Disclaimer: The fascinating Akatsuki goes to Kishimoto-san.

Claimer: Ayako and Nyu are my creations.

Author's Note: Chapter Twenty.~

Getting Twisted

It's nice... it's really nice to be twisted... .

The living room was to this time not full of life as the name itself said. Instead, it was filled with gloom of the members' emotions. Most of them, for that matter. The television was entertaining the furniture since the men did nothing at all. Kakuzu went over the calculations of their organization, while Deidara played with his clay on the floor like a little child before the television where it showed Nature Pure. Kisame would get interested when they showed the underwater life, but not as some beautiful butterflies floated gracefully above the nice smelling flowers. Zetsu liked the butterflies, though. Itachi, on the other hand, sat in an armchair with Nyu sleeping in his lap. Sasori and Hidan were each in their rooms, while Tobi ran cheerfully in the hallway.

The clock was ticking peacefully on the wall, until they saw their Leader stand in the living room. Tobi suddenly sat on the couch with chibi eyes.

"What happened?" Itachi asked rather worried, although it was hard to tell if he really was. Yet it was not the Deva Path who stood before them, it was the Animal Path*. The piercings on the side of his face and the long one through his nose made it clear.

Deidara looked up from his clay at the controlled person who had about the same haircut as himself, only that the controlled person had longer, and orange hair. Kakuzu let his calculations drop while Kisame switched the television off. Zetsu turned to him as well.

"I need Itachi, Kisame, Nyu and Zetsu for back up," he informed them. Nyu meowed worriedly as Itachi got up, petting her. Then she crawled on his shoulder. Kisame got up as well.

"Is it serious?" Zetsu's black half asked more sarcastically. Their Leader never would ask for back up if it wasn't grave.

"Are you sure you don't need more people?" Kakuzu looked into the Rinnegan.

"I will settle it with this team," the Pain said plainly. He never had been the man of many words. Walking out, the three 1/2 man - one with a cat on his shoulder - followed their Leader.

Outside and on their way, Kisame wanted to know more. "So what happened?"

"Ayako has been kidnapped." He jumped on without turning back. Nyu widened her cat eyes to his words.

"A second time?" The shark smirked amused. Itachi glanced at him emotionlessly, his facade hiding his working brain.

Zetsu, however, was on his own way beneath the earth.

"Where is she?" Itachi asked serenely.

"I am not certain, but she told me to watch out for owls and eagles and a large tree."

Having the hints given, the Uchiha thought on while Kisame asked, "Who kidnapped her?"

"A man called Katsutoshi." His hair flew widely in the air behind him; Ayako's cat gasped.

"I might know where he is," she meowed with only the black haired man understanding her. Itachi glanced at her. "It is not too far from here and you can't miss the tree. It's huge."

He nodded. "Nyu says that the tree isn't far from here and that we can't miss it." His Leader nodded lightly, telling him that he is to lead for the time being.

The team jumped on without losing a word, and soon they found a big tree. It was tall and wide. Stopping their feet, Pain waited for the missing team member. A second later Zetsu peeked out of the grass.

"So here it is," his black half said with a grin on his face.

"We should not underestimate our opponent," his white half warned.

Pain nodded almost unrecognizable to him. "I want you to sneak in and search this tree for Ayako." The overlarge plant left an "understood" before it searched the tree for the kidnapped girl.

The shark grinned a slightly mocking grin. "Didn't you say to watch out for eagles and owls?" Itachi glanced at his partner; he smelled something fishy, too, and it was not Kisame.

Meters up in a tree, the plant in a plant continued to seek for Ayako. This was a normal tree; nothing suspicious was in sight. There wasn't a chance that someone could be inside of this grown wood. They must've been mistaken for another tree.

Miles away a man called Katsutoshi jumped down before the Deva Path. Pain didn't change his expression at the enemy's insidious grin. "You must be Leader-sama," he tried to copy Ayako's voice on the last word. "I am Katsutoshi."

"Where have you taken Ayako?"

"Always straight to the point, how boring." He yawned. "How about we drink tea, eat cookies and have a little talk?"

"What have you done to Ayako?" Behind the scene the controller of all Paths informed his team that he had found the kidnapper.

Ayako, are you still in that tree?

I... I don't know where I am, Leader-sama! He... he...

"Aw, you worry?" He waved his hand. "She is safe."

"What is your intention?"

"What my intention is?" He rose his eyebrows. "I probably kidnapped her for the same reasons that you did. You maybe don't want to marry, or rape her, but I think the rest would be the same reasons."

"What did you do to her?" Pain's face was dead.

"Okay, let me think." He put a hand on his hip. "I talked to her, then we played chess, after that I told her a joke, then we were watching an episode of Behind the Wall**, and after that we danced." Katsutoshi laughed a fake laugh for a short time. "She also is an excellent cook, and her cakes are brilliant!"

The Leader of the Akatsuki wasn't to be sold for a fool. And yet it would be hard to get the truth out of him. People had to be careful with this cases. Katsutoshi suddenly would tell the truth and then the other person wouldn't believe. "Why would you have to kidnap her if she enjoyed your company?"

"You wouldn't have given her to me on your free will, ne? Besides... same question goes to you, pal." He smirked. What was there better than messing with a person's head? "So, what's your name, Leader of the fools?"

"Call me Pain, God of the new world." He lifted his arms in a mighty pose.

Katsutoshi swallowed a laugh. "God of the idiots is more suitable."

