I know I have been away for a while! I was struck with writer's block among other things like school and work. I will TRY to be more attentive now. I know this chapter will leave a lot of you with questions and I will happily answer what I can, but do know that they will most likely be answered in upcoming chapters. This is not the last time you will hear about Hannikuro.

Anyway! I would love to hear any ideas that any of you have and would like to see in the story. I will do my best to incorporate it in. Please review! Reviews make me want to update faster. I also want to send out a big thanks to everyone who has reviewed, favorited and is following this story!

Also I do not own Naruto! Only my OC Shaiya!

Hannikuro was a sight to behold, quite literary. A city perched upon a large, looming hill that looked over miles of land. The buildings and homes seemed to be built spiraling up the hill to meet in the middle where a towering castle like manor stood. Streets this way and that in a zig-zag manner that didn't make sense to outsiders, but then again they didn't get many. There was a foreboding tension that always hung in the air above every villager's head. The high stone walls that encircled the town put Konoha's to shame, that didn't make the scenario any better. Otherwise Hannikuro was a bustling with life with peoples going about their business to make a honest day's work and living, kids running around cheerfully playing their games and everyone staying away from the black iron gated manor.

It took Kisame and Itachi a week to get there, mainly because they really had no idea where it was and when they managed to ask someone about the village their answer was either 'never heard of the place' or 'please don't kill me.' They finally happened across one traveler who was willing to point them in the right direction but very warily with the words of 'it would be wise not to venture there.' Now the two were standing just across a field looking at the high walls with skepticism. "We will wait for nightfall and make our way into that manor." Itachi finally spoke after hours of silence, observing the structure at the top of the hill with his sharingan. Kisame only nodded his head and treaded back underneath the shade of trees of the forest they were in next to the field.

Nightfall was a long wait and the blue skinned male sat staring at the ground the whole time with a sense of nervousness. He was not nervous about breaking and entering, but seeing Shaiya again and how she would react to him. After trying to push her to the back of his mind for so long; he was going to be faced with her. Itachi sat with his eyes closed the whole time, looking too peaceful for his own good. Kisame wished he could be like him at the moment.

It was around midnight when the two Akatsuki members decided to make their move. Shuffling to their feet and darting across the field; their frames just a blur to anyone who happened to be looking in their general direction. Luckily this place was as bad at security as Konoha was. Sneaking in through a large crack in the wall on the west side was a breeze, getting through the town was like breathing. Most of the civilians were tucked into their homes, only the occasional drunks were about and two guards slacking on their patrol duties. This was all too easy in Itachi's opinion.

The manor ground is when it became hazardous as there were guards patrolling every which way you looked. They needed a distraction and seeing that these people were not of shinobi material, it would be easy. Itachi made a gesture for Kisame to wait for him as he walked off; disappearing into the shadows between two buildings across from the spot they were hiding and scouting the massive structure. Ten minutes passed when Itachi came rushing back, giving Kisame the signal to 'go.' Not a second later an explosive sounded in a small patch of trees next to the iron gate on the west side of the manor. The guards scattered to that area like ants, leaving the front wide open for Itachi and Kisame to dash through. May not have been the best of plans, but it worked.

They both stopped at the double doors, jiggling the knob and noting that it was unlocked so that left them to peeking inside to see if the coast was clear. Through the crack Kisame saw no one, but as he stepped in there was a loud, "Hey!" to his right. There were two guards rushing towards him, he grabbed the one that got to him first by the neck and slammed him up against a wall while Itachi easily knocked the other out then proceeded in closing the door left open and locking it for good measure.

The man Kisame held cowered as he struggled for air, the fear in his eyes causing the Akatsuki member to smirk. "There is a girl here by the name of Shaiya, yes?" The guard nodded his head right away. "You are going to show us where she is. Try to pull any tricks and we will kill you, got it?" The guard nodded again as he turned red in the face from lack of oxygen so Kisame loosened his grip. "Are there any more guards here that we should be aware of?"

"No-no." The man croaked out. "Th-they went to in-inspect the damage to the west wing. The girl is in the east." It was Kisame's turn to nod as he released the man who hesitantly stumbled over his own two feet to hurriedly show them the way up to the sixth floor and down two corridors that led them to the back of the manor. Eventually stopping at the only metal door in that particular hallway, "She's in there." The man pointed at said door before Itachi hit him in the back of the lower head with the blunt side of a kunai.

