Naruto woke to the smell of food and the sound of voices.

Her eyes opened and her limbs tensed as she took in her unfamiliar surroundings.

Memories rushed forward and she felt limp against the chair below her, noting that her seat was still on the ground and that she had a slight kink in her neck. The room smelt of stale mold, though a hint of warm meat flooded through the partially cracked door.

Another tactic. Great. She sighed heavily and tried not to think about the food, instead focusing on how her brother was bound to murder her once she was free. Her body was well rested and she guessed it had been only a handful of hours since she had been captured. Going from that and the smell of food, it was either early morning or they had cooked just for her.

The voices outside the door ground to a halt. Naruto's gaze settled on the door while she surveyed her surroundings. There was still water on the floor and the light overhead was just as dim. The walls were wooden and space was small, most likely two meters squared, the door settled further into the walls. It was most likely flush with the outside, which meant that the building was multi-roomed or equipped with a smaller area.

Naruto hummed under her breath and tried to ignore the tingling sensation that went down her spine. Her abused skin was sensitive to the slightest of touches with the ice-cold floor, which lead Naruto to withhold a gasp as she arched her head slightly to look at the walls again.

The walls had bits of blood on them and there were a couple dents around the same height on one of them. Further inspection of the floor below led Naruto to believe a table had been left in the space at one time, one used to gut something. Considering that the villagers of Nami didn't exactly see being a shinobi as a hobby, this small area was most likely a fishing hut.

Closing her eyes Naruto tried to think of the area she had surveyed with Hatori and her teammates. She remembered several small huts, though most were near the water. She listened carefully, trying to hear past the silence.

Nothing could be heard, meaning she wasn't at one of the huts on the beach. She must be at one of the ones in the forest near the lake then, one used to store fish. The smell was faded, though when she searched she could still smell it, which meant that the hut wasn't as used as the others.

Going through the remaining options she narrowed her location to five spots, each one as likely as the others. They also were fairly secluded, so Naruto pushed one of Gato's or even her own team finding her by chance.

She was really in for it when the mission was all said and done. Forget how badly her brother would maim her, the Tsuchikage would never let her out of the village again if he heard she was kidnapped. He had dealt with enough threats to her safety to deal with this one as well.

Cursing her ineptitude inwardly, Naruto ran through her options.

She could hold off and hope someone came to save her. Yeah, not happening.

She could also struggle and hope to escape, but if she was caught…not that either then.

That meant she had only one other option. Play along and give them enough to keep her talking, but not enough to make her useless. Lull them into a false sense of security before attacking with all she had.

The plan wasn't solid, but it was the best she had. She nodded within her mindscape and pulled out in time to witness Hatake walk in with his Uchiha student.

The Uchiha gazed at her with something akin to confusion, though the emotion was quickly replaced by his blank façade.

That was just great, they had to bring in the emotionless boy who she had somewhat befriended.

Cursing Hatake to the highest of heavens and even that of the Ramen gods, Naruto leveled them both with her blank stare and prepared to deal with both of their questions.

To the kunoichi's honest surprise, the Uchiha walked over and lifted her chair. He was within the distance for her to attack and potentially cause damage, but Naruto wasn't thinking clearly enough to do so. Instead, she gazed at the boy in bewilderment. Did he hope to good-shinobi-bad-shinobi her? She wasn't an idiot and such an amateur technique wouldn't work on her.

Hatake sighed and looked at his student. The boy offered nothing, his eyes slipping to hers silently as though he was looking for something important.

"Staring is rude," Naruto spoke, unable to help herself from doing so with the boy's face unbearably close. She valued her personal space and hated when people decided to push such things as basic human decency aside.

The Uchiha's lip twitched slightly as he recognized the snarky part of her character, no doubt comparing her to the fake persona she had crafted just to lull him into a false sense of security.

"So is lying to someone." The Uchiha told her, earning an unimpressed stare from the Iwa Kunoichi.

"I think kidnapping tops that." Naruto countered.

