Naruto Fan Fiction ❯ The Contentious Heart ❯ Chapter 3 ( Chapter 3 )

Disclaimer: Naruto and its characters are created by Masashi Kishimoto, but the new plots (meaning the ones you don't recognize!) are mine. This fanfiction had been written for entertainment purposes only and without intention of infringing upon any copyright.

 

Spoilers: The story follows the canon storyline until the part shortly after the Sasuke vs. Orochimaru battle (approximately chapter 353). After that, I took liberties with the facts.

 

A/N: Happy New Year everyone! To Vampire Pandora and lindajrjt, thank you so much for the reviews.

 

I'm so happy you like the story so far. Without further ado, here's the next chapter.

 

 

The Contentious Heart by elle6778 - Chapter 3

 

 

Sakura laid back on her futon, stretching languidly as she did so. Eyes half hooded, she scanned the room she had been given last night. It was nice and spacious. The construction was traditional, with walls made out of bamboo and shoji screens, and floor carpeted with tatami mats. A cozy little fire pit graced the centre of the room, next to a low table and flat cushions beside it.

 

With a sigh, she stood up to walk to the open window, her mission for Konoha playing in her mind. The slight breeze reminded her that she haven't contacted Tsunade about the latest development with the Akatsuki yet. Considering where she was, she did not dare to risk the message being intercepted until she knew more about the security of the area. But at least she managed to leave a scroll with a brief description of Konan in one of the pickup points. Hopefully it would give Konoha some idea of where to start researching the background of this female Akatsuki member.

 

Sliding down to the tatami mat, she leaned against the bottom of the window.

 

Konan had approached her exactly one week after their first encounter. At that time, Sakura had been camping out in one of the rocky valleys in Earth Country, for the lack of villages nearby. The heat and humidity getting the worst of her, Sakura knew that she had been far from pleasant. But Konan had simply smirked and calmly presented her offer again.

 

That time round, she had consented to follow Konan back to one of their bases to listen to what they had to offer. Heck, she would have accepted anything just to get a break from the damned heat. After a long one week, but not unpleasant journey south, they had finally arrived at Rain Country last night. It was not until this morning that she had been introduced to Pein, the reclusive leader of the organization.

 

Sakura could not help but grin at her recollection of the Uchiha's and the shark-man's expressions earlier. They sure did not expect to see her here. But what amused her most was Kisame's displeasure. The guy was obviously itching to fight her again, for revenge, no doubt. Her eyes narrowed in anticipation. Heh, she could not wait to try out a few of her untested jutsu on Kisame. Something told her that it was going to be fun.

 

Yawning, she decided that it was a good time to take a nap, since she did not know what she was in for later in the day. Settling down on the futon, her eyes landed briefly on the kunai holster strapped to her thigh. She had to be on guard all the time, seeing that she was effectively in enemy territory, so it was best to leave her weapons secured to her person.

 

Closing her eyes, she allowed herself to doze off.

 

In what seemed like no time at all, she was awakened from her light slumber by a sudden commotion. Springing up from the futon, Sakura darted to the window, her shinobi senses instantly alert. The sound came from outside but when she peeked out, she spotted nothing out of the ordinary. Whatever it was, it must have moved indoors, she decided.

 

Making sure that all her shinobi kit was in place, Sakura left the room and made her way stealthily down the hallway. She could sense chakra in the direction of the living room. It did not seem as if there was a battle going on, but there was no harm in being prepared. Sliding a kunai out of the holster, she gripped it securely and continued in that direction until she heard muffled voices.

 

The voices grew louder, some familiar and some unfamiliar as she paused outside the door. Cautiously, she pushed it open to find four pairs of eyes turned towards her. Her nose instantly twitched at the unmistakable scent of blood. When a groan of pain reached her, her medic sense immediately kicked in.

 

Someone was very, very injured.

 

The one wearing a one-eyed orange mask was the first one to speak. “Eh? Who is this?”

 

“Our newest member,” Kisame muttered darkly.

 

Sakura only had eyes for the injured Akatsuki doubled over against the wall. This one was Deidara, if she remembered correctly. Her experienced eyes landed on his stomach, or what was left of it amidst the blood. Lips set in a determined line, she strode forward only to be blocked by the shark-man.

 

She glared at him. “Let me pass. Can't you see that the guy is bleeding to death?”

 

The Mist shinobi's jaw ticked.

 

“Kisame-san, she's a medic-nin,” the Uchiha pointed out levelly.

 

The masked one took a quick step towards her. “Can you heal Deidara-senpai? He's Tobi's partner.”

 

Before she could respond, the door to the room opened again. She glanced over her shoulder to see Pein and Konan entering the room. The leader's attention instantly focused on the injured Akatsuki.

 

“What happened, Deidara?” he asked tersely.

