A/N: Sorry about the SUPER long delay. I wasn't going to update at all, but then I got a review which motivated me to write the next chapter! Thank you, fallensasuke93, for reminding me why I started writing this story! Hopefull the next update won't take so long!

!!!PLEASE READ!!! Does anyone know how I get rid of the underlines? I did not do that, its just the way is uploading it. Is there a way that I can change it?

"So did you have any hobbies back home?" Asked Sakura inquisitively.

Sasuke groaned. He had been at his wits end with the inane interview questions about an hour ago. Now it was just getting torturous. He rubbed his temples. Did anyone have any aspirin or something? His head was killing him. He spared a glance in the direction of his teammates. Sakura was scrutinizing Rya with her aqua green eyes. Naruto delightedly slurped his ramen, also listening intently for an answer. Rya, on the other hand, appeared to be getting very weary of all the questions as well. Her eyes were beginning to droop, she was no longer answering in complete sentences. Instead mostly in "Mhmms" and small nods of her head. Honestly, she didn't even look like she was paying attention anymore.

"Did you have any hobbies?" Sakura repeated.

"Huh? Oh sorry," Rya shook her head, trying to engage herself, "Sorry- I'm just zoning out. Do you happen to know the time?" She asked politely

Curious as well, Sasuke glanced at his wristwatch. It read 9:00. Sasuke was surprised. Had they really been there that long?

"Its 9:00 according to my watch." Answered Ichiraku from behind the counter.

Apparently they had! God, what was he still doing here? Then he was reminded of his little "arrangement" or "predicament" as some people might say. As for Sasuke he preferred to call it "a real pain in the ass". He groaned again, suddenly his headache got ten times worse.

"Oh its getting pretty late." Said Sakura sounding disappointed. "Maybe its time we start heading out."

Way ahead of you

Taking advantage of the suggestion, Sasuke quickly threw a few dollars on to the table as a tip and sped out of the shop before anyone had the chance to say anything otherwise. A little baffled by his sudden swiftness, the rest of the team followed Sasuke out.

"Be sure to come back soon, now!" Called Ichiraku, smiling cheerily from behind his counter, watching his favorite customers leave.

"You bet!" Yelled Naruto as he ran ahead of his friends with a sudden energy boost. "ALRIGHT!" He yelled, giving the rest of them headaches. "WHERE TO NEXT GUYS!"

Sakura whacked him upside the head.

"Keep it down will you?" She screeched. "There's no need to wake up the whole neighborhood!"

Sasuke, not wanting to be near his arguing teammates, walked ahead, taking notice of the beautiful night. It was late in the evening and the cloudless night sky was bedazzled with stars . The breeze had a bit of a nip to it, but other than that it was the perfect night. Most everyone had retreated to their homes for the evening and only a pair of ninja on guard duty could be seen on the vacant street before him. They nodded curtly him as he passed. And Sasuke respectfully nodded back.

Sasuke breathed deeply and wave of nausea swept his body. The air was suddenly filled with a sickeningly alluring scent. It was like a vanilla and Jasmine concoction mixed with something that he just couldn't place. Sasuke's steps faltered and he squeezed his eyes shut to keep from throwing up.

"Are you alright?" asked a soft voice close to his left ear. Sasuke opened his eyes and saw that Rya was walking beside him with a look of concern on her face.

"Yeah, I'm fine," He said aloofly, flashing her a bored smirk. "Why do you ask?"

"I don't know you just seem…unhappy to me." She said cautiously. Her comment confused Sasuke but before he could say anything the breeze flurried some strands of her hair, and another waft of the mystery scent filled the air, making Sasuke's head pound. He visibly bristled and clenched his jaw.

Eventually, Sakura and Naruto caught up with the pair. Luckily their arguing had ceased, unfortunately, for Sasuke, they had now taken to fussing over every detail of the coming days. Telling Rya all about the other ninja and the things they had planned for tomorrow. Honestly, Sasuke didn't know what was worse.

"-then there's Ino, she's a total bitch, but she has her good days." Informed Sakura. "and there's also Kurenai sensei's team which has Hinata, Shino, and Kiba-"

"Oh don't get me started on Kiba!" Naruto rudely interrupted. "He's an absolute animal! A menace to society! You'd do best to stay away from him" Naruto nodded. Sakura rolled her eyes.

