Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any characters affiliated therewith. Neither do I own Riku, who I am using with the permission of AzNcHiBi. I only own Katsuki.

Riku saw Sasori's hands clench at Katsuki's careless remark. But her whole body relaxed as he stepped away from the closet door and back toward her. Holding his hand out to her, he whispered,

"We should go someplace more… quiet." He pulled her up and just as Sasori was about to touch the door, the closet burst open, sending Deidara and Katsuki sprawling to the floor in a tangle of limbs, kissing each other fiercely. Abruptly, Riku felt like she had been slammed into a brick wall and collapsed to the floor at Sasori's feet. The redhead stared at the raven-haired woman as she writhed around, limbs flailing everywhere, her face contorted into a grimace of extreme pain.

"Hey, there. I'm Shiranui Genma. What's your name?"

"Kiyotake Riku. Are you also a Jonin here?"

"Mmhmm. I just became one five months ago…"

"Riku-san, how about some ramen after you get back?"

"Okay. But I have to report to Tsunade-sama, too."

"'Kay. I'll wait for you!"

"Hey! Kiyotake-san! I've got something to tell you about Kakashi!"

"What is it?"

"He's got a major crush on your student, Katsuki-san."

"Oh reeeeally…?"

"Sashimi-sensei, I don't see how it matters. I've been trying to do this for weeks, and I can't get it!"

"Katsuki, you know you may call me Riku. We're of the same rank and nearly the same age…"

"Still, I can't forget you were once my sensei…You still are, Sashimi-sensei…"

"…Riku, come here."

"What is it you wish, Master Sasori?"

"Do you know anything about puppets and how to control them-"

"AHHHHHHHHHH!!!" Riku screamed as the Akatsuki's memory bond broke and her memories of Konoha came flooding back. Sasori stepped back, this slight gesture betraying a hint of fear as the woman rose to her feet.

"How could I? How could I…?" she repeated the phrase several times over, before she noticed Sasori standing before her.

"YOU!" Riku lunged at the stunned redhead, only to be stopped as a kunai slashed through the air, skillfully slicing off a few strands of the woman's hair.

"How dare you-?" The raven-haired woman turned on Deidara, who held Katsuki's now limp body in his arms as he stood up.

"Rei-dono warned us this could happen," the blonde murmured to his partner. Sasori nodded and looked at Riku, who was staring daggers at the Iwa nin as he stroked Katsuki's face gently, his blue eye wandering over her smooth facial features. Suddenly, he blurted out,

"Sasori-danna! Make her into a puppet!" He gestured at the brunette's unconscious body in his arms. "I don't want her to leave, yeah!"

"Deidara, shut up," the redhead growled to his partner, still facing Riku, whose face had acquired a murderous look as she stared at the blonde.

"Rei-dono told us that if something like this happened, we'd have to let them go-"

"No, Sasori-danna!" The Rock nin looked desperate now, and tears streamed down his cheeks. "Katsuki and I love each other! You're in love with Riku! Why can't they stay here?" Deidara fell to his knees, cradling the brunette girl in his arms.

"They don't… They don't belong here, Deidara." Sasori nearly choked on his own words: He had never had to repeat the same two words in the same sentence. The Suna man took a step towards Riku, who immediately turned to Deidara.

"If you even so much as think about turning my student into a puppet again, I'll kill you," she said menacingly, her face showing no emotion whatsoever. The raven-haired woman swiftly withdrew a kunai from her hip pouch and spun it on her middle finger, catching it so its point was mere inches from the blonde's throat.

"Tell me what happened."

"In the closet?" Deidara looked at her, puzzled, tears still streaming down his face. Riku drew back and sliced the air in front of the Iwa nin's neck, causing a blade of wind to slash through the blonde's pale skin, drawing a drop of blood.

"Ai! I just told her I loved her, yeah! Then I said I'd find a way for her to stay with me forever! I knew… I knew we'd have to let you go eventually…" Riku lowered her arm as Deidara slumped to the floor, his tears bursting afresh, clutching Katsuki's unconscious body to his chest.

"I don't want you to go…" Riku heard Sasori whisper those words as he stood behind her, not touching her, but in such close proximity that she just wanted to fall back into his arms and forget everything that had happened to her. But she shook the thought out of her head when Deidara screamed,

"SASORI-DANNA! MAKE RIKU INTO YOUR OWN PUPPET! I KNOW YOU LOVE HER, YEAH!"

"I… I can't…" the redhead murmured softly more to Riku than to the blonde.

"THEN JUST MAKE KATSUKI INTO A PUPPET FOR M-" Abruptly, Deidara released Katsuki and his eyes became glassy, expressionless. It barely registered in Riku's mind that Sasori had attached some chakra strings to the other man before the redhead grabbed her hand with his free one and whirled her around. The raven-haired woman looked at her rival and lover with something close to despair in her eyes. Time stood still as Sasori's red eyes searched through Riku's earthen ones, his free hand weaving through her long black hair, pulling her closer and closer until finally, he kissed her, passionately, desperately. And Riku gave in to the kiss, wrapping her arms around Sasori's neck as his arms snaked around her waist.

"Take Katsuki and run," he murmured through the kiss. "What Deidara said was true: I do love you, Riku-chan." Riku pulled back, her eyes wet.

"Sasori-" The redhead gently placed two fingertips on her lips as he continued speaking.

"You have no place here. Two-" he braced himself to say it, "-two Konoha nins are already here, nearby, to take you home. I… I only wish I could go with you…" Riku's eyes narrowed dangerously in suspicion, but she said nothing as she lifted Katsuki onto her back piggy-back style. Sasori stepped back to the door as he heard a scuffling outside.

"Go," he whispered. The kunoichi gazed back at the redhead and for a split-second, hesitated.

"Go!" Sasori said, more forcefully. Riku bit her lip and turned to the open window.

"I love you, Sasori," she said. With that, she was gone.

A/N: Firstly, someone has asked me if I have my stories already all planned out or if I write them chapter by chapter. I do both. Especially with this story. AzNcHiBi and I have already typed out the main ideas for this story, but it takes a while to revise it: connecting events to make it flow like a story.

Also -dare I tell you now?- there is a high probability that there will be a sequel to this story. But I can't tell you the title or what it's about yet until the absolute final chapter of this story.

Thanks for reading.