Authors Notes 1) I don't own Naruto or its characters.

2) Thank you to my friend Alex for his help.

3) Constructive criticism is welcomed, as are compliments.

4) The characters are 16 in the first chapter of the story. I have not seen if Sasuke's defection to Sound was successful or not. For the purposes of this story, I am assuming that it was.

I AM VERY SORRY ABOUT THE DELAY. I HAVE HAD SOME PERSONAL PROBLEMS, WHICH HAVE NOW BEEN SOLVED.

P.S. FOR THOSE WHO NOTICE THE INCREASE IN GRAMMER MISTAKES, MY EDITOR IS CURRENTLY UNAVAILABLE FOR A VERY LONG TIME. ONCE AGAIN, SORRY.

O-O-O

Yamanaka Inoshi leaned against the wall, doing his best not to appear too nervous. It wasn't just that he had been summoned personally to see the Hokage; while that would normally put him on edge, today it paled next to the unease he felt due to his present company. He spared a glance to the occupied chair at the other end of the room. Morino Ibiki sat with his elbows resting on his knees. His hands were held together in front of his mouth as he looked straight forwards. Inoshi managed to suppress a shudder. Ibiki always put him at unease. His scars, combined with his personality, and that impassive stare, never failed to bother the mindwalker. Not for the first time, Inoshi found himself wishing he had been born into a different clan. His clan jutsu proved themselves very handy to the interrogation branch of the Konoha ANBU. He was often called upon to, mindwalk, was the commonly used term, a prisoners brain, searching for extra shreds of information the interrogators had been unable to extract. Usually, he did not need to walk through the memories of what Ibiki, along with the other interrogators, would do to a prisoner, but once in a while it was necessary. What he had seen, only furthered his dislike of, and discomfort around, the other man. He wished the third jounin would get here, so that they could meet with the Hokage, and he could get away from Ibiki. Of course, considering there was still ten minutes before they were supposed to speak with her, he suspected that it would be at least another two hours before the groups last member arrived.

"Yo." At the sound of the voice, the already nervous Inoshi nearly had a heart attack. The man had not spoken particularly loudly, nor attempted to startle him. Still, one did not ever expect Hatake Kakashi to show up for a meeting on time. Inoshi checked the clock on the wall; one did not ever expect Hatake Kakashi to show up for a meeting seven minutes early. That, if nothing else, spoke volumes of how important this meeting was. The silver haired jounin elected to stand against the wall also, although he seemed to be brave, or perhaps apathetic enough, not to be unnerved by the presence of Morino Ibiki.

One of the ANBU guards opened the door to Tsunade's office, motioning the group in. They found her reading a report, frowning at it. Standing straight, they formed a line in front of her desk. "Hokage-sama."

"Excellent. You're all here on time. Sit down, and we can begin." Gathering all of her papers, Tsunade began dumping them into various desk drawers. She waited for the three men to seat themselves, before she continued. "Now then, we must decide what we are to do. Kakashi, I presume you know Inoshi and Ibiki's thoughts on the matter at hand?"

"I do, Hokage-sama. I have reviewed their reports, at your orders."

"Very good. So then, tell me Kakashi, what are your thoughts on the situation with the prisoner Uchiha Sasuke?"

"Hokage-sama." Kakashi paused for a moment, deciding how best wanted to phrase his answer. "I do not believe that I should offer an opinion in this matter. Both Inoshi and Ibiki are excellent at information extraction, and have spent a great deal of time examining Sasuke since his return last year. I on the other hand, am neither trained in such methods, and have only met with Sasuke twice. I have gained no insight on the way Sasuke now thinks, and my time as his teacher indicates that I did not properly understand him when he was assigned to me as my student."

"Be that as it may Hatake, I request your opinion of the situation."

Kakashi sighed. He settled back into his chair, staring at the ceiling with his uncovered eye. Finally, he straightened himself out, and gave his answer. "Hokage-sama, I am of the opinion that Uchiha Sasuke would make an excellent addition to our ranks if he were freed and allowed to become a ninja once more. That being said, I urge strong caution in this matter. We have seen before, that he is willing to abandon everyone who cares for him, in his pursuit towards his own goals. No matter what my two colleagues here report, I believe that, even if we release him, he should be kept under close guard, and viewed with the utmost suspicion."

