Author's Note: Hopefully getting this chapter up quickly makes some people happy. n.n

I like this chapter, personally. Enjoy!

Chapter 3

They had finally reached shady grounds. Surrounded by trees and bright green grass, Naruto felt he could finally breathe. The two members of Akatsuki stood out against such a beautiful scene like a fire in the night. The air was cold, but the blooming flowers and soft breeze more than made up for it. And through the scenery, which painfully reminded him of Konoha, Naruto felt a sense of dread.

"I'm going to die, aren't I?" he asked quietly, out of the blue, as Itachi took a drink from his flask, still walking. Once the grass began to show again, and the sand disappeared, Itachi had put Naruto down and let him walk.

No one replied. The answer was obvious.

"What do you think?" Kisame asked loudly, no tone of remorse in his harsh voice. Naruto closed his eyes and allowed the gentle, cool breeze to play with his hair. His eyebrows met in anger.

"You bastards. If you had given me a chance to fight, I'd still be in Konoha and you two would be dead!" He snarled. Kisame burst into laughter. Itachi put his flask away and cleared his throat.

"You are correct in one field, Naruto-kun." Itachi said, "We did not give you a chance to fight. We stole you while you were having a conversation. It was unfair. But, you know, that is the point of a kidnapping." He retorted. Naruto snarled. "But you seem confident. I acknowledge you for that."

"I don't want to be acknowledged! I want you to fight me – fair and square!" Naruto yelled. He had stopped walking at this point. The two missing Nins stopped and stared.

"You think you are an equal match, kid?" Kisame chuckled.

"No. Of course not. I know I'm no match for him, by myself. But if I can land one punch, I'll be content. I'll feel better about myself!"

"You let your emotions take control of your actions. That is not prized in shinobi. You have potential to be strong, stronger than the Hokages, and I'm sorry for taking your future away from you." Itachi commented quietly. This only angered Naruto more.

"Even without my chakra, I could land a punch. Fight me, Itachi!'

There was a short silence.

Kisame raised an eyebrow. "You're not serious…"

"Kisame! Cut Naruto loose." Itachi ordered. In a flash, the cords binding Naruto's wrists were released. The stubborn blonde began massaging where his skin had been cut.

"Prepare yourself." Naruto growled. "I'm not going to hold back!"

"Naruto-kun, don't be foolish. You are without chakra. You are without weapons. Do you still think you can land a punch?"

"Of course! I don't need those things. A real ninja should be able to fight with or without them! Watch and learn!" Naruto yelled, rushing forward, thrusting his fist at Itachi's chest. He closed his eyes for a moment, wondering where Itachi would appear once he dodged the punch. While he was thinking, he was startled to find his fist come in contact with something.

The hit landed.

"Wha…"

"Are you satisfied?" Itachi asked. The punch did not hurt him. He didn't even stumble, whereas a normal person would have broken a rib or two. "Can you die now… without regret?"

Before Naruto could respond, Itachi grabbed him around the throat with his right hand and lifted him off the ground. Naruto choked, bringing his hands around Itachi's wrist, trying desperately to loosen the hold. He could hear Kisame chuckling.

"It seems the hardest thing you are able to do is accept the facts. You are now in my grasp. What have you been training for these two years? What have you been doing? Learning different ways to be captured by me, right?" Itachi growled in Naruto's ear.

Naruto dug his nails into Itachi's skin. He tried to yell, but all that came out was a short squeak. He needed air – now. Feeling his blood rush to his face, Naruto tried to listen to what Itachi was saying.

"I've said it before. You let your emotions take control of your actions too often. That is your fault."

Naruto could barely hear him anymore. He began kicking his legs, trying anything that would get him air. Itachi went on, staring into Naruto's eyes, which had tears streaming out of them.

"It is not up to you to decide your fate, Naruto-kun." Itachi said quietly. Feeling his lungs collapse, Naruto let his arms fall to his side while Itachi held him stiff off the ground. His head dropped. He no longer wished for air – he wished for death! Anything would be better than this pain!

Itachi snorted, "Oh, no. You're not dying just yet." He said, and released Naruto, who fell roughly to the ground. He took two sweet, delicious breaths of air before his mind gave up and he lost consciousness.

Kakashi grazed the tip of his thumb with his kunai, allowing a small stream of blood to escape. Sitting in a nearby tree, he made some hand seals and pressed his hands onto a branch.

"Kuchiyose no jutsu!" he exclaimed and lifted his hands. In their place sat a very small dog wearing a cape.

"Yo." Pakkun said lazily. "What is it?"

"Uzumaki Naruto is missing. He may be in the village, but I'm concerned. Smell him out."

The dog lifted his nose in the air. "That kid? Hmmn… I do recognize his scent."

Kakashi sighed, relieved. "Thank God. Where?"

"Not far – follow me." He said, jumping quickly through the trees. Kakashi followed closely behind, relieved to find Naruto, though not every ounce of worry had been erased. He was still convinced that there was something wrong.

"Why was he this far out?" Pakkun asked as they flew

"I'm wondering that myself." Kakashi retorted.

"Wait – he's not alone! I small Uchiha… and someone else?"

"What? Impossible – I was just with Sasuke, he couldn't have gotten--" Then it occurred to him. Akatsuki. "Pakkun – hurry!" He yelled suddenly. "Naruto could be in severe danger!"

"Right!" The dog announced, picking up his pace.

They traveled for about an hour or more before Pakkun stopped and jumped to a clearing. "Here. This is where the scent ends." He said, sniffing around. "I smell Naruto here, and Uchiha too. But that other smell… I don't recognize it at all. It barely smells human."