The Uchiha gave her a look that spoke volumes, despite only the barest fractions of his face changing from earlier.

"And poisoning someone isn't?"

A snort slipped free and Naruto tilted her head to the side, her eyes shining with the light overhead in what she made seem like amusement. "I never said I wasn't."

Their banter died down as the boy took in her words.

He looked read to comment again when his Sensei spoke to him. "Will you tell us what the poison is?"

The question earned a sigh from Naruto as she shifted her gaze back and forth between the Uchiha and Hatake.

She wondered how beneficial a little wordplay would be. Perhaps she could indulge the leaf Nin some.

"Ah, ah, ah, not too forward so soon, we haven't gotten to the main discussion. It makes my blood boil when people cut through my conversations like they deserve all of the attention." Naruto told the Jonin, shifting her eyes to the man. She leveled her eyes and her lips twisted into a less than a kind smile.

"Doesn't it just tear you apart, people's disrespect that is…makes you feel kind of helpless sometimes."

She carefully formulated her words and watched as the light in both Hatake's eye and that of his student's eyes died.

"I could die a million times over with the pain it causes. Funny how arrogance tends to bite one in the ass later on, neh, Hatake-San? Just like past transgressions. I meant, one simple slip, a single nick with a blade or a twist of a knife in one's gut and you might end up losing every little thing you care for."

Naruto ended with a jeering grin that left little to the imagination. Lady Rida had died because of a kunai to her gut. She bled out like a pig lead to the slaughter, her teammates killed mercilessly while she pushed forward with the mission.

Naruto would never forgive Hatake Kakashi for taking Deidara's mother from him, for causing the dark spark within her Tou-San's eyes that tortured him every night when he slept without his wife at his side. She could never forgive the man for destroying the family she had been welcomed into so eagerly, for ruining the image she had crafted of her Tou-San and her Kaa-San with her brother.

She hated him without an ounce of remorse, and she wasn't afraid to show him.

"You know of the poison, as much as you refuse to admit it. You know of that your comrade doesn't have long…At least I gave you time to say goodbye." Naruto commented coldly, her unnervingly blank stare back. She met Hatake's lone eye and ignored the presence beside her.

"Sasuke, leave." Hatake suddenly ordered.

Naruto smirked at him.

"Going to use your Sharingan on me? Or will you stab me in my stomach and watch me bleed out like you did to Lady Rida?"

Naruto offered, earning a sharp look from both Nin.

She leaned against the chair and breathed out calmly as the Uchiha slipped from the room.

The moment that he did, Hatake pulled his headband up to expose his Sharingan. Predictably, the man met her gaze, though his next action caused her heart to pound.

The man reached over her and grabbed the necklace she had around her next, quietly tugging it from its spot. The silver glinted in his hands, shining under the dim light while the charm twisted about. The explosion imprinted on the medal caught Naruto's eyes and she tried not to growl at the man.

He was playing dirty, though she supposed that had been her fault in the first place.

"How about I show you how she died…Bleeding slowly onto the earth where her men had fallen with her." Hatake whispered against her skin, the tomo in his Sharingan deathly still.

Naruto let loose a laugh and stared defiantly at him.

"Try me."

I~~~~I

Kakashi paused as he looked at the comatose girl in front of him. Her body shook every so often, though she never shed a tear. She was made of harder stuff than that, after all.

Gazing down at the necklace he had pilfered from the child, Kakashi looked over the name inscribed on the back.

"Deidara…The Iwatoshi Clan Head of Iwagakure. For you to have this necklace must make you either a lover…or family."

Kakashi paused and reached toward the girl's top. He pushed the shoulder part down slightly, his eyes narrowing on the markings she had hidden beneath her clothing.

From experience in the Third Shinobi War, Kakashi recalled that the tattoo of Iwa's Bomb Squad looked a lot like their namesake did in the middle of battle.

