Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.

...Time flies, I guess...Sorry about the delay, this chapter took a while to write...I wanted to get Deidara and Tobi in there (as promised!) but I wasn't compleatly sure how I wanted them to fit into this chapter...Anyway, I sort of did it in the end...

Thanks for all the wonderful reviews!! So many!

Enjoy, I guess... If anyone remembers where we left off?...

Chapter 20

"I'm sorry."

The words that Itachi rarely said meant so much to her; the way he held her made her feel safe, though it was he who had put her in such a state to begin with and for that she could not find it in herself at that moment to forgive him. She now remembered how he had made her relive that same terrifying memory over and over again, being dragged; pushed; falling; the pain followed by fear as her eyes closed against her will. Each time when she found the energy to force her eyes open it would start again. Even if she hadn't opened her eyes, he had still made her relive the memory, down to the last detail.

There had been one thing missing each time, though; Him. She had been through it so many times without him calling out her name as he had the first time that she had begun to forget, until she wasn't sure that he had even called out in the first place.

Pulling herself together and her thoughts away from the memory which plagued her, she placed her hands against his chest and pushed him away from her, looking up at him. Her eyes were hard and he found that for a change he had no idea what she was thinking.

"No, Itachi. I'm sorry, but I can't. I can't forget it now. It's ironic that all I wanted was to remember and now I wish it would all just go away again. I've decided that I won't run away this time, though. Not this time."

Her feelings were a mixed up mess in her mind and she wasn't sure if she loved him or hated him, but she knew one thing; there was something that she needed to do. Her gaze moved past Itachi to where Sasuke was hanging between Naruto and Sakura, his mouth hanging open, surprise and confusion clearly written across his face.

"What? What's going on? That can't be Itachi. No, he would never…He can't…How could she…?" He spoke to himself, but aloud. Everyone was thinking the same and shook their heads, unable to answer him.

They all watched as Amaya moved towards them. Sasuke freed himself from his friends and moved towards her. He knew it was him she wanted to speak to by the way her eyes were on him alone.

Stopping about arms length away from each other they were both silent. When she spoke her voice was soft and quiet, yet everyone could hear it clearly.

"Sasuke-san, I guess none of this makes sense to anyone, but you most of all. All this time you've been searching for answers, but he wouldn't give them to you. His reasons for doing that are his own, but there's something I want you to know. I guess I should start from the beginning."

"Amaya-chan, it wasn't your fault, it was him," Hana called out, knowing what was coming, knowing that Amaya had always felt guilty, "It was his choice, his decision and he is the one who did it. You don't have to blame yourself!" She took a step towards her friend, but Kisame laid a hand on her shoulder.

"I think you know better than any of us that this is something she feels she has to do. Let her do it, Midget."

For a moment Hana looked as though she wanted to shout again, but eventually she nodded reluctantly. Amaya carried on as if she had not heard.

"Shortly after your brother became an ANBU captain he had a mission in Kumogakure, my home. The details of how we met aren't important, but we became...friends." Her small pause was the only sign that they had become slightly more than just friends. "He was there for a few weeks, gathering information but one day a few members of his team were found and surrounded. Perhaps back then he had some care for his teammates, or maybe it was just for the information that they had managed to retrieve, but Itachi intervened, whatever his reasons."

She sighed then, but her eyes never left him for a moment and Sasuke was beginning to wonder where this was all going.

"Even the greatest ninja can be beaten when he is far outnumbered by men who are only slightly below him. I couldn't simply stand there and watch, so I moved in front of him and...asked them to stop. Our countries were only a step away from war at that time, so my act made me a traitor in their eyes. For that I paid dearly, and they thought I was dead, but I managed to survive. I had nowhere to go after that, so I went - with Hana-chan who had almost faced the same punishment for standing up for me – to Konoha; to him. They weren't particularly willing to take us in, though. Your clan, in particular, was against us."

She paused again, blue eyes burning into him and suddenly he had an inkling of what was coming.

