Disclaimer: Own nothing 'cept my OC's

Last time: Naruto gets attacked in Konoha for his stunt with Ayame. After getting a mission to a village called Lahan to deal with a missing-nin group called the Four Corners, Naruto runs into a drunk ronin who volunteers information in return for a fight.

This Time: The fight, another fight and some old adversaries pop up.

"A shinobi cannot compare to a samurai who follows the way of Bushido," Ren stated coldly as his thumb moved forward, the sliver of his blade glinting in the moon's wan light. The sword flashed and a vicious slash appeared on Naruto's chest, his blue eyes showing his surprise as red blood splashed all over the grass around him, his knees hitting the ground with a hollow thud. "Fuuryuusen." The ronin followed through, the sword sliding into its sheath with a clink.

He turned to leave, but stopped as a chuckle stopped him.

"Hey! Where do you think you're going?"

Ren snorted and turned back. "So you're still alive?"

Naruto laughed outright. "You didn't strike to kill so don't give me that bullshit. That wound wasn't deep enough to hit any vitals, and besides," he stood up and the samurai's eyes widened as he noticed that Naruto's chest was healing up, the wound closing before his eyes. In less than a minute, there was only a fading scar to denote an injury had been present just moments before, "it takes a lot more than that to kill me!"

The shinobi popped his neck as he flung the cloak aside.

"So, you're prepared to fight me openly? No hiding beneath your treacherous cloak?"

Ren's face showed confusion as Naruto fox-grinned at him, giving the man a thumbs down. "Like I'd lose to someone like you!"

Two black shapes burst from either side of the tree line, crisscrossing over each other as they headed for him.

"Treachery again!" Ren thundered as his sword left its sheath, another invisible slash slicing across the ground, visible only as a bending in the grass. One of the shapes was sliced in half at the waist, but the second used the first as a springboard to launch into the air, Ren's steel colored eyes tracking it as something attached to it flared wide, like a pair of reptilian wings or a shadow come to life.

The samurai darted backwards as kunai and shuriken littered the ground in front of him then his wrist was seized by a strong grip. It was Naruto, whose face was intense as he pulled the older warrior forward. Ren spun into him, grabbed the hand holding him and flung Naruto over his shoulder, who twisted in mid flight and landed like a cat.

Another pair of arms seized the ronin, though the samurai's right arm slipped free and the sword tip stabbed the interloper in the shoulder. Ren's face showed his surprise when the moonlight fell on the second attacker, revealing it to be Naruto, a sword buried deep in his right shoulder.

There was a puff of smoke and the second Naruto was gone.

Kunai passed Ren, trailing wire. Again the kodachi flashed and the wires fell away, each one sliced clean through.

Naruto grinned. "Not bad. That was special high tensile wire and you cut it like it wasn't even there. You're good!" Ren could sense no mocking or malice in the shinobi's tone.

"And you're not too bad either, for a shinobi."

"What do you have against ninja?" Naruto asked, mostly to stall for time as he tried to figure out a way past the kodachi. It was known as a shield-sword for a reason, and Ren had proven he could master it to the utmost degree. "What'd we ever do to you? I mean, most samurai really don't have a problem with us."

The ronin snorted and shouldered his sword. "You are nothing but malicious tricksters. You never fight a clean battle following any kind of honor code, always sneaking around in the shadows, behind the scenes. Even your leader, the Hokage, has shadow in the title. What honor can there possibly be in that?"

"Keh, shows what you know!" Ren's eyebrow lifted at the shinobi's vehement denial. "The Hokage may mean Fire Shadow, but not one of them was ever a coward. The Shodai founded Konoha and the Nidaime led it through the First and Second Secret Shinobi Wars. The Sandaime gave his life to protect the village from the invasion, just as the Yondaime sold his soul to seal the Kyuubi no Yoko! And the Godaime may be an old hag, but she's not doing too bad either!"

"So your leaders are honorable, perhaps, but are you? Konohagakure and the other villages all derive money from their ability to slip through the shadows and kill in secret. Do you call that kind of job honorable?"

