"Hush"
The word was spoken harshly as the gloved hand pressed harder against her face, mashing lips against teeth and bruising her cheeks. Tsunade didn't stop and her scream muffled as it was pierced the night before a rough slap silenced her and a gag tied in place. She made a face at the feel of rough dirty cotton on her tongue and attempted in vain to bite the cloth in half. Her hands were tied behind her and her legs, one of them broken now, were roughly tied to each other in bindings up to her knee.
This was supposed to be a simple extraction mission. Attack the rogue ninja hideout, get the hostage out and leave. That was it. Of course the plan had gone all to hell as soon as they came in sight of the camp. Intel didn't state they had a sensory type and the team's positions were seen before they could even scout the area. The rogues slit the hostage's throat before she could even drop her hand to her kunai, screaming that the deal was canceled. After that it was chaos and the three jounin went head to head against the enemy and for a moment a single minute in time, she was convinced they had won the day.
But that moment fell aside as the trap sprung around her and the chakra propelled weapon smashed into her leg, cracking bone, and bringing her down in a heap. She started to rise but stilled as a knife was pressed against her throat. Jiraiya and Orochimaru halted in their pursuit to watch helplessly as she was drug away. The blonde swallowed thickly and felt the dried blood on her neck pull and flake where she'd been cut.
Tsunade wasn't scared. She was seasoned in warfare and knew that they needed some form of collateral to save their skin. She just had the misfortune of being it. As long as they remembered that she'd be safe enough. Honey colored eyes glared as who she assumed was the leader stalked over to her. His foot came down hard on the broken bone of her leg and she screamed only to have it muffled by drool soaked cloth.
"Hush" The man said again, his voice jovial despite her pain. "Who'd have thought, they'd send the Senju Princess after my little gang. Tell me Tsunade, how much would your Village pay to get you back? Or better yet, how much would they pay to get you back unharmed?"
He leaned in close and let putrid breath brush along her face. "Now be good, or I'll let my boys have a round with you. It's been awhile since they've had a kunoichi, and village women just don't give them the same fight."
Her eyes narrowed and Tsunade felt a growl work its way through her as she gathered herself to attack that nasty face of his.
Orochimaru and Jiraiya sat a quarter of a mile away and went over the plan one more time. It had been sheer folly that had the rogues getting the jump on them and both of the jounin knew that they had to act and had to act now or there was a good chance Tsunade would be broken beyond repair when they got her back, a thought that churned acid in both their stomachs.
"Alright bastard," Jiraiya said pointing to the crudely drawn map in the dirt. "When my summon gets back we'll be able to have the pinpoint on where she is and where that damn sensory type is so we can take him out first."
Orochimaru nodded and studied the map they had drawn out. He knew how he would have set up his camp, but that knowledge was meaningless. His mind was a sharpened blade compared to these… these cretins. He worried though, despite the plan in place and the knowledge that they'd be taking action soon. Tsunade had a temper and if she got mad, there was a chance they'd kill her to simply stop her raging, or worse attempt to beat her into submission. He remembered going through the torture training with her vividly, while Jiraiya had cursed and even he had groaned in pain, she had stood stoic even under the harshest parts. They'd have to hurt her terribly to break her down.
The snake jounin let that thought go as a toad broke through the foliage and came to a panting halt in front of them. Jiraiya reached out his hand for the thing and waited, a slight tremble in his shoulders the only evidence of his worry. The toad bypassed the hand and hopped to the map putting his webbed feet directly in the center.
"The blonde girl is there." He croaked. "While I was scouting, she got into a fight with one of them and it isn't going in her favor." The toad didn't elaborate more, even as Jiraiya cursed and started to walk away. "Wait boy!" It called out after him. "The other you told me to look for is stationed here." He pointed to the drawing of a tree. "He didn't sense me though and seemed to be moving to join in the… fight that girl was putting on."
There was silence now as the jounins took off through the trees. Tsunade knew how to fight, Will of Fire did she ever. She didn't know how to back down though and they were sure that aspect of her was going to do more harm than good today.
