Ok last chapter was short, but I wanted to just get back in there. These next couple of chapters should be longer.

Thanks for everything!

Bolting through the forest Neji and Lee followed closely behind Gai, keeping pace with his intense speed. Neji's stomach was in his toes as he realized just how desperate this must be if Gia-sensei is losing his cool, looking over at Lee he noticed an anger in his dark eyes that he had never seen before.

"Gai-sensei please tell us about this opponent so that we may be prepared." Lee yelled forward to the larger man in green spandex, Neji looked forward waiting for Gai's response as well.

"Not until we rest for the night, save your energy as much as possible." Was Gai's call back, he sped up and pushed himself farther into the trees. Lee followed swiftly behind and Neji pushed harder with fear twisting his gut in the most loathsome way.

Tenten's POV

"So precious, what makes your heart beat, makes you want to live?" Akio spoke while cutting her steak for her taking care to keep the sharp instrument away from the weapons mistress, he wasn't that stupid; she could kill him with one flick of the wrist. Tenten's eyes were stared fixedly on the giant steak knife, dreaming up ways she could wrestle it away and maybe slit his throat; imagining that his ruby red blood would spill from the gash even as he tried to stave it with his hands. Suddenly something touched her lips lightly and the once bun-headed kunoichi recoiled immediately, her eyes shot back into focus as she searched for the offending object that touched her lips. It was a piece of steak Akio had been holding out for her to eat, he had a small smirk on his face as she grabbed the fork from him so that she wouldn't be subjected to being fed by her captor.

"You gonna answer my question princess?" Akio said as he started cutting into his own steak, and leisurely popping the piece of meat into his mouth.

"I like killing people." Tenten set down her fork, her appetite not present at the moment, he just chuckled as he chewed his food slowly.

"Let me rephrase my question. You got a boyfriend precious?" She stilled, her face an impassive mask as she rethought the decision to put down her fork, desperate to have something in her mouth to stop her from answering that question right away.

"Would you let me go if I did?" She lifted the steak to her lips and bit down purposefully chewing as slow as possible to distract herself.

"No... but here's the thing. You won't ever be mine fully until he's out of the picture."

"I don't have a boyfriend" Tenten wasn't lying, but it didn't stop her heart from clenching as she said this, an image of Neji springing to her mind. She'd known for awhile that the boy would never return the same affections to her, but the thought of him being in danger because of her feelings made Tenten sick.

"See you're lying again." Akio reached over and grabbed her hand that was holding the fork, squeezing it hard and harder until Tenten was forced to drop the utensil "I don't like it when you lie." Tenten stared back into his eyes with venom. " I was not lying. I have no one." Akio leaned over the table and whispered in her ear deathly quiet, Tenten fought the shiver down her spine caused by the hot breath against her ear. "I'm going to find him, and when I do I'm going to make his death slow and painful, and I'm going to make you watch." She pulled back and held eye contact as she spit the words out of her mouth "You're a monster." Akio just chuckled putting his hand on the back of her neck and giving her a rough kiss before sitting down to eat again. Tenten grabbed at her water to wash away the disgust and bile rising in her throat once again.

She prayed Neji had at least noticed she was missing by now, but she also feared what this man might do to him.

Neji POV

They had settled in for the night when big fat drops of water had started to plummet to the ground, reducing visibility and perception in the dark. Neji tried to persist saying he could just use his byakugan to help them which Gai-sensei immediately shot down in an excuse to keep Neji at his best. They had made a temporary shelter from the rain with a small fire to heat the little food they had. Nothing but the sound of the rain permeated the air as they slowly ate, both Lee and Neji looking at Gai expectantly.

"So are you going to tell us who this guy is or not?" Neji said rather impatiently, he was tired of being in the dark about the situation but also wanted to find out what kind of monster had Tenten. Gai reached behind him and pulled the red folder out of his pack, tossing it to Neji, Lee leaned in closer to see into the folder as well. Opening it there was a picture of a tanned, well kept man, who was smiling charmingly at the camera. Underneath, he was classified as an S-Rank human, a whole stack of papers fell from the right side of the folder detailing Sato's capture and offenses against the leaf nation. Neji's eyes scanned the reports a scowl increasing more and more on his forehead the further he read. Lee's eyes slowly widened as he followed, then he looked at Gai worriedly.

