A/N: I wanted to get this out asap... I'm really pleased with this chapter. It's nice and long... I just kept writing and writing and writing... so I'm posting it the second after I've finished writing it! I hope you all like it... I didn't really go over it AT ALL, so I apologize if there are typos and such...

Also, please let it be known that there's a time skip that isn't mentioned between this chapter and the last one! It's been around a month, give or take. That said, on with the chapter!

Piano Man

X: The Great Escape

By ancient-relic

-::-

Glancing around, Kagome took extra care not to make a single sound. Itachi was a very good guard, and even when he wasn't to be found, he was watching. The thought was slightly alarming, and vaguely reminiscent of Naraku, but Kagome continued on. Her playful, mock-attempts to escape had been covers to learn more of the layout. Itachi had been very diligent during her healing process in keeping tabs on her, and only took her outside blindfolded, so she wouldn't know where they were once they got there.

Unbeknownst to Itachi, Kagome had devised a plan to mark their location for future reference; by focusing minute amounts of her aura, Kagome was able to place it into living objects like flowers and wildlife. It appeared as Kagome playing with the flowers and simply encouraging them to grow, but even after they left a faint residue of her powers remained for her to sense. The only flaw in this plan was that there was an indefinite period of time that her aura lingered, and so it left her making her escape.

Kagome carefully conjured a barrier to hide her scent and sight, keeping it close enough to her form that if anyone passed her in the halls, it would not even brush them. She had not met any of Itachi's 'teammates' other than Kisame, nor had she been introduced to the pair that had rescued her from the well, but now was not the time for thanks. As she continued down the dimly lit hallway, she prayed that she wouldn't run into Itachi. His eyes, when they were red, possessed several useful abilities; one of which enabled him to see through her barriers simply by engaging the simplest of forms.

Footsteps that were not her own caught Kagome's attention, and she pressed herself as close as she could to the wall behind her, listening and watching as her heart pounded furiously in her head.

"-s been more than a little abnormal, un," a rather chipper voice commented. "But I don't understand what it's about either,"

"You are an idiot." A second voice replied. "Clearly it is the girl you rescued, or have you forgotten? He's kept her locked up in his room for two weeks."

"Sasori-danna, don't you think that's a little weird, un?" the first voice replied. "That he would change so obviously over a girl."

"Itachi has always behaved the way he chooses. In this case, however, I don't think he realizes that he's different at all." The second man, Sasori, replied.

Kagome could see their silhouettes now as they approached around the corner, and held her breath. The two men that passed her were both rather handsome; one with long blond hair and the other with a vibrant red.

The one with red hair hesitated a step as they passed; two abreast made them pass dangerously close to Kagome, who felt the breeze from the swish of their cloaks. The corner of the dark fabric brushed along her barrier, and she tensed even further as the man paused minutely before carrying on. Letting out a silent, shaky sigh of relief, Kagome continued on her way, tiptoeing down the hall until she could no longer hear their footsteps.

She had been living in the baggy garments that Itachi had provided for her until now, because anything else only served to irritate her scabs and ribs. Now, the loose clothing seemed more of a curse as she moved, and it brushed together rather loudly. Her jeans, shirt and Naruto's jacket were all lingering around somewhere in this god forsaken complex, and Kagome was determined to find them.

Temporarily putting aside her goal to flee, Kagome turned left, instead of the right that she knew would lead her to one of the many hidden exits in the 'lair' she was currently being held in. Sneaking down the hallway, she passed several doors, all closed. Despair slowly settled in her stomach- the place was a maze! How was she supposed to find her stuff? What if Itachi had thrown out her stuff?

"Damnit!" Kagome pressed her back in to the stone wall with a little curse, knocking the back of her head several times in frustration.

"—haunted by ghosts,"

Kagome tensed, looking up and down the hall at the faint murmuring. No one was approaching but-

"—thumping and groaning and shit, I hate ghosts-" the door to the left of her creaked and opened, and gave birth to Kisame, who pulled his cloak tighter to him and glanced up and down the hall.

"Kisame!" Kagome whispered with a grin.

"What?" Kisame looked rather alarmed, his dark eyes glittering with suspicion. "They know my name-"

"Of course I know your name," Kagome spoke softly, with a slightly lower voice. Maybe she could use this to her advantage…

"What the hell is going on?" Kisame mumbled to himself, and turned to leave. "I'm hearing things that know my name."

