"We were engaged in combat," I explained, and as I spoke, each word caught in my throat.

"Okay, and what next?" Tsunade probed. "Tell us. It's important that we collect all of the information we can from you. It's okay. Tell us what you saw."

She doesn't understand yet. I really don't want to talk about this anymore.

"He fucked me." Time felt still for a moment. The shadows on the wall seemed to jerk and dance violently, as if taking joy in the reprehensibleness of the moment.

Tsunade and Shizune looked visibly shook by the news.

"W-what.. do you mean?" Shizune scratched her head nervously as she spoke. She's uncomfortable.

"Shizune, please leave," Tsunade commanded softly. The room was still for a few moments, save for the flicker of a low flame and the snickering shadows across the walls. The oil used for the torches cracked, sending whisps into the cool night air. It smelled nice, like the changing of fall to winter. Everyone was asleep, save for these three. The town slumbered, and all the while, I was awake. At this point, I was afraid I would be awake forever.

The soft sigh of leaves added to the evening chorus as Shizune gathered a few of her small belongings, dusted off her kimono, and walked the trail back to the house where they were staying. I hadn't said anything to anyone for two days, so they brought me out here. I knew what they were doing from the very beginning, but certainly they thought they had me fooled. They didn't.

I hugged the woolen quilt around my shoulders, preserving the warmth from the flames.

Tsunade turned to sit facing me, and leaned forward to grab my hands. I let her.

"Listen," she spoke softly.

"I want you to tell me exactly what happened, at your own pace. We can forget about the mission for the time being, but you haven't spoken to anyone since we found you. We're worried. I cannot imagine what you have experienced, but I want to help. Don't be afraid to reach out to me," she finished, squeezing my hands a little bit tighter.

The words are easy to say for her, and I understand that. I wish it was that easy for me. I feel like each breath that I draw, though, is harder and harder. Maybe it will be good to get this out. Maybe it won't.

The trees around us heaved a sigh as a chilly breeze swept through the sleeping town. Maybe this was a sign. Maybe this wasn't a good idea after all.

I took a deep breath, and began to recount the events from the mission, as best as I could remember them. We were dispatched to a small village outside of Konoha to investigate a sighting of a man in a black cloak with red clouds. The information was vague, and we didn't have much to go on. The original objective was to gather intelligence before any action was taken, and report back. This was supposed to be easy, seeing as it was so close to Konoha. The distance required for travel was relatively small - a day, at most.

My assigned squad members for this mission were Kiba and Shino. Kiba was selected for his physical prowess, Shino for his sensory and stealth tactics, and myself for my medical techniques. A perfect recon team, truly. Over the years, I had built a relationship with both of them, and we were very comfortable operating together in the field. We were excited to potentially unmask and take down a member of the Akatsuki.

We dispatched during the night, and arrived the following evening. A line of trees marked the boundary for the mission area, and we entered. On the other side of the small wooded area was the assigned village. The smell of farmland permeated the air, even through the thick trees. Connecting the treeline to the village was a medium-sized field, and we intended to use the crops as cover to move in. We spent some time in the treeline to give Shino the opportunity to reveal any hidden threats, which none were detected. We felt it was then safe to move forward into the village.

Under the cover of night, we began the incursion into the field. We divided ourselves up by about fifty feet, and moved into the field of crops towards the village. No later than five steps in, there was a tremendous bang and the sound of upheaved dirt spattering the ground in fat, wet chunks. The air immediately smelled of soil and iron. I heard Shino scream. I thought he was dying - I have never heard such a horrific sound in my entire life. I sprinted towards the sound as quickly as I could, but the crops made it difficult to see under the dead of night. Leaves from the crops whipped at my face and eyes, but I was finally able to locate Shino.

He was standing over a pile of mud and rocks, his face bloody from his fingers raking his own face. He was still screaming.

"S-Shino.. what.." I sputtered.

I didn't realize it at the time, but what Shino was standing over was not a pile of mud and rocks as it appeared in the dark. What he was standing over was Kiba, or what was left of him. The wet, mangled mess on the ground was my squadmate not sixty seconds prior. Now he was various piles of meat, organ, bone, and viscera. The smell was overpowering. Chakra was thick in the air, and I knew almost immediately that we were under attack. Unfortunately there was no hope of restoring any kind of life to Kiba. He was gone. I was too scared to sob, I think. Actually, I was too scared to do anything. The threat was seemingly invisible, and overwhelmingly powerful.

A movement in the field caught my attention, and I immediately dashed towards it, leaving Shino behind. His voice was changing pitches violently. He was screaming so hard that the blood vessels in his eyes had popped, and veins bulged from his neck.

I searched for the movement, but was unable to locate anything. I kept searching the field, trying to find any trace of fresh chakra.

Shino's voice was raspy and hoarse, but he continued to scream in the distance.

"COME OUT! COME OUT!" he kept repeating, over and over, which was followed by a low wail.

I shuddered, too stunned to do anything but keep searching. I don't know how much time passed. Maybe five or ten minutes, at the most.

"COME OUT! COME O-"

BANG! POP! EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE

Shino's voice was instantly silenced and replaced by a tremendous ringing.

The smell of thick chunks of wet mud and soil raining down was becoming too familiar too quickly. My heart palpitated, and I lost my balance and fell into the soft soil.

I didn't know what to do, at this point. I knew what happened to Shino. It was the same thing that happened to Kiba, and what I expected was about to happen to me. My legs stopped working, and my breathing was off. My heart was racing, and my head hurt. I was dizzy. This isn't at all how I expected my end to go. This isn't how I expected the end for my squadmates. This feels wrong. It doesn't feel real. If it was real, I would be crying.

It occurred to me at this point that I couldn't hear anything. I scanned my surroundings by tilting my body left and right. When I turned back, he was standing in front of me.

"Who was standing in front of you?" Tsunade asked gently, her expression showing deep sympathy and pain. Her voice snapped me out of my trance.

I breathed in deeply through my nose, and out again. I'm really reconsidering this conversation.

With another deep breath, I opened my eyes and looked at Tsunade.

"Itachi."