A/N: This fanfiction was inspired by the song "Shattered" by Trading Yesterday. Please enjoy, rate, and review! Thanks!

SHATTERED xxx Chapter One

.: Gone :.

The guard felt a peculiar rush of excitement as he trumped down the dark passage way with his co-workers. He had worked in the west wing of the Konoha Prison for a few years by then with nothing to do but sit around shuffling cards with his fellows while wanna-be criminals snored away in their cells. It was a boring life, one that wasn't anywhere near worth the amount of time and effort he'd put into becoming a chuunin in order to get it. The only redeeming quality that it possessed was its ability to pay the bills, and which was good enough for him.

That was, until the rumors had started flying. Rumors had been spreading through the whole prison like wildfire, from overseer to overseer, from guard to guard, from prisoner to prisoner. A new, S-class criminal had recently been detained in the underground floor of the prison. At first he hadn't been very interested, but as the rumors continued to flurry past, the guard becamed quite intrigued.

Apparently the individual had broken six separate records for how long he'd been able to stay conscious under several different torture techniques; and that was within the first few days of his arrival. Also the criminal had been able to produce several actual jutsu on his own through the numerous chakra depletion methods that had been used on him and the restraints that surrounded him. He'd actually found the strength to overcome some of Konoha Prison's most powerful detainment jutus, and that in itself was somewhat frightening. It was quite an accomplishment to be able to do succeed in defeating the defenses in a given cell, and the guard distantly hoped he would never have to come face to face with such a powerful criminal.

So, in order to see just what new tricks this prisoner would spring up and fire at Morino Ibiki, all of the guards who worked in the lower levels of the prison had made it a habit of showing up whenever he was scedualed for torture. Always he'd heard about what went on down there. How amazing the guy was, how much determination and willpower the guy must have to be able to fight against such strong methods of torture for so long.... And apparently the jutsus he was able to produce were pretty cool as well. Now it was his turn to see it all.

After years of working on the upper-west wing, he'd finally been promoted. He'd been moved to the underground level, and now he could finally put a picture to all of the rumors.

The cell itself was giant. It's walls were completely clear, made of a titanium-strength, chakra-enhanced glass that was literally unbreakable. It was dug out into the ground so that when standing next to the glass, you could easily look down on the prisoner inside to see what he/she was doing. It was all cement inside, a bleak monotone except for the occasional splatter of a deep, crimson red. The glass looking over it was lined with solders, all peering down into the pit, watching

Then the screaming started.

If death had a sound, this would be it. It was a strangled and pleading sound, one that tore at the heart and wrenched at one's pity. It was the sound of someone who'd given up, the scream of someone who wanted to die.

Morino Ibiki stood in the pit with his captive, his expression cold and relentless. At his feet was not a man at all, but a child; no older than seventeen. He didn't look at all like something who could defeat so many prison records. The few clothes he had, though he wore no shirt, were ripped and shredded. His chest and face were covered in thick bruises, scrapes, scratches, and scars. His thick, unruly looking black hair was dyed red with dripping blood, and his eyes were screwed shut, his teeth gritted together as he attempted to silence his pain. His hands were bound tightly behind his back in a deep mesh of chakra cords, as were his feet. He writhed on the floor in vain attempts to qualm it, but relentless were Ibiki's techniques. He didn't stop until his victim was either unconscious or dead.

A great pool of blood had started to condense by then around the youth's shuddering body, slowly spreading across the gray floor and mingling with the dust that lay there.

Morino shot him a malicious scowl before he strode forward towards the black haired kid, grabbed him around the neck and hauled him to his feet. He held the captive right in front of his face for a moment, glaring into the youth's face before he roughly slammed his feeble body against the nearest wall. The youth choked up more crimson liquid, eyes remaining closed as he slumped to the floor and fell limply on his side. He didn't even make an attempt to move as his captor closed in.

Then Morino's lips moved as he said something, but the sound didn't travel through the thick glass.

