Fire: I'm here with Kakashi, since he's saner than Sakura and Naruto at the moment.

Kakashi: Yo!

Fire: We're going after Sasuke today! The only problem is...how are we going to find him?

Kakashi: (mysterious) I have my ways...

Fire: (sweats) How... (has no idea how to finish that sentence)

Kakashi: (grin) ...

Fire: (ignoring Kakashi) Well...on with reviews...

Kakashi: But first, you might be wondering where I was the entire time...

Fire: We know that already!

Kakashi: (continuing anyway) I was on an S-ranked mission.

Fire: Reviews!

Kakashi: The reason that there were no available missions in Konoha is...

Fire: O.o (immediate silence) ...

Kakashi: ...

Fire: Well...?

Kakashi: (whispering) This is for suspense.

Fire: (angry) Just tell us already so I can get to the reviews!

Kakashi: (smiling) ...because of the category of assigned and non-assigned missions.

Fire: (unimpressed) I know that already...

Kakashi: When a client comes with a mission, it is a non-assigned mission. You can easily request that type of mission without worrying about a conflict of ninja rank. D-ranked and C-ranked missions are typically this way.

Fire: On with the reviews! (sighs and mumbles to self) Great...he's stuck in sensei mode.

Kakashi: (talking over Fire) But B-ranked and A-ranked missions are more complicated.

Fire: (turns around and walks out of the room) ...

Kakashi: (doesn't notice it) Sometimes, B-ranked and A-ranked missions are assigned. The reason for this is because there is no client. These missions are for security reasons, like hunter-nin missions when you have to track down a renegade shinobi (like when Sasuke ran off to Orochimaru: A-ranked) or to capture S-ranked criminals (S-ranked).

Fire: (walks stealthily into the room) ...

Kakashi: (doesn't notice since he's too engulfed in explaining) B-ranked assigned missions are typically information gathering missions which are less likely to result in a battle. Typically, assigned missions are not done with your team but with teams specifically put together for that task. A mission with a client that you request (like how I requested that Naruto and I go after Sasuke in the last chapter) would typically fall into this category of B-ranked assigned missions as well. At the time, even though Naruto was requesting missions, Konoha only had missions which are assigned, and Tsuande-sama didn't think that these missions could benefit from N-- O.O AGH!

Fire: (hits Kakashi in the head with a bat) ...

Kakashi: Ugh...

Fire: (placing bat on the floor) Had to find the right bat. Now, on with reviews!

Kakashi: ...

Fire: Okay, there are no reviews. What's wrong with you people! Do you like the story or hate it? Arrgh! I'm just going to write whatever I want regardless of whether it makes sense or not, then!

Kakashi: Ow...

Fire: (cooling down, and composing self with a smile) Anyway, this isn't one of my favourite chapters, but it's a necessary transitional chapter. Bear with me here... :( ...I'm trying my best to make everything run smoothly without it sounding too boring or choppy.

Kakashi: (still wincing) On with the story.

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Disclaimer: The verb "to shunshin" and all conjugations (ie. I shunshin, you shunshin, he/she shunshins...etc, shunshin-ed, shunshin-ing) belong to Fire although the technique "Shunshin no jutsu" still belong to Kishimoto-sensei. All other disclaimers still apply. I want to stop reminding people that I own that verb now so don't try to steal it without my permission. :P

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Chapter 7: Departure

There was a certain anticipation in the early morning air as Naruto stood at the gates, again with his deep green backpack slung over his shoulders as he paced apprehensively. He had wanted to wait at home, but he couldn't bring himself to stay there...so, he came here instead. He wanted to leave as soon as Kakashi came to get him. He knew that his jounin sensei would know where he was. The grey-haired man was always late, but he always knew everything, even without having to be told.

Naruto looked at the tall walls that stretched out from either side of the even taller gates of Konoha, and an overwhelming sadness came over him. He was going to break the promise that he had made to Sasuke. He had said that he would wait for him, yet here he was, about to follow him to Akatsuki. "I really did want to wait for you...Sasuke," he whispered to himself, even though he knew that Sasuke couldn't hear him.

"The sky looks threatening, doesn't it, Naruto?"

The startled blond turned quickly to the pink-haired kunoichi...then to the sky. It certainly was dark, and the rumble of thunder that momentarily made Naruto jump only served to make the girl giggle. "Sa–Sakura-chan! What are you doing here!" Naruto blushed a little at the jumpiness he had displayed only a moment before. He was so anxious about setting off.

