I literally have been trying to post this chapter for the past hour, but it's too long and broke either my computer or the website, because it wouldn't upload. Not just taking too long to upload, but physically couldn't, like redirect and error couldn't. So I split it in two pieces; not what I wanted to do, but it will do. Just pretend it's all one chapter.

And sorry that it took so long, but I had crazy stuff happen. I dont think I'll be able to make my origional Sunday and Thursday deadlines, but just know that this story is not going to be finished. I'm not a quitter;) And I already have two spinoff stories planned, so even more motivation to finish.

And before anyone says anything, I know I'm not using Akatsuki the exact way it's used in the source material. Sometimes I refer to a single person as 'an Akatsuki' and a group to be 'an Akatsuki group'. It's for the sake of the story, so it has to be like that.

A fitful nap later, Sasuke was shaken out of his sleep by Naruto poking him in the cheek. "Hey, wake up. Neji's coming down."

The tendrils of sleep left Sasuke slowly, and he reluctantly relinquished them and sat up, rubbing the tiredness from his eyes. If Naruto had let him, he was sure that he would have slept right through Neji's entrance and more, possibly for another hour or so, until that strange lethargy that had suddenly come over him was dispelled. As it was, Sasuke had to shake his head vigorously a few times to wake himself up enough to focus on the sound of Neji's feet tapping down the stairs.

Neji nodded as soon as he saw Sasuke. "Ah, good; you're up. I was worried that you'd be asleep and I'd have to wake you."

Sasuke raised an eyebrow. "What-?" He started to ask, but the annoyed sounding Neji cut him off.

"Perception, remember?" He tapped his forehead, near the corner of his eye.

Sulking a little for being cut off, Sasuke observed the new attire of the pompous Hyuuga: shorts and an untucked button down shirt. Looking uncomfortable in the casual attire, he pulled at his collar, but at least he wasn't wearing the pressed suit anymore.

Standing up from the chair, Sasuke gestured to Naruto, who had leaned away from him as soon as Neji had appeared. "He's going to bring us to where they think the Akatsuki is. You ready to head out?"

"As I'll ever be," Neji said with a frown, pulling his long brown hair in the ponytail over his shoulder a little self-consciously. "I usually don't head for the dangerous ghosts, so this is strange for me."

"You'll get used to it," Sasuke intoned flatly, shrugging his satchel over his shoulder and turning to Naruto. "You ready?"

Naruto bit his lip. "Can I go check on Lee first?"

"Sure, but he probably won't be awake yet."

Fighting a little, Naruto responded, "I know, but I feel kind of responsible. Gaara was pissed because of the time we fought him, right? If that hadn't happened, he might not have snapped and attacked Lee."

A twinge of guilt twisted up Sasuke's own stomach, though he pushed it down to answer. "Maybe. Just be quick, okay?"

With a swift nod, Naruto shot off and Sasuke was left alone with Neji, who raised an eyebrow at him. "It seems like you've got your hands full just keeping track of them all. Who's this 'Gaara'?"

"One of the deadliest draugrs I've ever met." Sasuke sighed, pushing his hair, which was a little messy from his recent nap, out of his eyes. "You'll learn how to remember them all. It's not hard, especially when they all have such distinct personalities."

"Hmph." Neji snorted delicately. "I'll concur with you on that. That tall one with the ponytail - Shikamaru, was his name? - was just trying to get me to play a game of chess with him. What's his deal?"

Sasuke felt a smirk start to crawl across his face. "Shikamaru is … interesting. He's one of the laziest people I've ever met, ghost or no, but he's a genius, and he cares about his friends a lot. If he wants to play a game with you, I would suggest you do it. It's his way of getting to know someone, to see if he would trust them around his friends."

"Did he ask you to play a game?"

Smiling a little at the memory, Sasuke nodded. "He's very perceptive, and I would say his strategies are … interesting as well, but if you want to be accepted by him, I suggest you play the next time he offers. Naruto may be the unofficial leader of the group of phantoms, but Shikamaru is the unseen driving force that keeps them together."

Naruto jumped back through the open doorway, interrupting their conversation. Immediately, Sasuke stopped talking, not wanting Naruto to hear what he was saying about Shikamaru. Ironically enough, the phantom put a lot of energy into maintaining his lazy facade, and Sasuke didn't want to be the one to ruin it.

"He's not awake yet, but Tsunade says he's getting a little fidgety, which means he should wake up soon," Naruto informed them, latching onto Sasuke's arm.

"That's good," Sasuke answered a little absentmindedly, still thinking about Shikamaru. Shaking his head a little, he brought himself back to reality. "Are you ready now?"

"Yeah." Naruto floated above the carpet a few inches, then started moving towards the door. "Let's get to it."