"Kisame," Kagome called again. Kisame paused in his step a moment, but shook his head and continued walking. "Kisame, I need your help,"

Kisame looked like he wanted to say something, but instead picked up his pace, glancing once over his shoulder. Kagome grinned, and moved to catch up with him, stomping her feet a little more than necessary. Her footsteps echoed in the stone hall, and Kisame stopped so abruptly that Kagome ran right into his back.

"What the-" Kisame spun around, swinging his arm out and Kagome instinctively put her own out and blocked his swing.

"Kisame," she laughed a little. "That was completely unnecessary."

"Who are you, where are you, and how do you know my name?" Kisame was clearly agitated. "You'd better show yourself before I run you through."

Kagome glanced at the big sword that was strapped to his back and did some quick mental calculations. The sword was long enough that if Kisame drew it, it would likely nick her barrier one way or another. The resistance would allow him to pinpoint her location… and from there, everything would go downhill. She didn't even have long until Itachi would realize she was missing, and she still needed to find her stuff.

Glancing at the blue ninja in front of her, she realized that she would need to put some trust in him; at least until she was out of here. From there, she would be able to knock him unconscious with a zap of her powers and disappear before he was any wiser.

"Kisame…" she allowed her voice to return to its normal pitch. "It's me,"

"The princess?" Kisame was surprised, and allowed his hand to drop from his sword. "Where are you? Has Itachi finally killed you?"

"No," Kagome sighed exasperatedly. "But I need your help, and Itachi might just decide to kill me if he catches me now."

Itachi was more of a mother hen than her mother. And that was an awfully frightening thought.

"He does have a strange obsession with you," Kisame allowed. "But this would be better if I could see you."

"If you get caught helping me, wouldn't it be better for you to tell the truth when you say 'I haven't see her'?"

Kisame scowled.

"Listen. I'm leaving- I can't stay here anymore. I need my clothes, but I've no idea where they are."

"If they weren't in Itachi's room then they're probably in the laundry room," Kisame deduced carefully. "Your shirt was a little torn up and the jacket was a little bloody and the pants had some mud on them- if they weren't all tossed, they would have been put in the laundry room for mending."

"Can you take me there?" Kagome asked, stepping forward.

"What's in it for me," Kisame huffed, crossing his arms and unnervingly pinning her with a stare.

"Can't we work that out later?" Kagome pleaded. She felt a little guilty for using the ninja, but was it really her fault that he was so easy to manipulate?

"I'll think of something." Kisame grinned. He tensed when Kagome reached out and grasped his cloak.

"Hurry."

-::-

"No news," a little dog reported, saluting once to Tsunade before disappearing.

"Was that one of Kakashi's summons?" Shizune questioned, striding into the room with a tray of tea.

"Yes," Tsunade rubbed her forehead in exasperation. "No news."

"You know-" Shizune began, but the blond woman cut her off.

"Everything about this girl is trouble. Mysterious abilities… She appeared willing to cooperate, and then she just up and disappears. Neji's Byakugan, possibly the best developed in the whole village, couldn't see anything. Kakashi and Hana and Kiba have found no scent or even trace of the girl… and Naruto…" Tsunade's tirade lost speed abruptly. "I've no idea where he is."

"He seemed to take Kagome's disappearance the hardest." Shizune commented, pouring tea for her leader.

"Which is strange enough. He just… latched on to her presence." Tsunade rubbed her temples.

"Tea?"

Tsunade took the offered cup with a weary smile.

"I can't spend much more time on this," Tsunade said. "By saying it aloud it seems so final. The council is asking questions, but I haven't told them a thing about Kagome. If Danzo learns of her, he'll likely try to make her into some kind of weapon."

"Well…" Shizune paused. It was a predicament indeed. "What does Sasuke have to say about this?"

"Sasuke has been holed up in his house." Tsunade replied. "As per my orders, waiting to see if Kagome appears. But we also can't afford to have him just sitting around doing nothing, because sooner or later questions are going to start being asked. He's been more anti-social than ever, according to gossip. He hasn't been seen in the market at all. Sakura said she'd try to talk to him."

"I think you should try to wait as long as you can, but…" Shizune looked at her friend. "Maybe… maybe she's not coming back?"

Tsunade glanced once at her assistant before looking out the window.

