"You want to buy them?!" The assistant supervisor, Shoda asked in shock.

"Exactly." Tenten and Azami replied in unison.

"Well I'm sorry, but I do not have the authority to sell them to you. You will have to wait and come back when the supervisor is in." Shoda informed them.

"When will he be back?" Azami asked.

"Not until tomorrow morning." He replied.

"Very well, we shall return then." Tenten said. "But before we leave, I want to see Neji and Gaara and make certain that they are okay." (They found out the guys' names from Shoda.)

Shoda hesitated. "Are you sure that you want to go down there?" He asked. "I can not guarantee your' safety."

"We're sure." They replied.

Shoda sighed. "As you wish." He snapped his' fingers and a guard came forward. "Take the Himes down to the slaves quarter, to cell number 1,489." He instructed.

The guard bowed and said, "Follow me."

He led them out, across a courtyard and into a large, stone building.

The girls followed him as he led them down a steep, twisting stairway, and down a long, filthy corridor, to a large, thick, oaken door.

The guard produced a ring of keys and unlocked the door. He turned to them saying, "Just knock three times when you wish to leave."

They nodded to show that they understood.

The guard opened the door and they stepped inside. The door swung shut behind them.

Tenten and Azami nearly gagged at the terrible stench that filled their' noses. The cell was a ten x ten foot, stone room, into which had been packed at least twenty people. The ground was covered with filthy straw and rats scurried about everywhere. The lighting was dim and it took the girls a few moments too locate their' quarry.

Gaara sat in the far corner of the cell, hugging his' knees to his chest. His' eyes were closed and his' head rested on his knees. Neji lay on the floor beside him, his' body tense and his' breathing labored. His' eyes were closed so the girls assumed that he was asleep. They quietly made their' way to the boys' sides.

Azami touched Gaara lightly on the shoulder and awoke with a start.

"Don't worry, Azami told him. I'm here to help you. I'm Azami by the way. You're Gaara right?"

He nodded.

She smiled and pulled a bottle of antiseptic and some bandages from her' handbag. (Courtesy of Sakura who insisted that you should always carry medical supplies in case of an emergency.) Then she proceeded to gently cleanse and bandage Gaara's numerous cuts.

Tenten knelt on the soiled floor next to Neji and he opened his' eyes and looked at her.

"Hello Neji." She whispered.

He watched her cautiousely.

"My' name is Tenten. How are you feeling?" She asked.

Neji started to sit up, but pain like the hottest fire shot through his' chest and he lay back down again.

Oh crud! He thought as blood began to run into his' mouth again.

Tenten saw this and said, "Lie still and try not to do anything that would hurt your' ribs."

She proceeded to lightly press on Neji chest in different places until she had figured out which of his' ribs were broken.

Then she produced some bandages from her' own bag and began to tightly bandage Neji's broken ribs.

All during this time, neither of the boys uttered a single word.

When the girls had finished, they pulled out the meat pies that they had bought from the street vendor earlier that day and held them out to the boys.

Neji and Gaara gazed at the food with wide eyes. In the dungeon they were allowed one meal of watery rice per day. Neither of them had ever even seen a meet pie before. But from the aroma that filled their' nostrils, they could be pretty sure that it would taste good.

"Well? Aren't you going to take them?" Azami inquired.

The boys glanced at one another, and then they slowly reached out and took the offered pies from the girls' hands.

The boys were famished, and they devoured the pies in moments.

The girls were amazed. "Whoa! You were hungry, weren't you?"

Neji and Gaara looked at her oddly.

"What do they feed you in this place?" Azami inquired.

"We are given one bowl of rice per day." Gaara told her.

"ONE BOWL OF RICE PER DAY!!" The girls exclaimed in astonishment.

Neji and Gaara shot them perplexed looks and nodded.

Tenten and Azami exchanged glances. Each was thinking along the lines of, We have got to get these boys out of this terrible hell hole!

Sakura and Hinata reached the embassy with Sasuke and Naruto. They led the speechless boys up the stone steps to the entrance of the embassy.

Inside the boys gaped at the lavish furnishings and decor. The sheer size of the place was astounding and the entire place was sparkling with cleanliness. Sasuke and Naruto felt filthy next to the spotless furniture.