"Shit!" Kakashi growled. "I don't sense any chakra, either."

"No… there is no one here. The scent disappears at this spot."

'Could this be a trick?' Kakashi thought, observing the area. The grass was tall. It was obvious where three people stood, smashing the grass with their weight.

"Wait!" Pakkun announced. "Behind you, it's that scent Uchiha. It's like he was two places at once. But clones don't give off a smell. Sasuke's the only Uchiha…"

"Two Uchihas, Naruto, and a demon." Kakashi gathered softly. "I know what's going on. Pakkun, you may leave."

"Um… alright. Sure, see ya." The dog said lazily, disappearing in a puff of smoke.

Kakashi rushed back to Konoha and went directly to the Hokage. He told her everything that happened. Shocked, Tsunade immediately began to gather ANBU officers and sent them to the hospital to collect Sasuke. When they arrived, however, they reported the young Uchiha missing."

"Missing!?" Tsunade yelled, shortening the life of everyone in the room by a few years. "Damn! This is beginning to make sense…" She sat at her desk and went through a list of the ninja that were not on missions. There were very few.

"Damn… quickly, summon Hatake Kakashi, Neji Hyuuga, Sakura Haruno, Rock Lee, and that fool who calls himself the Toad Sage, Jiraiya. Go!"

The ANBU left. Tsunade immediately rested her head on her hands. Within the span of ten minutes, all five ninja arrived in front of her. Tsunade lifted her stressed head from her desk and got to her feet.

"Listen! I'm assigning you all to an S-ranked mission. This will take some explaining, so listen up!" She exclaimed. The ninja straightened up. "I believe three of you already know this, but it concerns the kyuubi no kitsune. You know the story, right?"

"Of course!" Rock Lee exclaimed with a confident smile. "The fourth Hokage bravely sacrificed his life by killing the fox with a secret, forbidden jutsu!" He proudly explained.

"Wrong." Jiraiya said softly.

"What? What do you mean 'wrong'? Gai-sensei informed me of that fact himself! Are you saying he lied to me?" Lee said, angered

"No, I'm saying he's ignorant. He may have thought that was the truth. But it's wrong." Jiraiya said simply.

Kakashi sighed. "He's right, Lee." Sakura nodded.

"What do you mean?" Neji asked, "That's what we were told?"

"Will you listen to me?" Tsunade yelled, regaining attention. "The fourth did not kill the fox. This is impossible! Instead, he sealed the fox's soul into a newborn baby, then died. That baby was Naruto." She paused for effect.

"Naruto-kun?" Le exclaimed, his jaw dropping. Even the silent Neji looked stunned.

"So…" Neji began quietly, "That's what he meant by being burdened with a mark that can never be erased."

"Hokage-sama," Sakura began, who had already learned this about Naruto. "What does this have to do with the mission?"

"I'm getting there. There is also an organization called 'Akatsuki', which consists of nine members --"

"NO!" Jiraiya and Sakura shouted together.

"Don't tell me…" Jiraiya began.

Tsunade looked at the worry in their eyes, and the sorrow and guilt in Kakashi's eye before continuing. "Their goal is to collect all nine of the beasts. For what reason, I do not know. To extract a demon from the container, those including Naruto called 'Jinchuriki', takes time and power. In addition, the container must inevitably be killed in the process. You can guess the mission… Naruto has been captured."

"When!" Sakura yelled, tears welling up in the corners of her eyes, "How!"

Tsunade looked at her student with pity. Inside, she felt exactly the same grief. "Early this morning, Kakashi searched for Naruto after he skipped their appointment. He was led to the place where he had been captured, and discovered that not only Uchiha Itachi and the demon Hoshigaki Kisame had been involved, but Uchiha Sasuke as well."

"Damn that brat!" Jiraiya exclaimed. "He helped his brother!"

"Neji and I have fought with Hoshigaki before, but Uchiha Itachi?" Questioned Lee. "The one who destroyed the entire Uchiha clan?"

"The same."

"No!" Sakura yelled. "That's a lie! I was just with Sasuke-kun! Did you interrogate him?"

"We tried," Tsunade explained, "But he's gone. ANBU are searching for him now."

There was a silence, and not a happy person stood in the room.

"So our mission is to find Naruto?" Neji asked.

"Your mission is the most important one yet – trace down Naruto and do everything in your power to bring him back alive. If not for Naruto's best interest, think of what such people would do to the world if the Kyuubi was in their power."

"Tsunade," Jiraiya butted in. "Don't get your hoped up. A mission like this is close to impossible. The Akatsuki is a very powerful organization. Each member is a S-ranked or higher mission nin." He said seriously.

"I'm aware. But, we can't sit back and do nothing. I've chosen the best ninja in Konoha who aren't on missions. Kakashi, for your strength and your Sharingan. Also, you've fought Akatsuki before, so you know what you're doing. Jiraiya, your one of the Sannin. Also, you've trained Naruto. Sakura, your incredible strength and healing powers surpass many that have fought for decades. You also have some knowledge of Akatsuki. Lee, your speed, strength and courage are needed badly as well. Neji, you have mastered the Byakugan, and you have incredible strength, defense, and knowledge." She said, "I'm counting on you all to bring him back alive, and cling to your own lives as well. Go!"

A/N: Alright, a part of this chapter may have been boring, but it was needed! I'll see you next chapter – hopefully an even longer chapter. n.n

R&R!