"Wake up." A crude voice interrupts your thoughts.
'Why are they trying to wake me up? I'm fine where I am. Wait, where am I? Who am I?'
"Wake up." The voice says harsher, louder. You are pulled farther from your peaceful sleep. You groan in protest and your head lulls to the side. You slowly realized you are sitting up as your eyes come into focus. You lift your gaze slowly and cringe as a bright light flashes into view. It is then you realize you can't move your hands to shield your eyes. They are tied to the chair.
"What do you want? Let me sleep." You manage to whisper.
"Which tranquilizer did you give her?" Another voice emerges.
"The basic. She's just reacting strangely." The first voice responds in an irritated way. You groan and lift your head again. This time your eyes are used to the light and you see two figures standing before you with white faces. Your vision swims again and your stomach lurches, the taste of vomit fills your mouth and you cough.
"She needs to go to the hospital." The second voice urges.
"After the interrogation." The first voice says firmly. By this time your vision clears enough for you to clearly see the masks of the two ANBU in front of you. "Do you know why you are here?" He says sternly and clearly. You can't manage to form words and just shake your head. "Do you know where you are?" Again you shake your head slowly. "Do you know who we are?"
You force your mouth to shape the word. "ANBU."
"Good. There's no memory block." The white face leans closer and you hang your head, wishing for the welcoming darkness again. "Hey!" You blink your eyes and realize your face is wet. They must have splashed you with water to keep you awake. "Do you recognize this object?" You scan the object being held out and turn away quickly as distant thoughts of pain rush to your senses.
"Y-yes… Pain…" You shiver and try to keep your head up but find it increasingly difficult.
"What is the last thing you remember?" The second voice pulls you out of your memories.
"I remember?" You say bewildered. Was there a moment before this? Is that why the object felt painful? What was the object? What was the word ANBU? Are they friend or foe?
"The last thing you remember." They repeat slower.
"R-remember…" You close your eyes and try hard to recall. A few fleeting images brush your senses and you try to pull them forward. You managed to catch one and instantly you throw your head back in pain. You scream and try to push the memory away but it consumes your mind. After what seems like days the pain ebbs and you start to see the room around you again. "Pain…torture." Fragments of memories pass before your eyes. "What do you want… never ask- never asked me anything. Why won't they stop?!" Tears are falling into your lap but you don't notice. "I can't… I don't want to… just leave… I don't want to remember…" You feel yourself slipping back to darkness but a sting to your face pulls you back to the light and that god awful room.
"Stay focused." You pant and raise your head to look at them. "Now, we're going to do a technique that will give us all the information we need. All you have to do is not struggle."
"B-but I…I don't…"
"Relax." A hand passes in front of your face and your eyes close. The room slips away.
You open your eyes and find yourself in a dark hallway with countless doors along the sides. You open the nearest door and stumble onto a scene where two kids are playing in a patch of tall grass.
"Not there…that's too far." A voice pulls you away from the scene and you close the door. "Keep going…" You stop in front of another door and push it open. This time you see a village full up people and shops. On a bench a child is eating some sweet ice. Three other kids are chasing after a stray cat. "More, keep going." The voice urges again. You close the door and keep moving down the hall. You hear things as you pass the doors, sometimes laughter or rain, sometimes screams and bangs. The sounds end and you stop. You step toward the door on your right. This is it. You don't even know what exactly it is but you don't want to open the door. Your hands shake as you press against the wood. It doesn't budge. "Try again." The voice reassures and you shove it open, falling into the darkness inside.
"What do you want? What do you want!" You hear your screams as the crack of a whip lashes through the air. A whip, that's what the weapon was called. "J-just a little longer… Just a little longer! You can make it… hold on…" A cruel maniacal laughter echoes all around you.
"They're not coming for you. They abandoned you. Not one of them will ever hear your screaming. You will die here, alone, in the darkness. A forgotten piece of trash. That is how they treat their own ninja. Like trash! You are nothing to them! Merely a tool to guide how they please!" The crack of the whip sings out again as more screams fill the air.
"Stop it. Stop it. Stop!" You beg as hot tears stream down your face.
"Relax, it's almost over." The voice tries to calm you but your own screaming drowns it out.
