Taryn sighed as she stared out of the window. They were in some nameless village, somewhere near the Lightning Country. They would stay here one night and then move on. Always travelling, capturing rouges with prices on their heads, selling information. Every step took her further away from home. A home she could no longer return to.

Taryn rubbed her neck. The curse mark had quieted down again after draining all her energy a few days ago. She narrowed her eyes. As soon as the opportunity would present itself, she was going to kill Orochimaru for dong this to her. She had been unconscious for several hours and her body had been sore all over for hours after that. She sighed again. Things weren't exactly going as planned.

She was unaware that she was being watched. Itachi stood just outside the room, in the doorway, carefully avoiding the light from the hallway so it wouldn't cast a shadow. Her half conscious confession from a few days earlier kept running through his mind. As much as he wanted to forget about it, he couldn't deny that he was drawn to her. He had been for a long time. His only consolation had been that she wasn't aware of it, but now that he knew she returned his feelings, it wasn't going to make things any easier.

He had become aware of her at the academy. At that time he had only been curious about her. She didn't care what others thought of her. And she didn't follow him around like the other girls. Not that it had bothered him, but it had certainly been refreshing. He knew very well that she had disliked him back then. But her pride had made him notice her even more.

Then at the Chuunin Exams, that was when he had first started to respect her. And he knew they were the same. Her father had driven her to Konoha and now fate had driven them both here to Akatsuki.

She was still proud.

And he couldn't get her out of his head.

The moonlight on her face gave her an unearthly beauty and made his breath stock. The sound made her look up. He had no other choice than to reveal himself then. He stepped into the room. "Can I come in?"

Taryn straightened up. "You already did ," she said.

Itachi took that as an invitation and walked up to her.

Taryn turned back to the window and stared at the night sky. For a moment they just stood in silence.

Itachi watched her expression sadden. She looked so lonely. Before he knew it, his hand had covered hers on the windowsill. It startled her. "Sorry," Itachi muttered.

Taryn shook her head. "No, it's alright. My mind wandered off... the stars.. they are so beautiful tonight. But they're not the same stars we see in Suna."

"Do you regret what you did?"

"No," Taryn said, "but I miss it sometimes."

Itachi touched her cheek, making her look up confused. He had taken a step closer and sighed sadly. Then he kissed her.

Taryn stared at him stunned, not sure how to react.

He pulled away from her. "I... should go." He turned to leave, but Taryn grabbed his sleeve.

"No. Wait."

This time she was the one to close the gap between them. With light hesitation, she leaned up and kissed him. Itachi deepened the kiss and locked his arms around her, steering her towards the bed. "Wait," Taryn gasped and pushed away.

Itachi kissed the side of her head. "What is it?"

"Where's Kisame?" Taryn asked.

Itachi leaned back and stared at her oddly. "You want to talk about Kisame now?"

"No," Taryn growled, "I just... don't want him to come in here any time soon."

Itachi chuckled. "Don't worry. He was in good company when I left him." He pushed her backwards and kissed her again.

...

Itachi smiled as he stroke the arm of the still sleeping girl at his side. Her face looked so much more relaxed now. His smile grew wider as she subconsciously moved closer towards him. He could lie like this forever, but a knock on the door pulled him back to reality.

Unwilling he stood up, carefully making sure he wouldn't wake Taryn, and put on his pants. He walked over to the door and opened it, instantly meeting Kisame's amused smirk. "I thought I might find you here. We need to split."

Itachi looked over his shoulder at the bed where Taryn had started stirring. She sighed and looked at Itachi with half open eyes. He turned back to Kisame and nodded. "We'll be right down." He walked away from the door to retrieve his shirt.

Taryn watched him and groaned. She pulled the sheets closely around her and sat up.

From the door, Kisame smirked at her. "Looking good, Taryn," he couldn't help but comment.

Taryn narrowed her eyes and glared at him. She threw a pillow at his head, but he easily caught it and laughed. "Hey," he said, "at least I knocked."

"Get lost," she hissed, but Kisame didn't move. 

