serialkeller: I'm not sure where this "getting his ass handed to him in nearly every fight" is coming from. He fought Orochimaru to a standstill as a genin. It took Sasuke 3? years to get to the point where he could kill Orochimaru. It took Menma 2(even if he did use poison). It took Naruto sage mode 90% of the time and his 8-tailed nearly 9-tailed state to beat Pein. Menma pretty much stomped him the first time without using his seal or summoning Kurama. He got hit with a sneak attack the second time(by the hooded Akatsuki member that was spying on them). Just because you're strong doesn't mean you can't lose.

Guest: I was under the impression that that tag was for the wavy blonde-haired kid by the same name. If it bothers people I can change it. The RTN Menma was just an alternate version of Naruto, as is mine.

The Eye of God: You'll actually find out why he doesn't use most of what he can near the end of this chapter.

Chapter 24

(Konoha)

Itachi, Jūgo, and the Sound Four had just reached Konoha and were being escorted to see the Hokage. It took only minutes for word to spread throughout the village. Itachi had returned. People were lining up on the road to the Hokage's tower to see him for themselves and give him a heroes welcome.

Karin adjusted her glasses as they travelled. "Isn't this strange? Does your village usually treat its missing-nin like this?"

Itachi kept his blank face and tried not to look around in surprise. "I was told I've been pardoned. Their reactions are unusual though."

Eventually they made it to the tower and were immediately ushered into Tsunade's office.

"Uchiha Itachi... welcome back," Tsunade said, once the group had been left alone. "Who might these people be?"

"Thank you, Hokage-sama. These people are..." He turned to them. "What are you?"

"We are Menma-sama's personal guard," Kimimaro replied before gesturing to Jūgo. "And my friend."

Tsunade raised her eyebrow at that. "You're his guard? Then where is he?"

Itachi returned his gaze to Tsunade before replying. "We... believe Akatsuki has captured him. We were attacked while trying to escape Sound. After we engaged and fought some of them Menma was separated from us. Eventually they all vanished. Menma was missing as well, so we assumed they captured him."

"Why did you not pursue them?" Tsunade asked.

"We were exhausted and in no condition to fight. We also had no way of tracking them, as they had simply vanished. Almost like they were reverse summoned," Itachi replied.

Tsunade stared at him quietly for a minute. "It's a good thing that Jiraiya warned us Akatsuki might attack then. We've been preparing to face them for about a week now." She turned and nodded at Shizune who hurried out of the room. "Any ideas where they would have taken him if they captured him?"

Itachi paused in thought for a minute. "Ame. If he was the last they would return to their stronghold in Ame."

"Looks like you're headed to Ame then," she said, looking over the group. "Any of you want to stay behind?"

Jūgo nodded. "Is there someplace secluded nearby that I can stay?"

Tsunade nodded and turned to the others. "Get some rest and resupply. You'll leave first thing in the morning." She wrote a quick note down and handed it to Jūgo. "Ask someone you come across to direct you to training ground 44. If they cause any problems show them the note.

The group bowed and left, leaving Tsunade alone in the office.

The sun was just beginning to set when Sasuke returned from the training ground to the Uchiha district. He had decided to take a different path home this time, and had entered the district from a smaller side gate. As he walked down the road the red-orange hue of the sunset reminded him of blood. It made him think back to that night all those years ago. He was still angry with Itachi for killing everyone, but after Tsunade had explained to the village what had happened he knew that Itachi was just as much a victim as he was.

Eventually he came to the main road where he turned to walk down it towards his compound and froze. Standing at the gate to the compound bathed in the orange light was a man with long black hair tied back in a ponytail. He wore body mesh underneath a blue shirt and pants and held a forehead protector in his hand.

Sensing the presence behind him the man turned around to face him. "Itachi?" Sasuke whispered.

"Hello, little brother," Itachi replied.

Sasuke walked up to him in a daze before punching him in the gut. Itachi flinched slightly but otherwise didn't react.