"No!" You scream. Your eyes snap open and the ANBU performing the technique falls limp to the floor. All your memories flood back. Everything… "You bastards! You bastards!" You yell, thrashing in the chair. "You left me there! You abandoned me! FOUR MONTHS!!" You shriek, all senses lost. "Four months in the pits of hell and you left me there! YOU BASTARDS!!" The chair beneath you shatters, the bindings fall from your wrists. "Not one word. Not one sign. How dare you! I'll kill you!" You lash out, the remaining ANBU barely dodging in time.
"I need assistance!" He shouts and a hidden door opens, six shinobi enter. You fling your hand in a swinging motion and they smash against the wall by no apparent force.
"Do you know what it's like to be in darkness for four months? Do you want to know what hell feels like! Beg for your deaths! Beg damnit!" You stand over them, your hair flying up as you raise your hands and shout out a few words. Lightning erupts from your finger tips and the room fills with screams. You smiles as tears continue to form in your eyes. "Welcome to my hell!" You release the technique and the six bodies go limp. You feel a sting in your shoulder and pull it out. You see a needle in your hands just before you collapse to the floor and are once again consumed by the dark.
"They snapped. They aren't safe. There is no reasoning with them."
"Silence. I will decided if they are safe or not."
"They should be far away from here. They could injure innocent people here."
"I said silence!" The room goes quiet and the female speaks again. "Fetch me Umino Iruka, Hatake Kakashi, and Hyuuga Hinata at once."
"Hai." There is a small poof and you try to figure out where you are. You notice you are laying down this time and there is something sticking into your arm, it stings a little but not much. You open your eyes slowly and are met with white lights. You turn your head sharply and close your eyes again.
"You are waking, good. Can you hear me?" You nod your head slowly to the comforting voice. "Good. Can you open your eyes for me?" She asks and you quickly shake your head no. "Why not?"
"Lights…" You force out, the tranquilizer still working it's way out of your system.
"Alright." You hear footsteps and a click, then more footsteps. "There, no more lights." You open your eyes gradually and blink up at the familiar blonde standing next to your bed.
"Tsunade-sama."
"I understand you've been quite the trouble maker since you got back. Seven of your fellow ninja in the hospital within the first two hours of being recovered?"
"Tsunade-sama. I've brought them." The ANBU member returns.
"Just a moment." She says and turns back to you. "Stay here a minute. There are some people who wish to speak to you." The Hokage disappears from your vision and you hear her footsteps leave.
Just as you are starting to drift away from the quiet hospital room the door opens again and you hear a new set of footsteps enter. "How are you doing?" Iruka's voice washes over you.
"Iruka-sensei. I… did I… how are they?" You ask shakily.
"Minor injuries to the six you… but the ANBU member is still unconscious." You nod your head slowly and focus your gaze on him.
"I don't know what came over me. I just felt so- I couldn't…" You fight back fresh tears as you try to keep your voice steady.
"I know-"
"No you don't know! How could anyone know! Why didn't you contact me? I tried every chance I could but I got nothing! Nothing!" You start yelling again but he is unfazed.
"I tried, but I am not as strong a telepath as you are. I did all I could."
"Is that all you have to say to me? Do you have any idea what happened to me in those four months!?" Iruka shakes his head.
"No, I don't know. And no one could ever know unless they went through the same thing as you." You clench your fists and shut your eyes as the memories resurface. Two arms wrap around you and you sit in shock. How could he possibly… after what you did… is he really telling the truth?
"Hinata wants to see you next." Iruka pulls away and you wipe your eyes.
"No, not yet. Send Kakashi in first." You say firmly and he nods.
"No disappearing again. You have no idea what you did to this place when you went missing." You see Iruka open the door and close it surely behind him. You sigh and force yourself to sit up just as Kakashi walks in.
"Sensei." You greet him and he just stands there. The silence grows and you actually shiver from it.
"You are lucky to be here."
"I know…"
"No you don't." He gives you a look that turns your blood cold. "To attack your fellow ninja is punishable by death."
"I-"
"Regardless of what happened!" You recoil from the fierceness in his tone. "I don't know what happened and I don't want to know. Never. Never let it happen again."
"Sensei…" You struggle to find words. "Nothing I can do can make it right again. I will carry this forever as if it's written on my face. I don't need your lecture. I have already given myself a harsh enough one." You look away from him. "Send in Hinata if she still wishes to see me." The silence persists for another minute before he opens the door and leaves. As his footsteps fade away new ones block them out.
