Hola,

Today I can give you all a very short update for this story. My time is still limited, so I decided to keep the chapters shorter, so I can update on a more regular basis. Though I prefer to write at least 5-6000 words per chapter, I will now publish chapters with half that length until I have enough free time to write long chapters. Else I would only be able to update once every 1-2 months. So this is a very very short chapter, don't be angry with me because of that.

And of course I want to thank my Reviewers. Thirteen new Reviews for the last chapter, much more than I had expected considering the number of views per chapter. Something I really want to mention here, because it really made me laugh. I received a PM the day I uploaded the last chapter. One 'person' felt the need to tell me that 'though he liked the first chapter, he will not continue to read my story. It has so few followers that it must suck.' Well can't argue with that kind of logic. Sometimes I wonder wether I should just deactivate PMs, but at least some are really amusing.

Well enough said for now, enjoy the chapter...


The Hunt – Part II

"We had a deal!" Akihiro yelled in outrage. "You swore to give me the child, so I can bring her to my village. You have the one you wanted, give me what is rightfully mine."

"Things have changed. I saw need to change the conditions of our agreements. Pray that I won't alter them any further." Tobi said menacingly as he stalked through the compound he currently occupied. He had other things to think about, other problems that needed to be solved. Akihiro was just an insect. Unimportant to the overall plan. But the girl in his custody... She was a different case all together.

"You betray me, after all I have sacrificed for you? I won't..." His words died in his throat when Tobi grabbed him by the throat and smashed him against a nearby wall.

"You will do as I tell you. Make yourself useful or you will become expendable. And you know what I do to expendable people." Tobi hissed, his only visible Sharingan spinning wildly in his eye. Akihiro merely gulped before he nodded dumbly. He had seen what this monster was capable of. He would be a fool to fight him openly. No, for the moment he would comply... but once Tobi would show a single moment of inattentiveness...

"Go now. Check the security of the compound, I do not wish to be interrupted by unannounced visitors."

"Those Uzumaki won't be able to send anyone after us. I was careful enough to leave no traces. And their village will be hardly in any condition to send someone to search for the two girls. Not to mention that no one will be willing to search for either of them." Akihiro stated arrogantly.

"Do as you are told. Now get out of my sight."

Akihiro quickly hurried off, leaving Tobi alone with his thoughts. The masked man entered the building through the next door, steeping through a dark room, before he reached a heavily barricaded door. Inside the room behind this door was the one person that currently occupied his mind.

"Greetings, Akahana, you have calmed down I hope. It would be such a pity, would you force my hand again." Tobi said, as he looked at the girl that sat underneath the small window. But Akahana ignored him, her eyes closed, as she tried to meditate. "Ignoring me won't do you any god, girl."

"I am not ignoring you, I just don't have anything to say to you." Akahana replied calmly.

"Oh, you will talk. They all talk... eventually." A sinister cackle escaped the masked man as he fully entered the room and closed the door behind himself.


After hours of traveling, the group finally stopped. A break to rest up. After this they would not stop until they had returned to Konoha. Kushina had not said a single word to anyone. She had barely acknowledged her Sensei and teammates either. Inside she was still seething. Should wouldn't let go of this anger she felt. But who exactly she was angry at... she did not know it.

Minato watched the young Uzumaki girl with worry as he sat next to Jiraiya, who was busy writing on a small scroll. "Sensei, shouldn't we do something?"

"What do you mean, Minato? We need some time to rest, before we continue our journey. If our lucks holds, we will be in Konoha before nightfall." Jiraiya answered without looking up.

"I mean about Kushina. She does not talk to anyone, she does not acknowledge any of us. She is just so..."

"Angry?" Jiraiya supplied with a worried tone.

"Bitter... I know we had to leave, but was it really necessary to force her to leave her home on such short notice?"

"Minato, the day will come when you will be in a position, where you will have to make difficult decisions. The Hokage made the decision to pull us out of Uzushio. A hard decision that has put a lot of strain on our alliance with Uzushiogakure. I made the decision to force Kushina to come with us. Again it was not a decision that has been made lightly." Jiraiya said, a hand now on his student's shoulder.

"But why force her? I mean, why force one Genin to leave her home?"

"She is important to Konoha, that is all I can say about this. One day you might learn the truth and then you will understand. Until then I ask you to trust me. I made the necessary decision." Minato listened with rapt attention to his Sensei, trying to understand what Jiraiya tried to convey. But there was some big secret about Kushina, something no one was allowed to know. It fueled his curiosity, but he also understood that prying for information would not be wise. For now at least.

