Not Sick Chapter 33

The Summit

"Sakura, there's someone here to see you."

Sakura turned her head over her shoulder, acknowledging the nurse. She'd already memorized the woman's name; Tsusume. It would be rude, she figured, to forget the name of her first personal assistant. The woman had huge, beautiful brown eyes, and was just a bit taller than her. It was odd to be a superior to someone older than herself, but Sakura thought she'd get used to it. Tsunade was trusting her with this, so there wasn't any other choice. It had only been three days since she'd gotten this assignment (challenge, she almost thought it was), and it still hadn't quite penetrated her brain.

"Who is it?" she asked, looking back to her tools. They weren't much; just a gleaming, freshly sanitized scalpel and a small clamp, but Sakura regarded them with the same amount of care she'd give explosives.

"Sasuke Uchiha."

Sakura's head snapped up. "He's here?"

"Yes ma'am," Tsusume said, and Sakura blinked at the title. "Should I let him in? I know you're in the middle of something."

"It's…" Sakura stared back to the scalpel, blinking. "It's fine. Sure. Show him in. This will only take a second anyway."

Tsusume bowed and left through the room's single door, and Sakura took a moment to look around before refocusing. It wasn't much; barely thirty feet by thirty feet, stuffed with hospital equipment, machines she probably wouldn't have to use for a long time, and stark white. There was a stack of gurneys in the corner; they had yet to be moved out. These basement rooms in the hospitals were usually multi-use; before Tsunade had gifted it to her, it had been a morgue. Sakura imagined she could still smell the cloying stench of antiseptics and preservatives.

But that wasn't what mattered. What mattered was the clear jar filled with thick liquid on the table in front of her, a clean white covering under it, and the eyeball bobbing within.

And that Sasuke had finally come to see her, she supposed.

Why had he chosen now, of all times? It was as if he was trying to irritate her.

She sighed, snapping on a pair of latex gloves. She may as well get started. Sakura picked up the clamps, feeling the cold metal through the glove. With her other hand, she flipped off the lid of the jar.

The clamps slipped into the liquid with some initial resistance, like pushing a spoon into jello. Sakura bent down, carefully maneuvering the instrument until the "hands" surrounded the Rinnegan. Then, very gently, she squeezed the clamps around the eye. They set firmly, and she flicked a switch on the side of them, blocking the mechanism and assuring they couldn't be manipulated anymore.

Sakura drew her hand up, and the Rinnegan, cradled between the hands of the clamp, came with it. It slipped out of the liquid with much less resistance than the clamps had going in, and Sakura sighed. Carefully, always carefully, she transferred the clamps from her hand to a stand on the table, slotting them in. When she drew back, the Rinnegan stood suspended above the table in the grasp of the metal hands. It seemed like it was staring at her.

"Well done."

"Place your hats on the table, if you please."

The Hokage lifted her conical hat off her head and gently set it down on the gleaming wooden table, the cloth attached to it pooling around it like a stark white puddle. As she did so the other Kage did the same; in one synchronized movement, the most powerful ninja in the world divested themselves of their headgear, exposing themselves to the others.

Tsunade glanced around, not trying to disguise her movements. Among her peers, it was futile: there came a point where subtlety became more obvious than blatant actions to Kages. They had all arrived. That gave rise to a curious mix of relief and tension in her gut.

Onoki, the oldest among them, was sitting just to her left. The man's diminutive stature and bulbous nose made him seem an almost comical figure, but Tsunade knew he represented the largest threat if the Summit went catastrophically poorly, especially in the confines of the meeting room. Particle Style was a horrifying, and effective, branch of techniques. His beady black eyes gave away nothing, but it was obvious he was doing the same thing Tsunade was; sizing up the competition.

Just beyond him was the Raikage, more than two hundred pounds of relaxed rage leaning forward in his chair like a dog straining at its chain. He reminded Tsunade of boulders before an avalanche. His eyes were narrowed and suspicious, and every slight movement of his heavily muscled body promised violence, but Tsunade knew well enough that A was perfectly in control; it would take more than a simple meeting to unleash his temper. His fists, clasped together, were each larger than her head.

On her right were the Kazekage and Mizukage. Gaara looked… confident. It was almost surprising, given his youth, but Tsunade's sensei had been much the same, though he'd never been forced into a Kage Summit until he was a grown man. Gaara sat quietly, his chin propped on clasped hands, his eyes veiled. He was absorbing every tiny detail. Good; his inexperience would be used against him here, and Tsunade knew Naruto's friend was smart enough not to give any of his peers ammunition.

