Ｐａｒａｄｉｓｅ

XIV

Confused at first, Naruto watched as both Sasuke and Sai hurried in and out of the hotel room to pack. Sasuke had only told him to get ready to leave, but there wasn't much to warrant the urgency as the only things Naruto had were a few pair of clothes and basic necessities. He wondered why the two other boys seemed to be in a rush and why they had many things to pack in the first place.

"Okay... so is anyone here going to tell me what's happening or...?"

"We're packing, is that not obvious?" Sasuke asked, smiling as he looked over to the blond sitting calmly on the bed. "You're done?"

Naruto shrugged. "I didn't realize I had to pack an entire closet. What are you even packing?"

Sasuke chuckled to himself, shaking his head. "Just be ready. Itachi's meeting us soon and he's bought us some time."

"Okay... then what about..."

"Sai? He's coming with."

"Was I that out of it last night?" Naruto asked, scratching his head. "I thought you hated him."

"I don't know about that," Sai said as he came in from the hallway, a small bag in tow. "I'm just glad he's not as annoyed with me as he was before." To this, Sasuke frowned but rolled his eyes. The two boys laughed and talked amongst themsleves while Naruto took a moment to catch up.

A few moments later and Sasuke nudged the blond before he fell asleep again. "Are you ready?" He asked, receiving a nod from the blond.

The two boys grabbed their bags and headed out, meeting Sai as the elevator doors opened. They entered and descended down to the lobby. Just as Sasuke had said before, Itachi waited for them just outside the hotel entrance leaning against his sleek, black car. Looking closely, Konan sat in the passenger seat and just before Naruto could point her out, she was already on her way out to run over and hug him.

"I'm so glad you guys are alright!" She greeted, instantly taking both Sasuke and Naruto into a hug. "Who's this?" She asked, pulling away and noticing the third person.

"Sai." He introduced himself.

"He's coming with us, if you don't mind." To this, neither Konan or Itachi said anything. Instead, they nodded and helped their bags into the trunk of the car.

"Pein is waiting for us a few miles up ahead. We're all going to escort you to the house in case anything happens." Itachi explained, putting his seat belt on as the others closed the doors and did the same. "Dad thinks I'm out with Konan on a small trip, so I'll have to go back by the end of this week. Naruto," The blond looked over his way. "Your dad misses you."

Naruto looked down. "I doubt he does."

Smiling sadly, Itachi reached behind and ruffled the blond's hair. "Trust me, he personally came up to me before Konan and I left." Taking the silence, Itachi started driving out of the small town.

---

Pein waited for his friends at a run down motel just off the interstate. Sitting on the end of the bed, he looked down at the keys of the different rooms he booked for them. Sighing, he kept the extra key he got and shoved it in his pocket, leaving the rest laid out on the small coffee table in the corner of the room.

---

"Finally." Sasuke mumbled as he practically pushed Sai out of the car. "I can't feel my ass anymore." Naruto laughed, climbing out of the car behind him.

"Go on ahead, you guys. Pein's in that room upstairs." He pointed to a door on the second floor. "Knock hard, he's probably asleep." Doing so, Sasuke, Naruto and Sai nodded and walked away, Sai walking calmly behind the two.

Konan smiled, walking over to her boyfriend and gently wrapping her arms around his waist. "Tired?"

Itachi let out a sigh, "Yeah." He pulled Konan over for a hug, resting his chin at the top of her head. "This is all so stupid. I feel even worse for dragging you along."

Konan nodded. "I chose to come along, remember? We're in this together." Her hand softly cupped Itachi's cheek, the tall raven leaning into it in comfort. "You're tired, we should be heading up."

Itachi nodded, sighing heavily and closing his eyes for a bit. Once opening them, his attention was drawn to the boy Sasuke and Naruto brought along. "Tell me," He began, nodding over in Sai's direction. "You don't think he looks a bit suspicious?"

Konan looked over at the boy who laughed at something Naruto said and shrugged. "You ask this now after driving this far?"

"He doesn't look... I don't know, like we can trust him." Itachi finished.

"I say he looks fine. All of us have our own issues," Konan said. "Maybe he, too, has his own. Why else do you think he came along?"