A/N: Next to last chapter I can't believe I'm almost done! Well, I'm not done yet! Thanks to all of you who have reviewed on any chapter. Thanks to all of my consistent readers and Shiroihato for listening to my rants of "did I make Itachi evil enough?" Why am I thanking you all now? We still have one more chapter to go! Please read and review! Now on with the show (curtain opens and lights dim)

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Chapter nine: Hallucinations

Noises. Bangs, clashes, screams. All of these things came from outside Anko's cell. She heard Itachi's rage-filled roar, she heard Orochimaru's snakes, she heard the battle move closer to where she was, but she did not respond. All she did was stare into the darkness around her. She was beyond response, beyond sanity.

She was nothing, she was hollow.

The battle sounds came ever closer to her cell. The sound of a body falling. A voice screaming "master" in anguished tones. Screams of pain. Then, nothing. No more screams, just silence. A silence that seemed to stretch over all time, into infinity.

Slowly, the door opened. Anko did not look up, did not respond. She was beyond fighting, if Itachi wanted to take her life, let him take it. Anything was better than this emptiness. At least in death there would be no more pain.

"Anko?" a soft voice asked, a familiar voice. It was not Itachi's voice, but the voice of another. It was a voice that came from far away, a different lifetime perhaps?

"Tsunade…why are you here?" Anko asked calmly. Not a question you usually ask when you are about to be rescued.

"Anko, I'm so glad you're alive! Come on, it's okay, let's get out of here," Tsunade said, her voice held relief and assurance.

"You aren't real," Anko said in a bland tone. She believed that Tsunade was part of her imagination-a fantasy; a dream awaiting fulfillment. "You're a hallucination."

"No Anko, I'm real," Tsunade said calmly. She realized that Anko was beyond reason. She did the sensible thing (in her mind this is Tsunade) and hit Anko smoothly on the head, knocking her out.

Light, bright and wonderful! How long had it been since she'd seen the sun? Anko had opened her eyes to find herself, not in her cell, but in a hospital bed. She looked around the room. She saw an IV to the right of her bed accompanying it was a heart monitor. When she looked to her left, she gasped. Kakashi was there, asleep, next to her bed.

"Ka…Kakashi?" Anko asked, not daring to believe her eyes, though she wanted to with all of her heart. Kakashi's eyes fluttered open, and widened in shock and joy.

"Anko, you're awake, you're alive!" he said, almost laughing in his happiness. Anko reached out and touched his face. Tears welling up in her eyes as she felt it.

"You're real," she choked. She tried to hold the tears back, but failed. Kakashi pulled her into a hug, letting her sob into his shoulder.

"It's all right, Anko, your safe," Kakashi said softly."I'm here." Kakashi remembered using the exact same words, once before. The only ever time he had held her like this, letting her sob into his shoulder. She lifted her face at those words. He wiped the tears off of her cheek.

"I know," she whispered. Then she fell asleep in his arms. Kakashi smiled as he laid her back on her pillow.

"I'm here."

A/N: Awwww, how sweet was that? We still have one more chapter left! The only hint I'll give you is that you can't walk away from being kidnapped by Itachi without scars, and not just the annoying white ones on your skin. Thanks for reading and reviewing. Please give me feedback. I know you're all sad about the upcoming last chapter, but that doesn't prevent you from typing! Until the next chapter! Thank you and good night.

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