I KNOW, I KNOW...I SAID I WAS PUTTING THIS ON HOLD!

But I've been working on this chapter FOREVER, and I finally finally finished it! I just HAD to give you all one last chapter before I left!

I'm seriously on hiatus after this though guys!

I hope you guys enjoy!

PLEASE REVIEW! PRETTY PLEASE?

Chapter 12

Suigetsu watched, his arms crossed, as Aiko pulled the gaudy silver brush through her hair, her blue-gray eyes staring at the small expanse of wood that made up the bottom half of the dresser. Her eyes refused to move from that spot, which was strange for her. Normally, she would look in the mirror every so often, making sure her hair looked flawless for that Uchiha bastard.

Madara was making his first move today. News had come from several of his spies that the Kage Summit was being held only twenty miles to the west, in the Land of Iron. The Uchiha hadn't told Suigetsu many details about his own plans, only that the Water-nin and Aiko would be on a separate mission alongside Madara, a mission that would involve the assassination of one of the Kage. Someone by the name of Danzō. Sounded vaguely familiar…was he from Konoha?

Suigetsu didn't – and couldn't – ask why this particular leader disrupted Madara's plans, and so instead he had obediently relayed the information to Aiko, who had begun packing immediately. Suigetsu watched her pack with a sick feeling to his stomach – her lack of passion was beginning to wear on him, as well as the fact that each day, he could feel her slipping away from him. Suigetsu wasn't used to feeling so many complex emotions, and that confused him even more.

He had been there for several weeks now, and yet he was no closer to rescuing the girl he had secretly sworn to protect. The thought filled him with uncontrollable anger, and his eyes narrowed as they observed the creature that had his friend's appearance, but none of her spirit, none of her peculiar humor, and none of her sharpness.

Aiko was like a ball of clay; soft, malleable, never taking a shape of its own free will.

The young man shifted, never once letting his eyes stray from her form. She still refused to look in the mirror, and her mouth was twisted into a sort of frown. Her hair was flat and smooth under her ministrations, but there was something odd about the way that it fell loosely around her shoulders and lower back. Now that Suigetsu looked more closely, he realized that it wasn't just her hair. Her eyes, the tension to her jaw, the way her fingers curved around the brush handle…they all were off in some indescribable way.

What was wrong with her?

Aiko stood before Suigetsu had a chance to examine her further, and without a moment's hesitation, shouldered her pack and walked out of the room. Suigetsu scrambled to follow, tightening the straps around his sword as he went. Aiko strode down the hallway of the underground complex that was Madara's base, her arms folding across her middle as if to ward off a sudden chill.

Danzō sat silently in his chair, watching as the other Kage sized up the surrounding shinobi, daring one of them to begin the meeting. The Raikage was bristling with restrained impatience, while the other Kage – including Danzō himself – were calm, silently waiting for someone to speak. Danzō knew that he himself must not speak yet, for he had to formulate his thoughts based on the feelings of the other Kage. His eye flickered toward Mifune, who was successfully being influenced by Danzō's Sharingan. It had only taken a second, to act as though he was removing his Hokage hat, while in reality pulling back the bandages and flashing his Sharingan for the briefest moment. Planting the seed that the Kage should unite, and under Danzō's rule. If all went according to plan, Mifune wouldn't even be aware of the influence, thinking that the idea was in fact his own.

It would all be perfect. The pieces had been nudged…all Danzō had to do now was be patient until the pieces fell into place. And if it was one thing that Danzō had perfected, it was being patient. He had waited his entire life for this title and this opportunity; he could afford to wait a little longer.

Fū and Torune – his Root bodyguards – stood silently and cautiously behind him, their eyes never ceasing in their careful scan of the guards positioned behind the other leaders. Compared to the rest, the Kage were strangely calm, the eye of the storm, while the guards and other escorts were bristling with distrust and with restrained hostility.

Finally, after several tense minutes, the Kazekage – the only leader that Danzō knew by first name – folded his hands together, his pale teal eyes staring directly at Danzō for a moment before drifting to include the rest of the leaders present at the table.

"I once was a host of a Tailed Beast, and it was forcibly taken from me by the Akatsuki. I've thought them as a serious threat for quite some time now, and yet when I sent out a call to arms, only Konohagakure responded," Gaara stated coolly, his voice bereft of any underlying anger or bitterness.

The Third Tsuchikage snorted at that. "Why should we bother ourselves with the pitiful pleas of a village that cannot even defend its own Jinnchuriki? I for one refuse to believe that the stronger nations are required to leap to the defense of the weaker ones!"

