Hey guys it's your lucky day! TWO UPDATES IN ONE DAY! Hope you enjoy it.

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Sasuke sat on the couch with Naruto standing behind him. It was things like this that make the job just that much more irritating, he really hated people who try to weasel their way out of paying their debts.

"P-P-Please Sasuke! I just need one more month!" the man stuttered, sweating like a pig.

Naruto snorted at the request.

This man must be either stupid or crazy if he thought that Sasuke would actually go for that.

The blonde turned his head back to his partner and shook his head.

This poor bastard was not going to live long.

Sasuke's eyes were red and he was sporting that blood thirsty smirk of his.

"Well now that's where we have problems, Gato."

The man looked around the extravagant sitting room. There were red velvet curtains hanging from the windows and the expensive wines in the new bar.

"This is new. Tell me, Gato, could you have paid me if you didn't buy all this?" Sasuke asked.

The short man gulped.

"We had Shikamaru look into your shipping company's logs and finances. It would seem that you have also been embezzling from it as well." Naruto added in, watching the old man squirm. It was by far his favorite part of the job.

Sasuke's eyes never left the pathetic being in front of him.

"Really, have you forgotten who exactly you are dealing with? We know that you have the money, Gato, you are just being stingy with it. A grave mistake on your part, one that will cost you your life."

The fat man tried to get away, only to be shot in the back five times before he could even reach the door.

Sasuke walked over to the man's body to check to see if he was dead and grunted.

What a fool.

"Did he really think he would make it out alive?" Naruto scoffed as he joined his best friend in staring at the body.

"Hn. Get Kiba and Choji to dispose of the body. Ino, Tenten, and Hinata can get any valuables from the house and pack those up."

Naruto nodded as he pulled out his phone to signal the rest of the gang that was outside the mansion awaiting their orders.

"Sasuke, what are we going to do about the house?" Naruto's blue eyes doubled in size.

"Can we keep it?!" He asked excitedly.

Sasuke rolled his eyes.

" No, Dobe, we are not keeping this dump. Get Neji to put it on the market. It will be more useful to us that way."

He watched as the blonde visibly deflated in disappointment, reminding him of a certain woman.

"Dobe it's not the end of the world. Stop being dramatic like Sakura..."

Both men stopped what they were doing, minds occupied with thoughts of the pink haired woman.

Naruto laid a hand on his friend's shoulder.

"Everything is fine Sasuke. She'll be safe. We both know that Gaara won't let anything happen to her."

Sasuke tried his hardest to keep his face neutral, but Naruto, like Sakura, could read him like an open book.

The blond man sighed. He loved his friends, really he did, but sometimes they were like a hurricane, destroying everything they pass. He and Sasuke both knew that the Sakura they have is not the Sakura that left. In the time she had been away, the pink haired woman had changed in ways they were only just figuring out. It was almost as if she were partly a stranger to them. Naruto knew that while it worried his raven haired friend, it also gave him a certain degree of excitement as well. It was as if she were challenging his authority and everyone knows that Sasuke loves a challenge. With this new incident, Naruto knew that Sakura would change even more and it was concerning to them both.

Sasuke interrupted Naruto's thoughts, voicing what they were all silently thinking.

"She's up to something. I don't know what, but I do know I don't like it." He whispered.

He turned his onyx eye to his partner.

"You've noticed, haven't you?"

"Sasuke, everyone has noticed. She seems to be hiding a lot lately. I can't help but get the feeling that she's hiding something. Some sort of secret. When I called her earlier her voice sounded off."

Sasuke nodded as Naruto confirmed his suspicions and ran a hand through his hair in irritation.

"What the hell is her endgame here? I have never been so confused by Sakura in all the time we've known her. Just what does she think she's doing?"

Naruto thought about it as he and Sasuke made their way to the car outside the mansion. What was she planning? Sure Sakura was acting suspicious lately, but there was nothing in her actions that suggest she'd be turning on them. Naruto shook his head as if that alone would erase those thoughts from his mind. How could he ever think that about her? Her green eyes filled with tears of happiness when Sasuke brought her back to the house. No one could ever fake the emotions he saw there as she hugged Ino and yelled at Sai for calling her an ugly hag. So then what...?

Naruto stopped in his tracks as it hit him like a ton of bricks.

That day when she left. She went to town alone, knowing that she was in danger and when he spotted her, her eyes had a fiercely determined look to them. Almost as if she were waiting for something to go down and then he spotted the Akatsuki members...

