I know that this story may be a bit mary-sue-ish and cliche but i really wish you'd keep reading if you've come this far! Please and Thank You! Review Please to!

Chapter Two:

"That I'll always be second, maybe even third." He sounded wistful.

Rei thought about that a moment, and knew it was the truth. She felt a pang of sadness as she realized she'd done that same thing to Shikamaru, given him false hope, when she'd always be loyal to Itachi first. She did it again.

"Forgive me…" She whispered, nearly inaudible. She crawled her way over to him. Pressing her front to his back, she laced her arms gently over his shoulders.

"Hm?" He glanced back at her with a tilt of his head. Her eyes were closed and a half-hearted smile held her lips.

"I never meant for this to happen," She mumbled sleepily her chin falling to his shoulder.

"Yes, I realize that." He shifted quickly out of her arms and caught her before she could fall, he held her in his arms for a moment. Just watching and wondering. Wondering how he'd fallen for her, wondering how she allowed it.

As he laid her gently down and pulled the covers over her he couldn't help but think of times when he'd tried to kill her or her him, for that matter. How ironic life could be.

His train of thought refused to let him off the ride. It kept bringing him places he'd rather not visit. Kabuto sat at his desk and looked over at her for a second before pulling out the papers he'd had in his hand when she'd burst through his door early that morning. Orochimaru was truly cruel and possibly foolish to send Rei on such a mission and with Sasuke no less.

Worst case scenario, no one would return. Second worst case scenario, they would lose either Rei or Sasuke. It was foolish hope that made Kabuto think that if they lost Rei it would be because she joined with Akatsuki and betrayed Orochimaru to them. He knew it wouldn't happen in such a way. They'd kill her for her betrayal. Itachi would probably do it himself. He scoffed.

Maybe there was a way he could get her out of it? Kabuto pushed that thought away, he knew Orochimaru was adamant about this. This battle was unavoidable.

Soon the war would come to a boil, it already slowly was. Criminal organizations were already in the heat of it, and a few of the villages like Cloud and Stone were coming to the frontlines as well. The line between ally and enemy was blurred already and only getting worse, Rei was proof of that.

He shook himself. He was thinking too much.

"Nnn…I…didn't—I…" Rei tossed in bed. Pushing a finger to his glasses, he sighed. She was probably having a nightmare again. Such a strong girl like her would never come off as the type for bad dreams, but she was that type. Kabuto looked at the papers lying on his desk and decided tomorrow would be a fine time to finish them. He didn't have to inform the squad until late tomorrow night anyway.

Kabuto stood up and stretched his arms before pushing his chair in. He walked to the bed and pulled off his shirt. He tossed the bundled fabric into the corner as he started to take his mesh shirt off as well. He kicked off his shoes and put on a pair of loose sweat pants to wear to bed.

He watched Rei for a minute before sliding in next to her. The thought crossed his mind to take her to her own room but he felt she was safer here with him. Brushing hair away from her porcelain face made his lips tug into a smile. She was angelic when she slept.

Clicking the lamp off and setting his glasses on the nightstand, Kabuto settled into bed. He felt Rei press against him her hands curled against his bare chest, her soft, rhythmic breathing tickling his neck. He held her close as he drifted to sleep.

In the morning when Kabuto woke Rei was gone. He turned over in bed regretting her absence, feeling the space was empty without her. His shirts and mesh top were hung over the chair at his desk and his pants were folding on the seat. She hated when he left his clothes on the floor, it made him grin.

There was a tap at his door, and then Rei pushed her way in with four blows of steamy food in her hands.

"Breakfast," She hummed in soft voice fit for morning time while she lifted a bowl at him.

Reaching for his glasses and grabbing them he slid from the bed and stretched his arms out. "What did you make?" He asked her as she set the bowls on the small table and seated herself.

"Miso soup, some raw egg," She pressed her finger to her bottom lip thinking about what she'd cooked, "And some rice with nori and natto." She finished as he walked over.

"You went all out," He stated.

"I was hungry," Rei explained as she started on her rice.

Kabuto took in her out fit as he sat down to eat. She had a dark blue skirt on with a black wide strapped tank-top on, the shirt had small dark red accents on the hems and on the straps. The clip in her hair above her right ear matched the red in her shirt.

"You don't pin your hair back often," he commented on it as he began to eat his miso soup.

Her fingers went up to the clip and brushed across it once, "It was falling in my way when I was cooking. Guess I forgot to take it out…"

Rei made breakfast for them often, or at least as often as she could. Though she didn't usually make so much for them, but he thought maybe she was really just hungry from her training yesterday.

Her hair that was pinned back still managed to fall over her shoulder, "What do you think will happen today?" she asked as he eyes dropped from his.

He thought about that a moment, "What do you mean?"

