GOMEN! I'm really sorry about the couple months away. I've gotten sidetracked by the bundles of work I have on my project. That aside when I actually got around to the story I had almost completely forgotten everything that had happened so I had to go back and re read a lot of the story. With that said…..

Well last chapter seems to have been well received. This chapter will begin to close this arc. Some of the characters from Akatsuki will be introduced. I would like to say more but I don't wont to spoil it. .

KEY

"blah" – Speech

'blah' – Inner thoughts

NO JUTSU – Technique being used

Blah – Stuff that is done or said in the past

Boom – Sound Effects

+ - Stuff that needs further reference. The extra info can be found in the author's notes

-CHAPTER 26 - "Different Path's"

'It's as I thought……' Kakashi looked over the ruins. The rescue group was spread out looking over the ruins and Torri. His eyes went from the stone building up to the sky, '….of all nights why tonight….' The eerie red glow looked as if the moon itself was bleeding.

"Strange…." Gai looked around the wall of ruins. He looked in all areas of the section he was in front of, "…I can't find a single door or window." He looked over at Neji, "Neji!"

Neji looked at him and nodded. His eyes bulged, 'Byakugan!' Veins popped around his eyes as his pupils traced the walls. His left eye suddenly twitched "….impossible!"

Gai turned around, "What do you see?"

A sweat drop rolled down Neji's face, "…nothing…"

Kiba walked up next to him, "There's nothing in there?"

Neji's left eye twitched some more, "…I…..I can't see though it….the Byakugan can't penetrate the walls!"

Everyone's eyes widened. Hinata walked up to the wall and also used her Byakugan. She had a similar reaction, "N….neither can I…."

"What are these for anyways?" Lee and Shino who were away from the group looked at the Torri.

Shino looked up at the top of the Torri, "Don't know….but each of them have seals around the two poles and a board in the center of the top posts. Each one reading from the number one to nine…"

Shikamaru and Temari walked around the base of the building. Shikamaru examined every crevice of the wall, 'there are markings but nothing that I can understand.'

"That's…."

Temari's word caught Shikamaru's attention, "What is it?"

Temari pointed to what looked like a hand indention on the wall. Shikamaru looked at it closer and discovered a round crease around handprint, "Looks like its supposed to be pushed." He placed his hand on the impression and pushed as hard as he could.

After a minute he gave up, "Geez, guess that wasn't right."

Temari sighed and walked around the base of the building again until she came back to Shikamaru. "There's a total of nine of these. Each on the parts of the walls that stick out. It's possible that all nine have to be pressed in order to open a way in."

Kakashi walked up to them, "So I guess each of us should pick one." He looked at the group, "There are ten of us. I guess that's one for each except for one of us."

Nine of the members except Gai, who lost in paper rock scissors, stood in front of the handprints. Kakashi narrowed his eyes, "Alright everyone put your hands on the marks and push."

All of them did so in the same instant. Suddenly the flat surfaces next to the marks opened. Kakashi looked at the opening next to him. 'Nine doors it seems…….why use such a system?' "Alright! Let's go!"

He removed his hand, as did everyone.

Kathud!

All of sudden all the doors shut again. Kiba raised an eyebrow, "WHAT THE HELL! Why did they close!"

Kakashi pressed the impression again, 'So the doors shut once we take our hands away….this could be a problem..' He looked at the others, 'Gai, Lee and I are probably the only ones fast enough to go inside the doors before they close….how can we get in then?'

"Oi Kakashi!"

Kakashi looked up at Gai who was at the second level of the building. Gai continued, "Looks like there's another one up here." On top of the first floor there stood a cylinder shaped stone the stood about three feet high. The top was slanted down with another hand impression on it.

Kakashi looked at Gai, "This time you do it as well."

Gai nodded, "Yosh!"

Once again the group placed their hands on the impressions. This time Gai also joined in. Once again the doors slid open. Kakashi looked around, "Alright, this time everyone release your hands. Except for you Gai."

Shino looked over at Kakashi, "I see….the top one must act a locking mechanism."

All at once everyone but Gai removed their hands. This time none of the doors closed. Kakashi looked up at Gai, "Let go Gai."

Kathud!