The kid's obsidian hues suddenly flared open, and somehow he found the strength and shot forward, lurching unevenly towards Ibiki. A bright-blue, lightning chakra lanced up the prisoner's arm as he stumbled forwards, rage emblazoned across his face. The interrogator captain stared as his captive approached, and easily sidestepped the feeble attack, a laughing expression now on his dark face. Blood was everywhere now, dripping and pool like no other.

Morino smirked broadly, said something quickly. The kid swayed in place for a moment, his hands clawing at his chest as an unworldly pain developed there. And just like that, the raven-haired prisoner dropped like a stone.

Unconscious.

The crowd around the guard looked anything but excited. They looked shaken, as he did, about the kid. Where was the competion in that? That was regular torture at its worst, and one a child no less...

He frowned, turning to a guard next to him. "What happened to the epic fights that everyone's always talkin' about?"

The guard cast him a hollow look. "Hasn't been any of that for the past week. Nothing but Ibiki-sama's crueler methods, and every day that kid's got less and less fight..."

Everyone listening nodded solemnly.

"So what exactly was that technique?"

"It's an newly-developed method of Ibiki's. The Godaime hasn't approved of its use in interrogation yet, for obvious reasons..."

"Obvious reasons being...?" The guard looked at him pointedly, clearly hesitant to explain.

"It's like turning on a blender in your insides. It tears everything up and will eventually kill you unless its released."

He looked back at the kid laying in the middle of the pool of blood as Ibiki yelled angrilly into a radio in his hand. It was a tragedy, to him, that such a young kid would have to be put under these circumstances. It just wasn't right.

His life had been a numb blur for the past few weeks. He was never quite aware of his surroundings, only of the constant pain and total exhaustion that continually engulfed him. He would wake up at sporatic times, only to open his eyes once and see nothing but those monotone gray walls, and then he would get whisked away once more into total darkness. Once a day, however, he'd wake up to the creaking sound of opening doors, and that cursed man with the scarred face would descend on him like the demon that he was.

The captor would just touch his skin, and the instant he made contact, the constant, more throbbing pain that he had endured for the majority of his confinement would seem like naught but a splinter. The cruel torture that ate away at his days was pushing him relentlessly towards the brink of his sanity, and though he would stand up and fight for it as hard as he could, it was like trying to fight the thundering currents of a river: it was impossible.

He hadn't a clue why he was tortured so often. He'd never been asked for any information concerning his detainment. From day one he'd just sat in the same old cell, awaiting the excruciating hours of torture that usually came at least once a day. Even if they were doing it for information, his ability to process words and sentences had almost vanished during his containment, so to interrogation might prove difficult.

He'd given up trying to understand the incomprehensible drabble that escaped Morino Ibiki's mouth after the first week. To put it simply, it just wasn't worth the effort.

He put his effort into fighting back as best he could. It was difficult, and he simply had no idea how he was able to overcome his chakra restraints as often as he did. He almost landed his chidori once, and he'd managed to singe Ibiki a few times with fire jutsus, but his pained, lurching movements proved to make maneuvering much harder than it should have been.

His captor had actually gotten smarter over the last week too. He'd decided on a new tactic of infiltrating the youth's mind by forcing him to witness his clan's death over and over in his head, and as he fought to keep out the foreign presence, his physical body was left open for the worst form of torture yet.

His ability to endure became worse and worse by the day. He feet like his fragile existence was close to breaking; like his whole being was going to shatter into thousands of annoying little pieces left only to be thrown away. He hated this miserable existance, and for the first time in his life he awaited his death with open, happy arms. He would welcome his demise with as broad of a smirk as he could muster.

He heard the familiar creak of the door opening and foot steps alighting somewhere near him. He didn't move, he only lay flat on his stomach, his cheek rested upon the cold cement, his eyes closed. Not again, not so soon.

The pain was unbearable. His insides felt twisted and ripped, his bones broken and shattered. His mind too, seemed to have taken a hit, for memories and complex thoughts seemed to be eluding him more and more often.

Someone's hand, gentler than most of his visitors, cautiously prodded his arm. He didn't, couldn't, respond. The person prodded him again, and after recieving no answer for the second time, gently turned him onto his back. More pain, flooding through his system with renewed strength.