"But we should not let her alone with her feelings. Just like she said, she will be all alone once we are back in Konoha. Someone should look out for her."

"I will talk to the Hokage, he will know what to do." Jiraiya said determined. "And then I will find myself a bar and drink sake until I can't think straight."

"You really shouldn't drink, Sensei."

"Ah, you should try it, too. There is nothing that helps better than a nice cup of Sake and a night with a good woman." Jiraiya said with a smirk.

"Sensei, I am only thirteen..."

"Old enough to kill, but not old enough to drink?"

"I really think we should stop talking now..." Minato said with a funny look. He appreciated his Sensei's attempt to distract him, but he really did not want to start arguing with Jiraiya about what he should and should not do at his age.

Kushina had not even realized that someone had talked about her. She knew that her current mood did nothing to improve the opinion that her fellow Genin had of her, but she did not care. She did not want them to accept her. She wanted to be with her family, to help free her sister. To be there when her mother woke up again and help her until she was fully healed. But none of that was allowed. No, she had to return to a place where she was unloved, unaccepted.

'I should run. Just wait for them going to sleep and leave. Most people wouldn't care, even should they see me leave. I would be too far away for them to capture me before they would even find out about it...' Kushina thought darkly.

'They will notice. They will capture you and imprison you unless you fight.' A dark voice growled in her mind. 'Why not make them suffer for treating you like a prisoner. In Konoha you will never be free unless you fight for your freedom.'

'No! I...'

'You are weak, but that does not have to be. I can give you the strength you need. You just have to release my power.' The voice sounded seductive, the promise of power sounding very alluring to her. The power to regain her freedom, the power to go and help her sister.

'You... you are... Kyubi!'

'My power. Use it. Use it to free yourself. To free the both of us from the Leaf!' The demon's voice boomed inside her mind now.

'No. I won't release you! You would kill me and everyone dear to me. You... you cannot be trusted!' Kushina thought. She felt more distressed with every moment that passed now. What would happen when the demon escaped? Would she die? What would the demon do? But she was especially worried what the Konoha shinobi would do to her, should they find out that the demon talks to her all of a sudden.

'Petulant child. Free me and I promise not to harm you and those of your blood. My vengeance lies with Konoha and the Uchiha Clan. They will suffer!' The demon growled angrily.

'Forget it. You never tell the truth. You will break your word the moment you leave the seal. Begone. Back into the depths of the seal.'

'Foolish girl. You will give in. Soon I will be free and then I will have my revenge. With or without your help. Those Leaf shinobi deserve only death.' Kyubi growled one last time, before its presence in Kushina's mind disappeared.

'The people of Konoha...' She knew that she did not belong to that group. She had tried to fit in. But it was all futile. She would never be one of them. But that did not mean that she wanted them to die... all she wants is to return home, her true home.


Akahana was breathing heavily, as Tobi slowly backed away from her. She was kneeling in the center of the room, her breathing labored, her body aching. She did not know for how long he had been in this room with her, but she knew that her enemy had not received the information he wanted. With grim satisfaction she allowed herself to smirk, something that displeased Tobi even more.

"Stubborn wench. I must admit that I am... impressed by your ability to resist my Tsukuyomi. Most others would have gone insane by now. But you will not last much longer, that I can assure you. You better start telling me what I want to know." Tobi said with an almost gleeful voice. He couldn't help himself but admire Akahana's strength, she was a challenge, even to him.

"Just take your damn Sharingan and stick it where the sun does not shine, Uchiha scum. I won't bow to you, I won't tell you anything. You cannot break me." Akahana replied venomously.

"We shall see about that." He replied confidently. He knew he would have to try something different now. Forcing her to answer had not worked, other ways would not fail him though. "You must have suffered much in the past, to be able to endure this much punishment. Tell me girl, what have you seen in your past? Have you seen how your family was murdered? The loss of a friend, a lover perhaps?" Akahana remained silent, a defiant look on her face. "Silence is also an answer. Your eyes betray you. So you have lost important people... through betrayal?" He merely looked at her, it was enough to get his answer. She tried to look away from him, but he forcefully grabbed her chin and forced her to look at him. "Yes. You have been betrayed. By someone you trusted. We are alike in that regard."

"We are not alike. I only kill to protect others. You kill just to justify your sick perception of good and evil. You only serve yourself, I..."

"You are a slave. One girl that has been forced to fight and die for the sake of others. Oh believe me, I've heard about that whole mentor story. A weapon, what a befitting way to describe you. Deadly beautiful and yet so severely limited to one task. They have taken your humanity, so you would serve them, am I right?"