Itachi walked back to the door and gave him a cold look. That look was enough for Kisame to take a step back. Itachi scared him. You never knew what he was thinking. Though... Taryn might.

He glanced at the girl one last time and then at Itachi. "I'll be downstairs," he said and disappeared down the hall. He chuckled to himself. He had known for a long time that Itachi and Taryn liked each other. The silent looks they cast at each other whenever the other wasn't looking. But he had seen it. There was no way they could hide it since they were in each other's company all the time. Not that he minded. He actually respected Taryn. But the others might not share that opinion. Everyone in Akatsuki knew those two had known each other from Konohagakure. Not everyone believed she could be trusted.

But he wouldn't give them away. He would keep their secret.

Kisame smirked. They owed him big time.

***

"Why did you allow her to burry him here?" Kakashi and Gaara were sitting in the Kazekage's office together. His students were already asleep and they had sent Taryn's students home as well with the order not to speak about this with anyone. Now it was just the two of them.

Even though night had fallen, Taryn was still somewhere outside. She hadn't returned home yet, but Gaara didn't seem to worry. Neither did Kakashi for that matter. He figured she would probably want to say goodbye to Itachi alone. She would be at the grave.

It took a while before Gaara answered. "I trust my sister. I may not care about Uchiha, but she did. This man... even though he was a criminal, she loved him. I don't think she would without reason." He sighed and looked at Kakashi seriously. "There is something you may not know... when Akatsuki took me... a few nights after... Itachi came to Suna to visit my sister."

Kakashi nodded. He had expected something like that.

"They had an argument," Gaara continued, "or better said, my sister was angry with him, because he was involved with extracting the One Tail. I was standing outside the room. I heard their entire conversation...." He paused a moment and cleared his throat.

Kakashi's jaw tightened. "I can imagine the next part," he said, "so please continue."

Gaara nodded, glad he didn't have to go into detail. "If anyone else had found him there... I wouldn't have had any choice but to sentence her," he said, "she was ready to leave with him you know, but he wouldn't let her. It didn't sound as if he didn't want her to though." He looked at Kakashi again. "I know what you must think, but she didn't forgive him. As far as I know, she still hasn't."

"But she was willing to leave with him," Kakashi growled.

Gaara nodded. "He told her they would never trust her again as long as she had that curse mark. That he couldn't take her with him because of that."

"You think he was trying to protect her," Kakashi said softly.

"I don't know what to think," Gaara answered, "I think he did love her. And I believe there is more to this. She asked him what he was keeping from her. She won't confide in me, but you have known her from the time she lived in Konoha. And you knew Itachi."

Kakashi sighed. "Taryn and Itachi... whenever they were together.. they just always seemed so aware of each other. I swear you could blindfold them and still have them fight side by side without them hurting each other. They just... moved around each other."

Gaara listened thoughtfully. "I've seen the way you look at her Kakashi. You love her. But my sister is very stubborn."

Kakashi smiled. "I know she cares about me. And I've always know she loved Itachi. I'll wait as long as I have to."

***

Taryn groaned as she cupped up some water from the stone trench in front of her. It was still early morning and she was dead tired. She hadn't slept all night.

She splashed the water in her face and sighed. She had already felt his presence, but now he silently walked up to her. He didn't look like he'd had much sleep either. "What do you want Naruto?" she asked in a flat tone, even though she knew full well.

His eyes were sad and tired when he looked at her. "Was it Sasuke?" he asked.

She knew she owed him answers. Even though he had been angry yesterday, he had waited with his questions until after the funeral. Until now. But he already saw the answer in her eyes.

"I know you're hurting over Itachi," he said, "but we are hurting too. We want Sasuke back."

Taryn narrowed her eyes. "I don't know where he went."

"Then tell me which direction he took."

"I told you I don't know. But you won't find him anyway. Akatsuki came and took him."

Naruto's eyes went wide. "What?!" he yelled, "Akatsuki?! And you just let them take him?! Why didn't you stop them?"

