~Naruto Kittens: The Re-Write~

Chapter Four

~Melanie's POV~

According to Savannah, all the kittens were in Megan and I's bedroom. All of them except Kisame, of course, who was still being held by Savannah. When I asked her why, all she said was that he was growing on her. The words she said scared me, but I didn't show it. I was scared for many reasons. One of them being that if Tobi was the actual Tobi from Naruto, did that mean that all the other kittens we had named were other Akatsuki characters?

It sounds a little stupid, but I don't think we should be getting attached to the kittens, like how Savannah is getting attached to Kisame. Because, well, who knows what would happen when we turned them back. What if they turn completely evil and kill us instantly? They can't use their jutsu's of course, but they must be able to stand their ground in hand-to-hand combat.

When Megan and I were younger, a robber broke into our house when my parents and brothers were out. Alec was home, but he didn't hear anything from all the way up in the attic. We made it out alive though. How, I can't remember. But ever since then my mom has been totally paranoid and made every member of the family take self defence classes. One-on-one I think I would be able to take them, but in a group? I don't think so. Even if we do have Savannah, Sean and Tobi with us.

Which brings me to Tobi. How can we trust him? I'm up to date in everything that's happened in the anime and manga, so I know that Tobi, or rather Obito, is the actual leader of the Akatsuki. It would be up to him if he really wanted us dead or not. He would be the one to decide our fate. Right now he was acting cheerful and trustworthy, but this is Tobi, not Obito. Because truthfully, they are two different people. Tobi isn't a quarter as smart and strong as Obito is.

I also miss a step on the stairs when Megan suddenly laughs, Tobi joining in with her. They're a bit a head of me but instead of asking them what's so funny, I listen in on their conversation. Turns out Tobi said something rather funny and Megan laughed at it.

See, this is what I mean. He's cracking jokes now, laughing like we're all old friends. But he's a ruthless killer who wouldn't think twice to kill anyone.

Or maybe I'm just paranoid?

No. No, I don't think I am.

Am I?

I have a bad habit of biting my nails, especially when I'm nervous. And by the time we had reached Megan and I's room, I had bitten them down to the cuticles. A few were even bleeding, to which I wiped on my black t-shirt. I grimaced as I looked down at my fur-covered t-shirt. I would have to change it when I got the chance, which would be soon. Hopefully.

I was about to walk right into the room, who wouldn't, when Sean stopped me by grabbing onto my arm. I frowned and looked at him, an eyebrow raised. "What?"

"What if the kittens are by the door and they all come running out when we open it? Shouldn't we open it slowly rather than walking right in?" He said. The way he said it annoyed me because he said it as if it was the obvious thing to do when it actually wasn't. But instead of getting mad I simply stepped back, crossed my arms and motioned with my head for someone else to open it.

Savannah was holding Kisame, and Kisame is a bit bigger than the other kittens so she had to hold him with both her arms. Tobi still looked a little scared of me and Sean just shook his head, a sure signal that he wouldn't be opening the door either. So that left Megan. Said girl sighed and walked forward, grasping the door handle and turning it slowly. She opened it an inch and immediately an orange paw appeared from the small crack between the wall and the door. I immediately knew it was Pein.

No one stepped forward to pick Pein up and Megan couldn't because she had to hold the door in place. So I swopped down and grabbed one of his paws. Megan opened the door a little bit more, just enough fro me to squeeze his head and front legs through. I hooked my arms under his tiny kitten armpits and lifted him up. Megan immediately closed the door, but slowly so she wouldn't hurt any kittens that tried to rush out. Not like any of them did anyway.

I held Pein in my arms, stroking his fur while he looked at me. I couldn't tell what facial expression he was using, but he was definitely not happy with me. I looked up at the other four human inhabitants of the room. "So, we should probably turn him back now."

"Are you sure it's a good idea?" Savannah asked. She sounded nervous, which was completely unlike her. But in a situation like this, I couldn't really blame her, now could I? "Shouldn't we turn back one of the weaker kittens first?"

A chorus of meows sounded from behind the closed door and I laughed out loud while hugging Pein to my chest. No one else laughed, but I refrained from frowning. "No, it's fine. We'll be okay."

Sean frowned and crossed his arms over his chest. "How can you be so sure?"

"Well," I started. "Out of all the kittens, Pein has got to be the most reasonable one, hopefully. So once we turn him back and explain everything that's happened and what exactly is going on, he can explain it to the other kittens and, problem solved."

"And if it back fires?" Megan asked uncertainly.