 

Deidara's only response was a choked groan as he clutched his midsection. Sakura frowned at the sight of blood seeping between his fingers, flowing down to the floor. His condition was critical. The guy would die if he was not treated soon.

 

“I told him that he should not fight, but the Deidara-senpai did it anyway!” the masked man exclaimed. “The hachibi jinchuuriki knew that we were tracking him and chased after us. We could have run, but Deidara-senpai stayed to fight. And I told him-”

 

“I understand, Tobi,” Pein interjected the rant. Turning to her, he asked, “Sakura, you are a medic-nin, are you not? Can he be healed?”

 

Nodding wordlessly, Sakura pushed past the shark-man to reach Deidara. The poor man was shaking uncontrollably, and the spreading pool of blood around him told her that if she did not do anything soon, Deidara would go into shock from blood loss. Crouching down, she reached out to pry his hands away. His entire body jerked as his unfocussed eyes snapped up to hers, filled with distrust. Grimacing in irritation, but understanding that Deidara had good reason not to trust a stranger, she tightened her grip around his wrists.

 

Keeping her voice low and steady, she coaxed, “Deidara-san, you need to let go. I can't heal you without inspecting your injuries.”

 

Konan stepped behind her. “Let her tend to you, Deidara.”

 

Deidara eyes narrowed in suspicion. “S-She's with the kyuubi! So she's not touching me, yeah.”

 

“She's one of us now.”

 

Sakura bit back the urge to correct Konan. The Akatsuki seemed so certain that she would accept. She had only agreed to see what they would offer her, and she had said nothing about accepting, even thought she would eventually accept it. Her mission was to infiltrate the Akatsuki after all.

 

“I wouldn't let her touch me too, but I don't think you have much of a choice right now,” Kisame told the blonde.

 

“Lie down, Deidara. This is an order,” Pein finally snapped when Deidara failed to obey.

 

The blonde Akatsuki hesitated for a moment, and then his arms loosened. Reaching out to place her hands behind his back, she helped lower him down to the blood-stained tatami mat. Deidara was still tense and obviously in a lot of pain, but at least she could see his injuries now. It did not escape her that he was still glaring suspiciously at her.

 

“It's not looking good,” she whispered half to herself as her eyes scanned his mutilated midsection. It looked like the jinchuuriki had sank his claws multiple times into the Akatsuki. The edges of his torn flesh looked burnt. Still, she had seen enough of Naruto's transformations to know that it could have been much, much worse.

 

The rest of the Akatsuki said nothing while she placed her glowing hand over the wounds, trying to determine the actual extent of the injury. When she was satisfied with her inspection, she changed her chakra to one for healing. She noted that the blonde had finally succumbed to the pain and had fallen unconscious. Closing her eyes in concentration, she carefully infused her chakra into his damaged organs, encouraging them to heal.

 

She did not know how long she knelt there beside Deidara, time seemed always to lose its meaning when she was healing. The gentle humming from her palms was the only sound she heard as she forced more and more of her healing chakra into the wound. A little bit more, she kept telling herself when she felt herself being drained more and more.

 

After what seemed like hours, she lifted her hands. Picking up a piece of bandage, she wiped away the blood. Pink, fresh skin was now present instead of the bloody mangled flesh. She sighed in a mix of relief and satisfaction. Then the torn black cloak with red clouds caught her eyes and Sakura blinked. For the last few hours, she had actually forgotten about her mission. Instead, she had simply reverted back to being a medic.

 

Glancing out of the window, she noticed that it was already dark. She must have worked on Deidara for at least five hours straight, she thought as she lowered her eyes to the unconscious Akatsuki. No wonder she felt drained.

 

A sudden rush of panic clogged her throat when it sank in that in her state, she was practically defenseless in enemy territory. With her level of chakra, she would not be able to fight back if they tried anything. Gritting her teeth, she forced herself to calm down. She had made a mistake, but there was nothing she could do now. And anyway, it was unlikely that they would harm her, seeing that they wanted to recruit her.

 

“Will he be alright?”

 

She looked over her shoulders to find Tobi waiting expectantly. The other four Akatsuki members were still in the room, sitting on cushions and leaning against the walls. They too, wore expectant looks as they stood up to join Tobi. Slowly, she released the breath she had not realize she had been holding. She was panicking for no reason. It was clear that they were not planning to harm her. And if she wanted to fit in without raising suspicions, she had better try to relax, at least outwardly.

 

“He'll be fine now,” she assured with a small smile.

 

Tobi nodded.

 

“He should be moved to somewhere more comfortable,” she added.

 

“I'll bring him to his room,” Tobi quickly offered and then bent down to scoop Deidara into his arms. Without another word, the masked shinobi carried his partner out of the room, leaving the other four Akatsuki with her.

