Sakura groaned as she forced herself to wake up. She longed for an opportunity to sleep in for once. The fact that she would never be able to do so was depressing. Ah well, she could always hope she supposed.
She slowly rose from her bed and rubbed her eyes. Then she glanced out the window only to be met with...darkness? That couldn't be right, they always got up at sunrise. And she never woke early, her body seemed determined to always get as much sleep as possible. So what forced her awake?
Then she heard the cries. She jolted upright when she heard them. There were terrible cries, women and men were screaming, crying and begging. She couldn't make out any of the wailes, what was going on? Her eyes peeled around the room. Others in the room were also looking around in confusion. She whispered to her father, who was also awake, "What's going on?" He looked at her in confusion and shrugged.
Whatever it was, it wasn't good and she wanted to find out. What if someone was attacking them or something? So she creeped towards the door. "Sakura stop!" Her father urged. It was discouraged for slaves to leave their compounds at night, as it could lead to secret gatherings or escape attempts. But she wanted to know, so she left anyway. If someone was hurting them she couldn't just sit by and do nothing. At the very least she could warn the others.
She crept around the door to the nearby bush. Sakura turned her head to the direction of the noise, a compound on her right. It didn't look like there were any guards between her and the large shack, but she could never be too careful. Keeping her body low to the ground, she snuck through the shaded areas near the back of the buildings. As she moved, the gravity of her actions began to hit her. She could get in serious trouble for doing this. Other slaves that snuck out were beaten very severely. That thought made her body tense up. She was a wimp when it came to getting beaten, that was always why she took steps to avoid it. Just the thought of the whip made her grit her teeth. Maybe she should turn back?
"Faster!" she froze as she heard a pair of guards speed to her destination. She froze beside a nearby wall and held in her breath, begging whatever deity out there to make them miss her. Thankfully, her wish was granted as they ran right past her. That was too close, her legs were still shaking. It likely wouldn't get any easier for her if she continued. But she had already gotten this far. And she was so close to her destination now, it was just a few more steps away. You can do this, she thought trying to psyche herself up, just a little farther. Just be brave for a little while. Then you can turn back.
She silently moved behind them until she beside the compound. She strained her neck to glance into the entrance of the building. There was so much crying, from women and men. But the loudest of all was infants. When she was able to look at what was going on, her eyes opened in shock.
Surrounded by guards, there were men in masks gathering infants, tiny babies. Mothers and fathers were wailing, begging them not to take them. Some of the braver slaves were trying to forcibly guard their offspring, but to no avail. They were too weak, and the masked men and guards were too strong. In a battle of strength they did not stand a chance against almighty Konoha. Part of her wanted to help, but she was in too much shock to move.
The men placed the babies into large baskets. What the? Her eyes widened in confusion. Why on earth were they collecting babies? And at night, with no prior warning during the day. It couldn't be for any good reason, they were literally tearing them from their parents. What the heck was wrong with those people? Once they had collected the infants, they left, and the guards stood at the door holding back any slaves that tried to get them back.
There could be no good reason for doing this. No notice had been given out beforehand, no one even mentioned it before. Sakura was now determined to find out what this was about, why these evil men were doing such a cruel act. And if the guards were involved, the government must be involved somehow, maybe they were the ones who orchestrated it. Sakura wanted to be surprised by that, but she really wasn't.
Out of the compound, the men broke off into two groups. One went to the next compound over, the others left with the full baskets. Once she was far enough behind them to not be noticed, she followed the men carrying the babies. She made sure to stick to the shadows and side streets to avoid being seen.
The men traveled far in the streets, keeping on the paths away from the civilian areas. So they didn't want the main population seeing what they were doing. That only made the pinkette more nervous, as many civilians normally turned a blind eye to cruelty against slaves anyway, so whatever this was must be especially bad.