Watching with amusement as he floated dangerously close to the door, Sasuke warned, "The bracelet, Naruto-"

But the warning came too late as Naruto tried to pass through the door and was jerked back by his silver bracelet, which refused to pass through the solid wood. Sasuke tried unsuccessfully to hide a laugh and Naruto came flying back through the door, swearing, and Neji raised an eyebrow at the ghost's antics.

"Is it always like this here?"

"Depends," Sasuke answered, opening the door and letting Naruto float out ahead of him with as much dignity as he could muster. "Sometimes it's worse. Before the others found out about the ghosts, this one liked to play a game where he told inappropriate jokes in public to try to get a rise out of me."

"Oh, come on!" Naruto shouted back as they all started to walk down the main street of Konoha. "You know you liked it!"

Thankfully, Neji ignored this and asked another question. "What kind of … inappropriate jokes?"

"Ones like this!" Naruto immediately took in a deep breath that puffed out his chest and began to sing very loudly. "Let it out, let it out! Can't masterbate any more! Let it out, let it out! Turn away and cum on the floor!"

Neji's only reaction was to raise an eyebrow. "How very amusing. Did you write that song yourself?"

Even Sasuke, in conjecture with Naruto, rounded on him in disbelief after that, and Neji shifted uncomfortably under the twin stares of horror.

"What?"

Shaking his head in disappoint, Sasuke asked, "Are you so out of touch with reality that you don't even recognize one of the most popular Disney songs of our generation? It's been literally everywhere for the past few years!"

Haughtily, Neji stuck his nose in the air to cover up his blush. "I- I just have a lot of things to do… Not much leisure time…"

Sasuke clapped the uncomfortable boy on his shoulder. "Well, all you have to do is spend a few weeks here, and that will all change. Take it from someone who has already had the miracle of Konoha happen to them."

"Yeah!" Naruto chimed in. "He was an antisocial asshole when he first got here, and now look at him!"

"Hey! That's me you're talking about, idiot!"

A ghost of a smile drifted across Neji's face. "Yes, I do remember him being like that."

Whipping his head around to glare in the other direction, Sasuke snapped at Neji, "Watch what you're saying! I'm the one who invited you here, remember?"

A smugly superior look came over Neji's face. "That's because you need me."

Unable to come up with a comeback to that, Sasuke scowled and stewed in his anger until Naruto stopped walking abruptly. With a trembling arm, he pointed at a building a good five hundred feet away.

"There it is. If there's any Akatsuki in Konoha, they'll be in there."

Sasuke started forward towards the rundown shack, but Naruto caught his arm. "No! Don't go any closer! This is as close as we can get without them noticing us."

Neji's eyes narrowed. "You've had run-ins with them before?"

"Sort of." Naruto's eyes were wide with fear. "We saw them when they first came, in the black clocks with the red clouds, but we haven't seen them since. Every time we get close to here, they send out tendrils of power to grab us, and it's dark and cold and terrifying! I'm never going near there again!" By the time his speech ended, Naruto's teeth were practically chattering and he was shaking at the memory of what had happened in the past.

Sasuke reached out and gently patted the stricken ghost on his head, and Naruto reverted to the appearance of a five year old and clung to him. Neji raised an eyebrow at this, clearly surprised at the phantom's shift in appearance, but said nothing and instead turned his attention to the shack.

"How are we going to get in to check?" Sasuke mused, gently brushing Naruto's hair back from his face in an almost motherly gesture.

Neji appeared to be weighing some great decision in his mind. Abruptly, he sharply inclined his head, decision made, and turned to Sasuke. "I can find out from here."

"Really?" Sasuke regarded him with respect. "How?"

Pausing hesitantly, Neji nervously drew breath to speak. "You know that we Hyuuga have another level to our Byakugan, as you Uchiha have for your Sharingan? Well, if I utilize that upper level… I can see the spirits inside that shack from here."

Sasuke drew in a surprised breath. He knew that the Hyuuga's gift had higher perception skills than his own, but he didn't know exactly how powerful it was. If he was able to see at great distances, through walls and into buildings, then it put the perception ability of the Sharingan to shame. However, the Sharingan had one other thing that went with it that placed it, in Sasuke's opinion, a little higher in strength than the Byakugan.

Then what Neji was really offering hit him. The secret of his clan, the highest level of power of his gift: he was willing to divulge it to Sasuke in order to help him. He would use his gift in Sasuke's presence, something he was probably forbidden to do by his clan, as Sasuke was by his, to find the Akatsuki. It was humbling that Neji was willing to go to those lengths when he and Sasuke were still virtually strangers.

"You would do that?" Sasuke asked, almost not daring to hope.

Unnaturally stiff, Neji answered, "If you would like me to."