 

Sakura grimaced as she straightened her back, unfolding her legs from the floor at the same time. Unfortunately, her legs had fallen asleep on her and she wobbled unsteadily. A hand gripped her elbow firmly, saving her from embarrassing herself. She glanced around to find herself looking into a pair of crimson eyes.

 

Dragging her eyes away in reflex, she stared at his chin and muttered, “Thank you, Itachi-san.”

 

The Sharingan-wielder simply inclined his head in acknowledgement.

 

Pein gave her a wry smile. “This was not what I had in mind for tonight. I planned on introducing you to Akatsuki.” After a short pause, he added, “Konan told me that you have questions.”

 

Sakura nodded. “I'm curious about the invitation.”

 

Pein flicked his eyes towards Konan. “We can explain that now. This does not need Deidara's participation.” Gesturing to the door, he added, “We can discuss it over dinner.”

 

Sakura's stomach rumbled in agreement, and she flushed in embarrassment while Kisame snorted. She immediately glared at the shark-man. To her surprise, he simply quirked a brow.

 

Well, that was surprising, she thought. Where was all the animosity?

 

Four of them made their way to the dining hall, and there, packets of food were already sitting on the large table. Sakura surmised that one of them must have left to get it while she had been occupied in healing Deidara.

 

Soon enough, the packets were opened and dinner began.

 

 

…***…***…***…

 

 

It was clear that the kunoichi was exhausted, Itachi observed impassively. Her chakra was low from the earlier healing, but for some reason, she could still manage to appear animated. From the way she and Kisame were taking verbal shots at each other, no one could tell that she was tired. Unless one possessed the enhanced eyesight provided by the Sharingan, of course.

 

As they continued to eat, the subtly conversation turned in the direction of the kunoichi's potential role in Akatsuki. Itachi wondered why Pein even bothered to go through this. After all, the kunoichi would have no choice but to accept. The fact that she was aware of the location of one of their bases was enough to ensure her death if she chose to decline the offer.

 

“As you know, one of Akatsuki's main tasks is to obtain all nine bijuu. In addition to that, most members also have individual responsibilities,” Pein began. “After your performance earlier, it would have made sense to assign the role of medic to you. Especially considering we've never had one.”

 

Itachi's chopsticks paused as he glanced at their leader. The rest of them, bar Deidara who was not present, did the same.

 

“However, there is something else that we need your skills for.”

 

“What is it?” she asked curiously.

 

“Finances.”

 

As everyone around him stilled at Pein's words, Itachi raised a brow. Kakuzu, the bounty-hunter, had been their original treasurer. And then Zetsu had taken over that role since Kakuzu's defeat at the hands of the Leaf shinobi. And now, Pein wished to assign this task to this kunoichi? Frowning inwardly, Itachi wondered why Pein would assign such an important role to a newcomer. Surely such a thing posed a greater risk to the organization?

 

“You will be responsible for the organization's funds, making sure that we have sufficient.”

 

Sakura placed her chopsticks down slowly. Mild confusion suffused her features. “Pein-san, why do you need me for this position? My specialty is medical .”

 

Pein nodded. “That is true, as well as your enormous strength. But our research told us that you are exceptional at… raising funds.” He reached into his cloak to pull out a bound stack of paper. Sliding it across to the kunoichi, he continued, “The proof is clearly presented in these sheets.”

 

Not knowing what those sheets contained, Itachi studied the kunoichi as she flicked through them and saw her eyes widen in recognition. She remained still for a moment, her expression turning unmistakably cold. Then she slammed it flat beneath her palms. Her eyes were hard when she glared at Pein.

 

“These are personal,” she bit out icily.

 

Konan quiet voice broke in. “That it might be, but you must understand that it is necessary for us to investigate you. After all, the role of a treasurer is an important one.”

 

“What's in there?” Tobi interjected curiously, trying to look over Konan at the stack under the kunoichi's hand.

 

“List of my jobs and how much I've been paid,” Sakura replied flatly. “In other words, invasion of my privacy.”

 

Itachi glanced at the kunoichi, curious despite himself. Clearly displeased by what she perceived as the invasion of her privacy, her green eyes flashed as she continued to glare at Pein. She must have managed to amass quite a large personal fund to catch Pein's interest. And all of them knew that the Akatsuki's expenditure was not small. Kakuzu, and later Zetsu, had to make a lot of effort to ensure that they have sufficient funds.

 

“So, kunoichi. How much do you have in there?” Kisame asked in a taunting voice.

 

She shot Mist shinobi a dark look. “It's none of your business, Kisame-san.”

 

Kisame bared his teeth in a parody of a smile. “Soon it would be.”

 

“What I earned is mine. And it stays that way even if I decide to join.”

 

Pein raised a placating hand. “Sakura, we will not touch your personal funds. What you've earned before is yours solely. However, from now on, you will act in the interest of the Akatsuki. You seem to have an eye for seeking out lucrative missions, judging by the amount in there,” he stated as he pointed at the paper flattened under her hand. “And that is what we need for Akatsuki.”

