Disclaimer- I don't own Naruto or the song.

Author's Note- Woot! 70 reviews! Let's shoot for a hundred, people! Haha just kidding. But that would make me really, really happy. Anyways, for those who have read my other stories, I'll get to them some time lol. For some reason I'm just inspired to work on this one more. Oh, and don't forget to take me poll at the bottom of the page!

Chapter Three

Pale fingers swiftly laced up the ebony boots she wore as the owner grumbled under her breath. Sakura then pulled on a pair of worn yet sturdy gloves, flexing her fingers in the process. She continued to grumble as she slapped on her ANBU mask and hurriedly brushed out the door, ignoring the person who stood next to it. Ino sweat dropped and followed her friend out of the locker room.

Three whole weeks had passed since her little incident with Takara and Miyu, and from then on Sakura and Ino had been purposely avoiding Sasuke and Shikamaru. Originally they had thought about talking to Tsunade about postponing their mission so they could attend the wedding, but now the situation was different. Tsunade had offered to give them a different mission so they could go to the wedding- but that proposition was met with a mountain of refusal. Hell, the girls would even slow walk during the whole mission if it meant missing the wedding. So what if it was rude? Those girls weren't exactly nice to them either.

Ino followed Sakura through the hall and listened to the strawberry haired kunoichi's endless grumbling. She didn't say anything, though. Her mind was drowning in thought.

Flashback

Three weeks ago at the celebration at Ichiraku…

Ino looked at herself in the worn mirror, splashing her heated cheeks with a handful of cold water. She sighed and grabbed a few paper towels to wring off any excess water. She had totally embarrassed herself back there and wasn't exactly ready or willing to face the crowd just yet. Maybe she just needed a little air… As soon as the Yamanaka girl decided she looked presentable, she straightened up and headed outside.

Then scent of a cold nighttime atmosphere graciously invaded her senses as Ino sucked in a deep breath of the delicious air. Ichiraku was stuffy and warm, but out here it was cool and open.

"Now this is more like it," she smiled. Icy blue eyes did a quick scan of the area and noticed a familiar pineapple-shaped shadow leaning on the doorframe. "… Shikamaru?"

He merely nodded in response.

Ino sighed at him. "Well there's no clouds out… are you stargazing?"

He smiled at her joke. "I guess."

She walked over and took a spot next to him. "So… why aren't you inside? The celebration is in honor of you after all."

"I don't know. It's too troublesome."

Ino rolled his eyes. She thought about retorting to his trademark comment with a "You're troublesome" of her own, but quickly squashed the thought. Instead, she opted for a different topic. "How did you meet Miyu?"

This time, Shikamaru paused and scratched his head. "Sasuke and I were passing through a village and we decided to take a break and split off. I went to cloud gaze by the nearby stream and Miyu was there. We talked and-"

"You found you had a lot in common," Ino finished for him.

"No," he corrected. "I found out she was an interesting person. She acts like a child, yet inside she has some deep, philosophical thoughts. We had some pretty good conversations."

Ino frowned and looked away. Sasuke and Shikamaru had known these girls for what, one month? And here they were, already engaged and what not. Ino had known Shikamaru for practically half her whole life- and they were best friends. Isn't there an old proverb that said "Friendship is the first step to love"? She sighed.

"Oh well. What's done is done."

"What was that?" Shikamaru cracked an eye open at her.

Oops. She said that out loud. "Nothing! Hehe…"

Ino exhaled deeply and glanced about. For a while she watched a fly buzz around, but that was no fun. She decided to break the ice. "How did Sasuke meet Takara?"

"…"

Ino ignored his silence. She was used to him being quiet and continued to rant on. "I mean I seriously thought that Sakura would be the woman for him."

"…"

"He's known Takara for what, a month? He's always so serious about choosing only the most select kunoichi to help restore his clan, and then he comes back with this chuunin who'd rather paint her nails than go on missions."

"…"

Ino noticed that Shikamaru became more uncomfortable by the minute. "Sakura loved him with all her heart and even held out a bit of hope for him. I mean this is just doesn't connect."

