(A/N): Gomen nasai! I'm sorry it took so darn long to write. So you know, I've actually finished chapters 14 onwards to 17. 12 and 13 I had and still have major writers block. I went back to school :( More chapters will appear as I set about editing my junk.

Also, the chapter flits about and tells you parts of the story at different times. It may be painful to read, but you'll get through it alive…maybe.


The cruellest lies are often told without a word; the kindest truths are often spoke but never heard.


Amnesia

Chapter Twelve: Tea Party of the Damned


It truly was a strange day, for one, sitting in the same room as the devil himself. And I wasn't dead…yet. I had traded something, at the time, seemingly trivial for one last flutter of light. And at this time, I realized this life had never been my own.

The devil does not play fair.


After awkwardly surviving another one of Deidara's debriefing jokes, it became alarmingly certain that we would yet again be doing useless errands, instead of making advances on the force that threatened death from the south.

Does he want us to play pretend and drink tea like nothing is wrong?

'Those accompanying myself are Deidara, Sasori and Itachi. I apologise Zetsu but you would hardly be inconspicuous in a village of people -"

"Why is Konan not going?" Tobi piped up.

I thought he might tell the truth, but no.

"Someone must say behind in my stead."

I was mildly surprised; Pein was often partial to boasting. Konan was a powerful kunoichi; surely their child would control immense power. But it interested me, he was protecting her. He was ensuring Konan would not be harassed for the time we were gone, whether he did it consciously or not.

"Why aren't I fucking going!?" Hidan demanded, slamming his fist down on the table, jolting the surface slightly. Before anyone could remind him why, said reason cleared her throat less than subtlety.

"Ah, fuck." He cursed.

"We travel down to the village in Wave to meet the delegates, they are willing to join us, and they offer great support. We then make our way back through the mountain pass to avoid the army.

"Zetsu has found them travelling north, nin from Rock too. They are yet to discover the village."

"But what if they do!?" Deidara blurted with an anxious note. Of course, Deidara had both a wife and child to worry about.

"Then we shall aid their evacuation, you seem to doubt them Deidara, their ninja are trained well."

"Hardly!" Sasori blurted.

Sasori was still upset about the puppet of his they tampered with, causing it to explode.

"Get over it, un!"

"Shut up!"

"Make me, yeah!"

There was the sound of scuffling as no doubt the pair were climbing on to the table in hope to duel each other and prove who was better and right.

"Cork it!" Zetsu yelled over their juvenile bickering and echoed through the room. It was silent apart from their frantic shuffle off the table. "Do continue leader." He said in a much calmer, casual tone.

"Thankyou. As I was about to say, winter is coming early this year and we are consider -" Pein was abruptly cut off, and Zetsu was none to happy about it.

"We can't move early. The village needs us! We can't just -"

"It would be wise if you discontinued your interrupting!" The dark heated voice of Zetsu boomed and a murderous aura began to emanate from him like a bad smell. But it did little to diminish Deidara's bright, yet brain damaged spirit.

"We can't move -"

They sounded like a father telling their wining child they were moving. Zetsu being the two sided and more-than –slightly-green father. Pein the nonchalant seemingly calm mother and Deidara as the whiney immature child.

"If your wife concerns you so, leave!"

"It was not my choice to send them away to the village!"

"This is not a place for women and children!" Pein roared his calm exterior finally shattering and refracting rage upon us all.

But of course, Pein had not thought his comment through. Immediately afterward, a chair went skidding back nosily and thudded against the wall.

"Konan! -" Pein rasped out, sounding near desperate. But no audible reply was heard except for the shock and hollow of a door slamming. If Pein were alone, I noted, I had no doubts that he would have chased after her in an instant. But he had a reputation and image to uphold, without that image of power his farce would fall and Akatsuki would be in ruin.

"Tobi will go check -"

"You will do no such thing. This mission is of high importance."

"But she is upset, Tobi must -"

"Do not concern yourself; I will speak with her after." I thought he'd finished, but as an afterthought added, "She has walked out disrespectfully and shall be punished."

"Hai, leader-sama. Tobi understands."

Deidara coughed unusually loud and muttered something almost audible as 'Sasori plays with dollies'. With yet another clatter, Sasori had thrown himself across the table and from the groans; I gathered he was strangling the blonde.

I wondered vaguely if the Akatsuki was all it was cracked up to be. Evil, Zetsu had that down pat as with the murderous bit. We were supposed to be dark warriors that struck fear into hearts and conquered and maintained great powers.

