Be prepared for major tearsheds in here, people.

Chapter Twelve

Stricken

Damn it, they were HERE?!

Itachi grabbed the nearest shirt he found; see-through white didn't matter as it was life and death. "How did they find out?" he demanded of Tsunade as he helped Hanaru pack up what they could. Everything they couldn't had to be left behind - but one sure thing his fiancée refused to leave were her drawings of the next construction of her company's possible new creations.

The thing most precious.

"I'll explain in the car!" Tsunade replied harshly, pulling something out from behind her, and showed it to be a handgun with more than enough ammunition to rival even Shisui's. Itachi swallowed and slung his bag over his shoulder, roughly taking Hanaru's free hand and pulling her behind him. There was no telling how much longer the Akatsuki would be here, but it wouldn't be long now...

He was used to running like this, and she was right behind him while her grandmother led the way with her gun in hand, ready to shoot back. "Grandma, I haven't seen you with that in a long time," Hanaru said softly, looking around for any signs of intruders outside. They had just finished coming down the stairs and were heading for the garage where the woman's car was.

Tsunade snorted. "Been waiting to use this guy again - and this time on those beasts of bastards out there," she declared - at the same time glass broke from their south. Hanaru shrieked and ducked, dropping her bag to the ground and landing her whole body on top of it. Itachi shrugged off his and grabbed onto her, then picked her fallen luggage to give to her at the same time Tsunade turned to fire back where the shot came from, standing on both feet.

The keys were on the coffee table, and he grabbed them after letting Hanaru take his bag. There was no time to lose. He was going to drive them all out of there. Tsunade was hurrying after them and firing a couple more shots. Itachi had thrown the door open himself and quickly pressed the button to unlock the door, and the red lights in the front and rear flashed in response. He dove into the driver's seat while Hanaru, with help from her grandmother, tossed their belongings into the backseat before rushing into the backseat together. Tsunade had locked the door between this room and the inside of the house.

They didn't get through that door...which means they are waiting for us outside. Which led to the fact that they could be waiting to strike as soon as they were out of the garage. The great door in front of them rolled upwards in command, and Itachi wasted no time hitting the gas pedal and revving them forward into the day - in time to be nearly met with a black car covered with soot and a few scratches here and there. "Itachi, be careful!" Hanaru yelled, holding onto the head of his seat. He winced at the vibrations in his ear.

"Hold on!" he replied back, swerving to the side so the other car collided into the pavement and hit a collection of shrubs. Whoever their attackers were, they were stunned for now, but he picked up speed to get them onto the road to head back into Konoha.

Itachi had to make damned sure there were no other cars or even cops around, lest he get a speeding ticket before he could get his fiancée, her grandmother and himself to safety. The Akatsuki didn't pick up, meaning they must have gotten stuck where they were.

However, he was quickly proven wrong, and the back of the vehicle was slammed into, jerking him and the women forward in their seats. He roared with rage, seeing it was the Akatsuki catching up to them. Shit! Tsunade growled and added more bullets to her gun, taking off the safety once more. "Oh, they're going to want a fight?" she snarled. "Well, they got one!" With that, she unbuckled herself and hauled up to lean out the window after rolling it down, and set to firing multiple shots at the frontal windows and at the hood, shouting at them angrily that this was what they got for killing her son and everything else they'd done.

Until she ran out of bullets and was quickly pulled back in by her granddaughter. "Damn it!" she swore, dropping the gun between them both, unloaded and with the safety remaining off. Itachi surveyed the impressive damage done to their enemy behind, at the shattered mirror, but he had a hard time getting a good look at WHO was inside - though he glimpsed the red cloud patterned black they were all familiar with - before he decided he had to act if Tsunade tried and couldn't finish.

He quickly hit the brake and jerked backwards, which would cause the other to swerve and go off the road a little. He then reversed the engine and brought them around to swing behind their opponent, the tires screeching, and had the advantage of catching the ones now in front of them off and rammed into their trunk.

The Akatsuki car ran off the road and hit a tree then and there.

"God, Itachi, you've done it!" Tsunade said with a proud beam, looking behind them as they passed. Itachi could only heave a sigh of relief.

They had gotten away unscathed, save for the blasted dent in the back. The poor owner would have to have it taken care of. But then the atmosphere became even more intense when Hanaru cried out, "Wait, Grandpa! Grandma, is he okay?!"

Jiraiya...if he'd warned them about this, then there was a very high chance...

