Ok ok, so I added another chapter... this one takes place long before the first two. Again, I must warn you that things will be kind of confusing, as there is just another excerpt with no explanation of buildup before this point. Hopefully though, this one will be a little better than the last two about it.

In the cold of an early December's night the dulcet sound of music faintly rang outside the doors of a small auditorium. Elegantly each note pattered on walls and out through the cracks and crevices between doors and windows. The premiere attraction was a mixed repertoire of soloists, each playing a few masterworks on their instrument of choice. The attraction warranted a full house of listeners, including one that didn't bother to pay for a ticket.

Upon the rooftop huddled the extra listener, apt to hear the pleasantries after a long week of travel. Asaya was eager to hear this performance two days ago when she and her two "escorts" entered the city. A small poster on the door of the inn they were staying at let her know there would be such a performance, so she decided to use it as an excuse to take a break from her company. Traveling with them was uneasy at best. There were days when not a single word was exchanged between the three of them. Save for maybe a couple lines about what ever direction they were headed in. She had been traveling with them for god knows how fucking long and she still didn't know why they took her or where they were going, just that whatever or wherever it was would probably be at least slightly dangerous.

At least they were in town now, and she could sleep in a hotel, with warm sheets and real food. Camping outside on the cold winter ground next to two S-class criminals lost all excitement long ago. No matter, she was at least able to get away for this small moment and collect her thoughts…

Oh, how they infuriated her! Besides the obvious distain Asaya acquired initially after they abducted, restrained, and beat her, they were just downright unpleasant to be around. The large, blue mutant known as Hoshigaki Kisame constantly rough housed her whenever he got the chance. Though his measures were extreme, she couldn't exactly claim that she had been the most obedient captive. She had tried to run more than once from them, and twice managed to successfully get away, if only for a short time. Now, at first sign of her taking any step out of line Kisame would hurl her violently to the floor, possibly with a couple swings of his fist; to set the precedent that she would not, under any circumstances, be allowed to escape again.

Uchiha Itachi was entirely different matter. Although he was the one who abducted her, he had since only disciplined Asaya once after she had made her second escape attempt, an experience she didn't want to repeat. He was always quiet and reserved, with a gaze that Asaya wouldn't dare to look into. The hollow black of his eyes weighed down upon her as if she were stripped naked in front of him, as if he could see every sin she had ever dared to commit. Before him she was nothing more than a mere blemished soul, displayed under an omniscient god to determine her final judgment. Whatever went on within his mind was a complete enigma, although she knew that the young man was more than capable of inflicting greater harm to her then his partner ever could.

She supposed that Kisame and Itachi weren't entirely successful in their attempts to control her, as here she was now, away from them, alone, sitting on top of an auditorium, and huddled in a blanket she stole from one of the rooms they rented. Although, she knew that in reality there was no sense in trying to get all the way back to Iwa, so she understood that she would eventually have to go back, or wait for one of them to find her.

Asaya was only able to get away because the Uchiha had left her in the care of Kisame while he went off and took care of whatever "business" she apparently needed to know nothing about. Kisame, being his lovely self, went to the bar downstairs and drank himself three sheets to the wind, while he left her tied up in the closet, for some reason confident that she wouldn't try anything. Of course she would try and get out, if only for a bit.

Out on the rooftop, Asaya actually had a good view from where she sat next to a vent in the ceiling. From the vantage point, she had a bird's eye view of the stage, complete with fairly good acoustics. The vent she looked into was meant to provide an escape for the smoke and heat from the many chandelier candles illuminating the grand auditorium. Every so often there was a stray waft of candle smoke, causing Asaya to crinkle her nose and look away, but for the most part her experience was a pleasure, despite the aching cold of the season.

A cry of applause echoed into her ears as a cellist finished his final solo. The volume that the cellist evoked from the audience was well deserved, and nearly masked all other sound from entering Asaya's small and frozen ears. Almost…

From behind her, the tread of a man's footprints traveled into her ears as well. The intruder clearly made no attempt at hiding his presence from her, with chakra flaring and heavy steps; he wanted to be noticed. "What are you doing?" By his tone she could tell the man clearly didn't expect an excuse reasonable enough to satisfy him. By his voice she could also tell that it was the Uchiha who stood behind her now. Asaya looked over her shoulder at him. The Uchiha stood in full uniform. The traditional red clouded cloak adorned his frame, and his sugegasa's cloth strips motioned gently in the wind.

Asaya did not reward him with an answer, and instead huddled herself back into the blanket she had stolen from their hotel. She ignored him as she gazed back into the vent. "Have you gone deaf?" He spoke again, only half expecting an answer.

Whenever the young woman conflicted with them she knew to hold her tongue. Any form of resistance by verbal assault was not kindly met, so she had learned quickly the advantages of silence, as well as other boundaries she could and couldn't cross. Her apt intelligence as a captive was one of the few qualities he enjoyed about the girl, as it made the task of managing her much less stressful. Unfortunately though, this particular situation he found them in now was not exemplary of her behavior.