Taryn turned to him, suddenly angry too. "Maybe Sasuke doesn't mean as much to me as he does to you."

"How can you say that?! Akatsuki is a group of criminals! How could you let them take Sasuke?!" Taryn pushed him against the wall and grabbed his collar. "Grow up Naruto!" she snarled, "Sasuke is the one that crossed over to Orochimaru! Your precious Sasuke is a criminal himself! Wake up will you! This is not a game! Being a  ninja is about life and death and choices and sacrifice and secrets. And about a whole lot of other stuff you know nothing about! It's not about Sasuke! Did you ever hold someone you loved in your arms while he was dying?! I'm sorry I'm not as good a person as you thought, but you don't know a thing about it so just shut up!" she shove him and ran off, leaving Naruto startled.

He had never seen her so unsettled.

He looked up when Kakashi approached him. His sensei seemed to be in deep thought. His eyes were sad as he watched Taryn leave. He sighed. Naruto shook his head. "Kakashi-sensei... why do you keep trying? With Taryn?" he muttered softly.

Kakashi gave a sad smile and patted Naruto's shoulder. "Because she's worth it."

***

She should have known they would come after her. Of course Orochimaru wouldn't let her leave just like that. She had hoped to evade them though. She thought she had lost them after Kabuto had healed her a few days ago, but apparently they weren't giving up. Or perhaps Orochimaru had forbidden them to return without her. In any case, they were pretty persistent. And she was tired. She wouldn't be able to outrun them forever. But she would never let them take her back alive.

She broke through the canopy and glanced around. Where were they?

Taryn narrowed her eyes. A sudden rustling made her whip around. She instantly faced Sora, one of the Mist ninja.

The girl smirked at her. "Found you."

Taryn turned to escape, but was cut off by Devon, another Mist ninja. "Where do you think you're going?" he asked, "you gave us a lot of trouble you know. Lord Orochimaru is very displeased with your behavior." He took a  step closer.

"Leave me alone," Taryn growled. She tried to push past him, but he grabbed her arm. Taryn struggled and tried to run away, but found herself surrounded. The only way out was to fight. She made a sign to activate her Byakugan. Only close combat would help her now.

She landed a few blows on Devon and he buckled. "You little bitch," he growled, "Water Element, Acid Needles! Shower of Terror!"

A haze of icy needles came her way. They weren't poisonous, but in contact with her skin they caused painful burn marks.

"Wind style, Wings of Fury!" She countered the needle rain with a wind attack and started running. She didn't get far.

A sling wrapped around her legs and she fell to the ground. Taryn groaned and pulled out a dagger to cut through the leather straps. She quickly scrambled up, but Sora attacked her again.

"Water Prison!"

A large bell of water surrounded Taryn, cutting off her escape.

"Dammit," Taryn swore. They hadn't even  put in much effort to capture her. Was she that weak in her current condition? Or did the curse mark give them so much more power?

She knew that the air inside her prison would be sufficient for about ten minutes. There was no way out unless someone would free her, but that wasn't likely. How could she have been so careless? But she was so tired.

The four Mist shinobi grinned at her victoriously. "Not so feisty now, are you," Yuki said.

The four of them approached her. Taryn glared at them, but she knew there wasn't much she could do at the moment.

Out of nowhere a kunai dagger skimped her water prison and freed her. Taryn scrambled up confused and looked around. No one was there, but it didn't stop the Mist shinobi. They immediately attacked her again.

"You're not getting away," Devon growled at her.

Taryn blocked his attack with wind. She threw a dagger at Yuki who attacked her from the other side. "You know," she said, "four against one isn't very fair."

Devon smirked. "We're rouges, Taryn. We don't care abut being fair."

"Coward," Taryn hissed.

That angered him and he intensified his attack rate by activating his curse mark.