"This is no longer a threat that can be handled by a single nation, Tsuchikage," Gaara responded curtly. "And I assure you, Sunagakure is not weak. I thought you to be above such petty insults."

Danzō had to fight to restrain a smile at the tense irritation that bled through Gaara's polite façade. It would seem that the boy was not as impenetrable as he seemed. Danzō wondered what the Tsuchikage had done to get under the Kazekage's nerves, and settled back to watch as the older Kage huffed murderously.

The Tsuchikage fixed his bloodshot, rather widely spaced eyes on the young redhead, his mouth curving into a scowl. "Watch your tongue, brat!"

The Mizukage – a beautiful woman with long auburn hair and green eyes – leaned forward slightly, her mouth twitching into a smile.

"Can we please stay on topic? I for one would like for Gaara to have a chance to speak."

Gaara nodded to her in silent thanks, and cleared his throat. "From what I have heard, a large percentage of the Akatsuki members have been dealt with. But they still continue to pose a threat. They seek the two remaining Jinnchuriki, the Eight-Tailed-Ox and the Nine-Tailed-Fox."

The Raikage shifted in his seat, his muscles rippling menacingly as he glowered at the Kazekage. "I believe that this is a prime opportunity to make it known that the Nine-Tailed-Fox is no longer within the control of Konohagakure. From what my messengers tell me, the Jinnchuriki is missing."

Danzō folded his fingers together as he responded, ignoring the angry murmurs that rose up as a result of the Raikage's announcement. "A shinobi by the name of Sasuke Uchiha, a teammate and supposed confidant of the Jinnchuriki, has in fact kidnapped the Fox and is planning to deliver the Jinnchuriki in exchange for something the Akatsuki have in their possession."

The Kage around the table were shocked into silence, and Danzō saw that Gaara's hands had tightened around each other, his teal eyes boring into Danzō's from across the table. Silence assumed control for several impenetrable seconds as Danzō let his statement sink into the minds of the spectators. The Raikage's thick white brow furrowed, and his great hands folded slowly together, and Danzō could see that the man was fighting to remain calm.

"And what is it exactly that the Akatsuki have?" Gaara asked quietly, his voice resonating in the airy room, and the Raikage nodded in reluctant affirmation to the Kazekage's inquiry. The Mizukage leaned back in her chair, her pale green eyes flickering from Gaara to Danzō.

Danzō let out a small sigh. "A girl by the name of Hikari," Danzō rustled through his papers, and after a moment of searching withdrew a picture of the kunoichi in question. He held it up, and the Kage all fixed their gazes on the image with frightening intensity. "But what the Uchiha refuses to accept is the fact that Hikari went to the Akatsuki of her own free will. In associating with her, he is also placing himself in the ranks of missing-nin, and is to be assassinated on sight along with her."

"And you're saying that Naruto was kidnapped by Sasuke, and did not go with him willingly? The two are remarkably close, after all…" Gaara asked, and Danzō felt his composure slip for the briefest second. The Kazekage couldn't know of his lie. He was just speculating, and if Danzō played his cards right, that's all the man would do.

Danzō bowed his head in acknowledgement. "The Jinnchuriki was indeed kidnapped, Kazekage. There is no doubt."

"What evidence do you have?"

"Are you insinuating that–" Danzō began curtly, but was interrupted by the cool voice of Gaara, whose hands were now loose and seemingly relaxed. But Danzō could see that the young man was merely attempting to hide his irritation, as one of the guards behind him shifted slightly in trepidation. The red haired Kazekage seemed to gain strength from the slightly panicked jolt that flit across Danzō's face before he could hide it completely.

The Kazekage stood, and with a deep breath, began in a low, uncharacteristically soft voice.

"I was a Jinnchuriki until recently. I don't know how close you all were to your village's Jinnchuriki, but I can assume that most of you were less than accepting. For what other option was there? We're monsters, abominations, but not natural abominations. We were doomed from the moment we were born, doomed to accept the village's hatred and be blamed for its mistakes. As Kazekage, I have found that I am often still blamed for the less positive aspects of my village, but it is not, and never will be, the same. We Jinnchuriki – and yes, I still consider myself one – are a cursed race. We are forced be host to some of the cruelest, most bloodthirsty creatures alive, and yet do you thank us?" Gaara snorted, and continued, "Of course you don't! Do you even stop to wonder what kind of life we have suffered, always hearing the Tailed Beast whispering and hissing and trying to chip away at our stability? Some are strong enough to bear it, others…aren't."

