Unlikely Love
Written by: Fliscent Firetail
Edited By: DragonSlayer2187
Updated: 10/21/14
Author Note:
Alright!
So for those of you who have tried reading the story that I wrote before this, you know that our main character is not going to go down without a fight. For those of you who chose not to read the Author's notice… haha. Looks like you get to stress out over it. Yes, I understand that some author's get a kick out of killing off their main characters right out of the gate, but I'm not one of those writers.
Ahem. That being said, I would like to say that this story has a fabulous plot with lots of interesting twists and turns. I just had to point that out because with the other story there was no plot. But moving on! I have finally figured out how to make an interesting plot!
I would like to thank DragonSlayer2187 for responding to the call for an editor. She edited this chapter and helped give more detail so make sure to thank her for her help on making this awesome story better!
Also, the rating on this story is going to be M because it will contain adult content such as foul language, mature situations, and if the readers cheer loud enough for it, lots of steamy lemons.
THIS IS GOING TO BE SEMIREALISTIC! AKA: AS REALISTIC AS POSSIBLE, THOUGH IT MIGHT NOT BE PERFECT, REGARDING THAT ASPECT. There will be darker aspects to the story later, perhaps, if the plot bunnies breed as planned or not planned. -_-* you know how bunnies get in plot season...
Disclaimer: I do no own Naruto, or any of its character, Kishimoto does. I only own my original characters.
Warnings: Language. There are a few curse words in this. Other than that, none for this chapte. :)
Italics are Thoughts
Bold is English
Preface
It was quiet that evening, the sky fiery and fierce as the sun set on a dying day. Soon the rich purples faded across the sky, leaving only seeping indigo on the horizon. The Anbu patrolman paused on his path around the Lake, to take in the peaceful sight of the summer fireflies flashing and glowing as they flew over the water. The Anbu couldn't help but grin behind his porcelain mask as one flew up to him, a finger already offered to the large glowing bug. It landed for a moment before drifting off across the water once more to join with its fellow lightning bugs.
The Anbu smiled at the bugs, before taking a deep breath, enjoying the fresh scents of water and brush that surrounded him. It was so peaceful, so pleasant. Throughout the years, the man had learned to appreciate the moments like this. After all, with the violence and missions that made up daily life for an Anbu Operative in general, such serenity was far and few in between. Letting his breath back out in a sigh of contentment at the calming sounds surrounding his person's, he couldn't help but think it was such a beautiful night.
All of sudden the lake began to glow from within startling the Anbu from his thoughts and brining his focus to the lake. The glowing bugs that had been slowly drifting in a lazy manner before, started to swirl in beautiful, but erratic patterns across the water. A wind picked up, causing ripples to form across the once calm water's surface.
Looks like another person is coming through the lake tonight, and so soon too, thought the man. He barely had time to finish the thought before there was a sharp hiss of metal. He had only time for a shocked and panicked look to cross his face before his head left his body to land in the dewy grass, his body crumpling into a heap behind it. There was a slight chuckle from the shadows, followed by a pale man with long dark hair and golden eyes with a slit pupil stepping into the moonlight. Around his eyes were strange purple eye markings, which made his exotic eyes become even more of a focus. Right now though, those eyes were wide open in a clear display of excited blood lust, due to the thick metallic smell of it now tainting the once lovely night air.
"Orochimaru-sama," said a voice from the shadows, a group of four appearing beside him in the dim light.
"Sound four. Report," the pale man answered with a raspy hiss.
"We have located the subjects that you were seeking. A woman and a boy. It looks like the Intel was correct. It also appears that there is one more coming through the portal tonight." Said the leader quietly.
The pale man chuckled, a grim look of satisfaction twisting over his features. "Good. We will wait for our newest test subject to arrive. Once they are through the lake, we will take the boy and the woman with us, along with the new arrival. Tanyu, Juu, go and retrieve Karin. We will need her sooner than we thought."
"Ah," replied both the kneeling figures before they disappeared in a flurry of shadows. Orochimaru smirked as he returned his attention back to the lake. He was so close to immortality that he could almost taste it.
Chapter 1: A Brave New World
In the dark of her room sat a young woman, her knees drawn to her chest with her arms wrapped around them as slight tremors shook her shoulders, at her repressed sobs. The woman's short curly brown hair was mussed and tangled, in the need of a good brushing as dark bags shown underneath her eyes, from the many nights of little to no sleep.
"Just where is she?" she whispered to the dark of the room. Her best friend had gone missing a few days ago. She had been part of the sweeps through the woods that had taken place before the searches where called off suddenly today. She sighed tiredly as a lone tear slips past her eyelid and begins making its journey down the sickly pale skin of her lower face. It finally comes to a stop on the tip of her chin and fell to land on the top of her bent knees. She was worried sick. Just where was Antonia? Thought the young woman, whose name was Samira.
