"So...this is Iwagakure..." Miyu looked around the mountainous region. Barely any green areas could be seen around.

"Yeah..." Hanako had been to Iwagakure two times after her father had been murdered. One in a mission with Kai, and that was the second time. The surroundings still looked as about the same. "Kai, you take it from here. You know the place better than all of us."

The guy nodded and walked ahead of the group. "Who are we looking for?" he asked.

"A man named Han," Hanako replied as she pulled a book from her pouch. "According to Kabuto's information, he lives in the outskirts of the Village. He's the Jinchuuriki of the Five Tails. His abilities focus on Taijutsu and Ninjutsu of the Steam Style. He wears a Steam Armor, which contains a furnace that emits steam on his back," Hanako narrated everything she read on the book before closing it with a sigh. "Fuuton, huh?"

"What can you do with steam style?" Yuu wondered, "I am going to steam you to death!" She laughed. Miyu joined the joke, "You'd be a great addition for my steamed veggies."

"Shut up before I steam you myself," Hanako rolled her eyes. Yuu and Miyu shut their mouths, looking at Hanako with fear. "He's still a Jinchuuriki, don't let your guards down."

"Anyway, he doesn't really stand a chance against your Shakuton," Miyu added.

"Maybe Han doesn't," said Hanako. "But the Gobi is a different story, I can't exactly scorch a Bijuu to death." She smirked when Yuu burst out laughing. Then it died down to a frown. "I have no other option but to use the Mangekyou."

"Hanako," Kai turned to her. "You're in no condition to use those eyes anymore. Your body can't take it."

"I know, but I have to. This will be these eyes' last fight, anyway, so I'll make the most of it."

"What do you mean, Hana-chan?" asked Yuu.

Hanako smirked. "I think I might have found the cure to my blindness."

After a few hours of walking, Kai finally stopped at the edge of a cliff. Hanako stood next to him and looked down to find a cabin made entirely of wood. It seemed to be completely shut out from any kind of civilization; whoever lived there was probably a loner or had a grudge against humanity.

"When I was a kid, I remember my mother talking about this cabin that was always alone, and somehow managed to maintain itself beautiful. This got to be it," said Kai.

"Han must live here," Hanako muttered. "Let's take a look."

The cabin was another regular house on the inside. It had a kitchen, a bathroom, one bedroom and the living. Nobody was home, and the cabin was void of any personal items that acknowledged it as private property.

"Are you sure someone lives here?" Yuu asked. "This place seems abandoned to me."

Hanako ignored her as she searched the bedroom. There was absolutely nothing that contained any sentimental value of the sort. If Han really lived there, then he had no attachment to that place.

They were about to leave when a new chakra caught Hanako's attention. She halted her movements, and silenced everyone in a moment. Han was still far, but he was heading their way. Mist started to form around them. Hanako narrowed her eyes at the barely perceptible increase in the temperature. 'This is not mist...' she thought as she focused on the vapor around them. 'This is steam.' Han's chakra had suddenly appeared right outside the cabin. Hanako turned to look at the door just as it opened.

"Breaking into private property isn't exactly a courteous act," Han said. He was carrying grocery bags, which he carefully placed on the ground beside him. "If you had been patient and waited for me outside, I might have considered inviting you in. However, I am pissed because you invaded my personal space." Hanako narrowed her eyes. Han was a very tall man, he had hunched his back to walk through the door, and even, when straightened back up, the top of his head almost touched the ceiling. He wore a red plated armor that covered his entire body, a mask that covered the lower half of his face, and a kasa that covered the top of his head. The only visible part of his body were his eyes.

"Han, Jinchuuriki of the Gobi," Hanako said, looking intently at the man. "We are the Akatsuki, and we are here to take you with us."

Han observed the five people standing in his living and narrowed his eyes slightly. "Take me with you?" he scoffed. "Don't play with me!" He went to attack Hanako, but Kai formed a silver shield in front of the brunette. Han landed a punch on the shield, crumpling it entirely as if it were a sheet of paper. His fist almost reached Hanako's face, but stopped a few inches from it.

Hanako jumped over Han, aiming a kick to his head; but steam formed around him pushed her away. Hanako crashed against the wooden wall, destroying it completely. "Hanako!" Kai yelled but at the same time Han stood before him. The Jinchuuriki landed a fist on his stomach, making Kai cough blood. He was thrown against the opposite wall, destroying it as well.

