THE WORLD IS A BEAUTIFUL, BEAUTIFUL PLACE. LIKE, FOR SERIOUS.
Disclaimer: THIS PLOT IS MINE. MINE. Naruto? Not so much.
Dedication: Dessie, Erika, Sonya and Eleni. Thanks for being there, guys.
P.S.: "'Oh, Na-a-a-a-av-i-i-i-i-i the fa-a-a-a-a-ai-ry-y-y-y-y-y…' said Treebeard, the Great Deku Tree. 'And don't forget me, Chuckles, the Evil Piggy!' screamed the fat, ugly pig." - Me to Eleni… Not even kidding, this is our relationship in a nutshell.
P.P.S.: I still really despise people who Alert/Favourite something and then refuse to review. It's so rude!

…---…

There's so much sun where I'm from… I had to give it away, had to give you away.

…---…

The boys had dashed up three flights of stairs when they heard a crash coming from about ten floors above them. The stopped, looked at each other in affirmation that yes, this was definitely the place.

And they realized that they didn't have much time.

They jolted up the stairs just a little bit faster.

…---…

Temari was still seething as she stared down at this bug who dared insult her family. Sure, maybe they weren't all that functional, but no one insulted her baby brother.

And hey, maybe insanity ran in the family.

"I'll kill you," she hissed, dispassionate anger seeping into her voice. "I will kill you."

He just stared up at her, spacey, almost. Scientific, almost, and Temari had a feeling that he was pushing her buttons to get her reactions. God damn reverse psychology. Tenten pinched the standing girl boredly, trying to not let the fear show through.

Seriously, Angry Temari was a Scary Temari.

So Temari stood there, part of her seething, and the other part -the constantly calm part-, muttered in disgust.

"You are a pitiful person, did you know that?" she asked him, rather calmly, given how she had been threatening him with death not two seconds ago.

…---…

Nine floors.

As the boys raced up the stairs, the sounds of breaking things got louder. They sent each other grim looks, and raced ahead.

…---…

"According to you, or according to me, little Temari?"

The girls looked on dispassionately.

All she said in reply was a vaguely revloted "I'm not little, stop calling me that. I'll gut you, you bug."

He tutted, and looked her up and down. "You really are such a child. I'll call you whatever I want. You're still alive only because I say you are, and really, little one, threats aren't the way to go."

Temari hissed. "Then shut up about my brother."

He smiled up at her, his lips pulling back over his teeth again. "Ah, but of course. As you wish. You wouldn't so kind as to clean this place up; would you?"

"You wish."

…---…

Seven floors.

"Tired yet, dobe?"

"Fuck off, teme."

…---…

The creeper sighed spectacularly, and stood up. Temari jumped away from him, and stood with the girls as he dusted off his shirt.

"You know, it rather is a shame that you lovely girls would rather not be in my presence. All I want is for you to be… happy," he said.

The girls hissed in synchronization. Happy? Did he actually know the meaning of the word 'happy'? Um, maybe he meant 'raped', or something.

Because really, this was not a happy situation.

Sakura opened her lungs, and screamed at him.

…---…

Four floors; and the screaming commenced.

Sasuke grinned as he whipped up another set of stairs. Well, if he knew anything, he knew that scream.

He'd had had it aimed in his direction enough, he guessed. Stupid Sakura.

…---…

Sakura was busy being enraged. Orochimaru stared at her, looking faintly fascinated. Karin was disgusted.

Sakura could scream all she wanted, but, really, it wouldn't actually change anything. Karin quickly eyed the ground.

Hm. There were rather a lot of broken plates on the floor.

Well. That might come in handy…

…---…

Three floors.

"Tired yet, teme?"

"…Fuck off, dobe."

"Sucker."

…---…

He was smiling. Why was he smiling like that? It was really creepy, and Ino really didn't like it and-

Ino's vision was getting a little blurry right around the edges. Huh? Why was it doing that? She was so tried. Her limbs felt like lead, but she could feel the preserve-self-above-all-else instinct kicking in.

But her vision was just so blurry, and she was just so tired… Her legs crumpled beneath her, and she slid to the ground, wheat-blonde hair glistening like gold in the faint candle-light.

…---…

Two floors.

"Fuck it, let's go!"

…---…

Hinata and Tenten, the two closest girls to Ino's crumpled form, gasped, and knelt down next to her.

"Shit," Temari hissed, and moved to cover her friends. Sakura stopped screaming to do the same, and Karin left off planning an escape that involved broken dishes, a slit throat or two, and plenty of blood, to help her friends.

…---…

"Only a few more… stairs…"

Just then the boys burst in.

They weren't shocked to find what they did.

It was a face-off; a creepy, grinning, black-haired, snow-white-skinned man, with a shadow-non-entity-boy with white hair in the background. The two were across from an over-turned table, broken plates; and six girls, three of whom were snarling.

Orochimaru seemed amused. "Well," he said, "Look who showed up. Aren't you little Kakashi's boys? My, I must say, that man does have good taste. But I suppose you're here for these girls… And I really can't have that. Little Anko won't come home. And I really must see her."

He spit out a sharp, hissing whistle, and the room filled with lackeys.

For god's sake.

