Lee rushed towards the caved in roof and yelled, "Tenten!!"

Smoke was clouding everywhere, and he couldn't see a thing. Moments later, two figures appeared out of the shadows. Lee saw Tenten clinging to a Hyuga.

"Easy, I got you!!" he said, holding her tight until they landed somewhere stable.

Tenten looked up to find another Hyuga, Tokuma, holding onto her. He landed on a roof only to grab her and barely dodge an incoming bomb.

"What are you doing here?!" Tenten asked, surprised. Tokuma said, "We came to assist! Word passes fast, and it looks like these guys mean business!"

Sasori moved three puppets about to keep Shikamaru and Choji busy and flung two others elsewhere to occupy Ino and Lee.

Deidara flung more bombs at them, causing Tenten to dodge and fling a large shuriken towards him. Deidara moved out of range and laughed, saying, "Hn, those small weapons can't reach me!!"

"No, but we will!!"

Tenten saw another Hyuga, Iroha, get into a fight with him.

Although Deidara easily dodged, he couldn't reach his clay fast enough. Tenten took the opportunity to let loose another set of kunai. Deidara dodged but got hit on one of his arms by Hoheto Hyuga.

All the while, Ko ended up getting in a fight with several of Sasori's puppets and his tail.

Lee broke a puppet and aimed a kick for Sasori's head, but was halted when Sasori's tail aimed right for him.

Ino kicked the tail out of the way but ended up getting caught by one of the puppets. She screamed, "Get off of me!!" and that alerted Choji to come over and smash the puppet.

Iroha broke another puppet said, "This is insanity!! They just keep showing up!!" Ko and Hoheto attacked Deidara from every angle possible, but he continued to dodge relentlessly and laugh. "Slap me will you, Hn?! Oh, missed again!!"

Deidara jumped onto the same roof Tenten was, and she flung several more kunai and various blades at him. He dodged easily and sprinted towards her. Tokuma jumped in front of her and yelled, "Eight Trigrams Palms Revolving Heaven!!!"

Spinning in a circle and creating a dome, Tokuma sent Deidara flying as well as protecting Tenten from an incoming bomb. Tenten jumped over Tokuma and sent several kunai with bombs tagged flying, and Deidara barely managed to dodge several of them.

A puppet tried to attack Tokuma from behind, but Ko sent it, along with another puppet, flying. Tenten released a scroll with several kunai in an effort to hit Sasori, but she missed. "Don't bother!!" Shikamaru yelled, "He's impenetrable!!" Choji tried once more to get close to Sasori, but almost got pinned by his tail. Ino tried to focus on Sasori to take him over, but he didn't budge.

Shocked, she yelled out, "He's not affected by my jutsu!! What is he?!"

"I'm starting to wonder that myself!!" Hoheto called out, fighting several puppets at once.

Lee punched a puppet that was next to Tenten, pushing her out of the way in the process as a bomb exploded. Deidara then laughed and took off.

"Don't let him get away!!" Shikamaru yelled, halting five puppets and watching as Choji smashed them.

Lee and Tenten nodded, taking off after him. "No, you idiot," Sasori said, "don't leave the area!!" "I'll do what I want, Hn!!" Deidara replied, taking off.

Ko said, "Don't let those two take him on their own!!" Tokuma and Iroha nodded, sprinting after the duo and Deidara.

Lee got close to Deidara, and he barely dodged the incoming bug bombs. The bombs exploded in front of Iroha and Tokuma, causing them to step back.

"Lee, Tenten!!" Tokuma called out, "Don't go after him, it's too dangerous!!"

Lee shouted, "We can handle this!!"

As they got closer to Deidara, their teacher suddenly popped out of nowhere. "Guy Sensei!!" Lee shouted, "We're close to cornering Deidara; help us out!!" Guy said, "No, stop fighting at once!! It was a ruse!"

Tenten looked at him and said, "What?! A ruse for what?!" "

To distract us," Guy replied, "We have to let Deidara know that we know now!! Come on!!"

All three rushed towards Deidara, who had seemingly slowed down. Guy noticed the trees beside him at the last moment and yelled, "Get back, he's going to-!" "KATSU!!!" Bugs that were placed on the trees exploded, causing the trees to collapse, and although Lee and Guy took a step back, Tenten dodged the trees and made it through.

