Nel here, sorry for making you wait so long, I've been crazy busy. I hope you find it was worth the wait! =]

xxx

It had been almost three weeks since Naruto had left the village. Every morning before heading to work Sasuke would stop at the bottom step and whisper to Naruto that he loved him and to be safe. Days weren't too bad; he stayed busy with training regiments, reports, and meetings. He had three trainings scheduled every day and would squeeze in the reporting and meetings anywhere he could. Any spare time he had left he spent plotting against Koharu and Homura the two remaining elders. Even with access to the Anbu files it was proving challenging to find a way to take them down, their talons reached far and dug deep. Once an opportunity finally presented itself it would make their fall even harder, but for now Sasuke waited. When night rolled around it was an entirely different story. Nights were insufferable. Many nights Sasuke would work through simply because he didn't want to go back to the empty apartment, others he spent with Suigetsu. He had always been a loner and yet here he was doing anything he could to avoid being alone. When he laid down at night and everything was quiet and he was alone Naruto's absence and how much he missed him would tear into him like a ravenous animal, ruthless and relentless. He would be miserable until he finally faded into sleep. He just wanted Naruto home.

Currently Sasuke was making his way to Tsunade's office for a meeting; he had just finished up the morning training session his skin glistened with sweat in the sun. It was a hot day. He made a quick stop on his way to splash some cool water onto his face. It made him think of the day he spent with Naruto at their secret paradise. What he would give to be there with Naruto now. He let out a sigh. Naruto would be the death of him; the person he used to be was certainly dead. He was not the man he once was, which wasn't a bad thing; it was just taking some getting used too. When he entered the Tsunade's office, Shizune, the two elders, Suigetsu, and Sai were all present. Sasuke noted the four other individuals in the room that he didn't recognize.

"Ah, good you've arrived. We are ready to begin." At Tsunade's words everyone quieted down. "Sasuke, I can tell that you are wondering who these four are." Tsunade gestured to the group beside her. "I requested that each Kage send a representative to sit in on this meeting and report any updates from them as well as report back on what we discuss." Sasuke nodded his understanding. "Please summarize your report for us Sasuke."

"Training is going well. As expected the Anbu picked up on the skills quickly and have been a big help with training the rest of the shinobi ranks. Sai especially has been an asset. Everyone has taken the training seriously and has been putting their all into getting stronger and have been progressing well. With more time I am certain they will be ready for anything Madara might throw at them. All of the details are written in my report."

"This is good news, thank you Sasuke." Tsunade nodded to the next person in line to give their report.

xxx

It was nearly twelve thirty when they finally broke for lunch; the meeting had started at nine. They still hadn't even gotten to the four representatives yet. Sai, Suigetsu and himself had given verbal summaries of their reports and then the group had painstakingly gone through the details of each of their full reports asking the occasional question here and there. Sasuke walked over to the table of refreshments and frowned. No tea in sight. He reluctantly poured some black sludge into his cup.

"You must be dead on your feet to have gone for the coffee. Pull another all-nighter?" Sai walked up beside him.

"Tch." Sasuke grimaced when he took a sip from his cup. Sai's grin widened a bit at his reaction. The two had been working closely over the last few weeks and had become good friends. Sai's lack of ability to read emotions and Sasuke's lack of ability to show emotion made them a perfect yet unusual pair. They rarely spoke but always understood each other. "If only Shikamaru was here to tell us what a drag it is." They both smirked at Sasuke's joke.

"I have this uneasy feeling like we are missing a piece of the puzzle. There must be more to Madara's plan." Sai frowned.

"You read my mind. I don't like just waiting for him to make a move. Have any of the teams picked up on any leads?"

"Nothing, there's not a trace." Sasuke frowned with annoyance at Sai's answer.

"Maybe the four representatives will have something to report." Sai shrugged in response. The meeting was about to begin again when the air at the center of the room began to move in an unnatural almost tangible way. Everyone stared in astonishment except for Sasuke, he already knew what was happening. As soon as Madara appeared he had him locked in a genjustsu. He knew it wouldn't hold him for long, but it didn't need it too.