One of his ribs gave a frighteningly loud snap, and he hacked in sputtering breath as he tasted blood seeping into his mouth. He couldn't breath, he was drowning in it. He felt crimson rolling down the side of his face from between his lips, he felt his consciousness flare black as he felt the warm arms of death coming ever nearer.......

There was a loud voice saying something now, angrilly. It was female, but not one he recognized. Then that damned voice, the voice of the torturer retorting agsinst her... Then the female voice talking louder, overpowering him...

And then he was roughly pulled back to his body by those hands again as an odd, plastic contraption was shoved over his mouth. He felt several other pairs of hands pressing against his chest, accompanied by that warm healing chakra.... He wanted more of that comforting warmth, wanted it to take away the pain. But he knew, deep inside himself, that that was impossible. No one person could fix him, that he knew. The scars ran too deep.

He felt himself getting lifted, gently, then placed on something soft. A stretcher? And something was beeping next to his ear, and the plastic thing covering half of his face.... Oxygen? He felt someone telling him to relax, telling him it would all be alright and it would all be okay. He was fading fast, darkness closing in on his consciousness.

No, it wouldn't be alright.

"Ibiki!" The startlingly loud voice of the Godaime echoed through the lower level of the prison as the woman strode towards the man, and even the Morino couldn't keep the look of displeasure from sweeping across his features.

"Milady..?" he asked subordinately, bowing his head. His courtesy didn't save him from any of the Fifth's ferocity.

"How DARE you disobey my direct orders!" she screamed at the Interrogation Captain, her thick pig-tails flying as she jabbed him in the chest with her pointer finger. She glared at him profusely when he didn't respond.

"I ordered you to keep him detained and to get as much information out of him as possible without hurting him! I specifically told you to avoid any harsher means of torture, and I get call that you almost killed him?! Do you realize what you could have done?" Her voice was a scream as she raged at him, her eyes ablaze with fury. "You kill him, you the Kyuubi container's trust in his village! Can you imagine losing the Kyuubi? Losing what the Fourth died to keep sealed up? It would tear this village--this country--apart! You incompetent fool! Have you nothing to say for yourself?!" He shrank away from her, eyes darting back and forth.

"I felt it necessary, Godaime-sama. He refused to cooperate--"

"Ibiki, I have trusted you since my initiation as Hokage. This incident might have cost you that trust." She glared at him profusely. "So if I were you, I'd do anything in my power to win it back. Understood?!"

"Hai, Tsunade-sama." He bowed his head low.

The woman scowled at him before turning around to meet up with her assisant, Shizune, as the black-haired woman ascended the stairs out of the cell.

"What is his condition, Shizune?"

"Critical, Milady. We must get him to the hospital immediately. I've already called a dispatch team to come pick him up, and an entire team of medics are waiting for us there. Ibiki-san cut it a bit close, Milady." Tsunade nodded solemnly as they hurried down the hall towards the exit.

"Leave it to Ibiki to take out his hatred towards traitors on a seventeen-year-old kid...." Tsunade's expression was cold, indignant.

"Hai, Godaime-sama. I just hope he's alright. For their sake."

The petite pinkette sat at her desk, busily signing papers and stamping medical reports. Her brow was furrowed in thick concentration, her delicate fingers stained black with ink, her expression exhausted. She slouched in her chair, tapping her foot idly against the ground to keep herself awake.

The blond was stretched out on her small leather couch, boredly flipping away at one of her magazines. Her office in Konoha Hospital seemed to be one of his favorite hangout spots of late, for Tsunade had given them very few missions for the past few weeks. The rest of the rookie nine, however, had plenty. The two shinobi didn't complain however, because both of them had enough work to do as it was, and though going on missions was the exciting part about being a shinobi, having some down time was nice too.

Plus, Sakura had hospital duty every day, and Naruto found it his duty as one of her closest friends to keep her company during those boring hours.

The sound of many shouts and loud footsteps suddenly echoed from outside the office door, and both members of Team Kakashi turned to look out the small window in the door looking out over the first floor hallway.

