The cold of the cave did little to upset the people who dwelled inside. 

"The loss of Deidara and Sasori was... unexpected." the Akatsuki leader spoke from the safety of a projection. All but two members participated in the projection, allowing communication from any location, no matter what. "But our new member, Tobi, will take the place of Deidara." 

All eight members listened to the news. 

Hidan of the Village Hidden in Steam was the one to speak up, a question itching in his immortal brain. "Who's this Tobi going to be paired with?"

The Akatsuki leader answered simply, "He is to be paired with Zetsu until another rogue ninja falls into our ranks. Now, we are to discuss the securing of the other tailed beasts. Hidan, Kakazu," He began to relegate each two man group to their tasks. "You two are to secure the two tails from the hidden cloud. Tobi and Zetsu will go after the three tails. Do not worry about the seven or six tails; they will be taken care of in due time. Itatchi, Kisame: the two of you are to track down and locate the ninetails. The jinchuriki was a boy named Naruto Uzumaki before the boy died, and then a member of the leafs anbu black ops. It has been almost three years since that anbu was reported dead and no new jinchuriki has been documented yet. Did you find anything the last time you visited the village, Itachi?"

"I did not. The leaf has kept the identity of the jinchuriki under wraps and out of public knowledge." 

"We'll go and secure the information." Kisame piped up.

Their leader nodded. "Very well. Good hunting."

"I must ask," the swordsman quickly interjected. "How'd Deidara meet his demise? The leaf isn't exactly known for killing their prisoners."

The air grew colder. It was bitter and malicious in nature. Speaking, their leader failed to portray any fear or remorse in his words. "It has been reported that Deidara was killed by a mysterious figure, nothing more than a murderous shadow. Not even the leaf has found his killer."

Kisame smiled. This was interesting. The meeting ended, all members beginning their journeys.

*******

Sai watched the scene unfold with the careful eye of a Root member. He was assigned to practice with 'Nayu' and work on their compatibility as teammates. Little did Captain Yamato know, but the two of them had worked numerous missions together, though identities were different then. 

There was a strange mix of fear and admiration of the fabled Fox of Death. To hold a transformation jutsu for so long, even while at rest, that took incredible chakra and skill. But that name Fox received bore far too much weight to be a mere nickname. No, that was a title granted to the most efficient tool in Lord Danzo's arsenal. Not even master assassins feared in all nations were able to bring Fox down. Yet Sai found himself here, crouching in the bushes with his superior disguised as an unbelievably unintelligent kunoichi. 

His teammate, Sakura, waited up in a tree; watching the tactics unfold. She too was an interesting character. So unsure of herself, yet with the temper of the hokage herself. What a strange girl. He bore no thoughts of the team captain. The captain was merely another member of the anbu. Just another tool for the leaf.

Speak of the devil. A very obvious clone of Captain Yamato walked into the clearing. 'Nayu' inched forward, her feet digging into the dry beneath her. The expression on her face was something his books mentioned. She expressed glee and an anxious joy at the coming fight. Truly a master-of-disguise, Fox was. Sai found it honouring to watch. 

Nayu made the first move, earth becoming upturned in front of Captain Yamato. 

"Earth Style: Bottomless Swamp." she whispered. Before Captain Yamato, the earth turned into a large pool of mud. Their captain was quick to jump away, escaping the otherwise foolproof trap. 

Taking his chance, Sai released a barrage of snakes of the captain. They slithered and moved quickly towards him. Each snake tried to wrap itself around Captain Yamato, slowly climbing up the clone. 

Bursting up from the ground, wood shot towards both Sai and Nayu. They both leapt away, going in opposite directions. 

Nayu rolled on her shoulder only to jump  backwards and into the clearing, narrowly escaping the barrage of wooden stakes aimed at her. With incredible agility and flexibility, she dodged almost all attacks of Captain Yamato's. Nayu couldn't engage in taijutsu in any form, so instead she focused on preparing a counter attack. 

Her teammate held his own and put up a formattable fight. Ink splashed around as Captain Yamato chose to increase the level of difficulty. There was something he wanted to see Nayu do. Besides, there was little teamwork going on. 

As if on cue, shinobi and kunoichi began to work off each other. 

Sensing chakra from below the surface of the earth, Captain Yamato jumped up and did the appropriate hand signs that would bring wood up from the ground.

"Earth style: double suicide decapitation." Nayu reached for the Captain's legs as she erupted from the ground. 

"Ninja art: super beast scroll." He completed the stroke of his brush, a bird flying off the surface of his scroll.

Captain Yamato saw their plan. Unable to move while in the air, Sai's ink birds charged him. Using the wood he created, Captain Yamato wrapped it around his ankle and pulled himself down with it. He escaped the attack of ink birds but failed to notice a clone of Nayu standing at the edge of the treeline. 

She smiled, a wild wind blowing the bangs from her eyes. "Earth style: earth flow river!" A river of mud swept Captain Yamato off his feet, causing him to land on his back. The mud solidified fast, leaving the captain's clone frozen still. 