"It's just a job," Naruto answered.

Ren spit on the ground between them. "And that is what separates the samurai from the barbarians in this world. We only strive for honor, not how much money we can make off of someone's death." His sword came off his shoulder; clenched in two hands by his side, tip down.

Naruto shrugged. "Whatever. I didn't come to get philosophical with you. I came for information on the Four Corners, so either tell me or I'll just beat it out of you."

The ronin smirked. Whatever his perceptions on shinobi were, this blond firebrand had certainly impressed him, if only through his fighting abilities. "Well then you might as well turn around now, because you will never defeat me."

Naruto sighed, rubbing his blond hair. "If I had a ryou for ever time I've heard that one," he quipped, before grinning at the samurai warrior. "Well, guess I'll just have to prove you wrong too." He held a hand out to one side and to Ren's surprise, chakra began to swirl in his palm, forming a small sphere that looked like it was a handheld hurricane.

"What technique is that?"

"The personal jutsu of the Yondaime Hokage," Naruto answered with a grin. "This is the Rasengan."

"A fitting name indeed," said Ren, nodding. "I would never want to get hit by that technique." He crouched low, as if about to sprint at Naruto. "And so I shan't. You've fought well, Sano-kun, but it ends here." He leapt into the air, soaring above the treetops, the sword flashing as he began his descent. "Ryuutsuisen!"

"Rasengan!" Naruto shouted, slamming his palm into the ground. There was a huge explosion and the samurai was force to squint as he dropped into the cloud than hung where the shinobi had been. The gray-haired samurai grinned when he saw a black shadow loom in his vision.

"It was a nice attempt, Sano-kun, but you still lose!" The sword flashed and the shadow dissolved into smoke the moment the Dragon Hammer hit. "What!?"

A second shadow lunged at him and slammed hard into the ronin, knocking him off balance, then he tripped over something behind him and before he could hit the ground, there was immense pressure on every inch of his body.

"Wha-?" his eyes went wide when the smoke cleared and revealed just what had happened. There was a Naruto standing from a rush, a Naruto on the ground on all fours, and four Narutos all sitting on him, one's foot pinning his wrist to the ground. The samurai had to laugh at what'd happened as the six blondes all grinned along with him. "Impressive, Sano-san, very impressive. This is a dishonorable way to win, attacking when I cannot see, but it is not without a certain amusement value."

"Glad to hear," the Naruto with his foot on Ren's wrist answered, "Now, about that information you owe me?"

"Yes yes, the information. First, you let me up, then we talk."

"Deal." There was a burst of smoke and all the weight on Ren's body disappeared. The Naruto on all fours was the one that remained. "So you took part in your offensive instead of hiding like a coward, Sanosuke-san."

"Why should I let my clones have all the fun?" Naruto answered with a laugh. "By the way, my real name's Uzumaki Naruto."

"A false name? Why use one?"

"Well, my real name can be tracked to Konoha right? Would you have agreed to tell me if I said I was from Konoha?"

"No. Well, perhaps we should talk then. I do not like the fact that you are a shinobi, but this kind of thing cannot be helped. I gave you my word to talk and so I shall."

The pair sat down on a fallen log at the edge of the clearing.

"So, you wish to know about the Four Corners then? Fine. I can tell you plenty about them. They first showed up about three years ago. At first, the lord in charge of Lahan did nothing to stop them since he believed them to be weak troublemakers who would pass from the village in time. When they did not leave, the lord took action against them, leading his honor guard and a platoon of his finest soldiers into the pass to clear them out."

"Were you on the team that went in?"

Ren nodded. "Yes, I was with them. We fought a great battle, but in the end, we were defeated by their underhanded schemes, and the lord was killed. His lordship had no wife and no living relatives, so the lord's seat went to the next of kin, who happened to be his cousin. I did not agree with Fukayama, so I left the samurai and became a ronin."

"So why hang around this village? You're a good swordsman. You could probably become one of the Fire Daimyo's guards."

