The Voice of Silence

(Disclaimer: I do not own the rights and all rights belong to Masashi Kishimoto. The events are part of an alternate timeline/storyline. Some character names from throughout the series are used but not necessarily with the same character… or are they?)

Chapter 1

Black. Pain. Cold. Despair.

These are what I know. I have lived my whole life in the empty darkness, only to be awakened by the cold and pain. There is no reprieve. There is only existence.

Suddenly a light flashes on my eyes as the door opens. I immediately shrink back towards the darkness.

"Don't be like that. I have use for you today, so come on out."

I relax a little, but not much. I know this voice. It is one of the two voices that I sometimes hear. Both bring pain, but one brings worse pain than the other; this one brings less.

I slowly stand, leaning against the smooth stone wall of my cell for support; I slowly make my way across the uneven stone floor to the man waiting outside. As usual he has an impatient expression that is all the more amplified as he cleans off his glasses. After he readjusts them he starts wordlessly down the long torch lit hallway.

I don't bother to look at my surroundings as I follow behind. I know this path well. Pain awaits me on the other end, just as it awaits the occupants of the other cells that line the walls on either side of the path. Pain and if one is lucky, death. Though I have heard that even after death, there are far worse things they can do to you.

I am led to a seemingly empty room. Empty except for a single gray stone table with a pair of shackles on either end. This is it. This is where the pain begins. I continue to stare at the table with dread and horror.

With his back to me, the man speaks, "Don't worry. I'm not going to do anything to you today. I've brought you here because you have a visitor."

Visitor? This had never happened before. The only people I've seen are the white haired youth before me, the one who brings the most pain and the scent of snakes, or the occasional fellow prisoner who happens to peer at me from their cell as I make my way to this room of pain. So who could possibly want to see me?

The man leaves the room and I look about, unsure as to what I am supposed to do. As I look about I see a book lying in a dark corner. I cross the uneven floor to pick it up. Its cover is coated with layers of dust, dirt, and other substances I prefer not to think about.

As I open it, I see that there are pages of text and illustrations. It is the illustrations that capture my attention, since I can't read. Each picture is of a creature that has one or more tails. There are nine of these tailed beasts. Some look somewhat like some of the preserved creatures I've seen before, but others look nothing like anything I have ever seen. Each possesses a terrifying beauty that is strangely attracting. The most attracting image is the last. It showed a brilliant golden fox with nine tails. I carefully trace each tail with the tip of my finger; it almost feels like I was touching the real thing. And to top it off, I hear a deep but quiet humming type sound all around me.

As I am becoming mesmerized by the experience, the door opens. I drop the book in surprise. The two that bring pain stand before me. My knees began to tremble as the one who brings the most pain steps towards me. My breathing increases as he approaches. I flinch as he steps before me and bends down so that we are face to face. I almost sigh in relief as he merely picks up the book I dropped.

"What do you have there, little Ghost?" There is a subtle hiss in his voice, giving him an even more snake like quality.

"My Lord, I must have forgotten that here. She is not supposed to have that." The younger man comes forward as if to slap me. I squeeze my eyes shut as I brace myself for the impending pain.

"Kabuto, don't. She has done nothing wrong. She was just showing natural curiosity. Am I right my dear?"

I don't trust myself to speak, so I stare at the floor as I nod.

"There's no need to look as the ground. You should look at me when I am speaking to you."

I slowly raise my head and look at the person before me. He is taller than the young man. And he has dark brown, almost black hair that goes halfway down his back. But his most noticeable feature is his eyes. They are a vivid golden-yellow and have slit like pupils, much like those of a snake, finally from the lids of his eyes down to his nose is a faint purple streak on either side.

As I take this all in he bends back down to my level and speaks. "Now how can you see me when you hair is in front of you eyes like that?" I flinch and try to stop trembling as he pushes my pure white hair behind my ears. "That's better. Now I can see your two colored eyes "(yes, I have two different colored eyes; the right is a bright jade green, and the other is a bright blue, like what the sky is supposed to look like).

"There, that's better. Now I can see my Ghost."