As soon as Gai moved his hand all the doors closed. Shikamaru looked at the door, 'this is insane. You need ten people to open the doors. Nine to open the doors and one to keep them open, jeez. What's worse is that if the doors close then there's no guarantee that they can be opened from the inside.'

Kakashi sighed, "Looks like one of us will have to stay behind."

Temari responded even though she was on the other side of the ruin, "Couldn't a Kage Bunshin be put on the door?"

"Impossible…" Everyone looked after hearing Gai, "As soon as I put my hand on the impression I can feel it draw chakra from my body. It must be a safe guard to ensure that people didn't try to cheat their way in. It requires that at least one person stays behind."

Chouji shouted up to Gai, "If that's the case then one of us should hold the doors open. It would be better if both Jounin's went in."

"That's also impossible." Gai looked at his hand, "Since the console takes chakra then someone who has high chakra should stay. Besides Kakashi there is no one else who can last as long as myself."

Kakashi's eyes drooped, "This is also why a Kage Bunshin wouldn't work. It requires energy for a Bunshin and even if we were able to then he would have to leave a Bunshin with a lot of chakra. Gai would be too exhausted. Unfortunately we don't know how long it will take to rescue Gaara and Naruto so we don't know how much chakra to give to the clone. And as Gai said, he is the only one strong enough to do it."

Neji looked at the door area, "Such a security measure. This is what Akatsuki is capable of?"

Kakashi shook his head, "No, I doubt this was implemented by them. It seems to be a system created by something….older…." He looked up at Gai.

Gai grinned and gave his nice guy pose, "Looks like I'm playing back up. Let's hurry! There's no telling how long we have to rescue them."

"Here!"

Chouji chucked a bag up to Gai who caught them, "It's soldier pills. It should help out a little."

Gai grinned. Kakashi nodded, "Alright, lets get going then."

Once again the doors were opened and everyone stood before the openings. Kakashi looked around, "Seems there is a door for each of us. I don't know where they lead but if you come to a dead end or get in trouble then head back."

Everyone nodded and looked at each other. Shikamaru and Chouji gave each other a thumb up. Kiba and Shino punched each other's fists together. Neji looked at Hinata, "Hinata-sama. If I find Naruto first then I will do everything within my power to save him."

Hinata nodded, "Arigato, Neji-ni-san."

Lee looked up at Gai, "I'll be right back Gai-sensei. I'll beat them up for the both of us!"

Gai nodded, "Be careful Lee."

Kakashi narrowed his eyes into the darkness of the door, "Move out!"

Two blurs rushed though the trees.

"We're late it seems, ney."

A voice came from one of the blurs. The other blur responded, "It's not a problem using the cave entrance."

The first blur grabbed the handle of a large sword on its back, "After all this time we can finally achieve the ambitions from years passed."

Suddenly one of the blurs stopped to reveal itself to be Itachi. The other blur, Kisame, stopped and looked back at Itachi, "What's wrong?"

Itachi had his head lowered, "Go on without me."

Kisame's mouth dropped a little, "Without you? At such an important time, what else do you have to do?"

Itachi slowly raised his head with his Sharingan activated, "Don't worry. I will accomplish my mission."

Kisame turned around, "Tsch! You've always been a sucker for stuff like that. I guess I'll see you when it's all over then." He jumped away in a flash.

Itachi stood still as leaves began to fall around him. The sound of owls and crickets added to the eerie feeling of the night. All of sudden he looked over his shoulder, which caused all the noise to stop. 'I see….'

A figure walked down a flight of stone stairs. The figure was shrouded in darkness. With each step it took a loud sound from the stairs could be heard. "It's hard to see." The figure spoke in an almost monotonous way. The figure raised its hand. As it did a small bug flew out.

All of sudden the bug lit up causing the darkness to vanish revealing Shino. A few more bugs joined the first one. Shino continued down the stairs, 'I've been walking for some time now.'

He raised his finger and looked at a fly, "Go ahead and scout the area. Return once you've found something." The fly took off ahead of him, 'At least this way I'm not completely blind.'

Else where Hinata walked a spiral set of stairs with a glow stick in hand, 'It's strange. First I walked down a flight of stairs and now these seem to be spiraling around something.'

As she walked down the stairs she began to think more and more about Naruto. Images from the last time she had saw him in the village flashed through her mind. 'Naruto-kun is in a battle that I can't even comprehend. He's not only fighting the opponent in front of him but the beast inside……'

"Hinata…..don't tell anyone what we heard ok?"

