From The Shadows and into the Light: All Hell Brakes Loose

(A/N: Thanks for sticking with me and reading my bundle of joy here. In this chapter…a mission has gone wrong and lands Ayako in a very unwanted situation. This is a darker chapter, just so you know as are the next few chapters. Enjoy!)

~xxx~

Ayako woke up with the early morning sun in her eyes. Her curtains were drawn to show the magnificent front walk to the Uchiha main house.

'Funny…I remember closing them before I left for my mission.' She thought then brushed it off as one of Sakura's ways of waking her up. Speaking for her mission, Ayako had to meet the Suna caravan before they felt. She knew they were still in Konoha because she could feel Hattori's agitated chakra signature downstairs.

Slowly crawling out of bed, Ayako headed for the bathroom to take a quick shower. She had been so out of it last night that she wore her uniform to bed; having only kicked off her sandals before curling under her blankest. Despite the hot water and bright sunlight of this ungodly hour, Ayako felt cold, alone and ashamed of herself.

'If only I had been a little faster, Kankuro would still be here…and they wouldn't have seen my face.' She chastised herself and her abilities as a kunoichi. She really hated herself right now and thought Gaara and Hattori hated her too. Though Hattori was an understanding man, he never failed to defend his family, no matter the situation. And…he hadn't spoken to her when they were at the hospital nor did he even look in her direction. Not that she was paying any attention; too busy beating herself up over the entire ordeal. Gaara was a completely different story; easily angered and never willing to forget.

The shower did little to calm her nerves and though she was clean, a small part of her could still see the blood on her hands. Some of it had been his. Her mind wouldn't let her forget when she morphed through the ground and appeared next to Kankuro. She had braced her right hand on the ground; right in the middle of Kankuro's pooling blood. He had weakly reached out to her…then he was gone, leaving her outstretched hand grasping the wet dirt where he once lay.

By now, Ayako was sitting on the ground with her knees pulled up to her forehead and sobbing hopelessly as the water started to turn cold. There was a knock on the bathroom door but Ayako paid no attention to it. She just pulled her legs tighter to her chest.

"Aniki, are you ok?" a tiny voice asked from the other side. Still, Ayako paid no mind. Soon his chakra had dissipated from her room and down the hall.

~xxx~

Akito ran down the stairs; Ayako would always talk to him, no matter what. He figured something had to be really wrong for her to just not speak. And she was crying to boot. Yeah, something was definitely wrong with his sister. Jumping the last three steps, Akito made a b-line for the kitchen. If anyone could talk to Ayako and get her out of her room, it was his dad. Skidding to a halt at the kitchen door, Akito struggled to catch his breath as he scrambled over to Itachi and grabbed his hand.

"Dad, Ayako is in her bathroom crying and she won't come out. She didn't even talk to me." Whined the youngest Uchiha as he pulled on Itachi's arm. Without saying a word, Itachi rose from his seat at the table and glanced over at Sakura, who stopped cooking when Akito entered the room. With a small nod, Itachi left the room soundlessly and headed for the stairs. Hideki and Ken hung their heads, knowing why Ayako was crying while Hattori sighed and sat down. He too, felt horrible about what happened but he didn't blame Ayako for it.

Itachi opened the bathroom door and found Ayako sitting in the shower; she had sense enough to turn off the water when it got too cold. Now she was shivering and sobbing with a towel wrapped around her shoulders.

"Ayako," he said softly causing her took look up at him. Eyes red and puffy from crying, bottom lip clinched between her teeth to keep her sobs quiet. She looked nothing like the powerful kunoichi he knew her to be, but the lonely five-year-old he remembered from years passed. Itachi knelt next to the tub and gently stroked her hair. "Why do you cry?" he asked.

Ayako let out a heart wrenching sob as she buried her face in his chest.