"Dobe, get the ones on the left. Kiba, take the right. Suigetsu, get whichever ones those two don't."

"Why us?" The three muttered quietly, readying their stances. The girls were on the other side of an army. Lovely.

It was Shikamaru who answered. "Because we can't trust you idiots to not get emotional. So shut up and work."

"Fine."

There was a flurry of movement; and the fighting began.

…---…

The world was spinning around Sakura. Her oldest friend was passed out on the ground, but she could that asshole from here. Actually she could see them both; the creepy one (Orochimaru?), and the jerk.

Whatever, Ino needed her.

She turned around, to find her way blocked by a huge man. He grinned sickly down at her, and Sakura hissed. "Move."

"Sorry girlie, I got orders."

He pushed her into the fray that was the middle of the room, and Sakura only barely ducked as a vase went barreling over her head. "Fuck my life," she muttered to herself, and aimed to get back to where the other girls were.

That was when she realized that her best friends were scattered about the room; apparently, those 'orders' had been to separate them. That had certainly been managed; Temari was screaming obscenities loudly in the middle of the room, Karin was making her way towards Suigetsu and was throwing random bits of broken dinnerware at the not-so-nice guards.

Ino was still passed out on the floor, Hinata and Tenten trying valiantly to prop her up in a semblance of normality. Sakura figured it was probably best to get to them.

But it wasn't going to be easy.

She ducked a thrown dinner plate, and was making her way towards Hinata when she felt a pair of arms fasten around her waist.

"The door is that way, you crazy bitch."

Sakura kicked at Sasuke's shins; having recognized his voice, she decided that now was not the time to kill him. Had he been anyone else (read: Orochimaru -hm, she needed a nickname for him and all his creepiness- or the non-existent shadow boy or one of the many guards around the room still fighting), she would have taken a page out of Miss Congeniality and would have SING-ed him into the next world.

"But Hinata is over there, you stupid bastard! And Ino's passed out!"

"Naruto will get them."

"Liar, let me go!"

He just tightened his grip around her waist, and tugged her to the closest wall. "Just stay here, okay?" he muttered, and positioned himself in front of her.

Sakura muttered obscenities at him quietly under her breath, and peeked around him to view the fight that was, already, winding down. Naruto was victoriously knocking out one of the last ones, and Sakura smiled.

Good.

She whipped her gaze around the room, taking stock. Broken dishes, Temari, over-turned table, white-haired oaf and Karin, more broken dishes, a knife stuck in the wall…

She blinked.

Where was Hinata? And Ino? And the Melon Lord? Hadn't they been just over there? Like, not two seconds ago?

"Jerk, where's Hinata?"

"Hn?"

Fear hit Sakura's stomach. They were gone. "Temari!" she shrieked, drawing every eye in the room, and pointed at one of the doors. It was swinging open, the empty blackness of the hallway silently screaming laughter.

"They took them." Sakura's voice was very, very calm.

Naruto was the one who spoke. "What?"

"That bastard took them. He knows that we'll go after them. That- that bastard," was all she managed, before she sank to her knees on the ground, tears streaking down her cheeks.

God, if only she had been paying attention, this whole thing could have been avoided. What had she been thinking?

Temari swore several times to herself in as many different languages as she could think of. Sakura was right. Of course she was right. Tenten wouldn't have gone off on her own; not with Ino passed out, and with Hinata there, she wouldn't have even had the chance.

Temari looked at Naruto, and watched as his face went ashen. He was probably feeling as bad as Sakura was, right then. Kiba looked the same, his eyes empty.

She sighed. "Fuck. Look, there's-"

Shikamaru finished her sentence. "Nothing we can do right now. Let's just get these ones home, and then I'm calling Kakashi, and telling him to get his ass back here, now. This isn't funny anymore."

"No, it's really not."

Sasuke looked down at Sakura, still immobile on the floor, tears still running down her cheeks. He had a feeling she probably couldn't get up on her own. He rolled his eyes to himself -he was never going to let her live this down; it was just payback!-, and he knelt down next to her.

"Sakura? Come on, get up."

She didn't move; didn't say anything at all.

He rolled his eyes again, and carefully slipped his arms around her, and pulled her off the ground. He held her against him, entirely supporting her weight, and he looked around the room quickly, making sure that they were, in fact, correct in their assessment that the others were entirely gone.

Naruto's face was the colour of sour milk. Shit, he'd have to fix that, Naruto in that position was bad; he looked almost like he had after his parent's funeral.

Sasuke shot glances at his other friends, too, just to assess their current mental state.

Kiba seemed to have turned into Neji; he looked like he'd turned off any and all emotion. That was very, very bad. Neji looked a little shaken, in fact; his hands were fisted in his pockets, trembling slightly. Neji, shaken. Also bad. Shikamaru looked, bored, and strangely, somehow concerned, his arm around the remaining female blonde's shoulders. Not so bad; the man would still be able to think. Suigetsu was holding Karin up, the same way Sasuke himself had Sakura, and was muttering softly to her. Good, Suigetsu was actually doing something, for once.

Sasuke nodded to himself, and then jerked his head towards the door. "Shikamaru's right." He seemed to be speaking only to Sakura. "Let's get you home."