"Some of them said things that they shouldn't have. Even the children were cruel and some went so far as attacking us. Their acts cost them their lives." Her voice became even quieter and wavered slightly, "I'm sorry, Sasuke, that I ever went to Konoha."

He stared, dumbstruck, his thoughts racing. He took a deep breath before asking the same question he had asked a thousand times: "Why did he leave me alive though?"

"You were about nine then, so I suppose you don't really remember, but you were the only one who wasn't against us from the start. You never said or did anything. He had no reason to kill you."

Sasuke stared at her as he tried to process what he was being told, "So he killed everyone because they-they hurt you?"

She nodded slowly, "You were too young to understand, ne?"

He blinked and his eyes widened as something suddenly occurred to him, but it was so unbelievable that he struggled to voice it, "Itachi murdered them all…because he was – because he - he was in…love?" His voice was barely above a whisper as he tried to put 'Itachi' and 'love' together. He shook his head. "That can't be true, he doesn't care, he doesn't feel, he doesn't…doesn't…"

"Not anymore, maybe, but I believe he did back then."

Sasuke's eyes moved from her to Itachi, still stood a short way away watching calmly, and then back again. He was finding it hard to accept that, firstly, Itachi had ever loved anyone and secondly that he may have had an actual reason. It didn't make it right, but Sasuke could almost understand.

"I don't believe you. I don't believe any of it. Him…in love…with you…I-I don't believe any of it." The truth was that he now wasn't sure who to blame. Itachi, of course, but then she was the cause, and yet, it was a better explanation than simply to test his strength.

"What does he want with you now, though?" He asked, pushing everything to the back of his mind for a moment, before his head exploded from the contradiction that 'Itachi' and 'love' posed.

"That is something else that does not concern you. I just wanted you to know that there were reasons and circumstances behind his actions. Now go, all of you," she said to Sasuke and the team from Konoha. Turning to Hana she threw a kunai to her friend, who caught it in surprise, "If I look like I'm losing control, I want you to be the one to do it. Not him."

"What? Wait, you can't mean…? No, I won't do it. I can't…How can you ask me to do such a thing?"

"You don't have to kill me, just to stop me. I'm counting on you, Hana-chan." Amaya gave her a small, reassuring smile before turning back to Itachi, her face blank, her voice cold. "I refuse to come with you. Either you walk away, let me walk away or we fight."

"You know I cannot simply let you go." He had watched her actions closely and already knew what she was planning. "That's dangerous. You could lose yourself, your friend, innocent people. Are you really willing to risk all of them in an attempt to save yourself, which could fail miserably anyway?"

Looking over her shoulder at the Konoha nins she repeated her command, "Go home. I'm sorry that this has really just been a waste of your time, but it's not safe here. Go!" They started to move, Shikamaru muttering about women being troublesome and Sasuke glancing back at her one last time, leaving with the aid of Naruto and Sakura, who Hana thanked hurriedly again for saving her from Orochimaru.

Closing her blue eyes slowly, Amaya took a deep breath. I wonder if this is really the right thing to do. But it's the only way I can see to have a chance of beating him.

I-I know you want to get out, to take control, but would you rather controlled by them, used as tools to fight their battles? I understand that you're not exactly free right now, but they'll just lock you away until they need you before sending you back. At least this way you can get a glimpse of the world, ne? So please, lend me your strength, just for a little but…but please let me stay as myself.

She waited for an answer. The seconds ticked by, and just as she was sure that she would get no answer, the voice spoke.

Now, now, that's not like you at all. You sound almost pleading. But you know it's not up to me. You borrow my power, but if you take too much it's your own fault. I'll lend you my power against him though; I never did like Uchihas much.

A cruel laugh that did not belong to her resounded inside her head, but she ignored it.

Her eyes snapped open and she fixed Itachi with her icy glare, but he was already moving. She jumped, matching his speed easily. She could feel chakra flowing through her, more and more, until it surrounded her. It was different to normal chakra; it was a bright orange-yellow colour, and flicked and fizzed around her, buzzing with electricity.