"That's just a greeting. I'll give you a proper beating for killing everyone tomorrow," Sasuke told him.

"I'm afraid it will have to wait. Tomorrow we leave for Ame to rescue Menma," Itachi replied.

"Resc-" Sasuke frowned. "Akatsuki?" Itachi nodded. Sasuke growled and walked past him into the compound. "Tell me everything."

Itachi paused to look up at the compound one last time before following Sasuke into his old home.

Early the next morning Tsunade stood in front of a team of assembled ninja in her office. Present were the Sound Four, Itachi, and Team 7.

"I've already briefed the other teams. They will be running interference and distracting the enemy as best they can. Your mission is to infiltrate Ame and rescue Menma," she turned to look out the office window. "Your secondary objective will be to destroy the statue they have been sealing the beasts inside. Do you have any questions?"

The eight people gathered remained silent. "Good. Kakashi will be in charge for this mission." She turned to the Sound Four. "Which of you is best suited for command?"

Karin and Kin both pointed to a passive Kimimaro. Tayuya frowned and looked down.

"You will be second-in-command under Kakashi," she said, looking at Kimimaro. He nodded in understanding. "Move out!" As the group vanished she turned back to her window and frowned.

"Good luck."

(Ame)

Kurama was furious. If the brat had just done what he wanted and stored nine tails of power in his little snake bite he would be free and this wouldn't be happening.

He was also terrified. He knew what was happening. He could feel it pulling him in. Knowingly or not the fool monkeys were recreating that monster he had been 'born' from. He did not want to return to it. He had raged and pulled and done everything he could to break free, but it was no use. He knew he wasn't going to get away.

He also knew that his cage had been weakening. He could see it breaking apart as they tore him out of the boy. At this point, he could do anything he wanted. He could destroy the cage, but he wouldn't be free. He could even finish the seal he had been trying to trick the boy into completing.

He stopped to think at that. He could store a full nine tails worth of power into the seal now. His mind wouldn't be connected to it, but his power would remain. That was life of sorts, right? What if they managed to destroy the beast like the Sage had in the past? If they separated it again would they all become new beings? Would they disappear? If he stored his power in the boy's seal and they did break them apart again would he be restored?

If he wanted to do it he would have to do it soon. If he wanted enough power to charge the seal he would have to do it before they drained too much. It wasn't really much of a choice, guaranteed death, or a slim chance at surviving.

Kurama tore through his cage and forced his power into the seal, boosting it to a full nine tails worth of power. He grinned as his mind broke apart and the rest of his power was absorbed into the statue. They wouldn't get all of his power. An entirely new set of his power now existed in that other seal, as well as pieces in others.

(?)

Pain. Pain like a thousand razor blades cutting him to pieces. Pain like he was burning alive. Pain like he was drowning in acid.

Pain like his body was dying and decaying while he was still alive.

Menma jerked up and found himself in his apartment from his childhood. He had been lying on the bed like he was sleeping.

Pain, like he was being electrocuted and his skin was peeling off in flakes.

He looked down at his hands with a groan and found them to be small, too small. He staggered out of bed and into the bathroom. With some difficulty he managed to look at himself in the mirror. A boy with spikey black hair and mismatched eyes looked back at him. The boy looked to be around 8 years old.

He frowned. Something felt... off. After staring at himself for several more moments and not finding anything wrong he walked out of the bathroom and looked around the apartment. He was supposed to do something... but what?

"Ah!" He said after seeing the date on the calendar. "Sensei was going to start with the real training tonight."

He quickly hurried out the door and locked it behind him. As he looked around he grew confused. The path he usually takes to Sensei's house was fine, but everything else was blurry. It was covered by fog and hard to see. Even the sky was odd. Normally he would run down the path, but tonight he was walking slowly and glancing around him curiously.

