...I'm running out of ways to say 'I don't own Naruto'. I don't…own Naruto…

Chapter 3 : Tsunade's Bargain

"We appreciate your cooperation in this matter, Hokage-sama." The figure opposite Tsunade smiled. "You really should visit more often. We grow tired of Jiraiya snooping around. This is so much more forward."

The blond sannin folded her arms across her chest. "I am glad I have no other reasons to interact with you. This is by no means a friendly visit."

"Yes, it is rather awkward, isn't it? I mean, you did organize shinobi units for the sole purpose of our annihilation."

"You are collecting tailed-beasts; killing innocent people. I cannot, in good conscious, sanction that. Your lust for power will eventually be your end. Just look what it did to those two you sent after bounties…"

The man frowned. "A minor set back. There are always others to replace them. However, we do intend to kill Orochimaru in order to take back what is ours. Now that we know what he is up to, it will make it easier for us to plan our final attack."

"See to it that…"

“Yes, yes.” He waved his hand in dismissal. “Haruno Sakura will remain unharmed. Our only interest is in the ring.”

Tsunade's brown eyes narrowed. "I've put a lot of faith in the fact that you will deal with Orochimaru. I've even put someone close to me in the direct line of danger. When all is said and done, if she and Sasuke Uchiha are not returned safely, you will have me to answer to."

He bowed as she stood and exited the room. He had no interest in either of the Konoha shinobi. The fact that Orochimaru wanted them both was concerning, but as far as Akatsuki's calculations were correct, they still had time to carry out their plans.

Tsunade had been surprisingly accommodating. When they had approached her with the request to allow Kabuto to enter into the village in order to see what he was after, she was reluctant. But as soon as they made it clear their intentions were the snake sannin's death, her mind changed.

Now, by tailing Kabuto, they knew Orochimaru's plans had changed. The time frame was similar, but still something had changed. This change offered Akatsuki the chance they needed to end the Akatsuki deserter's life. After the body transfer, when he was the weakest, was when they would strike.

And if that meant the death of Sakura Haruno, then so be it. Tsunade did not concern the Leader. She was merely a pawn in his game.

"Go to Orochimaru's lair and see what you can find out. I will contact you for a report in three days."

Two figures stepped out from the corner shadows. Itachi and Kisame bowed. "Yes, leader."

With a puff of smoke, they were gone.

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Things couldn't have taken a more pleasing turn for Itachi. From the beginning, he had his own ulterior motives for joining Akatsuki. He had driven Sasuke from childhood toward the ultimate goal of obtaining the mangekyo sharingan. He thought that by making Sasuke hate him, he would force his hand and facilitate the murder of whoever had become the younger Uchiha's best friend. He thought it was the only way for the third form of the mangekyo sharingan to appear.

But Orochimaru's plans for Sakura Haruno presented a new, exciting opportunity.

Once Orochimaru took over Sakura's body, he would kill Sasuke in order to take his eyes. This would mean, in a round-about way, that Sakura had killed Sasuke—who was undoubtedly one of her best friends. Thus, she would gain the mangekyo he had been waiting for.

It would be easy enough for Itachi to then invade Orochimaru/Sakura's mind and crush Oroachimaru's presence. If any part of the girl remained, he would over power her as well. Then, he would have complete control over a willing ally instead of a powerful younger brother who despised him.

The idea had merit.

Up until this point, Itachi had assumed that once Orochimaru took Sasuke's body that he would kill Kabuto, who he had probably kept around solely for that purpose. The snake sannin most likely thought that would gain him the mangekyo, when, in fact, it would not. Kabuto was not Sasuke's best friend. It had to be the original owner of the body's best friend.

Orochimaru had unwittingly stumbled onto the missing part of his ultimate jutsu puzzle. He wanted Sakura's chakra ability…but had no idea he needed her for the ultimate form of the sharingan.

Itachi had no intentions of letting the sannin figure that out. He would have to overpower his mind before he discovered how to use the sharingan.

It would be no easy task.

It also meant that he could not allow the Leader to kill Orochimaru after the body transfer.

The oldest Uchiha had a lot of planning ahead of him.

But, in the end, he was sure it would all work out to his advantage.

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A steady wave of cool air brought Sakura back to the waking world. Her eye lids fluttered open, allowing the new surroundings to make their first appearance.

They had moved her.

The thought of being carried or touched at all without her knowledge made her cringe. At least the welcoming feeling of her chakra was present. Her body had recovered fully since she had fallen asleep.

Completely recovered.

With a smile, she felt the barriers in her limbs vanish as she sent her chakra throughout her body. With a small cry of triumph, she broke her bonds. Rubbing her tender wrists, she studied the new area around her.

This room was much larger than they tiny cell she had been in previously. It was well lit. A central medical table, surrounded by instrument drawers, was the most prominent fixture in the room. Its polished surface reflected the bright light from above.

The only problem she could think past was the fact that she had no idea if she was underground or not. In a normal building, she would have been able to smash her way to freedom. However, if this was an underground lair, she ran the risk of bringing thousands of pounds of earth down on her if she broke through a wall.

That left using the doors.

It wouldn't be hard to break through them, but if she met any resistance, she would be easily cornered. The tactical decisions she made were the result of harsh survival training under Tsunade. The sannin taught her to survive and evade. And that was exactly what she planned to do.

But I'm not leaving without Sasuke. She'd found herself closer to him than she ever thought possible. She couldn't leave without trying to take him with her.

But that decision in itself provided a dilemma. To fight her way to freedom was one thing, but she would have to be stealthier if it involved searching the rooms within the close quarters.

Well, first things first. She had to get through the exit. That much was a given. After that, she would figure it out as she went.

Grasping the handle, she yanked the wooden planking toward her. It ripped off the hinges and clattered to the ground beside her.