The Mizukage, Mei, was in some ways just as untested as Gaara. She regarded the other Kage, Tsunade included, with something between amusement and caution, a perpetual half-smile quirking her lips. She was the unknown factor in this meeting. Onoki and A could be counted on to be belligerent, Tsunade knew, out of a shared distaste of Konoha. Gaara would likely support her, out of loyalty to Naruto. But Mei had no solid links to any of the other Villages; Yagura's death had put Mist in unknown waters.

The man directly across from her, seated separately from the rest of the table, opened his mouth to speak, and all of the Kage focused on him.

"We are here today thanks to the Tsuchikage, who called this Summit." The ancient samurai shifted, his sagging face screaming dour neutrality. Tsunade glanced at him, wondering how old he really was. "My name is Mifune; I will be your moderator. Now, this meeting will begin."

Sakura only kept herself from spinning around in surprise out of sheer stubbornness.

Sasuke walked into her peripheral vision, analyzing her handywork with dark eyes. "So they've given it to you?"

Sakura turned to him.

'Almost a week back and that's the first thing you say?'

"The Hokage assigned the Rinnegan to me," she said instead, and for a second it seemed like Sasuke was frowning at her tone. "It's my responsibility now."

"I see," Sasuke said. He glanced at the scalpel. "You're taking a sample?"

"Yes." Sakura moved over to the clothe the knife rested on, picking it up with care. She practically marched back to the Rinnegan, bending over it. As Sasuke watched, seemingly interested, the scalpel descended. Like a pen finishing a poem, Sakura snipped a strip of material off the rinnegan, no bigger than a nail clipping.

There was a bag on the table filled with a pale gel. Sakura picked it up with her off hand and opened it, depositing the sliver of eyeball, still perched on the end of the scalpel, into the gel. She sealed it completely, placing it back on the table and taking a deep breath.

"Why are you here, Sasuke?"

The Uchiha watched her, tilting his head slightly. After a moment, he shrugged. As he did, Sakura unclipped the clamp from its stand, lifting it and the Rinnegan. She moved it back to the jar, slipping the eye back into the thick liquid.

"I'm here to thank you," Sasuke said. Sakura narrowed her eyes, and undid the clamp. The Rinnegan floated free, bobbing, and Sakura drew the tool back. She picked up the scalpel in her off hand.

"What for?" She began walking over to a sink on the wall to deposit the clamp and scalpel in.

"For keeping me company while I was blind." She stopped at that, a hiccup in her steps. "I… appreciate it." Sakura resumed walking, and Sasuke's words hammered at her back. His tone was oddly mild. "And I did not treat you fairly. Then, or in the past. I'd like to apologize for that."

Sakura reached the sink, dropping the tools in with a clatter. She turned around, meeting Sasuke's eyes, and despite the undeniable bitterness gnawing at the back of her skull, smiled.

"Thank you, Sasuke," she said evenly. "I accept your apology."

He inclined his head, just a little. "I meant it, you know." He hesitated, and Sakura blinked. "Back then."

Sakura stepped closer. Her hands itched under the gloves. "You mean-?"

"'Thank you.'" Sasuke's words of three years ago echoed out of his mouth. "While we were a team. Even if you were… you gave me something to... "

He stopped talking. Sakura thought he might shuffle his feet, if he weren't Sasuke Uchiha.

"I shouldn't have left you that night. I hope you'll forgive me for that too."

"I… Sasuke." Sakura took another step closer to him. "Of course I-"

Something bounced on the concrete floor. Several something. A tiny, rubbery sound.

Sasuke's Sharingan spiralled out, his head jerking towards the room's entrance. Sakura's eyes followed his. There, mid-bounce, a dozen small balls hung in the air. There was an eight-stroke kanji emblazoned on some of them, and as she unconsciously read them Sakura's eyes went wide.

Flash.

"Get-!" she managed to say, and then the little balls disappeared and everything was replaced with vicious light.

There was a moment of silence after Mifune's pronouncement.

'Better to seize the opportunity, or start on the defensive?'

Medics weren't supposed to go on the offensive. They were supposed to play defense until the critical moment arose. But Tsunade was more than a medic.

"I understand there is substantial concern at the destruction of Amegakure," she said, and the room seemed to shift towards her. "But I can assure you all that this event was not my, or any of my shinobi's, intention."

"Your Jinchuriki was there." Onoki led with his characteristic bluntness. "We are not idiots, Tsunade. The survivors won't stop babbling about him." His lip curled. "A crimson demon murdered their god, so they put it."

Tsunade nodded, taking a breath. She had discussed this with both Jiraiya and Shikaku on the way here; they were waiting behind her, concealed by a curtain, like the rest of the Kage's bodyguards. Being open was necessary here; not too honest, obviously, but in a way Konoha had nothing to fear in telling the truth. Ironic, but somewhat relieving.