The men eventually met with another group of masked men also carrying the baskets. She continued on behind them until they arrived at an exit out of the city. She had only left the city once before, slaves weren't allowed to leave unless they had permission by a keeper. And they were rarely if ever allowed to leave alone. She'd have to find some way to sneak out after them. Wait, was she really going to do this? She'd get into some trouble by being out of the compound at night, but she'd really get it if she was caught trying to leave the city. That thought made her body freeze up. What was she doing? It's not like she could accomplish much by snooping around. She was just one person, one small meaningless little slave.
But she was already able to make it this far, farther than she would have expected herself to make it. And at this point if she turned back her curiosity and anxiety for her people would eat her alive. Besides, a part of her felt done with being a good little slave that constantly followed orders and kept in line. Her compound was filled with slaves like that and look at what had just happened to them. If she was going to be treated like garbage, at least it could be because of doing things her own way.
The men talked to the guards at the entrance, who let them pass after a few moments. She saw her opportunity to sneak by when the guards seemed preoccupied with a few documents. Her heart thudded in her chest as she moved through the gap before she could talk herself out of it.
Immediately after she got out she hid behind a large tree. She heard one of the guards mumble "Did you hear something?" But the second guard said no and they didn't decide to act further. She would have exhaled in relief if she wasn't so focused on being quiet. She did it! Despite the circumstances around her departure, she did feel a little satisfaction at being able to do what she never thought possible. Now where did those masked people go? She had had to wait about a minute before being able to leave the city, which had made her fall behind. What direction should she even start to look in?
Ugh, this was not good. If she chose the wrong direction, she could lose them, but if she took too long to decide, she'd lose them no matter what. Okay, where would everything lead? The path on the left lead to the river, if she went straight it would lead into the forest, and if she went right that would lead her to the main road used for traveling and trade. Well, if they had been avoiding civilians so far, they probably wouldn't take the main road and risk being seen. Maybe if she tried to go left but stick to the trees, she could find them on either side.
That was what she did. Moving slightly faster than before, she slipped between trees and bushes while trying to find her target. Seconds then minutes passed and still she saw no one. How had they escaped her so quickly? Gah, curse them for moving so fast. As she was about to continue forward, she noticed a new path up ahead. It led out of the forested area, and towards the river. But it was littered with rocks and other debris. Should she risk going on it? She still wasn't sure if it was right, not to mention how it would hurt her bare feet.
But if she wanted to find out what was going on, she'd have to take risks. She had already made it this far, what were a few rocks? So she took a gamble and forged on ahead. She tried her best to avoid the sharpest stones, but she still had to wince occasionally when the harsh terrain punctured her feet. Okay, so the 'few rocks' were actually quite painful.
Her risk was rewarded when she finally saw the masked ones up ahead. They were lining up at the river. She strained to see what the one at the front was doing. He held up the basket, tilted it forward and-OH SHIT!
They were throwing the babies into the river.
What the? How could-What? This didn't-No! They were just throwing them like rocks, like objects. How could they do this? Oh gosh, why were they doing this? Sakura fell to the ground and promptly threw up at the sight. They were literally killing innocent babies, infants who never had the chance to grow up, to live, to love.
How were they getting away with this? Who okay'd this? Her mind instantly flew to the Uchihas. It was well known that they thought of slaves as property, objects that needed to be punished frequently. This was extreme, even for them. And did Minato okay this? The more optimistic slaves hoped that Minato would one day free them, or at least make their lives much more bearable. Sakura never believed that, but she never thought he would do something like this, stoop to this low.
She hated those men, hated whoever was involved, hated whoever could have said no to this but let it happen anyway. Tears slipped down her cheeks. Tears of sadness, and tears of anger.
They just kept throwing them, basket after basket. Did any of them feel remorse? Did any of them question what they did? It didn't matter to her if they did feel guilty, only their actions mattered. They were all murders, every single one of them. All of them deserved to die for their despicable actions. If only she was strong enough to stop them. Stop them from harming every single slave baby.
Then a thought occurred to her that changed her emotions from hatred to horror. What if they came after her brother? He was less than two years old, a prime target for them. There was no reason for them to avoid him.
