A Little More Than This (Discontinued)

Chapter 49

Sasori flexed his fingers almost obsessively, not quite used to the skin that hung off his bones. He discarded his coat and pressed his fingers against his heart, still surprised to find that it was protected by muscle, bones and skin instead on the container which had held it for so long.

He flinched as he felt his heart beat rhythmically against his ribcage, a constant reminder that he was human. How long had it been since he had felt human? Far too long. He sighed as he laid back on his bed, his fingers still gently brushing against the skin covering his heart, feeling the strong beats that the organ gave out. Sasori suddenly felt a pang of emotion, something he hadn't felt for years. The feeling felt strange to him, as he was unsure of what to name it as he had forgotten about it in his puppet form.

He rolled to one side searching through his memories for the right name. It hit him when his partner walked through, ruffling his blonde hair as he let out a yawn.

"Where've you been?" Sasori demanded, shivering slightly as the blonde stared at him. "Out. How you feeling?" Deidara asked, grinning at the redhead sheepishly. "Like a human being" Sasori answered, standing up, his knees wobbling as they were weak with misuse. In fact most of his body was like that, he'd always been thin, but never thin enough to see bones. Maybe faint outlines but when he had woken up he could clearly see the bones through the skin. It scared him to see how unhealthy his body was. But he had to admit it was a bit cool.

"Eaten today?" Deidara asked, pulling off his cloak and throwing it on his bed. "Knew I was forgetting something" Sasori replied sarcastically. Deidara laughed and Sasori grinned, ruffling his hair. The pair exchanged a glance and Sasori smirked raising an eyebrow as Deidara received the message.

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Mei groaned loudly as she was pushed from her bed harshly, groaning as her blond team mate grinned down at her. "Why~?" Mei whined, watching as Shikamaru sleepily stumbled into the room, his black hair falling in waves at his shoulders. "What's going on?" He asked, yawning loudly as Naruto looked up in excitement.

"Tsunade-baa requested the both of you and I just so happened to be around. Also Sakura found some information on Orochimaru, we think Tsunade will let us go" Naruto explained. Shikamaru groaned but left the room, going to get dressed as Mei booted naruto out of it. Shikamaru and Mei met each other in the hall and Shikamaru shyly took Mei's hand, causing the latter to flush slightly.

Naruto waited for them outside the house and smirked at their intertwined hands but said nothing. He lead them halfway there before running off in the direction of Sakura, who had emerged from a store. Mei giggled at his wild antics before gently squeezing Shikamaru's hand as they slowly walked towards their destination.

They arrived outside of the Hokage's study twenty minutes later, their hands still intertwined as Shikamaru knocked on the door. A loud 'come in' allowed them entry and they stepped inside to find two Anbu and Neji milling around the Hokage's desk.

"Good morning you two" Tsunade greeted, beckoning them closer. "Now that you're all here I will explain your mission. For this you two will be given aliases; Bokuto and Haichin, you may choose your name afterwards. You'll need to get rid of your masks and cloaks, in private if you wish" Tsunade started, gesturing to the two Anbu, who nodded and bowed in understanding.

"Your mission is simple and dangerous. Infamous leader Pein of the Akatsuki has requested an audience. His letter states that it's concerning a many number of issues and propositions. I'll also be sending Ibiki Morino with you, the only reason he isn't here is because he's busy. You are to deliver this scroll and answer any and all questions asked of you. Any questions?" Tsunade asked, folding her hands together as she lent on her elbows.

"How do we know this isn't a trap?" One of the Anbu asked, clicking his tongue impatiently. "That's why I've invited these three. Shikamaru is a master strategist, Neji is of the Hyuga clan and Mei knows the Akatsuki inside and out. If any form of trap occurs leadership instantly falls to her. However Ibiki will lead the team until such a time arises" Tsunade answered calmly. "What time will we leave?" Mei asked.

"Noon. That should give you enough time to change and Ibiki enough time to finish his job. Dismissed" Tsunade finished, shooing the group away. The two Anbu disappeared in a cloud of smoke. Neji, Shikamaru and Mei bowed in respect before leaving the room, hurrying to their separate homes to do as they were asked.

~~~~~~

Mei and Shikamaru arrived at the gate first, Mei in her dark skinned, white haired disguise from her last Akatsuki related mission. They talked with Kotetsu and Izumo while they waited for the others to show up. Neji arrived next, looking like he'd rather be anywhere else in the world. He nodded to Mei, already recognising her disguise and the reason for it.

Two men arrived next, the first one tall and lean with red hair falling over his shoulders and deep grey-blue eyes fixed into a permanent scowl. The second was much shorter, with sandy blonde hair that was swept back into a messy ponytail and shiny hazel eyes. The shorter one spotted the group and smiled warmly, walking over to them quickly.

"Hi! We've already discussed. I'm Haichin and grumpy is Bokuto. What happened to the ginger?" Haichin asked, pulling the redhead over with him. "That'll be me. The success of the mission kinda depends on the Akatsuki not knowing it's me" Mei spoke up, raising her hand half heartedly. "A few members have already seen this face so they won't question it and assume this face is a real person" She continued when Bokuto nodded in understanding.

"But why?" Haichin asked, tilting his head. "They'd kill everyone here without hesitation" Mei answered back quickly, watching as Neji gulped loudly. "I don't even want to know what you did" Neji sighed, still looking somewhat scared. "Yes, now that that's taken care of. Let's go. I want to finish this quickly" a rough voice sighed, catching everyone's attention.

Ibiki stepped away from the tree he was standing against and Mei snickered at the scared expression Haichin wore. "Quick question before we go. Any ideas about who's meeting us?" Mei asked, picking up her bag and slinging it across her shoulder. "Nope. But we do know that four are promised to meet us" Ibiki replied quietly, gesturing for the group to start moving.