Tsunade nodded as the silver-haired jounin finished his report. "Thank you Kakashi, I shall bear that in mind. Now then; are the two of you satisfied with your reports?"

Both Ibiki and Inoshi nodded an affirmative at the Hokage's question. "Excellent. Then I take it you will both be able to explain your positions to me. Ibiki?"

Morino Ibiki nodded. His brows furrowed together as he tried to decide how he wished to phrase his answer. "Hokage-sama, it is pointless to dance around what some would consider unpleasant. My men and I generally obtain our results through the application of pain, both physical and psychological. In this case, it would have proven extremely difficult to extract anything from our prisoner. Uchiha Sasuke is an incredibly powerful shinobi, which means he is able to withstand most physical tortures. As well, he has one of the most tragic lives we have ever heard of. The psychological damage inflicted upon him over the years is extreme. Most of it obviously, was caused by Itachi, although the acceptance of Orochimaru's cursed seal as also taken its toll. As well, innumerable smaller factors have also twisted his fragile psyche. Because of this, psychological interrogation techniques are also quite useless against him."

"Wait a second." Tsunade cut Ibiki off, confusion in her voice. "Doesn't his past leave him more vulnerable to psychological techniques?"

"It does, but not in any way that will help us. Successfully utilizing psychological interrogation techniques requires breaking a person's mind, so to speak. Sasuke already has plenty of emotional trauma; but to function normally, he has to repress it. Successfully breaking his will destroys his ability to repress this trauma, and it all comes flowing back to him. Unable to deal with everything, his brain pretty much shuts down, making it impossible to get any information out of him."

Tsunade glared at the head of the ANBU interrogation squad. Picking up his report, she tossed it into his lap. "Then how the hell did we get all of this information from him? The strength of the Sound Village! Information on Orochimaru's latest body! How he ended up back here in Konoha! What, did he just tell you all of this?"

All three jounin winced at the volume of the Hokage's voice. Ibiki steeled himself, with a little luck she wouldn't start screaming at him. "Pretty much."

"Pretty much! And we're just going to believe the word of a traitor who just one day happens to show up back in the village?"

"Inoshi, a little help here."

Inoshi gulped as Tsunade's head snapped into position to glare at him. Help? Help nothing. Ibiki was doing a fine job of drawing the Hokage's wrath. Why draw her attention to himself. Drawing a breath to steady himself, Inoshi plunged into the conversation. "Hokage-sama, at the request of Ibiki-san I have spent a great deal of time inside the mind of Uchiha Sasuke. It is my professional belief that he can be trusted."

"And why is that Inoshi?" Tsunade's voice had lost the anger and sarcasm that it had held a moment ago. It was now replaced with curiosity. "Why should we trust a ninja who has abandoned the village? Who has in fact, killed ninja of our village?"

"It is in my report Hokage-sama."

O-O-O

Sasuke sat in the corner of the inn, slowly picking at his meal. Despite the fact that it was mid-day, and small in was near full, he sat alone. His scowl, which had grown fiercer over the years, dissuaded any from approaching him. No one felt like approaching the young man; he appeared very angry, and very dangerous

Both appearances were true in this case. Time was running out, a fact which greatly displeased the Uchiha. Orochimaru had granted him a year in which he was free of any obligations to the Sound village. A year to hunt his brother. A year that was almost over. Sasuke held no illusions about his future. Orochimaru had chosen a different host, allowing Sasuke to remain free; but ultimately, the snake sannin would want his body. Normally, Sasuke paid no thought to this. All that mattered was finding his brother, and tearing his heart out. After that, he would have to decide what to do. But until then, Itachi was all that mattered.

"Good afternoon. Is this seat taken?" Without waiting for an answer to his question, the asker seated himself across from Sasuke at the table. The Uchiha snapped his head up, a glare plastered across his face, planning on sending the fool scurrying away. The plan died as soon as he set eyes upon the man now occupying the table with him.

He was dressed in a traveler's cloak of sorts. It was larger than was normal. It completely covered the man, so that no part of him was visible from beneath its green fabric. Despite the fact that the material did not appear water resistant, it resembled nothing more than an oversized raincoat. Somewhat more alarming was the fact that he was wearing a plain white mask; a trait that seemed to scream ninja. And generally, there was only one type of ninja that wore masks.