Waiting, Nayu dispersed her clone and ran towards Sai. Sakura jumped down when a poof of smoke came from the captain's clone. A radiant smile escaped Nayu. She wiped the streaks of mud from her face.

"Well done." Captain Yamato left the comfort of the forest and faced the shinobi. "I'm surprised by the amount of success you two had. Sakura, think you'll be able to work with Nayu if needed?"

Sakura nodded eagerly. "Shouldn't be a problem."

"Good. But that being said, protocol is still important. Nayu and Sai have proved themselves a decent pair. So you'll stay in the back of the squad as our medic."

Really? Sakura was caught off guard. She already explained that she could work with Nayu. In her mind, the pink haired kunoichi beat herself over the disappointment she felt. Enough, Sakura. Don't doubt Captain Yamato. He knows what he's doing and Lady Tsunade would do nothing different. Listen up and make her proud! 

"Yes, Captain." Sakura hid her feelings as well as she could.

"Don't worry about it, Sakura. You'll still get to fight with us." Nayu expressed. "Pretty sure mister gloomy and I aren't going to be getting along for long, anyways. Might need you to step in as my teammate."

"Nayu," Captain Yamato tried to get her attention. When she faced him, he carried on. "I suggest using your genjutsu next time. You would have won the fight way sooner had you done so."

She smiled awkwardly. "Yeahhhhhh, but I wanted to give Sai the chance to fight. Besides, I don't have anything strong enough to knock you out cold."

"Don't worry about your teammate getting his chance. And don't play the weak link. You need to pull your own weight. That means using all the jutsu and genjutsu in your arsenal to defeat the enemy. Understood?"

"Sheesh. Got it!" Nayu gave a mock solute. All the captain could do was weakly sigh. This girl was exhausting.

***********

Blood curdling screams echoed across the Land of Fire's border. Without hesitation, the white haired sannin bolted towards the noise, fearing the worst. His eyes formed thin slits and cast a calculating gaze. Thoughts of what created the screams made his blood run cold. Was it a child? A travelling civilian? Another shinobi in need of rescue? There were far too many possibilities and none were good.

Running through the dense forest, moonlight cast dim light through the leaves above. A malicious chakra seeped onto the breeze; leaving as fast as it came. 

Jiraiya's fierce determination bolstered his speed. The sound of snapping bones and slashing weapons left him desperate. What kind of creature would be so cruel as to subject someone to such torture. Once group came to mind, but they left without a trace until some time ago. Jiraiya thought that the burnt village was theirs, but he never pressed on with an investigation in fear of painful reminders coming forward.

Rounding a corner, chakra flowed through his limbs. He would have to act quick if the situation was to be neutralized. 

Despite his greatest efforts, Jiraiya found himself frozen still. Standing in the woods in a small clearing, hardly large enough to fit him and another person, his eyes fell on a figure before him.

Casting a cold light from above, the moon allowed a bloody scene to be painted. Blood splashed up a rock in large slashes. Limbs and organs spilt across the ground. He counted five victims: three shinobi and two adolescent children. 

The figure stood in the centre of its victims. A familiar silhouette caused Jiraiya to consider who it might be. He slipped a kunai into his hand, a paper-bomb attached at the hilt by a string. Carefully, he moved forwards. Taking small, silent steps, the figure became clearer.

Pale blond hair, attire that claimed pieces of both the Foundation and the Anbu black ops, and a mask eerily void of personality. In the figures hand was a katana with red, black, and small bits of orange intertwined in the hilt. The blade dripped with fresh blood.

Jiraiya gasped, choking on words. A foreign tear fell from his eye and rolled down his face. "N....Naruto?" it can't be. The boy was killed on a mission years ago. 

The figure erupted in smoke, nothing more than a clone. 

The sannin stood there in disbelief. It couldn't be Minato's son. There was no reason for the boy to be alive. His torturers found him while on a mission and killed him. That is what many reported, so it had to be true. Jiraiya shook his head. It isn't like the first time Naruto was reported dead. No, that was Hiruzen's doing. This was Danzo. The Foundation's leader was far too fond of Naruto to falsify his death. 

Naruto was dead. This figure was nothing but a trick; an anbu who appeared similar in features, nothing more. 

He would have to report this strange finding to Kakashi once he returned to the village. That, and he would have to bring the shinobi to the burnt down village. Perhaps there was something to find among the ashes and debris. Maybe there would be answers this young boy so desperately deserved. 

A dark thought took hold of Jiraiya. Would he be happy to learn that Naruto truly was dead? Or would the tragedy simply become a crueler reality?

"I'm sorry, Minato and Kushina; but I hope that for his sake, your son truly has died."

************

Hiding in the bushes, Sakura waited with her teammates at the Tenchi bridge. The chimes of Captain Yamato's disguise hat sang in the wind. She set her gaze forward. Now was not the time for failure. She had to prove to Lady Tsunade that she was worth her time, and that this team could work.

You can do this, Sakura. Make Kakashi sensei and Lady Tsunade proud. Maybe then you can get Sasuke back. A determined grin covered Sakura's face. The mission began, and all three shinobi who hid in the woods itched for a fight. All three itched for success. All three wished to bring honour to their leaders.