"I decided that it might be best if we had a medic-nin with us," Kakashi said logically as he appeared behind Sakura, seemingly on time but if there had been a set meeting time–because there wasn't one in this case–he would surely have been late, with a lame excuse on his silver tongue. Somehow he failed to mention that Sakura had pestered him about it until he relented and allowed her to come with them. "Besides, she is a part of the team."

Naruto narrowed his eyes at the incredibly suspicious sensei. He had a feeling that Kakashi was holding something back from him. "This is a team mission now?" And he had thought that they were only going to provide backup for Sasuke, in case he needed it. Not to mention he was worried about the dark-haired shinobi as well.

"You're not the only one who's worried about him, baka!" Sakura yelled at the boy as she punched him hard on the head. "Now, let's go before it gets too dark."

The blond shinobi nodded his head in agreement as he headed for the gates, a hand on his aching head. His heart pounded so loudly in his ears that he was sure that the sentries who watched him pass by could hear it. He was going. He was really going!

Kakashi looked worriedly at the blond boy as he walked through the gates, flashing his shinobi passport with the Hokage's official seal, signifying Tsunade's permission to leave the hidden village. Usually, Naruto was so much louder, so much more excited when they headed out for missions. With the boy being so unusually quiet, he couldn't help but feel an ominous pressure in the air.

"Can you feel it too, Kakashi-sensei?" Sakura startled him a little as she spoke. He had forgotten that she was there. "The sinister quality in the air?"

Kakashi nodded slightly as they followed after the blond nin. Sakura had felt it too. "Don't tell Naruto. He's worked up enough without needing to know."

"Hey! Kakashi-sensei, which way are we supposed to go?" The blond demanded from a little ahead of them. With all his excitement, his enthusiasm, it wasn't a wonder that he couldn't feel it.

Kakashi smiled at that, his one visible eye under his hitai-ate curved with nostalgic familiarity. It was just like Naruto to walk off without even knowing where he was supposed to go. "Maybe I should take the lead, Naruto." He walked ahead of the blond. "I know where we're supposed to go." He was the one who had found them in the first place. He just hoped that Sasuke hadn't made it there already, even if he had a four day head start, and a half if he included today. At least Akatsuki was well hidden. Even with directions, Kakashi knew that it was possible–although it was a very slim chance–to catch up to Sasuke before he found them.

There was guilt in Sasuke's heart as he left Naruto, but he ripped it out with trembling hands and threw it aside, stomping it flat to make sure that it wouldn't return to him. It was cruel–he knew that–but he couldn't ignore the feeling that had welled up when he heard Kakashi say those words. He had found Itachi. He knew where Itachi was. And all the feelings that he had had for his brother–the constant thoughts of his brother that were omnipresent since his family was slaughtered– flooded his mind, and all he could see was Itachi. Naruto vanished from his mind as soon as he stepped out of that village. There was only Itachi now. As it had been since that day.

So, he was annoyed when he realized that he was lost. After three days' travel, he was lost. He knew that he was close. Taki no Kuni wasn't too far away now–the map clearly depicted Itachi's location as being somewhere near the Taki no Kuni and Hi no Kuni border–but he was lost!

The map that Kakashi had drawn, which depicted the location of Akatsuki–and Itachi–with reference to the location of Konohagakure, was easy enough to follow, but there was hesitation within him. Hesitation had made him lose focus, and he deviated from the map.

"Chikusho!" Sasuke crumpled the map in his angry hands before unfolding the scroll again. He had to retrace his steps if he was going find them. If he was going to find him.

But, he wasn't going to be lost forever. Sasuke wasn't stupid. He was a proper shinobi, and he would think of a way out of this situation...even though he wasn't going to really admit that he was in a bad situation. A shinobi shouldn't be distracted from his task enough to get lost in the first place! All he needed to do was sit down and think. He wasn't Naruto.

'Aahh! Where are we! We're lost!' That was what Naruto would say if he was here.

'Urusai, dobe! We're right here!'

Sasuke smiled a little to himself at the thought as he found himself on the map. He knew that he wouldn't stay lost for long.

The dark-haired shinobi rolled the map carefully before replacing it in his kunai pouch. 'If I remember correctly, that way is North, so I should head this way.' He turned northwest and began his way hurriedly forward. He had already wasted a lot of time wandering around in circles. If he didn't hurry, Itachi might move. Then he would have lost his chance at vengeance. And he couldn't allow that to happen. Not after the long wait he had had to endure.

Sasuke had been walking–since he didn't want to get lost again–for almost another day before he was attacked. He should have known that it wasn't going to be that easy to get to Itachi. Of course, there were other Akatsuki members nearby. And there was one Akatsuki member, aside from Itachi, Sasuke was ready for. It was predictable that he would be here.