 

A thoughtful frown appeared between Sakura's brows. After a while, she looked back up at Pein. “So what exactly is the job description?”

 

“Apart from our main goal, we also carry out side missions. Your role would be to ensure that these side missions bring in enough funds to support the organization and our main goal.”

 

“Do you mean for me to do these side missions all by myself to support this organization?” she sputtered incredulously.

 

Kisame laughed out loud. “That would be nice.”

 

Tobi piped up, “Zetsu-senpai used to tell Pein-san which side missions we should take to make money. Then Pein-san chooses and assigns the mission to the rest of us.”

 

“I see.” A pause followed. “What about distribution of funds for missions?” she asked. “And what do I get out of it?”

 

“You will allocate what is needed for the members and missions,” Pein explained.

 

Sakura turned a questioning look to towards the only other female Akatsuki. But before she could open her mouth, Konan held her hand up. “I told you a few days ago that you'll be paid well, Sakura. This has not changed. In fact, how well you're paid is up to your own discretion to a certain extent.”

Pein nodded. “It might change in the future, but at this moment, we have a set target to fund the organization and its goals. Once we meet this figure, the rest of the fund is split between the members, with a higher percentage for the leader and the treasurer.”

 

The kunoichi's tone was doubtful when she asked, “Why? That sounds too good to be true. Why should the treasurer be paid more?”

 

“Take it as an incentive to work harder at increasing our funds,” Konan suggested with a small smile.

 

“I see.” She adopted a thoughtful look, and then the kunoichi's eyes gleamed. “So let me get this straight. If I feel that we need more funds, I can ask for more missions to be carried out?”

 

“That's right.”

 

The gleeful smile which crossed her lips instantly sent Itachi's senses into alert. Could it be possible that she intended on sending them to carry out endless number of missions to raise funds? His grip tightened around his chopsticks. Surely not. A quick sideways glance towards his partner told him that Kisame was probably thinking of the same thing, considering the frown adorning his forehead.

 

Pein raised a questioning brow. “I trust that you'd find this satisfactory?”

 

A contemplative look crossed the pink-haired kunoichi's features. She appeared to be thinking it over.

 

Konan voice was level when she asked, “Do you accept?”

 

The kunoichi took a deep breath. Then she nodded. “I accept.”

 

“Good. Or else we might have to kill you,” Konan remarked conversationally. “As it is, you already know too much. We could not possibly allow you to leave with this information.”

 

Seemingly unperturbed, the kunoichi said, “I understand.”

 

Tobi grinned. “Welcome to the Akatsuki. Isn't this great? We've got a new member!”

 

Kisame grunted.

 

“There is one more thing, Sakura.”

 

She quirked a questioning brow. “Hmm?”

 

“You will have to capture the hachibi jinchuuriki as everyone else has been allocated their own bijuu. The only other outstanding one, as you know, is the kyuubi.”

 

Itachi glanced towards the kunoichi to see her reaction. How would she feel about her task considering that her friend was a jinchuuriki? Her expression betrayed nothing, but his Sharingan eyes did not miss the slight flicker in her eyes. Would she change her mind now?

 

She blinked, and then her eyes took on a gleam of interest. “I'll complete the task, Pein-san. The jinchuuriki will be captured,” she responded levelly.

 

“Good.”

 

Interesting, Itachi thought. Leaf shinobi tended to be rather… attached to friendship. Perhaps this Haruno Sakura had been a missing-nin long enough to shed the emotion. After all, she had left Konoha, had she not?

 

Finishing her meal, the kunoichi stood up, taking the bound booklet of her records with her. “If you would excuse me, I'd like to return to my room.”

 

“Sakura must be tired after healing Deidara-senpai,” Tobi observed, nodding his head vigorously.

 

She gave Tobi a lopsided smile.

 

“You've spent a large amount of chakra,” Pein acknowledged. “Once Deidara is well, we will commence your initiation. You may, however, consider yourself an Akatsuki now.”

 

Itachi watched silently with the rest of the Akatsuki as the kunoichi left the room.

 

Kisame was the first one to break the silence. “So, she's our new treasurer, huh?”

 

“Her financial records are impressive,” Konan pointed out. “No other missing-nins come close to what she's earning.”

 

“Does she have a bloodline limit?” Tobi asked curiously.

 

Pein shook his head. “Not that we know of. But her fighting skills are reputed to be excellent.” Then he turned to Kisame. “You fought her recently, I heard.”

 

Kisame grunted. The way his eyes were pinned to his chopsticks made it seem as if he found those eating utensils very fascinating. Itachi could not help but smirk at his partner's obvious discomfort. Kisame could have saved himself the discomfort if he had not chosen to approach the kunoichi two weeks ago.

 

Tobi leaned forward. “So who won?”