"Maybe this isn't worth all the trouble and stress,"

"Maybe…" Tsunade sighed, and sipped at her tea.

-::-

"Sasuke," a voice called through the morning. A pounding accompanied it, effectively keeping Sasuke from returning to sleep.

"Sasuke, I know you're there. Open this door."

Looking at the little clock, Sasuke realized that he had slept even longer than he had yesterday. Groaning, he pulled a hand through his hair and made a face. Rising, he groped for a clean pair of shorts and pulled them on over his boxers before heading for the door. How Sakura knew where he lived would have bothered him had he been more awake, but lately he was just so tired.

"Sasuk-!"

Her yell was cut short as a sleepy Sasuke abruptly opened his door, clad in nothing more than white shorts. Sakura felt the blood rush immediately to her face but instead clenched her stomach and pushed past her teammate, inviting herself into his house.

"What do you want?" Sasukes voice was rough with sleep. Sakura tried not to swoon.

"Oh I'm sorry," she feigned an apology. "Did I interrupt your nap? It's past noon."

"Sakura…" Sasuke's tone warned her that he was in no mood.

"Listen, Sasuke," Sakura seemed exasperated herself. She placed her bag of groceries down on the table. "You're doing no good staying locked up in here all day. You're pale as all get-out and you haven't even been into town for groceries in almost a month? Starving yourself is going to do you nothing and-"

Sasuke turned and began walking away. Sakura frowned and stopped talking. At least he hadn't kicked her out yet… as she moved to follow Sasuke further into his house, she realized that she was in. Sasuke's. House! She squealed a little inside. Wouldn't Ino be jealous when she told her!

"You're still here?" Sasuke commented snidely. Sakura returned her attention to her teammate, who was leaning against the kitchen counter and looking delicious in a beam of sunlight. To his right, a little stove sat where a kettle was boiling water.

"Sasuke," Sakura tried again. "You need to take care of yourself. I know you're waiting for Kagome to come back, but-"

"I am taking care of myself," he cut off, crossing his arms and turning to look out the window that opened onto the garden. Sakura followed his eyes and took in the tamed garden with wonder. It appeared that Sasuke had kept himself busy.

"You need to eat," she said softly, and began pulling groceries out of her bag, putting them in the barren fridge and cupboards. Sasuke allowed her to move about the kitchen unhindered, unloading the food she had brought for him. After a few minutes of silence, his low voice broke the tension in the room.

"Would you like some tea?"

Sakura turned to her teammate and long-time crush, and stared for a long moment at his dark, unusually expressive eyes.

"Yes, please."

-::-

"Kisame," Kagome hissed.

"What?" the blue shark-like ninja hissed back.

"You live here. Shouldn't you know where the goddamn laundry room is?"

"I-" Kisame faltered. "I don't do my own laundry! Leader has people that take care of it. I've never actually been to the room before, so-"

"You are sooo pathetic," Kagome groaned, smacking a palm to her forehead. The sound echoed lightly through the dark hall, and Kagome remembered she was supposed to be acting stealthily.

"You'd make a horrible ninja," Kisame commented. "You're never satisfied, always complaining and horrible at staying quiet-"

"Who'd make a horrible ninja, un?"

Kisame and Kagome both stilled at the voice. The blond haired ninja from earlier exited the nearest door to their right. Kagome tensed, and her hands fisted in the back of Kisame's cloak in warning. She was positioned between the wall and his back- so hopefully there'd be no way she would be physically caught, but even so…

"What?" Kisame replied, blinking at the clay-master.

"You were talking to someone, weren't you? Said they'd be a horrible ninja, un."

"Deidara," Kisame chuckled. "You're the one that saved that girl that Itachi's got locked away right?" his said, changing the topic none-too-subtly.

"Yeah, un. Me and Hidan brought her back." Deidara grinned. "She's a pretty little thing, un. I'd like to say hello, but Itachi has kept her under lock and key until now, un."

"What?" to Kisame's credit, even after being caught off guard he was a pretty decent actor.

"Haven't you heard, un? She's gone from his room. He's searching the whole place, un." Deidara sniggered. "Seems like his little Sharingan is failing him; he can't find her with it so he's looking manually, un. He's even got clones up outside."

"Fuc-" Kagome moaned. Deidara raised an eyebrow at the sound.

"-funny!" Kisame covered. "Itachi's lost track of one little girl," he laughed nervously.

