AN: Chapter title: A Distressing Report!
Red and black eyes focused on the rather haggard crow flying so high above in the early morning sky. His eyes sharpened, the Dojutsu that had earned him one of his more well-known monikers gifting him with an unsurpassed clarity of vision. He found what he was looking for, the familiar marking that was only to be used in nothing short of emergencies.
"Kisame." The infamous Itachi Uchiha turned to his partner, one of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist, Kisame Hosgigaki.
"Yeah?" Kisame shifted the body on his shoulder, the victim a Missing-nin with a bounty large enough for him to bother with collecting.
"Keep going." He came to a stop. "I'll catch up with you."
Kisame spared him a glance before nodding.
"Don't take too long. Meetings like this can't be blown off." His piece said, the Missing-nin from the Hidden Mist continued on his way and left his partner to his business.
Itachi didn't wait for him to get out of sight, made himself scarce as he collected the crow on a raised arm. The mark on its leg was obscure, considered little more than nonsense to anyone else who might've seen it.
A message from the Hokage to a Missing-nin had to appear as nondescript as possible.
He freed the message within from the carrier on the bird's back, released the seal that threatened to destroy the paper, and read over the coded message.
The more he read, the more his eyes widened.
The information within, what Hiruzen Sarutobi was telling him, was astounding. Sure, he had heard rumors but he had discounted them. He knew the powers of rumors, how quickly they could paint a vivid fantasy of what was once the truth, how destructive such falsehoods could be, but this was confirmation of them from a man he trusted, from a man that would not call on him if he could avoid it.
The fact that he had sent a message to him, had sent him such information, showed how desperate the situation must be in the Hidden Leaf Village, how desperate the Third Hokage had become for answers no matter their source.
The fact that is also involved Sasuke, that he seemed just as invested in whatever was going on with Naruto Uzumaki as the Jinchuriki himself made it something he would have to intervene with.
Sasuke couldn't be distracted, couldn't do this and bring honor back to the Uchiha name as he had intended for him since the death of so many by his hands. If he was part of such a radical group, the Uchiha name would continue to live on in scorn.
Sasuke simply couldn't be part of a group like this 'Orange Legion', this 'Uzumaki Empire'. He needed to focus on the goal he had given him, return to the path he had set on that blood-soaked night.
The solution to his problem, to the request from the Hokage, was simple.
He would need to return to the Hidden Leaf far earlier than he had intended.
He bid the crow to fly above once more, to return to him when he signaled for it.
He was lucky there was a meeting today, that he would have the chance to broach the subject of a return to the Hidden Leaf to the rest of the Akatsuki. With the nature of Akatsuki's mercenary work, such physical meetings were rare but far from unheard of. It helped keep the illusion of a simple mercenary organization instead of the truth of the group.
'Sasuke…' He shook his head at the actions of his foolish little brother. 'I'll put you back on the proper path. I promise you little brother.'
He swiftly caught up to Kisame and his partner from the Hidden Mist spared him a glance. He didn't respond to it. His face was impassive as was the norm.
Kisame's grin was one of good-natured taunting.
"You're planning something, aren't you Itachi?" His partner was more insightful than he let on. A swordsman as capable as Kisame Hoshigaki was bound to notice the subtle changes to his normal expression, the changes to his posture that marked a change in him.
"I received some concerning information regarding the Kyubi's Jinchuriki." Itachi would leave it at that.
He didn't expect Kisame's snort of laughter, for his grin to widen.
"So, the kid who gave that Momochi brat a job is being annoying back home?" Kisame laughed. More at the fact that he had managed to get an actual expression of shock from the normally unflappable Itachi Uchiha than at finding the situation that funny. It definitely was but it was rare to see the Uchiha so off balance. "What? Surprise I talk to the rookie? As a member of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen, I've got to at least keep track of that sword. It's a mark of pride to the group that the sword is held by a strong wielder." His sharp teeth were on display from his bloodthirsty grin. "If it wasn't, I'd have to go and kill whoever was holding it."
Itachi said nothing.
