Hidan's breathing was sharp and fast; he knew this was it. He was going to die, and he knew it. He also knew that Tsunade was dying. Stupid woman. Should have stuck to gambling and out of the way. Hidan's heart fluttered, and he drew his last breath with a smile, knowing he died with honor and the Hokage of the leaf.
OOOOOOOOO
Kisame lay panting, struggling to breathe. He had accidentally inhaled some of the poison, and he could feel his lungs being torn apart by every breath he took. Damn Tsunade! She was forcing him to kill himself!
Kisame felt the poison take over completely, and his breath faded out. The missing-nin from Kirigakure died cursing Konohagure forever.
OOOOOOOOO
Kakuza knew it was the end of his line, and also the end of the Akatsuki's. Unless…yes, Yasu and Itachi had lived! Tsunade hadn't poisoned them! They had escaped! Kakuza breathed a sigh of relief; he could die peacefully now, knowing that his legacy would be preserved.
And he did.
OOOOOOOO
Tsunade fought the poison that ravaged her body with nothing short of blind fury. She couldn't die, not here, not now, not like this! She drew another ragged breath and willed her heart to beat. Come on…Genesis…Resurrection…!
Tsunade's chakra began to fly off her body in her subconscious rage. She heard a gasp from beside her, and fought harder. She was starting to regain consciousness…come on, come on!
With one final shove, Tsunade exploded back into the world.
OOOOOOOOO
Shizune gasped as Tsunade's eyes flew open and her entire body glowed purple with chakra. Her seal shattered, spreading over her face, then down her neck and onto her shoulders. Shizune's eyes widened in shock.
"It's…It's not stopping!"
The medics puller her back, and Shizune fainted from sheer exhaustion. Tsunade's seal continued down her arms and over her chest, still moving across her body. It didn't stop until it had reached her feet, and then the seal ruptured completely. Tsunade's body became a blinding light, and the medics dragged Shizune back farther. Tsunade felt her body dispelling the poison, but she registered nothing in the world at all. All that mattered was the present moment; that one, fleeting moment, when Tsunade had a moment of clarity, and she knew for sure…
She wasn't going to die.
She was the Fifth Hokage, and…
"Fuck if anyone tries to take that away from me."
OOOOOOOOO
Orochimaru lay quietly as Kabuto pulled off his shirt to change the bandages on that stupid wound. Kabuto had run out of chakra after healing Orochimaru's broken ribs. The sannin had tripped out of pure exhaustion and pain and went down, dong something painful to both his side and Kabuto's spine. Kabuto had automatically regenerated with what little chakra he had left, and then he had healed Orochimaru. The snake had twisted his body as he fell, re-opening the wound and snapping several ribs. Kabuto had scraped up enough chakra to heal the ribs, but he couldn't heal the laceration. He had bandaged the wound and then, to Orochimaru's dismay, picked him up altogether. He had considered kicking Kabuto in the teeth, but he was so drained and pissed off that he fell asleep. Kabuto had carried him into his room and set him down on the bed, then went to the bathroom and got fresh bandages. Orochimaru had woken up by that time, as Kabuto had started pulling his clothes off, but had given no reaction.
Except now.
Orochimaru hissed as a sting rose to the surface of his skin, and he glared at Kabuto for the pain.
"Iodine," the boy said in response to the glare. "I'm cleaning out the wound."
"Well, do it less painfully," Orochimaru spat. He could have sworn the boy was smirking as well…"And get that look off your face."
Kabuto's smile only widened, and he set the iodine aside. Orochimaru felt a gentle hand in his hair, and soft lips grazed his forehead.
"You did well," Kabuto murmured, keeping his face in contact with Orochimaru's. "Tsunade is probably dead, the Akatsuki are completely under your control, Konoha is still weak, and Sunaga still hasn't figured out your part in the Kazekage's-"
"Stop it."
Kabuto withdrew slowly, confused by his master's behavior. "What's the matter?"
"You're wrong," Orochimaru said bitterly. "Tsunade isn't going to die. She's very much alive; I can sense her. The Akatsuki is almost extinct instead, I can sense that too. Konoha is almost back on its feet; I was just there for a mission. Sunaga just contacted me about the Kazekage, and they know about my role in his demise. Kabuto…" Orochimaru looked up at Kabuto, a complex look even Kabuto couldn't read on his face. "We're falling apart…" Kabuto's hand began to move in Orochimaru's hair, gently stroking him.
"Orochimaru-sama, it's not over, don't-"
Kabuto stopped short as Orochimaru's eyes began to shine with tears.
"Kabuto…" the first tear spilled over, and Kabuto felt himself begin to cry as well, ripped apart by his master's pain. "It is over."
OOOOOOOOOO
Itachi sat on the crest of the hill, looking out at the setting sun. The vibrant color bled together over the fiery globe that was the sun. Itachi had always liked sunsets, especially red ones. He was lucky tonight; this particular sunset was very red.
"Mind if I join you?"
Itachi looked up at Yasu and nodded mutely. The woman's cloak was open, revealing her halter-top and capris. She settled on the grass next to Itachi, cloak and hair billowing in the breeze.
"It's so pretty tonight."
"Stop trying to make me feel better."
Yasu sighed. "Just like now, the sun has set on the Akatsuki…" She turned to look at Itachi. "You know they're all dead?"
Itachi nodded. "Except us."
Yasu fell into Itachi's shoulder. "We're going to have to do something."
Itachi shrugged the shoulder Yasu wasn't leaning on.
"And…there's…" Yasu swallowed hard. "There's something I have to tell you…"
Itachi sighed. "Well, what is it?"
Yasu swallowed again. "'tachi…I'm pregnant…"
Itachi stiffened against Yasu and turned sharply to her. "How long have you known?!"
"Since we first…"
Itachi heaved a heavy exhale. "God, Yasu…!" He exhaled again. "Actually, this works out perfectly. We go into hiding, have the kid, wait until he kid I thirteen or so, and restart the Akatsuki. I'll be…thirty, and you'll be…thirty-two or so, but we'll still have enough to raise the kid and restart Akatsuki."
Yasu nodded. "Okay, so that's what we do…but…where do you go…?"
Itachi sighed. "I know a few people who owe me."
"Informative."
Yasu wasn't happy with the answer, but she also knew Itachi wasn't about to give her more than that. She sighed and leaned against him again.
"So until we restart, what do we do?"
Itachi lowered his gaze. "We wait," he said finally. "It's dusk anyway. We must wait for morning's rise, and for fate to smile on us once again."
Yasu knew he was right.
A/N: T.T –sniffle- Cry scenes! Oh, well! No flames, I don't care if you don't like it, just no flames. This should be it for the mushy stuff, so bare with me a little longer…Thanks for reading this! (If you did…)