"The Kyuubi Jinchuriki was forced to travel to Amegakure by the leader of Akatsuki: a missing-nin going by the name 'Pain.'" The Raikage snorted at the name. "He had been a former ninja of Rain, who murdered Hanzo and seized the Village as his own." At that, the samurai moderator blinked in surprise. "I ascertained this with a recon mission to Ame, shortly before its destruction. Some of my ninja also learned, from a personal encounter with the man–" there was a slight stir at that "–that he had founded Akatsuki with the intent of gathering the Bijuu to create a weapon of unparalleled power, with which to challenge the Five Villages."

"Why tell us that?" The Mizukage asked with warmth that couldn't be real, and Tsunade turned to her with an equally faux smile.

"So we are all aware of the magnitude of the crisis we have narrowly averted," she said.

'We pulled you out of the fire.'

"Your Jinchuriki has mastered his Bijuu then?" A cut in, and Tsunade turned to him. She began to feel as though she were under trial, but the situation wasn't nearly out of control yet.

"That is none of your business, Raikage," she responded, and A huffed. He sank back, looking unimpressed. "However, it was Pain's actions that led to the Kyuubi destroying much of Amegakure while combatting the man. By the end of it, as I'm sure you've all gathered, the village was in ruin and Pain was dead."

"Hmm." Onoki leaned forward, his back groaning in protest. "So, the Akatsuki has been destroyed then."

Tsunade nodded her assent, and the Tsuchikage quietly murmured in response.

"Interesting." He straightened up. "I assume Konoha will be ready to assume responsibility for all the… refugees this act has created?" Tsunade's eyes narrowed, and she drew up as well, her hands lying flat on the cool table.

"What ones we can, of course," she said calmly. "We have already been approached by elements of Amegakure's leadership. Though some of its shinobi are unwilling to approach the Village of the Jinchuriki that destroyed their own, even for aid, many of its shinobi and civilian population are following their leaders to us, and perhaps even integrate alongside them. They have a… religious reverence for them."

"Her, you mean," Onoki grunted. "My shinobi have met that paper woman as well." Tsunade inclined her head slightly. "Well, at least Konoha has been pulling its weight. Still, this outpouring of missing-nin, potentially hundreds of them, is troubling. There may have to be additional measures-"

A slowly stood up, and Onoki's words died away as the other Kages turned to look at the rising man. The Raikage looked around, a sneer worming a way onto his lips.

"Refugees," he snarled, leveling an accusing finger at Tsunade.

"My, how rude," Mei said. The atmosphere of the room skipped, charged by more than a dozen shinobi suddenly tensing, flooding their systems with chakra. Cords in the Raikage's neck tightened.

"Lord Raikage," Mifune said sonorously. A didn't look at him. "Please, preserve the sanctity of this Summit." His razor-sharp eyes practically disappeared into the folds of his face. "This is not the place for fighting."

The Raikage huffed. "I know your game, Hokage!" he growled, not lowering his accusing finger. Tsunade narrowed her eyes.

'That went downhill fast.'

"What are you doing, Raikage?" she asked

"You may think you have pulled the wool over the eyes of the other Nations," the man sneered, looking around. "But not I. My village has been keeping careful tabs on both you, and the Akatsuki. It's clear to me what has been happening over the past month!"

"And what is that, Lord Raikage?" Gaara calmly asked, and A jerked towards him. The man bared his teeth.

"Konoha," he spat, the name like acid on his lips as he lowered his finger, "has been preparing for war."

"Ridiculous." Onoki wasted no time in battering the Raikage's accusation. "Konoha has been doing the same as the rest of us; deescalation. It's been obvious." His eyes narrowed. "Even your own shinobi, Raikage, have been shrinking in number."

"No longer," the hulking man declared. "From this Summit onward, Kumogakure will be keeping a very close eye on its borders. I have no intention of allowing the Leaf to press the advantage any more than it has."

"Raikage," Tsunade said, still seated. The man flared his nostrils at the use of his title. "What are you accusing me of? You believe I would risk the current detente?"

"I believe nothing, Hokage," the Raikage shot back. "It's clear as day. The destruction of Amegakure, the Akatsuki; anyone who does see the truth here is blind!" He narrowed his eyes. "From the beginning, the organization known as the Akatsuki has been in the pocket of Konoha!"

Tsunade blinked, momentarily thrown off her guard. "Excuse me?"

A sneer intensified. "Don't insult me, Hokage."

