This idea has been rolling around in my head and wouldn't let me go to sleep until I typed it. You'll have to tell me whether it's something I should continue or if I should leave it as a one-shot. :)
"Fall back!"
Shikamaru nodded and obeyed. He knew what was coming, and his mouth tasted like cotton balls.
He was filling in for Sai (again) on a B-ranked mission with Team Kakashi, and it had just become S-ranked. Just now, out of nowhere more than sixty enemy shinobi had surrounded Kakashi, separating him from the rest of his team and making it clear that they intended to capture him alive.
How the hell did so many of them sneak up on us like that?
Clearly someone wanted the jonin pretty badly. Apparently, Naruto, Shikamaru, and Sakura weren't as infamous as the Copy Ninja yet, and so had been underestimated. Even so, there was no way in hell the four of them could hope to defeat the small army that had swooped in, and it was possible that even more were still hiding in the surrounding forest.
Naruto didn't seem to understand the order. After all, Shikamaru figured, running away went against everything the spunky blond believed in. He just didn't have it in him to back down, and that was going to be a problem. Already he was forming the seals for his Mass Kage Bushin no Jutsu. Shikamaru stopped him by placing a firm hand on his.
"Don't." A look of shock passed over Naruto's features, followed closely by a look of betrayal. Shikamaru had to calm him down, and fast. "We have to follow his orders, Naruto. He's never given you a bad order before, right?"
This seemed to calm him down a bit, and though he still looked confused as hell about why they were supposed to turn tail and run, Naruto clearly had a lot of faith in Kakashi.
Sakura didn't look any more pleased with the situation than any of them felt, but she was a lot more level-headed than her teammate.
"What happens now?"
Her question was directed more to herself and her teammates than to the several enemies that had broken from the main group to encircle the three, but one of them answered.
"Now, we take your commander with us and as long as you three play nice, we'll let you run back to whatever playground you came from."
Sakura looked peeved at the sneer in his voice, and Naruto bristled. Kakashi looked as deceptively nonchalant as ever, but his voice had a dangerous edge to it that only his team could recognize.
"I said Fall. Back." He had their attention now, and it was becoming clear to Naruto and Sakura that they were being used as hostages. Of course, Shikamaru had already realized that, and their best bet now was to feign uselessness. My specialty.
"Shikamaru. You know what has to happen now."
The genius nodded, and laced his fingers behind his head. A meaningful look at Sakura and Naruto prompted them to follow his lead. He didn't even flinch when he felt a threatening presence behind him and felt the coolness of a kunai at his throat. He saw the other two tense at the development, but they seemed to be understanding the situation more fully now than they had been earlier, because neither made any sudden moves.
The enemy that had spoken earlier stepped toward Kakashi.
"If you would be so kind, Hatake." Kakashi rolled his eye at his arrogance as he put his hands together and offered them to be tied. The assailant shook his head and motioned for Kakashi to turn around, and said Copy Ninja obliged, sighing as if to say 'it was worth a shot.'
Kakashi's hands were tied quickly behind his back, and he was disarmed and blindfolded with startling efficiency.
Shikamaru could see a plethora of emotions in his teammates eyes as they stood by watching their sensei be taken captive without offering so much as a single punch as resistance. He could reassure them later that Kakashi wasn't being a coward; any false move he made would certainly get at least one of them killed and it was best to conserve his strength and chakra for whatever the captors had in store for him.
He winced. I probably shouldn't tell them that he's probably going to be interrogated, because they know that often involves torture. I could tell them it's likely that he'll be used as leverage for something…probably not the best idea either. I'll just try to avoid telling them anything until we can rescue him.
The captors seemed to have other plans. The leader was satisfied that Kakashi wouldn't be able to escape, so he turned to the henchmen holding knives at the throats of the three other leaf shinobi. He quickly appraised each of the hostages, and though Shikamaru noticed the way his eyes lingered on Sakura's body for a couple of extra seconds, his gaze finally settled on Naruto and he gestured.
"Him."
"Me?!"
They want a hostage to take with them as leverage against Kakashi. They know that if we were safe, he'd be pretty likely to try something…he thinks Naruto is the best choice. They have no idea how much that'll work in our favor since Naruto is easily the most hot-headed of us. If they can control him, that means I won't have to bother reasoning with him, and if they can't…then Sakura and I won't have nearly as many enemies to worry about.
Kakashi tensed against the ropes, and his jaw seemed to clench a little tighter under his mask as Naruto's captor escorted him over to the main group.
"You said you'd let them go."
The leader scoffed.
"I'll let the other two go, and once we're done with you, we'll have no more use for this brat either. I know you really didn't think we'd give up all of our hostages, did you? Just because we don't want to deal with three of them doesn't mean we're stupid."
Naruto was being bound and blindfolded in the same manner as Kakashi. Soon, the leader was satisfied and he shoved Naruto in the opposite direction from Sakura and Shikamaru, and the rest of the party followed. Once they were out of sight, the two ninjas left guarding Sakura and Shikamaru disappeared in a poof of dust.
Sakura stood there for a moment looking stunned. Then, she fell to one knee. Soon the other was also on the ground. Then she was doubled over, clenching two handfuls of grass as she started to weep.