"Who the hell are you?" As he asked the question, his hand slid down towards his kunai. Everything about this guy pointed to a hunter-nin, and Sasuke had no intention of letting the man get the drop on him.

"Who am I?" The man gave a small chuckle at the question. "I believe you mean, am I a threat to you. Am I correct?"

The attempt at humour did nothing to lighten the Uchiha's mood. He continued to glare at the person who had intruded on his solitude. Undeterred, his companion pressed on.

"No need to worry of course. I'm no threat at all. I merely saw someone sitting in the corner and thought to myself; 'now that man looks like he doesn't have a friend in the world. Maybe I should go and cheer him up.' And so, here I am."

Sasuke brought his hand above the table, displaying the kunai clenched in it. "You're either a hunter-nin, or an idiot. If you want to fight, go ahead; you wouldn't have approached me if you didn't have me surrounded. Otherwise, go away."

"Oh come on now;" the masked man's voice had taken on a bit of a whine. Other patrons had begun to notice the drama playing out, and were backing away. "I only wanted to talk to you." Despite the seriousness of the situation, Sasuke would swear the man was grinning beneath his mask.

"Go to Hell."

"Fine then." Pushing his chair back, the man stood, and strode towards the door. Sasuke's eyes followed him the entire way. Pausing at the door, the man looked back, tossing out a final sentence before leaving the inn. "And here I had just wanted to talk about your family, Sasuke."

By the time the words had registered in Sasuke's head, the man was gone. Leaping out of his seat, the Uchiha was off after this mystery ninja. Despite having only a few seconds lead, the green cloaked stranger was already out of site. Moving fast enough to appear a mere blur, Sasuke was after him. The man was leaving an obvious trail. The speed he clearly possessed spoke highly of his skill. Despite this, there was no attempt to cover his tracks. There could be only one conclusion as to why such an adept ninja would leave such an obvious trail. Sasuke was being led. In the back of his head, he realized this, his brain warning him of the obvious danger. The danger was irrelevant however. For far too long, Sasuke had survived only for vengeance. Rational thought was now subjugated in his mind by the all consuming desire for revenge. The running form appeared in front of him now. He had caught up. In actuality, his prey had slowed down to allow the Uchiha to overtake him. Sasuke was too far gone however to notice. "Itachi!"

Alerted by Sasuke's scream, his opponent sidestepped. "No no, you have it all wrong. I'm not your brother. I'm not even from your village." Several dodges and backflips were needed to avoid Sasuke's next attacks. "Hell, I'm not a friend of your brother even." As Sasuke lunged, the man again stepped to the side, shoving him forwards. As Sasuke fought to keep his balance, the man continued. "You'll notice I'm only defending. I haven't even tried to fight you."

Dimly, the words registered in Sasuke's brain. Straightening himself, he faced the masked man down. "Very well. You said you wanted to discuss my family. What was it you wanted to say then?"

"Nothing much. Just that I know exactly where your brother is."

Sasuke's eyes narrowed, the pupils changing to hold three crescent wheels. Whoever this was, he was clearly trying to anger Sasuke; and it was working. The Uchiha seethed as he spoke, his anger clearly detectable in his voice. "Alright then. What is it that you want from me in exchange for the information? And while we're at it, why should I not kill you right now?"

Beneath his mask, the man smirked. Sasuke was cocky as ever. It was clearly time to teach his old rival a lesson. "Well let's see. Firstly, there is nothing you can hope to give me in exchange for telling you Itachi's whereabouts. And secondly, you shouldn't attempt to kill me for one very good reason. You're too weak. See?"

As the question was asked, the man seemed to vanish. Before Sasuke could even question his whereabouts, he was doubled over by a fist slamming into his gut. Falling to all four limbs, he coughed, trying to force air back into his lungs. His mind screamed at him to get back to his feet. His body would not obey however; the ninja standing above him held him completely in his mercy.

The kick landed solidly against Sasuke's ribs. He spun through the air like a top, hitting the ground with a thud. Before he had even stopped rolling, his body was jerked into the air. Holding Sasuke by his collar, the masked ninja shook him so hard that the Uchiha's neck nearly snapped. "you think to threaten me? You could never dream of defeating me. You could never hope to fight Itachi; do you understand? You are nothing!"

