A.N. THANK YOU EVERYONE! Got to 100 reviews today and I'm just so, so happy. So thank you again everyone to reviewed, you make my day!


Clammy fingers raked through the greasy tangled hair. May hadn't bothered to brush it before she came since it was the middle of the night. She'd woken up from an unpleasant nightmare and then ran here, teleporting into the room to make sure that Kakashi Sensei was still at the hospital. That he was still alive, even though he wasn't conscious, at least he was still breathing. When her friends notice that she'd disappeared, they were going to freak out but, hopefully, the Akatsuki will be able to figure out that May was actually here.

"I'm so sorry, this is entirely my fault."

A moulding awkward atmosphere settled itself in and around the tiny room. May hid behind her long black hair as she peered at the starch white covers over her knees that were held up against her chest, toes dangling over the thin padding of the hospital chair.

They weren't talking. There wasn't any arguing either. It was a one sided conversation but on May's part this time for a change. It felt strange to not have him talk back. It didn't feel right at all. Then again it's not like the Copy Ninja could answer anyway.

She buried her face into her knees. It is all her fault that he lay in the bed. All her fault that he was wound in a body of bandages. All her fault that he was a target. All her fault that he nearly died. His blood wouldn't stop flowing, staining his clothes, soaking into hers. May hugged her knees tighter and tried to wash the memories out of her mind.

"I'm so sorry Ka…Kakashi," she sobbed, "I'm so sorry about everything, if… maybe if… I don't know… if I had been stronger then maybe none of this would have happened. Then you wouldn't have gotten hurt."

The young ninja swallowed, fighting back the persistent sting in her eyes. She stared at the bedding and spoke into her legs.

"I don't want to see anyone get hurt over any of this Tobi stuff that involves me. It's between him and me only but," May glanced over at the slumbering face, "but then everything had to get cocked up with how I feel about everything, about you in particular. I don't want it to matter but it just has to make itself matter and it's being annoying. Dammit you're annoying."

She knew he couldn't hear her, and that he couldn't answer back, but the words just kept tumbling from her dry mouth. No matter how illogical the situation seemed all the emotions she had forced down in her gut had finally chosen to come to her surface.

"I just want to protect everyone but to do that I would have to be with Tobi. I know that he would probably go after everyone still but if there is even a chance that it might work," May swallowed the lump in her throat as her chest tightened, the realisation of what she had to do finally came to surface.

And why she had to do it.

"I can't stay anymore, not after this. I have to go back to Tobi. If I do that then he'll leave you alone, I can't let you get hurt again. Especially because of me. That's why you're in hospital, because he must've figured out I fell for you and this is punishment. I'm sorry Kakashi."

May finally got out of her chair and crossed to the head of the bed, looking at the seemingly peaceful man with tears slightly clouding her eyes. She pulled the grey mask down and hovered over the peaceful lips. She took her time kissing him, wanting to remember the feeling, soaking in the warmth and knowing that he was going to live. May replaced the mask and rubbed her hand down the side of his face.

"Goodbye Kakashi, if it means you'll stay safe then I'll give myself to Tobi a thousand times over."


"Abi… Abi… Abi wake up."

"You suck at this don't you?"

"I woke you up didn't I?"

"Okay, okay I'm up," Abi gave a tired yawn and rose up off her pillow, spotting Elle on the end of her bed and Tay glaring by her side, "What's going on you guys?"

"I can't find May."

"What?"

"She's right, May's not in her room," Tay sat in the middle of the bed with a tired yawn; "We wanted to talk to you to see what to do. Elle wants to go to the others for help but I reckon she's just gone to see Kakashi, she didn't tell us because she still doesn't want to admit she likes him."

"What if May does something stupid? Abi, what are we going to do if Tobi gets her? You know about the spy."

"Stop stressing moron, May wouldn't let herself be caught."

"If you haven't noticed May's been acting really weird lately and I don't want to lose her."

"Both of you shush," Abi rubbed her temples and looked at the younger girls, whenever May went out she was the one who had to sort out the fighting and issues that came up, "Why were you looking for her anyway Elle?"

"Couldn't get to sleep so I decided to check on her."

"Go back to sleep, you too Tay, neither of you are any good when you're tired okay?"

"But what about May?"

"I'll take a walk to the hospital to go find her."

"Don't be stupid! We're not allowed to leave and neither are you."

"I know Tay, I know," Abi pushed both of her friends off her bed and out of the door, "I'm sure one of the others are awake and I'll get them to walk with me to go find May okay?"

"Fine."

"Abi I don't like this."

"Both of you just rest okay, I'll see you in the morning."

Abi watched the two move down the hall to their individual rooms, down the end of the hall she saw Sasori waiting with a raised eyebrow. He crept a little closer and leaned against her door frame, "Is everything okay Abi-chan?"

"Yeah, the others are just worried about things and wanted some council."

"Why didn't they go to May-san?"

"May's tired enough as it is; you know she's been acting distant since Kakashi Sensei was attacked the other day."