As he walked he passed a wall with a familiar fan icon on it. As he stepped past the walls he felt something wash over him. 'This is...' As he walked along another wave of pain burned through him causing him to stagger and nearly drop to his knees. When he straightened up he found himself inside a house facing a very irate man.

The man's mouth was moving like he was screaming at him, but he couldn't hear him. Moments later he lashed out with a powerful kick that sent him flying out of the house and into the street. Menma frowned again, he hadn't felt any pain when that kick landed.

As he lay in the street the fog started getting thicker. A man walked over to him and looked down at him. He too talked without making any sound. A name came to mind suddenly. 'Itachi.' The fog completely covered everything and the world around him turned dark.

He looked down at himself in confusion. He could still see himself and he seemed older. When he looked back up the fog had retreated and he found himself in a forest clearing staring up at two figures in a tree. 'Mizuki-sensei.' The man fell forward after being stabbed in the back and died right before his eyes.

Another wave of pain, and the world again, fogged up and darkened.

More scenes flashed before him, but he barely registered them. Water. Explosions and cliffs collapsing. Men with impossibly long necks biting people. A boy with black hair and black eyes surrounded by four people. 'Sasuke.'

One of the people was a girl with red hair and wearing an odd looking hat. She was important. What was her name again?

Darkness.

He found himself underground now. He had been exploring when that girl from before had found him and dragged him off to a training area. He focused as they reached the training field, as he did her voice gradually could be heard.

"...how a real ninja fights, shithead," the girl said.

He blurred forward and delivered a punch to her gut that set her smashing into the wall. Wait, no he didn't. He looked down, he was still standing there. When he looked up he saw another him standing and smirking at the girl.

The girl coughed and started cussing at him.

"Sorry. I should have known you were a sailor and not a ninja," the other him said.

"You just got a lucky shot in, you little shit," the girl snarled.

He watched as the other him beat the hell out of the girl. After he had finished he turned to her. "Your friend is right, ladies shouldn't speak like that."

"Go to hell," the girl wheezed out as the other him walked away. The world faded and similar memories played several times. Each time the other him would brutally beat the girl when she cussed at him.

Eventually the girl learned this and began to speak normally around him. They would have regular sparring sessions during these times. When the other him would catch her elsewhere cursing he would call her random horrible sailor names. She took offense to that and would curse at him, which would result in him dragging her off to a training ground and pummeling her again.

Menma figured out where he was. His was seeing his memories.

He watched the other him and the girl interact over time. As they spent more time training and doing missions her looks towards the other him gradually became less and less severe. Eventually he came across the memory that changed her expression towards a kinder one.

They had been on a mission where her flute had been destroyed by an enemy. It had left her quite depressed, so he decided to do something about it.

Orochimaru had previously approached him about having a weapon crafted for him. He expected him to ask for a sword as he had been pushing him to learn to use one properly. Menma had told him at the time that he already had a weapon and didn't need a new one.

Returning to Orochimaru he told him he was ready to have a weapon made, but he wanted to be in charge of it. Orochimaru allowed it and gave him funds to have one created. Rather than taking it to a smith for a weapon he used it to have a flute crafted instead.

When he had delivered it to her she had hugged him and thanked him. Her! Tayuya the Sailor thanking someone! She had been kinder since that day.

Shortly after was when she found out Kin was a part of his group and joined.

More memories flashed by. Smaller ones that added up to a larger picture. Her volunteering to help him when he needed it. Him finding her playing her flute late at night and commenting on how good she was.

Eventually he came to another larger memory. He and the three girls, Karin, Kin, and Tayuya had just finished a meeting when Karin turned to him with a sigh.

"That was such a nice date, we should do it again soon," she said, scooting closer to try and hang off him.

"Are you stupid? This wasn't a date, it was a meeting!" Tayuya corrected.

"It was a date! Any time I spend with Menma-kun is a date!"

"A date is when two people spend time alone! Like, eating dinner or... watching a movie or something! That's a date!"

"Hah! You don't even know what a date is!" Karin seemed pleased. "This was a date and it was lovely. It's a shame you'll never experience it."