 

The sake cup in Kisame's hand cracked as he let out an almost inaudible growl.

 

Knowing that the rest expected to hear an answer, Itachi explained, “The kunoichi used a medical technique to defeat Kisame.”

 

“Is that so?” Pein murmured thoughtfully. “How interesting. So, Kisame, what do you think of her skills?”

 

The Mist shinobi's tone was grudging when he replied, “She's not bad.”

 

Tobi bounced slightly on his chair. “So you were defeated, huh, Kisame? That must have been pretty embarrassing.”

 

As Konan chuckled, Pein held out a hand to restrain the snarling Kisame before he could launch across the dining table towards a surprised Tobi. Mildly exasperated, Itachi could not help but wonder sometimes if Tobi deliberately tried to get on their nerves. The masked shinobi certainly did it often enough to warrant suspicion.

 

Deciding the voice the question which had played on his mind earlier, Itachi turned to Pein. “Why Orochimaru's ring?”

A small smile crossed Pein's lips. “Compatibility.”

 

Kisame frowned. “What do you mean?”

 

“I don't understand,” Tobi said plaintively.

 

“From our research, Sakura is predisposed towards the wind element, and to a lesser extent, the earth element. Orochimaru's elemental bias is towards these same two elements,” Pein explained.

 

“Hm.”

 

Tobi looked confused, but Itachi understood the reasoning. Considering that the bijuu extraction process was dependent on the chakra of the ring-wearer, placing Sakura in Orochimaru's position made sense. Her type of chakra was similar to Orochimaru's, hence would create less instability issues during the extraction. Based on what he had seen during her fight with Kisame, he could also tell that she possessed good chakra control, which was essential for the extraction process.

 

Yes, it certainly made sense that Pein wanted her as a part of Akatsuki.

 

The rest of the meal continued in relative silence. When the rest of them finished their dinner, they left the room and made their way back to their own quarters.

 

Entering his room, Itachi slid the shoji screen shut behind him and went to the bathroom to cleanse himself. Once that was done, he sat down on his futon and then laid down. As he glanced out of the open window, the full moon caught his attention. Unbidden, a memory long lost flashed across his mind.

 

The moon shone brightly in the backdrop of inky sky, casting odd shadows in his room. It was annoying, how those shadows danced against the walls and the floor, making him see what was not there.

 

Laid on his futon, he drew his eyes away from the window to stare at the patterns on the ceiling. His eyes were sore and his mind felt clouded, but he could not allow himself to sleep. A kunai was gripped tight in his right hand and his left hand rested on the pouch which contained his shuriken. He did not know when they would come, so he had learnt to be permanently on guard.

 

He could not afford to do otherwise.

 

Four months had passed since they first came to him. Since then, he had spent many sleepless nights in this room. But he was better at it now. He learnt his lesson. Being observant, alert and fully prepared were now second nature to him. They could never even make it into his bedroom nowadays.

 

Not again.

 

With a sharp intake of breath, Itachi forcibly broke off the memory. He despised how these memories refused to leave him, how he remained plagued by it even after so many years. What would he have to do to erase it? Would he ever forget?

 

Taking a deep breath, Itachi closed his eyes and once again, prepared himself for a sleepless night.

 

 

…***…***…***…

 

 

Two days had passed since Sakura learnt of her new duties. Since then, she had begun familiarizing herself with the finances of the organization. A smirk crossed her lips, she would never have thought that her financial state was the thing which had caught the Akatsuki's attention.

 

Dropping the accounts book on the table, Sakura stretched and stood up. A quick glance out of her bedroom window told her that it was about time she went to check on Deidara. Deidara had left her with no other choice but to sedate him yesterday when he woke up and thrashed around in his delirium. Today, she should really wake him up, since he should be completely healed by now.

 

Her eyes automatically went to her weapons pouch, deciding to leave it. Although she was still wary of the Akatsuki, she realized that it would look very suspicious if she walked around fully equipped with weapons. The kunai in the holster strapped around her thigh and the senbon hidden under her arm-wraps should be sufficient anyway.

 

Stepping out of her room, she went past a few rooms down the hallway until she reached Deidara's. Without knocking, she slid the shoji open and went in, her eyes landing on the sleeping figure on the futon. Kneeling down next to him, she placed her glowing hand on his forehead to allow him to wake up.

 

Slowly but surely, Deidara's eyelids began to flutter.

 

A moment later, Sakura was staring into a pair of brilliant blue eyes. Her breath caught in her throat when she realized that his eyes were the exact same color as Naruto's. Once again, a wave of homesickness coursed through her.

 

Then those eyes narrowed.

 

“You!” Deidara snarled as he bolted upright, the blanket covering his naked torso sliding to his waist.

 

Quickly pressing her hand onto his bare shoulder, Sakura ordered sternly, “Lie back down!”

