DISCLAIMER: Some of the text and characters are from Masashi Kishimoto's Naruto, which I do not own. Only the characters & text that were not in the original manga/anime series are mine.

Recap: Asuma has been avenged through the defeat of the two Akatsuki members, Hidan and Kakuzu; however, new challenges still await the Leaf Village shinobi, particularly our bright eyed friend…

Trial Mission

"Awk!" Naruto exclaimed as he slopped ramen on himself, "Hot, hot!" He cringed as he sloshed still more on his injured, right arm (which was in a cast and sling), "Gah! I just can't eat left-handed!"

Sakura glanced at his right arm, remembering what had occurred when she had been fixing up his arm…

Sakura scolded Naruto as she used her medical ninjutsu to heal his arm, "You must've broken half the bones in your body! It's not made for this kind of strain! This new jutsu of yours is only meant as a last resort! Just promise me you'll think before using it again!"

Naruto grinned, "Hey, it's no big deal so long as I've got you around to fix me."

"That's not the point!" Sakura snapped. "There are limits to what I can patch up! Medical ninjutsu is a science, not a miracle cure!"

Naruto continued to grin, though he humored Sakura by looking serious for a second, before he went back to grinning, "Yeah, still…I like things the way they are now because, Sakura, it feels like we're on the road to reach Sasuke together."

This left Sakura shocked, but in a pleasant way…

Sakura scooted closer to Naruto, who was still sulking over the fact that he couldn't eat his ramen properly, "You're hopeless. Give me your chopsticks."

Naruto was surprised, am I dreaming? She's not going to…feed me…is she?

"Now say, ah…!" Sai said, grabbing Naruto's chopsticks and getting some ramen noodles.

"HOT!" Naruto shouted, before he turned angrily towards Sai, "It's too hot! And who asked you for your help?"

"Hey!" Kakashi said, pushing the flap aside as he entered the Ichiraku booth, he took in the scene before him.

"A friend indeed is a friend indeed," Sai recited. "Or that's what the book says."

Naruto snapped, "How about you take your head out of your book and think for yourself! Man!"

"Kakashi-sensei!" Sakura said, turning away from the arguing boys to greet Kakashi.

Kakashi asked, "What's all the commotion?"

Sakura, being the spectacular friend that she was, explained to Kakashi what had happened. So, Kakashi fixed the situation: neither Sakura nor Sai got to feed their friend, instead, Kakashi took up the task.

Naruto sulked as he chewed, grrr! And I get Kakashi-sensei!

"Kakashi-sensei, how are you even out of bed?" Sakura asked, recalling how beaten up he had been after their last mission.

Kakashi turned towards her, "Why does everyone keep asking that?" He snorted in disgust, "I didn't even use my Mangekyo Sharingan this time. But if you hadn't shown up when you did…I would have had no choice." He looked a bit embarrassed as he added, "And then I WOULD be in bed right now…in the hospital!"

Naruto looked subdued after Kakashi said this, so Kakashi tried to perk him up a bit, "You're strong, Naruto. You may even surpass me." All of them glanced at him, "Thing is, the more profound the jutsu, the riskier it is to wield. Just remember that."

"Yeah," Naruto muttered. He decided to change the subject, "Hey! Where's Bright Eyes?"

Sai nodded in agreement to this question, "Yes. Where is she? Isn't this one of those conversations where her sarcastic humor is needed?" They all stared at him like he'd grown another head, "A book said…never mind!"

Kakashi decided to let that drop, "Tsunade apparently sent her on a mission of some sort."

"I hope she let that shoulder rest a bit before she went out," Sakura muttered darkly. "When it comes to injuries she's not exactly the most careful…"

Kakashi smiled, "As long as whoever's she's teamed with isn't in danger, she'll take it easy."

Meanwhile, hidden in various spots around a ventilation shaft that was halfway disguised as a stump, Sara, Kenshin, and Ryo were having a silent argument.

Kenshin thought in frustration, "All we've heard is that old snake hacking and wheezing! We can take him!"

"And I've told you at least a thousand times," Sara thought angrily. "That we're not going into that snake hole! Orochimaru may be weak, but Sasuke and Kabuto are not!"

Kenshin glared at her, but Ryo ended the conversation, "Look. Sara knows these guys better than we do. Just drop it, Kenshin. Your arguing is starting to annoy me."

"This coming from one of the laziest ninja," Kenshin thought, though his tone was no longer frustrated. "I hate these kinds of missions…"

"These are my favorite type," Ryo grinned across at Sara and Kenshin from his hiding spot, a bush only a few feet away from the ventilation shaft. "Very little action, just a lot of watching," he thought contentedly.

"Let's hope the intelligence we gather within the next few days is enough to appease Lady Tsunade," Sara thought, excitement in her thoughts.

It was infectious. Kenshin couldn't help grinning then, though no one could see it since he was farthest from the hole, perched up in a tree to make sure no one came near either Ryo or Sara's hiding spots. "Yeah, it would be great if we could remain a squad…even if we do have to listen to a hot tempered jônin."

"Who's hot tempered?" Sara thought.

Kenshin quickly thought, "Certainly not you!"

Sara rolled her eyes. The closest to the shaft, only a few inches away, and hiding inside of a log; normally not an ideal hiding spot for a shinobi, but since she could teleport so fast, it was perfect. She could hear most of the conversations or sounds from the shaft and identify who (or possibly what they) belonged to. So far, all she, Ryo, and even Kenshin had heard was Orochimaru's hacking.

Still listening to the sounds coming from the ventilation shaft, Sara couldn't help remembering what Tsunade had told her about the mission the other day…

Tsunade stood facing the window that looked out over the village, "Sara…this mission I'm giving you could prove to be very important to…dealing…with Sasuke…possibly even getting rid of the Akatsuki."

"What's the mission?" Sara asked.

Tsunade smiled, "It's time your squad got put to use." Sara grinned. "I need you and your squad to follow Orochimaru and Sasuke's movements. However, I don't want any of you to be seen. You are merely gathering intelligence. Consider this a trial mission for you and your squad. If all goes well, I will let you three remain a squad, if not…well that just means my idea didn't work as I had planned."

"Yes, Lady Tsunade," Sara said.

Tsunade smiled, before she waved a hand, dismissing her, "Now, go get your squad and head out immediately."

A voice spoke, coming up through the ventilation shaft, bringing Sara out of her thoughts, she focused on the voice as it said, "Your body has reached its breaking point."

"Kabuto," Sara silently informed Kenshin and Ryo.

Kabuto continued to speak, "If you don't take the level ten medicine, there's not much more I can do for you." There was no response from Orochimaru. "I'll go get the medicine." Still no response from Orochimaru, but a door opened with a squeak. "I'll be right back," Kabuto said.

Orochimaru started to laugh then, and the Leaf ninja were a bit unnerved as they listened to it, but it soon subsided into hacking.

The squad tensed as they heard something break through a wall, and a sound like electricity.

Orochimaru called out, "Who's there?"

A crash sounded, and Sara and Ryo exchanged a quick glance. Ryo nodded and pulled out some shuriken, just in case either Orochimaru, or whoever had apparently destroyed a wall, decided that their fight couldn't be limited to a room. Ryo focused on the shaft, tensed and ready to throw the shuriken at a moment's notice. Lazy by nature, Ryo was still a deadly ninja when he wanted to be.

Kenshin was ready as well, ready with some smoke bombs if the enemy needed to be distracted.

Orochimaru's voice rose out of the shaft, "I knew you'd come for me."

Another voice rose out of the shaft, "There's no more you have to teach me." Sara tensed, recognizing her cousin's voice, "I can be merciless…even to you!"

The Snake…

Unaware of the three Leaf shinobi listening in on all that was going on in the room, Sasuke had shaped the Chidori into a blade, pinning Orochimaru in place by piercing through both his wrists and pinning him to the wall.

Sasuke could feel the curse mark working, giving him more power as it covered half of his body, "Orochimaru. I'm stronger than you." Orochimaru glared at him, "So at this point, I really don't see a reason to hand over my body to you."

"A bold statement from a nursling Uchiha," Orochimaru grunted.

Sasuke laughed, "Of course, it had to be the nursling. That's the only Uchiha you could handle. Itachi was out of the question, and that left you two options: the baby with the Sharingan or the half-breed with the Devil's Eyes, and you coveted the Sharingan, so you went after the baby."

Sara, Ryo, and Kenshin all shared the same, silent thought after Sasuke said the words, "half-breed", how did he hear about that?

The three shinobi were so shocked that they missed a bit of the conversation, as Sasuke continued speaking, "…and they say you're one of the three great shinobi?" Orochimaru's glare became even more intense, "It turns out you're just a run-of-the-mill ninja. You're not even in the same league as Uchiha…and you know that, don't you. Before Uchiha, mild brilliance such as yours becomes actually rather ordinary. Filling yourself up with medicines, leaping from body to body…and the way you covet the power of Uchiha…it's revolting. As an Uchiha, all I see is a miserable wretch. And anyway, I don't like your style. I mean, what are you after? Unlocking the mysteries of nature? You keep toying with people, all for this vain and frankly stupid cause of yours." Sasuke remembered how his brother had killed his own clan simply because he wanted to test his power.