Itachi had gone to the outskirts of town to speak with Zetzu, leaving Asaya with Kisame for the evening. At first he hoped that the other Akatsuki would finally give him the answer to why they needed the kunoichi, as the only instructions he was given so far were to capture and detain her until further notice. But no, all the plant-man wanted was an update on her health and wellbeing, so he could report back to Leader. The uncertainty of not knowing how long he would be stuck with her was beginning to gnaw at his peace of mind.

After giving his report to Zetzu, Itachi immediately walked back to the inn, as he was not entirely trusting of Kisame's babysitting skills. Unfortunately Itachi's intuition was correct. As soon as he had gotten back to check on Kisame's room he saw that the shark had chosen to drink himself to sleep, with little thought to their responsibility. The owner of the family run establishment had his sons carry his offending partner upstairs after causing a small ruckus and passing out. Sadly, Itachi expected better from his partner. Although Kisame normally did this when they entered town after a long travel, Itachi hoped for better considering their unusual circumstance.

Speaking of that circumstance, there was still the question of where the girl was. Itachi had last remembered leaving her in his room, with the command not to leave, and instructions to Kisame to watch her. He had seen how one half of his intentions ended, and with any luck the other would be better.

No, it was not better. His room was dark and completely unoccupied. The closet doors were open and on the floor between them lay discarded strands of rope. It seemed that Kisame, despite all his previous knowledge about the girl, thought that simple rope and a pair of flimsy doors would be sufficient enough to hold her. As Itachi looked about the rest of the room he noticed that the bed's comforter was missing. His red eye twitched ever so slightly. This was not turning out to be a good night.

It did not take him long to find the girl. The only real reason it took any effort at all was because they were in a large city crowded with people, making it hard to pinpoint her chakra. She had made no attempt to cover her footprints, left no misleading trails, or took any means by which to hide her chakra. She did not hide in come dark crevice in the city, or even try to find an Iwa safe house; she simply sat on the roof of an elaborate building. Curious, because this girl had just been given every capability to run again, and this time possibly succeed in getting back to Iwa.

'So why didn't she?' Itachi wondered to himself as he stood behind her. "Woman, I asked you a question."

"I have a name, you know." She said, still not meeting his gaze.

"So there is your voice. Tell me, Kagami-san, what do you think you are doing?" He asked again, bitterly.

Asaya remained quiet for a moment longer. He had used her surname. That wasn't much better. "My name is Asaya, Uchiha-san. And I came to listen."

"To what? The silence of your own voice?" Normally Itachi wasn't one for sarcasm, but the situation called for it.

Asaya, looking into the vent, saw a woman in a formal dress sit down in front of a piano. She turned her head to look at Itachi, and raised a hand from within the confines of her blanket to hold a finger to her lips, then extended that finger to point into the vent. Itachi came up behind her, peering over her shoulder, inquisitive as to what she was pointing at.

A loud 7th chord shot through the air, quickly followed by a series of trills. From over her shoulder Itachi saw the black outline of a grand piano, complete with pianist. She had come to listen to music, he realized. "Music? You ran away again for this?" Really, all this trouble for a few compositions?

Silence again. Discouraged by his callous words, she didn't feel like arguing with him.

"Kaga-"

"It's Asaya." She chided.

He narrowed his eyes. "Very well. If you answer my question."

It took a moment for Asaya to organize exactly what to say. Clearly, there was no lie she could tell him, so the challenge was how to make the truth seem as reasonable as possible. "... Hoshigaki-san, he… After he locked me in the closet, he then went downstairs to the bar, no?"

She took his silence as confirmation.

"Well, I didn't exactly want to be there," she cast her gaze away from him again, "when he came back…"

Itachi's expression relaxed, her worries were reasonable. "We were given strict orders not to… damage you."

Damage? What line does that draw? She wondered. "Orders from who? And why?" Asaya wanted to know exactly who was responsible for her misery, and since he brought it up it was a perfect time to ask.

Now it was Itachi's turn to carefully choose an answer. Normally, he wouldn't reveal that information to a hostage without express permission to do so, but he had been with the girl for some time now. Leader didn't expect him to keep her in the dark for so long, there would be no point. By now she knew at least enough about Kisame and himself that whenever the Akatsuki were done with her, she would be killed. "I will answer that on the condition that you answer another of my questions: why come all the way out here, and not try to escape again?" Making her answer first would give him time to prepare an appropriate response for himself.

The question was bugging him. She had every opportunity, but instead sat there in plain sight, as if she wanted him to find her.