"I-I wasn't fast e-enough and they t-took him. He was in-injured and they just took him." She whaled into his chest as he listened to her. "I was inches, inches away and I let him s-slip through my fingers."

"It isn't your fault." He said softly as he reached for another towel and put it over her head. "No one blames you for what happened." Ayako looked up at him and sniffled.

"But…" she began, effectively being cup off by Itachi's large finger to her lips.

"It isn't your fault." He commanded just a little louder than before. Then a small smile slid across his thin lips. "Ita-chan…" he whispered to her.

Ayako stared at him for a moment as he held her face in his hands. "What?" she asked softly.

"My mother used to call me Ita-chan." She snorted, trying to keep her smile from showing. Then she laughed; loud and hard, the sound easily made its way to the people downstairs. They let out a breath they hadn't realized they'd been holding.

"I should get dressed." Ayako commented when she stopped laughing. Itachi wordlessly stood and nodded. "Thank you papa." She said softly, as if afraid to admit she needed help. Itachi bent down and planted a small kiss on her forehead then left her to dress.

~xxx~

"So, what's the journal say, yeah?" Deidara asked as he sat on the couch.

"It's a bunch of medical crap that I can't make out." Kisame said as he closed the book and stuffed it in his cloak. The duo had successfully gathered the information their leader needed and picked up the notebook as a bonus, hoping to get something useful from it.

"It's high time we contacted Leader-sama, un."

"Yeah and if you would be so kind as to tell me why exactly the others were after the ambassador," Kyoji commented as he scowled at the two men in his apartment.

"That's Akatsuki business and since you're not in the Akatsuki, you have no say in the matter." Kisame's large form stood from his seat and towered over the teen.

"Not yet, but when I am, I won't have to depend on your fish-ass to fill me in." The brunette fired back with a vengeance.

"Watch how you talk to me kid, or I swear on all that is holy, I'll gut your scrawny ass like a fish." All the while, a mantra played in the Kiri-nin's mind; must not kill free labor, must not kill free labor…

"Face it Kisame, you need me to get close to her or you'd have to do this shit all by yourself. Oh wait, I forgot…she can see through your genjutsu!" And with that, Kyoji stormed off to his room and locked himself in.

"If you don't kill him, I will, yeah." Deidara said with a growl, his one blue eye narrowed at the boy's door.

"Care to bet on that?" Kisame's reply came with a snarky grin.

"Four bottles of sake and two hookers sound good to you, yeah?"

"I think I'll need more sake but I'll take that bet, Blondie."

"Alright, let's get this over with, un. Sasori no Danna will be pissed that we've taken so long, yeah."

~xxx~

Five images flickered in the dark room, atop the fingers of the twisted Buddha statue, meeting the piercing stare of the Ren'negan.

"Where is Zetsu?" Pein asked with a growl.

"He's still suffering the effects of what the girl did to him." Sasori said as he tilted his head to the side, no emotion held in his voice. Pein seemed to be amused at his subordinate's misfortune but nodded nonetheless.

"And of our acquisition?" he asked as his eyes turned to Kakuzu.

"We'll be at the prison in a few hours." The red-eyed nin responded with a nod.

Pein smirked, things were going smoothly. A new image flashed to the right of Pein.

"Captured and secured Leader-sama." She said before he could even ask.

"Very well, Kisame, Deidara, pull out of the village. An ambush will be best suited for the situation. Remember, we need her alive." Pein instructed while glaring at Kisame, who tended to get carried away sometimes. "Kakuzu, secure our guest and return to base with Hidan. Sasori, I want you to tell me everything that happened with my prize." Meeting adjourned; the rest of the Akatsuki members went about their business and missions while Pein and Sasori discussed the recent events concerning one Uchiha Ayako.

Lurking in the deepest recesses of the base, one member smirked in a devilish manner; all things considered, soon he will have everything he needed.