"He can't use jutsu's here. No chakra, remember?" I pointed out. I switched from stroking Pein's fur to scratching his belly. I was surprised when I felt his tiny heartbeat beat unbelievably fast, even for a kitten.

The three of them didn't look so convinced, but Tobi had another idea. "Tobi cold talk to him. Leader-sama likes Tobi!"

"See?" I said, trying to sound hopeful. "We'll be fine."

Sean sighed, running a hand through his unruly brown hair. "Alright. But if anything goes wrong, I'm blaming you. Deal?"

I shrugged my shoulders. "Deal."

~.~.~

I stood over the soapy, water-filled tub. Pein dangled from my arms, looking at me with ridiculously adorable kitten eyes and meowing constantly. I shut my eyes and frowned. "I don't want to do it anymore."

Megan let out a noise of disagreement from behind me. "Why not?"

"He's too adorable!"

"He's an S-rank criminal!"

"And an adorable one too!"

"Just drop him!"

"No!"

I yelped when Sean suddenly body-bumped me, making me let go of Pein while I flailed around for something to hang onto. That something was Sean and I clung on for dear life as Pein flipped in the air and splashed into the soapy water. I looked over Sean's shoulder, sighing in relief when I saw that the door was in fact closed, before looking back over to Pein. The poor kitten splashed and flailed in the water, which wasn't all that deep, while he tried to 'swim' for the edge of the bathtub. He made it, miraculously, and began darting all over the bathroom.

Savannah dropped Kisame into the sink and held her arms open as Pein jumped towards her. He clung onto her for dear life and she hugged him back. A blinding white light suddenly appeared, making me wince as I scrambled to shield my eyes, as did the other four inhabitants of the room. I just hid my face behind Sean's back, which meant I was the first person to see Pein when the light faded.

He looked exactly like how he did in the anime and manga but more...real, I guess? He didn't have that 2-D look to him. He looked like one of those really good cosplayers who put in a lot of effort with their costumes and appearance. The only difference was that he was real. And naked.

Oh, so naked.

Savannah let out a squeal when she realized that she was in fact hugging a twenty-something year old naked man and pushed him away from her, shielding her eyes. I took that as an opportunity to throw a towel at him while I also shielded my eyes from his nakedness.

Tobi, Megan and Sean had been still recovering from having their eyes practically blinded and Kisame just sat in the sink in a daze. Which means that Savannah and I were the only ones to see him naked.

(And Konan)

Pein fixed the towel so it hung around his waist and turned to look at me. His piercings glistened from the water and he was half glaring at me. I couldn't describe the other look he was giving me but it was one of...interest? I wasn't sure. I don't study behaviours.

I laughed awkwardly, scratching behind my neck as I smiled at Pein. He continued looking at me with that look of his and I bit my lip. "So...I'm guessing you need some clothes?"

Pein shook his head out, getting rid of the spare water droplets in his hair and also successfully coating my mirror with water. He brushed the hair out of his face and gave a half smile. "Yeah, that would be nice."

"Uh, yeah, okay." I bit my lip nervously, chewing on them as well. I turned to the others. "Well, I'm going to go get some clothes for Pein. Be right back."

I practically ran out of the bathroom and out of my parents' bedroom, dashing down the hall toward my eldest brother, Damien's, room. Hopefully his clothes would fit Pein. And all the other members of the Akatsuki. As I picked out a pair of boxers from Damien's dresser, I blushed when I remembered seeing Pein's...family jewels. No one said anything about them being naked when they turned back. Though I guess it did make a little sense. But then where did the clothes they were wearing before go? Did it just get lost somewhere in the space-time continuum?

Ugh. All this thinking is making my head hurt.

After grabbing the necessary garments that Pein would need (so the usual stuff; shirt, pants and boxers), I ran back to my parents' washroom. Megan, Sean, Savannah and Tobi had recovered from the shock and were now conversing with Pein. I let out a tremendous sigh and held out the clothes for Pein. "Here you go. You can change in here and the five of us will wait outside."

A meow sounded from the sink and I sighed. "...Right. The six of us will wait outside."

Pein merely nodded. "Thanks."

I didn't say anything back as I exited the room, Tobi, Megan and Sean following after me. Savannah lingered a little longer to get Kisame out of the sink. It was rather awkward while we waited for Pein to change. We wondered what was taking him so long but obviously he would have to dry himself off and then make sure the clothes actually fit.