"I… I truly don't understand." Tsunade shook her head. "The Akatsuki murdered my master's son. Their leader maimed the Toad Sage. They've been hunting down our Jinchuriki, along with the other Villages'-"

"Yes, and how convenient that is!" the Raikage said. He left his spot at the table, and the air popped again as excess chakra in the air, emitted by the Kage's bodyguards, charged it with the smell of ozone and sweat. "The other villages Jinchuriki have been disappearing, one by one! Suna's, stolen out of their own Kazekage!" He regarded Gaara with a look somewhere between pity and disgust. "Iwa's, hunted down and butchered like animals! The Nanabi, vanished! Mist's, the Sanbi disappearing under its new Kage's nose!" He bared his teeth. "Yugito Ni, slaughtered while her guard was down! The Nibi gone."

"What is your point, Raikage." Mei cut in like a scalpel, and the massive man jerked. Mifune leaned forward with a slight grimace, nodding in assent.

"The Jinchuriki have been taken," he said after a moment. "Only the Kyuubi, Hachibi, and Rokubi remain." He snorted. "The Villages are weaker than ever."

"Perhaps," Gaara spoke up. "But how can you blame the Leaf for this crime?"

"Kumogakure has always regarded mercenary organizations with suspicion," the Raikage answered. Tsunade grudgingly acknowledged the man had fearsome charisma; his booming voice filled the room, and every inch of his muscular frame demanded attention. "From the beginning, we regarded the Akatsuki with great care. And the shinobi I assigned to such a dangerous position could not help but notice something."

It hit Tsunade, at that moment, that she might have an inkling of what the Raikage was talking about. In hindsight, it was both incredibly obvious and incredibly stupid.

'Damn you Orochimaru.'

"The Akatsuki has always had a single member of the Hidden Leaf among its ranks," the Raikage said with barely repressed venom. "Always a prodigy, who supposedly went mad and abandoned the village." A glared at Tsunade, and the woman stiffened, almost rising out of her chair. "The first was your own teammate, Tsunade: the Snake Sannin, Orochimaru. He left your village soon after the Kyuubi killed the Yondaime, did he not?"

Tsunade didn't respond, her mind busy racing through possible counterarguments. She had to shut this down before it began in full. Not by attacking the Raikage's supposition now; that would look too suspicious. She needed to bring down the man after he was done.

How. The invasion of course, but that wouldn't be enough-

She devoted just enough of her mind to ensuring she didn't lose track of the man's words.

"Orochimaru remained with the Akatsuki for several years," the Raikage continued. The other Kage, even Gaara, were listening intently. The Kazekage's head was cocked just slightly, like a curious bird. "Until he abandoned the group… with Itachi Uchiha replacing him, the latest prodigious "rogue" from Konoha."

Attack the premise? What else could she do? The pieces fit together. It was like a cosmic joke, that the Raikage had seen a pattern in-

No.

Tsunade barely kept herself from rocking back, maintaining her placid face. The Bijuu; the Rinnegan. Even with a controlled Summit their existence would have been difficult, but now their position was incredibly dangerous. She could leave? No no no, she couldn't be stupid. it would look too guilty. But staying was suicide, maybe literal, no, with Jiraiya and Shikaku they could fight their way out, but-

Her mind whirling so quickly the world seemed frozen as the Raikage continued laying down his accusation, Tsunade tried to plot her way out of three separate checks at once.

'If only I'd been clever and cruel enough to set the plan he's accusing me of in the first place.'

"Doubtlessly, Konoha had hoped we would believe Itachi had been afflicted with that particular Uchiha madness," the Raikage growled. "At any rate, Itachi participated in several missions for the Akatsuki; whether he assisted in capturing any Bijuu is unknown, but it hardly matters." He narrowed his eyes. "For as soon as the Akatsuki had outlived their usefulness, poaching six of the Beasts, he abandoned it, along with his partner Kisame Hoshigaki, and shortly thereafter the entire organization collapsed."

'Dammit-'

"There's more!" the Raikage declared. "Sasuke Uchiha, Itachi's younger brother, "abandoned" Konoha three years ago… fleeing to Orochimaru! Now, he is back in Konoha apparently by some miracle, a member of its Shinobi once more, and immeasurably more powerful than when he left!" The Raikage snarled. "And his brother is with him! Itachi Uchiha, The Walking Genocide, the man who murdered his entire clan, has reunited with his brother, and with the Village he had so viciously abandoned!"

Of all the statements the Raikage had made, this caused the greatest stir. Every Kage shifted to look at Tsunade with weighing eyes, with the exception of Gaara. He simply slowly looked down, his eyes boring into the wood of the table. Tsunade mentally gaped. The Raikage really was going all out; if he knew that, he must have had sources higher in Konoha's structure than she would have guessed. And he was as good as throwing them away just to make this accusation.

Sloppy.