Hinata and Sakura didn't seem to mind. They hauled the boys up the stairs to the rooms in which they were staying.

Hinata threw open the door to her' room saying, "Welcome to my' temporary abode!"

Naruto cocked his' head to the side in confusion. "Your' what?"

Hinata giggled. "N-Never mind." She smiled and said, "Why don't you go get cleaned up? The washroom is through that door. I'll go find you some clean clothes." She turned and exited the room.

Naruto entered the bathroom. He stopped and stared. It was Huge!!

The room was spacious, and elegantly decorated. Naruto took a look at the bathtub and shouted, "Yahoo!"

It was the size of a small pool!

Naruto filled it and then sank gratefully into the steamy water…

Sakura opened the door to her' room and led Sasuke inside. He took in the spacious, luxurious furnishings. The room was decorated in various shades of rose, maroon, and burgundy.

Sasuke stood in the door way and watched Sakura move busily about the room.

When Sakura noticed that Sasuke was still standing in the doorway, she paused and asked, "Sasuke-kun? Is there something wrong?"

He looked at her and shook his' head.

She placed her hands on her' hips and looked at him. "Then why don't you come in?"

Sasuke took two steps forward and then halted again.

Sakura cocked her' head to the side. "What's the matter?"

Sasuke just looked at her and then lowered his' eyes and shook his' head.

Sakura shrugged. "Okay… I'm going to go find you something you can wear to supper. While I'm doing that, why don't you go get cleaned up in the bathroom?" She suggested pointing to a door to his' left.

Sasuke nodded and walked through the door. Sakura sighed and turned to go find Hinata.

Shikamaru followed Ino into the dining room.

He had bathed and changed into the clothes that Ino had brought him. Now he was going to eat supper with Ino and her' family. Shikamaru was confused as to why his new owner wanted him join her, but he did as he was instructed without question.

Sasuke and Naruto sat side by side, between Sakura and Hintat, at the long, dining room table. The door opened and everyone looked up to see a girl with a long, ash blond ponytail enter the room followed by a boy with dark hair pulled up into a high ponytail.

"Ino Onee-chan!" Sakura and Hinata chorused.

"Shikamaru?!" Naruto and Sasuke both gasped under their' breath. Shikamaru looked just as surprised as they felt.

"Hey Sakura Nee-chan! What's up Hinata Nee-chan?" Ino greeted her' sisters merrily.

Sakura noticed Shikamaru. "You bought one of them too?" She whispered.

Ino nodded. Aloud she said, "I'd like you to meet Shikamaru."

Sakura and Hinata smiled. "Konichi wa Shikamaru-san."

Then they turned and introduced Sasuke and Naruto to Ino.

Just as they finished, the door opened again, and in stepped Lord Kaemon. Introductions started up all over again.

Finally the chatter died down and Lord Kaemon asked the blessing. Then the meal was served. Sasuke, Naruto and Shikamaru stared in amazement, their' mouths watering at the sight of the lavish dishes placed before them. There were meets, cheeses, fruits vegetables, and breads ect.

"Where are Tenten and Azami?" Lord Kaemon asked after they had all been seated for a while.

Ino, Sakura, and Hinata shrugged. "We don't know."

At that moment, the door burst open and Tenten and Azami dashed inside.

"Well, speak of the devils." Lord Kaemon said wryly. He eyed his' two breathless daughers. "Where have you two been?"

"Father! We need to speak with you!" They exclaimed in one voice.

(Early the next morning…)

Jiro's eyebrows shot up in amazement. "You want to purchase two more of our' slaves?"

Lord Kaemon nodded. "My' two eldest daughters asked me to buy them, and I told them that I would." He explained.

Jiro let out a sigh. What is with this family? He wondered. "Well, Lord Kaemon Sama, I'll sell them to you for the same price as I sold the other three. 214040 yen a piece."

Lord Kaemon nodded. He produced the correct amount of money from within the folds of his' robe. He handed it to Jiro saying, "Have them delivered to the embassy this afternoon."

"As you wish, my' Lord." Jiro replied.

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Hey everybody!

So what did ya think of the third chapter?

Remember, reviews are greatly appreciated. (No flames please.)

Until next time,

This is Yaruhi, over and out!