If people were here, the pangs of fear would certainly be replaced with humour and greatly lessen the respect and mystery. As for warriors, all we had done so far was scout and hide up in the manor drinking tea. Hardly a respectable thing for S-class ninjas to be doing

And now we would be running another errand.

There was more thrashing and a cry as Deidara managed to pry Sasori's hands off his throat.

"Get off me, yeah!"

"As I have been trying to say, the mission needs to be accomplished quickly and without a hitch, the winter snows are coming soon. Raiu predicts we will be snowed in within a mere two weeks from the first snow, we will move to the other manor as soon as we return." Deidara was about to open his mouth, when, "Unless any of you are expert at hiking in snow we would be of absolutely no help to the village."

"But -"

"If you wish, I could arrange for Mina and her daughter to be moved to the nearest village." Pein suggested softly, his often icy manner melting to show a tiny refraction of the human inside him.

"Thankyou leader-sama!" Deidara blurted as he attempted to stay out of Sasori's death grip.

I liked the winter manor far better. It was more secure, larger, cleaner and virtually inaccessible unless you knew how. There was a lake for bathing and swimming, apt training grounds and weaponry stocks.

And it was currently a very safe distance from Orochimaru, and a perfect place to leave Sakura.

"We leave tomorrow at dawn, Zetsu will hand you the necessary co-ordinates and mission codes. I must take my leave and attend to business." Like apologising to Konan profusely…

But with all the hub-bub no one seemed to take care at his abrupt and hurried departure.

"Listen up!"

And now my problems were furthered, as Zetsu handed about mission documents (not so much handed as threw with enough force to give major paper cuts), while temperately ignoring the pair attempting to strangle each other and yelling profanities.

Not of how I would read such a document, but who I would have to ask to read said document to me. It was impossibility for me to make it look like I too struggled with reading, as did Hidan and Kisame, as I had often demonstrated reasonable reading skills before.

But, instead, I would just have to worm the words from others, like Raiu or Deidara.

I decided Raiu was too perceptive and would pick up on my plot either immediately or afterwards and then pressure as to why I had done such a thing. However, Deidara was no where near as perceptive and a reasonably good reader. I would approach him later. Until then there was the issue of training in the dark.


I had predicted it to be as awkward and as nerve wracking fumbling blindly in the dark through the halls of a new house.

This, in a sense, was exactly what I was doing. But to worsen the problem, this 'house' didn't have proper walls to feel along nor was it particularly safe; I was just waiting to step on a floor embedded shuriken.

Nevertheless once I had located the elusive straw stuffed dummy in the centre of the seemingly giant room and had become familiar with the difference. It became a simpler task.

Although I was pretty sure if another ninja was hell-bent on spilling my blood or of those around me, I would be quite useless. All I had to work with was noise and chakra signatures, both of which an elite ninja could easily cloak. The only thing I would be useful against was slow moving animals and perhaps a low level Genin or two.

I would be of no use in battle.

It was a common misconception that blind people could hear exceptionally better than those with the ability to see. I had been officially blind for almost twenty-four hours and I certainly did not feel that my hearing had improved. And all those years spent with blurred vision had not improved my hearing at all. If anything it's getting worse, Deidara

Although, in a sense, my hearing had enhanced because I had no visual to overwhelm my senses or rely on and to not go mad I was forced to trace each tiny creak and crack back to its discernable origin. And I knew I would have to eventually rely solely on hearing while walking. Sharingan would have to be saved for battle.

Much like a bat, I fixed intently on the thuds and echoes produced by my kunai as they struck, missed or nicked the dummy.

And of course as my fortune would have it, I made the fatal mistake of slumping against the only fully intact wall in exhaustion. I was so tired that at the time it had seemed a normal thing to do.

However being stabbed in the arm by a shuriken was an exceptionally sobering thing to experience, but no where near as painful as someone attempting to skin you alive nor being burnt alive. Instead of crying out, it was decidedly a waste of energy, I settled for a flinch and a very swift step away from the wall.

That swift step also happened to add to my list of unfortunate events so far today as I had jerked it while stepping away, tearing the wound further. I tried to gauge the size of the tear with my left hand, at the same time unsuccessfully clotting the blood. And secretly for the sake of my mental health, I was glad I was not wearing my ceremonial robes, for surely I would never hear the end of it from Konan. The woman had a mouth on her, and a rather intimidating presence when she wanted to; she was far from a meek woman. Surely to withstand Pein she would have to be.