"Don't you think you're being a little dramatic, Naruto?" She asked "you just don't like him because he has an ego just as big as yours."

"Hey!"

And so their arguing began again, all the way to the Uchiha Compound, located right in the center of the village. The once proud corolla of the Hidden Leaf; it used to be a metropolis of activity. But now it just sat lonely, playing host to the last remaining Uchiha.

"Alright," Yawned Naruto when they reached the heavy, iron gate of the compound. "Time to hit the hay, see you guys bright an' early!"

"See you later, Rya! Good-night Sasuke!" Said Sakura, turning to follow Naruto down the street.

Truth be told, Sasuke never felt worse watching the two most annoying people in the world walk away from him than he did right then. It was quiet, discomfortingly so. All that could be heard was the soft chirping of crickets somewhere in the grass, and the nervous shuffling of Rya's feet. And so the awkwardness begins! Sasuke sighed, he swung open the unlocked gate and began walking up the winding, gravel pathway leading to the compound.

"You coming or what?" He spoke coldly. Rya quickly followed after him, glancing unsurely at the compound. It did not look so promising. The shutters were in shambles, the garden was invested with weeds, and the paint job was chipping away.

Sasuke was not one for doing handy jobs and the place was letting itself go.

They reached the front door. Sasuke reached underneath the shabby, old "Welcome" mat and found the key. He fumbled with the lock for a second, before the door

swung open.

Rya stepped in the house after Sasuke, being sure to take off her shoes in respect. She stared in wonder at her surroundings. It was a step up compared to the outside of the house, that was for sure. All the floors in the hallways were all carpeted in maroon, and appeared to be in need of a good vacuuming, the kitchen, the only visible room from where they were , had tile flooring and delicate chandelier hanging from the ceiling. It looked very old and very out of place.

"My mother had a thing for vintage." Said Sasuke, noticing her gaze.

"Its beautiful." She whispered. Sasuke shifted, he wasn't comfortable with this conversation.

"Well, follow me." He ordered, walking down one of the wide hallways. The two walked in silence, their footsteps even muffled by the carpet. The hallway was dark, the walls lined with little, unlit candles sitting in small, brass holders. Sasuke stopped suddenly in front of door nearing the end of the hallway. He rubbed the back of his neck, and looked around nervously.

"I'm guessing you want to shower before going to bed?" He mentally smacked himself. He sounded like idiot! But he wasn't sure how he was supposed to act. This was his first time playing host.

"Yeah, that'd be great." Rya spoke, equally unsure. Sasuke opened to door he stopped in front. Inside was the bathroom. It was small, but very classy. Instead of tile the floor was made of burgundy-stained stone, the walls painted deep blue and there was a

small, cream-colored tub and showerhead with on the far end beside the sink.

"You can have any room in house, I'm going to bed." Sasuke said before walking down the hallway towards his room.

Rya sighed stepped inside the bathroom and began to undress. There was something about him that made her feel…sad. Miserable, in fact. She didn't know what it was. But it had been bothering her all night. She stepped into the shower and turned the faucet on hot. She sighed as the water poured over her. It had been a long time since she had felt an energy pull as strong as his.

A very long time.

Sasuke sat at the edge of his bed, topless, his shirt flung haphazardly among the rest of his clothes on the floor. He sat there bandaging his left bicep. It was extremely sore from the chidori he had used early. Purplish bruises were beginning to show their ugly faces up and down his arm.

He jumped as his door swung open. He had nearly forgotten someone else was here. He turned and immediately stiffened. It took him a second to realize how awkward the situation had just become. There in his doorway Rya stood clad in nothing but a towel and him sitting on his bed without a shirt. Suddenly, all of his senses were set aflame. He was suddenly aware of everything around him. The warmth of her body, steaming from the shower, the scent of his shampoo in her hair, mingled with her natural scent that was once again making his head pound. The water droplets on the tips of her hair dripping to her neck slowing making their way down her collarbone. His head erupted with ear-splitting hisses coming from the voice from before, making his curse mark prickle.

Sasuke forced his gaze away, immediately putting an end to the hissing, leaving him instead with another searing headache. His heart pounding in his chest. He tried to look as un-phased as possible so she wouldn't get the wrong idea.