"Um, it's nice to see you again…" Hinata mumbles and walks closer.
"My closest friend. Hinata, how are you?" You turn to her and smile softly.
"Good, I suppose… They told me-"
"I know." You interrupt. She stands there a moment searching your eyes then suddenly throws herself on you.
"I was s-s-so worried about you! Everyone thought you were d-dead!" She sobs into your shirt. You hold her tight until she finishes.
"It's okay now. Everything is going to get better. I promise." She smiles at you and you laugh a little. "I'm alright. I am alright." You say for her and yourself. She nods and Tsunade appears and ushers her out of the room.
"There are still some loose ends to tie up before you can be released. As a precaution there are ANBU stationed around the hospital. Don't try to leave." You nod slowly. "Until the other ANBU member regains consciousness and informs us of what he discovered you must be under constant surveillance."
"I could wake him up if you bring him here."
"I'm afraid I can't do that." Tsunade says quickly. You nod.
"Alright, then bring Iruka-sensei in. I'll show him what happened so he may tell you. Then hopefully you will trust me enough to revive the one I… hurt." You say the last part painfully.
"Do you think he could be revived by telepathy?"
"Yes, but Iruka-sensei is not powerful enough. I'm afraid I used my forbidden technique on him."
"Mind scatter? This is very incriminating."
"I realize this." You both have rock-like expressions as you stare at each other. "There is nothing I can do to make it right. But I will do what I can to prove I am trust worthy. To prove I am still a Konoha ninja and I still want to protect this village and everyone in it." Tsunade's expression softens and she smirks.
"I'll retrieve him and inform him of the situation." Tsunade turns to the door but pauses. "You realize he may refuse."
"I do. And if he does there is nothing I can do to change his mind." Tsunade nods to you and leaves. Moments later someone comes in with a tray of food and sets it on the table attached to the bed. You pull it towards you and the person leaves. You quickly eat the weak soup and just as you finish, Iruka reenters the room.
"Iruka-sensei." You smile.
"You are willing to let me sort through your memories."
"Yes, are you willing to accept?"
"Yes." He says and steps closer to the bed. "Lay back. Close your eyes." You do as he instructs and he begins combing your mind…
Iruka steps back, releasing the technique. "Good God…" he whispers, a horrified expression on his face.
"Go tell Tsunade so I might undo my mistake." You plead and he quickly retreats from the room, leaving you to ponder your fate.
You jerk awake as your name is called. "I just finished talking to Tsunade-sama. She has deemed you trust worthy to reverse your technique on the ANBU member." Iruka explains quickly and helps you sit up.
"Give me a moment to wake up Sensei." You blink rapidly and try to pull your mind out of its haze. You stumble out of the room with him to find Kakashi plus three ANBU waiting for you. "What is this?"
"Escort." Kakashi says simply.
"Of course, which room is it?" You ask quickly, your mind fully awake.
"This way." Iruka guides you down the halls and finally you stop at a door in the critical care section of the hospital. You stand in front of the door in silence.
"Go on then!" One of the ANBU says harshly and Kakashi shoots them a glare. You take a breath and push the door open and step inside. The sight before you makes you cringe. The ANBU member is laying on a bed, his face unmasked and wires everywhere hooked up to several beeping machines.
You step up to the head of the bed and begin pulling the plugs off the person's forehead. They'll just get in the way. "What are you doing?"
"I have to take them off." You explain and set them on the edge of the bed. You place your hands on the sides of the man's head and focus all your energy on his mind. "I'm connected." You whisper.
"Hurry up traitor." One of the ANBU hisses. You open your eyes and glare at them.
"Firstly, this is going to take a while, hours, maybe days. Secondly, I need complete silence to concentrate. Actually just having you all here is a distraction."
"We are not going to leave are comrade alone with a –"
"Leave." Kakashi instructs. They make to protest but he holds his hand up. "We can manage our own student." He says in an unarguable way, they file out the room slowly. You nod to Kakashi and go back to work.
"Connected, starting to reconstruct…" You whisper as you sort through the shattered pieces of the person's mind. You find two pieces that match and mend them with your chakra. "It's working." You smile and keep flipping through the pieces.
Hours later you pull away. "I have to stop." You pant. "I need to eat." You sit back in a chair you didn't notice before. Iruka disappears and moments later returns with an apple and a few other choice items. You snatch them, giving a quick thanks, and chow down. "I feel like I haven't eaten in forever." You smile and stand back up. "How long has it been?"