Taryn swore under her breath. Dealing with all four Mist shinobi was bad enough, dealing with them while they were using the curse mark was a nightmare. Especially since she refused to use her own. She had lost control over it once before. She wasn't going to take that chance again. She wanted nothing to do with anything provided by Orochimaru. But she knew that if she didn't get out of here soon, she wouldn't have much choice or she would end up dead. Where was her mysterious ally now? She didn't know who he was, but anyone fighting against Devon's team was her new best friend. At least... until they were defeated. What she would think afterwards was a different story, depending on what he wanted from her.

She fought off Devon and Yuki when the mysterious attacker showed himself again. Well... showing was a big word. All she could see were flashes as he rushed by.

Sora was thrown to the ground and soon after Iro. Of course they didn't stay down for long.

Taryn noticed it seconds before it happened and shouted a warning. Strange markings had started to appear on Sora's face. Slowly the woman transformed. Much time to watch, Taryn didn't have. She needed her concentration to fight off her own opponents.

Yuki smirked at her. He had already entered the second stage of the curse mark. They were going to force her to do the same. She couldn't use her fire based jutsu because it would have no effect. Wind would even water out and her Byakugan... she doubted it would have much effect against the curse mark.

But she had to try something. She wasn't going to be goaded in using the curse mark.

Before Yuki could attack, Taryn punched him. She normally would have waited for him to move first, but there was a second right after the transformation where he was unable to move. She aimed for that.

Unfortunately she had miscalculated. Yuki sent a wave of water towards her and Taryn was slammed against a tree. She spit out water and crawled back to her feet. She focused her energy and decided to use a wind attack after all, but sent a handful of shuriken to go with it. Yuki cast them aside and prepared another attack, but Taryn was already gone. She stumbled on Devon however who had also entered the second stage. She was now caught in between.

Her unknown ally was fighting the other two. Flashes of lightning were thrown around. Taryn frowned. She knew that attack, but that was impossible, was it?

She focused again and tried to gather enough energy to create Ryoki, but she knew it was futile. To make things worse, her curse mark started throbbing. Taryn fell to her knees and groaned. She dropped her fan and dug her fingers in the forest floor. Sweat appeared on her forehead as she tried to fight off the curse mark. She could do it. She had done it before. It would just cost her all her energy.

From a distance she could hear the laughter of the Mist shinobi. She really, truly, hated them. An attack came her way, but before she could react, she blacked out.

...

Kakashi had been strolling through the forest in his own when he had heard the sounds of battle. Curiously he had hurried towards the scene to see if he could help.

He had recognized her right away.

A year had passed and she had changed. Of course she was older now, but there was something else too, thought he wasn't sure how to name it. He knew he didn't like it. Something was not right. He looked at the four ninja she was fighting with. There was no way she could win. She didn't stand a chance. He could see the exhaustion on her face. She needed help. But the question was, should he give it? She had abandoned Konoha. And after already being banished from Suna, it made her a traitor. Beside that, he had heard the stories. She was in league with a band of criminals. But these Mist shinobi were criminals too...

Kakashi debated a moment. It was said that she had run away with Itachi Uchiha, who had murdered his entire clan. It was very plausible. She and Itachi had been close. But he didn't see Itachi now. And she needed help.

His hands seemed to move on their own when he threw the kunai dagger that freed her from the water prison. He could ask questions later. He watched her fight with two of the men. Strange markings appeared on the face of one of them. Quickly Kakashi formed a Chidori and rushed forward. He worked two of them to the ground. He had the advantage after all, with his lightning jutsu. He gasped when the woman stood up again. Strange markings were covering her body and she seemed to transform. Her chakra level was increasing drastically.

A few feet away, Taryn was having trouble as well. He couldn't help her at the moment. His lightning flashed across the clearing. A  large build up of chakra drew his attention and he glanced aside. Taryn fell to her knees and dug her fingers in the ground. Kakashi gasped when he saw the same strange markings appear on her face. But she seemed to be fighting it. Something sharp brushed his side. 'A shark fin?'

The woman smirked at him. "Don't worry about Taryn. We'll handle her. Just keep your mind on your own fight."