The ronin smiled sadly. "I cannot leave. Though I'm disgraced and considered worthless by my comrades and lord, I cannot abandon this city. I refuse to turn my back on Lahan." He looked at Naruto. "Surely you can understand, Naruto-kun."

Now it was the blonde's turn to smile sadly. "Yeah. I know. So anyway, enough sob stories. About the people in the Four Corners?"

"Right. The shinobi themselves are rather formidable, each one being proficient in a different category of ninjutsu. I'm sure you're familiar with what I speak of?"

"Chakra types."

"Right. I do not know their names, but only that they all dress in long black coats with the symbol for their element embroidered in the back in the color most closely associated with it. For example, fire is red, earth is green and so on." The ronin's hand clenched on the hilt of his kodachi. "I would deal with them myself, but I'm not a shinobi and I don't know how to deal with underhanded tactics like theirs."

"Well, you've helped me out more than you know," Naruto told him. "I'm the leader of a shinobi team that's come here on Hinata-chan's orders to clear those bastards out."

"Really? Hinata-sama bade you to come?"

"Yeah…whatever bade means."

The samurai laughed outright, not unkindly, but with happiness. "Well then, Uzumaki Naruto, I wish you good luck." He stood and began heading for the village again. "Should you ever need help, just ask."

"You sure you want to help out a shinobi?"

"No, but you are not a shinobi. You are an anomaly and that makes you interesting. I want to see where this encounter takes you Uzumaki, and I also want to see just how much you were holding back in that fight just now."

Naruto looked stunned, then smiled. He should've known that an experienced fighter like Ren could sense when someone held back. "That goes for you too, Ren. Oh!" The samurai stopped. "Just one more thing. What's Hinata-chan mean to you?"

"To me? Well, I can honestly say that she's the one person in that entire damn estate that I can be around and truly enjoy their company." He resumed walking and within moments had been swallowed by the shadows.

"Well, that was productive," Naruto remarked to thin air. The response was nonverbal.

'Still, you didn't get much out of him.' Kyuubi pointed out.

'Maybe, but at least now we know what to look for when we go out on escort duty.'

Naruto stood and followed Ren down the path.

"So we're looking for long coats with the symbols on the back of them?" Neji asked the next morning as the four sat in their room, eating, or in Naruto's case, devouring, breakfast.

"Yeah."

"And what source did you get this information from?"

"One I trust."

"Let me get this straight," Sakura said, "you met him at a bar, challenged him to a fight, won the fight and then he told you what he knew? Naruto, that's not a source that's just a drunkard running his mouth!"

"Maybe, but it's more than we have right now, isn't it?"

"He does have a point," Tenten interjected before the others could get after the blond again. "Now we need to hurry up. The caravan leaves in an hour and we need to be there."

The others nodded and breakfast was finished quickly and the four shinobi left the compound, heading for the departure point, a small pass-control at the foot of the winding mountain road that led into the pass.

On the way out of the manor, they passed Oda and Yoritomo sparring. Naruto watched what he could without being obvious, taking in the sword techniques, but they were unfamiliar to him. It wasn't a style he'd seen, but then again, he hadn't really seen that many. Both father and son were studiously trying to avoid looking at the shinobi.

'Just you wait. When this is all over, I'm gonna make sure I show you why I'm the best damn prankster in Konoha!' The blond Jinchuuriki vowed as they passed through the gates, nodded farewell to Aoshi, and headed for the meeting point.

It took the shinobi all morning to climb the mountain trail, slowed as they were by the fifty or so traders and their donkeys, which were laden in turn with huge packs of merchandise. What the missing-nin gained by stealing this stuff was beyond them. Most of it was worthless, just little trinkets and so forth, but it'd been said that there was a sucker born every minute, so Naruto supposed that there was some poor bastard out there who just had to have what the missing-nin put up for sale, no matter the price.

At the entrance to the pass, which was just a hollowed out bowl before the narrower path between two mountain peaks, they stopped and ate then were on their way again, the shinobi moving out and ahead, then doubling back in an endless racetrack.