A phone begins to ring down the hallway from her room, the sound muffled slightly as it bounced through the silent apartment. This drew the woman's attention from whatever morbid thoughts she was having, but the sound didn't bring her comfort. Tightening her hold on her legs, her brown eyes darted to the hallway where the red flash of the phone's light reflected off the dimly lit walls. Soon the phones shrill ringing is cut off to be replaced by a young woman's voice saying cheerfully, "Hey there! This is Samira R. Haze. I'm sorry I'm not able to come to the phone right now, but please leave your name, number, and message at the tone and I will get back to you as soon as I can. Thanks!"
A loud beep sounded for a few minutes and then a distinctly male voice hesitantly spoke, "Hey there… Um, it's Brian… Ah, listen… they… they found her car." At this the young woman's hold on her legs tightened to the point they began to lose feeling and her fingers turned white from the death grip. Brian had been part of the searches and was a friend of hers. He had been dealing with some of the higher ups since his father was a police officer. He had promised to let her know the moment they found anything. With the tone of his voice however, her throat tightened in anticipated dread, making it hard for her to breathe as she waited for the man to say anything more. She didn't have long to wait as his voice now chocked with sadness continued in a whisper, "I-It was floating in the lake… off of Richmond Bridge. Samira… they can't find a body but… they… don't think that she… made it. I'm so sorry. I wish-" Another loud beep cut him off as his time had run out, but she didn't need to hear anymore.
Tears where now pouring freely as the young woman, Samira, began to shake harder, her face now buried in her knees. Soon a keening wail was heard from her as she grabbed a pillow, crushing it to her as she desperately wished that it wasn't true, that she hadn't just lost her best friend.
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Two months later found Samira standing in her room as she regarded it coolly, dull brown eyes taking in the sparseness of it, the lack of personal effects and color, lifeless and devoid of human touch. Satisfied, she finished putting the last sheet over the wardrobe before closing the door to her room behind her. She hated this place. It held so many bad memories, memories from her childhood, memories about her parents. About fights and cheating and alcohol and death. Loosing Antonia though had been the last straw for Samira though, and she couldn't bring herself to say here any longer.
Going down the hallway and past the living room she took in the sheet covered furniture as she went before finally pausing one last time to take in her home, knowing that she wouldn't be returning for a long time. Content that everything was where it should be and that she hadn't forgotten anything important she locked the old black door behind her before stepping off the porch and down the steps that led to her waiting car below, boxes and luggage easily seen stacked up, blocking out most of the windows of the silver Golf VW.
Getting in, she forwent the radio, instead opting for silence as she drove, the only sounds being heard were those made by the rumble of the engine and the hum of the tires on the wet road. Brown eyes took in the misty coverage of autumn before a soft sigh fell past her lips, her grip on the steering wheel tightening as she thought of how much Antonia had loved the fall. It felt like her heart was tightening in her chest as she drove, knowing that she was going to have to say goodbye before she left.
Soon the Richmond Bridge came into sight and she swallowed roughly, thoughts and emotions a jumbled mess. This was where it had happened. This is where Antonia had… died. Samira took a deep breath as she struggled to control her rising grief as the sound of the tires changed when she entered the new stretch of concrete and steel that was the bridge. It wasn't long for a bridge. In fact it was rather on the short side, but it had been long enough, high enough for her to lose her closest friend when the car had gone flying over the edge and into the still waters bellow.
Samira suddenly jolted when a sudden sharp pain flashed from her leg. She cringed and slapped her leg, grimacing when she spotted the dead ant under her hand. Looking up, her eyes widened at the figure standing in the middle of her lane that hadn't been there two seconds ago.
"FUCK!" she cursed, panicked. Without another thought, she slammed on the brakes and turned the steering wheel sharply to the side in hopes of missing the person.
There was a high squealing sound as the rubber tried to grip the wet concrete until suddenly, the car was flipping. There was an ominous crunch as it hit the railing, flying over the edge and into the cold waters down below. The occupant of the car could barely get out a scream as she saw her world go from steady level road, to a swirly chaotic blur, only to then settle on the swiftly approaching greyish blue of the lake, which she could barely see over the dull white of her deployed air bag.
An ear deafening smack was heard as the car hit the water making a giant splash. Samira's head whipped back and forth from the impact and she let out a moan as her head hit something hard and unyielding. This left her feeling disoriented, struggling to regain her balance as the car continued to shake and groan as it sank deeper into the water. The sting of the seat belt as it cut into the middle of her chest, which was sure to leave a bruise later, helped bring her mind back into some type of focus and onto the situation at hand.
Focusing now on her cracked windshield she saw the grey depths of the water that surrounded her and by the air bubbles shooting past her. The heavy metal car, loaded with luggage, was sinking rapidly. The sound of trickling water filled the almost dead silence and she could feel the coolness of it start to soak her shoes. Looking down panic once again filled her as she noticed the water trickling in around the frame of the door, causing the water level in the care to slowly rise. Trying to think of what to do around her panic, Samira was once again hindered as her head began to throb in pain from where she had hit it.