But instead of freedom, she was met with a small area enclosed by metal bars. On the opposite side, Kabuto sat at a modest desk. His head turned to face her as she emerged.

"Sakura-san," he acknowledged her. "I see I was right about your healing abilities. To undo my chakra blocking is a feat worthy of Tsunade herself."

"You…you knew?"

He nodded. "Yes, as most of the others things we have done, it was all an experiment. I was testing your ability to regenerate. I was not disappointed." He pointed to the metal bars. "You will not be able to break through those. You're welcome to try, though."

At a loss for words, Sakura stood in the doorway, defeated. Had they anticipated every option she had for escape? If so, her chances of survival had just been halved.

"We had to move you, of course. This is the only room in this lair that has …precautions such as these metal bars. That and the fact that Sasuke-kun has become increasingly interested in why I have been so inattentive."

"Sasuke-kun?" Sakura whispered.

The other medic nodded. "Yes. He does not know you are with us. Orochimaru-sama and I think it would be unproductive."

This interested Sakura. Something about Kabuto made him very willing to give up information. She recalled that he willingly gave out facts about Orochimaru to Konoha before. If she were correct, he had even healed her once for no apparent reason. This, coupled with the fact that he had just volunteered knowledge to her, made her question his loyalty.

She had no illusions of him helping her, but she might be able to get word to Sasuke.

Immediately after that thought, Sakura chided herself. It was foolish to think Sasuke would want to help her, or that he would even care that she were a prisoner. Hadn't he tried to stab her not too long ago? That wasn't the Sasuke-kun she knew. She just couldn't count on him anymore.

But still…maybe she could use Kabuto's strange personality quirk to her advantage.

"Why would it be unproductive?" she asked. "It's not like he has any attachment to us any more."

"You're right. But that doesn't mean that he couldn't suddenly change his mind. If dear Sasuke-kun sprouts a conscious, it could make things difficult."

"You're wrong about him, you know. He may seem cold and uncaring, but he has a good heart. That's not something you can change."

No, but you can certainly cover it up with the right dugs. Kabuto kept this thought to himself. Instead, he said, "Perhaps you are the one who was wrong about him. Nothing I have seen of Sasuke-kun has led me to believe that he cares about anything other than himself."

Sakura almost smiled. "Yes, he is selfish. But we all are from time to time. True friends can look past that."

He studied her pretty face over the top rim of his glasses. He could tell just by the light in her eyes that she believed what she said without the slightest doubt. He almost felt bad for her—almost. If he truly wanted to break her spirit, he would have told her that no amount of drugs, not even the amount in Sasuke's system, could inhibit a strong bond of friendship or love. The fact that Sasuke did not remember, or even tried to remember, his former friends proved that his feelings were less significant than Sakura's or Naruto's.

But Kabuto did not mention this to her. He didn't want to break her spirit. That spirit was what he was counting on to see him through till the end.

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Orochimaru was prepared for the angry look on his student's face. He had known since early in the morning that Sasuke had discovered the inanimate copies of the Akatsuki.

As he stared at the blazing sharingan, he smiled calmly. "You must have many questions, Sasuke-kun. But let me assure you, they are not the bodies of the real Akatsuki."

"I know that," Sasuke snapped. "I am not a fool."

"Kabuto created them for informational purposes only. We can use them from time to time to spy on Akatsuki."

"And the reason you didn't want me to see them?"

The snake sannin shrugged. "I simply thought it would be less stressful if you didn't see the somewhat lifeless form of Itachi. Even though it is not your real brother, I thought perhaps you would do better without the shock of that…surprise."

Sasuke stared at his master. He didn't believe a word the man said. Too much had been going on lately. There were too many secrets. Sasuke hadn't seen Kabuto in days, and when he did it was only briefly when the medic and Orochimaru talked quietly with each other.

He had a hard time believing the body doubles were being used for spying. Especially the double of Itachi. Anyone with the ability would be able to tell that was not the real Uchiha. And if Itachi himself ever saw it…his sharingan would see right through it.

And what did any of that have to do with the bloody clothes and screaming he had heard?

Sasuke turned and walked away before Orochimaru had a chance to speak again. He was angry with all the lies, and couldn't help but feel that they centered on him.

Aside from the strange suspicions, the dreams he had been having of late bothered him as well. They were dreams of the days spent with team seven. Just the thought of his former team called the mind the last day he had seen them.

The memory was foggy, just like most of them were. But he remembered the anger he felt on that day. The anger—and the hurt.

Naruto and the others he had expected to attack him. He felt no quilt when he shocked them with his current of chidori. But when Sakura looked at him with hostility, he almost felt betrayed. Perhaps he had taken it for granted that she would forever hold him in the highest esteem.

And he was not sure if it was that fall from grace of the fact that she rushed at him that made him react as he had. He would have stabbed her. It wouldn't have been a lethal attack, but he still would have done it. In some twisted way, it would have made him feel better.

It would have made him feel like the traitor Sakura saw him as. It would have made it okay for her to hate him.

He remembered the rage he felt after the confrontation. Why couldn't they just leave him alone? Why did they have to force their affections on him?

And why couldn't he just forget them?

Irritated, Sasuke continued on through the labyrinth of hallways. He needed to speak with Kabuto. The medic was easier to manipulate that Orochimaru.

Sasuke had a fairly good idea where the grey-haired man was. He had never ventured into the medical section of the lair before, but there was a first time for everything.

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Coming soon: Chapter 4: Eureka!

Author's note: This was perhaps the hardest chapter to write. I wanted to make sure I conveyed Tsunade/Akatsuki/Itachi's plans in an understandable way. If anyone is uncertain about it, let me know and I will do my best to clarify in the next chapter.

Thanks for the reviews!