Return Of The Madness

Chapter 5

"Dei, answer me, damn it!" Yuma snarled, glaring up at the significantly taller man as he avoided her gaze entirely, staring straight over her head. His jaw was set to a painful degree, his fists clenched so tightly that his knuckles were stained white. They'd been at this for a solid hour, waiting for Sasori. Still, Yuma refused to let up.

"Yuma, go to your room," Sasori ordered gruffly upon his arrival, saving Deidara from further interrogation as Yuma turned to the puppeteer.

"Who was that boy? Why won't you guys tell me?"

Unaffected by her aggressive questions and irritated glare, Sasori replied calmly. "Who that was is none of your concern."

"None of- He knew who I was, I could see it! And he was so damn familiar! Who was he?!" Yuma yelled, storming to the hunched figure, leering over the slightly shorter form. She was angry to the point that her fists trembled, but Sasori only stared up at her with a chilling, level gaze.

"Who he was to you or anyone else is irrelevant now, I made sure of that. Room, now, or I contact Leader and let him deal with you."

Yuma stood staring at the man before her for a solid thirty seconds, seething with rage at the condescending tone used for this secrecy. Finally, she tore her piercing gaze away, storming off without a word to either of them, and slamming the door to her room once she reached it.

As soon as she was gone, Deidara relaxed, releasing a heavy breath and staring sadly after the confused and livid girl.

"Thanks, Danna, yeah," the blonde man mumbled.

"Don't thank me, brat, for fixing your mess," Sasori growled. "Let's just finish this mission."

~•••~

Tan eyelids fluttered, and Kakuro cringed at the bright lights shining overhead.

Ugh...

He heard voices, familiar voices. So familiar...

A sudden picture flit through the young puppet master's mind, and the image jerked him awake.

"YUMA, WAIT!" He cried out, eyes flying open in hopes that the girl would be there to answer his questions. Why was she with the Akatsuki? Why had she left Konaha? He recalled the notice that she'd gone missing, but for her to go and join up with those criminals? He found it hard to believe that she would willingly do so, after seeing her dedication to her village.

Why didn't she recognise him? I mean, sure, they hadn't seen one another since the Chunnin Exams, but he could never forget her, or her stunning, twisted eyes more like. Those eyes which have accompanied many a nightmare after seeing her strength, blood-lust, cruelty on the battlefield.

In the moment their gazes locked, she'd looked so... lost.

"...uro? KAKASHI-SENSEI?!"

Kankuro blinked in surprise as another familiar face filled his sight. Yuma's dad, or sensei, or whatever he was. The Copy Cat Nin.

Kakashi Hatake.

The man was frantic, an expression that Kankuro hadn't ever seen before on the usually dull, bored sensei's masked face. His dark eye was wide, searching the boy's face as his masked moved relentlessly, and it took the Sand Nin a moment to recover from his shock to realize the man who'd suddenly appeared was talking to him, but the words were so fast that his sluggish brain couldn't make sense of any of it.

"S-Sensei, he needs rest!" A feminine, but strong voice reprimanded, and Kakashi blinked, as if realizing what a scene he was making.

He forced himself to relax, moving away from Kankuro, but the puppeteer couldn't help but notice how the man suddenly looked so much older. So tired.

A bright pink head of hair appeared over Kankuro, and sparkling green eyes scanned him over. Sakura Haruno was asking him soft, gentle questions about how he was feeling, what hurt, what he remembered last. Kankuro answered to the best of his ability, but found his voice hoarse, his throat sore.

"I managed... to snag a scrap of the bastard's cloak... my... puppets..." He croaked, struggling to rise, though Sakura was sure to push him back onto the bed, assuring him they would find the scrap, his puppets had been retrieved with him.

"Kankuro," yet another familiar voice muttered, and Sakura moved away as blue eyes and blonde hair made Kankuro's eyes widen.

"Naruto..."

"You..." the blonde hesitated, a moment of doubt flashing in his blue gaze. "You said... Yuma... when you woke up..."

Kankuro suddenly jerked, cursing the pain and his shitty memory. This was her team, maybe they knew what the hell was going on. He ignored Sakura's protests and sat up, with the aid of his sister.

"She was with them," he said hurriedly, eyes wide as he leaned forward. "The two Akatsuki members. She was covered in blood, but unhurt, and..." He stopped, the last detail stuck in his throat as he looked at the trio. They were staring intensely at him, eyes wide and shimmering with hope and tears.

He looked down, and continued.

"She was wearing the cloak... She's... She's a member..."

"No!"

He'd expected Naruto to be the one to shout in disbelief and anger, but when he looked up, it was Kakashi whose fist collided with the hospital wall. Naruto and Sakura stood absolutely still, eyes wide in shock and denial, and Kakashi whirled around to glare at Kankuro, who flinched at the terrifying expression.

"You sick, lying, son of a-"

"Hey! Lay off!" Temari shouted, stepping in front of her younger brother to shield him from the accusing glare of the deranged sensei. "Why would he lie about this?! Why can't you just calm down, fighting and yelling like children isn't going to figure anything out!"

Kakashi stopped, and the rage melted slowly from his face, and again he seemed to age before their eyes. Sorrow, exhaustion, and guilt weighed him down visibly, and he muttered an apology before exiting the room.

"I'll talk to him..." Baki, a man with half his face hidden behind a cloth from his head covering, and the Sand Siblings' Sensei, offered, exiting the room after the silver haired jounnin.

Kankuro looked down. "I'm sorry... She was gone before I... I thought maybe you guys would..."

He looked up again as a gentle hand landed on his shoulder. Sakura smiled softly at him, her eyes slightly red.

"It's okay, at least we know she's alive and well. And this is Yuma we're talking about, there's no way she'd team up with the Akatsuki."

"She's right!" Naruto grinned, lifting a fist confidently. "Yuma loved Konaha, and promised to protect it, there's something really fishy going on for her to be with the Akatsuki, and Yuma's counting on us to figure it out, and there's no doubt in my mind that she'll help us get Gaara back, too!"

His enthusiasm made Kankuro smile.

"Yeah... you're right..."