"I-I need to get out," she whispered to herself as some blood began to dribble down the left side of her face and into her eye, which stung like hell and made her unable to see out of that eye. All her thoughts however where paused when a high pitched cracking sound was heard. Samira's eyes immediately where drawn to the windshield where a spider web of cracks where slowly beginning to grow from a central crack as the car sunk deeper and deeper into the swiftly darkening waters. The water pressure, she thought with growing panic as she watched the windshield continue to crack under the growing strain, the air, it's trying to escape with the growing pressure and it's going to break the windshield. She struggled against her belt frantically, knowing that her time was running out. Clink. Ping. She froze eyes wide as she stared at the windshield, taking a deep breath, knowing what was going to come next.
Whoosh! The glass finally gave way under the water pressure and she raised her hands in time to protect her face as the glass blasted into the car along with rushing torrents of water. A sharp stinging started up in her arms and chest as the glass hit her in several places. The force of the water pushing her back into her seat leaving her defenseless as it powerfully rushed in, trying to force itself into her lungs and up her nose.
Samira began to thrash wildly in panic, but the powerful torrents of water and still buckled seat belt held her firmly in place. As the car continued to sink, the light from the surface began to grow dimmer and dimmer, turning the once grey blue water to black and leaving Samira completely blind in the suffocating icy depths of waters embrace. I should have hit bottom by now, her thoughts sluggish as her mind screamed for air and her struggles began to weaken.
That's when the car sank past a dark still shape in the water, making Samira tense as she continued to clumsily try to detach her belt. She frowned as she noticed another dark shape pass and she groggy comprehended with a massive wave of confusion that it looked like a giant tree root and that the water was no longer a pitch black, but seemed to be returning to its grey blue state it was when she first entered. This made it easier for her to actually see more clearly and as she passed another shape Samira could defiantly tell it was a giant tree root.
I must be hallucinating, she thought dizzily as her lungs continued to burn for air, there's no way I could survive this. It's too late. Oh well, might as well… she thought before taking in the breath that her lungs so desperately required. She shuddered and jerked wildly at the foreign and uncomfortable sensation of her lungs filling with the water, not even noticing the car starting to drift upward at a faster rate than before. She blinked rapidly as her vision began to falter, spots swimming before her eyes, as she took another breath of water, wild shudders running through her frame before the car broke through the surface of the water.
With a loud roaring sound the water poured out of the broken windows and cracks in the doors. As soon as the water was past her head her body reacted even more violently, trying to make her double over and expel as much of the foul liquid from its system as possible. Samira coughed and hacked as her upper body pushed against the restraining force. Finally done ejecting the glowing liquid from her lungs she sat slumped and shuddering against the steering wheel, utterly exhausted.
At this point a random thought wandered into her fatigued mind, glowing water? But her mind was too tired to puzzle it out. Closing her eyes and taking many deep breaths, she began the process of trying to calm her body and gain some semblance of peace after that whole ordeal. It wasn't until the soft blue light surrounding her began to dim that she opened her eyes and began to become aware of her surroundings as she continued to greedily gulp down precious air. That was when she spotted the figures with dark eyes and bone white masked faces surrounding her.
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Morino Ibiki was not a patient man. While he could be when it was required of him, by nature he was generally not so generous. Many could attest to this, seeing as the man was the head of the Hidden Leaf's Torture and Investigation unit. Standing at over six feet tall, with a powerful build, a scarred rugged face, and cold black eyes, he was well suited for his job of wringing information out of his subjects.
The men that where traveling with him however, where greatly testing his limited patience, with their fruitless chatter, which was grating on his nerves. Sighing the man shoved his black gloved hands into his pockets, stern face darkening with his growing irritation as his black trench coat whirled behind him in his wake.
In an effort to tune the chattering men out, the irritated man let his mind turn instead to the subject of his current mission. The scarred man's eyes narrowed as he thought back to what the Hokage had told him, about how Orochimaru had broken into the Forbidden Lake and past a very powerful barrier before making off with three of the people who had come from the lake, earlier this week.
Ibiki scratched his chin distractedly, the rough pull of stubble ghosting across his gloves as his thought turned to the mystery of the lake and it's people. The people that would come out of the lake where always a bit of a unknown whenever they came through, as Ibiki could recall from his youth when he had first been introduced to the top secret location of the lake. He had remembered seeing the waters begin to glow blue and the shadows start to rise from the depths of the lake before a drowned and bedraggled man was ejected from the waters, hacking and gasping as he struggled to stay afloat. That had been years ago, the man long dead.
In fact, all the people that came through had a tendency to die off quickly, though the Hidden Leaf had managed to come up with a few ways to extend their short lives, even if it was only by a couple of months, or years if they were extra lucky. They had never figured out however how to extend these people's lives to a regular hundred year old life span. Most of the time they got only a couple of years at best, despite all the Hidden leaf's years of study and research.
So the question to ask is why would Orochimaru, after all these years, suddenly decide to break into the Lake and steal some of the subjects that had come through? It's not like they lived long to be interesting or useful test subjects to the scientist. It was troubling to say the least that Ibiki couldn't even guess at why the twisted genius wanted the subjects badly enough to come get them himself, if the reports were correct.
Ibiki and the group traveling with him came to a halt when an Anbu agent suddenly appeared in their path. "State your business," demanded the masked man in a monotone voice, holding his sword in a ready position.