"You disgust me," Sasuke murmured as he charged forward, pushing the Chidori blade further into the wall behind Orochimaru, as he advanced, unsheathing Kusanagi. Pulling back his right arm, he thrust his arm forward to stab Orochimaru.

Opening his mouth wider than should have been possible; something white shot out of his mouth, Sasuke only seeing the tail of whatever had emerged from Orochimaru's mouth.

Sasuke turned around completely, "The giant white-scaled snake. Never would have recognized you." He stopped his Chidori blade and pulled Kusanagi out from Orochimaru's limp body.

Meanwhile, above them, Ryo mouthed to Sara, "Giant white what?"

"Snake," Sara mouthed back, thinking, I'm sick of snakes…

"I still say we go in and get a better view," Kenshin thought, eager to see the fight.

Sara shot a glare towards his tree, "One thing I've learned about snakes…it's best to stay out of their holes…because you never know when the hole will widen, or how many snakes may be in them."

Kenshin kept his thoughts to himself, though he sulked up in the tree.

Sasuke stared up at the white snake that was Orochimaru, "To change bodies you experimented endlessly. And this is what you've become."

Orochimaru hissed, "Now…Sasuke…you are mine…" He reared back and struck at Sasuke, "GIVE ME YOUR BODY!"

Sasuke leapt into the air, allowing Orochimaru to "eat dirt". What had originally appeared to be scales, turned out to be more white snakes, two of them lunging at Sasuke with mouths agape. Sasuke spun in midair, sword drawn, slicing off the snakes' heads. Orochimaru hissed in pain before more of the snakes on his body swarmed towards Sasuke.

Unfazed by the swarm of snakes coming towards him, Sasuke sheathed Kusanagi, and started to undo his shirt, throwing it off as the snakes drew closer and closer. As the snakes coiled around him, his curse mark began to spread, his skin getting darker, his hair becoming lighter. He said as the snakes coiled around his head, "A snake that crawled on the earth dreamt of soaring through the sky knowing full well it was impossible. Still, hoping beyond hope, it kept its eye on a baby bird that it nurtured in its own nest…" The snakes had completely coiled around him, "Little realizing that actually…" The snakes were sliced to pieces much to Orochimaru's disbelief, "The snake is prey, because that bird is a hawk ready to take to the sky!"

"SASUKEEE!" Orochimaru hissed in rage, lunging at Sasuke.

The Ritual…!

Sara and Ryo strained their ears for any sound, but all was quiet below the ground. They had heard Orochimaru hiss in rage and then nothing.

Below the ground, Sasuke stood over Orochimaru's form, the giant, white snake sliced into three different parts. Sasuke's curse mark started to recede, "So that's it? That was disappointing."

Sasuke suddenly went to his knees with a grunt, noticing for the first time (courtesy of his Sharingan) that there was a vapor rising from the pools of blood surrounding Orochimaru.

Orochimaru wasn't dead yet, either. The white snake rose off the ground, "It's about time it took effect. The bodily fluids of the great serpent will evaporate the moment they're exposed to the air. They have…a numbing effect." He opened his jaws wide, "I am immortal. You cannot kill me." He laughed, "Now…let me take you…" He struck and Sasuke was poised to fight with his Sharingan at the ready.

Sasuke was taken off guard, though; as he stood on a writhing mass of white, flesh like things. "What is this place?" Sasuke wondered aloud.

Something, that could loosely be called a human figure, started to rise out of the white mass, "This is the universe inside of me. This is where the transference ritual takes place." Sasuke's eyes widened slightly in astonishment, "Shall we begin?"

Sasuke glanced at himself as he felt the writhing mass, which had now taken the form of snakes, wrap around him, and some even, sprang from his own body. He glanced from side to side and was startled to see that there were other people near him there faces the only visible part of them, the rest of their bodies was encased in the white mass.

Orochimaru gazed hungrily at Sasuke as the white mass completely encircled Sasuke, leaving his face visible. Sasuke turned back to face Orochimaru, an unreadable look in his eyes.

Orochimaru started to laugh, "Those eyes…they're finally mine!"

Back above ground, Sara and Ryo were, once again, straining to hear any sounds from below. They had heard Sasuke talk and then they had heard Orochimaru, but now…all was quiet once again. Neither of them heard anything for quite awhile.

Sara was the first one to hear anything; the faint sound of someone getting into a quick hiding position that normally, one would not be able to hear, but thanks to the underground cave, every sound was amplified.

Back underground, Kabuto warily glanced around the door frame that led into Orochimaru's chambers. He had been walking there to give Orochimaru his medicine when he had seen a massive puddle of blood, which put him, automatically, on guard.

He took in the scene quickly, noting the blood that was everywhere, the giant, white snake skin lying on the ground, and Sasuke standing, apparently unscathed.

The giant snake has shed its skin… Kabuto thought. So…has the ritual already taken place? He stood up, what's going on?

Sasuke turned when he heard movement near the doorway. "Kabuto," he said in greeting.

Kabuto walked a few inches into the room, but he didn't go any further, wary of Sasuke…or possibly Orochimaru.

Sasuke silently started to leave the room, and had started down the hallway when Kabuto finally asked, "Which…which one are you?"

This caught Sasuke's attention, his eyes their normal black.

The Detour

Sasuke turned to face Kabuto, "Which do you think?" He activated his Sharingan and took Kabuto into the scene of the ritual.

Kabuto glanced around warily, until he caught sight of two figures that were covered in the white, writhing mass, it's the ritual…

Orochimaru was reaching for Sasuke, but paused when Sasuke activated his curse mark, the mark, glowing crimson. The mark didn't limit itself to just Sasuke. Instead, it started to spread through the white mass, changing it to red, and the snakes changed a bit, becoming more fearsome in appearance. The crimson continued to spread and spread, and the crimson mass unwound itself from Sasuke, poised behind him to strike.

"No…no!" Orochimaru shrieked, "This is my universe! I created it! This can't happen!" He was furious, "It can't! It's impossible! This is my own space!"

"Orochimaru," Sasuke said. "My eyes can see through all your jutsu…surely you must know already…"

Kabuto watched in horror, how…how frightful…Sasuke's will is…eroding Orochimaru's very inner being.

Orochimaru was now held in place by the writhing, crimson mass, and was helpless as one of the massive, crimson snakes behind Sasuke moved towards him, mouth agape.

"No!" Orochimaru wailed. "This can't…this can't be happening! I am Orochimaru. I am immortal! I will not die here! I…I am the one who..will unlock the mysteries of mature! I am the…one who will receive…everything!"

Kabuto was thrown back into reality and he murmured, "Lord Orochimaru…is dead." Sasuke remained silent. "No…no it's more…" Kabuto stared at Sasuke in fear.

Sasuke grinned cockily, "I absorbed him. That's all." With that said, he turned away from the startled Kabuto, and walked down the hall.

Sara and Ryo stared at each other in shock and horror, they both relayed to an anxious Kenshin, "Sasuke…absorbed Orochimaru…!"

"That's the same as dead…isn't it?" Kenshin questioned.

Sara shrugged, so Ryo guessed, "I would think its worse then death..."

"We need to relay this information to our contact," Sara informed them, slicing her thumb. She made several hand signs, before she struck the ground with her hand, Summoning Jutsu! When the smoke cleared, her liver-spotted Dalmatian, Two-Tone, took in his surroundings before he nodded solemnly.

Sara quickly wrote on a scroll and tied it to Two-Tone's neck, hiding it beneath his headband. She whispered in his left ear, "Find F.T." Two-Tone nodded before he started to walk off. Once he was a good distance away from the ventilation shaft, he took off at a run.

Kenshin silently asked, "Why didn't you use the Irish Wolfhound or that Great Dane? I thought you said the Great Dane would be the best at finding our contact?"

"She is," Sara agreed. "But I don't want to use her just yet, nor do I want to use Lucky just yet either. We'll save them for more…delicate information… Right now…we need to find another ventilation shaft…!"

Back in the Hidden Leaf Village at the Ichiraku ramen shop, Naruto looked upset as he was lost in his own thoughts. Kakashi noticed Naruto's look, and he sighed, remembering what Tsunade had told him as he, Tsunade, and Tenzo had stood around Kakuzu's body within the basement of the hospital.

"His chakra network has been completely severed," Tsunade informed them. "It's hard to imagine. But it is so.

"Wind Style Rasen-Shuriken…how very thorough," Kakashi murmured.

Tsunade glanced at Kakashi, "The effect is more like a poison than physical trauma. It damages on a cellular level. As attacks go, it's incredibly minute. I believe it shapes the wind chakra into an armada of tiny swords and systematically attacks every cell in the body."

"That's some jutsu," Tenzo commented.

Kakashi looked thoughtful, "Poison indeed. I supposed then, it would be more practical to speak in terms of concentration rather than in number of attacks?"

Tsunade was silent.

After a few minutes, Tenzo broke the silence, "So…how's Naruto?"

