A/N - This chapter isn't exactly well written, especially not the beginning. I was baby sitting my ten month old cousin while writing, lol. But it's finished so YAY! It's a bit longer than the others, as well. Hope you guys enjoy!

This fanfic is unbeta'd so please ignore the typos! And to clear up any confusion about this, Temari's timeline is slightly behind Naruto's.

Disclaimer - All Naruto characters belong to Kishimoto-sensei...Except Gaara...after many long law suits, I finally managed to get him to give me Gaara....At least, that's what the men with the big butterfly nets told me.

Naruto tapped his eraser on his textbook rhythmically as he stared at the back of Sasuke's head. The raven hadn't moved once in the past forty-five minutes. Hadn't even shifted positions. He'd sat there as still as a statue, staring our the window for what was starting to feel like an eternity to Naruto.

Naruto bit his lip and flipped his pencil around, debating whether or not to actually do the homework in front of him. It seemed impossible at the moment, his mind was racing in too many directions to focus.

He had a bad feeling that was bubbling in his chest, seething and expanding, threatening to take over his entire body. Something wasn't right, something was off. He just didn't know what it was.

Was it the school?

There was certainly something off within Konoha High. Naruto didn't know what to think about it. The fact that students were used like soldiers for the whims of the government infuriated him. Not only because he was now one of those students and would probably be used, but because there was something so morally wrong with it.

The students in the school had probably come with hope, looking for some semblance of normalcy amongst their altered lives. Naruto had. He hadn't admitted to himself, but somewhere in the back of his mind he had been hoping for acceptance. Belonging. Not to be judged on his past or his strange abilities.

And this is what he and everyone else got.

A place where they could learn to control things beyond their control. A place where bonds could be forged and life lessons could be learned.

A place where they were all used.

Naruto remembered the look on Hinata's face for the umpteenth time that day. The wide eyes and trembling lips. Then the look on Neji's face as he had lifted her up and taken her away.

Quiet outrage.

He started tapping his eraser again, biting his lip harder than ever. Was what Sakura said true? Things are the way they are, and nothing could be done about it.

Naruto didn't want to believe that.

And were there really people attempting to do something about it? To change things? Sakura had made it sound like there were, but Naruto didn't know enough to truly understand the situation. He was beginning to feel weighed down by his ignorance.

He didn't understand the calm attitudes of his fellow students. The quiet acceptance by the teachers. He knew the threat of those who acted beyond their place was great, but that didn't stop him from wanting to act anyways.

He'd survived the institution the first time, after all.

"Would you stop that?" Sasuke snapped, turning his head to glare at Naruto's pencil. Naruto's mouth fell open slightly at the sound of Sasuke's voice. He had figured Sasuke was off in another world, lost in his thoughts.

"Yeah," Naruto looked at him as apologetically as he could manage, being rather annoyed by Sasuke. "Sorry."

Sasuke turned around and resumed staring out the window. Naruto bit his lip again. He knew talking to Sasuke was a bad idea. Nothing good could come of it, as they'd obviously gotten off on the wrong foot, and Naruto had a feeling there wouldn't be any 'do overs' to rectify the problem.

But his thoughts were driving him crazy and he needed a distraction.

"Sasuke," He hesitated slightly. It felt strange to say Sasuke's name. "What exactly is it that Hinata can do? Kiba said she was S-rank."

Naruto counted the seconds that ticked by until a full minute had passed, and he gave up on an answer. He was surprised when Sasuke turned to him with guarded eyes.

"Hinata is an S-rank harmonizer." Sasuke's voice was toneless. "Her Kekkei Genkai has to do with sound waves. Depending on the pitch of scream she uses, she can knock down buildings."

"Seriously?" Naruto asked, amazed. "But she's so quiet." He couldn't help the slight smile that pulled at the corner of his mouth. "Why is that Neji guy so protective of her?"

Sasuke sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "He's her cousin." He said shortly. Naruto nodded. He had figured they were somehow related, they looked very similar. He was astounded that Sasuke was actually answering his questions.

"Sasuke?"