"I am Morino Ibiki, Head of the Torture and Investigation Unit. I have been sent by the third Hokage to gather reports of the incident and transport any remaining subjects back to Konoha," he stated handing over a scroll before the Anbu's gaze turned to the men traveling with him.
"We are the barrier squad that the third Hokage sent to replace or fix the current barrier around the lake. We are also to investigate the means that Orochimaru used to bypass the current barrier," declared the leader of the squad.
The Anbu nodded, shunshining away allowing them to continue. Ibiki returned to his thoughts, but was interrupted once again by the members of the barrier squad continuing on with their gossip amongst themselves, much to his frustration.
"I heard that the Forbidden Lake is a base for top secret experimentation," murmured one man, as he brushed his shaggy bown bangs out of his eyes as his companions gave him a serious look.
"Well, It wouldn't be the first. It is a top secret location. That would explain why Orochimaru came himself to the lake." Said another as the youngest of their group hummed in agreement and nodded.
"Senpai is usually the one sent to take care of the barrier, so this will be the first time that I've seen it.," said the youth as his comrades looked to one another before continuing to talk quietly.
"Well, you'll be seeing it soon enough. We should be getting pretty close," assured the team captain before the men nodded and continued their pointless chatter.
Ibiki sighed in mild relief and exasperation, glad that they didn't actually have full clearance to the topic. Knowing how the barrier squad liked to gossip, it wouldn't have been wise to tell them half of what was going on inside the base. The group stopped short when they realized that through the dark trees before them, a barrier was beginning to glow.
"Crap, that must be it," muttered one of the barrier team before the men sprang into action preparing their scrolls.
Ibiki disregarded them, running directly toward the barrier until he came to a stop before it, his eyes narrowing instead as he observed the fluctuating barrier before him. He swiftly performed the sequence coded needed and bypassed the barrier. Moving swiftly toward the glowing lake, examining in the Anbu that milled around the edge of the glowing water.
Reaching the small research building that was stationed on the edge of the lake, Ibiki stopped in front of the door joining in with all the other eyes that were directed toward the large shadow that was slowly rising from the center of the lake. A minute later an alien looking silver container of sorts appeared, looking like a horseless carriage, only this had windows and a large gaping hole in the front, where a window used to be, judging by the glass still clinging stubbornly to the edges. The sound of coughing and hacking filled the air as water poured out of the odd contraption. A young bedraggled brunette woman was sitting upright in a seat, before she slumped forward, her harsh breaths filling the air, shudders running through her every now and then.
As the light began to dim from the glowing waters, the head Anbu motioned that it was safe and the teams immediately set out over the water to retrieve the brunette from her odd looking carriage. The door behind Ibiki opened and a young medical ninja quickly came out of it, letting the door bang shut, in his rush to get across the lake to the odd carriage and the Anbu milling around the silent young woman. Ibiki's eyes narrowed in curiosity as he heard the young woman's ragged breathing catch as she finally registered the people surrounding her vehicle.
The young medic yelled at the Anbu to get out of his way so he could see his patient and they reluctantly parted for him. Finally making it to the edge of the circle he stepped forward and in a soothing voice tried to coax her to come out. "Don't be afraid Miss. My name is Hanataro. I'm a medic. These people are just here to protect you. We need to look at you to make sure that you're alright, ok?"During his talk he had carefully crept forward and opened her car door as he finished.
Ibiki took in the tensing of her shoulders and the way her eyes darted around, confusion and wariness clear in their depths, while her face remained blank. "Where am I?" she demanded in English, making no move to leave the car.
The medic halted, blinking at her in mild surprise from the steel he had heard in her voice. Her eyes bore mercilessly into his and he had to hold back the urge to swallow uneasily. At least they knew what language she knew how to speak. Changing tracks quickly, the medic began to speak in English back to her, "Well, you had an accident miss-"
"Yes. In fact, I should probably be dead. But that doesn't change the fact that I want to know where I am," she said calmly as her eyes carefully took stock of the people around her, her eyes lingering on Ibiki for a moment before returning to the young uncertain medic before her.
"Ah, please miss-" Ibiki snorted and moved toward the door of the research building that was behind him, feeling amused at the poor medic's plight.
He was sure that the young man was going to have one hell of a time trying to explain to the brunette that she was in an entirely different dimension with no hope of getting back home. Missing a beat in his step Ibiki speculated on the new thought that just hit him, Perhaps it's for the knowledge that the people possess. Falling easily back into his rhythm as if he never faltered, Ibiki ran with the thought, for it would definitely explain Orochimaru's sudden interest in the forbidden lake.
It was true that even though it had been difficult, the Hidden Leaf had gained at least three full languages that were used as code by Anbu, both spoken and written, one of the main codes being English, which was what the young woman had been speaking in. Ibiki's thoughts trailed back to the days he had been forced to learn the odd language, before rubbing his forehead and giving a tired sigh. No, that couldn't be it. From the brief report, Orochimaru had taken a young woman, a boy and the boy's mother, killing two other subjects that had come from the lake and taking no documents with him, making it highly unlikely that that was the man's objective. Perhaps the rest of the detailed reports would help, with that thought he moved into the building, looking for the director of the facility.