"Is that chakra…?" Kisame asked with his usual grin of anticipation on his face.

Hana's expression was the complete opposite as she gazed at the kunai in her hand, "Hai."

"Ah, so she is…?"

"Hai."

"Perhaps we should go on ahead?"

"But I-," Hana started, but was cut off.

"Itachi-san will win before it comes to that. Come on. They'll both need seeing to once this is over, so we might as well have it all ready for them," Kisame said, prodding her away from the fight and towards the Akatsuki base.

It would be easier for her if she did not have to watch.

Amaya and Itachi were disappearing and reappearing faster anyone would have been able to follow. Fire and lightning flew back and forth, throwing sand into the air to join the kunai and shuriken which accompanied the jutsus.

Occasionally they landed, only to be flying through the air in the next second. Neither of them spoke or shouted anything, except to execute their jutsu. Every now and then there was a hiss of pain or a gasp of surprise, accompanied by the sounds of grim satisfaction at the other's pain.

Finally they landed a few feet apart. Itachi had a cut on his cheek, and his leg was bleeding badly from a deep slash, but he was still standing up straight. The stomach wound she had inflicted on him earlier stung and burned each time he moved, but his face betrayed none of his pain.

Amaya's body was beginning to change slowly from the unusual chakra and she licked a long wound which ran the length of her forearm before letting out a small laugh as she watched it heal rapidly.

"Is that all you've got Uchiha?" She asked, appearing behind him. Her movements were growing faster and even though Itachi could follow with his eyes, his body was beginning to have trouble keeping up. He would have to end this soon.

Amaya ducked easily as he threw another kunai at her. She thought it odd that he only threw one – a single kunai wasn't going to do her much harm - but then it occurred to her that even he had to run out of them at some point. It was then that she noticed that she had only two kunai left her self. Drawing one she decided that it was the time for close combat.

However, her foot did not move as she wanted it to. Looking down she blinked in surprise at the sand burying her feet and twisting up her legs, binding her tightly.

Genjutsu? When did he…the kunai? No matter. She closed her eyes and focused, directing chakra to her head so that she could break the illusion. More, more, more…Why isn't it breaking? She pushed all the chakra she could gather up to her head, I can't lose. Why can't I break out of this?

"Amaya, it's over." His voice was steady and calm, but he was panting slightly.

She shook her head, "No, I won't give up. I won't let you-" The end of her sentence was lost as his fist hit her heavily in the stomach, causing her to fall backwards. Instantly the sand began to wrap around her whole body, squeezing tighter and tighter.

"Give up."

"No!" She struggled, still channelling chakra to her head, but she was beginning to become desperate.

With her free hand she managed to pull her last kunai free but before she could do anything with it he had a hold of her wrist and squeezed it tightly. There was a snap. A cry of pain escaped her lips and the kunai dropped to the sand. Tears pricked her eyes, from the pain, from the desperation, from the memories that now filled her mind, of times when they had smiled together. Yet now they were trying to kill each other.

"Why does it have to turn out like this?" She asked through gritted teeth, chakra disappearing before her broken wrist healed, as she lost the will to fight for a moment. She felt tired and drained and her chest rose and fell rapidly, as did Itachi's.

Letting go of the genjutsu he looked down at her. He only had a moment to realize that that was the wrong decision. She was still determined and had kept hold of the kunai she had drawn before being bound by his illusion; he hadn't realised she was still clutching it.

Holding it with her uninjured hand she took advantage of the brief moment she had, bouncing up onto her feet and made a slashing motion. He blocked quickly, but was left with a deep cut across both arms.

It was then Amaya's turn to regret her decision. In a flash he was behind her, his own kunai in hand. With one swift motion he left a long wound on her back, from her shoulder to the opposite hip.