"S-Sasuke we need to get to Suna now." Naruto said while pulling out his phone to call Gaara.

Sasuke jerked his head to stare at him, concerned and irritated at being told what to do.

"Why?"

"I know what Sakura is planning. It's so obvious it was slapping us in the face. Think about it Sasuke. If any of us were in trouble, what would Sakura's reaction be?"

Sasuke looked as if he didn't know where his friend was going with this, but then his face clouded up like a thunderstorm about to unleash its rage.

"She'd do anything to make sure we'd be safe even if she got hurt in the process." He jerked the car on to the freeway heading straight for Suna.

Naruto nodded as Gaara picked up the phone.

"This had better be important, or I'm going to kill you. Affiliated or not."

Naruto flinched a bit. He wouldn't think twice about doing it too.

"Where is Sakura?"

It was quiet on the other end for a moment before the red head replied.

"Asleep in Temari's room. Why?"

"Because she's planning something incredibly stupid. Don't let her out of your sight until Sasuke and I get there. We should get there in a few hours."

"Like hell it'll take us that long." Sasuke grumbled pressing his foot hard on the accelerator.

"What's going on?" At the mention of his beloved cousin's name, Gaara got serious and completely focused.

"Sakura's planning on getting captured so that she can kill Madara and Orochimaru!"

Naruto heard Gaara's breath catch and a few colorful curses come out.

"That idiot! What the hell is she thinking?"

"You know how Sakura is."

"Yeah a pain in my ass."

"I think that's my line." Sasuke growled keeping his eyes on the road.

"Either way, just don't let her out of your sight, got it?"

Gaara snorted.

"As if I need you to tell me that." He scoffed as the line went dead.

"Well I can rest a little easier now that Gaara knows. I mean that dude is like an overprotective dad mixed with three guard dogs."

Sasuke didn't answer.

Naruto sighed, "You can rest easier too. It's not a crime, ya know."

Sasuke's hands tightened into a death grip on the steering wheel.

"No. I won't take it easy. Not until this threat is over and we are all back at the house. I lost her once, Naruto, because I was taking it easy. I won't make the same mistake twice."

The blond sighed. His friend was no fun when he was in his hero mode.

This was going to be a long ride.

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Sakura woke up next to Temari after hearing hushed voices coming from outside the door, seemingly talking about something important. Slowly as to not wake her cousin and alert the people outside, Sakura lightly made her way over to the door. She leaned her head ever so slightly against the wood, catching the tail end of the conversation.

"Sasuke and Naruto are on their way here. Their orders are that she not be let out of our sight til they get here."

"Man is she troublesome."

Sakura knit her brow in confusion. Why would Gaara and Shikamaru be talking about that outside her door?

Wait...

'Sasuke and Naruto are on their way here. Their orders are that she not be let out of our sight til they get here...'

She gasped, almost missing the most important part of the conversation.

"Why are they so worried? It's not like we're incompetent and can't protect one woman." Shikamaru stated blandly.

"That's not the issue here. They seem to think that Sakura is planning to do something dangerous."

The other man sighed.

"I knew something was a bit off about the way she was acting, but I just chalked it up to the shock of the video. Though now that I think about it, her doing something like self sacrificing sounds just like her."

Sakura backed away from the door slowly.

So Naruto and Sasuke figured her out. She knew they would eventually, but not this soon.

Damn it, she should have never answered Naruto's call.

It would seem she made the mistake of underestimating the two of them. If it was just Sasuke, he would want to be certain before taking action, but Naruto on the other hand...that idiot must have confirmed Sasuke's suspicions causing him to act immediately.

Well this certainly moved her plans up, she thought.

Sakura moved over to the dresser to pack some clothes. She felt a small amount of guilt for leaving like this again, but it was quickly overshadowed by the the need for vengeance. She didn't have time to worry about things like that right now.

"Huh? Sakura what are you doing?"

The pink haired woman turned to see a sleepy Temari sitting up in bed, rubbing her eyes.

Damn. This added further complications to her plans.

"Well it can't be helped, I guess." She sighed walking over to the blonde.

Temari gave her a questioning look before noticing her apologetic expression.

"Sakura-" She couldn't finish her sentence as Sakura hit a pressure point on the woman's neck rendering her unconscious.

"I'm sorry Temari. Please don't hate me for this."

With one last regretful look at the blonde on the bed, Sakura grabbed her bag and jumped out the window.

Hopefully, whether she lived or died, one day they would all forgive her for this and see that she only did it to protect them.