~xxx~

Ayako was dressed and in the kitchen in less than ten minutes. Even though Itachi said it wasn't her fault, Ayako still felt overwhelmingly guilty and it showed in the way she carried herself. She walked at a slower pace, feet shuffling under her with her head hung. Even her hair was left down, bangs shadowing her puffy, red eyes.

Akito was out of his chair and hugging her waist in a flash, burying his face in her abdomen.

"Are you ok now, aneki?" he asked as he looked up at her. Ayako gave a small smile and nodded. Akito beamed in return, grabbing a hold of her wrist in both of his hands and leading her to the table.

"Aya-chan, why were you crying?" Shiro asked from his position across from her.

"It's nothing you should worry about otouto." She responded as she ate breakfast.

Hattori didn't say anything, preferring to talk in private.

"We should probably get going. Father doesn't like to wait." He said as he and Ayako rose from their seats.

Ayako turned to the noble family and bowed. "I'll be back soon. I must see Kazekage-sama off." Then they left, walking silently out of the house like ghosts through a wall; quiet and unaware of the eyes on their backs.

"Do you think she'll be alright?" Hideki asked, breaking the silence, yet his gaze never wavered from the door.

"She just needs time." Itachi said as he glared at his plate. He hated to see Ayako like that, lost and sad like a puppy that had just been scolded for peeing on the carpet. Sakura placed a hand on his shoulder, though she didn't say anything the worry in her eyes told the tail.

~xxx~

It was quiet, too quiet. Hattori didn't know what to say. When Akito had charged into the kitchen that morning practically balling his eyes out that Ayako was crying, Hattori understood her pain.

"We don't blame you." He said nonchalantly with a smile…but that smile didn't quite reach his eyes. Slowly, Ayako's hand reached up and took his.

"I know…I just feel awful about it." She responded as she hung her head. Hattori let go of her hand and wrapped his arm around her shoulders.

"You did the best you could…they were just a little faster." He whispered to her as they walked toward the main gates.

"Did they tell you who took him?" she asked quietly, obviously, the question was intended for only him to hear.

Hattori's eyes narrowed to slits, mouth pulling to a thin line. "They did." He spat heatedly as his grip on her shoulders tightened. There was no love lost between the Sabaku family and the Akatsuki, and with the knowledge that Akasuna no Sasori had taken another member, Suna could not afford to sit back and wait any longer.

"I'm sorry Hattori, I truly am. If only I had been a split second faster, he's still be here." Ayako said, trying to hide her tears by turning her head away from his intense gaze.

"How many times must you be told that it wasn't your fault?" a harsh voice chided from behind. In a flurry of motion, Ayako wiped the tears away and turned to face the man behind her. Gaara stood with his arms crossed, a dark glare set on his handsome features as he walked toward the pair. Quickly, she bowed and spoke a soft greeting to the Kazekage.

"I'm sorry Kazekage-sama." She spoke quietly, fearing his temper may explode any second now. To her relief, Gaara rested one large hand on her shoulder and gave it a gentle squeeze.

"Sasuke told me everything, there is no need to apologize." He said with a hint of pride in his voice. For a long time now, Gaara had seen Ayako as a surrogate daughter since he and Hinata couldn't have another child. "You did all that you could," Gaara continued. "And I believe you will bring him back."

Ayako looked up at Gaara, confusion obvious in her onyx eyes.

"I requested that you be sent with the rescue team. At the end of the week, you will head out with Hinato's team to bring back my brother." He said with a rare smile. A smiled bloomed on her face, one only seen when she was with Itachi.

"Thank you Gaara-sama." She gushed as she hugged the sand user with all her might.

"It's nice to see you're all doing fine but as it stands, there's a lot of work that needs to be done." Tsunade's booming voice rose over the small giggles and soft smiles. Yes, that's right, they had work to do. Ayako pulled back from Gaara and nodded.

"You can count on me. I will bring him home." She said with a fierce determination shinning in her eyes.