Kisame stared at the door with trepidation as the past was starting to catch up with him. Steeling his nerves he stepped up to open the door only to find it locked…He should have known. Itachi was next to him in the next second holding a ring of keys to him. Taking them from the Uchiha, he fumbled with 7 different keys until one finally slipped into the hole and unlocked the door. He slowly turned the knob and opened the door to a dimly lit room.

The room was small, but it was perfect for one person. There was a full size bed to the left with light blue sheets and white pillows. At the end of the bed there was a wooden chest resting upon cherry wood flooring. There was no dresser, nor vanity, but there was a gold framed mirror that hung on the wall just to the right upon entering and a two person metal table in the far right corner with two dingy wooden chairs. With the white walls and lack of furniture, it felt all too clinical in Kisame's opinion. But his attention was drawn towards the window only a moment later; right across the room from him.

There was a little cushioned area next to the window so one could sit and look out. Sitting there was the petite frame of a woman with a slender figure and toned body from years of training with various weaponry. She was dressed in the most peculiar of outfits that made both men want to do a double take. She was wearing a strapless faded yellow top that tied in the front by black laces that squished her breasts together and barely covered them. The bottom was no better with the same faded yellow leather material that had black lacings but on either side of her hips. At any other time Kisame would have swooned at how she was dressed, but his attention and gaze was following the trail of multiple fist sized bruises that covered her body. Having two set diagonally apart on her stomach, one on her left shoulder, two on either side of her right thigh and one on her lower left calf. They could not see her back as she was facing them, but it was no better than the front with a healing light brown bruise between her shoulder blades and two on her lower back.

The female had stiffened when she heard the door opening up, but when no sound of movement or spoken words were shared she slowly lifted her head up. She could not see them, however, for she had thick white strands of bandaging wrapped around her head and efficiently covering her eyes. There were shackles around her wrists and ankles, small chains ran from them to a thin shackle that was strapped around her waist. That would explain why she had the two piece on and also why it looked like the clothing was slipped and tied onto her. "What do you want?" Came her sudden clear tone, still sounding like chimes but with the cold edge it was bitter.

Kisame was struck frozen for a moment as he stared at the sight and state that Shaiya was in, slowly taking his tread across the room and halting in front of her. "We are here to rescue you." Surprisingly his voice was not shaky.

He couldn't be for sure, but Shaiya's face sort of scrunched in a look of confusion as she tilted her head back to face the direction his voice came from which was above her since Kisame was so tall and she was still in a seated position. "Who are you?" She asked in a drawn out manner.

Hesitation set in. "My partner's name is Uchiha Itachi and mine is…Hoshigaki Kisame." There was a tension in the room so thick it could have been cut with a knife. The confusion dropped from her face and fell into a sort of unreadable expression. She reached out her hand towards him and he instinctively held his hand out to take hers, she gripped firmly as she stood to her feet. Taking two wobbly steps to be closer to him. His breath hitched from the proximity until it rushed right out of him and a stinging pressure fell upon him as she landed a punch to his gut. "I should have expected that." He wheezed.

Itachi decided to intervene just as the woman started to collapse. Rushing in and sweeping her into his arm just enough to place her back on the cushioned window seat. He shedded his Akatsuki cloak and gently draped it over her as he went to get the keys out of the door. Strolling back over and trying each key to the lock on one of her wrists and was pleasantly delighted to find one that did the trick of unlocking the shackle. Quickly making work to get the others off her before he was able to wrap the cloak snuggly around her. "Take her and leave, I will follow shortly. Step back, I'm going to place an explosive tag against the window."

Kisame was just starting to get his breathing back in check and straightening up when Itachi instructed him what to do. He feebly nodded as a huff left him. Gingerly scooping an unconscious Shaiya into his arms and stepping out of the room as Itachi set the tag before joining them, the tag sizzling before it exploded blowing the window and bars as well as a good chunk of the wall out. Kisame was leaping out the hole in the next second with Shaiya. There was no concealment as he ran through the streets of Hannikuro.

No one was there to stop him as Itachi had placed other explosive tags around before following them out and ensuring no one followed. Next destination: Akatsuki Headquarters.