Tayuya grit her teeth before slamming her hands on the table and turning to Menma. "We're going on a date," she glared at Karin. "A real date. Just you and me."

Karin sputtered and opened her mouth to deny her when Menma shrugged and spoke. "Alright."

That caught both Karin and Tayuya off guard for a moment. "Ah, that's right! It better be good," Tayuya said before rushing out of the room.

Neither of them had any nice clothes so in the end he had just taken her to a festival in a nearby town.

As they arrived at the festival his feet started to have a prickling feeling to them. Like they had fallen asleep. As the night of the memory progressed the feeling crept up his legs. When they reached the end of the memory where they were watching fireworks it had reached his waist. He frowned as he watched Tayuya plant a sloppy kiss on his other self before rushing off. She had always been impulsive.

The memory changed to the night Karin had informed him of Orochimaru's plan for stealing his body the next day. His other self had pulled his fan off the wall of his room and headed straight for Tayuya's quarters.

His other self had pounded on the door until she answered.

"What, damn it?!" She asked angrily as she ripped the door open. "Ah, Menma..."

"I don't care right now. I'm going to face Orochimaru. Sorry ahead of time if I lose. If I win, I'll have to pose as him so we won't be able to spend as much time together alone anymore." His other self gave her a quick hug and a kiss before rushing off. She quietly closed the door afterwards and he could hear her cursing.

The feeling had climbed up to his neck. Something was wrong. Where was the pain? Why was it just this pins and needles feeling?

The feeling reached the very top of his head, and his eyelids jerked open.

(Ame)

The explosive tags blew the door open and the rescue team rushed into the darkened room. In the center they could see red chakra draining out of Menma and into a giant statue. After the chakra was fully absorbed Menma dropped to the ground.

"You're too late," the Deva path said to them. "Although your friend has survived the process."

Sasuke growled and whipped a fūma shuriken towards the figures in black robes. The Deva path lifted a hand and redirected the giant shuriken downwards where it slammed into Menma. He coughed up some blood but otherwise remained limp.

"No!" Tayuya shouted before turning to deck Sasuke. "Asshole!" Sasuke just stared blankly at the shuriken stuck in his friend's body.

The Akatsuki members stepped forward to deal with the intruders. The Deva path lifted his hand and with a "Shinra Tensei" blew the Konoha ninja through a wall and out into the city. The Akatsuki members then followed them out through the hole, leaving Menma and the hooded figure behind.

The hooded figure walked over to Menma and pulled the shuriken out of him before tossing it aside. "Why do you still hold back?"

Menma slowly looked up at her, blood bubbling out of his mouth.

"I see. You're afraid. Afraid that you'll change. Afraid you'll become someone... something different." The figure waved a hand towards the gaping hole in the wall. Even though it was raining it was a fairly bright day and the light was pouring in, lighting the room slightly. "Your friends are out there fighting. If you continue this way you can drag yourself over there. They might find you and heal you in time. You might be able to defeat some of Pein's bodies, but at what cost?"

The figure then waved a hand towards a passage that was slightly revealed by the light pouring in. A passage no one had noticed in the dark. "Or you can stop holding back. Use what you have and hunt down his true body. He is crippled and can't move. Kill him and the other bodies will stop moving."

The figure stood and walked towards the passage leading to Pein's true body. "I might even answer your questions."

The figure stopped and looked back at him. "Make your choice," it commanded.

'That phrase... that voice... it reminds me of...'

"Do you return to what you know?" Menma's heart skipped a beat. 'Impossible.'

"Or do you follow me into shadow?"

End Chapter 24

A/N:

Yeah, that's right, I did it. Anyways, everything should be explained next chapter.

As for Tayuya... I'm having problems. I was so sure Karin was going to win that I can't figure out how to make Tayuya fit. I hope with the little bit of memory here that it at least laid some groundwork that people find acceptable. If you guys have any suggestions let me know.