It would be a pain to convince someone to fix the cut without having to be quizzed about how I had cut myself. I had often made a point of remarking when another had made a foolish mistake, I was sure that Raiu would make a point of doing the same to me.

Kenshi was as thick as five planks but was a blabber mouthed coward and was awful at keeping a secret. I'd then be tormented for weeks on end about a foolish matter. But what was worse off is those with enough intelligence to realise there is something wrong with me. Raiu would figure it out by himself, Kenshi would be bullied into to telling someone about it like Pein and Pein would figure it out too. However I already had the strongest feeling that he had already figured it out. He was not considered a god for nothing.

Besides making a half assed job of healing it myself, asking Sakura was the only other option. She had both a motive to be silent and to help me; her child was at great risk without my help. Perhaps we were not on talking terms; she could easily be bent and moulded, much like Deidara's clay…pliable yet deceptively precarious and unpredictable. Yet even as volatile as she was, her presence was soothing but still nevertheless uncomfortable. And she was undoubtedly as uncomfortable with me, as I was with her.


The walk along the pass was slow and painstaking. It was cold and snow was falling already. Until we were past the mountains, we would walk on foot. Apparently there was a carriage taking us there once we reached the roads. We were posing as merchants, meaning we would have to keep up a henge at all times.

Deidara was less than pleased with what he had to appear as, and he made such a ruckus about it, I was sure the snow on the peaks was going to tumble down and crush us all.

"I am not going to be a girl!"

"Don't make me wait." Sasori snapped, growing impatient.

"You don't have to pose as a girl!"

"But it suits you."

"Say that to my face, asshole!"

"What did you just call me? You piece of shi -"

"Cut it out the pair of you! I swear you two argue like a married couple."

Their lips were completely sealed after that, the trip was walked in silence…until we reached the road. This was another time I was both disappointed and grateful that I was blind. It would have been extremely amusing to see Deidara as a girl.

I was glad that I was posed as an old man who was supposedly blind. Sasori was posed as my grandson and Pein was Sasori's brother. Deidara was Sasori's wife. I figured Pein had set that one up almost mockingly for their erratic behaviour. I figured Pein had allowed me to be the blind man as I could hide my sharingan underneath blackened glasses.

Once completely disguised and transformed, we boarded the carriage and assumed the role of the Hanaka family. The Hanaka family was travelling to Wave in search of wealth. Deidara still didn't understand why it was necessary to have him posing as a girl. Pein had explained that if we were pulled up on suspicion, people were always soft for girls and old disabled men. I almost choked when Pein said he'd chosen our roles to play out fittingly.

He knew.

Shit.


The trip to Wave had been lengthy and irritating, Sasori and Deidara bickering like a married couple the entire time. Pein had been silent except for when he was silencing them. I spent the entire time attempting to sleep, but the road was bumpy and it was frustrating that I hit my head on the window each time the carriage jolted. I'd avoided talking to Pein about anything, he knew.

My sharingan was paining me; it was irritating my eyes, even as it was inactive. I could feel that power leaving me. It wouldn't be long now.

I was confused as to why he had not cast me out the mission or killed me already. I tried my hardest to focus on worrying about my ultimate fate, but as fate would have it I could not stop thinking about the conversation I'd had with the pink kunoichi as she'd healed my arm yesterday afternoon.

For one her chakra had an incredibly soothing undertone to it, even when she was angry. She was so soft compared to what I had been projected to the last decade of my life. Yesterday, once she had gotten over her initial anger over my intrusion, her attitude had changed completely. She'd dropped her chopsticks down with her bowl of food and was instantly at my side. She tore at my cloak, and I almost sighed at the beautiful feeling of her calming chakra stroking my wound. There was no way to express the decadency of the feeling, it was fantastic.

She had not asked me how I had obtained it, nor questioned me. But then again, I did not know if she was trying her hardest to keep a straight face, or making obscene gestures at me either. All I had was chakra.

Yet she grew upset when I mentioned her baby, referring to the babe as him. I would have thought that Raiu would have woken her to check the health of her baby, but apparently not. Yet I still could not fathom why she was now becoming so worked up about the mention of the baby's gender.

Before I could question her state of distress, she was crying and bolting for the bathroom.

When we arrived at the destination my thoughts for Sakura were lost, a most unusual guest was there to greet us.