Tsunade sighed, "There's our real problem."

"Figured as much," Tenzo muttered while Kakashi merely waited for Tsunade to say more, not allowing his worry to show through.

Tsunade looked him square in the eye, "Kakashi…don't allow Naruto to use the Rasen-Shuriken ever again."

This surprised both Kakashi and Tenzo, but Tenzo was the first to speak, "That bad, huh?"

"I saw those same symptoms in Naruto's right hand," Tsunade stated, her gaze serious. "Not as severe, granted, but the same. If Naruto continues to use the jutsu, then before long…he'll altogether lose his ability to wield chakra…"

Tenzo sighed, "It's a powerful jutsu…it comes with a risk…"

Tsunade nodded, "Once a cell of the body is cut off from its Keirakukei, it's beyond my ability to heal. Even with my medical ninjutsu… Be sure that Naruto understands this fact implicitly."

Kakashi turned so that he could face Naruto, "Naruto…about that new jutsu…"

"Sensei," Naruto said, starting to grin. "I know how I feel…way better than anyone else does!" He was truly grinning now, "Remember, I'm gonna be Hokage! That's how incredible I am! So don't worry!"

Sakura put her hand to her head, feeling a headache coming on, but she smiled at Naruto's statement.

Sai even managed a small smile at Naruto's words.

Kakashi merely remained silent, unsure if Naruto really understood what he had been about to say.

"Thanks for the food!" Naruto called to Mr. Teuchi. He started to head out, "It's on Kakashi-sensei's tab!" He took off at a run, laughing.

Kakashi sighed, pulling out his wallet; I'll let him get away with that just this once…

Back at Orochimaru's lair, Sara had summoned Alpine and Streak who were listening for any sound of Sasuke's voice or an out of the ordinary sound.

Alpine froze suddenly, and Sara, Kenshin, and Ryo were all watching the Great Dane before Alpine started to lead the way towards another ventilation shaft, this one disguised as a rock, although the top, back half of it was missing. They could hear the sound of water trickling.

Sara frowned, "It's just water…" She broke off as she heard an unfamiliar voice.

"I'm free…at last…my regards, Sasuke," the voice said.

Sara signaled for her dogs to hide, and they hid behind separate bushes, the thick branches hiding their white fur. Kenshin, Sara, and Ryo each moved to random hiding spots, each straining to hear what else was going on.

Down below, Sasuke said, looking at the head and torso of a boy that was coming out of the puddle of water, "Suigetsu…you are my first. Come with me."

The boy, his hair a very light grey, almost white, was taking his sweet, old time getting out of the water, "I'm the first? Who else then?"

"Two more," Sasuke answered. "I'm taking Jugo of Northern hideout and Karin of the Southern."

"You serious?" the boy questioned, pulling himself completely out of the puddle.

"Why?" Sasuke inquired.

The boy was now crouched, naked, in front of Sasuke, and he looked up at him his lilac colored eyes, and grinning, revealing shark-like teeth, "Well…I'm not particularly fond of them. Just don't think we'd get along is all."

"You don't need to be friends. Just cooperate," Sasuke explained.

"If that's what you want, I've no objections," Suigetsu said. "Still, Sasuke, I can't believe you'd go for them."

"Just shut up and get dressed. We're going," Sasuke snapped.

Suigetsu laughed, "Oh dead. The way you talk."

Sasuke turned his gaze to glance behind him as Suigetsu put his index finger to Sasuke's head, his thumb in the air, like a gun's trigger, "First, let's clarify our relationship, shall we?" Sasuke remained silent, unfazed by this show of force, "You may have defeated Orochimaru, but that alone doesn't make you my leader. We were all aiming for it. Sooner or later, someone was bound to kill him. You were his favorite. He let you stay by his side while the rest of us slept in cages. You had all the advantage you needed."

Sasuke was still unfazed, "Your point is?"

"Look at us two right now, I have the advantage," Suigetsu explained. Sasuke was still unfazed. Suigetsu moved his hand away from Sasuke's head, "Forget it. Just testing. That was a pretty tight spot I put in, and you didn't even blink. So it wasn't luck, then. That's reassuring. I've heard how strong you are. It was your platoon, wasn't it, that took down my predecessor, Zabuza Momochi?" Sasuke didn't answer him. "Sure, I'll come with you. But before we go and fetch the others…there's a place I want to swing by."

Sara's brain started to work furiously, trying to figure out where Sasuke and his new companion, Suigetsu could possibly detour to, we can assume this new addition is weaponless so where would he want to go to get a weapon? He said Zabuza was his predecessor…got it! She signaled to Kenshin and Ryo that they would be moving out right away.

Back in the Leaf Village, Konohamaru stood waiting outside the Ichiraku Ramen shop, waiting for Naruto to emerge.

Naruto had started to run, since he had just left Kakashi with the bill, when he spotted Konohamaru and his clone. He grinned, "So you can make Shadow Clones now?"

Kakashi, Sai, and Sakura emerged from the shop as well, "What?" Sakura asked. "What's going on?"

Naruto was excited now, "All right. Come show me how you've been training. C'mon!"

Konohamaru made a hand sign, "Okay, Naruto…Here goes!" With a puff of smoke, he and his clone had transformed into two naked girls that looked a lot like Sakura and Ino, "Art of Onna-nokotachi!"

Naruto's eyes practically popped out of his head, "That's your new move?"

Sakura was appalled, while Kakashi and Sai really didn't know what to think.

Konohamaru released the jutsu, not noticing that Sakura was stomping towards him, "What do you think of that, Naruto? You see with TWO girls, it's even…"

Sakura punched him in the chest, forcing Konohamaru to release his clone, "Say no more!" She shouted at Naruto, "Is THIS what you guys do when you get together? Is it?"

Naruto was now embarrassed, "Err…it's a form of diversion, see…and this is a, err, serious project between us two…I mean…competiton…"

Sakura glared down at Konohamaru, who returned her glare, "Well, don't put yourselves out! C'mon! Distract the enemy? The only ones you'll be distracting are yourselves!"

Konohamaru made a hand sign and two naked boys that looked quite a bit like Sasuke and Sai appeared with a puff of smoke.

Sakura's eyes nearly bugged out of her head, "Aaaahh! What's up with that?"

Now it was Naruto and Kakashi's turns to be appalled. Sai was more surprised as he commented, "That's…me…and Sasuke?"

Sakura was now embarrassed, "Oop!"

Naruto punched Konohamaru on the head, "So maybe that IS too much messing around…"

"Y-yeah!" Sakura said, putting on quite a bit of bravado, "Okay, time to lay off the new fantasy jutsu, all right? Why don't you work on something more practical and real than that…"

All of the guys were now giving her weird looks, Kakashi and Konohamaru included. Sakura realized her mistake, "Oh…wait! I didn't mean… N, that's not really, I didn't mean that I…"

Konohamaru grinned and said to himself, "I knew it…!"

Meanwhile, in the Land of Waves, Sasuke glanced up at the bridge, convinced he had seen a flash of white on the top part of the name board of the bridge, he shook his head, the clouds are starting to look like Great Danes… He then focused on the name of the bridge: The Great Naruto Bridge.

Suigetsu asked as he finished taking a drink of water from his canteen, "What's up, Sasuke?" Sasuke remained silent for a second before he snorted. "Sasuke?"

"It's nothing," Sasuke finally said. "C'mon."

Meanwhile, perched behind the name board, Sara and Alpine had pinned Streak, who had poked his head over the sign when he had heard someone approaching the bridge. Poor Streak was bewildered as to what he had done wrong to deserve such treatment.

Kenshin and Ryo followed Suigetsu and Sasuke, staying well hidden as they followed the pair once they reached the other side of the bridge.

Sasuke nodded at a sword that was behind one of two grave markers, "There, Suigetsu."

Suigetsu approached the sword, "Never thought I'd find this here." He gripped the hilt of the blade, "Sorry, Master Zabuza. This is mine now." He yanked the massive blade out of the ground. Suigetsu grunted as he held the blade up, "Pretty heavy… This is the Executioner's Blade, the sword of the Demon Zabuza from the Village of Bloody Mist.

Sasuke questioned, "You sure you're strong enough to handle it?"

"The weapon of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen has been handed down generation to generation. It's the tradition. And…all these years I've trained, I've done it only out of reverence for the seven ninja," Suigetsu answered cryptically. "So long as I have this sword, not even you can touch me…maybe." He started to form a makeshift sling for the sword, "Besides, if you got to have Jugo…this sword will definitely come in handy." Sasuke smirked. "Okay, Sasuke. From here, let's shoot for whichever hideout is closer," Suigetsu put slung the sword's strap over his right shoulder so that it went across his chest diagonally.

Kenshin silently called out to Sara, "Hey! We're going to have to move out…I have no idea which hideout they're heading to though…"

"That's all right," Sara answered, moving towards them as she teleported into the small woods they were hiding in. "We'll follow them somehow…"

Ryo didn't sound optimistic as he watched Sasuke and Suigetsu head towards the ocean, "How are we going t follow them across the water?"