She and Deidara then had a stare down.

She carefully took a step forward and said, "It's over, Deidara!!" "Oh I'd beg to differ, Hn!!" He pulled out another thing of clay and noticed that his hands were chewing on the clay. Tenten shuddered and turned her head once she heard Lee's yell.

Deidara took the opening and flung the bug.

It attached to Tenten's shirt without knowing.

She turned around and said, "Look, we're not trying to fight anymore! We know it's a ruse!!" "Oh, is that what you think?" Deidara asked while smirking.

Tenten lowered her scrolls onto the ground and said, "No, that's what I know."

Deidara pressed his hands together and said, "You have a good heart! It's just aiming at the wrong man, Hn!!" Tenten sweatdropped and glanced down at her shirt, realizing she had made a mistake by looking away.

As Tenten reached for it, Deidara yelled, "KATSU!!!" causing the bug to explode.

Tenten felt dizzy.

She couldn't control her movement as much nor could she see as well.

Blood oozed out of her mouth, and she collapsed moments later; her own blood pooling around her.

Deidara looked satisfied until he saw someone approach him. Tenten's vision started to fail on her as she realized she was dying.

His actions were so quick and smooth, and she failed to multitask and keep her eyes on the enemy. A crow cawed moments later, and Tenten could've sworn it might've been Kuro.

"I told you not to harm anyone," a voice said.

Deidara didn't even bother to apologize, and the voice said, "Don't be an imbecile. My instructions were for both of you to turn yourselves in, not cause all this havoc and chaos."

"Hn, right you are. But we couldn't help ourselves."

"And now we have an injured kunoichi on the ground."

Someone in an Akatsuki robe walked towards her and lifted her up easily. Tenten whimpered, both out of fear and out of pain. The person then said, "I need to take her to the hospital. Don't do anything else stupid while I'm gone, and turn yourself in. Am I understood?"

Deidara rolled his eyes and nodded, saying, "Hn."

Moments later, the member took off with Tenten in his arms. It wasn't too long after until he ended up at the doors of the hospital. He entered the doors and was immediately greeted by kunai at his neck and back.

Tenten looked up faintly to find none other than Itachi Uchiha holding her carefully.

She panicked, but her sudden jerk caused more blood to spill.

"She needs assistance," he said almost flatly, "Either get someone to help her or watch as she dies."

One of the shinobi backed up quickly and caught the attention of a few nurses, and Tenten was soon placed onto a stretcher. She could barely breathe as it was, but since she was lying on her back, she felt like she was drowning.

Tenten started choking as several nurses pushed her into a room.

"Lift her head!!"

"Get her blood type, quickly!!"

"The patient is Tenten, one of Might Guy's pupils!! I need blood type B quickly!"

"Hurry up and get that wound closed!!"

"She's bleeding too much, it's dangerous!!"

Tenten's vision faded in and out as several nurses rushed from left to right around her.

She closed her eyes for what she thought felt like seconds, and opened them to find Guy and Lee standing before her, worry planted on their faces.

Tenten groaned softly and said, "Guy... Lee... You guys are alright.."

Lee smiled wide and said, "Yeah, we are! But how about you? A few hours ago you were in a critical condition. Do you feel well?"

"I ache a little," she replied, trying to remember everything that took place. Moments later, she sat up painfully and exclaimed, "Deidara-! The Akatsuki!! What happened; is everyone alright?!"

Might Guy held up his hands and said, "Easy, Tenten. Everyone is fine, and the five members are in custody. You can relax."

Tenten sighed softly and carefully laid back.

After a moment, she said, "I'm sorry, Guy Sensei. I should've focused on the enemy, but I was caught off guard when you guys made noise behind me. I should've been more careful."

Guy grinned and said, "All is well, Flower of Youth!! Your heart was in the right place!!"

"But when I do that, I become a liability, and that's what I was trying NOT to do!" Tenten fumed, shaking her head and balling up her hands into fists. "I put the team and myself at risk... If it weren't for Itachi, I wouldn't be here. I'm surprised he even cared to take me to the hospital. I'm still confused about that. I thought he was evil or crooked or something."

"Well, as it turns out, he might not be a bad guy after all," Guy replied happily.

Tenten looked at him in confusion and asked, "What do you mean?"