The blonde blinked the blood out of her eyes. For once it wasn't hers but rather the rogue ninja who decided threatening a Leaf kunoichi and jounin with rape was a good idea. She'd shot up as hard as she could centering her chakra in her forehead and releasing it all at once when she made contact with his nose. The crunching noise and spray of blood had the corners of her mouth tugging up as much as they were able.
She bit down hard on the gag that still refused to tear, as pain screamed through her leg. She shifted her weight to her uninjured one. It would have to suffice, she mused as the remains of the camp surrounded her. The only sound was her harsh breathing as eyes looked at her already seeing her naked and submitting or dead. At once Tsunade realized she'd lost. She would fight, she would fight until she couldn't anymore, but there wasn't going to be a way to walk away from this. They use her and either kill her or try to bargain with the Leaf for her return. Breathing slowed and she relaxed her shoulders. With any lock she'd take down so many, she'd be scared to touch her and simply kill her from a distance.
The bandits stepped forward, only to stumble back as a large snake coiled a ring around the blonde. "Are these the ones I get to eat?" It demanded. Orochimaru walked out of the woods and nonchalantly glanced at the now terrified crowd. "My dear Snake, I wouldn't summon you without payment."
The snake made a hissing sound that was what passed for its laughter. "I do like my meals free ranged. I'll enjoy this." It said before lunging forward.
Tsunade watched through the dark spots dancing in front of her eyes, the pain from her leg overtook her and she swayed forward closing her eyes to brace for an impact that never came. She opened them started and saw Jiraiya's face pale but smiling back at her. Tsunade came perilously close to sobbing. She didn't though and instead rubbed her face against his arm to try and nonverbally direct him to taking her gag off. He realized what she wanted and took her weight against his larger frame as a hand worked to undo the knot behind her head without pulling hair. Next came her hands and then finally legs.
"Thank you." Tsunade whispered trying to calm down. "I thought I was abandoned there for awhile."
The toad sage gave her an odd look and picked up as gently as he would hold a hollowed egg shell. "Never that Princess, never think we'd forget or leave you."
It wouldn't be until later, much later when the mission was over and the rogues and bandit were safely digesting in the snake's stomach, Tsunade laid in her sleeping back and stared blankly up at the canvas ceiling. Her mind replayed the day in stunning detail. She'd been helpless. With all her strength and willpower, she'd been completely powerless. They could have killed her. They could have raped her and she would have been able to do nothing.
Silent tears made tracks down her cheeks. If the boys had been just a little slower, if she hadn't knocked the leader out with the head butt.
If…
If…
A sob made its way out of her throat. Tsunade brought her hands up to try and muffle the sounds as delayed reaction and fear shook her frame. She was breaking and would be damned before she'd let the two sleeping beside her see it. Even as she formed the thought, the decision was taken out of her hands as pale slender fingers reached through the darkness to touch her wet cheek.
"Tsunade?" Orochimaru asked in question. He sat up completely and narrowed his eyes to adjust to the moonlight night. He had heard her cry out and felt the vibrations of her trembling. He knew she'd been crying, but was at a loss as to why. They'd saved her. She was between the two of them and despite the troubled times it was nearly the safest place in the world. He reached out, unsure if she'd bat his hands away and gathered her to him.
His mind reached for the words he barely remembered, the comforting murmurs his mother would say when he woke fretful from a nightmare. "Hush now. I've got you. You're safe, you're here and you're safe."
She burrowed against him, her cries coming harder as she wept out relief. Another hand, this one large and roughened by time spent training with the toads stroked her hair. "Oh Princess," Jiraiya whispered his voice infinite in kindness. They stayed like that, each man holding her tight as they tried to comfort her.
In the morning when the first rays of day lit the tent, Tsunade made a vow to herself. She would learn her grandmother's jutsu and any other jutsu she needed on top of her medical healing. These two, these precious two would not have to rescue their teammate again. Her hands would be the one protecting them and anyone else she needed too.