 

His chakra flaring, Deidara shrugged her hand away violently. “What are you doing here?” he snapped.

 

“Keep still.”

 

He jerked away from her.

 

At the rate he was going, he would probably suffer a relapse. Irritated now, Sakura glared at him. “Look here, Blondie, I'm just trying to help.”

 

“Get away from me. I don't need your help, yeah,” he shot back. Then he glanced around almost desperately. “Where's my clay?”

 

“Listen to me, damn it! You have holes in your stomach two days ago, and you've been out with a fever since then. I didn't fix it all so that you can get yourself sick again!”

 

He backed further away from her, thankfully pulling the blanket with him. “Do you think I don't know who you are, hmm?”

 

She was reaching the limit of her patience. What they had told him a couple of days ago obviously had not registered. “I'm part of Akatsuki now. Deal with it, alright.”

 

Deidara snorted derisively. “You're part of the kyuubi's team. So don't think of lying to me like this, yeah!”

 

Her eyes narrowed as a growl made its way up her throat. “Why you-”

 

“Deidara.”

 

Sakura spun around to find Itachi frowning at them from the open shoji screen. Finally, someone who Deidara might listen to, she thought irritably. Springing to her feet, she strode towards the Uchiha. When she reached him, she stared straight into his crimson eyes. She was too annoyed to be scared of his Sharingan.

 

Then she pointed her thumb over her shoulder at her reluctant patient. “Since he doesn't want to listen to me, can you tell him that he needs to take it easy, meaning no abrupt movements, or he'll end up bedridden much longer than he needs to be.”

 

With that, she squeezed past the man to leave the room, only to be halted when a hand clamped around her arm.

 

“Wait.”

 

At his quiet, but authoritative voice, Sakura turned around. He had lost the frown, and was now regarding her with a look she could not decipher. Then the uncomfortable pressure around her arm reminded her that he was still holding her. She immediately directed a pointed look at his hand before raising her eyes to his again.

 

He did not break their gaze, but slowly, the pressure on her arm eased and his hand fell to his side.

 

Sakura resisted the urge to rub her tingling arm. “Is there something else you need, Itachi-san?”

 

“Can he walk?”

 

She glanced past Itachi into the room to find Deidara standing shakily on his own two feet, the blanket wrapped around his waist. Stubborn mule, she thought irritably.

 

“Itachi, what is she doing here?” the blonde snapped.

 

Sakura reined in her surprise at Deidara's unfriendly tone. For some reason, it looked like Deidara did not like Itachi much, not that Itachi seemed to care. How curious. What had happened between them?

 

Stepping fully into the room, Itachi explained, “She's our newest member, our treasurer.”

 

Deidara's eyes bugged. “You must be pulling my leg, yeah? She's the one who killed Sasori!”

 

The sudden tension in Itachi's posture told Sakura that he was not aware of this little fact. She smirked inwardly, strangely glad that she had managed to catch the Uchiha off guard. She wondered idly what else she could do to rattle the stoic shinobi.

 

Itachi's voice was level when he said, “Nevertheless, she is now considered a member. All that is left is the initiation. Your presence is required for that.”

 

A moment of silence passed as Deidara glared at her. Then, a myriad of emotions crossed his features; anger, confusion and then finally, resignation. With a huff, he turned to Itachi.

 

“When is the initiation?” Deidara asked grudgingly.

 

“Now. If you can make it to the hall.”

 

Frowning in disapproval, Sakura stepped up next to Itachi. “He should be resting,” she pointed out.

 

“The initiation only requires his presence and some of his blood.”

 

“I can make it, yeah,” Deidara declared. “Now get out so I can get dressed.”

 

Sakura did not wait to be told twice. Quickly, she walked out of the room, leaving Itachi to slide the shoji screen shut behind him. As she stood there, she could hear the rustle of clothes and muffled curses from the room's inhabitant. He was obviously having some problems dressing.

 

Slightly concerned, she ventured, “Maybe you should help him dress.”

 

Incredulity flashed briefly across Itachi's face before he resumed his usual stoic expression. His tone was clipped when he bit out, “No.”

 

Shrugging, she leaned back against the wall. “Fine. I just hope that he won't tear open a new hole in his stomach.”

 

He turned away from her.

 

After a while, Itachi's voice reached her. “You killed Sasori?”

 

The image of the red-headed puppet master flashed across her mind. “It was a long time ago.”

 

“Hm.”

 

And that was all that was said about the subject before the shoji screen slid open to reveal Deidara, clad in his mesh top and black pants. His Akatsuki cloak was slung over his shoulders. He was still a little unsteady on his feet, but he might just be alright, Sakura decided.

 

 

…***…***…***…

 

 

Shoji screen after shoji screen moved past him as Itachi made his way out of the residential building to the next one. He had used his ring to alert Pein that Deidara was able to participate in the initiation. So the rest should already be preparing the chamber.