Sasuke's hand lashed out, his fist catching his opponent's temple. Dazed, the man released his hold over Sasuke, allowing him to drop back to the ground. He quickly followed through with a dazzling taijutsu offensive, landing kicks and punches as fast as he could. His sharingan eyes spun, guiding his strikes. His ribs felt like they were on fire, and the pain in his left lung was almost enough to shake his vision. Blood trickled out of his mouth, but nothing would stop him. Finally, the cloaked ninja managed to catch one of the incoming punches. Undaunted, Sasuke used his other hand to grab the offending limb around the wrist. Unexpectedly, he pulled the arm forwards! Surprised by this tactic, his opponent stumbled, off balance, towards him. Sasuke twisted his entire body, and pulled. The added momentum caused the man he was fighting to continue forwards, past him. As he did so, Sasuke spun his body full circle, delivering the most powerful kick he could muster to the back of his opponents head. The man flew forwards; even farther than he had sent Sasuke. It was over ten feet before he landed. A normal opponent would have been out of the fight right there, unconscious at the very least. But already, he was climbing back to his feet, recognizing the significance of the chirping sound behind him.

Naruto spun, facing down Sasuke, who was coming at him with a chidori. Hatred seething through him, Naruto almost created a rasengan. Fighting down the urge, he struggled to keep control of his hatred and bloodlust. No fast death for this one. Naruto had a much better plan in store for him.

Sasuke's sharingan saved him from dying to his own attack. With what seemed like no time left, his target slid to the side.It had happened too fast for Sasuke to react, but his eyes had at least forewarned him of what was to come. The man sent a punch at the inside of Sasuke's extended arm, catching it on the joint of the elbow, and causing it to fold closed. Even as the punch connected, Sasuke dispelled his sharingan. His own arm folded in, catching him square in the face. The last bits of chakra on his fingertips pierced into his face, leaving bloody lacerations. Sasuke stumbled back, shaking as he stared at his bloodied hand. There was no way that was possible. The speed needed to do something like that was inhuman!

Naruto stood in a fighting stance, but made no move to continue. Let the traitorous bastard stand there and feel scared. He wanted the asshole to feel terror. "It doesn't matter if your fancy eyes can see me, if you're to slow to react, now does it?"

Sasuke glared at him, through his eyes stung from blood dripping into them. "Only one other person has ever said that to me; and I surpassed him years ago."

Vanishing from existence, Naruto reappeared behind him. He slammed an elbow into Sasuke's left shoulder, tearing it from the socket. Grabbing the arm with both hands, he twisted it over his head, and slammed it down. Sasuke screamed as he felt his arm shatter, one of the bones jutting out of his skin. "You will never surpass me."

Staggering, Sasuke attempted to flee the fight. Whomever this ninja was, Sasuke could no longer hope to fight him. His flight lasted for only seconds before it was ended. The masked figure swept his legs out from under him. He landed on his left side, his ankle cracking as it awkwardly hit the ground. That pain never even registered in his brain however. It was a miracle he did not pass out from the pain as his destroyed left arm hit the ground. As Sasuke writhed in pain, Naruto delivered what would be the last blow of the fight. An axe kick landed on Sasuke's right knee. That pain did register. The Sound ninja screamed as yet another of his bones shattered. As the darkness reached up to claim him, Sasuke found himself hoping for death.

His eyes opened weakly. It seemed he was not yet dead. Slowly, the picture before him came into focus. It seemed he was moving. Shifting his head caused him to hiss in pain, but allowed him to see that he was being carried by the man with whom he had fought. His hiss of pain had drawn the man's attention. He threw a glance backwards towards his captive. "Ah excellent, you're awake. We've just arrived at our destination."

Ignoring his body's protests, Sasuke raised his head to look around. He had no idea where he was, but it seemed that they were entering some form of building. He tried speaking, and was disgusted to find he barely had the strength. "What are you- Aaaahh!"

His question was interrupted by a cry of pain, as he was tossed unceremoniously to the floor. Once again, his world faded to black.

When Sasuke regained consciousness for the second time that day, his vision was quickly focused on the kunai imbedded in the floor before him. Reaching out, he grasped hold of it, pulling it out of the wood. Suddenly, he was pulled to his feet. He swung his arm ineffectively, attempting to drive the kunai he held into the chest of his captor.