Finally, Shikamaru spoke. "Ino… Sasuke still loves Sakura."

She scoffed at him. "Pbfft, yeah right. When did he start? Because I really didn't notice it."

"…"

"Don't try to prove me wrong, Shikamaru," her face softened at him, "It's okay. We're not upset over the weddings or anything. We're not going to hold grudges-"

He suddenly cut her off. "Takara's pregnant."

Clear blue eyes widened. "W-Wha-?"

"Sasuke still loves Sakura. And Takara's pregnant." He scratched his head and felt a bit tense. He really wasn't supposed to tell anybody. "This is so troublesome."

"Go on," Ino ushered.

"See, Sasuke met Takara when she was being attacked by a few thugs. He saved her but wound up getting cut and she insisted on taking him back to her place to be healed. While he was there she… poured a heavy aphrodisiac into his tea. She started to seduce him, and since he was under influence by the drug… they engaged in intercourse."

Ino gasped and her hands flew up to her mouth. She gaped and looked horrified. "And… she wound up pregnant?"

The obsidian haired male nodded. "He was forced to marry her then. If he didn't she could always come find him when the child was born and reveal the details about their little 'romp'. He decided to accept it and pretend that he loves Takara. Think about it- What would Sakura think of him then?"

"I understand," Ino looked downcast. "That's so sad…But it's not entirely his fault. Takara's the one who drugged him and then seduced him."

"Still, he has an illegitimate child. Though Sakura might still accept him, Konoha would look down on him."

"Poor things…"

"Don't tell Sakura, though."

"Why not?"

"Sasuke doesn't want her to know, but he still loves her."

"Aa," Ino sighed. "Well, I'd better get back inside. She's probably worried sick about me right now."

End Flashback

Ino bit her lip. Since Sakura's little outburst, the Haruno girl had eluded any mention of the boys or their wicked fiancés. Secretly, Ino knew that inside she was simply dying to just let it all out and rant on and on about how unfair life was, a trusty bucket of ice cream at her side. The secret about Takara and Sasuke was killing her, and she just wanted to stand on top of a building and broadcast it to all of Konoha. Dammit, Shikamaru picked the wrong girl to tell a secret to!

They caught sight of a male up ahead, clad in a jounin outfit and checking his watch.

"Hey," Sakura shouted, "Are you Keiji?"

He turned his head toward them. "Yeah, are you Sakura and Ino?" Sakura noticed that he had dark turquoise hair that resembled the color of the great ocean depths. Part of it fell in front of his face, partly covering his right eye. This Keiji was a fairly handsome boy… why hadn't they noticed him before?

Keiji too couldn't help but let his eyes linger on both the girls. 'Man,' he thought, 'how lucky can a guy get? The two prettiest kunoichi in Konoha on his team!'

"Well, is everybody set?" Sakura looked around. Keiji nodded but Ino seemed lost in her own little world. Pink brows furrowed at her. Lately the blonde had been acting strangely… "Ino?"

"Huh?" she looked up in confusion. "Oh, uh yeah I'm ready."

"Are you feeling okay?" Sakura looked concerned.

"Yeah, I'm fine."

"Alright," the medic nin still looked unsure, "Well let's go then."

About an hour into the journey, Ino perked up. "How long is it going to take to get there?"

"Well," Keiji said as he thumbed through a book, "If we continue at a regular pace it should take about 2 to 3 days."

"…Is there a chance we can slow walk?" both girls smiled innocently.

Keiji yawned loudly and stretched his arms over his head. It was now nightfall and they had decided to camp out. He threw his empty plate into a pile next to his pack, opting to wash it later. "Well, I'm going to crash now. Goodnight."

Sakura and Ino nodded. After a session of chatting by the fire, Sakura extinguished it and both girls climbed into their respective tents.

It was probably about 2am when a familiar strawberry haired kunoichi climbed out of her tent. She sighed and stood up, inhaling the crisp forest air. She couldn't sleep. Lately, a ton of stress had begun to build up inside of her, and ever since her little outburst she just felt more confused. Sakura shook her head and decided to head to the nearby river and just relax.

