Hello reader! Oh how times flies so quickly; I'm very sorry for the long wait for this chapter but I had an abundance of summer school work to finish up before I once again go through another year of school. I hope you enjoy this chapter! I shall try and write at a better pace now that my workload has decreased.

"Very well…Konan and I shall brief him tonight…You two are in charge of taking him to the entrance."

"Of course leader-sama."*

Frederick walked slowly behind the now limping Itachi and Kisame as other members gathered around Pein and Konan; no doubt making comments in regard to what they had just witnessed.

As Frederick walked back to the hideout of the akatsuki he had two things on his mind. The first was how tired he felt; he had expended an incredible amount of chakra in that duel and yet somehow he was still standing. He knew he would be okay in that fight but he was impressed with his own durability. It was something he had never had back in his time as a young teen in New York City…

When Frederick first moved to the city everything was always dark. After some time he had grown accustomed to the seemingly never ending array of darkness and despair during the cold winter nights. Seemingly always in a back alley of China town people would look at him and cringe. Frederick had surrendered to the darkness of the cruel modern world.

Frederick remembered the first night he visited Central Park. It was dark; frigid, silent as an empty abyss of nothingness. He remembered being just ten years of age as he walked through the darkness. He didn't know what he was looking for…but he knew that anything would be better than what he was currently walking through.

That was when Frederick saw a rather plump figure walking softly through the darkness in his direction. Frederick stood still as the figure that approached him walked up to him.

"Isn't it a bit late to be strolling through central park alone?"

"I could say the same to you."

Frederick took in the man's features as they stood close.

The man was old, plump and content.

"Bahahaha; I guess you're right about that one."

Frederick had watched the man closely as he smiled; an expression that Frederick had not seen in a long time.

"Come; walk with me…what did you say your name was?"

"It's…Frederick."

The man was walking away, motioning for Frederick to follow him; at this point Frederick didn't care what happened to himself anymore…

He began to follow the old man as he began to speak once more.

"Frederick is a terrific name; it is usually given to those who at one point in their life will process some sort of leadership role; what role that will be I cannot fathom."

Frederick didn't say anything as they approached the exit of the seemingly never ending park of darkness.

"I can see that something is troubling you sincerely; what's on your mind?"

Frederick noticed how the man's tone was persuasive and fatherly but very calm.

"I've had a hard time of life recently."

The man nodded as he spoke again.

"Sometimes life is just like this dark park; you can't always see where you are going, but if you just keep moving, you will come to a better place."

Frederick didn't say anything as they walked along a street. An apartment building stood in front of them.

"This is the key to my apartment; it has been paid off for the next twenty years. You may call this place your new home; I will not be returning to this place ever again."

Frederick looked at the old man as if he was crazy.

"I can't just take your home! What kind of scam is this?"

The old man chuckled as he looked at Frederick.

"Life occurs wherever you are, whether you make it or not."

"I don't understand…why would you help me?"

"Sometimes the best way to solve your own problems is to help someone else."

Frederick didn't know how to respond as he watched the old man closely as he spoke.

"And besides, though it is usually best to rely on oneself, sometimes a little help from others can be a great blessing!"

The man threw his keys into the air as Frederick caught them.

"If you look carefully and search for the light in the darkness; you will find something of unimaginable beauty…look that way."

Frederick turned only to see the most beautiful sight he ever saw in his entire life. On a balcony was a girl dressed in a white sleeping gown, studying him. That was the first time Frederick laid his eyes upon the beauty that was Sophie.

He looked at her for a few moments before turning; only to see the old man was gone, nowhere to be found.*

As Frederick made it into the base and into the main conference room he went immediately to the fridge in order to procure some food items. He was starving; dehydrated and overall just sweaty; he felt disgusting.

As Frederick ate and drank diligently, Hidan himself walked into the main conference room.

He walked over towards Frederick and looked right at him, only to immediately start gagging.

"Dude what the fuck; you smell like crap! Don't you know what soap is? Fuck!"

Frederick ignored him, but Hidan did have a point.

Frederick quickly walked to the bathroom near his room and took a quick shower as he freshened himself.

He was getting tired of wearing the exact same clothes over and over. His shirt had holes rippled all around it and parts of his pants were torn.

As Frederick walked back into the main conference room he noticed Pein and Konan standing by the conference table.

Konan motioned for Frederick as she threw him a robe.

"You've earned the right to wear the akatsuki robe; no ring or other accessories yet."

Frederick nodded as he slid the robe unto his body; it fit him nicely and he felt like he had great maneuverability in it; something he had not expected upon first glance.

Pein was the next to talk.

"Walk with us Frederick…there are things we must discuss."

With that the three members walked out of the hideout into the forest.

They walked in silence as no one dared speak a word.

Finally they arrived to a cliff overlooking the battlefield in where Itachi and Frederick had fought.

Konan stayed quiet as Pein did most of the talking.

"Tomorrow you will be venturing out to the fields of fire. Itachi and Kisame will guide you to these gates but beyond that; the only person that may go is you. No one knows for certain what you will find in that field…but if you are able to come out of there alive then perhaps our meetings with you will be more productive rather than informative."

Frederick didn't know how to respond; the way Pein worded that completely twisted the way Frederick was thinking.

"I will do my best."*

Alright I'm stopping here because I fell an update is needed for this story! Sorry for the long delay once again. I'll try and be better on this. If anyone can guess a person they feel fits the same role as the elderly gentleman be sure to review and let me know J …did what I say just make sense? Oh well. Thanks for reading! J