A wide, relieved smile broke across Sasuke's face. "That is why I called you here, to be my second set of eyes."

A similar relieved look crept across Neji's face. "I'm glad you understand."

"As am I," Sasuke replied, inclining his head slightly.

Naruto looked back and forth between them as Neji turned away and stared intently at the house. "Did I miss something?"

"Nothing you need to know," Sasuke muttered to Naruto.

"Hmph." Naruto clearly wasn't happy, but he let it pass. "How can you see them from here? Even I can't feel their power from this far away."

"Watch and learn," Neji said with a smirk, closing his eyes.

A look of concentration took over Neji's face, displacing the superior smirk from before. Sasuke's skin started to crawl as an aura of power, almost visible to his trained eye, gathered around the Hyuuga as he prepared to fuel his powers. Lines started to appear on his forehead, lines the veins were throbbing from too much pressure, then his eyes exploded open all at once with a power infused shout.

"Byakugan!"

Neji's eyes were pure white now, with no hint of iris or pupil, and they were menacing to behold. They looked on Sasuke without looking at him, seeming to see him and yet see through him at the same time, dragging all his secrets up to the surface, and he shuddered. Slowly, Neji turned his terrifying gaze to the shack and narrowed his eyes almost to slits.

"There are five of them, black cloaked draugrs decorated with hellish red clouds and with power levels exceeding normal spiritual boundaries. There is to be no doubt; this is a group of Akatsuki."

A cold wave of fear washed over Sasuke. "Damn. What are they doing?"

"It appears we have caught them in the midst of planning. The leader appears to be a man with multiple piercings on his face, and it looks as if he is briefing the others on some topic of great importance." Neji turned his unearthly white gaze on Sasuke, who shuddered under its weight. "Would you like me to try and find out what they are planning?"

"If you can," Sasuke instructed dubiously. "Don't do anything too dangerous. We don't know if they would be able to sense your probing if you listen too hard."

"Understood." Neji nodded before focusing once more on the shack. "The leader is angry, saying that there have been no results. They appear to be searching for something."

"What?" Sasuke edged.

"Be quiet," Neji snapped. "I can't concentrate if you talk."

Sasuke snapped his mouth shut, listening intently as Neji started talking again. "There is a blond who looks like a woman but is actually a man, and he appears to be taking the brunt of the punishment, but the fault actually lies with a man whose face is entirely covered in a mask. The fourth man had an unfortunate green complexion, and he is defending the masked man from the blond's accusations. The last one isn't even paying attention but is sitting in the corner and… Oh, God, he's stabbing himself over and over again with a silver knife - and he's enjoying it."

Neji had to break away from the horrific sight then, and he turned away and wretched as Sasuke watched in horror and Naruto backed away from the shack in a terrified panic.

"I'm sorry," Neji apologized with his eyes still glowing a deadly white. "I don't usually have to pay so much attention to someone who is so twisted."

"It's alright," Sasuke assured him, trying to clamp down on the nausea rising in his own stomach. "Can you find out what they're looking for?"

"I can try," Neji said with a slight frown. "They're mostly focusing on the mistake, and I'm limited to what I can hear, so I don't know."

"Just try," Sasuke urged, and Neji nodded slowly after a moment of consideration.

"Alright." Trembling slightly from the amount of energy he was using, Neji turned back to the shack. "Perhaps it would be better if I just relayed their conversation?"

"If you can."

Neji nodded, then closed his eyes, and Sasuke got the sense that he was going even further into his gift.

"We can't afford any more mistakes, Deidara!"

The voice that came out of Neji was gruff and not at all his own, and it caused Sasuke to jump. Eyes still screwed tightly shut, Neji continued to repeat what was happening inside the shack in voices that didn't belong to him.

"I said I was sorry, Pain! Tobi-"

The whiny voice was cut off by the first gruff one. "I don't care what Tobi did! Was it or was it not you that that set that building on fire?"

A third voice, slightly hoarse, cut in. "If it has anything to do with fire, it had to be Deidara."

"I don't appreciate your input, Zetsu."

The whiny voice came in again. "Fine, it was me! I made a judgement call, and it was the wrong one! I don't see the big-"

"You fucking idiot!" Another new voice cut in, even deeper and gruffer than the first one. "Deidara, do you even remember why we're here? Why we've stayed in this godforsaken town for three years now? God fuck it, do you even remember what we're looking for?"

"Tobi knows! Tobi knows!" Yet another voice made its appearance, but this one was almost childish in nature. "We're here to find the secret spiritual force that resides in Konoha and steal it, giving us the power of immortality that every ghost within the town limits inexplicably possesses. Then we can rule the world and nobody can stop us from eating ice cream past our bedtimes!"

Sasuke almost choked. Who would have thought it would be that easy? But Neji kept speaking, so he kept listening.

