the infirmary." 'He killed a teenager for trying to remove his mask. No one touches Tobi's mask.'

"That's...wonderful yeah." Deidara moved closer to Sasori.

"We don't have much time, but I want to thank you." Pein looked at them all. "I know we are all taking different paths after this, I can't help you all but Sasori, follow these coordinates." Pein handed Sasori a folded piece of paper, "It is all I can do for you and Deidara. A plane will be waiting for you."

"Thank you." Sasori meant it.

"I have one more request from you Deidara." Pein said quietly. "I want to know her resting place."

"Amegakure, the south cemetery un." Deidara replied equally soft, "when you enter the gates, head right until you reach an oak tree then go up for ten rows then turn left for five graves un." Deidara instructed.

"I appreciate this Deidara." Pein then raised his voice a bit more, "Itachi, I assume you're going to Sasuke, is Kisame going with you?"

"I sure am. He couldn't get rid of me if he tried." Kisame grinned.

"Zetsu, are you sure don't want to go with Sasori and Deidara?" Pein asked. "Is Tobi going with you?"

"We are sure." 'We can make ourselves disappear. Tobi will come with us, he's a good boy.' No one asked for details.

"Juugo, what are you plans?"

"I will help you but I'm staying here. Without Kimimaro I could never control myself, it's safest if I remain behind." Juugo looked solemn.

"Very well. It's time to go then." Pein gestured to three large trolleys. There was canvas lining them, making the contents invisible. Two trolleys were conjoined and the other one was single. Pein sent Deidara and Sasori to the single trolley. The two males climbed into the trolley and Tobi placed sheets around them until they were hidden. The masked male picked up the metal handle at the front of the trolley and exited through a swinging door. Pein and Zetsu hid in the back of the conjoined trolleys, Kisame and Itachi climbed into the front trolley. Juugo then covered them up with sheets and grabbed the handle. The bulky male pulled the trolleys along with ease, despite the extra weight.

Juugo steered the trolley through another set of swinging doors and into the side entrance of the infirmary. He made his way to the third floor with a bored face. Anyone who glanced at him didn't seem suspicious. The orange haired male was on the roster for laundry. Most psych ward patients weren't permitted to leave their rooms so it was almost like a reward service to take care of the laundry. Juugo entered a room on the west side of the infirmary. The room was small, the main colour was white. A small barred window was situated on the wall looking out over the west side of the prison. Tobi was already in the room with Deidara and Sasori. The trolley pushed against the wall. Juugo told his cargo to get out of the trolleys.

"Aren't we likely to get caught over here yeah?" Deidara looked worried.

"No, the infirmary is no better than the main prison now. Only one guard and doctor remained behind. Karin runs everything over here. She can't be everywhere at once. This is Juugo's room and Karin usually avoids it." Pein assured Deidara.

Juugo walked over to his small bed, it was hard to imagine that he'd even fit on the bed. The bulky male lifted the mattress up and grabbed a coiled up wire. The wire was thick and wound together many times. On closer inspection, there were different types of wire. Juugo pushed the coil into Kisame's chest then grabbed a hook fashioned out of bent metal. Juugo handed that to Kisame, walked over the window and pulled the bars away from the window. He had spent a long time working the metal frame away from the window. Juugo remained quiet as he grabbed the handle of his trolleys and left the room. The Akatsuki members and Tobi looked slightly shocked.

"Let's do this then." Pein nodded at Kisame.

Kisame attached the hook to the wire and un-rolled it. The wire was rather lenient in it's movement's despite it's thickness. Kisame held most of the wire in one large hand, the hook was grasped in his other hand. He moved his hand around, experimenting with the weight. His eyes glanced up as Pein smashed the window, Pein had muffled the sound slightly by holding a pillow over the window. Kisame walked over to the window and looked over to his target. The high razor topped fence was perhaps only seven metres away. A large metal pole was directly in front of the window. The pole stopped any slack on the wire. Barbed wire wound all the way up the pole to stop anyone from climbing it. Kisame analyzed the pole intently. He would need to get the wire to wrap around the pole and the hook to catch on the barbed wire. It would then hold their weight as the slide along the wire. In theory.

"You can do it yeah!" Deidara gave a sheepish grin at Sasori's warning glare.

Thanks for the confidence Dei." Kisame gave an appreciative smile. "Well here goes." The tall male spun the hook end of the wire around to gather momentum then he threw it towards the pole. It clanged loudly as the metal hook hit the pole and fell to the ground. Kisame cursed and quickly hauled the wire back in. He repeated his previous actions of spinning the hook around and tried a second time. This time the wire wrapped around the pole and the hook snagged on the barbed wire. Kisame gave it a hard pull, the wire remained in place. Kisame then tied the other end around the metal frame of the bed. The large male sat on the bed and dug his feet into the ground to keep it in place.

"Good job, Kisame." Pein looked over his members, his eyes falling onto Sasori. "You are the smallest, you will go first."