"We'll figure it out," Sara said, grinning as she approached them, sending her two Great Danes back to their kennel back in the Leaf Village.

Ryo had a feeling he wouldn't like whatever plan she had come up with for following Sasuke and Suigetsu.

The Warden of the Southern Hideout

Ryo swam through the water easily, glaring at the sea lion that kept breaching the water every now and then, "I hate you, Sara, I really do! Why did we have to transform into sea creatures?"

"By all means, release your transformation jutsu, let's see how long you can remain undetected on the open sea!" Sara said sarcastically as she came back under with a flourish of her flippers.

Ryo continued to swim, his large, swordfish body cutting through the water with ease.

Something shot forward to his right, a Mako shark, Kenshin, and he could easily hear his thoughts, "If my cat attacks me because I smell like fish, Sara, I blame you!"

The sea lion, Sara, merely grinned comically at them, before swimming to the surface, poking her head out of the water to see if their targets were still in sight, they were, so she took a breath and went back under.

Meanwhile, walking on top of the waves, Suigetsu said to Sasuke, "I have to ask."

"Yeah?" Sasuke murmured.

"Why are you dragging a team together?" Suigetsu asked.

"I have a goal," Sasuke answered. "And a small team will let me reach that goal faster."

"Okay…" Suigetsu said, knowing full well that Sasuke hadn't really answered his question. "So why me?"

"Ever since I met Orochimaru, I've been preparing for this. I always take note of shinobi who catch my eye," Sasuke answered.

Suigetsu smirked, "Well, if that's your game, you could do better than Karin. Unlike me, she's a true believer." His expression became unreadable, "She used me for experiments. She irritates me."

"Sure. There are plenty of other shinobi just as strong yet far easier to handle," Sasuke said. "But she has a special ability…one that no one else possess."

"True, I can't deny that," Suigetsu glanced back, squinting.

Sasuke glanced back as well, "What is it?"

"Nothing. Just a curious sea lion," Suigetsu said, pointing out the sea lion that had poked its head above the water. "I guess it doesn't see two shinobi walking on the water every day," he grinned mischieviously, "Shall I teach it to be more wary?"

"It's just an animal," Sasuke said, watching the sea lion leap into the air to catch a fish that had leapt out of the water, before it dove underwater.

Underwater, "Spit me out now!" Kenshin demanded, since he had transformed into a smaller fish so Sara could appear to be a real sea lion. Sara spat him out, and he transformed back into a Mako shark, "You owe me big time!"

"Right, you can remind me later," Sara answered, slowing down to a slow swim.

"Why are we slowing down?" Ryo inquired, adding quickly, "Not that I'm complaining!"

"They were heading directly towards a small island," Sara answered. "No need to waste energy when they'll be leaving the island again anyway."

On the island, inside a rock fortress, Sasuke and Suigetsu walked down a hall that was lined with cells filled with prisoners. One of them asked the others as Sasuke walked past, "Isn't that Sasuke Uchiha?"

Another wondered, "Why is he here?"

"Wait…Sasuke here alone…without Orochimaru?" Another said. "Maybe it wasn't just a rumor?"

Another exclaimed, "It must be true! He killed Orochimaru! And he's come to set us free!"

"Listen to yourself," yet another scoffed. "Don't be an idiot. Orochimaru can't be defeated."

Sasuke and Suigetsu paid them no attention, only stopping when a girl with medium length, bright red hair, a purple jacket, black shorts, and black leggings blocked their path. "I knew it was you two," she said, her right hand on her hip. "Sasuke. Without a chaperone I see. So it wasn't just a rumor, was it."

"Hey, what am I, a hunk of meat?" Suigetsu muttered.

She asked, "All right, what do you want?"

Suigetsu answered, "Sasuke wants to talk to you. Show us to a room where we can sit down and chat. I'm bushed. Not used to walking so far." Karin merely snorted in response to Suigetsu's statement.

"Karin, join me," Sasuke said. "I need you."

This threw Karin off guard, "You whah? Why on Earth should I listen to you? I'm in charge here!"

Eventually, Sasuke managed to convince her to lead them to a room where they could talk more privately.

"Orochimaru is gone," Sasuke stated.

Karin argued, "I've got responsibilities here! What about the prisoners?"

Sasuke glanced at his first traveling companion, "Suigetsu, go and liberate every prisoner in the compound."

"Wha…!" Karin exclaimed weakly.

Suigetsu chuckled, "You and that commanding tone of voice…" He stood up.

"Don't you dare!" Karin shouted.

"There's no more need for a warden," Sasuke stated. "You don't have to stick around. What do you say?"

Karin glanced at Suigetsu, who was pushing open the door, "I say no thanks! I have no reason to join you!"

Sasuke didn't say anything right away. After a few seconds of silence he said, "Fine. If you're not interested, I'll go find someone else."

Suigetsu left the room, closing the door behind him as he headed towards the prison cells, and he squatted in front of the each cell door to explain to them that Orochimaru really was gone.

One prisoner still asked, even after Suigetsu had explained this, "Sasuke Uchiha did kill Orochimaru?"

"You got it," Suigetsu affirmed.

"Then what happens to us?" The prisoner asked.

Suigetsu grinned, "You go free, of course."

"What?" The shocked cry was taken up by all the prisoners, "You mean it?"

"Sure," Suigetsu reassured them. "You don't see me locked up, do you? I'll open the door. But before I do, I have one favor to ask of all of you."

"Fine by me!" One prisoner said eagerly.

Another agreed, "We'll do whatever you want!"

Suigetsu's grin broadened, "Remember that it's Sasuke who defeated Orochimaru and freed us all. When you're out, I want you to spread the word. Tell everyone you meet, 'A man is now among us who will bring stability and peace.' You got that?" He chuckled as he unlocked the door.

By now, Karin had backed up against the door and locked it, and her tone changed to one filled with sickly, sweetness, "Okay, I'll come. " Sasuke was perplexed by this sudden change in Karin's behavior, while Karin pulled off her glasses and sat on the couch next to Sasuke, "If you really want me to, Sasuke…I will follow you." She was blushing slightly as she blinked at him flirtatiously.

"What are you doing?" Sasuke asked warily, "Are you always this impulsive?"

"No," Karin said, scooting closer to him. "I've put a lot of thought into this. You're right. I'm fed up with guarding this place anyway."

Meanwhile, Suigetsu tried to get back into the room and found the door locked, "Uh-oh…that hell cat locked me out…"

Karin heard the doorknob giggle and decide to advance closer to Sasuke, who said, "Hey, get back."

"Listen…" Karin's voice was dripping with sweetness. "Why don't we do this alone? Just the two of us? Suigetsu won't do anything for you…not really."

Karin turned as she heard two slices of a sword striking wood, seconds before the door collapsed, causing her to quickly scoot away from Sasuke.

Suigetsu walked in, planting his sword into the floor and leaning against it, his left arm grotesquely more muscled than the other, "C'mon, Sasuke. Let's go. I take it Karin is staying here?"

"Actually," Sasuke said. "Looks like she's coming after all."

Karin had her glasses back on her face as she blustered, "Where did you get that idea? I…I just happen to be going the same way…along the same road…urm!" Sasuke was, once again, baffled by her sudden mood swing.

"Oh yeah?" Suigetsu mused. "That works out okay. We can go halfway then."

"Sure. Fine. Halfway," Karin snapped.

Suigetsu allowed his left arm to shrink back to its normal size, "Now…for Jugo."

"Whaat?" Karin shouted. "You're not throwing him in?"

Suigetsu asked, "Does it matter? It's not like you're joining us anyway."

"Well…wait," Karin said, becoming furious. "YOU WANNA PIECE OF ME? C'MON THEN!"

"Let's go," Sasuke said, leading the way out of the room and into the corridor.

Karin paused as she entered the hallway, looking distracted. Sasuke asked, "What is it?"

"There are three chakras still in the general area…none of which belong to any of the prisoners that I have guarded," Karin answered.

Sasuke's gaze became livid as he motioned for Suigetsu and Karin to stay put as he made his way outside the fortress.

His gaze scoured the waves, and he activated his Sharingan, spotting a sea lion that was not one, Damn you, Sara! He activated his curse mark, and quickly wove some signs, Let's see you handle this! He started to form a blade out of the Chidori.

Sara reacted faster then him, though, diving back under the water, releasing her transformation and grabbing the dorsal fins of her surprised comrades, teleporting out of there.

Sasuke glared at the waves, letting his jutsu fizzle out, you got lucky…again… It's not like you to run from a fight though. His glare intensified, you had others with you…you were following my movements… That won't work now that Karin is with us, though, I'm sure you figured that out now. The ex-warden of the Southern Hideout is a sensory ninja…

Meanwhile, Kenshin and Ryo flopped onto the wooden planks of a dock, while Sara stood on unsteady legs, swaying slightly, her shoulders slumped forward in fatigue.

Kenshin and Ryo both released their transformations, and while Ryo was watching Sara with concern, Kenshin was furious with the squad leader, "What the hell is wrong with you? A little warning would have been ni- Sara?" He now noticed that Sara definitely wasn't herself.