Ibiki found the man with ease a few seconds later, as the facility wasn't that huge, and now he sat in a small chair in front of the older man with a frown on his face. The man in front of him, known only as the Director, had short cut black hair with speckles of grey throughout and a long narrow nose with a pair of black rimmed glasses perched at the top. His face was long and came to a point at his chin, but at the moment was haggard with the stress the week had brought. Giving a sigh of weariness his grey eyes met Ibiki's stare head on and began his report, something Ibiki had to respect the man for, since the Director didn't flinch or cower at his intimidating stare.
"The barrier was breached without detection at 23 hundred hours, give or take thirty minutes. We later found several patrol members dead, mostly having their heads severed. We weren't made aware of their presence however until another young woman had come out of the lake. By then, they decided to act, reaching her before we could get to her, with the other two subjects in tow, the mother and her child," said the graying man.
"The mother and her son?" asked Ibiki with a frown.
The Director nodded grimly, face drawn. "Yes. They killed two other subjects."
"You mean two subjects that had come out of the lake previously?" Ask the head of the T and I with a frown. If the man would just stop calling the people 'subjects,' they could probably get through this conversation a bit faster. The Director nodded, lips tightening, though sadness could still be seen in his eyes.
"Yes, an older man and a teen boy." Ibiki frowned deeply as the man continued speaking.
"They were killed on the enemy's way out of the building, so we're not sure if it was subjects in general they wanted for experimentation or if it was specific to the three that were taken." The Director said with a grimace.
Ibiki hummed in thought, ever present scowl unchanging, "Any patters regarding the people that were taken?"
"Well, I suppose all of them where on the young side, and all had recently come out of the lake. The woman and her son had come out of the lake a couple of days before the attack, and the other subject they took had just come through. None of them had begun treatments yet to prolong their life spans. Do you think there's a connection," asked the Director?
Ibiki's frown deepened slightly, "Of course. To what purpose though?" he murmured before sighing in frustration as he scanned the report in his hand. There seemed to be more questions than answers. "You say that there were six raiders in total?" Ibiki confirmed.
The Director nodded, "Yes. There were four main fighters, Orochimaru, and a young red haired female that didn't participate in the fighting, instead staying near the taken subjects."
"Interesting," Ibiki muttered before glancing up in curiosity as a large splash was heard outside, along with a wail of wind that hadn't been there before.
The Directors eyes narrowed and he lifted the blinds to the window, taking in a sharp breath at the scene unfolding in front of him. Ibiki's eyes widened slightly in surprise as well at the scene, before something happened that normally didn't around the Head of the Torture and Investigation Unit Leader, a quick deep chuckle left his mouth. "It's always so interesting to see what they do, isn't it Director?" said Ibiki, amusement clear in his voice as the Director's shoulders tensed.
"Not anymore. That's a bit on the new side though," said the graying man, his attention on the young woman who was currently struggling in the grip of two Anbu, with another standing in front of her wet and cringing in pain as he cupped his manhood. After all, it wasn't every day that one of the people in the lake had enough energy to fight back, much less actually catch one of the Anbu off guard enough to land a hit, especially to such a sensitive place.
"Hold her steady," snapped the young medic at the Anbu as the young woman continued to flail wildly, curses being snarled across the water. What made the Director and Ibiki frown however wasn't the fact that the young woman was struggling so violently; it was the fact that the water under the Anbu team was starting to roil and whirl, as the wind picking up.
"I better stop this before it goes too far. Excuse me," said the Director as he hastily left the office, Ibiki right on his heels.
"You seem to know what's going on?" asked Ibiki.
The Director looked over his shoulder, surprise showing on his face at Ibiki being so close without him having realized he had left after him, but it quickly cleared up as his mind finally comprehended the question asked.
"Yes. Since all subjects that come through the lake have no chakra to begin with, they have no elemental affinity, or I guess you could say they have a complete affinity for every element. Because of that, most can manipulate natural energy without meaning to when they first arrive, especially when they are upset or feel threatened. If I don't stop this soon, we'll have a storm on our hands, and the lake with its vast size will probably turn into a raging sea," his tone harsh and scientific as they exited the building, making their way rapidly across to the enormous lake.
"Drop her," called the Director sharply.
The Anbu and medic paused to look at one another uncertainly as the choppy water continued to move sluggishly. "But sir, she could injure herself." Said one of the Anbu, making the young woman pause for a moment.
"Just do it," the Director bit out, annoyed that his orders weren't followed immediately.
The Anbu looked at one another over her head before carefully lowering her into the water, not moving as she swam a ways away, regarding them all quietly with interest, and deep mistrust.
Ibiki smirked slightly to himself when he noticed the water beginning to calm, the winds no longer blowing as strongly. His gaze returned to the young bedraggled woman and he frowned slightly in concentration as he began to examining the young woman's attitude and reactions.