"Thank you for that," the fourth voice said sarcastically. "You dipshit, Tobi! Know one cares about eating ice cream!"

"Tobi likes ice cream," the childish voice muttered.

"Hidan!" The first voice that had spoken, presumably the leader, shouted to the owner of the sarcastic voice. "Could you stop picking on Tobi for one minute? All of you just be quiet!" Everything fell silent, and Neji took a deep breath that mirrored the one being taken inside the shack. "We are running out of time. We all remember what happened with Orochimaru; we can't let anyone suffer that fate again."

Sasuke froze at the mention of Orochimaru. What did the former Akatsuki who had driven his brother mad have to do with anything? It took all his willpower to force his attention back to Neji to catch the rest of the leader's speech.

"We Akatsuki are a dying breed. With advances in modern technology, it's becoming harder and harder to live the life required of an Akatsuki without being caught, so less and less of us are being born again every year. If we want to preserve our race, we have to protect our oldest and most vulnerable. Deidara, you remember how we lost Sasori."

"You just had to bring it up, didn't you?" The whiny voice asked in a tone that seemed thick, as if with tears.

"The point is, we need the Kyuubi. We need its powers to save ourselves, so we can become more powerful than ever before, and yes, take over the world. But before that, we need-"

Neji suddenly broke off as his Byakugan snapped and stumbled backwards, holding onto his eyes in pain. "We have to get out of here," he croaked out, eyes watering but back to their original pale blue color. "He looked right at me, he saw me-"

"Slow down, Neji!" Sasuke caught the almost delirious youth, alarmed by the abrupt change in his usually calm demeanor. "What's wrong?"

"The leader turned and looked right at me," Neji gasped, grabbing onto Sasuke's collar. "I think he saw me watching them!"

"The aura's starting to form," Naruto called out in a panic infused voice. "Now would be a really good time to start running!"

"I agree." Neji tried to stand, but he was so spent from using his power that his legs wouldn't hold him, and panic trampled across his face. "Sasuke!"

Then Sasuke saw it; even to his eyes, which were not so perceptive as those belonging to the Hyuugas, it was a monstrous cloud of dark energy, and a lump of solid fear formed in his throat. "Oh, God, I see it!"

He started backing away in shock, then the cloud abruptly thickened and Sasuke turned and ran, dragging Neji behind him on unsteady legs. Naruto kept pace with them, and they ran as fast as they could with no destination in mind, only seeking to outrun the black cloud with evil intent. They ran until the shack had faded from sight and the aura no longer encroached upon them, then they slowed and stopped, gasping for breath.

"What did they say?" Neji asked, unsteadily supporting himself on his own two feet.

Sasuke frowned. "You were the one who said it in the first place."

But Neji shook his head. "When I'm transmitting like that, I become a simple radio, and I can't hear what I'm saying. You have to tell me what they were talking about."

"Well," Sasuke said slowly, "They want to steal something, and it's what gives the ghosts here in Konoha their longevity. They want it to increase their own lifespans."

"What was it that they were looking for?"

Sasuke racked his brains, but couldn't remember what the man had said. It was right before Neji had snapped out of his trance, and right after he had mentioned Orochimaru, and his brain was so occupied on both accounts that he couldn't come up with it.

"Kyuubi," Naruto supplied suddenly. "They're looking for the Kyuubi."

Both humans looked at the phantom, who had the most serious look Sasuke had ever seen him wear on his face.

"Do you know what that is?" Sasuke asked, hoping he would, but those hopes were dashed when Naruto shook his head.

"No, I've never heard of it, but whatever it is, it must be very powerful."

Sasuke considered this for a moment, faced with a hard decision. Finally, he sighed and turned to Neji. "You can't tell anyone what we learned today."

"Why not?" A frown creased the skin between Neji's eyes. "It would be best to go at this with all the backup we can possibly have."

"Not these people," Sasuke disagreed. "I know; I've spent the better part of a month with them. They'll try to help and just end up getting in the way. We need to keep this as quiet as possible until we can get more information and form some kind of plan."

"I agree," Naruto chimed in, surprising both of them. "The other phantoms are too busy worrying about Lee; adding something else to worry about would be cruel. The Akatsuki have to be stopped. If they aren't, all the older ghosts here will fade when this Kyuubi is taken from Konoha. It would be better to wait to tell the others until we figure out what course of action we need to take."

Neji stared at Naruto in astonishment. "I do believe that's the longest and most intelligent thing I've heard you say."

"You don't have to be so surprised," Naruto muttered with a self conscious flush.

"Let's just head back to the Hokage," Sasuke suggested to diffuse the tension.

Neji seemed relieved by the suggestion. "Good idea. That took a lot out of me; I don't know if I would be able to do anything else today."