"We believe in you, Ayako. Never forget that." Hattori said as Tsunade made her way to the trio.

"In light of our current situation, I need stronger captains, better equipped to deal with the Akatsuki." Tsunade said as she handed Ayako a medium sized box. "Congratulations…captain."

Ayako was stunned to silence.

"W-what?" she finally managed, tearing her gaze from the brown box in her hands.

"You heard me. Now get going, you're still on duty." The blonde commanded with a smirk as Ayako beamed up at her. With a nod, Ayako turned and said goodbye to Gaara and Hattori before bounding off back home.

"Are you sure she's ready?" Gaara asked as he watched Ayako's retreating form hop from roof to roof.

"Sasuke and Ibiki gave her rave reviews. She's ready…more than ready." Gaara and Hattori both cringed at the mention of Ibiki's name. The man was scary, terrifying to be exact, and he was Ayako's mentor. God only knows what he taught her.

Back at home, Ayako sought out to find Itachi. Her latest achievement would put a smile on his face…seeing is how she caught the glare he gave his plate that morning.

"Dad, I have some news." Ayako said, trying to hide her excitement. Itachi looked up from his paperwork and gave her a small smile. Sitting next to Itachi was one of the council members. A burly man with glasses, on of Fugaku's childhood friends, who was also her third cousin. "Hi Gansu-san, how are you?"

"I'm fine Aya-sama, how are you today?" his rich baritone asked with warmth all too familiar to her.

"I'm better now." She answered with a smile.

"That's good to hear." Itachi said as he pushed the papers off to the side. "So, what's got you in such a good mood?" he had never seen Ayako smile as brightly as she was right now, laying a brown box on the table and popping open the lid.

"I got a promotion." There was a pause as the all too familiar wolf mask came into view. It was definitely the real deal. The wolf was a standard issue for all captains.

"That's great news." Gansu said as he stood and walked around the desk to Ayako's side. Ayako was beaming as she closed the box before they could go digging through it and 'accidentally' finds her mission scroll.

"Congratulations Angel, I'm very proud of you." Those were the words he rarely ever spoke in front of other people…other than Sakura and Ayako, of course. "When's your first mission, captain?" oh, he just had to bring it up, didn't he?

"When the noble family leaves the village, we'll escort them to the fork then head out from there." Ayako said as she picked up the box and tucked it under her arm. "I have to get back to my duties; I'll see you guys later." She bowed to them and scampered out of the room, grinning like a madman.

~xxx~

Paying tag was a lot more fun than he remembered. Hideki, Aki and Akito ran around the large backyard, trying not to get caught while trying not to trip. Yeah, Hideki was having a lot of fun. But his mind would wonder back to Ayako and the events of the early morning.

Speaking of Ayako, she was standing by the door to the backyard, watching the boys run around like chickens with their heads cut off. There was a smile on her lips like none that he had ever seen before and he stopped and stared at her; a tiny smile lining his own. Suddenly, he was hit below the knees causing him to tumble forward…much as he did just over a month ago.

And like before, Ayako was there to catch him.

"You really are a clumsy buffoon, wrinkles." She said with a smile. Their face was just inches away; so close that their breaths mingled between them. "Are you injured?"

Was it hot? Sure, Hideki had just been running around with the boys, but nothing compared to the warmth radiating from Ayako's hands. Damn, it was really hot.

"I-I think I'm ok." He stuttered as a rush of color flooded his cheeks. Ayako gave him a warm smile.

"Come on Aki; let's leave the love birds alone for a while." Akito snickered as he and Aki ran into the house.

The pair paid no attention as Ayako led them to a bench and sat Hideki down. Her hands began to glow green with healing chakra as she looked over his right ankle…which he had sprained…again. Hideki watched in fascination as her hair side from behind her ear and fell in her face, blocking her view of his ankle. Before he knew what he was doing, Hideki's hand swept forward and caught her hair between his middle and index fingers. Moving it to the side, he met her gaze; a gaze that held surprise, confusion and something else.