"Hn." Sasori went to walk to the window but Deidara grabbed his arm. The blonde spun Sasori to face him. "Let go brat, not everything is a goodbye."

"You don't know that Danna." Deidara looked distraught. "I didn't think it was goodbye with Hidan yeah..."

"Do not worry about me." Sasori let Deidara hug him tightly. The scorpion placed a chaste kiss against Deidara's cheek then disentangled himself from the blonde's grasp. Sasori climbed out the window backwards and held onto the wire tightly, He stretched right out the window and then brought his legs up around the wire with ease. Sasori slide along the wire slowly but not with difficulty. The wire held his weight without strain. Sasori tipped his head backwards to see how far away the pole was. It less than a metre away. Sasori moved closer then dropped his legs, with graceful movements he turned his body around to face the wire and swung his legs a few times and then flung them up onto the metal pole and pulled his whole body up. The red haired male looked back over his shoulder. Deidara was sticking out the window looking relieved. Sasori smirked and then jumped off the pole. The five metre jump didn't bother him at all. He landed, his body was crouched down, his knees bent to avoid jarring his ankles. Sasori stood upright again.

Pein, Deidara and Itachi went across the wire with no real troubles. Tobi struggled to replicate the graceful movements of the others. Tobi's actions were clumsy and his feet kept slipping and dangling down into the yard below. After many nerve wracking minutes Tobi finally joined the others. Deidara bit back a giggle when Tobi jumped down off the pole and fell flat on his face. They all looked back up at the window where Kisame now climbed out and began his journey across the wire. Kisame felt his heart leap in his chest as the wire fell lower. The bed shifted closer towards the window. Kisame had an awful feeling that this would happen. Every time he moved closer to the fence, the more the wire sunk down. Kisame didn't give up though. He moved quicker, hoping to get to the pole before the wire lowered too much. He was halfway when the bed squealed across the floor and Kisame dropped to the ground. The large male stood up and made his way over to the fence, he plastered a fake grin onto his face. Inside, his heart was breaking.

"Well I guess I'm staying here." Kisame placed his hand against the wire.

"I will not leave you." Itachi said softly, his handing moved to rest against Kisame's.

"You have to Itachi. If you're caught outside the fence you will be shot dead. Plus, you need to go clear things up with Sasuke." Kisame rested his head against the wire, he kept up his fake smile.

"I love you Kisame. I will find a way to return to you." Itachi's voice was whispered, laced in pain.

"Love you too 'Tachi. Now get going." Kisame turned and walked away. Not able to stay there longer. Kisame let his face face, it was screwed up in anguish. Tears rolled down his face and he hurried off, he couldn't face watching them leave. It was too much, Kisame knew he would end up killed if he escaped. It didn't bother him though, to die a free man was better than rotting away in a prison. The fate would only be worse now without Itachi. Kisame would be the only member of Akatsuki left in the prison. Questions will be asked, blame pointed at him. Kisame felt that his life was going to be in jeopardy. He wouldn't say anything, no matter what he was forced to endure, he'd never sell out his friends, his lover.

The remaining six members turned and ran for the forest that was ahead of them. Itachi ignored the lone tear that slid down his face. The siren from the prison was becoming more distant. None of them dared to slow down their pace, even if their escape was unnoticed for the time, it was inevitable that it would be noticed. They continued on in relative silences, their ragged breathes coming out sharp and short. Their paces dropped and eventually Tobi stopped, causing all the other males to halt. Zetsu went to Tobi's side. Pein gave an irritated glare.

"Can you continue?"

"Tobi can't run," the masked male panted heavily. "Tobi doesn't want to run anymore."

"Its okay Tobi." 'Tobi has done well.' Zetsu reassured. "You can keep going, Tobi and me will head our own way now."

"If that's what you want." Pein looked slightly upset. "Thank you Zetsu. You've joined me in my goal from the moment I asked and not only that, you have being...a true friend."

"You are a good person." 'Take care Pein.' Zetsu bowed his head then grabbed Tobi's arm. "We're leaving." The two males walked off briskly into the forest. Tobi was waving behind him the whole time until they were swallowed up by trees.

"And there was four yeah." Deidara's voice was sorrowful as he looked at their dwindling numbers. Kisame was the only other male in Akatsuki that Deidara considered a friend. Leaving him behind was gut wrenching and painful. Deidara looked over to Itachi, the Uchiha appeared lost without Kisame. "I'm sorry, Itachi yeah." It was the first, and most likely only time Deidara would ever offer words of condolence or kindness to the stoic Uchiha.

"So am I Deidara." Itachi's words were forlorn, broken. Itachi hadn't felt this pain since Sasuke screamed out words of hatered at him. Kisame protected him, loved him. Itachi knew that the feelings he felt towards Kisame would never be replicated to another person. Ever the impassive solider, Itachi held his head up and forced his emotions away.