Hinata and Sakura sat in front of a tree on a bench. The two are still thirteen. Hinata looked at Sakura, "You mean about Naruto-kun and the Kyuubi?"

Sakura nodded, "Naruto knows about it but has kept it a secret. He must have his reasons….probably…"

Hinata nodded, "But why did Shishou let us hear that if it's a secret?"

Sakura shrugged and leaned back on the bench, "Shishou isn't so weak that she didn't know we were there. She probably wanted us to know." She thought back to how Naruto was always isolated, "She probably thought that even if we knew that we wouldn't judge him based on it."

Hinata put her hands together and laid them on her lap, "I…it doesn't matter to me….Naruto-kun is Naruto-kun."

Sakura smiled, "Yeah, Naruto isn't so fragile that he would be torn down by it so we shouldn't either." She looked over at Hinata, "But you know Hinata, when he comes back. It wouldn't hurt if you were the first to greet him."

Hinata blushed and turned her head, "I….I'm sure Naruto-kun would want to see someone else first……" She fidgeted and looked at Sakura, "…maybe Sakura-san…"

Sakura shook her head, "To tell you the truth, I can't really help Naruto. I can't save him from his demons. But I think you can Hinata. I've never met anyone kinder than you. I'm sure if Naruto ever needed someone by his side you'd be able to help him."

Hinata thought back to when Naruto had his demon features and the song she hummed, "If Naruto-kun…..if he every needs me I'll be there to help him."

Sakura grinned, "And you know, when you're by his side you might as well…" She got closer to Hinata so that their faces were close to each other, "…K-I-S-S him."

Hinata's face turned beet red, "SAKURA-SAN! Stop kidding around!"

Hinata looked down into the darkness of the stairwell, 'Naruto-kun needs me now so I will make sure to use all of my power to save him.'

"You're…….you're….." Naruto trembled as Kaijin walked all the way into the dim light. He had long orange hair and what seemed like a scar over his right eye. It reminded Naruto of Kakashi's scar.

Kaijin stopped and grinned. He held up the Hoshi no Tama, which gleamed in the light. Naruto's eyes widened, "…..you're…….who are you?"

Kaijin's eyebrow rose, "You're actually an idiot after all. Oh well I didn't expect much from the beginning." He looked down at the floor and began to reach towards it with the Hoshi no Tama in his hand. Naruto saw where he was looking. It was a round shaped indention in the floor. Kaijin placed the ball inside the indention. The moment he did lights filled the entire room. It was then that Naruto finally realized how large a room he was in.

The room was more like a chasm. The size could easily match the size of the stadium used during the Chuunin Exam. The walls were all rock as well as the ceiling. Even amongst the greatest Naruto's eyes were diverted somewhere else. "Wh….what the hell…."

Naruto's eyes moved from left to right. Surrounding the spot where Naruto was were several large statues. Each seemed to be a large beast. They all stood about fifty or so feet tall and seemed to be made of a gray stone material. Naruto's eyes finally caught something that he had seen before, "Sh….Shukaku!"

A large statue of Shukaku stood in front of Naruto. Like the other statues its mouth was open. There within its mouth was something that made Naruto's eyes widen, "GAARA!"

Chains also suspended Gaara but unlike Naruto it was inside of Shukaku's mouth. He didn't respond and seemed to be unconscious. Dried blood was evident from the corners of his mouth.

Naruto looked at Kaijin with gritted teeth, "You bastard! What did you do to him!"

Kaijin looked up at Gaara, "Deidara took care of that one. I hear he put up a good fight. Even crushed Deidara's arm in the process."

Naruto narrowed his eyes and tried to get free but the effects of the ball were still active. He looked at Kaijin with hatred. His pupils suddenly lengthened and the blues of his eyes changed to a fiery red, "What are you planning to do with him, bastard!"

Kaijin smirked, 'So those are the eyes of the Kyuubi?' "The same as you." He looked at the Torri that Naruto was chained to, "It seems that it will be a while before the start. I suppose passing the time with a chat will be fine."

He looked around the room, "It's not only that child but all the Jinchuuriki."

Naruto's eyebrow raised up, "Jinchuuriki?"