As the medic went to go after her to try and check on her, she swam away some more before coming to a stop again, after one of the Anbu stopped the young man and whispered something in his ear. Something about the way the Medic had acted seemed to have made her wary, suggesting a past trauma regarding a medic or a situation that was alike, form what Ibiki could gather in her reactions.
Managing to land a strike on an aware Anbu however, suggested past taijutsu training, and the way she was regarding the situation calmly suggested that she hadn't understood the gravity of her situation fully yet, though from the way the Director had spoken and from the Medics evasion to forward questions, Ibiki seemed to take the hint that they had no intention of being upfront with her. After all, she was already admitting signs that suggested that she was too smart for her own good, and not easy to control. The only way the Director could probably subdue her was with ignorance, and she probably understood that as well.
He could tell the Director was starting to become irritated with the whole situation as every time somebody tried to approach her she would just swim away, the built up stress of the week not helping matters for, it just made him more waspish than usual, and less likely to be able to talk with the young woman appropriately.
However, what Ibiki saw under that fierce threatening demeanor, that everybody else seemed to miss, was fear and lots of it. It made him want to hum in amusement. After all, he was a sadist, and there was no way he could be around such a character and not find himself amused. A pity really.
"So, any particular reason you were so insistent on not leaving your car?" the Director called, trying to keep his annoyance out of his tone as he addressed the young woman that was watching them all quietly and warily.
A car? Ibiki regarded the odd contraption before returning his attention to the young woman.
"I think I'm entitled to defending my personal space when it is invaded against my will." She called over the calming waters as the Anbu stayed in place, not moving as they watched the conversation unfold. They knew from experience that any movements on their part would only serve to escalate the already tense situation.
"We're just trying to help you," said the Director, his tone firm, the annoyance starting to show through, along with his impatience.
The young woman's eyes narrowed as she scoffed and regarded him steely, clearly not please with the tone he had started to take with her.
"Oh, and I suppose I should just be grateful for your… 'help?'" she asked, her tone sarcastic and incredulous.
"How arrogant," she said as the Director's jaw began to bunch with growing anger, "Help is doing what others want you to do, not what you want to do, which is what your men have been doing before. I was taught that as a small child. I would have thought that a man your age would have learned the difference by now. But I suppose having power at your disposal has made you forget that not everyone wants the same things you want. " she said firmly, eyes flat and cold as she regarded the man with pursed lips.
The Director stiffened in outrage at her insolence at addressing him in such a fashion as Ibiki's eyebrows went up in incredulous delight. She had a sharp tongue on her, and clearly the Director was not amused. "Watch your tone girl and come out of the water this instant," he snapped as her eyes narrowed.
"Fuck that shit. What do you take me for? A fool?! I can smell the bullshit from here!" she snapped, before continuing more calmly. "Where am I? Who are you? And what are you planning to do with me?" she demanded crisply.
Ibiki couldn't contain the bark like laugh that burst from his lips at her daring and bluntness, his amusement only growing as he watched the Director begin to swell with anger. She was cheeky, the sassy little imp, but he could still tell she was using it to hide her fear. She may have been doing a good job in fooling the Director and everybody else, but not him. He could see that her hands were slightly shaking every time they broke the surface of the water to keep her afloat. He could also tell she was forcing her breathing to be steady and even, for once in a while she would falter and have to take a few quick breaths before setting back into a rhythm.
"Bullshit huh?" Ibiki called, her dark eyes turning to regard him calmly, a slight crooked smile playing upon her lips, hands still shaking.
"Yeah. Utter bullshit. I want to know what's going on, whether you want to tell me or not." She said, her voice clear as it carried across the water.
Ibiki grinned, a bit impressed with the way she seemed to calmly stand her ground and not let her fear drive her. It was because of this he decided to throw her a bone, "Well, for starters, you've crossed into another world or dimension or whatever you call it." Her eyes narrowed but she allowed him to keep speaking. "Here, people have abilities that allow them to break the rules that actively govern your world, like physics and gravity," he said before quickly performing a water jutsu, aiming it into the air. A large powerful spout of water blasted forth making the young woman yelp in surprise as she stared at him with wide disturbed eyes before he stopped it. "Is that enough proof for you?" he called with a smirk as the young woman's eyes slowly slid shut, shock still easily seen on her face as it slowly dawned on her that she was in no position to be demanding answers. Hopefully it would persuade her to come along quietly now and not fight them, for there was no way she could win.
It was quiet for a moment as the young woman continued to struggle to comprehend just what the hell was going on. But it wasn't quiet to Samira. Her heart sounded like thunder in her ears with how it pounded loudly away. Holy shit, what the hell have I gotten myself into? She thought to herself uneasily.
"Will you come out of the water?" Ibiki asked, starting to get fed up with her silence.
She almost flinched at his harsh tone, but hesitated, appearing to think, her dark brows pulling together in thought as her eyes met his. "Well, I suppose you could just drag me out, since some of you can walk on frigging water, but you're not. Why? What do you want with me and how do you know so much about my world," she asked?