With the lack of support, the wooden cabin started to crack all around, until its roof finally fell. "Yuu!" Miyu wrapped some of her summoned vines around the girl's waist and dragged her out of the place. Doku also took of Miyu, and pulled her and Yuu away. The cabin fell over Han. Kai used his steel to protect himself, while Hanako summoned her own weapon and turned it to a small shield.

They waited for a few seconds until the ruins had settled; dust rose slowly around the place and was then dragged away by the wind. Hanako transformed her shield back to her accustomed kama and stood slowly. She couldn't feel Han's chakra anywhere among the former wooden cabin and that got her severely unsettled. "He ran away?" she asked slowly. But then she widened her eyes at the sudden presence behind her. For a Jinchuuriki, he could hide pretty well all of his chakra.

"Run away?" Hanako looked at him from over her shoulder at the same time he pulled his arm back to punch her. Hanako raised her kama just in time to intercept his fist. Hanako's feet skidded back due to the force of his impact. 'He's strong,' she thought. The furnace on the back of Han's armor emitted steam and whistled like a pot with boiling water. Hanako gritted her teeth when the plates of his armor started to inflate, starting at the top of his shoulder, all the way down his arms. 'Oh no,' she frowned. The pressure in his armor receded all at once, with enough force to push both Han and the girl towards the forest. Hanako's feet skidded backwards, causing enough friction to heat the ground and burn her toes. Hanako gasped in pain when she was crushed against a tree trunk, breaking it completely. The tree fell down behind her, making the ground tremble. Her weapon disappeared when her chakra suddenly failed to respond.

Han pulled away, and Hanako fell down to her knees. 'Really strong,' she admitted. Blood trickled down her chin and fell to the ground in large drops. 'I will have to use the Mangekyou, or else I won't beat him.'

Han turned away from her, back to where the other four members of Genso waited for him. Hanako clenched her fists as she healed slowly, her hair started to turn black starting from the roots, all the way down to the tips. "You don't simply turn your back to the enemy in the middle of a fight," she growled menacingly. Han stopped and turned back to look at her; but when he did, she was gone.

"What?" The Jinchuuriki narrowed his eyes. Soft chuckling could be heard as an echo through the woods, but the Uchiha girl was nowhere to be seen. "Come out."

"Sure thing," she muttered right next to his ear. Han widened his and backed away immediately. Hanako was hanging upside down from her kama, which was nailed from its blade to the tree that was behind him. She looked at him with a wicked grin. "What is it? Don't you want to play?" she asked.

Han clenched his fists. Hanako's hair had suddenly turned from brown to a dark black, and her Sharingan tomoes had merged into a design that vaguely resembled a flower. Her chakra had also changed, flowing out of her channels and emitting a dark aura. "Are you just going to stand there?" Hanako asked.

Han huffed as he let the Gobi's chakra take over. He transformed into the version 2 of the Bijuu, the chakra cloak around him tearing into his skin, merging into him in a combination of boiling chakra and blood. He roared, making the ground beneath crack at the sudden tension released. Hanako grinned in excitement as she chuckled slightly. "Yes...give me all you've got."

* * *

Naruto and Jiraiya walked into a restaurant. "I'm starving..." Naruto nagged. "When are we going to find this woman you are looking for, Ero-sennin?"

"Patience, kid..." Jiraiya rolled his eyes. "She'll show up when we least expect her to."

At that moment, a blonde woman opened the doors of the restaurant. "Take a drink everyone!" she exclaimed. "It's on me, I won today!" The woman burst into a fit of laughter. She was clearly drunk.

"Tsunade-sama!" A younger woman, carrying a small pig on her arms, stopped her movements with a nervous laugh. "We should go back, you're not okay..."

Jiraiya sighed. "Speaking of the devil..."

Naruto's jaw dropped. "ARE YOU SERIOUS?!"

* * *

The steam started to fade after Han had been defeated. Hanako sat over the Jinchuuriki's unconscious body, covering her eyes with her hands. Her black hair reverted back to her accustomed brown. Kai approached the Uchiha with a frown. They had destroyed their surroundings completely.

"Are you okay?" he asked.

"My eyes... they hurt badly, my head hurts badly..."

"What can you see?"

Hanako chuckled dryly. "I see black. I literally see nothing." Hanako suddenly coughed blood. "Heh, this man really took a toll on me..." she placed a hand over Han's ruptured armor. "But it's finally over."

The rest of Genso members also approached them. "Should we go? We have what we needed." Yuu asked.

"Yeah," Hanako nodded. "Let's go."

* * *

"What is your relationship to Hanako Uchiha?" Tobi was sitting down in his personal office, reading through some old scrolls. When he heard Pain's voice, he looked up.