Neji and Tenten had been paired together, at Neji's suggestion, because it would take time to work out team dynamics and it was safer to stick with people they knew how to fight with. The Hyuuga had also pointed out that Tenten's long range would complement his close range.

The same held true for Sakura and Naruto too, so they were paired together, both teams never once ceasing their vigil.

The pass opened out wider, becoming more of a bowl than a pass and it was filled with grasses and flowers with the shallow slopes of mountain peaks rising all around them. Neji looked tense, scanning the entire area with his Byakugan.

"I don't like this," he muttered. "It's too open."

The others could only nod in agreement. The traders didn't like being in the open anymore than the shinobi did and the whole caravan quickened its pace.

"How much further?" Naruto asked the head tradesman. The man's eyes flicked from side to side, scanning the ridges around them and the entire field, looking for the slightest hint of the enemy.

"Not much further," he replied. "The border is only two miles past that entrance over there. Get us there, and we can move fast the rest of the way."

"Only two miles?" Neji asked, coming up beside them. "That's still a long way off, but if I were going to attack then it would be…"

A massive wall of earth sprang up in front of them. Naruto recognized it. He'd seen it once before when he was training to develop Rasenshuriken.

Doton: Doryuu Jouheki. The Earth Rampart. This was wasn't as impressive as Yamato's, but it did do its job in that it sealed the exit out of the valley. There was a small earthquake that knocked the traders off their feet and sent their animals running as a second rampart sprang from the ground behind them and cut off their escape route.

They were trapped.

"Well well well, look at what got trapped in our web," said a voice as two people appeared on top of the rampart. "Another caravan to raid!" The speaker was a man with fluffy red hair. Ren hadn't been kidding when he said that the Four Corners used their element's most known color. Long coats fluttered wildly over bare chests with the abdomen wrapped in bandages and their pants were gray and black camouflage like what the Oto-nin used to wear.

"Sweet! This is gonna rock!" called a second voice. It wasn't the earth user either. The speaker was on the wall behind them, his wild blond hair stuck out everywhere like he'd stuck his finger in an electrical socket.

"Can it you moron," huffed the kunoichi next to him, her breasts wrapped like the men's stomachs. Her eyes were a crystal blue, just as clear as Naruto's and her hair was silvery, done up in an elegant topknot with a ponytail that fell to the middle of her back. In her hand was a naginata with a wicked-looking blade and a red ribbon tied around the shaft.

The last man snorted. "Lets just crush them and get it over with," he moaned, his voice sounding slow when compared to the others, especially the blond one, who seemed to be chattering nonstop. The earth-user looked almost normal, with brown hair and brown eyes. Contrary to what was expected out of him, his build was slender, with no real visible muscle, aside from what little they could see from beneath his coat.

Naruto's eyes shifted left then right, looking for a way out of the mountain's bowl. They could've climbed the slopes, but with the mules and donkeys running around like chickens with their heads cut off, there was no way the pack animals were getting up a mountainside. The only way out seemed to be either front or back and both of those were blocked.

An idea came to him.

"Sakura," he murmured, "Can you break down that wall in front of us?"

The kunoichi sized up the wall and shrugged. "I might. I don't know how thick it is though, so there's no way to tell."

The former missing-nin grinned. "Fine then, here's what we do…" he whispered his plan and what he had in mind was good.

"That might work," Sakura answered. "Between the two of us, we might be able to pull this thing off."

"Right. Go!"

They blurred forward, sprinting all out at the wall, Naruto's cloak flaring behind him as he charged a Rasengan in one hand as Sakura pulled on the gloves she used to protect her knuckles from the super strength she'd learned from the Godaime Hokage herself.

None of the Four Corners seemed concerned at all.

At least, not until Sakura's fist made contact with the wall.

A gout of earth blasted backwards, concealing Sakura and Naruto totally as a spider web fracture spread over the surface of the wall. The fragments began crumbling then a ball of blue light became apparent in the smoke and haze.