He, for the moment, didn't know what to say.
"…What has Momochi told you about that boy?" Itachi settled for the simple question.
"Nothing you shouldn't already know." Kisame adjusted the body on his shoulder, a shrug of his shoulders nearly sending his bounty toppling to the ground. "Kid ended up stirring things up in the Land of Waves, that Gato guy ended up torn apart by a mob. He's got an army so Momochi decided to throw in with him, accept a job instead of getting worn down in a fight with a couple hundred clones, the kid, and your brother. He put some new guy in charge, some real force of personality for the people there." Kisame chuckled. "With what the kid's paying him for a job that easy, I'm getting a little tempted to see if he's still hiring."
"That would be a mistake." Itachi answered without thinking. At Kisame's look, he continued. "The boy is a Jinchuriki. He'll be a target eventually."
"You never know." Kisame only laughed again. "Kid doesn't seem like he'll be easy to take out even now."
"Are you doubting your capabilities or my own?" The Sharingan burned with warning. "No matter the stories you've heard, he's nothing but a child."
"That's coming from you, you know that?" Kisame shook his head at the well-known child prodigy even among the once formidable Uchiha Clan, his grin growing. "Don't get too upset about me leaving Itachi. If I promise I'll write would that make you feel better."
Itachi privately decided this conversation was finished. Kisame only laughed at his silence.
The two continued on, reached the barrier that marked the meeting location. If one lacked knowledge of the seals to enter, it would prove impassable, would dissuade one from entering with nightmarish visions at this range, would incinerate anyone who continued on and tried to breach it with force.
With Kisame burdened, even if only lightly, Itachi weaved the necessary seals to avoid such a thing. The barrier was opened before them, sealed once more as they passed through it.
The building before them, the front of it draped in black banners bearing a red cloud, served as the publicly known headquarters of the mercenary group known as the Akatsuki. Few knew it existed, even fewer knew of its location. For such a group, it was concealed well enough to continue the façade their leader had envisioned for the organization.
"This should be interesting." Kisame was the first up the stone steps, approached the wooden doors also bearing the black and red banners.
Itachi said nothing. He followed behind him, allowed the doors to swing shut and seal themselves.
"We're the last to arrive." A secondary barrier was in place on the doors to prevent interruptions. "We should hurry."
Kisame gave a pointed look to the body on his shoulder.
"I think I'll take care of this first." He headed into a side room, would take the few steps needed to preserve the body for another member more suited to the task to examine, confirm the identity of the bounty through his own means. He was the one most likely to collect the bounty, head to his preferred bounty office.
Itachi continued onward, left Kisame to his work as he entered the main room.
Purple eyes briefly focused on him from the head of the table. Their owner barely acknowledged his presence before he returned his focus to the man who had slammed his fist through part of the table.
"There was no need for that outburst." The man was known only by an alias: Pain. Whatever his history, his reasoning for the creation of this group, was known only by he himself and one other, his partner in the organization. Her past was equally as shrouded as his own, the nature of their relationship unknown beyond the fact that both hailed from the Hidden Rain and worked together more often than not.
But even that could be another layer of deception.
Itachi briefly observed the man who ripped his fist out of the table as he took his seat.
Kakuzu of the Hidden Waterfall Village, a man who had once battled the First Hokage and lived to speak about it. He was also the, self-professed, Treasurer of Akatsuki. The man had a fixation on money that was borderline obsession, seemed to live his life on the basis of what would and what wouldn't turn a profit of some kind.
He was also renown for a rather short temper.
Some would even say he was infamous for it. At least those who managed to survive his rages.
"We just lost months, possibly years, worth of work! Without that bounty work, Akatsuki is going to have to turn to other jobs." Kakuzu's rage wasn't unfounded.