A strong hand clamped onto his wrist, halting his swing, but not even attempting to disarm him. A voice growled into his ear. "Patience now. You'll want that weapon in a moment." Half guiding, half dragging, the unknown man led Sasuke towards a door at the side of the war. He released the Uchiha's arm, seemingly not worried at the least by the prospect of having a kunai buried in his back. Using his free hand, he opened the door, revealing a small, well lit room. Helping Sasuke in, he held him steady for a moment, before letting go, forcing him to support his own weight. As fast as Sasuke could, he spun to look at his captor.

"What is this?"

In the center of the room, tied to a chair, was a second captive. Sasuke felt his knees wavering as he stood looking at the man. Tied to the chair, was the last remaining member of his family, Uchiha Itachi. The man was in worse shape than his younger brother. In fact, just looking at him, Sasuke could tell just how greiviously he had been mauled. Every part of his body was covered in blood. His eyes had been gouged clear out of their sockets. It looked as though his wounds had stabilized, although it was doubtful he would be able to survive more than a few days without a large amount of medical attention.

"Why this is what you wanted, is it not?" The masked ninja cocked his head curiously to the side, as though he could not understand Sasuke's emotions. "To kill your brother? He is before you, I have seen to it that he cannot fight back. Strike him down, so that you can finally avenge your clan."

"No!" The response was torn from Sasuke's chest before he had even considered the words. It was the truth however, and the explanation flew out of him as he spoke. "I live to kill my brother, but not like this. I must meet him in battle, and defeat him. To kill him as he sits here helpless after his fight with you does nothing. It will grant me no peace, nor will it avenge the spirits of my murdered clansmen."

The shrouded ninja rolled his shoulders, pitching his weight away from the wall he had been leaning on. "Is that so? While what makes you think that I care at all about what you or your family's spirits might want?" As he advanced, a low growl began to enter his voice. "In case you haven't caught on, I've seen to it that you aren't in the best of shape yourself."

Sasuke tried to back away, and bit back his pain as he felt his wounded ankle protest. It was all he could do to stay on his feet. Mustering his last reserves of strength, he drove his arm forwards, plunging his kunai into the chest of his approaching opponent.

Rather than giving an indication of pain, the man merely ripped the weapon out of his chest, laughing as he caught the falling Sasuke. "Is that the best you have, Uchiha?" Sliding behind Sasuke, he wrapped his arms around the wounded ninja's body, pulling him tight embrace. His mask brushed Sasuke's ear as he tilted forward to whisper to him. "You are too weak, Uchiha. You could never have done this without me." Walking him forwards, he continued to speak, as he pressed the kunai back into his captive's hand. "Don't worry though. I'll help you do this. It's fitting after all. Had you met your brother alone, you would not have been able to kill him. Why then, should you claim the credit alone now?"

Itachi was unconscious, and there was no way that he would wake up soon. Or ever again, for that matter.

Seeing his brother's helpless form brought panic to Sasuke. It wasn't that he cared about his brother; he still hated him with every fiber of his being. But this went against what he ad planned. He had to win in a glorious battle. He had to stand over the kill, and know that he had done it. That he, Uchiha Sasuke, had proven the stronger of the two. That it was he that was the clan genius. That his family could finally rest in peace, knowing that their murder had been avenged.

But it was not to be. Fighting the motion all the way through, he felt the man who had defeated him slash the kunai out, its edge tearing away at Itachi's throat. Sasuke felt himself released from the binding grasp, and, too wounded to support himself without warning, collapsed again to the ground.

"Why?" The question came out of his mouth as he watched his brother's lifeblood drain away. "Why have you done this to me?"

The masked ninja stood above him, looking down on the shattered nanja and radiating contempt. "Why? Because of what you have done with your life, Uchiha Sasuke. In your quest for revenge, you have dismissed the power, and the feelings of those around you. And so, you have destroyed many lives, including mine. When your brother destroyed your life, you became his enemy, thirsting for revenge. In your obsession for it, you helped destroy the lives of myself, and those I care about. And so, I take my revenge on you, by removing yours. I shall not kill you Uchiha Sasuke. Rather I shall let you live out your life, knowing that you have failed in your only purpose for living. Sleep well Uchiha. And may your rest be haunted by the knowledge that you shall never fulill your purpose for existing."