"The last two Uchiha reunited, the Akatsuki destroyed, the Kyuubi Jinchuriki obviously having control over his Beast, the lion's share of the 'refugees' of Amegakure fleeing to the Land of Fire…" the Raikage trailed off, letting the silence speak for him. Tsunade knew what he'd follow it with.

"And yet, there is one question that outweighs all those petty things." A took a deep breath, his whole body going still.

He struck the desk before him with one of his head-sized hands. The polished wood shattered under the blow, and the Raikage reared up like an enraged bull before the sound had even reached Tsunade.

As the section of table exploded into debris, the room exploded into pandemonium. Onoki flew straight up, hovering nearly eight feet in the air as his bodyguards burst out of the curtain behind him; his granddaughter who had delivered the news of the summit to Konoha, and an enormous man that shared the Tsuchikage's nose. Tsunade's own guard emerged as the same time as she held her ground, unwilling to back up even an inch in the face of Ai's anger. Jiraiya and Shikaku flanked her, a sharp shadow creeping past her leg.

Gaara's sibling leapt in front of him as sand peeked out of the gourd on his back, his sister bringing her fan sweeping in front of the Kazekage and one of his brother's puppets clattering into place before them both, a construct of wood and metal leering at the rest of the room. The Mizukage's guards interposed themselves in front of their unshaken Kage, a serious looking man with an eyepatch raising one hand in warning and an excited girl with long blonde hair and teal eyes bringing a pipe to her lips beside him.

A's escort stepped slowly out from behind their curtain, a man and a woman with dark skin, swords, and resigned looks. Their Kage huffed, staring at Tsunade.

"Hokage," he hissed, "where are our Bijuu?"

The world turned into angry white light and noise, and Sakura stumbled backwards, her eyes slamming shut a second too late. Even the darkness behind her eyelids was filled with vicious light.

Flashbang. She'd been flashbanged. Someone had flashbanged-

Sakura pulled herself together with razor focus, her whole being sharp as a knife. She was stuck inside her head; she couldn't hear, and she couldn't see. All she could do was feel. Sasuke was shifting behind her, that she could tell; and through the ground, there was the slightest vibration of scrambling footsteps.

Whoever had done it, no, there were more than one, her whole body was screaming with danger sense, there must be much more than one, would be running through the door right-

Sakura threw herself forward, fist cocked back. It had been about a hundredth of a second since the flashbangs had gone off.

She punched, and something squishy gave way under her fist. Her knuckles were wet. Sakura's shoulder tingled; a knife brushed against it, opening a long shallow slash down her upper back, and she dropped, her leg sweeping around.

One, two, three sets of feet; one of them, the ankle cracked. She made a mental map in her head; this was just like the fight with Sasori. There, his puppets had been rushing her too fast for her to do anything but let instinct take over. Here, she could tell she was completely surrounded; at any moment she could be turned into a pincushion. She had to keep moving.

Sasuke was a complication, but if Sasuke was as smart as she remembered him being he'd stay out of her way.

Sakura hurled herself to the left, bodychecking another mystery shinobi. She felt hastily formed handsigns get crushed against her side, the momentum shoving the man's hand against his chest. She had a mental map now. The doorway was too narrow for more than two or three of the shinobi to get through; if she held them here she could brutalize them with her superior strength, even if they outnumbered her and two of her senses were gone. She threw out a backhand and hit nothing but air. Someone grabbed her wrist, and she jerked down. The man (or perhaps a woman with very large hands) hit the ground so hard the concrete cracked, and Sakura spun, dragging him as an impromptu flail. Something punched through him and arrested her momentum, and Sakura went with the motion, flinging herself to the side and striking out with a knee. A flat object cracked; perhaps a chestplate.

A kunai stabbed clean through her left hand, and Sakura yelped. She jumped straight up, and the blade went with her. Sakura hit the ceiling, stuck there for a moment gathering chakra, and then rocketed back to the floor with as heavy a punch as she could manage in the short time-frame. Another blade, maybe a sword, carved up her cheek, bringing with it a sensation like liquid fire, but Sakura didn't stop.

The world was starting to grow slightly less fuzzy, Sakura's chakra system working overtime to clear her eyes. When she struck the ground, she could perceive the grey of the concrete.

The chakra in her fist exploded out, and the ground exploded with it. She didn't want to level the whole hospital, so the punch wasn't anything close to full strength, but it was more than enough to turn everything within ten feet of her into rubble and shrapnel. Her hearing was back, just a little, and she could hear the wet wheezing of someone trying to breathe through crushed lungs, and several sets of feet scrambling away.

Sakura reared up, spinning around. Her dim sight was good for shapes now; there weren't any standing forms near her. She brought her right hand up to her eyes, sending a jolt of chakra into them. Her sight improved again; now, it just seemed as though she were deep underwater.