I would recognise that suppressed chakra anywhere, especially when he was crying out in delight. Sasori and Deidara took no notice that the man 'Yuu' was in fact Tobi. He must have been well disguised. Yet none of us acknowledged his presence. I kept silent as we were lead into a hotel of sorts, and I was greatly thankful that my disguise must have posed me as an extremely old man, I'd been lead upstairs by 'Yuu'. But how on earth had he gotten here before us? My head was spinning with millions of questions.

When I was shown to my room separately, I noticed it was not empty. Pein occupied space in the room and Tobi closed the door behind us.

"Drop the henge Itachi."

"Kai." I whispered, feeling no real change in myself. I tentatively found a chair, it was round and plush. I felt nervous, but I knew better than to ask questions. I had expected him to begin lashing out at me, perhaps break my fingers. But no.

"Sasori and Deidara will be accompanying us no further. We attract too much suspicion in a large group. We must change our identities again. They will meet with us on the way back."

"Yes sir."

"Deidara and Sasori will be travelling to the west tomorrow; it is a chance to throw off the hunter-nins."

"Hunter-nins?" I choked out. Shit, we didn't stand much of a chance. Pein could defend himself, I was useless.

"Hai, we leave when the moon is highest in the sky tonight, be ready. Do not leave this room until then."

"Of course Leader-sama."

Pein got up to leave, yet no one was yet to make acknowledgement to Tobi, who currently still stood by the door, not making any movements to leave.

Great, I'm hallucinating.

"You're not hallucinating." A voice said. It could have only come from one person, and this was most indefinitely not Tobi's voice. Pein had not seen him; Pein was far stronger than I. It was clear that this was not Tobi, Tobi was strong nonetheless, but his aura had changed.

"Tobi?"

"Come now Itachi, I thought you were smarter than this." I could plainly hear the sarcasm dripping from his voice, the arrogance and clear commanding tone to it. I could almost swear I'd heard it before.

But I could not put a name to the elusive voice, who was this man? Tobi had always been odd. It was clear he had a split personality, but perhaps it was voluntary, not mental as it was with Zetsu.

"Who are you?"

"It saddens me that my own protégé does not recognise me, Uchiha Itachi."

During my childhood, I had been subjected to many bouts of violent training, many from my father. I'd only ever had one teacher, he was a strange man, but in the company of my father he was normal. When he was training me, he was insane. The training had been so horrid; I still struggled to recall the details. But I remembered his name quite clearly. He introduced himself to others as 'Hiro-sensei' but in training he was far different, he called himself something different.

"Mandara." I whispered.

It made sense to me now. I'd never bothered to worry at that age about names and what seemed to be coincidences. For one, Mandara had never looked like the first Uchiha that shared his name. I had been built and moulded to a perfect machine, yet my mind was still much like a child, barely open to what was about me. Yet he had possessed a most powerful sharingan, and no one knew of him at all. Just Hiro-sensei.

It certainly bothered me that he had made an appearance in my life again. What was he after?

"See, you do remember me." There was no noise or movement as the man sat where Pein had sat moments before. "You will listen to me."

This was a most unsettling encounter. Tobi had been dangerous in the first place, he could snap a mans neck from the other side of the room without batting an eyelid. Mandara intimidated me; his presence brought back constant memories of that dark dank basement where he had attacked me with sheer extreme power scores of times.

"Tea?"

And he was acting ever so casually, pouring himself tea; I could smell the water mingling with the tea leaves. The man that had attempted to kill me frequently as a child, the man who had been responsible for my fighting abilities, was asking to drink tea with me.

It was also this man that had caused all my pain and suffering. He had been responsible for my twisted interior yet perfect exterior. Yet against this man I did not stand a chance in a fight, he would blow me up just by batting an eyelid or twitching his finger.

This man was Uchiha Mandara, the first Uchiha.

This man I hated with every inch of my being.


Yet it was this man that was making me an offer that I couldn't resist. The overwhelming anger was now irrelevant. This offer I could not refuse. This offer was too good to be true. Nothing in this life was free, he wanted something.

"W…What do you want in return?" I was elated yet uncomfortably nervous.

"Not much."

He was holding back. I knew it.

"Tell me."

"I want the next born Uchiha." My heart plummeted so low, yet I felt as if my heart was in my throat too. "I want your nephew."

"But -"

"Who needs family when you can have power? Surely you already know that Itachi."

What was one more reason to hate myself?


A/N: Expect updates soon. Sorry for the crappy cliff hanger, this ending was a little rushed; you all could see the Mandara issue coming from a mile away, ne? Feedback is greatly accepted! Apologies for any spelling mistakes, I've yet to find a beta. If you'd like to be my beta, PM me.

- Narkness