"Sara?" Ryo asked, concern in his voice as he stood up.

The young ninja didn't answer as she collapsed onto her knees before hitting the dock and lying motionless.

"Sara!" Kenshin and Ryo shouted, worried about their comrade as they rushed to her side.

Options

Kenshin and Ryo sat around a table along with Tazuna, his daughter, Tsunami, and his grandson, Inari.

"Idiot," Kenshin muttered, casting a glance where Sara was lying on the floor, "Teleporting halfway across an ocean…it's a wonder she didn't kill herself in the effort!"

"Wonder what made her believe that she had no other choice," Ryo cast another glance towards his comrade.

Tazuna said, "Whatever you three were up to, it must have been dangerous." He cast a glance at Sara, "I remember when she was just a ripe, young, inexperienced…"

"All right," Sara croaked from where she lay on the floor, "I think they get it."

"Sara!" They all exclaimed before they rushed into the room.

She sat up stiffly, gritting her teeth as pain coursed through her body.

"Take it easy," Ryo said, forcing her back down. "You used up a lot of chakra."

Kenshin asked, "What were you thinking? Teleporting us all so far!"

"He knew we were there and he was going to finish us off," Sara answered.

"We could have taken him," Kenshin grumbled.

Sara glared at him, "I've told you a thousand times, if not more, that our orders were not to engage!"

Inari asked, "Who are you talking about?"

"Who were you following?" Tsunami questioned.

Sara shot her two teammates a meaningful look, before she answered, "A rogue ninja from our village."

Tazuna inquired, "Why aren't you with your regular squad?"

"I'm a jônin," Sara stated. "This is my own…special…squad."

Inari grinned, "I bet Naruto's a jônin as well!"

"Well…" Sara looked embarrassed, "He's definitely improved, but he's still, technically, a genin."

Tazuna laughed, "Somehow that doesn't surprise me."

Sara looked away, it's not any fault of his…Naruto just hasn't had time to take any exam to advance his rank…if he did, he'd be at my level or above in no time. "I hate to cut this visit short, but we really…"

Ryo cut her off, "We can't go anywhere, not until you've recovered."

"I'm fine," Sara said, sitting up quickly, and then flopping back down onto the mat she was on.

"Yeah, you're fine all right," Kenshin said, sarcastically. "To make matters worse, we have no way of reporting to Lady Hokage since you can't summon any of your canines."

Sara shot Kenshin a dark look, "We'll report to her as soon as possible." Kenshin heard the anger in her tone, and was smart enough to keep quiet.

Tsunami suddenly said, starting to shoo them all out, "Sara's going to need her rest, now out!"

A bewildered Kenshin and Ryo were shepherded out of the room right along with Tazuna and Inari.

Sighing, Sara was left to her own thoughts and how she and her squad could possibly keep tabs on Sasuke even while she was incapacitated. I can't send Kenshin and Ryo to keep tabs on him…for all I know, the newest member of his "squad" is a sensory ninja, and that's how he knew we were there…or I was simply careless, which I'm willing to believe, remaining a sea lion was a risky decision. Another thought struck her, will my Devil's Eyes keep tabs on Sasuke just like they do with Kakashi and Shikamaru? It's worth a try… Activating her Devil's Eyes, Sara closed her eyes, sleep claiming her chakra exhausted body quickly.

In the kitchen, Kenshin and Ryo were talking, while Tazuna and his family listened to them in silence.

"I still say we should have fought him," Kenshin grumbled.

Ryo snapped, tired of hearing the same thing come out of Kenshin's mouth, "No one doubts that you aren't afraid of S…" He glanced at Tazuna and his family, remembering how Sara hadn't used Sasuke's name, "Him. But that's not the point. The point, is that he knew we were there, or at least, he knew Sara was there…how did he know? That's the question."

"Right," Kenshin grudgingly admitted. Ever since Ryo had been on the mission where Enaki had been killed, he'd noticed that Ryo and Sara had seemed, closer, for lack of a better word. He didn't mind though. They were all closer since that incident. "How could he have known that we were there?" Kenshin watched Ryo think, and he couldn't help smiling slightly, Ryo may be the laziest ninja in the village, but he certainly inherited the Morinos' sharp minds…if only he used it more, like my cousin, Shikamaru… He shrugged slightly, and sighed, Ryo will be Ryo…

"Well…" Ryo finally said, after several seconds of silence. "Either her sea lion disguise was seen through or…" He didn't seem willing to say the other option.

"A sensory ninja," Kenshin stated, following his friend's thoughts.

Ryo nodded, "Both are likely, but I'd bet it was a sensory ninja was his newest recruit."

Tazuna interrupted the two shinobi, "Are you ever going to say who you were tailing?"

"That's on a need to know basis," Kenshin stated. Tazuna snorted angrily in response.

Inari grumbled, "Sara wouldn't keep the information from us." Kenshin and Ryo ignored these signs of discontent, moving to an entirely different subject of talk annoying Tazuna and Inari further.

Sara woke up, slightly annoyed, but not really disappointed, it's good to know that Kakashi is doing just fine, but I really didn't need to see just how well he pictures some scenes in those books… She sat up slowly, trying to ignore the way her body protested. She closed her eyes, estimating how much chakra she had after using up most of it up with the teleportation jutsu, I should have enough to summon one, medium sized dog… She bit her thumb and started to weave the signs, a surge of chakra notified her that Phoenix was helping her out, but she didn't break her concentration, Summoning Jutsu! She slapped her hand on the ground, and smoke appeared revealing only the silhouette of a medium dog, that looked a bit out of proportion, with floppy ears. The dog let out an excited bark, before it leapt towards Sara, "No!" She protested as the dog slammed into her, pushing her back onto the mat.

The bark and Sara's protest was enough to bring the others back in. Inari grinned as he saw the adolescent Great Dane pup sitting happily on top of Sara.

"Off!" Sara grunted, shoving at Duchess's chest. Duchess obeyed, moving her black spotted body off of her mistress.

Ryo demanded, "What happened to not using your chakra?"

Duchess took the opportunity to clean Sara's, apparently dirty, face, and Sara had to shove the happy pup away, "If it matters, Phoenix gave me his chakra to use." Thanks, by the way…

Don't mention it, Phoenix muttered crossly, knowing he'd performed a good deed, yet again.

Kenshin asked, "Is this the dog you were talking about? The one that can find our contact no matter where they are at?"

"Yeah," Sara managed to say, pushing Duchess away again. "This is Duchess."

Duchess finally realized that there were other people in the room and automatically went to each one, seeking attention and receiving tentative pats from everyone, except Inari, who she took an instant liking too as he stroked her again and again.

"No offense," Ryo said, feeling a bit uncomfortable in criticizing Sara. "But we were expecting…a more experienced Ninken."

"She'll get the job done," Sara reassured them. "Duchess, come here!" Duchess ignored her, instead flopping onto her side so Inari could rub her tummy.

Ryo decided to save the dog from being yelled at by saying, "Kenshin and I thought of something…" Sara nodded to him, signifying that he should continue. "Our target has probably recruited a sensory ninja, and I think you should include that in the information you send our contact."

Sara nodded, "I'll tell them it's a possibility, but doubtful." She sighed, "Much as I hate to admit it, I believe the fault was mine in my transformation and keeping it the same." Duchess lightened the, suddenly, darkened mood, by letting out a moan of pleasure as Inari rubbed her stomach, causing her to roll onto her back happily, wagging her tail, and grinning, her expression was comical: her front teeth showing and her jowls touching the floor.

Sara grinned as she sat up, "Come here, Duchess." Duchess reluctantly got to her paws and padded up to Sara, giving a mischievous grin as her tail wagged slowly. "Focus, Duchess," Sara said, grabbing the pup's head gently so Duchess would look her in the eyes. "Now, I need you to do something for me…" The puppy's tail started to wag harder. "I need you to deliver some sensitive information…" Sara pulled out a scroll and wrote on it quickly using the Hidden Leaf Village's code as she wrote, tying the scroll to the puppy's headband when she was finished. "Now, Duchess, I need you to find F. T." Duchess cocked her head to the side, perplexed. Sara sighed, "The Fat Toad?" Duchess was still perplexed. "Go find Jiraiya!" With an excited bounce, Duchess shot out of the room and out the door, eager to find the Pervy Sage. Sara muttered something incoherently about Duchess, but no one really heard what it was.

Kenshin asked, "What do you want Ryo and I to do? Try tracking Sa…him again?"

"No," Sara said, shaking her head. "We'll all stay here while I recuperate, and then we'll return to the village." Kenshin opened his mouth to argue, but Sara cut him off, "We've lost his trail by now. Our only option is to stay here and then return to the village…and see what Lady Tsunade wants us to do from there."

Kenshin sighed, unable to argue with her logic, "All right."

"We'll be here a couple days," Ryo stated. "It will take awhile for your chakra to recover to a sufficient level."

"There's not much else we can do," Sara murmured.

