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I do not own Naruto. Wishful thinking will only remain as wishful thinking.


Chapter 5: Sumiko Shadowed

Deidara was happy Sumiko was coming to join the Akatsuki and alert Pain via his ring. Pain officially gave Sumiko his blessing and told her that she could go on one mission to officially become a member. Sumiko gazed at the hologram of Pain.

"Sumiko-san, you are to retrieve the ring from Orochimaru. Be careful of not just Orochimaru, but his followers as well. We hear there is a decent medic nin around them as well as Itachi Uchiha's younger brother Sasuke." Upon hearing about Sasuke, her attention is perked.

"The little brother that Itachi did not feel was strong enough to kill?" Deidara smirked at Sumiko's question. "So, the cold-hearted Uchiha has a heart after all?"

Pain was silent about this issue. "Nonetheless, head to the Sound Village and claim the ring. Return when you have the ring in your possession and then you will be welcomed as more than just a contact." With that, Pain's image vanished and Deidara turned towards Sumiko.

"Ready to become a member, un?"

Sumiko smiled widely at Deidara and Daisuke growled. Sumiko glared at Daisuke who immediately quieted down. "Daisuke-kun, what is your problem?"

"Nothing Sumiko-sama," murmured the fox who respectfully lowering his eyes.

"Stop being so protective of me. The last thing I need is another Sasori…" Sumiko rolled her eyes and turned her attentions on Deidara once again. "Can we head to the Sound Village now?"

"Yes, let's move out, un!" They embarked on the giant clay bird and flew towards the Sound Village.


Sai and Yamato were in a deep conversation when Naruto woke up. First thing he did was look for Sakura and was happy that she was also awake. He noticed her worry as she was finishing healing herself. "Sakura-chan, what happened?"

Sakura looked at Naruto, "You've been out for a couple of days now Naruto… There was a red fox that looked like it was trying to absorb your chakra. It got stopped, but you still might experience some weakness in your body."

Naruto nodded and looked towards Sai and Yamato. "What happened in our battle?"

Sai replied, "Tactical retreat. Three members of a team knocked unconscious left me with no choice but to get us all out of there."

Yamato interjected, "The fact that the Akatsuki are after the very scroll we were supposed to guard is troubling. We need to report back to Hokage-sama immediately."

The Leaf shinobi agreed and travelled towards the Leaf Village.


Tsunade missed Sakura already. Shizune was out on a mission and now Tsunade was stuck with all of the paperwork. One particular document caught her eyes however. It was a shinobi warning from the Wind Country: specifically the Sand Village. Open opening she glanced at the picture of a woman with waist length red hair, light brown eyes, and a red dress. Moving past that, she began to read the description.

Name: Sumiko of the Red Dress
Age: 35
Known Family: Sasori of the Red Sand (Akatsuki member, twin), Chiyo (grandmother, Sand shinobi)
Ninja Rank:S Ranked, jounin
Known Powers: Chakra strings, excellent chakra control, exceptional spy (possible Akatsuki spy)
Danger Level: High – Follows any orders with a chilling simplemindedness
Miscellaneous Note: Likes pie

Tsunade's brow furrowed. This girl is related to an Akatsuki and they both are from the Wind Country. Hmm… I wonder if this proclamation means she has joined the Akatsuki or simply has officially defected and become a missing nin…

Tsunade's door opened, but she did not pay attention for she suspected it was only Shizune. A loud, obnoxious blonde ninja on her desk a second later disproved that thought. "Naruto, what are you doing?"

Yamato spoke before Naruto could think of a response, "The scroll was taken before we reached the village. Kisame and Itachi fought us, but we suspect other members were involved in the scroll stealing."

Tsunade nodded. "I have received information about a potential contact for the Akatsuki. Her name is Sumiko and she is the twin sister of Akatsuki member Sasori. I would send you to her home, but when Kazekage-dono sent ninja there, he found the house in ruins. She could be anywhere and she is very dangerous. It is a simple mission: found Sumiko and determine if she is involved with the Akatsuki. Kakashi will also join with this mission making it five ninja strong. His hounds could track a trail left behind by Sumiko."

Team 7 nodded and left. Tsunade sighed and Shizune entered. "Shizune! Now that you're back, I can have a break!" Immediately, Tsunade pulled out a bottle of sake. Shizune sweat-dropped at the sight and was aspirated.

"Is this how you handle with the stress of assigned such missions? What was the rank of that mission? A?"

Tsunade put down the cup of sake and refilled it, but paused before drinking it, "S-Ranked. She is a very dangerous ninja and the Sand Village is unsure of whether or not she is officially a missing nin or not. Nonetheless, they are adamant in finding her; Kazekage-dono wished to meet her in fact."


One week later…

"Um… Deidara-san, this isn't the Sound Village…" Daisuke spoke. They were lost and Deidara did not want to ask for directions to Sumiko's annoyance.

"Leave him alone Daisuke-kun. We don't want to bruise Deidara-san's pride. How do you even get around on missions?" Sumiko smirked at Deidara's expression. She vastly enjoyed his company: although a prankster, Deidara is intelligent and he knew how to make her laugh while being tasteful although he could have a perverted streak when he felt like it.

"Sasori-danna helped me find out where we are on our missions, un. It takes a lot of concentration to fly these birds around you know, un."

Finally, they came close to the Valley of the End. Sumiko unconsciously gripped Deidara's hand in hers, but Deidara looked towards her and smiled. He had never seen Sumiko look so excited about anything. "Deidara-kun… Thanks for coming with me on the mission."

"No problem, un." Sumiko looked at Deidara and Deidara looked back at Sumiko. They started leaning towards each other and their lips were maybe a centimeter apart when Deidara shot backwards and shouted, "You fucking animal! Why the hell did you bite my hand?!"

Deidara was swinging his hand and attached to the hand, sure enough, was an agitated Daisuke. Sumiko smiled at the display. Alas… maybe next time…