"Five hours." Kakashi glances at the bed. "How close are you?"
"Not even half yet." You shake your head. It's like putting a puzzle together where you can only look at two pieces at a time."
"How much more time do you think you will need?" Iruka asks.
"At least three days." You shake your head and move back to your position. "You should update Hokage-sama." You say before you immerse yourself in the unfamiliar thoughts and memories once again.
You open your eyes and smile. "It's done." You announce and the man's eyes open slowly. He recoils when he sees your face and Kakashi restrains him.
"Hold yourself before you do something regretful."
"I think you should leave the room for now." Iruka sets his hand on your shoulder and guides you out the door.
"I did it." You smile.
"You crushed his mind and rebuilt it. You see that as accomplishment?"
"I reversed it! Now I know that I can. Don't you see? This is a major accomplishment! I am becoming more skilled and this was proof. I can become stronger. I can be better. I just have to reach for it. I will never let any of my comrades down. I will never let my misfortunes befall to another. Whether I become Hokage one day or not, I will get stronger to protect this Village and the ones I care about!" You proclaim. Iruka laughs and you look at him confused.
"You are starting to sound like Naruto." He smiles and you laugh to.
"How is he? Does…does he know?"
"He is fine, and no. Tsunade only informed those that were involved. All they know is you were kidnapped and are finally well enough to get out of bed."
"Good. That's good. I don't want them to avoid me or avoid talking to me. I want things to be as close as they can be to how it was before." You nod and Iruka grins.
"Well, maybe after the party things will fall back into their respective places."
"Party?" Your eyes light up.
"As I said, you have no idea what you did to this place when you turned up missing." Iruka leads you down a new hall and stops in front of some double doors. You push them open and a deafening cry meets your ears.
"Welcome back!" Your gaze flows around the room to all the faces.
"You… all…" Your eyes well up and you fight down your tears. "I don't know what to say."
"Say you'll never do that again!" Sakura says in a playfully harsh way.
"I promise!" You cry and tackle her in a hug. "Oh how I missed you! How I missed all of you!"
"No talk of that now." Kiba appears with a plate. "Take this and eat up!" He hands it to you and you laugh at the piece of cake. The frosting on the top has the letters "RIP" crossed out and "Welcome Back" written underneath it.
"So you were going to eat chocolate cake at my funeral?" You laugh and swipe your finger across the frosting, dabbing a glob of it on Kiba's nose. "This is fantastic." You sigh and look around you again.
"None of that." Shikamaru says dully. "We don't need to know."
"Yes, this is a celebration." Ino appears and places a crown of flowers on your head.
"Of course it is. And what is a celebration without games?" You smirk.
"I knew it." Neji rolls his eyes.
"Be nice." Sakura warns.
"Karaoke!" You shout and hold up a microphone. You duck as a piece of cake comes flying at you, unfortunately it hits Hinata in the face.
"FOOD FIGHT!!!!" Someone cries and suddenly the air is filled with flying food and laughter.
"Cheater!" Naruto claims as Shikamaru uses his shadow technique to make Naruto hit himself in the face with a glob of cake. You spot this and hurl a handful of chips at Shikamaru.
"No techniques!" You shout and several people groan before getting hit with more food.
"What the hell is going on here?" Tsunade appears at the door, arms crossed. Someone throws a handful of food at her and the chaos begins again. It only stops when you jump on a table to shout something along the lines of "La Résistance!" Slip, fall, and break the table in half. At that point everyone is laughing to hard to continue. You sit up and try to wipe your face off but end up getting more food on it.
"This is insane." Someone sighs.
"Yeah…" Nearly everyone agrees.
"I don't know if I've ever had this much fun." You smile and look around at all the collapsed people covered in food. You will never forget this day. In fifty years when you are telling your grand kids about your life, this will be one of the things mentioned. Never, will you forget how much one person truly means and, no matter how chaotic things get sometimes, you can always count on those who care to help you through; whether by some advice, an unexpected hug, a lecture, or a massive food fight. All you have to do is hold on. The End.
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I haven't any idea where this came from but here it is! Re-uploaded to fix some mistakes I noticed. I don't any any of the characters except the one this is based off of. Her name is Kina but I tried to write this so a guy could read it to. (For my friend Joe!) Anyway, here it is and I hope you like it!