"I…uh…I like your hair down; it's very soft and beautiful." Well, if that didn't kill the mood…he was sure she'd hit him. But she smiled at him.

"Thank you." She said softly and returned to her work.

Sakura, Haruka and Mizuki watched from the kitchen window. All three women had seen the boys run in the house, now they were jam-packed at the kitchen window, holding their breath.

"Please don't let Itachi see this." Sakura whispered aloud as her hands clasped her chest above her heart.

"See what?" a monotone voice said from directly behind her. It was too late, she noticed. One second he was behind her and the next, Itachi was walking toward the couple in the yard. Sakura's eyes snapped shut.

"Please don't hurt him. Please don't hurt him." She repeated praying to whatever god was listening. To her surprise, Ayako had started laughing. Her eyes shot open and she flung herself toward the window, trying to make out what they were saying.

The rest of the day, Sakura watched closely for any signs of hostility coming from Itachi. They were subtle but still there. She was proud of her husband, trying his best to not interfere but the temptation was still there. After all, it's only natural for a father to look out for his daughter.

~xxx~

The last three days of their stay had flown by in an instant…well, that's how Hideki felt about it. They had celebrated Ayako's promotion and then Aki's birthday. By the time they were packing up to leave, Ayako and Hideki were inseparable. This was also Ayako's first mission as captain. She had left her house early to meet with her team. Unfortunately for Ayako, Kyoji had been sent to her team to balance it out.

As a weapons master, he was valuable but he sucked at genjutsu and his taijutsu left a little something to be desired. And he made it into ANBU? Jeez, the guy was a hopeless flirt and was thwacked in the head by more than one member of her team. Hinato was her second in command…because they've been working together since they could walk. Then there was their tracking specialist, a tall man named Kin. And finally their communications specialist, a young woman named Ami.

The team spent the better half of the morning going over their plan of attack. After they left the noble family, they were going to meet up with the hunter teams and fan out. Ayako had a lot banking on this mission, which could define her career. The underlining mission goal: Kankuro comes home no matter what.

Ami was stationed up front with Kin, Hinato and Ayako where on either side of the carriages and Kyoji brought up the rear. The other two members of her team were surprised by the relationship their captain had with the noble family. Normally it wasn't allowed for shinobi to converse with the noble family. But since Ayako was still technically on bodyguard duty, it was allowed. And they addressed her as 'Crimson-chan' which they had figured they had to have known from the beginning.

What had been a peaceful journey thus far turned to suspicion in the blink of an eye. Ayako had been chatting with Haruka and Mizuki when she stopped in mid sentence. Motioning for the two women to keep talking, Ayako slowly brought a hand up to the receiver and spoke quietly.

"Two bogies, ten o'clock northwest, one has incredible chakra and the other is about average." She said, scanning the trees for signs of movement. There were four affirmatives in her ear.

"Plan of action?" Hinato asked noticing the forest had gone deathly quiet.

"Blue, recon but stay within sight of the caravan incase there's trouble. Fang, you'll cover the rear."

"Yes, captain." Said men chorused and jumped into action. Kyoji took to the trees and Kin hopped over the caravan to the last wagon.

"We're going to loop back to Konoha; the noble family cannot be put in danger." But it was too late. A loud cry erupted from the forest and then a resounding boom. A huge column of smoke rose from the trees, spreading out and heading toward the road.

A figure came rushing out of the dust, but it wasn't Kyoji. Black and red came into view and Ayako acted on instinct, throwing herself in front of the carriage; effectively blocking the man from the noble family. The man's gigantic wrapped sword came crashing down on her, but Ayako was able to block it with a short sword. Ayako's leg snapped out and connected with the man's chest, sending his skidding across the dirt road.