"Hanako?" he asked, rolling the scroll closed. "She's an old acquaintance of mine." Tobi stood up and walked towards Pain. He was standing at the entrance of the room, looking at Tobi with an emotionless face. "How did you find this place?"

"I followed you here," Pain said monotonously.

Tobi huffed and turned his back to him. "Of course..." he rested his arms on a nearby table. "Hanako is useful for us. She can easily detect the presence of the Bijuu, and she can also control them."

"Control the Bijuu?"

"Yeah, Zetsu reported to me that Hanako halted one of Shukaku's rampages."

Pain widened his eyes slightly for a moment, then reverted back to his emotionless façade. The loud sound of a thump interrupted their conversation, and they both looked to find the Uchiha, standing in the middle of the room with crossed arms and a scroll in her hand. "Are you guys talking about me?" she asked with a raised eyebrow, looking at Tobi.

"No, why do you ask?" The man noted that her eyes were opaque, and her clothes were dirty. She seemed to be fully blind now.

Hanako shrugged. "That's just what I normally say when I enter a room and people stare at me," she commented. "It's like they're waiting for to me to snap at them or something."

"Did you get what we were looking for?" Pain asked.

"Jeez, chill out..." Hanako muttered. She opened the scroll in her hands and let it fall to her feet. She made a seal with her hands and placed her foot on the parchment. Suddenly, a figure started to emerge of it, taking the form of a human being. "This is the Jinchuuriki of the Gobi, Han," Hanako explained. Tobi and Pain looked down at him with analytic eyes.

"The Gobi?"

"He's almost dead," Pain noted.

"Of course he is," Hanako rolled her eyes. "Or else I wouldn't have been able to drag him here without any resistance."

He nodded. "I'll take him with me, then." When Pain went to grab the unconscious man, Hanako stood in front of him with narrowed eyes.

"Uh, uh," she shook her head. "We had a deal."

"I will be the one to give you Hikari's eyes," Tobi said boredly. "However, you must know that I've never performed this kind of surgery on anyone before."

Hanako stared at him seriously, not really seeing him. She only knew he was there because she could feel his chakra. "I'll take the risk," she finally said. "If you fail, I'll be blind anyway, so what is there to lose?" she smirked. "Hurry up, Mada-kun. I'm not giving you this until you give me that."

* * *

"You should be ashamed, beaten by two clowns..." Tsunade shook her head after she had healed Kakashi. She had healed Sasuke before coming to the Jounin, but the kid still needed a little more of time to recover. Kakashi was as good as new. Even though, Itachi's beating had really ruined him a little.

"I'm sorry," Kakashi looked down at his sheets.

"Alright, now it's Genshimayou's turn and we're good," Naruto grinned.

"Lee is in the next room," Gai had accompanied them the whole time, and was eager to get to his student.

When they left, Kakashi sighed and lay on his bed once again, closing his eyes. "I met Hanako on the trip," Jiraiya mumbled from the window, making Kakashi open his eyes and look at him from over his shoulder. "She was supposed to come with me, but I guess her plans changed drastically." Jiraiya was sitting on the window sill, looking at the outside. His back was turned towards the Jounin. "Kakashi, Hanako asked me not to tell you this, but I think you deserve to know."

Kakashi sat back up, looking at the Sannin with curiosity in his eyes. "What is it?"

Jiraiya turned to look at him with extreme seriousness in his face. Kakashi was almost ready for the worst, but what Jiraiya said made time freeze around him.

"Hanako...joined the Akatsuki."

* * *

Hanako stopped Kai's kick right beside her head. "Not bad," he smirked. Although Hanako couldn't see, she had gotten used to her blindness and learned how to take advantage of it. She didn't need to see to know where she was anymore; she could guess her context by feeling the chakra around her.

Hanako had learned to feel the Natural Energy around her, which helped her to make an image in her mind of her surroundings. Hanako might be blind, but she could see perfectly thanks to her sensory abilities.

"It's like you're back to normal," Kai panted heavily as he pulled away. Hanako wasn't tired at all.

"You could use some cardio training," she mocked. Kai scoffed. He straightened up and got all serious all of a sudden. Hanako noticed the sudden silence and frowned. "What is it?"