Unbeknownst to her, another kunoichi with blonde hair poked her head out from her tent. 'Where is she going?' Ino thought. She decided to follow Sakura out of curiosity.

Sakura had walked to a small clearing where she found a silent river, flowing idyllic and quietly. The moon cast a wavy reflection in the water, letting its pale, silver streams of light illuminate every thing and glimmer off the surface of the stream. Sakura padded over to the shore of the water and removed her sandals and dipped it in the bubbling river. She relished the refreshing feel as it soaked her aching feet.

She exhaled deeply and let her viridian eyes scan the parameters. A few birds flew about, running their late night errands. Other than that everything seemed so still, and so quiet. The atmosphere was so peaceful yet so depressive in its own ways. The trees seemed to droop and wilt slightly, the night only adding to the effect. It reminded her so much of a beautiful yet sad song she had heard long ago. Slowly, Sakura let her lips open and the lyrics of the song sing from them.

Ino closed her eyes as she listened from behind a tree. She knew Sakura had a beautiful voice, courtesy of a few drunken karaoke nights, and everyone loved listening to her sing. The Yamanaka girl let the soft melody travel to her ears. She swayed her hips in response, imagining the slow tune in her head.

Sakura put more emotion in her words, giving them a greater effect. Her voice gained more confidence and she sang more beautifully. If she wasn't already a ninja she could have become a singer. Ino let her body glide gracefully with the lyrics like a ballerina. Every part of her body slid elegantly from one pirouette to the next. Sakura knew Ino was nearby- she could sense her chakra. But she didn't mind.

Two shadows stealthily crept through the thickets and stopped slightly when they heard a voice, undoubtedly female, singing divinely. The figures sported midnight colored cloaks with ruby clouds sewn on. They were members of an elite gang called the Akatsuki.

Itachi stopped and turned to listen to the voice. It sounded magnificent and he was intrigued by it.

The other figure sported odd, blue skin and beady, ebony eyes. He seemed more shark-like than human. "Where's that music coming from?"

The elder Uchiha followed the source, Kisame behind him, and found two girls. They quickly hid their chakra. One sat by the river bed, singing a sad yet lovely song, while the other sauntered nimbly to the music.

"Well," Kisame smirked, "What have we here?" His eyes were glued onto the blonde one, entranced by the way her body moved so artistically.

Itachi on the other hand, was more focused on the singer. Her tresses were an odd, rose color. He believed he had seen her once before when he went to pay his 'dear' little brother a visit. As he listened to her sing, he suddenly felt more relaxed than he did in a long while.

Through her words, Sakura started to release some pent up stress along with her raging emotions. Ino's swayed with more meaning also, dancing so perfectly she could have rivaled an advanced ballerina.

Itachi and Kisame watched from the treetops. The Sharingan holder closed his eyes and tilted his eyes back. He didn't know why, but he felt at peace and relaxed, like some part of him had been filled. The girl's singing calmed him. Kisame was hypnotized by Ino. He wanted her for his own, to entertain him with her dancing. A sudden feeling of want overcame him.

Sakura closed the song and hummed the ending melody of it. Ino wrapped her dance up and gave one last twirl before bowing elegantly. Itachi opened his eyes and Kisame rose.

"Sakura? Ino?" a voice called. The Akatsuki members saw a boy with dark, sea colored hair stroll towards the river.

"Keiji!" Sakura and Ino were startled.

"Where are you guys?"

Kisame and Itachi took the moment as a signal for them to leave. They quietly slipped back into the shadows and continued to leap toward their destination.

"Do you think we'll meet those girls again?" Kisame asked.

"Hn." Itachi answered.

The shark man scoffed at his answer. "Whatever."

As Sakura Ino headed back towards the camp, the girls couldn't help but shake the feeling that something had been "watching" them during their little musical escapade. It sent shivers raking down their spines just thinking about it. Was there somebody there?

There used to be song lyrics that went with this story but it turns out doesn't let you put song lyrics in stories anymore. How cruel. Well, if any of you are interested the song Sakura sang was called "Missing" by Evanescence. Ja, well, review now!