Itachi's blood ran cold, but he kept his attention on the road. "Yeah, Tsunade, try calling him," he said. She nodded and picked her mobile from her pocket, but after three, four tries going to voicemail, there was nothing - but then she noticed she got a text message that made her gasp and a worried Hanaru hold back a sob.

"He sent me this..."

Unfortunately, Itachi couldn't see because he was driving, although when Hanaru read it aloud, he knew that it had to be taken to his office and to the police as soon as they arrived, which wasn't that far away now.

~o~

Something had happened to Jiraiya, and she was sure of it. She couldn't stop the pounding of her heart. The message he sent to Tsunade, indicated that he couldn't get to the law office and dispatch in time, but this was something that could not be directly linked to all of them.

And yet he entrusted his wife, granddaughter and eventual grandson-in-law to get it through. What she saw made her body turn to ice inside.

Pain, the leader of the Akatsuki. Nagato is his name.

She frowned to herself, looking up at her grandmother and furrowed her brow when she saw the older woman deep in thought, eyes shut deeply. "Grandma?" she asked softly, getting no answer. Which told her Tsunade didn't feel like talking, but something was linked to this concerning this "Nagato" character...

"If there is anyone to give us answers then," Itachi had answered when she read the message aloud to him, "it's the one who had been giving Jiraiya his answers, and looking into Jiraiya's personal logs he obtained."

Which means that we are getting closer finally. We have an idea WHO he is, but how to find him... So, to see their town again when he got them into its familiar streets made her realize how much she missed it. Hanaru's heart began to thump as she considered possibilities, but she wouldn't get too far ahead. But if Jiraiya knew this "Pain" - or Nagato, whoever he was - then it was one step closer. Except without a surname, their leads could be crossroads.

The first place the trio went was the police station, going straight for Ibiki Morino's office, where Shisui was none other to spot him without trouble. "My God, Itachi, Hanaru - and Tsunade-san!" he said when he saw the retired doctor, who gave him a curt nod and hum of acknowledgment. "You three are back. What happened? The Akatsuki -"

"They came to the house, Shisui," Hanaru interrupted, clutching Itachi's hand in her own. "My grandfather notified my grandmother to get us out of there, but then they showed up and attacked us. The car has some damage." She looked at the other Uchiha when he frowned, deeply troubled. "What's gone on, Shisui?" He opened his mouth to answer before a deep, gruff voice filled in.

"Perhaps it's best we all take this in my office," Ibiki Morino stated, jerking his head in the other direction. Oh, it's really that serious...

How little did she really know.

"My husband left me this perhaps a few minutes after he called me to get these two and myself out of the beach house," Tsunade said as soon as the door closed behind them all. "He said they were coming and that he'd had a lead on the possible identity of their leader for some time now." She gave the head of the department her mobile to show him the proof. The eye that wasn't scarred narrowed when he scanned the content before allowing Shisui to take and see for himself.

"He did manage to get it through to us before he died; perhaps he meant to get it through to you three as well if it was going to..." Shisui trailed off, shaking his head. "We sent a unit out there, but then dispatch returned to us not even ten minutes later. I'm afraid..."

Hanaru felt her heart drop into her stomach. "He's...dead, isn't he?" she whispered. The cold, cruel words...she didn't want to say them, but both Shisui and Morino were nodding their heads grimly. At this, Itachi closed his eyes and reached to rub his temples as if suffering a migraine.

But the sniffles behind her were just as worse as the tears silently streaking down her cheeks. Tsunade was redder than she was, and the flood was thicker than her own, and her glazed eyes were filled with a myriad of negative: regret.

Self-loathing.

Heartbreak.

Seeing her grandmother's puffed up, wet and scalding face - the first time in years she saw Tsunade shedding this, like the time she told her and Naruto their parents were gone - made her regret all the things she said that one day, after arrival. The words of hate, of despise, of anger and so on. She wanted to choke, to tell her she was sorry even in front of these men, but she didn't have the energy or will.

"Yeah, I'm sorry to tell you all this," Ibiki said somberly, sitting down behind his desk and gesturing for all of them to have a seat, but when she and her weeping grandmother sat down, Itachi remained where he was and right behind her. "But Jiraiya-san wasn't the only one we lost today. His informant within the Akatsuki has also lost his life. Obito Uchiha."

"Obito," Itachi repeated. "What happened to him?"