The Northern Hideout

At the Southern Hideout, Karin and Suigetsu had joined Sasuke outside, neither commenting on sensing Sasuke's chakra and curse mark earlier. Instead, Suigetsu complained, "Ugh, more walking? I'm at the end of my rope here…"

"Geez. You know we're going to the Northern Hideout. If you can't take a little walk, you're dead the moment we arrive," Karin stated.

Suigetsu said, "Yeah, I know where it is on the map. But I didn't know the place was that dangerous."

"The Northern Hideout isn't your conventional stronghold," Karin said. Sasuke and Suigetsu looked at her, "It's for…well…human experimentation. It's full of all the monsters they produce there."

Meanwhile, within the deepest, darkest confines of the Northern Hideout, an orange haired prisoner sat, a heavy, black, iron ball shackled to his right ankle, muttering to himself, "No…a woman. I prefer a woman. But wait…why not a man? Yeah…yeah, a man will do. No…a woman..gotta be a woman… Nah…a man's better… A man… No…No, a woman… My next victim…will be a man… Yeah…" He glanced up as he heard a scream of pain from outside his cell door, "Hmm…it's begun."

A day later, Suigetsu complained, taking a drink from his canteen, "Hey…you gotta be tired by now. Time for a break." He plopped himself onto a boulder to rest.

"How pathetic are you?" Karin demanded. "The Northern Hideout is still a long way off!"

Suigetsu sighed, "And you've got somewhere else to go. Don't worry about me. Just go on ahead."

This irked Karin, "Well, I just remembered something I had to do at the Northern Hideout! So I decided to go there first!"

"Oh boy," Suigetsu murmured.

Sensing that the pair would be arguing for awhile, Sasuke sat down on a boulder as well, willing to wait them out.

"Suigetsu…Why are you hanging around with Sasuke?" Karin inquired.

"I've got my own reasons," he answered. "You could say it's a mutually advantageous relationship. But hey, I should ask you the same question."

Karin crossed her arms over her chest, "I don't know what you guys are after. But you know what Jugo's like. Do you really hope to recruit him?"

"I know a few things about him," Suigetsu murmured. "I was forced to fight him once." Sasuke was now listening intently, "He used some interesting powers and was pretty strong. But I could never tell what he was thinking, and I never liked him." He took another drink from his canteen, "Rumor has it he came to Orochimaru of his own free will… He's a little bit demented." Sasuke was starting to get bored with the conversation.

"Do you know why he came to Orochimaru?" Karin asked.

Suigetsu shrugged, "Beats me. Didn't strike me as all that bright." Karin stared down at him, remaining silent, "So why did he?"

"To be fixed," Karin said ominously.

Suigetsu was perplexed, "Fixed?"

"Yeah," Karin nodded. "The hideout is like a sanctuary for him."

"What's his problem?" Suigetsu wondered.

"It's like an addiction," Karin continued. "He can't do anything about it on his own." Suigetsu was baffled at what Karin was saying. "He wants to control his urge to slaughter," she stated dramatically. Sasuke was, once again, interested in the conversation.

Suigetsu muttered, "Oh, lovely. A head case with the bloodlust. That's just what we need!"

"No. You don't get it," Karin said, causing Suigetsu to look at her in confusion. "He can usually suppress his bizarre urges. But when they overcome him. He's no longer himself. He turns into a horrible, demonic thing. His looks change along with his personality."

"Huh," Suigetsu mused. "The things some people hide. When I fought him though, he used a different kind of power…"

Karin ignored him, "Orochimaru was fascinated with his power. That's what led him to extract a certain fluid from Jugo's body and purify the enzyme…which allowed other shinobi to achieve the same state. I'm sure you know where I'm going with this." Sasuke and Suigetsu remained silent, although their gazes answered Karin's question. "I'm talking about the Curse Mark! It originated with Jugo."

At the Northern Hideout, a blood bath was occurring as one of the prisoners used his curse mark to slaughter the others, "I'm getting out of here. And whoever stands in my way is dead! So let's see…who's next?"

The next day, after stopping several times the previous day, Suigetsu plopped onto the ground, "Hey…how about we take a break?"

Karin was beyond irritated with him by now since the Northern Hideout was within sight, "SUIGETSU! WE CAN'T KEEP STOPPING ALL THE TIME! COME ON, WE'RE ALMOST THERE!" She stomped back towards him, "IS THAT SWORD TOO HEAVY FOR YOU? WHY DON'T YOU JUST LEAVE IT BEHIND?"

"Hey…" Sasuke said softly, managing to draw the others' attention. Karin and Suigetsu followed his gaze to see a man lying on the ground.

They approached the figure and Karin rolled him over and propped him up, "He's from the Northern Hideout. He's still alive."

"What happened?" Sasuke asked the man.

The man gasped, "A…are you…Sasuke Uchiha? Help…"

"Why?" Suigetsu questioned. "What's going on?"

The man's eyes were glazed with pain as he answered, "It started with…a rumor that Orochimaru was dead. The prisoners…they all went berserk… The way it's going…" He gave one last gasp of pain before he was still.

"Whoops…guess he died," Suigetsu said.

Karin turned as she sensed someone's chakra, at the same moment a prisoner landed several feet in front of them, his curse mark activated. "I know you," he growled.

"What is that thing?" Suigetsu wondered.

Karin was unnerved, "He's in his second state but already transformed!"

Sasuke was unfazed by the prisoner's second state. Moving swiftly, he took down the prisoner with two blows from his Kusanagi blade before the prisoner could even defend himself. The prisoner dropped to the ground as his curse mark receded, dead.

Sasuke sheathed his blade, "The Northern Hideout is right up there. Let's hurry on and meet Jugo."

Suigetsu examined the body of the prisoner, a bit perplexed, "Hm? Who is this guy?" He had assumed that the, now dead, prisoner was Jugo.

Still within his cell, Jugo was still muttering to himself as his own curse mark started to spread, "Okay, it's settled. If the next one through that door is a woman, then I'll kill her."

Meanwhile, in the Land of Waves, Sara was flipping through her branch the Uchiha's journal, pausing as she came to one entry, a grin slowly spreading across her face, it's about time I found someone who wrote down how the jutsu to expand this journal worked! Kenshin interrupted her thoughts, "Are we heading out now or what?"

"Yes," Sara said, shoving the book into her pack, having recovered enough to head back to the village, "We're heading out."

Kenshin was raring to go, "It's a good thing the Land of Waves is fairly close to our village, we'll be there by the afternoon."

"We'll be ahead of the storm at least," Ryo muttered, as he looked at the window, watching the approaching rain clouds. He didn't fancy walking in the rain.

News of the Clash

In the Hidden Leaf Village, a doorbell rang, forcing a groggy Naruto to answer the door as he clutched his cup of instant ramen, he squinted at Sakura.

"Ramen already, Naruto?" Sakura asked incredulously. "You just woke up!"

Naruto half-moaned, "Sakura, it's our day off. Why are you here? And why so early?"

"It's past noon, for your information," Sakura answered testily. "But never mind that…just wash up and change, okay? I'll wait right here."

"Wait…" Naruto said, missing the serious note in Sakura's voice. "Is this a date?"

Sakura lost her self-control on her temper, "FOOL! Lady Tsunade has summoned us!"

In the Hokage's Mansion, Tsunade's irritated voice could be heard, "You're late!" She turned to face Naruto and Sakura, "What took you so long!"

"Now, now, Tsunade…" Jiraiya said, holding up his hands, trying to calm her down.

Sakura stammered, bowing to the Hokage, "P-please forgive us…Naruto was eating lunch for breakfast…"

"Hey! Pervy Sage!" Naruto greeted Jiraiya, completely ignoring Tsunade.

Jiraiya grinned, "Long time no see, Naruto!"

"So…what did you want to discuss?" Sakura asked, cautiously.

Tsunade gazed at them both intently, "We've been seeing some intel floating around multiple channels. We need to talk about it."

"Intel?" Sakura queried.

Naruto asked, "What? What is it?"

Jiraiya's gaze became serious as Tsunade said, "Orochimaru is dead. And it seems Sasuke Uchiha killed him." Naruto and Sakura were rendered, temporarily, speechless.

"Seriously? For real?" Naruto demanded.

Jiraiya nodded, "There's no mistake…I heard it from a trustworthy source…"

They all turned as there was a crash in the hallway outside, along with a faint "woof!" and possibly someone shouting. Jiraiya looked a bit worried, but the sounds soon faded.

"Then that means," Sakura said, tears in her eyes, now that she could focus on the news she had just received.

"Woo hoo!" Naruto shouted. "I knew Orochimaru couldn't break him! Then Sasuke's coming home to the Leaf Village, right?"

Tsunade looked downcast, causing Naruto and Sakura to gaze between her and Jiraiya worriedly.

"Unfortunately," Jiraiya said. "It doesn't seem like it…at least, not according to my source."

Sakura demanded, "Who is this source?"

There was another, excited bark, and then something slammed into the door, forcing it open. A Great Dane puppy shot in happy, Shizune clutching it's headband as she was dragged along shouting, "Yiaaaahhh!"