"It is, un." Deidara chuckled a little. "I hope he doesn't find her. Too bad no one will actually tease him that he lost her, un. Anyways, see you later. I was just grabbing my laundry, un."

Kagome tentatively peeked over Kisame's shoulder and saw that the blonde was indeed carrying an armful of dark clothing.

"Isn't that Sasori's…?" Kisame pointed to the garment on the top of the pile. Deidara flushed beet red and hurried away.

"Later, un!" he tossed over his shoulder as he disappeared in the darkness. Kisame chuckled as he turned to where Kagome was standing. Kisame had quickly adapted to not being able to see her, and was getting quite good at pinpointing her location.

"Found the laundry room," he grinned, his sharp white teeth brilliant even in the dimly lit corridor. They entered quickly, because time was short.

"How am I even going to get away with Itachi out there?"

"Well, Itachi's not really out there…" Kisame pointed out, dodging a cloak that appeared to levitate before being tossed into his face as an invisible Kagome rifled through large hampers of clothing.

"Is that it?" Kisame suddenly spoke, and pointed to a rack that hung from the ceiling. There, an orange jacket, white shirt and her pants hung.

"Oh good," Kagome sighed. Her jeans and Naruto's jacket seemed no worse for wear, but her shirt had several tears in the fabric. "Well, at least it was just cotton," she mourned.

Turning to the blue ninja, she frowned. "I'm going to get changed. Turn around, and don't look. I have to let down my barrier."

"Hmph." Kisame snorted, but turned and did as she asked, nevertheless.

Kagome quickly pulled on her pants and shirt, kicking the baggy rags into a dark corner. Glancing around, she realized her shoes were nowhere to be found, and realized she'd just have to wear the reed sandals Itachi had procured for her earlier during her 'stay'. Doing a quick one over on herself, and frowned at her shirt. It was all stretched out and torn, but it would have to do.

"Here," Kisame said. Kagome jumped and turned to look at him, as he had turned around and was now facing here. He was holding a black blade- Kagome recognized it from her first encounter with Itachi and Kisame. Kagome tensed, glancing from the blade to Kisame's face and back again. Kisame seemed to sense Kagome's nervousness, and nimble flipped the blade around so he was holding the handle towards her.

"Cut the ripped parts off so they're out of the way," he suggested. Kagome thought about it a moment and figured it made sense, and quickly did as he suggested. The shirt now fell short, just brushing the top of her ribs. Her torso was still bandaged to keep her ribs as still as possible, so really, none of her skin was revealed anyhow. Sliding into Naruto's jacket, Kagome inhaled the musky odor of the blonde haired ninja.

Naruto… she thought miserably. I miss you. Her mind drifted back to her other friends then, and the sorrow doubled. InuYasha… Sango… everyone…

"Now's no time for a pity party," Kisame bit out, after taking in the shadowed expression on her face. "This could be the next room that Itachi searches. Put this on, and cover up that blinding, disgusting colour." Kisame flung the cloak he had been hit with moments earlier at Kagome.

Kagome did as she was told, and quickly cast another barrier the same as the one she had put up earlier.

"Damn it, where'd you go?" Kisame groused. Kagome grinned and kicked him lightly in the back of the shin. "Unnecessary," the ninja replied, and turned to fast for her to dodge, and encircled her in his arms.

"Hold on tight," he grinned.

Before Kagome had a chance to struggle out of his grasp, Kisame's power flowed around her form, almost as malicious as Itachi's, and poofed them out of existence.

When Kagome opened her eyes, she realized instantly by sound alone that they were in a forest. Kisame had released her already, and sheepishly Kagome realized she was still clinging to the ninja. Stepping back, she dropped her barrier so the man could see her. Strangely enough, Kisame had done nothing but help her… so far. She didn't want to hurt him if she didn't have to- a fondness for the fish-like ninja was beginning to grow.

"You're not far from the base right now," Kisame intoned, pointing towards it. "Itachi will finish searching the hideout and immediately begin canvassing the area. You'd better run awfully fast."

"Why are you helping me?" Kagome was curious. The blue-eyed ninja looked down at her with an unreadable expression, but quickly it split into a toothy grin.

"All princesses need to be rescued sometimes."

"…" Kagome was shocked for a moment, but grinned at Kisame. "Well aren't you quite the vigilante."