Kaijin looked at Naruto's eyes, "People like yourself who have been possessed by demons."

Naruto's eyes widened, 'O…others!' His eyes darted across the room. In each of the statues mouth's there was a person chained inside it. His eyes scanned the room as far as he could.

Kaijin touched the ball and smiled, "Well I guess I need help you out some. You can freely move your head."

Naruto moved his head over his shoulders and looked at the other statues. "What are the statues?"

Kaijin stopped touching the ball and stood, "Like the Kyuubi and Ichibi." He looked at Naruto, "Oh, the true name of Shukaku is Ichibi. Anyways, these are all tailed demons that are called Bijuu. Once they all roamed the land and brought destruction to humanity. Humans being the greedy creatures they are tried to make the Bijuu's power their own. Over the centuries many came up with techniques to seal the demons within human bodies. The Sacrificial Sealing is what it was once called. With the life of a human the power of a Bijuu could be sealed within the body of a infant."

Naruto looked at all the statues. His eyes traced from Shukaku and followed the statues in a clockwise motion. There was a two tailed cat, a three tailed fish, next was a four tailed reptile of some sort followed by a dog bearing five tails. Naruto looked over his shoulder and continued the clockwise motion. The sixth statue was that of a weasel looking beast with six tails, next to it was a seven-tailed badger. Naruto's eyes stopped on the last one, which was a giant snake with eight heads and eight tails. His eyes shifted around the room and then to Kaijin, "Where?"

Kaijin just stared at him as he continued, "Where is it? Where is the demon fox?"

Kaijin grinned, "The Kyuubi is not amongst these statues. But if you want to know where then look down." He pointed his index finger down at the floor.

Naruto looked down and his eyes widened. He hadn't realized before but the ground he was sitting on was clear as glass. Naruto's eyes trembled as he looked down at a huge statue of the Kyuubi, which was looking straight up at him. Kaijin smiled, "The entire floor of this room is made of some clear material that is impossible to cut through, so we left it where it was.

Naruto slowly looked up at Kaijin, "Wh…..what are you going to do with us?"

Kaijin's smile slowly contorted into a wicked grin.

All of the members of the rescue team made their way down the darkened stairs. With each step a new wave of uncertainness crept through each person's mind. All of sudden Shino stopped. He looked up, "A door…..Have I arrived?"

He approached a large stone door. It was at least eight feet tall and had a weird design carved into it. Shino looked around and finally spotted a hand indention like above ground. He placed his hand on it causing the door to slowly open with a rumbling sound.

As the door raised Shino kept himself ready in case of a surprise attack. As the door finished opening, Shino finally caught a glimpse of the other side and it surprised him. '…trees…..?'

What should have been a room more resembled a forest. The room itself was several stories tall. The entire room was filled with large trees similar to that in Konoha. Shino looked down, 'Grass as well. This is strange…' He looked to his left at the entrance sides, '…the room is made of stone but it's as if I were outside.' He walked past the doorway cautiously.

THUD!

Suddenly the door slammed down behind him. Shino turned around and examined the door, 'It won't open.' He looked at the edges of the door, 'there's no room for any of my bugs to get out either.'

"That's not the exit…."

"Eh…" Shino turned around after hearing a deep and eerie voice. For some reason he couldn't locate where it was coming from, "Who's there?"

"That doesn't matter……or more to the point it won't matter…."

Shino's head jerked to the left following the direction that the voice was coming from.

"Going on like this doesn't make much difference so we shall end this quickly, right?"

"Aaa…"+

This time the voice came from the right. Shino tried to locate it again, 'Is there two of them?'

"On the other side of this room there is an exit. That exit will lead you to where you're comrade is. That is if you can make it."

Shino focused, 'There's an exit, but in this environment there is no telling how far away it is…..'

Vwoosh!

Without warning two large vines shot from the ground almost impaling Shino. He jumped away and onto a tree. He put his back to the tree trunk and exhaled, 'Most likely this environment is most suitable to his fighting style. I'm at a huge dis…'

"….advantage…"

Shino's eyes widened as he heard the voice behind him. He darted away as a kunai nearly slashed his throat. Shino jumped back and looked at his attacker, "You……you're from…"

From within the tree Zetsu protruded with a smirk on his face. Shino narrowed his eyes, "Kisei…..Zetsu…."