Kakashi narrowed his eyes. The scratch on his side was burning. He needed help defeating them. And it didn't look like Taryn would offer it any time soon, so he performed his summoning jutsu.

A second later his pack of dogs appeared. Even with their help the Mist shinobi were tough opponents. He didn't succeed in killing them, but at least they retreated. It seemed they had orders. But what were those strange markings?

"Kakashi."

Kakashi turned to his dog Pakkun who was standing next to Taryn's unconscious form. Kakashi walked over and kneeled beside the girl. He groaned when his injuries hurt. He could take a look at those later. First he needed to get Taryn to a secure place in case those ninja came back. She seemed alright now. The markings had vanished.

Carefully he picked her up, wondering all the while why exactly he was helping her.

***

Taryn slowly opened her eyes. Her entire body felt sore and she was thirsty. When she focused, she found herself lying on her side under a rock overhang. She became vaguely aware of someone behind her, an arm was wrapped around her waist. Strangely enough she didn't feel threatened.

She turned her head slightly and saw a small dog not far away. 'Pakkun?' she thought confused. So she had been right then. It had been Kakashi in the clearing. Why had he helped her? More importantly, why was he still with her? Was she his prisoner now?

Carefully she tried to sit up.

"Going somewhere?" Kakashi's voice asked.

Taryn glanced at him. "Can I sit up?" she asked a bit annoyed.

"Are you going to run?"

"Should I?"

Kakashi sighed and removed his arm to let her sit. "What's going on Taryn?" he asked, "You're a missing nin now?" She didn't answer him. She wasn't even sure herself. "Taryn?"

"Do you have some water?" she cut him off, "I'm thirsty."

Silently he handed her a canteen. She took it and drank slowly to buy her some time to think. Pakkun was watching her with an accusing expression. She glared at him and he closed his eyes, pretending to be asleep.

"Thanks," Taryn muttered as she handed to canteen to Kakashi again.

"So where is Itachi?" Kakashi casually asked.

Taryn stared at him irritated. "Do you see him somewhere?" she growled. She didn't want to talk about Itachi. And certainly not with Kakashi.

Kakashi sighed. Obviously that was a touchy subject. Hadn't she run away with Itachi after all? "Why did you leave Konoha?" he asked softly, "I thought you liked it there."

Taryn sighed and ran a hand through her hair. "I don't know," she muttered. She glanced at him. "What are you going to do with me?"

He didn't answer for a while. "What did those Mist shinobi want with you?" he asked.

"They were sent to take me back," Taryn answered.

"Back where?" She didn't look at him. "Taryn," he pressed. He still liked this girl, no matter what she had done. He knew how stubborn she could be, but he wasn't going to let this go.

"Why did you help me?" she asked instead.

He didn't take the bait. "I asked you first."

Taryn brushed her hair aside to reveal the Heaven Mark. He stared at it confused. "What?" he asked.

Taryn sighed. "Orochimaru," she explained, "you've seen them transform, didn't you?" He slowly nodded. "It started as an experiment," Taryn continued, "but then he discovered how to increase someone's chakra with it. It gives great power, but it takes control..."

"Why did you do it?" Kakashi asked.

"You think I volunteered?!" Taryn snapped at him, making Pakkun jump.

Kakashi cleared his throat. "Sorry," he said, "So he forced it on you. What were you doing with him in the first place?"

"That's none of your business," Taryn said coldly.

"You ran away from him," Kakashi said, "Those Mist shinobi work for him, don't they? They were supposed to bring you back to him. Why is he so interested in you?"

"He wanted me as a vessel," Taryn said, "that's when I left." Kakashi opened his mouth, but she cut him off. "I don't want to talk about it anymore."

He nodded. "Alright." He looked at her. "So now what? Where are you going to go?"

"I don't know," Taryn said. She couldn't return to Akatsuki. Orochimaru wouldn't give up that easily either. There was nowhere to go. Except...

"Come back to Konoha with me," Kakashi said.

"You're not serious," Taryn said.

"I am. I'll talk to the Hokage. I'm sure he'll hear you."