"I'll tell you later on," Guy replied, "For now, just get some more rest. You'll need it."

Tenten nodded and closed her eyes, feeling her side ache.

'I wonder who the fifth member is,' she thought before passing out.

Guy tucked her in before sighing and looking at Lee. "Lee," he said in a commanding voice, "watch over Tenten while I'm gone. Lady Tsunade wishes to see all teachers about the Akatsuki matter."

"You can count on me, Guy Sensei!" Lee exclaimed, grinning wide. Guy patted his shoulder and said, "I know you can, Lee. You're an exceptional comrade." Lee smiled wide before saying, "I can only hope so, Guy Sensei."

Lee watched as his teacher and leader left the room before turning to a sleeping Tenten.

He inwardly sighed.

'This is the last time I'm letting you get hurt by anything, my blooming comrade! I swear to it!!'

~~

Tsunade glared down at the captured "ex" members, trying to really figure out what they were up to.

Deidara couldn't stop chuckling, which proved he was indeed crazy.

Sasori, who had shown his true form, stayed silent as he watched the team leaders, the Elders of Konoha, and the Hokage herself.

Kisame grinned softly, but didn't say a word as he too studied them.

Itachi watched them with mild interest.

And it seemed that the fifth member was very quiet. So quiet, in fact, that his chest hardly moved as he took slow, deep breaths.

Tsunade finally sighed and said, "So start from the beginning please? Because I'm having a very, very hard time believing your words."

Deidara smirked and chuckled, saying, "What else can we possibly tell you, woman? The Akatsuki disbanded. We no longer affiliate with the Akatsuki, nor do we plan on regrouping in the near future."

Kisame chuckled and took over, saying, "In some way, our leader was caught and put to his death. By who? We're not sure. Our other members kept their mouths shut. We were simply told to either hide or turn ourselves in."

Sasori added in quietly, "The whereabouts of the surviving members are unknown, but maybe that is for the best."

Tsunade turned to council members Koharu Utatane, Homura Mitokado, and Danzo Shimura, for their say, but they were just... Quiet. After a moment however, Homura walked up to the steel bars and asked, "And if we were to believe you, what would you gain from it? What will you wish to do then?"

Kisame grinned softly and said, "Freedom from sin. To stay by my comrade's side for as long as he wishes."

Deidara chuckled and said, "I am psychotic. I love destroying things, and I'm not quite sure what I want. Freedom, maybe, but I wouldn't trust myself."

Sasori spoke up quietly, "I'm not sure what it is I want anymore. I am almost but nothing but what's concealed in my chest. I wouldn't think it's possible for a puppet to live in normal society."

Finally, Itachi said softly, "I want freedom.... I want a chance to redeem myself for the sins I have committed... I want the truth and nothing but the truth to be known to the public, and if not, then at least to the fellow shinobi. I do not want this burden placed on my head any longer. There is no need for it now."

Kakashi looked at Itachi in slight confusion, not sure if he should pity the man or hate him for what he's caused his brother to become.

Homura turned to the last member and asked, "And what of you, Sasuke Uchiha? It seems your brother has told you the truth, as you had not killed him yet. Isn't that why you left to Orochimaru? So you could become 'stronger' and seek revenge for him killing your clan? Now that he's told you the truth, is it us you want to kill? Do you wish to end innocent lives and further attack your former students like once before? What is it you wish for, young Uchiha?"

Tsunade glanced from Homura to Koharu to Danzo, a little confused but not daring to speak up at the moment.

Sasuke said nothing; merely looked into the eyes of Homura.

He then said, "To be perfectly clear and honest, I don't know what I want. I am lost on the matter, Council."

Koharu smiled an unkind smile as she said, "You know what happens to some missing-nin. Your brother's crimes can be pardoned easily, however yours cannot. You've harmed your teammates, avoided authorities, and even joined up with that accursed snake devil. The only reason we've allowed you to continue breathing is because the Hokage insisted, as well as that blonde-headed imbecile."

Her words caught Sasuke's attention, and he raised his head once more to look at her.

She smiled and said, "You have a chance to become a part of Konoha once more and work your way to becoming an official shinobi once more. However, if you choose to leave again, then there will be no mercy for you this time, child."