The last thing Sasuke saw was a foot moving towards his face. His brain barely registered the impact.

O-O-O

Tsunade looked angry enough to tear someone's head off. "And? What the hell does this have to do with anything? Tell me Inoshi, how does the fact that he's managed to kill his brother justify re-integrating him into the village?"

"I did not claim that it did." Inoshi was quick to point this out, attempting to deflect the Hokage's wrath.

"Really?" Tsunade began to flip through the pages in front of her. Finding what she wanted, she stabbed her finger onto the report victoriously. "It is my conclusion that there are two possible courses of action to take in regards to Uchiha Sasuke; execution, or reintegration."

"Hokage-sama, if we do not re-grant Sasuke citizenship, what shall we do with him?" Caught off guard by the Yamanaka's question, Tsunade settled back into her chair. Arching an eyebrow, she urged him to continue.

Inoshi pressed on, laying out his argument. "We cannot allow him to leave freely, to pursue what course he may; his sharingan makes him far too dangerous to do such a thing. For the exact same reason, we cannot allow him to simply be imprisoned. Think back to the damage Mizuki did when he escaped from prison. Who knows what horrors Sasuke could commit? No, if he is not made one of us once more, then the only safe course is to kill him, removing any threat he may pose in the future."

Tsunade considered what was said with a nod. "A good argument, but only for having him executed. What makes you say we can reintroduce him?"

Sitting and listening, neither Kakashi nor Ibiki's expressions changed. But still they were surprised by what they were seeing. Inoshi had seemed so nervous before, but now, explaining the psychological analysis he had performed, he seemed to regain the mentality more befitting a ninja.

"His purpose in life has been destroyed. If we can create a new one for him, and convince him to accept it, he will belong to Konoha once more."

Kakashi decided perhaps he should enter the debate after all. Clearing his throat to draw the attention of those in the room to himself, he voiced his concerns with what he was hearing. "When I taught Sasuke, he said he had two goals. The first was to kill Itachi, which despite what your report says, he has been successful on some level. The second goal however, was to rebuild his clan. How can you say he no longer has a purpose?"

Inoshi's grin showed he had anticipated the question. "They were linked you see. Sasuke believed he had to kill Itachi before he could rebuild the clan. It was not just to avenge his family however. Sasuke believes that when Itachi murdered their father, he assumed the mantle of the head of the clan. True he destroyed the clan, but he was still its leader. He even gave Sasuke orders to live for revenge. All the years that Sasuke pursued Itachi, he felt, in some small way, that he was following his brother's orders."

"He believed that when Itachi left him alive, he gave Sasuke orders to kill him?"

Inoshi nodded, "Indeed. But not just to kill him, to defeat him. And that is the central point here. In Sasuke's mind, he killed his brother, but did not defeat him. Because of this, the clan head died, while Sasuke failed to carry out his orders." Inoshi paused, waiting several seconds for dramatic effect. "And because of this, Sasuke believes that he cannot ever inherit the role of the leader of the clan. He has failed in his mission, and can never be issued a new one to redeem himself. As far as he is concerned, the Uchiha clan is dead."

The other three nodded slowly, accepting the enormity of what had just been laid before them. The three jounin turned to look at their leader, waiting to see what her command would be.

The Hokage pinched the bridge of her nose, her eyes shut. "I'm not making a decision now. There is far too much to consider to allow me to make a decision right this second. Still, if we allow him to return, what purpose do we offer him?"

At this, all three of the jounin finally smiled.

"To serve the Hokage."

"To ensure his clan is not remembered only for its betrayals."

"To protect the village."

For the first time all morning, Tsunade managed a smile.

O-O-O

One year and nine months. It had been a full year and three quarters since Sasuke had been returned to Konoha. And now, finally, they had decided what to do with him. Finally, they had let him free.

Tsunade had came to his cell and talked at length with him. He had listened; after all, he had nothing better to do. And so, she had offered him a choice. Defend the village, and restore honour to his dead clan. Or die, and join them in the afterworld. It had been more complicated than that of course; but in the end, that's what it boiled down to. And so, of course, Sasuke had accepted.

He walked down the street, a reinstated member of the ranks of Konoha's ninja, a free man. In actuality, he was not free. Two ANBU trailed behind him in plain sight, about twenty feet back; no doubt there were more that he could not see. He was a ninja again, but it seemed he still had to earn trust.