As we waited, we conversed on which kitten we should turn back. Savannah voted for Kisame and I only agreed because he was already here with us. Not that I actually said that out loud. All I said was that it was a good idea and that we should turn him back next. I was kind of scared about turning the kittens back now because that means they'll all be naked. And I do not want to be in the presence of a naked man.

You already have. The little voice in my head whispered. I scowled and mentally told it to 'go suck an egg'.

Pein came out of the bathroom a few seconds after that and I have to admit, he actually looked like a normal person and not crazy in proper clothes. But then again, back in his dimension, world, thingy...whatever, the clothes he wore on a normal basis was 'proper' clothes. The clothes that you and I would normally wear here would be considered weird back in Pein's dimension.

Ugh, why am I even thinking about this?

Anyway, Pein came out of the bathroom fully clothed and he stood somewhat awkwardly by the bathroom door. No one really spoke until Sean decided to break the silence. By saying the stupidest thing you could every say to someone.

"So..." He started. "Are you aware that you are a fictional character?"

I swear, I felt like face palming myself, but with a cactus. It wouldn't be that hard. My mom even has them in her garden in the backyard.

But, I have to admit, Pein's reaction was pretty damn hilarious. He stood there for a few seconds with a puzzled look on his face before saying, "What are you talking about?"

Meh, it was funnier than how I made it sound.

But seriously, I really felt like punching either myself or Sean for that question.

And it looks like everyone else in the room wanted to punch him for it too.

Megan laughed nervously. "What he means is...um..."

"You do know that you were turned into a kitten, right?" Savannah asked.

Pein laughed un-humorously. "Yes, I know that."

"Okay." I said, interrupting. "I think that if you tell us what happened to you guys, then we can tell you guys what's going on. You know?"

Pein just shrugged his shoulders and nodded his head. He's surprisingly more laidback than I expected him to be. It's almost scary, because he could turn on us at any second. Just like Tobi. But I'd rather not talk about that. Instead, I listened as Pein recited the whole story of how he and the others were turned into kittens and how they got to us. He explained that Orochimaru turned them into kittens (no surprise there, really) and then sent them here, where Megan and I's uncle, Marko, found them and brought them home. And then he described the process of being a cat with Uncle Marko there to take care of them and then finally coming into my (our) clutches.

"That's a really, really weird story." Savannah commented. Upon the look she got from Pein, she added, "I totally believe you, it's just pretty weird."

"So?" Pein asked. "Can you figure out what's going on?"

"Well..." Sean started, stroking his non-existent chin hairs. "If Orochimaru went to such great lengths to get rid of you guys, he's probably planning something."

Megan nodded. "And something big, too."

"Which means that we should probably get you guys back there as soon as possible." Savannah chimed in.

"The only problem is..." I started. I laughed nervously, scratching the back of my head. "The problem is, we don't really know how to get you guys back. None of us are that smart."

Pein frowned and then waved Tobi over, to which he obliged. As they were conversing with each other, I had a strange feeling that this would be the time where they both turn on us. Surprisingly, they didn't. Instead, Pein said, "None of the members of the Akatsuki will hurt you, under one condition."

As he said this, he looked directly at me. He probably assumed that I was the 'leader', give or take, so I just nodded my head. "And what is this condition?"

"None of the members of Akatsuki will hurt," He paused before adding the last bit. "But only if you help us get back to our own world."

Again, he looked toward me. I swallowed thickly and looked around the room at Sean, Megan and Savannah. They all had somewhat scared and bewildered looks on their faces. All of them except Megan. She stood up tall, held her chin high and nodded. "Deal. I'm in."

I sighed dramatically. "Well if you're in then I'm in, too."

"I'll be damned if I'll let you guys have all the fun." Savannah said and then grinned. "Count me in."

We all looked toward Sean, who was seated on the bed. He sighed deeply but I could see a tiny smile gracing his features. "Someone's got to keep you three out of danger. I'm comin' too."

I looked from Megan to Savannah to Sean. They all nodded, smiles on their faces. They wouldn't pass up an opportunity like this for anything. And, honestly, I'm glad I'm stuck doing this with these three.

Pein spoke from behind me, half startling me in the process. "So, I'm guessing we have ourselves a deal, yes?"

I looked at the three of them once more and they nodded again. I smiled and nodded my head as well, turning to look at Pein. My smile turned into a grin as I said,

"You, sir, have got yourself a deal."

Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaand done! I procrastinated this chapter too. Sadface. But better late then never! This chapter isn't the longest chapter but it's longer than the last chapter I put up so yeah. Hope you guys like it! Sorry for the long wait!

~RylahCaverley