Hanaru hadn't heard of this one Uchiha, so she asked of him and Shisui, "Which member of your family is he?" He has to be a distant cousin, right? I never heard the name from any of them...

"He is a cousin specifically on my side of the family," Shisui answered, sitting on the edge of Ibiki's desk despite the disgruntled head of the department. "He's one of our best to infiltrate certain organizations on every level...but this time his luck ran out. He was a friend of the mayor's since their childhood." He and Kakashi were friends since they were children. I can imagine how he's taking this. "A year ago, Obito was placed in charge of infiltrating the Akatsuki when we got a lead which would first lead us to Hidan, and so on. And recently...we have gotten two more members, Itachi, while you were gone," he finished with a nervous eye.

Two more...this means two or three to go. We almost have them.

Itachi tensed behind her. "Who are they?" he demanded, softly but still cold and having a terrible feeling. It would explain the look his cousin was giving him, and Ibiki was doing the habit of looking through the papers in front of him, mouth in a tight line.

"They're two people that you care most about, and Kakashi was right - but he never expected it would be these two," Shisui said gravely, clenching the edge of the desk, knuckles turning white.

And when he said the names, Itachi lost it. He whirled around and opened the office door, stalking out in a flash, and Shisui followed him, shouting his name and pleading with him to calm down and not do anything rash. Ibiki shook his head, muttering under his breath before standing and trailing himself. Presumably to make sure nothing of the sort happened.

"Grandma?" Hanaru asked softly, turning to her grandmother to help her stand. Tsunade cooperate, recovering and reaching for a few tissues from the desk and going right ahead. Hanaru stayed behind her, her blood frozen, but somehow she was still functioning. She could only imagine how her fiancée was feeling.

If it had been Hinata or Sakura, the deceit would have been so deep that she couldn't look at them the same way.

~o~

Itachi's world had been a lifetime whirlwind. To list it from start to now:

He was almost kidnapped at age five when his pregnant mother was attacked by a man his father tried to put behind bars - but that also got him Shisui, his cousin and best friend for life.

Later, his father stepped down with guilt gnawing his heart, mind and bones, and even though it wasn't Itachi's dream to be in Fugaku's shoes, he swore to protect this town he loved with his entire being. It brought him purpose, even if he suffered through it; from both the media, the court's eye, his colleagues - with one main enemy among them - and so on. But he was pleased with the results in the end.

The deaths of Minato and Kushina Uzumaki...the separation of Jiraiya and Tsunade...and it brought him to Hanaru. It also brought his brother as Naruto's best friend.

But since the time of the unspeakable murder of her parents, the death toll regarding those they all loved pushed the boundaries...just as now had done so. In fact, his heart broke beyond repair. He was on the verge of crumbling into dust, like an ancient relic that wasn't taken care of properly. To see those two on the other side of the glass, handcuffed since the previous week...

Sasori...Deidara.

How COULD you two -?!

They were the ones to plant the bomb at his birthday when he was not looking. There had been no fingerprints, which meant gloves had been used. They'd done it so well when neither of them were not in law enforcement or even in analytics, or perhaps anything regarding to DNA.

But then after weeks of examination and dead leads, the particles gathered and seen with careful precision, it was easy to determine that there were CLAY bits, and it was identified as "composition C", which was once used during the Second World War, and this was specifically the second which wasn't effective as the fourth which was primarily used in explosive devices. But all four of them are...and why would this one be used if not the fourth?

In addition, it turned out that after further analysis by Sakura and Sasuke together when they returned to the harvested remains of none other than Kakuzu - and Shikamaru as well as his assistant personally dissected the miniature bomb itself - a tiny portion of this clay substance was slipped into the chip that had been lodged into Kakuzu's main heart - which also happened to be placed within the one who made it as payment for his loyalty. The same went with his partner as chances could not be taken. The substance was toxic for those who inhaled it as soon as it was released into the air, besides the bone-shattering impact it would unleash, but those who didn't inhale the air were lucky.

Hanaru would have been poisoned if she did. Father, Mother...Sasuke and Sakura...everyone else who made it...even if we didn't know what it was, it was wise to not inhale the smoke and clear the area that night.

If Itachi had not heard the story, he would have said that this betrayal cut his heart to the point he could NOT forgive either of them.

Kisame had given him a slap on the back and told him he'd missed his "little tadpole self", and the Uchiha admitted his missing of the shark-like man. But then that friendly leer dropped when he led Itachi towards the window he was at now...where two of their closest friends were sitting in orange jumpsuits and handcuffed on the table. The couple only looked at each other on occasion but spoke very little as if afraid the cameras and speakers would catch something incriminating.