"Don't stand there and gawk; get them the fuck out of here!" she snapped, refocusing her attention to the man in front of her. An explosion ripped through the caravan, blowing up one of the unoccupied wagons but the explosion pitched the noble family's carriage to the side, making it tip to one side. Being the closest to the window, Hideki was thrown from the carriage, landing hard on the ground.

Hinato to the rescue! The boy grabbed hold of the carriage and yanked hard, bringing the carriage back down on all four wheels. In a split second, Ayako was next to Hideki, dragging him to his feet and pulling him into the forest.

"Everyone, get back to the village. Make sure the daimyo and his family make it back safely. I'll take Hinato and Hideki the forest route." She growled over the headset while running with a stunned Hideki in tow.

"He's gaining on us." Hinato said as he came up on Ayako's left. A large bird flew overhead as they whipped through the foliage. "Shit…the other one followed." He hissed taking his gaze from the one above to the one behind.

"Split up and circle back. They obviously want Hideki, they'll follow me." But the order was never carried out. The man behind them sped up and nailed Hinato in the back, sending him crashing to the ground. Ayako turned to Hideki and pulled him close. "Hold on tight." The stunned boy only nodded as she picked up the pace.

They were getting closer to the village; Ayako could see the gates just a hundred yards away and ANBU teams heading in her direction. She turned her head to see the man behind her. Finally, she was able to get a clear look at him. Blue skin and hair, sharp teeth behind a menacing sneer and the familiar black and red cloak of the Akatsuki raced toward her, and he was beginning to gain speed.

Suddenly, a blonde was in front of her, blocking her escape and her rescue. She had no choice but to fight…but then there was Hideki to think about. Ayako looked between the two men as she came to a halt in the road. She didn't know what to do and she had nowhere to go. The blue man charged her, swinging his sword wide and clipping her shoulder.

Poof-

"A clone, yeah." The blonde said as he looked around. "SHIT, LOOK OUT!!"

Ayako was barreling toward Kisame with chi-

"SHIT!" Kisame swore as he tried to dodge. But her palm made contact with his chest, puncturing a nasty, gaping hole into his sternum.

"Bye-bye mister shark." She said in a sing-song voice as she tore her arm from her handy work. Ayako turned her attention to the terrified blonde.

"Stay away from me, devil woman, UN!" he shouted from atop his clay bird. Forming new bombs in his hands, Deidara flung them at her. Ayako easily dodged them as she made hand signs, and the Grand Fireball was unleashed. Kisame stood, gripping his sword for support. Uneasy at first but his footsteps soon evened out and he ran at Ayako. He was just feet away from her but was knocked off his feet; tackled from the side by none other than Hideki.

On his end, Hideki couldn't watch it anymore. Sure, Ayako was doing great but he wasn't about to let the big fish guy get her from behind. And the ANBU squads had stopped their advances, apparently afraid that he would get hurt in the crossfire. So, Hideki took it upon himself to do something. And what a mistake it was. From the moment his shoulder connected with Kisame's side, Hideki knew he should have stayed in the trees.

"You little fuck." Kisame growled as he easily tore Hideki off of him, tossing him to the ground as he stood again. "You're gonna pay for that." One punch was all it took to incapacitate the noble son. Giving a gruff shake of his head, Kisame turned back to Ayako and charged.

Her eyes landed on Hideki's limp form for a second and a fire was ignited. Glowing Sharingan blazed with a fury so fierce, Mangekyo had been activated; completely skipping its other forms.

But something hit her…something that took her chakra and cut it in half with one blow.

"Not so tough now, huh bitch?" Kisame hit her again, this time he knocked her out. ANBU swarmed toward them as they made their retreat. Swooping low, Deidara was able to snatch up Hideki as they made their escape.

A/N: This chapter is dedicated to Wolfsredfalcon, The Silver Spork and No-Idea-For-A-Name. You guys wanted Akatsuki action, I hope you like it. Send me a shout and tell me what you think! See you in the next chapter.