"I don't know what's gonna happen today," she stared desperately into his gray eyes. "But it won't be anything good." She finished and looked away as she moved to get up. She rushed for the door, she needed to get out.

Kabuto grabbed her wrist just as her fingertips brushed the doorknob. "Rei,"

"Let go of me, Kabuto." She stressed each word with pain in her voice. When she sounded such he had no choice but to listen to her. His grip loosened then disappeared and she fled out the door.

Running to her room, Rei tried to calm herself. She couldn't do anything now to change what she'd done in the past, but as her feet pounded the stone floor she wished she could go back and never leave Itachi.

Orochimaru sat in his chair as though it were his thrown; Kabuto stood next to him and looked at the small group. Sasuke, Rei, and one other nin Rei did not know.

"You will go through this route into Hidden Waterfall." Kabuto pointed out the path on the map he held. "Once there you will take out the patrol of Waterfall nin coming to Oto."

That was the mission, but not the plan. The mission was a cover for the plan to fight Akatsuki, who happened to be coincidently stationed there. They were going to fight Akatsuki at some point on this venture, it was guaranteed.

"Move out," Orochimaru's hiss startled her and she locked eyes with Kabuto for a moment before turning and reluctantly following Sasuke out of the room, the hideout and into the forest.

"Nobu, keep watch for anyone with in hundred meters of us." Sasuke's first order rang loud and clear.

He glanced back at Rei, and an odd look crossed his features for a second. Was that worry in his eyes? He motioned her forward and hesitantly she paced him.

"What?" She demanded in a silent breath.

"Don't do anything stupid," He said harshly.

"Like what?" She growled at him, "Do think I'm going to yell out "We're right here come kill us" in enemy territory?"

He shot her a dagger filled glare. "You know what I mean."

"No, actually I don't." She tried to hide her confusion behind anger and sarcasm.

He looked at her like she was an ignorant child needing to be lead by the hand. "If you try to switch sides in this fight, I'll kill you myself." He spat.

"You'd kill me yourself anyway," She raged.

"Hn," He smirked at her anger and dodged under a branch as they ran through the trees.

"Besides…I'm not welcome back there…" Her heart sank with the truth of her own words.

"It's your own damn fault." He said, but then added. "I told you he didn't care about you enough to follow you like you followed him and now he'll kill you." His tone changed in that last sentence. Even though he said a lot more than that, it sounded like "I'm sorry."

She fell back with out another word, even if he felt pitied toward her she knew he still wanted her dead more than many things.

She pulled up the zipper on her gray sweat shirt; the pace they set was chilling her. Her knees and thighs were cold but she didn't have anything to cover them with. Her red mini skirt and shorts combo hadn't been the best choice today. Neither had the tank-top, but at least she'd had enough sense to grab her sweat shirt.

Much too quickly it seemed they crossed the boarder into Waterfall, and Sasuke halted them.

"Nobu." Sasuke waved the brown haired man over, and he crouched beside the Uchiha. "How many are there?"

"I can sense at least twelve, sir." Nobu answered and in almost the same breath added, "No twenty," he paused and seemed to check something, "There's eight more coming in from the right."

"Hn," Sasuke smirked obviously itching for the battle. "Rei, Nobu, each of you take six of them out, I'll take the remaining eight." He decided that quickly.

Rei reached out her senses to the group that was not far from them in the distance, then to the group coming in on them. "No," Rei breathed to loud and Sasuke looked back at her.

"Rei?"

She had to give him an answer. "The eight coming…are Akatsuki, I can sense Itachi…" She grimaced and held the almost overwhelming tears inside.

"Even better," Sasuke grinned.

"Sasuke, you can't take on eight Akatsuki alone." Rei blurted out without thinking. Stupid.

He looked at her questioningly. "You want him?"

"Please let me fight him, Sasuke, I'm begging you!" She knew that line would work, he liked when she begged. She bit back her devilish grin.

The younger Uchiha was outwardly amused by her request. "Just don't kill him, that's for me to do."

Rei could barely stay in her crouch as Sasuke consented to her request.

"Nobu and I can handle the rest while you deal with him then. Now, on my signal…Go!"

Rei shot through the leaves and into the clearing where the Waterfall shinobi stood, she was only there a moment before she veered right and down a path that would lead her straight into the Akatsuki ambush.

A breeze tickled her throat as a shadowy cloak danced around to her back pressing a cool blade to her soft flesh.

"Seeing you here gives me great pleasure, Rei." His voice was calm velvet.

"Itachi," Her voice was pleading, on the verge of tears, and no more than a whimper.

"You betrayed us." He stated coolly, "The others wish to kill you swiftly, I won't be so merciful." He jumped back from her a good twenty feet and she spun to face him.

The trees loomed above them and the wind stirred the leaves at their feet up around them. She stared down the path way into his swirling crimson eyes. Itachi…

End Chapter Two:

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