"Rasengan!" Naruto thundered. The Yondaime's jutsu slammed home and a second explosion ripped through the rampart, totally blowing out the back of the earthen wall, forcing the two shinobi on top to jump clear as their footing crumbled. The Jinchuuriki turned. "Now!" he shouted at the traders, "Run for it!"

There was bedlam for a moment before the caravan got clear, pelting pell-mell down the narrow pass on the other side. The yellow haired Corner cursed and leapt from his wall, pelting toward the shattered rampart to pursue the caravan.

Four blurs appeared in front of him and the missing-nin was forced to spring back or risk running into the wall of Konoha shinobi. The other three shinobi rallied around him and the eight ninja went into a stare down.

The red-head's eyes searched the hirai-ate that was tied securely around Naruto's forehead. The man snorted. "Konoha, huh? It's about time one of the villages stuck their nose into our business." He poked himself in the chest with a prideful finger. "You can call me Hyotoko."

The Four Corners blond grinned widely. He seemed to be nothing but a ball of energy, though that would explain his affinity for lightning. "Heya! Y'all can call me Rai!"

The kunoichi sighed. "I'm this idiot's cousin. Name's Aisha."

The slender earth user blinked almost balefully. "You may call me…Enishi."

"Why tell us your names?" Neji asked.

Hyotoko smiled. "Because, it's only fair for the killers to tell their victims their names."

Naruto smirked. "Well in that case, I'm Uzumaki Naruto."

"Hyuuga Neji."

"Tenten."

"Haruno Sakura."

The two teams stared each other down again, then all at once sprang into motion.

Naruto and Hyotoko sprinted at each other, kunai slipping from the sleeve of the redhead's sleeve and flashing from beneath the Jinchuuriki's cloak. They met in a flash of sparks, bounced apart, then sprinted toward the other side of the mountain bowl, keeping pace with the other.

Aisha and Tenten went at it, the Konoha kunoichi pulling a naginata from her scroll, spinning it elegantly before leveling the tip at Aisha, who answered in kind, then they leapt into the air, weapons flashing, the blades ringing as they met again and again, the wooden shafts clattering noisily.

Rai lunged at Neji, who's Byakugan flared to life and he ducked beneath the wild punch of the blond, his kekkei genkai catching a flash of the kanji for lightning embroidered on his back. The Hyuuga prodigy didn't pursue, simply allowing Rai to come back at him from behind.

"Gotcha, Pretty Boy!"

"Hakkeshou Kaiten!"

Neji spun and the blond rammed headlong into the barrier of chakra before getting thrown backwards, flat onto his back. The blond kicked to his feet and grinned.

Sakura and Enishi were already embroiled in battle, throwing punches left and right, the strikes glancing off one another and not doing any real damage.

"Not bad, for a brat."

Sakura snorted. "I'll show you brat!" she shouted, sprinting at the earth user again.

Across the field, Hyotoko and Naruto were a blur of motion as they fought hand to hand. They clashed again, their knives grating against one another.

"Pretty good blondie," Hyotoko grunted as he tried to overpower his opponent. Naruto was having none of it, however, and dug his heels in, stopping the other shinobi cold.

Naruto grinned. "Just wait," he said, pushing back, bringing a speculative look to the Flame Man's eyes. "It gets better!" The Jinchuuriki shoved, knocking the redhead off balance then sprang into the air. A single shuriken spun from his fingers, then his hands folded together, flying through hand seals. "Ninpou! Kage Shuriken no Jutsu!"

"Shit!"

The missing-nin darted all over, barely dodging the hail of shuriken.

"Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!"

There was a burst and Hyotoko was surrounded by a ring of clones, all of which began to make seals. "Katon! Goukakyuu no Jutsu!"

Fire sprayed from the mouths of every clone.

"Aww hell."

The missing nin was lost amid the flames that engulfed him. The fireballs stopped and the clones burst from existence. "Ha! Take that!" Naruto crowed. "I call it Ring of Fire!"

"Apt name," said a voice behind him. "Too bad it wasn't enough."