If she had been thinking clearly, she would have waited until they brought him to the river to act. But she wasn't. Without a second thought, she turned and raced back to the city. This time she was too high on adrenaline to care about the sharp rocks or the pain that accompanied them. Please hold on, she begged her brother. She forced her legs to move as fast as possible.
It was a miracle that she got through the city entrance with no one seeing her, as she wasn't doing much to keep herself hidden at the moment. She did try to keep to the side streets, as part of her recognized that it would do her no good if she was discovered. But she wasn't nearly so careful this time as she streaked through Konoha to the slave areas.
After what felt like an eternity she reached her compound. She hurried inside, only to find her mother and father sobbing among countless other parents. It only took a glance at her brother's empty place on the bed to realise what happened. Sakura slammed her fist on the wall and cursed out loud. She had been too late. Damn, why couldn't she have been faster? If only she had been on time she could have...well she could have done something.
Maybe there was still time. Maybe she could cut them off before the river. She just had to try. With this thought in mind, she raced back out again, ignoring the calls of her parents.
For the third time she raced through the streets of Konoha, this time more brazen than before. At this point there were other slaves that had ventured out with the same motivation as her own. But unlike her, they took the main roads and thought that they could plead with the guards. Could she ever look at the guards without disdain now? She didn't think so. And she knew better than to think that they would do the right thing, or at the very least turn a blind eye. So they were stopped while she went through. As she moved, she noticed a strange sight. Hinata Hyuga, a possible future head of the Hyuga family, was looking around outside with eyes filled with horror. Maybe all the families weren't made aware of this act then. Strange that the government would go through with such a huge motion without the approval of the big families. What would make them go to such drastic action?
A slave, presumably one of the Hyuga's house slaves, came running out of the compound and immediately began pleading with Hinata. Sakura slowed down and watched the scene from behind some old boxes. Her breath was heavy from all of her running, but she hardly noticed at this point. The slave motioned to the guards with teary eyes and it became clear to the pinkette that this was a mother who had just had her baby taken. The Hyuga just looked at her uncertain eyes. The slave resorted falling down to their knees and begging, anything for their child back. Hinata just looked back with an expression that said she'd rather be anywhere but here, forced to deal with such a situation. When it became that the girl wasn't about to act on the slave's behalf, Sakura spat in disgust and moved on. That's what slaves got for years of loyal service. She knew that Hinata was known for being docile and rarely acted impulsively, so she understood why such a quick decision would have caused turmoil for the girl. But that didn't excuse her actions, or rather her inaction. Too many in Konoha witnessed the cruelty shown to slaves and did nothing. Hinata was scum, just like the rest of them.
This time the guards did notice her and one yelled at her to stay back. But thankfully for her there were others trying to get through at the same time that preoccupied those at the post, so she could slip through.
As she took the rocky path once more, she wondered just how much damage her feet would incur by the end of the night. But forced herself to discard the thought. With everything happening tonight, her appendages were the least of her worries. She'd cut off her feat if it meant that she could save her brother. Come on, move faster!
After what felt like years, she finally reached the river. The men were already standing over the edge of the rocks. Just as she neared them, they threw the basket contents and she watched in horror as a familiar baby with pink hair tumbled out to the watery depths below. Shit! She was too late. Her eyes filled with tears and her body froze. Oh gosh, oh shit. Her brother. Her brother was-shit! He was going to drown. No! Oh fuck, please no.
But, drowning wasn't instant, or at least it wasn't always. What if he managed to land on a stray rock or something? She had to try. Sakura bolted past the masked men, away from the edge of the rock cliff they stood on towards the river's shore. The men made no move to stop her, likely thinking that they'd just deal with her once she came back from the river or something.
She reached the banks of the water and was about to jump in when someone moved quickly in front of her.
"Stop," said Sasuke Uchiha.
What was he doing here? Nevermind, it didn't matter, only saving her brother mattered right now. "Let me by!" she urged him.
"No. you'll just drown," he told her dismissively.
"I have to save him!" She exclaimed. "Please, just let me by. I'm not even asking you to help me or anything."
"No," he said again in a slightly annoyed tone, as if he was having to chastise a child.