So, the Kunoichi that Sashiko's teammates had helped him subdue was the little sister of Iwatoshi Deidara, Iwatoshi Hosha. Not much was known about the girl other than the fact she worked with her brother's team and was often seen guarding the Tsuchikage on his outings. She was famed for her custom explosions, one that had nearly taken out Kakashi earlier if he wasn't mistaken.

The girl could be the key to ending the missions peacefully.

Raising his hand, Kakashi pulled his headband back over his Sharingan. Quietly he tucked the chain into his pocket and headed toward the door.

As the door slipped shut behind him, Kakashi failed to notice his prisoner's eyes opening.

Cerulean bleed crimson, slit pupils catching the Jonin's retreat from the damp "cell".

A single twitch of the hands and gloves fell from two primed wrists to the floor, two hands gripping tightly to the rope binding the young Kunoichi.

I~~~~I

Ikate scanned his targets, crouched and ready to pounce at a moment's notice. He rested in the cove of a large tree near the site of the bridge being built. For the past day, he had observed the Konoha Nin watching the Bridge Builder, trying to find any sign of Naruto while also collecting information for Deidara.

So far, Ikate had learned that the pink haired female on the young redhead's team wasn't competent, Tazuna surprisingly had balls, and Gato had really screwed this country over. If there was ever a time that Ikate did not like one of their clients, now would have to be it. Gato was a despicable man that Ikate wanted to personally introduce to his clawed bracers. As the official protector of Hosha's beauty and magnificence, he was also the one that had nearly injured the men who had catcalled his Hosha throughout the trip. Gato's quips at the Kunoichi hardly helped the man's case.

The Iwa Nin wished desperately for some Sake and a nice run to clear his head. Once the whole mission was over, Ikate would have to go out for drinks with Kurotsuchi and his cousins again.

During his lamenting, the green haired Genin noticed a shift in his targets. On the bridge, the two Genin observing the Bridge Builder had been joined by a Jonin. The Jonin was slouched over slightly, his brilliant silver hair flaring like a beacon. The man dressed in the custom uniform of most Konoha Jonin was talking rather loudly to his two students. He said something about the two switching with two other males before commenting on how good of a job they were doing.

As he did so, Ikate took notice of how the man's body subtly shifted in his direction.

Cursing lowly, Ikate took hold of his chakra and vanished in a burst, hitting the ground of the bank opposing the small town just as a leg slammed into the bark of the tree he had just been on.

The Jonin, or rather his copy since the original was still amusing his Genin, turned sharply to Ikate a vanished.

Taking a deep breath Ikate molded his chakra once more, remembering all those times he had to dodge Hatori's katana, all the nights he spent working with Kurotsuchi until he was lying on the ground exhausted. He had always been the fastest on his team. Next, to the tank Deidara and the easy-going backup Hatori, Ikate had marked himself as the one to hit-and-run, the one to deal out as much damage as he could in the smallest amount of time. Hatori may be able to kill a man without a sound and Deidara could turn an entire town to ash, but Ikate could meet your eyes from several yards away and kick you in the face all in the span of a few seconds.

Ikate dropped into a crouch and brought his arms above his head to block another kick, switching gears fast enough to block a fist to the face. Quickly executed blows struck at his arms as Ikate blocked several strikes. His chakra echoed across his limbs, his skin shimmering as it hardened into rock.

The Jonin's fist slammed into Ikate's chest, only know force was exerted on the now-solid skin.

A single eye narrowed on Ikate's skin just before the Genin twisted around an aimed a landed a roundhouse kick on the Jonin's side. Tumbling with the blow, the silver-haired shinobi moved further from Ikate and met the boy's gaze head-on.

The Jonin opened his mouth to speak behind his black mask. He looked strangely…calm.

Had the encounter been set in different terms, Ikate might have joked. Had he not been annoyed with his client or their opponents, Ikate might have participated in idle chatter.

Instead, Ikate was pissed off. Instead…These stupid Konoha Bastards had taken Hosha and done kami-know-what to the Kunoichi.