"What?" He sounded irritated, it made Naruto smirk. There was something fun about pushing Sasuke's buttons, as there seemed to be so many. Just talking annoyed the guy.

"What do you think of the way they do things? Sending us out on missions and stuff." Naruto watched as Sasuke seemed to think about it. His face didn't change at all, but Naruto could see a slight flicker in his eye every now and then.

Emotions, maybe?

And here he'd been thinking Sasuke was actually an undercover AI unit. The kind that follows all the rules but then goes all crazy and tries to destroy humanity.

On second thought, that could actually happen. Naruto grimaced.

"I think we have abilities, so it make sense to use them." Sasuke deadpanned, before turning around and staring out the window again.

Naruto let the subject drop, musing at the fact that they had had a somewhat civil conversation. He hadn't really expected anything like that to happen, so he felt slightly giddy. But it wasn't like he and Sasuke were on there way to being friends or anything, so he crushed the feeling immediately.

Naruto glanced down at his homework, and then around the room. He and Sasuke were the only ones there. Kurenai-sensei had left about twenty minutes earlier. Naruto doubted she would be back any time soon, as she had been called away by the teacher who had caught Naruto punching Kiba on his first day, Asuma-sensei.

Naruto jumped to his feet and picked up his bag, stuffing his textbook inside. There was no reason to hang around if the teacher wasn't there. He could go and do what he wanted for a while, and then come back just before their time was up.

With a smile, he headed to the door.

"Where do you think you're going, idiot?" Sasuke's voice was no longer civil, or even toneless. It was a cross between amusement and annoyance.

"Um...outside, obviously." Naruto said, narrowing his eyes at the smug look on Sasuke's face. "Why?"

"No reason." Sasuke said. Naruto stared at him for a few more seconds before opening the door and attempting to go out.

His head slammed against something hard, propelling him back a few feet. Naruto's eyes widened. There was nothing there, just an open doorway.

"Idiot." Sasuke said again. Naruto rounded on him. Sasuke wasn't laughing, he didn't seem the type to ever laugh, but his smirk was so wide on his face that Naruto had no doubt he was at least snickering on the inside.

"What's so funny, teme?" Naruto didn't like being laughed at. Ever. Sasuke's expression sobered immediately.

"Kurenai-sensei is an entrapment specialist." Sasuke explained, tone smug. "She's put a barrier on this room. There's no getting in or out for anyone who isn't her."

"Asuma-sensei came in." Naruto pointed out.

"She let him in, you idiot."

"What the hell is your problem?" Naruto nearly yelled. He didn't understand how they had gone to being almost nice to each other to this. He didn't take kindly to being insulted and retaliated on instinct. But Sasuke had no reason to be so damn insulting in the first place.

"Right now, my problem is you." Naruto gaped at Sasuke. He had the oddest expression on his look as he said that. Almost pained. Naruto didn't understand it, but it made him curious. Not curious enough to ask, though.

Deciding to be the bigger man, Naruto just glared at Sasuke as he resumed his seat. He pulled his textbook out and flipped it back to the chapter he was on. Eventually, he began tapping his eraser again and started glaring at the back of Sasuke's head.

Sasuke didn't move an inch the rest of the time. Naruto was pretty sure he'd even stopped breathing.

Sasuke slammed the door behind him and stomped up the stairs. All he wanted to do was get into his room and ignore the world.

Throwing his bag on his desk, he flung himself into bed. It sucked that 'the world' included himself.

And he was what was on his nerves at the moment.

He grit his teeth and clenched his fists as he stared at the ceiling.

He had found himself becoming victim to the large sun that was Naruto. He had sworn to himself not to get pulled in by the blonde. So what was he doing even speaking to him? Why had he answered Naruto's questions?

Why had he felt the need to pull Naruto closer, rather than push him away?

Sasuke slammed his fist against his mattress.

Maybe he was just lonely. He had been alone so long now that he was almost used to it, but it still got to him sometimes. The weight of loneliness was crushing, like he was pinned beneath a car. It made him feel like he could barely breathe.