"Hu….Ghaa!" Naruto began to turn, but a hand suddenly thrust itself through his chest, blood spraying everywhere, splashing on the grass and flowers. The other battles stopped at the sound of Naruto's scream.

"Naruto!" Tenten shouted as the other two teammates looked on, stunned. Hyotoko pulled out his hand and the impaled blond fell to the ground, unmoving.

"Well that's that," the redhead missing-nin remarked as he flicked the blood from his fingers and stuck his hands in his pockets, walking back towards the others. "The rest of you hurry it up. I want to get dinner sometime today."

A voice made him look back around. "Hey, you jerk, don't write me off just yet!"

"Impossible!" Aisha shouted as Naruto picked himself up, any sign of a wound gone from his body. The only thing showing was the patch of scar tissue on his left shoulder blade and shoulder, the old wound marked by smaller wounds that looked like some big bird had pecked at him. "You should be dead!"

"I've been told that a lot," the jounin answered casually, leveling a finger at Hyotoko. "Now you bastard, you owe me a new shirt, vest and cloak!"

The Konoha shinobi were bolstered by Naruto's surprise and pressed their attacks. Neji sank into a Jyuuken stance, his arms held in front of him and out behind, leaning forward, almost touching the fingers of his lower hand to the ground. "Hakke, Rokujuuyonshou!"

Rai didn't even get a chance to ask what the prodigy was doing before he was slammed by sixty-four strikes, each one hitting a chakra point. Blood flew from the blonde's mouth as he flew back and slammed to the ground, out cold from the sudden shut down of his inner coils.

"Rai!" Aisha shouted, taking her eyes off Tenten for a split second. That was all that was needed. Tenten leapt high into the air, putting the sun at her back, forcing the other kunoichi to shield her eyes, and unfurled her scroll. There were explosions all up and down the scroll's length as weapons of every size, shape, category and design rained down on the Four Corners member sparkling as the rain of metal caught the sunlight. All the speeding weapons kicked up a massive dust cloud, which spilled over Sakura and Enishi.

"Shit," the Doton user cursed, right before his vision was filled with black leather knuckles. Sakura's blow hit hard, shattering his nose and sending him rolling head over heels into the massive hill of shattered stone that used to be the first rampart.

Hyotoko looked around, gritting his teeth right before the Konoha team surrounded him.

"Aw crap," he muttered.

"Now," Neji ground out, Byakugan flaring. "Why are you stealing the from these caravans?" His fingers were flexing in an odd display of irritation from the usually icy Hyuuga man.

"Che, like I'd tell you?" answered the missing-nin. "Later!"

Before the Konoha-nin could react, he made a single hand seal and the world went dark.

"Genjutsu!" Neji shouted as the team made the appropriate countermove. "Kai!" When the darkness shattered like breaking glass, the Four Corners were gone. "They got away?"

"Looks like it," Naruto answered. "Think we bought the caravan enough time?"

"Should have," Tenten replied, looking as pissed as the rest of them that the enemy had gotten away.

"We should look around for anything they might've left behind," Sakura suggested. "It would tell us a lot about them." Having nothing better to do, the four set out to do just that, but came up empty.

"Well that was useless," Naruto muttered. "Still, it helps that we fought them. Now we know what to expect. I didn't expect a bunch of missing-nin to be such pushovers!"

"Well, you're used to dealing with Akatsuki," Neji answered. "Every one of them is an S-ranked missing-nin. These guys are B or A at best."

'Aww man!' moaned Naruto's inner demon. 'And here I thought that I'd get some enjoyment out of this!' The blond just shook his head with a sigh.

While Team Naruto headed back towards Lahan, the Four Corners were running as fast as they could through the mountain range that'd surrounded the bowl-shaped battlefield, Enishi carrying the unconscious Rai.

"Hyotoko, just who the hell are they? We didn't have that much trouble with the Samurai!" Aisha shouted over the wind in their ears and the scuffing of their feet across the ground. "And what was with that blond guy?"