Her back arched from the sudden pain, but she refused to give up. Even as they both tired and their movements gradually got slower, they carried on. It wasn't until Amaya tried to run at him again and tripped over her own feet that they stopped. She collided into him, knocking him to the ground.

She hadn't the energy to get back up, and he seemed to lack the strength to move her. After what seemed like hours she lifted her head from his chest and found herself staring into two endless black pools, instead of the glaring red Sharingan.

"It's been a while since we fought like that," she murmured.

He gave her a small smile, "Aa."

"There's no way around it, is there?"

Itachi did not reply.

Hana walked silently beside Kisame, caught up in her own thoughts.

When Amaya forgot everything she changed so much. She never used to smile, but when she forgot it all she remembered how to…feel again. Is she the same as how she used to be? Or still how she was afterwards? Will she remember how to laugh, how to cry?

I tried so hard, Amaya-chan, but it still came to this. I'm so sorry. If I hadn't gone wandering off into the forest, if I had just listened to what you said. I guess in truth I missed all the action, the adventure…I'm so stupid. Everything I do always ends up this way. You were always the sensible one, while I just made mistakes. If there was a way that I could save you, I'd do it, no matter what. If only there was a way…

She jumped a little as something was placed on her head. Looking up she found that it was Kisame's straw hat. He didn't look at her.

"Did you get sand in your eyes?"

At first she didn't understand but then she realized that she was crying. Wiping her face hurriedly she nodded. "Thank you."

I guess even Sharky can be nice sometimes, she thought, smiling as she did so, thankful that he hadn't made a point of it. It was a strange feeling, realizing that amongst all of this she had somehow made a friend of the shark man – even if he had almost killed her, but she was beginning to wonder if he hadn't finished her off on purpose.

She remembered when Amaya and Itachi used to meet each other occasionally. She and Kisame had seen each other a few times, but never spoken or even properly learned each others' names until that night when she and Amaya had been kidnapped. Before then the both Kisame and Hana were simply tag-a-longs, waiting for their partners.

Who'd have thought I'd hate him so much? She smiled quietly to herself, even as an old saying floated across her mind:

It was getting dark, and it had grown much colder when they finally reached the base. Hana stared in wonder. It was, again, different to the others. From the outside it looked like a mansion, tall and regal, with large doors and windows, and the inside was spacious and more house-like, with no long, dark corridors or gloomy passages, yet somehow it did not seem out of place. She thought vaguely that it seemed more like a home than a hideout.

Hana followed Kisame to the kitchen, desperate for a drink and something to eat, feeling guilty for thinking about that when she had no idea what kind of state her friend was currently in.

"You finally got here then. We were beginning to wonder where you were, un."

"We would have got here sooner if Midget didn't walk so slowly," Kisame replied.

"Deidara-san, you're already here? Did you finish your business in Suna?"

"Un," the blonde haired Akatsuki member answered. "Where's Itachi-san and Amaya-san?"

"Fighting," Kisame explained. Hana tugged at the wide sleeve of his cloak, gazing wide-eyed at something that had caught her eye.

"Ano, is it me, or is the plant in the corner looking at me hungrily?"

"Ah, Zetsu, I was wondering if you could do me a favor. Well, not me so much. Could you fetch Itachi-san and the girl back here? They're about three hours north of here." Looking down at Hana he mumbled to himself, "I can't believe it took you five hours to make a three hour trip, even with those short legs." Hana heard and gave him a hard thump.

The 'plant' in the corner seemed to consider it for a moment before speaking slowly, "Ask Tobi," and then, in a different voice, "Yes, ask Tobi, he'll do it."

"Two voices? Split personality?"

"Something like that, un," Deidara answered with a small smile, "I think Tobi's -"

"Tobi is here." A man poked his head in the door. Hana blinked at the bright orange mask that covered his face, with a large swirling pattern that spiraled out from the single eye-hole.

"Tobi, you were listening?" Zetsu asked.

"Hai. Tobi will go. Tobi is a good boy!"

Hana continued to stare at the doorway for a while, even after the masked man had disappeared.