"Ah, so it's true, you have rejoined the Leaf, Sasuke." The deep voice was full of malice. "Did you really think I would be fooled by this genjutsu?"

"No. I wanted to talk in private." Madara raised an eyebrow.

"I'm listening."

"All I care about is getting revenge, the only reason I am here now is because it was the easiest way for me to take down the elders. I'll admit, it's taking a bit longer than anticipated, but if I can take them down without dying in the process then it's worth it. I killed Deidara to gain everyone's trust. Fooling these idiots was child's play. I didn't even have to use genjutsu."

"Are you trying to tell me that this whole time you've been on my side and you haven't betrayed me? I'm not foolish enough to trust you."

"Tch." Sasuke rolled his eyes. "Did I say that? I've never cared about your plans." His words bit like frostbite. "I followed you until it was no longer advantageous for me. You act as if you were actually surprised when I left. Perhaps you're just another fool. Nevertheless, I believe we can help each other out."

"Is that so? And what could you possibly have that I would want?" Sasuke let out a mischievous chuckle.

"The location of the eight and nine tails of course. Without my help, it will take you months if not years to find them. All the while, they will be growing stronger." Madara eyed Sasuke suspiciously.

"And what do you want?"

"Kill the elders."

"That's it? How will I know that what you tell me is the truth?"

"I will take you there myself. Once the elders are dead there will be nothing left for me here. Do we have a deal or not?" Sasuke and Madara stared at each other in silence for what seemed like forever.

"You don't want to kill them yourself? You would be content with them dying by my hand instead of yours?"

"Dead is dead. I grow tired of this. Your answer?"

"Very well, I agree." The words slithered out of Madara's mouth like a snake accompanied by an evil laugh. "You never cease to entertain Sasuke." He broke the genjutsu and faced the room full of people. Looks of astonishment still on their faces. What had been minutes in the genjutsu had not even been micro seconds in the real world. They could have talked for as long as they liked and it would have made no difference. That was the beauty of it, you could cause someone endless pain in less time than it takes to blink your eye. An eternity in a second.

"Madara!" Tsunade yelled. Everyone in the room went into fighting position. Sasuke followed suit for show. "What do you want?"

"Simple really." Madara's voice grew dark. "War." Shock returned to every one's faces again. "The world will bend to my will. Nothing will stop me." In a flash he was behind the elders, no one even had time to react. "Yours will be the first blood that's shed." Koharu and Homura tried to fight back but they didn't stand a chance. He had both of their necks firmly in his grasp. "Consider this a warning, if you do not submit you will suffer the same fate." His fingers dug into the side their throats blood wetting his fingers. In one swift movement he tore their jugulars, blood spraying violently throughout the room. The elders released blood curdling screams as they collapsed to the floor in pools of their own blood.

xxx

When Madara appeared suddenly behind the elders Sasuke looked over at Sai. When they locked eyes he caught him in his genjutsu.

"Sai, I need you to trust me. Do nothing."

"You have a plan." It was more of a statement than a question.

"I'm going to take him to Naruto and the eight tails."

"Do you think that wise?"

"He is no match for the three of us together." Sai nodded.

"Very well. I understand. Before you go I need to give you something. Please be prepared it may be a little uncomfortable." Sasuke gave him a questioning look but just nodded his head.

"Thank you." He said as he released the genjutsu.

xxx

Everyone sprung into action at once as the elders fell to the floor. Madara laughed evilly. As everyone launched their attacks Madara simply disappeared and reappeared behind Sasuke.

"I'll be taking him with me. He can be of use to me." Just as Madara tried to grab Sasuke and pull him into his portal Sai tackled Sasuke to the floor. Using his scrolls he created a barrier around them as everyone launched new attacks at Madara.

"Sai I thought you agreed to..." Sasuke was cut short by Sai's lips connecting with his. His eyes widened and just as he was about to push Sai off he felt him slide something into his mouth and push it to the back of his throat with his tongue. They separated just as Madara materialized inside of the barrier Sai had created.

"It's useless, you cannot keep him from me." Madara grabbed onto Sasuke and they vanished.