Tonton came galloping in after the Great Dane and Shizune with an angry "Oink!" and she head butted the Great Dane pup, who merely glanced at Tonton.

"Shizune!" Tsunade shouted, as the puppy circled Jiraiya happily, tail going two-forty. "I thought I told you to take that mutt back to her kennel!"

"She wouldn't go!" Shizune stated. "And have you seen the size of her?"

Sakura smiled, that's one of Sara's dogs, I bet she's the source!

Hmm…who has a Great Dane like that? Naruto wondered.

Why does this dog refuse to leave me alone? Jiraiya thought, reluctantly patting the pup's head.

At the Southern Hideout, Karin whispered, "All the wardens are dead…and the inmates have all broken out."

"At this rate, we cant' tell which one is Jugo…eh, Sasuke," Suigetsu murmured, watching the hoard of inmates in front of them warily.

Sasuke glanced at Karin, "Is Jugo there?"

"Everyone just shut up…" Karin said, making a hand sign, "Give me a sec." She focused on all of the different inmates' chakra. "He's not among them."

Suigetsu grinned, "Then we can do as we please then, eh?"

"Just don't kill them," Sasuke stated.

Suigetsu grabbed his blade, "Right…you really are from the Leaf Village…you're soft."

"Let's go," Sasuke said, ignoring Suigetsu's last comment.

Within the confines of the Southern Hideout, Jugo was still muttering to himself, watching his cell door intently, "Woman…if a woman comes in, I'll kill her…kill…"

It didn't take long for Sasuke and Suigetsu to fight their way through the prisoners outside and inside the compound. Suigetsu sighed as Karin appeared in one of the hallways, holding up a key ring, "I've found the keys." The trio started to walk down the hallway.

Sasuke said as they came to a several, converging hallways, "Which way is it, Karin? Lead on."

"Sasuke! Quit bossing us around!" Karin snapped.

Suigetsu said, "Just chill and figure it out, okay? This is what you're good at, right?"

Karin glared at him, before she focused on Jugo's chakra, "That way."

Suigetsu followed the direction that Karin was pointing, taking the lead. Sasuke made to follow him, when Karin yanked him down a different hallway, "What is it?"

Karin blushed, "It's actually this way. Now come on, Sasuke!"

"Why did you lie?" Sasuke questioned. "Suigetsu went off in the wrong direction."

"I hate Suigetsu!" Karin elaborated. "Always running his mouth! Come on!" She retained a hold on Sasuke's arm.

"Let go…I can walk on my own," Sasuke muttered.

Suigetsu, meanwhile, had no idea that he was on his own, "You know…I didn't realize that the curse mark could transform one's body to such a grotesque degree… Sasuke…does the curse mark change you like that too?" He stopped as no response came from Sasuke. He turned around, "Sasuke?" An empty hallway greeted his gaze. "That wench!" His knuckles cracked as he clenched his fist.

Meanwhile, Karin and Sasuke had reached a reinforced cell door, with two chains across it, while four, thick deadbolts kept the cell locked.

"This is it?" Sasuke asked.

Karin nodded, "Yeah. Jugo's inside." She started to unlock each of the different locks.

Inside the cell, Jugo could hear the two ninja talking, "Someone's here…now…which is it?"

Karin managed to get all of the locks opened, "There! I'm going to open it now." She started to grab the handle of the door, but Sasuke beat her to it.

"Stay back, Karin. I'll go first…" he said as he started to push open the door.

Jugo watched the door open bit by bit, but he still couldn't tell who was opening the door, "No…I take it back…if a man comes in, I'll kill him." The door opened enough for Jugo to see Sasuke's face, "Bingo! You're dead!" Jugo shouted, as he ran forward, the giant, metal ball not hampering him in the slightest.

"Here he comes!" Karin shouted. Sasuke tensed, crouching down, ready to strike.

Walking back to the Hidden Leaf Village, Kenshin kept glancing at Sara, who was stubbornly refusing to rest, and forcing herself to maintain the pace that they were at, She recovered enough of her chakra to travel, but she's pushing herself too much. He had given up saying anything to her, since she refused to listen to him.

Kenshin wasn't the only one who was worried, Ryo watched how stiff her movements were, if I didn't know any better, I'd say her muscles just went through one of their spasms. "I'm bushed," he said, abruptly, leaning against a tree, "I need a break."

Kenshin rolled his eyes, sure, the one that doesn't need a rest, asks for one! He looked at Sara to see how she'd react.

"All right," she said, sighing. "We'll take a brief break." She sat down, and leaned her back against the trunk of a tree, damn spasms… she thought darkly. I had to ask Phoenix to send a surge of his chakra through my body, but it didn't work as well as the times before…probably because my chakra hasn't fully recovered… She glanced at the sky, noting that the storm clouds that had been so close in the Land of Waves, were now farther behind them, the storm's moving slowly… "We'll get going again in a few minutes," she stated, glancing at Ryo, who promptly looked away from her, pretending to be exhausted. He needed a break my ass…!

The Man to Man Talk

Suigetsu gazed around in confusion as he gazed around the room, having back tracked to try and find Sasuke and Karin, "I'm back where I started…guess I should have turned right at that fork."

"Wh-why…why have you come here…?" One of the inmates that he and Sasuke had left alive asked weakly.

"We're here for Jugo," Suigetsu stated, glancing at the inmate. "We want him to join us."

The inmate laughed, "You have no idea…what you're in for…" He groaned in pain, before he continued, missing the look Suigetsu gave him. "If you let someone like him loose in this world…"

"Oh, believe me. I know," Suigetsu agreed. "But I'll make him see reason…by force if necessary…"

The inmate laughed again, "However strong you area…you're no match for him…"

Suigetsu lost his patience with the inmate and kicked him in the side, "You know…if it weren't for Sasuke's orders…you'd be dead now."

The inmate laughed again, "Dead! You're all dead!"

"I think he'll forgive me…" Suigetsu mused, grabbing the hilt of his sword, "Just this once." He swung his blade, silencing the inmate.

Further in the compound, Jugo had slammed Sasuke into the wall. Karin stared in shock at the scene and shouted, "Sasuke!"

Jugo laughed insanely, his own curse mark spreading, "Not just yet!" Without moving his arm away from pinning Sasuke, a piston moved where his elbow should have been, pulling back before slamming forward, pushing Sasuke further into the wall.

Karin sensed a surge of chakra, Sasuke's chakra…!

The dust from the wall being shattered started to dissipate, revealing a hand shaped wing blocking Jugo's punches.

Transformed! Karin stared in awed horror at Sasuke as the hand shaped wing threw Jugo back, and then started to recede.

"What? Another copycat brat?" Jugo questioned. "Quite impressive though, that you can do segmental transformation! You're pretty good at using the curse mark!"

Sasuke stated, "I'm not here to fight you, Jugo. I just want to talk."

Jugo didn't seem to understand Sasuke's words as he charged forward again, "He's strong! Haven't seen a copycat this good since Kimimaro!" He made to punch Sasuke.

There was a "klang" as a blade stopped Jugo's punch, and Suigetsu staggered a bit as he lost his blade, which spun across the floor.

"What?" Jugo exclaimed.

Suigetsu grinned, "Nice technique, Jugo. Different, but solid." Jugo stared at him in confusion. Suigetsu turned to Sasuke, "Leave him to me. And Karin," he turned to face the red head. "I'll get to you later…"

"Great," Karin muttered.

Sasuke glanced at Suigetsu as his curse mark completely faded, "Stop it. We didn't come here to fight. Let me talk to him."

Suigetsu grinned, shaking his head in disbelief at Sasuke's words, "He's not the type that listens to words. The only language he understands is force."

Jugo said, "That's right! You're Suigetsu. I remember you now." His arm started to morph into a blade. Suigetsu dove for his blade and swung it, Jugo meeting the blow with his arm. The two slid away from each other with the recoil from their blows. Suigetsu recovered faster, swinging his blade low to slice Jugo in half. Jugo easily ducked the blow, and was ready to retaliate.

"Stop it! Both of you!" Sasuke said in a commanding tone.

Karin was grinning, no… Let them kill each other…!

Suigetsu and Jugo made to swing at each other again, when they both were stopped mid-blow, Sasuke standing between them, two large snakes hanging out of his sleeves and holding Suigetsu and Jugo in place. His voice was deadly quiet, and his Sharingan gaze, was filled with blood lust, "Do you both…want me to kill you?"

Jugo and Suigetsu both tensed in fear realizing the danger they were both in. Neither moved towards the other as the snakes pulled away from them and slithered back up Sasuke's sleeves.

Suigetsu was sweating, that…was real intent to kill just now…!

Th-that was incredible! Karin thought, blushing, Oh, Sasuke…!

Jugo's curse mark receded, and once it was completely gone, Jugo whipped his head from side to side, taking in the people around him and the hallway before he shot back into his cell with a yell, slamming the door shut behind himself. He shouted from within the cell as he cowered in a corner, "H-hurry up and lock the door!"

"No, Jugo…I came to take you out of here," Sasuke stated. "Come with me."