"Tobi is a good boy?" She repeated, "Is he really part of Akatsuki?"

"Not yet. He hasn't got a ring," Deidara explained as Kisame left the room. There was silence then as Hana waited nervously, eyes on the door.

Deidara watched her, wondering what she was thinking. Deciding to break the silence and pass the time a little he asked, "So where did you and Amaya-san disappear to for a year?"

She glanced at him, but her eyes moved back to the door as she spoke, "Amaya-chan had it all planned out. We found a small village, surrounded by woods, in the middle of nowhere. They had hardly any contact with ninja and were pretty much shut off from the rest of the world. They grew their own food, had their own schools...It was the perfect place to hide. Then, of course, it was a lovely sunny day so we went to the edge of the village. There's a big Sakura tree there, it was so beautiful in the summer; we'd never seen anything like it." A smile crossed her face and Deidara got the impression that she had forgotten she was talking to him, absorbed in the memory.

Her smile soon faded as she continued, "We were sat beneath it, but I've never really liked sitting around doing nothing. I used to love the adventure, the chase and then winning, knowing that we'd beaten another bad guy and I guess I missed it. I just wanted to leave the village for a while, so I dragged her with me, and before we knew it, we were lost. I've always had a fairly good sense of direction but we'd wandered so far, and then before I knew it we were kidnapped. As soon as I realized it was Akatsuki I could see it all crumbling. She'd wiped her own memories because she couldn't sleep, couldn't stop the same bad experiances resurfacing in her dreams, every night, and then I, the one who she's always trusted, I was the one who destroyed it all. I tried to pretend that we were just two normal girls, but after we got into trouble it was obvious that I moved too well for just some normal girl -"

Guilt was plainly evident on her face and tears had started to trail down her cheeks. Not quite sure what to do Deidara got to his feet, trying to think of something that he could say that might stop her crying; despite his smiling, playful nature he had never been good with girls, especially crying ones.

"- but they already knew, see, 'cause the Henge had disappeared when I got knocked out. Not Amaya-chan's though, somehow she made it stick, so that she didn't have to think about it, so that she wouldn't be found, but then that disappeared too. Now – now she's – she's going to d-d-die, because of m-me and I-I...there's nothing that I can do, nothing, n-nothing at all."

She sank to the floor, burying her face in her hands, letting go of her usually cheerful façade that she'd maintained for so long, simply so that her friend would have one less thing to worry about.

"There might be something." Deidara said after a short while, crouching down in front of her. She looked up at him, hope shining in her soft brown eyes.

"What-what is it? There's a way to save her?"

He nodded, and began to explain as she listened avidly.

Tobi's head popped out of the sand and he glanced around, pulling himself completely to the surface when he spotted Itachi and Amaya lying nearby. He walked over slowly, slightly cautious of the Uchiha.

Neither of the figures moved as he neared. Even when he was stood right beside them there was no movement apart from the slow, rhythmic rise and fall of their chests. He noticed that, strangely, they were breathing in time with one another.

"Uchiha-san?" He asked quietly, but there was no reaction. He had never seen Itachi looking so relaxed and off guard, and the young girl with her head resting on his chest looking just as calm and comfortable. It seemed a little bit of a shame to move them but being the good boy he was he decided that following orders was best.

He wondered for a moment just how, exactly, he would get both of them back to the base on his own. Shrugging to himself he gently moved Amaya off of Itachi's unconscious form and very carefully positioned the Uchiha on his shoulder. Comforted slightly by the fact that Itachi remained unconscious he hung Amaya over his other shoulder.

Murmuring, 'Tobi is a good boy!' happily to himself he began to head back to the base.

...Long, but hopefully not too boring...And an answer to mystery of the voice in Amaya's head (I'll clear this up completely in the next few chapters)...Next chapter: Will Amaya forgive Itachi before she reaches her fate? What is it that Hana-chan is planning? And Itachi's true feelings?! Ahh, that one should be easier to write...Until next time!