When Naruto nodded in conjecture with the idea, Sasuke started walking again. Noting that Neji was walking quite a bit slower than he had earlier and with much greater strain on his face, Sasuke slowed his pace to match that of the other boy, and Neji shot him a look of gratitude. His pride wouldn't allow him to admit it to Sasuke, but he was exhausted. Using the powers of their eyes to that magnitude had that effect on members of both the Uchiha and the Hyuuga families.

Upon entering the Hokage, Sasuke hoped to be able to steal upstairs to talk privately with Neji about what they should do, but an altogether too familiar ball of pink energy assaulted him.

"Sasuke! Where've you been?"

"Just out gathering a little information," he answered vaguely, trying to bypass the hyper girl, but she grabbed his arm, refusing to let him pass.

"Did you find out anything interesting?" Sakura asked in an interrogating manor as Ino also entered the room, looking expectant.

"Nothing of importance," Sasuke answered, though the words left a bad taste in his mouth. He didn't like having to lie to people who trusted him.

"In that case, are you free tonight?" Two sets of guileless eyes stared at Sasuke with hope and expectations.

Uncomfortable, Sasuke shifted from one foot to another. He needed to think about what to do about the Akatsuki, and he didn't have time to fool around, but he also couldn't afford to make the others suspicious. He needed them calm if he was going to find a way to get the Akatsuki to leave. With a sigh, he relented in his annoyance. "I guess."

"Excellent!" Sakura clasped her hands in excitement. "Then you can come with us!"

"Come where?" Sasuke asked, suspicion in his voice.

"Every Friday, one of the local restaurants has a cabaret style karaoke night, and once a month, those of us who work for Kakashi get to do it. He's friends with the guy who owns the place, so it's a god deal for both of them; the restaurant gets business, and the Hokage gets free publicity," Sakura explained.

Jumping in, Ino exclaimed, "And you can come hear us sing! Won't that be wonderful?"

"Sure," Sasuke agreed absentmindedly, not really paying attention to them. Singing, meh. Akatsuki? Big problem.

Suddenly, Ino's eyes got as round as saucers. "I just got the most brilliant idea! Sakura, we can make him-" And here she leaned forward and whispered in Sakura's ear, and an identical wide eyed look spread across the pink haired girl's face.

"Yes! Ino, you are a genius!"

Not wanting to be roped into whatever they were planning, Sasuke tried to escape a second time, edging past the giggling girls. "I have some things I need to talk over with Neji, so if you'll excuse me…"

"Yeah, fine," Sakura called out, waving a hand in Sasuke's general direction before resuming her conversation with Ino.

Glad of the reprieve, Sasuke grabbed Neji's arm and pulled him bodily up the stairs. Naruto floated after them, and after they had made it safely to the second floor, he broke into a chuckle.

"Going up against draugrs is no problem for you, but a pair of giggling girls leaves you defenseless and running. Oh, how the mighty have fallen."

"That's right, laugh it up," Sasuke said with a glare, his insides all twisted up. The mention of Orochimaru was still on his mind, and he couldn't shake the sick feeling that had sunk down low in his stomach. "They can't see you, so you're safe from their conniving plans."

"Lucky for me, right?" Naruto grinned cheekily at Sasuke, but there was something in his eyes that said he knew something was wrong, that he was just trying to lighten the mood. Sasuke wondered how often it had been there, and he had simply missed it.

As if reading the signs both of them were giving off, Neji cleared his throat. "I'm not really comfortable in this, so I'm going back to my room to change, if that's okay."

"Yeah, go for it," Sasuke muttered. "We need to talk, though, so come to my room after."

"I will do that." With a final inclination of his head, Neji took his leave and stepped into the room he had claimed, firmly shutting the door after him.

As soon as the barrier had been placed between the two parties, Naruto grabbed Sasuke's hand and dragged him across the hallway to his own room. Rounding on Sasuke, he waved the door shut using his telekinesis and crossed his arms over his chest.

"I know there's something bothering you, something more than the Akatsuki, so don't bother denying it. You can't hide it from me, Sasuke, so just spill. What's wrong?"

With a sigh, Sasuke sank down on the chair next to the desk, letting his head slide into his waiting hands. "Orochimaru," he almost whispered, the word leaving a foul taste in his mouth.

"What?" Sasuke could hear the frown in Naruto's voice. "Orochimaru? Who's that? I remember the Akatsuki mentioning him, but what is he to you?"

"He is - was - a member of an Akatsuki group."

"Was?" Naruto swiftly floated over to Sasuke and grasped his chin, forcing him to look straight into Naruto's eyes. "What do you mean, was?"