Kai looked at her. Hanako looked pretty much the same a few days after the surgery. But she still didn't recover completely. She wore a bandage over her eyes, waiting until Tobi told her she could take it off. They didn't know if the surgery would work, and they didn't know if Hikari's eyes would allow Hanako to see again. It was the first time they tried it, it was just an experiment. But Hanako was eager to try anything that might give her a chance of gaining her sight back. She seemed pretty confident, but he wasn't so sure about it. There was a greater chance of Hanako remaining blind, than of her being able to see again. "I heard something regarding Orochimaru that might interest you." Hanako sighed. "He's planning to send the Sound Five after Sasuke."

Hanako didn't respond; she just disappeared.

The Leaf Village was just as she remembered. Hanako was secretly thanking they didn't change anything after Orochimaru's attack, or else she would have had a lot of trouble moving around. The Uchiha tried to maintain a low profile, but that meant she couldn't use her sensory abilities very much, or else the ANBU would sense her immediately.

She was currently standing on the branch of a high tree; the Hokage Mountain was below her. The breeze swayed Hanako's hair as she focused on looking for a specific chakra.

"The hospital...?" Hanako suddenly muttered to herself. Then she disappeared again.

Sasuke had been intercepted by Kakashi before his Chidori could harm Sakura. She had gotten in the way of his fight with Naruto, but there was nothing he could do to stop. He was thrown against a water tank, crumpling the metal as his hand pierced the cylinder. When he pulled his hand back, all water came out in a single cascade until only drops where left. Sasuke looked over at Naruto and smirked when he saw that his technique had only managed to create a hole from which water dripped slowly. Fighting on the hospital roof had probably not been a very good idea.

"I didn't teach you the Chidori to use it against your friends," Kakashi said. Sasuke narrowed his eyes at him but didn't say anything. Instead, he jumped over the fence, wanting to get as far away from his team as he could. When he landed, he was surprised to hear the sound of water dripping. There was a puddle right next to him. When he looked up, he was surprised and almost raging when he saw that Naruto's tank had a large hole on the back. Even larger than the hole he had made. Naruto's jutsu was stronger than his.

Sasuke gritted his teeth and left without another word.

Hanako made her way slowly towards the hospital. She was covered with a black hood from head to toes, so people wouldn't be able to identify her. She also camouflaged herself, not using her chakra on the slightest. To any Shinobi, she didn't possess chakra at all, so they only perceived her as a normal civilian.

A sudden presence over a building called Hanako's attention and she stopped. The Sound Five. Hanako smirked and disappeared.

"Is it time to go?" asked Sakon.

"Go where?" Hanako muttered. They all looked beside them to see a hooded figure sitting next to them.

"Who are you?" Tayuya narrowed her eyes. "How did you find us?"

"Wow, snappy... Pretty much the impression I had of you," Hanako commented. "Tayuya, right?"

Sakon finally seemed to recognize her voice. "Hanako...Uchiha?"

"Precisely."

"I thought you had left the village," Kidoumaru commented with a low chuckle. "What are you doing here?"

"Kai told me you would be here," she said bluntly. "Are you here to take Sasuke?" she asked.

"Why?" Sakon pulled a kunai out and pointed it at her with a smirk. She didn't even flinch. "Are you here to stop us?"

"No, I don't have any interest in whatever your mission is. You can kidnap Sasuke for all I care."

Sakon pulled the kunai away with a scoff. "Then, what are you doing here?"

"I need to speak to Sasuke. Let me talk to him before you take him. He's pretty malleable, with the right words I can make him come with you."

"Is that so?" Sakon smirked. "Then, go ahead talk to him. After that, I want you gone."

"Of course." Hanako disappeared. Tayuya snapped at Sakon.

"Why would you just let her go like that?! She's the enemy!"

Sakon only shrugged, continuing to look down at Sasuke's location. "She was saying the truth."

Hanako moved closer to Sasuke, careful of not getting noticed. Suddenly, she heard Kakashi's voice and halted on her steps. He was talking to Sasuke.

"Sasuke, forget about revenge."

"What?!"

"I've seen a lot of people like you, their fate is tragic," he said. "You're only going to hurt yourself even more and suffer. Even if you manage to get your revenge, the emptiness inside you will continue to be there."

"SHUT UP!" Sasuke snapped at him. "What would you know about it?! Don't talk to me as if you knew what I am going through!"

"Calm down," Kakashi said calmly, getting on Sasuke's nerves. Hanako listened to them silently, trying not to move.

"If you want to, I can kill the most important person to you right now," Sasuke threatened. "Then you'll understand that what you just said doesn't make sense at all."

"I wouldn't care if you did," Kakashi said slowly, suddenly heartbroken. "That person doesn't exist anymore. Everyone I loved has already been killed, and the only person I thought I could love again...is a traitor." Hanako gulped and clenched her fists. There was a knot in her throat, and a sudden emptiness in her heart. Kakashi had just called her a traitor.