And it was like Naruto was the only person strong enough to lift the car off of him. To give him room to climb out from underneath it.

But he didn't want to climb out. He didn't want to change the way his life worked. His focus and goals were what made him who he was. Uchiha Sasuke, an avenger.

He sighed and closed his eyes, forcing a mental image of Itachi into his mind. Itachi, covered in blood with that horrible smirk on his face. Itachi laughing and telling him to hate as he walked past the corpses of their parents.

Sasuke lurched into sitting position, determination exploding in his chest and surging through his limbs like wildfire. He didn't have time to sit here and think a bout trivial things. He didn't have time to care about things beyond his goal.

He jumped out of bed and headed for the door. He was going to go into the back yard and train. Train until he could no longer move, he was so exhausted.

But before Sasuke could even put his hand on the door knob, it turned and his door opened. Kakashi was standing there, staring at Sasuke quizzically. Sasuke glowered. There went his plan.

"Sasuke." Kakashi greeted, pushing past Sasuke inside of the room. Sasuke almost growled as he slammed the door closed and turned to see Kakashi sitting at his desk, looking perfectly at home in Sasuke's barren room.

"What?" Sasuke didn't even attempt to sound civil.

"You were going to go train, weren't you?" Kakashi sounded disinterested, but Sasuke knew that wasn't the case. It was just Kakashi's natural tone of voice. Sasuke glared at Kakashi but didn't respond. He knew he wouldn't be able to lie about something so obvious.

Kakashi sighed and leaned back in Sasuke's computer chair. A contemplative expression crossed his face, and Sasuke stood staring at him for a few moments before Kakashi finally voiced his thought's.

"What do you think of Naruto?" He asked, both eyes trained on Sasuke, who almost flinched, but managed to stop himself just in time. Of course Kakashi had come to talk about the one thing Sasuke wanted to forget. "Do you think you could get along with him?" Kakashi continued.

Sasuke grunted in response. In truth, he thought maybe he could get along with Naruto. Except that he didn't want to get along with Naruto. He didn't want to go anywhere near the bubbly blonde. And he was going to use his naturally abrasive attitude to make sure he never did.

Kakashi's eyes hadn't once left Sasuke's face as Sasuke thought about it. Sasuke watched idly as Kakashi reached his hands around to the back of his neck and retied the knot on the scarf that hid the lower half of his face. Sasuke resisted the urge to roll his eyes. His guardians attempts at being mysterious came out more eccentric than anything.

"Sasuke," Kakashi's tone was serious now. "I don't think I need to tell you about Naruto's past. Everyone knows about it. You of all people should know what living through such an incident does to a person. I think you and he may have a chance to actually bond."

Sasuke glared at Kakashi with all of the fury he could manage. He didn't want Kakashi sitting in his room, in his chair, with that cocky expression, throwing Sasuke's own thoughts in his face.

"That's one of the reasons I made him a part of Team 7. That and there were no other options." Kakashi waved his hand airily, as if to dismiss that reason. "I think you could understand him, and likewise, he could understand you. If you got past your natural inclination of biting the ankles of everyone who comes near you, Team 7 could easily be the best team at the academy."

Sasuke snorted. Kakashi seemed to get the meaning. "Once Naruto gets a hold on his abilities, he will be strong, Sasuke. You know it as well as I do."

"Hn." Was Sasuke's response to the assumption. Kakashi's eyes closed in a smile before he spoke again. "You need to get used to the idea of Naruto, Sasuke. Because he isn't going anywhere. He isn't going to magically disappear. He's in your life now and there is nothing any of us can do about it."

"Are you finished?" Sasuke deadpanned. Kakashi nodded and gave him a long look before getting up and walking out of the room. Sasuke huffed and took Kakashi's place in his computer chair, pulling his backpack toward him. May as well get his homework out of the way now, since training wasn't going to happen.

A small twinge of guilt flickered in Sasuke's stomach when he thought about the fact that he hadn't told Kakashi about his newfound abilities, but he quickly brushed it off. His abilities were no one's business but his own and no one was going to stop him from using them how he saw fit.