"He's not incorrect." From across the table, the ageless Sasori of the Red Sand agreed. His bored half-lidded eyes moved away from what he had been reading for the past few minutes. "The work we'll have to resort to now will draw unwanted attention to Akatsuki. Bounty hunting was both simple, discreet, and, at times, lucrative. It was also expected. If we've lost that avenue, we'll need to begin taking contracts that will bring far more notice. Assassinations, political espionage, infiltration, any number of things that, while high paying, will create a far higher profile for us. We'll have to be more selective, take measures to keep our involvement secretive unless you intend to change the plan you told the rest of us."
"The goal of this organization won't be changing. It will always remain the same." Pain spared a glance towards Kakuzu. The man hadn't calmed down but had restrained his rage for the moment. "Despite the belief of some, bounty hunting was not our only source of funding. We have already amassed more than enough to fund our primary goal. Anything else will simply be supplementary."
"This is still a problem." Kakuzu removed a Bingo Book from his pocket. He flipped through it on the table, most of the pages covered by a stamp of a red 'X'. "I spoke with Zangei before coming here and he told me what happened. The same story across all of the bounty offices. A box of heads dropped in front of the desk and the money hauled off by clones." He drew out a paper next, laid it on the ground.
A picture of a blonde in armor dominated most of the page.
"This kid was responsible for everything."
Pain's eyes narrowed. He recognized the blonde rather easily, had memorized the faces of all nine of the Jinchuriki.
"The Kyubi's Jinchuriki." He seemed to change his opinion on the matter with that. "How much did he obtain?"
"Nearly every bounty in the books." Kakuzu's rage simmered beneath his words. "Most of the Bingo Books are currently out of date. New ones won't be out for a few more months at minimum. The bounty offices are having difficulty keeping track of who's dead and who's not thanks to that boy. They may even shut down for the next year, try to balance their books after all of this."
"Orochimaru's invasion backfired rather spectacularly it seems." Sasori had gathered the book using a blue thread of Chakra, flipped through it for himself. "All of them were involved with it." His normally impassive expression shifted, a frown marring his ageless face. "What a shame. I had my eyes on a few of these. Sad to see them go to waste."
Pain said nothing, he seemed a mix of uninterested in the actions of the former member and focused on his own thoughts. Whatever they were, Itachi could guess they concerned the Kyubi's Jinchuriki.
It was an avenue he would try to exploit.
'I need to return to Konoha.' His goal was simple. The path he would take to get there was anything but. For whatever reason, Pain had avoided any action in the Land of Fire. Sure, contracts had taken members into the country but never intentionally.
He was committed to avoid drawing the eye of the Hidden Leaf to the criminal organization.
"If Orochimaru was present for the attack, he could have tampered with the Jinchuriki's seal. His opposition to Akatsuki has been made abundantly clear in the past. If he had the chance, he would take it to impede our goals." Itachi made his case.
Pain didn't glance to him, his focus remained on his own thoughts.
"I doubt he had the chance." Of anyone in the room, Sasori held the best understanding of Orochimaru as the two had been partners during the Sannin's brief tenure with Akatsuki. "From what little I've heard of that disastrous attack, he made an appearance to battle the Toad Sage but that was all."
"Regardless, we can't disregard the possibility. Orochimaru is more knowledgeable than anyone else concerning the goals of Akatsuki and is powerful enough to enact any number of roadblocks to accomplishing them." Itachi pressed on, fought to maintain his normal demeanor.
He was growing worried the longer Pain said nothing.
"His bounty isn't high enough to go after his head." Kakuzu shook his head. "Shouldn't bother with him unless this invasion raises it." The former Hidden Waterfall Shinobi seemed to have calmed down at least, was unlikely to have another outburst during the meeting. "Ever since he started up the Hidden Sound it's been shrinking. The Land of Sound Daimyo's been busy."
"The Land of Sound isn't a concern of Akatsuki." Konan spoke up from Pain's side. "As long as they lack a Jinchuriki, they'll be treated like any other possible client."
"Doesn't that just sound like a mess waiting to happen." Kisame made his way to his seat with those words, looked over the room. One absence was expected, that one rarely bothered with attending these meetings and Pain usually had a better task for the strange Shinobi, but two were of note. Their more recent additions were both missing. "I get Zetsu but Hidan and Deidara? Those two already dead or something?" He settled into his seat across from Itachi.