Enough of this deriding, the future God showed his worth, sprawling out his arm. "Shinra Tensei.***" Not in the expectation of the easy man's list, he got thrown away, his back smashed against a tree with high speed. Before the man of mockery could recognize much, Pain called him back with the attractive force.**** He stopped him with a kick up his stomach, then grabbed his throat in a firm grip and slammed him down on the grassy ground.

His enemy coughed blood as the face of he new God bended over him. "Where is Ayako?"

Katsutoshi licked his lips, then swallowed. His throat was pressed down, yet he could speak - nobody forbid him his mouth! "I killed her." The blood around his lips acted to its owners pleasure as he grinned like a demon.

"Speak the truth," the God commanded, his grip tightening.

The man - who was told to be a master - laughed inaudible. "Don't tell me you found a crush on her," he pretended a helpless whisper, but his wide grin gave him away.

"Where is my 11th member, Katsutoshi?" The God spoke the name of this man with disgust.

He laughed again. "She? And a member of the Akatsuki?" He laughed his silent laugh. "Pathetic." He took a breath and gazed at trees above him. "You know... I am a master of eagles."

Pain became more serious as he started to glare. To make Pain take on any emotion was a hard job, perhaps, Katsutoshi was good this at. "Where is my 11th member?" His hand grew tighter on the man's throat.

Katsutoshi swallowed some of his own blood as the laughed. "Perhaps, my lord," he laughed out, "I have the bottle of Laughter."

"My assumption is that you drank it."

Blood swelled up as Pain was close to break his neck. Nobody would provoke somebody this badly if he dwelled in his own skin. This jeering must have an end. And so, with a simple movement the throat was broken, and the laughter died among the trees.

Soon as the breathing stopped, the dead man shone luminously as feathers surrounded him. Carefully Pain got up to watch the feathers disappear and a graceful eagle laid in the grass with a bloody throat.

"Aw, you killed Tamotsu.*****" With false pity the new Katsutoshi looked at the dead eagle. "You know..." He took a step closer to Pain. "I created a jutsu where I could transform eagles into myself and that it changes back once it dies." He smirked. "I was honest as I said that she is safe and that I've got the bottle of Laughter. It's the bottle after Friends. I have that bottle too... Ayako read it already, and also the bottle of Laughter... the next bottle you need to find is the bottle of Tears."

Just in that moment, Pain's team placed itself in perfect order next and behind him. The animal Path landed next to him, while Itachi stood on the other side with Kisame next to the animal Path. Nyu hissed as she saw the enemy. Zetsu planted himself in a tree and watched from the shadows. He would come and help once his help was needed. It would be no use if he got injured; he was a great messenger.

"Nyu-chan!" Katsutoshi spread his arms. "Welcome home. You missed me?" The cat hissed again, drawing her claws. "Now, now, who would be so angry after all those years?" He bowed lightly, looking at Pain. "My offer is still present. You want tea, cookies and a talk?"

"Can we trust this clown?" Kisame asked. He was worse than Deidara and Hidan together.

"Of course you can't. Didn't your parents teach you anything?" He laughed softly. "Or is it because your mother died with the last fisherman?"

"What, you-" Kisame drew his Samehada, but his Leader blocked the way with his arm.

"We are talking here," Pain instructed.

Leaning back on a tree, Katsutoshi sighed. "It's always the lack of trust, right? But fine, ask, I'll answer."

"Give me back my 11th member," their Leader ordered.

"Excuse me, what?" He put a hand behind his ear. "Was this a question?" Putting his hand down, he continued, "You missed the please, too, Leader of the morons."

Pain wasn't to be thrown out of his way. "I said we were talking here."

"My apologies, Lord." He bowed, one arm before his tum in the air. He looked back up. "Your Highness surely want to see Ayako, your slave?" Katsutoshi's smirking face fell on an emotionless one.

"Why are you making this so hard?" Itachi asked.

"Leave it, Itachi," Nyu meowed. "You can't defeat stupidity."

He glanced at her. "I figured that out." Leading his eyes to his Leader, he gave him a signal of attacking with his Sharingan. Seconds later, he made Katsutoshi stand on a cliff before a river of lava.

"So this is the power of the Sharingan, eh?" He looked around.

"Where is Ayako?" Itachi's voice was everywhere in the illusion.

He sighed. "It's always the same question; what about my feelings? Do I want to give her away? No!" Itachi was getting to the line of being overcharged with idiocy as a weasel surfed on a spoon through the lava.

Meanwhile in the real world, Kisame got the order to tie Katsutoshi up, and so he did. As they made sure that he couldn't move, Pain contacted Ayako.

Are you still in that tree?

Leader-sama! That is not the real Katsutoshi that you have!

Ayako! I need to know where you are!

I... I am safe...!

Ayako! Pain thought that he was running in circles. Where are you?

I... am... I am in... Leader-sama... help! Help me, Leader-sama-! Her voice died abruptly and so did the forest.

Author's Note: *I hope you know that Pain (Nagato) has Six Paths, means six bodies. Well... if you want more information I recommend for you to go to NARUTOPEDIA and search for the Six Paths of Pain. I also don't know if the members even know that Pain has several bodies, but in my story they do. They are all alive as well, so I hope you don't mind.

**That show doesn't exist; I just made it up.

***Shinra Tensei is the ability to manipulate repulsive force (, sekiryoku) at the user's will to push matter away. (Got the explanation from NARUTOPEDIA. u_u)

****The attractive force is the same, yet opposite technique of Shinra Tensei.

*****Tamotsu means protector and/ or keeper.

And yea... I am currently having some kind of writer's block, but I hope to get the next chapter done until the next weekend.

And thanks for the reviews - as usually. =)