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Gaara's acute hearing picked up something from Temari's room and a sinking feeling made his stomach turn.

Something wasn't right.

He shared a look with the man next to him and they went crashing through the door, finding the unconscious Temari and an MIA Sakura. Shikamaru, being the genius he was, pieced together what had happened in an instant. He walked over to his girlfriend and gently nudged her awake. Most men would be in a frenzy if they found their woman in a state like this, but he knew that Sakura wasn't one to seriously injure those close to her.

"What happened?" Gaara was at a bit of a loss until he noticed his cousin's clothes and bag were gone as well as the open window.

"Sakura overheard our conversation and she left before they got here. Temari must have woken up as she was packing." Shikamaru said.

Gaara sighed and rested his head on his fist. This was a disaster to say the least. Not only was his favorite cousin in danger, but Sasuke was going to be beyond pissed. It's not that Gaara was afraid of the dark haired man, but it was just a headache for him to deal with an angry Sasuke. Seeing as how Naruto was going to be there, it might not be as bad.

Or it just might be ten times worse.

"Should we go look for her?" Shikamaru asked sending the redhead a sideways glance.

Gaara shook his head.

"If Sakura doesn't want to be found then there is no way we'll be able to."

"I'm sorry. I realized something was wrong too late. I should have stopped her." Temari said still sitting on the bed.

"No one's blaming you." Garra said.

"Not yet anyway. You know that when Sasuke gets here, he's going to be a major pain and he's going to be looking for someone to blame."

Gaara's green eyes narrowed in irritation.

"Then the blame is on me. I'm the one who should have known she would do this."

Just then the heard a sports car screech to a stop outside the mansion.

Gaara turned and left to go meet his friend and Sasuke.

Shikamaru and Temari shared a look and the brown haired man sighed.

"What a drag." And they both left to meet the others.

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"WHAT DO YOU MEAN SHE'S GONE?!"

Sasuke glared at his blonde friend in irritation. Did he have to do that right in his ear? On the outside Sasuke looked emotionless and detached, but Naruto could see the fire of fury in his eyes and the tension around the man's mouth.

Sasuke was incredibly pissed off.

"She overheard Gaara informing me about the situation and she bolted."

Even though he was seeing red, Sasuke reluctantly admitted to himself that he understood Sakura's way of thinking. A tiny part of him glowed with pride, knowing that his girl was capable of escaping them. He didn't know what she did while she was away, but he was sort of liking the results and if her life weren't in absolute danger he'd find all this pretty hot.

But she was playing with dangerous people and there was no way Sakura could take them on all on her own. Even if she was stronger, Sakura still needed her friends. In her state of mind she'd never survive an encounter with Orochimaru and Madara. Sasuke knew the effects grief had on the mind better than anyone

She needed him.

"Naruto, contact Hinata and Ino. Have them keep an eye out for any disturbances. Shikamaru, get everyone else over here now. We have to find Sakura and back her up."

The brunette nodded and went off to do as he was told while Naruto looked at him questioningly.

"Sakura has the right idea. We can't keep going like this. It's about time we put an end to the threat to our family before they hurt anyone else."

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A woman was looking through shop windows, seemingly unaware of the silver haired man tailing her. To the average person she seemed to be window shopping, but Sakura Haruno was waiting for said man to make his move. He had been following her since she left the Sand Compound two hours ago, so he had to know that she was alone and no one was with her.

What was he

waiting

for?

"Hey pretty lady. Why don't you come and have a bit of fun with us?"

Sakura turned her attention to the men in front of her. One of them had slicked back silver hair and violet eyes, while the other had tanned skin black hair and stitches all over him.

They were a weird pair, of that she was certain, and they needed to leave her alone. No one else should get involved in this.

"Sorry but I can't. You see I'm waiting for someone." She said with a sweet smile, hoping they'd leave.

The silver haired man threw his head back and let out a loud laugh.

"Did that sound like a request, Kuzaku?"

Kuzaku sighed.

"Hidan, just grab her and let's go. Madara said there was a reward in it for us if we capture her."

At the name Madara, Sakura's brain skid to a halt.

"You guys are Akatsuki?" She asked, trying to put the appropriate amount of fear in her voice.

"Yup and you are coming with us." Hidan said, grabbing her by the arm and tossing her into a black car that pulled up beside them.

From the other side of the street, Kabuto smirked.

They finally had her.

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And that's it for chapter 7. Please leave a review!