"I left on my own accord," Taryn said, "he'll never let me come back."

"Do you want to come back?"

Taryn hesitated. She had liked living in Konoha. But no one was going to trust her now.

Kakashi noticed her conflict and gently took her hand. He wasn't sure how she had ended up like this, but he would find out. "Come on," he said, "let's see what the Third has to say. I'm sure he'll offer you a second chance if you share your information on Orochimaru. And we'll see what we can do about that curse mark."

Taryn sighed. She wasn't sure if this was the right thing to do, but at the moment she didn't see any other option. "Alright," she said, "I'll come with you."

***

He found her at the edge of the village. Her back was turned towards him and her entire body was tense. Carefully Kakashi approached her. "Are you alright?" he softly asked.

She whipped around instantly. "Alright?!" she bit at him, "do I look alright to you?! Of course I'm not alright! Itachi is dead! How is that alright?!"

"I know how much you loved him..."

"You know nothing!" she cut him off.

He took a step in her direction to calm her down, but she punched him. He stumbled back startled. Taryn came at him again and continued hitting him with her fists. Against his shoulder, his stomach, his chest. He gasped. Every hit actually hurt. "Taryn," he choked out.

"Shut up!" she snapped, "quit pretending you're sorry! You don't care that Itachi is dead! You wanted Sasuke to kill him! You wanted him gone, because you wanted to take his place!"

Tears were streaming down her cheeks as she continued to attack Kakashi. At first he seemed too startled to react, but during her ranting he gently grabbed her wrists to stop her assault. Taryn struggled against him, but he wouldn't let go. "Let go of me!" she shouted, "I don't want your sympathy! I hate you!"

Kakashi pulled her closer and locked his arms tightly around her so she could no longer move. He figured it was best to let her get it out of her system. Better she take it out on him than on his students. Or worse, her own students. Besides, she wasn't entirely wrong. He had envied Itachi. Not enough to wish him dead, but still...

Her struggling became less and less. Instead she was crying openly now. Kakashi sighed. He had heard her shout at Naruto. So Akatsuki had taken Sasuke. He didn't blame her for what had happened. They would have taken Sasuke either way, regarding her cooperation. If she had fought back, she would have gotten killed. They would have taken both Sasuke and Itachi then.

Kakashi softly stroke her back until he felt her calm down.

Suddenly Taryn pulled away from him and turned her back. "Feeling better?" he asked.

Her hands turned to fists. "Leave me alone," she hissed, "just go away Kakashi. I don't want you here. Go fetch Sasuke. Whatever. But leave me alone."

Kakashi looked at her sadly. Her words hurt him even more than her punches had. Was this it then? Had he really lost her this time? It seemed Itachi had won, even after his death.

He nodded solemnly, even though she couldn't see. "Alright," he said softly, "I'll go. We're headed back to Konoha anyway. Goodbye Taryn."

She didn't answer him. He waited a moment longer, but then hung his shoulders in defeat and left. The deserts suddenly seemed a lot colder.

***

Slowly Sasuke opened his eyes. His entire body felt sore. Where was he?

He vaguely remembered fighting his brother. What had happened?

Above his head was a rocky ceiling. He was in a cave then? How had he gotten here?

"I treated your wounds," came a voice from the shadows.

Sasuke sat up and looked around, but saw no one.

"You won," the voice said, "but you've suffered quite a bit of damage yourself, which you're not completely over. So I wouldn't move more than absolutely necessary." A man stepped out of the shadows. He was wearing a mask. "I am not your enemy," he said, "I brought you here in order to tell you something." Sasuke looked away. "Not interested huh," the man said, "what if I told you... it's about Itachi Uchiha?" Sasuke's eyes shifted towards him. "That's right," the man said, "you think you know everything about your brother, but you actually don't. Oh alright, let me start with a self intro. I am like you..." he said while taking a hand to his mask in order to remove it. "An Uchiha survivor." Sasuke looked at him curiously now. The man started taking of his mask. "And one who knows the truth about Uchiha Itachi..."