Naruto: Lost In Kishimoto - Revenge [Book 2]

Chapter Thirty-Seven: Meeting of the Five Kage.

Beth POV

"I don't trust her! How do we know she isn't working for the enemy, how else would she know all of this information!?" The Raikage yelled with conviction, his eyes filled with the fury he was renowned for.

"Lord Raikage, please, calm yourself. Beth isn't the enemy, she is one of the Akatsuki's victims." Gaara followed, an unusual edge to his voice.

"Trust her?! Orochimaru trained her through her most formative years, who knows what kinds of ideals and ethics he implanted within her. He was a former Akatsuki member! And now she's the desire of the Akatsuki, have you considered that she is a member of the Akatsuki herself?" The Raikage continued to spout allegations at me, each one feeling like a sword being plunged into my gut. I shouldn't have been surprised at the suspicion, and yet I still was considering whether or not to continue providing the information I was privy to.

"Lord Raikage, I understand your reservations about my loyalty. But for now we need to focus on making sure the Akatsuki is no longer a threat. So that they can't get their hands on anymore of the tailed beasts. We have to create a task force and attack. We have to take the fight to them!"

***

Seven Hours Earlier

Opening my eyes I was greeted to a black room, the darkness of early morning still enveloping my bedroom in shadow. I hadn't been able to sleep much the night before, the unease of the days events causing an indescribable level of anxiety. My nails had ripped small strips of skin from my forearm as a result, an unexplainable need to constantly scratch my arm resulting in a mess of oozing blood. The wounds looked worse then they felt, both during and after they occurred.

Sasuke had stayed the night, lying beside me even as I looked out at the quiet buildings of Konoha. Turning my head to look at him I watched as a piece of his hair, which had fallen from behind his ear to rest on his cheek, slowly moved with the breeze of his breath. Every time I looked at him I found myself both loving and loathing him. I loved his face, his eyes, the way his breath felt as he rested his chin on my forehead, the way my face fit perfectly into his chest, the way he challenged me. But I loathed him, with every fibre of my being and that was proven with my own words. It had obviously been something hidden within myself for a while, as if I refused to acknowledge it before. He scared me, made me feel like he could turn on me at any moment. But that wasn't the only thing that made me hate Sasuke, it was his anger, his inability to move on from the trauma of his past. The trauma which had caused me to give my life for his.

And that was what brought my mind to Itachi. It had been months since I had spoken to him, his promise to tell Sasuke the truth still lingering within me, and yet he had disappeared. Deserting the Akatsuki was something that required one to be invisible, and yet I wished he would just get it over with. Itachi and I had a connection that I couldn't comprehend. An unspoken bond created through mutual respect and understanding of each other's motives and past actions. Somehow as I continued through my everyday life in Konoha, I found myself wondering what he would do once Sasuke knew the truth. Would he move back to the Land of Fire? Stay in touch with Sasuke? Would Sasuke forgive him after knowing the truth? Or would his anger then find itself directed at Konoha itself. With all the questions I found myself asking, it was a wonder I slept at all.

Swinging my legs over the side of the bed I pushed myself up and began walking into the kitchen, my throat dry and hoarse. Pouring myself a glass of water I walked out onto my balcony and sat down, taking small sips of the water, lubricating my throat. I breathed in, the sounds of the morning ringing in my ears, the singing birds, the breeze swaying through the trees.

But as I looked out at the trees there was something I noticed. It was there for maybe a millisecond, but I knew what I saw. It was in the shape of a man but not a man. Its body morphed with the landscape, its colouring pale. Zetsu.