"Don't..." His sudden change disturbed her. His questions and rather accurate conclusions had thrown her off balance.

"No. You are more than just a weapon. I must admit, that the man who raised you was very cunning. He told you that you are merely his weapon, but he left you with your emotions and convictions. You served him loyally without being forced to." Tobi let go of her chin and started pacing around her, a chuckle escaping him every now and then. "A perfect weapon, one that can never be used against him. Or so he thought. You desire to be more, do you not?"

"Don't talk as if you know me, Tobi. You know nothing." Akahana said darkly as her eyes followed the masked man through the room. A cold shiver went down her spine as Tobi's fingers touched her neck briefly. What he intended with that... she had no idea.

"I may not know much about your past, but I understand you like no else can possibly ever hope to. You are like me. Born and raised to fight, a true shinobi. We felt the painful sting of betrayal, the heartrending feeling of loosing someone dear to us. And just like I understand you, you can understand me." He finally stopped pacing in front of her. "Just think about what the two of us could achieve. Together we can change this world, make sure that no one will ever have to suffer through the same life that we have been forced to live."

"I would rather die, than join you." Akahana spat out.

"You will change your decision soon, Akahana." Tobi said with a sickly sweet voice, as he grasped his mask with one hand and pulled it off. "You and I will have our revenge on those who have wronged us, when we bring eternal peace to this world. Our power and your apparent knowledge of the future will help us succeed." He looked intently at her, now with both of his eyes revealed. He scrutinized her closely.

"Never. I will never work with you..." Her raving was suddenly stopped when she saw Tobi without his mask. This man... he wasn't the Tobi she remembered. It wasn't the Tobi from her time. No, this was a different person. An older man she had only seen as a walking corpse after his resurrection. "Madara Uchiha..." She mumbled with disbelief.

"So you already know me. This will make our partnership much easier, Akahana. Do not worry, soon you will see things my way. I will make sure of that." Tobi said as he turned to leave. He put his mask back on before he opened the door. "I shall return later, so we can continue our little chat." He chuckled as he walked out and closed the door behind him. He had no doubts that he had finally found something he had been searching for years. Someone like himself.


Not far from the compound, a small group of shinobi had arrived. Three members of the Uzumaki Clan, that had come to save their clansmen from their captivity. Lead by a small fox they had found this hidden place, hoping that it was not too late yet.

"This is the place?" Arashi asked, as he watched the compound in front of his group. They were still hidden from view, but the night would come soon and then they would strike.

"Yes, yes. She is here. Akahana-hime is inside this place. But so is her captor, the one you know as Tobi." Kurou answered snappishly. "Be careful that you actually save her without embarrassing yourself in front of your mate."

Hotaru laughed lightly when she heard the fox' words. The little summon amused her greatly, a nice distraction before a very dangerous fight that could possibly be her last. Naoki next to her remained stoic, his eyes fixed on the compound and its perimeter.

"We should attack soon, Arashi. The sun is already going down, but waiting until we have complete darkness also means to risk being found prematurely. We must surprise them or else we will fail." Naoki said calmly.

"I know, I know. Just a little longer."

"We should better not mess up or else death will be the most preferable fate. I don't want to incur Toshiro-sama's wrath because we failed to safe his granddaughter." Hotaru said lightly. Though it was most likely meant as a joke, none of the three had any doubts that their clan head would be extremely angry, should they return without Akahana.

"We will not fail. Now shut up and wait for my sign. We will strike soon." Arashi ordered sternly as he watched the main gate of the compound. He had no intention to fail. This wasn't just about Akahana for him. This was about the honor of his clan. To find and destroy the traitors and to save the fiance that had been stolen from him. Forced betrothal or not, no one would get away with offending him like this.


A/N: Yep, it was really that short. Don't worry the next chapter will be longer. I merely released this now to fill the gap until the next chapter and to shed some light on Tobi's plans with Akahana.

Both sisters now have to face their own demons. Kushina has the orange fuzzball to worry about and Akahana is still Tobi's guest of honor. Whether Kyubi and Tobi will succeed... well you will have to wait for that. But just to make sure that everyone understands it, Tobi's plans with Akahana are purely platonical. No romantic relationships or any such thing. This Tobi is actually Madara and in this time Madara is already a old man, well not that old, somewhere in his fifties, but by far too old to consider a relationship with a eighteen year old girl. So sorry, no chance for a Akahana/Madara pairing.

Well that is all for today. The next chapter will come out soon. As I have already mentioned, the chapters will be shorter, so I can update more often. Until next time, hope to see you all again...