Sasuke smirked as he flipped open his Calculus textbook.

No one.

Temari groaned. Something wasn't right. No, something was very, very wrong. There was a sharp pain in her leg and her skull felt like it had been cracked in half. She could smell smoke and hear people shouting.

She opened her eyes blearily and had time to glance down at her leg before something impeded her vision. A large piece of glass – the windshield from the taxi – was sticking out of her thigh. Temari could feel the warm stickiness of blood as it leaked from the wound.

Then there was a face in her way. She recognized it, but had no idea who it was. It was the hair – the red hair – that she remembered.

This was the person who had rammed into the taxi. Temari had suspected it was intentional, and judging by the cold eyes staring down at her, she hadn't been mistaken. Temari stared into the eyes of the man for a few seconds before she felt a prick on her arm. She looked over to see that the man was shooting something into her with a syringe.

Everything got hazy again and Temari closed her eyes.

When she next woke up, she was extremely confused. Fluorescent bulbs flickered above her head lazily and she squinted her eyes against the harshness of artificial light. Her eyes darted around the room as she became more alert. Last she remembered, the taxi had been wrecked and there had been a man with a needle. As she looked around, she realized she was alone in the room and gave a sigh of relief.

And then panic surged inside of her when she realized she had absolutely no idea where she was.

She lifted her head to give her body a once over. She was no longer wearing the black tank top and jeans she had remembered starting out in. She was in a hospital gown. She frowned – not liking that very much at all – and tried to sit up.

And then she realized she was restrained.

Of course, she thought to herself. Because whoever it was that had kidnapped her would just let her wander free in this situation. She bit her lip and tried not to roll her eyes at herself. She gave a soft tug on the restraint in frustration. It was the kind that hospitals used to subdue mentally unstable patients.

Temari's eyes widened as she realized that maybe that was where she was. The bed she was laying on was like one of those uncomfortable ones doctor's made you sit on when you went to the clinic. She was in a hospital gown, and it seemed the wound on her leg had been bandaged, though it was still sending out dull and aching throbs. The room was white and smelled sterile. She examined it more closely.

White cabinets and counters lined the walls. There was various medical equipment on top of the counters. Boxes of gloves and bottles of iodine and other things she didn't recognize except from the many, many times she'd been in a doctor's office.

Next to her was a tray of medical instruments. The kind surgeons would use just before cutting someone open. She shuddered. The fact that it was so close to her sent out warning signals in her brain.

She tried to think, tried to remember the face of her captor. But her head and hurt and the strain made her want to close her eyes. The kidnapper had seemed young, only a few years older than herself, but his eyes had been dark and cold. Remembering sent another shudder across her spine.

She didn't know who the kidnapper was, but she had a vague idea of why she had been kidnapped. And if her suspicions were correct, this was the worst possible situation she could be in.

The door on the far right side of the room open and Temari snapped her half-lidded eyes open, instantly alert. A man with bright orange hair walked through the door, closely followed by a boy with long blonde hair who looked about her age.

"Oh look, she's awake!" The blonde exclaimed, a smile on his face. Temari did not like that look of that smile at all. "About time, too. You've been asleep for two days. Sasori must have upped the dosage."

"Deidara." The man with orange hair said, voice cold and impassive. "Shut up." The blonde, who Temari assumed was Deidara, clamped his mouth shut immediately. There was still a hint of that grin on his face though.

"Subaku Temari." The orange haired man addressed her and she immediately stiffened. She bit her lip against the rising panic that was threatening to pull her away from sanity. She did not like being afraid. "I presume you would like to know what is going on."

She nodded, looking into the eyes of the orange haired man. They were the strangest she had ever seen, even for a Kekkei Genkai. They look like someone had dropped a pebble in the pupil sending ripples out across the iris, and they were completely dead, betraying no emotion.