"I should go in there -" Shisui started, but he waved his cousin off.

"No, I'll handle this."

Ibiki didn't look convinced. "Are you absolutely sure about this? And if Toneri Oosutsuki comes here..."

If anyone wondered how it was linked to Sasori and Deidara, records showed purchases of C-2 in the last few months, and they were listed as anonymous as to the identity, but they had gotten a description of the customer as having long blond hair half-held up, almost feminine-looking, and the one who provided this had offered to participate in a drawing which ended up matching known databases...ultimately leading to Deidara.

Sasori was implicated because he was aware of his partner's involvement and didn't even try to contact the authorities, but how could he when the Akatsuki had material against them?

Itachi now found himself standing before the table, looking across at them both. He nodded for them both to speak. What could he say? Nothing would ease tension, and they were two of his best friends...and he was going to lose them to the legal system as he'd lost them to the Akatsuki. But since they had a lead to the identity of their leader - this mysterious "Pain", or Nagato - it meant they were getting closer.

However, in the end, would all the pain be worth the peace they were fighting for?

"I'm sorry, Itachi," Deidara croaked out, his eyes red from holding back tears. Men never showed their emotions to the public, and he refused to let his shell cracked because he'd been found. "It excuses nothing, and we took enough away from you -"

Sasori interrupted him. "We have been in there for six months," he said, dull and devoid of emotion, but the guilt was shown in his eyes. "Pain blackmailed us. My grandmother was sick and the bills were high, and he also threatened to pull the plug himself." His cuffed hands closed into painful fists, the veins in the back showing clearly.

Deidara let one thick tear streak down his cheek, the shine blinding white against reddened pink. "And he got me because he knew I can make just anything from clay - but I could never participate against my best friend and this town we love; I never had intentions to create bombs like this!" he pleaded. "I swear to you, Itachi, on Sasori and all we love. If I didn't do this, he would destroy my studio which Sasori and I spilled our blood, sweat and tears into..."

"You care about your life's work," Itachi stated, his skin breaking out into a clam's chill. He slipped into the chair on his side. If someone outside hears that, then they would say they are simple-minded and care only about themselves instead of the many around them. But everyone has something they love and would desperately protect, if not only a person.

"Yes, we both do - as much as we love each other, the way you love Hanaru, your brother his wife, and everyone else!" the blond stated hysterically, reduced to a weeping mess and bowing his head forward on the table.

He could feel the watchful eyes of Kisame, Shisui and Ibiki on the other side of the glass. His back was gladly to them, because he didn't want them to see the tears burning the corners of his eyes. The Akatsuki...if he didn't say it enough, they had taken more than enough from him and everyone around him. Once this was over, there would be no easy way to move on - and it meant losing two more, right in front of him. He hated them more than he did before, wishing he could go rogue and hunt down the leader himself, the one who killed Jiraiya today.

"We gave away enough of what we know on the Akatsuki," Sasori told him suddenly. "But it will not be enough to clear us." He lowered his eyes in shame. "It's less than we deserve."

It also meant his grandmother would have to be taken off support, and how the hell would anyone have to explain to her what her grandson had done - even if it was no choice of his own?

Itachi stood up, feeling like a zombie and wished this was only a nightmare he wanted to wake up from. If nearly losing his fiancée wasn't bad enough...it was the unwilling betrayal of two of his best friends. And the fact they would face jail time with solid evidence against him, unless he could try and get them a lighter sentence...

"I can't promise you two that I can clear you completely," he said numbly, the light of hope slowly dwindling as he turned to leave them both, unable to look at them, because the pain in their gazes matched his.

~o~

Four days later, Jiraiya's funeral took place. Everyone was in black, the summer day was beautiful, but it did little to disguise the silent suffering in the air.

When Itachi went to the police department, to the holding area, she begged to go in with him just because he needed her support, but he didn't. Because Sasori and Deidara...she couldn't finish the thought. Those two were so interesting when she met them, if polar opposites in tastes in art. They'd been blackmailed, hadn't been in Akatsuki that long; in fact, she found out two other members from years ago were killed, so replacements were needed. That was also why it took so long for them to reemerge.

But what the hell did it matter now? There were two left, since one of the three latest was an informant of her grandfather's and the law, and he was also an Uchiha, but not an official member of the force. He'd been found out after all these years and paid with his life along with Jiraiya.