Taking a deep breath Ikate funneled his chakra into his limbs and spread out the rock chakra around his skin. Working with extra weight was nothing new to the boy. He had learned how to deal with a couple more pounds long ago.

Ikate dropped his hands and channeled chakra to the bracers he had strapped to his arms that morning, ignoring the sharp sound of steal-on-steal before swiping at his opponent's face. The Jonin teetered back to avoid the sharp blades, the claws catching several of the man's strands of hair.

Ikate's mission was to distance the man and force the Jonin to retreat so he could head back to Deidara. He had only to nick the man once and then he could flee.

The Jonin withdrew a kunai, raising it in time to meet a swipe of Ikate's claws, the Genin's eyes darkening as they met the Jonin's. The two stood in silence for a moment, before the Jonin decided to try and speak again.

"Not willing to hear about your friend? I guess Iwa Shinobi truly are heartless." The Jonin commented, earning a sharp breath from Ikate before the Genin was lunging at his opponent's throat.

Red met green and the two traded multiple blows while trying not to get nicked by their opponent.

"Perhaps you just wanted to get rid of her…" The Jonin prattled on; consequently, Ikate swung upward with the intention to remove the Jonin's head from his shoulders.

More silver hair fell to the beach as the Jonin dodged the strike. He needlessly commented while aiming a blow at Ikate's collarbone. "-that could easily explain her resistance to Lightning Jutsu."

Ikate's vision tried to burn red. He channeled his anger into incentive and managed to lunge and rake his claws across the Jonin's jacket. Unfortunately, the man burst into smoke and Ikate had to dive to the side to avoid a volley of shuriken.

The Jonin dropped down in front of Ikate, his lone eye twinkling sadistically as he commented with, "You must have used them on her a lot."

Ikate froze in place, raising his bracers in front of his face while he looked over the Jonin.

Without the hum of battle or the quick movements, Ikate was able to easily identify the Jonin as Hatake Kakashi, or Kakashi of the Sharingan. The man was a legend throughout the Elemental Nations, especially in Iwa. Ikate still remembered the news of Hatake Kakashi's triumph at the Kannabi Bridge during the Third Shinobi World War alongside his teammates and Namikaze Minato.

"I have no idea what you are talking about." Ikate finally bit out after a few minutes of awkward silence. The tension was too thick to cut with even Hatori's beloved katana, and yet the next words Hatake spoke shattered it.

"Of course you do. Or do you want me to believe that the little sister of Iwatoshi Deidara really isn't being held as my prisoner?" Hatake drawled, leaning back in a relaxed pose despite the kunai still held in his grasp.

Ikate wavered, his eyes darkening as he inwardly cursed. Knowing just who they had in custody did not bode well for Hosha, no matter the case. Even so, Ikate would deny Hosha's status without a thought if it posed even a small chance for her to get out of this encounter in one piece.

"Oh yes, that second-rate Kunoichi is totally Iwatoshi Hosha. Do you really think that someone from the Bomber Clan of Iwagakure would ever get caught by a load of tree-huggers?" Ikate snarled.

"Perhaps," Hatake chuckled, and with a flourishing and mocking movement, withdrew a familiar chain from his pocket.

Ikate's breath died in his throat and he struggled not to falter his stance at the sight of Hosha's chain. The decorative explosion glinted in the morning light, twisting and twirling about in the air below Hatake's fingers.

Hosha would never have allowed someone to take her necklace without a fight. Hell, the girl rarely slept without the piece. For Hatake to have her necklace meant the kunoichi was either dead or near dead.

"What do you want." Ikate bit out. His hands dropped to his sides as the claws on the bracers withdrew, his stance one of a forlorn messenger.

Deidara was going to be pissed.

More importantly, heads were going to roll.

I~~~~I

Huh, that was…neat. Next chapter may or may not wrap this part of the series up. If it does it'll be longer, but if not, expect several short chapters to come. Thank you for reading!

Pairings:

Sasuke-8

Ikate-3

Hatori-1

Itachi-1