"Sasuke?" she said, the words ringing inside her skull. She turned again, searching for him.

A hand poked her shoulder, and Sakura jerked towards it. Sasuke was standing behind her. There was a smile creeping across his lips, and his Sharingan was deactivated. He pulled his hand back carefully.

"Sakura, I-" he said, before Sakura punched him in the stomach. He wheezed, falling to his knees, and the Haruno kicked out, striking him in the jaw.

Sasuke Uchiha sprawled on his back, blood running from his shattered mouth, and dark smoke rolled over him. When it disappeared, there was a man wearing a cracked mask lying on the ground instead. The cracks on the mask ran over what seemed to be a roughly drawn hyena.

'Sasuke never smiled like that.'

She spat blood, straightening back up. Her eye wandered back towards the rest of the room, and Sakura ground her teeth together.

It was exactly what she'd been afraid of. The Rinnegan, and the jar it had been securely floating in, was gone.

"Fuck." Sakura dropped to one knee, the acid pain on her back, in the hole in her palm, and dripping from the slash on her face overwhelming her for a moment. Her knee was screaming as well, along with several back muscles and her right bicep. She'd taken more blows than she'd realized in her frenzied series of attacks in the doorway.

Sakura yanked the kunai out of her hand with another grunted curse, flinging it to the ground. Her blood was forming tiny pools all around her.

The room seemed strangely narrow; the flashbang must not have worn off yet. Sakura turned, staggering back towards the door as quickly as she could manage. She needed to find Sasuke, and the Rinnegan.

And find out who had taken the eye.

The entrance to what had been her lab was completely demolished, but the corridor leading to it was fine. It took Sakura barely five seconds to cross the barren stretch, even with her injured lope. The metal stairs leading down into the basement were still there: she took them four at a time, severely misjudging the last set of steps. If it hadn't been for her feet gripping the corner of the last one, she would have gone tumbling back down the stairs. Instead, she hurled herself forward, bursting out of the double door at the top of the flight.

Now, she was in the hospital proper. The world still seemed strangely narrow, and her injuries, particularly her slashed cheek, ached and burned with ever growing intensity. Could someone see her teeth through the wound? It was a gruesome thought, but she pushed herself onward, throwing herself down the linoleum hallways. She had to get outside and find the attackers; out of the hospital was the only place they could have gone.

Sakura left a trail of blood behind her as she raced towards the hospital's entrance. The light outside was unbearably bright, but that didn't stop her from flinging open the doors.

The first thing she saw was the real Sasuke Uchiha; his frown was unmistakable. The second was the still grey body under him; another one of the masked attackers, dressed in an eerily similar fashion to Konoha's ANBU. This one's mask had something like a tiger on it; some of the marking had been burned off.

"Sasuke," she gasped. "You got one of them?"

He turned towards her, the frown dropping just a little. "You're okay," he said, and for just a moment she thought he sounded relieved. "I went after the ones who ran; I couldn't let them get away with-"

"It's okay, Sasuke," Sakura said. The street under her grew a bit redder. She strode forward, the sun still almost blinding. It felt as though she were an impenetrable curtain over half of it, while the other half was utter brightness. "Did you get it? The Rinnegan?"

His frown grew more bitter; the Uchiha shook his head. "I captured this one; his comrades practically sacrificed him. But the rest got away; more flashbangs, and some sort of insect jutsu. I couldn't pursue."

"Insect jutsu?" Sakura finally drew up next to Sasuke, looking down at the man he'd captured. Some of her blood dripped past her nose and onto the man's back. "You mean… like the Aburame? That's-"

Sasuke finally turned his full attention to her, and his eyes snapped wide open. He grabbed her shoulder, almost roughly, and spun Sakura to face him. She didn't resist, too shocked by the sudden motion. The Uchiha examined her face, her lips drawing down.

Sakura shivered. There was something cold emanating off of Sasuke, chilling the sunny day around them like a stormcloud.

There were people pouring out of the hospital, and more stopping in the streets, drawn by the commotion. It had been strangely empty before, but now it seemed like Konoha was resuming its normal operations. Sakura barely noticed. She was too busy staring at Sasuke's face, so close to her own, and so filled with repressed anger.

"Sakura," he said. Everything past his face was cut off, like a curtain. "Get back to the hospital. You're going to need a medic."

She pulled back. "I'm not that-"

"Your right eye is gone."

Sakura blinked. Her right eyelid exploded into agony at the motion. Slowly, she brought up her unpierced hand. It lightly slid up her cheek's laceration, the slight touch like lightning, and reached the bottom of her eye.