"The young Uchiha..." The blue skinned man was staring at Sasuke...but then, he stared at everything through his round eyes.

"..." Just like his brother, he didn't say anything, only charged forward. To get to Itachi, he had to get through this obstacle first.

But, of course the nukenin had no intention of letting Sasuke through. He grabbed his sword immediately, sending the white bandages around Samehada flying in all directions. Sasuke threw his arm up instantly to shield his face as bits of linen fell on him.

And that was what Kisame was waiting for. With his arms over his head, the Uchiha couldn't see or react as he normally did. The shark man swung his sword around to the dark-haired boy.

Chakra...! Samehada's victory cry rang through the air for a moment before Sasuke jumped away and it found itself grazing across a tree. Chikusho!

"You said it!" Kisame balanced his weight enough to launch himself at Sasuke once more.

But by this time, the Uchiha had had enough time to recover. He was no longer blind. 'Katon: goukakyuu no jutsu!' The signature katon technique of the Uchiha clan...but the dark-haired shinobi hadn't expected it to hit. So, he wasn't surprised when he missed.

Kisame appeared right behind the boy and clove him in two. But, the nukenin had no illusions about his enemy either. He knew that the young Uchiha has been studying under Orochimaru. So, he was anything but surprised when he saw the two halves of the shinobi's body fall to the ground as two halves of a log. A kawarimi.

Kisame held up his hand to catch an attempted kick to his head by the Uchiha. For a moment, the blue skinned man had thought that the boy would try another ninjutsu, but he knew that Itachi's little brother wasn't as foolish as that. Sasuke was saving his chakra for the fight later on.

And that was why Kisame had the upper hand...that and another reason.

Kisame took a deep breath as he initiated the jutsu. 'Fire attacks...just like Itachi-san. Well...that's not going to work with me! Suiton: bakusui sho–!'

Sasuke landed two very good kicks to Kisame's gut, cancelling the attack before he could even complete it. Samehada dropped to the ground.

"During the time you initiate a jutsu, you're wide open for attack, baka," Sasuke said to Kisame as he kicked the sword away, slammed his arm into the back of the blue man's head.

Kisame dropped to the ground, but...he wasn't out yet. He reached out his hand and called for his sword...

...and obediently, Samehada flew to the hand of its master.

Sasuke leapt back before Samehada could catch hold of him, but already, he felt chakra draining from his body...even though the sword hadn't hit him. He didn't want to think about what would have happened if that sword had connected.

'Chikusho! I can't keep up like this!' It was then that he realized that he wasn't just in a fight. He was in a fight with a member of Akatsuki. He couldn't afford to hold back. 'I need to finish this...now!'

With renewed determination, Sasuke threw himself at the nukenin. This time, he wasn't going to miss. This time–his chakra concentrated on his right hand, his eyes glowing red–he was going to hit him.

Kisame was ready for the attack, until he saw the boy vanish. 'Shunshin...no jutsu!' He had thought that the boy was a chuunin. Sasuke couldn't...shouldn't know a jounin-level technique like shunshin!

There was a wet shluck and as Kisame fell forward, Sasuke's hand through his chest, he remembered the sharingan. This boy had the sharingan...but he hadn't used it until the very end.

'He was...holding back...'

The blue man landed onto the ground with a sickly thud. Sasuke shook his hand free of his opponent's dark blood before sliding to the ground. He needed rest. He had used up so much chakra fighting this nuisance. He was just going to let his eyes close...for a moment... Itachi wasn't going to go anywhere without his partner.

And it was much longer before Sasuke awoke to continue his journey with replenished chakra and an already rotting blue corpse on the ground.

Naruto felt cold anticipation in his heart as they continued forward. "How much longer, Kakashi-sensei?" He whined again. He was also pestering his sensei to move faster, but he decided to do it separately. He didn't want to annoy the jounin too much and get them all lost. That would be really bad.

"I told you already, Naruto. We're really close now. It shouldn't be much longer." The grey-haired jounin spoke with incredible calm. He was used to dealing with Naruto. And besides, he was running out of chakra with all the times Naruto had forced him to shunshin forward. Sure...they knew where they were going. They could just shunshin there...but there was no way that he could allow himself, or the other members of his team, to do it. They didn't know what was waiting for them when they got there. It could be nothing, but it could also be the entire Akatsuki organization waiting in ambush. "I'll tell you when we get there." They had already cut a lot of time off their journey. There was nothing more that he could do now.

Naruto was silent for another moment before speaking again. "We should hurry up," the blond nin said, the same thing he had said not too long before. Somehow, he felt as if they were too late. He feared that they might come to their destination only to find Sasuke's bloody corpse. And Naruto's heart gripped at the thought, hoping that it wasn't true.