"As long as everything is okay."

Abi stretched up on her toes and kissed Sasori's surprised lips, "Trust me Sasori-san."

"I trust you," he kissed her back with a small smile, "Get some sleep okay?"

"Sure."

He shuffled back to the hall, pausing to smile back at the blonde, then went quietly down the stairs, clearly telling the others who woke that everything was alright. Abi breathed in deeply and moved back into her dark room, the chill of the night running through her body like a blade. She changed out of her pyjamas and into her shinobi gear, shrugging her cloak on before packing away her tools and opening the window. She glanced around her room once more and slid out into the night of the village.

"If you're doing what I think you're doing you are going to be in so much trouble May."


She was never going back home. She couldn't. If she did then bad things were going to continue to happen to everyone she cared about and that would just kill her. It would eat at her until she could take no more. May was out of the village and she wasn't going back.

She looked back and had to laugh at herself, she didn't even understand how she got out but that didn't matter. She was out. No clue which way to go but May had a feeling that Tobi was watching her and that he'd help lead the way soon enough. Everyone was safe now; Tay, Abi, Elle, Kakashi, they were all going to be safe and sound now that she was gone.

"May‼"

That was not a good sound, May froze in her tracks and spun around to face the owner. She couldn't believe her eyes when the blonde frown bounced into view, "How the hell did you get out of the village?"

"I use Genjutsu and am very good at it."

"You could ruin your eyes."

"You could be captured, what the hell are you thinking?"

"Just go away Abi, I don't need you."

"I don't care," Abi stood her ground, standing between May and the path that continued further into the forest.

"What are you even doing here Abi?"

"What does it look like? I'm following you of course."

"You're supposed to be sleeping, or looking after the others," May looked frantically around, praying that Tobi wouldn't find Abi too, "Go back already, this doesn't concern you."

"I'm your friend aren't I? That means I'm going to follow you out here and stop you from doing something stupid."

"Go back."

"Not without you I won't."

"Go back; I just need some space from everyone. I'll come back soon."

"Uh-huh, and I love rainbows and unicorns."

"What?"

"You're lying," Abi stated blatantly, "you're going back to Tobi aren't you? Even after what he did to us! What he did to Elle‼ He tricked Tay into thinking he loved her‼ Then there are all the shinobi he killed during the war‼"

May clenched her fists to her side; she would've preferred anyone else catching her out, "I'm not an idiot. I know what I'm doing."

"Obviously not."

"Go back Abi."

"No‼"

"Go back‼"

"I was expecting one not two…"

Snakes slid out from the cold shadows of the forest trees, wrapping themselves around the girls and rendering them defenceless. They struggled to free themselves from the reptilian cuffs as the long body slipped into the moonlight, hood pulled back, and a dark smirk crossing the dry lips.

"By my guess you are May and you would be… Abi?" Kabuto chuckled like it was some sort of dark joke they didn't understand, "I'm not entirely sure how he will react to you but I can't let you go back to the village now."

"No listen," May tried and failed once more to free herself from the snakes, "I'm going with you willingly, let Abi go."

"Do you take me for a fool? If I let her go back then she'll tell the rest of the Akatsuki and that is just going to cause a whole lot of trouble we don't want or need."

Abi slowed her breathing, concentrating on the colours that wavered briskly around the snake man, spotting the weak line in the coloured aura. Itachi had helped train her Genjutsu, seeing that their eyes were similar, and once her eyes met Kabuto's she activated the jutsu. He collapsed nearly immediately and so did the snakes, Abi wasted no time grabbing May's hand and attempting to run them back to the village.

"Abi what did you do?"

"Shut up and run‼ AH‼"

Poison ran through her veins, the snake fangs retracted and the body ran back to its master. A dark chuckle emitted from Kabuto as he got to his feet, unfazed from the jutsu, and moved over to Abi's crumbling body, "Well that certainly was interesting."

"Abi‼" this is exactly what she wanted to avoid. Her loved ones getting hurt trying to help her. May went to grab Abi but Kabuto was already over the weeping form.

"Leave her alone‼"

"Do you want me to save her?" Kabuto questioned with a smirk, he ran his fingers down Abi's pale cheek and paused just underneath her eyes, "The poison is going to kill her in less than a few minutes unless you let me do what needs to be done."

"Fine… but then you have to let her go. That's a… that's an order‼"

"Don't kid yourself."

The familiar blue chakra wavered over the bite till a long green liquid was pulled out of the wound, Kabuto throwing it to the side and heaving Abi's unconscious body over his shoulder, "Are you coming or am I just taking this one with me?"

"I'll fight you," May prepared herself even though she was still dressed in her flimsy pyjamas, "Let her go or-"

"Or you'll do what? You are pathetic and completely inferior to me. Now come on, the temperamental Uchiha is waiting and I won't be punished because you changed your mind at the last second."

One path took her back to the village, to safety, then the other one took her to Tobi, to the thing that she feared most. She only had one choice.

"Yeah… I'm coming…"