She could feel it there; a delicate orb, resisting the pressure of her finger. She went just a bit higher, and the orb vanished. Her fingers hit the top of her eye-cavity, and came away sticky with thick, almost black blood.

Sakura pulled them in front of her frozen face, and her hand twitched.

"Oh," she said softly.

Sasuke called for a medic, and then again. He strode past her, yelling at the hospital staff that had poured out of the building. Sakura just kept staring at her hand.

Despite the agony racing across her body, and the tiny part of her that wouldn't stop screaming at the sight of the blood on her fingers, she could only think one thing.

'I guess I lost two eyes today.'

Tsunade breathed out.

"You misjudge me, Raikage," she said, eyeing every bristling shinobi in the room. "And I hope I can make you understand that."

"Not likely," the man said. "Don't make me repeat the question, Hokage."

Tsunade glanced back at Shikaku, and the man grimaced, nodding assent.

"The Akatsuki was storing the Bijuu it captured within a statue," Tsunade explained. The other Kage peered at her, some with suspicion, some with curiosity, and one with dawning realization.

"I remember it," Gaara said calmly, the thin clump of sand that had leapt from his gourd settling back into it. "It was a horrible looking thing." The Raikage glared at him.

"Their leader, Pain, was the only one able to summon it," Tsunade said. She locked eyes with A, aggressively projecting honesty. "My village is currently attempting to unlock the secrets behind this summoning. When we have, and we will, I swear to return the Bijuu to all the villages they were robbed from."

"When were you going to tell us this, Hokage?" Onoki asked cannily, and Tsunade pinned him with a stare.

"Immediately after we'd sorted out the refugee issue," she said truthfully, before shifting her eyes back to A. Her lip curled down. "I regret we now have to discuss it in such a… hostile environment."

"Hmm." Onoki floated closer to the ground, his eye wandering over Jiraiya's stump. He frowned. "Like your grandfather before you. You propose to redistribute the Bijuu?"

"Of course," Tsunade said. "Konoha has no intention of disturbing the balance of power."

"Liar!"

Tsunade spun to the Raikage, flashing her teeth. "Lord Raikage, please. You are proposing something ridiculous: a conspiracy strung together by several unfortunate coincidences, all centered around my village!" She stood fully up, as imperious as she could manage. "If my master and myself were clever enough to come up with such a ridiculous and far reaching plan, don't you believe we would have hidden it better?"

Gaara's eyes lit up at that, and his siblings relaxed. Tsunade didn't let herself grin at the sight, but it eased something in her heart.

"Attempting to take refuge in ridiculousness, Hokage?" the Raikage asked. His hand curled around the top his chair, and the wood deformed below his fingers. "Indeed, who would have suspected that Orochimaru would have-"

"That man murdered the Sandaime!" Tsunade growled, leaning forward and laying her hands knuckles-down on the desk. "He invaded the Leaf! And you would suppose he was doing this under orders?"

The Mizukage grinned slightly at Tsunade's tirade. Mifune just grew more and more tired looking.

"An invasion!" The Raikage was shouting now, foregoing politeness. "An invasion, you say? Konoha certainly seemed no worse for wear afterwards! Your shinobi were taking missions as normal, Hokage! There was no great loss of manpower! Konoha walked away from that invasion having secured the alliance of Sunagakure, no worse for wear! You expect me to take that as proof Orochimaru is a true rogue?" He snorted. "It even gave you the perfect excuse to have Sasuke Uchiha "escape" the village to be tutored by one of the Sannin."

"You're seeing a conspiracy where there is none, Raikage," Tsunade said, her voice still measured. She pressed her hand to her chest. "We had to put on a show of strength. That is how all the Villages operate. What would you have done, if it were clear that Orochimaru's actions had stretched Konoha to its limit? Can you honestly say that Kumogakure would not have considered capitalizing on it?"

At that, there was a short stretch of silence. The Raikage narrowed his eyes.

Onoki chuckled. "My," he croaked. "There hasn't been a summit this interesting since your sensei was young, Tsunade." He grinned, turning to the Raikage. "A, she's got you there. However, I can't help but wonder…" He turned back to Tsunade, and all traces of affability vanished.

"If Itachi Uchiha really is back in the village," the Tsuchikage said, "then perhaps there is a hint of truth to the Raikage's words."

"Hmm." Tsunade sat back down in her chair. "He is. And yes, I believe that unintentionally, the Raikage did hit upon some truth in his accusations." She glanced at Jiraiya, and he nodded; silently, he and Shikaku retreated back behind the curtain. "Itachi Uchiha was, in fact, loyal to Konoha, and remains so. But he was not directing the Akatsuki in any way; merely gathering information. He was sent on that mission by the Sandaime, and truly, we never expected him to return. With the collapse of the organization, he has."