Ghost. That is what they call me. I guess it fits as I look like a stereotypical albino, except for my eyes. But other than that, everything about me is pure white.

"Now why don't you tell me what you found so interesting in this book, hmm?" He flips through the pages as I watch. Eventually he reaches the picture of the nine-tailed fox and looks up at me. "Is this what captured your attention?" He looks at me with an almost regretful expression. "I see that you've been entranced by the Kyuubi. The demon fox that nearly destroyed Konoha nearly sixteen years ago. That was about the time you came here wasn't it?"

I shrug my shoulders. I don't know how old I am or where I'm from. All I know and can remember is the darkness, the pain of experiments, and the cold stone floor of my cell. Anything else is just fragments that are incomplete and scattered

"Sixteen years is correct, Lord Orochimaru." Kabuto has now joined us and is standing behind Orochimaru with what appears to be a syringe in his hand.

I do not see this "visit" ending well.

Orochimaru continues, "These demons seem to fascinate you, just as they have done for so many others. Just think of the power that they possess. To control one would bring enough power to topple most nations. But just imagine if someone could control them all! That person would have power beyond imagination! No one could stop them!" By now a wicked smile has crossed his face and his eyes hungrily stalk me as though I am their prey.

Suddenly without warning I feel a sharp pain at the base of the back of my neck. As my eyes widen in horror I realize that there are two fangs piercing my skin and that those fangs belong to Orochimaru.

I try to struggle to get away, but those fangs hold me in place. I begin to tremble uncontrollably as I begin to feel a warm wet stream slide down towards my back. Soon the following scent of blood fills my nose with its coppery scent. I begin to feel faint. Raw power is being poured into my body, burning through my entire being with white-hot pain.

Just when I feel like I can't take any more, I am released. I slump to the floor in fear and from the pain that seems to be spreading though my body, like fire burning in my veins. This pain seems to be originating from the bite marks. My eyes begin to tear as the pain and threat of unconsciousness start to overwhelm me.

My last glimpse before I lose total consciousness was Kabuto and Orochimaru standing facing each other as I lay helpless before them.

Soon all is black. But the pain has not left. It is merely growing more intense.

I want the pain to end. I am willing to do anything if only this pain would end.

At this point death would be a relief.

I don't know how long I am unconscious. There is no sense of time, only pain.

Just when I feel like I have lost all hope I hear a deep laugh. I can't tell from where the voice comes, merely that it is an escape from the pain. I hear the sound again and this time I mentally call out to it.

"Who are you? How are you here?"

A deep booming voice answers, "I am me and I have always been with you. You just haven't called out to me before now."

"I called for you?"

"Yes, you called for me to save your pathetic life, so that is what I will do."

Before I can respond I feel raw, almost animalistic power flood through me, erasing all traces of the pain. However, I cannot control what is happening, and soon the power leaves, and I cannot even move my body afterwards.

I lay like this for a time. But eventually I begin to hear the two voices return to where my body lies. I cannot tell exactly what is happening, but I feel someone pick me up and set me on the cold table. They turn my head to expose where I was bitten.

"It seems like the curse mark has been forcibly removed. Only an immense chakra could to such a thing. I've never seen anything like it."

They are silent for a time before Orochimaru responds. "A powerful chakra indeed. Pity that the curse didn't take. She could have been so useful." I hear sounds of retreating footsteps; his voice is now further away. "Kabuto, dispose of the body, but do it somewhere where we can send a message back to Konoha."

"As you wish, my Lord."

I can feel that my body is being lifted again, but now it feels like I am being moved to a very closed and dark space that threatens to destroy me. Just when I am about to lose consciousness again, I am pulled back into the world of the living.

My body is dumped in a heap on some relatively hard ground, and I struggle to understand what has happened. All I know is that I am now completely alone and I don't even have the strength to open my eyes, let alone fight for survival if I needed to. This day keeps getting worse and worse.

Hello again! I know that this is not the BETAed version (yet) so please take that into account! I hope to continue posting for this multichapter fic once a week, but since I normally write all of my fics out by hand before typing them, it could take some time.

As always feel free to review! I will take all handouts (hold out a beat up tin can).