Taken aback, Asaya then turned to listen to the music. What was with all of these difficult questions? He never had any care for her before. "Because it would be futile. I don't even have any idea where we are, other than that it's not Iwa, and we have been traveling so long that we're probably so far away I could never run without you catching me. Does that satisfy you?"

She spoke as if she had accepted being held prisoner, at least for now. Good, because it meant that he wouldn't have to deal with any childish fits or temper tantrums. She was proving to be very level headed about the whole thing, which was a load off of his mind. "One more,"

Before Itachi could explain himself just yet, the pianist moved into her second piece. Her fingers raced up to the high end of the keys, to stay there and dance for a while, and then repeat the motions in variation.

Only thrown off for a moment, Itachi finished his statement, "Why here specifically? At this venue."

"Isn't that self explanatory? I saw a poster about a day ago, and I like the music, so I came." Fair enough, he supposed that he didn't expect any monumental explanation from her.

Through the pair's silence, the allegro tempo of the pianist hung about them in tension.

"Will you then answer my question?" She asked.

Itachi took another moment to percolate his reply. "What do you know already?"

Asaya wrinkled her nose. Was he really going to run her around the bush again? "Well, obviously you answer to some kind of authority, and there are more of you. Although, I can't imagine too many, as you seem to be able to work internationally without being discovered, or I would have already known who you are. Other than that, I know nothing besides you and Hoshigaki-san. And the strange plant being I have seen you talk to on occasion."

Smart girl, Itachi observed. "You are correct. We are in a small international terrorist organization called Akatsuki." He might as well tell her, with the way things were going she would figure out eventually.

"And why me?" Asaya pressed the question foreword, as it was what she most wanted to know; what they were planning to do with her.

'Why me?' Itachi repeated. Yes, the eternal question that plagued all forms of personal misfortune; why me? "I don't know."

"You don't know? What do you mean 'you don't know'?" Asaya was visibly upset at his answer. She had been abducted and dragged halfway around the known world by now, and for no readily available reason? What kind of great terrorist organization kidnapped a girl without a plan?

"Exactly what I said, Asaya-san. I was given no other instructions other than to detain and hold you until further notice."

Not completely satisfied with his explanation, Asaya scowled and huddled herself further into her blanket, and focused back on the performance below them.

Out of the corner of his eye, Itachi saw the irritation plastered on her face. At least he wasn't the only one having a less than perfect evening.

"What did you mean by 'damage'?" Asaya asked. She had never spoken so many words to him, leading her to feel a tad uncomfortable

Itachi drew in a deep breath. In truth, even he didn't know what that truly meant."I can assure you, Asaya-san, that you will not be harmed to the point where you cannot continue living life as you are now." It was a gamble, but better than saying nothing.

"And after you have found your use for me?"

"I cannot promise you anything beyond that."

A long silence dangled between them, contrasting with the wrought piano echoing through the vent. Within that conflict, Asaya pondered the weight of her undecided future.

A harsh wind blew passed them, giving its own unique spin on the moment. Itachi stood firm and erect, not at all swayed by the element. Asaya however, covered her entire face within the stolen comforter. The top of her head remained exposed, and the length of her sable hair wisped in a laced flurry. When the wind finally did pass, she again raised her head.

Nervousness slowly seeped into her veins as she comprehended the situation. She was sitting on the roof of an auditorium, having momentarily escaped from her captors with a stolen blanket, and now in awkward silence next to one of those said captors. What was he thinking anyway? Shouldn't he have taken her back to the hotel already?

To ease her nerves, Asaya looked out at the cityscape. Bright lights stretched out over the ground, only disappearing at the shore of a distant lake. Far below, the hustle and bustle of busy salesmen, shoppers, stray animals, and many others drifted into her ears. "Are there more places like this in the world? The villages just outside Iwa are nothing like this." She whimsically asked him, then instantly worried that she spoke out of turn once she realized she had inquired aloud.

"Many, and this isn't even one of the largest." Distracted by the stress of his long evening, Itachi answered without thinking.

Hearing the ease at which he answered, she immediately asked another. "Are there cities larger than the capitol?"

"A few, but this far north it is uncom-" A thought hit him midsentence. "Were you ever allowed outside your village?" The way she acted surprised by the grandeur made him question her travel experience.

A blush crept into her cheeks as the embarrassment of seeming naive. "I have been to the capitol once, a few years ago. The only missions I am sent on are in the immediate area, other than that I go a few times year to the monastery, and as you know even that isn't a very extensive distance away…"

"I see…" Itachi knew exactly what she meant. The monastery had been where they first encountered each other. "What position are you in, to not leave far from the village for missions." He was suspicious of her. He knew that she was no low level genin, he had seen her in action. She was a much higher level than that, making it all the more peculiar.

Caught off guard by his question, she stumbled over her words. "Oh.. Um.. Torture and Interrogation Division."

