Well here it is. The next chapter, as a mark of my maturity I'm dragging the other member back in. I will owe up to not knowing a great deal about them though so if there personalities seem off then please forgive me. If anything SCREAMS of being wrong please alert me and I will do my best to fix it. Oh and you wouldn't BELIEVE the amount of awesome Akatsuki member tributes are out there. I found a few and then got the music tracks they had used. Like I said, there are some awesome ones out there. No this story isn't finished yet but it will be soon. The others will hopefully be updated soon. I'm doing my best and that's all I have to offer you. Thanks to S3v3rusIsMin3 for everything she's done and continues to do. I wouldn't be this good if not for her. That said please read and review, not just on mine but on everyone's that you read. It does encourage the writer to update faster. No lie.

Morning didn't bring any relief from the pain and fever had taken Sakura. Sweat poured off her as she lay shivering under the covers. Through the haze of a fever Sakura was aware of Itachi placing a damp cloth on her forehead. Every sound was magnified. The sound of the other Akatsuki members talking, the clink of bottles as Itachi moved around the room. Sakura groaned, oblivious to everything but pain.

'This shit hurts.' The colours began to swim, flickering in all kinds of shades. The pain lessened and the dizziness rose as Sakura welcomed the strange world of her inner.

"I told you it was bad" Sakura sighed. There was a small amount of relief from hovering in this place.

"Yeah I noticed. Fuck, what was that shit?" Her inner shrugged.

"No idea what was in it but it was an interesting mix. From what I can work out, it would numb your body so you can't move, then I'm guessing he'd rape you while you're trapped in your own body. After that, if he didn't kill you then it would leave you with a fever until you died." Sakura shivered.

"So how come that didn't happen to us?" Her inner replied with an arrogant smirk.

"That would be thanks to ME. Sheesh you would be SOO dead if you didn't have me." The comment caught Sakura by surprise.

"That reminds me, what was with the whole, 'you do the fighting' comment you made last time?" Her inner sighed, sitting cross legged on 'floor'.

"Okay, you know how normally it's you in control?" Sakura nodded and her inner continued,

"And when we do the merge and you get my vision and strength? Well it's a level up from that. You have to give up control. I'll be the one doing the fighting." Sakura frowned as she tried to follow the logic.

"Okay, so we can join minds or one of us can have control. Just what exactly are you?" Her inner shrugged.

"Hard to say. I'm you. But at the same time I'm not. I'm different from the Demons that inhabit people because they are two separate things, we are the same thing. In the end we are a Spider. Rare, but not unheard of."

"This is one of those circle conversations, isn't it? The ones that seem to go on forever with no real point?" Her inner nodded. "Alright, I'll let it be, we are a Spider. But I'm starting to wonder, you know so much more about this than me, what else aren't you telling me?" Her inner offered a cheeky grin.

"Lots. I can only tell you something when we're ready for it. Otherwise you'll try to leap ahead without stopping to check if you can. The Web is a dangerous place and if you're not careful it can kill you." The conversation made Sakura nervous, and she glanced around the multicoloured world.

"Alright, so how to I give you the reins so to speak." Her inner sighed, stretching out so that she was lying down.

"It's similar to how we join minds. Wait till after we get better then we'll try it, okay?" Sakura nodded and reality came back to her.

"Hey." Sakura opened her eyes slowly to look at Itachi's face. He seemed worried, but when she looked at him relief flooded his eyes.

"How are you feeling?" Sakura moved to sit up, groaning when the room spun.

"I feel like I've been hit by a truck." There was a bark like laugh from the door.

"So, she's awake at last." Sakura turned to look at Pein. He was leaning casually against the door frame, watching the pair. "Congratulations on your success Sakura. Try not to get poisoned next time." With that snarky comment, he vanished, black and red coat flickering around the corner. Sakura lent back on the pillow.

"Is he always that much of an arse?" Itachi laughed softly.

"No. I think you just worried him. After all, he's got big plans for you." The muscles in Sakura's body tensed.

"What do you mean?" The sharingan wielder sat on the edge of her bed, looking at her closely.

"You're a Spider, and though not at full strength, once you have mastered it, you will be of great use to him." Her stomach dropped.

"What does he want me to do?" Itachi offered her a sad smile before standing.

"The same thing he wants all of us for. He seeks peace just like every other nation. His means are just different. Whilst not everyone here agrees with his plans for the world, we all follow him anyway. It's a crossroads and, for now at least, we all walk the same way."

Sakura let her eyes drift shut. "That doesn't answer my question." A damp cloth whiped the sweat from her brow and she glanced at Itachi who began to put his cloak back on, preparing to leave.

"No, I guess it doesn't. You wish to learn how to master yourself and for now we are the only ones who can help you with that. In return for our help, you must follow orders. The only reason this life is different from your last is the lack of restrictions. Here, there is no fog of ignorance save the one you create on your own." With that last cryptic comment he left the room. Sakura sighed, leaning back onto her bed.

"Aragh, what the hell was that meant to mean? Fog of ignorance, I wouldn't have one if you all just came out and said what you meant!"

There was a soft laugh from the door and she turned to see the resident puppet master leaning on the door. "That's just Itachi's way of seeing the world." For a moment the silence stretched between them. Then Sasori walked calmly into the room and sat on the desk. His dark eyes watched her slowly as she struggled to sit up. "It's better if you stay still. You need rest." Sakura fell back onto the bed, her feathered pillow letting out a soft poof.

"Yeah, yeah. I'm a medic remember?" She felt her heart give a slight twinge, "well, I was a medic anyway." The red head eyed her for a moment, a slight smile pulling at his lips.

"There is nothing stopping you from being a medic here. Itachi is the closest thing we have and whilst there is no disputing he is effective in healing, he does not possess your gift for it." Sakura stared at him for a moment.

"If I didn't know better, I would say you are trying to make me feel better." The living puppet moved closer to the bed, standing closer to her than before.

"Is it working?" Sakura look at him for what felt like an eternity then smiled.

"Yeah, it is. Thanks." Moving quickly, Sassori placed a gentle kiss on her forehead and moved out of the room.

"Sleep Sakura."

'Guys are weird. Like, really weird.' Sakura agreed silently with her inner before falling into a dreamless sleep.