He paused, noting the person walking towards him. A smirk came to his face as he regarded her. Most people he had seen since his release yesterday, had attempted to avoid him. In fact most people seemed to go out of there way to avoid him when they saw him approaching. It figured that this would be the exception to the rule.

"Sakura. Here to ask for a date, I'm sure."

The kunoichi regarded him through a mask of anger. Her words came slowly, as she clearly tried to keep herself calm. "Sasuke. I figured I should at least say hello to you, but I'm no longer sure I care to." Spinning around, she began to walk away.

Not content with allowing her the last word, Sasuke fired a parting remark at her back. "Sasuke? Not Sasuke-kun? Why Sakura-chan, I'm hurt. I was hoping we could be friends. After all, I seem to recall you making me a very intriguing offer before I left."

Sakura wasn't sure what did it. Maybe it was his words, maybe it was his tone. Most likely it was the combination of the two; but whatever it was, it hit a nerve. Spinning on her heel, Sakura slammed her fist into Sasuke's chest before he had a chance to react. Sasuke folded with the blow, collapsing to his knees. His eyes bulged wide with surprise. He had heard Sakura had become Tsunade's apprentice, but he had never witnessed the strength the Hokage had trained into her.

Dropping into a crouch, Sakura locked eyes with the gasping Sasuke. "That offer is dead. But by all means, look me up if you need a sparring partner. I so rarely get to go all out." At that she rose, and began to walk away. After a few steps, she glanced over her shoulder to deliver a final comment.

"I pulled that punch, by the way."

O-O-O

Hisoka crouched low, hidden within a rocky outcropping, keeping watch over the surrounding terrain. He suppressed a shudder as another scream from the man being held captive some ways behind him reached his ears.

He had been with the man called Naruto for some years now. While he had grown accustomed to most of his traveling companions traits, there were a few that he still could not handle. Naruto's expertise and occasional enjoyment of torture was one of them.

This seemed out of place however. All of Naruto's previous victims had been people that he had hated. Itachi and Sasuke were prime examples. Orochimaru would have been another; Naruto had mentioned several times his disappointment that had not made the sannin suffer longer. But this was different. This Rock ninja they had encountered had no previous encounters with either of them. He had been sent to offer them a job, which was not uncommon. The two of them occasionally took on mercenary work to get needed funds. Naruto rejected most prospective clients, and occasionally even killed one who requested a particularly sinister mission, but never had he tortured any of them. Hisoka didn't know what the proposed mission was; the contract had been delivered on a scroll. Naruto, upon reading the scroll, had destroyed it and proceeded to grab the unfortunate ninja who had delivered it. None of this made any sense to Hisoka; whatever was on that scroll had clearly upset his friend however.

Another scream made its way up to Hisoka's perch.

O-O-O

The Rock ninja shuddered in terror as the figure before him stalked back and forth. It had removed its mask, and was looking at him with pure hatred.

"For the last time, why did you attempt to hire me!"

The captive clamped his eyes shut as he answered, his voice trembling with both pain and fear. "We're recruiting as many missing-nin and mercenaries as we can. I swear, I don't know why!"

"Not good enough!" The ninja screamed at the response. His cries grew even louder as claws tore into his chest. He felt the nails close around one of his ribs, tearing it clear out of his body. "Now then, I am forced to ask again. Tell me everything you know about this mission."

"Noth… noth-ing." The voice was barely above a whisper now. "Please, I… I swear. I don't…" His voice gave out, his head falling forwards.

Naruto regarded the man before him for a moment, then nodded his head. He believed the man. He turned to leave, casually tossing an explosive tagged shruiked over his shoulder into the captive's neck.

"How unfortunate."

O-O-O

"We're going home."

Hisoka started at the voice. He had not heard his comrade come up to be standing beside his hiding place. "Home?" There was genuine confusion in is voice.

"Konaha."

O-O-O

Tsunade sighed as she entered her office. Another boring day of paperwork. What she wouldn't give to be able to start her mornings with something other than paperwork.

"The security this village has is pathetic, Hokage-sama."

Perhaps her paperwork would be slightly delayed this morning.

O-O-O

There's the latest chapter. Hope the next one will come a lot faster.