 

“Why the rush, yeah?” Deidara asked as they walked towards the dojo which hid the entrance to the chamber. “Took forever before Tobi got initiated.”

 

“It is risky for all of us to remain in the same place for so long.”

 

Deidara did not seem convinced. “That's it?”

 

“Pein wants to send her out on a mission.”

 

The kunoichi's steps faltered, and she sounded surprise when she remarked, “This is the first time I've heard of it.”

 

Itachi looked at her out of the corner of his eyes. “You will be briefed later.”

 

Turning to him, she asked, “I'll be going with one of you, I take it?”

 

“Aa.”

 

She looked as if she wanted more information, but thankfully she simply shrugged and continued to walk. Itachi had no doubt that Pein simply wanted to determine how well they worked together. Considering the outcome of Deidara's battle with the hachibi, it was clear that the bijuu was too powerful to be subdued easily. It was likely that Sakura would be introduced to one of their teams when it was time to carry out the task. Skill-wise, he had seen enough to know that she would be able to hold her own. Especially now that he knew that she was the one who had defeated Sasori.

 

After that incident three years ago, Deidara had only said that a Konoha shinobi was responsible for it. It was hardly surprising that Deidara did not know her identity then, seeing that she had not made a name for herself until recently. Itachi smirked inwardly. Konoha must be… upset by her disappearance, considering the level of her skills. Then again, many highly skilled shinobi chose to be missing-nins, for one reason or another.

 

Walking silently, they descended the stairs in the dojo which led them to the tunnel. As they neared the underground chamber, Itachi wondered idly why Pein always chose such dark, damp places to gather the Akatsuki.

 

A sharp inhalation of breath and a muffled curse broke Itachi's train of thought, bringing his steps to a halt. Glancing over his shoulder, he found Deidara bent over with his hands on the rough tunnel wall. The kunoichi was instantly by the blonde Akatsuki's side.

 

“What is the matter?” he asked calmly.

 

She laid her hand over Deidara's stomach. “He probably tore some tissues.” Softly, she instructed, “Don't move, Deidara. This will be quick.”

 

Itachi stepped closer. “Wait.”

 

Stilling, Sakura shot him a questioning look.

 

“You should not spend too much chakra before the initiation,” he explained. “You would need it then.”

 

She frowned at him. “It won't use up much.”

 

Before he could say another word, her hand began to glow and the healing process commenced.

 

Itachi could not help but feel rather annoyed at her dismissal of his words. Still, she would only jeopardize herself by her stubbornness, for the initiation process would utilize her chakra heavily. Deciding to leave the kunoichi to her foolishness, he turned away and continued down the tunnel.

 

When Itachi reached the chamber, he noted that Pein, Konan, Kisame and Tobi were already there. His eyes went towards the cylindrical pedestal placed at the centre of the chamber. A large glowing orb was seated in the middle of it.

 

“Where are they?” Pein asked as he walked towards the pedestal.

 

“In the tunnel. They should be here soon.”

 

The other three Akatsuki came forward and took their respective positions around the pedestal. Tobi reached out to touch one of the ten grooves at its edge as the rest of them watched the entrance silently. The subtle sound of footsteps eventually reached them, announcing Deidara's and Sakura's arrival.

 

“Sorry we're late,” the kunoichi apologized as she made her way towards them.

 

Pein simply nodded. Gesturing to a particular groove in the pedestal, he told the kunoichi, “This one is yours.”

 

Itachi watched as she shifted into position between him and Kisame. Previously, when there had been ten of them, Orochimaru and Zetsu were the ones positioned between him and Kisame.

 

Konan extended a hand towards Sakura, uncurling her fingers to reveal Orochimaru's ring. “Take this.”

 

The kunoichi picked it up, and then studied it curiously. Raising her eyes to him, she asked, “What does this involve?”

 

Inclining his head at the orb, Itachi explained, “The purpose of this orb is to link the Akatsuki members. It allows us to communicate over large distances when the situation warrants it. The rings act as an identifier.”

 

Tobi nodded. “And we also need to leave our blood and chakra for it to work. You know, like a signature.”

 

“That is so that someone could not use the ring unless they have been initiated, yeah,” Deidara added.

 

She eyed her ring. “So, since Orochimaru was initiated once, he could still contact you after he left?” she asked.

 

Kisame snorted at the mention of Orochimaru. “No. The orb only remembers the ones who are present in the most recent initiation.”

 

“That is why Deidara's presence is required,” Konan elaborated.

 

“Just follow what we do,” Pein said as he took off his ring. His gaze swept over them. “The rest of you know what to do.”

 

Itachi nodded. Taking out a kunai from its holster, he pressed the tip to his palm until a red line of blood appeared. He then took off his ring and allowed his blood to coat it before he placed the ring in its own groove on the pedestal. Six other rings soon followed, slotting into their respective places.