Suigetsu muttered, "Sasuke really freaked him out."

"No, that's not it," Karin said.

Sasuke listened in surprise to what Jugo said next, "I don't wanna kill any more people! I don't wanna go outside… Please just leave me alone!"

"What…?" Suigetsu said, baffled. "Wow. Schizophrenia…"

Karin stated, "I told you… Jugo gets irrepressible, violent urges and he loses control of himself. But truth is, he'd actually rather not kill."

Their Plans…

Jugo whimpered from within his cell, "I don't know when the urge to kill will strike again! So, please! Just hurry up and lock the door!"

"I don't think Jugo's going to work out, Sasuke," Suigetsu muttered. "We'll constantly have to watch our backs around him."

"Who ARE you people anyway?" Jugo bellowed, wishing they'd leave. "Why won't you leave me alone?"

Sasuke took a step towards the closed door, "Orochimaru's dead. This hideout's been destroyed too. You'll be done for if you stay here."

"Fine by me! I've got enough blood on my hands!" Jugo shouted.

"Don't worry…I'll be your cage. I'll stop you," Sasuke stated, now inches away from the door. Silence greeted this statement for several minutes.

Jugo finally said, just loud enough so they could hear him, "What can you do? The only one who can stop my urges is Kimimaro. If Kimimaro's not here, I can't go outside!"

"Kimimaro?" Suigetsu wondered. "You mean of the Kaguya clan?"

"Yeah…Jugo and Kimimaro were Orochimaru's favorite lab rats. They were both imprisoned together here for live experimentation," Karin stated. "So Kimimaro was probably the one person Jugo trusted within this organization. And Kimimaro was strong too… I heard he was the only one who could stop Jugo's rampages…without harming his fellow, precious, research subject."

Suigetsu was a bit baffled now, "but I thought that guy was…"

"Jugo…" Sasuke didn't let Suigetsu finish his thought, "Kimiaro died for me. He's gone."

Jugo's eyes opened wide with shock, "He died for you…? Then you're…Sasuke Uchiha…?"

"That's right," Sasuke answered.

Jugo remembered the last time he had seen his friend, Kimimaro, and how Kimimaro had explained to him the reason why he was leaving his sickbed, and promising that he'd be back… Jugo now understood why Kimimaro had never returned as he stood up and opened his cell door, taking a good look at Sasuke, so that's what happened, eh, Kimimaro?

Meanwhile, entering the Hidden Leaf, Sara, Kenshin and Ryo had just returned from their mission. Sara turned to her two comrades, "Head back to the Anbu area, I'll make the report to Lady Tsunade." Kenshin and Ryo looked like they wanted to argue…or at least Kenshin did, but a voice calling Sara's name took away the opportunity.

Sara turned as she heard Kakashi call her name, "Sara! Where have you been?"

Sara sighed, no "how are you?" or "I missed you!" No, it's "where have you been?"…

Kakashi smiled under his mask, hearing her sigh, "It's good to see you…were you on a mission…?" He glanced at the puffs of smoke that told him that two ninja had been standing near the gate. He frowned, why did they skedaddle so quickly?

"Yeah, I was on a mission," she answered. "I meant to tell you, but Tsunade sort of told me at the last minute…"

"It doesn't matter. I'm just glad you're back," Kakashi said, embracing her. He could sense her exhaustion, and he wanted to kick himself as he asked, "Are you up for another mission."

Sara, being Sara, answered, ignoring the fact that her chakra had not fully recovered from her, long distance, teleportation, "Yes! What's the mission."

"I don't know yet…we need to head to the Hokage's Mansion though, since I have a hunch on what the mission will be," he grinned under his mask, as he beckoned for Sara to follow him.

Outside the Southern Hideout, Sasuke turned to his three comrades, "Now that I've gathered my dream team…here's my plan…" Suigetsu, Karin, and Jugo waited patiently for him to continue, "My goal is to kill Akatsuki member Itachi Uchiha. I want your help.

"Thought so…" Suigetsu muttered.

"But first, Karin…you said you had some business to take care of…what is it?" Sasuke questioned.

Karin blushed, "R-right…now that I think about it, it's not really that urgent."

"Sheesh, Karin!" Suigetsu said, "Can you just be honest for once? Like it's any big secret you just want to be around Sasuke."

Now Karin was furious, "Th-that's not it at all! I-I don't know who's spreading such scurrilous lies, but, uh…where was I?"

"There, bull's eye!" Suigetsu was grinning, "That's hwy you start stuttering. It's so obvious." His gaze turned fiendish, "I know the truth you know, that long ago you…"

Karin's eyes widened before she slugged Suigetsu, causing his head to explode in a splash of water.

Irritated, Sasuke snapped, "Suigetsu, stop egging Karin on…I told you from the get-go to play nice."

Suigetsu's head started to reform, "All right…sorry Karin." His head was fully reformed now as he cast her the same fiendish look, "but I'm warning you, I'm going to stick smack dab by Sasuke's side. At least until I obtain Samehada. One of the seven Hidden Mist Village blades, the giant sword of Itachi Uchiha's sidekick, Kisame Hoshigaki."

"You're just weapon collecting? Bo-ring…" Karin stated. Suigetsu cast her an irritated look.

His look didn't go unnoticed, "Suigetsu!" Sasuke warned.

"I know…I know," Suigetsu muttered darkly. He changed subjects, "What about you, Jugo? Now that you're out…are you IN?"

Sasuke watched Jugo intently as Jugo answered Suigetsu's question, "Kimimaro said Sasuke was like his reincarnation…and sacrificed himself to protect him… I want to see what kind of shinobi you really are."

"Then it's decided then," Sasuke said.

Meanwhile, in the Hokage's Mansion, Naruto's shout could be heard outside in the hallway, "What do you mean? Why not? Orchimaru's gone, so why wouldn't he come home?"

Outside the door, Sara glanced at the others Kakashi had gathered, nodding at each individual that was there, while Kakashi leaned nonchalantly against the door, waiting for the right moment to enter. He said to her silently, stay out of sight of the door, I don't want Naruto and Sakura to know that you all are here."

"Right," Sara answered, moving out of sight of the doorway like the others had already done.

Inside the office, Jiraiya said, still patting a happy Duchess, "Sasuke's obsessed with vengeance. He's planning to infiltrate the Akatsuki and kill his own brother, Itachi Uchiha."

Naruto practically growled, "That idiot! He's still…?" Then he really did growl, "Grrrr!"

Back near the Southern Hideout Sasuke continued his little speech, "From here on out, we move together. And our cell shall be known as…the Hebi."

In the Hokage's office, "Hey, I know!" Naruto shouted. "Let's form a cell and get out there too! Operation Track Akatsuki is still going on right?"

"Yes…" Tsunade answered warily.

Naruto continued eagerly, "If we hunt down that Akatsuki member first…we'll definitely run into Sasuke eventually!"

Sasuke continued, "As I said, the Hebi has only one goal…"

"In other words, our target is…" Naruto continued.

And the two ninja said at the same time, even though they were miles apart, "Itachi Uchiha!"

Tsunade mused, "Itachi Uchiha, huh… so what to do and how to go about it…?"

"If we can capture even one Akatsuki member…I think we can count on Ibiki-sensei to get information out of them," Sakura stated.

"I've already given each squad standing orders to try to capture Akatsuki members and bring them in but…"

Kakashi took that as his cue to enter, leaning against the doorframe, blocking their view of the hallway, "They're a tight lipped bunch, that's for sure… Judging from the ones we've encountered so far, it's been too risky to take them alive or intact."

"Kakashi-sensei," Sakura said, wondering how long he'd been in the hallway.

"Then what are we supposed to do?" Naruto demanded, turning to face Kakashi.

"Well…" Kakashi suggested, "Keep searching patiently until we run into Itachi?"

Naruto gritted his teeth, not liking that suggestion, but he didn't get a chance to voice his opinion, since Jiraiya said, "Hunt Itachi to catch Sasuke huh… And what will you do when you find the elder Uchiha brother?

Kakashi had already figured that part out, "We'll need more than just one cell that's for sure."

"What do you mean MORE?" Naruto asked.

Sakura explained, "If we take Itachi down, Sasuke will no longer have a motive, so we'll need to capture and keep Itachi alive. And for that, we need a lot more people, as opposed to if we were just eliminating him, right?"

"That is correct," Kakashi agreed. "Though I would argue a two-cell team should be plenty. When the targets to be captured are few in number, as in one or two, the more cells you the involve the greater the odds of being spotted. Not to mention, the chain of command gets more confusing and the chances of success decrease."

Jiraiya now knew that Kakashi had planned everything out, down to his entrance into the office, and he cast Kakashi an irked look, "and since live capture also requires more finesse that assassination you want shinobi who've worked together before to ensure smooth teamwork."

"On that note," Kakashi said innocently, gesturing towards the door. "I've already summoned the ones I believe are best suited for this mission." He turned to face the door, "Come on in everybody."

Everyone turned to face the door as it opened, and Duchess left out a happy woof.

Now the wait for Part 7 begins! And thank you to all who've been reading this story!