"He's my brother!" Why the fuck couldn't he just let her by?
"And you won't save him, you'll just die too," he glared at her. "I'll whip you if I have to. Just go back home already."
Fine, it was clear he wasn't going to assist her in any way. She'd have to go around him. She had already made it so far, she just needed to take a few more steps. Sakura bolted around him, or at least tried to do so.
But he caught her easily, how was he so fast? Just as soon as he caught her he threw her down to the ground. "Che," he spat out. "Annoying. Remember, I gave you a warning."
Then he took his whip out. Despite herself, Sakura froze in fear. It had been so long since she had been beaten, she had always taken so many precautions to avoid it. She could count the amount of times she'd been whipped on one hand, it was why she had so few scars. "No," she whispered.
Then the whip came down. It made contact on her face, splitting open the skin on her nose. She cried out in pain and agony. Agony for being hurt, and for being denied the opportunity to save her own blood. Her fists clenched until they were white. It came down again and again, this time targeting her limbs and stomach. Each time she whimpered and gasped. She forced herself to keep her eyes open, but he never made eye contact. Couldn't even look at her in the eyes as he reached havoc on her body.
There were ten lashes in total. The old keepers may have deemed that a 'cushy' punishment, but it was too much for the pinkette. Her body felt like it was on fire and everything hurt. Sasuke then wiped the blood off the whip, like her blood was unworthy of his torture device, before looking down at her and saying, "go home."
She watched him turn and walk away. Was he really going to just leave after making such a show of making her stay and let her brother die? Maybe he figured that she would be too sore, too broken to attempt it. But then she saw him stop and talk to the masked people, close enough to try and grab her if needed.
Her eyes narrowed at him as she watched him casually talk to the people who had just committed mass murder. If there had been any doubt that the Uchihas had orchestrated, or at least knew about this attack on the slaves, it was now gone. Sasuke, that smug piece of shit, could have just let her go by. Could have just let her try to save her brother. But he hadn't, and he had punished her for doing so. She hated him so much right then, wanted him dead. Wanted him to be the one drowning and alone instead of her brother.
Sakura let her head fall back into the dirt. She just felt defeated. Her brother was going to die, if he hadn't already. She was beaten for trying to save his life. And there was never going to be a consequence for this, the people who had murdered innocents were just going to go on like it was just another day. She hated this, hated this life, a life where she had nothing but a bleak and short future to look forward to. Tiredness consumed her. She just wanted to leave, to go anywhere but here and stay there forever.
She looked up into the river and was tempted to let herself fall into it, to be consumed by the water. What if she could escape somehow? She didn't know where it led, but wherever it was had to be a better place than this.
Sakura decided to be impulsive for the final time that night. Before she could let her beaten body tell her otherwise, she leapt up and sped towards the river. Perhaps if she was fast enough she could outrun the men if they came after her. She heard Sasuke grunt and sped up. Just as she was almost there, a hand caught the helm of her rags. Determined to not be stopped by him again, she clawed at his hand while simultaneously trying to leap towards the water. That loosened his hold enough to get out of the release, but it also made her stumble.
Instead of the control leap that she planned, she fell into the water. Her head slammed against a rock and darkness consumed her.
Kabuto was surrounded by incompetence.
Or at least that's what it felt like. He had been spending the last few days trying to find a specimen, the perfect specimen. If the experiment for a new kind of warrior was to go well, he needed a human that fit his specifications. But so far noone his underlings had brought forward fit the bill. How was he supposed to impress Orochimaru, the best scientist in the world, and become his apprentice if he couldn't even find a good subject?
It's not like his demands were overly complex. He needed someone who hasn't taken any medications or vaccines in the past ten years and wasn't in too much of a bad physical state. They also couldn't have a weak mind, with the amount of resources going towards this person, he couldn't have someone who would quickly need a suicide or escape watch.