She was lying. Itachi knew immediately. Not because she seemed an unlikely candidate for the position, being a young woman with a diminutive bearing, but because she had shown alarm at his question, followed by a pause to respond, and stumbled over her response.

"I see." He thought it would be best not to interrogate her further. Although he now thought that whatever she was hiding was key to answer his ongoing question about her status as an Akatsuki prisoner.

Asaya's eyes wavered as she evaluated his response. He knew she was lying, she was sure of it. But he clearly didn't choose to pursue the truth, both a relief and a worry. For now she was safe, but when he asked later, who knew what would happen.

The pianist finished her final series of chords, and as she lifted her hands from the keys the audience erupted in another fit of applause.

Itachi took it as a cue to take himself and Asaya back to the hotel. "Come now, it is getting late." He watched as Asaya obediently stood up and began to fold the comforter in her arms."Leave it, I will ask for another one when we get back."

She did as she was told and dropped it, and then followed close behind him as he turned and left.

As they walked through the doors of the small hotel, Itachi took off his sugegasa and immediately walked up to the bar table where the elderly innkeeper was talking with his equally aged wife. Though interrupted from their conversation, they politely looked up at their guest. "Oh, my. I hadn't realized you were both out so late. Is there anything I can get for you two?" The old woman asked sweetly.

"My room, 218, is in need of a comforter." The words passed easily out of Itachi's mouth.

"I'm so sorry for the inconvenience; I will deliver a new one up shortly."

With a short nod Itachi left to walk back towards the stairs leading to their rooms.

"Is there anything you need, dear?" The old woman spoke to Asaya, who had been following right behind Itachi.

"No, but thank you." She answered softly, and followed Itachi back up to their rooms.

Upon reaching room 218, Itachi opened the door and motioned Asaya inside. "You will sleep here tonight. If you leave this room again, I will know." His voice was stern, and his eyes displayed sharingan to display exactly how much he could enforce his words. The door shut as he left her alone in the room.

Angry, much? Asaya thought to herself.

The room was exactly the same as when she had left it. The closet doors still had discarded rope between them, the comforter was obviously missing. And the window was still open, so there was a freezing draft wafting around the room. The situation was soon remedied when she closed said window. Now all she had to do was wait for the room to heat up.

Asaya walked over to and sat in the blanket-less bed. Burring her face in her palms and let out an aggravated groan. Could her situation get any weirder? Now, instead of being just the captive of two thugs, she was prisoner to an international terrorist organization. And for what? Use in an underground prostitution ring?

Before her thoughts could fall further into a pit or despair, a knock echoed off of her door. When she answered it she found the old woman from downstairs with an extra large, extra fluffy comforter. The old woman calmly walked past her and over to the bed saying, "This was the best I could find for you, and it appears I've chosen right, what a nasty chill."

Still standing by the door, Asaya quietly watched as the old woman proceeded to spread the generous comforter on the bed in proper fashion.

"There, hopefully you won't freeze while you sleep."

"Thank you." Asaya said.

"Ah, do not worry. Doing the small things like this are what keep my old body moving." The old woman smiled. "Now you two-" Stopping mid sentence, the old woman realized that Asaya was otherwise alone in the room. "Oh, never mind then. Have a good night." With a final nod she exited the room, closing the door behind her.

"Night." Asaya blinked a couple times. Crazy old woman, she thought. Yet her kindness was still appreciated.

But it didn't matter, it was time for sleep. As she walked over to the bed, she stripped down to her underclothes, which consisted of her black underwear and a grey tank top. Before crawling in, she folded her pants, half-length kimono jacket, and obi into a neat pile.

The warmth of the comforter was welcomed as it insulated her from the chill. She curled her legs under her, and hugged the comfortable, puffy material closer around her body. It was fortunate that Itachi had let her sleep by herself in the room. She was expecting that she would have to sleep on the floor, as there were no couches or spare beds in either of the rooms.

Wait, where will Uchiha-san sleep? The thought stuck in her head. Hoshigaki was sleeping in the other bed, did they-

A loud thud came from across the wall.

Asaya grimaced at the thought. It was better to not think. Now was time for sleep.

After leaving Asaya to herself in the other room, Itachi entered the room occupied by his partner. Stepping over to the small table in the opposite side of the room, Itachi disrobed and prepared for bed.

Passed out and snoring on top of the left side of the bed, Kisame was blissfully unaware of what awaited him. Calmly stalking over to the opposite side of the bed, he lent both of his hands to grab at the edge of the blanket, and pulled.

Kisame tumbled to the floor. He let out a groan of discomfort as his body landed in a warped position. However, the deep sleep of his drunken coma prevented him from waking up.

Satisfied with his achievement, Itachi crawled into bed himself, in desperate need of rest.

Ah, the ending was just a little of my indulgences creeping out... Sorry if it seemed silly.

And again I would like to thank plastik cuffs, your seal of approval is always good!