Everyone stayed quiet, and tension rose high in the air.

Sasuke closed his eyes in thought.

It didn't take long for him to decide, however, and he opened his eyes and gave the faintest of smirks.

"I've made my decision, Hokage, Council."

"Well, what is it?" Tsunade asked, stepping forward and standing beside Koharu, "Speak now, Uchiha."

~~

Naruto paced back and forth, feeling more anxious than he ever had before.

Not even Sakura's comfort helped him.

Hinata watched him pace back and forth, wishing she could hold him in comfort, but knowing that her actions would not help the situation.

"I just... I just can't believe it," he said, shaking his head, "He's returned... But he hasn't killed his brother. And Orochimaru was nowhere to be found. This doesn't make sense!!!"

Ino said, "M-Maybe something's happened! Maybe they've come back peacefully!"

"'Peaceful' my ass!!" Kiba hollered, Akamaru growling beside him, "I don't know if that was their doing or not, but right now Tenten is in the hospital! We should've never let her and Lee on their own!!"

"We all knew they were unstable when they became a three-man team," Shino replied quietly, "but I never figured it would lead to her being in pain."

"That's not the problem," Shikamaru said to Shino, "the problem is that she didn't have anyone to back her up. There are four in a group for a reason; to have a tag-team. Tenten was alone this time, and because of it, she almost died."

Hinata looked down and sighed.

Sakura glanced over at her and asked, "What's wrong?"

Hinata flushed softly and said, "I'm... I'm just thinking about Neji-Kun is all..."

Naruto calmed down only a little and said, "I think we all are at this point..." The room went silent.

Even when Tenten and Lee weren't there, mentioning Neji Hyuga was an automatic conversation breaker.

Shikamaru sighed and said, "Regardless if we want him back or not, it won't help the current situation. Right now, Tenten is fine. She's just resting. But we need to focus on the matter at hand."

Naruto shook his head angrily and said, "I feel like they're hiding something from us. When I looked at Itachi and Sasuke, they didn't move, didn't attack. And now they're being questioned. I thought Itachi was a part of the Akatsuki!!"

Sai, who was drawing a dragon, said, "Maybe they haven't told you because of how you act."

"Maybe they haven't told him because they don't know either," Sakura said, slightly glaring at him.

Ino said, "We can't just wait around forever! Let's go find Tsunade!!"

"No need for that," Shino replied, pointing towards her.

She was walking towards them.

Naruto stepped up to approach them, but it seemed like Tsunade was steamed, so Hinata grabbed onto Naruto's shirt sleeve and said, "N-Naruto-Kun... Wait a moment..."

He glanced down at her and saw the sincerity. He sighed and took a step back, waiting for her to walk up.

Tsunade looked at Naruto and Sakura before quietly asking, "What's the status on Tenten?"

"Better and resting, Ma'am," Shikamaru replied, standing up.

Tsunade nodded and said, "Deidara will be paying for harming her like that. Questions have been asked and answers have been received. But for now, I need time to think."

Naruto opened his mouth to protest, but Tsunade raised her voice, "AND I would appreciate if I was left alone to think about what was said and what took place. I would hope you respect my wishes."

Naruto went quiet and took a step back. Hinata impulsively gripped onto Naruto's shirt.

Tsunade sighed and continued to walk down the hall. Not too long after, someone came trailing behind her. Akamaru growled at the person, and it caught everyone's attention. Before they could process it, Sasuke was walking past them, seemingly blank in the face.

Naruto stared at him and said, "S-Sasuke..." Sasuke didn't reply, and simply kept on moving.

Sakura took a step forward, but stopped in Sai grabbed onto her arm.

She looked at Sai, and he simply stared back, seemingly just as blank. But she knew why he stopped her.

Ino was speechless, and Kiba was beyond furious.

When he turned the corner, Naruto managed to let out a shaky breath. 'He really is back,' Naruto thought, unsure of how he should feel, but knowing that he didn't have to fight to get him back.

Sasuke had a chance to return to Konoha, and everyone knew it.

But the question was would he accept?

~~~

SAS. KEH. Yew little bish. XDD #SorryNotSorry

Also trust me. I don't like injuring Tenten close to death. Well, maybe. XDD
And yes, those Hyuga are very much real and canon.

Until the next Update!

~ Nimo