Close enough to the truth, especially for this kind of meeting.

"I see." Onoki sat back down in his chair as well, and internally Tsunade sighed.

"Then, where do we stand?" he said.

"You can't believe her!" the Raikage snapped, glaring at the diminutive man. Onoki glared back, unintimidated.

"Hokage," he said mockingly, "have been, in my experience, foolishly honest." He grinned unkindly. "And I was there to see the first. I do not believe, Raikage, that Konoha orchestrated the Akatsuki; it is both too obvious and too ridiculous to be true."

The Raikage stared at him, sucking in a deep breath. He stared around the rest of the table, meeting the eyes of the other two Kage. Mei shrugged, her bodyguards also withdrawing as she slipped back into her seat. Gaara returned a flat gaze, his hands folded in front of his chin. His guards had disappeared as well.

"Lord Raikage." Tsunade said, drawing his attention back to her. "I do not believe you a stupid man, or a wasteful one." She leaned forward. "What can I do to prove to you Konoha has no interest in another war?"

The man's eyes darted between her and Onoki. "Tsuchikage," he said, for the first time in the entire Summit in a somewhat even tone. "You don't believe the Sandaime Hokage would be capable of such a plot, do you."

"No." The Tsuchikage refused to meet the Raikage's eyes. "I do not."

"That is understandable," A said. "But I don't believe it was him who organized this conspiracy."

"No?" Mei spoke up. "Who then?"

"His shadow," the Raikage said, and Tsunade let slip a slight grimace. "Danzo Shimura."

Onoki blinked, and turned to the Raikage with a suspicious air. He glanced back at Tsunade.

"That," he said slowly, "does sound entirely more plausible."

"Lord Raikage," Mifune said as Tsunade turned the Tsuchikage's words over in her head. "I'm sorry, but that's more than enough. You've presented nothing but your own suspicion and a series of coincidences. A rogue ninja does not a conspiracy make. I must insist that you cease this line of talks; I should not have allowed it as far as I have."

The Raikage huffed, but after a moment inclined his head. "I apologize," he said. "I will do just that."

He turned, stepping past his chair. "C, Darui, we're leaving." His guards stepped out from behind the curtain. As A turned away, Mifune rose.

"Lord Raikage, I must insist you stay," he asked calmly. "This Summit is not concluded."

"I've said what I came here to say," the Raikage grunted. "It's up to the other Kage now whether they see reason or not."

"Ai!" Tsunade barked, not rising. "You never answered my question."

The Raikage regarded her with suspicious grey eyes.

"I will never trust you, Fifth Hokage," he said bluntly, and the Hokage scowled. "And not a single one of those refugees will be setting foot in the Land of Lightning." His brow crinkled. "But if you want to convince me Konoha does not wish for war…"

He turned, walking away. "Returning the Nibi will be a start."

The Raikage vanished from sight, and the Summit chamber grew silent. The anger that had charged the room was gone; all that was left was a tired wariness.

"Well then." Onoki sounded his age. "Let's finish what we started, then, and be on our way. I didn't come all the way out here to listen to conspiracy theories."

Gaara nodded, un-steepling his fingers and setting them flat on the table. "Suna will take what we can. Konoha is our ally; we are more than willing to assist in this effort.

Mei nodded. "I cannot promise the same. Kirigakure is still recovering in many ways from our recent... difficulties. I'll have to confer with my top Jonin before any agreements can be made."

Tsunade just sighed.

'Sakura had better work quickly.'

An old man, alone on top of a mountain, looked out over half a century of work. It was disorganized. Messy, chaotic in places, sprawling out below him for miles. A bastion of sanity in a world that frequently discarded it.

He'd worked his whole life to protect this place, and had the scars to prove it. Half of his body had been sacrificed towards that purpose. And yet, before today, he'd never felt anything like regret.

It had always been difficult. Sullying himself, sacrificing others, living in the shadows. While it may have been the purpose of a shinobi, it was unnatural for a man. He'd given that up, of course; he was a tool, not a man, and it was vainglorious to think otherwise. It was only today, now, seeing the fruits of his labors so starkly, that he allowed himself to feel a twinge of… nostalgia, perhaps.

He was wasting time. His tools were here; they were waiting in the trees behind him for direction. One of them was carrying Konoha's future in her hand; a small jar filled with thick liquid. He could see it as though it was right in front of him.

Danzo closed his eye.

"Move out."

There was a rustle of leaves, and Konoha's Root was gone.

AN: Quicker update this time. I wish I could say it's a sign of things to come, but I'm still working out my summer schedule. We'll see how it goes.

Hope you enjoyed the chapter.

Serendipity, out.