The people brought to him this morning all didn't work for one reason or another. One was a slave who fit the no medications qualification, as slaves did not receive vaccines and only got medications if their keepers really liked them (which was rare and only really happened in the slave sympathiser families). However he could tell within thirty seconds that the person lacked the will to survive the experiments. Another was an orphan who was much too beaten up to be of any use. The final one was a civilian girl, which was automatically useless as all civilians had received vaccines two years ago after an outbreak.
He had to take a break from it all and go by the river. Although once he got there he didn't find it particularly relaxing as he remembered the events of the night before. Every slave aged two and under was rounded up and killed. It had caused quite the stir, especially in families that were more friendly to slaves. The Ino-Shika-Cho families had apparently all demanded to see the Uchihas and Minato, as well as grant all their affected slaves a one week grievance period.
Kabuto was also not fond of the actions of their dual Lords. If they infants were to be taken away, they could have been at least been donated to labs instead of killed. Think of all the experiments that could be done with those many subjects! Subjects that had no restrictions, no humanitarian laws to be forced to follow. It would have been a dream come true. But alas, no one thinks of the scientists.
His train of thought stopped when something, or rather someone, appeared from the river. The person's upper body was suspended above the water by a piece of driftwood. The wood lead them to the bank right beside Kabuto's lab. That was an odd sight.
Curiosity led him down to see the person who was now sprawled on the shore of the river. If the person had managed to stay above the water the entire time, perhaps they were still alive. The individual was turned face down, so he turned them over to get a better look.
It was a young woman, likely near the age of eighteen. She had pink hair, quite the odd colour. One glance at her rags told him that she was a slave, probably tried to run away or something. What was surprising was her body seemed to actually be in decent shape for a slave. She did have some wounds, but they all seemed quite recent. If her skin looked this good, she was either a house slave for some sympathizer family or was just very obedient.
Hmm, would she be a good subject for him? Assuming she was alive of course. She wouldn't have had any vaccines, and it did appear that she was in good shape, though that may require further examination. A bonus of being a slave was that they had very few laws regarding what they could or couldn't do them. All that was left was her mental aptitude.
Just about as he was about to check on her living status, she coughed and opened her eyes. Her green eyes were initially filled with confusion and she looked around before settling her gaze on him.
"Hello," he greeted her. He began to kneel down and noticed that as soon as he did so she flinched and tried to move back. That wasn't surprising. Whether or not she had deliberately went down the river, there was some keeper out there who was probably not too happy about her missing. And she had no reason to believe that he wouldn't immediately turn her over to the authorities.
"Now now, I'm not going to hurt you," he told her. "I admit that I may not be the prettiest sight to see after a nap." His attempt at humour failed to garner a reaction from her. "That was quite a tumble through the river you took. Are you feeling alright?"
She studied him, as if trying to decipher his intentions. But before she could come to a conclusion, they were interrupted by a guard coming up to them. "Yakushi, sir," the guard stopped and glanced at the girl, who seemed nervous and a little defeated by the guard's presence. "Is everything okay here?"
Perhaps the girl would not be a good subject for him after all. She seemed too docile and anxious, not strong willed enough to survive what he would put her through. "What did you need?" Kabuto asked, weighing if he should tell the guard that the girl was a runaway or not.
"I just wanted to let you know that the Uchihas have ordered there to be more security in the nearby town, so you may see more patrols close to here in the future," she explained.
That would have annoyed Kabuto if he had not noticed the pink haired woman's reaction to the name 'Uchiha'. Her eyes held such hatred. He knew that most slaves disliked the Uchihas, but she seemed to detest them, she was practically seething. And she was letting that disgust show, whereas most slaves would have been too scared to show it, or show any emotion for that matter. Perhaps one of her family members died in the river? Ah that would make sense, maybe she had went into the river to save them. He could use that anger and determination, with enough anger one could survive anything as long as the rage was directed at the right source.
Maybe he could use her as his subject after all. With a small smile on his face, he turned back towards the guard. "Thank you for letting me know. Is there anything else?" The guard shook her head. "Very well, that is all," he dismissed the woman.
When she had left, he turned back to the girl. "I have a proposition for you."
Sorry for the long wait guys, hope it was worth it!