"Deidara and Hidan have an assignment in the Hidden Grass." Konan clarified the reason for their absence. "They'll return once it's complete."
"And half that village is a blood-soaked crater." Sasori made his opinion of the two clear, the mix of dismissal and annoyance in his words.
"Half if they're lucky." Kakuzu was of the same mind.
Neither of the two enjoyed their most recent partners that much.
It was rare for any member of the Akatsuki to have more than a functioning partnership.
Itachi spared a glance towards Kisame, the former Hidden Mist Shinobi finding the situation amusing from the grin on his face. He met his gaze.
While rare, it wasn't unheard of for partners to cooperate beyond their missions, to develop something close to comradery.
"So, anything I miss?" He nodded towards the hole in the table by Kakuzu. "What set him off this time?"
"The Kyubi's Jinchuriki. The boy managed to claim a majority of the bounties he was after." Itachi kept it short.
Kisame outright laughed at that information. He turned to where Kakuzu was seated further down the table.
"What happened? Kid take all the easy ones? Mad you've got to work for once?"
Itachi sighed. Kisame was baiting Kakuzu. He hadn't known the Missing-nin had been deprived enough from a fight to resort to something like this.
"You've got a high enough bounty. Shut your mouth before I decide to take your head."
"I'd like to see you try." A bloodthirsty an eager grin was quickly working its way onto Kisame's face. "Samehada's been eager to see how those hearts of yours taste."
"I'll sell that sword of yours too. Maybe back to the Mist, maybe just to the highest bidder. A nice bonus on top of shutting you up for good." Kakuzu didn't rise but Itachi didn't need his Sharingan to know what was about to come, that the two powerhouses were about to clash.
He spared Kisame another glance, was ignored as the Missing-nin reached for the hilt of Samehada, as Kakuzu made to stand.
"Enough." Pain rose from his seat, brought a halt to the bubbling conflict with that single word. "This is not the place nor the time for your pointless battles." He waited for the eyes of the group to focus on him. "Our plans remain unchanged but we currently lack critical information. That will be remedied here and now. Sasori, you are to return to the Hidden Sand. Uncover the status of the Jinchuriki after the invasion. If he is alive, leave him be. If he is dead, we will adjust our plans concerning the Ichibi accordingly. Itachi, you will partner with Sasori for this assignment. Kakuzu, you may investigate Naruto Uzumaki in the Hidden Leaf but you are not to engage him or anyone else for that matter. Konan will be your partner for this assignment. Frame it as speaking with the Fire Daimyo over a past contract, offer our services to the Hokage. Whatever you believe will serve as the best cover. Our true mission remains unknown to anyone outside of our organization and that provides us with an opportunity you will not throw away. You are to keep your temper under control during this assignment or I will deal with it for you. Kisame, until they return, you and I will work together on any missions."
His words offered no argument, no compromise.
"This meeting is over. I expect to see you all six months from now." Pain rose from his seat.
Itachi Uchiha, somehow, kept the horror he was feeling from his face.
He didn't hurry as he rose from his seat with his usual calm, his face once more impassive as was the norm.
He and Sasori locked eyes, the former Hidden Sand Shinobi and veteran of the Third Shinobi World War not saying anything. He nodded towards the door before turning his eyes to Kakuzu.
"Before you leave, I have a few things for you that may be interesting." Sasori reached into his sleeve, drew out a scroll. "I heard rumors about a few unique bounties that may help to balance out our recent losses. Interesting people I was originally after for my art, people who have a high price on their heads."
He had Kakuzu's attention once he mentioned money.
Itachi left the building.
He didn't have much time to compose his message, warn the Third Hokage of what was coming.
'Sasuke…'
His worry for his little brother would only to continue to grow.
He could only hope that nothing would go wrong once Konan and Kakuzu arrived, that the two of them wouldn't endanger the Hidden Leaf, wouldn't endanger Sasuke before he could set him on the proper path once more.
All he could do was hope he could get this message to the Third Hokage in time.