Ibiki's grin got wider as his satisfaction with her grew. She may be scared and struggling to calmly catalogue her situation, but she was holding her ground and trying to pump as much information as she could out of him. How amusing. "I don't have to give you any answers you know. You're not entitled to any yet," he said scathingly as he grinned at her sadistically.
Her lips twitched slightly as if wanting to grin, though it turned out to be more of a grimace. "True. There is always the possibility that the answers you give me would be false anyways," she said quietly as her eyes took in the appearances of those around her carefully.
Samira took in the matching uniforms and the subtle hand signs that where being used to communicate between the masked people. A code, she realized, finding that the more she looked at these people, the more they reminded her of a military.
"Then why ask the questions anyways?"
"Sometimes, the answer you receive can tell you more about a person than the version of the truth they choose to impart." He smirked at her wise wordplay.
"So what version do you want? The easy truth? The harsh cruel truth? Or a truth that's in-between?" The man called, curious as to what her answer would be. He was finding her reactions a pleasant change from the norm and was interested to see what she would say next.
She frowned at him slightly, her expression contemplative as she took a deep breath to calm herself. "All of them." She called.
"Why?"
"To see how much they vary." Ibiki had to hold back another chuckle. He definitely liked this young woman's nerve. Trying to coax reactions out of her would be so fun. If only the Hokage would let him take a crack at her. He wanted to see what made her tick. "Alright. Come out of the water so I can tell you on the way. I have to get you back to the village as quickly as possible," he called.
Taking a deep calming breath, she began to swim to the edge of the lake, eyes still trained warily on the people closest to her. The Anbu, seeing her swim toward shore, began to work around the car. A moment later the car along with all the items in it disappeared in a flash of smoke as an Anbu sealed it into a scroll before giving it to another which hurried off with it. After a moment the young woman emerged from the water and the medic hurried forward, this time all business, no longer trying to act soothing as he began to work on healing her as the Director came over to speak with the scarred head of the T and I division.
"Please don't be too harsh with her. As irritating as she is… and impudent," the Director said with a slight scowl, before his face relaxed somewhat, but still showed small lines of distaste around his mouth. "I know what you are thinking; about telling her everything Ibiki-san, but do know that her first change and seizures will be occurring within the first few weeks and the more stressed she is, the faster her life will end. Just keep that in mind, whatever you decide. We need the subject in the long run." he suggested in a no nonsense tone of voice, making sure it was low enough that only him and Ibiki would hear. Ibiki found his brow furrowing again.
"Why do you call them subjects, instead of people, Director?" he asked quietly, having an idea but wanting to know what the director would say. The man sighed, a certain detached coldness coming to his face as he glanced at the tall scarred man beside him.
"Because that's what they are. Subject to be tested on, nothing more." He said calmly as Ibiki felt unease rising up in him though he didn't let it show. Instead he shot the man a slight smirk that made the scars on his face pull and pucker slightly at the strain.
"Oh is that so Director? I thought they were people?" he asked almost mockingly as the director shot him a withering glance.
"I don't consider the walking dead much of anything," he retorted sharply. Ibiki barked a laugh as a wicked gleam came to his eyes.
"You do realize that you just said that to a shinobi, right? And that most of your underlings are shinobi. All shinobi are walking dead," said Ibiki with a slight shrug, "After all, our time if anything is usually cut short mor often than not."
The doctor almost flinched before realizing that Ibiki was trying to screw with his head. If that is the case then I will meet him head on, thought the Director with a grim look.
"Why do you think that you are called shinobi?" he asked, "the fact that you are the walking dead is implied in the name. after all, there is only so much one can endure, and endure a shinobi must until they finally succumb to deaths call." He murmured quietly as Ibiki's face grew grim.
"Do you call them 'subjects' to dehumanize them?" he inquired as the Director shot the man an un-amused look.
"Obviously. It makes thing easier if you don't think of them as people."
Right after the Director had finished speaking, an Anbu landed in front of the two men to report on the Barrier Team. "The Barrier Team is still trying to figure out what went wrong with the barrier. They said to tell you that they would probably be here for several more days," The Director nodded and the Anbu vanished in a swirl of dust as if he had never been there.
Just as quickly another one took his place presenting a large scroll to Ibiki as he reported, "The items have all been sealed here as asked Ibiki-sama, Director-sama," Ibiki took the scroll from her with a nod as the medic finished patching up the young woman.
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Samira kept a sharp eye on the young medic that was patching her up, mind churning rapidly as she struggled to keep calm and in control of the situation though she knew that she had none. It was unnerving, to know that she was at these people's mercy, and from what she could gather of the situation, they weren't going to be giving her much of a say regarding her current situation. She could keep a level head however and gather as much information as possible out of this situation she found herself in, so she could play an active part in her fate, even if it meant escaping them.
"There," said the young grey haired medic, appearing satisfied before grabbing a medium branch off the ground. She took a few wary steps back and he raised his hands in a placating gesture. "I'm just going to get the water out of your hair. See?" he said holding the branch out over the water. Samira's eyebrows went up in surprise when the water moved away from the wood as if repelled. "Does all water react that way here?" she asked watching with fascination as he dripped the branch into the water only for it to come out dry.