"No idea," the leader answered as they touched down at their camp, a small ring of rock that was laced with explosive tags and wire. Only the missing-nin themselves knew the safe route through the traps. "Whoever they are, they're troublesome."

"Having trouble with the Nine-tailed brat, huh?" asked a voice from the shadows.

"Who's there!?" Aisha demanded, whipping her naginata off her back and brandishing it.

"Relax," the voice said, stepping from the shadows. It was a tall man with blue skin and shark-like features, a massive bandaged sword strapped across his back, his body swathed in a black jacket-like cloak with red clouds decorating the exterior. "We're just here to talk."

"We?" Hyotoko asked. "There's only one of you!"

The shark man laughed outright, showing pointed teeth. "Good one. I guess you four really aren't as good as we thought, eh, Itachi?"

"It would appear so, Kisame," replied another voice. The three conscious shinobi spun, surprised, as a second man melted out of the darkness between the rocks. His eyes were a vivid crimson with three tomoe circling the pupil, a scratched Konoha hirai-ate visible beneath his high bangs.

Hyotoko's eyes widened. "Uchiha Itachi!" he gasped. "That would make you…"

"Akatsuki," the former Konoha-nin replied, his voice a low monotone.

Aisha grinned. "Hey, Hyotoko, there's a big ass bounty on these bastards heads. If you're right, then the other one is Hoshigaki Kisame, from Kirigakure. If we take them both in, we get rich fast!"

Itachi stepped further into the light, his Sharingan seeming to look at all four shinobi at once. "I believe Kisame told you that we only wished to talk."

"Why?"

"Because, dumbass," Kisame answered roughly, tugging at Samehada's hilt in agitation, "you want the Konoha shinobi out of the way and we want one of them. You scratch our backs and we won't lacerate yours. Deal?"

"I don't like this," Aisha muttered out of the corner of her mouth to Hyotoko. The redhead wasn't paying attention to her.

"Which Konoha-nin do you want and why?" He demanded.

"We want the blonde, Uzumaki Naruto-kun," Itachi answered, seeing no problem in telling the four missing-nin. The more they knew about Naruto and his demon partner the better. It would put them on guard and make them more cautious in dealing with him, "because he is the Jinchuuriki for the Kyuubi no Yoko."

The stunned looks on the upstart's faces was worth that little revelation, Kisame decided with a savage grin.

"Jin…chuuriki?" Aisha breathed. "No way, they really exist? I always thought that they were a legend."

"They are real, I assure you," murmured Itachi.

"Why do you want him so badly?" prodded Enishi. He gulped as he found himself staring into a dull and flat Sharingan. This guy could kill them all without a second's hesitation, Enishi realized, and if he did, then they were all screwed. To go against these two missing-nin would be…ill advised at best.

"That is not for you to know," the Uchiha traitor answered bluntly. "We shall return in three days for your reply. Do whatever you wish during that time and have an answer when we come back." With that, the former ANBU captain stepped back into the shadows and was gone. When the three looked behind them, Kisame was gone as well.

Aisha shivered. "I never thought Akatsuki could be so intimidating."

Laughter cut the air, coming from Hyotoko.

"Huh? Hyotoko? The hell's up with you?"

"I have an idea. We're going to negotiate our way into Akatsuki."

The other two looked at him like he'd gone crazy.

"Did you lose your fucking mind!?" Enishi asked.

"Look, I've heard rumors of the Akatsuki, even before the Four Corners was founded. They're up to something big and this is our chance to get in on it!" He looked from one comrade to the other. "Think about it! We wouldn't have to rob these pathetic convoys to get by and we wouldn't have to be continuously dodging ANBU border patrols!"

"But these are S-class missing-nin we're dealing with here!" Aisha protested, not believing the words from her leader's mouth. "If we get entangled with them…Damn I don't even wanna think about it! Anyway, Konoha has pretty much left us alone till now. If we join Akatsuki, we'll end up on their shit list. Didn't you hear what happened to Sasori no Akasuna, Deidara, that Jashin freak and his partner? It's been all over the underworld for the last few years now. All of them dead, killed off by some kickass team of Konoha-nin that's included everyone from that Sakura bitch Enishi fought all the way to Sharingan Kakashi!"