"Orochimaru went mad, and left his group, I guess," Sasuke answered, sickened by the black memories flooding his consciousness. "I don't know much, but I do know that he was trying to find a way to become alive again, to become human, and he was hurting people while doing it. It caught the attention of the Uchiha clan, and they sent one of their best young recruits to deal with him, not knowing exactly what he was to face. He wasn't prepared, and…" Sasuke took in a deep, shaky breath. "And my brother was never the same again."

Naruto's mouth formed a small O as he realized what Sasuke was trying to say. "So Orochimaru was the one who drove your brother mad...?"

"Yeah." A thick, perverse laughter bubbled up from within Sasuke. "I've spent the better part of a decade running from the memories of that night, and here it is again, mocking me. I suppose I'll never be entirely rid of it."

A small, comforting hand settled in Sasuke hair, gently following the pattern of the strands. Hesitantly, Naruto asked, "Do you think you would feel better if you told me about it?"

Sasuke snorted. "I don't know. Maybe."

The hand traveled down to his back to rub soothing circles against the material of his shirt, and Sasuke relaxed into the contact. "Then…" Naruto asked, still a little hesitant. "Sasuke, what happened to your brother?"

Sasuke eyes closed involuntarily, and he allowed his head to fall forward. For a long moment, he didn't make a sound, just listened to the harshness of his own breathing. Sasuke was a very private person, and didn't relish the thought of retelling his darkest moments to a captive audience. But this was Naruto, who cared for him and was even now offering him the chance to make peace with his past.

Finally, Sasuke spoke. "His name was Itachi."

If Naruto noticed that Sasuke had spoken in the past tense, he made no sign of it, but gave him a comforting kiss on the temple.

Bolder now that he had started, Sasuke foraged ahead. "I told you before that he's blind now, and in a psychiatric ward, but what I didn't tell you was that he blinded himself, unable to face spirits after what happened with Orochimaru. I also didn't tell you that he tried to blind me as well, and only turned the knife on himself when my father intervened and pulled me to safety."

"Jesus," Naruto whispered, eyes wide. "What happened to Orochimaru?"

"I don't know for sure, but I do know my father went looking for him. I doubt he's still in this plane of existence."

Shaking his head softly, Naruto admitted, "I know I said that was a fate no one deserves, but even I wouldn't deny someone a revenge for something as terrible as that."

"And now his name is haunting me again," Sasuke growled, his sorrow changing to anger in the blink of an eye, and he clenched his fists. "Damn that snake! Will my family ever be free of his shadow? Hasn't he done us enough damage?"

But Naruto pried Sasuke's fists apart and held his trembling fingers in his steady ones. "Peace, Sasuke. He's gone, and while he might have hurt your family in the past, it won't happen again."

Wondering at Naruto, Sasuke shook his head slowly. "How do you always know what to do to make me feel better? You act so foolish all the time, and then when it matters, you always find the right thing to say."

Naruto gave a soft laugh. "I'm not as naive as people would guess from my actions; you of all people should understand that. You used to hate my foolishness, but you've grown to admire it, I think."

"You've rubbed off on me a little," Sasuke admitted, sifting through the strands of Naruto's hair gently. "You taught me how to smile again, to laugh when there was nothing really to laugh at. I'd forgotten how to make my own happiness."

"And I'd forgotten how it felt to take something seriously." Craning his neck, Naruto looked up at Sasuke. "I've been living like this for a long time, and I had reverted to this childlike version of myself that had little regard for others. You reminded me how to watch other people and care for them, and for that, I thank you."

A wave of warmth washed over Sasuke; he had no idea that he had done so much for Naruto, and the idea touched him. "I guess we're good for each other."

Leaning back carefully, so as not to dislodge Sasuke's hand from his hair, Naruto replied, "I guess we are. I'm glad I met you."

"As am I, Naruto. As am I."

A knock on the door pulled the pair out of the closeness caused by their emotional confessions, and Naruto floated off Sasuke's lap rather sheepishly.

"Come in," Sasuke called, and the door opened to allow Neji entrance.

"I hope I'm not interrupting something," he said with a frown.

"No," Sasuke answered a little guiltily. Quickly moving past the topic, he asked, "What do you think we should do now?"

"Honestly? Nothing."

The answer took Sasuke by surprise. "Why?"

"Did the Akatsuki say how long they'd been looking for this Kyuubi?" Neji asked, rubbing his jaw in thought.

"Three years," Naruto answered. "That's the same time frame when we first noticed them as well."

"Then there's no point in us rushing into this. If they've been searching for three years already, whatever they're looking for is obviously well hidden, so they aren't likely to miraculously stumble upon it in the next few days. From the few snatches of conversation that I caught, it seemed like they were frustrated, so it's highly likely that they aren't any closer to their goal then they were three years ago." After Neji finished outlining his thoughts, he passed a hand over his eyes. "I'm sorry; I'm starting to get a migraine from all that power I used."