"Hardly, princess," Kisame scoffed. "Here, take these just in case." He handed her two blades like the one she had used moments ago on the remains of her shirt.

"They won't help you against Itachi, but they'll be useful against anyone else." The man said. His voice held a kind of finality that Kagome easily recognized as goodbye.

"And what's your alibi going to be?" Kagome questioned, taking the blades in either hand.

"I felt like rabbit," Kisame said suddenly, throwing a smaller, round blade through the air, and a small thud reached Kagome's ears, signifying that the blade had met the target.

"Ew," Kagome wrinkled her nose. "Are you sure you wouldn't prefer fish?"

Kisame gave Kagome a dark look, and Kagome giggled as she put her barrier back up. "Thank you for helping me," she whispered.

"See you later, princess." Kisame grinned as Kagome took off, leaping through the foliage and heading away from the hideout. "Good luck."

-::-

Tsunade was sitting in her favourite bar with a jug of saki and a pounding headache. The saki wasn't helping like she thought it was, and she was just about to call the bartender over with her bill when a familiar presence made itself known to her left.

"What's a good-looking lady like you doing out here by herself?" a voice questioned jokingly.

"Jiraiya," Tsunade greeted in monotone. "What a surprise."

"Wow," the man laughed. "You sound so surprised! Your acting skills get better every day. I know I'm too good to resist, but-"

"Jiraiya," Tsunade sighed. "I'm so tired I don't even feel like getting drunk. Is there something you wanted to say?"

Jiraiya glanced at his long-time love and teammate. "Well I decided to pay you a visit because I've just learned of some interesting news…" he began, taking Tsunade's half full saki jug and taking a swig. "It seems something has thrown Itachi into a tizzy."

Tsunade let her face slide down a little from where it was rested in her palm. "What's Itachi got to do with anything? He hasn't been seen around Konoha, has he?"

"Well no, not yet," Jiraiya began. "It seems he's lost something. Word is he's been acting strangely as of late. The rumor is that Itachi had taken himself a prisoner."

Recognition began to spread through Tsunade's mind like wildfire, as she put more and more pieces together. "Itachi?"

"Some girl he found," Jiraiya continued heedlessly. "But now she's missing, and Itachi's looking for her. Now normally when Itachi's looking for someone he finds them awfully quick, but for some reason this girl has evaded his notice. Itachi's already tortured several small villages he passed by on his search. He's getting frustrated and careless because his Sharingan has failed."

Tsunade let this information soak in for a moment, running it over in her head. It makes sense. Itachi had Kagome. Kidnapped Kagome. Now Kagome's gotten away somehow… but where is she going? Where is she now?

"Do any of the other kage's know what's going on?" Tsunade questioned seriously. Jiraiya seemed surprised at the sudden change in her demeanor.

"Well not yet, but Itachi's not hiding the fact that he's searching so it can't be long before word gets out it a person-"

"The council will surely hear of this soon, then," Tsunade began making a plan aloud. "I have to talk to Sasuke… and then I'll have to call a meeting with the council. It will be better if they hear of Kagome from me."

Jiraiya watched his companion with a grin. It had been a while since he had seen Tsunade so driven towards a goal, but fire in her eyes made her even more attractive.

"Jiraiya!" she snapped, turning to him.

"Y-yes?" he said, startled.

"I need you to go to Shizune and inform her that she needs to get the council together for a meeting first thing tomorrow morning. Then, I need you to go find Kakashi and the Inuzuka siblings. They're out in the forest south of here somewhere. Tell them they need to get back to the city as soon as they can."

"All right," Jiraiya shrugged.

"And then, when you've done all that," Tsunade was making a list, almost frantically going over everything to make sure she wasn't forgetting anything. "I need to you to go find Naruto and bring him back."

"Where's the brat?" Jiraiya noted Tsunade's urgency, and became curious. "Is this girl-"

"This needs to happen immediately," she intoned seriously. "As fast as you can, okay? No fooling around. I've no idea where Naruto is, but he needs to be informed with everyone else on the new plan of action."

"Oka-" Jiraiya was silenced as he felt Tsunade peck in cheek in thanks before she promptly disappeared from the bar.

"I hope you'll be paying for that, sir," the bartender gave him a dark look before glancing to Tsunade's saki jug. Jiraiya glanced at the two other empties that sat beside it and groaned, realizing that Tsunade had left him to foot her bill.

tbc.

EDITED: 30/05/10