Shikamaru walked over to her and knelt by her side, resting one hand tentatively on her shoulder. His actions seemed to have the desired effect, because she drew in a deep breath and let it back out. She looked up at him.
"And now we go after them."
Shikamaru looked in the direction they had gone and then back at the medic. He nodded.
"Now we go after them."
She stood up, and he could see that her breathing was still a little shaky. It was understandable; she had never seen a teammate captured before and been powerless to do anything about it. Neither had he, for that matter, but his nature was calmer than even Sakura's and that was saying something. He wouldn't lose his head, and she seemed to have regained control of herself as well.
"I saw some sound and some rain symbols on the forehead protectors. That most likely means that those two countries have formed an alliance, and since they specifically wanted Kakashi badly enough to send a small army to capture him, they're probably planning an attack on Konoha."
Shikamaru was impressed. He'd reached the same conclusion about five minutes ago, but she had still gotten there a lot faster than Ino would have. The genius nodded his agreement as he searched the trees for the signs Kakashi would have left. It didn't take long to find the first snapped tree branch.
"They went west. We're only a few hours away from the Rain Country's border. That's probably their destination. Let's go."
Defiance and determination glinted in Sakura's eyes as she nodded fiercely. Heaven help whoever threatened her friends, because that look in the kunoichi's eyes was deadly.
Seven hours later, Shikamaru and Sakura were crouched outside a window of a mostly underground compound just over the border into Rain Country. The window was narrow, and the two of them were well-covered by bushes that had carelessly been allowed to grow close to the window.
Sakura gasped softly. The sight before them was enough to cause anyone's stomach to lurch, and if the sight wasn't enough, then the smell certainly was.
Kakashi was tied to a chair, positioned so that the window viewers had a perfect profile view of his left side. He had been stripped to the waist except for the blindfold that was still tightly in place.
Sakura's eyes seemed to be focusing on his face. It was probably the first time she'd ever seen him without his mask, Shikamaru surmised. When her eyes did drop, she swallowed.
Kakashi's arms and the visible part of his torso were covered with a lot of scars, but that wasn't the gruesome part. He had clearly been beaten. His white hair was matted with dirt and blood. Cuts and bruises covered his body. Some looked quite serious. A couple of deeply purple areas were visible on his ribs, and there was a particularly bloody cut on his upper arm.
Sakura's hand involuntarily found Shikamaru's forearm and she gave a squeeze. She looked like she might be about to demand that they attack right this second before a voice from inside the room interrupted her.
"How many shinobi does Konoha have?"
Kakashi remained silent, and the interrogator walked closer to him.
"What kind of defenses are in place?"
Still, the jonin said nothing. If anything, his jaw seemed to clench tighter. Has he sensed our presence watching him? Suddenly the sound of flesh connecting with flesh resounded. Sakura jumped and Shikamaru winced as they saw Kakashi take a sudden (and apparently hard) punch in the ribs. A stifled grunt accompanied the strain against the ropes, but no further reaction was given.
Sakura's grip tightened as the interrogator moved to leave less than eight inches between his face and Kakashi's.
"Tell me where Konoha is vulnerable."
By now Kakashi seemed to have recovered from the initial shock of the punch, and he took this opportunity to courteously spit in the man's face.
The interrogator stood up and his expression darkened. As he pulled a handkerchief from his pocket to wipe it off, Shikamaru was certain that the expelled blood did not go unnoticed by the medic beside him.
The back of the interrogator's fist connected soundly with the side of Kakashi's face. It caused his head to be thrown to the side facing the window, but the Copy Ninja made no sound that might give the interrogator any satisfaction. If anything, Shikamaru could make out a defiant smirk tugging at the corner of his mouth. That was a good sign.
"We didn't think you would break easily, Hatake. But you should feel honored. You know things that no lower-level brat would know, and we WILL get it out of you. You should consider cooperating before I lose my patience and decide to threaten that blond kid."
Shikamaru knew it was a bluff, and Kakashi certainly knew that too. If they killed Naruto, they'd have nothing left to keep him from killing them. Sakura seemed to be too overwhelmed by the sight of her sensei tied to a chair to have heard that last part, and that was probably a good thing. She whispered without removing her eyes from Kakashi.
"We have to get him out of there. Now."
Shikamaru looked at her.
"We will, Sakura. Don't worry. But we have to get Naruto first."
For the first time since they arrived at the window, Sakura met his eyes. They were begging him not to make her leave her sensei like this, but the fact that she hadn't already charged in meant she knew deep down that they had to do some serious planning.
Another punch sounded and Sakura jumped. Her eyes closed, and Shikamaru saw a silent tear fall down her cheek. This is killing her. She couldn't even look to see where he got hit that time.
"Sakura."
She swallowed before opening her eyes. They were brimming with more tears –undoubtedly a mixture of anger, hurt, and fear for Kakashi.
Shikamaru looked back at the jonin. He was smirking again. Good.
Sakura's gaze hesitantly followed his. She's probably afraid of what she might see. When she saw the smirk, her eyes widened a tiny bit. Shikamaru put his hand on her shoulder. Both watched for a moment as the interrogator continued to hit Kakashi, but the smirk remained in place the whole time, and his unwavering defiance seemed to give Sakura courage as Shikamaru leaned in to whisper to her.
"He can handle it."
So...another chapter? Let me know what you think -constructive criticism is always appreciated!