Gaara's eyes closed, showing the shadowy eyelids. The room was so soundless and still that a fly could have landed on the wall and the sound of its landing would have caused every single person to jump. Gaara seemed to pause in order to formulate his thoughts, and before anyone could speak, his voice echoed once more.

"I was one such Jinnchuriki. I was denied any love from my family; I was isolated, hated, and despised by everyone who knew what I was. I was so alone, and no one ever cared enough to try and restrain me. Killing wasn't something to be avoided, I relished it. Everyone was to blame, everyone was an enemy, even my own siblings," he said, and Danzō saw the two guards behind him share a quick look.

"I was unstable; afraid to close my eyes for fear that the Shukaku would finally consume my soul. It constantly roared in my chest, it screamed its hatred of me – the one who contained it – and its plans if I dared let my guard down for one moment. It wasn't until I met another Jinnchuriki that I finally was able to come to terms with my condition, and it wasn't until the Shukaku was pulled from me that I knew true peace. Death was so peaceful compared to the constant fear. But…not all Jinnchuriki were blessed with a medic-nin who was willing to give her life in order to save mine. I came back, and with new eyes I saw Naruto Uzumaki."

Gaara held up a hand to interrupt Danzō as the man tried to speak.

"Naruto Uzumaki – I detest that none of you seem to understand that we Jinnchuriki have names like ever other human being – is more powerful than anyone in this room. We all know that the Nine-Tailed-Fox is the most dangerous of the Tailed Beasts, and yet do you see it? Do you see in Naruto's eyes the murderous glint of the Fox? No…because Naruto has strength I wish I had, and that I think everyone can see if they dare to look past his rather obnoxious personality. Naruto Uzumaki is able to be himself even with the Fox tormenting him, torturing his mind with evil ideas and thoughts, and was able to save someone like me, a person who bordering on insanity."

Gaara then leaned forward, placing his hands on the table to support himself, and Danzō felt a pang of unease.

"I do not believe for one second that Naruto Uzumaki was kidnapped by Sasuke Uchiha, Hokage, and so I suppose I am insinuating that you are lying to us in order to achieve personal goals. And so I challenge you to provide me with legitimate evidence that Naruto Uzumaki was in fact kidnapped – memories, eye-witnesses, anything you have."

Gaara continued to stare Danzō down, and the Hokage knew that Gaara had been planning this. But how had he known? How had he possibly found out? Or was this all speculation? If it was speculation, it sure didn't sound like it.

"Until you do so, Hokage, my village and I will assume that Naruto Uzumaki went with Sasuke Uchiha of his own free will, and will make no attempts on Sasuke's life. We will offer sanctuary if they need it, and will defend them to our last standing shinobi."

Gaara's eyes swept to include all of the staring Kage, and with a flourish he sat back down, and folded his hands, a cool look of triumph on his face as he beheld the utterly dumbfounded expressions of the shinobi leaders.

When all eyes began to drift to the replacement Hokage, Danzō felt the beginning stabs of panic.

I sat on my haunches, peeking quickly into the window. After carefully scanning, moved back to where Kakashi and Naruto were silently crouched. We were hundreds of feet above the ground, perched on either side of one of the great glass windows of the building. I could feel Madara's chakra in this place; pulsing, waiting, and as evil as it was the first time I encountered it. I swallowed, careful to keep my chakra completely suppressed. We couldn't afford to have anyone aware of our presence until the time was right.

The snow was falling more thickly now in the Land of Iron, and Naruto shook his head to clear the wet blonde spikes of the powdery stuff. Kakashi waited expectantly, and I frowned as I explained what I had seen.

"There are only two samurai guards, but they're impatient. If we wait a few minutes, they'll probably leave."

Kakashi shook his head. "No, they'll stay where they are until they receive orders. Samurai are strict followers of their leaders, nothing but direct orders will sway them. I propose that we enter through the ventilation…it doesn't require any chakra, and will keep our presence hidden for a little while longer."

Naruto shifted impatiently, his hands slightly blue as he tightened his cloak. "Okay, okay, I don't care what we do, but can it please involve getting inside as quickly as possible? It's freaking cold out here!" he hissed, his teeth chattering. I knew how he felt; without chakra constantly pulsing through our channels – as it usually did when we allowed our chakra to rise to normal levels – our bodies were just as vulnerable to cold as any common civilian. My toes had gone numb a long time ago, and my nose felt like ice when I rubbed it. Kakashi's eye flickered to the wire vent present only ten feet away, and I nodded as his plan.