Grrrrrrrrr

A monstrous roar filled the dark hallways as a person walked down a similar set of stairs as Shino. Chouji pulled out a bag of snacks and began to eat, 'This is bad. I've been walking for a while n…..' Suddenly he came upon another door. He spotted the hand indention and opened the door. He walked through it with little hesitation, 'I should probably be more cautious but I get the feeling if I go too slowly I won't be able to rescue Naruto…..'

KATHUD!

The door slammed behind him but he didn't seem to care. He finished his snack and then threw the bag on the ground.

"You…..shouldn't…….litter…….in…..a…..person's…….room……."

Chouji's eyes went to a single candle that was lying on the floor. Other than the candle there seemed to be nothing else in the room, though it was hard to tell since it was all engulfed in darkness. His eyes went from the candle and shifted upwards as he heard someone walking towards the candle, "Are you Akatsuki?"

The figure stopped once it reached the candle, "That……. eyes went from Kurei's feet all the way to his head. Chouji could barely tilt his head far enough to see the entire Akatsuki member. He had to be at least twice Chouji's size. He wore the Akatsuki coat and had on a village of rain bandana. His face was covered by a white cloth that only revealed his eyes.

Chouji began to sweat, 'this guy. It feels like he isn't really here but the presence feels like I'm in a tigers den…..' "Where are Naruto and Gaara?"

The behemoth raised his hand and pointed behind him. Chouji couldn't see what he was pointing at but before he could say something Kurei spoke, "On…….the……other……side……of……..the……..room…….there……..is……..a…….door…….it…….will…….lead…….you……..to…….where…….you…….need…..to…..go….."

Chouji tried to spot it but couldn't, "That simple?"

Kurei lowered his head alittle as he bent down and put out the candle leaving on darkness, "……It……..never…….is…….."

"In the end you children are just pawns in the larger game…." Kaijin smirked.

Naruto had a frustrated expression, 'pawns!' "….even if that's so, why gather everyone? Are you going to kill us?"

Kaijin walked to the statue of Shukaku and sat down, "In the end that will be the result. But child that question is irrelevant in the end. The question you should ask is so much simpler."

Naruto huffed, "Stop talking like I should know what the hell is going on. If you're gonna tell me then tell me!"

Kaijin smirked, "To the point I see. It wouldn't be like me to tell you but I'm interested in talking to you more. After watching your fight with the other Jinchuuriki I became interested in the way you think……..alright I'll tell you." He clasped his hands together, "The question that you really want to ask is one that you…….and all the rest of these have asked your entire lives 'Why me?'"

Naruto was slightly taken back by this. Kaijin saw this and smirked, "There isn't a single answer that solves all of the Jinchuuriki's reasons but if there were a theme to your existence it would be because in order to gain power one must sacrifice. In order for your Jinchuuriki existence to come about a sacrifice must be made. In order for your roles to be complete then a sacrifice must be made and in order for that role to be complete a sacrifice has to be made. This is why you are here……this is why the other Jinchuuriki are here and this is why your acquaintances are here….."

Naruto's eyes widened, "….acquaintances?'

Kaijin looked up, "above us your comrades have come to rescue you."

Naruto looked up, "…they……for me….."

Kaijin smirked, "Do you know why you were the last of the Jinchuuriki taken? In truth you are the only one who has been acknowledged even in the slightest by his village. Because of that, those comrades whom have come to acknowledge you are now here…….here to fulfill the role which they were intended."

Naruto looked back at Kaijin, "intended?"

Kaijin smiled, "Aaa……they must fulfill their greatest roles ever……..as sacrifices!"

Naruto's eyes widened in horror and then lowered in anger, "Bastard…….If you harm a single one of them………" he gritted his teeth, "……I'll kill you!"

AUTHOR'S NOTES

- In this instance "Aaa…" is used as a replacement for words like "yep" or "sure".

Well there's the new chapter. Hope it didn't suck; it's been a while. These next chapters will encompass the fights. I hope to get a majority of them done within two or three chapters. Maybe two if they are long.

Next chapter will most likely answer a lot of questions that have been asked and maybe make others arise. Cya next chapter, btw check profile for pic of Kurei.

NEXT CHAPTER – "The Sin's of the Past"