"This is the guy, for sure? How do you know?" Gai nodded solemnly then opened his mouth "I was apart of the team that dismantled his organization." Both Lee and Neji looked at Gai, closing the folder and giving him their attention. "Tell us everything Gai-sensei." Neji said sternly

Gai sighed before continuing, " I wasn't on this case for long, but they needed the muscle for the 'last stand' as they called it. A number of young girls had gone missing within the leaf nation in those years and people were getting more and more worried for their girls... there was a case already involved in investigating a couple of sex slave rings running through the leaf nation, but when searched they didn't hold any of the girls they were looking for. Multiple times they tried to shut down the rings, but the participants weren't scared, they were proud and felt secure under what they called 'the umbrella of surrender' something being fed to them by a person high up on the chain no doubt. They all knew that this man would protect them and continue these disgusting rings no matter what." Gai's eyes looked haunted as he relayed the story, Neji and Lee glanced at each other worriedly before looking back at Gai-sensei. "They eventually found out the ring leaders name... when one of the girls that had gone missing suddenly appeared in a village far from her own. She was beaten so badly she died shortly after of internal bleeding, no medical ninjas could save her. She mentioned his name in a horrified manner, saying that she was kidnapped the night before her wedding, help captive and beaten and used, then he captured her fiance and killed him in front of her, declaring that she had no ties left to her old life and she was his completely... We eventually found the scum and his mansion hidden in the deep secret forests of the Leaf nation raiding his house which had been used to house every single girl he had captured one at a time, if they fought enough he'd eventually kill them after he was done with them and find another one; if they bent to his violent will he'd keep them for as long as they could sustain the injuries he gave them." At this moment Gai's voice caught in his throat, and he swallowed hard "We can't let this monster out again."

The two shinobi sat deathly quiet as the small fire crackled before them, their eyes wide with shock and anguish. Neji's chest felt like it was about to rip open, his heart was beating so hard against his chest, his field of vision was suddenly red with rage but before he could open his mouth Lee spoke first.

"How did he get out?" It was quiet and hard as steel. Gai-sensei shook his head sadly, his eyes focused on visions of the past. "I have no idea... there wasn't an alert or anything from the prison. Most likely he bribed and charmed his way out, the man is horrifyingly persuasive and whoever helped him just set free the nightmare for every little girl in the area."

"We have no time to wait Gai-sensei Tenten has been missing for weeks now!" Lee said vehemently, anger and desperation coloring his voice so it rose to a higher pitch.

"Lee, we will not be any help if we let our emotions get ahead of us. Tenten is strong, we have to believe she is holding her own and still alive." Neji said decidedly.

Lee really looked at Neji for the first time, scowling but nodded before announcing he was tired and going to get some sleep. Gai followed shortly after Lee did, but Neji was not able to close his eyes, nor quiet his mind so he stared unblinking into the fire until turned to just burning embers before him. He had to believe that Tenten was alright, that she was strong and capable and that he was coming for her. He was going to find this Sato and tear him limb from limb and leave him for the birds to feast on.

They woke before the sun was out, heading towards their known destination now. Gai was certain that Akio was much too proud to take captives anywhere besides his plush mansion in the countryside. Silence pervaded through their group the closer they got. Neji's breath caught in his throat at the vast mansion before them, he briefly wondered if the man was currently holding any other girls hostage at this moment, but pushed the thought from his head. Nothing else mattered until Tenten was safe back in his arms. Lee went to step out of the forest when Gai grabbed his shoulder preventing him to do so, the green ninja looked back in impatience and confusion and Gai silently shook his head.

"If he sees us coming then he will kill her immediately. Neji."

"On it... byakugan!" Chakra flowed through his pale irises searching through the mansion for any sense of chakra or bodies in the house. His search was short, there was only two body signatures in the manor, in a bedroom high on the 5th floor a tall figure carried a smaller one to a bed laying it down on the bed. Neji had a hard time seeing what was happening, it would seem the tall figure leaned down and kissed the other person; When he saw a smaller hand reach out and strike the bigger on the cheek, His heart leapt in his chest knowing beyond a doubt that that was Tenten's right hook, and he knew that it wasn't a thing to be taken lightly she had a mean punch. However, a moment later Neji let out a sharp gasp as he saw Tenten's form be lifted by the neck and slammed into the wall next to the bed, suddenly the bigger person was close too close to Tenten's form.

"What's happening Neji, have you found them?" Lee said quietly, Neji nodded silently too horrified to speak what he saw.

"We need to move now." Neji was gone in a flash

Two more chapters after this! Whooooo Can you believe it? It only took me 4 years... anyways. Who's ready to save Tenten? I am sure am.