"Alright, let's go," I whispered, and Naruto was the first to climb up the sides of the metal building, the ridges proving effective handholds, and Kakashi quickly followed. I watched as the two shimmied their way up to the vent, and hurriedly mimicked them, wincing as the coldness rebelled against my hands moving to grip the metal.

Kakashi was already cutting open the thick wires when I reached them, which proved to be a little harder without the use of chakra, but still doable. In less than a minute, there was a gaping hole that was large enough for a large man, and Naruto clambered inside without a moment's hesitation.

I went next, and found myself in a large vent – just large enough for us to crawl on hands and knees – that held stale air and the underlying hum of the generators. The interior of the pipe was cool, but such a relief from the freezing chill of the outside that it felt pleasantly warm against my skin. I let out a low sigh as Kakashi crawled in, glancing at the silver-haired man as he carefully placed the circle of wire back where he found it, making the vent look like it was still intact.

Naruto looked around curiously, rubbing his hands together to regain some color to the numb fingers, and I nudged him forward. "Move it, Idiot."

"Shut it, Emo!" he snarled, and Kakashi's voice sharply interrupted before I could respond.

"Enough. This isn't the time. Keep your senses alert for Madara's signature, and remember," Kakashi focused on Naruto. "If it looks like Sasuke and I wont get out alive, Naruto…do not stay and help us. Get out of here as quickly as possibly, and teleport as far away as you can. From there, go back to Konohagakure. Madara's goal is to capture you, and if he does…he will be that much closer to destroying the world. Do you understand?"

I nodded, and Naruto scowled, his voice angry. "I would never–"

"Naruto!" Kakashi barked, and Naruto sighed deeply before slowly nodding in reluctant acceptance. Kakashi's voice was softer, less scolding, as he went on, "Good. Now get moving."

Scowling, Naruto began making his way down the metal pipe, and I followed him, letting my senses expand to try and locate Madara's chakra. It was still there, but it was so faint that I had trouble telling from where.

It was for nearly half an hour that we crawled, and by the time we reached the end, my shoulders were beginning to ache from the tightness of the pipe, and I waited as Naruto began unlatching the small door that allowed for repairs. The blonde slowly pulled it up, careful to remain silent, and poked his head down for the briefest second.

My heart began to pound as I waited for Naruto's verdict, my limbs trembling as adrenaline began to pump though my veins. I could feel Kakashi tensing behind me, and I prepared to shoot myself back. If someone was there…

"It's all clear!" Naruto hissed, and without further ado flipped down and out of the pipe. My chest relaxed, and I quickly dropped out of the pipe after Naruto, both of us pulling out weapons. Naruto flipped out a kunai, and I held my sword – also known as Kusanagi – at the ready while we waited for Kakashi.

Kakashi's feet touched the ground, and–

BOOM!

The explosion was so intense that all three of us were blown off our feet, and only barely managed to flatten ourselves to the opposite wall, instinctively using chakra to keep us safely attached. My eardrums were ringing painfully, but I could still hear to an extent. Yells, the sound of metal biting metal – muffled because of the effect of the explosion on my ears – and the dust from the crumbled cement filled the air. The dust caught uncomfortably in my throat, stinging my eyes and making me cough. I squinted through the dust with Sharingan eyes, dropping to the ground silently, and holding Kusanagi at the ready.

A dark shape darted from the fray, so quickly that even with the Sharingan all I caught was the sight of a face half hidden by thick bandages. With a jolt of surprise, I recognized the man to be Danzō. The older shinobi leapt and crashed through the glass window, and the sound of footsteps caught my attention. The dust was slowly clearing, and my eyes widened as I saw a familiar figure – so familiar that I felt my chest clench painfully – part from the dust and jump through the broken glass window, disappearing from sight.

"Sasuke–" Kakashi yelled, trying to detain me, but I was already gone, running as fast as I could. The air whipped at my skin as I fell toward the snowy earth, my crimson eyes locking on a rapidly disappearing figure.

The figure had only been visible for the briefest second, and from what I had seen, it was completely cloaked in black, with a facemask and a hood to cover its hair.

But I knew that run, I recognized the sight of those arms pumping furiously, I knew the sound of her breathing in the thick of a battle. I had trained her, I had taught her so well that her speed was only barely below mine. When it came to her, there were no hesitations; there were no second guesses.

Hikari was running after the replacement Hokage, and I had no choice – the other options didn't even enter my mind – but to follow.