"No just the water at the Lake. For some reason, the water here is repelled by anything to do with plants or trees. See, your cloths and skin aren't even wet, are they?" he said making her blink in surprise as she regarded the indeed dry clothing.
"How odd," she murmured in surprise.
It appeared the medic's attempts to distract her from the current situation where working. "Indeed. Here, I'll let you do it," he said as he handed her the branch.
Samira nodded hesitantly as she grabbed the branch. She handled it awkwardly but managed to get her short curly hair dry easily, handing the branch back to the medic. A sparkle came into his eye as he grinned. "Hey, want to see something cool?" he asked.
The young woman nodded hesitantly. Grinning behind his glasses the young medic threw the branch into the Lake. She blinked in surprise when it immediately sank without a ripple into the waters depths.
"What happened?" she asked as she hesitantly threw in a twig. It sank faster than a stone making her frown.
The medic chuckled. "The water's properties, remember? A branch can't float on top of water it can't touch and the pressure of the water on top of it makes it sink quickly, since the water is repelled by wood, not the other way around," he said as the young woman regarded the Lake with interest.
"Are you ready?" Samira jumped at the sudden voice beside her to find that it was the tall scarred man wearing the large black trench coat and grey uniform underneath with dark boots and gloves.
Samira nodded, staring back solidly, making the man's mouth twitch into a rugged grin. Without further warning he swept her up into his arms, making her gasp and flounder for balance. His eyes still trained on her form he crouched. And then they were soaring through the air. A terrified scream broke past her lips as her eyes widened and she clung to him desperately as she took in the incoming branches and trees.
The Director began to curse quietly in his head at the sadistic man as the medic and the remaining Anbu grimaced. It looked like even the young woman wasn't going to be exempt from Ibiki's sadistic pleasures, even if it would stress her out.
He landed easily on a limb as she gasped and shuddered before beginning to struggle madly in a desperate attempt to get away from the one responsible for the uncomfortable experience.
Ibiki let her struggle for a moment before his deep voice rumbled forth, "Quit squirming or I just might drop you," causing her movements to still into a tense silence as she regarded him with terrified eyes.
Her heart was beating wildly in her chest, the man's ominous looming presence not helping to calm her nerves. His knees bent again and she tensed, eyes widening to watch as they went sailing through the air once more, a strangled scream catching in her throat, unable to make in out as they landed on another branch.
"Are you going to do that every time?" asked the scarred rugged man with a straight face, referring to her screams of surprise, his tone bored, almost mocking.
She looked up at him with dark eyes, the pupils almost completely dilated as she struggled to control her breathing and shaking, since the adrenaline had hit her system once more. Her eyes narrowed slightly when she realized that she could see a twinkle of amusement in his dark unreadable eyes, a slight twitch the only indication that he wished to smirk at her misfortune.
The young woman took a deep breath as her grip on his jacket tightened a bit more before she returned his dark gaze challengingly, "I don't know, can you manage to jump smoother or should I be worried about you falling like a fool?" her voice calm despite the hardness in her eyes and the shake in her hands.
The man just smirked slightly, knees already bending before he took off once more, this time not stopping from branch to branch, instead leaping swiftly from one to another. She forced herself to keep from flinching, eyes sliding shut when she realized it was the only way to keep herself from screaming every time they jumped. Minutes passed and grew longer, the silence between them only broken by the calming rustle of the leaves as a crisp wind flited through them, making the young woman unthinkingly draw herself closer to the large man's hold, shivering slightly from the crispness in the air.
Ibiki shot a curious glance at her to find that her attention was no longer directed at him, her eyes now shut as she listened to the world around her, hearing the call of the birds and animals of the forest as they made their way swiftly past in the dim of the night. The sun had fallen long ago. Unthinkingly he tightened his grip, shifting her closer since her relaxed form was harder to grasp than the stiff coiled mass of nerves she had been before.
An hour had passed by the time she finally spoke, her voice soft and strained with exhaustion. "So… I really am in a different World?"
Ibiki chuckled as he easily leaped over another limb and onto another. "I suppose now would be as good time as any to tell you about this world," he stated, making Samira regard him with a grimace.
She was tired, and already reeling from the impossibility of the situation that she was being faced with. It would figure that the scarred man would want to add more to her full plate of problems. Samira heard him chuckle quietly at her exasperated expression and she sighed in resignation. She had a feeling he was enjoying this situation a little too much, the sadistic bastard.
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"Kabuto," called the Director.
"Yes sir?" called the young grey haired medic as he straightened his glasses.
"You have some reports to finish up. Get back over here," called the Director as Kabuto hurried to obey.
"Yes sir. Right away," said Kabuto as he hurried across the water with a slight smirk. Lord Orochimaru might want to know about this.
…
AN: HUZZAH! Chapter one done and revised! I would like to thank everyone who has favorite and begun following, Unlikely Love! Please leave a review and comment for the author and editor!
A Special shout out for my Partner in crime, DragonSlayer2187. She has helped me with some heavy editing and revision of the chapter for everyone's pleasure, so please thank her everyone!