"I am Pein," The man told her. "Leader of the Akatsuki." Temari's eyes widened visibly and then immediately went to the mans wrist, then to Deidara's. They were both wearing a band of black cloth there, with a large red cloud stitched into it. Temari's heart rate sped up as she realized just how serious the situation was. Out of all the times she had encountered the Akatsuki, she had never once met nor heard talk of their leader.

"I apologize for the methods we used to bring you here." Funny, he didn't sound sorry at all. "But they were necessary, as you were going to interfere with our plan of action. That could not be tolerated."

Deidara smiled mischievously at Temari over Pein's shoulder, his eyes crinkling slightly at the corners.

"I don't know what you're talking about." Temari deadpanned, looking at Pein again.

"I highly doubt that." Pein said dismissively. "You were on your way to Japan, presumably to contact Uzumaki Naruto for the sake of your brother. That would be interfering."

Temari's eyes widened and the words were out of her mouth before she could stop them. "You have my brother."

Pein simply nodded.

"You bastard!" She screamed, lurching forward as if to attack him, only to be slammed back into the bed by the restraints. "You fucking bastard! What have you done to him?! What have you done to Gaara?!"

"Nothing that he can't handle, I assure you." Pein told her, unphased by her attempt at rebellion.

"At least physically." Deidara cut in, laughing. "Mentally, I'm quite sure he'll never be the same."

"You son of a bitch!" Temari screamed. She knew she should be calm in a situation like this, that fighting would get her no where – except injured or possibly dead – but she couldn't seem to help herself. "I'll kill you! I will kill you and rip you apart and then give your remains to a wild fucking dog!"

"Deidara" Pein's voice was heavy with the weight of an unsaid command.

"Yes, sir." Deidara said, coming forward. Temari watched as he raised his hand, a syringe in glinting in the harsh light.

"Don't-" Temari managed as Deidara stuck the needle in her arm. And for the third time, everything went dark.

The days seemed to fly by for Naruto as he grew used to Konoha High. And he was glad to say that all of them were filled with laughter and the general joys of being a teenager. Before he knew it, he'd been at Konoha High for a month and was completely comfortable.

Wednesday and Thursday classes had proved to be exceedingly interesting. He worked with Kakashi relentlessly as the elder man told him how to focus his abilities and harness the energy required to activate his Kekkei Genkai. Naruto could now cause very small explosions on command. He was extremely pleased with his progress.

Sasuke was as cold as ever, but Naruto mostly ignored him. He and Sasuke hadn't had the chance to spar yet, and for that, Naruto was grateful. He was sure he would come off worse in the fight and he didn't want to experience the humiliation that entailed.

Sakura was almost always by his side, going with him everywhere. Hinata had joined their group for lunches, though she didn't contribute much in the way of conversation. Her general presence was relaxing though. Naruto still found her Kekkei Genkai hard to believe. She was just too quiet to be a screamer.

"Hey, Naruto." Sakura called him back from his thoughts. He was on his back on the school lawn, staring at the bright blue sky. Shikamaru was next to him, but he'd drifted off. Nobody was surprised by this, he seemed to sleep through most lunch hours. Their usual group was sitting in various places on a large blanket that had been spread out under the shade of a large tree. Hinata had brought a really large home-made bento today, so they'd decided to make a picnic out of it.

"What are you thinking about?" Sakura asked, leaning over into his line of sight. She was grinning and Naruto grinned back reflexively.

"Nothing much." He said idly, giving a slight shrug. "Just that I've only been here for a month but I feel like I've been here forever."

Sakura's grin widened. "Yeah, it's like that for almost everyone who comes here. It's like we were always meant to be here, you know? A home away from home."

Naruto nodded his agreement as he sat up. The other new addition to there group was regarding him with cold eyes. Naruto fought the urge to grimace under Neji's scrutiny. He and Neji weren't exactly enemies, but they weren't friends either. Neji seemed to go wherever Hinata went, so when she started eating with them, he had too.

Kiba was eyeing Naruto and Sakura with interest. His squinty eyes darted back and forth between them before a large grin spread across his face. Naruto fought the urge to groan.

He knew what Kiba was thinking.