"Get some rest," Sasuke said. "I'm grateful for what you did for me, and you've earned it."

"So we've settled on a plan, then? No further action until we find out more?"

With a sigh, Sasuke stood up from his chair. "It's as good a plan as any. Come downstairs with me," he added, opening to door and beckoning to Neji. "Sakura or Ino might be able to get you some medicine for your headache."

A look of gratitude swept over Neji's face. "Thank you."

They descended the stairs again, where they found Sakura and Ino in the exact places they had been in when Sasuke and Neji had first ascended to the second floor. Catching sight of Sasuke, Sakura stood up and waved him over enthusiastically.

"Sasuke! Come here!"

"Sure," he answered a little apprehensively. "But first, is there any Tylenol or something around here? Neji's got a headache."

Ino immediately popped up from her seat. "I'll go grab some. And don't you go telling him before I get back," she added to Sakura, wagging a warning finger at her,

Sakura rolled her eyes at her friend. "Get back quickly then!"

But it was unlikely that Ino heard, since she had already dashed out of sight. It only took a few seconds for her to come racing back, a bottle in her hand.

"Here." Ino shoved the bottle at Neji, who took it suspiciously.

"What's this?"

"You've seriously never taken Tylenol before?"

Drawing himself up proudly, Neji proclaimed, "The Hyuuga do not heal their ailments with such plain remedies as these."

"Whatever." Ino reclaimed the bottle from Neji. Opening it, she took out two pills and tossed them to him, who caught them with surprise. "Down the hatch."

Neji gave the pills one last suspicious look, then popped them in his mouth and dry swallowed. A look of revulsion crept over his features. "That was nasty!"

"You'll be glad you did it in about half an hour," Ino quipped, stowing the bottle in her pocket.

"Now that that's over, do you want to hear our idea?" Sakura asked excitedly.

"Fine," Sasuke sighed.

"It'll be a doozy, whatever it is," remarked an amused Naruto.

"You're going to sing with us," Sakura announced.

Neji's eyes grew wide, and he immediately started backing up. "I think that is my cue to leave. Have fun, Sasuke…" And with that, he turned and dashed up the stairs.

"Party pooper," Ino muttered under her breath, but Sasuke was thinking more along the lines of traitor.

Unaffected by Neji's quick retreat, Sakura grabbed unit Sasuke's harm. "So, how 'bout it, Sasuke? You wanna come sing with us?"

"Absolutely not."

The abrupt refusal did not deter either of the girls.

"Oh, come on," Sakura begged. "Just one song? The rest of us will do one!"

"The rest of you are also gainfully employed by Kakashi," Sasuke pointed out. "I am a guest in this inn."

Ino laughed this off. "But you're one of us now! You belong here, same as the rest of us, and that gives us free reign to torture you a bit."

Sasuke had to stifle his ego at the flattery; it was, after all, the first time he had really been included in a group of people with a sense of belonging. "I still am under no obligation to-"

"Sasuke!" Sakura interrupted, pulling out her phone. "Do I have to blackmail you? I still have video evidence, remember."

"Of something I could easily pass off as a joke," Sasuke scoffed. "You'll have to try harder than that."

"I'll bake you a cake," Ino offered.

Sasuke quickly shot that down. "Don't like sweet things."

"Right, tomato boy." Ino made a face. "A salad?"

"Not happening."

From next to him, Naruto spoke up. "What do they want you to sing?"

"But-"

"Ask them!"

Giving in, Sasuke turned to the girls and asked, "What is it that you want me to sing?"

The two girls exchanged a conspiratorial glance, then Sakura held out her phone, and Sasuke read the title of the song displayed on the karaoke app.

His reaction was immediate. "No. Absolutely not!"

Spectral laughter echoes in Sasuke's ears. "That's perfect! You have to do it!"

"It's a girl's song," Sasuke retorted. "Even if I wanted to sing it, I couldn't; it's not in a key for a man's voice."

"There's two keys, one for girls and one for guys," Sakura pointed out.

Ino clapped her hands excitedly. "Then there's no excuse; you have to sing it!"

"Why?" Sasuke asked angrily. "What would compel you to pick out that specific song?"

"Well…" Sakura smirked a little. "We thought it would be funny, since… you know…"

"Are you making fun of my sexuality?"Sasuke asked, fixing the two girls with a fierce, piercing glare.

"Of course not!" Sakura placed a hand over her heart in an exaggerated facade of offense. "We're only using it as a gesture of comic relief, in an effort to distract us from traumatic events of yesterday and this morning! It's not every day that you gain absolute proof of the existence of ghosts and then watch an all out battle between forces you can't even see!" By the time she finished, her eyes were shining with the passion of her words.