The top of Tsunade's head came into view, her bright eyes glimmering with rage as she spouted something off to Shizune, who hurried to keep up with her. A full team of Emergency Medic Shinobi's rushed after them, evidently carrying a stretcher whose occupant was hidden from view.

The whole part tramped past in a flurry of commotion before leaving down the hall and and off into a nearby elevator. A few lagging nurses and doctors hurried after them, clipboards in hand.

Sakura and Naruto exchanged glances.

"I hope that wasn't anyone we know," said the blond quietly. The Haruno glanced at him and nodded, eyes still glued to the window.

"Team Ten was supposed to get back today, maybe one of them got hurt..." She grit her teeth, hoping desperately that it wasn't.

"I'll go check, Sakura-chan. I've got nothing better to do." He said to her, eager to do her a favor. The Haruno shook her head.

"That's alright, Naruto, I'll go check it out later--"

"I'll be back in a bit!" he grinned broadly at her before flitting out the door. Sakura watched him go dryly, unsure of what to think. Should she be flattered that he took so much pleasure in helping her out, or should she be annoyed that he completely ignored her? She shook her head and decided to concentrate on her work to keep her mind away from other things. Yet, no matter how furiously she signed papers, she couldn't keep her mind from wondering about the endless possibilities of who the emergency patient was. So, defeated, she fished out a bag of licorice from her drawers and plopped herself on the couch. Then she settled right into the cushions, chewed lazily on the end of a licorice and flipped through one of her magazines.

Naruto raced down the hall and up the stairs to the Emergency Ward, his thick blond hair whisking past his face as he neared the large double-doors leading off to the side. Over the door was the "Critical Condition" sign that lit up red whenever the patient inside was in critical condiction. The light was on.

And then he heard a strangled shout, followed by a series of angered orders from the medics inside. Tsunade's powerful roar suddenly boomed over the rest of them, followed by the sound of something heavy being moved.

The Uzumaki pressed his palm against the door, and hesitantly pushed it open.

The world seemed to suddenly be put on mute. All he could hear was that unsteady beep of the heart rate machine and his own breathing.

There must have been fifteen doctors and nurses in the room. Most of them were crowded around a single operating table in the middle, blocking all but the patient's feet from view. One was heavily bandaged, the other in a full-out cast, and every so often they would both jerk violently. Then he heard a pitiful little moan, and the heart monitor started to beep frantically.

"We have to start him on anesthesia, Tsunade-sama! Or at least morphine, his body can't take it--"

"His heart will stop if we do either just working!!" Tsunade's voice was almost at a scream now as she stormed between the nurses, shoving one of the doctor's aside as she took her place next to the patient's head.

Naruto remained frozen at the door, unable to see who it was. Then Tsunade was barking something, but this time not at any of the doctors.

"Stay awake, you hear me?! Fight it; if you lose consciousness, you will die. Keep your eyes open, understand?" Her voice was loud, unwavering. But behind it was a distinct wave of fear. The monitor suddenly went crazy, and Tsunade's many curses doubled in volume as she yelled at the nurses around her to triple their efforts.

Naruto could feel the warm, medical chakra pulsating through the room from the table, but something, deep in his gut, told him that it was all fruitless. And to match his thoughts, the monitor, which previously had been beeping pitifully and irregularly, suddenly stopped let out a long, drawn-out tone. The graph that had for so long been trailing the beat on the screen was set into a thin line.

Gone.

And then a doctor moved away from the table and he saw.

Gone.

He saw the pale, hollow face hidden beneath the oxygen mask.

Gone.

And the sweat-drenched, raven-colored locks that framed that familiar face.

Gone.

And the frozen lips that he knew would never again draw breath.

Sasuke.


A/N: Sorry for the cliffhanger! No killing the author, please. *holds up shield* ;w;
I had a lot of inspiration to write this out, and the rest of the plot has been formulating in my head all day. For those of you who read my other fanfiction, I am almost done with the next update, and I will try to get it up sometime this weekend. ^^

I am almost done writing Chapter 2 for this fanfiction as well, and I hope to have that posted in the next few days.

Thanks so much for reading! Please review! Thanks!

-- xxIndigo