Kakashi was ignoring him though. They were already moving as fast as they could without drawing attention from any Akatsuki scouts who might be in this area. The jounin wanted to avoid confrontation as much as possible. They were supposed to be Sasuke's backup, and they wouldn't be of much use if Akatsuki prepared for their arrival. Then, they'd be even more outnumbered.

"We're her–" Kakashi was about to announce that they've reached their destination, but the sound of a battle up ahead–the sound of a boy's scream–said everything that they needed to know.

Sasuke was already here.

"Sasuke!" Naruto shouted as he ran forward, almost tripping over the corpse of a blue-skinned man. "Sasuke!"

"Naruto!" Sakura shouted as she ran after him.

"The baka!" Kakashi swore under his breath–the only one to remember stealth in their approach–before following after them.

The blond was sure that Sasuke needed him. In the trees, drops of fire rained down and on the ground, red stained the burning leaves. The sky was still brooding overhead as if waiting to taunt him for his efforts. But, Naruto couldn't allow anything to distract him. And he wasn't going to allow anything to distract him. He did what he did best and charged in without thinking...because if he had thought about it, he surely wouldn't have run–even if he was an idiot-nin–toward a possible Akatsuki stronghold where there was only going to be him and Sasuke.

End Chapter 7

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Fire's English tidbits for those who care:

Fragments...what are they? In English, there are independent and dependent clauses. Independent clauses are sentences which can stand on their own, that have a subject, verb and object like "Sasuke killed Itachi." Sasuke is the subject, kill is the verb, and Itachi is the object. However, dependent clauses cannot stand on their own. So if I say "Sasuke killed Itachi and it was easy," then "and it was easy" would be a dependent clause. They have to be attached to an independent clause otherwise it would be a "fragment" which is the term used for saying that you've used a dependent clause separately without attaching it to an independent clause and that is incorrect grammar. However, when writing a story, it is okay to use fragments. It is one of many devices used by authors in order to draw attention to a fact. So if I wrote "Sasuke killed Itachi and it was easy" and "Sasuke killed Itachi. And it was easy," both these sentences would have different meaning. The first sentence is easily dismissed by readers and the fact that it was easy to kill Itachi wouldn't have much weight, but the second sentence draws more attention to the fragment. The fact that it was an easy task has significance. Fragments usually begin with prepositions (ie. in, about, for, after...etc) or conjunctions (ie. and, if, but, because…etc) so keep an eye out for them and use them only when you want to use them and not by accident. If you use them too much, it will take away from its effect.

Fire's babbling:

Fire: ... (staring) When did you come back?

Sasuke: (raising an eyebrow at Fire) What do you mean? I just went to get some popcorn. This is getting interesting.

Naruto: (sniff) Sasuke! (runs up to Sasuke and hugs him tightly)

Sasuke: (frowning) ...

Fire: Staying?

Sasuke: (looks down at Naruto who was hugging him tightly) Maybe not...

Fire: (turning back to the audience) Well...that was an interesting chapter, ne?

Kisame: (yelling) One chapter! One lousy chapter! And I get killed! Who wrote this crap!

Sasuke: I'm co-writing this...so be glad that you even had one chapter.

Kisame: But I'm already rotting!

Sasuke: (annoyed) Corpses are supposed to disintegrate the most during their first twenty-four hours!

Fire: Aren't you supposed to be dead?

Kisame: (sneaking away) Uh...yeah...dead...

Itachi: (walks after Kisame) ...

Sasuke: Itachi! (throws Naruto to the side and runs after Itachi)

Naruto: Sasuke! No! (crumples to the ground again and sobs silently)

Fire: Well...tune in next chapter to find out what that scream was about. It certainly was Sasuke's voice, but are they too late?

Kakashi: (smiling) I can always shunshin there...

Fire: (sighing) What if there is more than one Akatsuki member there...?

Kakashi: (thoughtful) Oh...yeah...

Fire: A horrific scream has cut through the air, and Naruto runs ahead of the group to Sasuke. I'm trying not to do cliff-hangers but at least a chapter or two in a book will have cliff-hangers, so don't hate me. Review and let me know what you think. Like the cliff-hangers? Hate them? Are the characters still in character or are they out of character by now? I need feedback! (emotional, mental and creative breakdown: slides to the floor at Naruto's side)

Kakashi: (patting Fire on the back) Why am I stuck with these two...?

Sakura: (walks nonchalantly up to the group) Tune in next chapter. (kneels at Naruto's side and tries to cheer him up)

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