"I'm so sorry," She said quickly, "I didn't know this room was yours." She looked away.

"why aren't you wearing anything?" Sasuke asked stupidly, clearing his throat.

"Lady Hokage hasn't given me my things yet," She said hastily, "I don't have anything until tomorrow." Sasuke groaned, feeling like an idiot. Why hadn't he thought of that before?

"Oh, right," He said keeping his gaze down. "You can borrow some of my mom's old clothes if you want."

"That'd be great, thanks," Rya said thankfully. Sasuke got up from the bed and crossed the room to the hallway. He risked a look at Rya. The skin on her arms was beginning to break out in goose bumps. He shuddered and looked quickly away. He led her down the hallway and opened a door two rooms down. There was a difference between this room and the room that Rya had seen earlier. This room vacant. Not in a literal sense, but it felt vacant. She could tell that no one had touched anything in there for a good long while. There were only two pieces if furniture in the room. One very large bed, made neatly with crimson blankets and black pillows. And a dresser, equipped with mirror and an assortment of brushes, combs, and ornate jewelry clustered on the top. Rya could sense Sasuke's mother's vintage handiwork in here. She reached out to touch one of the Victorian necklaces she saw on the dresser. Sasuke caught her wrist before she made contact.

"Don't…touch….anything." He growled in annoyance. This room was like his

Holy Sanctum. No one went in. Even he tried to keep from going in. This was his way of preserving his mother and father's memory. This was their old room, after all.

Sasuke went to the dresser and as carefully as he could opened the top drawer. Inside were his mother's old nightgowns. He picked one from the top and handed it to Rya.

"Thank you very much," she smiled graciously. Sasuke turned his back to her, giving her privacy to change. After a few moments of rustling fabric, he tensed when he felt her warm hand on his shoulder. He turned and his heart nearly jumped in his throat. The knee-length, light pink spaghetti-strap dress with shiny sequins along the hem that he had let this basic stranger wear was the last thing he had seen his mother in before she died. Anger bubbled in the pit of his stomach. His fist clenched and his teeth gritted. He felt like he wanted to kill something!

KILL HER! KILL HER! The voice boomed in his head. He let out a cry as his curse mark exploded with pain, making him collapse to the floor.

Suddenly, Rya was on the floor next to him. Her green eyes fogged over with an eerie hypnotic gleam locked with his obsidian orbs. Sasuke found that he couldn't take his gaze off her, no matter how he tried. He gasped, feeling her fingers pushing roughly at his temples. His eyes rolled in the back of his head, letting out a pained groan. He felt as though she were breaking into skull!

The room around him swirled out of focus and he found himself as though looking through a window. His surrounding were sickeningly familiar. Nothing was its right color. A grotesque mixture of black, red and negative colors swirled around to shape some twisted, distorted form of reality. Fear pumped through Sasuke's veins. He was in the last place he wanted to be. He was in tsukoyomi.

Flashes and memories past before his eyes.

A younger version of himself running fervently down his street among the piled bodies of his butchered clan. He was crying, running towards his house.

"STOP IT, ITACHI!" He screamed as the sword swung heavily down, slicing through his unsuspecting parents. "MOTHER! FATHER!"

The shady silhouette of his older brother leaning over the bloodied corpses of his beloeved parents. A wicked smirk playing on his lips.

The tortured sobs of young Sasuke as he relived the death of his family over and over again.

"Itachi…why?" choked Sasuke, splayed across the floor with sweat dripping down his neck.

Itachi solemnly closed his eyes, "To test the limits…of my power."

"By all means flee," Echoed Itachi's haunting voice throughout his head.

"….cling to your wretched life."

The disturbing images spiraled away, the intense pressure leaving Sasuke's head. Rya's fingers left his temples. He opened his eyes, his chest heaving and a bead of sweat ran down his forehead. She was kneeling in front of him, resting on her shaky arms. Her creamy skin was flushed and red. Her eyes, regaining their orginal hue, looking up at him; big and apologetic.

"I'm sorry," She whispered breathlessly. "…I just needed to know." He hardly caught what she said before his eyes fluttered shut and crumpled to the floor.