Hey there,everyone! Sorry for the long wait. This big exam I'm going to face in October is just around the corner and I have to work extra hard.

But I would try to spare some time to write some fics. Thank you for spending your time on my fictions. Now, on with the story!

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto

Konan leapt away from him, holding her now limp right arm. The large gash along her forearm was bleeding profusely and showed no signs of stopping. The room was a total mess. The table was turned upside down; two of its legs had destroyed. The walls were full of Kunai and shuriken and stains of blood were everywhere. Kakashi was on the other side of the room, panting heavily. He was still recovering from the mission of rescuing Gaara from the Akatsuki and the battle had depleted his chakra faster than usual.

The kunoichi cursed silently at her mistake. How could she forget that he had copied more than a thousand of jutsus? This guy is far more dangerous than she thought. Seeing that the blood gushed out from the wound in a fast rate, Konan reached for her torn kimono and quickly but carefully bandaged her arm. She can't afford to lose more blood.

She saw her opportunity in his weak state. But just when she grabbed one of the kunai that impaled on the wall near her, a loud knock on the door captured both of their attention. "Hatake-san, Wazana-san, are you guys alright?" the woman's voice made them look at each other. "You are going to pay for all the damage!" Konan said through gritted teeth. Kakashi look bewildered. "No way! I ain't going to pay for any of these. I need my money to buy a new collection of Icha Icha Paradise now that you stabbed one of my favourites," he too whispered at her, then eyeing his orange book on the wall above his head, a shuriken keeping it in place.

The knocks grew louder that it had woken up other guests in the inn. "You have to do something. It is your fault in the first place that we battle," she pointed at him with an intense glare. "No, it isn't. You are the Akatsuki in the first place!" she tried to resist the urge to roll her eyes. Keyword, tried. She thought quickly. No, she definitely would not want to pay for the damages. It could cost her a large fortune. But to stay and do something like she and Pein always did when they refused to pay will just reinforce Kakashi's cautious attitude towards her. Moreover, to have the ninjas of this village to know her as one of the Akatsuki will just slow her in her mission.

Finally, she sighed real heavy and limped towards him since he could hardly move. "You are going to thank me for this, Hatake!" before that, she shot him a warning look that could even make Gaara flinch. She then knelt down and slung his right arm over her shoulders and helped him to the window. The people at the door had grew noisier and in the process of breaking down the door. "Will you hurry up? I don't really feel like paying," Kakashi asked annoyingly.

"Will you shut your big mouth for a second?!" she yelled exactly on his ears. Kakashi swore that he can't hear anything for the next ten seconds. Konan adjusted his position and closed her eyes, praying for the best before leaping off the balcony just in time when the door was tore down. She vanished in the darkness of night with him, going directly for the village border.

Itachi increased his speed, even though he himself did not know where to go. Kisame was just a little way behind him, also bearing the same feeling with him. Maybe. They had been heading for the wind country at their top speed for three hours since the paper flower suddenly ripped on its own. He was sure the flower had some kind of connection with their now missing member.

Maybe they can use the flower to locate her whereabouts. Or maybe….Itachi shook his head. He felt as if his head is in the clouds for a few days and sometimes fail to think rationally like he used to. He peeked from the corner of his eyes at his partner. After years working together, he can understand Kisame pretty well. He can even read his thought sometimes. And this time, it was not so hard.

He could tell that Kisame had really fallen for their lone female member. Not just now, but he had noticed it since a long time ago, when Sasori was still alive. He noticed that Kisame had always tried to beat Sasori in their practice. Or how he tried his hand on art crafts so that he can have something in common to share with Konan, just like between her with Sasori. Her origami art and his puppet making skill seemed to fit just well.

Itachi had never missed the look of jealousy that crossed in Kisame's facial expression every time Konan and Sasori came home from practice together, sometimes she will ride on his back. He had even come across the poem that Kisame intended to give to her on her birthday, but Sasori beat him to it. And now with Sasori gone, he still lost to him in many ways. Itachi knew how hard it is to love someone who didn't love you back. He had it once and the event left a scar in his heart until now.

After feeling that what they were doing was useless, Itachi slowed down and stopped abruptly. Kisame followed his suit, but he showed signs of protest. "Kisame, listen. We can't guarantee if she is really in danger. That flower could mean something else. Even if there is any danger, I am sure that she can take care of herself. Right now, we have to plan back carefully," Itachi laid out his thoughts as simple as possible. "But Itachi, that flower guarantees her safety. It ripped suddenly, so that shows that she is not in a condition that I would call safe," he said sternly. Suddenly, he felt something stinging his neck. A second later, everything went black.

Konan was breathing heavily when they arrived at a clearing in the forest. Just when she released him, she lay down out of exhaustion. The bleeding on her arms had grown worse, that she painfully got up and reopened the bandage. She put her left palm over the gash and tried to gather healing chakra but failed. Her chakra was almost drained after she used it on her feet to support Kakashi's weight. Plus, she was growing weaker from the blood loss. Suddenly, she felt his warm hand over hers. Konan looked into his visible eye in confusion.

"Continue it," he said seriousy and she obeyed it. She tried to heal it again and this time, she felt chakra from him was transmitted into her palm. Both of their chakra were not enough to heal it completely but enough to stop the bleeding. Just when the last drop of blood cleaned, she passed out from exhaustion. Kakashi moved to catch her just in time, and gently lay her head on his lap. He too, then drifted into a long, peaceful sleep leaning against a giant tree trunk.

Itachi studied a map of the shinobi countries carefully. They are now just a day walk from Wind Country where everyone thought Konan would be. But, is it really or all of them had predict her actions wrongly? 'If I am Konan, what would I do?' he asked himself as a way to understand Konan's way of thinking. She had a mind different from anyone else he knew. Konan tended to act opposite to what people would have expected. Just like someone he knew…

Well, reviews, anyone? Thank you for reading and reviewing!