The mahogany casket was covered with red blossoms - roses, gladioli and carnations notably, as well as ferns. The flowers were courtesy of Ino and Sai. They were also there at the service. Everyone knew and worshipped Jiraiya for all he'd done for them - and even Tsunade was a wreck if trying to keep it together. Over the last few days, Hanaru and her grandmother were with each other as well as Naruto and Hinata.

"Grandma," she'd rasped when they left Itachi at the station, "everything I said to you..."

But Tsunade shook her head and said the unexpected as well as the expected.

"No, I don't deserve your apologies...you were right about everything. I closed myself from everyone - especially him. I blamed him, and he didn't deserve it. But...I never stopped caring about him just like he never gave up on me. The least I can do now is help protect this town however I should."

There were no words to describe the joy and wrench in her gut.

Her brother had thrown himself on them both when they walked right into the store to let him and the rest know they were fine. Hinata was in near tears...but on her part and Naruto's, the tragedy in the air exploded when Tsunade was the one to tell him about the death of her husband and their grandfather, and how she hated herself for how she treated him all these years.

From now on, they were really going to lean on each other through this.

Naruto's face was red from wiping away tears, and Hinata was the one to do it for him in front of all their friends and acquaintances. Sakura held onto Sasuke's hand just like she herself was doing to Itachi - and showing off her new engagement ring - and from the looks of it, things had improved between her best friend and her husband. Who is going to be my brother-in-law.

And when all this is over, I put to mind a piece of men's jewelry that honors Grandpa Jiraiya...something that represents the road he took to end up where he was now. He died being on the road, protecting us all and losing so much in the process.

When the services were over, she, her grandmother and brother were left at the site of the coffin being lowered into the ground. Itachi left them after she kissed him and asked him to wait in the car. They were planning to move in together after the wedding - a date yet to be set, and as soon as possible - so Tsunade was going to stay with her at her place for a few more days before she found the courage to go back to her own flat. Endless hours of weeping and drinking. Half of Hanaru was worried of leaving her now fragile grandmother to fend for herself, but Tsunade was still the tough cookie she always was.

"Tsunade." A soft voice, velvety and hissing like a snake which charmed before devouring, filled the air, causing the three of them to look up and see the man with long black hair, pale as a ghost and with yellow slits for eyes. He was a humanistic form of the serpent itself. Not to mention, he looks young enough to pass off two decades prior, like Grandma.

"Orochimaru," her grandmother replied, looking at him as she stood and wiped her eyes with her tissue. "How wonderful...to see you. And you, too, Kabuto," she added to the young man with silver hair and glasses, who canted his head politely. "I think Jiraiya would have been happy to see you both here today."

"Hmmm," the pale man replied - the one who ran the asylum where Hidan had died. Her skin shivered a bit. That mild leer slowly softened to that of sadness. He had been friends with her grandparents a long time ago, right? Hanaru never met the man in person until now, so she felt uneasy around him as she did seeing him on the television. Naruto was even more wary than she was, but Orochimaru kindly smiled at them both anyway. "Hanaru and Naruto, I take it."

"That's right," she answered, "Orochimaru-san. And...Kabuto, right?"

He had to be the man's assistant, but was that all he was? "Yeah." His voice was soft, like he wasn't used to being around people except those he worked with.

Naruto found it in him to crack a little nervous grin. "Uh...nice to meet you then. If you're a friend of Pervy Sage's, then we ought to let you in our lives on a personal level, right, Granny?" He earned a little bop on the head, earning some laughter before the air became serious again.

"I honestly like your grandchildren, Tsunade. I look forward to getting to know them both - and you again, if you wish it."

Somehow she saw another hint behind those words, and it troubled her - which increased when Tsunade nodded without a word.

So this chapter has been filled with strikes to the heart in more ways than one. :'(

I researched Deidara's clay techniques from ninja canon and also found out C is a real composition that was used primarily during the Second World War. It was extremely difficult to determine which one was used during the attack at Itachi's birthday, as well as why the second in specific. Originally I thought of the fourth which was the largest (and C0 was Deidara's last resort suicide), but you have any idea how GREATLY it would have taken the entire house?

C-2 was Deidara's favorite in Shippuden because it was in the form of a dragon which spits out missile bombs shaped like creatures. Tobi himself said so. The greater the size of the missile and range, the more powerful the explosion.

Review, pretty please.