Sasuke widened his eyes as he looked up at his teacher. "I have lived longer than you have," Kakashi continued. "And times have changed. I know pretty well, though, what it's like to lose someone important." Sasuke looked down. "None of us was lucky, I guess. But we're not that bad; we have both found some pretty good friends, haven't we?" Kakashi let go of Sasuke. "I understand your feelings Sasuke. I gave you the Chidori because now you have something to protect with it. Don't use it to destroy it. I'm sure you can understand what I mean. Think about it." Then, he was gone.

Hanako took a deep breath. She could suddenly feel remorse towards the Jounin. She regretted her relationship with him, maybe if she hadn't gotten involved with him she wouldn't feel that way. She smiled and shook her head. She would have to forget about him, maybe she could erase all of her memories of her time in Konoha. She should do that. And then the remorse she felt would be gone.

After making up her mind, Hanako stood where Kakashi had been. Sasuke didn't look up at her.

"Should I start by apologizing or by asking what happened?" she asked. "I'm pretty sure Kakashi already told you everything you did was a wrong, and more, but..." Hanako stopped talking when she noticed that Sasuke wasn't listening to her. She took a deep breath and tried again. From Kakashi's words, she could assume that he had gotten into a fight with Naruto. "Sasuke."

The boy looked up at her, not really looking at her. "I'm leaving Konoha."

"I know," he said. "When I woke up in the hospital, I knew there was something wrong. Itachi came back, and you weren't here. Are you running away again?"

"Yeah...I guess you could say that..."

"How long are you going to keep running?" Hanako chuckled dryly.

"I wish I knew..." she said. Then she became serious. "What are you going to do, anyway?"

"I don't want to stay here." Sasuke admitted. Hanako couldn't blame him. The Village didn't feel safe anymore. "Being in a team, having friends to worry about...all those bonds keep me from getting what I want..." Hanako bit her lip. "You trained with Orochimaru, didn't you?" Sasuke suddenly looked up at her, and for the first time he noticed her bandaged eyes. He didn't ask about it. "Are you going back with him?"

"No," the Uchiha hurried to say. "I trained with him, yes. It worked for me a lot. But I'm not going back to him, not ever. If you want to become powerful within a couple of years, I'd say you give it a shot. But I don't recommend you to stay with him, that man is really creepy."

"Are you urging me to go?" Sasuke smirked.

"If I did it myself, who am I to stop you?" Hanako raised an eyebrow. "It's your life, not mine."

"Where are you going, then? Maybe I prefer to come with you," Sasuke said.

"I joined the Akatsuki," Hanako said in a monotone voice. Sasuke widened his eyes slightly. "Yes, that's the organization your brother's in."

"Why did you join?"

"Partly, to keep tabs on Itachi and his partner Kisame." Hanako shrugged. "Partly, to keep tabs on another member whom I have some pending business with. But most importantly, because I need to know what they're up to." Hanako chuckled. "I actually have to infiltrate into Orochimaru's hideout soon, I gotta steal his Akatsuki ring."

"He has a ring?"

"Yeah, he used to be a member until Itachi scared him off." Sasuke pursed his lips. "It's actually funny to think a man like Orochimaru would actually be afraid of him. I am still trying to make him fear me like he fears Itachi, but I still don't get it. What did he do?"

"I guess we have to figure that out..." Sasuke smirked. "I'm going with Orochimaru. I'll help you infiltrate whenever you need to."

"Sounds good to me," Hanako smiled.

"But, you have to keep me informed on Itachi's whereabouts, and his abilities."

"Sure..." Hanako pressed her lips. She really didn't want Sasuke to fight his brother, but she couldn't do anything about it yet.

"I'll tell you anything I know about Orochimaru as well; if something happens, I'll let you know."

Hanako chuckled. "I'll train with you once a week, I kind of owe it to you, don't I? Orochimaru tends to change his hideout every week, but he has a specific pattern so I will find you. In any case, I'll send Hayabusa constantly to track you around."

"Hm."

"If he tries to take your body, call me and I'll kick his ass..." Hanako tilted her head sideways. "I guess that's everything you should know... Wait, don't go to the dungeons. There are some pretty nasty things down there." Hanako shrunk her face with disgust. "Things you really don't need to see."

Sasuke chuckled. "I get it..."

"So, I guess that's it... I'll see you around, Sasuke." Hanako disappeared in a cloud of smoke.