"With Akatsuki, we won't have to worry about them! Even rats can get lucky. That team you're rambling about was all chuunin and one genin. They got fucking lucky. Not gonna happen this time. I don't care what you guys say, I'm going to capture Uzumaki Naruto and use him to get into Akatsuki!"

The other two sighed.

"Well, someone has to keep your ass safe," Aisha answered, "so I guess I'm in."

"We're a team," Enishi added. "It would be a shame to break it up now. So, where do we start?"

"Well that noble family in Lahan is the client for their mission right? We start with them. Now, here's what we do…"

It was long after Rai woke up and agreed to the plan with almost no hesitation that the Four Corners had their operation all planned out and ready to go.

True to his word, Itachi and Kisame appeared again three days later and asked for the Four Corners' answer.

"We're in," Hyotoko said with a slightly savage grin.

Itachi nodded. "Very well. Kisame and I will accompany you, but the operation and the capture of Naruto-kun is yours and yours alone."

Kisame grinned toothily. "We clear on that kiddies?"

Hyotoko bowed low. "Crystal clear," he said smoothly. "Give us two days and we'll have a plan for you."

Itachi nodded and the two Akatsuki again left the Four Corners' camp.

"Hey, Itachi, you really think that it's a good idea to use them? I don't like it."

"A necessary evil," Itachi answered, not looking at Kisame. "I don't expect the Four Corners to be able to catch Naruto-kun. Even without the Kyuubi, he is wily and powerful enough to escape their clutches."

The shark man grinned as he saw the scope of Itachi's plan. "So, we use them to soften up the gaki and wear him out, then we move in and take him right?" Itachi didn't say anything as he walked away, but Kisame knew he'd hit the nail on the head.

His grin widened.

This, he decided, was going to get interesting.

And that ends this chapter. Sorry if the fighting was short and all that, but they were only meant to set the stage, not be epic battles. This is going to be somewhat of a short arc, certianly shorter than the Exams arc (I think. I have to see where the story goes). So anyway, Itachi and Kisame are back in the picture, and that's gonna mean trouble for one blond Jinchuuriki. Oh yeah, just for future reference, Itachi will NOT die of a fucking DISEASE! That pissed me off so much. He was hyped so much, had this big ass battle with Sasuke, WON that battle 'cause he could still walk and Sasuke had nothing, then keeled over and died. My story diverges from the Naruto plotline somewhere after Asuma's death, so yeah, that's your reference point. Anyway, that's all for now.

If I've made an error with the jutsu below, specifically Neji's techniuqes, please let me know and I'll fix it.

Glossary

Fuuryusen (Wind Dragon Strike (I think)): An original jutsu. By swinging a sword very fast and hard, combined with Chakra, a blade of wind is projected from the tip. A master could possibly cut a diamond in half, though the power decreases with distance.

Ryutsuisen (Dragon Hammer Strike): Taken directly from Rurouni Kenshin and adapted to the Narutoverse. No I'm not going to make Ren use Hiten-Mitsurugi Ryu, but I will use the techniques, and some from Saito and Aoshi.

Hakkeshou Kaiten (Eight Palms Heavenly Spin): Neji rotates at high speed as he expels chakra from every opening. The result is a dome of spinning chakra that is damn near impossible to pierce, though he can be stopped by attacking before the spin starts or tangling up the spin through webs or wire. Also throws the attacker's power straight back at him or her.

Hakke Rokujuuyonshou (Eight Palms Sixty Four Strikes (or is it Palm Strike? Either way, it uses sixty four of them)): Neji strikes sixty four times with Juuken, each attack hitting a chakra point on the coil system and closing it. If enough are closed, unconciousness, or in the case of the higher strike numbers, death, can result. Thanks to RasenganUser13 for pointing out my error with that. It's been fixed and is no longer a problem.