 

Fisting his bleeding hand, Itachi raised it above the orb in unison with the rest of the Akatsuki before he pressed it against the smooth curve. Out of the corner of his eyes, he saw the kunoichi's brief hesitation before she joined in, placing her blood-stained hand beside his. Soon, they would know if she was strong enough to survive this initiation.

 

Turning his attention back to the orb, Itachi watched impassively as their blood mingled on the orb's surface before it was absorbed. The orb glowed brighter, and what looked like red clouds began to form within its boundaries. It was about to begin.

 

Pein turned to the kunoichi. “It is best that you don't remove your hand until we say so.”

 

She only nodded, her wide green eyes not leaving the glowing orb.

 

Soon, Itachi felt the pull on his chakra. The tug was not unpleasant to him, but then again, he had done this before. He glanced towards the kunoichi, noting her furrowed brows. She would be the one who would be affected most, as she was undergoing this ritual for the first time. The orb seemed to require more chakra from those which had no previous contact with it.

 

A low, humming sound began as the red clouds in the orb spun faster and faster, feeding harder on their chakra. As the kunoichi beside him tensed, Itachi looked sideways again. He could feel the unsteadiness of her chakra beside his. The fluctuation was not encouraging. Would she survive this? In the past, there had been three others who had come this far before they failed the initiation because they had not met its requirements. The outcome had not been pleasant for them.

 

Their eyes met.

 

The anxiety in those green depths was evident as the ritual took its toll on her. A myriad of expressions crossed her features, the individual emotions were mostly too rapid for him to identify, except for her hesitation and fear. That was possibly the worst thing she could do at that moment.

 

Itachi continued to watch as she inhaled deeply. Then, to his surprise, her eyes hardened with determination before she returned her attention back to the orb.

 

This time, the flow of chakra beside his were steady and strong.

 

The corner of his lips tilted slightly. By fluke or not, the kunoichi appeared to have figured it out. The orb recognized uncertainty, and react adversely to it. One could not be hesitant, or to fear, for Akatsuki would not accept such a member. Now that she had passed this barrier, she was no longer in any danger.

 

Soon, the pull began to lessen. The process was now almost complete. Slowly but surely, the red clouds within the orb cleared.

 

It was done.

 

Lifting their hands off the orb, they retrieved their rings and took a step back from the pedestal. All except for the kunoichi. She was still standing in the same spot, her blood-stained hand still flattened against the curved surface. The rest of them simply studied her with various expressions of puzzlement.

 

Deidara, who appeared to almost dead on his feet, was the one who broke the silence. “Hey, you can let go now, yeah.”

 

She did not respond.

 

How odd, Itachi mused. He took a few steps forward to the pedestal to find that she was still staring at the inactive orb, her expression frozen. Why was she not releasing her hand?

 

“Is she still alive?” Tobi whispered, his tone tinged with morbid curiosity.

 

Returning to the pedestal, Kisame tapped her shoulder. “Oi, kunoichi.”

 

She jerked at the contact. Slowly, her hand left the orb to fall to her side and she took a few steps backwards.

 

Then she swayed.

 

Itachi caught her arm to pull her upright. Much to his consternation, she slumped further, forcing him to wrap his arm around her waist to support her. When her head rolled onto his chest, he realized that she had fallen unconscious. Tilting her head back, his sharp eyes took in her pale features before he scanned her condition with his Sharingan.

 

“She is out of chakra,” he announced blandly.

 

“Completely?” Konan asked with a frown.

 

“Aa.”

 

Pein closed the distance between them, his expression displaying his displeasure. “That shouldn't happen. The ritual should not use up all of her chakra.” He directed a questioning look at Konan. “Your research said nothing of her low chakra level.”

 

“Her chakra level is more than sufficient to meet the requirements,” Konan replied, looking puzzled. “It's not as high as Kisame's, but-”

 

“She has enough chakra to keep me on my toes,” Kisame interjected. “More than Hidan and Kakuzu.”

 

Deidara cleared his throat uncomfortably. “She was healing me back in the tunnel, yeah. So that's probably why.”

 

Tobi gasped. “Why did you let her do it, Deidara-senpai?”

 

Deidara bristled.

 

“It was her choice,” Itachi said quietly as he glanced down at the limp body draped over his arm. Foolish girl. She should not have disregarded his warning.

 

A contemplative look came over Pein as he picked up Orochimaru's ring from the pedestal. Reaching out for the kunoichi's limp left hand, Pein slid the ring onto her little finger. Then he murmured, “Take her to her room. She should be fine after a night's rest.”

 

Itachi nodded.

 

 

…***…***…***…

 

 

A/N: That's it for this chapter. As always, I hope it entertained you. Please review if you could, it'll make my day! HAPPY NEW YEAR!

 

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