Review Spotlight: It's a very good story! Nice job. One thing though. Why did u put it in the filter that says 'Anko M.'? lol. it has like nothing to do with her in this story. :) okays.
Very nice job indeed.

-AnimesTribute

My response: You'll find out right… Now!

The news reached Konoha fast.

The night Kankuro had appeared before Temari, Shizune burst into the Hokage's office, panting. "Shizune! What is it?" Tsunade asked.

"Hokage-sama! There's a new member of the Akatsuki…!"

"So they are replacing lost members…" Tsunade slumped back in her chair. She had hoped that they wouldn't try to take on any new members once one was killed, but that wasn't the case.

"That isn't the only thing! The person they've recruited… i-it's…" Shizune stuttered.

"Who is it? Spit it out!" Which S-ranked criminal had they gotten to join them? They'd have to be powerful. Tsunade mentally went over a list of suspects.

"It's Kankuro of the Sand!" Tsunade gasped and dropped the sake bottle she was about to pour.

"What?! But I thought he was dead!"

"He was declared dead… but apparently they made a mistake… And now he's a missing-nin. But not only that, we have to rank him S," Shizune said, looking downcast.

"But why would he do such a thing?" The Hokage picked up the sake and began pouring it, "He never seemed to be the type to just go off and…"

"Well," Anko interrupted her from the doorway, "I think that being declared dead might have gotten him a little pissed off, don't you think?"

"Anko," Tsunade said, the sake making a soft tok-tok-tok sound as it hit the saucer, "Do you know anything about this?"

"No," she said, "but I intend to find out."

"Fine," Tsunade said, lifting the sake to her mouth, "I'll assign you a team to lead, if you don't mind."

"If you must," Anko sighed.

---

Yasuo turned out to be an even bigger pain in the ass than Kankuro had anticipated. If he wasn't talking (Kankuro couldn't get a word in edgewise where the blue-haired freak was concerned), he was doing something else equally annoying, like making squeaky noises with his umbrella-shuriken (oil the damn thing, baka), trying to take apart Dokuneko (Kankuro had told him explicitly: don't touch the puppet), or futzing around with his headband (it made a jingling noise because it had a screw loose… just like its wearer).

But still, he had to admit, they worked well together as a team. The umbrella could serve as cover until Kankuro could bring out Dokuneko, and then Yasuo could use a few choice techniques. And they were working out more combos.

But Kankuro had told him not to kill any person from Suna. Or anyone who'd ever been from there. But not out of compassion.

He wanted to kill them all himself.

Inhale. Cough. Exhale.

Occasionally he thought that maybe being tortured and threatened with the clay in his lungs had made him a little… Unstable. But hell, look at some of the others in the Akatsuki; they were fucking nutjobs, the lot of them.

Inhale. Cough. Exhale.

One part of him was still saying that they didn't abandon him.

How could they have known that they captured me?

It doesn't matter; I WAS captured, and no help came. They didn't try hard enough.

They tried their best.

No, they didn't. They left me to die.

Eventually he'd squash that puny voice in the back of his head.

Inhale. Cough. Exhale.

He didn't want to die; they gave him the choice to live. He wanted to be stronger; they gave him more power. He wanted to kill anyone he wanted, just for badmouthing him; they could let him do that. He liked the feeling of being in total control, while at the same time, being completely out of control.

---

The Akatsuki was nothing without a Puppet Master. Two years without Sasori proved that the delicate balance of abilities was offset. So it was decided: the current puppet master of the Sand would be captured and forced to become one of them. Deidara had the most experience with him, so he led the mission. It was successful, and Deidara's threat of blowing him up from the inside out by forcing him to inhale some of the ex-stone shinobi's special explosive clay was implemented.

But one thing they didn't count on was Kankuro being eager to join them. From a certain angle, Deidara failed. Now the Puppet Master was completely useless on stealth and recon missions. However, he was an excellent offensive fighter. And Foshin Yasuo had a nearly impenetrable slew of defensive moves.

So the two new members were put on a team to be used strictly for direct battles, including capturing the remaining Bijuu.

The fact that Kankuro was on friendly terms with the Kyuubi was both a blessing and a curse; it might give him a better chance at capturing him… Or he could have a soft spot for the boy and allow him to escape. They would have to wait and see.

Itachi chuckled. This could prove interesting.