Raising an eyebrow, Sasuke asked, "So you're using me?"

The girls gave each other a look, then nodded. "Yep, sounds about right."

"Jesus," Sasuke swore softly under his breath.

Naruto fracked up with an evil sounding cackle. "This is perfect!"

Rounding in him, Sasuke snapped, "You stay out of this!"

"See!" Ino pounced on his reaction. "Even your undead fan club wants you to do it!"

"We prefer the term 'spiritual fan club', actually," Naruto quipped.

"You're not helping things," Sasuke hissed to the troublesome ghost.

"He's totally helping - just not you!" Sakura giggled at her own joke. "Naruto- that's Naruto, right?" At Sasuke's affirmation, she continued. "Naruto, do you think you could convince him to sing for us?"

Gritting his teeth, Sasuke spat, "No."

But, at the same time, Naruto grinned slyly and made a motion with his bracelet. "Yes."

Sasuke turned angrily to the ghost. "No, you can't!"

"Yes, I can!" Naruto retorted, drawing himself up so he stood nose to nose with Sasuke, even though he had to float several inches off the floor to do so.

A giggle caught both boys' attention.

"I'm sorry," Sakura apologized, a hand coming yo to cover her mouth to keep in the laughter, while Ino completely dropped all pretense of hiding her mirth, leaning over and grabbing her knees to keep from falling on the ground. "It's just so funny to watch you argue with the air!"

"Hey! I'm not air!" Naruto crossed his arms over his chest, offended.

"He's mad now," Sasuke remarked dryly.

"Oh, Naruto! Please don't be mad!" Sakura begged, still trying to hide her laughter.

"Hmph." Naruto leaned against Sasuke, sticking out his lower lip. "Aren't you going to defend me, Sasuke?"

"Defend yourself," Sasuke snorted at Naruto while trying to made him move, but the ghost just clung to his arm more tightly, like a leech.

"But I can't," Naruto whined with a pout, throwing his arms about Sasuke neck. "I can't argue with them if the can't see or hear me!"

"Well, I'm not going to be your mediator," Sasuke announced, glad that the attention had been diverted from him.

Suddenly, Naruto narrowed his eyes and pinched Sasuke's cheek. "Hey! Were you trying to distract me? It won't work - I still want you to sing."

Damn. "Not happening."

Undeterred, Naruto reached up and twirled a strand of Sasuke hair around his finger slyly. "Surely a big, strong man like you could handle singing one little song?"

"Passive-aggressive flattery will get you nowhere." Sasuke raised a single eyebrow, unamused.

Sticking out his lower lip in a pout, Naruto switched tactics. "So you can't sing it? God, Sasuke. I thought you were better than that!"

"Insults won't help your case either." Finally succeeding in shaking Naruto off, Sasuke rounded on him. "Will you just cut it out? They're staring at us!"

True enough, both Sakura and Ino were regarding the pair, on invisible to their eyes, with amusement. Shaking her head, Sakura reached a hand out to Sasuke. "No luck?"

"Not even close." Sasuke crossed his arms and ignored the hand. "Just leave me alone!"

Abruptly, Kakashi walked into the room, causing all conversation to cease. He looked like he was dressed for whatever was happening later, decked out in a slick eighties costume, complete with teased hair, which looked ridiculous with his mask. Honestly, the whole effect was rather sickening, but Sasuke was just glad he hadn't gone with the seventies. Disco Kakashi was something he could go his whole life without seeing and be happy.

Without bothering to explain his bizarre appearance, Kakashi walked over to Sasuke and clapped him on the shoulder hard enough to almost knock him to the ground. "Hey, Sasuke! I hear you're going to be joining us in our open mic cabaret tonight. That's great! I can't wait to hear you sing! Well, I'm off to finish the last check of everything. See you later!" And after that pronouncement, Kakashi retreated in as much of a whirlwind as he had come, leaving the two girls victorious and Sasuke slightly shocked.

Sakura rounded on Sasuke triumphantly. "Hear that? Kakashi's looking forward to listening to you! Now you have to perform!"

"I noticed," Sasuke said dryly, shaking his head in equal parts fear and admiration of the old man.

All in all, he was surprised by how calmly he was taking being shoved into the limelight. For all his protesting of the idea of performing, now that it was decided that he was, Sasuke found himself relieved. He was glad that the relentless attacks of the girls were over, and even found himself looking forward to sing in, something he hadn't had the occasion to do in a long time, though that may have just been caused by Naruto's delighted smile.

A smirk decorated Sasuke's face as plans for that night started to percolate in his brain. Sakura and Ino, the ones who had put him in this situation, may be only expecting some comic relief and amusement, but tonight, Sasuke was going to give them the show of their lives.