Naruto did not like Sakura, nor did Sakura like him. Kiba's new found assumption was all wrong. Naruto didn't even think Sakura liked Sasuke as much as she claimed. She actually seemed to like a certain someone else...

The bell chimed loudly, echoing across the grounds. The sound made Shikamaru groan as he sat up, batting a few hairs that had strayed from his ponytail out his eyes.

"Dammit." He muttered. When Naruto raised an eyebrow at him in question, Shikamaru shrugged. "I have to attend those meetings for the cultural festival now. It's troublesome."

Naruto smiled and stood up, stretching slightly. Shikamaru thought everything was troublesome. Except laying on his back and staring at the sky, or sleeping. His attitude annoyed Ino to no end, but Naruto had grown rather fond of his lazy friend.

"Sakura!" Everyone looked over at the voice. Ten-Ten, the girl with the twin buns from Neji's team was walking toward them. "Tsunade-sensei wants you to go to the office." She informed, and Sakura just nodded. She gave the rest of them a slight wave and headed toward the admissions building.

Naruto stayed behind with Kiba and Shino to help Hinata pack up the bento. They walked back to the classroom together, Kiba laughing at Naruto's loud denials of his supposed affection for Sakura. Class resumed with a lazy kind of ease, everyone so used to the routine of things. Kakashi started rambling on about some English author and his opinions of the world as Naruto mimicked Sasuke and stared out the window.

By the time the final bell rang, Naruto was restless. He had never been able to sit still, and he still had two hours of detention with the teme to sit through. The thought made him want to groan. His self-pitying was quickly interrupted as he walked out of the classroom and saw Sakura leaning against the opposite wall. She hadn't returned to class after lunch. She motioned him over, and when Sasuke walked out the classroom, she did the same.

Naruto looked at her curiously and Sasuke just seemed bored as she led them down the hall, and outside. Naruto didn't fail to notice that they were heading toward the admissions building. "Sakura," He asked, unable to resist the curiousty any longer. "Where are we going?"

"To Tsunade-sensei's office." Sakura said without turning to look at him. Though her tone was relaxed, her body seemed tense as she led both him and Sasuke by the hand. Naruto got a kick out of seeing how much the physical contact annoyed Sasuke.

"Why?" He asked, still curious. Her explanation hadn't been much of an explanation at all.

"Because," Sakura said, taking a deep breath as if to brace herself. "We have our first mission."

When Temari came to, it was dark. She was no longer in the white hospital room and there were to fluorescent lights hanging on the ceiling. There were no lights at all. Instantly alert, she sat up and looked around.

Her eyes took some time to adjust to the dark. She got to her feet and felt along the wall she had been laying next to. It seemed to be made of concrete.

Was she in a basement?

Her mouth dropped open when the wall she had been touching disappeared. Instead, her hand met with cool metal. Bars. She was in a cage. Or a cell.

Panic set in faster than she could contain it. She started pounding on the bars frantically, hoping to get the attention of someone. When that didn't work, she felt along the three concrete walls that surrounded her, as if there was a hidden way out.

There wasn't one.

It was cold and dank and Temari shivered. She was still in that atrocious hospital gown from earlier, and it did little to shelter someone from the cold. After and hour or so of adapting to her surroundings, she kicked the bars in frustration.

"Dammit!" She yelled to no one in particular. She was surprised when a rather sarcastic laugh answered her.

"Who's there?!" She demanded, tilting her head at the sound of the voice. It was coming from her left. If it were any of the Akatsuki, they'd be standing in front of the bars. They didn't need to hide.

No, this was another prisoner.

The chuckles died off abruptly and there was silence for a few moments. Temari almost gave up on waiting for answer when...

"I'm Sai." The voice said, amusement still plain in his tone. "Welcome to hell."

A/N - Haha! The plot thickens...! Kind of. What little plot I've managed to work out anyways. I hope you guys enjoyed it, cause I had a hell of a time writing it. It was very fun, but very hard. Reviews are always appreciated, so I wouldn't mind getting some! No pressure though. XP I'll update as soon as I possibly can, so look forward to it!