Moving Past

"On the outskirts of a small village in the Rock Country," Tsunade read out loud, "was found the corpse of Uchiha Itachi, missing ninja of Konoha and known member of the rebel organization 'Akatsuki'. Time of death was estimated to be one to three days prior. Cause of death was likely a broken neck. Murderer unknown, no clues left. As per regulations, after confirming that the body was indeed Uchiha Itachi, it was disposed of and the area wiped clean. Further information requests should be directed towards squadron 5. Information level: classified."

The medical ninja looked up from the paper, face grim. "As much as I should be happy that Itachi is no longer a threat..."

Shizune nodded. "Something feels wrong about it. Should I summon squadron 5?"

"No..." Tsunade shook her head for emphasis, carefully setting down the report. "There is no need. I only wish to speak with their medic. Bring in Yushika. I have a hunch about this..."

The assistant nodded, bowing and leaving. As the door slid shut, Tsunade sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose. Itachi had been killed? It seemed so sudden. No one had seen hide or hair of him for almost three years. All of a sudden he wound up practically on their doorstep, dead.

"Looks like our brief moments of peace are about to be cut off once again..."

*****

A hand slid through Sasuke's hair, and the boy instantly slapped it away. Orochimaru chuckled softly, eyes narrowing. "Poor little Sasuke-kun. Is something wrong?"

"Go... away..." the words were almost a whisper, not even slightly concealing the hostility. The Uchiha shifted slightly, putting a tiny bit more distance between him and the older man. Every part of him made it clear that he didn't want any sort of attention. That suited Orochimaru just fine. He was willing to fawn over the boy whether he was welcome or not.

"I do hope you are proud of yourself. You've finally killed him." Orochimaru's hand drifted down the boy's arm, just barely brushing the skin. Even when Sasuke pulled away again, the snake master kept his light touch on the Uchiha. "You passed the greatest milestone in your quest for power."

Sasuke winced, gripping his neck as he felt the burn of the cursed seal on his body.

"Don't stop now..."

It was a threat.

*****

"Eh?! What do you mean, 'There's been nothing'?! I left for almost three years with Ero Sennin and all you guys come up with in that time is NOTHING?!"

Naruto slammed his fist on the desk, leaning towards the Hokage. A look of frustration was clear across his face. Tsunade met his glare with one of annoyance, hands twitching in their folded position.

"I know that you care very much to find your teammate. However, I would like to point out that my job is keeping this village alive and running. You're lucky that I've been able to spare a ninja here or there to even bother looking! As much as I want to eliminate the thread of Orochimaru and you want to locate Sasuke, they cannot be a priority right now!"

"WHY NOT?!"

Naruto pounded the desk once again, reminding Tsunade very much of a child throwing a tantrum. From behind the blond, a knock sounded. "Hokage-sama, you requested my presence?"

"Yushika-san, come in." The woman returned her attention to the boy standing before her. "I will consider a slight increase in our efforts, but until there becomes an immediate need, I cannot do more than that. You may go, Naruto."

The genin turned, his glare not lightening the slightest as he stormed out. As he passed the female now entering; she turned, casting him a quick glance of repulsion.

"Don't look at him like that. He's Naruto, only Naruto, and has worked hard to make that clear to everyone." Yushika gazed at the floor, bowing stiffly.

"My apologies." Her lack of sincerity was obvious.

"Anyways... Yushika Seaga, you are a member of squadron 5, their medical ninja, correct?"

"Yes, Hokage-sama."

"I would like to make a few inquiries as to your work yesterday. About..." She trailed off, and glared at the door. "NARUTO, GO AWAY!"

There was the soft sound of scuffling feet, and Tsunade waited a few moments before continuing. "About Uchiha Itachi. You were the team member assigned to the identification of corpses, correct?"

"Yes."

"How did you identify that the body was that of Itachi?"

"I ran a check on the blood that remained in the body. There was no sign of tampering, and our results turned up positive for matured Sharingan. The body appeared to be unmodified, although some of the wounds may have disguised clues."

"I see... and of the assassin?"

"We were unable to locate any sign of him. All blood in the area appeared to belong to Uchiha Itachi, and no fingerprints or tissue samples could be found to say otherwise."

"That blood that was around... you tested it for presence of Sharingan?"

"All scans returned positive, matured."

Tsunade sat back, glancing at her almost-empty cup. "I see. You may go."

She watched the ANBU member turn and leave, the door closing silently. Well, Naruto... we might have just found a clue.

*****

"How troublesome..."

Shikamaru sat back against the trunk, sighing softly. "It's been three days, and so far, nothing. What a troublesome mission..."

"You complain a lot for someone who isn't doing anything." Neji sighed as well, disengaging the Byakugan.

"It's not my fault. It's the fog. I can't see a thing."

The two were perched in a tree, about ten meters from the Village Hidden in the Mist. So far they'd managed to stay undetected their entire mission, but with each passing second the chance of discovery grew. It was a miracle that the ninja village hadn't found them out already.

They had been sent out on information that Mist was possibly making an alliance with the Village Hidden in Sound. The hope was that if the information proved true, they would be able to at least report back to Konoha, or even better would be if they could disrupt the negotiations altogether.

"Hokage-sama preaches about staying away from war situations, but when it comes down to it, she–mph!"

Neji thrust his hand over Shikamaru's mouth, silencing him. "Someone's coming."

Engaging the Byakugan, he looked out at the past leading to Mist. As he honed in on the figure, he had to stop himself from making a sharp gasp.

"I... don't believe it..."

*****

"Kabuto-kun..."

The medical ninja startled, hearing the dark voice calling out his name. Slowly he turned around, peering into the darkness, just barely making out the figure of his superior in the dim light.

"Yes, Orochimaru-sama?"

"What were you doing out just now?"

The teen blinked, eyes widening, unconsciously taking a step backwards. "I was collecting samples... why?" There was an edge to Orochimaru's voice that sent chills up the back of his spine. His blood felt like ice in his veins. He swallowed thickly as the snake master looked him over, piercing glare searching for anything that Kabuto might have been keeping hidden. "Orochimaru-sama...?"

"Sasuke-kun is gone."